Here at La Vida Dulce we are major league fans of those greasy little sliders. Here's why:
When we moved to Colorado back in the 1980's, there was no Major League Baseball. They had a team called the Zephyrs, but after sitting in a showplace of a ballpark like Dodger Stadium, it just wasn't the same. The entire state of Colorado is big on sports, but lacking in MLB back when we were there, long before the Rockies came to town. So one day while scrolling through the cable we found WGN and the Cubs, who once in a while played against my beloved Bums. We also discovered White Castle burgers sold in the frozen food section at the King Soopers markets, and we watched the ballgames while enjoying our little nuked sliders. We soon adopted the Cubs as our substitute team to root for and I have a fondness for them to this day.
Years later, while in that wonderful town of Chicago, I was honored by my hosts with a trip through the drive-thru line of a real honest to goodness White Castle burger stand. Immediately I was transported back to L.A. with the sound of a heavily accented "May I take your order?" My host had no clue and kept yelling "What? What?" into the speaker. I moved up to the car window and relayed our order in Spanish and at the window we were presented with so many White Castle swag freebies and extra burgers and fries. My hosts were so astonished and we thanked them for their generous and courteous service. Like peanuts or potato chips, when it comes to sliders, you can't eat just one!
Recently I received a kind email in response to my request for the company to open a White Castle burger stand out here in sunny California. Here is part of that letter:
"Thank you for your recent suggestion directed to our corporate office
that we locate a White Castle restaurant in your area. We appreciate
hearing from customers who enjoy our products. We have noted your suggestion
and have forwarded it to our real estate department for consideration;
however, at this time we have planned all of our construction for 2008
and are now looking for sites for 2009 and beyond.
Sure, in California we have In-N-Out, Bob's Big Boy, and we are the birthplace of McDonald's. But for White Castle lovers like Harold & Kumar, nothing would stop them on their mission to find what they craved, and in the end, they were triumphant. In spite of Doogie Howser. Maybe one day the Burger Gods will descend upon the Golden State and honor us with a real White Castle stand, maybe in my lifetime. Ah yes, I can dream of those real sliders, so meanwhile enjoy the frozen ones from Ralphs and the new Harold & Kumar movie, amigos. White Castle is truly like no other burger. Click the title of this post and it will take you to the "crave quiz" on the White Castle site. Enjoy!
