Doohickie

Translation:  "Finally I can talk to the other forum members without Paul interrupting!"

Now here's a concept that Fort Worth needs.  "Dinner in the Sky"

(I wonder what the policy is if you need to use the restroom?)

https://www.dinnerinthesky.com/

 

 

I went to Ashim's Hibachi Grill with my wife for dinner Friday; it's one of the ground floor retail slots in the building on Taylor Street north of W4th.  It's visible in the picture above, in the lower right corner.  The place doesn't have much in the way of pretense or ambience but the food was good.  I thought it was pricey at ~$20 per person but we both got hibachi entrees; there were less expensive items on the menu.  It was pretty busy.  It seems like it may be a go-to place for people who live downtown.  I also noticed there was a sign at the door saying they were open until 4 am.

It reminded me of foreign food places we'd get a quick bite at when traveling for business in Washington, DC.  I've been to kabob places like that there; Ashim's had the same no-nonsense feel to it.

I'd never noticed it before, but we started a thing where we're trying to eat at restaurants going from A to Z to get out of our rut of going to the same ol' places.  Ashim's which begins with A, was the first place we went in our quest.

There are a lot of people out there that think that they have the business acumen to operate a bar or restaurant and many fail because they have no idea what they are doing.

When I was a kid I wanted to have a restaurant.  I think if I'd gone right into that it might have worked out but in retrospect I think what I really wanted was just to work in a restaurant kitchen; I did that at my first two jobs.  I enjoyed short order cooking and prep cooking.  I've also worked as a waiter and enjoyed that.  When it gets into the business end and working out the processes resulting in consistent product, ordering, all that stuff... nope, no interest in that at all.  I just wanted to put the food together and bring it out to guests.

When I retire I may go back to that part time if I feel the need to get out of the house.

Years ago, I'd occasionally watch that show Bar Rescue.  Sort of a waste of time but the host (___ Tapper?  Taffer?) had some good insight for bar/business owners.  The one that I remember was their system of weighing in the bottles before and after service and trying to control overpouring drinks and reconciling income vs sales.  I think a factor for those type of establishments is if you have a lot of bar hopping going on but your average patron is only there for an hour and spends $10-15, is that enough to make ends meet at the end of the day?  I would think some better than average places with more loyalty would have customers that stay 2 to 4 hours, catch a game, eat and drink, hang out, they might spend $40-50+ per person or more.  Quality is also a big factor...with that much competition, busy does not always equal quality.  Did they serve food?  Was it any good?

I caught an episode centering on the old Whiskey Girl in the Stockyards.  They rebranded it as Stampede Saloon.  What I remember is they got rid of one of the partners who wasn't bringing value, added some bar food (basically what you find at a bbq truck) and signature drink and that was supposed to fix everything.  I don't think it did because it's the Rhinestone Saloon now. 

Hmm.  Never gave them a try.  It's probably my fault.

DreamVision?

My brain went there instantly.  How's that coming along?  They should be opening soon, right?    

^Should study the history of Knox Berry Farm, use that as a template for Stockyards expansion.... 

You mean "Knott's"?

This us straight up Disney here. We have officially become like a roadside attraction at a truck stop outside Omaha.

There is plenty of "authentic Western heritage" in the area.  But when attracting visitors, kitschy and fun are also draws.  Don't be so stuffy.  Look at all the stuff around the Alamo in San Antonio.  It's as Disney and Roadside Attraction as you can get.  I remember four things from visiting San Antonio:  River Walk, Alamo, the Missions tour and the Buckhorn Museum, which is as kitschy as it gets.  Not everything needs to be "on brand" (in the case of the Stockyards, Western themed) in a historic district/tourist area.

I didn't realize they were planning so much development along Wayside...

 

Case: UDC-2022-112

Date: December 15, 2022 @10:00 AM

Address: 3144 Wayside Avenue

 

 

 

...and around the corner part of this same group of projects:

 

Case: UDC-2022-111

Date: December 15, 2022 @10:00 AM

Address: 3217 Forest Park Blvd

If/when they put the TEXRail station in for TCU, it will be RIGHT THERE.  My understanding is it will be on the west side of W Cleburne (/8th Ave/McCart) just south of Berry.  That will make these dwellings very desirable I would think.
 

The house needs some updating, particularly on the electrical system and windows (original windows, mostly painted shut), but overall it's in good shape for a house 60+ years old.

I was looking for something else and tripped over this thread.  The electrical was updated when we moved in, and I (finally) got my new windows two weeks ago.  The windows were made at the NT Window plant in the old S&H Green Stamp building on Seminary and Cockrell, a mile from out house.  I think that's pretty cool.

Yes.  Another fan of Pacific Table here.

Last time we went there they were packed and we had no reservation.  They asked if we wanted to sit at the bar and we said yes and it actually worked out pretty well; we chatted with the two other couples on either side of us and had a very pleasant meal.

Tweet; agrees with my earlier assertion.

NEW: A former VP of Whole Foods lays out why the Kroger/Albertsons mega-merger is a travesty and could even be criminal.

The massive new grocery chain will have near-monopoly control in major cities. Food prices will go up & workers’ wages will go down.

The FTC must block it.

Again, anecdotal, but even if the city does not have a legal liability, they may still, by policy, pay a settlement.  For instance, when a water main broke and sprayed not just water, but pavement and rocks on my roof, the city paid to cover my insurance deductible, even though state law says that a city is not liable for damage from water main breaks (and literally every correspondence from them had a statement to that effect).

Who knows... maybe someone might sue claiming their is too much ready access to the tracks, but if they can show a pattern of reducing the number of crossings they can counter that claim.

Also, you don't simply dig a hole.  There's usually utilities buried- gas lines, water lines, drain pipes, etc.