Wednesday, November 3, 2010

J Russell Bouws perfected food service as a science, starting in 1934.

J. Russell is a long name for a restaurant, so West Michigan diners
know this chain of restaurants as Russ's. I always sit at the counter,
and the waitresses put in an order for hot beef without my asking. I
sit at counter because it's the closest to a community table you'll
find in Muskegon MI. I order the hot beef because it's quick and
always the same. It is a dish my maternal Grandmother served me. It is
literally mid-Twentieth century comfort food. I am certain that
Michael Pollan or Chris Bedford would never order one of these or a
Big Mac. The Hot Beef Sandwich is what it is. It can be served
quickly, eaten without fuss and paid for without pulling out a twenty.
The Health Hutt is virtually across the street, with row upon row of
sustainable food. So what do I order when I dine there one day a week?
The new age's answer to the McDonald's Milk Shake, the health foodie
smoothie.

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