There's now a game section on the site featuring food-themed Flash games. During the summer I did nightly recaps of Gordon Ramsay's Hell's Kitchen and MasterChef that became pretty popular on the Internets. It's probably because I was relentlessly trashing all of the contestants, but that's quality content, man. There were times where I didn't post as much but I assure you I'm eating just as well as I ever have.
To qualify for this list the pictures needed to be POSTED after January 1, 2012. I consider a lot with these; the quality of food, the restaurant, the service, and of course if the picture is good enough to lick my screen for. There are some pictures that didn't come out too well because the setting was too dark so I did not include them. So without further ado, here are the top 12 pictures of 2012 in no particular order:
1) The Pig Burger from The Prado at Balboa Park:
A pork burger topped with bacon - that's like a hamburger topped with prime rib
You'd think two servings of pork would be dynamite but honestly about halfway through it was getting kinda tough to down. Sausage is delicious but it can be heavy. But still, I was expecting that going in and how could I resist something called a Pig Burger? That's like Newt Gingrich resisting extramarital affairs with pig-tailed women just out of high school.
2) Deluxe Strawberry Waffle from Penny's All American Cafe in Pismo Beach:
I had a joke all set up for the whipped cream but I try to keep this site PG-13
I went on a road trip with The World According to Rich in July that took us up the Eastern side of California, into the Sierras, around to the Bay Area, and back down the Pacific Coast. Along the way we encountered some really good food but I think the Deluxe Strawberry Waffle from Penny's takes the cake. This is one of those meals that leaves you licking the plate and keeps you full but not stuffed. The best part about this dish is that it's seasonal - if strawberries aren't in season then it ain't on the menu. I respect that.
3) New Years Gingerbread House constructed by myself, my mom, and my sister:
Everyone knows the whole point of gingerbread houses is to put as much candy on as possible
On Christmas I was given a gingerbread house kit. The house fell apart the second it came out of the box, much to everyone's disappointment (imagine if I was a 5 year old). So we decided to construct one the old fashioned way and while the architecture isn't fantastic, the taste was sweetly delicious enough to make even Michelle Bachmann simmer in her political bitterness.
4) Bacon & Eggs with Hash Browns and Toast from Hays Street Cafe in Bridgeport:
The smaller the town the bigger the meals
The weird thing about this meal is that I actually had some stomach pains just prior to eating it, but I didn't let that stop me. This was SO FRICKIN' GOOD. Trail this with one of those stupid 5 Hour Energy shots and all of my stomach pains were gone. Sometimes you just gotta eat through it.
This was all sitting in my stomach at one point
So here we have a turkey leg, mashed potatoes, stuffing, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, and a dinner roll. It's really the perfect combination of food and anyone who disagrees is a liar.
6) Duck Breast from JRDN in Pacific Beach:
Duck breasts would benefit from implants; maybe genetically modified foods aren't all bad
This was my first time trying duck and it did not disappoint. What's more amazing is that there were mushrooms in this dish that I didn't know where mushrooms until someone actually said "dude, those are mushrooms." Then I realized they were mushrooms and that was the end of that. Yeah, I really don't like mushrooms. But that's a testament to the seasoning and flavors on this plate that I didn't even know what I was eating.
Ironically, Hostess reported record high sales following their liquidation announcement
In an endless standoff between management and the unions, Hostess shut its doors in November, thus ending the 80-something year reign of the Twinkie as America's Snack, shutting down all subsidiary bakeries, and putting 15,000 people out of work (while management collected bonuses of course). When I heard of the news I rushed to Target and Albertsons to properly salute Hostess by going on a sugary shopping spree. There's talk that a Mexican company is going to purchase the Twinkie brand and we've already seen replacement imitation items hit the shelves for most of Hostess' products. But still. It's just not the same.
Pizza is actually pretty easy to make from scratch, so long as you buy pre-made pizza dough. That yeast is a bitch to rise
I was given a most excellent pizza stone for my birthday and initially the pizzas were hard to make cause the damn dough would act like a little asshole. Seriously, you put the yeast into the water and it's supposed to rise and it wasn't. So pre-made dough is the solution for pizzas that are easy and ridiculously delicious.
9) Regular Breakfast from Stagecoach in Sacramento:
Yes, this is a REGULAR breakfast
For so long I've searched for a breakfast plate like this and of all places it was located in Sacramento. FOUR eggs, a half plate of potatoes, four strips of bacon, and a biscuit. Seriously, look at the size of this! It's got more calories than the amount of times an average athlete says "you know" during a halftime interview. Ridiculously stuffing. So. Frickin'. Good. By the way if anyone from Stagecoach is reading this: get a frickin' website. Seriously, guys.
It reeks of staunch patriotism
I love this dessert. It's fruity, it's cold, it's sweet, it's refreshing, and of course, it's patriotic. Strawberry and berry blue Jello layered in with angel food cake, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, Maraschino cherries, and whipped cream. It's the perfect cherry on top following a day of competitive hot dog eating as a way to say Happy Birthday, America.
11) Peanut Butter & Jelly Soda from Rocket Fizz in Santa Clarita:
The sad thing this ranks toward the bottom of the "disgusting sodas I've tried" list
Rocket Fizz is a funky shop that sells a variety of weird candy, toys, and odd sodas. Oddly, PB&J soda isn't as weird as you may think. It smells like strawberry kiwi and tastes like...uh...a cardboard sandwich? There's a funny video of me taste testing five other sodas from Rocket Fizz (Bacon, Cucumber, Pumpkin Pie, Martian Poop, and Cock Cola) but I didn't take a picture, so it doesn't qualify.
12) Prime Rib from 94th Aero Squadron in Kearny Mesa:
Prime rib is kinda like Visa; it's everywhere you wanna be
The Squadron sometimes has trouble cooking their food at the correct temperatures, but they succeed in service (shoutout to Kevin), decorative aura (WWI era themed), and location (beside Montgomery Field). And besides, even if my steak isn't cooked perfectly, it's still prime rib. Plus the potatoes, plus the cream corn, plus the bread, plus the beer cheese soup, plus the dessert. As you know, I get as excited of the deal as I get with the food.
So there we have it. Thanks for checking this out. Stay hungry, my friends.