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"Corn for the Cure"
by Kris
 This coming Monday,
July 26th they will be
selling freshly picked sweet corn on 1st
Street in front of the Tri City Frock Shoppe. Volunteers will be picking the corn all day Sunday and selling it starting at 10am on Monday.
The price...a nominal donation to Susan G. Komen breast cancer
research. Your purchase will allow you to enjoy some of this season's
first ears of sweet corn AND help further the fight against breast cancer. So, mark
your calendars & plan to put corn on the cob
on Monday's dinner menu!!
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Around the Food Industry
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Garden to Go C.S.A. (Community-Supported Agriculture)
by Kris
As parents and/or grandparents we are always hoping that our teenagers can find a summer job or at least enough to do to keep them motivated and out of trouble over the summer break. It always amazes me when I hear the stories of the kids that really take it up a notch, not only for themselves, but also for the community.
I ran across this story in the New York Times and it really touched me that a 14 year old could be this driven about the need to help others when many of our politicians and leaders don't have a clue.
Alexandra Reau, who is 14 and from Petersburg, Mich., one day asked her father to dig up a patch of their lawn so that she could farm! Not knowing where this was going to take her, I am sure that he was amazed that a year later this "little patch" is now home to Garden to Go C.S.A. (community-supported agriculture). A CSA consists of a community of individuals who pledge support to a
farm operation where the growers and consumers share the risks and
benefits of food production. Alexandra supplies vegetables for 14 clients who pay anywhere from $100 to $175 for a two month supply of fresh produce.
Alexandra became interested in gardening after participating in the
Monroe County Youth Farm Stand Project where she works alongside disadvantaged youth to grow and sell
vegetables. "A lot of those kids have never really had fresh food and
things like that," she says. The Farm Stand Project was founded by her mother (who is head of the Michigan State University's local extension office) two years
ago to help disadvantaged youth learn about nutrition. I guess we can see where Alexandra gets her motivation and concern for others.
Coming from an agricultural family, gardening and raising animals comes somewhat natural. She has been a national champion rabbit breeder since she was 10; for
the past four years, she's been packaging the manure in her dad's old
plastic nail buckets and selling it as Bunny Honey.
You can check out the rest of the details on the New York Times website.
We can only hope that what we take from this article trickles down to our youth. Just remember, when you teenager asks you to " dig up a little patch" or something similar, you should stop and listen to what they have in mind, there could be great things on the horizon.
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The
Health Care Bill
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How it effects us ..... This is not a good start!
by Ray
 Well we have just had our first experience with how the new health care bill is
going to effect us. Now the last thing want to do is to alienate half of
my customers, but I feel it is incredibly important for real people and
real business to discuss the real effects.
After attending the National
Restaurant Association seminar this past May, I wrote an article that
touched on how it will effect restaurants and how little information
there was that would allow businesses like mine to plan and get ready
for the future. Well, the future is here. Our group health insurance policy is up for
renewal on August 1st. Just to give this a little perspective, the past 3
years we have had two minimal increases followed by last year's renewal
which was actually a 9% DECREASE.
When we got our renewal for this years
upcoming policy it was a staggering 59% increase.! In quoting our coverage
with several different companies they are all about the
same. In 25 years of providing health insurance for my employee I think
the largest "year over year" increase was around 20%.
Since we pay for
half of our employees deductible, we at least have some idea of the
volume of claims that are submitted. In this last year I can not say I
have seen any change
in the amount of claims or health history, in fact maybe even less claims.
In speaking to my agent one of the things that may have played a large
factor in this price increase is in the fact that as of August 1, 2010 insurance companies are not allowed to
exclude pre-existing conditions on individual policies. The insurance
companies have no choice but pass this cost of insurance on to the healthy people and the group policies. The bottom line to me is that this is in effect a tax on
healthy people.
Who pays this tax? You do, every single time you
buy something, and you will do it at every single level of the supply chain. Besides the
additional insurance costs that I incur you can bet that all of my suppliers, including every piece of produce, meat, dry good,
and service that I purchase, will have this added cost built in to their products. So far we have been able to hold out on any sizable price increases, however, this could be the straw that breaks the camels back.
I remember
back when Blagoyovich was running for governor his campaign mantra was
he was only going to raise taxes on
businesses and not on individuals. Most of the media gave him a pass. Is
there really any one that thinks that if you increase the cost that a
business pays for anything that they will simply eat that cost and not pass it on to
the customer? 
When you look at almost every new initiative by the federal governments they
try to hide it within the cost of something else, all in the name of "not raising taxes."
From a business
standpoint I was not expecting to have another 2 or 3 percent of profit
taken away from my bottom line. In this industry if you make 5
cents on every dollar you take in you're doing better than the average.
For months while the debate raged all you heard from one side of the aisle was
how this was going to help small businesses like mine "afford" health
care for my employees. The
other side predicted the exact opposite and implied that their goal is to make health insurance so expensive that our
only option will be to go to a public or a nationalized health plan. Is this the
ultimate goal? Time will tell, but this is exactly why we need to have
this discussion as this law starts to take effect. I'm one of those
people that thinks there's not one thing that the government does well,
efficiently or cost effective. Now I know I must may be one isolated
case, but if this is what we are in for, look out.
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Dining Out
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Customer Do's and Don't's
by Ryan  This past week a series of articles was brought to my attention. These articles are by a restaurant critic from the Baltimore Sun who
searches blogs about the dining habits of restaurant customers and how
those habits are viewed from the restaurant employee. So for the next
few weeks I will share a few of these articles with you. I think that they can
be helpful to your dining habits and overall dining experience.
When
your in a big city, reservations are usually a requirement. Here,
reservations are a service that we offer for free and most people don't
take advantage
of this service. We try to spread our "open" reservation times over the
course of an evening so as to not book too many reservations at the
same time, but it's not an exact science and things don't always go
according to plan.
The critic points out that customers in Baltimore usually dine
out or make reservations for 7pm. While other parts of the country have
different dining out times depending upon where you live. California for example is
8pm or 9pm. The critic then
calls to memory a blog from a waiter who said, "it always amazes me that everyone in Baltimore makes
reservations for 7pm and then expects stellar service."
What
he is saying is that it's just not feasible to serve the majority of our guests on any given night all in that one prime time hour and be able to give quality service to everyone.
Why we all make our reservations at 7 p.m.
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On The Menu
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Mesclun Greens
By Jimmy
 As you may see on our menu, we do quite a bit with Mesclun greens. It
is our leafy lettuce mixture of choice. We often here the question,
"what is mesclun?" Mesclun is salad mix of assorted small, young salad
leaves that originated in
Provence, France.The word comes from the French
word mescla, "to mix"
and literally means
"mixture". Because the greens are young,
they tend to be extremely tender and are often highly flavorful.
This "mix" can contain arugula, red oak, frizze, raddichio, red leaf,
green leaf, endive, spinach or chervil, amongst others. Some mixes also integrate edible flowers, which
can range in flavor from spicy nasturtiums to delicate rose petals. It
seems each country has its own version of this salad blend. Many cultures have a tradition of mesclun
consumption, especially in the spring, when fresh new growth can be very
refreshing after a long, dark winter. Cultivating these lettuces is
very easy and you can plant what you like, to create your own mixture.
What's more organic than growing your own salad, for dinner at home? The
French season their mesclun with vinaigrette made of olive oil and
flavored with herbs, garlic and even anchovies. Most Americans prefer
using mild light dressings to avoid hiding the delicate flavors of the
greens. The mix is
very attractive to the eye; with its reds, greens, and even bronze
colors. It is also very high in nutritional value. The health craze
begins with a nice light salad. These "designer greens" are the rage for
health-conscious Americans. Each green has its own nutritional
characteristics. Most are loaded with Vitamin A, omega 3 fatty acids and
high in potassium. We serve it topped with gorgonzola cheese and sugared walnuts or with
strawberries and topped with balsamic marinated chicken. It is also an
accompaniment to our panini sandwich
combo. |
On The Menu
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Taste Summer
By Crystal
 We have been known for our mint iced tea for a long time.
It's been a popular favorite for many for years. Over the last year we
have expanded our hot tea selections. We switched to loose leaf teas
which has allowed us to offer many different types and flavors. Some of
these teas even have some great health benefits.
Over this summer,
however, we took our iced tea a step further. We chose 3 flavors,
perfected the recipes (which includes a two hour steeping process) and are
now offering a choice along side the mint! We rotate the 3 flavors so
that your "taste summer" experience is never a dull one.
Right now, we
have Peach iced tea! Other flavors in our rotation will include Passion Fruit and Mango.
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Full Moon Report
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Buck Moon
By Kris
 At 1:38am, Monday, July 26th it will be the "Buck" moon, or "Thunder"
moon, or since it is the closest full moon to the Summer Solstice, it
can be known as the "Honey" Moon. According to the Farmer's Almanac;
July is normally the
month when the new antlers of buck deer push out of their foreheads in
coatings
of velvety fur. It was also often called the Full Thunder Moon because
thunderstorms are most frequent during this time. |
| Not Your "Everyday" Specials |
 Friday Nights, Seafood Mixed Grill
It
includes
a 4 oz lobster tail with
drawn butter, 4 oz salmon filet with basil
cream and 4 oz whitefish parmesan with lemon caper
butter. All for only $19.75
Monday Nights, Steak Diane
Every Monday after 4 pm, we will be serving Steak Diane for $13.75. This will be just like the Red Door Inn. With Victor's stamp of approval.
 Sunday, All Day,
Sizzling Sunday Fajita and Margaritas
You
get a chicken
fajita for two with a 64 ounce pitcher of margaritas for only $20! Imagine this on a Sunday afternoon on the patio or at a sidewalk table
with the sunshine and a nice breeze! No, your not in Cabo, but it sure
feels like it!
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| On Our Special | |
Blackberry Point Oysters on the Half Shell
Panko Breaded Fried Zucchini
Yellow Fin Tuna Tower
Almond and Roasted Red Pepper Hummus for Two
Panini Sandwich with Black Forest Ham, Fontina Cheese and Stone Ground Mustard
Smokey Salemville Blue Cheese and Heirloom Tomatoes with Wedged Butter Lettuce
Grilled Mahi Mahi with a Dried Cherry and Toasted Pecan Crust
Breaded Boneless Chicken Breast Stuffed with Raisin River Ham and Fontina Cheese
Spicy Shrimp, Arugula, Fava Beans and Whole Wheat Spaghetti
Steamed Broccoli with Tillamook Cheddar Cheese
Chocolate Flourless Mousse Torte
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Win a Free Lunch
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Foodie Fight Free Lunch Contest
by Kris
 Each week in the newsletter we will ask 3 questions from the Foodie Fight cards. The first person to email us (see link below) the correct answers to all three questions will receive a complimentary free lunch. The winner has to have the correct answer for all three questions, no exceptions. The following week we will publish the correct answers and the winner from the previous week. So come on in and have a drink, study the cards, test each other and have fun. Good Luck!
1. What candies, at a very low humidity, spark in the dark when broken?
2. How many guests will a 9-by-13 inch cake serve?
3. What Irish dramatist and Nobel Prize winner said, "there is no love sincerer than the love of food"?
foodiefight@uptowngrill.com
Fine Print...
You must be the first person to respond with all three correct answers.
The response must go to the email address in the above link.
You must reply within 24 hours from the time the newsletter is published.
Participants are eligible to win a limit of 3 times a year.
Last Week questions and answers....
1. What condiments are
always passed in a pair regardless of the request? Salt and Pepper
2.
Who is served first, the hostess or the female guest of honor? Female Guest of Honor
3. What should hosts
never do before the guests depart? Clean Up
Last weeks winner of the free lunch ... Barb and Dave Kromphardt
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| Playlist Theater | |
Tickets on sale now.
Upcoming Shows
 Roy Davis
Friday
August 13th
Tickets on sale now
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Uptown Grill
601 First St.
La Salle, Il 61301
815-224-4545
Mon - Thur 11 am to 10pm - Fri & Sat 11 am to 11 pm
Sun Noon to 10 pm
Uptowngrill.com
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You can read all of our past UPtown UPdates by clicking the link below.
UPtown UPdate Archives |
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Uptown respects your privacy and will not sell or distribute your personal information.
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