Category: Food & Drink

Tradition

Food & Drink

Sod off, Swampy.  Trying to stop la famille du Toit  from getting together at this time of year would take a company of Marines, and even that might not work.

We do Christmas meals a little differently from most people.  It’s too long a back story to tell now, but basically, we stagger our Christmas meals so that various of the family members can visit with their in-laws, girlfriends’ / boyfriends’ parents on Christmas Day.

So Christmas Day is always devoted to an early-morning present-opening ceremony, followed by a Full English breakfast:

…after which the kids scatter to the four winds.

That was yesterday.

Today is Boxing Day (in Britishland), which is when the family comes back to our place for a proper Christmas dinner (roast beef with Yorkshire pudding):

That will be this evening… and I’m still full from yesterday.

Have mercy.

Question

Food & Drink

Longtime Reader Sean F. sent me this, and wondered if I’d ever tried it:

My reply was unprintable, even for this website.  Gin-flavored tea — i.e. adding a sniff of gin to a cup of Yorkshire Gold — might be acceptable in cases of dire emergency (although rum is far better).  But a tea-flavored gin?

The fact that they chose the floral Earl Gray — tea of people who don’t know much about tea but are seduced by the ersatz  class of the name — says it all.  Revolting.

Expansion Opportunity

Food & Drink

As S&W has haughtily turned its back on Texas, we look to our Cousins Across The Pond for future investment in the Lone Star State:

Greggs today warned supply issues were pushing up the cost it pays for food and labour – presenting the risk of future price rises – as it promised sausage rolls are safe despite the UK’s pork crisis…
…
The Newcastle-based chain is also looking into opening overseas locations for the first time.

For my Murkin Readers who may have forgotten about this fabulous company and its most excellent wares:

From the top:  sausage roll, steak bake, cheese & onion.

And there are more, oh so much more.

[takes moment to wipe up drool]

I know that you folks at Greggs have probably employed vast armies of Bainies and McKinzies to ascertain where your best opportunities lie here in Murka — and if their suggestions don’t include the US, fire them — but I can save you a ton of money simply by suggesting the Dallas-Ft. Worth metroplex.

  • Fourth-largest metro area in the U.S. (7.65 million)
  • One of the fastest-growing metro areas in the U.S.
  • We have a large expat community, including not only Brits and Aussies, but Seffricans as well, for whom sossies and steak pies are comfort foods like few others.
  • The DFW-London air travel route is always full, not just of the aforesaid, but Texans going there for vacations and business purposes.  They will know about Greggs.

Now I know that a bunch of Californians are going to say the same kind of thing about their state — but compare the time and cost in getting a food business operating license (hint:  months and thousands of dollars in CA vs. days and scores of dollars in TX) and we haven’t even talked about the tax benefits (TX: low vs. CA: astronomical) and cost of land/rents (TX: low vs. CA: don’t even ask).  And most Californians eat fucking salads more than pastries anyway, whereas we Texans loves us our fried pies and baked anything.

And by the way, I scored 7/11 on your quiz, and I haven’t been Over There in nearly four years.  If that’s not a Greggs fan, I don’t know what is.

So waddya say, Greggs?