Thursday, October 1, 2015

What happened to food critic Joseph Thompson III? Reviews Benny's on the Beach and never heard from again

[RE-POST: Some hilarity is in order. The very first target of Margaret Menge's now-defunct (always's FREE, delivered FREE, advertising challenged) tabloid was the fabulous restaurant Benny's on the Beach and it hilariously backfired. Without further ado, the short career of 'food critic' Mr. Joseph Thompson III:]

It appears Mr. Joseph Thompson III, Margaret Menge's restaurant critic, has set a world record for the shortest career in 'food criticism' history. Margaret Menge published this review by Joseph Thompson III on 1/16/15 and Mr. Thompson III hasn't gotten another bite, pardon the pun, at the apple.

As part of her 'newspaper' policy, Margaret Menge, "[W]elcomes Letters to the Editor. Letters should be no more than 250 words". 

In Margaret Menge's FIRST LETTER EVER PUBLISHED she published a letter by Lee Lipton. Mr. Lee Lipton, along with his son, Max Lipton and chef Jeremy Hanlon are the management team at the fabulous restaurant Benny's on the Beach. (Read the review of Benny's on the Beach by Liz Balmaseda here.) Mr. Lee Lipton's "Letter to the Editor [Margaret Menge]" was more than 250 words: like close to 700. Mr. Lee Lipton's "Letter to the Editor" was likely one of the longest ever in American history.  And thank goodness it is, since it had to cover a lot of territory, given the honorable Joseph Thompson III's review of his gyro and hot dog. I hear that Mr. Thompson's nickname is simply "Tres", by the way. (We think "Tres" may be a fictional character, perhaps to protect his/her identity at future restaurant visits.)

Anyway, here are some of the things that Mr. Lee Lipton pointed out in his "Letter to the Editor [Margaret Menge]" last January:
Last year, myself, son Max and an amazing Chef and friend Jeremy Hanlon purchased Benny's on the Beach. This location in Lake Worth is a dream come true for all of us. Our goal was to take a building that has been worn down from the salt air and Florida sun and improve many aspects. Working with the folks at the city has been wonderful.
[and...]
While creating a new and very special Benny's on the Beach, we increased our staff, not only to help with the kitchen preparation but to work on better service for our guests. So far, we have already hired an additional 20 local employees to aid in our efforts to make this a great place to spend time. 
[and...]
We do not pretend to be perfect, but thrive to make all of our guests happy as our mission statement. When we do not achieve this, we do everything in our power to fix it. We work with our staff every day on improving efficiency and customer service, which are so important in our industry.
[and...]
Our goal is to give our guests the feeling of being on vacation each time they come to visit! And part of that is putting every effort we can to make the atmosphere, food, drinks and service the best we possibly can.
[and...]
The one issue we still can't fix is that quite often the demand is so large for a table that people do get upset with us for having to wait. We are only so big! Of course, that is what is called a golden problem. 
[and lastly...]
[W]e are working hard trying to build a better home for both the local community and our friends here visiting! Have a great 2015!!
-- Sincerely, Lee Lipton
So there you have it. The shortest career ever for a food critic and the gentlemanly response from Benny's owner Lee Lipton. By the way, have you made any holiday plans yet?