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Sometimes I take things in life for granted. For example, in 2018 Beth purchased a Napoleon Charcoal grill for me for my birthday. Think of it as an upgraded Weber, with a cast iron grate and a hinged lid.
Bill and Marla Storr own Smoke, Fire and Spice, the small specialty shop on Main Street in Clarence that used to be Adventures in Heat.
Recently, the can that catches the ashes rotted through at a mounting point. I also noticed the bottom part of the enameled steel kettle developed a rust hole.
Bill and Marla are closing the Storr store, mostly because they want to travel more.
I stopped through last week to grab Humphrey briquettes and charcoal. Mali charcoal is just as good but Humphrey briquettes, though more expensive, last longer and burn hotter than Kingsford. I am sure an analysis of cost per BTU would show Kingsford, with all its lime filler, is more expensive.
Anyway, Bill and Marla had my purchase record and gave me a print out of the serial number and where to call. You can’t do that with Amazon.
After a 20-minute wait, a Canadian call center person named Aleah came on the phone, listened patiently and agreed to ship replacement parts at no cost.
As for what I like to cook on said grill, recently it has been pasture raised chicken from Wilson as well as beef and seafood from Wild Fork Foods.
Wild Fork generally costs less than Tops, Wegmans or Federal and sells higher quality cuts.
Sunday I took a nice couple to Cave of the Winds and Maid of the Mist for Niagara Falls Walking Tours. They live in St. Louis now and are U.S. citizens but he grew up in Moldova and she grew up in Ukraine. They travel a bunch and are proud to be here. She stays home. He drives over-the-road.
I made a Picanha sirloin cap from Wild Fork on the grill after I got home, scoring the fat cap and loading it with seasoning and then cooking the big chunk of meat most of the way before taking it off to rest and stoking the fire to 500 degrees so I could sear it to finish with a nice crust before the Bills game.
All of that was a great privilege, just like stopping to see an immigrant friend Monday in Niagara Falls. He is an active real estate investor who can’t be bothered much with the government.
He has fixed up most of a block in the Falls and 200 or so other properties. Many of the the prostitutes and drug dealers are gone. He is working now on 16 more homes. His way to attract upscale tenants is to make the properties nice enough to command high rent and then do tough analysis of applicants.
He has tried to approach and work with the city but as a newcomer has found Niagara Falls government unwelcoming and uninterested. He has the know how, expertise and support to make a material difference but when there is no charismatic leadership, not vision and the only progress that has happened in the last 5 years is in spite of the government, not because of it, he is moving forward alone because it is easier than trusting the people who have presided over 40 years of decline.
They are the same folks who tell people like me or the newcomers operating short term rentals we don’t understand because we weren’t her to see the decline. The way is forward easier with a cooperative administration but just as possible without it.
