[CH] I e-mailed Chilis

GarryMass@aol.com
Mon, 02 Apr 2001 11:34:01 EDT 

In a message dated 03/30/01 7:58:17 AM Eastern Standard Time, kennethbaker@email.msn.com writes:

all he could find was Tabasco

Ken,
I had the same experience.  So I took your comments together with my own and sent them to "Chilis."  I can't post to the list because of AOL 6.0, so if you'd like to forward the following to our fellow C.Hds, please feel free.

Dear Folks at Chilis,
"No chiles at Chilis?"
I am one humble member of an internet e-mail group called "chile-heads@globalgarden.com (chile-heads)" comprised of several thousand chile (pepper) lovers from around the world.  Most are based in the US and many of us grow, harvest, smoke, powder, and sauce our own Ajis, Chimayos, Datils, Guajillos, Habaneros, Jalapenos (Chipotles), Mirasols, NUmexes, Pullas, Rocotos, Serranos, Thai Birds, etc. (alpha-partial-list).  One of us, Jim Campbell of Indiana, grows, sauces, and markets hot sauces (among which "Smokin' Chipotle" is my favorite).  But when we go to Chilis, apart from the jalapenos on the nachos and a few other jalapeno treats - there's no chiles at Chilis.  If we think the food is too bland and ask for hot sauce (to kick it up a notch), we are offered Tabasco (yuck).  I'm not trying to sell you Jim Campbell's spectacular sauces, nor do I think that other sauces like Dave's Insanity will get much use, but there oughtta be more chiles at Chilis.  Note this recent postin!
g to our list by Ken under the t
itle "There ought to be a law" (reprinted without permission)' What I am referring to is my latest trip to Chili's restaurant in the KansasCity area.  While this is one of my more frequent haunts - it does have great food, Chili's theme, name, and about everything else associated with the public image of the place are centered around the beautiful chile pepper.  They even have a pair of beautiful red blown glass chile peppers in a display case there.  What they are lacking, however, is any reference to the blessed pepper in their cuisine.  Everything there, although nicely cooked, is severely lacking the "hot stuff."    You'd think a place with a name like that, a place who has pictures of the peppers everywhere, would have at least one dish that is close to nuclear.  But nah!'
Perhaps one of Chilis' corporate types would like to join our list and read up on the remarkable level of chile expertise among this unique group of fire eaters (even mild fires).  It's a nice group of highly rational pepper lovers who understand that what we eat is too fiery for mass distribution, but the flavors that we crave, Chipotle for example, can be had using TAM Jalapenos that are smoked after turning red without much chile heat.  Although red Jalapenos adorn the Chilis menu, Chipotle (or Chipotle cream sauce for pasta) is absent from the selections.  If you'd like to talk some more, please write or call me.  If you just want to check the "chile-heads" out, send an e-mail with "subscribe Chile-Heads" to: 
majordomo@globalgarden.com 
Yours in flavor, more than heat,
Gareth the Chileknight