Mom's Roast

We get a lot of compliments from customers about how they enjoy cooking our beef products. I enjoy hearing all the comments, but I always have to smile when we get one about how much they like our beef roasts. I can always pretty much tell that person is close to my age and grew up in much the same home environment that I did.

When I was growing up in Alvin, Texas, my brother and sisters and I always knew what our Sunday menu was going to be. It was roast beef although my mother on occasion threw us off and went with chicken instead.

We weren't unique. I guess from after World War II until deep in the 1960s, most American families enjoyed a special meal almost every Sunday usually centered around roast.

That routine had a lasting impact on me. Even today I enjoy a good roast with brown gravy more than any other home-cooked meal. Same thing if I'm eating at someone else's home. I usually get really excited if they cook roast with potatoes, carrots, celery, onions and brown gravy. It's my ideal home meal.

I don't know exactly why a good roast has that effect. I just know those were special days and whenever I eat roast today it just takes me back to when I was a kid growing up. Perhaps it does the same for you. E-mail me with your thoughts on your favorite family meal.