Tim and Jeremy are both waiters at a restaurant in downtown New York City. During slow times at work, to stave off boredom when it is slow, the two young men draw pictures. These pictures are made using ink and what is called the "Triple Dupe Pad," a book of paper used to place orders in the kitchen. The drawings usually take about a week to make, all the while also being used by fellow employees to take orders; this sometimes leads to other collaborators or in a couple cases, to the loss of the work. The drawings are then scanned and colored in Photoshop where they come to life in stunning technicolor! The subject matter varies from piece to piece, as they are made over a long course of time and under various moods and states of mind. They all retain a playfulness that serves as a coping mechanism after spending a night catering to the endless needs of hungry patrons.

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

#70 "Feather in Your Cap" September 3, 2013

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One of the most popular desserts at the Loup is the Chocolate Pudding. Actually, it is the most popular, hands down. We have a great assortment of desserts, and most of them are fantastic, but the chocolate pudding stands head an shoulders above the rest. I am not quite sure why that is besides the fact that it is delicious. It is simply your basic, every-day pudding, but there is something else that elevates it to a magical plane. Maybe it's the giant chocolate cookie that accompanies it, or maybe it's the fresh whipped cream dollop on top, or could it be the sprinkling of cocoa powder? It could be a combination of all of these things, but I think the not-so-secret ingredient of "love" that Jose puts into every batch is the real reason this dessert is such a hit with the downtown crowd.
In the drawing above, the chocolate pudding is merely a bystander witnessing the scene lain before it. It was the last detail of this drawing to be added if I remember correctly. It stands proudly in it's parfait glass, complete with a spoon just waiting to be gobbled up by someone with a sweet tooth, or maybe someone who really likes dessert and has sweet teeth. The rest of the drawing unfolds before it, with all of the characteristic hi-jinx that are usually seen in this series of drawings. Including a severed head, and what self-respecting T&J drawing is complete with out one of those?
So, as long as I have been working at the Loup, there has always been the chocolate pudding. I have seen some desserts come and go, but the pudding is always going to be around. We used to have this great dessert that is sadly missing from today's menu. It was called Sabayon, and it was incredible. For those of you who have not tried this particular delicacy, it is essentially just eggs, sugar, and some wine. It can usually be found in Italian restaurants since it has Italian origins, but we used to have one that could stand up to anyone's. Light and creamy, served with berries, it was something to behold. But alas, we got rid of it! No one misses it though, not like other things that disappear off the menu. There are still people who call the restaurant on a regular basis asking if we have the brains back on the menu. I have talked about brains here before, and there's a great story about them over here in T&J #55, but they are not a consistent item on the menu. They are the very definition of "special." But people still ask about them. One thing that I am glad we no longer serve, either on the special list or on the regular menu is the Duck Liver Beignets. Those things were toxic (no offense to the guys in the back who made them every day. It was not their fault that they were nature's own heart attack inducer). These things were crazy. They were essentially crepes that were filled with duck liver (think Passover style liver, not fois gras) and then deep fried. Then, they were served with a sweet sauce and served like a pizza, essentially. They were my nightmare, and I stand behind the food that I serve at the Loup, so this was one of those things that was difficult to serve. But people loved them anyway! Who am I to say what people are going to find delicious and nutritious? People would get the Beignets and then still have an entree after eating their weight in duck liver and crepe. It was truly a sight to behold.
But I digress. We started this one off talking about desserts, so I guess we should finish off there as well. Not that it matters where we end. But dessert does come last, so we should stick to that. In the next post, you will see the pudding in color, then you are going to want it. This is the most reasonable response to the pudding. You see it, you want to eat it. I don't think I have ever served someone the pudding and them not like it. Some people can't eat a lot of it because they have already eaten too much rich things like Beignets and such, but they'll still try it out and fall in love all over again. And isn't that what dessert is all about?

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