My Chef's Hat - Spicy New Orleans Shrimp

Getting fresh seafood in a landlocked state is usually a challenge. When I first moved to Stillwater I refused to eat seafood for about a year. Then I started buying the flash-frozen stuff at Sam's Club, and then about a year ago I discovered 2 places in Tulsa that sell truly fresh seafood that they fly in daily. One is White River Fish Market, and the other is Bodean. Bodean is both a fine dining restaurant and a market. So now every time I go to Tulsa, I stop at Bodean Market to pick up seafood. I often buy raw shrimp and salmon, but have also bought clams, mussels, and scallops. 

On my last trip I bought clams, mussels & shrimp. I made one of my favorite dishes, steamed clams & mussels in garlic butter sauce. I've found quite a few great shrimp dishes on Pinterest, but I wanted something different the other night. So I got online and searched, and came across Spicy New Orleans Shrimp. I was so excited to make it, until I saw that it needed 4 hours to marinate. And it was already 7pm. So clearly that wasn't happening until the next night

Here is the official recipe photo


And here is my version, served over rice


I don't normally post in-progress pictures, but I couldn't help it this time. 





Oh. My. Goodness. This was absolutely outstanding. I've never used a marinade that you cook before using, but it definitely intensified the flavors. As it was cooking I kept going back and smelling it, because it was so good. I normally pare back recipes for a single serving, but I decided to go full force with this marinade and I'm so glad I did. Because it meant that much more goodness for the shrimp to soak in. There was some serious heat, as well as a ton of serious flavor, going on in that bowl. I didn't have any crusty bread, so I put it over rice, which helped tone down the heat. I've never baked shrimp before, so I overcooked them slightly. But that's an easy fix.

I can't wait to make this again, and will be doing it very soon.

Recipe found on Jo Cooks


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Repeats with a Twist - Red Robin, Oklahoma City OK

It’s no secret, especially when you look at my blog, that I’m not the healthiest eater. It’s hard to have self-control at a restaurant, especially if whoever I’m with is eating something really good. And it’s become so easy to say “its for food blog research”. When I cook at home, on the other hand, I actually control it very well. I look for recipes that are delicious but not super heavy, and substitute healthier items as much as I can. I also meal plan, which helps me balance what I’m eating.

Last week I was in OKC running errands all morning and afternoon, so eating lunch at home was out of the question. I go to OKC about every 6 weeks or so, and hit all the stores that we don’t have in Stillwater. There’s a vicious rumor going around that we’re getting a Sam’s Club in Stillwater which would be awesome, especially because it would go literally 2 minutes from my house. But for now, I have to drive to OKC or Tulsa.

Before I even go to OKC I’m thinking ahead of what to eat for lunch. The first few years I would always go to one of 3 or 4 places, but once I began the food blog, I had to branch out. I realized that the next new restaurant would be #200, which means I needed something epic. But I couldn’t come up with anything worthy of that. And then I remembered I could get my free birthday burger from Red Robin. Not epic, but delicious no less.

I don’t think I’ve been to Red Robin since I began the blog. About a month ago I saw a post from a fellow blogger that the restaurant had gone through a revitalization of their menu and interior. So I figured this would be a great opportunity to check it out.

The location in OKC on N. Memorial hasn’t changed it’s interior at all from what I could tell. There’s a good-sized waiting area as soon as you walk in, a large open kitchen taking up most of the left wall of the restaurant, a bar section to the right, and the main dining room takes up most of the rest of the space. There’s also an outdoor patio in the back, and the whole place is very kid friendly. Since it was college football Saturday I sat in the bar area so I could watch games. The bar area is a combination of high top tables, regular tables, and booths. 

One change I did notice when I sat down was an electronic tablet at each table. You can call your server, order another round of drinks, and pay your bill all from there. I know there are a couple of other chains that are doing that, and I think that’s a great idea, especially in this casual type of restaurant. My server came to the table a couple minutes after I sat down, and came back to check on me a few times while I was thinking. When I asked her if I should press the call button when I was ready she said no, I should just flag her down. I’m wondering if they get dinged on that by management as not being attentive enough.

When you join their Red Robin Royalty program, you get a free burger during your birthday month. I’m sure there are other rewards, but I couldn’t even tell you what they are. It’s the free burger that sold me.

As I browsed the menu I noticed they have added some items to the standard menu since the last time I was there, and they’ve also added several premium burgers. Of course, the premium burgers don’t count for the free burger, but that’s okay.

They have a ton of burgers on the menu, as well as chicken sandwiches, salads, wraps, soups, and even a few entrees. They also have a really big drink menu. In addition to soft drinks, they've got a selection of lemonades, iced teas, and a full bar. I wasn’t sure if the chicken sandwiches would count for the free option, but I was on a burger mission so I didn’t even ask. And of course I couldn’t decide which burger to get, because there are literally 15 different ones. Since I was starving, I decided to try their new mini wedge salad while I thought about it.

Topped with bleu cheese crumbles, bacon bits, onion straws, diced tomatoes and ranch
This salad was so good! And larger than I expected for just $3. So often restaurant salads are over-dressed, but this one was just the opposite. I momentarily thought about asking for a little more dressing, but decided to save the calories. There were huge chunks of bleu cheese, the lettuce and tomatoes were ice cold, and the onion straws added a very nice contrast in temperature and texture. I savored every single bite.

I couldn't decide between the Bleu Ribbon, Whiskey River BBQ and Banzai burgers. After some help from the server I finally decided on the Whiskey River.

Whiskey River BBQ sauce, crispy onion straws, Cheddar, lettuce, tomato, mayo
I’m not normally a big fan of BBQ sauce on a burger, but this one was excellent. The sauce was both sweet and tangy, and lent great flavor. The meat was cooked more medium well than my requested medium, but it was still very good.

Red Robin is known for their bottomless steak fries. They’ve since added sweet potato fries and broccoli to the options. But who’s going to eat bottomless broccoli?? The steak fries were just as good as I remembered. Crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, and served scorching hot. They start you out with less than they used to, but that’s not a bad thing because the fries don’t have time to get cold. And if you want more, you just have to ask. I do like that the first batch is served it a little metal container, which is a big step up in presentation from the previous basket.

Did I need more fries? Of course not. But I wanted to try the sweet potato, so I asked for some.


I was really disappointed because they weren’t hot, and had obviously been sitting for a while. And I got them in the basket rather than the cool little container. However, they had amazing flavor. Had they been hot, they might—just might—have been better than the regular. Maybe it’s a good thing they weren’t hot, because it kept me from eating more than just a few.

Yes, of course I will continue to eat here. Probably not much more often than during my birthday month, but that's only because I don't need bottomless fries very often. And I have no self-control to not get more than one serving.


#199 - Main Street Noodle, Stillwater OK

Last week I took off work Monday & Tuesday for my birthday. I never used to do that, but you know what? Life's too short. So my feeling is, as long as I don't have a work responsibility on my birthday, I'm not coming to work. My original plan was to do a whole lot of nothing both days. But Monday I ended up meeting Shawn for lunch in Tulsa and running a bunch of errands. And then Tuesday morning I drove to Guthrie and hit several thrift/antique shops. I had thought about eating lunch in Guthrie, but honestly there aren't a whole lot of options, and nothing jumped out at me. 

When I first moved to Stillwater I think there was just one restaurant and a lot of closed down businesses in the heart of downtown. Over the years they have worked hard to revitalize the area, bringing in several restaurants, a wine bar, and several new shops. They also host monthly Fridays, Food Trucks & Tunes in the summer & fall, a Christmas parade, and a Halloween festival and parade. 

One of the more recent restaurant additions was Main Street Noodle. It has gotten great reviews online, and I've heard friends rave about it. So I decided to try it out. It's not a very large place, seating maybe a total of 50 people. There is a small patio out front; and as you walk in the door there are booths along the right wall, a few tables on the left side, the kitchen takes up over half of the left wall, and then a semi-private dining space towards the back with 3 tables. 

The menu isn't huge. They've got appetizers, Pho, ramen bowls, and noodle bowls. I've never tried Pho, which is a Vietnamese noodle soup. I also hadn't eaten ramen since I think college, so this was going to be an adventure. They also have a substantial sushi menu, but since I ate my weight in sushi the day before, I passed.

I like how they have chopsticks and spoons out on the tables, so you don't have to ask for anything.


I had absolutely no clue what to get, and when I told my server that this was both my first visit and that I'd never tried Pho, she got so excited. She sat down and went over every single item with me, with complete patience for my questions. And she really knew her stuff. I was super impressed. 

I definitely like that they have pictures of a lot of the dishes on the menu, to help you decide. That's how I selected my appetizers, and went with the croquettes and crunchy shrimp rolls. I don't usually get apps, but I was absolutely starving. And besides, the pictures drew me in



The croquette was outstanding. Freshly fried, screaming hot, super crunchy outside, creamy mashed potato inside. I like that they add corn, peas & carrots so it's like you're getting 2 food groups at the same time.


The shrimp was just okay. It wasn't bad at all, it just didn't do anything for me. The sauce, on the other hand, was delicious.

It took me a really long time to decide what to get for the entree, going back and forth between a ramen bowl or Pho. I finally decided on Pho

Also at the table was an array of sauces and spices


Hoisin, sriracha, sweet chili oil, white pepper,
Nanami Togarashi (traditional Japaense mix of spices), soy sauce
My server put a mix of everything together for me. She explained as she went along, but honestly I was kind of mesmerized so I just watched. The dish also comes with a side of bean sprouts, jalapenos, basil & lime



And finally, the pho


I got a half serving, and was stunned at the size. You would have to be absolutely starving, and not eat any apps, to even attempt the full. 

I have to say, I wasn't a huge fan of the meat. I'm such a visual person, the color of the meat was kind of unappetizing, and it just didn't have a lot of flavor. But that's because of how they cook it, by pouring the boiling broth over the meat. On the flip side, the broth and noodles were awesome. The broth had amazing flavor, and it was made even better when I poured the sauce into the bowl. I added the bean sprouts and a couple of jalapenos. I didn't even think of squeezing any lime in or adding basil until after the fact.

I tried, but I couldn't finish the bowl. The server offered me to take the rest of the broth to go, but I have no clue what I would have done with it. I'm going to have to look into that in the future, because I could have definitely eaten the rest later.

Will I go back? Most definitely. I really enjoyed the Pho, and want to try the Ramen noodle bowl as well. 

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Repeats with a Twist - Yokozuna, Tulsa, OK

I've been very lucky while working at OSU that I've never had a home football game on my birthday, or even during my birthday week. We're either playing on the road, or have a bye week. Even with all that, I've never taken my actual birthday off when it's during the week. I honestly never even thought about doing it. Then last year my mom and a family friend came to visit and it coincided with my birthday so I took the day. So from now on, as long as I don't have a work requirement, I'm off work.

Last week since my birthday fell on Tuesday, I took off Monday as well.  No real point showing up to work for one day, right?! I made plans to meet Shawn for lunch in Tulsa. Our original plan was to try Cafe Seville, since neither of us had ever been there. I arrived early, and saw their new hours...closed Mondays. I was so bummed. While I waited for Shawn I stopped in a very cute shop next door called Canterbury Lane. My original plan was just to browse, but then I got sucked into the sale section. The owner recommended we try The Ridge. Drove over there, and it's only open for dinner. So after a little more back and forth, we settled on Yokozuna. We had both been there before, and it was one of my very early blog posts. But since my pictures weren't that great, it was a perfect excuse to go back and try again.

There are 2 locations in Tulsa. One downtown, where I ate the first 2 times. And on this trip we ate at the one in South Tulsa, close to Shawn's house. Each location has a very unique look. Downtown is in an old brick building on the corner in the heart of downtown. South Tulsa is in a relatively new strip mall, and has a much more modern look with very clean lines. Huge windows take up 2 sides of the restaurant. There's a bar to the right as soon as you walk in, and a combination of tables and booths in the main dining area. They created a small second floor with a few tables by putting an overhead over the booths along the back wall. Very creative use of space.

Shawn had been feeling a little under the weather, so he got miso soup to start. 


I'm not normally a fan of miso soup, but it looked really good so I tried it. This soup was wonderful. It wasn't very hot so that was disappointing. But the soup had tremendous flavor. Most places the miso soup is mainly chunks of tofu and a few pieces of veggies This almost looked like a mushroom soup.

We also started with roasted pork crispy spring rolls



Another hit. The roll was absolutely stuffed with pork and vegetables. The pork was extremely tender, and all of the flavors worked really well together.

Shawn suggested that we get 4 rolls and split it. I guess my eyes were bigger than my stomach because I agreed. And for some reason we were on a spice kick, as all 4 of the rolls had spice. We momentarily contemplated the scallop roll, assuming there's no way it would be raw. We were wrong, so it quickly got crossed off the list.

Shawn asked for "a lot" of ginger. She must have thought I wanted it too, because we each got this


They do not play around when you ask for "a lot". In the grand scheme of things that's a good thing, and Shawn needs to remember to just say "extra".

Hot Mess 
Chipotle cream cheese, jalapeno and imitation crab, tempura fried and topped with Hot Mess mix of imitation crab and spicy tuna. Topped with Simchi pepper, eel sauce and served with a fried wonton chip
I had this one on my last trip with Bob, and I ordered it because I remembered it being awesome. And it still was. I love the wonton chips on top. It adds such a nice crunch and different texture, but you really can't eat it as part of the roll. 

Roll & Gift
Tempura shrimp, jalapeno and chipotle cream cheese rolled in masago, topped with blackened eel, scallions, eel sauce, sesame seeds and sriracha
The very first time I ever tried sushi was in Maui in 2007. I figured Hawaii was as good a place as any to get my first taste. Unfortunately that first taste was raw eel. After that, I refused to touch sushi for a year. Now I eat it all the time. This roll was fantastic. Blackened eel lends such a subtle flavor. And then the contrast of the sweet eel sauce, which has no eel at all. There's a lot going on in the roll and you would think that the jalapeno and chipotle would make it spicy, but it's not at all.

Nutty Thai Professor
Coconut shrimp, imitation crab, cream cheese, peanut butter, jalapeno, mango and avocado in soy paper with sesame seeds. Topped with sriracha, eel sauce & cilantro
When the server first recommended this roll, we both thought it was very odd. I mean peanut butter, cream cheese and mango all together? That makes no sense at all. But it works. Really well. No one flavor overpowered another. Instead it was just creamy deliciousness. We were both very pleasantly surprised.

Last was Geisha's Demise
Seared yellowfin tuna, avocado, wasabi and imitation crab rolled in Shichimi pepper
with sweet evil sauce
I made the fatal mistake of dipping one side of a piece into the sweet evil sauce. My mouth was ON FIRE. They weren't kidding with the evil part, and there is absolutely nothing "sweet" about it. After that, I dipped just a tiny corner of the roll in, and then dipped the roll into my soy sauce. Even that was almost too much. They could give you 1/4 the amount of sauce and it would be plenty.

We tried, but we couldn't finish all the food. It was just way too much. Again, our eyes were a lot bigger than our stomachs. Had it just been the sushi, we would have dominated it.

Then the fortune cookies arrived, and this was mine


Clearly the Yokozuna Gods knew it was almost my birthday. I don't usually do sake, but in the spirit of birthdays I did one. Still not that much of a fan.

I will of course continue to eat here. The service is prompt and efficient, everything I've tried has been really good, and I enjoy the atmosphere. Building one in Stillwater would be outstanding.

Repeats with a Twist - Boba Fusion Cafe, Stillwater OK

When my dad was here in August, I made my first trip to Boba Fusion Cafe. It's on the east side of town in a strip mall next to the older Wal Mart. For a long time I didn't even know it existed because it's towards the back of the strip mall. And then it always looked sketchy from the outside. But then my friend Ming always raved about it, and I knew he would never steer me wrong when it comes to food. So we took a chance, and were super impressed.

Ming and I made plans to go in early September, but I should have known better than to even try to take that long for lunch right at the start of the season. Most days it was all I could do to run out and grab a quick to-go meal somewhere. Two weeks ago we finally made a date to meet for lunch.

As I said earlier, it looks pretty sketchy from the outside. For a long time I honestly thought it wasn't a space that wasn't even open. It's actually a pretty big restaurant, seating maybe 75. The owners and staff are very friendly, and last time the cashier was really accommodating, helping us decide what to order. You order at the counter, and then they bring the food to  you. They do daily specials, but when they run out, they run out. This is the first place I've been to like that, but I like it. 

They make their most of their food from scratch, including the dumplings. Last time they were already out by the time my dad and I got there, so I was on a mission to get some this time. They do both pork and veggie, and we went with the pork


These were fantastic. lightly fried, full of flavor, and scorching hot. The sauce was delicious as well.

Ming said he always gets the fried noodle roll. I had never heard of it, but who am I to question something fried?!


Phenomenal. Freshly fried, huge puffs of noodles. I seriously could have eaten all of them myself. They come with condensed milk, which I had never seen as a condiment before. When I was a kid and my mom baked a lot, she would always let me eat what was left in the can of condensed milk when she was done. It's so sweet and rich and yummy. It was super tempting to eat all of this one with a spoon, but I held back.

Each entree is served with 2 sides of the day. You don't get to choose, you just get what they're serving. One of the sides was a mix of sauteed bok choy and carrots. We really weren't sure what the other side was. We went back and forth trying to decide if it was zucchini or cucumber. But either way, both were very good.

Ming got the sesame chicken


Sesame chicken is almost always fried, so I really like that this one wasn't. I tasted a piece, and it was excellent.  A little spice heat, but not overpowering.

I went with the spicy chicken


Again, not fried. And again, awesome. Ming said that many of their main dishes aren't fried, which I like. The sauce was very spicy, but had a great flavor as well, and the rice helped tone it down. I loved the big chunks of peppers and onions. The chicken was extremely tender, so I think they used thighs instead of breast. 

Ming asked for a large side of rice. I didn't think about it until after the fact, but I should have done that too so I would have more to take home to make fried rice. We had enough to eat that I was able to save most of the rice though. But next time I know: get the bigger bowl.

Ming is friends with the owners. Let's be honest...Ming is friends with everyone, and he eats here pretty much weekly. One of the staff was giving him grief for not ordering the special. But his normal time to show up is about 2pm, and by then the special is gone. I don't know how he does that, because if I'm not eating by 12:30 I'm about to gnaw my arm off. 

So our next visit will be during regular lunch hours. And I'm getting the special. And of course the fried noodle rolls.

My Chef's Hat - Bacon, Corn & Avocado Salad

Growing up, I never ate avocados. I honestly don't remember my parents ever buying them. And we very rarely ever went to Mexican restaurants. So when I moved to Oklahoma, it was a little bit of culture shock to see avocados absolutely everywhere. I was still really hesitant to try them, until we were at a retreat at Mr. Pickens' ranch, and we had guacamole as part of the appetizers. I had to stop myself from devouring the entire thing. From that day on, I was a fan, but it still took another year or so for me to buy them. Now I buy them all the time, and try to eat 1/4 avocado every day. They do have quite a bit of fat, but it's the good kind. 

When I'm on Pinterest, I look for recipes that use avocado. And when I come across ones like Bacon, Corn & Avocado salad, I am completely sold. Because those are 3 of my favorite ingredients. 

The original recipe comes from the Absolutely Avocados cookbook. I'm tempted to buy it. But I already know what will happen. I'll get it, put it with the other cookbooks, and look at it maybe once or twice. 

Here is the original recipe photo


Here is my version


This dish is fantastic, simple to make, and ready in about 20 minutes. I already knew the flavors would work really well together, and I wasn't disappointed. I added red onion and sauteed it with the corn, to deepen the flavor and add another layer of texture to the salad. I also threw in some scallions since I had them. I didn't even remotely think of looking to see if I could find cojito cheese at the grocery store, so I used the goat cheese I had on hand.

This is definitely going on the dinner rotation. I made it with grilled salmon the first time, and then pork chops the other night. It's such a versatile side that would work well with many different types of protein.


Recipe Posted On Recipe Girl; original recipe courtesy of What's Gaby Cooking



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My Chef's Hat - Spicy Fried Pork Chop

There's lots of things I love about living in a small town: light traffic; I can get to work in 8 minutes or to the other side of town within 20; family atmosphere; very friendly people; local businesses. But on the flip side, there's quite a few things we don't have. When I came on my interview, I was stunned to learn that there was no Target in town. And even worse, the closest one is 45 minutes away. But that's a whole other story. 

Another thing Stillwater lacks is good grocery store options. We have 2 Wal Marts, and it was just announced recently that we're getting ANOTHER one. Yes, it's going to be a Neighborhood Market, which is strictly a grocery store. But that's not really the point. Why do we need to have 3 of the SAME STORE?? In a town of 50,000 people? We also don't have a local butcher. But about a year ago Michele introduced me to Ralph's Packing, a butcher about 15 minutes away in Perkins. One trip and I was sold. When I've got a special occasion dinner I always go there for fresh meat. Their frozen meat is sold in big bulk, but I'll still buy it, portion it out if needed, and store it in the freezer. I also discovered their enhanced pork chops. I'm not sure exactly what they do to them, but they are so much juicier than regular pork chops. I won't buy anything else now.

A couple weeks ago I was on Pinterest, looking for something to do with the pork chops I had taken out to thaw. The first couple I came across needed several hours or overnight of marinating. I didn't have time for that, so I kept searching. And then saw Spicy Fried Pork ChopsIt's very rare that I ever fry anything at home. Don't get me wrong...I love fried food. A lot of the posts on this blog prove that. But I just avoid doing it at home. It's messy, it can be smelly, and then you have to do something with all the grease. I was going to keep searching, but I decided to just jump in and try it. Besides, the picture looked amazing.

Here is the recipe photo


And here is my version


Wow, this was fantastic. It was so juicy and tender, just the way fried food should be when it's done properly. The recipe doesn't exactly call for it to be deep fried, but it does say to fill the pan not more than halfway full. That's way too much oil for me. I did less than half that, so it was more of a pan fry. Probably why I didn't get such a thick crust, but honestly it didn't matter.

I will say that I pretty much failed on the creamy gravy. This was my first attempt, so that's not fully unexpected. I used too much flour, because I could taste it a little. I didn't have heavy cream, so I used half & half instead, and I'm honestly not sure if it made a difference.  I think mine looks so much thicker because of the extra flour. 

I made this dish again the other day, and as you can see the gravy was still really thick. 



Clearly I need to learn how to properly make gravy.

I will most certainly be making this again.  It won't be on a regular rotation, because of the frying. But I'll definitely make it occasionally. 

Recipe Found On Creole Contessa

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#198 - The Garage - Stillwater, OK

Home football game weekends are crazy busy for me. Friday is long, Saturday is a lot longer and I walk about 10 miles from start to finish. So Sunday I'm as lazy as I possibly can be. I sleep in, go to lunch with Bob, Joni & Tony, then go back home and take a nap. In reality, it's a pretty good day. 

Sunday we normally go to Louie's or Brooklyn's for lunch. But Joni & Tony weren't with us this time, so we decided to try something different, and went to The Garage. It's a fast-casual restaurant concept with 7 locations in Oklahoma and one in Arkansas. The Stillwater location opened just a few months ago. I was kind of surprised about the location for 2 reasons. First, it's on the same block as Eskimo Joe's. Joe's is a Stillwater institution. It's always packed, especially on gameday and in the summer. I wouldn't think they wanted the competition. There's also a law that restaurants within 100 feet of campus cannot serve liquor. And The Garage is right across the street from campus. So we figure either they got grandfathered in because it was a bar years ago, or maybe the Joe's is the silent owner so they got an exemption. Either way, I'm happy it's here because we need more good restaurants in town.

You wait in line to order, then sit and they bring your food out to you. The very front portion of the restaurant is the line and the order counter, with a partial wall separating the line from the seating area. There's a large bar in the middle of the restaurant with barstools around 3 sides of it, and then a mixture of short tables and high tops around 3 sides as well. Plus tons of TV's throughout the restaurant. At the back of the restaurant is another seating area, through an open doorway. The interior has very unique decorations, with a little bit of everything: old signs, large superhero figurines, and lots of pictures.

Their menu is pretty simple: appetizers, burgers, hot dogs, tacos, salads, and sandwiches. Sides are sold separately. I'm not really a huge fan of that concept, but it does also allow you to create your own meal. For the burgers you can choose from Angus beef, turkey, smoked turkey, garden burger or bison. Then your options of bun are regular, whole wheat, or lettuce wrap for a gluten free option. Pretty much every burger already has stuff on it, but you can also add "regular" or "premium" toppings for an extra charge. They've got 4 types of fries, 2 types of slaw, housemade chips, and an assortment of dipping sauces.

I had seen earlier that morning that it was National Vodka Day. So of course we had to join in on the fun. Bob did the BLT bloody mary, and I got the pineapple club special


I don't do bloodys so I didn't try Bob's, but he said it was really good. The bartender had warned him that it was pretty spicy so he asked them to tone it back some. And they listened. My club special was really good.

Allen was a rebel and got the fish & chips


I didn't try any, but he said it was good. 

Bob and I ordered the sriracha slaw, garlic parm fries, and Tijuana fries


They were NOT kidding with the heat on this slaw! My mouth was absolutely on fire. But the flavor was excellent, which made it hard to stop eating it.


My students had brought me an order of these garlic parm fries the week before. They were good, but had gotten a little steamed and also not that hot from being in the to-go container. So I got these to give them another chance. Sadly, I was disappointed, because they weren't hot. Just kind of warm. With how crowded the place was, I thought for sure there's no way that could happen. I was wrong. 


The Tijuana fries were good, but SPICY. They don't fry the jalapenos with the fries, so I can't figure out how they absorb so much of the heat. But they most certainly do. Again, mouth on fire.

Bob got the Hawaiian burger, and got bison meat

Honey mustard, Swiss, pineapple salsa, bacon
I tasted a bite, and it was awesome. I had never eaten bison meat before, and was very pleasantly surprised. It has really good flavor. The pineapple lent a really good hint of sweetness to the burger, without being overpowering.

I decided not to be adventurous with bison meat this time, and stuck with Angus beef. I did the grilled jalapeno bacon cheeser on a wheat bun

Garlic aioli, lettuce, tomato, onion, grilled jalapenos, bacon, American cheese
The burger was awesome. Cooked perfect medium, juicy, and full of flavor. However, I had asked for grilled onions and an egg on top...and didn't get either. It was way too busy to send it back, so I just ate it as is. In the grand scheme of things, not having the egg wasn't a bad decision, because I really didn't need it. The burger was plenty on its own. Looking back, I have no clue why I got a burger with jalapenos. Clearly I had a death wish that day. I ended up taking about half of them off because by that point I couldn't do more spice.

This place was packed when we arrived, and by the time we sat down there was a line out the door and heading down the street. I know part of that is that it's new, and another part is that people who don't want to wait to be seated at Joe's (which can be a really long wait during popular times) have another close-by option.

We will definitely be back.  Besides the mess-up on my burger, the food was awesome. We're going to try the regular slaw next time, and avoid anything with jalapenos. My friend Tia had just gotten her food as we were leaving, and I tasted one of her sweet potato fries. They were amazing...we're getting those next time. I'm also getting bison meat for my burger. We were also discussing how to get Joni to eat there. She doesn't do restaurants where you have to stand in line to order. But we figure if we order when they're leaving the hotel, she'll be able to just come and sit with us by the time they get there. And they have alcohol, so she can get her Sunday mimosa.


My Chef's Hat - Orange Chicken Vegetable Stir Fry

When I got home from Wisconsin-palooza, a 4-day cheese and beer binge, it was high time to eat something healthy. I was kind of afraid that my body would go into shock at the first bite of vegetable, but it was a risk I had to take. 

Of course, Pinterest to the rescue. I wanted a dish with only protein and vegetables, and relatively low in both calories and fat. So when I came across Orange Chicken Vegetable Stir Fry, I knew I had hit the jackpot. This is one of those dishes I've made a million times but never posted about. And quite honestly, I hadn't made it in a long time. 

Here is the original recipe photo



And here is my version



Unfortunately I can never find bean sprouts anywhere in Stillwater, other than the canned stuff in the Asian section of the grocery store. I tried those once...there is NO comparison to fresh. There's a great Asian store in Oklahoma City, so I always buy them when I go there, and plan a few recipes that use them so they don't go to waste. I'll use whatever crunchy vegetables I have on hand, and this time I had a whole bunch: celery, carrots, mushrooms, green beans, asparagus, and broccoli. The recipe says to boil the broccoli and beans first to soften them a little, but I never do that. I think that would make them way too soft for my liking. I much prefer tender-crisp. So I cut the broccoli small and sautee the veggies longer before adding the chicken.

I really like this dish.  It's bursting with flavor, and I love all the contrasts in texture and crunch. The one down side is that it's saltier than I would like, because of the soy sauce. I use low sodium and it's still quite a bit. Next time I'll cut back on the soy sauce and see if that helps. 

I need to make this more often because it's filling and delicious. And great for when you need a break from a lot of carbs. 


Recipe Found On Kitchen Explorers


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#197 - Culver's - Fon du Lac, WI

Wisconsin-Palooza Day 4 was the last day of our trip. And honestly, really the bucket list of the weekend, since we were going to a Packers game at Lambeau. And it was Monday Night Football. I've only ever been to one other MNF game, and it was Redskins/Cowboys, but I had to work the game. So that doesn't count.

I'm not sure how it happened, but Kerrie and I were ready before Dereck and Reg almost every single time we were going somewhere. It's supposed to be the opposite. And it was worse in the mornings, when we were starving. On Sunday night we had briefly talked about doing breakfast in Madison before leaving Monday morning, but of course the guys didn't tell us they were ready until 5 minutes before they were ready to get the car. And we were meeting friends halfway between Madison and Green Bay to pick up tailgating supplies for the game.

I was about to gnaw my arm off by the time we hit Fon du Lac. Where is Fon du Lac you ask? I have absolutely no clue, other than somewhere in the middle of nowhere. I think we were about halfway between Madison and Green Bay. Dereck looked up places to eat, and no surprise, our options were extremely limited. But then I saw Culver's. I had also seen the restaurant on Saturday on our drive to Madison, and "home of the butter burger" is what caught my eye. Normally fast food isn't blog worthy, but since I had never heard of it, I made an exception.

I was shocked to learn that there are locations in about half the states in the country, including one not far from Joni's house in Flower Mound. It's clearly based in Wisconsin, as there are 131 locations throughout the state plus 2 more opening soon. Illinois isn't too far behind, with 91 locations.

It's hard to explain the decor, other than you feel like you took a step back in time. There's carpet on the floor; I cannot remember the last time I saw that. It kind of reminds me of a grandmother's house, but not in a bad way


It's a quick-service restaurant, so of course you order at the counter. But you get a number, they cook your food fresh, and then they bring it out to you. I like that a lot.


At the start of the trip we were all so excited for cheese curds. But by now, we had all had enough. I think the cashier was a little disappointed. But if she knew how much we had consumed over the past 3 days, I think she would understand.

So, what is a butter burger you ask? Basically, they slather the bun with butter before toasting it. I'm not sure if that's actually a really unique thing, but I'll roll with it. I couldn't decide what to get, even with a pretty limited menu. I finally went with the bacon cheddar deluxe, since the cashier said that's their most popular item. I had a hard time deciding between fries and onion rings. Kerrie got onion rings, so I went with fries



The onion rings were good, but I'm glad I got the fries because they were awesome. Scorching hot, fresh, crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside.  No, I didn't really need a double burger. But it was really good. The meat was very fresh, and the buttered bun was delicious. I savored every single bite.

Culver's does fresh frozen custard that's made throughout the day. I needed caffeine more than a shake so I passed. But Dereck got one so I did taste a bite and it was really good. 

When we went up to the self-serve area to get ketchup Reg and I saw bibs!


So of course we had to put them on to eat and then get a group picture. Dereck wasn't cooperating with wearing the bib, so I just tied it on for him so he had no choice. Wasn't letting him be a fun-hater.


Will I go back?  Unlikely, but not at all because of a negative experience. On the contrary, this is one of the best fast-food restaurants I've been to. The thing is, I try to severely limit how much fast food I eat. And even though there's a location in Flower Mound, the only chance I have of getting Joni to eat there is if we send Tony on a post-beverage run. So maybe I'll go back on my next Wisconsin-palooza.

#196 - Short Stack Eats, Madison WI

Wisconsin-palooza Day 3 was going to be a pretty slow day overall, since the only thing on our schedule was the Shania Twain concert that night. Saturday was such a gorgeous day that our plan was to do something fun outside on Sunday. We had discussed hanging out by the lake, or even renting a Pedibus beer bike. But when we woke up it was overcast, breezy, and not that nice. So we ended up watching NFL games most of the afternoon.

One of Kerrie's friends had recommended Mickie's Dairy Bar for breakfast, but it was a little farther than we wanted to walk. We looked for something closer, and came across Bassett Street Brunch Club and Short Stack Eats. When I had been out walking earlier in the morning there was hardly any line at Short Stack. But that was also at about 8:30AM. By the time we got back after 11AM, the line was out the door. Kerrie stayed there to keep our place in line, and Dereck and I walked to Basset Street to evaluate their situation. The wait there was 90 minutes. No chance, so back to Short Stack we went.

The restaurant is in the heart of downtown Madison, only about a 5 minute walk from our hotel. They make all their dishes from scratch, and use locally sourced ingredients. I love restaurants like that. It's not huge, seating maybe 75. There's an open kitchen at the back, and a combination of booth and table seating. The decor is also very cool and unique, and I really like that they use the pillars and wall space for chalkboards





The whole ordering and seating process was very interesting. You stand in line to order at the register. I was the first in our group to order, and saw a family that had just moved from a table so I sat down. A minute later an employee came over and told me that we had to wait for tables. I know restaurants where you order at the counter ask that you don't sit down until after you've ordered, so I showed her my order number. She then explained that you have to still have wait to be seated. I apologized, and told her it was our first visit so we had no idea. The whole thing is kind of weird if you ask me. Thankfully another table opened up just a couple minutes later and we were seated there. I apologized again, because I really didn't want her thinking I was "that person".

The water and condiments are self serve, in an area over by the kitchen. We had no clue, and had to figure it out on our own. I think they should tell you when you order, or have it posted somewhere. In a college town, you're going to have a lot of people who are there for the first time and don't know the rules.

If you want a cocktail, you order that separately too


I had ordered a milkshake, mainly because they used local milk. I went safe, getting the vanilla shake


It was nice and thick and rich, but the flavor was a little plain. Then again, it was just a vanilla shake so I guess that's normal. It just didn't wow me. And since I got a small, I didn't get it in the cool mason jar. Oh well.

I love that the table numbers were on Wisconsin license plates. Very unique


Even though the restaurant was packed, they were turning over tables pretty regularly. We did have to wait about 35 minutes for our food, but it didn't seem like forever. And since it was Sunday morning after a home game, and parents' weekend to boot, it could have been a lot worse.

Kerrie got a bloody mary. 

Fresh pureed carrots, cucumbers, celery, shallots, garlic, beets, dill,
red peppers, jalapenos, serranos, habaneros, and tomatoes
Wow, there was a lot going on in that glass! It almost looks like a milkshake. They pretty much include every vegetable they can in there. Kerrie said they use crushed ice, so that just adds to the thickness and texture...cubed ice would be a lot better. She said it had good flavor, but was way too thick and she wouldn't get it again.

The menu isn't huge, but they've got a little bit of everything. One very unique option is the "blind special". It changes weekly, and if you just order without asking what's in it, you get it for half price. None of us were quite that adventurous though. 

Reg went the healthiest of all of us, getting the scramble with spinach, cheese and tomatoes, with wheat toast

Four cage free scrambled eggs with choice of 3 ingredients
Dereck got the Trio with scrambled eggs, breakfast potatoes, and chocolate chip pancakes


Kerrie got the Trio with bacon, eggs, and buttermilk pancakes


I went with the Trio with over medium eggs, bacon, and chocolate chip pancakes


The eggs were good, and cooked perfectly medium. The bacon was cooked a little more than I would like, but it was still good. Normally I would get toast as well to eat with the eggs, but since I had pancakes I didn't want the extra carbs.


I don't normally eat pancakes, but how could I pass them up at a place called Short Stack?! Speaking of that, I love that for each type of pancake you can get either a short or a regular stack. All 3 of us went with the short stack. The pancakes were really delicious and fluffy. A reviewer said he had no chocolate chips inside his pancakes. He must have gotten a bum batch, because mine had chips throughout. They skimped on the syrup, but when Kerrie went back to the self-serve counter to get more water she brought back a syrup bottle. So now the small amount of syrup to start with makes sense. The only way to improve the pancakes is if the syrup was served warm.

Will I go back? Yes! As we were waiting for our food we were looking around at other tables and saw some really good looking dishes. I still won't be adventurous enough to try the blind special though.