Haus Murphy’s – Glendale, Arizona
To some of us of a certain age and generation, the term “grandma’s food” evokes emotionally-arousing childhood memories of the foods our grandmothers would prepare. That’s especially true for those of us who no longer have those heaven-sent treasures. Food was just one of the many ways grandma showed how much she loved her family. Memories of grandma’s cooking sustain us and bring a flood of warm, fuzzy, happy memories to us–powerful memories that touch our senses of taste, touch, smell. For the sentimental among us, “grandma’s food” summons the sense of love and happy familiarity in our hearts. For restaurateur Thomas Hauck, the term “grandma’s food” also represents how German food is perceived by an American dining public more inclined to chase the shiny new culinary trend. In a 2018 interview with the Washington Post for an an article titled “How Changing Tastes are Killing German Restaurants,” Hauck lamented the closure of his venerable German restaurant in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. “It’s a German restaurant that’s 114 years old,” Hauck said. “It’s not what the trend is; it’s just not.” Despite ranking “high” in familiarity by respondents to Yelp polls, Yelp’s research indicated German food ranked 83rd among 100 restaurant categories…