While I’m a huge fan for food, the concept of cooking and well….just plain old eating.  I’ve never really enjoyed watching food eating contents, food challenges and even trying to figure out which pizza joint in the U.S. can make the largest pie.

However…this is a really cool story that a co worker sent to me this morning and I must say…that I find this to be waaaay cool. Frisco’s Northstar Church welcomed 355 teens and their parents to build a 3,555 pounds, 48-foot-long tray of nachos loaded with chips, cheese, salsa and jalapenos – setting the new world for the largest plate of nachos. 

While I can go on and on about the article, it’s best left to the World Records Academy who featured the article on their home face this morning!!  http://www.worldrecordsacademy.org/food/largest_plate_of_nachos_world_record_set_by_Northstar_Church_101635.htm

Enjoy!!!

Trying to find a decent local sushi joint in the neighborhood has been like shooting fish in a tank (hit or miss) until we happened upon Sake Toro. It’s a very small corner restaurant in Frisco Square. The first thing you notice about the restaurant is it’s tank of jelly fish behind the hostess stand. That’s just cool…maybe I just found it to be way cooler than it really us since I hit a happy hour on the way to dinner!  Either who, the staff is extremely friendly and eager to please.  A nice feeling you don’t get too often anymore….often I feel like I’m putting someone out when I ask for a refill of drink or a lemon for my water.

I ordered the Karai which really, really caught me off guard, but was probably my favorite dish of the entire night. I expected a roll but they brought out a bowl filled to the brim with chunks of yellow tail, halibut and ahi mixed with squash, zucchini, fresh jalapeno and red onion all mixed in a light sauce and special blend of the chef’s “special” spices. I’m always a little scared when I hear the word special…it generally consists of things that are more than likely on their last leg in the freshness department, but I was very much blown away with how fresh it tasted (and I didn’t get sick so winner, winner).  I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if their back kitchen area consisted of nothing but a monster fish tank….which goes back to the shooting fish in a tank deal…

All and all a good place and a great atmosphere and service.  What’s even better is ladies night on Thursday when you can get $4.00 martinis made with your favorite blend of fruits and sake!

Volunteering to help those less fortunate and eating!!!  Frisco Cares Clinc has teamed up Foodelz to raise money and awareness for the uninsured children in Frisco. 

Since inception in 2005 Frisco Cares has experienced tremendous growth. The Clinic experienced a 68% increase in the number of uninsured Frisco children treated from 2006 to 2007. As of 2008, the Clinic has treated over 1,000 uninsured children.

Frisco Cares actively participates in and benefits from numerous fundraising and community events such as the Lochrann’s Irish Pub and Eatery Annual Charity Golf Tournament, Kids Helping Kids Car Wash, Clothe-A-Child, Frisco Community Parade, Merry Main Street, Macy’s Shop-for-a-Cause, and several public health and safety fairs in the surrounding communities.   All things surrounding the Frisco Community.

Foodelz.com offers super-discounted restaurant deals sent directly to your phone or email for restaurants located exclusively in the Frisco Community.  And best of all…the memberships are free!!  What’s to lose…you gotta eat don’t you?

Foodelz announces it’s first Pay-Per-User Fundraiser to benefit Frisco Cares. Register on or before April 1^st and Frisco Cares will receive $.25/unique user over the age of 16 in Collin and Denton Counties. Please pass this on to everyone you know that enjoys eating out for less while helping this vital Frisco organization.  

For more information and to sign up and join in the fundraiser, please visit www.foodelz.com.  Additional information for Frisco Cares Clinic, visit www.friscocares.com.

Probably didn’t do much there for the song and Van Morrison would more than likely smack me if he heard me squeaking that song….I’m not much of a little canary over here.  But anywho…seeing how it’s almost 75 degrees for the first time this year the only thing that I can thing about while I finish up my work day is a frozen mango margarita on the patio at Gloria’s on Gaylord Parkway!!!  Frozen with salt…I’ve been chanting to myself today…frozen with salt!

Gloria’s is the perfect place to spend a warm spring evening with friends and family…with fantastic food that finishes with hints of Brazilian goodness one can’t help but try one of everything.  But tonight is a night to celebrate…spring is finally here and Gloria’s is where it’s at!  

The nightly menu can be downloaded at:

http://www.gloriasrestaurants.com/templates/glorias/images/dinner_menu.pdf

It’s strange to think that just a few short years ago I was a vegetarian.  Hah…yes..it’s true, I felt the need at that time to save and cherish all God’s creature (exception being  snakes, spiders, roaches and to be honest…most other insects) and hug a few trees.  Know I know what you’re thinking…but come on…I think we all at some point in time go through a hippie preachin’, Doors and Beatles listenin’, savin’ the planet phase which seems to happen almost always in your early 20s.  That being said….you couldn’t get a piece of steak or chicken in my mouth to save your life.

While I lost the hippie phase and colored my hair back to a somewhat “natural” looking shade and got a real job…I still didn’t eat any meat.  Well, that all changed when I moved to…uhhh…TEXAS…the steak and bbq capital of perhaps the world.  Today, I can be found chowing down in a medium-rare steak at Houston’s and grubbing on some killer bbq.

Which brings me to Rudy’s in Frisco!  Funny thing…most good places aren’t chains from what I’ve found….but this chain has strategically placed restaurant locations in virtually any “major” metro area in Texas that is big enough for your to have heard of and not compromised a morsel of flavor!  And don’t let the “chain” hold you back from stopping it…not the best I’ve ever had, but it’s right around the corner and it’s CHEAP goodness!

From the outside Rudy’s doesn’t look like much more than an old gas station.  But inside, you’ll fun some pretty delectable q and some hella friendly folks inside to serve it to you.  After fighting off the hankering from some meat I stopped in and immediately the employees began making recommendations on some of their favorite chow downs.  Fatty brisket…check…St. Louis style ribs…check.  Of course I stopped them after the first two and was sold…but the list of choices and sides goes on and on…turkey, chicken, gamie type stuff…coleslaw, cream corn (icky btw) and more!

The meat is all delicious…smoked over oak wood chips to perfection.  The only thing that makes these meats eat better….the sauce!  The ribs are so meaty and seasoned to perfection it’s almost not needed, but a like to use the bbq sauces as more of a tasty moppin’ sauce for a little added kick.  The sides are vast in variety and I can only comment on those I’ve tried…the slaw and creamed corn.  Slaw good, corn…yugh…what was I thinking?  It had nothing to do with the was it was cooked or prepared at Rudy’s….it’s the concept in general…corn in a goo.

All in all…1.5 thumbs up from me.  Great place for lunch or a grab and go dinner!!

While I’m a BIG fan of other people’s (emphasis is placed on OTHER…mine has four-legs and lots of white fur) children….why should the little ones get to have all the fun places to play?  Well entering stage left…Dave and Busters located in Frisco on Preston Road.

It’s just like the Chuckie Cheese that you remember as a kid…minus of course the stink of little feet in the ball pit and the smell of dirty diapers looming around the wack-a-hole game.  And there’s also the addition of a bar with some killer drink specials and food that’s not to shabby (though I did slightly miss the greasy cheese covered cardboard that I became oh so fond at the mouse house.

The D and B in Frisco is a fairly good size…with two levels…bar and dining room up top and games, bar and small tables to eat at downstairs (escaladers, stair and elevators are available).  But it was not just the food and drinks that brought my group of 20-something (YUGH LATE 20-something) friends and I to play this weekend…it was our cut throat sense of competition and the desire to cash in our tickets on cheesy gadgets, shot glasses, coffee mugs and ash trays and the games….ohhh….the games!!!  Ski ball, wack-a-mole, basket ball, air hockey, old school video games among them Pac Man and others!!  

This is a great place to visit with friends and I would say teenage children.  I would be hesitant to bring younger children in the evening on weekends…there can be a few rude folks with language that’s not appropriate for the little ones.  Dave and Busters provides a great weekend out with friends or a fun happy hour if you are looking to step put of the box a little bit and break up your work week.  Either way…with edible food, great drink specials and games that will made you want to tackle your spouse because you’re so angry they beat you shooting hoops by on point at the buzzer, you can’t go wrong!!!

http://www.daveandbusters.com/

Enjoying a Bud Light and some Ms. Pac Man.

...walking with my feet ten feet off of Beale! I will be heading to Memphis to cross off numbers 27 and 49 in late February or early March from my loooong bucket list!!

But first…..here’s a little history on these two numbers.  Before I moved to Texas a few years back, I was living in Cleveland and making trips back and forth every few months to visit friends when I found myself sitting in the Memphis bird’s nest waiting on my connecting flight…..and all I can say is holy sensory overload Batman!!  It was that same night…we were out at Giovanni’s Italian Restaurant on Preston (amazing pizza and it’s BYOB) when I decided to make Texas my home….

As I stepped off my plane in Memphis, which was filled with the sound of crying babies, and the unmistakable smell of stale peanuts, body odor and cheap airline vodka…..I was immediately met with what can only be described as the Las Vegas strip for ones sensory organs. It was the smell of BBQ, french fries and chicken fried steak mixed with the sounds of the most soulful blues I would experience before a night on Printer’s Alley all packaged neatly in this colorful little box of local artist talent that gave way to a desire to see more of this diamond of Tennessee than just the airport.

What a picture, huh? Well….I’m looking forward to seeing Graceland, trying that famous BBQ Spaghetti and walking along Beale Street where the likes of Howlin’ Wolf and Muddy Waters performed. I also can’t wait to see the those famous little ducks at the Peabody Hotel!! I however will have to walk across the street to see them since the Holiday Inn Suites I found is slightly more in my price range.

Best Thai that is!!  This small Thai restaurant located in Frisco Square is the place to be when you need to spice up your life!  A quaint little eatery with concrete stained floors and walls painted the color of what I can only describe as what a canary would look like if it feel in a mud puddle.  Your typical Asian décor adorns the entire restaurant creating a nice ambiance for dinners.

I stumbled upon this diamond in the rough one day when I was shopping.  Normally I’m not game for Thai cuisine and it’s strong aromatic elements (I was living in downtown Cleveland in a high rise filled with neighbors who apparently couldn’t get enough of the stuff thus permeating the hallways with a haze of curry) but that all changed when I saw an episode of Man vs. Food on the Travel Channel.  

In this episode, host Adam Richman travels to New York City to eat the “world’s spiciest” curry, the Spicy P’haal at Brick Lane Curry House.  Well I’m not sure if it was the sweat and snot flying everywhere while he ate the concoction or the fact the chef had to wear a gas mask (which bared a strong resemblance to something out of a Star Wars movie) when cooking to prevent himself from breathing in the flamin’ fumes but one of those two made me rethink how I felt about Thai nommin’.

And wow…am I glad I did!  I ordered the Pad Plik Khing with the red chili curry and what a zinger!!!  Every bite was lightly sauced and opened up every pore in my body and my sinuses instantly.  It was so good I couldn’t shovel bites into my mouth fast enough…stopping only to breathe or drink.  The flavors and aromas were so intense that when I got home I had to practically beat my dog away from me as she thought I was a snack!

Bottom line…Best Thai is the…..drum roll please…..best Thai!!!

Before I get to the “juicy” details of these amazing burgers, here’s a little history on how I stumbled upon the home of these mean eats!  When I first moved to Texas, I was living in the Addison area when one Friday night I had a real hankering for some red meat…..yes, I know.  I pulled into a shopping plaza off of Belt Line, parked my car and proceeded to follow the smell hickory smoke into a small restaurant, Kenny’s Wood Fired Grill.  After my meaty meal and making small talk with the bartender, he (I use “he” as remembering a name has never been my forte) suggested I sample Kenny’s Burger Joint….and the rest is history.

 Kenny’s Burger Joint is a cholesterol-laden burger haven where the only thing bigger than the flavor are the portions!  Located on Legacy Drive in Frisco, this joint is well worth the drive from anywhere in the DFW area.

 Once again, my Kenny’s experience began in the parking lot where I was met with the all too familiar smell of hickory smoke and the finest brand of beef cooking over it.  Walking in the staff was friendly, the place was clean and more than anything….it was PACKED with everyone from families to 20-somethings! (All of these elements in combination tend to speak volumes for an establishment).

 And the food….oh….the food….holy ½ ton tasty portions!  I started with the Loaded Cheese Fries with aged Vermont cheddar cheese and finished it off with the Black and Blue Burger that was what seemed like in that moment sent from the heavens for my tasting pleasure.  Everything cooked to perfection with flavors that blend perfectly in your mouth. 

 Kenny’s Burger Joint is a must for anyone in Frisco or heck….anywhere in the DFW area.  With great food, drinks and fun for families and singles a like.  Make 2010 your year to try your own little slice to heaven (in the form of a burger of course) at Kenny’s Burger Joint!!!