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@Tyrus, Those are some very wise and well-thought out words. Thank you - it's easy to lose perspective on these things.

I really want to reiterate that I've been to Edzo's twice and I think the food is fantastic. And I've even go as far as forwarding the New York Times and NYMag write-ups to friends. I think Chicago is at a really wonderful place right now in terms of food, offering a wide spectrum of choices. I guess one shouldn't complain in the pride and balance restaurateurs are choosing over money. Having recently eaten at Xoco, Kuma's, Urban Belly, Hot Doug's, and Great Lake, I really just found myself wishing that I could eat at them more often without it turning into such a production.

Don't bother trying to eat at Schwa, my friend. You'll long for situations where you can just walk up during posted business hours to exchange money for food.

Joking aside, I think it's great that people are able to find jobs (of all sorts) that work in to their lifestyle. I know plenty of people who have taken jobs specifically because they knew at 5pm on the dot they'd be walking out the door, over other jobs (perhaps offering better pay, more excitement) that might require long nights or unpredictable hours. The restaurant business appears to be an extremely difficult one in which to make a decent living, and folks I've known that owned restaurants were often slaves to their restaurant and worked crazy hours. If you can make a solid living and be able to balance your work/home life (in the restaurant business or otherwise), my hat's off to you.

-Dan

Just for the record, if it was really 3:50, I would not have turned anyone away. I take customers right up until four, and sometimes a minute or two later, depending on when they walked in and when I saw them.

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This reminds me of an article in New York Times, the reporter interviews a restrauteur of a small restaurant of 30 years, an ornary person at that. He closes at 8pm, a table of four walks in just before closing, the owner and the server exchange quick glances, the server says I am sorry we are closed, puts the closed sign up, disappointed customers leave, the reporter tells the owner, " you know you are still open"," yeah right" responds the owner, "well it is my understanding that you have a restaurant, where customers come, eat and you make money, it is called a business." "f... 'em" responds the owner.
It is not meant to be mean spirited exchange or response, but a reflection of the owner, an ornary one at that, who after 30 years wants to go home that night.
I'll post the full article when I find it, it gives a real good insight to the mind of this owner and chef of a small restaurant without being judgemental.

Congratulations, Eddie! This thread may have taken the coveted LTH turn from food discussion to an arguement over proprietor procedure. Many greats have come before you: Burt, Kuma, Doug, Depot, L2o and others. Maybe you could stop answering your phone or refuse substitutions of toppings to really get this thread going.

About the food, I have been a few more times. The griddled burger has always been great for me. I have had the Angry Fries (the gardineira oil and hot sauce do great things to the somehow still crunchy fries) and the truffle fries (I didn't think the truffle salt would pack enough truffle, but it does). I like the way the fries are a well executed rustic style.

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Today I caught that fish again, that lovely silver prince of fishes,
And once again he offered me, if I would only set him free—
Any one of a number of wonderful wishes... He was delicious! - Shel Silverstein

This sounds like Calvin Trillin's article on Shopsin's in NY, found here:

http://www.newyorker.com/archive/2002/0 ... 415fa_FACT

I'd nominate another restaurant for that trophy.

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Geno55, actually it is that restaurant, although I thought the article was written by another person, but sounds very similar, a great article about a restaurant and its owner though...can't believe it you pinpointed it so quickly!
It is a classic. Thanks.

I think that for many of us who 'fantasize' about being in the restaurant industry, the hours are one of the biggest barriers to entry. They are long and brutal -- spent mostly on one's feet -- and many of them fall into parts of the day, week and year when everyone else is with their families. The sacrifices of time required to make it in the industry are normally immense. So, when I see a person like Eddie step into the arena and set some reasonable boundaries for himself -- boundaries that facilitate having a normal family life -- I admire them greatly.

Why not hire a GM? Because it's expensive and even if one can afford the luxury of an extra layer of management (not likely), it requires having someone who can be implicitly trusted. After a few months of being open, could this possibly be someone you didn't know before you opened your doors? Doubtful. I wouldn't hand the keys to my mostly-cash business over to someone I'd known less than a year. Nor would I put my professional reputation in their hands.

A friend of mine owns a restaurant in Phoenix, which opened in July of 2008. He's had like 1 day off since he started. He's not going to take $35-$50k a year out of his investors' pockets to hire someone to be there, so he can take days off. That's just not how it's done at a single-unit, owner-operated restaurant. Maybe after a longer period of time, an employee will step up and prove that they are capable of running the place in his absence. Or not. But beyond that, Edzo's is all about Eddie. It's his place, his vision, his food. As such, people want to see him when they come to the restaurant. He is part of what draws them there. He is a large part of what makes Edzo's a destination. By limiting his hours, he makes it far more likely that he will be there when customers come in.

Perhaps the 4:00 closing time will someday become problematic. But my hope is that Edzo's becomes the success it seems likely to become and that Eddie gets to be a part of his kids' lives while they grow up. Should wanting to own a restaurant mean you automatically have to sacrifice these things? It shouldn't have to. Nothing makes me happier than seeing someone doing what they love and setting their own parameters in doing it.

=R=

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Maiden visit today. The old fries are the way all fries should be. I really appreciated the care with which the guy seasoned them and made sure the whole batch was evenly coated with salt. This was a rare occasion on which I had an overcooked burger and didn't much care, because my char burger was still juicy and very beefy tasting, despite the medium-rare order coming out more like medium-well. The place was mobbed with a line right to the door, but thanks to Eddie and staff's efficiency I was in and out in about 35 minutes anyway. Could have been 33.5 had the burger come off the grill when I'd have preferred . The crew was hustling so hard that it's easy to see how an 8-hour day at Edzo's could feel like a full work week. Edzo's is an excellent place with very good value. I'll be back whenever I'm in the area and in the mood to clog more arteries.

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Fuckerberg on Food

Yeah, but your biased. Tell the truth. The burgers were juiceless, the fries were soggy, and they wouldn't let you order because they were closing in four hours.

you left out dark and scary

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And dirty and not up-to-date.

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"The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook." - Julia Child

I do have a complaint. Edzo's, Poochie's, Hot Dougs and all the good places serve the fries either in paper-lined baskets or paper trays, where the fries fill the entire vessel. Where is the freakin' ketchup supposed to go? I see people just squirting the stuff all over the top, but ketchup is meant to be a dipping sauce not a finishing oil! I usually try to shove some fries to the side and squirt the ketchup into one corner, but invariably at least a half-dozen fries drown to the point of inedibility, and I end up with sticky red fingers. Squirting some ketchup onto a napkin doesn't work either - just creates a big mess of a tray. So, Eddie, Doug, Mr. Poochie, and all the rest of you: provide small paper cups for us to squirt the ketchup into.

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...defended from strong temptations to social ambition by a still stronger taste for tripe and onions." Screwtape in The Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis

Fuckerberg on Food

Excellent point! I was at Hot Doug's yesterday and had this exact problem. My solution was to lift the sausage out of it's basket and put it on a napkin, and then use the paper in the basket as a place to put the ketchup.

I couldn't do this at my maiden voyage to Edzo's, though, because my burger left a really large pool of oil (in fact, I had to find a place to put the burger so it didn't sit in the oil). My solution was to sacrifice a few fries and put the ketchup on them.

So, please take Kenny's advice.

I am working from home today and kicking myself that I didn't use the opportunity to drive up to Evanston for lunch at Edzo's.

I actually find it quite refreshing to see someone like Eddie who doesn't see the need to be like corporate fast food joints who provide small paper cups for ketchup. What's next, you'll want him to start serving customers who come in close to closing time?

a lot of people just ask for a second small paper tray to use for their ketchup dipping.

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Edzo's Evanston on Facebook or Twitter.

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It's still better than Smoque giving individual ketchup packets instead of having squeeze bottles. Honestly, I don't know how they stay in business.

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New episode: Soil, Corn, Cows and Cheese
Watch the Reader's James Beard Award-winning Key Ingredient here.

That's normally what I do. But would it be cheaper (from your cost point of view) and more environmentally friendly to have some of these available on request?


I'd imagine these are significantly cheaper than the paper trays you serve the fries in, and since they're non-perishable, a stack of them could sit around taking up very little space until they're called into service by a customer.

As I said, I am victim of the ketchup problem....but I get a real laugh out of imaging Eddie logging in every day and reading all of these little suggestions and comments about the minutia of his business.

He should just not offer ketchup at all, and redirect you to the nearest McDonald's.

Eddie, this is no place for practical responses to senseless rants

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...defended from strong temptations to social ambition by a still stronger taste for tripe and onions." Screwtape in The Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis

Fuckerberg on Food

Thanks for the reply. For the record, I've been in the same boat as you. I often can't get to these places during their business hours - or afford to wait the requisite time necessary, for the "food experience," even if it is just a hot dog, burger, or pizza. I've often found myself voicing the opinion (to myself or wife/friend/etc.) that this food should be more readily available (especially and selfishly to me) but then realize that the only reason I'm frustrated is because the food is so good. That's the point really - quality trumps all.

Has no one ever squirted ketchup on a drink lid before? Sheesh.

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Watch Sky Full of Bacon, the Chicago food HD podcast!
New episode: Soil, Corn, Cows and Cheese
Watch the Reader's James Beard Award-winning Key Ingredient here.

I went to Edzo's today. Very good, thank you. Double grilled cheeseburger. A nice hunk of meat. And truffle fries. I liked it. Thanks, Eddie.

Tom

Get over yourself.

Pardon me. I meant a nice hunk of meat. Eddie's burger. A nice hunk of meat.

That is all.

TC

Wow, the ketchup comments really threw me off in relation to Hot Dougs, Poochies, Edzo's, Smoque, etc. When confronted with excellent fries like those I prefer them with just a little salt and maybe a nice aioli ala fRed's and WaSC or Merkt's. In fact that was my first thought during my first trip to Edzo's was how awesome those fries would be with a nice Garlic Aioli, ketchup never came to mind. I do use profuse amounts of ketchup with food service fries from most places (Red Gold preferred) so I am not opposed to it but given the choice with these purveyors, I want that potato-ey goodness all alone.

I do agree though that those little white cups are the best way to go especially when you are eating in. That is about the only redeeming quality for some of the places I end up eating with my co-workers (Charcoal Delights for one).

Just as an FYI, Edzo's will be closed 12/25/09 thru 1/1/10. Spread the word.

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Edzo's Evanston on Facebook or Twitter.

Edzo's Lincoln Park on Facebook or Twitter.

Thanks for the info I was planning on bringing a friend, it will have to be next visit.

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For what we choose is what we are. He should not miss this second opportunity to re-create himself with food. Jim Crace "The Devil's Larder"