When the Long-Suffering Husband proposed, I specified that I didn’t want him to buy me an engagement ring. But there’s one type of ring I never turn down.
This big, bold stack of rings is served at Dante Bocuzzi in Akron. The thick-sliced red onions are advertised as “tempura,” though the batter is heavier than you get with a really good tempura. The crust is golden brown and crispy, and they are served with a ranch sauce spiked with hot Sriracha.
Dante encourages you to play with your food.
Dante himself is easy on the eyes. The Akron restaurant has a rock ‘n’ roll theme, with guitars here and there, and menus printed on vinyl record sleeves. This is especially appropriate given that the predecessor restaurant at the spot was owned by Chrissie Hynde. Dante also has a fancier place in Cleveland and is building a restaurant empire…
Play Freebird!
You can judge onion rings by the Three C’s: cut, color and crust. A perfect ring is truly a thing of beauty.
These are the onion rings at Veggie Galaxy in Cambridge, Mass. A very pleasing, light and crispy batter, but a bit too greasy. Still, I highly recommend Veggie Galaxy, for any vegetarian who ever fantasized about walking into an old-fashioned diner and being able to order anything on the menu.
Onion rings and beer. Mmmmmm.
This is Christian, the Veggie Galaxy chef! Doesn’t he look delicious?
Photo from the Veggie Galaxy blog. Click to see the other denizens of the VG kitchen!
My favorite onion rings may just be the ones at Nino’s, our local. They are probably frozen rings that Nino buys from a supplier and deep fries. The crust is bumpy and crispy, and the onions inside are well-cooked and slightly sweet.
With a pint of Stella and some ranch dressing, these really hit the spot.
You might not be as enamored of Nino if I showed a picture of him. Let’s just say he looks like the late, great James Gandolfini.
“Mangia, mangia!”
In case you’re wondering what happened with the engagement ring, my plan for a solo wedding band was vetoed by his mother, who insisted that he buy a proper diamond ring. So I chose one with a band of tiny diamonds instead of a big solitaire. That was more my style. I wonder if they ever make cocktail onions into rings…
Linnet Moss 
LOL. I’d go for the onion rings rather than the diamonds, too. Yummie. Racking my brains here to find a recommendation for Dublin re. onion rings. Eddie Rocket’s Diner, possibly. Otherwise Tempura in Yamamoto. Mhhh, I’d love some now…
I don’t see them on Eddie’s menu, but they have Crispy Garlic Mushrooms and Four Cheese Quesadillas. Yummy!
Those are some fine looking onion rings. Nothing like a good one. And nothing as disappointing as a bad one.
I agree! If they are really greasy they can be awful.
Or those pre-made frozen ones some diners try to pass off as onion rings. #cardboard
You weren’t joking, I see!
Deep fried food… meh 😉
Loved the ring story.
I have the American fondness for deep fried foods. I especially love deep-fried pickles!
Deep fried pickles?! That’s a new one. To me 😉
Who wouldn’t enjoy a post with spunky chefs (well two) and onions rings! Not something we see tonnes of here but if you get a good one, they are right tasty. Maybe you could have an imitation onion ring cocktail ‘ring’ made out of resin? Imagine all the attention it would garner at a cocktail party!
I’d have people eating out of my hand 🙂
So far I have resisted the temptation to buy a deep fryer, but this is really pushing my limits. Must get back to leafy green vegetables…
Hmm, my future mother-in-law was quite unperturbed by my lack of engagement ring, so I never did get one (as I also requested). Given that I went on to lose not one, but two, wedding bands, just as well I never owned an expensive diamond, I think!
Yes, that’s one reason I didn’t want a diamond, but also because I don’t like the way they stick out.
I would sell every gram of my jewelry for fabulous tasting food–any day. And it’s really hard to trust a chef that isn’t at least 100 lbs overweight. I want the chef to be an advertisement of how frickin’ fantastic his own cooking is. I’ll save the pinup boys for the leading rolls.
And now you have me quite desperate for phenomenal tasting onion rings–especially for number three.
Bring ’em on.
Ha, ha, it’s Mario Batali for you! We had pizza at one of his joints in Manhattan, and boy was it good 🙂
Yummy chef…oh wait.
We probably have very similar wedding rings. I didn’t want the rock sticking out because I knew it would annoy me and I’d take it off and lose it. Now that I’ve inherited my mom’s solitary rock, I can tell you you made the right choice. I wear this one on my right hand with the ring I got in Greece (to hold it in place since it’s a little big). It’s constantly getting on my nerves but I force myself not to take it off for fear of losing it.
I never cared for jewelry until my thirties. Now I have a few classic pieces that people have given me that have sentimental value. I have my limit though, and I’m at the limit. Any more jewelry options and I start getting confused!
Thanks for the comment! I love beads and I have a vast collection of beaded necklaces, but I’m not that much for rings, and even high-carat gold earrings irritate my ears. But I do enjoy a big gemstone or crystal once in a while. Preferably on a pendant.
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