NomX3

The Melting Pot

Mike Langford — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 02:44:26 +0000

Location: Melting Pot Restaurant – Boston - at 76 Arlington Street in the Park Plaza Hotel, Boston, MA

Connect with Melting Pot via Twitter (@MPMARI).

Join the Foodies group on Tweetworks to get your Noms on with other people who love to talk about food.

Mike and Jeff ate from the same steaming bowl of goodness. They enjoyed seafood, beef, chicken in a savory and slightly spicy broth. They also enjoyed traditional cheese fondue and some decadent chocolate goodness at the end of the meal. This menu was interesting for the superstar and the cabbage because – like at a couple other venues – the boys put themselves in the hands of their host. Renee did a great job sharing the essence of Melting Pot with them. The boys also had Sangria, some fluffy, girly drinks, and a healthy helping of steam.

Conversation Topics

LIFESTYLE – Favors - Where is the line when asking someone to water your plants? Or feed your cats? Or pick up the mail? Does it go way over the line if you need to empty a little box, administer medicine, collect people at the airport? The duo went headlong into this like they were diving into a fondue pot.
TECHNOLOGY – Climate Control - How in the world – and this almost went rantalicious – can businesses not have climate control when it’s ten billion degrees out? This also speaks to places without wifi or other ‘necessary’ facilities. But how can a business not realize that their place is too cold to eat or work or even peruse the shelves? Aren’t we past needing to manually figure out what’s too hot and too cold?
RANT! Marketers Who Don’t Get It - Mike and Jeff share war stories of how they’ve run into folks who really don’t know how to sell their products or market them correctly. The politician who throws pamphlets on doorknobs, the Tupperware woman who fills the mailbox with brochures right before the mailman comes, and the random folks who try to convert you to their religion when they clearly know you’re in the Jehovah Witness Protection Program.

During this Episode NomX3 Ate With…(you’re always welcome to join us for lunch, too!)

Sonsie

Mike Langford — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 12:43:54 +0000

Location: Sonsie Restaurant – Boston - at 327 Newbury Street, Boston, MA

Connect with Sonsie via Twitter (@Sonsie_Boston).

Join the Foodies group on Tweetworks to get your Noms on with other people who love to talk about food.

Mike ordered an Olive Appetizer which was warm assorted olives, a flageolet puree, rosemary, citrus, and grilled flat bread. For his main dish he selected the Cubano that has spicy roast pork, ham, cheese and comes with plantain chips.
Jeff ordered the Clam Chowder with sea-salt crackers. Then Jeff went with the farm-raised Salmon, Cajun spiced and pan blackened. The dish came with a crab cake, coleslaw and yam chips.
We also enjoyed some wine – selected and served by Pete “The Greek” who is Sonsie’s sommelier. We started with the Truchard Roussanne. We also decided that the wine was NOT on Gretchen’s list of desired wines. Then we ordered some other delightful beverages to accompany the meal.

Conversation Topics

LIFESTYLE – Fitness - We’re still not young, we’re still not fit, but we have taken up some exercise programs and started biking together. We talk about what it’s like to try and get back into shape. Life expectancy too.
TECHNOLOGY – Truly Interconnected World- How technology makes it so much easier to be a consumer and live your lives. Press a button, get a server. Yelp, Textaurant, and other applications are making it so easy to live your life. We digress into a Fenway park eating discussion – a rabbit hole of baseball dining ‘rules’.
RANT! Parking - Mike leads into this rant fervently while Jeff smiles and nods because he often rides a scooter into the city and avoids most of the parking woes that befall mere mortals. For today’s show, though, Jeff held a spot for Mike right in front of the restaurant and was given the medal of valor for parking compassion.

During this Episode NomX3 Ate With…(you’re always welcome to join us for lunch, too!)

Elephant and Castle

Mike Langford — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 00:37:23 +0000

Location: Elephant & Castle – 161 Devonshire Street, Boston, MA

Join the NomX3 group on Tweetworks to get your Noms on with us and other foodie, techie, rant prone peeps.

Mike ordered Haddock, Halibut and Cod (yes, all three) and a London Pride Pale Ale.
Jeff ordered the Yorkshire Pudding with Roast Beef – essentially a roast beef sandwich on Yorkshire pudding. He also sucked down a tasty Black Velvet – a layered pint of hard cider and Guinness. He also nommed on Bread Pudding to wrap up the meal.

Huge thanks to our camera man Gradon Tripp whose voice you hear from off camera. Gradon also ordered some food this show and went with the Bangers and Mash.

Conversation Topics

LIFESTYLE – Authenticity in Restaurants – How the entire dining experience, especially when you make a choice to dine in a themed or authentic-style restaurant, hinges on the ability of the staff and the entire company to pull off authenticity. Elephant & Castle do it with their selection of food and beer. They also have malt vinegar on hand for folks to put on their fries. And they employ a good number of staff who have real British and Irish accents. It lends to the meal when your memory can be boosted with a few authentic touches.
TECHNOLOGY – Marketing the Multi-Location Restaurant – An amazing challenge faced by some restaurants is marketing their multiple locations while staying in touch with their local clientele. How can you run a special in one market and not have it in another? How can you have Facebook presences in multiple cities? Stuff like coordinating messaging and menus and events is very difficult and we peek inside E&C’s method to tame this madness.
RANT – World Cup Soccer – Can there be a more boring game? Why isn’t there a winner in every game? What’s with the amount of time – is it random? Ties are normal. Mike feels that this sport and the entire spectacle is idiocy! He also hates that there’s no key to the teams in the scoreboard. Tell viewers who has what color uniform.

During this Episode NomX3 Ate With

Not Your Average Joe’s

Mike Langford — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 19:36:19 +0000

Location: Not Your Average Joe’s – Medford - at Station Landing at Wellington Circle – 501 Fellsway, Medford, MA

Connect with Not Your Average Joe’s via Twitter (@NYAJoes).

Join the Foodies group on Tweetworks to get your Noms on with other people who love to talk about food.

Mike ordered the Lamb Kabob.
Jeff went off the rails and ordered a Cobb Salad. He was eating lighter because he had demolished all of Joe’s Ahi Tuna Wontons earlier in the evening…. DELICIOUS!
We also ordered some lighter, summer beers to accompany the meal. Krunkin’ in the afternoon. Yes, Jeff had the Blueberry!
And we were honored to get a pop-in from Rob Mondavi of Folio Wines. He stopped by to taste Jeff’s beer and talk about wine, conversation and friends. Look for Mike and Jeff in Napa, California SOON!

Conversation Topics

Restaurants and Technology- How the places we go to most are doing things right – and wrong – when it comes to using technology. Reaching out to customers is just the tip of the iceberg, how about ordering via iPad or taking a satisfaction survey on an iPod Touch? Having a Twitter account is far different from using that account to engage customers. And what about Textaurant and other firms that are giving customers better ways to connect with the places they like to dine at most? There’s a lot to talk about and learn when using technology to run a restaurant!
When is Lunch NOT Lunch? - Mike is freaked out by the concept of having breakfast food for dinner. But it doesn’t stop there. He’s also against mixing designated foods at the wrong meal time. Jeff was too astonished to bring up Lupper or Brunch, but had the wherewithall to share his love of breakfast at any time of day or night. Also mentioned was the time-honored practice of going to Denny’s or iHop at 3AM to have breakfast after a night of boozing.
RANT! LITTER - Mike went off again on the madness of people throwing trash out of their windows and how the world’s biggest litter producer is probably Dunkin Donuts. Mike believes that Dunkin Donuts is responsible for the downfall of society and the non-beautification of the globe because their cups are all over the place. Jeff contended that if Dunk’s wasn’t so successful, there’d be less of their litter around. Catch 22!

During this Episode NomX3 Ate With…You should join us for lunch soon!)

Rob Mondavi

Mike Langford — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 02:25:58 +0000

Location: Rob Mondavi of Folio Fine Wine Partners - a Napa, California company.

Rob was our guest for a quick chat about wine, life and food. We shot this video at Not Your Average Joe’s in Medford, MA—a company for whom Mondavi makes regular trips ‘cross country to host fine-wine events. Our interview with Rob was really only about ten minutes long, so fire it up and find out what he taught us (A LOT) about how grapes are harvested, how wine is processed, what wine you should buy, and what’s too much to spend on a bottle of wine. There IS a limit.

Join the Foodies group on Tweetworks to get your Noms on with other people who love to talk about food.

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A few reminders…

Show Venues- Quite often, the shows and guests on NomX3 are chosen by you, our audience. If you have an idea for a show, leave a comment here on the Website, on our Facebook page or send a Tweet to one of us.
Sponsorship- NomX3 is made possible by the support of a variety of organizations (not the least of which are the great restaurants that host our tapings). But we’re always open to forming new partnerships with beverage, transportation, styling and technology sponsors. Same rules apply. If you know of a company that wants it’s logo associated with our show, contact Mike or Jeff.
Studio Audience- As you’ve seen, most recent events have been organized using an Eventbrite page. This is our model going forward. We love having studio audience members but really need an accurate count for restaurants so they can run specials for the folks that come out to support us. When shows are well-attended, we can also move our taping time to Noon so we don’t disrupt your workday. Please register early for any event in which you’re interested. We do the show for you. Thanks!

During this Episode NomX3 Ate With…(in the case of this mini episode, it was really a list of folks we drank with!)

Turner Fisheries

Mike Langford — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 18:39:01 +0000

Location: Turner Fisheries – Boston - at the Westin Copley Place, 10 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA

Connect with Turner Fisheries via Twitter (@TurnerFisheries).

Join the Foodies group on Tweetworks to get your Noms on with other people who love to talk about food.

Mike ordered the Clam Chowder and the classic Lobster Roll.
Jeff also ordered the Chowder, but then he went wild and ordered the Make-Your-Own Panini. Cheese, Pretzel Bread, a mix of fresh meats…. DELICIOUS!
We also ordered some lighter, summer beers to accompany the meal. Krunkin’ in the afternoon.

Huge thanks to our editor Brian Schwartz who made this episode possible.

Conversation Topics

First Adopters- Not the folks who are early adopters, like the people who rush to the store to see items after they’re released to evaluate and then jump on the bandwagon. No, FIRST adopters are the people who are paving the way for the rest of the world by subjecting themselves to the errors, bad hardware and software and possible glitches that are in many products before the general release. These are the folks who need technology and need it now. About 50% of NomX Nation falls into this category!
Birthdays and Getting Older - We’re not nearly as young as we once were, but we still maintain a belief that we can move the same way we did when we were younger. Mike has a tweaked neck, Jeff has a bad back – these guys are old. Getting older stinks, and trying to perform your daily activities when you get decrepit is really hard.
RANT! Road and Refuse Rage - Jeff and Mike tell stories about bad drivers they’ve encountered and the madness of people throwing trash out of their windows. Mike believes that Dunkin Donuts is responsible for the downfall of society and the non-beautification of the globe because their cups are all over the place. Every year there should be a driver’s test – EVERY SINGLE YEAR!!
Sustainability at Turners - A side topic we covered was the way in which Turner Fisheries runs their restaurant. They do it right by using sustainable fish and seafood and also the dining area. No tablecloths in the place anymore to save on laundry and more. Good stuff.

During this Episode NomX3 Ate With…(by the way, I THINK most of these people were there, but we may have added some names by mistake. It only means we want you to join us for lunch soon!)

Piccadilly Pub

Mike Langford — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 15:41:13 +0000

Location: Piccadilly Pub – 11 Robert Toner Blvd, North Attleboro, MA

Join the NomX3 group on Tweetworks to get your Noms on with us and other foodie, techie, rant prone peeps.

Conversation Topics

iPhone vs Android – The battle has only just begun. We discuss the pros and cons and our reasons for choosing either the iPhone or an Android powered device. Are you an iPhone or Android fan?
Netflix On Demand – Streaming, on demand services like Netflix and Hulu are rapidly changing the way we consume entertainment.
Have a Hot Dog on the Menu – Pay attention to your customer’s needs. Is it really that hard to have a hot dog on the menu?

During this Episode NomX3 Ate With

Rio’s Brazilian

Mike Langford — Mon, 10 May 2010 15:34:01 +0000

Click here for an iPhone or iPad version

Location: Rio’s Brazilian – 408 North Pleasant Valley Road, Austin, TX

Connect with Rio’s via Twitter (@RiosBrazilian).

Mike Langford, Jeff Cutler dined on dishes that scared Jeff a little, but were off-the-charts in their inventive and delicious nature. As will the other venues in Austin, we allowed the chef to direct us to the best food. This included Salgadinhos – a general term describing all Brazilian savory pastries. Each is named by the shape of the pastry and type of dough used. We had Ben, the owner, just start serving us food. Mike had a Lagoa Bisque…featuring sweet potato and hearts of palm in it. Jeff had a Calo Verde soup that had bacon and sausage in it, and we all know NOTHING with bacon and sausage in it can be bad. We also had some Guava Juice and other tropical goodness.

Here’s another look at the items on the amazing menu at Rio’s.

Conversation Topics

MisoHungry!- Shout out to our coordinator on the ground in Austin, Jenny Chen MisoHungry on Twitter who made our shows rocktastic. She helped organize the venues for us and for that we’re eternally grateful.
Gary Lombardo!- Shout out to Gary who made the trek out to the outskirts of Austin to join us for lunch. Props to him for grabbing a taxi and joining us for lunch! He’s @garylombardo on Twitter and he was just one of the many folks who joined us in the studio audience for all our Austin tapings. Thanks!
Geolocation Craze – We talk a bit about the Gowalla and Foursquare wars. How people are using these tools and how they may benefit restaurants and other businesses going forward. Do you know where you are? These guys do. There’s also a bit of a concern that maybe too much info is being shared, that geolocation apps are being gamed by folks who want mayorships and points, and that even more technology is around the corner. Stay tuned!
Pacing Yourself When Away on Business- We chat about the complete exhaustion that can befall you if you take to the exhibit and conference halls at an event without properly thinking about pacing yourself, leaving heavy stuff at your room, and making the right decisions. You can’t do every party, you can’t carry a laptop or a 40lb camera setup with you everywhere. Even at a tech conference you might have to go low-tech and unplug. Grab a pen, a pad of paper, some cash and some business cards and have at it. Maybe a smarter recipe for success.
RANT! Mailing it in – Corporate Ambivalence - Ben at Rio’s was the perfect example of the company owner who pays attention to his clientele. But too often there are firms that don’t realize that people are becoming disenchanted with their products and services because of how they respond – or don’t respond – to the conversations and interactions going on around them. The coffee place that makes your latte incorrectly EVERY TIME YOU VISIT, or the cable company that might continually get your bill wrong, or the airline that starts charging you to use the toilet. These are all companies that are just moving toward the dollar and not paying attention to what people are going through. A prime example is government employees (and elected officials) who never spend any time commuting, so they have no idea that roadwork at 8PM could be inconvenient. We could – and did – go on for ages on this MASSIVE RANT.

During this Episode NomX3 Ate With a huge list of people. We still haven’t fully updated the list on our Twitter list but you can see the list of attendees here.

We are also very grateful to Brian Schwartz our fantastic editor. Without Brian we wouldn’t look half as good as we do. If you have video that needs editing or other rich media needs you’ll find no better than Brian.

Manuel’s with Molly Wood and Tom Merritt of CNET’s Buzz Out Loud

Mike Langford — Sat, 17 Apr 2010 15:03:19 +0000

Click Here for iPhone or iPad Version

Location: Manuel’s Austin -310 Congress Avenue, Austin, TX

Connect with Manuel’s via Twitter (@ManuelsAustin).

Mike Langford, Jeff Cutler, Molly Wood and Tom Merritt feasted on an amazing chef’s choice of appetizers and entrees. These included Ceviche – Yellowfin Tuna marinated in lime juice and served with salsa fresca; Baja Taquitos de Callo de Hacha – lightly battered and fried, wild-caught bay scallops served with shredded cabbage and chipotle crema; and some other amazing stuff that the chef whipped up special. We also let the bartender create some masterpieces and each of us left with a grin on our face and possibly some lime juice dribbling down our chin. Tropical, Mexican goodness.

Here’s that Drink Menu

Conversation Topics

MisoHungry!- Shout out to our coordinator on the ground in Austin, Jenny Chen MisoHungry on Twitter who made our shows rocktastic. She helped organize the venues for us and for that we’re eternally grateful.
Firewire Vanishing – Why? – With our guests, both Tom and Molly, so accomplished in the tech and entertainment industry, we wanted to find out why anyone would do away with the standard that allows people to stream video right from their HD camera. We solved the problem with an informal conversation about how Steve Jobs should improve his method for looking ahead.
Who can you trust with your children? - A lively discussion with the parents in the group – Mike and Molly – about how you might not want to let just anyone play babysitter to your children. We got sidetracked by the drinks (MMMMmmmmm), but this was a talk you’ll love.
We Can End This- Shout out to our friends at We Can End This who put on a major grassroots campaign during the entire SXSW Festival to get people thinking about hunger in the United States. We paused to think about those going hungry during our meal at Manuel’s. And during every show we like to discuss how social channels can further causes.
RANT! Apple and iPhone App Strongarming - Molly is known to steam a bit about poor customer service, bad gadgets, inept organizations, hamfisted folks, and probably about 79 other themes. Today she and Tom got to share their thoughts on how a locked-down service like the Apple App Store is a FAIL.

During this Episode NomX3 Ate With a huge list of people. We still haven’t fully updated the list on our Twitter list but you can see the list of attendees here.

Kenichi with Pete Cashmore

Mike Langford — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 21:25:20 +0000

Click here for iPhone or iPad version

Location: Kenichi Austin – 419 Colorado St, Austin, TX

Connect with Kenichi Austin via Twitter (@KenichiAustin).

Conversation Topics

Why SXSW? – Why is SXSW so important? What makes it so special?
How Do You Use Social Media - Do you separate business identity from personal? Do you use Twitter as a conversational medium or a broadcast medium?
Social Media for Social Good - Huge shout out to our dear friend Alicia Staley and the Staley Foundation. We also talk about how using social channels can benefit people.
RANT! Lack of Customer Service at Google - We had a bit of a continuation of a conversation that started between Pete and Mike about how Google and other large web companies need to improve their customer service. We also touched on whether social media as a service channel can actually scale.

During this Episode NomX3 Ate With a huge list of people. We still haven’t fully updated the list on our Twitter list but you can see the list of attendees here.

We are also very grateful to Brian Schwartz our fantastic editor. Without Brian we wouldn’t half as good as we do. If you have video that needs editing or other rich media needs you’ll find no better than Brian.