Date Night with the Hubby
Posted on August 19, 2012 by Ching under Date Ideas, Food and Drink.
Brian and I went bowling and rode go karts at The Alley the other day. We hadn’t had a bowling date in a long time, and I had a Groupon that was fixing to expire. The only downside about the Groupon was that it was only good for one person. Brian still had to pay for his bowling. When it came down to it, it really wasn’t that great of a value. We ended up spending more than we really wanted to, but then that’s usually the trick. They just want to get you in their establishment so they can take all of your money. I should just become a hermit. LOL.
We had an all-meat pizza for dinner that night. They were doing a BOGO so we ended up getting a second pizza (that was Brian’s crazy idea) which we ate for lunch the next day. Yes, as much as I don’t like pizza, I had to eat it two days in a row.
The pizza wasn’t bad actually. It’s not the best pizza in town, but it’s good enough that I will actually eat it. I’m not normally a pizza fan. The only downside about eating at The Alley is that the service at Back Alley Sports Grill is very slow. And, they’re not very attentive. They actually forgot to cook our second pizza. Not that we were going to eat it right then, but how do you miss that when you’re doing BOGO. Wouldn’t you automatically just make two every time? Or maybe Brian and I were the only ones who actually took them up on the offer? Who knows?
Anyway, the food isn’t too bad. If you don’t mind the slow, inattentive service and over-priced bowling, The Alley actually isn’t a bad place to go on a date. Brian and I had a lot of fun. I really need to stop buying these Groupons though, because they just make me spend money that I otherwise wouldn’t spend.
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China Express
Posted on August 19, 2012 by Ching under Food and Drink, Travel.
This didn’t taste nearly as good as it looked. I think I had my expectations set too high because it was so colorful and pretty. Broccoli was good and the water chestnuts had just the right amount of crunch. The scallops, however, were somewhat rubbery. I also did not like the texture of the fake crab. The shrimps were delicious, though. I also liked that they removed the tails so I didn’t have to deal with them.
Though I really wasn’t a fan of this dish, I would give China Express another shot. I think I just need to try something else on the menu. Good seafood is kind of hard to come by around these parts. I should have just ordered something with beef or pork or chicken or something.
I do like that the restaurant delivers because sometimes you just don’t feel like eating pizza.
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Coco Bolos
Posted on August 18, 2012 by Ching under Food and Drink, Travel.
While in Manhattan for our leadership conference last week, Darcy and I had dinner at Coco Bolos. Neither of us are familiar with restaurants in the area so we asked another coworker of ours (who went to K-State for undergrad) for recommendations. He said that we would like Coco Bolos and so that’s where we decided to go.
We were both starving so we ordered the combo appetizer, which consisted of “Q” (their queso dip), guacamole, and salsa verde (subbed for salsa del fuego because I can’t handle food that is too spicy) served with corn tortilla chips. The “Q” was different and not as liquid or creamy as the queso I’m used to. The cheese was somewhat stringy and posed a challenge when scooping. I thought the salsa verde was good and the guacamole was just okay. The corn tortilla chips tasted like bagged chips that had been sitting out for a day or so. In short, the appetizer was disappointing and we should have just skipped it. We were really hungry, though.
Darcy had the Cox boys’ burrito – a giant flour tortilla with chicken, black beans, Monterey Jack, salsa, sour cream, Navajo rice and Bolo beans. She said it was very good. I had a piece of chicken, a small bite that was packed with flavor.
For dinner I had the Caribbean BBQ shrimp. It was delicious! Then again, everything tastes better with bacon. Seriously though, it was so good that I tried to make a happy plate despite being completely stuffed halfway through the meal. Darcy and I agreed that we really should have skipped the appetizer, which was nowhere near the quality of the entrees, which were both very good.
I was also really impressed with their freshly squeezed lemonade. You’re probably wondering why I had lemonade instead of a margarita (or two). Brian prefers that I do not drink when I’m out of town.
Anyway, I’m really glad that I tried the lemonade because it’s one of the best I’ve had. I would order it again even if I could have a margarita instead. Yes, it’s that good. So good, in fact, that I almost forgot about the stale tortilla chips. Oh, and did I mention that they give you free refills on the lemonade.
In conclusion, skip the combo appetizer unless you know for sure that the chips are fresh. Maybe ask for a sample before you order? LOL. The entrees seem solid. Darcy and I thought both of our meals were delicious. I have confidence that the other entrees on the Coco Bolos menu are good also. Finally, the freshly squeezed lemonade is not to be missed.
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Moving – Very Slowly
Posted on August 18, 2012 by Ching under Life.
Brian and I are slowly moving to the new place. And when I say slow, I mean really slow. So far we’ve only moved our winter coats and a few other things.
My winter coats moved last weekend. We took Brian’s over there today. Except for one of his jackets that just happened to be mixed in with my stuff.
And yes, I got the short straw on the coat storage selection. Brian got to pick which bedroom he wanted to put his coats in, and he picked the one with the walk-in closet. So even though I have more coats than he does, he gets the bigger closet. Oh, well. Maybe I can kick him out of the master bedroom closet. LOL. Probably not going to happen though, because Brian has a lot of clothes too. He has is own walk-in closet here at the townhouse now, and he fills every inch of it.
Our bikes were among the first things to get moved to the new place also.
After pressure washing the patio and the deck, we were able to move in our old patio furniture. We weren’t using it much here it at the townhouse anyway.
The furniture is old and will probably need to get replaced in the next year or two. Our friends the Dills and the Phelpi got some really good deals from Dillon’s during their 75% summer furniture clearance so we are hoping to do the same next year.
I’m looking forward to drinking some wine on the back deck this fall and winter. We are going to put the fireplace to good use.
The only other thing we’ve moved in so far is our microwave, which we got from Lowe’s using a gift card that mom gave us. (Thank you, mom!)
It was so hard to find just the right size for the wall shelf. This one sticks out a bit in depth, but I opted for this one as opposed to a smaller microwave because I didn’t want to see space at the top and sides of the microwave. The cut out that they made in the shelf for the power plug wasn’t big enough so Brian actually had to make the hole bigger. Thanks to our friend Feifel for coming to the rescue.
There’s still plenty to do. We cleaned the windows today and got window treatments for the glass doors to the back deck. Walls still need to be painted. The rest of our appliances still need to be delivered. We are gradually getting moved in to the new place, but I kind of wish that we would have just planned and executed our move all at once. I like that we’re not feeling rushed and can move at our own leisurely pace, but I’m so ready to be done moving already.
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Taco Tinga
Posted on August 18, 2012 by Ching under Food and Drink.
Brian and I found ourselves at Taco Tinga last weekend. There are few options late at night. The restaurant, which I had been curious about, just happened to be open.
Taco Tinga is located near Douglas and Hillside in the space formerly occupied by Dolci & Joe’s, Breezy’s before that, and Taco Tico even further back in the day. I’m not a huge Taco Tico fan so I never went back then. I missed going to Breezy’s and Dolci & Joe’s so I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to check it out before it eventually closes. Sorry, but this location doesn’t have a great track record. LOL.
The concept is a lot like Chipotle. You basically build your own burritos, quesadillas, tacos etc. Although, I think Taco Tinga is more like Poblano in terms of food offering. The restaurant offers several good options including sopes, tamales, and fajita salad, but I was disappointed that I couldn’t order a bowl (which is what I normally get when I’m at Chipotle). The ladies at the counter were really nice, though. They let me make my “bowl” and just put it in a plate.
Brian was unimpressed. LOL.
I thought the food was just okay. It could be that we got there too late and the food had been sitting out there a while. Who knows? I found the carnitas too watery. Same with the rice. Then again, I’m partial to the cilantro lime rice served at Chipotle. Food issues aside, the restaurant offers a good value. You get plenty of food for the price, which I thought was more reasonable than Chipotle. Also the people are really helpful and super nice. I’m not running back to Taco Tinga, but I would give it another shot. Perhaps go around lunch time and see if the quality of the food is better then.
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