Bat Country

I had heard about this place from my friend Nickel. During the spring and fall semesters, I would often hang out with Nickel in the tunnels underneath Towson University. In the summers when he works for Columbia Association, Nickel often finds and shows me recently discovered chill-spots.

I wasn't scheduled to work on Tuesday, so I went to the East Columbia Branch Library with Joey to help him prepare for the GED. After studying at the library, we walked around Owen Brown as we often do. I remembered Nickel telling me about a tunnel underneath Broken Land parkway, so we went to check it out.

At the bottom of a forested slope on the corner of Broken Land and Cradlerock lies a stream and two concrete tunnels spanning the width of the parkway. To satisfy my curiousity, I decided to walk through one of the tunnels, Joey followed. One hundred feet through a steel ribbed, sand filled sewer tunnel. No snakes that I could see, just the sound of trickling water and the echo of flip-flops.

On the other side of the tunnel was a concrete slab followed by a stream choked with brush and fallen timbers. Among the twigs and trash, Joey found an expired Maryland learner's permit for Jhef Herard Felix of 6361 Windharp Way along with a lone black athletic shoe. After snapping a few pictures of damsel flies and waterfalls, we decided to head back through the other tunnel.

That was when we entered Bat Country! As far as people go, Joey's reserved and not easily startled. However, not long after we entered the tunnel, we discovered Bat Country. His mannerisms quickly changed to panic as he screamed out about bats and snakes and death.

A podcast of our adventure through Bat Country can be found here.

Bon Fresco: Now Open

I haven't posted in over a week. Have I gone AWOL? Are the lack of posts the result of some turbulent mix of apathy and stupor? Actually, I've been busy with my MsgworX internship and landscape engineering for Mom Duke.

I've also spent a few hours here and there at Bon Fresco, four more today for the official opening of the restaurant. Little things like the bus-yellow wall tiles, Micros heat tape tickers and plastic containers filled with baguettes remind me of Atlanta Bread Company.

Gerald Koh, the owner and manager of Bon Fresco says he's changing the menu slightly. For Howchow and any other curious patrons, I've scanned a copy of the handbill menu I've pedaled and peddled to the surrounding office structures. The bottom of the menu cuts off on the Capri, so I've listed it below:

Capri: Prosciutto, Genoa salami, capicola and provolone with lettuce, roasted red peppers, hot peppers, onions and vinaigrette on ciabatta.

The layout of the restaurant is similar to that of Chipotle, one of the restaurants with which Bon Fresco is competing for your business. Orders are picked up at the counter adjacent to the front doors and taken at the opposite end of the counter. Bon Fresco is small however and only seats 27.

So what makes Bon Fresco any different from Panera Bread or Subway? I'm sure there are many patrons pondering this point, as have I. The ingredients. As Koh has stated before, he wants everything to be fresh, so he won't refridgerate tomatoes nor will he buy them with the additive spray film even if this means 86ing tomatoes for the rest of the shift. All of the bread is made on site, by hand. No frozen-boxed baguettes here.

Business has been slow primarily due to lack of advertising, so get the word out. The more guests Koh gets, the more hours I get. If the management is sound and the operation is streamlined, then the business should succeed. The food will sell itself.

Bon Fresco is located in Dobbin, behind Ledo's Pizza. Here's the street address for all of you Google mappers:

6945 Oakland Mills road (At the corner of Oakland Mills road and Snowden River parkway).

So is it ethical for me to report on a business I work for? Honestly, when I was in J-School at Towson, I was given the choice of electives; either take media ethics or media law. Complimentary to my character, I chose media law.

As for objectivitiy, well that's a subject better explained by Hunter S. Thompson. Refer to Fear And Loathing: On The Campaign Trail '72, page 33.

Gerald Koh on Bon Fresco

Columbia resident Gerald Koh has been busy over the last few months, overseeing the building and inspection processes of his new restaurant venture, Bon Fresco. Koh, who earned a BS in accounting from College Park in 1982, has been working in the food-service industry for over twenty years.

In the cube behind Ledo's Pizza in Owen Brown, Koh works daily meeting with potential employees, contractors and inspectors. He says he hopes to open Bon Fresco to the public by June 15th.

Bon Fresco is small, about the size of your average Subway restaurant and will employ only 15-20 people. Thankfully, I count myself among those 15-20 employees. Details are hard to come by but Koh says menus will be printed by Tuesday. The specific items of the menu aren't yet known by anyone except Koh, but we can look forward to Koh's favorite menu item; Israeli couscous, made with caramelized onions, dried apricots and feta cheese.

"I like to have food that is good for you, that is tasty. That is what America is all about," says Koh while standing at his impromptu desk. Koh says many restaurants in the area work on three basic principles: good bread, freshness and service. He points out however that none of his competitors have nailed all three yet.

When asked, he says restaurants like Chipotle and Panera Bread will be his primary competitors.

So where does the name Bon Fresco come from? Koh says he spent a lot of time thinking of names for his concept company like sweet and fresh, sweet and simple. Finally he came up with good and fresh. Bon Fresco translates as good and fresh in Italian and French respectively.