The Last Supper

Before I begin my journey to bring peace to the Middle East I want to fully indulge on the perfect chain restaurant meal. I am taking suggestions so let me know what you think my last meal should be before I begin my mission (of getting really tan that is) .

Happy Memorial Day - Hello Summer!

Hello Summer, my favorite time of year! Yup because in the summer my suburban lunch favorite, Panera, brings back my favorite salad, the Strawberry Poppyseed salad. This yummy, delicious salad is topped with strawberries, duh, blueberries, pineapples, manadarin oranges, pecans and chicken. Plus it is made with a non-fat special dressing. Perfect lunch on a hot summer day. Have that with their classic iced green tea and it is guaranteed to be a good day. They also add a tomato and fresh mozzarella salad for the summer. I am not a big tomato fan but that salad looks good too. This summer they have added a new low fat strawberry smoothie to the menu that I would like to try and a passion fruit bagel. I think the passion fruit bagel sounds very interesting. The Chicken Pomodoro Panini is another new addition to the menu that I would like to try in the near future. The only thing I am a bit afraid of with that is that the chicken is smoked and pulled. I am not really a smoked chicken fan. I like it grilled.

Seasons 52 - Outstanding

I have been spending lots of time in Hotlanta lately which is really good for this blog because it allows me to sample chain restaurants in other parts of the country. Lucky me. Most recently I had the honor to dine at what I think should be the new trend in chain restaurants. The place is called Seasons 52. It is called that because they change the menu 4 times a year to coordinate with the 4 different seasons and use fresh ingredients in all their food. What is simply amazing about this place is that everything on the menu is under 475 calories. What, that is like a Lean Cuisine meal. I can not believe this. The menu reads like every other chain restaurant menu. Sandwiches, big salads, Entrees, etc. This was not some crazy health food, granola loving place. Oh no, it is a beautifully designed upscale chain. I think I found my heaven.
To start I shared the specialty of the restaurant, flat breads. These are just long, flat pieces of specialty pizzas essentially. We got the Garlic Chicken one and it was very good. It is perfect for sharing among a group of 4 people. They also have edamame on the menu which is one of my favorite foods so I was really happy to see that. The starter salads they offer also look very nice.
I did not get one because I was getting a big salad as my entree. Now, you will not believe what kind of salad I got. It was called a Chicken Parm Salad. How cool is that? It was just grilled chicken, peppers, capers, shaved parmigiana cheese, and a lemon-pepper dressing. It was delicious and very filling! They also offer lots of sandwich's, chicken and pasta dishes, fish and even steak! And remember they claim everything is under 475 calories.
One of the coolest parts of this restaurant are their desserts. Again all are under their calorie guidelines. They are "mini indulgences" So cute! They are fun desserts served in what looks like a big shot glass. I think their are around 8 choices that your waiter comes over and shows you. I got the Pecan Pie with Vanilla Bean Moose. I was in Atlanta so I figured that was a good choice. Others that looked really good are the Red Velvet Cake, Old Fashioned Carrot Cake and Strawberry Mango Cheesecake.
To sum it all up, they need to open up more places like this very soon. If anyone from Seasons 52 is reading this, please open up in NY. I would go all the time.

Texas Roadhouse - Yeah It Rocks

So I have to admit I was reluctant to love this place. My family would not stop singing its praises. They would even drive almost 2 hours to the middle of nowhere Pennsylvania to get the ribs. When I finally had the chance to eat here I liked it but did not love it. That all changed last weekend when I was lucky enough to eat here again and my oh my was I wrong. This place really does rock and is awesome. Amazing food!

I will start with the best thing that they offer, the rolls. Wow! They are soft dinner rolls that are coated with butter. If that is not enough, these hot delicious rolls are also served with a cinammon butter that makes this tasty treat really feel like a dessert. The hostess brings you your rolls right as you sit down. They also have peanuts on the table and in barrels for you as you wait for your table. These peanuts are extra good because they taste like they swimming in a sea of salt.

As you can probably tell by the name, Texas Roadhouse, this is a BBQ place. Good ol'fashion food like steak, ribs and chicken. I get the Grilled BBQ Chicken and it is delicous. It is a nice piece of grilled, chicken in a tasty sauce. What I love about this place is the options. You can get either two side items or a side item and a salad. I opt for the two sides. I figure I can get a salad anywhere, might as well have fun with the sides. Last time I got a baked potato and applesauce. I am such a little kid when it comes to food, but hey applesauce is fun! Anyway you can also get a baked sweet potato, mashed, rice, veggies, even chilli. I might try the chili next time, I bet it is good. I have tried the steak here as well and it is really, really good. Much better than the steaks you get at typical chains. They have a few combo options on the menu so you can get steak and chicken, steak and ribs, etc. Oh boy! The ribs are supposedly, "fall off the bone" spectacular. I am not really into food on the bone so I just take everyone elses word on that.

Truthfully, there is no need for dessert here, the rolls are enough of a dessert.

Of course there are a few downfalls to this place. The biggest being the wait. It is always busy, probably because it is so good. I recommend doing their call ahead seating. Another downfall is the clientel. I have to admit this place does not attract the classiest people in the world. Last time I saw a guy that really looked like ZZ Top. It was kind of scary. I think you just have to go and not pay attention to who is eating around you.

Supposedly they also dance here, kind of like Coyote Ugly. I think that is kind of cheesy.

The Day Is Finally Here!

It is finally May, 15th, my 1 one year anniversary at the Post and the Grand Opening of the California Pizza Kitchen in Murray Hill!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! A coincidence, I think not!


I am sure I will be here at least once before the end of the week. I would go tonight but the elitists that I work with refuse. Whatever, they do not know what they are missing.


Roasted Garlic Chicken Pizza, Spinach Artichoke Dip. Thai Crunch Salad, here I come!

Thanks to my biggest supporter, he let me know that the opening was actually a big event in Murray Hill. Check out this link for pictures of the Grand Opening. I can not believe I was not invited.

http://www.wireimage.com/GalleryListing.asp?navtyp=gls====273840&nbc1=1

Coffee Fun In The Great State of CT

I had the opportunity to explore the great state of Connecticut this weekend and explore what they had to offer in terms of coffee. My first stop was the one I was most excited about. Imus Ranch coffee. Yes you read it right, I was going to be able to support my man Imus and his ranch for kids with cancer simply by ordering a cup of Joe. I ordered an iced coffee and much to my dismay it really was not that good. First big mistake, they served it in paper soda cups. Not the typical clear plastic ones that iced coffee is served in. Just by seeing that I knew the coffee was not going to be good. It was just kind of blah. Nothing exciting about it at all. Of course I recommend going there though to support Imus and his charity.

Now, my second stop in coffee exploration came to my by surprise. I was going to just get Dunkin Donuts for breakfast but I found this Tim Horton place. Wow, lucky me. It was awesome! At first the name scared me because it sounded like someone one of my friends would date or maybe it was too much like Bobs Big Boy, but I am glad I decided to try it. It is essentially a coffee and donut place with a small town feel to it. They have all your standard quick breakfast fare like donuts, bagels, muffins, etc. I looked it up on the Internet and they started in Canada but now have outposts throughout NY, New England & Pennsylvania.

Anyway the coffee was wonderful! First, they used small pieces of crushed iced instead of cubes, similar to the way they make it at the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. This really was a treat. I ordered a Mint Chocolate Iced Coffee and it was AMAZING!!! They put actual chocolate in the iced coffee. It tasted better than any latte I had at Starbucks ever. I also was able to sample a "Cappuccino Supreme" that was fantastic. This was similar to a frappaccino but half the cost. Really tasty! If you see one near you, definitely stop in and try it.

Chain Your Mom

It is almost Mother's Day. If you have not bought your mom a present yet, hurry up, you only have a few more days. There is a new Barbra Streisand CD out so that is always a good choice. I know my mom would be happy with that.

Of course besides getting the lady that brought you into this world a present you should probably take her out to brunch or lunch or dinner and really, what better place to do that than a Chain Restaurant.

So, here is my list of chains your should take your momma to this Mother's Day.

1) Grand Lux Cafe - it is Mother's Day, everyone could use a little bit of excessive opulence. Plus this place has a great brunch menu and awesome lunch and dinner entrees. Really, something for everyone.

2) Joe's American Bar & Grill - They have a special menu for Mother's Day plus a brunch menu that includes a free drink! Awesome! It is also a nice atmosphere and pretty reasonable.

3) Maggiano's - This is a nice dinner choice. The atmosphere is very cozy, and nice. Mom will feel very at home here. It is almost like eating in Carmela Sopranos kitchen.

4) Cheesecake Factory - It is probably going to be packed on Mother's Day, but so what, it is worth the wait and Mother's Day is the perfect excuse to indulge in a cheesecake like the White Chocolate Raspberry one. Yum!

5) IHOP - Maybe she should not have grounded you so much and you would have taken her to one of the choices above, but really it would be kind of fun to get all you can eat pancakes for breakfast. Mom would love it!

Fox Sports Grill - Not Impressed

I feel bad saying this because I should really love the Fox Sports Grill. It is owned by News Corp, has a nice ambiance, a nice menu but it is just so blah. I mean the idea of a nice sports bar is something I should love, but Fox Sports just falls flat. I have only been here a few times and each time I left with a kind of empty feeling.

My first complaint about this place is not about the food, no, instead it is about the placement of the TVs. I just don't get it. It is not that easy to see a game from every seat in the bar and restaurant. I mean you are a sports bar you should be able to see a Yankee game from every seat if that is what you so chose. Very annoying.

Now the food. I once got this appetizer there that was skillet cornbread. I mean what is that really. I guess it is my own fault for ordering it. It sucked. I am looking at the menu online now and they actually have some cool things on the menu like Chicken Lettuce Wraps, BBQ Shrimp and a Mozzarella Bake. Maybe if I go back I will try one of those options.

Truthfully, I do not even remember what I ordered as an entree here. I think it was a Teriyaki Chicken Sandwich. Anyway the fact that I do not really remember what I ate is a big deal. I always remember my meals. I might forget most of my friends birthdays, but food, I remember. Anyway, similar to the appetizer options there actually are a a lot of cool options on the menu. Maybe my problem with this place is that I compare it to Cheesecake Factory because they have similar price points and Cheesecake just blows it out of the water. I bet that is what it is.

I also went here once with my friends for a drink. What a terrible scene. I mean yes, it is in a mall in Rockland County but still it was pretty bad. The only people in there were underage tools. No thank you.

I actually think that if this was not in the mall and perhaps a free standing restaurant it would be a lot better. I am sure some of the locations out West are a bit cooler.

Lenny's - It's Freakin Good

I had a special request for a post about Lenny's so here it goes.

A lot of my co-workers spoke so highly of this place but I was a bit apprehensive about it. You see, Lenny's is a bagel and sandwich shop and I am really not a sandwich person. I am so picky about what type of meat I like that I am always scared to try a new sandwich place because I think the chicken will be gross and hard or cold, yuck. Also I do not really eat cold cuts, so I am really limited in my sandwich options. Anyway, the first time I went I only got a bagel, it was OK nothing special. But, I was impressed with the cleanliness of this place. A lot of the NY sandwich places can be a bit dirty.

On a random day this winter I got to looking at the menu more and saw that there were a lot of options on the menu for me. I was assured by, I think Princess Lovey Dovey, that they chicken was top quality so I give it a try. Wow, much to my surprise I was in love. The chicken was good! Yippee!

Now I pretty much only get two things here. The classic, which is chicken, sun dried tomatoes, lettuce, onions and a little bit of fresh mozzarella. I also add some balsamic vinegar to give it some more flavor. You can pick whatever type of bread you want with your sandwich. I always get the wholewheat wrap now. I figure it is the healthiest choice and really brings out the flavor of all the stuff inside. Another great wrap here is the Chicken Terriyaki. It is chicken, terriyaki sauce, fresh mozzarella, lettuce and onions. I interchange between the two depending on my mood.

Other things I like about this place is that they have a quick and easy delivery service. Also, many cute boys go here at lunch. It is fun to see the boys who work at Rockefeller Center here in their suits.

One annoying thing about this place is that after you order your sandwich and pay they call out your number. Always, my sandwich takes so much longer than everyone elses.

Right now Lenny's is only in NYC but I think they could expand to places like Boston & LA.

Oh it is also cool because they have clippings of NY Post Page Six sightings of celebrities at Lenny's on the walls.

Dunkin Donuts - I think I love you

Nobody just likes Dunkin Donuts, you either love it or you hate it. I am proud to say that I love it. It really is one of the greatest places ever. They were one of the first people to introduce the Coolata that really revolutionized coffee drinking in the East.

I can probably write about it forever, so for now I am just going to highlight some of my favorite things and memories of this place.

1) Drinking Coolatas in the summer with my mom. These things are really the most delicious thing on the menu. When I found out just how many calories were in them I stopped drinking but if you really want a cooling, relaxing treat, go for it!

2) Having Nina drive the block to Dunkin Donuts on the way to school and drinking my iced coffee in my Journalism class while everyone else looked on in jealousy because they did not live near the Dunkin Donuts like I did.

3) Having Nina and Josh go and get us Dunkin Donuts on Sunday mornings. That was nice. She made eggs too!

4) French Vanilla Iced Coffee - when it is made just right, it is perfection!

5) Whole Wheat Bagles and Cream Cheese - With my iced coffee, it is the perfect Sunday breakfast.

6) Frosted Donuts with sprinkles - so yummy, what a treat!

7) Munchkins - When I first started at the Post I brought then on meetings, it was my signature move! Now I rely on adult beverages.

8) Going on dates with the sketchy kid I met at Dunkin Donuts. I do not know how many other places where you can be totally out of it the day after Halloween with sparkles still on your face and end up meeting a sketchy dude who is still in his Halloween costume that you only will refer to as Dunkin to your friends.

9) 3:00pm coffee runs to Dunkin for myself and the Finance boys. Yes, they never get it right when I order it but I like the 3:00pm coffee runs. It is cute.

10) Dunkin Smoothies - Thanks for advertising!!!!!!!!!!!!! They really are tasti and delicious and cost less than most other smoothie places.

America Runs on Dunkins and I like to run so we really are a perfect match.

Bubba Gump - I Came, I Ate, I Conquered

It was on the list of places I had to try. Bubba Gump Shirmp Co. Just 4 blocks south of my gigs at News Corp, it was destiny.

I was pleasantly surprised with my experience here. At first I was a bit embarrassed because my co-workers I went with told the host that I was a food critic with a website. Well I guess he told his manager and the guy came to the table to talk to us. We had to tell him that it was really only my little blog. Anyway he was not so impressed after that. I think he could have threw in a free dessert or something.
So to start we got Bubba's Far Out Dip. It was really good! It was pretty much spinach artichoke dip with peppers. Good idea! A bit on the greasy side, but really tasty.
For my entree I took the waiters suggestion and got the Shrimp New Orleans. It was actually outstanding. It was grilled shrimp in a spicy Cajun brown sauce with white rice. I ate the whole thing. It also came with a piece of garlic bread the size of a boat.
The most amazing thing about the meal was that I was peer pressured by Princess Lovey Dovey to try her Mahi Mahi. Usually I do not succumb to such antics but she swore I would like it. It was the first time I ate fish since fish sticks in 3rd grade. I have to say, not bad at all.
Bubba Gump also has some fab drinks. Fun Lemonades with real fruit like blueberries or strawberries. I also sampled an adult beverage (shhh!!! don't tell my bosses). It was a peach vodka drink. Not strong at all, but really tasty.
The service and atmosphere at this place is also noteworthy. Our waiter was a lot of fun and quizzed use on our Forrest Gump knowledge. I thought that was a nice touch. They also have ping pong paddles on the table which is cute.
So in conclusion, I think this place is really good. I thought it was going to be like Red Lobster, but it is different. I would say it is fresher tasting and more spicy. It was a bit on the pricey side, I mean at least you get amazing rolls before your meal at Red Lobster and a salad but, if you have one in your area check it out. I mean there is one in Bali so I bet there is one in your neck of the woods.

Applebee's - Feeling Good Now!

Oh Applebee's you seem to really be springing up all over now. I remember when you were a novelty, a treat when I was shopping in Jersey, but now you really are everywhere.

Rockland, Manhattan, Woodbury Commons. I kind of think I liked you better when you were smaller.

The thing I love about Applebee's is that although they are a chain they try to be a neighborhood restaurant. They do this by hanging stuff (a la old school Friday's) all over the restaurant that have to do with your town. Usually it is stuff from neighborhood high schools. When I used to go to Applebee's in Jersey I would always imagine how cool it would be to have my high school on the walls and maybe a picture of me. Anyway, one did open up my me and much to my dismay no pictures of everyone's favorite national honor society president and soccer bench warmer made the wall. Instead they put pictures from like 1987 up with people in MC Hammer pants. Whatever.

Usually when I go to Applebee's now I get the Oriental Chicken Salad. It is probably one of my favorite chain salads. It is filled with chicken, almonds, and noodles. You can get it with fried chicken or grilled. Obviously it is better with fried chicken but the grilled is good too. The best part of this salad is the dressing. It is called an Oriental vinaigrette, it is really light and sweet and tangy and good. Love it! What is also cool is they offer the salad in a wrap form. I get that sometimes if I am more in the mood for a sandwich over a salad.

I used to get the Chicken Fingers and French Fries all the time here. I think they are a very solid choice. Way back in the day they had a Riblet and Chicken Finger basket, that was a nice option too but I probably would not get that now because I do not eat ribs anymore.

Now on the menu they have a bruschetta burger. It sounds really good, next time I am here I am going to try it. It is made with pesto so I am sure it is outstanding.

Another really important thing to note is that Applebee's had tons of "Weight Watchers" choices. I have had the Confetti Chicken and it was really good. You do not feel like you are eating a healthy dish at all. It is a mexican chicken with rice. The description online says it is a party on your plate, wow, can't mess with that. They also have Teriyaki Steak 'N Shrimp Skewers. I would try that for dinner.

I think my brother has had some of the steaks here and he says that they are decent. Good to know.

The desserts on the menu here are really good too, they have a weight watchers one, never had it. I mean dessert is dessert go all out. I would get the Sizzling Apple Crisp because I love that kind of stuff. I am always tempted to try to Maple Butter Blondie. Never did though, I wonder why?

One annoying thing to note, like most chain restaurants in Manhattan, it is totally overpriced. I went with my co-workers recently and it was like 25 bucks each. We could have went to Del Frisco's for like 5 bucks more. Also there were no pictures from high schools up either.

Breaking News - New Dressings at Hale and Hearty!

I have breaking news to report and what glorious news it is! Due to the beautiful weather in the city I decided to have a salad and sit outside for lunch. I know, what a concept!

I went to Hale & Hearty today and was pleasantly surprised to see that they are introducing three new salad dressings. Yup, not one, not two, but three! What was great is that they had little samples of each so you could taste them to see which one you would like. Good idea!

The first one is a reduced fat sesame one. It was a bit weird looking because it looked so white, I kind of imagine my sesame dressing to be a bit more of a peanut color but even though it looked kind of weird it was very tasty. If I am in an Asian mood, I would get it and it is reduced fat so kudos for that.

The next one was called Plum Raspberry Vinegarette It was very tasty, tangy and unique. It reminded me of something they would serve at a Cheesecake Factory or something like that. It is a nice addition to the mix.

The last new dressing is a fat free Balsamic Vinegartte. This was my favorite one. It is pretty much what it says it is a Balsamic Vinaegarette but it had some sort of tangy kick to it. For a fat free dressing, very good.

Anyway, this is great news and makes me love Hale and Hearty even more!

Pizza Hut -Cute Little Comforting Place!

OK, so I am from NY and have the luxury of eating really good pizza every day if I want to. I have lived in other cities and it is true, NY really does have the best pizza. Even the bad pizza is good pizza. I am also very proud to admit that I love Pizza Hut! To be fair, it is totally different than real NY pizza but that does not mean that it is not good.

First thing to really praise Pizza Hut about is their Book It program. I have no idea if this still exists but when I was younger they had this program where you got a free pizza if you read a certain amount of books. How great is that, encourage kids to read! Wonderful, reading is fundamental.
So the food, well I actually think that pizza at Pizza Hut is delicious. I love the deep dish plain cheese pizza. I think the best size to get is the personal pan. The bigger you get the worse it gets. I love the massive amounts of cheese, sauce and dough. The crust of a Pizza Hut pizza is awesome. They just use lots of butter or something. Whatever, it is good! Also, Jessica Simpson seems to eat a lot of Pizza Hut and she is pretty hot so it can not be that bad for you.

What I also love about Pizza Hut is their salad bar buffet. That itself could be a meal. They also have pineapple chunks and chocolate pudding as part of the buffet. Awesome! Pizza Hut is where I learned about mixing sunflower seeds with chocolate pudding. This might sound gross but try it and you will love it.
Pizza Hut also sometimes has a lunch time buffet. Besides all of the salad essentials they have lots of different kinds of pizza so that is fun. They also have dessert pizza which is kind of just like a danish in the shape of a pizza.
Of course you can not talk about Pizza Hut and not mention the breadsticks. They are amazing! They are big, soft on the inside, crusty on the outside and coated in garlic and served with a marinara dipping sauce. Delicious!
Now Pizza Hut serves pizza with the crust stuffed with mozzarella cheese. I have not tried that yet but think it is a very good idea and would like to try it sometime soon.
Lots of places serve Pizza Hut now like Taco Bells, etc but I think to really get a quality Pizza Hut experience you should go to an actual Pizza Hut.

Rosa Mexicana - My Man Arod Likes It So It Must Be Good

If I was writing this blog a year ago I probably would not consider this place a chain. I mean yes they have always had a few locations in Manhattan but recently they have been opening in cities all over the country. They have locations in Florida, DC, Atlanta and soon the great state of New Jersey. Very nice, very nice.

All around I think this place is great! Fun atmosphere, good drinks and great food! As mentioned in the title of this piece of literature it is also a favorite of my boy Arod. An A-bomb, for A-Rod!
For starters the guacamole is top notch. I could probably go here and just eat that. What I love is not only do they give you great chips but they also give you hot tortillas. Eating the soft tortillas with the guac I feel like my dad must have felt chillin Guadalajara 35 years ago. According to him, that makes it really authentic. Other than the guac, I do not see the need to order any other appetizers. Yes, the flautas are really good but you don't need them. Chow down on the guac baby.

For main dishes their are 3 that I totally love. The first are the enchilades de Mole Poblano which is really shocking considering I do not even like chocolate that much. Anyway it is just a really soft, tasty and fun dish. I also really like the Shrimps with Rice. It has a fancier, ethnic name but it is hard to spell and really the dish is essentially garlic shrimp with rice. Sometimes it is a bit on the greasy side so if you can, tell the waiter not too greasy. Other than that, delicious. The third dish I recommend are the short ribs. Just really tender and juicy pieces of meat. I do not often order this but I should. Actually nah, I will just eat it off my brothers plate and get myself something else.

Of course I must mention the drinks. They are most famous for their pomegranate margaritas. Good thing, because they are great. What a treat. They also serve sangria that is really good.

The desserts do not really stick out in my mind but I am sure they are good. I guess maybe just skip dessert though and order yourself another margarita!

Hale & Hearty - Yummy, Yummy

Really, I should have posted this a long time ago but in honor of my lunch today I am going to talk about Hale & Hearty. I am absolutely in love with this place.
Hale & Hearty is a soup and salad place located on almost every other block in NYC. Most of them have lines a mile long at 12:30 pm so you have to scout out the good ones that are not as busy to ensure yourself a speedy enjoyable experience. Sometimes waiting in line for a long time makes me crazy and antsy and that is never a good thing.
I am going to start with the salads because that is what I most often get. I first must commend them for allowing you to get a few freebies. I mean really all salad places should do this. How dare they charge $3.25 for a bowl of chopped up lettuce and then think it is alright to charge you $1.00 for a scoop of almonds. Anyway, Hale & Hearty at least gives you some carrots, onions and cucumbers as part of the basic price. So I pretty much get the same salad every time I go and it is always delicious. I try to go to other salad places and none compare. I get carrots, cucumbers, apples, walnuts, golden raisin and my new pick, mozzarella balls. For dressing, this the tricky part, I get a mix of the Hale and Hearty vinaigrette and balsamic vinegar. I have to thank my friend red headed Kate for coming up with this combo. It is nothing short of genius. There are lots of other choices to put in your salad like avocado, chicken, shrimp, craisins, goat cheese, corn, etc but I found what I like so I am sticking to it. I also always get a piece of their seven grain bread which is very tasty.
The soups here are also far superior than that of what other lunch places serve. My personal favorites are the Senegalese Chicken (which pretty much tastes like pad thai and is amazing), Cream of Tomato with Chicken and Orzo, Texas Beef Chili, actually I like all of the tomato soups and once I tried the Spinach Artichoke Cheddar one and it was pretty much spinach artichoke dip so that obviously rocks. I also just looked online and they have a Vegetable one with pesto that says it is low fat so I clearly need to try that ASAP.
I know the soups here are generally a bit more than at other places but they are kind of worth the extra price because of all the extra flavor.
This place also has sandwich's but I never get those but word on the street is that they are decent too.

Old School Charm - Nathan's

I love Hot Dogs, I think they are so delicious. I am kind of surprised how much I love them because of what they are actually made of but I just don't think about it. I guess I am kind of picky about what kind of hot dogs I will eat because I notice a big difference between Kosher and non-Kosher ones. Pretty much I will only eat Kosher ones . They just taste so much better (and because I am so religious). Of course there is one exception, NATHAN's.
When I was younger I used to always go to the Nathan's on Central Ave. in Yonker's. It was a blast! I would play video games, eat some food and if memory serves me right there was a clown there sometimes that would put on a show for kids. I remember always getting upset though when I wasn't picked to be part of the show. I guess I was always attention hungry. Sometimes the clown did not see the true star power I had as a 7 year old.

When eating at Nathan's, one should not even think of wasting times getting the burgers or the chicken. No way, stick with the hot dog! Also you must, must, must get the French Fries. They are so good. They are by far the best fries in the world. Load them with lots of salt, pepper and ketchup and it is heaven in a paper plate! When you are in a mall food court and you want to indulge the perfect meal is a hot dog, fries and Nathan's lemonade.

Sadly, I have never been to the Nathan's in Coney Island but I really want to go. I will make it a priority this summer. Let me know if you would like to come with me.

I must also note that you have to love a place that sponsors the most famous eating contest. For a while I contemplated becoming a competitive eater. I do not think I could really eat large amounts of hot dogs though ( I think I could do Pasta, Chips & Salsa, Fajitas, Chicken Fingers, Fried Rice or Ice Cream), but this place originated the amazing contest that gets world-wide attention so I must commend them for that!

Finding Chain Selections in Your Local Grocery Aisles

I kind of consider myself a gourmet cook thanks in part to the wide selection of frozen foods chain restaurants make available. These selections are much better than any other frozen food options you might buy. I am going to use this post to highlight some of my favorite ones.

I think the best frozen chain foods are the California Pizza Kitchen pizzas. They are so good, especially the roasted garlic chicken and the thai chicken ones! In college I used to eat them all time. I mean they are not as tasty as what you get in the actual restaurant but for a frozen pizza they are pretty stellar. The only downfall is the amount of fat and calories in them, it is obscene. I recommend not looking at the nutrition label and just enjoy it. I tried to figure out once how it was possible for them to be that bad for you, I mean it is bread, chicken and cheese, how bad can it be?

Anyway other great frozen options are made possible by Friday's. They have a spinach artichoke dip that is awesome! People try to make their own dips all the time and really they are never better than the Friday's one that you can easily heat up in your microwave. Save yourself the time and effort people. They also have their famous rectangle shaped mozzarella sticks that are delicious, available at grocery stores, and these very good chicken bites with a smokey bbq sauce. It is a feast baby! Oh and I can not forget that they make they sell their drink mixes. I have spent many a night enjoying a Friday's Mudslide, thank you very much.
Boston Market also makes their sides available in the frozen food section. I have never tried them but I am curious to see how they taste. I like the sides at the actual store a lot, so I am sure these are pretty good too.

Recently I discovered these amazing granola bars that are made by Caribou Coffee. The granola bars are chocolaty and have a bit of a coffee taste, not too much, just a hint of it. It is perfect really. If you see these in the supermarket, definitely pick up a box and give them a try.

Starbucks makes coffee ice cream flavors that you can buy at the grocery stores. I have had this a few times and I was pretty pleased. Maybe they should just make ice cream and stop making bad coffee.

The Kobe Burger

I am a burger lover, really there is nothing better than a good, juicy hamburger.
Makes me smile.
Anyway, I decided that I would stray from my usual Asian Salad theme food that I usually get at the Cheesecake Factory and go balls to the walls, I would order a hamburger. Oh, but not just any old hamburger, a KOBE Burger!
Much to my dismay I was very let down. There I was, mouth watering waiting for this piece of cow goodness and it just was so blah. I ordered it medium and it definitely came out well done. It was not really that juicy and kind of had a weird flavor, like a bad spice or something. The best part of the burger was the sauteed onions on top and that should not be the case. I have had Kobe burgers at other places and they were much better. I think though, Kobe beef should just stick to steak. Why waste it on a ground beef.
Oh well, I know better now, no more Kobe burgers for me!

Johnny Carino - Johnny So So

I went to this restaurant because of a recommendation from one of my loyal readers. I was really excited to try it. I figured it would be similar to Macaroni Grill but better. Starting the meal I was in a great mood, Arod just hit a grand slam to win the game for the Yankees. It was like all was right in the world. My family decided to sit in the bar area because there were TV's and the sports channel was on so we could see replays of this glorious hit. Anyway, maybe that was not such a good idea because we were seated next to the weirdest couple in the world. More about them later.
What I did really like about Carino's is that all entrees come with either a salad or a soup. I opted for the salad, just a house one. One of the dressings they offer is a house Chianti Vinaigrette. Well my eyes light up when I hear the word Chianti, wine, of course I will order that one. The salad was good, but not amazing, pretty standard. I liked the dressing it was a bit spicy and different so that was good. My dad got the minestrone soup and that was pretty good. I think if I was to go again I would get the soup. Better value.
Anyway, they also serve a nice bread with the first courses. It is a hot Italian Loaf with this nice garlic dipping oil. I love dipping bread in oil so I was happy with that but I must say I saw so much garlic in the oil that I was surprised it was not a bit tastier.
In between my salad and main course I was entertained by the weirdest couple ever. This man was telling his date that he loved her even if she did not have the nicest body. "Most of my other girlfriends had what you would consider perfect bodies, but I like yours better, I would not even care if you got bigger, I would still love you. I remember when I saw you on one of our first dates and you were wearing that outfit, I was so attracted to that outfit and the way you moved. We did not touch so much when we were at the club, but we got it on in the car." What, is this what you talk about extremely loudly at chain restaurants??? He just kept on talking and talking I was afraid I was going to lose my appetite. Especially when he was telling her the difference between strip clubs in Memphis and New York. Apparently you have to pay for lap dances in New York, not so much in Memphis, good to know.
Finally it was entree time - here is where I was a bit disappointed. I ordered the Spicy Shrimp and Chicken Pasta. It claims to include succulent shrimp. I do not think they were so succulent. Kind of just blah actually. I will take Red Lobster Shrimp any day over that. The chicken in the dish was good though. Nice and thin sliced, just the way I like it. The main downfall of the pasta was that it was just way to creamy. My pasta was swimming in a sea of cream sauce. I think if about 1/4 of the sauce was used it would have been a much better meal. My mom and brother got similar dishes and felt the same way. I did try my dad's Chicken Marsala and that was very, very good. Light and airy with lots of chicken and a good amount of pasta. If I was to go back I would get that or try the Chicken Parm. After I ate my pasta dish I felt like I needed to go run laps around the shopping center.
One thing that I was very impressed with about Carino's was their drink menu. They have Sangria - in pitchers and individual glasses, booyah! I ordered a glass of their Italian Sangria, it was very good, very, very good. It has a more berry taste than more traditional Sangria's. I mean is this the way they drink it in Italy, perhaps not but at Italian chains, it works!

Houstons - A Real Winner

Houstons truly is one of the best chain restaurants around. It is one of those chains where chain snobs like to go. I think they kinda of feel that this is not really a chain, but alas, it is. I guess the dark atmosphere and jazz piano player at the bar is a bit different that what you might get at Applebees.
Most good major US cities have a Houstons. It is actually owned by Hillstone Restaurant Group. They have many upscale American restaurants in California. I think they should expand and open some in the New York area.

Anyway, let's get down to business. I shall start with the spinach artichoke dip which is delicious at Houstons. Not as good as the one at CPK, but a close second. My most favorite thing at Houstons are their burgers. Oh my god, they are incredible. By far my favorite chain burger. They are always big and juicy and beautiful. Sometimes you order a burger and you say medium and it comes out burnt, not here, they know how to get it right. Also they are very cool with letting you substitute fries for a baked potato. Good thing because their baked potatoes are awesome. They coat them with salt baby.
I also recommend the Grilled Chicken Salad here. So if I was to get the spinach artichoke dip I would probably get the salad as my entree. It is kind of like a good Asian Chicken Salad.
My brother once get a steak here and he really liked it, so if you are in the steak mood you can go with that but I still feel the burgers are just so good, stick with that if you are diggin red meat. I am also pretty sure my aunt always gets the tuna and she is a picky eater so I trust her judgement so if you eat things like tuna try that.
What is also cool about Houstons is their drink list. They serve cool, regional beers, not just your standard Miller Lite, etc (not that I don't like Miller Lite, I am just saying). They also have a stellar wine list. I usually get a glass of Riesling here and I always like it.

This is Intense - The Best Coffee Chains

I love coffee! It is my favorite non-alcoholic beverage. A day does not go by that I do not have my coffee. I need it like I need water, actually maybe more. This weekend I had the honor of trying my new favorite coffee chain, Honey Dew donuts.

This place is really incredible. The coffee is so smooth and delicious. The regular iced coffee tastes as good as a latte at some of the higher prices places.

Anyway to celebrate my new obsession I am going to be ranking my favorite coffee chains.

1) Honey Dew - Wow, they need to open these in NY. How about we tear down 25% of the Starbucks and open these up. They have many different coffee flavors, I tried the French Vanilla and it was awesome! They also have great muffins. I had the pistachio one. It is green and tastes like a cookie. I am curious to try some of their low fat muffins to see how they taste.

2) Dunkin Donuts - This was my old favorite. I try to have it once a day. I like the French Vanilla coffee here but sometimes I find it inconsistent at different locations. You need to find a good Dunkin to get the best quality coffee. Some of them are kinda shady and some are just like big coffee factories but I still love it! I also like their hot chocolate and vanilla chai a lot. I am not a big fan of their lattes. Of course their donuts are amazing but usually I get a wheat bagel or corn muffin. Both are very yummy.

3) Caribou Coffee - I just went here in Atlanta and was very impressed. Their iced latte was delicious as was just their iced French Vanilla. They have a very nice menu of different kinds of lattes I want to try like Mint Condition, and Lite White Berry (kind of sounds like me). One thing I do not get is the whole log cabin feel of the place. Isn't coffee from South America?

4) Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf - This place is only on the west coast. When I first tried it when I was in Vegas I totally loved it. They have a lot of great iced blended drinks with cool flavors like Caramel, and Peppermint White Hot Chocolate. I think they put powder is most of the drinks which is kind of weird but it tastes really good so I do not care. The only reason why this is not higher on the list because when I tried it for a second time in Vegas I did not like it as much as the first time and I found the service kind of slow.

5) Starbucks - So, so, so overpriced and so blech. I really only like the lattes here. The regular coffee is just not good. The only way it is drinkable is if you put tons of milk and sugar which is kind of annoying. Yes the white chocolate latte or the caramel frapachino is delicious but they are both really fattening. Also they only sell New York Times in their stores. I mean come on sell the Post that is what people want to read anyway.

6) Coffee Beanery - I remember going to these way back in the day but they just are not that good anymore. I feel the coffee is kind of burnt there.

Honorable mention - Guy and Gallard - they get this because their chai is the greatest hot drink in the world. It is like a dessert and I love it!

I AM A WIMP

Yes, I hate to admit it but I am a total wimp. Recently I was attending a happy hour (big surprise there) where one of the speakers was a man who worked in marketing for Darden Restaurants. Umm, do you know what Darden Restaurants is????? It is the parent company of Red Lobster, as well as Bahama Breeze, Smokey Bones and Olive Garden (it is ok we all make mistakes). I thought to myself, a converstation with this man may open many windows for me. Maybe I would be offered a job doing PR for Red Lobster or maybe he would have read the blog and thought, hmm before this thing gets so big maybe I should advertise on it and secure good rates now (whatever, we can all dream). Anyway, there I was glass of wine in hand staring at a man I so admire and I froze, I did not go over and say hello, did not tell him how I love his bisquits, did not tell him about the blog, nope I did nothing. Instead I talked to some girl and told her I liked her shirt. I am not a shy person so I have no idea why I was such a whimp. When I saw Donald Trump and Patrick Ewing at the Taj Mahal a few years ago I had no problem saying hello to them. Hmm, I just don't get it. Hopefully I will come across someone in the chain restaurant world again and I will not get so shy. Until then, I will keep on eating and keep on blogging.

Gordon Biersch - A New Fav!

I knew it! Atlanta really is a chain food culinary destination. They have a plethora of chain food options from fast food to coffee chains to nice sit down restaurants. Today's posting will feature one of my new favorite chains, Gordon Biersch. This place is really awesome, it has nice casual elegance feel to it. This was not my first time there, I was lucky enough to have gone in both DC and Vegas. When I saw that one was in Atlanta too I said yipee and made sure to drag my colleague there with me. Also it was kind of fate that brought me there because it turns out it was really close to one of our appointments.

I would describe the menu as eclectic American. Their special thing is that they brew their own beer in these big metal things with red lights that look like they could be in a scene from 24. Anyway I am not a big beer drinker really, I mean $1.00 beers taste just as good as any premium lager to me so when I come here I am more concerned with the food. But, since it was a brewery I thought I should order one. What was so nice was that the waiter actually let me sample a beer I was interested in to see if I would like it or not. I got a heffenwizen (not sure how to spell that). It was good, kind of like Blue Moon but I still like Blue Moon better. Besides beer they have a very extensive drink menu that I wish I would have tried. Oh well, an excuse to go back again.

So let's move on to the food. I got this awesome appetizer that was hummus and all these other spreads and came with this yummy "European Flat Bread." It was a really large portion and really tasty. I really recommend it.

For my main course I got Sweet and Spicy Chicken Cashew Stir Fir. Wow, wow, wow! It was awesome, a nice sized portion, great sauce, good veggies and rice! It was tasty and I kind of think it was relatively healthy. I would totally get it again. I have also tried the Chicken Marsala here and it was also very tasty. They have lots of pasta and chicken dishes that sound good like the basic Chicken Parm, but wait - they actually serve the Chicken Parm with pesto pasta, that is really cool. I might get that next time. My colleague got a chicken sandwich which he seemed pleased with. It came with garlic fries. I tried one and they are really delicious. Not too much garlic but a nice amount to give it a unique flavor. OK, I am lying I tried two, I took when off his plate when he went to the mens room but like whatever, he was done anyway and I have a job to do, report about this restaurant so I figure it was not really a big deal.

Anyway, this place rocks, I really hope they open one in the NY DMA soon. I think it would do really well.

What is left for the great chain master?

I just want to thank everyone again for reading this blog and for posting comments. I am going to try my hardest to keep this updated at least 5 times a week and I am also going to try to make sure I respond to most of the comments posted.
I noticed a comment on one of my older postings...what chains haven't you been to that you would like to try? Well, amazingly there are so many. I pretty much have been to all the chains that have locations in the northeast with the exception of some of the steak ones that I plan on hitting up by the end of May. Many chains do not have outposts near NY so I have not been able to go. A positive thing is that I get to travel for my other job (I know I actually have a full time job and do not spend my days only blogging about and or eating at chain restaurants). Anyway I hope in my travels I will be able to go to most of these chains and tell you all about them.
Here is my list of chains I really want to go to and haven't yet.
1) Buca di Beppo - they always went on the Real World Vegas and it looked really good. There was one when I lived in DC but I guess I was too busy eating at Baja Fresh and Chipotle to go. I also read that Vinny T's in Boston became this but not it is Bertucci's or something. Too much to keep up with.
2) Roy's - There is actually one in NY so I am sure I will go soon. My brother said he would go with me. You always see this place advertised in airplane magazines. I think it looks good and different even though the menu seems a bit limited.
3) Bubba Gump Shrimp Company - A restaurant based on a movie, brilliant! There is one in Times Sq so there is no excuse for not going except that it is only like 2 blocks from Red Lobster so I always to there. Food Snob said she will come with me to this one.
4) Cozymel's Mexican - No real comments about this one, I just need to go.
5) Carrabba's Italian - I think there is on in Staten Island according to my brother so maybe cousin could hit up this place with me.
6) Ruth's Chris Steakhouse - I know, I know, how is this possible, but it is true. I am going very soon so I will be able to take this one off of the list. I know I am going to love it because I hear the steaks are smoothered in butter -- yum.
7) Morton's - I just never heard great things about this place so I never really felt the need to go.
8) Bonefish Grille - They are starting to open more in the NE so I am sure I will be there soon.
9) Rockbottom Brewery - Again another one in the DC area I did not go to that I always see on the Real World. This time it is the Real World Denver. Interested that the sluttiest Real World seasons (Denver and Vegas) are also the ones where the cast is always eating at a chain restaurant.

10) Hooters - I heard they have good wings. Maybe I will take a client here.