Do You Like It On Top or On the Bottom?

Your yeast, I mean. Depending on what kind of yeast used in fermenting your beer, it either ferments on the top or on the bottom, developing a very different flavor and style of beer. What were you thinking? Personally, I like bottom fermented beers.

"What's the difference?" you may be wondering. Well, the purpose of yeast in beer is that it converts the sugar into alcohol. First off, methodology in top fermented beers is different than that of bottom fermented beers. The fermentation process occurs at warmer temperatures, closer to room temperature, causing the yeasts to act quickly. Also, you want to expose the beer to as much air as possible in the few days that the beer is stored and allowed to ferment. In the end, the yeasts are unable to fully convert all the sugars, and you're left with a fruitier, sweeter, often more complex beer. Top fermented beers include: ales, stouts, bitters and traditionally British beer.

Bottom fermentation is pretty much the opposite of top fermented beer. The beer is fermented at much colder temperatures with minimal air contact and for much longer periods of time, varying from 6 weeks to 6 months. During that time, the yeasts and any by-products fall to the bottom. This process usually results in a cleaner, crisper beer, often known as lagers and pilsners.

Don't Try To Make Me Feel Small, Just So You Can Feel Big

A phenomenon that I've noticed over my years of working in restaurants is how rude and angry people can be over the smallest things. Now, I'm not saying there aren't those moments when a guest has a right to complain, but some of the comments that people make are astonishing. It makes me wonder if by nature, these people are just mean, spiteful and generally unhappy with life, or is it something about us being in the service industry that makes them feel like they can just belittle us? I've experienced it as a manager and most recently I experienced it while hosting. Shocked into silence, I merely gained the respect of my co-workers and manager for not promptly sticking my foot up his ass and kicking him out. Although most felt I had the right to respond in a similarly condescending way, I've learned to merely laugh at these situations and try to not let it get the best of me. But let me tell you the little story of what happened and let you, the reader, decide how outrageous or justified this 'guest' was. I will do my best to also recreate the tone and inflections that were used in our conversation.

It's about 5 minutes before we open at 6 pm, and although the bar is open, the dining room is not. I asked if I could start seating a little early because I know people always filter in a little early, but I was told not to, they kitchen needed every last minute to prep and get ready for the evening...no problem.

As predicted, I had about 3 groups of people walk in who wanted to join us for dinner. Great. I explained to them that the dining room wasn't quite open yet, but if they would like to get a drink or just grab a seat at the bar, I'd be seating them in just a few minutes. Great, still no problems. Then I have my 4th couple walk in, an older couple, perhaps in their 60's who wanted to dine with us. I explain to them the situation, and the man asks if he can have a drink at the table. I let him know that we're still in the process of setting the dining room, so there wouldn't be any service and if he could just wait at the bar, I'd seat him as soon as possible. He responds "Well, that's just too far for me to walk." At first I thought he was joking, the distance to the bar is about 10 feet away, I could easily have sat him at a table that was farther away than the bar was. That, and he said it in a very sarcastic way...but I soon realized he wasn't joking. Well, they just turned around and sat at the bar table right behind them. No problem with me.

Mere seconds tick by and I'm in the process of wiping down my last couple of menus and was about the start seating people when I see the couple get up. As they start walking out the door the man leans over and says "Just a word of advice, you should learn to be more accomodating and maybe you'd have more business." Umm, okay. Well, first he didn't say it in a very nice advice giving way, more of a I hate you and your making me wait for a table way. And second, would it really be better to seat you somewhere when I know you're not going to get service and then you complain about not getting served? There is a method to my madness, there's often a method to any madness at any restaurant you go to...usually. I try to grit my teeth (it helps make the smile stick more), and responded "I'm sorry, I'm really just doing what I've been told and I was told not to seat anyone until 6 pm" And then he taps his head and says "Well, maybe if you started using your head more, you'd be moving up in life..." and then walks out the door. Ouch.

I really didn't know what to say to that. Do I tell him that I have 2 Bachelor's degrees and that I put myself through hospitality school? That I've worked as a manager at 2 different multi-million dollar restaurants and that I'm only working as a hostess now while I look for my next job? No, in the end it's not worth it, to stoop to his level or try to explain anything to him. But just remember, the next time you want to take a verbal crap on your server, or host or anyone who's offering you some sort of customer service, do they really deserve it, or are you just being cranky. Cause I think usually you're cranky, but sometimes, they really do deserve it...trust me, I know they do.

Dried, Canned or Frozen?

Ever wonder what's the best option for cooking? Although, fresh is always best, sometimes we just have to use the convenience of frozen, canned or dried foods.

You may or may not be surprised to learn that both canning and freezing food is an effective way of preserving most of the nutrients in vegetables and fruits. You do lose a minimal amount of Vitamins A and C during the heating process before they are canned or frozen, but it's comparable to the same amount you would lose while blanching the veggies before cooking them. In fact, some scientists believe that both of these processes help to better preserve the nutrient carotene, because the exposure to light is minimized. Other vitamins and nutrients tend to hold up quite well, and canned meats tend to hold their nutritional value similar to fresh. The only other thing to be aware of when it comes to frozen foods, is how texture may change. Foods that have a high water content could become more soggy when thawed. This is because as the item is freezing the water cells expand, and often burst, when the foods thaw, the water is no longer kept in the cell walls and essentially leaks out. I don't recommend freezing tofu for this reason (although some people love frozen tofu), it develops a spongy texture. And although flavor is still retained, I don't recommend mushrooms, unless they're going into some sort of saute or stew, but they're no longer viable raw.

Dried foods also maintain their nutritional value quite well. In fact, ounce for ounce, pound for pound, it actually contains more nutrients than the fresh. That's because as the water evaporates, the vitamins and minerals become concentrated. However, you must remember, that when consuming 2 ounces of dried fruit, could be equivilant to eating much more of that fruit than you normally would. And as the nutrients become concentrated, so do the calories. For example, eating a handful of dried apricots, could be like eating 5 apricots, but normally, you would maybe only eat 2. So, although dried fruits make a great nutritional snack, if you're trying to shed some pounds, be aware of all the extra calories you're consuming as well. Like freezing and canning, the most depleted nutrients are Vitamins A and C, but the process of sulfuring helps protect that loss a bit, so you can always look for dried fruits and veggies that have gone through that process (drying foods tends to darken them, most commercially dried foods go through the sulfuring process to maintain the colors we're accustomed to).