Green and crunchy ... trends in munchables

A few years back I came across deep-fried green beans on an appetizer menu somewhere other than in the tempura at a Japanese restaurant and thought, "Terrific. Hope this catches on." Lately, it has seemed to be showing up here and there. Now I have proof it's a bona fide trend: You can hardly get more mainstream than T.G.I. Friday's.

We were on our way home from "Travels with My Aunt" in Glencoe yesterday and wanted something to eat. As you may be aware, the north and northwest suburbs offer rather slim pickings when it comes to dining after 10 p.m. but T.G.I. Friday's in Glenview turns out to be open till 1 a.m. on weeknights. And there it was on the menu: "Crispy green bean fries." Their version is breaded (vs. the tempura-style I have seen some other places, such as Red Lantern Asian Bistro in Rolling Meadows). and served with a reasonably zesty wasabi-laced ranch dressing for dipping. The beans seemed quite snappy and fresh tasting.

We got them as part of a "fry trio" with huge wedges of seasoned steak fries served with bacon-blue cheese dip and savory sweet-potato fries. (I recognize that T.G.I. Friday's isn't the sort of place that LTHers will be rushing out to, but as casual chains go, they do a nice job. The rest of our meal was perfectly respectable -- I ordered a small steak, which came cooked perfectly rare to order, and Himself had a Cobb salad. Two different managers came by to see how we were doing -- they were pretty empty at that hour -- and one of them offered us some extra wasabi sauce.)

Anyway, I'm wondering if others have been seeing this munchy trend and where?

T.G.I. Friday's
4513 W. Lake Ave.
Glenview, IL 60025
(847) 298-996

Hello!

As far as breaded green beans go, I think of any menus I've seen them on recently. I do know edamame is a popular green appetizer. If you've never tried it, I highly recommend it. They're just steamed peapods (usually lightly salted) and are absolutely delicious. They're a great appetizer too because they are not too filling, so you still have room for your meal

Another popular green "munchable" is fried pickles. These have been popping up on menus everywhere. The restaurant I currently work at serves fried pickles, and I find that many of my customers shy away from them. Those who do try them love 'em. They are different, but still delicious. Many places serve fried pickles with a tangy sauce such as a cajun-style mayo.

Cheers!

-Samantha
BunchBite Marketing Intern
http://bunchbite.com

LAZ wrote:A few years back I came across deep-fried green beans on an appetizer menu somewhere other than in the tempura at a Japanese restaurant and thought, "Terrific. Hope this catches on." Lately, it has seemed to be showing up here and there. Now I have proof it's a bona fide trend: You can hardly get more mainstream than T.G.I. Friday's.

We were on our way home from "Travels with My Aunt" in Glencoe yesterday and wanted something to eat. As you may be aware, the north and northwest suburbs offer rather slim pickings when it comes to dining after 10 p.m. but T.G.I. Friday's in Glenview turns out to be open till 1 a.m. on weeknights. And there it was on the menu: "Crispy green bean fries." Their version is breaded (vs. the tempura-style I have seen some other places, such as Red Lantern Asian Bistro in Rolling Meadows). and served with a reasonably zesty wasabi-laced ranch dressing for dipping. The beans seemed quite snappy and fresh tasting.

We got them as part of a "fry trio" with huge wedges of seasoned steak fries served with bacon-blue cheese dip and savory sweet-potato fries. (I recognize that T.G.I. Friday's isn't the sort of place that LTHers will be rushing out to, but as casual chains go, they do a nice job. The rest of our meal was perfectly respectable -- I ordered a small steak, which came cooked perfectly rare to order, and Himself had a Cobb salad. Two different managers came by to see how we were doing -- they were pretty empty at that hour -- and one of them offered us some extra wasabi sauce.)

Anyway, I'm wondering if others have been seeing this munchy trend and where?

T.G.I. Friday's
4513 W. Lake Ave.
Glenview, IL 60025
(847) 298-996

We had "Leprechaun Legs" at the Nook in St. Paul. They were tasty. It was the first time I've seen deep-fried green beans on the menu, but I don't eat that often at bar-food type places.

One of the earlier places I spotted them was the now-closed Fan Si Pan in Ukrainian Village. I see tempura green beans are on the menu at The Paramount Room, and Smokin' Woody's has fried green beans, too, though I haven't tried them there.

LAZ wrote:Now I have proof it's a bona fide trend: You can hardly get more mainstream than T.G.I. Friday's.

Could deep-fried green beans be poised to become the new blooming onion?

EvA wrote:We had "Leprechaun Legs" at the Nook in St. Paul. They were tasty. It was the first time I've seen deep-fried green beans on the menu, but I don't eat that often at bar-food type places.

Deep-fried green beans seem strangely popular in the Twin Cities. I too noticed them recently at The Nook as well as at Blue Door Pub, another bar known for their Juicy Lucy. These two are certainly not the only spots serving deep fried green beans (see Shamrocks, O'Gara's, Edina Grill, Darby's etc). Reportedly they have been a big hit at the Minnesota State Fair in past years, perhaps partly explaining their local popularity.

LAZ wrote:I see tempura green beans are on the menu at The Paramount Room . . .

I enjoyed a burger, deep-fried green beans and a pint of Surly Bitter at Paramount a few years ago. Just like being in St Paul, though I didn't realize it at the time.

Bad Dog Tavern has the on their menu although I've never tried them.

CRISPY GREEN BEANS $7.99
Fresh green beans lightly battered and served with lime ginger soy dipping sauce.

Rene G wrote:

LAZ wrote:Now I have proof it's a bona fide trend: You can hardly get more mainstream than T.G.I. Friday's.

Could deep-fried green beans be poised to become the new blooming onion?

I hope so! Or a french-fry substitute. (It's also kind of a hoot that this trend may be coming here via Minneapolis -- vs. the usual patterns of fads from the coasts. E.g. cupcakes. Will hotdish be next?)

Of course, what I'd really like to see become the next bloomin' onion is tempura sage leaves, as served at the late, lamented Soul Kitchen.

Old Oak Tap serves tempura green beans with a ginger-soy dipping sauce as an appetizer.

Old Oak Tap
2109 W. Chicago Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622
773-772-0406
http://www.theoldoaktap.com/index.html

Green Bean (and other vegetable) chips have been showing up more in grocery stores like Trader Joes and Fresh Market. They are deep fried so I am not sure how good they are for you, but I would guess they are healthier than potato chips.

-Will

I've got a major backlog in my Google Reader, so maybe this has already been shared, but I thought of this thread and the TGI Friday's crunchy, munchy beans today when I read this interview with TGI Friday's founder Alan Stillman, published last month. I had no idea TGI Friday's started out as a "sophisticated" singles bar on the Upper East Side. The whole interview is worth reading, but here are excerpts:

Alan Stillman wrote:I lived on 63rd Street between First and York. Easy access to the 59th Street bridge meant you could get out of New York quickly, so in that two or three block neighbour­hood, there was a pile of airline stewardesses — and for whatever reason, there was also a whole bunch of models. Basically, a lot of single people all lived between 60th and 65th and between York Avenue and 3rd Avenue. It seemed to me that the best way to meet girls was to open up a bar.

Alan Stillman wrote:The other thing is that my timing was exquisite, because I opened T.G.I. Friday’s the exact year the pill was invented. I happened to hit the sexual revolution on on the head, and the result was that, without really intending it, I became the founder of the first singles bar.

Alan Stillman wrote:I wanted T.G.I. Friday’s to feel like a neighbourhood, corner bar, where you could get a good hamburger, good french fries, and feel comfortable. At the time, it was a sophisticated hamburger and french fry place — apparently, I invented the idea of serving burgers on a toasted English muffin — but the principle involved was to make people feel that they were going to someone’s apartment for a cocktail party.

Bin Wine Cafe in Wicker Park has some pretty great tempura green beans -- "bwc crispy tempura green beans —citrus aioli 9." They've been on the menu for at least a few years. I order them every time I eat dinner there. Really dig the citrus aioli.

Bin Wine Cafe
1559 N Milwaukee Ave
Chicago, IL 60622
(773) 486-2233
http://binwinecafe.com/index2.php

Hub 51 offers the "Three Green Bites" appetizer, a combination of edamame, blistered padrone peppers and tempura green beans. The peppers are absolutely delicious.

Hub 51
51 W Hubbard
Chicago, IL 60654
(312) 828-0051
http://hub51chicago.com/

Wang's serves tempura green beans.

Wang's
3317 N. Broadway St.
Chicago, IL 60657
773-296-6800
(Men only after 11pm)