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Restaurant Chain Removes Pope John Paul Busts
- Thread starter craigdawg
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craigdawg said:
You read my mind!
I dunno, I think it's tasteful that they took them down, but I think it would be okay to put them back up after awhile as a "tribute"... I dunno. People react differently to this kinda stuff. Then again, do people normally get offended at wax museums?
Hemingray said:You read my mind!
I dunno, I think it's tasteful that they took them down, but I think it would be okay to put them back up after awhile as a "tribute"... I dunno. People react differently to this kinda stuff. Then again, do people normally get offended at wax museums?
i dont see whats wrong with having them up as tributes to be honest, its a way of remembering the man, its tasteful to take them down while people are still in mourning sure, but in a few months i think it would be okay for them to go back up imo
PlaceofDis said:
Have you actually been to Bucca di Bepo? Nothing in that place is tasteful. It's all actually pretty blasphemous from a Catholic standpoint, but it is funny to me. I take it with a grain of salt. I can see some people taking it way too seriously. But even with a grain of salt, everything to do with JP2 in that restaurant should be taken down now that he's dead.
Macaddicttt said:
Hmm... I've never been to one, that would definitely explain why they took it down though! My "tribute" comment would certainly be out of place in their restaurant from the sound of it.
Macaddicttt said:
no in fact i had never heard of it before this thead, but thank you for explainin it, guess this move was for the best then
Mechcozmo said:
It's kind of hard to explain why it seems blasphemous. There are just a bunch of really tacky, cheap religious icons that aren't displayed very respectfully. It looks like they got the cheapest, brightest, ugliest icons they could find and then threw them at the walls. There are other things, but I don't remember. Actually, I haven't been to Buca di Beppo in about three years, but I remember being taken aback by it. And my mom called me a few months ago and said they went to Buca di Beppo for the first time. One of the first things she said to me was, "It's pretty blasphemous, eh?"
I'd like to hear a more recent account of Buca di Beppo.
P.S. I didn't even think the food was that great. I'm half Italian and have grown up with great Italian food and Buca di Beppo isn't great Italian food. And if anyone cared to know, the name means Beppo's Hole.
Macaddicttt said:
The one near us doesn't have many religious items hung about on the walls. Pictures upon pictures, some of cardinals, but no items or replicas of items. They have a table called the "Pope's Table" which has a bust of the Pope in the middle (well, guess not right now) and you can eat dinner with the Pope.
The food is good if you pick the right stuff off of the menu but once you find the right stuff to order, its better than McDonalds. But then again, I haven't had real Italian food...
Mechcozmo said:The one near us doesn't have many religious items hung about on the walls. Pictures upon pictures, some of cardinals, but no items or replicas of items. They have a table called the "Pope's Table" which has a bust of the Pope in the middle (well, guess not right now) and you can eat dinner with the Pope.
Well, just the fact that there is a "Pope's Table" is pretty bad. I mean, it's a family restaurant and the "Pope's Table" is for larger (presumably more boisterous) groups. I don't think that's very respectful. It's not a solemn place, by any stretch of the imagination. It seems disrespectful to be passing food around a bust of the pope while being loud, etc. It's not an atmosphere conducive to respect of the things around. It's not a solemn tribute. Sorry, but this is really hard to explain.
Ugh. I went to a Buca for the first time, um, last fall I guess. Everyone told me how i just HAD to go (people around here are too stupid to realize it's a chain-- they think it's the only one). The FOOD and the ATMOSPHERE and it's just so GREAT! hum...
-Being as how I grew out of using christmas lights as a light fixture when I was about 9, the lack of any real light sources was annoying,
-"family oriented" is code for "you don't even have to try to keep them quiet, or even at your table, or even not ripping things off the walls"
-Food was sub-par even when compared to similar restaurants. It all kind of tasted the same, which unfortunately was not any Italian dish I've had...
-I can certainly see how a religious person might be offended by the symbolism that's carelessly used as an irreverent decorating style... Although one of the groups that recommended it to me was a bunch of Catholics in a KoC hall (I will answer no questions about what i was doing there)
-I'm not going back... (buca that is).
erm, more on topic... i'm sure these will be replaced soon, the "pope table" is a big attraction...
-Being as how I grew out of using christmas lights as a light fixture when I was about 9, the lack of any real light sources was annoying,
-"family oriented" is code for "you don't even have to try to keep them quiet, or even at your table, or even not ripping things off the walls"
-Food was sub-par even when compared to similar restaurants. It all kind of tasted the same, which unfortunately was not any Italian dish I've had...
-I can certainly see how a religious person might be offended by the symbolism that's carelessly used as an irreverent decorating style... Although one of the groups that recommended it to me was a bunch of Catholics in a KoC hall (I will answer no questions about what i was doing there)
-I'm not going back... (buca that is).
erm, more on topic... i'm sure these will be replaced soon, the "pope table" is a big attraction...
The food at Buca is mediocre at best. It's convenient for a large group because they serve everything family style and you get a ton of food. They have really cheap house wine though.
I am not Christian so it's interesting to hear how blasphemous it is! But I can understand because at the Palms in Vegas they have a restaurant called Little Buddha and there's a statue of the Buddha there and it pisses me off! It's disrespectful for me but I'm sure everyone else thinks it's cool.
I am not Christian so it's interesting to hear how blasphemous it is! But I can understand because at the Palms in Vegas they have a restaurant called Little Buddha and there's a statue of the Buddha there and it pisses me off! It's disrespectful for me but I'm sure everyone else thinks it's cool.
Buca isn't trying to be blasphemous. They are just using that stereotypical pseudo Italian-American style that is more an offense to Italians than it should be to Catholics. I mean not every Italian family has "Mary on the half shell" in their front yard, and a shrine in every room.
It's on a par with a lot of cheesy Mexican restaurants that think it's a good idea to put velvet paintings everywhere.
I guess they'll just wait until the new Pope is announced and will make up new busts as soon as possible.
It's on a par with a lot of cheesy Mexican restaurants that think it's a good idea to put velvet paintings everywhere.
I guess they'll just wait until the new Pope is announced and will make up new busts as soon as possible.
wdlove said:
What doesn't make sense about this? I believe that I've made it pretty clear that the busts are not respectfully displayed. You can joke about the Church and all that, but people who are sick or have recently died are pretty much off limits for jokes.
doumbek said:
I know it's not trying to be blasphemous, but it is. It is making fun of the stereotypical Italian-American style and it at times borders on blasphemous. It's not done in a mean spirit, but it is still pretty bad. The potential problem that this parody is that it begins to include religion, which has the potential for becoming a sticky situation.
Macaddicttt said:
I agree with you on the fact that using stereotypes is a bad idea, but welcome to America. People aren't going there for the Carpaccio and a '97 Ruffino. They want Lady and the Tramp eating spaghetti.
Maybe one day people will stop falling back on stereotypes to sell stuff, and will take the time to find local restaurants instead of eating at chains.
doumbek said:
There's one here in Chicago. Did they all have busts of the Pope? That does seem odd. I'm not offended, but I can see how someone might be I suppose.
Just to clear it up for everyone.
I do not care about any sort of religious sacrilege. It's all about the bag-and-boil restaurants that claim to be serving real food. They could have the pope break dancing in front of the store for all I care, it's the fact that they appeal to the lowest common denominator to sell food from a can that I find offensive.
Buca is in the same class as Carrabba's which is owned by Outback Steakhouse (which was started in Tampa, Florida by the guys who own the Tampa Bay Buccaneers).
It is all fake. It's all about marketing, and whatever they can do to sell cheap food.
The pope bust is a prop, and they will probably make the next pope bust as soon as the conclave figures out who it will be.
This really is not a religious issue. It's a good old fashioned capitalism at it's most ridiculous issue.
I really can't believe that I'm debating this topic. I think I better go watch "The Life of Brian" and get my head straight.
I do not care about any sort of religious sacrilege. It's all about the bag-and-boil restaurants that claim to be serving real food. They could have the pope break dancing in front of the store for all I care, it's the fact that they appeal to the lowest common denominator to sell food from a can that I find offensive.
Buca is in the same class as Carrabba's which is owned by Outback Steakhouse (which was started in Tampa, Florida by the guys who own the Tampa Bay Buccaneers).
It is all fake. It's all about marketing, and whatever they can do to sell cheap food.
The pope bust is a prop, and they will probably make the next pope bust as soon as the conclave figures out who it will be.
This really is not a religious issue. It's a good old fashioned capitalism at it's most ridiculous issue.
I really can't believe that I'm debating this topic. I think I better go watch "The Life of Brian" and get my head straight.
doumbek said:Just to clear it up for everyone.
I do not care about any sort of religious sacrilege. It's all about the bag-and-boil restaurants that claim to be serving real food. They could have the pope break dancing in front of the store for all I care, it's the fact that they appeal to the lowest common denominator to sell food from a can that I find offensive.
Buca is in the same class as Carrabba's which is owned by Outback Steakhouse (which was started in Tampa, Florida by the guys who own the Tampa Bay Buccaneers).
It is all fake. It's all about marketing, and whatever they can do to sell cheap food.
The pope bust is a prop, and they will probably make the next pope bust as soon as the conclave figures out who it will be.
This really is not a religious issue. It's a good old fashioned capitalism at it's most ridiculous issue.
I really can't believe that I'm debating this topic. I think I better go watch "The Life of Brian" and get my head straight.
Oh- I know. I just think it's sad that they couldn't come up with something better than exploiting stereotypes.
I personally think Buca di Beppo is great fun for large groups--would never go there with just the wife. I enjoy sitting in the pope room! I would not, however, consider the location I've been to (Austin, TX) to be family friendly--that is to say, when I was there there was a lot of drinking going on (cheap wine plus a busy busy bar).
I find nothing offensive about it--but I'm neither Catholic (though I am Christian) nor Italian.
*Just to clear things up, while Carabba's may now be owned by the Outback folks, it was originally founded by Johnny Carrabba and Damian Mandola in Houston, TX (I'm a Houstonian, so I feel it's necessary to clear this up).
I've been to Carrabba's in Houston (at the original) and elsewhere--having done this, I would never go to a non-Houston location.
I find nothing offensive about it--but I'm neither Catholic (though I am Christian) nor Italian.
*Just to clear things up, while Carabba's may now be owned by the Outback folks, it was originally founded by Johnny Carrabba and Damian Mandola in Houston, TX (I'm a Houstonian, so I feel it's necessary to clear this up).
I've been to Carrabba's in Houston (at the original) and elsewhere--having done this, I would never go to a non-Houston location.
JeffTL said:It does seem kind of odd to have a raucous party around a bust of John Paul II. He never struck me as the party animal type.
Maybe they should shift to a Palatine, rather than Vatican, theme for that room and stick up Gaius Caligula instead?
Yeah, but i mean, it's hard enough to clear out a party of 15 when they're not having drug/food mixed orgies all over. Tho it does make for some great tips, they're offset by having to scrub bodily fluids and gravy off the ceiling.
Tho it'd get me to go back.
