The Grand Unified Theory of BBQ - Dinosaur BBQ

I love BBQ. I mean really love it. To this end, I have created my version of the perfect BBQ meal. To that end, I am going to try all of the BBQ places in the greater Tri-City area. According to Urban Spoon, there are thirty eight of them. (That number may be not as accurate as I believed before. I think there may be a handful more of them.)

My original plan for this project was to eat at all of them over the course of a five day weekend, but...my body is far too old for that much meat and sauce in such a short period of time.

So, instead of five days, I am going to try to hit all of them over the rest of the summer.

Here is what it is going to about:

BBQ Joint: Dinosaur BBQ at 377 River Street in Troy
Date of Visit: July 7th

The Food:
Pulled Pork Slider
Brisket Slider
Cole Slaw
Mac & Cheese

My server was Holly (who was behind the bar) and she was great. She was helpful and she adjusted my order for me to save me money without asking me to do it, which was kind of awesome.

The meal was decent. My first issue was when Holly brought me my plate, she warned me that it was "Very hot". Why is this an issue? Well, there was cold slaw on the plate. Hot plate plus cold slaw does not an auspicious start make.

So, I started on the slaw, because it is supposed to be cold, crisp and refreshing. It was...decent. I mean it was tasty, but it was not the paradigm of slaw that it should have been. Maybe I was off base by expecting something transcendental from cole slaw, which is a working class summer salad that has taken on more importance as of late, and while the ingredients were obviously fresh and it was well put together, it had not quite jelled yet.

The Mac and Cheese was decent as well. Not great, nothing to write home about but...it was good. If I had a complaint about it, the black pepper flavor dominated and not in the way that I generally enjoy. There was a pleasant bite to it, but it lingered on the back of the tongue for an extra nanosecond longer than it had to be.

But...most people don't go to BBQ for the sides (most people, I know...I love the sides)...so for the meat.

The brisket was amazing, and easily the best thing that I had during the meal. It is moist and tender (which is really tough to pull off) while being flavorful. It was lightly sauced (almost perfectly so) and I am willing to go back again just for the brisket.

The pulled pork...not so much. It was tasty, but dry and the sauce was inconsistent. I know it was between shifts. I went after lunch but before dinner and maybe it did not happen the way it was supposed to. I need to try it again to ensure that this was not a one-off problem because I have a couple of friends who swear by the Dinosaur's pulled pork.

The pickles were great though.

With the meal, I had a diet soft drink (I asked for Diet Coke, but I was served a Diet Pepsi according the the receipt) and an Erie Brewing Company Railbender Ale.

The score:
Using a ten point scale, I am going to give this visit a 7.75. It was going to be a 6.75 but Holly's exceptional service bumped up the meal by a full point.

Cost (Without Gratuity): $19.02

This made me giggle.

Everyone Says 'Sookie'

I am glad that I obsessively caught up on the show so that I got the joke.

Today's the day! The Great Beer Walk!

Here is the idea:

Beer + Long Walk = Tremendously Good Time

TODAY!

If you are coming, please register for the event on Facebook and invite your friends!

5:15 PM at Wolff's Biergarten!

Then we will head to McGeary's, followed by Savannah's/Dublin Underground, Red Square and the Lionheart!

It will be a great time, just like last years was!

You will get a sticker, just like the one above.

This year, I am asking for a $5 donation to be collected at Wolff's (and it is a donation, a suggestion, like at the museum) to benefit Habitat for Humanity.

This year, the walk is just over two miles.


View Larger Map

Oh, and if you are wondering who is at Alive at Five? Don't worry about it.

(Oh, when you are registering for Beer Walk on Facebook, you can also like AFM on Facebook!)

Keywords

I love some of this weeks keywords.

(NB: These are not what brings most people here, just what strikes my fancy). Almost all of the search engine traffic that comes here is about (in this order) Facebook commenting, things to do in Albany and people looking for the definition of futility. Hah to the last one!)

• Hermon Raju is still generating traffic.
• "Sky Bully" which is one of my favorite descriptions.  I first heard of the term from Joss Whedon.
• democracy is dead happy holidays (which is from a SNL Skit)
• famous people who have smoked crack
• great moments in drunk history (which is a Will Ferrell skit)
• guilty pleasure summer songs
• "I like my eggs poached"

Tomorrow! The Great Beer Walk! Tomorrow!

Here is the idea:

Beer + Long Walk = Tremendously Good Time

July 7th, 2011! Invite Your Friends!

5:15 PM at Wolff's Biergarten!

Then we will head to McGeary's, followed by Savannah's/Dublin Underground, Red Square and the Lionheart!

It will be a great time, just like last years was!

You will get a sticker, just like the one above.

This year, I am asking for a $5 donation to be collected at Wolff's (and it is a donation, a suggestion, like at the museum) to benefit Habitat for Humanity.

This year, the walk is just over two miles.

Please register for the event on Facebook and invite your friends!


View Larger Map

Oh, and if you are wondering who is at Alive at Five? Don't worry about it.

(Oh, when you are registering for Beer Walk on Facebook, you can also like AFM on Facebook!)Here is the idea:

Beer + Long Walk = Tremendously Good Time

July 7th, 2011!

5:15 PM at Wolff's Biergarten!

Then we will head to McGeary's, followed by Savannah's/Dublin Underground, Red Square and the Lionheart!

It will be a great time, just like last years was!

You will get a sticker, just like the one above.

This year, I am asking for a $5 donation to be collected at Wolff's (and it is a donation, a suggestion, like at the museum) to benefit Habitat for Humanity.

This year, the walk is just over two miles.

Please register for the event on Facebook and invite your friends!


View Larger Map

Oh, and if you are wondering who is at Alive at Five? Don't worry about it.

(Oh, when you are registering for Beer Walk on Facebook, you can also like AFM on Facebook!)

And I admit that I sing to myself and occasionally it is the Bangles...

(I am writing this because my brother told me to, because it is funny, and because I do try to do what he asks of me.)

I have written about my habit of singing out-loud (in the shower, walking down the street, sitting next to someone in a truck) before and anyone who has spent more than two hours with me has heard me break out spontaneously. One of my friends, who I do not think believed me, picked me up early at my apartment, and knowing that I was running late, I texted her telling her that the door was unlocked and the coffee was hot and that she should make her self at home until I was ready. She entered, got herself coffee, and relaxed with Curly (this was two years ago...maybe three) and she listened. I thought that I was making good time, and I was happily singing "This Charming Man" unaware that my friend had already arrived.

When I came up the stairs and saw her sitting on the couch, and then heard the laughter in her voice, I knew my secret had been "exposed".

I am not generally embarrassed by my behavior (largely because I do not care) but in this case, I am not at all. This is fun, goofy, and shows that I am not generally self-conscious around the people who have heard me break out into song. It shows that I am comfortable with you. It is a trust thing, and feel honored if you hear me say "We don't need no walkie-talkie" outloud.

"Get to the point"...

Yeah, yeah, yeah...what is the point?

The point is that last evening, I was un-self-consciously singing while I was in my bathroom. Little did I know (and whenever I use that phrase, I think of Stranger Than Fiction, which is really underrated and quite enjoyable...watch it and you will understand.) that my brother was in his bathroom. I started singing. With feeling.

What was the song?


Yep, I was singing the Bangles. Yep, it was Eternal Flame. No, I do not know why I was singing this particular song.

And had my brother not mentioned it, I would not have remembered singing it.

But...mention it he did.

"Hey, you do that blogging thing, right?"

"Well, not right now. I am reading something."

"Not what I mean. Next time you blog, it is important that you let everyone know that you were singing the Bangles, loudly, and really meaning it, while you were in the bathroom."

I did try to get him on camera, telling me (and the world) what he thought of my singing and my location, but he did not think that was a good idea.

So, little brother, here it is.

I am not embarrassed, nor should I be...

Is this yearning...an eternal flame?

Ugh - Casey Anthony Edition

The only reason that I know who Casey Anthony is relates to the general ubiquity of the coverage of the case.

I do not know if she did this, and I do not really care. The system found her not guilty.

However, I do have an issue.

When the verdict was about to be broadcast, my curiosity got the better of me and I turned on the television. Thanks to the physical plant not being great, and oversubscribed, both MSNBC and CNN were unavailable on HD. That left me with Fox News(Megyn Kelly and Geraldo Rivera) and HNN with Nancy Grace.

The vitriol that these two networks put forth about this decision is...well...worth watching. Check that, it isn't. It wasn't for me. It was the worst display of the infotainment industry that I have been witness to in a while (but I think that is because I do not pay attention all that often) and...it made me think about a number of whys when it comes to modern American journalism.

What do you think? Was the coverage too much? If you watched, why? What did you get from it?

Goodbye Blogger

EXCLUSIVE: Google to Retire Blogger & Picasa Brands in Google+ Push:

"Say goodbye to the Picasa and Blogger names: Google intends to retire several non-Google name brands and rename them as Google products, Mashable has learned...Blogger and Picasa aren’t going away, of course — they’re two of Google’s most popular products. Instead, according to two sources familiar with the matter, Google intends to rename Picasa “Google Photos” and Blogger will become “Google Blogs.”"

This Thursday! The Great Beer Walk!

Here is the idea:

Beer + Long Walk = Tremendously Good Time

July 7th, 2011!

5:15 PM at Wolff's Biergarten!

Then we will head to McGeary's, followed by Savannah's/Dublin Underground, Red Square and the Lionheart!

It will be a great time, just like last years was!

You will get a sticker, just like the one above.

This year, I am asking for a $5 donation to be collected at Wolff's (and it is a donation, a suggestion, like at the museum) to benefit Habitat for Humanity.

This year, the walk is just over two miles.

Please register for the event on Facebook and invite your friends!


View Larger Map

Oh, and if you are wondering who is at Alive at Five? Don't worry about it.

(Oh, when you are registering for Beer Walk on Facebook, you can also like AFM on Facebook!)

Happy Fourth of July, Folks

And now...to honor America...Mr. Hendrix.

Feel the heat...

I mentioned that the other day that I had found the perfect summer song...the song that best encompasses what summer fun means.

For me, there are certain things that need to be there for it to be perfect:

*It needs to span genres. A straight rock, country, or hip hop track isn't going to do it.
*It needs to have some history.
*It has to be a song that you can have on in the background at the beach as well as something that you can dance to.
*Oh, and there has to be a horn section

So, with that...what is the most perfect song for the summer?

The Power Stations's Some Like It Hot.



Give a listen, and add it to your summer playlist.