Tag: froyo

The Absolute Worst!

by hungryandfit, posted in Food

If you know me, then you know that I do not, EVER, try anything before ordering it. I make a decision and deal with the consequences of that action. If I absolutely hate whatever I order, I’ll just swallow it whole.

Then, there are people who like to sample products before choosing what they’d like to invest in. I can respect that. I’d rather they go through that process to prevent any future stress or food waste.

Then, there are people like the guy pictured above, who are pathetic enough to resort to asking for a sample cup and eating more than $5’s worth of yogurt with it. He refilled that cup so many times that he might as well just put his face under the machine and inhaled.

This guy came in with his girlfriend and they arrived in a nice car, so it isn’t like I’m just failing to show him empathy. He is a leech and I hope she dumped him because this behavior is not acceptable. Unfortunately, I was being watched so I had to be nice.

The worst!

Is it Okay to Smoke at a Restaurant?

by hungryandfit, posted in Restaurant Review

If you answered yes to this question, please explain why in the comment section below. Clearly, if your answer was yes, I do not know about your culture or society and I’d love to learn more about it. It’s important for us to realize how ignorant we all are, but bringing us back on track, my answer is an emphatic, no!

Obviously, you can break this question down to make it a lot more specific. What do you mean by okay? What exactly are you smoking? Where in or around the restaurant are you smoking? No matter what loophole you want to try to pull, however, the answer is still no. 

A restaurant is a place where meals are served. People pay for their food, and no matter how they got their money or why they are eating at that restaurant, they deserve to enjoy that meal. Except you if you’re smoking or having a greater negative than positive impact. By smoking anything, you’re most likely having a negative impact on their and everyone else’s experience, but let’s get even more back on track.

In the picture above, these two individuals stood up and walked away from their table to smoke (what I believe were cigarettes) in the corner of the deck/patio where our table also was. This was at a high(er) end Italian restaurant called Ferro in Idyllwild, CA. The servers and staff did not say anything to stop them, so we politely asked to sit in the back of the restaurant instead.

I’m not knowledgeable of the laws in Idyllwild, but I’m fairly certain you can’t smoke within 50 feet of the building, by law. If you have any manners whatsoever, you wouldn’t smoke within a distance that could carry the smoke via wind to where people are eating.

But they clearly lacked manners, common sense, or are from a cave in a very isolated part of the world. I love smoked food, but I prefer applewood to cigarettes. Thanks for taking care of these guys, Ferro! Also, thanks for taking care of the party of eight screaming throughout our whole meal in the back patio. Great customer service.

Don’t be a jerk at a restaurant. If you’re going to be a jerk, invite your jerk friends over instead and don’t grace us with your miserable presence. Cigarettes, ugh.

The Problem with Yelp Elite

by hungryandfit, posted in Apps, Food

This really doesn’t have all this much to do with Yelp itself. This is more about the “Elite” and even though it is a system created by and facilitated through Yelp, they can’t take responsibility for these monsters.

I probably know or have dealt with the person in the one image in this post. I operated a large facility in West Los Angeles, not too far from this recycling center, and we probably crossed paths. Fortunately, I don’t remember her being overly entitled, if we ever did, which would have been nothing more than sheer luck.

Why? Well, for one, she is clearly entitled to a certain degree. Just look at the line that I highlighted. If you know anything about Yelp that really explains it all. Then you can look at her stats and see that her contribution really isn’t that significant. 124 reviews and 57 photos… that’s it? Sure, she admittedly hasn’t been Yelping for very long at all (although she was making the opposite point), but those numbers are hardly worthy of Yelp Elite status.

After writing over 900 reviews on Yelp, while there might have been one that looked something like her review here or there, my goal is actually serving the community. She should have put that review on her blog that I know she has; she is clearly a blogger because she loves to hear herself think, write, talk, etc. My reviews might be boring, but they get to the point and tell someone who is debating using a service what they need to know to make an objective decision. This is just wrong.

Now, I’m sure this woman is absolutely lovely in real life. She’s just trying to build a persona online like so many others do, but this really isn’t about her. It is about the low standards and issues with the Yelp Elite system. You can have pitiful stats on Yelp and still earn Elite status. Then you can “abuse” and flaunt that status to try to bring others down. Or you could just not be a jerk. Don’t automatically listen to the Yelp Elite because they applied for it themselves. Don’t feed the monster.

Disclaimer: There are tons of great Yelp Elite users out there and I will continue to use Yelp for my own good and to help the community.

How to Start Your Day STRONG!

by hungryandfit, posted in Exercise, Food

Come up with a routine and if you don’t think you’re getting enough done in a day… wake up earlier!

This morning, we started with a 6 am hike of Runyon Canyon with our dog. It gets a crucial chore out of the way, but we really take advantage of the walk and turn it into a workout. Over 2.5 miles and 40 minutes later, your body and mind are both ready to go.

Skipping breakfast, I take a pre-workout blend of electrolytes and amino acids, throw some gum in my mouth, and walk the quarter-mile to my gym, carrying my relatively healthy gym bag. The walk keeps me warm and allows me to mentally prepare for the training session without stressing out over LA’s notoriously bad drivers.

Usually, on a day with a packed schedule, I spend an hour in the gym. That typically involves a short warm-up and cool-down, but today, I was in there for closer to 90 minutes. Here is what was accomplished during today’s pull workout.

First, a 0.6 mile jog at an incline of 0.5, increasing my speed every minute or so.
Next, a series of exercises to warm-up my shoulders, lower back and hips. These are all areas with past and present injuries that really need to be maintained carefully.

Internal/External Rotators & Kettlebell Swings: 5sx25/25 & 35×25, 7.5sx25/25 & 35×25
Lateral Raises & Back Extensions: 7.5sx25 & 35×25, 7.5sx30 & 35×25
Hip Mobility: Various exercises and stretches, on the mat

The run and warm-up work took about 20 minutes; now we’re moving forward into heavier weights and more complex exercises.

Cable Lat Pulldowns: (Facing out without your legs being held in place, using an extremely wide grip) 80×20, 100×16, 120×10, (last set facing in) 120×8
Zottman Curls: (Using dumbbells, maintaining strict wrist position and form) 10sx20, 15sx18, 20sx14, 30sx10
Barbell Reverse Curls: 45×12, 55×12, 65×12, 75×12
Cable Horserope Hammer Curls/Chin-ups: 60×15/5, 75×14/5, 85×12/5, 95×10/5
Cable Horserope Straight Arm Pulldown: 100×10, 65×12, 75×13, 85×12

Cable Horserope Face Pulls: 100×15, 120×15

Close Grip Pulldowns: 100×12, 120×10, 150×8
Barbell Shrugs: 45×20, 95×20, 185×14, 185×14
Barbell Rows: (Alternating grips of over/under) 95×10/12, 95×10/12
Inverted Rows: 7

At this point, some acute pain in my left elbow and right shoulders tell me that it is time to cool down, so I move to the Treadwall for a nice long climb to exhaust my forearms and grip strength. Then I stretch my hips and groin.

About 20 minutes after the workout is over, I’ve already made it home and started putting a meal together. I haven’t had any calories yet today, for no particular reason other than chance, so I’ll aim to fill myself up with a considerable amount of protein.

Why Delivery Shouldn’t Exist

by hungryandfit, posted in Food, Restaurant Review

With the only possible exception of pizza. If you think about, there’s something seriously wrong with the idea of ordering delivery. Chefs take pride in the food they make. In a restaurant, the kitchen staff plans exactly when food should be delivered to the table so that it’s not too hot or cold. It impacts the texture and flavor; it creates a complete eating experience.

Delivery destroys their ability to create that experience. Nowadays, the restaurant staff isn’t even delivering the food thanks to all of these new apps. Do you think the drivers for these services care about the reputation of the the eateries? Most of them probably don’t and they certainly don’t take timing into consideration because, even if they did, there isn’t much they can do about it.

Obviously some foods do better than others. Pizza is that one food that can really stand up to delivery well, but even that isn’t always the case. We received the worst pizza we’ve ever eaten from a place that has 4 stars on Yelp. Why? It was the equivalent of a sponge when it arrived. All of the heat created condensation that then dripped back on to the pizza. Disgusting.

Now, there are some restaurants that don’t do delivery. They aren’t willing to provide a bad meal. They aren’t willing to sacrifice quality for business. Money isn’t always everything, especially to a passionate chef. With all that being said, make us one promise. If you’re eating somewhere for the first time, eat there. Sit down and eat the food fresh, like it’s meant to be eaten… unless its pizza.

Oh, and yes, the pictures are from a delivery meal that was awful. It was mostly awful because the food didn’t travel well. Soggy fries, etc.

 

Froyo Thieves

by hungryandfit, posted in Food

The absolute worst of the worst. This kind of behavior is representative of an awful person. I’m talking about the people that are capable of affording to buy the yogurt, who put on an act like they’re going to make a purchase and then end up eating as much as I paid for without spending a dime.

Like the guy in this picture for example, who is making the University of Michigan’s Center for Entrepreneurship look great right now. I guess they taught him that if you want to be successful, you have to take what you want. Well, he did. Technically, it’s not stealing since Yogurtland allowed it, but he’s also a complete waste of space.

This is the kind of person who would discover the cure for cancer and not release it to the public so that the can continue to buy stupid pants and shoes that nobody cares about, except for him.

What’s even worse? He used 5 sample cups (that I saw) and got massive heaps of Plain Tart yogurt every single time. It was painfully obvious from the beginning that this guy is a total freeloader. Now, I don’t know this guy personally but this kind of behavior isn’t acceptable for anyone, so I hope you get the message, because you lose all credibility (period) when you do something like this.

(I paid my $5 for the yogurt below…)

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