Dingfelder's: Reuben (Four of six)

Link to Dingfelder's Delicatessen.  

For them as do not know, a Reuben is corned beef and sauerkraut on rye with Russian dressing. Not a fan of Russian dressing, so I ordered mine with mustard. In my German-blood opinion, the Reuben can be the best sandwich ever made. 

On a Reuben, I want the sauerkraut bone dry. If you lean that way, too, I suggest at Dingfelder's you order your Reuben for take out. I shall tell you why in a bit. 

When I saw the meat in the sandwich displayed on Dingfelder's site menu, I wondered if that was for real and always or just for the photo. 'Cause I been fooled before. 

Proud to say it was for real and always. Big slabs of tender meat. Crisp sauerkraut in the Goldilocks zone: not too strong, not too weak, but jussst right. A thin schmear of mustard that added a hint of heat. 

If not Sandwich Heaven, it is as close as mortals can get. 

Plentiful, too. My wife and I ate half the Reuben and got the other half wrapped for take away. Could be the gribenes and the latkes sated our hunger. Could be. 

The wrap is where the magic happened. 

I ordered three sandwiches from Olympia. Where Ari went I do not know, but Olympia took care of us. She and invisible Steve wrapped my half Reuben in butcher paper and boxed it with pickles and a side. 

Long trip back to the hotel (Embassy Suites-SeaTac). Stowed the sandwiches in the fridge and took a nap. Woke up and pulled the half Reuben from the fridge. I noticed that the wrapping paper was moist. The butcher paper had rubbed against the sauerkraut and wicked away the brine. Left me with bone dry sauerkraut. 

Another step closer to Sandwich Heaven. 

I recommend you get the Reuben for take out and give it some hours for the paper to magic the sauerkraut to bone dry. If that's the way -- uh-huh, uh-huh -- you like it. 

Reuben: A++ 

Next: Chopped liver on onion roll. 

Dingfelder's: Gribenes and latkes (Three of six)

 

Link to Dingfelder's Delicatessen. 

First we gotta talk about schmaltz. What is schmaltz? Schmaltz is to chicken fat as ghee is to butter. Don't know what ghee is? Okay, let us try . . . schmaltz is to chicken fat as lard is to pig fat. If you still have questions, click the link. 

I am goy, but I had a good friend who called himself a 'completed Jew.' That is, he converted to Christianity. His heart did, anyway. His stomach still kept kosher. He rendered his own schmaltz and used no other cooking fat or oil. He invited me over to eat with him every week. Most times I accepted. I am familiar with schmaltz. 

When Vance Dingfelder (picture above) related his tale of schmaltz I did not flinch. My lack of response seemed to impress Vance. He told me that once upon a time he rendered chickens for schmaltz. Then some supplier persuaded Vance to give his schmaltz a try. Vance said the outside product was as good as his own, and when he costed out his own production, the outside product came out cheaper. 

Vance switched from house-made schmaltz to outside-supplier schmaltz. Then he found that that cooking copious amounts of chicken soup left schmaltz as a by-product. Thus, he returned to house-made schmaltz, right? 

I dunno. The story was long, and I got lost. In either case, Dingfelder's cooks its gribenes and its latkes in schmaltz. Makes a difference. A big difference. 

'Gribenes (Jewish Chicharrónes) kosher Skins.' That is quoted from Dingfelder's deli menu. For them as know not Mexican delicacies, chicharrónes are fried pork skins. Usually deep fried in lard. That Vance knows chicharrónes suggests that he breaks the Jewish dietary laws sometimes. Gribenes are fried chicken skins. Between the two, I prefer chicharrónes, but my preference is not strong. Do chicharrónes taste better by a preponderance of the evidence? Yeah. By a clear and convincing standard? No. 

Gribenes are pictured above left. Call those golden brown. Dingfelder's gribenes were two shades darker the day we tried them. 

Latkes were next (pictured above right). I have eaten more latkes than I can count. Had a lot of German potato pancakes, too. In my humble opinion, Dingfelder's were the best I ever had. No doubt. I think the schmaltz made the difference. 

Gribenes: A+ 
Latkes: A+ 

Missed the chance to include a couple of pictures last time, and for that omission, I apologize and atone. Dingfelder's pickles and Dr Brown's Root Beer:

 

I really enjoyed Dingfelder's pickles. My only complaint is that there were too few of them with my order. Next time I shall order a to-go container filled with these delicious pickles. 

Never had Dr Brown's fizzy drink before. Surprised to learn that the company has been in business since 1869. Good stuff. 

Next: Corned beef on rye. Do not miss this one! 

Dingfelder's : Borscht and Dr Brown's Root Beer (Two of six . . . I combined some posts.)

 

*

Link to Dingfelder's Delicatessen. 

We arrived at Dingfelder's on a Thursday. Soup-of-the-day was borscht. Was not always borscht. I saw a photo of Dingfelder's menu from years back on Yelp that gave Harvest Vegetable as the soup for Thursday. 

When I ordered, Ari told me that this was the summer borscht and asked if I still wanted the borscht. I said, "Sure." Had never heard of summer borscht. How does summer borscht differ from winter borscht? Or fall borscht? Or spring borscht? 

There is a difference. Dingfelder's summer borscht uses gold beets. Big surprise for me. Never had gold beets before. Until that moment, I did not know gold beets existed. 

Summer borscht looked nothing like the red beet borscht I like. Looks more like a vegetable soup. Hmm. Shades of Harvest vegetable, what? On the plus side, the textures were good. Not overcooked and mushy, not undercooked and chewy. On the minus side, I tasted vinegar. That was the dominant note. My wife took one taste and never touched the borscht again. The vinegar was a deal killer for her. 

Dr Brown's Root Beer. I like root beer. FWIW I like sarsaparilla, too, but that's a rare find. I like ginger beer, too, and have been meaning to brew some. 

Anyway, Dingfelder's displayed the sodas they offer. Dr Brown's Root Beer was one of 'em. Decided to try it. Glad I did. Whoever chose this drink for Dingfelder's did well. Good taste but not brash. Not too sweet. Excellent choice. 

Borscht: B+ 

Dr Brown's Root Beer: A 

Yelp photos of Dingfelder's food, Dingfelder's menu, and Vance Dingfelder. 

Next time . . . Gribenes and Latkes. 

* This photo I got off the internet. It is not from Dingfelder's. I took no pictures that day. My bad. 

Dingfelder's : Mother's chicken soup (One of eight . . . or nine)

 

I want to start this review off right. Here is the link to Dingfelder's Delicatessen.  

We had mom's chicken soup, pickles, borscht, gribenes, latkes, a Reuben Corned Beef sandwich on rye, a chopped chicken liver on onion roll, and beef tongue on rye. I shall treat each item in a separate review. 

Today I shall review mom's chicken soup and the pickles. 

If you chased the link above to Dingfelder's, you may have noticed that mom' chicken soup is not on the menu. There is a story there.  

When I planned this trip, I saw a blog that listed Dingfelder's Deli among the ten best sandwich shops in Seattle. There were others, but Dingfelder's . . . there is a name that stands out. I put Dingfelder's Deli on my 'Must Visit' list and continued my planning. 

I executed my plan, and we arrived at Dingfelder's one afternoon. One Thursday afternoon. This will be important when I review their borscht. 

Ari, polite and helpful, took our first order. Soon after our order arrived, Vance Dingfelder -- the owner his own self -- joined us and struck up a conversation. 

For his cooking skills and business, Vance credits his grandmothers. There are photos of them on the walls. Not small photos. Billboard-size photos. 

Vance asked me how I found his eatery. I told him Dingfelder's Delicatessen popped on on my computer as one of the ten best restaurants in Seattle. Vance lost his smile and peered at me through narrowed eyes. It was clear he did not believe me. (I swear it was true.) Vance keeps a cynical appreciation of his deli's place in the Seattle restaurant pecking order. We then talked about Bateau restaurant. Vance said he goes there once a month, but from all the stories he told me of his sojourns there, I think he eats at Bateau more often than that. 

My wife and I each finished a latke while Vance talked. That is when Vance excused himself to the kitchen and brought back two cups of Mother's Chicken Soup. The soup was full of vegetables and goodness. Serious Jewish penicillin. Don't know, but I think this is the base for "Grandma" Matzo Ball Soup. Wife liked it. I liked it. 

Pickles. Dingfelder's serves pickles as sides to sandwiches. Their pickles include cucumbers and green tomatoes. Pickled together? Don't know but to me the tastes say yes. Kosher? I think so, but mild with a hint of sweetness. Reminded me of  the taste of bread-and-butter pickles. Excellent. 

Mother's Chicken Soup: A- 

The pickles: A 

Next time . . . Borscht. 

One more time, the link : https://dingfelders.com/ 

Embassy Suites - SeaTac – Good, Bad, and Ugly

Bunny and I stayed at the Embassy Suites – SeaTac; that is, not the Embassy Suites in downtown Seattle.

Dark when we walked out of the airport at 10.40 pm to hunt for a shuttle bus. Called for a shuttle and went to the hotel.

The Good:

Most of my experience with Embassy Suites is with the Embassy Suites – Santa Clara. A Silicon Valley company put me up there when they brought me in to interview. First time in an Embassy Suites hotel. I enjoyed the space.

After a day of interviews, I returned to the hotel and freshened up. As I washed my face, my tongue said to me, "Sashimi." I heeded my tongue.

Descended to the reception desk where I found two young men. I asked the one on my left if he knew a good sushi bar. He turned to his partner – a Japanese-looking young man – and said, "Hey, Steve*, you know a good sushi bar?"

* Honestly I do not recall his name, but Steve popped into my head when I thought back to that evening, and it is no more wrong than any other name, so let's go with Steve.

Steve glared sidelong at his partner and answered, "Yeah, the one my parents own."

I don't know about you, but I found this amusing. I thought, Have you two met?

Anyway, Steve directed me to his parents' sushi bar. Even drew me a map. FYI this was before Google. Yeah, I'm old.

Drove to the sushi bar. Matsuri. That was its name. Means 'festival'. Yeah, I speak Japanese. No, I don't read Japanese. Well, maybe eight words.

Enjoyed the food and the ambiance at Matsuri. Steve's mom played hostess. She saved a seat for me at the bar. Evidently Steve called her to make a place for me. Steve did well.

When I got home, I wrote a letter to the president of Embassy Suites to praise Steve. Had to go to the library to find who was the president of and what was the address of Embassy Suites. FYI no worldwide web at this time. Yeah, I'm old. Posted the letter.

Other companies brought me to Silicon Valley for interviews. None of them put me up in a hotel as nice as Embassy Suites. The company that did put me up in Embassy Suites offered me a job, and I took it. Moved to Silicon Valley.

One evening after I moved there, my tongue said, "Sashimi." Drove to Matsuri again.

Place was packed. No seat open anywhere.

Steve's mom recognized me and came running over with a big smile. DEEP bow . . . and a handshake! "Come. Come," she said. She made all the customers at the bar scoot together and put up another stool for me. All the while, she called me 'Keith-sama.' If you know Japanese, you know what a big deal that is.

I sat, ordered tako sashimi, and cleaned my hands with the oshiburi. Big guy with a beard next to me looked me over and said, "You must be somebody special."

I smiled. "Must be."

Spent many, many happy evenings at Matsuri. That letter in praise of Steve did as much for me as for him.

Spent many happy evenings at Embassy Suites – Santa Clara, too. Made a habit of spending New Year's Eve and New Year's Day there. I recall watching the movie 'The Fugitive' for the first time there.

Stayed at other Embassy Suites, too, but my guess is that all other stays added up will not equal the number of my stays at Embassy Suites – Santa Clara.

Back to Embassy Suites – SeaTac.

Tyler worked the desk at Embassy Suites – SeaTac. I talked to Tyler on the phone before we booked our stay, and he impressed me with his local knowledge. Met him the morning after we arrived and he impressed me again. The man knows his job and more. He went beyond his job to help me while I was a guest at his hotel. Outstanding individual effort. I am confident if I book the Embassy Suites – SeaTac again, Tyler will take care of me.

Jon drives the shuttle bus during the day. Every time I saw Jon, he brightened my day. Big smile at all times. Cheerful. Helpful. Went out of his way to make our day better. Outstanding individual effort.

It is the people who make an experience good or bad. Tyler and Jon made my experience at Embassy Suites - SeaTac good.

Honorable mention:

Julia and the breakfast crew. Each of them was pleasant, cheerful, and good at their job. I name only Julia because she was the only one whose name tag I saw. The others had their backs to me while they worked the grill. Good food made by good people.

Maria with housekeeping greeted me with a smile when she brought us extra towels. Humored me by conversing in Spanish, too.

My wife is a professional chef, and she sees things I do not. The woman who bussed tables impressed her. My wife tipped her for her good work.

The Bad:

I like to think I am a patient man, but after two long flights, TSA Kibuki-theater, and wandering through SeaTac airport to find a way out, my patience evaporated.

The courtesy phone to call for a hotel shuttle at SeaTac Airport is ridiculously and unnecessarily complicated. I do not know, but I suspect it is the product of the fevered imagination of a local government committee with zero experience in design.

With some study – believe me, after two flights, clearing customs, the drunk-with-authority hassle of TSA Kibuki-theater, and treks through three airports, I was tired and in no temper to study – and three failed attempts, I got through to our hotel and called for their shuttle bus.

The hotel clerk told me to go to D4. Or C1. Somewhere.

"No. You tell the driver to come to me. I'm at," I looked up, "C3."

Clerk said, "Okay. Look for a van with Embassy Suites on a paper in the window."

I swear to God that is what she said. Aye and begorra, a white van showed up with an eight-and-a-half-by-eleven sheet of paper taped to the front window on the passenger side with 'Embassy Suites' in large, bold letters printed on it.

Embassy Suites. Look. You are not 'Joe and Mabel's Roadside Cottages'. Pay to get your van painted with your name. All the other hotels have their vans painted that way. I counted two off-airport parking lots with shuttles that were painted with their broadsides. Get with the cool kids.

If you have not read Nick Stephenson, I recommend you do: https://www.yourfirst10kreaders.com/. Sign up for Nick's emails. They contain droll musings on his children, his life, and his fancies. They also contain useful, valuable information.

One series of emails Nicks sent reflected on his family trip to Disneyland France (the cold one) in December 2020. He analyzed Disney as a business. His analysis boiled down to this: Disney works hard to make the Disney experience frictionless for its guests.

You should strive to do the same.

Christ and Buddha, I should strive to do the same.

Can I explain what 'frictionless' means? Nick said it means 'stress free'.

The shuttle to Embassy Suites was not frictionless.

The ride was good. No problem. Getting in the hotel sucked.

Our driver unloaded our bags and strolled over to sit and chat with someone. We took our bags and went to the entrance.

I tried to open the door. No joy. Then I notice the sign that read 'DOOR IS LOCKED AFTER 11 PM'. Guess what time it was. I rattled the door, turned and called to the driver to open the door for us. A clerk ambled to the entrance and unlocked the door.

Embassy Suites – SeaTac, when guests arrive late, GET THEM IN THE DOOR! Make this the duty of the driver.

The desk clerk told me the hotel was full. I pulled out my phone and showed her a photo of my Embassy Suites confirmation. Lo and behold, they did have a room for us. We got our keycards, wife bought some instant noodles, and we took the one working elevator to the fifth floor. Found our room; that search was easy. Went in. Found the lights. Two full-size beds. I ordered a suite with a single king bed. Descended to the desk and asked the clerk to change my room.

"We're full. Maybe I can change your room tomorrow."

Not what I wanted to hear. Especially since I had PAID IN ADVANCE for the room I wanted.

Not frictionless. Most definitely not frictionless.

Asked for a 5am alarm call.

Back to the room, unpacked, fell into bed. The Good: Comfortable bed.

Awoke at 6am. Honest to Buddha, my first thought was, I did not get a wake-up call.

Got dressed. Left wife asleep and went down to breakfast. Passed by the reception desk. Clerk called me to the desk. Same clerk as before.

"What time did you want your alarm call?"

"Five A-M."

"This is what I wrote down." Showed me a scrap of paper with 3am and my room number written on it. "I called then, but I wasn't sure. I heard it ring once and hung up because I was scared I got it wrong."

I know that I will never waste my time asking for a wake-up call at Embassy Suites again.

Wife woke at 8am and hurried to get to breakfast. Tyler showed up to work and – miracle of miracles – things got smooth. Told him I had business downtown and he told me how to get there with the least fuss. Told Tyler of my woes and he promised to see what he could do for me while I was away.

Jon showed up and things got brighter and easier.

Then we got on the Light Rail and things went to shyte.

Some years ago, there was a fire in the subway where we live. The planned reaction did what it was designed to do, but that was not the right thing to do.

Two hundred people died.

Less than a year later, a crazy man squirted lighter fluid in the aisle of a subway car and lit it. As a result of the previous fire, the cars had been fitted with extinguishers. Nobody died including the crazy arsonist who was tackled by other passengers and beaten unconscious. He was lucky that the transport cops sped to the scene and took him away.

So we were riding the Light Rail when a crazy woman squirted light motor oil in the aisle of the car we were in. My wife panicked 'cause she remembered the events in our town. When the train stopped at the next station, she herded everybody off the train and pulled the alarm. Transport cops came and finished unloading everyone from the train. Crazy woman hefted her belongings in a black garbage bag, swore at the cops, and made her escape. The transport cops did not follow her.

Minutes passed. Train left the station empty. Everybody piled into the next train, and away we went. Minus one crazy woman.

Seattle is a failed city. Whoever is responsible for the Light Rail is incompetent and MUST BE FIRED. By your gross negligence, you endangered the lives of hundreds of passengers. Worse, you endangered my wife's life.

The Ugly:

Both Tyler and Jon spoke of the hotel manager in glowing terms. As a paying guest, my opinion differs.

When I returned to the hotel, Tyler was still working. He collared me and informed me that, when he checked, I was still being charged for a king-sized bed (!) but that he had changed that to the lower rate and added a $20 discount. He asked if I wanted to swap rooms. I told him my wife liked the room and wanted to stay. Tyler smiled and said he would discount my two remaining nights.

This is great service. Where did Tyler learn to give such great service?

I cannot believe he learned it from the hotel manager. IMO the other clerks have not been trained at all. I doubt they can find the toilet without someone to hold their hand.

For instance, the night I arrived I asked the clerk if the hotel had courtesy toiletries – including a razor – for guests. She said, 'No.' The next morning, I asked Tyler the same question. He said, 'Of course', turned around, and pulled out a big drawer that was filled with toiletry packets. Grabbed one and handed it to me.

The hotel had two elevators. One was out of service during the duration of our stay. Never saw a workman on it. The other elevator ran hot all day every day.

Why was there no workman on the elevator?

This is a failure of management.

Embassy Suites. At the corporate level, who is responsible for employee training? Fire him.^† Pour encourager les autres. Find the best clerks in the company – like Tyler – and ask them 1) what they do and 2) what is their attitude about what they do. WTSD and drill it into every clerk in the company. Same with shuttle drivers. Those drivers are the first contact your guests have with your company. Do they represent you well or ill?

^† If you say 'We have no such position', then the responsibility falls to the president. Fire him.

Best if you follow each of these top performers with a videographer all day and record everything they do so you can figure out what makes the great emploees great and share that with others.

The Embassy Suites hotel manager must be doing something right to generate such loyalty in employees like Tyler and Jon, but I did not see it.

The money question: Will I book another stay at the Embassy Suites – SeaTac?

For Tyler, Jon, Julia and the breakfast crew, and Maria, yes, I will. Great people make a great experience. Maybe next time my wife will swim in the pool.

Coming up: Reviews of Dingfelder's Delicatessen and its food. That's right. Reviews. Plural.

Hawaiian Airlines – Good, Bad, and Ugly

"Next time: Our trip to Seattle and Hawaiian Airlines good and bad. "

That was the end of my last post. Time to fulfill that promise.

Bunny and I flew Hawaiian Airlines redeye on an Airbus 330 to Honolulu. Landed minutes after 11am and collected our bags to pass through Customs. Surprised to find Customs easy and the Customs officer friendly. She smiled the whole time.

Got lost in the airport. Finally made it to our next plane to fly to Seattle. TSA was not fun.

Landed at SeaTac airport after 10pm. Found the courtesy phone at curbside. Takes a genius to figure out the hotel courtesy phone. Fortunately I am a genius. Dialed up Embassy Suites SeaTac and their shuttle bus came for us.

The Good:

M, our flight attendant, was the best thing about our flight from Honolulu to Seattle. Only my stewardess on a Korean Air flight was equal to M.

M was attentive, helpful (suggested a way for me to get my bag into the overhead bin), and cheerful (always smiled). We flew economy class, and a good attendant makes a big difference.

It is the people who make an experience good or bad. M made my experience on that flight good.

The Bad:

I do not like Airbus planes. The passenger space feels cheap to me. I had trouble finding the earphone jack. Some A330s have it in the arm rest. Some have it below the screen. When I got plugged in, I had to turn the jack in the socket to get a connection. At Airbus, quality is job four hundred eighty-seven.

The light switches and the call switch are not intuitive. Any rational person – that is, not a Frenchman – would place the switch next to the device. So where did Airbus put 'em?

In the screen.

That's right. Along with the list of movies and cartoons available, there is an icon to bring up the switches. In a previous life, I worked man-machine interface design. I am qualified to judge this design.

This is a FAIL.

Hawaiian Airlines in-flight food gets a C. Not a C+. I got a drink with the meal. When I asked for water later, the attendant (not M) brought me a bottle and said, "That will be four dollars."

Look, Hawaiian Air, rather than charge your customers for water, fire some executives. If your executives are okay with the nickel and dime treatment, you need to get rid of 'em anyway.

Hawaiian Airlines has in-flight video documentaries and in-flight magazine articles about the lives of their employees doing good deeds in Hawaii. Hawaiian Airlines has in-flight video documentaries about native Hawaiian life.

That is all well and good.

But it is wrong.

Seems to me that Hawaiian Air is in the business of selling Hawaii. That is stupid. People have already bought Hawaii. Hawaii is on my list of places to go and visit for a while. How to get there? That is the question.

The head of Hawaiian Air needs a two-by-four counseling session to remind him that he is in the business of selling transportation. Seats on flights. Nothing else.

When I flew Hawaiian Air, the attendants had the last row of seats screened off. These seats were for use of the attendants. By my reckoning that was $4,200 lost. Woulda paid for my water.

The Ugly:

No real ugly but asking four bucks for a bottle of water comes close.

In the end, the question is this:

Will I choose to fly Hawaiian Air again?

Maybe, but you can bet and give odds that I will shop around.

What happened?

My record shows I made my last post February 2019. Been -- what? -- four and a half years and a bit. Why the delay? 

First. 

Wife opened her cafe. Working the cafe took all her time and money. Took all my time and a good portion of my money, too. After some months, got within spitting distance of breaking even. Then -- 

Second. 

The Great Wuhan Flu Epidemic hit. For those who believe the lie that the Wuhan Flu started with a bat in an open air market, please leave. 

Well, that put an end to the cafe. Despite the shutdown of many restaurants, wife got a job as the chef in a company cafeteria. She liked the work, but the job had two drawbacks: long commute (hour and a half each way) and a crazy boss. The crazy boss is not an exaggeration. Turned out she had a brain tumor. When she got the diagnosis, she sold her business. That was -- what? -- September. So two months ago. 

Wife signed up for some cooking courses to get new certifications. In the space between wife leaving her job and her first cooking course, we took a trip. 

Next time: Our trip to Seattle and Hawaiian Airlines good and bad.