Food Blogging Retirement

Well, ladies and gents, readers from all over the world, the time has come; Greg's Gourmet is shutting its doors.

Truth be told, this is a decision that's been several years in the making. I haven't considered myself a "regular" food blogger since 2013. While it was fun to write about all the crap I'd eat, it became repetitive and boring after a while. How many times can I write about the latest burger or about how Company XYZ sucks at life? It takes a toll on you. I tried numerous times to rebrand and relaunch the blog but every attempt was short-lived. Between those rogue relaunches, I set myself to a system of posting once per month to the blog, just so it didn't look abandoned.

But I simply can't do that anymore. My heart is no longer in it. My appetite is no longer what it once was.

My eating habits have changed drastically. Gone are the days of four slabs of prime rib, giant chocolate chip scones, and mountains of candy. Present are the days of fruit salads (every day is Fruit Salad Friday), green salad once a week, and trying my best to go vegetarian during the week. Aside from a few token appearance, I'm completely off dairy, I've cut my candy down to almost nothing, and I'm in the process of cutting bread and related products altogether. Not that I needed to lose much weight, but I'm down half a belt size. The flip side of that is now my pants don't fit; they're either too loose or too tight. Just can't win.

We've had some fun times here. We've had contests, giveaways, challenges, videos, events, television recaps, reviews, Hall of Shame rants, food news, and even the occasional troll. It's been a blast to say the least. I started this blog in January of 2011 as a joke where I would post pictures of the food I'd eat for the world to see. For some reason, people seemed to dig it and I watched its readership grow. After about a year the blog gradually transformed into the visual layout you see today, which was the result of going back to school to learn various coding languages.

Greg's Gourmet was more than a blog; it was a playground. It gave me the freedom to experiment and try new things to see what worked and what didn't. Today in 2016, when people reference Greg's Gourmet, they're not referring to the blog; they're referring to the brand. I created a brand and even after the blog posts dwindled, people still saw me as Greg's Gourmet. That's when you know you've done something right.

I want to thank everyone for your loyal readership and enthusiasm over the years. It's been fun. Greg's Gourmet the brand will continue on in its own way. I'll still take pictures of my food and I'll still post them to Facebook and Instagram and the such, but as for this blog? It's been a good run. There may be a time in the future when the site is revived but right now I just need to focus on other things.

As always, thanks for reading.

A Fruit Salad

I call this...Summer Breeze (Makes Me Feel Fine):

A delicious summer assortments of colorful fruits, comprised of: pineapple, watermelon, peach, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, plum, and Maraschino cherries for extra flavor. 

Delish! 

St. Louis Gourmet

Just wanted to get these pictures up. Food from St. Louis:

1) A club sandwich

2) A steak sandwich

3) Burger with an egg that was, shockingly, cooked properly

4) And, of course, a pizza

Tasty. All of it. 

Pulled Pork Sandwich

Went on the road for a few days in St. Charles, Missouri (part of the greater St. Louis area). This was a significant trip because A) I hadn't been on a plane in over 10 years, B) I would be working 12 hour days and C) The people in this region of the country know how to eat.

Day 1 of this trip was no exception, as I was bestowed with a massive pulled pork sandwich from a joint called Sugarfire Smokehouse BBQ:

Quite a large sandwich if I do say so myself. The pork was moist, tender, and cooked to perfection. I added my own portions of BBQ sauces to turn this baby into an organized and delicious mess. 

Overall - 3.5 Gargantos out of 4. 

What's the Deal with Red Robin?

Now, I like Red Robin. I haven't been there in years but I like it. Sure, the patties are frozen and they make some of the unhealthiest burgers on the market, but every once in a while it's a real pleasure. Recently went there and had a good time, but the question was proposed: what's the deal with the "endless fries"?

Red Robin's fries aren't really "endless." In fact, quite the opposite. Every time I've been there and have asked for a refill of fries it always takes the server a long time to bring them out. Like, purposely stalling. This is obviously a ploy because if it takes a long time to get the fries out then you'll be less inclined to take advantage of this deal. I get it. But still, it's obnoxious.

However for some reason during this recent visit I did not have that issue, as the server promptly brought out not one, not two, but THREE baskets of fresh steak fries for our party of seven. Well played.

This is a Whiskey BBQ cheeseburger or something. I kinda forgot but it has BBQ sauce and onion rings. Pretty good.

Let me tell ya, when the company is paying for your food you ALWAYS order dessert. 

Karl Strauss Asada Fries - With Cheese Whiz?

So I've been on the "Passover Purge" for a week where I refused any form of bread, crackers, cake, etc. When we went to Karl Strauss last week I was kind of limited in what I could order but alas the "Asada Fries" jumped off the page to me.

On a plate they look quite attractive as you'll see here:

Pretty dish presentation for sure. You've got the steak, gorgonzola, avocado-chimichurri, cilantro, pickled onion, and chipotle ketchup...and house-made jalapeno cheese-whiz...

I dunno, dude. Cheese whiz? When I think of cheese-whiz I think of this:

To me this is, like, a cheap imitation cheese product, right? It's overly processed junk is what it is. So...what exactly is "homemade" cheese whiz? What does that comprise of? This is what I don't understand. It seems to me that utilizing cheese whiz over real cheese is a pretty lame way to save a few bucks. Overall it added an odd texture and peculiar taste to an otherwise solid dish. Karl Strauss boasts some really tasty fries and the steak was delicious as well. So why use cheese whiz? I don't know. I don't understand.

KARL STRAUSS

ASADA FRIES (WITH "HOMEMADE" CHEESE WHIZ)

ONE AND A HALF GARGANTOS

OUT OF FOUR

Little Caesars Bacon Wrapped Pizza

Rarely does something come along that's so egregiously revolting that you'd rather sniff a bag of decomposing horse crap than risk the quadruple bypass you're likely to incur with said enigma.

Enter: The Little Caesars Bacon Wrapped Pizza.

A concoction so greasy that Pizza the Hutt's arteries would clog themselves with pepperoni just from laying eyes upon it:

Remember in Lord of the Rings when Frodo or Boromir or whoever would fall into a trance with the ring? That's a lot like staring at the Little Caesars Bacon Wrapped Pizza

I bought this because curiosity got the best of me. This sounded like something so disgusting yet so delicious that I just had to try it once. Fortunately, I have no desire to try it ever again. 

Is this thing any good? Well, yeah. Sometimes being bad feels really good. That's what the Little Caesar's Bacon Wrapped Pizza is all about. When you dance with this devil, all of your dieting and lifestyle restrictions go right out the window. It's eight slices of acne-inducing firepower baked onto the devil's pizza stone originating from the seventh layer of Hell.

Grease soaking through the cardboard

Again

Hey, I can almost see myself in the reflection!

Would I recommend this? No. Absolutely not. What I would say is that it's something you can try once just to say that you did. Several people who partook in this pizza reported heartburn immediately after. I would think that explosive diarrhea followed considering how this pizza is probably the equivalent of an industrial-strength laxative. Is it so good that you have to have it again? Not really. Once is enough. 

Bottom line:

LITTLE CAESARS BACON WRAPPED PIZZA

ONE AND A HALF GARGANTOS OUT OF FOUR