great restaurant ideas aka 'why didn't I think of that'

While reading Mike G's thread about breakfast out and its merits, I was immediately reminded of how one of my biggest pet peeves with breakfast out is my Quixotic dream of getting toast of my liking at virtually every place I go for breakfast/brunch. Odds are it's gonna be barely toasted or cold, usually both.

But, when I was in LA last month, my friend and I went for breakfast to an average Greek-ish diner-y place called Foxy's. We'd been there before several times but had always sat on the outside patio so I didn't ever notice that in every booth in the dining room was the answer to every diner's toast problem: toasters in every booth. You want wheat toast, super dark brown ? No problem. Your bagel only lightly toasted. Sure, just do it yourself. Seemed like such a simple solution (if you discount the potential electrical issues) for both customers and staff alike.

And so I say to any Chicago restauranteur reading this, "Give them personal toasters and they will come".

Or at least I will.

tem wrote:I was immediately reminded of how one of my biggest pet peeves with breakfast out is my Quixotic dream of getting toast of my liking at virtually every place I go for breakfast/brunch. Odds are it's gonna be barely toasted or cold, usually both.

Not only that, it won't be buttered. So you're usually trying to spread cold, hard butter on cool toast.

I remember when it was common practice for restaurants to butter toast in the kitchen. Too many dieters asking for dry toast ruined that.

Which then raises my biggest pet peeve of all. Restaurants that serve cold butter.

Last year I got room service that came with a toaster. Great idea.

Now you've got me thinking of an all-toast restaurant, like Cereality.
But with toast.

Have to come up with a clever pun name, though: "Toast of the Town"? Too trite. "Tippie Toast"? Too much of a stretch. "Since Sliced Bread"? Eh. "Toe Stir"? Now I'm just being silly.

Twenty kinds of bread, 5 kinds of butter, 12 spreadable cheeses, 30 kinds of jelly and jam, 8 kinds of peanut butter... and no muffins or pannini. Maybe call it Shmear.

JoelF wrote:Maybe call it Shmear.

Then it would have to have bagels.

Years ago, I was invited to be toastmistress at a tiny science-fiction convention. So I baked a half dozen kinds of bread and brought a toaster.

JoelF wrote:Have to come up with a clever pun name, though

I'd find Toast Modern hard to beat - but there might be copyright issues.

What about little Korean grills to toast bread over an open fire?

We were at, the then newly opened, Omega on Route 59 in Naperville a few years ago and the manager/owner/"boss" asked about our meal. I expressed my displeasure about the frozen butter and it can easily destroy an otherwise perfect piece of toast.

Since that day - it has always been room temp.

JoelF wrote:Now you've got me thinking of an all-toast restaurant, like Cereality.

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