Gettin' my Tiki drink on at The Red Dragon!

I finally made it to "Red Dragon", my favorite Chinese restaurant located in Loveland Colorado last night. I attempted to dine there at the beginning of the week, but had forgotten that they are closed on Monday's.

Ever since that fateful night, I've had an overwhelming craving for Chinese food. Even more overwhelming was my craving for a fruity alcoholic beverage. More specifically.. Red Dragon's Volcano drink! In this day and age, you don't find many places that can craft a good old fashioned Tiki drink that's not only appealing to the taste buds, but to the eye as well.

If you love Tiki drinks but aren't fortunate enough to have a Tiki bar in the city where you reside, here's a tip... try a Chinese restaurant. Most have Polynesian themed Tiki drinks they can concoct for you. Below are some pics I took of our wonderful flaming volcano drink...

Pretty impressive huh? And yes that's an actual flame burning in that volcano! I believe Bacardi 151 was used to fuel the flame that burned for quite some time. The drink had two more garnishes, but those were pulled off and gobbled down before I could snap this pic.

I watched anxiously as this drink was being prepared at the bar across the dining room. It took about ten minutes to make, and entailed several bouts of measuring, mixing, and blending. The care and precision that our server/bartender executed to prepare this drink was amazing. Our excitement steadily escalated with every passing minute, and we were pleasantly surprised with the culmination of his hard work! The taste of this drink was pretty complex with a nice fruity zing. It seemed that rum was the dominant alcohol used to give this drink it's punch.

Here you can see my little one enviously eyeing our fruity fun drink for adults only. Those eighteen inch straws also added immensely to our inebriation Tiki drink experience! Boy was I thankful that my eighteen year old son was with us to chauffeur us back home!

Oh yeah.. we ate as well! Here is one of the plates I ate with Lo Mein noodles, pork skewers, pot stickers, fried rice, sweet & sour shrimp, and sesame chicken. Ah yes.. a delicious Chinese buffet, an incredible Tiki drink to share with my bride, and deciphering messages from fortune cookies with my kids. What a great night!

Visit Red Dragon at:
296 E 29th St. Loveland
CO 80538
(970) 669-6769

McDonald's Angus Burger review

The verdict - Surprisingly good

My buddy and I needed to get off plant site today. It was one of those days that required a change of scenery, even if it was only for twenty minutes or so. We decided to break the day up a bit, and ran out for a quick lunch.

The town where our factory is located happens to be pretty limited as far as dining choices go. Therefore, as we often do.. we ended up grabbing a quick lunch at McDonald's. Upon some urging from my friend, I tried one of their new 1/3 pound Angus bacon cheeseburgers, and I've got to say I was pleasantly surprised. Deluxe, Mushroom/Swiss, and Bacon cheeseburger varieties are available.

Hands down, these Angus burgers are the best on McDonald's menu. No Grissel, and no struggling to chew the meat. In fact, the patty actually tasted like meat! I truly can't remember the last time a McDonald's burger tasted this good to me! Granted.. these are not gourmet burgers, nor are they anywhere near what I consider to be an excellent burger. Nevertheless, they are very good as far as McDonald's burgers go.

I'm not sure how long McDonald's plans on keeping their Angus Burgers around, but as long as they do, I will continue endulging.

Nick N' Willy's Pizza review

The verdict - Excellent!
I took my family to Nick and Willy's pizza located in Loveland Colorado for the first time last night. Little did they know that there was a skeptic in their midst. I was not only prepared to scrupulously dissect their pizza bite by bite, I was good and ready to find fault with it.

It's kind of sad that I can no longer try a new pizza place with an open mind. I examine every aspect of a pizza (even my own) from the way it's baked, to how well every ingredient compliments the next. It's not until I get through my first slice that I give it a thumbs up or thumbs down. Sometimes it takes me a couple slices before I will allow myself to either enjoy, or perform further analysis on the pie. On this particular night I was uber critical, but not for any of the reasons I just mentioned.

You see.. hours before going to Nick N' Willy's, I had my heart set on eating Chinese food. I had even driven my family twenty plus miles to dine at our favorite Chinese restaurant. I was looking forward to enjoying some fried rice, pot stickers, pork ribs, and sharing a great big flaming volcano drink with my bride. Unfortunately I had totally forgotten that the only day of the week this restaurant is closed happens to be on Mondays. Having absolutely no appetite for anything other than Chinese food, I reluctantly conceded to go to Nick N' Willy's upon my bride's urging.

Nick N' Willy's ad campaigns always stress that they make "Gourmet Pizza" and as I looked up at their menu board, it was evident to me that they are very proud of their pies. As a hard working Dad trying to feed a family of five during tough times, I was a bit taken back by their pricing. At this point I also had a ravenous appetite, so I quickly became irritated that they consider 14 inch pizza's "large". Did I mention I'm not the happiest camper when I'm hungry?

We settled on buying a medium "Meat Eater" with fresh tomato sauce, mozzarella, cheddar/provolone, pepperoni, Canadian bacon, seasoned beef, salami, and choice of sausage. We also ordered a "Garlic Chicken with Smoked Bacon" pizza which was topped with olive oil glaze, mozzarella, fontina cheese, fresh garlic, smoked chicken, smoked bacon, Roma tomatoes, red onions, and oregano.

As critical as I am with pizza, I could find no fault with Nick N' Willy's. Both of these pies tasted just as good as they sound!

What truly impresses me about this locally based Colorado pizza chain, is that they never freeze any of their ingredients. Their web-site even boasts that they don't even utilize a freezer on the premises! They also use superior cheese and toppings, and make their pizza dough throughout the day in small batches. Their pies remind me of homemade pizzas, made with top quality ingredients just like Mama used to make!

While the prices are a bit on the higher side (over $40.00 for the two pies and 4 drinks) the pizza's can truly be considered gourmet without being pretentious. I will definitely be patronizing Nick N' Willy's again in the future.

Check out Nick N' Willy's online

My food priorities. The ugly truth...

Was just looking at the tags on the right hand side of the page to see what subjects I most frequently write about. Here are the results..

• Burgers (12 posts)
• Booze (11 posts)
• Fast food chains (11 posts)
• Sweet snacks (11 posts)
• Candy and Gum (8 posts)

Wow.. I feel so guilty now. Guess I should work on writing some posts for my "Healthy-ish" tag, seeing as there are only two posts pertaining to that subject.

Smokehouse BBQ in Kansas City, KS

Someday I really should showcase snapshots of various meals I've eaten during my travels across the U.S. Here's a couple I just stumbled upon from an 1800 mile road trip my son and I took to St. Louis.

Mmmm... nothing like Kansas City Barbecue! I'll try to upload more of my travel food pics soon.

Bought me a Wooly Willy!!

Because sometimes you just need to do something that makes you feel like a kid again.

Leinenkugel Sunset Wheat Beer review

The verdict - not my cup of beer

I'm no beer snob, nor do I admit to being an expert on the subject. The fact is however, I know what I like.. and I do not like Leinenkugel Sunset Wheat.

To me, the beer was fine as long as I was drinking it. It was between sips when I had to breathe, that were the problem. The aftertaste that this beer left on my palate, was reminiscent of Krylon Spray paint.

And no silly... I don't go around drinking Krylon Spray paint. I have had the misfortune however, of having it fill my airways on more than one occasion during various home projects through the years.

Don't be mistaken.. I love Wheat beers and am no stranger to them. My absolute favorite is Sunshine Wheat made by New Belgium Brewing company. Easy Street Wheat made by Odell Brewing is a close runner up. Shock Top Belgian style wheat beer made by Anheuser-Busch will even do in a pinch.

Whether I got a hold of a bad bottle remains to be seen. I may give this beer another try if it were ever available on tap, but I won't be taking my chances for curiosity sake with the long necks again.

Grammy's Pizza.. Geezaloo!!

I only see Grammy's Pizza stands set up at fairs, and various food, beer, and wine festivals. I'm not sure if they have a set place of business, or if they just move from event to event all year round. Nevertheless.. their food is awesome! Take a gander at what they were serving up at The 2009 Fort Collins Brewers Festival..

Look at the size of those pans! Considering that only three slices per row stretched across the width of the pan, each individual slice resembled a loaf of bread topped with some sauce, cheese, and pepperoni!

Ohhhh yeah! This is what I ate at 2:30 p.m. when I cut myself off of imbibing for the day. I had been sampling Colorado crafted brews since 11:00 a.m in the 90 degree heat, and this was just what I needed to sober me up err... smooth me out. My only regret with the picture above, is that I didn't have anything in the shot which helps to truly impress upon you just how huge this slice of pizza was.

Their desserts are equally as impressive, featuring brick sized Rice Krispy treats, huge cookies, and strawberry skewers drizzled in chocolate. It's probably a good thing for me that Grammy's doesn't have a base of operation in the form of a restaurant, otherwise I'd be finding reasons to incorporate their giant sized delicacies into my weekly means of sustenance.

"Pain is Good" Garlic style Hot Sauce review

The verdict - Excellent!

I bought this garlic style hot sauce made by "Pain is Good" a couple of days ago, and have found myself emptying the bottle rather quickly! I like this sauce so much, that I'm finding myself using it on everything! Tonight it was pizza, and yesterday it was lasagna and quesadilla's.. (not at the same sitting of course).

See that cat's screaming face on the bottle? That is a very accurate indicator of how you could feel if you don't use this sauce sparingly!

This sauces lovely bouquet exudes the wonderful smell of garlic, and habanero peppers give it a wicked bite! Carrots, mustard seed, onion, lemon, and lime, all add depth to the overall flavor.

Heat vs. Flavor.. who's the victor? I'll leave that up to you to decide, but I promise that if you can focus and eat through the pain, you will be more than satisfied with complex flavor combo of this sauce!

Visit the Pain is Good Website here

R.I.P. Billy Mays. It's a bad week to be a celebrity

Even if you didn't know him by name.. you knew who he was. There was no mistaking his patented yell. Whether it was Oxy Clean or Mighty Putty he was pitching, when Billy Mays yelled.. people listened!

I've heard so many people refer to Billy Mays as a loud mouthed irritating jerk. These are the people who knew nothing about him.

Billy Mays spent the better part of 20 years on the road pitching products at home shows and trade shows to provide for his family. It was during that time he perfected his overall presentation, and carved out a niche for himself. His persuasive powers and his ability to hold people's attention is what made him one of the most successful pitchmen of all time.

Abrasive as that distinctive voice sounded to some, off camera Billy Mays was a soft spoken charismatic guy and family man. I absolutely loved his show on The Discovery Channel appropriately entitled Pitchmen which is still currently airing on the network.

Billy Mays died in his sleep last night and was pronounced dead at 7:45 a.m. this morning. Some reports state that Billy Mays was on Flight 1241 from Philadelphia to Tampa when one of its front tires blew out as it landed at Tampa International airport on June 27, the day before his death. Some of the crew sustained injuries, and Billy Mays told a local Tampa television station that "some of the objects hit me on the head, but I got a hard head." Billy Mays wife stated that he had told her he didn't feel well before going to bed, but it is still unclear whether Mays' death was related to the incident.

Rest in peace Billy, and may your pitches continue to live on.