Minnesota State Fair Food Bingo

The Minnesota State Fair is known across the country for being a mecca of sorts for food on a stick. The portability of food on a stick, coupled with the variety of deep fried everything makes the Minnesota State Fair a ten day orgy for your taste buds.

With that being said, it' was high time for someone to come up with a basic but fun game centered around the crazy food available at the Minnesota State Fair. While you can find highly organized maps detailing where to get the newest fair food creations nearly everywhere and websites have detailed every category of food available at the 2015 Minnesota State Fair, the time is right for a bit of chaotic fun in the form of Minnesota State Fair Food Bingo.

Just like any other form of bingo, you can play horizontally, vertically, diagonally, blackout (or what I call "food coma") or take the easy route and go for four corners.

Download the card, share it, print off a hundred copies and leave them around the Minnesota State Fairgrounds.

7 essential Thanksgiving foods

America is truly a melting pot but there are some dishes -- especially for a day set aside to celebrate

the one time when the pilgrims got along with the native Americans before killing them with weapons and disease -- that are essential to your Thanksgiving Day feast.

1.) Pumpkin Pie.
This is a necessity. Without having at least one (preferably more) Pumpkin Pie at your Thanksgiving Day feast, you obviously hate America and all of the awesomeness which it stands for.

2.) Mashed Potatoes.
Forget adding shit like cheese and bacon bits to them. Thanksgiving is about celebrating with the most basic foods in the largest quantities available. Cheese has no fucking place on your mashed potatoes and if you are having Au Grautin Potatoes, then you're obviously a terrorist. Heap that pile of mashed potatoes high and be sure to go back for seconds because on Thanksgiving, your belt gets the day off.

3.) Cranberry Sauce.
The Pilgrims probably had the luxury of fresh cranberries picked by the hands of the native Americans whom they would later conquer and kill so as modern Americans we shall at least have the same food. Of course we should do so with a modern twist. Take that can opener out of the kitchen drawer and crank open a couple cans of Jellied Cranberry Sauce. Brand has no place, I prefer the cheapest I can find, and slice off discs of jellied Cranberry goodness. If your relatives don't like the Jellied Cranberry Sauce that simply leaves more for you. If they begin to taunt you for liking something so weird, tell them how you truly feel about them. Don't hold anything back. They are now DEAD to you.

4.) Stuffing.
Don't call it "dressing" because what the fuck is it actually dressing. This stuffing comes out of your turkey's ass like it ought to. And it needs to have plump, juicy raisins in it. Not giant chunks of onions but raisins because that's just the way it is. If your spouse says this is gross, it is grounds for divorce. Seriously, consult a lawyer.

5.) Gravy.
This is the only accessory which is acceptable for your mountain of mashed potatoes. Put a healthy drizzle of gravy -- hopefully from a can, jar or a bag which came stuffed up the turkey's ass -- on those potatoes. Then put more on. Dump it on your stuffing and turkey. They lick the rest out of the gravy boat. Laugh maniacally at the person who would have received the gravy next, pound your fist on the table and proclaim yourself "king of the gravy" as you leave no gravy for anyone else. Maybe they'll think twice about making only three gallons of gravy next year.

6.) Candied Sweet Potatoes.
They are healthy because they're orange. They're delicious because they are glazed with butter, brown sugar and milk. Notice how I didn't mention marshmallows. That's because marshmallows have one purpose -- s'mores. Marshmallows are NOT a Thanksgiving food. Leave my house, hippie.

7.) Turkey.
Cook it breast down after seasoning it. DOn't just throw the headless bird in a pan and shove it in the oven. Take some pride in this genetically modified turkey and at least make an attempt at seasoning the poor bird. Use some Kosher salt, Paprika, hell, maybe ever some freshly ground pepper. Shoved a few sticks of butter under its skin. A few more up its cavernous ass. Rub butter on the outside, too. Eat half a stick of butter then, and only then, can you shove it in the oven and routinely baste it.

There you have it. The seven essential Thanksgiving foods necessary for a proper Thanksgiving feast complete with the best way to prepare each one. Eat until you feel sick because that's the American way!

OK Corral in Jordan is officially closed

For nine years or so, I have routinely driven by the OK Corral restaurant and bar located south of Jordan, MN. I knew something was up last Friday when I saw that their LED sign alongside the highway simply said "CLOSED".

For a bit of a backstory, the OK Corral (to me at least) seemed to have a bit of a checkered past. It seemed like there were, like many restaurants, two tiers of employees. There were employees who truly cared about what they were doing and there were those who wouldn't care if their best friend were on fire and they were standing two feet away while holding a bucket of water with one hand and a fire extinguisher with the other.

The changes in ownership, too, seemed to play a part in the quality of both food and service. If I'm counting correctly, the current ownership which ended in the OK Corral of Jordan, MN closing was at least the third in the nine years I have lived in the area. Quality seemed to have hit its high mark under the ownership of Dangerfield's in Shakopee.

The restaurant and bar seemed to suffer from an identity crisis as well. The restaurant area is large as is the bar area. The problem (or maybe it isn't really a problem) is that there isn't much in the way of physical separation between the two areas. The restaurant area, at least on my most recent visit (when it was still under the ownership of Dangerfield's) served affordable entrees but it was definitely a sit-down restaurant which, given the prices and atmosphere, seemed to cater to families and older married adult couples. It seemed to cater to the 30 and up crowd who may want a couple drinks with their dinner as well as those who may want to eat their meal at the bar and hang around for a couple hours. It had an atmosphere of western class.

The new ownership group seemed to steer Jordan's OK Corral into more a straight-ahead bar direction. They forged ahead with booking bands on the weekends and possibly more frequently. Being unaware if there had been changes to the interior of the building, I have to think that having bands playing -- even with a start time of 9 PM -- would at least interfere with a portion of the sit-down dinner crowd who may have lingered around after their meal over a bottle of wine or a few drinks. I am not a restaurant owner or expert but day-parting your activities and catering to drastically different crowds is a challenge but if done properly can maximize profits.

However, the end result is closed doors. Maybe the quality of the food declined. Maybe the level of service for customers was disappointing. Maybe the day-parted approach didn't draw well on either side. Maybe there wasn't enough customer loyalty or awareness. Whatever the case is, restaurants are an extremely tough business. The failure rate is high (over 50% if I remember correctly). But my ultimate theory, especially after checking out the OK Corral Facebook page, is that management/ownership were in over their heads.

Below is the text of some of the interactions from the OK Corral's Facebook page.

Bryan Hannes No apologies to the employes, just the bands?
Like · Reply · 36 · December 11 at 5:46pm via mobile

    OK Corral We apologize to them but not in a statement on Facebook for you to think we are not hurt by letting employees go shows you know nothing

********

Bryan Hannes Shena ray no they did not let employees know, but if they would have listened to us employees, it would not be closed!!
Like · Reply · 9 · December 12 at 4:37am via mobile

    OK Corral Your an idiot.

********

Amanda Svihel We haven't even got our paychecks and don't know if we even will, I doubt you'll get refunded, sorry!
Like · Reply · 1 · December 12 at 4:00pm via mobile

    OK Corral We have made attempts to contact everyone and all employees will get paid you don't respond to texts or even try to get in touch with me. You have my number I don't know why you spread this crap

*********

I understand that in having to close the OK Corral, the owners are likely out a large amount of their own funds but even as a closed business owner a little decorum and the appearance of sincerity in your message goes a long way. Going as far as calling someone (it appears to be an employee) an idiot makes me think that there may have been name-calling like that going on in the workplace as well. Working with difficult ownership makes work difficult. Proactive ownership and management will listen to their employees. Given the above public interactions, I believe that ownership was the reason that the OK Corral closed. It's a shame, too, because the restaurant is in a prime location but its name is rather tainted. Best of luck to whomever runs the restaurant for the next go-round.

Arby's has a new logo ... again

As we draw close to the end of 2013, it must be time for Arby's, the fast food purveyors of roast beef
sandwiches, to debut yet another new logo.

The 2013 version, though, at least harkens back to the original which has been around since the restaurant's inception. A few things were finally done correctly in the 2013 version of the Arby's logo. The return of a slab serif font is a welcome change. Gone, too, is the poorly conceived extruded / 3D western hat and in its place is a slightly modified (and thankfully flat) version of the original western hat. The logo again feels unified and cohesive both in its colors but also its elements. No variations in colors between elements which were a result of the wretched extruded hat. No mish-mash of styles between western and modern. Lastly, the new red used in the 2013 version of the Arby's logo is a happy middle ground between the too-dark red of the 2012 version and a rather dated and too yellow mix (seems to be 100 M/100Y) in the red of the original logo.

Gone as well is the sans serif font which, along with the poorly conceived apostrophe which was supposed to represent the blade used to slice their signature roast beef.

I could go on forever about how much better the 2013 iteration of the Arby's logo is when compared to its predecessor but I won't because there were so many shortcomings with the short-lived 2012 version. While I do not know the name of the agency which created the 2012 version, I sincerely hope that that particular agency did everything in its power to distance themselves from that logo. It looked like it was the world's most perfect example of what happens when the input of everyone is incorporated. It looked like the design team was trying to please everyone involved and ended up with a design worthy of a high school student.

The funniest, most random photo I've seen in a while

Something are so weird and random that they cannot be explained. Take this photo below for example. Yes, it is an actual pizza chained to a bike rack. Intentionally or accidentally funny, I can't tell but it made me laugh.

The most significant restaurant chains in all 50 states in a fun map

The United States is known for food. We eat too much of it. We eat the wrong kinds of it. We eat it far too often. But when I came across a link with a handy map featuring the supposedly widely known restaurant (usually a chain) which each state is famous for I was intrigued.

How many of these restaurants had I heard of. Were there any errors or omissions? (View the PDF version here)

Minnesota is accurate. Dairy Queen, or DQ as it has been coined in recent years, is a Minnesota staple and one which I believe is nationally known. It definitely has a much more well-known name and more polished presentation that the likes of something called "Ted's" in Montana which uses the wretched Brush Script font.

The one restaurant, though, which caught my eye was in Nevada. Something simply names "PT'S". I have no idea what this likely slap in the tastebuds is. They probably serve up bland, pedestrian burgers which set themselves apart from the competition in no way. They instantly lose points and nearly all credibility of the complete mess of an apostrophe. Actually, the vertical line filling in as an apostrophe. Anoyone who has every worked in a graphic design capacity and is actually worth the wages they are being paid knows about "typographer's quotes". It's a hidden option in Adobe InDesign which allows the user to actually use proper quotes (both single and traditional) and apostrophes. The option also exists in Adobe Illustrator in a few different locations and can also be found in the glyphs window if you seek the full list of options.

Lastly, where in the hell is Hardee's in this error-ridden map*?

*I don't actually see any errors except the fact that Hardee's, once a national or at least regional force, is missing from this map.

Bee colony collapse and how to self-pollinate Zucchini

Reductions in bee and butterfly populations are hitting zucchini harvests hard: Without bees, pollination doesn’t happen, and zucchini buds literally die on the vine. But you can give nature a hand by pollinating zucchini blossoms yourself.

1. Determine which blossoms are male and contain pollen: Males stand on slender stalks.

2. Locate female blossoms, which have a small zucchinis beneath that will grow into an adult vegetable when pollinated.

Here’s a look at the happy couple.


3. Wait until morning when female blossoms open their petals. Then, shake the pollen from the male blossom onto the stigma in the center of the female blossom. You can use a cotton swab or paintbrush to push the pollen onto the stigma. Or just pluck off the male blossom leaves and shake the pollen directly onto the female.

4. Close the female blossom with a piece of pantyhose, and let nature take its course.

While this is a lot of work, it might be the only viable way to produce certain vegetables until something is done to stave off the declining honey bee population.

Why are we letting Paul Deen distract us?

So, let me get this straight. Paula Deen, a diabetic southern hag born in the 1940s used a racial slur? Once? And this is news? Yeah, I get it, racial slurs have no place in our society but Paula Deen, again born in the 1940s in GEORGIA, used a racial slur... at some point in her life! Color me totally amazed. A southerner using a racial slur.

I agree that when crap like this is exposed that the person who uttered the racial slur -- especially being that she is a television host -- should probably be pulled from her gig but why is this news? I'm sure there are hundreds, hell, maybe thousands of politicians from south of the Mason-Dixon line who use certain racial slurs on a semi-regular basis knowing full well that what they are saying is 100% wrong and probably makes more than a few around them feel rather uncomfortable hearing racial slurs flow somewhat freely.

But Paula Deen is a television chef. Who cooks everything with butter. Did I mention that she's from Georgia? And was born in the 1940s? That isn't exactly a racially tolerant area or era.

But while we are distracted by a racist diabetic from Georgia who cooks with nothing but butter the NSA is spying on us, abortion is being outlawed in multiple states and the courts are debating the legality of same sex marriage. But we care so much about a cable TV chef who uttered a racial slur at some point in her life because it's easier to focus on celebrities of any level than deal with actual important news. God, America is circling the drain faster than usual.

Avoid eating canned tomatoes

Avoiding canned foods never really clicked with me. I never thought, "Hey, maybe I should pass on the 79¢ can of fruit or tomatoes or sweet corn". Being raised on a farm, we had a huge garden which resulted in a decent mix of fresh, home-preserved (either canned in glass jars or frozen) or, as a last resort, canned goods from one of the grocery stores in town.

This tidbit, though, makes perfect sense now that I am a somewhat educated consumer.

The Problem: The resin linings of tin cans contain bisphenol-A, or BPA, a synthetic estrogen that has been linked to ailments ranging from reproductive problems to heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. Studies show that the BPA in most people's bodies exceeds the amount that suppresses sperm production or causes chromosomal damage to the eggs of animals. "You can get 50 micrograms of BPA per liter out of a tomato can, and that's a level that is going to impact people, particularly the young," says vom Saal. "I won't go near canned tomatoes."

The Solution: Choose tomatoes in glass bottles (which do not need resin linings), such as the brands Eden Organic and Bionaturae. You can also get several types in Tetra Pak boxes, such as Trader Joe's and Pomi.

h/t

300 Club - Le Sueur, MN

The hamburger -- this was entitled the 300 Style Burger -- cost me a mere $7.50 for a 1/3 lb. patty topped with 2 large slices of Canadian bacon, two strips of bacon, American cheese and Swiss cheese. I was immediately impressed by its size and all of its accessories.

I'll start, though, with the french fries. They were basic fries but encrusted with a bit of batter for a bit of added crunch when you took a bite (not to mention perfectly salted). The hamburger's bun was a typical pub style affair, lightly toasted on the kitchen's grill. My one complaint is that the heaping pile of cheese and two varieties of bacon served to overwhelm the flavor (if there was any) of the beef. That could have likely been avoided by using only one slice of Canadian bacon or applying a bit of seasoning to the pre-formed frozen ground beef patty when it was placed in the grill.

Le Sueur, Minnesota's 300 Club is a rather unassuming place. Its location -- part of the city's bowling alley in the basement of a strip mall below a few other stores and adjacent to the town's only motel -- left me wondering what I was getting myself in to the first time I ate there but the selection of food and the affordability of the tap beer (I ordered myself a 32 oz. Grain Belt Nordeast for about $3.25) has brought me back a few times.

The 300 Club restaurant is a bit small in size but so is Le Sueur so don't expect to ever have to wait for a table.

Overall, I give the 300 Style Burger 3.75 out of 5 stars due to its value which serves to compensate for the perceived lack of flavor I encountered. I'll be back to try another offering which isn't as shrouded in Canadian Bacon and cheese.

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Turtle’s Bar & Grill - Shakopee, MN

Turtle’s Bar & Grill - Shakopee, MN
Lunch
11:45 AM Thursday
$7.95 menu price

The burger itself was obviously something pulled from a case of frozen hamburger patties. Irregularly shaped to appear like it was hand-pattied but the straight edges were a dead giveaway. The ⅓ lb. hamburger patty was decently seasoned -- I know I detected a bit of pepper on the meat which wasn't extraordinarily juicy but also wasn't dry -- an admirable feat for a well-done burger.

Sitting in the bar area, Turtle’s was rather vacant at lunch. I would assume most of the lunch hours are similarly sparse and despite the fact that it’s a bar it would be a fine place to go with the wife and kids and a welcome alternative to someplace like Applebee’s. Turtle’s offers a full and varied menu of sandwiches, hamburgers, pizzas (a full bar, too) and more so it would be hard to strike out for people of any age.

The pub-style hamburger bun (no sesame seeds here) at Turtle’s in Shakopee was lightly toasted (probably put on the griddle for toasting) and brushed with butter. While this was a nice touch as it prevents the bun from getting soggy from whatever toppings (think lettuce, tomatoes, etc.) are ordered, it also caused the top of the bun to become somewhat dry as well which left my side of the table covered with crumbs (an embarrassment if you care about being tidy, which I don't).

Overall, the hamburger hit the spot that particular day as it got me out of the office for lunch but the $7.95 price could be adjusted down a bit (50 cents probably wouldn’t make or break Turtle’s Bar & Grill).

 ⅘ stars

If you are interested in a coupon for Turtle's Bar and Grill in Shakopee, check out the one below.

2013 is the year I'll feed the world

2013 promises to be an exciting year full of change for myself and the family. While I'm not expecting a robot or zombie apocalypse, it's still going to be pretty damn cool.

To start with, I began a new job a few weeks ago. While this new gig isn't a huge departure from my prior job, it's a huge step in the right direction and will hopefully enable us to do a number of things which have been on the back burner for far too long due to uncertainty in the area of my own employment. While I was sad to leave my job (I had been there for nearly ten years) I was hugely excited to be facing a new challenge which will, with any luck, propel us to the all-important next level.

Last year began a certain amount of that change which I am looking forward to. Out of almost shear necessity we ventured into the world of farmer's markets. Having both grown up on actual working farms, we have a certain amount of gardening skills in our blood. I was a little unnerved when I sat up my table on that first evening in August but by the time the season wrapped up in late September I was totally digging the farmer's market scene. We tried our hand at our hometown market and a couple other area markets but I like to think that, in a couple short months, we carved out our niche. I met my neighbors, had conversations with some really interesting customers and in that short time became known and recognized for what I was selling.

2013 will only serve to expand on that small farmer's market base we built last year. I've been busily planning what to order so I can plant things at the right time and have a longer season. If all else fails, we're going to be eating a ton of home-grown produce in the upcoming year. If all goes well, we're one step closer to forging a future free of the shackles of a commute and an office. Working the land -- however small the parcel is -- runs in our blood and this venture just makes sense.

2013 will be plenty of work but that's what we do and hopefully we do it well.

An ode to generic potato chips

I take a lot of heat from family and friends for being cheap. First off, I'm not cheap, I'm frugal. There's a difference. The biggest area of frugality is my love of generic potato chips. I'm not talking about store brand potato chips because those are always busted and greasier than any snack food should be. I'm referring to the generic, black and white 1 lb. box of potato chips. The box itself is white a simple sans serif font set in black. It's cheaper to print using only black and using a standard white chipboard box is the cheapest form of packaging.

My friends and family wince a bit each time I show up at a party or get-together with my 16 oz. 2/Pac box of potato chips in hand. They taunt me for being an old cheap guy but they always end up eating those potato chips. To me it's a far better bargain than the constantly-shrinking boxes that Old Dutch churns out but with the proliferation of gourmet potato chips (think every imaginable type of seasoning including BBQ sauce and ketchup) flooding the market, I am fearful that my trusty standby black and white 16 oz. boxes of generic potato chips will be squeezed out of even the most obscure grocery stores and supermarkets.

Having said that and not knowing the name or address of the company which makes these tried and true potato chips, I will instead post my letter of appreciation here:

Dear Generic Potato Chip Company,

For the better part of three decades I have been a consumer of your potato chips. Through prosperous times and through tough times, your standard 16 oz. packaging has never changed while your name-brand competition has shrunk the weight of its packages numerous times throughout my 33 years of living in Minnesota.

I'm fairly certain I was first introduced to your fine product in  my earliest days of growing up in southern Minnesota as my parents routinely shopped at the local warehouse market where customers had to write the prices of each item on the package with a grease pen. Times were primitive but even as the nation transitioned to barcodes, your fine company stood by the 16 oz. packages which were a fine value for a fine product.

Flash forward about thirty years and while your delicious potato chips are becoming more scarce -- likely negatively affecting your company's sales -- you continue to provide the same amazing value I remember from some thirty years ago. While seemingly every package around us has shrunk while the prices increased, your packages remain the same 16 oz. size that I brag about to anyone who will listen.

I might not be your biggest consumer of your top-notch brand of potato chips but I just may be your biggest fan and biggest brand ambassador.

Keep up the excellent work and I hope you keep producing the same consistent value I have grown to love throughout the years.

Thanks!

When All-You-Can-Eat isn't that

After being recommended this story about a fatty in Wisconsin who is probably still picketing a restaurant who cut him off after he states that he ate too much fish, I was reminded about my own all-you-can-eat fiasco of sorts.

It was probably ten years ago but I still remember it fairly well. I, along with my girlfriend and a few of my close friends loaded up the car and headed out to the mall in the city where I lived at the time. It was Sunday and Sunday meant all-you-can-eat hard shell tacos. There were nothing fancy -- ground beef tacos seasoned fairly well and topped with lettuce, cheddar cheese and diced tomatoes. The cost was appealing -- $5.95 for a basket of three hard shell tacos was the regular price and that price was the same for the all-you-can-eat Sunday special.

I don't honestly know what the others in my party ordered but I sure as hell ordered the all-you-can-eat tacos and a Coke to drink.

Within a few minutes my basket of three hard shell tacos arrived and mere minutes later I had eaten them. The waitress arrived back at our table and asked if I would like more tacos. Of course I said "Yes, please" and asked for another glass of Coke as well.

This time the basket of tacos arrived more slowly. It probably took fifteen minutes, bringing the time we had spent at the now-closed Diamond Dave's Mexican Restaurant to about 40 minutes. I spent about another ten minutes eating this basket of tacos bringing my total to a measly six hard shell tacos (weeks earlier I had eaten three baskets -- 9 tacos -- when I visited with co-workers).

I looked around from the comfort of my chair for our waitress. The restaurant, with the time now closing in on 1:00 PM, was basically deserted except for our table. The waitress was nowhere to be seen. I decided to walk up to the bar at the front of the restaurant. I asked the helpful bartender for another basket of three tacos, she said they'd be right out.

Magically, a few minutes later, our waitress arrived. She brought the check instead of my tacos. I wasn't happy. How was this all I could eat? I asked for a third basket of tacos, was promised a third basket of tacos and was brought my check -- a sort of signal that it was time for us to leave and that I wouldn't get another refill of Coke. I wouldn't get that third tasty basket of tacos. And the waitress would get a tip of about a dollar.

Was I wrong to be upset about this experience? I'm not some hideously obese beast that would have sat there all day eating tacos, demanding more and more until they closed the doors and ushered me out. I was in my early twenties at the time and had a rather healthy appetite and knew a good deal when I saw it. I do know that I voted with my wallet after that experience and never returned but as I'm writing this my taste buds are craving some of those freshly made tacos.

Candy Corn flavored Oreos - review

The attractive packaging of the Candy Corn Oreo package
lures you in.

In one word, the new Candy Corn flavored Oreos -- billed as a limited edition -- are terrible. Reproducing the sugary concoction known as Candy Corn as a creamy filling is a mistake to say the least. First off, we all know that Oreos are two chocolate-flavored wafers with white cream sandwiched between them. The first mistake is that the Candy Corn flavored Oreos use the relatively new golden wafer which is strangely sweeter than its chocolate counterpart.

I first gave one of these cookies to my wife. After seeing them in my Target back after work today she asked if they were for her. After this initial sampling I can safely say that she can have the rest of the package but given her own opinion of the orange and white creme filled abominations someone else with a less fickle cookie palate will have to eat these tiny travesties.

Once opened, the Candy Corn Oreos
immediately disappoint with sloppy
production and a mere 21 cookies, or as I call it,
three servings.

As my wife slowly chewed her Candy Corn flavored Oreo, she was obviously using each and every last tastebud to better offer up her opinion on the flavor she was experiencing. After fully chewing and swallowing the cookie she described it as "Plasticy with a sort of alcoholic rum taste." She went on to rhetorically ask "What were they thinking?" And also mentioned that the Candy Corn flavored Oreo was "not like Candy Corn at all."

After that verbal beatdown of Nabisco's latest ill-advised creation, I decided it was time to man up and face down this apparent mistake of a cookie.

Upon the first bite of the Candy Corn flavored Oreo I was immediately struck by the fact that it tasted like pure sugar. The closest approximation I can come up with is that it is like drinking pure concentrated Coca-Cola syrup before it gets mixed with the carbonated water except not as syrupy. I then muttered aloud that it was simply "too sweet" which, given my sweet tooth, seems impossible.

After I decided to just finish the rest of what I knew was a misguided purchase I noticed that the taste of the Candy Corn flavored Oreo lingers and no amount of time and water seems to eliminate the taste from my mouth. In the end this single cookie was actually so sweet that it made my stomach hurt.

If you're still brave enough to purchase Candy Corn flavored Oreos, they can be found at Target stores (and likely many more national and regional retailers) for $2.99. The biggest drawback, though, is the fact that the $2.99 price tag nets you a mere 21 cookies. Yep, that's seven tiny cookies for $1.00. For that price it seems like I bought them at Super America instead of Target. But at least the packaging is cool.

Mountain Dew A.M. is truly liquid crack

Leave it up to the most disgusting fast food chain, Taco Bell, to serve the equivalent of breakfast time liquid crack -- a disgusting mix of Mountain Dew and orange juice. Hey, at least they're both shades of yellow and orange but shouldn't orange juice in the morning be reserved for mixing with champagne or vodka. And who the hell eats at Taco Bell for breakfast anyway? Unless you are so drunk that you haven't gone to bed yet. Anyhow, Mountain Dew A.M. is served until 11 AM at Taco Bell locations which offer a breakfast menu.

Mr. Pig Stuff BBQ Restaurant - Shakopee, MN

The BBQ pulled pork sandwich from Mr. Pig Stuff restaurant in Shakopee, MN

The potato chips from Mr. Pig Stuff restaurant in Shakopee, MN

Mr. Pig Stuff, a Shakopee BBQ restaurant which recently re-opened in a larger location on Highway 101 / 1st Avenue on Shakopee's eastern side next to Dangerfield's Restaurant (approximately 1 block east of Marschall Rd.) has put itself in an excellent position for growth. Having established themselves at their former location in western Shakopee and offering only walk-up and drive-thru orders, the new location is, in one word, huge.

The former Panzanella Restaurant (now home to Mr. Pig Stuff), nestled between Taco Loco and Dangerfield's Restaurant doesn't look large from the outside but on the inside now offers a salad bar, full line of Coke products with complimentary refills and seating, at my best estimate, for approximately 75 or more patrons.

Building on Mr. Pig Stuff's always delicious BBQ offerings (the pulled pork sandwich is my favorite -- they also offer half and whole beer can chickens, beef brisket, ribs, etc.) the Shakopee restaurant has expanded on their side dish offerings. I have always opted for french fries but when my basket arrived at our table this evening I was greeted with a dish of cole slaw as well. My daughter, being hard to please sometimes, had chicken strips, mac and cheese and a few other offerings to choose form but opted for the grown-up size cheeseburger. Weighing in at what had to be 1/3 lb. or more, this hand-pattied beauty was nicely seasoned with something I couldn't quite nail down. Maybe it was a bit of a spicier rub they made up specially for their new hamburgers and cheeseburgers but my nearly four year-old daughter did mention that it was really spicy. She instead shared in some of the succulent pork from her mom and dad's sandwiches but she did love the "potato chips" that came with the order.

The potato chips, a new side to go with the new location, were amazing. Seasoned with the same spice mixture Mr. Pig Stuff uses as a dry rub on their smoked meats, these potato chips were -- as explained to me -- something they experimented with by simply slicing potatoes the long way (approximately 1/8" thick), frying them and sprinkling them with their amazing dry rub which had a hint of brown sugar as a nice surprise.

All told, in the BBQ community, Mr. Pig Stuff has an excellent handle on their recipes. The service is fast with items prepared to order. The core of the staff is still all family members and the welcome addition of the much-needed inside seating should keep a steady stream of lunch-time workers coming through the doors with families keeping the place busy during other hours. The decor features plenty of Iowa Hawkeye memorabilia, two (or three) large televisions which tonight were tuned to the Green Bay Packers game and with the coming addition of beer Mr. Pig Stuff will have a leg up on their cross-town BBQ restaurant competition (Dickey's BBQ Pit in Shakopee's Southbridge area).

All told, I will definitely be back either during the workweek for a hearty lunch or on the weekend with the family. The best touch, though, was the cashier not only asking my daughter her name as we ordered but remembering it as we left the restaurant. Very nice.

Mr. Pig Stuff BBQ Restaurant
1561 1st Ave E
Shakopee MN 55379
952-233-7306
Mon - Sat 11:00 AM - 9:00 PM
Sun 12:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Even squirrels are overeating

The greedy squirrel has an entire ear of corn in his cheeks. This is precisely why anyone who feeds squirrels always has empty corn cobs on their feeders. Squirrels like this one prove that America has an obesity problem.

Minnesota State Fair food - The Walleye Roll

2012 Minnesota State Fair 091 The Walleye Roll, a photo by rabidscottsman on Flickr.

The Walleye Roll, made by Giggles Campfire Grill, is inspired by a lobster roll only with walleye substituted for lobster. The unique twist on Minnesota food s available at the Minnesota State Fair which runs through Labor day.

Heap of Garlic Fries - Minnesota State Fair food

120825 big heap of garlic fries (special for @amycrea) @MinnStateFair, a photo by heideland on Flickr.

Garlic Fries are one of thousands of food offerings at the Minnesota State Fair. The food is the biggest draw for many and the sole reason for some to make the annual trek to the Minnesota State Fair. It is also the final nail in the coffin for thousands of diets across Minnesota.

The Minnesota State Fair keeps rolling on through Labor Day.