Crumbs in my 'Stache: When the moustachioed foodie is down, you, too, will suffer

Wednesday, June 04, 2008

By Ben Cannon

Jackson Hole, Wyo.-Attention: The column regularly found here, ‘Crumbs in My ‘Stache,’ will not run in its usual format this week.

No, there will be no writing about any wayward little joints, where the adventure to get there or the cultural experience of the place can often outweigh the desire for anything on the menu. There will be no waxing on the best dishes at established valley eateries, no superlative claims of authenticity for some under-rated or justly celebrated ethnic restaurant.

There was a time when I thought - no, I knew - there was no pain worse than that of a deeply broken heart. I was wrong. Give me deeply despondent, transformative heartbreak over an abscessed tooth any day. For those of you who’ve never experienced one - and pray to whatever god you subscribe to that you don’t ever have to - it is an infection down in the soft pulp of the tooth, where dense nerve pockets are wired so closely to the brain that it delivers an unrelenting, un-ignorable and often throbbing pain. It is an ache that at times spread to my eyes, ears and throat.

As I was overcome by my tooth woes over the weekend, I could not seek treatment until Monday. Nor could I indulge myself with one of my favorite parts of this journalism gig - eating and writing about local fare.
I have started on strong antibiotics and will need, inevitably, either a root canal or to have the tooth, a back, bottom molar, pulled altogether.
Have you ever found yourself wishing for nothing more than a root canal? Yeah, it’s that bad.

But hey, we’ve all been sick right? I just had to let you know where I stand - or rather, why I’m writing this from bed, waiting anxiously for the monster that brings blinding pain to return. But life goes on - that is, until it doesn’t.
Yep, give me heartache over toothache any day.

But before my condition took a turn for the worse, when it was still only a nagging discomfort, I joined a couple of friends at Q Roadhouse for dinner Saturday.
I could still open my mouth, which I can’t really do at the moment, but I could not really chew for fear of accidentally hitting the sick molar. Oh, the blinding pain!
But I did put down a couple of sides - the mac and cheese, and the creamed spinach.
The creamed spinach - rich but not too rich and with what seemed like a hint of nutmeg - was the better of the two.

It was a largely empty restaurant that night, quite a contrast to what it should be like one week later, during the Film Fest’s World Party on Saturday night. The Q, from both a food and an ambience standpoint, has come a long way since it first opened in late 2006. It will be interesting to watch it try to hone in on a broader following, especially with its outdoor seating and ample lawn space with beatific summertime on the West Bank unfolding by the day.

COURTESY PHOTO
Anything to stop the pain.

PERMALINK:
Crumbs in my 'Stache: When the moustachioed foodie is down, you, too, will suffer | Planet JH News Article: Restaurants And Dining

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