High on Fire - Not Just for Ears Anymore!

My friends, if they read my blog, will probably roll their eyes as soon as they realize I'm writing a blog entry about Kuma's Corner. I can understand that reaction. As it's been written up by GQ, Playboy, Time Out, Check Please!, I'm hardly breaking new ground. There is probably little I can add to the masses of letters in print and digital form that have been spoken about Kuma's.

But I don't care. I love the place.

If you go, no matter what time, you should expect to wait. And wait. And wait some more. The kitchen is small; your clothes will smell of meat. You will have heard more doom metal than you ever thought you'd listen to at a restaurant. And as the wait will take at least an hour, sometimes two hours, you will probably be much drunker than you expected by the time you sit down. With a nice beer list of some offbeat and enjoyable beers, as well as whiskey on tap, getting more inebriated than you expect is a treat - if you like whiskey or beer. If not, waiting can be a chore.

After finally being seated; face flush with alcohol, cheeks red, ears humming with tinnitus (okay, not really, it's not that loud, but you get the idea), you're faced with a menu. Over 20 burgers, with names like Dark Throne, Motorhead, Pantera, Mastodon flash before your eyes. Do I want a burger with bourbon soaked pears? Chipotle peppers and goat cheese? Ranchero sauce and tortilla strips? The choices are dizzying. One of my favorites is the High on Fire. A 10 oz patty atop a pretzel roll. Topping it are: Siracha hot chili sauce, a slice of prosciutto, a roasted red pepper, grilled pineapple and sweet chili paste. No cheese; I don't think it needs it, although my wife to be disagrees with that. I think all women believe cheese makes anything better.

High on Fire:


Bay Area metal band High on Fire inspired the luscious burger above. Check out the video for "Rumors of War" from Death is This Communion, their fourth record. Like the burger, it's loud, awesome...and no cheese.

A Gift for the Whole Year

My soon to be brother-in-law and I share a common interest: whiskey. Whenever we visit my fiance's family in Ohio, her brother and I often wind up, at least one night, drinking too much whiskey, though I pay for it the next day, hungover. Nine out of ten times, it's bourbon. Earlier this past year, he and his wife went to the Buffalo Trace Distillery. It was while he was there that he decided to get us a tremendous bourbon they make release only once a year. Part of their "antique collection", George T. Stagg is an uncut, unfiltered barrel proof bourbon. At 141.4 proof, the bottle they got us is from the 2009 release. Despite being over 70% alcohol, it really has a bourbon taste - sweetness, fruit, vanilla - alcohol (duh!). And yeah, it burns, but not as much as you'd expect. I drink it with an ice cube, and slowly. Not a whiskey to drink a lot of, or quickly, it's a great treat that I'll come back to throughout the year to enjoy. If you like bourbon, and you can locate a bottle, I highly recommend getting yourself one.

New Years Evolution: Chicago in Photos

With the turning of the year, and my interest in history, I naturally think about the passage of time, and the changing of things. Time marches on, and though day to day life seems the same, that is just an illusion.

Located as I am in Chicago, I'm always interested in looking back and buildings and places that are familiar to me, yet viewed in the past, somehow out of context. Fortunately, the fine collection of Charles Weever Cushman's Kodachrome slides at Indiana University is available to peruse online. I've often viewed it, looking at great scans of his shots; Kodachrome is truly vivid and wonderful in it's presentation of color. I've taken some of my favorite shots from his collections - all taken from 1941 through 1944, and paired them up with contemporary shots of the same locations. Human beings cannot experience geologic time, but with photography like this can serve as a metaphor - how something as seemingly timeless as a cityscape, can, in the span of a human life, change profoundly.

Thanks for a Good Year

With 2009 nearly over, I just wanted to post a quick note thanking all my readers. After spending the holidays with the family, I'm ready to start the new year with fresh material for my blog which is, as ever, a work in progress. Look out for a fresh post with new content January 4th, 2010.

Thanks for stopping by.

Gift Wishlist #3 - Mills Canvas Bags

Wm. J. Mills & Co. have quietly been making top quality canvas goods since the late 19th century. Based in Greenport, New York, they started out as sailmakers first and foremost. Today, sails comprise but a small portion of their business. What they make primarily now, is great items out of Whaler Canvas.





I have a small travel duffel in the red above; well, it's burgundy, to be specific. Made of their Sunmbrella marine canvas, it's a great useful bag for long weekend trips, or trips to gym, or...whatever. Pick one up and support a company that has 120 years of practice in making excellent gear.

Three Days of the Condor

When I think of 1975, let me tell you what I don't think about. Style. It's my opinion that, by and large, the mid to late 1970's, and well, much of the 1980's - well that was the time that style died. I know not everyone feels that way, but there's very little to like. So I was pleasantly surprised when I watched Three Days of the Condor.

Robert Redford looks pretty damn cool in it. Sure his blond hair is very 70's, but the outfit could easily be slightly updated today and still look great.


One thing immediately apparent when watching the movie; they just don't shoot a film this way anymore. Plenty of long shots, camera angles held for what seems to the modern attention span a long time, it's a different experience than a modern cut and jump film scene. But it manages to hold your attention. The long scenes with a static camera angle develop nicely, the scenery around the actors looms larger.



Oh yeah, and it has Max Von Sydow in it. Enough said.

Gift Wish List #2 - The Hill-Side

With the Holidays right around the corner, everyone needs to start thinking about dressing their holiday best. I'm not talking awful sweaters with dreadful patterns; though I have been to an ironic terrible sweater holiday party or two in my day. I'm talking about busting out a nice outfit for a holiday dinner. And every man looks good (at least to Mom) in a tie.

And what do I want for Christmas? A tie, but not strictly speaking, a traditional tie. I want a tie made by the Hill-Side. While they are not a traditional looking tie, they have character by the bucket load. These aren't your usual silk or wool neckties. Made from interesting unique fabrics like selvage chambray from Japan or waxed canvas or selvage chino twill, they immediately stand out, stand above the usual tie. And I can't wait to get one. Or two. Or three.