Food: The Bug & Germ

We were sitting in a booth next to one of the huge storefront windows looking out at Morgan Street. The old GTE building on the other side of the street was keeping a watchful eye on us to make sure we didn't run past our thirty minute lunch break. We usually did!

Melanie was taking our orders when suddenly she hollered out, "That bum is pissing on my car!" We all looked toward the street and sure enough, one of the local winos was steadying himself against a parking meter while relieving himself on Melanie's front bumper. A customer new to Rusty's Diner may have found this scene a bit shocking. For us regulars from GTE this was just another day at the diner we called home for morning, lunch, and afternoon break.

Rusty's was located at the front of the U-Save Grocery run by the beavers. Actually, the Bever family of B & B Groceries. The name just demanded an occasional joke. The grocery is  long gone and sadly, so is the Bug and Germ, as some phone people affectionately called Rusty's. The food at the Bug and Germ (I love that name) was usually pretty good, wasn't horribly expensive, and was very filling.

The entertainment was pretty good, too. Take the wino pissing on Melanie's car, as a for instance. Or, the frequent sightings of Ralphie the roach or Marvin the mouse as they scampered about on the floor along the lunch counter. From time to time, if you were lucky, you could see the grocery store employees giving one of the neighborhood bums the bum's rush for trying to shoplift a jug of Mad Dog or Ripple.

Mornings were special at Rusty's. One of the all time favorites was the Cuban cheese toast slathered with butter and melted cheese washed down with a cup of cafe con leche. Afternoon breaks usually consisted of cokes or iced tea and camaraderie. The technicians from the toll testboards and the EAX building on Zack would use this time to discuss the ineptitude of management or any plans for upcoming weekend activities that had nothing to do with the phone company.

What got me to reminiscing about the B & G was the craving for one of their lunch specialties, chicken and rice. This greasy treat was just heaven to my taste buds and with a couple of splashes of hot sauce, this dish transcended being heavenly and moved into a much higher dimension. Going to Rusty's is not an option since they tore it down. Then, to frost the cake, as the song goes,"They paved paradise and put up a parking lot." No, really, they did. They put a freakin' parking lot in the foot print of Rusty's and the B & B.

In an attempt to relive old tastes and  times, I went into the SOG City kitchen and played around until I came up with my version of:

The Bug and Germ Chicken and Rice

3 pounds chicken pieces -- with skin and bone

1 tablespoon kosher salt
3 tablespoons black pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion -- chopped
1 clove garlic -- minced
4 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups rice

Coat the chicken pieces with the salt and pepper.

Heat the oil in a large sauce pan and then brown the chicken. When the chicken has a light brown color, remove from the pan and set aside.

To the same pan, add the onion and cook for a few minutes until just softened, then add the garlic and cook until the garlic becomes fragrant.

Put the chicken back in the pan, add the rice, and then the broth. Make sure all of the rice is in the broth.

Bring to a boil, then lower the heat, cover and simmer for about 35 minutes.

Near the end of the cooking time remove the lid and sample a bit of the rice to ensure that it is tender. We don't want crunchy rice, now do we?

Before serving, give the bottom of the pot a stir with a large spatula to scrape up any of the delicious browned bits - or, socarrat.

Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 905 Calories; 47g Fat (47.6% calories from fat); 54g Protein; 62g Carbohydrate; 3g Dietary Fiber; 211mg Cholesterol; 2344mg Sodium.

Serving Ideas : Serve with a bottle of Tabasco sauce at the table.

NOTES : For the chicken, I used four thighs and two breasts. Cut the breasts into approximately the same size as the thighs. This dish should easily serve four people, and it took me about an hour from start to finish.

I wouldn't skimp on the pepper. The B & G didn't.

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The Belle of Ballast Point said this was even better than Rusty's - not as greasy. Oh well, I tried for authenticity.