Soda Day!

When I was growing up, my mom always had soda in the house. It might have been diet Coke, which is gross, but we still always had some soda to drink if we wanted it. I learned, as time went on, that my favorite soda was Dr. Pepper....oh how I love it! It's so different from other sodas and so tasty. I also love Cherry Coke. I used to work at a TGIFridays back in college and was thrilled to see that they had both Cherry Coke AND Dr. Pepper on tap. I used to mix them together...so delish.

Anyways, soda is terrible for you...yes I know. My teeth probably scream bloody murder when I drink it. It's also a source of wasted calories. Thus, Clayton and I started soda day. We both love soda and drink too much of it..so we thought of the idea to drink as much soda as we want on one day a month, the 21st. So happy soda day everyone! It's not as hard as I thought it was going to be..but there are days when I crave it. I just have to remember what my teeth would say and the guilty eyes Clayton would give me haha.

Diner Tour- April

4/18/09
South Street Diner, Boston MA

We have heard of this infamous diner for a while, but never got the chance to eat there until now. It was built in 1947 and is open 24 hours...a nice and rare luxury found in Boston. It is well known around the area and is frequented by many students, especially when everything else is closed. We, however, were not too impressed...Our friend Kerry joined us on our diner tour this time. We were happy to have some company.

Decor: The South Street Diner resides in a diner car which is a plus. It is a small place, but home-y inside. We sat at the counter because we came at a busy time. The counter seats swiveled all the way around which was nice. There were old black and white pictures decorating the walls with some neon colored lights along the trim of the diner. If it looks like a diner, smells like a diner...then it is probably in fact, a diner.

Staff: When we walked in, we met a very tall, big fellow who Kerry actually knew personally. He told us to take a seat wherever there was room. This man was the king of the diner for sure. We saw him barking orders at everyone. To my dismay, he was quite rude to the main cook and made me feel uncomfortable. He was also very loud so we could hear the mean comments he was making, loud and clear. Our waitress appeared new and didn't seem to know too much about the menu. She also forgot our friend's order and didn't realize it until Clayton and I got our food. It happens, we know, but it was certainly a minus. No huns or heavy make-up to be seen in the whole place.

Menu Options: The South Street Diner has a typical menu to choose from. Nothing fancy or memorable. I hoped they would have some cool names of things or twists to their menu since they are so "famous" but I was disappointed.

Taste of Food: Clayton got banana French Toast. It was actually very interesting how they made it...in between two pieces of toast, they put a whole half a banana and highly dipped it in eggs. It was okay tasting..nothing like the banana French Toast from Victoria's. I got a club..it was standard. Nice thing was that I got to choose my side to go with it. The turkey tasted good and you get quite alot of food. Kerry got chocolate chip pancakes. They weren't as tasty as we hoped. Couldn't taste the chocolate too much. Overall, the taste was just eh. Not terrible, but nothing to rave about. The price was also a bit higher than we are used to.

Gut Feeling: Overall, we gave the South Street Diner a 3.2. Got some pointage because it is a diner car with history.

My Tribute to Music

I knew it was only a matter of time when I would write about music on this blog. I love music. I thrive on listening to new bands, old bands, new songs, live bands...it's just an obsession I have. I also almost always have a song stuck in my head. Maybe I should put the song that is stuck in my head on my playlist whenever I write a new post. hmm...anyways, I thought it would be important to talk a little bit about my love life with music.

When I was in grade school, my favorite band was the Beatles. I had Beatles posters EVERYWHERE. I knew the history of the Beatles and the band members. I also made it a point to buy all of their cds. Even the imports. I distinctly remember writing all of their song titles all over my textbook covers in 7th grade. I celebrated George's bday (he was my favorite) and I cried when he died. The Beatles were probably my first introduction to music. But, I wasn't really into popular music too much. I remember the exact place I was though when I decided that I needed to know more about music..other than the Beatles. I was in the car with one of my best friends when I was a kid. Her sister was in the back seat with us too. A song came on and they asked if I knew what song it was or who sang it. I forget who I thought it was...but the song was by the Smashing Pumpkins and they laughed when I guessed wrongly. I was mortified, so I made it a point to know more about bands and listen to music more often. I have been a music junky ever since.

My love for music probably came from my dad. He has played the guitar since before I was born. We used to listen to music all the time whenever he was doing some job around the house. One of my fondest memories is when my dad and I would play pool in our basement on my old playschool pool table and listen to Eric Clapton Unplugged...the best pool playing music ever. Try it sometime. He also has a band and has played in that band for years. I definitely get my music bug from him. My parents also had me take piano lessons starting when I was in 1st grade. I kept with piano until my high school years..sadly, I am losing my knack for it. Clayton is now learning piano, so it's reignited my piano playing a bit. I also tried my hand at flute, but that didn't last too long. I always wish I learned guitar though. That would be pretty amazing.

When I grew up a bit more, I fell in love with live shows. My first concert ever was terrible..Spice Girls. I still remember the circumstances. I didn't particularly want to see the Spice Girls, but my friend got free tickets and she wanted to go with someone. Ugh that concert was terrible and we left early. I think I have redeemed myself though. Off the top of my head I have seen these bands live: John Butler Trio, Appleseed Cast, Cursive, Jimmy Eat World, Bob Dylan, Dave Matthews Band, Counting Crows, Minus the Bear, Sigur Ros, Third Eye Blind, Incubus, Barenaked Ladies, Dispatch, The Good Life, Alexisonfire, Taking Back Sunday, State Radio, Murder By Death..can't think of more right now. I have saved all of my ticket stubs too and I still have them. Man I love concerts so much. I will have to write another blog on Dispatch someday. That band has changed my life...for real, you'll see.

I have sorta been in a music slump these days. I have been listening to the same stuff over and over...I need some newness in my musical library. Right now, Radiohead's Kid-A is in my car's cd player. An oldie, but definitely a goodie. I have also been listening to alot of Sigur Ros. But I need something new! I welcome any suggestions please. One game I play when I am in the car or have access to a radio is the "guess that band" game. I randomly choose radio stations and I name the band that is playing on that station as quickly as I can. I win if I can go through a whole rotation of the stations and I name every band correctly. It is hard, but really fun. I usually do a pretty good job. I also change it up a bit and I try to name as many bands as I can in a row when I stay on one radio station. That is a good time too. Clayton plays along sometimes...his personal best is 3 bands in a row on one station. I have no idea what mine is...I lose count. ha

So there is one of my obsessions..music. I love it, I live for it...it's one of my passions..if not the only one.

I put one of the Eric Clapton songs from Unplugged on the playlist...can't you see a daughter and father playing pool to this? hah

Diner Tour 2009- March

March was a wonderful diner tour month. We managed to visit 4 diners, 2 of them were re-visits. I have to just say that this tour is a lot of fun. I may have gained a bajillion pounds, but it is well worth it. I really enjoy looking for diners on the internet..then mapquesting them...then seeing them in person. It also gives me a fun way to explore the city.

Anyways, the first diner we went to in March was Deluxe Diner in Watertown. This was a re-visit. The first time we went to Deluxe was back in January and we just felt like it was time to give it another shot.

3/7/09
Deluxe Diner
Watertown, MA

Decor: Deluxe is a beautiful diner. We sat at the counter this time and realized that the seats turn all the way around! Very exciting. I also got to check out the vintage signs they had more closely. Gives it that nice diner-ish feeling.

Staff: Our waitress was average. No "huns" or "sweeties" this time, but service was okay.

Menu Options: Deluxe's menu is very large and has lots to choose from. This time, I went the healthy route and got a salad with salmon on top. It was very good and inspired me to buy salmon the next week at the grocery store. They also have a whole tea menu. Unfortunately, the tea I really wanted was out, but I think it's pretty sweet that they have a whole tea menu.

Taste of Food: My meal was great. Clayton enjoyed his too. I was more impressed this time with the taste of food than I was back in January. That salmon was way delicious. MMMMM

Gut Feeling: Overall, we gave the Deluxe an improved rating of 4.2. Last time, it received a 4.0 from Clayton and 3.7 from me. Re-visits are nice.


3/14/09
New York Diner,
Watertown, MA

Decor: The New York Diner does not look like a diner from the outside. The only indication that it is actually a diner is the sign outside that states "New York Diner". When we got inside, we scored a nice booth, but nothing too diner-ish, except for the counter, was seen. Not too impressed with the decor.

Staff: The staff at the New York Diner is very young. Sadly, no endearing names...no Reinke's, no eye make-up either! Our waitress was nice and all, but no extra points were awarded here.

Menu Options: At the New York Diner, you can get your typical breakfast and lunch. The nice part about the menu at this diner is the price. It is very reasonable and you won't break your wallet. Clayton got a huge breakfast special for really cheap. It honestly could have fed both of us. So, if you are in the mood for a big breakfast and you are money conscious, the New York is good for you.

Taste of Food: We both enjoyed our meals immensely. My club was very good with real turkey..not the slimey junk you sometimes get. It also came with good home fries. Clayton's huge breakfast meal was also pretty good. Eggs could have been less watery, but overall, we were impressed.

Gut Feeling: I gave the New York a 3.1. Clayton gave it a 3.4. Just your average diner. The staff and decor really take away from it's potential.


3/21/09
TumbleInn Diner,
Saugus, MA

Decor: Sadly, the TumbleInn Diner is not set in a diner car, but the inside decor makes up for it. When you walk in, you see tables on the walls and a huge circular counter that surrounds the wait station. It's a pretty cool set-up. Also, it is very homey at the TumbleInn. Everyone seems to know each other and I think we met some of the family members who own it. Plus, a little girl was playing hide-and-seek under the counter while we were eating...it felt like breakfast with the family on a Sunday.

Staff: Out waitress was AWESOME. She had Reinke's, she called us endearing names, she even made fun of us! We couldn't have felt more at home. She also helped us order our meals so they would be the less expensive. I want to go back to this diner just to say hi to our waitress. She was just that cool.

Menu Options: Not too shabby at this place. I liked the specials they had that day (waffles with real fruit, yum) so I might be a bit biased. You can get both lunch and breakfast for a reasonbale price. Plus, they have Italian nights during the week. I told them that they had to start serving polenta. What is an Italian night without polenta?? She said she would mention it ha.

Taste of Food: For my meal, they gave me a glorious waffle, and I was able to put as many strawberries and bananas as I wanted on it. It was very tasty. Clayton enjoyed his French Toast as well, but I think my meal was the better tasting one. If you go to TumbleInn, the waffles are pretty excellent. We need to go back to check out their lunch.

Gut Feeling: Overall, I gave it a 4.4, Clayton, a 4.1. We both want to go back to the TumbleInn sometime soon. If you are looking for a diner with a family feel to it, you will be happy at the TumbleInn..where people just happen to tumble in? Yeah, lame joke I know...



3/28/09
Victoria's Diner,
Dorchester, MA

For Clayton's bday breakfast, he requested to go back to Victoria's. Our experience at Victoria's the first time we ate there was amazing. We rated it a 4.7. This time, we were not impressed. I won't go into all the individual categories because the decor, staff and menu was the same. This time, the taste of food and gut feeling changed. My club was plain, Clayton wasn't too impressed with his meal either. The best part of the breakfast was my french fries. They were perfect. Overall, it was just a bad experience. We might need to go back to make sure it wasn't a fluke. Also, it was the first time in a while that our bill was more than $20.00.

So there you have it...diner tour in March..now I am all caught up. Hopefully, I will be able to write about our diner adventures one diner at a time rather than pack them all into one post.