Everything But Anchovies

[jason]

I dearly miss corn nuggets. Cornell can change the campus all they want (for the most part), but if the Chariot and corn nuggets were to disappear, my "old Cornell" would be diminished. (Corn nuggets are on my short list of items that comprise "my" Cornell, along with Lynah Rink, Dunbar's, Chapter House, Dickson Hall, Plant Science Building, Louie's Lunch and a few other places/things that I hold dear.)

[AdamGanderson]

My dearest memory of the plant science building is that vending machine in the basement that someone hacked (low temp and CO2 flow?) so that you can get seemingly just off the tree fresh apples of several varieties year round.  For just a quarter.  : )

"Cornell:  We GROW the Ivy!"

[Beeeej]

And no matter how many times I explained that I wanted the breadsticks with the garlic and oil but without the salt, I invariably got them with some other incorrect combination.

IMHO, though, the "most recent incarnation" of Joe's that was mediocre only goes back a few years, to when Mark Campagnolo began to back away (and later sold) in preparation for opening the Boathouse Grill.  Right up until the late 1990s, it was good, solid stuff almost exactly the same as they'd been serving since their reopening in the late 1980s.

Beeeej

[Beeeej]

1.  Anybody who frequented both Louie's and the Hot Truck knew that Louie's was simply a normal lunch truck, while the Hot Truck had a mystique, almost a suspense.  Sure, you could get decent, greasy food at Louie's (and their shakes were fabulous), but you couldn't make fun of freshmen for not knowing how to order, there were no dictionaries, the person serving you didn't care who you were or what was going on in your life (as Bob most definitely did if you took the time to get to know him), and let's face it, the longer the wait is for your post-blood-chemistry food, the more you value it.

2.  Joe's stopped putting pepperoncini in the salads because something like 90% of them were coming back uneaten, and they figured it'd save them a few bucks.  They'd put them in your salad if you asked up front.

3.  I believe (though it's possible this is just an urban legend) Dartmouth's charter contains a provision that puts its tax-exempt status in danger if it ever ceases to be known as "Dartmouth College," hence the non-University status despite its business and medical schools.

Beeeej

[mha]

Beeeej hit the nail on the head. Mark Campagnolo's gradual departure from running the business is what sent Joe's on its downhill path the last few years.

After Mark finally sold his share of the business, it was only a matter of time before Larry managed to run it into the ground, unfortunately.

The Boatyard Grill inherited not only Mark's business sense and talent for running a restaurant, but also much of the competent cooking and wait staff. (That's another reason Joe's went downhill.) I highly recommend it, and I highly recommend not showing up at 6:00 on a Friday evening unless you're prepared to wait at the bar and enjoy drinks and appetizers before you get a seat an hour or three later.

This thread has brought up SEVERAL of my favorite area eateries. Just a Taste and Bistro Q are run by two of my favorite restaurateurs, Jen Irwin and Stan Walton. My pace has relaxed quite a bit, but after dining at Q twice on opening night, I ate there a few dozen times in their first couple of months. They like me. :-)

Just a Taste is very different from Q, which is very earthy and informal, focusing on southern and BBQ comfort food. Just a Taste is a wine and tapas bar, with an alarming array of wine by the glass and very creative dishes served in sharable portions. A few of us went in there for dessert before the Brown game, and ended up going back for dinner at 10 partly because the menu (which changes every night) had looked so good.

     http://www.just-a-taste.com/

Maxie's rocks, and I haven't been there in too long. That and Boatyard Grill are two great seafood options, Melissa.

Yes, I have lots of opinions about food and Ithaca-area eateries. I write restaurant reviews for the Ithaca Times (I get to eat free, and then they pay me to write about it) and created my own online dining guide, 14850 Dining.

     http://dining.14850.com/

[zg88]

Here I go again, chiming in with pointless statistics...

(But first, I want to say that I've been trying to get caught up on this forum for over an hour-and-a-half now... this is insane!!)

> ...the drinking age went from 18 to 20 in 1983, and then 21 in 1984...

I know that just about no one's going to care, but, just for the record:

The drinking age went from 18 to 19 in late '82, then from 19 to 21 in late '85.

I'm absolutely positive about the second jump, because it ended 6 weeks of "legality" for me during my sophomore year (a tragically brief period of which I took liberal advantage, naturally), and I had to wait another 2 years to be legal again. (Damned politicians!!!  Would it've killed ya to grandfather us in?!?!)

[CUlater \'89]

You're right on about the change in drinking age.  I remember being annoyed at that because I arrived as an 18-yr old freshman and before I could turn 19 in the spring semester, the increase to 21 went into effect.

[jason]

To keep with the nostalgia theme, a place I forgot to mention (and I'm not sure how popular it was with the student body) is The Pines Restaurant out on rt. 89 (I think, memory is hazy when it comes to route numbers) which runs along the far side of Cayuga Lake. Great burgers, frosty mugs with your beers, and one of those mechanical mini-bowling games. Tough to beat that combination.

[CUlater \'89]

Love those Pines' Burgers!

[Beeeej]

A gift certificate for two of those Pinesburgers was the only prize I've ever won in the Cornell Hockey Association 50-50 drawing.  I want the jackpot, dammit!!   ::help::

Beeeej

[tml5]

I'm not sure if they still have the mini-bowling game, but since I usually go there after a tournament I'm more interested in the food.  Good cheap fare, and lots of it, plus a *fantastic* view of the lake.  And yes, the Pines is on 89.  Look for the "legal beverages" sign, and be warned - the bridge is (was?) under construction so the parking entrance is a bit weird.

[rhovorka]

They still have the mini bowling game.  For a quarter/player, it's one helluva bargin.  When I get my millions and get a big game room, I'm putting one of those mini-bowling games right next to my USA-USSR bubble hockey game.

[jtwcornell91]

I just want to win something so Grady can announce where I live.  (Probably should have taken the job in Potsdam, Germany, from that point of view.)

[littleredfan]

note to admin: possible to retitle this thread as "area eateries debate" ?

[Greg Berge]

> They still have the mini bowling game.

Maybe that's where it went.  It was gone for years, but I guess they buried it in the Palms storeroom (which itself is a scary place...)

Next time I'm in Ithaca, I'm buying a game for *everybody*!