Take a recent outing where the waiter quickly moved himself into the annoying corner as he seemed to meet resistance with his every ploy. Sparkling water became a spigot that was never shut off. You know how I feel about the restaurant versions of still and sparkling without a cost to the consumer.

When the waiter moved to a more profitable part of the menu as he  tried to sell truffles a thousand ways, he lost everyone at the banquette. The group preferred a conversation rather than a lesson in pricing or slicing. He was unstoppable as he moved through menu gyrations with the almost musical tone, “we could just add a thin truffle slice to make the dish purr.” Seriously, uninterested and turned off by this overpowering display of in-your-face possibilities. Let us dine. Let us relax and chat and welcome our dining choice rather than secretly dread the restaurant decision.  Did he mention the cost? No need; there were no bites at the table. He quickly tried another approach, also an unsuccessful strategy as he encouraged additional courses. He asked, “Is that it?” Not smooth; not impressive, and not a winning tool.

Yes, dining out can be complicated and expensive with rising food costs and creative plating as chefs struggle with all matters of pricing.  Yet, the annoyingly, cloying waiter needs to remain a caricature and not make a visible presence tableside. Let the diners’ imaginations go wild and let them initiate as in, “could I have the truffle atop that salad, or…”.  You get the picture. Food is expensive enough at high-tiered restaurants without the nagging upsell that has again entered the market space.

Let’s all be hospitable and relax.

Besides ample room to negotiate the aisles, what else is new in this brightly lit environment? Where does one begin? Maybe with the fact that they have a butcher on site. That works for me as the profession has been slowly facing the death knell. To help the butcher have a bold presence, there’ll be no shortage of great aromas as the meat department has its own smoker for ribs and brisket, a Kosher selection, and dry-aged meats.

The fish and seafood counter may remind you a bit of the way hotels are reaching out and getting away from the front desk concept. In this department, the staff will come out from behind the counter and help you select your items. The more personalized, interactive, approach is something that will be evident throughout the entire store.

Name a department and put them to the test. They’ve got you covered. Start with take-away, prepared foods. You’ll be swimming in possibilities from the hot 850 degree pizza oven that promises a Neapolitan selection in 90 seconds to the new Arepas section for your cornmeal cake. Too daring, then step over to the burger and hot dog station. Some other changes right there: An organic salad bar. Now that takes the guesswork out of decision-making! They’ll even have smaller, more affordable prepared salads in the cases.

As for what’s truly different: Cooking Rockville promises to take the guesswork out of “How do I prepare this food, ingredient?” They have a staff of cooking coaches ready to assist in an inviting space with a wall of spices and grains as a backdrop!  This area should help more shoppers take the next step into adventuresome, reality cooking, what they call CIY, Cooking It Yourself. They’ll champion you.

The company seems focused on addressing an age-old problem: Affordability. They are conscious of what’s involved for every shopper and stress their new focus: competitive everyday prices, over 2,000 sale items per month, and plenty of weekly specials. When you add that up and throw in the emphasis on fresh, organic, and local,  you have followed the Market to its next step.

It’s always fun to go to a new grocer or restaurant preview. This outing was no exception. Yes, Whole Foods has shown that shopping does not have to be dull. Always fun to see new departments stretch the possibilities and respond to the latest trends.

Grab a basket. It’s opening day!

Then, the impasse. Your email is filled with offers. Deals, bargains, two-fers; you name it. They’re there. What happened? How did we get to this point, and why was no one offering us these “bargains” before? Marketing organization is the strategy that convinces businesses to take advantage of online energy. It’s simple for the companies, especially small companies, but no one should forget how well big players such as Gap (Groupon deal) and Amazon (Living Social deal) did with their offers!  Small businesses, on the other hand,  see the advantage of possibly getting 1,000 new customers. Will they have stickiness is the big question or does the purchaser only visit the place on his special deal visit?

Look at the possibilities that I awoke to this morning: Half-off a burger, $15 for $30 worth of food from a large selection of Asian and European restaurants, $25 for $50 at an American spot…I could continue, but it is rather alarming how these deals multiply. Subscribers are divided into only two groups: The Addicted and the Never Again. The fine print often gets the Never Again as they missed the expiration date or the deal was not what they expected.

The Addicted, a group I might claim chairmanship, means a daily scroll through the possibilities and some serious personal, private conversations about how many deals should one have floating in their cloud at any one time? I do have self-control, as in, I did not buy $20 worth of candy which looked like jelly beans for $10. Yet, a good chocolate offer…BTW, companies are sprouting up all over the country. New online contenders continually seem to offer a deal a day. Deal categories continue to expand from cooking classes to clothing to home decor and activity trips or vacations. You name it; there’s a deal site.

What’s one to do? Of course, cancellation would be an option, but then you’d miss the hot new restaurant that’s trying to get your attention. After all when you scan through sold out past deals, you see what you missed!

Just to show you the popularity of these programs, try to take advantage of the offer to get “free” money with a referral. Everyone you send it to seems to respond, “already subscribe.”

The obvious solution: Invest in the companies when they go public. They know how to make a deal.

Whether hot or iced, short or tall, in a cup or a mug, you get the Dr. Seuss cadence. Coffee is a treat, a necessity, a way of life. So set aside a moment today and catch the wafting aromas as the steam fills the air. Find a shop that draws a lovely little design on your latte: Latte Art.

Relax, enjoy, and celebrate this most worthy day!

By the way, sorry for the late post, I’ve had too many such celebratory breaks today!

This blog is after all named All Before Coffee, and I have explained that thoughts occur along that caffeinated highway at any time, day or night. Yes, I like my coffee strong, frequent, and made fresh. Seasonally, I love a triple over ice, no water, but when the temperature falls into single digits, coffee cures: Hot.

This has been the year of the ultimate fights among the giants. As Starbucks was down and many called it a vulnerable player of an earlier, sound economic era, the company responded with its own belt-tightening strategy and a remaking of its image. VIA came along and did so well that it spawned flavored single paks. Who woulda thunk it?

McDonalds refused to sit still and watch people return to Starbucks. They created a coffee strategy of possibilities and convinced their customers that a latte could be enjoyed at a McD’s. The consumer was the coffee winner. Possibilities abounded and other fast food chains responded with their own coffee selections. Coffee was hot and selling. Dunkin’, Caribou, and other big name players rolled out a laundry list of selections.

Then the sensibility quotient: This was the year that the coffee cup came into play as the enviro cups made a more lasting impression on customers. More people were purchasing their own carry around reusable mugs. Just don’t try to take your holiday thermos to an airport!

Yet, the biggest news was probably that the consumer had become educated and wanted more for his money. “Don’t just hand me a cup and expect me to go to the pump machine: Make it. And make it they did with an impressive list of new equipment vying for customer attention and loyalty. The list goes on (walk down a Manhattan or Brooklyn neighborhood and see the little coffee guy’s new piece of high-end equipment) as we move into the new year as the home consumer wants to duplicate the coffee shop experience and several manufacturers are ready to accommodate. No, you do not need the $1,000 machine, but it’s great if you can have it. There are plenty of new approaches that promise to give the home user a coffee shop experience, a hand-brewed special of the house!

Whether before the first cup or from the smell of the in-home fresh-brewed awakens your sensibilities, one fact remains: Coffee’s vitality kicks it up a notch. The story goes on.

Let us hope that 2011 gives us numerous coffee pleasures.

The news of their apparent breakup means Starbucks products would not be distributed by Kraft to grocery stores, nor would Seattle’s Best, a brand of the Starbucks family. This has been a back-and-forth discussion about who would make certain the shelves were properly stocked with the coffees. The plan was for Starbucks to exit the grocery aisles by March 1. Yet, yesterday, the conversation escalated into a loud crush of responsibility when Kraft announced its coffee prices for its mainstay products, Maxwell House and Yuban Coffee, would  increase again. Starbucks countered with the comment that the new prices would exceed what had been previously agreed upon for the coffee company’s strong presence in the grocery aisles.

Confused? No need. The issue is quite simple: Where can a consumer purchase Starbucks coffee? Kraft says no problem–it plans to continue to offer the products in grocers’ coffee aisles. Starbucks says its stores can easily handle the requests.

What is a consumer to do? Wait it out and hope this escalates into a price war that sees coffee price reductions rather than the current upward trend. That type of lowered pricing may be part of a coffee drinker’s dream chest!

Love the fact Baskin-Robbins is playing in the space again with their popular Turkey Cake making a reappearance. This ice cream cake lets you choose your light and dark meat: Vanilla and Chocolate. They need 24 hours notice so think about the surprise dessert and charm your guests with two turkeys!

If you’re super crazed, they’ve got you covered with their traditional seasonal ice cream cakes such as Turtle Pie or Harvest Roll. Relax and have a fun dessert.

Welcome to the world of a dead compressor. The refrigerator quit; the compressor was the cause, and the option of a fix or replacement was not in the cards. Did I mention that the whole event took place at 7 P on a Friday nite! You know the likelihood of finding a repair person over the weekend? OK, one who doesn’t charge double for the effort of arriving at less than an optimal time! How about throwing the age of the appliance, (8 years) into the equation and multiplying that by the cost of a service call plus the compressor and the possibility that the exact replacement part is on backorder! You are approaching a negative number. Repair never entered our conversation. We were fixed on getting a new piece of equipment, one that would conserve energy and have a more efficient space configuration.

Once long ago we fell in love with the beauty of a side-by-side. Those days are so far behind us as the actual space in a side-by-side approaches the phrase, “minimally efficient.” One significant grocery visit, and you have buried the products somewhere inside the unit. Not impressive. We knew our focus on fresh and local meant we needed limited freezer space, just enough to hold the ice cream, and preferred visible space for our refrigerator items. A French door, a three-door unit, would be ideal, but there was one major stumbling block. We needed to find the appliance that could be delivered sooner rather than later and fit in the designated height consideration.

Welcome to the sign that won me over: Next Day Delivery, 7 days a week! Sure, I thought to myself, there must be some caveat such as no delivery the first week of Fall or the last Saturday of the month, or…NO, none of that. Lowe’s meant what they said. Our 8 P debacle turned into a sparkling delivery by 11 A the next morning, a Saturday! Not only did we have a replacement refrigerator within hours, but we were able to purchase something we wanted. There were plenty of 3-doors in stock so we turned to our trusty friends at Consumer Reports and verified our price-need coefficient.

Yes, today I could be doing commercials for Lowe’s as they delivered their promise, and we have a sparkling appliance happily solving our needs. Did I mention they carted the smelly unit away and did not charge for delivery! One last comment on this potentially otherwise devastating experience, we initiated the conversation about an extended warranty, and we chose the multi-year one that covered food spoilage. After all, we threw out more food than the whole extended parts and labor policy cost. Yes, I know we may never need to use it, and I hope we don’t, but throwing out a lot of food does not agree with me.

So now we’re singing a different song.

It’s not just organic coffee that does the trick; it’s the way it gets into the cup. Not every machine can turn a great bean into a magic cup. Believe me, I’ve had plenty of mediocre cups from supposedly great coffee beans.

No doubt that there is a relationship between the bean, the brewing process, and the end result.  You can buy all the great beans, spend some serious money, help the growers, and go home and use bad-tasting water and a sub-par machine and wonder how you wasted $20. The coffee was great at the store, you mutter, but here…not so much.

What is one to do. A few simple facts to follow and you’ll be smiling. First, the beans are important. When and how they got to the store and how they were taken care of are all integral components of that dream cup. The water always plays a role. Ask the Brita or Pur folks to share their research that demonstrates how people turn ordinary tap water into a much better tasting water, one without the requisite taste-hider slice of lemon or lime! Then watch the coffee sommelier, the coffee bar person, or as some would affectionately say, the barista, use the machinery to take the bean from its container into your cup.

No, I am not saying we all need to get in line and buy a Jura, a Saeco, or a Clover machine or even extol the virtues of single-cup brewing where we ask questions about the strength of the brew and how much space we need to leave in the cup for milk and sugar. BTW, fill the cup with the espresso, no additives necessary. I am saying a great bean may need some help.

Yet, serious coffee drinkers need something more than the $10 filter machine. Count your number of cups, your gas mileage to the local spot, add in the cost of your multiple espressos, and you can easily justify a machine of some substance. I’m always fascinated how excited basic coffee drinkers become when they taste a cup from a home version of the best of push technology. They have had their first cup of great, home-cured coffee.

It can be done. Simple mathematics: A good bean, great water, and a machine to match.

Sip and enjoy.

Whole Foods decided they needed companies to certify the organic claims for their personal care products. Such changes do not come overnight so the company is giving them until August to submit their compliance plans and until next June for full compliance. This should be interesting to watch! Wonder how many companies will just disappear from the shelves since they cannot meet the claims they advertise! Hmm. They are asking manufacturers that claim a product is organic to verify that it meets the USDA’s National Organic Standards.

We should applaud this move as well as salute the companies that are focusing us on our food verification. A final quick note (for today) in the anxiety column: Sunscreens.

We have been told to protect ourselves from the harmful rays of the sun. That damage and increased skin cancer rates are making us vulnerable to future problems. We lather our children and ourselves with 15-30-45 SPFs and higher so they will not be victims of future skin problems. Wait: The news may not be what it seems. Some sunscreens have ingredients that subject us to future problems; not protect, but enhance the dilemma. Now the Environmental Working Group has a list we need to check and cross-check against the products we regularly use.

As they say, it’s complicated: Protecting our food supply, making certain claims are authentic, and finding the safest, best products. We need to stay ever vigilant!

Trust….

–Giving Dad something for the grill is like giving Mom (on Mother’s Day) a new kitchen tool or a handy cooking device. Another day. Sure he loves to grill and everyone likes the post-grill kitchen clean-up, but another spatula, another day.

–Taking Dad out to eat on Father’s Day just means lots of people, lots of lines, and potentially less than stellar service. Make it yourself: That’ll be a better treat. Go ahead, you pop it on the grill! Remember, clean-up’s easy.

Dad might prefer a trip to a winery: Every state now produces wine. Lots of ‘em figured out how to make it a family affair so Dad gets to do what he wants, and the family is occupied with arts ‘n crafts, food vendors, and activities for the underage set. Check out your neighboring vineyards.

Maybe he could catch a ballgame in person or via television. Sorry, Strasburg fans, he’s not pitching today.

Repeat the Mantra: Give Dad a break; let him decide his Day.

Just a few helpful reminders. We need to be properly hydrated. That phrase gets mired in complexity. Does everyone, regardless of size, health condition, or physical activity, need the same amount of water a day? Can the sport dictate the rules? How about the length of the activity? The time of day? All relevant questions, but hydration is not a single-focused, exclusive phenomena. If you plan to start running today, grabbing a couple water bottles will not do the trick. Sure, they won’t hurt but that is not considered proper hydrating.

Let’s look at a few factors. Jimmy Connors one of tennis’s great athletes used to get leg cramps if he didn’t prepare for a match with an intensive amount of water for several days prior to the matches. He could feel them coming on and knew his lack of (water) diligence was going to cause pain. Research also indicates you can overdose on water and that can have a debilitating effect. Getting the balance can be accomplished by a daily intake of water which matches your daily physical commitment. Many recommend a sports drink to supplement water as you’ll be losing too much water through perspiration. Or, just give your water an energy boost with powder packs to turn it into a more powerful beverage. Over or under-doing liquids has severe negative consequences from leg cramps and extreme nausea to heat-related medical problems.

No one needs to remind you about sunscreen and time of day. OK, I just did, but application of the SPF’s and reapplication may be a long-term critical commitment. There are numerous products that reduce the sweating off (as in dripping into your eyes) during physical activity. Until you find the right balance of fluids and have your activity in a manageable zone, consider skipping the high noon workout or consider an indoor regimen when it’s 100 humid degrees. Keep your body hydrated no matter time of day or physical activity.

Participate. Drink. Be smart.

–”Sure you can look at the menus, but doubt we have much of them.” This led to a long circular course of confusion focusing on what do you have, but what’s this mean, and what about this?

–When we asked if we could order a bowl of berries, the response proved truly elusive. “I guess I could ask for berries, but we have a big bowl of fruit that they may want to send out.”

–We ordered the big bowl of fruit which turned out to be a sherbet cup of Ginsu, razor-thin sliced bites of an assortment of fruits, some of which had more of a winter feel than a truly springtime essence. Yes, there was a strawberry if you count one berry dissected into slivers that encircled the dish! Strawberries have been lush this year and wonderfully priced–not so hard to serve a bowl of berries!

–Taking the order was as confusing as delivering it. There was nothing complex ordered, but the delivery proved elusive: “Who had the tart?”

–Nothing was as complex as the taking of the check. The check was delivered and after several attempts to pick it up, mind you the restaurant was not crowded, we asked if they were closing and if we needed to pay up quickly. “Sadly, someone just showed up so you have at least a half an hour.”

That’s the real takeaway: “Sadly,” he said as in I’m not getting out of here for awhile so take your time.

Maybe it was his delivery or his overall level of confusion. Maybe staff training might make the whole experience easier for him. He was kind; not rude. He was the representative of an enterprise that could not work. Create a menu the staff understands and can deliver. Let the server know what exactly is going on and what needs to be communicated to a guest.

Yes, it is the hospitality industry.

What started as a comment turned into a social media Facebook success story: Incredible numbers decided to join up.

I always knew that coffee had a more vocal following; after all that caffeine has to be put to good use somewhere.

Politics aside Coffee Klatches have been around for a long time. It’s hard to describe the current state of the country as being divided between the teas and the coffees or the amount of juiced up caffeine in our spirit, but that seems to be where we are.

Pick your drink and your politics.

I’ll stick with the double espresso.

Not every restaurant has the high rent problem. Some have solved the dilemma by getting a food truck. Remember this was a strong trend at the end of the decade and continues to be an ever-present one, regardless of the weather.  

Some cities are lined with food carts, and you quickly learn who’s got what and where to find the best hot meal. No matter the competition, the goal is the same: Quality food at affordable prices. Even with a smile!

Time to get onto Twitter and find where some of the mobile ones are hanging out.

These are the little businesses that need our loyalty even if the snow is still piled high along the street.

BTW, the falafel is excellent!

Yes, something’s going on at the grocery store. Somebody very smart, somewhere, figured out that buying fruit by the pound could tip the scales over the budget limits, but buying affordable 3-lb bags seemed somehow logical. With the economy in its current circular cycle, shoppers needed products in more manageable sizes: They could no longer afford to fill their kitchens with 10 lb bags of an assortment of fruits. Welcome to the 3-pound bags.

Selection varies from store to store, but there are multiple varieties within a category such as apples: Saw 4-5 different types of apples (even found organic honey crisps) in this 3 lber easy-to-carry bag. Another positive besides price, storage, and variety, they were smaller apples: Perfect lunch box or brown bag size. Hey, someone has figured this out.

There are small bags of all types of oranges, too. Not seen much in the way of grapefruit, but figure this year with the various negative temperature cycles, small grapefruits will become popular, too.

We’re talking economy of scale.

OK, economy.

Check this out: The New Sweetheart messages have evolved and changed with the times with fruity new flavors, bright colors and modern messages. Sure you can still get a “sweetie,” a “love me,” but how about the new ones:

–Text Me or Tweet Me

We can’t seem to escape our universe of smartphone mantras. The company even came up with an IPhone App that works with your Twitter account. Here you can personalize your messages to say what you want. Remember we said you could do that with chocolate bars and M&Ms, and now a real sweetheart deal.

So the next time you can’t tweet and find the web overloaded, you know the Sweetheart approach is taking over.

Tweet, tweet, you cute little birdie. Oh, that’s so yesterday.

Privacy alert.

What if  you are on the other end of the spectrum? What if the caffeine gets you? What then helps you fall asleep and sleep soundly? There are those that suggest a warm glass of milk instead of the hot coffee. Or the camp that says a bowl of cereal–milk again tops the list for its calcium-inducing factors. How about other strategies to help awaken the melatonin and get the sleep juices going?

A new report says a handful of dried cherries or even a banana about an hour before bedtime does the trick. No wonder the Grand Traverse Resort and Spa in Traverse City, Michigan offers a cherry massage. It’s a natural! Also not coincidental that this is the location of the annual National Cherry Festival. Not a difficult food to honor!  Tasty and good for you: A perfect combination.

Sleep well.

If sushi chefs taught us anything, it was that customers love to watch their food being made. It somehow conveys a freshness not otherwise exhibited when one buys a plasticized food container. Yes, someone made that item somewhere, but when and where?

When we go to a Mexican restaurant and someone is manning the tortilla machine we get that warm, cuddly, freshness feel. Yes, tortillas somehow taste better when we see the machine in action!

We like to watch. (I’m not talking about high-end restaurants where the magic is delicately performed at stations in the kitchen). I’m talking about a different food tier. We feel comfortable ordering what we see being prepared. That’s why grocers have expanded their takeaway sections with meals you can put together for a set price. You make the selection based on what you see. It feels far cleaner and fresher than the salad bar approach to dining.

How about a machine that makes fresh rice cakes while you watch! First off, the concept is fun, and the flavor means you’ll forgo the packaged products forever. Hello, CocoPop Machine.  Yes, these circular gems literally pop out of the machine and into the individual order. You’ll question the packaged rice cakes you’ve been snacking on for years.

If you see the machine in action, like I did today at a brand, spanking new Wegmans, you’ll be hooked on the lightness of the taste. If they are doing samples, try it with the organic jam. Now we’re talking a pairing! This type of interactive food display makes shopping fun again. Trust me: No cardboard aftertaste!

Seeing food being prepared can enhance the palate.

I would have been happy believing you were clean and that you demonstrated what hard work and untold hours of practice could accomplish.

I would have survived nicely practicing my game; thinking back on great wins and believing that natural talent could be supplemented naturally.

No. You ruined it. I did not need to know.

Then the final confession that you secretly hated playing tennis.

Seriously, what are you on now?

Let’s see how your name sells now?