You know you're an LTHer when . . .

Just this evening as I was entering Amanacer Tapatio in Joliet, I saw the strip mall across the street had a Speed Queen. I just about leaped thinking it might be related to the famed BBQ joint in Milwaukee. I read the sign again to find it was a laundramat. Ah, hope springs eternal!

Going home I reached into my purse to answer my cellphone. Instead I grabbed a foil packet of still warm handmade tortillas.

On another occasion, I am driving south on Clark Avenue with my exercise instructor. She is noticing all the exercise clubs along the way, while I marvel at all the restaurants I recognize from reading posts on LTHforum.

I just love this hobby!

Regards,

Another sign -- planning all travel routes so that you go past at least one interesting market.

Cathy2 wrote:...I saw the strip mall across the street had a Speed Queen. I just about leaped thinking it might be related to the famed BBQ joint in Milwaukee. I read the sign again to find it was a laundramat. Ah, hope springs eternal!

Cynthia wrote:Another sign -- planning all travel routes so that you go past at least one interesting market.

_____ALL true. Absolutely great post idea C2! I think just the fact that I get excited about sharing food stories is proof enough. However, here's a few additions:

->You take pictures of fantastic homemade or meals out
->You actively eavesdrop during weddings for people out of town looking for a "Chicago Food Experience"
->You drive WAY outta your way to satisfy a certain craving
->You actively search/try to replicate the foods you love at your favorite restaurants

Feel me on this one?

Zin

Travel plans are made around restaurant reservations, or destinations are picked for food opportunities -- or both.

You sometimes read reviews of a restaurants on LTH before trying them on your own.

->You visit the zoo and wonder what the animals taste like.
->You take more pictures of food than family.
->Your take out menus are better organized than your tax files.

-ramon

->You don't even bother looking at the menu.
->You break for new grocers and restaurants.
->You seek to shout "Eureka" after every bite.

-ramon

You have a small stash of paper plates, napkins, a bottle of hot sauce, possibly some packets of ketchup (and/or some other condiment) in the car.

Your friends know there's a teeny lag between the food hitting the table and when they can start digging in.
related: you choose to sit at a table based on the lighting.

You know the names of animals and their anatomy in languages you can't otherwise speak.

You think spending >$20 on gas (and/or driving more than an hour) for a 15 min. meal that costs <$10 is perfectly reasonable. (and that's putting it mildly)

You have three (semi)lunches in one day, and then you realize you have plans for dinner.

Hi,

Walking into a restaurant you never visited before, then expertly picking the best-of and/or seeking off-menu items known only to regulars.

Regards,

You mean like this, Cathy?

Hi,

That's a good one, Mike. I was just inspired by this, too.

Regards,

You drag your friend and her kids to an international food court, (even though said kids refuse hamburgers at McDonald's unless they're pickle-free)...your child gets them all to eat fish eggs....

My bad - upon further review I see that Zin already identifed food photography.

You understand that it is absolutely normal to whip out a cellphone or digicam to snap a nice shot of a meal before you dive into it, if for no other reason than to view it later and think, 'Mmm that was a damn fine tamale...' On Saturday I took a picture of a bowl of noodles picked up from Katy's. My 4 y.o. son upon observing said, "Daaad what are you doing?" and then went to the kitchen where I could hear him telling my wife in that tired/resigned/I don't understand tone "Dad's taking pictures of food again."

Mr. T,

A good anecdote worth sharing. Thank you!

Your son needs to meet another young man:

Amata wrote:

G Wiv wrote:Hammond called an audible on the walk back to our cars and we stopped in Ferrara Bakery for a coffee. Ok, not just a coffee, but a cookie or two for Lucantonio.

Our poor child: he thinks it's normal to have a picture taken of his food before he eats it...

I very much enjoyed hanging out with the beef guys on your first two stops. You really have it down to a science! Too bad the sandwiches were mostly disappointing. It was especially nice to meet more LTHers and to see Flip again on one of his infrequent trips into the city.

Amata

You read/study "Eating out in Chicagoland" everyday even though you don't live in Chicago (and never have).

You make sure you have something to eat while you read LTH.

->You routinely need to scrape bread crumbs off your car seats.
->You find it quite natural for everyone to share their entrees, desserts, etc.
->You keep fellow LTH'rs on speed dial for last minute recs.

-ramon

As you finish another great meal out, you tell your significant other (in my case, my husband) that "we can thank our friends" for such a fabulous meal. Significant other knows that "our friends" are all the LTH'ers, even though we still haven't met a single one. We're very thankful for "our friends", since we can only credit them for many great meals, both in Chicago, and in far away places, such as California and NYC.

Hubby knows "our friends" are so helpful that he also stalks the forum, especially when he travels out of town. I'm just waiting for him to actually get a username and post about something!

Servers, upon seeing the extent of your order, ask if others are coming -- and then try not to look surprised upon being told that it's just the two of you.

You call a restaurant to push back your reservations because your camera battery is still charging.

When you order something in an ethnic restaurant not your own, the wait staff says "do you know what that is?"

The only piece of haute couture you own has butter stains on it, the unfortunate result of trying to shell a lobster with your teeth.

while eating something at one place, you're reminded of something else you want to eat (that you most likely read about on some food blog/chatboard) and make a plan to go there after your current meal is finished...

When you see an Onion parody of a food-related product and think, "Hey, that's not a bad idea -- I'd buy that!"



More at: http://store.theonion.com/product_info.php?products_id=217

David Hammond wrote:When you see an Onion parody of a food-related product and think, "Hey, that's not a bad idea -- I'd buy that!"

Well, it's not an of-the-month club, but you can get a sampler of 12 different sea salts (about 5-6oz each) for $140 from saltworks. Or this one, with 24 salts in mini jars for $115.

They've got a really astounding collection of specialty salts. I just wish the prices were a bit lower.

- When you are bored or hungry at work you open up the "Eating out in Chicagoland forum" to find a thread on some restaurant that sounds good and instead of reading you scroll to see if there are any pictures of the food.

You're watching the Deep Sea episode of Planet Earth on Discovery, and you think to yourself, "I wonder how those deep-sea translucent luminescent shrimp would taste deep fried or tempura-ed..."

...you can name the owner of a kitchen just by seeing a small portion of it in a photograph, even though you've never been there or have never even met that person.

Inspiration for this post

Best,
Michael

On a somewhat related note:

I'm surprised there's no mention so far of drool covered keyboards or monitors with bite marks...

The pastry you are looking at, at Caputo's is described: pastry shell, canoli cream, lard, and you decide you HAVE to try.

And quite good too, if I say so. I forgot the exact name, perhaps Antinous or someone can pip in, it was Mont-something, kinda half-opened pastry shell totally over-filled with the creamy stuff, maybe even lard.