Burger Blog

Campfire Lounge

Bar with fun food.

Burger: Sliders – sloppy joe, pulled pork, burger.

Overall grade: C+

Review: This probably shouldn’t count as a burger review. But I ate a burger here so there’s that. The sloppy joe was probably my favorite. The burger was pretty good! Although the burger to bun ratio on that thing was not good – so much bun. In the end this place isn’t about the burgers.

Bonus points: Tots! They had spicy tater-tots and they were spiiiiicy. But good.

Additionally: The cool part about this place is they have little fire pits outside. And you can order s’mores and tinfoil dinners. Also, we ate outside in February so that was pretty great.

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Burger Blog

Salt City Burger Co. 

Burger bar of sorts.

Burger: Garlic burger + provolone.

Overall grade: C+

Review: I have mixed feelings. At Salt City Burger there is a toppings bar. You order your burger then go get all the lettuce, pickles, onions, sauce you want. (I chose lettuce, tomato, onion, BBQ sauce.) Which is great! But also I kinda like it when my burger is already built. It’s kind of like they burger place was creative and made this great new combo when it’s already put together. That being said – Salt City Burger did get fancy. Bacon in the burger, garlic in the burger, this fancy Southwest one. So there was some of that. Overall, it was good. The meat was juicy and the patty to bun ration was perfect but it could have used more flavor. The bun was super bready. I wasn’t digging that. Maybe it’s a B-.

Bonus points: The sweet potato fries were delish. I don’t know why I’ve turned into an exclusive sweet-potato-fry girl.

Additionally: The company was really the best part. Good friends make any burger better.

Thoughts on making friends and falling in love or something

I’ve been thinking about this article: here.

And something I’ve noticed – making friends as an adult is hard because you don’t talk about the past or what makes you you. You start your relationship fresh – right as you meet. Aside from “where are you from” and “what do you do.”

Which is how some people prefer it. Burying the past. And it can be a good thing. But I think it hinders us from forming inmate relationships.

So much of our past creates who we are. Not that I’m saying we should pull out the skeletons. (It’s probably better that you don’t.) Or bore people with tales of the glory days. But there are parts of us that are essential to our personalities – our families, for example.

Many of my friendships as an adult lack intimacy.

But sometimes these awesome connections happen naturally – like with roommates. But I’m almost convinced that we need to work on them. If we deem a person worthy of friendship and we want to spend time with them then we should work on our connection/intimacy/relationship.

I think I would rather have five friends that I really know (and vice versa) than 500 friends I sorta know.

Back to the article: the reason I think this worked is they were able to establish an intimate connection and be vulnerable. Which is the crappy part because nobody likes that biz. I’m thinking that if we just take it slow it might be easier. The vulnerability, I mean.

Application to dating: how can we expect to fall in love if we don’t get down to the good stuff? The stuff that makes us awesome, i.e. our families, our convictions, our dreams, our weaknesses, our strengths.

After one dry, surface interaction (a date perhaps) – how can we expect to find love? (Disclaimer: sometimes you just know first meeting that it ain’t gonna work. And that’s fine. Because I hold that as a good enough for not falling in love with so and so.) Not that I’m saying this can happen on a first meeting – it obviously takes time. (Or not actually, see the article again.)

So if you want to create a connection or strengthen the one you have – ask about the good stuff. Learn it and remember it. When they see how much you care they’ll probably like you a little bit more.

It’s not science. Or maybe it is. Either way I’m not a scientist. So there’s that.

NYE

My friend and I were chatting about our least favorite holidays. I’ve decided my least favorite is New Year’s Eve. Here’s why:

1. Because people always call it New Years or New Year’s. Ugh. New Year’s what? And there is only one new year! (Note: this is not a good reason to hate a holiday but this is my blog, so there?)
2. I feel more alone on NYE than Valentine’s Day. To quote my friend, “Like, oh good! Another year! Still alone!” And there’s nobody to kiss at midnight. Whomp whomp.
3. So. Much. Hype. And yet, it’s always super-duper lame. Maybe I’m going to the wrong parties? Maybe it’s because I don’t drink? So many maybes.
4. This one will make me sound really lame but we have to stay up past midnight. (Ok, this one’s gone.)
5. And finally, because the next day is January. And January is just one of the worst months. Because what do we have to look forward to? Don’t you dare say Valentine’s Day.

Here’s one good thing about NYE – it just makes me think of glitter. And I really love glitter. But then that makes me think of the hype and I’m back.

That time I was a genius or an idiot

I’m applying for graduate school. Woot! My boss doesn’t know yet so please don’t tell him.

And in order to do so, I need my transcripts from the five universities where I have credit. Naturally, I couldn’t remember all of my school IDs or passwords. As I was going through the process to retrieve them, I came across this security question that I had created:

ET?

Whaaaaa? At first I was stumped by my own question. So I typed in “phone home” because that had to be it. And that was it!

Another school security question:

ET?

I tried “phone home” again. But it didn’t work this time. Then I realized (since the password for this school was a “pin”) it was the last four digits of my home phone number! Ta-da!

So overall, I don’t know if this makes me an idiot or a genius.

My Birth Story

In Amy Poehler’s book “Yes, Please!” (if you read this book prepare yourself for some foul language, wisdom and laughter) she encourages everyone ask their parents to tell them about the day they were born.

So I did just that.

My mom said her water broke around 1am on July 2nd. At first she thought she had wet the bed. They called the doctor and he said to go to the hospital. She had an epidural but was too drugged to push and I kept sliding back in. The doctor wanted to use the forceps but she wouldn’t let him. I was born around 7am. They let my dad bathe me. My mom said she didn’t know until then that love like that exists. They whisked me away to the ICU soon after because I had a bunch of the nasty stuff in the amniotic sac in my lungs.

After all was said and done my mom said all she wanted was a Diet Coke. Well, then she said she just wanted food but then my dad chimed in, “All she wanted was a Diet Coke!”

And that’s the day I was born.

My mom cried through the whole story. It was really sweet.

I think they took me home the next day. I always add this part to my birth story: once we were home my parents watched the fireworks from the porch while holding me. And that’s why I love fireworks so much. I don’t know that it’s actually true but I fee like my mom told me this once.

Thanks, Amy.

Burger Blog

Rich’s Burgers-N-Grub

GOURMET BURGERS.

Burger: Mac N’ Cheese: House made mac, chipotle mayo + lettuce, onion, tomato.

Overall grade: B

Review: This burger was hot. He didn’t even have the grill on when we arrived. And I saw the fresh meat being added to the grill after we ordered. At one point while eating this burger I said, “I love my life.” Seriously, I do. And I love Mac and Cheese. So much. The meat was juicy and delicious. The mac and cheese was creamy and delicious. The chipotle mayo was a little spicy for me. And I should have waited for the burger to cool a little before stuffing my face. But I just couldn’t wait! I feel like I’m only giving this burger a B instead of a B+ because it was too spicy. And I don’t know that that’s a good reason.

Bonus points: Presentation, see below. Also, he said the mushrooms (had I ordered the Mushroom Provolone burger) would have been fresh and not from the can. Boom.

Additionally: The sweet potato fries were good. The regular fries were just ok.

Notes: I’ve been thinking about gourmet burgers versus a bun, meat and cheese burger. While typically I think I’d prefer a simple meat, cheese, bun burger – it’s nice to mix it up with a fancy one with magic like mac and cheese on it.

Burger Blog

Five Guys Burgers and Fries

Everybody loves this place.

Burger: Little Cheeseburger + Grilled Onions, Tomato, Lettuce.

Overall grade: B

Review: I dunno. I liked. It was good. I feel like everyone loves these burgers. I took issues with a few things. My meat to bun ratio wasn’t awesome. It was so slidey. Things just wouldn’t stay put. The cheese wasn’t that melty. The meat was tasty, though, which is really the important part. I guess I’m not raving about this place because everyone else does. And for some dumb reason that makes me not like it as much. But still I wish I was eating this burger right now.

Bonus points: The fries, obvi.

Additionally: I asked the kid at the counter if the mushrooms were from a can or fresh. He says, “fresh.” Then he says, “well, we grill them here.” Yeah, they are totally from a can.

Cold Weather Cure

It was 18 degrees Fahrenheit when I left for work today. Pretty soon it will snow and everyone will cry about it on social media. But you guys, the cold isn’t that bad.

“There is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing.”  – someone

Here are my steps for being less of a crybaby about the cold:

1. Wear a coat. I know this seems obvious but seriously so many people don’t do this.
2. Wear a scarf. I feel like scarves are usually a fashion thing but they make me at least 73% warmer.
3. Gloves or mittens. Here’s this article to help you decide.
4. Ditch the canvas shoes or ballet flats. Duh.
5. Wear a hat.
6. Layers. So many layers. If you’re still cold you aren’t wearing enough clothes.
7. Tights are required after November 1st – no bare legs. This is a rule.
8. Don’t put on a cold coat. Make sure you’re already warm before you put your coat on. If you don’t, you’ll stay cold.
9. I hate this one but boots. Boots help.
10. Just pretend it’s not that cold.
11. Remember that everyone else is cold, too.

These aren’t fool proof. But if you have the chance to be a little warmer, don’t you think that you should take it?

But yeah, it’s still pretty cold.

Burger Blog

The Habit Burger Grill

Fast-food-ish but better (in the Five Guys, Smashburger league not Wendy’s, McDonalds league.) I paid around $6 for this burger and some sweet potato fries. WORTH IT.

Burger: CHARBURGER (Mayonnaise, pickle, fresh tomato, lettuce and caramelized onions on a toasted bun.) Minus the pickle, plus American cheese.

Overall grade: B+

Review: I wish I was eating this again right now. For a burger of it’s class, it’s pretty dang good. My mouth is watering just writing about it. The meat was juicy and flavorful. And caramelized onions always make a burger so good.

Bonus points: Toasted bun, ding! And the cheese was super melty, which I love.

Additionally: The sweet potato fries were just ok. And the regular fries were also just ok.

I don’t know if I’ll ever eat a burger that’s so good I want to cry. But Imma keep searching for one.