My visit to Derby

[infinite monkey]

Originally Posted by Gravdigr

Scattered, shattered, smothered, and covered.

Which is an Awful Waffle reference, and everyone knows The Waffle House uses actual hashy brown potatoes. I've been to Awful Waffles in my travels, and they're always grated potatoes.

I love some Awful Waffle, Nationwide.

You're right, monster, using previously baked potatoes is a perfect way to make great hash browns. It's all in the browning and the center.

[monster]

and I'm an import (and hash brown convert now I've discovered what they're supposed to be like....)

I always shove a few extra potatoes in the oven when I'm baking them

[DanaC]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

We must all drink and we insist you will drink with us and we assume completely that you will want to drink with us to the point of needing a cab and it will be funny and there is absolutely zero concern for whether you may or may not be alcoholic or have any reason to avoid alcohol in any way.

So it's true that our culture is more full on with the alcohol then?

[Undertoad]

It's a slightly different attitude. I think we manage to drink as much, but there's a layer of uptight about it.

J, who has previously worked for a Brit company, told me that I would be taken out and gotten drunk. My host narrowly avoided it on the last day with some nearly-forgotten spousal duty.

It was like making sure that some plan was made to entertain the hotel-bound traveler, and that was just normal, but it had to involve drinking. Going to the cricket was not an option, although I had indicated an interest in it. It had to be the pub, even though that was 10 miles away, and I had to wake up at 5 the next morning to leave for home.

Here, if it was a big company, that would be frowned upon (unless the person involved was in sales and then I think the rules differ). There is a certain amount of walking on eggshells. The visitor may be Asian (half of eastern Asians can't really drink much at all, it's biological), or religious (religions we can't identify are a problem), or alcoholic (where the culture is we assume you can't drink at all, and just mentioning it could be a horrible pitfall).

And then there's lack of public transport, combined with the .08 DUI rules which will truly fuck someone over (I don't even know what they do with foreigners who fail to appear in court). We are in this weird middle place on that, where drinking out is becoming simply not possible, and drinking at home means you're automatically an alcoholic.

And, of course, this will differ regionally. Much of the silly valley has started having beer in the office, in case it's something top software talent wants. And like a foosball table, it's less expensive than 10% more salary. Failure to have a "fun" office in the Silicon Valley can be the death knell for your company. (Where "fun" means you can drink at work, not that you don't have bosses who don't know how to manage people, and stuff.)

[Clodfobble]

Yeah, Mr. Clod's company has foreign visitors fairly regularly, and the celebrations are always of the "going out to dinner" variety. Some get drinks with dinner, others don't, but no one goes beyond tipsy and no one mentions anyone else's consumption, or lack thereof.

[lumberjim]

Originally Posted by infinite monkey

In these parts, we would call those cubed breakfast potatoes 'home fries.'

But I don't think y'all got the Bob Evans around there.

Originally Posted by Griff

Yep, them's home fries. Hash browns are grated potatoes. Use McCormicks Season-All.

Hash Browns:



Home Fries:

[Undertoad]

One last thing, the soap dispenser in the hotel was terrible. It only dripped a wee little bit of soap out. But I fixed that.

[lumberjim]

Lol, mook.