White Pizza

In a very sneaky way, White Pizza has flown up my ranks in terms of my favorite pizza. I remember my childhood where the pizza I liked went Pepperoni 1, Cheese 2, and nothing after it. All of a sudden White Pizza just strolls into my life and knocks down a few fan favorites and joins my Top 5. Here's how I rank my pies:

1- Meat Lovers
2- Buffalo Chicken
3- Pepperoni
4- Bacon
5- White Pizza

What's crazy about this list is it can easily change based on where the pizza is from and if they have a certain type of pizza there. Just as an example, if a place makes their buff chick pizza with red sauce or blue cheese instead of ranch, GET OFF MY LIST. Stock in that pizza plummets faster than Tim Tebow's playing time this year (he's bad). Also, certain places use crappy bacon or they chop it up so small you don't get that key bacon flavor when biting into a slice. I'm not mad, but those factors and more allow for White Pizza to make a case for one of my favorite pizzas out there tryna function today.

The Goober

Yesterday was a good/bad-happy/sad day for me because I went with my aunt, mom, and brother to my aunt's house in Rhode Island to more or less close up shop there because my aunt sold the place. It's obviously a sad time because I'll never be going back there for long weekends, but it was really cool driving by places with my aunt and reliving childhood memories.

One of my favorite things to do in RI was go to Casey's Restaurant which was this awesome Irish inspired place to eat. Growing up we went there for dinner almost every time I went to RI so I was stoked to go. I was a picky little shit as a kid so we would order waffle fries and buffalo wings as an appetizer and I'd get another order of wings as my meal. Now that my taste buds have matured, I was ready to look beyond the first page of the menu to really see what Casey's had to offer.

Son. Of. A. Bitch.

We pulled up and there was a sign that said "closed for renovations" on the door. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? I was talking about those wings ALL DAY (not to be confused with AP who we need to have a MONSTER GAME today) and now they've been taken from me. After some mental swearing we hatched a new plan and it was off to another fan favorite in Mews Tavern.

I know what you're thinking and no, this was not a Pokemon themed restaurant because it's called Mews. It's a nice lil tavern where I ordered a unique creation called The Goober.

 

At first glance I thought this would be a cheese fiesta of a burger (the likes that would make Francesca proud), but it went in a different direction. The Goober was a bacon cheeseburger with a fried egg (had it before and liked it) and a few globs of peanut butter. I like, nay, love all of those things, but I never thought of combining them before. Kind of a weird concept, but I went for it and had mixed feelings. Overall it tasted good (curly fries were a nice addition), but the peanut butter was a bit over powering in a sense that my taste buds keyed in on that instead of being able to taste the burger itself or the bacon. I like the idea, but I'd more than likely go for a normal cheeseburger next time and just drench that bad boy with BBQ sauce. 



Ted's Steamed Cheeseburgers

When I saw Ted's Steamed Cheeseburgers featured on Man v. Food I was stoked because it's in Connecticut.  For those of you who don't know, I'm born and raised in Waterbury, CT and now live (I was about to type reside, but I think that kind of sounds dumb) in Enfield, CT.  So learning of this once hidden now not so hidden gem, I knew I had to make a visit.

In a normal way I walked up to the counter and asked for a cheeseburger.  Casual and to the point, but then I looked up and saw options for "double meat" and "double cheese".  Needless to say, but I'll say it anyways because that's what people do when they say needless to say, I ordered a cheeseburger with double meat, double cheese, bacon (said EXTRA aka one of my travel season commandments), and fries.  Below is what was served up in 7 minutes flat:

At first glance you probably think this was amazing and you're right.  But you're only right if it's opposite day because this was one of the most disappointing burgers I have ever had in my life.  I'm sure you're shocked reading this because I basically like everything, but this burger just doesn't do it for me.  There was a lot of hype around it and I was really excited to taste a burger unlike any other, but when I bit into it I immediately went to sad face mode.

The burger was just "blah".  That's the best way I can describe it.  Just a lack of a taste.  Imagine your friend (for me I will use Brian Baum) who sucks at cooking trying to make a steak or a burger.  Instead of using seasoning or anything to enhance the flavor, all Brian Baum does is take the food out of the freezer and throws it in a pan on the stove (while it's still frozen).  After jabbing at it with a knife for a few minutes, the food is "done" and a greyish meal is "ready" to eat.  That's basically what I was presented with only it was dressed up with globs of cheese and bacon.  Don't get me wrong, I beasted it, but it was such a let down just like most sequels to great movies (exceptions off the top of my head would be Bad Boys 2, Home Alone 2, Rocky IV).  Bottom line, if you wanna know "What's Really Good", go somewhere not named Ted's.

Christmas Cocoa #5

It's all over folks! Today is the last day of Christmas Cocoa and it also happens to be my last day at work for 2012!!!  Gotta love working in higher ed because I have vacation next week and then a bonus week off for Christmas/NYE.  So to close out my week and to challenge the new champ in Mint Chocolate we have Caramel Cream.

Not blown away by the snowman on the cover because he's about to get seriously hurt.  I went snowboarding one time and my friends thought I would pick it up on the spot... they were wrong.  Frosty over here looks similar to me when I accidentally went off a jump at the bottom of the mountain and nearly did a back flip before crashing down and basically becoming a lifeless body.  But this isn't about me, it's about the cocoa.  While I liked the overall taste of it and the fact that it was different than all the others, something about it held me back from really enjoying it.  I'm a big fan of caramel (Caramellos are AMAZING), but I still had Mint Chocolate on my mind.  It was really unfair to Caramel Cream because it lost before the race even started.  No matter how delicious it tasted I would be comparing it to Mint Chocolate.  Just no shot at winning.

In the end, this is how I would rank my Christmas Cocoa Week:

#1- Mint Chocolate

#2- Milk Chocolate

#3- French Vanilla

#4- Dark Chocolate Sensation

#5- Caramel Cream

They're all delicious and all worth trying.  Nothing wrong with any of them, but if you're like me, save Mint Chocolate til the end so it doesn't ruin the taste of any of the other flavors.

Christmas Cocoa #4

We have a new champion!!!!! I really hope I don't say that in any of my fantasy football leagues this year (defending champ in 3 and I'm in the semis in 5 outta 6 leagues), but a new hot cocoa has emerged as my #1!!! Milk Chocolate has been solid for so many years, but Mint Chocolate now stands alone at the top!!!

 

There is just something about drinking a liquid version of an Andes candy that brings me to a happy place.  It might be because the taste of Mint Chocolate Hot Cocoa reminds me of times at my Aunt Maryanne's where I ate Andes candies by the mouthful until my mother yelled at me or it could be the times where I ate Andes candies at my grandfather's house and hid the wrappers in the couch cushions because I wasn't supposed to have any, but either way the taste of this cocoa was terrific.  I also took it to the next level via my mug because I had the pleasure of tasting this hot cocoa at home instead of at work.





 

 

That's right folks!  Merry Christmas mug!  Christmas makes everything better!  If you say otherwise then you're a liar, mean, a Grinch, and someone who is not my friend.  But back to the point of this blog, Mint Chocolate Hot Cocoa is my new favorite.  With only one hot cocoa left to try this week, I doubt it'll be knocked off the podium, but we'll see what Friday has in store tomorrow!

Christmas Cocoa #3

Santa!!! I know him!!!!!! This morning brought another solid flavor of hot cocoa in Dark Chocolate Sensation which was better than expected. Fun fact - I'm not a fan of dark chocolate anything. I mean I'll eat it, but I prefer milk chocolate 10 outta 10 times. So I was pleasantly when I took my 2nd sip (too eager with the 1st and burnt my mouth) because it was quite good. Still not better than the original, but not bad at all.

Christmas Cocoa #2

French Vanilla isn't just a flavor of coffee anymore! Swiss Miss is really stepping it up! Day 1 was the classic double-double guy in Milk Chocolate, but Day 2 brings the foreigner aka a lil Tony Parker if you will. I recommend trying it out, but I also recommend trying everything I try. Plus, the lil characters on the boxes are adorable!

Christmas Cocoa #1

I'm really trying to get into the Christmas Spirit this week since Christmas is 15 days away. With that being said, today marks the start of hot cocoa week! All throughout my travel season I've been searching for a variety pack of hot chocolate that has 5 different flavors so I can sample one each day of my final work week.

Search Complete. I stumbled across this 5-Pack in Target and experienced my own Christmas Swiss Miss Miracle. First up is the classic flavor of Milk Chocolate.

I don't know if the other 4 options can beat this. You know what you get with Milk Chocolate. In the NBA, Milk Chocolate would be a 20-10 guy. Someone like KG or Cousins aka Boogie. Regardless, this was a great start to my week of Hot Cocoa magic.  And let's be honest, how adorable does that little penguin look???

Travel Season Commandments

It's been a while since I've been able to write a new blog post, but I'm back in CT and have a normal routine again so I'm hoping I can post more frequently. Anyways, now that my Bonus Travel is over, I can take a breath and settle down for the winter before travel starts up again in the spring. After taking a long and hard look back at this travel season, I've developed an air tight list of Commandments that every Admissions Counselor should be aware of. These are not to be taken lightly and all should be followed in order to maximize enjoyment while on the road.

10 - Thou shall coordinate with thy colleagues to slumber at the same hotel (this allows for carpooling and easy get togethers for dinner and fun... thank God none of my friends look like these people)

9 - Thou shall NEVER neglect the free breakfast bag when leaving a hotel like a Hampton Inn (water, granola bar, apple... Why not? Take 2 if you can!)

8 - Visits, whether they are of the mini fair or individual variety, are strictly prohibited before 8:00 am (maybe even 8:30 am)

7 - Thou shall always wear a tie (or just look nice if you're a female), unless you work for a school that gives you a polo to wear. If that's the case, I hate you. But nevertheless, CLASS IT UP GENTLEMEN

6 - Thou shant be afraid of double lunches and dinners. If a visit or fair gives you a sandwich you should still buy lunch/dinner as a supplement to what you already ate. Nothing wrong with a wrap at a school then a burger after followed by dinner at a fair and then second dinner with other counselors after.

5 - Family style meals with other counselors is a must. Sharing is caring but it's also cool to order 5-6 different things off the menu and be able to sample some of everything.

4 - There is ALWAYS room for dessert. ALWAYS.

3 - The saying "that'll cost extra" means nothing to you when ordering food on the road when you have a company card

2 - Thou shall experience the local flavor of your area. If you're on LI or in Rhode Island, order seafood. If you're lucky enough to go down south, load up on BBQ. Referencing Man v. Food and other TV shows for places to go is also a great idea.

1 - Thou shall say the word "extra" with every meal. (Cheeseburger with EXTRA bacon, salad with EXTRA dressing, fries with a side of ranch... Actually an EXTRA LARGE side of ranch, EXTRA side of bacon with whatever you eat, EXTRA candy, hot fudge, and peanut butter sauce in your Reeses Peanut Butter Cup Friend-Z from Friendlys)

 

Go forth young ones and eager eaters and live thy life by these Travel Season Commandments! So it is written, so it shall be. In the name if Bacon, Ranch, and the Extra Meal. Bon Appetit!