Steve-O’s – Crystal , MN

We went to watch some roller derby with Karen192 and Charlesworth a few weeks back and Charlesworth mentioned a bar in Crystal that has an 8am happy hour for third shirt workers (and drunks). It’s called Steve-O’s. From what he heard, 8-9am they serve three-for-ones and from 9-10am, they serve two-for-ones. We tried to do the math on how much drinking we thought we could do, but we were already into our current cups so the math wasn’t coming out very smoothly at that point.

Being unemployed, I convinced TheDoctor to go to Steve-O’s with me the very next Friday. And no, it didn’t take THAT much convincing. He DID go to Arizona State, after all. We drove out there and were the first ones in the parking lot. While waiting and enjoying a PB&J sammich (thanks, Doctor), we saw a random guy walk through the door. Guess they were open! We headed in to watch the last of the night shift cleaning crew finishing up with the mopping and cleaning (at least we know they clean this place, right?). It’s a dark bar, but not a scary dark bar. It’s got all kinds of pool tables and games (no darts that we saw) and actually is a pretty welcoming place – even if you don’t like country music on your juke box.

The barkeep, Linda (she’s awesome) welcomed us graciously and took our orders. Canned beer and rail drinks were three-for-ones. I ordered rum and cokes and TheDoctor ordered Premiums. She whipped up three of each and handed them over. It was 8:05am and we were on our way.


People started rolling in to Steve-O’s at this point. Like lots of people. People getting off work, a bunch of old guys, and some regular guys that were just there to drink. Interesting mix of people. There were, of course, some stereotypical bar drunks there. A guy with an oxygen tank sitting next to me. A guy without vocal chords using one of those voice box thingys. And a random uber-talkative baseball fan who kept trying to talk to TheDoctor. There was another guy talking about strip clubs while showing photos of his kids to his neighbor. And of course the guy that comes in every Friday and pounds two shots of J ägermeister and drinks a beer. Like I said, this place was hopping at 8:30am.

We polished off the first round and ordered a second. I think it was about 8:20am.


We listened to some people arguing and I heard one of the best lines ever come out of an old guy’s mouth. “I’d kick you in the ass but I don’t want to hurt your gerbil.” Who the hell says that?!?!?! Obviously an angry old guy says that. It was brilliant.

I polished off another round of drinks and ordered a third set. It was about this time that TheDoctor realized someone was going to have to drive us home. So he quit drinking after two rounds. He also confiscated my phone when he realized I was drunk txting people at 8:45am. Apparently, people don’t believe you when you drunk txt them that early, since I got responses back like, “You’re so silly” and “WTF are you talking about?”


And then, because TheDoctor is nothing if not generous, he ordered me a set of two more drinks when 9:00am rolled around – that’s when they switch to two-for-ones. (I would have taken a photo of these two, but my phone was missing, along with my digit functionality.) I tried with all my might to get through both of those drinks because I hate to waste alcohol... I mean diet coke. But it wasn’t going to happen. I made it through one full one and half of the other.


This brings the total number of drinks to 10.5 in the space of 1.5 hours. Not my smartest move ever, but I can cross 8am happy hour off my list. Additionally, I can cross a multitude of other things off my list that I didn’t even know were ON the list. Some of those things being: puking straight rum in TheDoctor’s driveway at 10am, passing out in TheDoctor’s chair with his dog at 10:30am, and having a fresh hangover at 2 in the afternoon. Who would have known my list of stupid things to never do again was so extensive?!?!


And while I would highly recommend hanging at Steve-O’s to anyone, especially since they do karaoke there, I probably won’t be attending 8am happy hour again. It was fun while it lasted (which was about an hour and a half), but I don’t need to prove myself to an ASU grad ever again.

Experimental Food Night (Sour Cream Chicken) – Minneapolis, MN

As I‘ve said before, about once a week, Trash likes to find horrific recipes and make them for M.Giant and I. And it usually turns out to be awesome. This time, M.Giant found a delicious-sounding recipe online and thought he’d give it a shot for experimental food night. It was Sour Cream Chicken in the crock pot.

Usually when we give Trash the night off, it’s a safe bet she won’t come anywhere near the kitchen when this type of meat-filled cooking is happening. She is a vegetarian, after all. Since M.Giant can spread his culinary experimentation wings, I knew I was in for a treat. Generally because when M.Giant cooks, it involves Chicken In-a-Biskit crackers. And oh boy did this one ever!!!

Here’s how it works, from what I’ve been told. You marinate chicken breast in sour cream for a period of time. I had no idea this would have any effect on chicken at all, due to sour cream not being all that acidic, but I won’t argue with the results. Just DO it. Then you crush up an entire box of Chicken In-A-Biskit crackers and pour half into the crock pot with a melted stick of butter. Throw in the chicken breasts and cover with the rest of the crackers. Then pour in another stick of melted butter. Turn on the crock pot and cook everything until it’s done. I’m sure there are additional steps and temperatures and times I’m leaving out, but this is what I remember: Chicken, sour cream, Chicken In-A-Biskit crackers, and lots of butter.


What comes out of the crock pot is glorious. It’s like the crackers turn into some sort of heavenly buttery stuffing crust and the chicken is super juicy and tender (likely due to the butter bath it has been taking). Really, this is one of the best things we’ve had at experimental food night. No offense, of course, Trash. It’s hard to go wrong when you add Chicken In-A-Biskit crackers to anything in M.Giant and I’s opinions. Delicious!!

Baked potato, some Italian bread, and a salad finish this meal off right, especially with a Dew. Can’t be beat.

Camdi Chinese and Vietnamese Restaurant – Minneapolis (Dinkytown), MN

GingerVitis and I had some stories to swap, so we decided to meet for lunch. She works at the U of MN, so we opted to meet in Dinkytown to make her life easier. I heard there were some decent Asian places around there, so I suggested Camdi. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it was worth a shot, right?

The place is pretty small, but the menu has a lot of stuff on it, including a lunch menu. I saw they had fresh spring rolls on the menu, so I got an order of those. And then I decided on the Basil, eggplant, and tomato stir fry, but extra spicy. I also got chicken in it, just to add some flavor. Sometimes stir fry can cook out the flavor of vegetables instead of enhancing them.

The spring rolls came out quickly and much to my surprise, GingerVitis doesn’t eat them, so I got to eat both. SCORE! They were decent. A little floppy and the ingredients didn’t seem all that fresh, but they were edible and simply fine.

The food came out much quicker than I would have thought, and looked fine as well. No bright colors or anything like that. The dish I had had EXTREMELY large pieces of eggplant in it. Like large enough I could have cut them into three pieces (I didn’t because I’m not above shoving large chunks of food into my mouth in front of girls or anything). But sadly, I didn’t have a knife either, so it wasn’t going to happen. The eggplant was a bit soggy as well, so it wasn’t the best eggplant I’ve ever had. The rest was a tad greasy for my liking. I don’t mind a little bit, but it seemed more than usual. Big pieces of onion, and green pepper as well. I think the cook must have a giant mouth or something since nothing (except the carrot slices) was small enough to be considered an actual bite. It was kind of sub-par in my opinion as a whole.

Not sure if I’ll come back to Camdi for lunch again. It wasn’t terrible, but there are certainly MUCH better places to eat Asian food, especially in Dinkytown.

Top 5 things about Camdi
1. Friendly waiter
2. Good variety on menu
3. It’s close to campus (good, only if you live/work there)
4. Parking is cheap ($2?) right behind the place
5. GingerVitis has the most hilarious stories

Bottom 5 things
1. Stir fry was bland
2. Huge chunks of food and tough to eat without a knife on the table
3. Sub-par spring rolls
4. It just doesn’t feel clean inside
5. I should have gone to the new Uncle Franky’s location across the street

www.camdirestaurant.com

Don’s Leather – Minneapolis, MN

I needed to get some buttons sewn back on my leather jacket, so I found out where a lot of the retail stores take their leather to have it repaired, cleaned, or altered – Don’s Leather over on Lake Street. I’d never heard of it, but now that I’ve been there, I’ll take all my leather items there.

I brought my coat in the customer entrance and talked to a guy named Mickey. Really super helpful guy. He told me these sorts of things are usually done in a couple of days, so I should expect a phone call within a week to pick it up. It was like $1.50 per button, so the whole thing cost me $6.

I headed out of the place and started down Lake Street. My phone rang about 5 minutes later and it was Mickey from Don’s Leather. He said he gave my coat to the boss and she said she’d do it right away. He asked if I could drive back and pick it up if I hadn’t gone too far. AMAZING!!! Of course I certainly did.

I picked up my coat from Mickey and thanked him profusely for the speed and helpfulness. The coat was perfect. So now, I’m trying to spread the word about Don’s. They take really good care of their customers and if you have anything you need fixed or cleaned, I suggest you take it there. They’re good people.

Manny’s Tortas – Minneapolis, MN

TheDoctor and I needed to do lunch and since I suggested Mexican food of some sort, he said he had heard about Manny’s Tortas in the Midtown International Market building on Lake Street. I had heard Manny’s is pretty good, so I told him it was a deal .He texted me the address and then he put 125 after the address. I assumed this was what time I was supposed to meet him at the place, however, as I discovered when I arrived a half hour after TheDoctor, it was the number of the booth in the food hall. Sorry, Doctor.

If you haven’t been to the Midtown International Market, you need to go. There’s all kinds of food booths from many different countries inside and some small market-type shops. It’s really a fun place and there’s enough food that an entire family would be able to find something to eat for everyone there. It’s amazing. I don’t frequent this place often enough, honestly.

Manny’s Tortas are basically Mexican sandwiches (similar to Pambazos) and there’s a variety of insides you can get on them at Manny’s – all kinds of various meats and vegetables. I went with the Chorizo and Eggs Torta and TheDoctor asked about Manny’s Special, which appears to be a couple different kind of meats, but then lost me when she said mushrooms and onions, sadly. I also got a Pineapple Jarritos, since they’re my favorite.

We grabbed a spot in one of the many eating areas nearby and checked out a photo of Guy Fieri standing with Manny himself – even Guy Fieri has good taste! The food comes out pretty quickly and you can watch them throw it together. All the tortas come with onions, tomato, and all kinds of other stuff, so if you are a picky eater, check the menu board to find out what to have them leave off. I forgot to do that until it was too late. Oh well.


The torta was delicious. The chorizo was cooked right into the eggs and was really flavorful. I really liked it. The bread is thick and chewy (not in a bad way) and the ingredients tasted fresh. The torta comes with plain Lay’s potato chips which never thrill me, but I guess if you have to have something, they’re not a bad choice. The real meal is totally the torta, obviously. You won’t be disappointed with it. It’s perfect for one of those days where you’re trying to decide if you want a sandwich or if you want Mexican food. It’s the perfect combo.

I’d definitely hit up Manny’s again. Although, the next time I hit up Midtown International Market, I’ll probably do Safari or the West Indies place that’s in there. I don’t think you’ll go wrong at Midtown, no matter where you decide to eat.

Top 5 things about Mannny’s Tortas
1. Chorizo and Egg Torta
2. They have Jarritos
3. Super friendly staff
4. TheDoctor and I never have normal conversations (aside from talking about his love Giata)
5. Free parking in the ramp across the street

Bottom 5 things
1. The last time I was at Midtown International Market was with Gerd and it was a little bittersweet going back there this time without her.
2. I didn’t notice the onions on my torta until it was too late – it was fine though
3. I’m not a fan of plain Lay’s potato chips
4. The tortas are a little messy to eat
5. I know some people are picky about eating off paper/Styrofoam plates, so if that’s you, then Manny’s isn’t for you

www.mannystortas.com

Mioposto Caffe e Pizzeria – Seattle, WA

Since I was a bit under the weather with a bit of food poisoning, Pul-Chevy came through with a quick review of the pizza place we went to after roller derby. So if you have complaints, be sure to direct them at him. Hahaha

On the last night of our stint in the Pacific Northwest, we met up with ChickenLittle's GF and went to Mioposto, a pizzeria in the Mount Baker neighborhood of Seattle.

When we pulled up, I noticed that there was a large park right across the street, as well as a lot of homes, so the neighborhood vibe was a more "chill" one than our previous treks for food in Ballard or other busier neighborhoods. Kind of nice for our last night. Upon walking in we saw approximately 12 to 15 areas that sat a variety of numbers. We grabbed a place for the six of us, and the host and waiter both stopped by immediately. Very cordial folks, and once they walked back to their staff area where other cooks and servers were, you could tell by the camaraderie that everyone enjoyed their job.

3Bagger and I decided we should order some bruschetta for everyone to start on. A couple people ordered pop, and it came in little 10 ounce glass bottles (mini-me versions of what Coach and Chao would normally want, but no matter; it worked). No one ordered beer or girlie drinks. Most of us decided to order our own pizza, with the exception of ChickenLittle and his ladyfriend, who decided they would split a vegetarian calzone. Both Coach and 3Bagger decided on the straight-up pepperoni pizza, and I decided on a specialty pizza.

Here's the rundown on that item, as well as the other food we ordered, taken from their online menu descriptions:

Matt's "Pizza Raccolto In Autunno"
With olive oil, butternut squash, pancetta, garlic, rosemary, mozzarella, goat cheese, caramelized onions, balsamic reduction and red pepper flakes.

Bruschetta
Mix and match three slices. Choose from agro dolce and goat cheese, roasted tomato and basil with fresh mozzarella and mixed olives with arugula.

Vendura Calzone
Roasted mushrooms, artichoke hearts, caramelized onions, sweet peppers, mozzarella and vinaigrette in a caputo crust envelope. Served with a side house salad.

Pepperoni Pizza
With salsa di pomodori and mozzarella.


The bruschetta was a mix of three different styles. I didn't know that when I ordered, nor did I know we were getting three slightly smaller pieces than I was used to, but throw all that out the window because the dish was damn good. (See... I'm accustomed to ordering Bruschetta at a variety of Italian places in Chicago, and every time I ordered it there – cheap-ass or fancy – it would be chopped tomatoes, onion, garlic, basil, and olive oil atop crusted bread).

My pizza was phenomenal. The size was noted as being 10" diameter, but our pizzas were clearly larger than that, maybe even bigger than 12" (I love mentally placing punk rock records over circular things to get a sense of size - haha). The crust that Mioposto makes was clearly what made things for me. It's thin and had a distinct flavor that was unlike other crusts I have had. Not overly salty, but… it's hard to explain… just really flavorful, yet simple. I don't know what else to say about why I loved it so much - I was in my element, really, for I love butternut squash in Italian food, and I could eat goat cheese every day for the rest of my life. The balsamic reduction was either laid down under the crust or it had seeped through the crust, so with each piece of pizza you picked up you could dip it a little bit. Hell yeah. The only thing that I may have changed about this is that I like my crust just a little more crispy, so it didn't droop a little bit when you picked up a piece.

All in all, good eats and good friends. A nice wrap up before heading home the next day.

top 5
1. The Pizza Raccolto In Autunno
2. Bruschetta
3. Coach playing with his little 10 ounce bottle (TWSS)
4. Having someone who knew the waitstaff + having a genuinely jovial server and host
5. 3Bagger continuing to talk like Super Mario even during our last night

bottom 5
1. Chao still ill from the night before, not being able to eat one bite.
2. The kitchen's first attempt at ChickenLittle's calzone was a failure, so he got his food later than everyone else's. However, the price of his dish was taken off the bill due to the error.
3. Knowing this was the last night together for a while
4. Slightly floppy crust
5. Chicken Little and his ladyfriend and their overly abundant PDA's - hahaha, burn!

www.seattle-eats.com/mioposto

Karaoke at Tarasco Mexican Restaurant – Seattle (Ballard), WA

When out in Seattle with ChickenLittle, par for the course is hitting up at least one karaoke bar. Since we had a good group with us, we knew it was going to be fun, especially with the liquor flowing as freely as it was. We went to Tarasco and commandeered a couple of tables right in the front. The guy has an amazing collection of songs and if he doesn’t have what you’re looking for, he’s not afraid to download it right then and there for you.

We ordered the first round of drinks and then lost track. After only a few drinks, Coach was already to show us his pterodactyl impression, which had us all rolling.


Then we began to light this bar up with our awesomeness. I will remind you the drinks were flowing freely, and none of us are professionals. Unless professional idiots is an actual job, in which case none of us get paid enough for the amazing job we’re doing.

I will warn you in advance, these files are enormous, so you might want to pause them and let them download first.

Here, ChickenLittle busts out “The Power of Love”.

I managed an awful version of “On Bended Knee”.

Pul-Chevy threw down the best version of “Run To The Hills” EVER. Watch his sweet gallop and dance moves!

ChickenLittle whips out “Jesse’s Girl”.

And finally, Coach sings a song no one has ever heard before and then got mad when no one knew what it was. Apparently, it’s Lionel Richie’s “Sail On”.

All in all, it was a good night. We didn’t get some of the songs on video, which you should thank me for. But I will tell you this… I did power through brilliant versions of Lady GaGa’s “Poker Face” and Carrie Underwood’s “The Next Time He Cheats”. I’m pretty sure my friends are now horrified by me.