Photo courtesy Oklahoma City Civic Center Music Hall.
Saturday, March 7 –
Louis Lortie, a French-Canadian pianist, will be in the spotlight on Saturday, March 7 during the performance coined Terror and Triumph. The Oklahoma City Civic Center Music Hall stage welcomes Lortie’s talents on the bench, as part of the OKC Phil Classics Series. Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 2 and Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10 will fill the air as Lortie charms the keys and captivates the crowd. Having gained applause and acclaim throughout Europe, Asia and the United States, Lortie continues to hit the right notes, winning him high recognition. His extremely impressive play list includes performing complete Beethoven sonata cycles in multiple venues, all five Beethoveen concertos and all of the Mozart concertos, his interpretation of Ravel and Chopin, performing the complete Annees de pelerinage and many more notable sheets. He has performed with some of the world’s leading conductors, including Riccardo Chailly, Lorin Maazel, Jaap Van Zqeden and Kurt Masur. The OKC Civic Center Music Hall will open the curtains to this long-awaited performance, by a prestigious, world-renowned artist, at 8 p.m. For more information, visit http://www.okcciviccenter.com/
Every year, Doris and George reunite, but their love affair pulls at their morals and their marriages…to other people. This romantic comedy by Bernard Slade encompasses the more than two decades in which Doris and George have been rendezvousing once a year, every year. Running for four years on Broadway, Same Time, Next Year is a must-see performance, and the Tulsa cast will captivate its audiences at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center March 6 through 15. One of the world’s most widely produced plays, Same Time, Next Year’s popularity continues to grow. It’s easy to fall in love with this love affair. Presented by Tulsa Project Theatre, tickets start at $22. For more information, visit www.tulsapac.com.
Selling more than 2,000 tickets, Neil Gaiman’s appearance at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center on Tuesday, March 10, is a highly anticipated event. A best-selling author, across many genres, Gaiman has won over the hearts and minds of readers all over the world. Whether writing short fiction, novels, comic books, graphic novels or scripts, his dedicated followers fall trap to the beautiful, unique, interesting characters they meet between his pages. His words and storytelling shape fascinating imagery that keep readers turning the pages from cover to cover. His potent way with words has won him high honors; the Hugo, Nebula and Bram Stoker awards are a few his pieces have earned him, and he is the first author to win the Newbery Award and the Carnegie medal for the same work, The Graveyard Book. Popular works by Gaiman include The Sandman, Coraline, Stardust, American Gods and The Graveyard Book. His works are telling depictions of a creative, artist mind, one that audiences will get to uncover at An Evening with Author Neil Gaiman, presented by the Oklahoma Center for Poets and Writers/Oklahoma State University, Tulsa. Applause, and most likely a standing ovation, will welcome Gaiman to the stage at 7 p.m. For more information, visit www.tulsapac.com.
Originally taking the stage on March 12, the iconic rock band that has survived almost five decades as Fleetwood Mac will perform for fans at Chesapeake Energy Arena on a later date – Friday, April 17. The band last toured in 2009 with its sold-out Unleashed tour. The current tour, On With the Show, which kicked off nearly two years ago, has taken Fleetwood Mac on the road again and just in time for the 35th anniversary of the release of the classic Rumours album, one of the most successful albums in recorded history with sales toping 40 million. Band mates Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks give quite the performance and are just as excited as fans for their current tour. Due to an overwhelming demand to see Fleetwood Mac in concert, 11 new shows have been added to the 2015 line-up. Make sure to get your tickets before they run out. Tickets range from $60-$200. The show starts at 8 p.m. at the Chesapeake Energy Arena, 100 W. Reno, Oklahoma City. For more information, visit www.chesapeakearena.com.
Round House CEO Jim Antosh displays the company’s iconic overalls. Photo by Brent Fuchs.
Layer upon layer of denim stretches across a 32-yard table. With steady precision, a worker makes a series of cuts, initiating a process that will eventually yield a sturdy pair of overalls – thousands of pairs, in fact.
In one of the offices adjacent to the factory sits the man in charge of it all. Tall, thin and exceedingly good-natured, he is not the first in his family to hold this position, nor is he likely to be the last.[pullquote]“As far as work clothing, we’re about it, so it gives us a real niche that way,”[/pullquote]
“When I was in high school, I was planning to be a chemical engineer,” says Jim Antosh, owner and president of Round House Workwear, which has manufactured jeans and overalls in Shawnee since 1903. “But then one summer I worked here and found out that I like manufacturing.”
Antosh majored in industrial engineering and earned his MBA from Oklahoma State University, all while planning to return to Round House. In 1978 he joined the company in a managerial role. In 1986 he became president, taking over for his father, Edward Antosh, who had purchased the company in the 1960s. Antosh’s son, David, currently serves as vice president, thus representing a third generation.
The vast majority of family businesses do not make it that far, Antosh says.
“There’s a myriad of reasons why they don’t make it,” he says. “But come around for our 200th, I think we’ll be here.”
David Antosh is equally optimistic.
“It seems like that’s kind of the way the family works,” he says. “We’ve always been involved in the business, and so even growing up I worked out at Round House doing different things.”
While the Antosh name imparts a sense of continuity, the last 112 years have brought many changes to the industry in general and the company in particular. Since Antosh took the reins, the NAFTA era has seen much of the American manufacturing base move overseas, leaving Round House the only company of its kind to carry on the tradition of “Made in the United States,” he says.
“As far as work clothing, we’re about it, so it gives us a real niche that way,” he says.
Perhaps ironically, this domestic emphasis has become an international selling point. Japan, for example, is a loyal and enthusiastic customer of the Round House product, which seems to embody notions of rugged individualism and traditional Americana, he says.
“They like that John Wayne-type image,” Antosh says.
Other changes have been more technological in nature.
Because individual sewing machines with their own small motors were not quite a reality in the 1910s and 1920s, one large electric motor was manipulated by pulleys on a shaft running down the table at which the workers sat, he says. Antosh recalls meeting a woman, now deceased, who worked for Round House in 1922, at which time this system would have been in place.
She appears in a period photograph hanging in a nearby hallway.
It is a type of history for which Antosh feels an obvious affection. He is constantly on the lookout for photos and other memorabilia from previous decades, with the hope of eventually establishing a museum.
But for now, a small gallery of photographs must suffice. It reflects a century of history – for Round House and, by extension, for Shawnee – with more recent photos showing celebrities from Donald Trump to Miranda Lambert bedecked in the company’s gear.
Meanwhile, the overalls continue their rounds across the factory floor, gradually taking shape through a combination of computerized technology and the same type of old-fashioned handiwork that was necessary 100 years ago – and, one assumes, will still be occurring under Round House’s roof 100 years from today.
William Brown shows off some of Brown Bakery’s famous cinnamon rolls, that come covered in just the right amount of icing. Photos by Brent Fuchs.
In a growing area in Oklahoma City sits a landmark, whose owners and staff greet its customers with consistency. Run by three generations and worked by four, Brown’s Bakery has deep roots in Oklahoma City and in brother-and-sister-duo Brenda and William Brown’s hearts.
“We were raised in the business,” William says. “We’ve always been a part of it.”
William has been involved with Brown’s since he was 10 years old. He remembers a lot of kids following him home from school back then. The bakery was open until 6 p.m., and his grandparents were always there in the afternoon running the kitchen.
“They knew they’d get some donuts,” he laughs.
Photo by Brent Fuchs.
Brenda, current manager and cake decorator, also remembers good memories of Brown’s Bakery as a child.
“We started working as soon as we could walk,” she says. “We’d make the boxes. A penny a box.”
Brenda moved to Texas at 21. She was gone for 30 years, but during holidays she and her sister would bring their kids up to make their own memories. Their grandfather would put the kids up on a bucket so they could reach the counter, and they would help him in the kitchen icing the donuts, she remembers.
William and Brenda’s grandfather started Brown’s Bakery in 1946. He had worked for a continental bakery, and when he was passed over for a foreman position, he left the company to start his own. Their dad, Bill, did a lot of the baking, and his brother, Bob, helped with delivery and sales. Brenda recalls her grandmother, Anna Fae, being a great saleswoman, too; she was frequently heard enticing customers walking by with, “Come taste what Mr. Brown made.”
When the bakery moved the store to its current location in 1991, the Browns were afraid it wouldn’t be as successful. Other than St. Anthony’s Hospital and Kaiser’s American Bistro, empty buildings, a liquor store and a convenience market were all that welcomed Brown’s Bakery to the neighborhood. It wasn’t a good area. Walking around at night wasn’t safe. Still, the business grew, and it continued to get better as the area developed.
Next year will be Brown’s 70th anniversary, and who knows how the bakery will celebrate. During the week of the 50th anniversary, Brown’s offered its famous applesauce doughnuts priced as they would have been in 1946: 69 cents a dozen.
“We had made over 300 dozen,” says Brenda. “They were gone before 10 o’clock [a.m.].”
Like she did for many holidays and big events, Brenda returned home from Texas for the 50th. Her most recent trip home, though, wasn’t for such a celebration. Last year, Brenda came home to help take care of her ailing mom, and the family business kept her.
Now, Brenda works alongside her dad, Bill, her uncle, Bob, her younger brother, William, his son Chase and some other great staff members they’ve hired along the way. The girls decorate and the boys bake. That’s how it’s always been; Bill taught his wife how to decorate, and she taught Brenda and her sister.
Almost every morning between 6:30 and 9:30 a.m., a line forces the door ajar. Bill calls everyone out from the back, and they all help move the line through.
“Sometimes it’s people getting one doughnut to eat right then or a couple dozen to take with them,” says Brenda.
Brown’s Bakery is a fun environment. Brenda and the rest of the staff welcome the noise of customers and their families.
“It’s not a strict, professional kind of place,” she says. “The sales girls have really good personalities. One lady just came in the other day asking about the cookies. [She said,] ‘I didn’t really come in to buy anything, just to talk to Ellen ‘cause I’m feeling a little down.’”
You can believe she left with a smile and a cured sweet tooth. 1100 N. Walker Ave., Oklahoma City. 405.232.0363
The first time I saw fava bean pods in the grocery store, I did a double take. The pods are large and daunting, and they require specific preparation for use. But look past the pod and the tough cover around each bean, and a delicate, flavorful legume awaits. The beans are a great source of protein, magnesium, iron and fiber. In Oklahoma, fava plants planted in the fall can produce beans in March through May. Look for them to begin arriving in grocery stores then. Fava beans are easily shelled but must be removed from their tough, outer husks. Inside is the bean, which can be prepared in myriad ways.
Fava Bean Dip
2-3 lbs. fresh fava beans, shelled (about 2 cups)
1 tbsp. salt
4 cloves chopped garlic
olive oil
1 tsp. lemon zest
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1/4 c. or more water
5 oz. goat cheese
kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Remove the outer shell from the fava beans. Bring two quarts of water to a boil. Add 1 tablespoon salt. Add the shelled beans and simmer for five minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove beans from the hot water and place in a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking and to shock the beans into maintaining their bright green color. When the beans have sunk to the bottom of the bowl of ice water, fish them out and remove and discard the outer peel.
In a small skillet, heat a tablespoon of olive oil on medium. Add the chopped garlic cloves and cook until softened, but not browned, three to four minutes.
Place beans in a food processor with softened garlic, lemon zest, lemon juice and water. Pulse until smooth. Stream in a tablespoon or two more of olive oil while puréeing. Scoop the bean mixture into a bowl. Mix in the goat cheese until well combined. Season with kosher salt and freshly ground pepper.
Traditional Irish stew and a pint of Guinness are the perfect St. Patrick’s Day pair. Photo by Natalie green.
March is the perfect month to get your Irish up. But celebrating St. Patrick’s Day is not all about drinking green beer. A major part of the festivities is enjoying traditional Irish foods. Corned beef and cabbage, potatoes in every form and shepherd’s pie. At Kilkenny’s, the Irish-themed hotspot in Tulsa, the Traditional Irish Stew is a great meal with which to ring in St. Patty’s Day. Chunks of beef are cooked slowly with carrots, onions, potatoes and fresh herbs. The meat and vegetables are served in a rich broth and makes the perfect celebratory dinner. Enjoy the Irish classic with a pint of Guinness and a few slices of Irish soda bread. 1413 E. 15th St., Tulsa. www.tulsairishpub.com
In late 2013, investors in Pizzeria Gusto began tearing away at an old building located in Oklahoma City’s Uptown district, unsure of what awaited them. To their surprise a beautiful Deco façade was waiting under the layers of material that had covered the front of the building many years before. It’s a perfect metaphor for a restaurant that strips excess from a classic Italian dish, pizza, and creates a simple, straightforward and delicious pie. With a wood-fired oven hand-crafted in Italy, Pizzeria Gusto creates Neopolitan-style pizzas that lean on the freshness of ingredients, rather than the quantity, for flavor. Butternut squash, Italian sausage, salmon and meatballs all make appearances on Gusto’s pies. Of course, the Margherita, the original pizza, is a star. Fresh mozzarella and parmesan are layered with basil and glugs of extra virgin olive oil on a crust sauced simply with San Marzano tomatoes. It’s a fine bite when paired with a wine or beer from Gusto’s extensive list. 2415 N. Walker Ave., Oklahoma City. www.pizzeria-gusto.com
