The Gas Leak

Ever Seen a "Don's Guns" Commercial?

2010-11-28T00:21:00.000-05:00

2008 Caymus Special Selection Cabernet Sauvignon

If you've ever watched much tv out of Indianapolis, it's likely that you've seen a Don's Guns commercial that finished up, "I don't want to make any money...I just love to sell guns." Well, we've taken a little bit of that tongue in cheek approach with some very serious wine here at The Gas House. Now, don't take this to mean that we claim to be some sort of authority on wine...However, we have recently brought in a few iconic names, and have put price tags on them that might suggest that these bottles have been aging at the bottom of the St. Mary's River...rest assured this is not the case. In any event, those in the know would be completely aware that we have no business pushing Caymus Special Selection Napa Cab at $160 or Shafer Relentless Syrah at $95. Obviously, this is not peanuts, but consider what you might pay for either of these California icons in other restaurants (slim pickings here in town), and you might get the notion that we've got a screw loose. To be totally honest, we still make out on these, but we're nice guys and enjoy having our stupidity taken advantage of. Besides these top shelf offerings, there's also a bunch of very good stuff in that wine book, now...and quite a bit of it at more casual price points. But, if the occasion calls, remember that you're not going to find anyone else around that will peddle top flight bottles like us morons.

A public service announcement...

2010-10-21T17:48:00.000-04:00

When the fires need rekindling, this appears to be a safe, inexpensive and discreet alternative to more conventional medical methods of dealing with a personal problem...

What we really need to know about our candidates...

2010-10-15T23:18:00.001-04:00

While stances on issues such as healthcare, the economy, witchcraft and the like are all top of mind this election season, there are positions on issues we generally don't hear about from national candidates. This is an exclusive look into the minds of a few important figures in recent American politics that may offer a brief moment of insight into how these fellas think...

Not So Fast My Friend...

2010-10-05T10:04:00.001-04:00

Mother Nature can be a fickle bird from time to time, and we're not too proud to admit when we might be wrong about something...Although we looked a little bit like prophets for calling it a year on the Deck when a pleasant and 75 degree Friday turned to 50-something and rainy on Saturday, the tides have turned a little bit. As of 10:08 a.m. on Tuesday, we're looking at something 70-ish and sunny for the next six days or so. With this development, we're seeing if our outdoor staffers have already left for their winter residences at Del Boca Vista Phase 3. If we can track 'em down, we'll wrangle 'em in here and see if we can't milk a few more days out of this sucker before fall sets in for real...stay tuned.

And Finally for Today...

2010-09-23T17:46:00.001-04:00


This is Your Competition

It has been determined that there is no way there is a better hamburger out there than an expertly crafted burger from The Gas House...now, bear in mind, I think we do a filet, New York, or a porterhouse better than anyone else in town because there is a little bit of science to cooking steak, and most folks just don't pay attention to the finer points. That being said, there is something positively patriotic about a well executed hamburger that makes me want to stand up and recite The Pledge of Allegiance. This is better than a half a pound of freshly ground beef on a buttered and toasted onion roll, with damn near anything you might want on it. I've cooked an awful lot of these things, and I still chuckle just a little bit when I send out a beautiful medium rare Black and Blue smothered in grilled onions, bleu cheese & bacon...it's oozing goodness and strictly business.

With this said, I'm throwing down the gauntlet...if there's anyone out there in restaurant-land with the guts to rumble like The Outsiders, I'm game. We'll assemble a panel of well-girthed aficionados and get down. Conveyor belt cooks need not apply. If I'm beat, I'll admit it...'cause I know it's gonna take a Villanova '85 effort to get that done.

A Little Comic Relief

2010-09-23T17:10:00.000-04:00

After something as depressing as that, I figured something needed to be done to lighten up the situation a bit...this scene never ceases to crack me up.

Friend of Fort Wayne Passes On

2010-09-23T17:00:00.000-04:00

A familiar face to almost anyone who has spent any amount of time in the downtown area has moved on to a better place. Morgan Ketchem, 54, died Wednesday, September 22nd. Morgan's brother Roger, his best friend in the world, has worked here at The Gas House for more than 25 years. Like Roger, Morgan never seemed to have a bad day...there was a reason to be pleased with even the smallest thing, like a bowl of soup he would share with his brother after his workday was over. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Morgan and Roger.

Online Reservations in Full Effect

2010-09-20T12:10:00.002-04:00

For those of you stuck at 3:30 in the morning without dinner reservations for the following evening, you now have an option...Hop on over to The Gas House website at:

http://www.donhalls.com/locations.asp?ID=35

You'll find some menus and some other propaganda, but also a handy little tool for making an online dinner reservation. Punch in some information on time, number of guests and so forth, and you're ready to roll...no muss, no fuss. There's even a spot to make any special requests: favorite server, anniversary, dog's birthday, etc...very new and very exciting...But, for the purist, we are definitely still answering telephones as well.

Summer Season Wrapping Up

2010-09-20T12:02:00.002-04:00

After another busy summer season, the Deck is getting close to calling it quits for 2010. Despite the fact that when we hit the first 60 degree day in April 2011 folks will be stripping down to tank tops and digging out the flip flops, 60 degrees in September may as well be a low-grade blizzard. All this said, we've still got a few weeks in us before it's all said and done...sticking around until we hit that first stretch of wet and chilly early fall weather. It's been fun, and we are working on some things already to make 2011 even better...stay tuned.

Late Breaking News...

2010-02-18T20:06:00.003-05:00

Generally speaking, many citizens of this great country think that Congress wastes its time on silly, irrelevant and petty things...Well, just when it seemed that we should probably scrap everything and start over again, the boys and girls in Washington have finally gotten down to the things that really matter to most Americans...

It's Been Determined...

2010-02-18T17:28:00.004-05:00

Believe it or not...an independent panel of hamburger enthusiasts has determined that the best hamburger on planet Earth is available here in Fort Wayne.

Despite tough competition from snobbish foie gras and Kobe beef monstrosities offered by hot-to-trot wimps from New York and avocado-tofu garbage submitted by a bunch of freaks from the left coast, The Ten Dollar Burger offered at local good-times joint, The Gas House, has taken top honors in a recent poll of at least six people here in the Summit City.

While it was difficult to comprehend the judges completely with a load of bacon and cheese stuffed in their oral cavity, the verdict seemed quite apparent when the out-of-town competition was offered quite willingly to a roving pack of raccoons.

Weighing in at more than two pounds, The Ten Dollar Burger sports 20 ounces of beef, and enough mayo, cheese and bacon to disqualify you for most life insurance policies. Eyewitnesses at the scene actually reported to have seen a personal injury attorney approaching the judging panel at the conclusion of the competition offering the name of some unscrupulous cardiologist.

While The Gas House staff cannot guarantee that you'll find this colossus on the menu, we're told to rest assured that (with a wink and nod) you'll get what you're looking for.

Back in Full Effect

2010-01-09T21:02:00.003-05:00

It's hard to believe that it has already been a year since we started tearing this place apart...things are quite different now from the first of '09 when we began the monumental task of turning cooks and dishwashers into a reputable construction crew...

By all accounts, the last seven months of 2009 were quite successful, but not without some blood, sweat and tears. I'll tell you what, though...to open up without much opportunity for getting to know some new staff, with very little practice and with the deck opening only one week after the inside restaurant, I'm thoroughly pleased with how quickly we got back on that horse...and a fine testament to the efforts of our staff here is being mentioned by some local media types as one of the best joints in town for 2009.

This is all swell, but we're not looking to just hold steady...

Menus are constantly being reviewed, wine lists have been tinkered with big time, staff continues to learn and develop and so on and so forth...One thing remains the same, however...we've got a whole bunch of people here who bust their hump pretty good to not only meet, but exceed your expectations every time we see you...

All this said, we've enjoyed our "first" seven months of operation, and eagerly anticipate all that 2010 promises...

It All Sounds Like a Good Idea

2010-01-09T20:51:00.002-05:00

Remember the last time that you swore up and down that you were putting an end to your casual addiction to all things deep fried?

What about your commitment to eliminate four letter words from your vocabulary?

Ever mystified when someone was completely incapable of following through with a penny-ante responsibility?

Find it odd that an individual cannot find two minutes a few times a week to make some semi-amusing and/or interesting comments on a blog about the comings and goings of a restaurant in a midwestern town of approximately 200,000 people?

Yes...that's quite curious.

I'm sure that a person like that would feel quite silly, and would probably do everything in his or her power to be certain that such a lapse might never occur again.

What's Cookin?

2009-10-24T01:20:00.002-04:00

With all the excitement of publishing to the world without anyone having a word, edgewise, I almost forgot part of the purpose in this experiment in electronic nonsense...Hopefully selling some more food.

For the balance of October, we've got a really nice dinner special running...A Coffee Crusted Sirloin with Carmelized Shallot Butter, mashed potatoes and sauteed mushrooms. Yes, it may sound a bit odd...but it works...big time. We'll rub this twelve ounce monster with a blend of ground coffee, garlic, salt, pepper, romano cheese and other secret ingredients and then slap it in a smokin' hot broiler (truly, the only way to cook a steak...just ask the big city steak joints). Topped with a butter of carmelized shallots (little onions) and cracked black pepper...this is a thing of beauty. We'll throw in the salad and a fork to eat it all with for just 17 bucks.

As a pairing, we're also running a very nice California Petite Sirah from Bogle Vineyards for six and a half. It's a big & jammy California red with a ton of fruit and backbone that will stand up nicely to the carnival of flavor which is the Coffee Crusted Sirloin.

And, don't forget lunchtime. Here's the current lunch special lineup:

Monday: Mile High Meatloaf Sandwich

Tuesday: Roast Turkey Manhattan

Wednesday: Stuffed Chicken Breast on Pesto Risotto

Thursday: Roast Sliced Sirloin, Mashed, Creamed Spinach

Friday: Dealer's Choice Fish o' the Day

All lunch specials 7.50...available from 11:00 - 4:00

That's quite enough propaganda for now...

P.S. Have a nice day

What's Up-Town?

2009-10-23T23:49:00.004-04:00

Yes, it's an awful play on words..."What's Up-Town?"...we completely understand your disgust. However, it's a marginally catchy way to lead into what's been going around the northernmost reaches of Downtown. So, for the sake of discussion, let's define Uptown as the the parcel of land bounded by Superior Street on the south, Barr Street on the West, Spy Run on the East, and the Mighty Saint Mary's River on the North...commonly known as 305 East Superior Street...otherwise known as Boardwalk...Park Place...maybe Pennsylvania Avenue...Seriously, though, this ground has it all...great street access, tons of space, four hundred feet of riverfront, more than a hundred years of history, horses trotting around, front row seat to Headwaters Park, and it's just a stone's throw from the Fries Hotel.

This little slice of Heaven has since 1958 been the home of The Gas House...the Mecca of straight-up good eats in Downtown (err...Uptown) Fort Wayne. If this isn't enough, we've also been tossing knives, flipping shrimp tails and telling corny Japanese jokes upstairs at Takaoka since 1978. And, to top it all off, we're home to the only riverfront restaurant in the City of Three Rivers...commonly referred to as: Nick's -or- The Deck -or- The Boardwalk -or- that place out behind The Gas House.

So, to get back to the original point of this rambling, incoherent babble...What's Uptown?

Well, as at least a few of you may know...2009 has been quite an eventful year for us. A comprehensive renovation of the restaurant which ran from January 'til May punched a great deal of snazz into what was (we'll be honest, here) a place that was at least a little bit tired. No, we didn't really like the 25 year old shutters in the bar room, either. And yes, believe it or not, the ceiling in the back dining room did drip from time to time. However, (and we'll be honest, again) what we have now is pretty damn cool if we do say so ourselves. It's swanky without being snobby, it's rough but refined, it's friendly without sitting down at your table with you. We'll cook you a fine piece of cow the way it's supposed to be cooked, but a burger and a beer works, too.

The way we look at it, every town needs a classic joint they can call their own...and we're definitely not talking about the TexasRoadAppleOutHouse. What we've got is real. And it can't be accomplished with a bunch of goofy t.v. ads convincing you that you're going to be just as happy as the guy who just discovered his new "favorite" pasta that some ding-a-ling just boiled up for him in a vacuum sealed bag. At the end of the day (God, I hate that phrase), what we've got here is a crew of dedicated folks looking to put out an honest meal and send you off wishing you never see another bloomin' anything for the rest of your natural life.

Now...that's quite enough self promotion...it's not really our thing (maybe it should be). It's back to what has gotten us to this point over the course of more than half a century...figuring out what tastes good, making it hot, and saying "hello" and "thank you" with a smile.

Insanity Grips Superior Street

2009-10-23T23:01:00.005-04:00

A sign that things around our little burg are truly getting weird...A 51-year-old restaurant in the heart of downtown Fort Wayne has entered the world of conspiracies, political mumbo-jumbo, and self-important prose.

With an already never ending parade of mindless blather to distract us, yet another moron with a computer has decided to offer up his own version of entertainment and wit, "The Gas Leak". With a not so catchy name to its credit, this lackluster bit of tripe intends to offer the goings on at the Gas House Restaurant . . .get it, “Gas Leak.” Yes, terrible. Editor and publisher, Ben Hall, describes The Gas Leak as, “...something that I’ve sometimes thought that I might possibly be kindof good at.” Yep, a real page turner we’re sure.

Initially, The Gas Leak intends to offer such salacious material as monthly lunch and dinner specials, employee features, humorous editorial comments (we can’t wait for that) and other goings on about the restaurant. “In the future,” Hall says, “we’ll think about expanding into a little more hard hitting journalism, or maybe some personal ads, but we’ll stick to basics to begin with.” Sounds like a lark. In this writer’s opinion, enjoy it while it lasts, folks.