Slog

News & Arts

Line Out

Music & the City
at Night

« The Army Is Gay Enough Right Now, T… | The Battle of January Is Won »

Monday, February 2, 2009

Chow Tomatoes: End the Madness

Posted by Bethany Jean Clement on Mon, Feb 2, 2009 at 1:21 PM

At Oddfellows, the afternoon light is lovely, and the breakfast panini—poached eggs, bacon, tomato, smoked cheddar, and Gruyère—is pretty good. The bread's a little white-bread-squishy for my taste; denser bread would stand up to the onslaught of the egg yolk better, too. But the problem is the tomato. No one should put fresh tomatoes on anything at this time of year. They are all terrible: pale, mealy yet hard, tasting like a tomato's phantom limb, an approximation of what a tomato ought to be. In winter, tomatoes should be a memory and a hope.

3c51/1233609465-3128879272_dcd11a40c5.jpg

Photo by sweetwankle from The Stranger's flickr pool.

Comments (23) RSS

Oldest First Unregistered On Registered On Add a comment

foodies such martyrs

Posted by well they are on February 2, 2009 at 1:27 PM

I love tomatoes so much that I am willing to put up with mediocre tomatoes on sandwiches (not on salads or sliced plain, of course).

Posted by Julie in Eugene on February 2, 2009 at 1:29 PM

Why do you hate BC so?

Posted by Will in Seattle on February 2, 2009 at 1:31 PM

Greenhouse tomatoes are good year round.

Posted by StC on February 2, 2009 at 1:31 PM

Agreed. Tomatoes are only worth eating for like 3 weeks a year.

Posted by TheFang on February 2, 2009 at 1:33 PM

I couldn't agree more!!! I never can understand why an establishment who serves good food (or tries to) would ever include mealy, cardboardy tomatoes anywhere on their winter menu. Totally not worth it.

I grew up hating tomatoes because of so many experiences just like that. Come to find out, I actually *love* tomatoes, they just have to be ripe and local. Yummm...makes me hungry for summertime...

Posted by katy on February 2, 2009 at 1:37 PM

In winter, tomatoes should be a memory and a hope.

Or sun dried.

Posted by keshmeshi on February 2, 2009 at 1:44 PM

I'm with 5. There's no point at all to eating tomatoes when it's not hot and humid. Otherwise they're trash. Why eat something that doesn't taste like what it.. tastes like?

Posted by STJA on February 2, 2009 at 1:52 PM

CONFLICT OF INTEREST!!! CONFLICT OF INTEREST!!!

Posted by VVM on February 2, 2009 at 1:57 PM

Ok I’ll bite, why is this a conflict of interest?

Is Bethany part of some cabal intent on the destruction of the hard working hot house tomato farmers? Or is she perhaps in the pocket of the powerful local tomato farmer lobby?

Please back up your accusations with some information so we can all be outraged enough to hit the CAPS LOCK key!

Posted by you say tomato I say tomato... on February 2, 2009 at 2:06 PM

i am still baffled by my sub-par meal at the oddfellows. just when i thought quinn's had a threat - they do not. not even close.

the only thing oddfellows has on quinns is the hipster dofus quotient. ugh.

oh yeah, good point about the tomatoes. primarily water and no taste does not translate well. good itentions but we all know where that leads...

Posted by birdy num num on February 2, 2009 at 2:07 PM

if tomatoes out of season bothered me that much i'd maybe say hold the tomatoes when i ordered. but then i'd have nothing to complain about. and with nothing to complain about i'd have nothing to say. with nothing to say i'd come face to face with my own mealy approximation of what having personality ought to be.

Posted by well they are on February 2, 2009 at 2:08 PM

I had tomatoes on my Subway sandwich yesterday and they tasted OK to me. I'm not too picky about them, but I wouldn't like mushy tomatoes on my sandwich either.

Posted by danQualeeeggs on February 2, 2009 at 2:17 PM

oddfellows is your typical linda dershong place...great decor, so-so food, tiny portions, poor value, and populated by the hipster elite who enjoy bellowing at each other on uncomfortable chairs.

Posted by michael strangeways on February 2, 2009 at 2:36 PM

"I am not ashamed to say that when I first heard the news of the salmonella-tainted tomatoes, my first thought was that it seemed an appropriate punishment for anyone foolish enough to eat a tomato out of season. These pale, mealy, flavorless things that Waters appropriately describes as "approximations" of tomatoes can clearly only lead to evil, pain, and, possibly, loose bowel movements."

wow. crib from your own writers much? except for the really stupid phantom limb part that makes no sense at all.

Posted by look into comp101 on February 2, 2009 at 2:49 PM

Dear Bethany,

I hate you but I agree with you 100% about tomatoes. I don't understand why good cooks do this, they know better.

Posted by chilla flavor on February 2, 2009 at 3:48 PM

In the winter it's canned organic or sun-dried only. Winter tomatoes are almost an astringent.

Posted by Bauhaus on February 2, 2009 at 4:00 PM

silly twits

get the Vancouver hothouse 'maters - perfect year around, the BEST

Posted by Farm BOY, really on February 2, 2009 at 5:19 PM

Oddfellows does have subpar food. Oatmeal is hard to fuck up but there's is rubbery and bland.
There are good tomatos at QFC right now.

Posted by My name on February 2, 2009 at 10:26 PM

Amen. Tomatoes are for summertime!

Posted by raisedbywolves on February 2, 2009 at 10:34 PM

i just had wonderful tomatoes in december and january....grilled, with poached eggs, toast, and capsicum sauce that my friends' friend had made....

'course that was in new zealand....so that's all you have to do - escape to the southern hemisphere, if they're that important to you!

Posted by jezbian on February 3, 2009 at 12:54 AM

She's right about northern hemisphere tomatoes now.

Yet her prose is Mudede-worthy.

Posted by made me look on February 3, 2009 at 4:47 PM

Well said, and so true. And fucking hilarious!

Posted by S. on February 4, 2009 at 1:32 PM