First Summer Jobs, It's that time!

First Summer Jobs By JB

What was your first summer job? What did you want to buy with the money you earned? What was your pay? What did you learn?

I passed the questions about to several friends. The responses have been numerous, various, and sometimes humorous.

They are great memories if you will reach back and recall your innocence. I have received so many responses that I am opening up the hot line for more good stories. They are everywhere!

The object of this summer project is many faceted. These stories are of growing independence, responsibility, commitment, accountability, and maturity at a young age.

Where are they now? Those young teens that went out, found a job, stuck with it, and learned life lessons. Those jobs at the time might have seemed to be beneath them. But if you think back…. These stories are nostalgia. They show the early determination and responsibility of successful people. They are insightful if not inspirational.

Thanks to my friends for some great stuff. This offering includes a little insight on Mayor Brian Loughmiller and Independence Bank CEO David Brooks! 

Summer Gardening, The Hard Way

3 Stacks, Not just Great BBQ

 
  For our recent tasting at Frisco's newest hot spot 3 Stacks Smoke & Tap House I invited him to join my League of Extra-Ordinary Reviewers. I have included him before and he is always great company and to me, a respected opinion.
  So while I usually suggest that everyone drink water so they can taste the food, Richard is a respected Beer Judge. With 32 beers on tap as part of their name, someone has to do some pairing. Here's Richard! 

  As a BJCP beer judge and restaurant consultant, it was a pleasure to be invited to the tasting at 3 Stacks Smoke & Tap House.  The food was excellent and the company was fun and funny. 

  We were guest of J.B. Blocker, the North Texas Reporter. Joining us were Frisco's Mayor Maher Maso, Collin County Commissioner Matt Shaheen, and Terri Green the current President of the Republican Women of Collin County.  With commentaries on the food by these three local favorites, I will simply use my space to detail what I think are the best meat and beer pairings currently available. 

  3 Stacks has 32 beers on tap and a few of those beers are specials and they won't always be available.  If my suggestion is not available, ask your server or bartender for a recommendation of similar style.

  While you may have a favorite beer, I urge you to compare and contrast these beer selections with your food (Texas beers are designated with *).  I also urge you to try the different sauce options to see what makes your palate happy.

Texas Beef Brisket: Alaskan Amber Ale or Franconia Dunkel*

Carolina Pulled Pork: Left Hand Milk Stout or Brooklyn Brown (Carolina barbecue sauce has vinegar in it. That is why I recommend big, soft, stout, round, and malty brown ales.)

Smoked Turkey or Smoked Chicken: Peticolas Golden Opportunity* or 312 Wheat

Hickory Sausage: Shiner Bock* or Franconia Kolsch*

Jalapeno Cheddar Sausage: St. Arnolds Pilsner* or Lagunitas IPA

Dry Pork Ribs: Peticolas Velvet Hammer* or Batch 19

Glazed Pork Ribs: Lakewood Lager* or Lagunitas IPA (Some people are wary of IPAs but this is a softer version than most.)

Beef Ribs: Firestone DBA or Deschutes Black Butte Porter

Beers with smoky notes such as Smoked Porters, Scottish Ales or Rauchbiers always play well with any barbecue pork or beef dish.

As always, your mileage may vary.

- J.B. Blocker is a media consultant based in Collin County in North Texas. Advertise with J.B. by calling 469-334-9962. Email: jbnorthtexas@gmail.com

How to Caffienate your Bacon, The Caffiene Cowboy

Caffeine Cowboy Writes Again  by J.B.Blocker

  
  There is a good reason that I chose the moniker Caffeine Cowboy and not the Coffee Cowboy. 

  To some extent, the oriental half of me also enjoys, appreciates, and respects Teas of all kinds. 
  I did not want to be eliminated from that culture.

  And then of course, there’s Chocolate!

Coffee: The Mediterranean half of me demands at least two cups of very strong coffee before I can talk or even see straight. Throughout the day, if I am in writer’s mode, I am constantly brewing another cup.

Like my hero Beethoven, I prefer to make my coffee one cup at a time. No pots of coffee for me. I turn to my home made cold water filtered syrup, my one cup pour over steep and strain brewer, or my French Press.

I think nothing of squeezing out an espresso at anytime day or night. In fact, it is hard for me to pass an espresso machine without grabbing a grupo and creating coffee essence art for the soul.

Last night was a normal night for me. I was planning out my upcoming day and found myself brewing a cuppa. I might have added a dash of whiskey.

Chocolate: The stars were aligned the day I made friends with Clark about 20 years ago. That’s Clark Guittard of the Guittard Chocolate family! From then on, I have been introduced to the wonderful world of chocolate beyond Hershey’s. He took me on a tour of chocolates from different countries, how they were prepared differently, and how many wonderful products they make with chocolate.

When I crave dessert, chocolate comes to mind. When I grocery shop. I consider whether I have chocolate mint ice cream, cookies, and a few other odd chocolate nibbles at home.

Chocolate and Coffee are my friends.

Bacon:? It is my belief that bacon is good with pretty much anything. BLT is my go to comfort food with tomato/basil soup. If I-Hop and Denny’s didn’t have bacon, I probably would not eat there. More bacon is way better than not enough.

I am a connoisseur of bacon! It is a wrap for quail and dove, it is the skin around a perfect meatloaf, and the perfect topping for any hamburger or salad. If it could be in a dessert, I’d give it the benefit of the doubt.

Is there a way to combine the three! I give you Chocolate sprinkled Bacon and a hot Cup for breakfast, a brunch snack, or a lure for other bacon fiends.

Here’s how: Chocolate Chip Bacon

Start out with at least a dozen crispy strips of bacon.

Chop up your chocolate of choice ( I prefer semi-sweet, but 

frozen 3 Musketeers, Snickers, and chopped Butterfingers also work )

Sprinkle the chips of chocolate over the bacon and nuke for 20 seconds.

Grab a cup of coffee, and your gun to guard your Bacon Chips from preditors!

You’re welcome! The Caffeine Cowboy

- J.B. Blocker is a media consultant based in Collin County in North Texas. Advertise with J.B. by calling 469-334-9962. Email: jbnorthtexas@gmail.com

ITALIAN GARDEN in McKINNEY

BENNY'S ITALIAN GARDEN

Another restaurant profile by J.B.Blocker, the Lone Star Reporter

Family is very important to the Polisi family. So when one of their cousins was to be married, Zati and his wife Flora brought their two teenage sons to attend the wedding in Allen, Texas. They left their family farm in Albania and packed for an extended visit. They liked Texas, respected America, and decided to stay.

For generations the family has lived close to where the Adriatic and Ionian Seas meet just southeast of the heel of the Italian peninsula. They were strongly influenced by fresh seafood as well as locally produced fare. Even though the family is Italian, the region also has a strong Greek influence. Their homeland is rich in history and the melding of ancient cultures.

    Back Row: Little Benny, Flora, Zati, Chef Benny, Alisa, Shippy, and Sabi                          Front Row: Mayor Brian Loughmiller, Richard Pedretti-Allen, and County Judge Keith Self

The oldest son took to being called Benny and worked his way from a dish washer and bus boy up through the ranks of the well established and operated restaurant of a relative. By the time the Polisi family was ready to open their own restaurant, Benny’s skill, experience, and love for cooking had prepared him to take control of his own kitchen.

It's good to have a talented and dedicated chef, but you need more to insure a successful restaurant. You need a really good manager who takes quality, management, and hospitality seriously. Fortunately, Chef Benny had the best of allies. His younger brother who was also being called Benny by his friends has the mind of a responsible businessman. Little Benny was 14 when the family came for the wedding and chose to become a part of the American Dream.

Benny's Italian Garden is a family affair.