True, you guys have got me that it doesn't matter what you look like to enjoy some music. But you have to admit that many of the people wouldn't be caught dead in a place like kuma's, if they didn't have good food.

I'd like to see the same people go to Exit, Neo, Delilah's or any other Punk/Harcdcore/Goth/Metal hang out and have a beer.

Anyway, didn't think making a comment about a nerd would get such a response, maybe you guys were sitting next to me

Also, whomever mentioned Burger King...well... let's not.

I think you guys should try the Monday burger special at Celtic Crown.
Not as entertaining a place perhaps or spectacular a burger as Kuma's, but still a good value for what you get.

Oh my god, you mean some people went to a restaurant for the food, rather than the atmosphere?

This must be reported to the authorities immediately!

Good thing this isn't a culinary chat site!

gleam wrote:Oh my god, you mean some people went to a restaurant for the food, rather than the atmosphere?

This must be reported to the authorities immediately!

Good thing this isn't a culinary chat site!

I know, it's crazy, isn't it?

I make one comment about the patrons of a restaurant, and people jump down my throat. It's not like this is a forum where we can express our opinions, no matter what they might be.

Good thing this isn't a communist country.....or is it?

You insulted some of the customers. You should have expected a response.

Wiseguy wrote:The people that work there are what make this place cool, too bad the same can't be said for the patrons.

Wiseguy wrote:I'd like to see the same people go to Exit, Neo, Delilah's or any other Punk/Harcdcore/Goth/Metal hang out and have a beer.

Sure, name the time. But please give me 48-hours' notice to purchase an argyle sweater.

Jim "Corporate Lawyer Who Was a Performance Artist in the Late 1980s and has an Advanced Degree in Philosophy (that's cool, right?) and Bought an English Import of Psychocandy by the Jesus and Mary Chain in October 1985 and Knew a Guy Who was the Singer in a Band Called 'Pontius Pilate and the Nail Drivers
Well Enough to Dislike Him, and He, Me, in Indianapolis c. 1984" InLoganSquare

gleam wrote:You insulted some of the customers. You should have expected a response.

Wiseguy wrote:The people that work there are what make this place cool, too bad the same can't be said for the patrons.

So what, really? Can't our opinions of the restaurant include the patrons? Or is that off limits now?

I mean, you guys regularly rip on the food, staff, service, atmosphere...

But no, God forbid that someone says someone is a nerd.

You guys are too sensitive in here, maybe you need to look at peoples comments a little more openly. Are you guys on the payroll here, what is it?

Ok, so I made some generalizations and now you guys are going to poke holes in my line of thinking, good for you, you win, or do you?

Oy...I'm sure that my appearance would be judged even more harshly than those wearing argyle sweaters and glasses. The only pertinent comment in this vein is that even with my VERY non-metal appearance, the staff at Kuma's could not have been more pleasant and efficient. I was a little apprehensive given my very non-metal appearance, and my expectations were more than exceeded.

More pertinent still, yesterday at 5:00 PM, we were quoted a wait time of 45 min for our belated Valentine's Day celebration (followed up with a romantic trip to the auto show - we are totally your stereotypical Trixie/Chad ). Fiance and I found two good seats at the bar, thus eliminating any wait. Fiance enjoyed a Victory and I stuck to water. He ordered the Mastodon and I, the Metallica. We both couldn't have been more pleased. While mine wasn't the most adventuresome of the bunch, by my choosing, what I was the most impressed by was that my burger was actually medium rare as ordered. While I probably shouldn't be giving props for making something correctly, I've gotten used to either rare burgers or medium when I ask for med-rare. This was perfect. And they were extremely busy. The pretzel roll stood up nicely to the toppings. Considering that fiance's burger was gone before I got a chance to sample, I'd say he liked it. We'll be back.

Wiseguy wrote: Are you guys on the payroll here, what is it?

Everyone here is paid in burgers and, ironically, argyle sweaters. Go figure

jesteinf wrote:

Wiseguy wrote: Are you guys on the payroll here, what is it?

Everyone here is paid in burgers and, ironically, argyle sweaters. Go figure

LOL

I think you're right.

Anyway, my apologies for giving a less than stellar review of your beloved burger haven and it's patrons.

Stay positive everyone.

Is there an antipodal Kuma's serving death burgers and death metal in Buenos Aires?

I think Umberto Eco wrote a novel about this.

Wiseguy wrote:... my apologies for giving a less than stellar review of your beloved burger haven and it's patrons.

Stay positive everyone.

Actually, no. I don't think I want to stay positive here. LTH is not a place for "reviewing" the patrons of restaurants. We review restaurants, not patrons. To the extent you feel otherwise, you are not playing by our rules, minimal as they are. We encourage all to investigate anything. Whitebread crackers like me learn to dine on eels in Chinatown and to travel to 113th and Michigan for fritters at Old Fashioned Donuts. Or listen to Primus while eating gloppy big burgers. If the other patrons at Kuma's the night you were there actually impinged on your enjoyment, that's another thing. But I didn't get that from your post, which seemed basically like a snark, IMHO.

Wiseguy wrote:Ok, so I made some generalizations and now you guys are going to poke holes in my line of thinking, good for you, you win, or do you?

Man, are the nerds beating up on the metalheads again? For the love of God, why? What is it that fills them with such aggression? Why do they lash out indiscriminately? It's like they're some kind of mindless killing machines. Just like Daleks!





Incidentally, I've observed that the staff at Kuma's really doesn't care how you dress or what music you listen to. You know why? Cause they're completely awesome.

Wiseguy wrote:I'd like to see the same people go to Exit, Neo, Delilah's or any other Punk/Harcdcore/Goth/Metal hang out and have a beer.

Well, I'm a nerd who works in IT, and I've been to all three of the above mentioned places, as well as Kuma's.

I think you're receiving some retribution for failing to live up to, apparently, your own metal/punk pedigree: don't judge someone by their appearance.

That being said, wiseguy, I do think you're probably nice enough, and probably have been come down on a little harshly, but judging a book by its cover isn't cool by any number of cliques, greasers, nerds, head-bangers, punks, goths, etc.

eatingoutisforsuckers redux?

I was thinking more RiverWester (but when I went to cite other posts, they'd mostly been deleted).

Santander wrote:I was thinking more RiverWester (but when I went to cite other posts, they'd mostly been deleted).

I think this is the thread you're looking for:

http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=15782

In any case, Wiseguy, I think your reception here has been more than a little harsh. Just bear in mind that this is a place populated by people who are sick of restaurants being judged by scene and crowd first and food second. They (myself included) bristle a little when it's suggested that the look of the people who populate the place should have any impact on your judgment of whether it's a great place to eat.

That said, some of those people would have more of a leg to stand on if they didn't regularly ding some restaurants for their white bread crowd.

Just sayin'.

dfawley wrote:That being said, wiseguy, I do think you're probably nice enough, and probably have been come down on a little harshly, but judging a book by its cover isn't cool by any number of cliques, greasers, nerds, head-bangers, punks, goths, etc.

As the LTH member who's most sensitive and easily-offended by stereotyping and name-calling, let me say that I agree that Wiseguy has been treated a little too harshly here. Certainly what he said is no worse than the average LTH rant against places that are overloaded with trixies and chads. And he likes the Kuma's burger, so I say cut the dude some slack. While there was certainly a better way to make the argument, I think Wiseguy basically said something that most people agree with: Kuma's is an utterly unique place with an extremely eclectic crowd.

Kennyz wrote:

dfawley wrote:That being said, wiseguy, I do think you're probably nice enough, and probably have been come down on a little harshly, but judging a book by its cover isn't cool by any number of cliques, greasers, nerds, head-bangers, punks, goths, etc.

As the LTH member who's most sensitive and easily-offended by stereotyping and name-calling, let me say that I agree that Wiseguy has been treated a little too harshly here. Certainly what he said is no worse than the average LTH rant against places that are overloaded with trixies and chads. And he likes the Kuma's burger, so I say cut the dude some slack. While there was certainly a better way to make the argument, I think Wiseguy basically said something that most people agree with: Kuma's is an utterly unique place with an extremely eclectic crowd.

Thank you for your support, lol

You know, when I was writing the post, I had a slight feeling that my criticism of the patron next to us might get me into trouble, but I threw caution to the wind. Figuring that my words would be seen as a sarcastic but lighthearted comment.

But to make a point, many of you are correct that the food is of utmost importance when going out to eat. But it is also important, at least to myself, to be comfortable with the atmosphere in which I choose to eat. It adds something to the enjoyment of the meal.

When I travel, I find that having a meal at a place with great atmosphere and pleasant people add to the overall enjoyment. But if something feels "off", even if it's something like the patrons being a little snobby or obnoxious, it makes MY experience, less that great. Food is obviously the main point of eating out, but when I travel, and that's why I am bring up travel, what makes the memory of my trip that much better is the food & people. People do matter when I go out to eat, believe it or not, It's not like I can just ignore everyone around me as if they are wallpaper.

When I talked about Kuma's, I know it was only the crowd or few people that happened to be there on that particular night that gave me a less than great impression of the atmosphere of the place, but it mattered to me since it was crowded and you can't avoid people in such a small space.

I wasn't trying to indict anyone with my comment about nerds, just saying what I expected to see and who was actually there, didn't seem to jive with the atmosphere and the theme of the establishment. There is absolutely nothing wrong with people going anywhere they want looking anyway they want , but since I have been judged in the past for such things, maybe I'm just reflecting back what I've felt.

I kinda felt that it was a trendy place with people who were there for the food, but also to be seen. And what I saw, I didn't entirely care for, sorry.

I guess the question ultimately comes down to:

Was your distaste for these fellow diners due to the way they look, or the way they behave?

I'm perfectly fine with criticizing people for the latter, but your first post didn't mention their behavior at all, and it should have.

Without the clarification you supplied only after being pressed on the subject, it was more like to "I saw a black person in a white person's restaurant" than "I saw someone acting like a jerk".

gleam wrote:I guess the question ultimately comes down to:

Was your distaste for these fellow diners due to the way they look, or the way they behave?

I'm perfectly fine with criticizing people for the latter, but your first post didn't mention their behavior at all, and it should have.

Without the clarification you supplied only after being pressed on the subject, it was more like to "I saw a black person in a white person's restaurant" than "I saw someone acting like a jerk".

I think my mistake was not including that they were acting out in my initial post. I should also state that the written word is not my forte and I have a very conversationalist style to my writing. You can't infer the tone in which I write very easily and since we all read within our own heads, the message can get misconstrued.

Instead, I chose to point out their looks, which, is a mistake from the standpoint that it seems prejudice, but please, don't use racism as an example.

If most of us here had this conversation is person, I think very few people would see any malice in my statement. I also use the word NERD very generally, as a negative statement toward anyone that is not acting cool, as in, a nice person, not just their style. Even though I pointed out the sweater and glasses. I myself am an admitted "geek" who enjoys video games, computers and technology, so I can't throw too many stones

[ LTH is not a place for "reviewing" the patrons of restaurants. We review restaurants, not patrons.

Actually JLS you are mistaken on this point. I can recall a thread that degraded into nothing more than a forum for disparaging a specific ethnic group. I believe the thread was actually started by and and included a number of postings by the LTH founders/major contributors.

Tommy2dogs wrote:[ LTH is not a place for "reviewing" the patrons of restaurants. We review restaurants, not patrons.

Actually JLS you are mistaken on this point. I can recall a thread that degraded into nothing more than a forum for disparaging a specific ethnic group. I believe the thread was actually started by and and included a number of postings by the LTH founders/major contributors.

Tommy2dogs, I have no recollection of this thread you recall. I'm not saying you are wrong, but if you want to post a link, that would substantiate your claim.

Even, however, if this thread happened, you surely do not think it would be a good idea to allow such a thing to happen, right? I mean, that would be (or would have been) a mistake, and no justification for it happening again, don't you think?

Actually, I can pinpoint the exact moment when metal(specifically the subgenres of doom, death, and black) became the provenance of "nerds": ca. 1999. So, if you listen to a kind music because it makes you one with the crowd or you only eat a certain kind of food because it makes you one with the crowd...well...geez...order somthing different for a change. I've never been to Kuma's, but this thread has placed it firmly on my list of places to try when I'm next at the old homestead. Moth-eaten argyle sweater check! and Black-Boned Angel slurping thru the cassette deck.

johnny wrote:As far as the nerd in an argyle sweater comment, perhaps Kuma's could begin enforcing an "anti-dress code" that requires all patrons to sport stereotypical, cliched attire (tattoos, death metal t-shirt, long hair, etc.)

About a month ago I was in for lunch @ Kuma's, and there was a guy there with his daughter, probably about 4-5 years old. I was sort of amazed at the amount of full coverage tats this guy had on his arms. Then his daughter started laughing and reached up and pulled down the "nylon stocking tattoo sleeve" off of one of his arms. I just cracked up. It was a costume! I've seen 'em for sale at Uncle Fun. Maybe they could sell 'em at the bar at Kuma's!

Denounce False Tattoos.

I just came across this profile of CKE Restaurants (owner of Carl's Jr. and Hardee's). Considering the public outcry against some of their creations (ie. their recent experiement: the Fourth of July Burger, it was tested last summer at seven locations by the West Coast fast-food chain Carl's Jr. and consisted of a huge beef patty topped with pickles, ketchup, mustard, potato chips, and a hot dog.), here we are celebrating the same pile-it-on ethos of Kuma's.

I'm not trying to suggest that Kuma's is as good as Hardee's or Carl's, Jr. (or vice-versa). Obviously, Kuma's puts a little more soul (metal?) into their food -- a quality that just can't be succesful on a larger scale. Still, it's an interesting article on its own. Maybe if they started to play a little metal, Hardee's and Carl's, Jr. would attract the nerds, metal-heads and everyone in between that have been flocking to Kuma's.

danimalarkey wrote:I just came across this profile of CKE Restaurants (owner of Carl's Jr. and Hardee's). Considering the public outcry against some of their creations (ie. their recent experiement: the Fourth of July Burger, it was tested last summer at seven locations by the West Coast fast-food chain Carl's Jr. and consisted of a huge beef patty topped with pickles, ketchup, mustard, potato chips, and a hot dog.), here we are celebrating the same pile-it-on ethos of Kuma's.

I'm not trying to suggest that Kuma's is as good as Hardee's or Carl's, Jr. (or vice-versa). Obviously, Kuma's puts a little more soul (metal?) into their food -- a quality that just can't be succesful on a larger scale. Still, it's an interesting article on its own. Maybe if they started to play a little metal, Hardee's and Carl's, Jr. would attract the nerds, metal-heads and everyone in between that have been flocking to Kuma's.

I doubt that I could scrounge up the energy or travel dollars to make the trek to Indiana or out West when Kuma's is just a hop, skip and a jump away from home.

Wiseguy wrote:I'd like to see the same people go to Exit, Neo, Delilah's or any other Punk/Harcdcore/Goth/Metal hang out and have a beer.

LOL.

Those places are infested with more nerds and hipster trash than Kuma's.
There's nothing even slightly 'hardcore' about the above mentioned bars.
Dweebs in leather = NOT HARDCORE.

Make a relevant point, such as "I'd like to see the same people in a Lamb of God pit" and it would carry some weight.

Kuma's is an internet darling, and as such, all types of people are going to flock there.

Arrogant wrote:Those places are infested with more nerds and hipster trash than Kuma's.
There's nothing even slightly 'hardcore' about the above mentioned bars.
Dweebs in leather = NOT HARDCORE.

"hipster trash"? is it now socially acceptable to call any group of people "trash"? Why sink to such a level?

I hope that you can elevate your level of discusion to rising above grouping a subset of people you don't happen to like as "trash". Such a statement shows you to be many things I doubt you consider yourself to be.

On a food note, I had the calamari there not too long ago and I found it to be excellent. It didn't have the greatest texture I've ever experienced(not as greaslessly crisp as I would have like) but it included a lot of nice acid flavor which I think always helps to brighten a fried dish.

hantav wrote:On a food note, I had the calamari there not too long ago and I found it to be excellent. It didn't have the greatest texture I've ever experienced(not as greaslessly crisp as I would have like) but it included a lot of nice acid flavor which I think always helps to brighten a fried dish.

Huzzah!! Something about the food.

Acidic flavor from...lemon?