I second this recommendation. And Shreve is such a pretty little town!

Dave's Supermarkets! Giant Eagle is a hit or miss, but any Dave's in Cleveland should have a load of Goya things. I'm familiar with two locations in particular: Ridge Road and West 25th. Neither disappoint me, but I like the layout of the Ridge Road location better. Plus, they carry a larger variety of dry and canned Goya products, and a nice selection of Badia spices and seasonings.

Honestly, I miss having access to all of that in Cleveland. Moved out to Kent last summer and I can't find gandules, yuca, or a decent platano to save my life.

Oh man, sounds like my dream stove/oven. We're in an apartment now with a crappy electric coil stove and an oven that reads at 400 on the thermometer if I set it to 325. I hate it, but I can suck it up until we're in a house. Then I'm going all out!

I read through the entire thread hoping I would see my food, but no luck. What I really, really can't stand is melon, especially watermelon. This aversion is due to a "fruit punch" with melon made by my dad when I was younger. He sent it in my thermos to school where it sat in a warm locker. I tried to drink some, and it tasted terrible. Then, the puking started.

What is more unfortunate is that my daughter LOVES watermelon. She looks forward to summer just for the fruit, but I can't stand the smell one bit. I make my husband cut it for her, and wash the plate she eats from.

Just thinking about this is making me queasy!

Julie,

Puerto Ricans like myself call that bit of rice stuck to the pot "pega'o", which is the same as "pegado", or stuck. And that pegao has a polarizing effect on Ricans-- either you love it or you hate it. In my family, we're pegao haters! But at church potluck you can see folks battling over those leftovers during cleanup.

@ Sandwich_Sister: I think I remember a similar story about a class garden. Who knows, it might have been the same story. And while my siblings and I --and my daughter-- seemed to be unaffected by food bullying, I've heard from friends about children giving in to the peer pressure over "yucky" foods. In that case, I think it's up to parents to make sure their picky kid isn't turning into a food bully and putting other kids off their delicious mushrooms.

@Masha: Dino-shaped ravioli? I think that's my next project. I wish more restaurants did fun things like that with their kid's food.

You are so right. I work at a grocery store and have mothers tell me how much they love Kid's Cuisine/Chef Boyardee/Totitos Pizza Rolls because "my kids are really picky-- they won't eat anything else!" Ugh. That, and the koolaid as "juice".

Some of the items you listed reminded me of Panera. Kids of various ages from my dad's two churches ALL love going there because of nice sandwiches, soup, and lemonade. They're doing it right, in my opinion.

I have to agree with shaogo and MandalayVA-- I don't think that a kid's menu is necessary, simply because you usually see only the lamest options, i.e. chicken finger/hotdogs/etc. If adults are having Mexican or Thai or Indian, why can't there be kid-friendly options too? A milder and smaller-portioned version of an adult's menu option can't be that hard to produce.

I have a six year old, though, and she likes those lame menu options sometimes. If we're at an Applebee's/TGIFriday's, I let her run with that. But she really likes Italian food, so if I take her to Olive Garden or someplace similar (usually for grandma's birthday), she wants to eat regular food too. I normally get a dish we'll both like and ask for a separate plate for her (since I rarely finish my entrees, having her around saves me from having need of a take-home container). I think the key is to ASK what they want from a selection of options, and to not allow any sort of tantrum. If they aren't hungry, and are old enough to wait out their pouty funk, they can sit and sip some juice while I finish/pack up my meal.

I really get upset, though, when I get a waiter/server who decides that being a child means she doesn't merit a salad plate/bread plate, and look at me like I'm insane when I request one. Kids love carbs and crunchy vegetables, folks.

Not red sauce fro me, but a large simmering pot of Puertorrican-style pinto beans with sofrito/tomato sauce/pumpkin squash (habichuelas guisadas con calabaza). I do this at church when I'm heating up the food for potluck during the service... SO good.

Hm, while reading all the replies to this topic I kept thinking "man, I don't eat anything this weird..." But, do I? Some odd combinations I like that relate to other posts:

-Kosher salt on my peeled grapefruit, loads of it.

-Apple chunks in my potato salad (this is how my mom has always made it)

-Salt, lots of pepper, milk, butter, and honey on my grits.

-Black pepper freshly ground over grilled cheese and macaroni and cheese (can you tell I love pepper? haha)

Just tried some soft italian bread with nutella and salt as suggested by someone else, and it was fantastic.

Awesome topic. Right now I'm completely enamored with my 6qt. Crock Pot, a gift from my boyfriend this last Christmas. I've always wanted one, and this one has the removable stoneware that can be used to saute food on the stove. I wish I could find interesting savory recipes online that don't call for canned soup but I've had fun experimenting.

Oh, what a lovely gift. He sounds like a great brother, and pretty thoughtful when compared to the teenagers I've known.

Yes, it would be the Hilton Chicago. And thank you, I will certainly check that thread.

Hello Chowhounds!

I'm seeking advice: the old man and I are traveling to Chicago for the AWP conference that takes place at the Hilton downtown the second week of February. We, however, are staying at a hotel outside of the city and are taking the Blue Line in.

We're looking for some good, inexpensive eats (we're still undergrads, and therefore aren't bringing in the big bucks quite yet), close to the hotel since we'll be at the conference all day from Wednesday through Saturday (which happens to be Valentine's Day). We'll need destinations for lunch and dinner, and perhaps brunch on Sunday? We love ethnic food, but a lifetime of Spanish cuisine makes me eager for other sorts of foods, such as Greek (which was mentioned in a few other Chicago threads-- very helpful, those) or Asian.

I'd really appreciate any help at all, since I've never been to Chicago, and the last time my SO was there, he and his friends stuck to pizza. There isn't anything wrong with pizza (we already planned to stop for some authentic stuff), but we budding foodies would like to expand our options.

Thanks.

it's a shame that so many recipes involving salt cod are fried.

my family is puertorrican, and one of our favorite dishes is bacalao con berenjena (salt cod with eggplant). this is how i make it: in a large skillet saute one whole onion, diced, with two minced garlic cloves in olive oil. cut eggplant into one-inch cubes (i also like to use sliced japanese eggplant) and add to the skillet, cooking until almost done. break the prepared cod into chunks and add, along with a diced tomato and diced pepper of any kind. once everything is cooked through and the tomatoes have broken down, season with coriander and black pepper, and top with chopped fresh cilantro or culantro.

my mother and i like it over steamed potatoes, yucca, and fried plantains. my dad likes it over rice (either white rice, or rice and pigeon peas), and my boyfriend likes to eat it cold in a pita with lettuce or sprouts.