Arts & Entertainment
Amuse-bouche: The most unlikely of pioneers
Published
5 years agoon
Posted By
Outlaw PartnersBy Scott Mechura EBS Food Columnist
The history of restaurants and bars in America is short compared to that of the Old World. We didn’t really see the modern, fine dining restaurant as we know it until the turn of the last century. And we credit New York City’s Delmonico’s and its a la carte menu for that.
In hindsight, Wolfgang Puck was the first “celebrity chef.” His restaurants were packed with the Hollywood elite; he created an empire that included a grocery store line of products, regular television appearances; and was one of the first people in America to open what we now refer to as a brewpub, Eureka, which closed in 1993.
Alice Waters, the self-proclaimed hippie chef from Berkley, California, opened Chez Panisse in 1971. It changed the way we experienced dining in a restaurant and approached menus. Creating smaller plates, and focusing on locally sourced, seasonal ingredients, rather than technique, and establishing direct relationships with farmers and ranchers, Chez Panisse remains a formidable dining institution to this day.
And any multi-unit restaurant on the globe has the golden arches of McDonalds to thank for establishing reliable systems of duplication anywhere in the world.
But there is another pioneer—a restaurant that has had more influence on America’s modern dining and bar scene, yet seldom gets acknowledged for the many once-revolutionary practices that have since become commonplace.
I’m not talking about The French Laundry in Napa Valley, or New Orleans’ Commander’s Palace, but none other than T.G.I. Fridays.
From interior to floor plan, cocktails, branding, movies and much more, Fridays, the casual dining chain single handedly shaped a multitude of new concepts into common practices that now span an entire industry.
Wishing there was an unintimidating bar where he could meet girls (but not in a “two wild and crazy guys” kind of way), Alan Stillman opened the first Fridays on Manhattan’s East Side in 1965.
Stillman wanted to create an atmosphere were a group of women could have a drink in a bar and feel safe, rather than at the apartment cocktail parties that were popular at the time. The staple Friday’s interior of wood and Tiffany lamps was to create the feeling of one of those apartments. And it didn’t hurt that the neighborhood was filled with flight attendants and fashion models—just shy of 500 according to Stillman.
What soon followed was what is now known as “ladies night.” And these evenings became so popular that ropes were put in place outside the entrance, like theaters. No other bar had ever had this “problem.”
What followed, in partnership with college friend Ben Benson, was to open seven more locations throughout the south.
What’s more, Fridays created mixed drinks with fruit juices and fruit garnishes, the precursor to the craft cocktail.
Previously, bars were where you went to get a beer from a bartender who kept his interaction with you to a minimum. But Fridays soon had bartenders from all over clambering for jobs in their restaurants because they actually engaged the customer in an open friendly dialogue.
What followed was fresh, from scratch, approachable menu items that appealed to a wide audience.
And it didn’t hurt that the Tom Cruise movie Cocktail was based on T.G.I. Fridays and its founder. And we had yet another Fridays original; bartender and server “Olympics.”
You could make the argument that being able to memorize 400 drinks, make a handful of them blindfolded, and train as a bar-back for up to nine months before earning your first bartender shift at a Fridays, that they were the original mixologists. By today’s standards, T.G.I. Fridays may be a Myspace rather than a Facebook, but the restaurant absolutely changed the way Americans ate and drank for all time.
Scott Mechura has spent a life in the hospitality industry. He is a former certified beer judge and currently the Executive Chef at Buck’s T-4 Lodge in Big Sky.
The Outlaw Partners is a creative marketing, media and events company based in Big Sky, Montana.
Upcoming Events
april, 2024
Event Type :
All
All
Arts
Education
Music
Other
Sports
Event Details
Children turning 5 on or before 9/10/2024:
more
Event Details
Children turning 5 on or before
9/10/2024: Kindergarten
enrollment for the 2024-2025 school year can be completed by following the
registration process now.
Children
born on or after September 11, 2019: 4K enrollment is now open for
families that have a 4-year-old they would like to enroll in our program for
the 2023-2024 school year. Please complete the 4K Interest Form to
express your interest. Completing this form does not guarantee enrollment into
the 4K program. Enrollment is capped at twenty 4-year-olds currently
residing within Big Sky School District boundary full time and will be
determined by birth date in calendar order of those born on or after September
11, 2018. Interest form closes on May 30th.
Enrollment now is critical for fall preparations. Thank you!
Time
February 26 (Monday) - April 21 (Sunday)
Event Details
Saturday, March 23rd 6:00-8:00pm We will combine the heart-opening powers of cacao with the transcendental powers of breathwork and sound. Together, these practices will give us the opportunity for a deep
more
Event Details
Saturday, March 23rd 6:00-8:00pm
Time
March 23 (Saturday) 6:00 pm - April 23 (Tuesday) 8:00 pm
Location
Santosha Wellness Center
169 Snowy Mountain Circle
Event Details
We all are familiar with using a limited palette, but do you use one? Do you know how to use a
more
Event Details
We all are familiar with using a limited palette, but do you use one? Do you know how to use a limited palette to create different color combinations? Are you tired of carrying around 15-20 different tubes when you paint plein air? Have you ever wanted to create a certain “mood” in a painting but failed? Do you create a lot of mud? Do you struggle to achieve color harmony? All these problems are addressed in John’s workbook in clear and concise language!
Based on the bestselling “Limited Palatte, Unlimited Color” workbook written by John Pototschnik, the workshop is run by Maggie Shane and Annie McCoy, accomplished landscape (acrylic) and plein air (oil) artists,exhibitors at the Big Sky Artists’ Studio & Gallery and members of the Big Sky Artists Collective.
Each student will receive a copy of “Limited Palette, Unlimited Color” to keep and take home to continue your limited palette journey. We will show you how to use the color wheel and mix your own clean mixtures to successfully create a mood for your paintings.
Each day, we will create a different limited palette color chart and paint a version of a simple landscape using John’s directives. You will then be able to go home and paint more schemes using the book for guidance.
Workshop is open to painters (oil or acrylic) of any level although students must have some basic knowledge of the medium he or she uses. Students will be provided the book ($92 value), color wheel, value scale and canvas papers to complete the daily exercises.
Sundays, April 14, 21 and 28, 2024
Noon until 6PM.
$170.
Time
14 (Sunday) 12:00 pm - 28 (Sunday) 6:00 pm
Event Details
Come join us at Cowboy Coffee as we celebrate a fun night of drinks, games, and meeting others within the community. This event is from 6-8 and all are welcome
Event Details
Come join us at Cowboy Coffee as we celebrate a fun night of drinks, games, and meeting others within the community. This event is from 6-8 and all are welcome to come, if you don’t know who to bring come alone this is a great mixer event! This is an event hosted by Big Sky OUT as we work to provide queer safe spaces throughout the community.
Time
(Sunday) 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Location
Cowboy Coffee
25 Town Center Ave. Big Sky, MT 59716