No Schatzies ... :-( ...

Yesterday evening we had a mother with her teenage son for dinner, and they had Schatzies for dessert. Schatzies are addictive, and the son wanted to get some to go, but his mother declined, which clearly must have bummed him out, because after they left, our waitress found this drawing on their table.

For those of you who haven't been to Gunk Haus yet, Schatzies are bite-size chocolate-filled pretzels, and they are highly addictive. The name was coined one evening when we had our neighbor Billiam (of Liberty View Farm) and his friend Helen (the associate publisher of edible Hudson Valley) for dinner, and they got to try Schatzies for the first time. The ensuing naming discussion finally settled on Schatzies, and that's what they're called now.

Dirk

My Beef With Google ... (Updated 07/11/10) ...

Update: Google has meanwhile fixed the problem, which is why below map does not display the problem anymore.

Google is omnipresent in my internet life. My browser home page is Google, this blog site is owned by Google, I use Google Docs, and various other nifty applications Google offers, for free. I love Google, and I think it's the best thing that happened to the internet world since the start of the World Wide Web.

However, right now I have a problem with Google: It is losing us money!

The problem is that Google Maps is a widely used application to locate places and get directions (I use it all the time), but it has our location wrong, by a whopping four miles!!! Here is a map of where Gunk Haus is (marker A) and where Google thinks it is (marker B).

View Larger Map

This is a big deal to us! I have heard from several people already that they couldn't find us, because they looked us up on Google Maps, but you can assume the number of people who don't tell us is substantially larger.

Of course Google allows you to notify them of a problem, and I did so twice already, and I was told twice that I am right, but being right doesn't bring guests to our restaurant.

The next complaint I have is with Facebook, which I also use extensively. Initially I had posted our address there, but then I found out that they turn the address into, wait for it, a Google Maps link.

I can assure you, we are pretty upset about this, and the thought of legal action has crossed my mind, just to get someone's attention (Google doesn't have live customer service, because it costs money; gee, tell me about it, I have wait staff taking orders and delivering food, being there for our guests if things aren't right).

Dirk

Proper Signage ...

At long last we installed the Gunk Haus sign on the building today. Jack and Jerry were at hand to help with the installation.


Jerry and Greta, the makers of the sign.


Jack with the wrought iron sign he had made for us. Jerry painted it.



Now we have a real restaurant.


Dirk

Feels Like Sunday ...

Gunk Haus is closed on Tuesdays. Originally we thought about closing on Mondays, but reconsidered, because there are too many holidays on Mondays for which we would have been open, and possibly confused our customers.

Anyhow, Gunk Haus is closed on Tuesdays. All this means to us is that there are less people around, but the work continues.

This morning our friend, and logo designer, and sign maker Jerry (of Starpoli Signs fame) dropped off the sign for our building, and it looks fantastic!!!


Here is a closeup.


Later in the afternoon Jack, our Jack of all trades, came by and we talked about how and where to hang the sign (amongst other things, like building a custom walk-in cooler in the basement, and turning the basement underneath the beer hall into a prep kitchen).

I went to pick up more wine at Whitecliff Winery this morning, and on the way back stopped by at Jerry's to pick up the other sign, that will adorn our building. Unfortunately, the stein and pretzel, which will hang off the bracket, aren't done yet, but maybe by Saturday, when Jack and I are planning to hang it.


This morning I received the new part for the dishwasher, which now works again. Paaaaarty!!!

Dirk

Happy Father's Day ...

Yesterday was Father's Day, and without surprise we had a nice crowd. From the early afternoon to almost 9pm we had Dads and their families walk through the door.

One of our guests was Agnes of The Village Tearoom (Facebook page) and her family. E! had worked at The Tearoom as the daytime cook for almost a year, before we bought Gunk Haus, and learned most likely more than during her year at The Culinary Institute of America. Cooking to order requires continuous planning and scheduling, so that meals for one table are ready at the same time, and this is a skill that can't be taught in a classroom, but has to be practiced.

The evening went smooth with one exception: Our dishwasher broke. It doesn't drain the water anymore, most likely because the drain pump is broken. Kudos to our human dishwasher Rob, who pulled through, doing the dishes the old fashion way.

Dirk

Walk Right In ...

Our walk-in cooler has been sitting in our basement for a year and a half now, nicely stacked. We bought it for our beer draft system, and to serve as additional produce cooler.


Most prefab walk-ins are seven or eight feet high, which is why I haven't installed it yet: The space in the basement where it will live is not high enough. In the olden days, the basement of Gunk Haus seems to have been occupied by a kitchen. The kitchen floor was installed on top of wooden beams, which sat on top of rocks and dirt.


Without the floor, the walk-in should just about fit. So yesterday I started removing the old flooring, and while I was at it, did some general cleanup in the basement.


I meant to continue today, but E! had noticed a sewery smell in another part of the basement, which was once the home to four tenants. A while back I had ripped out the shower in what used to be the bathroom, to make space for our washing machine. To make it short, I ripped out the remaining fixtures and the flooring to get to the drain pipes, and lo and behold, the drain pipe from the washing machine had a loose connection, releasing water and sewer gases. Not anymore. And while I was at it, I replaced an existing S-trap with a better P-trap.


Dirk

Victims Of Our Own Success ...

It was a stunning weekend. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday we had large crowds for dinner and lunch. We had so many people come through the door, that E! had to ration hamburgers, to save some for Sunday. Today's menu is brief, very brief.

Fortunately, we're closed tomorrow, giving us a breather, and time to restock our fridges.

So, why didn't we get more supplies upfront? Well, stocking up a restaurant is like investing in the stock market: You look at past performance, look at future prospects and influencing factors, and take a stab at it. Beyond that, it's anyone's guess.

Today is slow, which isn't surprising, but we are gearing up for Wednesday, for our first Yappy Hour (bring your pooch, and enjoy the company of other dog-lovers in our beer garden).

Dirk