Would you like fries with your hospitality award?
The Oscars, Grammys, Golden Globes, Critics’ Choice … it’s definitely “awards season.”
Though she may not be wear- ing Chanel haute couture and diamonds from Harry Winston, Huntsville resident Magda Casteneda recently captured a way more important award.
She is the “McDonald’s Crew Person of the Year for the Houston Region.”
Grammys are important, sure, but when you’re running late for work in the morning, which would you rather have — a silly statue of an old record player or a Sausage McMuffin with egg and hash browns?
Who won the Grammy for Best New Artist in 1990? Milli Vanilli. That same year, McDonald’s introduced its McChicken sandwich. Which one of those is still around?
Unlike the Oscars, Castaneda didn’t have to beat out a handful of white actors and actresses in movies you never heard of. She topped more than 38,000 employees at 772 McDonald’s restaurants from Beaumont across southern Texas to El Paso. That’s some “Houston Region.”
Castaneda is “hospitality ambassador” at the McDonald’s at 2719 11th St. in Huntsville. Her job is to welcome customers when they walk in the door and make sure their dining experience is supersized.
Castaneda, 35 and mother of three, began working at McDonald’s in 2010. She started in the kitchen, worked her way up to the drive-through window and now trains new employees in addition to her hospitality- ambassador duties. Her nickname: “Smiley.” “The best part of my job is meeting so many people and making new friends,” Castaneda said. “I love coming to work every day.”
For winning “Crew Person of the Year,” Castaneda received a plaque, a pin and $500.
“Magda has a wonderful personality,” restaurant manager Jackie Patterson said. “She’s the same every day, always smiling
and happy. Our customers love her. She’s so warm and friendly to everybody.”
Castaneda received her prizes at a party thrown in the restaurant. The event was attended by local politicians, judges and chamber of commerce executives. The paparazzi were more interested in celebrity guests Ronald McDonald, Grimace and the Hamburglar.
An originalist’s point of view
Let’s honor the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia for his brilliant and astute opinion on an issue that has torn this country apart for decades.
New York thin crust v. Chicago-style deep-dish pizza.
Scalia found deep dish guilty of impersonating pizza.
In 2014, he told the Chicago Sun-Times: “You know these deep-dish pizzas? It’s not pizza. It’s very good, but call it tomato pie or something. I’m a traditionalist, what can I tell you?”
He called it right, right to their faces in Chicago.
Turns out Scalia was delivering a majority opinion. According to Zagat, New York thin crust is favored by 39 percent of Americans, followed by Neapolitan with 17 percent. Chicago deep dish was third with only 9 percent. Others receiving votes: New Haven thin crust, Sicilian and California pizzas.
New York, Neapolitan and New Haven are almost identical — all thin crust, crispy and light, without the burden of 100 pounds of greasy toppings. You listening, Pizza Hut and Domino’s?
In 2004, the Astros met the White Sox in the World Series. I went to Chicago to watch the first two games. I had never been to Chicago, and I had never tried deep-dish pizza. I was fine on both counts, by the way. I visited Lou Malnati’s Pizzeria. It’s the Food Network’s go-to place for deep dish.
I’m with Scalia. Chicago deep dish is not pizza. I would call it lasagna pot pie in a sweet, buttery pastry crust. Look, if you need a knife and fork to eat it, it ain’t pizza. Deep dish is too much. Too much cheese, too much sauce, too much everything. I was most offended by how long it took to cook. I waited almost a half hour. A New York pizza? Two minutes. And the pizzeria owner gives you a look like, “Hey, bud, eat fast and get outta here. I need the table.”
Presidents always say they don’t have a “litmus test” when considering Supreme Court nominations (yeah, right). But I think the American public deserves to know where a nominee stands on pizza.
While we’re on a pizza rant
Let’s salute Candelari’s pizza restaurant on West Holcombe near Kirby. Owner/chef Michael May went to Italy last year “to get in touch with my roots, my ancestry.” He had a pizza epiphany. Goodbye, gas oven at Candelari’s … hello, authentic woodburning oven like they use in the Old Country.
“I tried the pizza, and it was the best I ever had. It was light and simple and didn’t leave a heavy feeling in your gut,” May said.
May not only ordered a wood-burning oven, he now sources many of his ingredients from Italy, including Italian 00 flour, or “doppio zero,” which is specially refined for pizza dough.
“My European distributor is always bringing in new things for me to try. We use a prosciutto crudo from Parma, our Grano Padano is from north of the Po River in Rome. The taleggio cheese is from Brescia. The sopressato or salumi is from Calabria, and our olive oil is from Sicily.”
I checked. Candelari’s wood oven is the real thing —no weird hoses or tanks in the back. I’ve been to a few “wood-fired pizza” joints where the oven is “gas-assisted.” Seriously?
Get a long little doggie
Those ever-popular Wiener Dog Races, featuring the speediest dachshunds in Houston, return Saturday night to Sam Houston Race Park.
More than 50 wiener dogs will sprint 30 yards to the finish line. Ever see a dachshund run? They run sort of sideways. Weird.
There will be eight races between actual horse races, with the winning pooches meeting in a final super race. Winner gets $200. The place dog gets $100.
There will be $1 wieners all night at concession stands. Hey, that’s rubbing it in. Stop body shaming dachshunds! Not cool!
Post time for the first horse race is 6 p.m.
Pethouse Pet of the Week
Name: Rudy (as in “America’s mayor” Giuliani, NBA star Gay, vaudeville’s Vallee and Rockets championship coach Tomjanovich). Birthdate: Oct. 22, 2013 Ethnicity: Let’s call Rudy a miniature short-haired dachshund and Chihuahua mix. How’s that even possible? He’s a cutie, all right, and a sweet little guy. I did say little — only 5 pounds.
Rudy’s ramblings: Trinity University’s baseball team, ranked No. 7 in Division III, has started 2-2 this season. The wins came against Texas-Tyler and LeTourneau University. Losses were at the hands of Birmingham Southern and Mary Hardin-Baylor. Here are some notable alums from those
schools. This is the kind of stuff I look up between innings.
Texas-Tyler: Craig Tiley, CEO of Tennis Australia and director of the Australian Open, a Grand Slam event
LeTourneau: Patricia Harless, member of the Texas House of Representatives since 2007. I’m going to need a ruling on evangelist Franklin Graham. He attended LeTourneau but was booted in 1971 for keeping a female classmate out after curfew.
Birmingham Southern: Kate Jackson, best known as an original “Charlie’s Angel” (the smart one), and Morgan Smith Goodwin, who plays “Red” in Wendy’s burger commercials. Also Western character actor Pat Buttram.
Mary Hardin-Baylor: Miriam “Ma” Ferguson, the first female governor of Texas in 1925, and Buddy Groom, bigleague pitcher from 1992-2005 with the Orioles, A’s, Tigers, Diamondbacks, Yankees and Marlins.
Trinity’s next opponent: University of Texas-Dallas for a three-game set this weekend. I wonder who went there.