On WBZ Boston's new video.
Good evening, and Emma, are you still at the microphone?
Yes, I am.
Do you know I heard this on BZ this week that your name is one of the top three names that baby girls born in the United States received.
I did know this.
My mom blames that on friends because Rachel and Ross name their daughter Emma. That's true, that is true. Well, I just thought i'd bring that to your attention in case you didn't know. But you know, so thank you for introwing me. And I think you're off now and you get to go out and drive in non traffic roads.
Yes, thankfully, enjoy yourself.
Thank you very much. Thank you. All right, there goes Emma, and I'm here again tonight for Dan. I was here on Wednesday, I was here last night Thanksgiving Eve evening, and I'm here tonight and I'll be back in December. I think my first Denray date will be the twenty third, and primarily that that week after Christmas and days after Christmas, I'll be here. So for those of you who keep
my schedule, now you know first hour. I know that when you woke up this morning, you looked at the area where you had your Thanksgiving meal, whether it was the kitchen, the living room, the dining room, if it was in your home, it was a disaster area. This morning, dishes were still there. Meals you thought that should have been saran wrapped didn't get sarene wrap or wax paper or luminum foil. And you said, say the same thing
every year, never again. I've got maybe a helpful hint for you, so you don't go through this again at Christmas or any other major day where you and family all get together under one roof, have it catered. And I've got two people on that can help you, And I vouch for the culinary talents because they own the Midway Restaurant to sixty nine Washington Street and Denham and every style of meal that they can produce. I've had you want meat, I've had prime rib there. I've had
fish as in loter, lobster, etc. There. I've had every major meal and I'm always super duper satisfied. So I want everybody to welcome Bob and Donna Jenks. They're here from the Midway and they also have a side hustle, distinctive dining. They do catering. So who am I signing with Bob, Donna or both?
Hi, Logan, how are you all right?
Donna? How are you? Bob?
He's here, he's here with me.
I'm here all right.
Don't make me nervous.
Now you got me?
Okay, I'm happy that I have you. Why don't the two of you give background information on catering for people? What type of a neal O'Neals do you recommend people at least consider getting catered?
So we can. We cater from all various styles of cuisine. So it depends what the customer is looking for, Morgan. So if they're American, we might like gear them to do like a prime rib of beef for like a surloin or a tenderloin, maybe some a rack of lamb or maybe some fresh seafood, keeping it in New England style. So it depends what the customer is looking for.
Okay.
So on the last holiday we just had, which was Thanksgiving yesterday, a big item for us is now individual turkey dinner, which is stuffing ashed potatoes, green beans, butch squash, turkey, gravy, cranberry sauce. We do a pie with apple pie with that and rolling butter, and that's spent the past couple of years exploding for us. Just those personal plate and stick it in the microwave and warm it up and it's ready to go.
Now, it sounds like you can do it one of several ways, depending on the size of the event the party. You can bring vans full of food, serve it, dish it out, soup to nuts, you're in charge. Or you can pre make the food, bring it to the customer, fill the refrigerator with all the fixings, and they're now in charge of their own food stuffs. Is that correct?
That is correct Morgan. Okay, So a lot of people seem to like to go that route. They just don't like the preparation, the you know, the messiness and you know, dealing with all of the mus and plus so I mean that's so we take all that away. So we do all the prep ready to you know, from the refrigeration to the oven or to the air fry or whatever they're going to use to heat it up. So
that seemed to be very popular too. You know, people just want to keep it like, you know, they want really good good food at reasonable parties, good quality, fresh food, and then they call us and they want us to do all the prep and then they can finish it. So no, people are still having full service catering, but I think it's going on a lower end where people just want to have the food prepare for them and ready to serve.
Okay, I you know me, I know these things. I know that the first Thanksgiving sixteen twenty the Pilgrims in the Indians, Turkey was not the dish of the day. The dish of the day was venison, lobster, venison, deer and lobster. Do you get You mentioned lobster before, but do you get any venison requests?
We do get some requests for venison, but it's very far and view between we We've dealt with more of like wild boar, that was very popular dish that we did.
Oh really, We've.
Done alligator and a couple of crazy things. But lobsters right now extremely high. So we haven't brought them in, but we will bring some in for the holidays.
You know, is there an equivalent taste of boar to whatever.
Equivalent taste would be, It would be the pork family.
Okay, all right, because when you said wild boar, what does that taste like?
Yeah, No, it's very very it's it's it's very similar to pork it's a pork park item. We've done wild boar sausage that was very popular and that's actually we're going to try and bring that back.
All Right, I've got to take a break. If Enwin wants to call in and speak to my guests six one, seven, two, five, four teen thirty eight, eight, eight, nine, two, nine, ten thirty and I'm sure they would be happy to answer any question that you put to them. And once again they are the Jenks j E n Ks, Bob and Donna. Time here on night Side eight sixteen, temperature thirty nine degrees.
Now back to Dan Ray live from the Window World night Side Studios on WBZ News Radio.
This is the last day of the week. Dan is off tonight. I'm expecting him back on Monday. And my name is Morgan White Junior. Been a part of BSY broadcasting since roughly nineteen ninety six. And my guests tonight are caterers Bob and Donna Jenks of Distinctive Dining. That's the correct name, right.
Guys, It's Distinctive Catering. By the Midway, Okay, I I.
Knew I was making mistakes distinction and give your phone numbers. So and give it slowly in case somebody guys want to call you for Christmas or another holiday what have you.
So it's it's five oh eight three one, five nine two one for the catering.
Okay, And I have an interesting question. I've been thinking numbers. You know, five people in the family, fifteen people in the family and more. Do you do one person catering.
Somebody wants no one person? I did do like a board of governor's dinner for eight people, and it was you know, six course meal with you know, appartuse in between each one of them. So yes, I mean I do smaller scale, but usually those are a much finer dining events because.
I know, I know, there are a lot of people who are alone. Three hundred and sixty five days a year. They're alone yet and still they might want to treat themselves for a major Thanksgiving meal. They don't have the energy, initiative, or necessarily even the intelligence to prepare a nice turkey meal with the fixings. So for people out there who might now that Christmas is our next mate, well, let me put it this way. All the December holidays, Christmas Hanukah,
Quanta Festivus for the rest of us. Thank you Seinfeld's fans. Some of you out there maybe hadn't thought of treating yourself and getting yourself a major meal prepared it by professionals just for you.
So that was single orders. Would we could do, no problem, but that would be we could probably deliver it. It wouldn't be it shouldn't be an issue, but you're going to get a delivery charge, which would be easier if they came into the restaurant and picked it up and it would be all prepared ready to go for them.
Okay, So give your phone number.
The numbers of the restaurant would be seven eight to one, three two nine five five seven.
Five okay, And I might have you do that once or twice more during the interview because we want people. A lot of people are not prepared. They they hear something that catches the air in the radio and when a number is given, necessarily they're not prepared. Oh wait a minute, I think pencil talking to the radio does
not help. We cannot we cannot hear you. And there are thirty eight states and parts of Canada that Busy reaches with its signal so I will make sure they give the phone number again and maybe even again again. Is there a question that you always get put to you by people that are investigating having you do their catering.
So a lot of people do say like, what would I suggest? You know, So when they're putting it on me, I would say, if I was having this party, this is what I would do. What's the occasion. Oh, it's a cocktail party. It's I want heavy or dirves. I want heavy nice a dirves past perfect. I have a game plan. We can do a stationary, something fun and fancy, and then we can have some nice elegant past or dirves and maybe pasta station or maybe like it's a lollipop,
lamp chop, something that's filling. So I would I would do a little bit of everything in every food category, including gluten free, you know, to the people who are seeliacs, to make sure that they have something for them right, and then I do vegetarian. I do a little bit of chicken, a little bit of beef, a little bit of seafood. And that's how I would plan my cortail party. So usually when I tell them what I would do,
they're like, I love it, let's do it. So they kind of put it all on my lap and I'll turn around, say you're gonna you know, what's your favorite or you know, if you have a special guest coming to your party, you know, what are their favorites? So and then I incorporate all of those types of food into the into the menu planning. Okay, But a lot of it comes down to budget, you know. They're like, you know, I have X, Y Z to deal with. What can I get? Well, you can't get tenderline with that.
But then some people say, I don't care what the price is. I want it nice, so, you know, and that's far and few and between. But a lot of people, you know, they're like, you know, they have a budget that they want to stick with it, and sometimes they budget and the food that they want it's not compatible, you know. So especially in today's today's world, you know, one week, a case of tomatoes might be eighty five dollars and like, you know, three weeks ago with like
thirty five dollars. So you never know what's going on with the price of food from one week to the other. That's the scary pot Okay, you know what I mean. So I always say, like a week in advance, we can nail down the number. But this is what this is what it is today. You know, sometimes people want
to book a party two months in advance. So but it could be like some of the food that they want all of a sudden it's not available, or the prices like you know, dramatically has single seasonal correct.
Depending on the time of the year. Summer, lobsters plentiful, winter it's not as plentiful. But let me ask you both your background, your history. What's the backstory of Donna and Bob or should I say Bob and Donna.
I let Bob Ali Bob start off with it.
So the backstory for the Jenks family is Al Janks started in nineteen forty seven at eight ninety Providence Highway, and my father took it over in the early seventies, and then right up to the Blizzard of seventy eight, we closed the Midway Steakhouse and I worked there approximately for three years, and then we came to two sixty nine Washington Street, where we've been for My father was here for part of that and I've been here for
forty two years now. What all is about a generation and possibly the last.
Wow. Now, what is it about food that you love? You couldn't do this unless you loved food, the environment interact.
I love making different items that are out of the norm, you know, put my spin on. I'll see something, I'll put my spin on it. And I just love creating different items, you know what I mean, not the norm, like your like your lobster, you know something that's uh, we do like a seafood castle role which is a popular item for this season coming up. But we do many different things that are are that are not the norm, you know what I mean. Try to be different from
the neighbor next door. You know what I mean.
I know just what you mean. Donna. I'm i ask you the same question, but I have a news hit coming up, so I'm gonna do a commercial or two. Take my news and when we come back, you can answer the same question again. If anyone wants to call in to speak to my caterers. Six one, seven, two, five, four ten thirty or eight eight, eight, nine, two, nine
ten thirty, Bob and Donna Jenks are here. And maybe, just maybe you've got an event coming up on your calendar that a caterer would be just what the doctor ordered. This is Nightside. My name is Morgan Morgan White Junior. I'm filling in for Dan Ray. He should be back on Monday. I haven't been told he's not, so I am telling you that I'm here for the rest of the night till midnight. I've got a great show planned next hour. We've got Bill and Bo Winnaker. That's all
I need to say about that. Time and temperature eight thirty thirty nine degrees.
It's night Side with Dan Ray on Boston's news radio.
We're talking food. Find food and if you're in the need of at least considering having an event catered. Distinctive catering is represented by Bob and Donna Jenks. They're here and Donna do two things, the same question that gave to Bob before the break. What is it about food that attracted you and has pretty much held your attention for the years you've been doing this? And give your phone number again, please.
So the first thing is passion. I have a passion for what I do. I love the food industry. I love to be creative. To me, food is passion. It changes with the time. So you have to be you have to know what's going on with the food trends. So that's kind of like what makes me stay interested after like, you know, forty years of being in the food service industry. But I've been through all different styles of restaurants, hotels, private country clubs, you know, private, public
restaurants and things to that nature. So I've kind of done it all, so I still love it. And i'd say, you know, you have to be passionate to be in it for all the years that both my husband and I have been in four So.
It looks like you found the right mate the same and there are a lot of those big knives in the kitchen, I know, I know.
No, it's nice because he'll ask me for my opinion on certain things, and I'll ask him for his opinion on certain things. So it's it's a good blend.
Give your phone number again.
Five eight three one five nine two one for any.
Caring, all right, because you gave the other number, the seven eight one number before, but either.
Work the restaurant, it would be seven eight one three two nine five five.
Okay, I'm gonna mention three classic restaurants that don't exist anymore, and I want you to give an opinion of how they treated food prep customers and the concept of hospitality, and the fact that they're not around anymore. It tells you, no matter how high their name was, if you don't do something right, eventually you get brought down. And I'm going to start off with Anthony's per four. I'll then say Lockovers, and I'll say denis.
The last one d I and I.
They were on Tremont Street, almost at the intersection of Park Street and Tremont Street. Are you familiar with any of them? All of them? None of them?
Two out of three?
Well, let's talk about the two out of three?
You know, So Lockovers and P four. I mean I've heard, like I'll I've been to the P four many many times, the special celebrations, and I really like, I can't remember having not one thing that was like wrong. It was very good experience.
Right.
Lockovers I've never been to, but if I've heard, I've heard great things about it. To be honest with you.
And Bob, I think the Anthony's Peer four is they had longevity. I disbelieve it would be like the Midway, who is going to take over the peer when you know when the time comes for a change in the family, and I think that it just it came to that point. And I know they were doing work down there and changing their location and it's all been done differently down there now, but I think it was at bottom line, it was the family, you know, So the family tree
came to an end. That was the Anthony's peer is the only one that comes to my mind.
I remember that there was a TV show called Bandicheck and it was primarily based in Boston, and there was an episode that was filmed there and Anthony I think his last name was Athenis h wound up waiting on the Lee character Thomas Bancheck table as if that was something he did every day. And I said to myself, you're gonna mislead people if they think the owner of the restaurant is going to be waiting on your table to find out what it is you want the afternoon
specials or not. So tell me one one thing. And I feel awkward asking this. I don't want you to include my name and what you're about to say, but talk about your Friday and Saturday regularly scheduled entertainment.
So we have we have Bobby Diamond who comes in twice a month and he does a great job. We have Dave Solo that comes in twice a month. He does a little country is type music. I feel like Frank Sinatra and Tony Bennett. We have Mike Biano, he's fabulous. He come than twice a month too. They're all on the rotating schedule. Those that I mentioned mostly coming on Friday. We do have a couple of live entertainment that have
been here for years. Cheryl and Rudy their duet. They do a little bit of everything, and and Cheryl has a fabulous voice. I just love her voice. So we have, you know, a little something for everyone, you know. So so Tony Corbone he is, he did He's good with me. He has he's an instructor. He works in the school in in Boston.
Music, so.
He comes with a lot of skills. But all of them are very entertaining. You know. They do a great job. And I mean I haven't I like the variety and the customers and they love the variety too. So you but if you know anybody who's who's looking to do a little, you know, live entertainment here at the Midway, I always periodically have them to come in and do like a little you know, an hour gig again.
Demo what they can do.
Yeah, we'll put them, We'll put them in the rotation.
And you forgot a name, Douglas the Psychic.
Oh he's the live Well I was, I wasn't thinking about this. Well, yes, Doug. He comes over like twice a year. He's great. You know, he does a lot of people. They he gets filled up. So I'm happy for him. We appreciate his business. He's a regular customer.
So and I stole him from you, I.
Used that's okay shared when he's on, I try to listen to you guys, but sometimes midnight is too late for me.
Well, yes, and I've got to call him because I've got, like tonight, I've got some nightside dates that need to be filled in. And he is good because I use certain guests for a one hour slot, like we are here with you and Bob, or I use some guests for two hours, like I use that two hour slot for mel Simon's and I could listen to other people that I use two hours for, but Douglas is a two hour guest. Because the phone lines go crazy.
Yeah, everybody wants to know I've listened to the show when he was on. He's good.
Yeah, everybody wants to know what's coming up in their future, and I'll tell people listening right now. I will call him on Monday. I'm not going to pest him over the weekend, but I will call him on Monday and see if I can insert him into one of the slots that I have opened. I think the last time I had them, I was in September, and I try to make it every couple of months or so with
the majority of my guests. And for an example, I do believe this is number seven the time that Midway has been represented with me here on WBZ.
Oh. I think it's always fun to be part of your team's. I enjoy it. We always lost to you guys.
Anyways, the gentleman that you're filling in tonight for was actually in the restaurant Monday night, Odynight.
He was in Monday. Yeah, you know why I was away from this microphone. He belonged right where I'm sitting now. Oh, not my house, but this microphone. Every Monday through Friday, eight to midnight, that's where we are supposed to have Dan Ray. But I think Rick Kitlas filled in and on Monday and Tuesday. And I've been here Wednesday, last night, Thursday and out tonight. So did Dan do something unusual or.
He came in the restaurant with his brother. I had seen his brother a couple about a month before, and I said, we started talking about it. Might tell Dan we still have the turkey tips on the menu, and he said, I'll bring them, and sure enough, he came in the restaurant on this past Monday night. Okay, nice guy, very nice, very personable.
And yeah, did I say I meant to say. Gary Tangway was on Monday and Tuesday. And it's nice to know that your restaurant every now and then appeals to celebrities. And Dan Ray is a celebrity and there's.
One that comes in on Tuesday night too.
Okay, I got to take a break. I publicized my appearances there enough. I feel uncomfortable pubbing myself, but I will let people know later on tonight. The times that I'm there and the fact that Mel and other people that call the radio station participate with WBZ show up. So I'm very lucky to have loyal listeners.
We're very lucky to have all of you.
Well, Bob, thank you. Let me take a break and we'll be back and have about ten twelve minutes of show to go talking about distinctive catering. Here in BZ time and temperature ten forty six thirty nine degrees.
Now back to Dan Ray live from the Window World night Side Studios.
On WBZ News Radio. Dan is off tonight. My name Morgan White Junior, and I've got two people who make their living through food. Their restaurant The Midway through sixty nine Washington Street and Denham and their catering business, distinctive Catering. And you mentioned, I think it was you, Bob, that you're probably not going to be continuing on with the Midway. But you have a daughter who is part of your staff, is she not?
Yes, Amanda is a godsend. She's working for us now, but I would not put that burden on her.
It's not easy running a restaurant.
I know that it is not easy, and it's a lot of things have changed over the years and it's not the same as it was twenty years ago, you know. So, and if, with God forbid, if we ever have another issue like we did with the COVID, you know we were on a string, just hanging on, you know, So I wouldn't do that. I know my father, my grandfather would never ever dream that would happen to the restaurant. But we came to the other side and we're stronger
for it. But as far as somebody else, and I wouldn't do that to my family.
If you recall both of you, with the regularity, I would order lunch and I have a nancwer. I would would come pick it up, just as a way of showing support for the restaurant.
I remember.
We don't forget those days.
No, but you know what, COVID killed so many businesses across the board. No matter what the business business manufacturer or did, or how they made people walk through their front door. So many places that were open in twenty nineteen twenty twenty have gone the way the dodo.
We were lucky because it was people like you and a lot of regulars that kept us kept us afloat. You know, we're lucky to have all of our regulars.
All right, I'm going to give everybody a two minute warning. I'm going to give a queue for Bob and or Donna to give the phone number again. So if you have started to write it down, didn't write it down, get pen and paper, because in two minutes we're going to give the phone number again. And I know you normally do a big blowout for the holidays. There's anything special planned for December.
For December, we're definitely going to be doing. We did not do it lest last year, but we're going to do it this year. We're going to do our buffet Christmas Eve, and we get a lot of things planned for it. I don't want to spill the beans right now, but it's going to be pretty special.
Okay. Well, I'm going to say it's a fifty to fifty shot that I will be able to be there, because if I have to come in to do Dan Ray time again, maybe I'll send Dan Ray in in my stead and he can eat the lobster.
Well, Mel Melk can have yours.
All right? And you know what, if Mel's listening right now, he just lit up, not just head, Yes, sure, all right, got one of you give the phone number, So anyone who is prepared.
Phone number catering, it's five oh eight three one, five nine two two.
One and the restaurant would be seventy eight one three, two, nine five.
Okay, now you do know, because you've heard the rumors about this. When I say again, when I hit the big mega million's jackpot, I am taking a good ten or twelve people, the regulars that come, the girls, you know who the girls are, and two of the bartenders, Emma and Lisa. So and I have to give you both something to make up for the fact that I'm taking away employees. We're all going to Vegas, and I'm inviting both of you to come as well.
I'll be there.
There you go. Wait, wait, wait, I said, the two of you. You didn't give barb a chance to a gree to come as well.
No, he tricked me because I thought you were going to say when you hit the big one that you would buy the Midway.
All right, you know what, let's keep that alive.
There you go.
But I'm going to tell you one of the top five restaurants in Vegas is named Michaels. It used to be at the Barbery Coast. The Barbary Coast evolved into Bill's Gambling Hall at Casino, which was a Harris property, and that now is evolved into the Cromwell. So Bill's moved to the south Point further down on Las Vegas Boulevard South. I cannot tell you a better culinary evening I've never had. I've had the best culinary evening I ever had was at Bill's Michael's. I mean a number
of times. And I will treat the two of you when you come with me when I hit the big one, not if when I hit the big one, I will bring you to the place that will just blow the doors off. And that would be my way of telling you thank you for all you've done for me over the past seven or eight years.
We appreciate it.
And by the way, we all fly first class. I'm not putting you in coach.
I'm not partying. Yes, that is a private jet.
I've got too many people coming. Oh, because private jets normally fit around a dozen people max. If I find a private jet that would fit all the people, I would do thats there you go. It would be like when Rex Trailer used to do those trips to Florida, and they they started up with one, but they had several planes that went and then there were the people that complained because they couldn't be on Rex's plane. And everybody's gonna want to be in the plane. The two
of you are on. Guys, I'm gonna let you go back. You get a restaurant to run. Thank you for coming.
On much.
Bye, Bob, bye, Don okay. And I mentioned next hour, next two hours, Bill and Bo Winnaker. If you want to call in to be prepared when they're on, because the last couple of times I've had them on, people did that. They loaded up the lines early six one, seven, two, five, four, ten, thirty eight eight eight nine, two nine, ten, thirty thirty nine degrees