Is a Jucy Lucy a portmanteau?

We planned to have a “portmanteau” sandwich to honor the premiere of the 14^th Cycle of America’s Next Top Model. I was having a hard time coming up with the best portmanteau idea and the date was rapidly approaching. When I finally thought of something great (more on that later), it was too late to properly execute it.

So, just hours before the start of the show, Beth called and suggested ordering Jucy Lucies (or Jucies Lucy, if you prefer) from Matt’s. Perfect!

Of course it was dinner rush and of course they had the phones off the hook, so I had to go there to place the take out order. This is actually better than calling in. You get to sit at the bar and drink a little Summit Extra Pale Ale and watch the incredibly well oiled machine which is Matt’s. One cook (on a 4 foot square grill) one bartender, one server. At least 100 hungry people clamoring for the Jucy Lucy. They fit so many Jucies on the grill, they overlap the ones closest to being done. I think he was cooking 25 at a time. Plus onions. Plus a grilled cheese sandwich every once in a while for the vegetarians (ask for it with grilled onions and pickles--grown-up style). At the bar, the bartender keeps up a good banter, fills drink orders, washes glasses, tops up ketchup bottles, wraps the sandwiches and saves her best affection for the regulars. She never stops moving. Ever. And the server has to ferry all that grease and beer across the restaurant, asking potentially litigious neophytes “Have you had our Jucy Lucy before? It’s really hot. Be careful. Don’t bite into it too fast.”

It was super busy, so I got an extra half glass of beer for my wait. It’s agonizing to sit there, trying to figure out which Jucy Lucy is yours. Is that it? The next one? The next one after that?? Finally, they were done and I was out the door and home.

I missed the first 30 minutes of the show, but I don’t think I really missed much. I’m glad that Angelea from a couple seasons back has returned without her frightful manicure. And yay for makeovers right away. But boo for no major makeover drama. Rest assured, that will come.