Everywhere you look today there is a fast food place. They are so plentiful that it is a complete mystery how they make money.
Aaron has a preference for one called Canes Chicken and frequents it on the way home from school for a light 1000 kcal snack to tide him over till dinner.
Growing up in Belfast in the 1960s we had Fish and Chips or Fish and Chips. The most famous Fish Salon was Longs and it’s still going today. A trip to the Odeon or ABC cinema was just a stones throw from Longs so there was often a trip for a supper after the show.
We became very hip in the late 1960s with the arrival of the Whimpy Bar where Carol and I would go to have a plate of thin crispy French Fries so different from our usual chips. They came with ketchup which was a novelty and if we were celebrating we’d have a burger too. This was like a thin piece of rubber sandwiched between two dry pieces of bun. No matter how it tasted we took a long time to eat it so we could drink in the atmosphere!
With the success of Whimpy local burger joints started popping up. One of the most popular was Kens at Knock. Kens burgers were highly rated because they had cheese as well as lettuce and tomato on them. They were so juicy they dripped when you bit into them. What made Kens extra special though was that in the days when Fish and Chip shops closed at 10:00 pm Kens stayed open till the ridiculous hour of 3:00 am. Heading home from a disco or party, not having eaten anything more than a pack of peanuts since your dinner served at 5:00 pm sharp, it was a heavenly outpost
There were a few other options if you didn’t stay out too late. The curry chip from the Chinese was a perfect combo after a movie and by the 1980s there was Spuds where not only burgers but baked potatoes filled a tummy or too after an evening in the pub.
The Combo of day was the event with the food stop rather than the menu from which you’d choose.
There was no such thing as a value meal or meal deal. Choice was limited but Crinklies sure knew how to end an evening in style!
Blessing # 472 – Perfect Pairings
Booming Banter 