Surprise stop at the PEZ Visitors Centre

Posted on March 27, 2014 by borysSNORC

Not sure why we pulled over at a rest stop and visitors welcome centre when we neither needed a rest nor a welcoming, but we did. And inside were greeted by a display case of PEZ dispensers, of all the bizarro things. Turns out, not 30 mins away and not 5 mins out of our way, was the world famous PEZ factory and visitor centre, and Mr K decided that we HAD to go! In all fairness, a break from driving with these nutters was probably well deserved at this point. So off we went to the PEZ Visitor Centre in Orange, Connecticut! First thing you are greeted by when you step through the door (other than instant diabetes from the smell of the sugar) is a giant Minnie Mouse riding a custom made Chopper hanging from the ceiling, complete with flashing LED lights and fancy paintwork. Apparently the guys from the Custom Choppers TV show were made into PEZ dispensers and in return, they made the PEZ guys this cool motorbike! Wish it was down on the floor so you could see it a bit better, I have a feeling it was quite fancy. Opposite the chopper is the Reception lady who gives you a ticket, on a special PEZ lanyard for the grand price of $5 and a $2 discount towards any gift shop purchase… you can tell they aren’t trying real hard to make money off this thing.Opposite the reception is a Great Wall O’Pez Dispensers! There are 792 of them mounted on the wall in an enormous collection and in amongst these is THE most rare PEZ dispenser of them all, with only one known to exist in the entire world (no idea why there is only one). And it’s in this pic and it’s a yellow base with a green lizard like head and I have no idea what it is or why it is so damn special, but it is! 🙂

Then we went on into to read up on the History of PEZ, and I learned that they were originally from Europe and originally designed as an anti-smoking aid for adults! And I thought that was pretty cool actually, given we now absolutely associate them primarily with children (children and Seinfeld, but it’s a grey area).

There was a bit of a spiel on how they make the PEZ dispenser heads and how they are modelled, and then loads of different ones on display for people to have a look at, so I took some pics of ones I thought The Small Child might like. Mr K was rather taken with these ones, and some that had Stanley Cups on them (I forgot to take a pic of the Maple Leafs Stanley Cup one, I’ll be in trouble now!)And there was even a limited edition rather expensive looking Swarovski Crystal Ladybird PEZ dispenser…
Then we got to see into the factory floor to see how the PEZ machines work and how they make the PEZ dispensers and how the candy is made. This factory pumps out over 12,000,000 pieces of PEZ candy every single day which is a figure that just blew my mind, no doubt because I have just never thought about it before.This last lady is making Mario Mushroom PEZ dispensers,Which look just like this one:

We also found a cool Pikachu one for The Small Child but was unable to find one to buy 🙁 and we were desperately looking to see if they had gotten on the Minecraft bandwagon yet, but alas there was nothing.
Then we discovered that there are huge conventions each year where serious PEZ collectors get together and buy and sell and swap their PEZ dispensers, and they meet up all over the place… that’s no weirder than the National Association of Hungarian Pigeon Fanciers or the Cleveland Hibiscus Club, right?
Then, predictably, it was onto the giftshop where you could buy collectable PEZ dispensers:
Buckets of just PEZ candies in bulk without bothering with a dispenser:There was Halloween themed PEZ dispensers:AND the full set of Presidential PEZ dispensers which we ran into in bits in Washington DC: There was also plenty of PEZ apparel – because apparently there are some people out there whose lives are just not complete without a PEZ hoodie – and I thought this kids t-shirt was kinda cute:I actually enjoyed my little 30 minute break from the highway at the PEZ Visitors Centre, and if all of this sounds like I was surprised, then I guess that is because I was… still, if we had to stop somewhere for a break and a walk around an iconic ‘something’, I am so glad it was the PEZ factory and not America’s Largest Ball of Twine or something!

Casa Borrega – Best Mexican in New Orleans

Posted on March 6, 2014 by borysSNORC

We are airbnb'ing in New Orleans and staying with a great couple named Ron and Steve. Steve just happens to work at a local restaurant noted by food critics in 'Eat Dat' magazine as the 'best Mexican restaurant in New Orleans.

Restauranteur, Hugo Montero is a man with a vision. His restaurant has been personally designed and decorated in an old nineteeth century house in the Garden District with an eclectic eye and a feel of fun and whimsy, evocative of his original home in Mexico. The decor alone is worth stopping in for a margarita…

The menu is cram full of delicious authentic fare all apparently drawn from recipes of Hugo's youth – family favourites passed down from his mother and grandmother… and all made fresh on the premises. There is also more tequila on the menu than you can count – many of which you can't get anywhere else in town, as Hugo has gone out of his way to source as many unusual brands as he can. You can see that attention to detail in all aspects of the restaurant, the decor, the food, the bar, the drinks. All fabulous.

I tried the Fish/Shrimp Quesadilla for lunch and it was absolutely divine, while Mr K had the Heuvos Rancheros (Lightly fried corn tortillas topped with fried eggs, salsa Mexcana and home made fries, queso fresco and salsa) which was also quite the hit. Both meals were fabulous and our server, Steve was especially friendly and efficient. 😀

This place was awesome, I just wish it wasn't so far from home!

Posted with Blogsy

Too hot to cook.

Posted on January 4, 2014 by borysSNORC

After record high temperatures around town today, I think everyone had the same idea – no fucking cooking tonight! No way, no how, no body wants to turn up the heat in the kitchen at home if it is at all avoidable.

Mr K suggested Carolina’s Kitchen in Coorparoo (2/38 Macauley Street, Coorparoo Qld 4151) for some ribs and wings or burgers and chilli dogs and all good Aussie, err… American foodstuffs. I looked them up online attempting to find a menu, but couldn’t find one anywhere, because the unassuming little diner with what is rumoured to be the best ribs in town, doesn’t have a website. Go figure.

For the four of us here for dinner tonight, we ordered a Carolina Pack, a Gourmet Burger, and two Cheeseburgers. I have to say the ribs were beautiful… I was quite impressed, thick, juicy and delicious. The wings on the other hand… well, I’ve had better. They were a bit dry and nothing to write home about. New York Fries were yummy and the guys enjoyed their burgers by all accounts. It was nice and all, but I actually think it’s a bit over priced, perhaps because I was in the US a few months ago and these things were so much cheaper.

Anyway, I would happily have their ribs again… pay day treat or something.

(Made a mental note to grab a menu or take a pic of the bill of fare).

Do you have a flag?

Posted on September 29, 2013 by borysSNORC

Looky here! The Sydney International Food festival inspired some foodies to go make some cool flags out of foods associated with each of the various countries. The pics were created by advertising agency WHYBIN/TBWA for the event. Starting to look like a great excuse to visit Sydney next month!

Australia (you’re standing in it!): Meat pie with tomato sauce.

Brazil: banana leaf, limes, pineapple and passionfruit.

France: blue cheese, brie, red grapes.

Greece: kalamata olives and feta cheese. India: curries, rice and a pappadum.

Indonesia: spicy chili curry and sambal rice.

Italy: basil leaves, pasta and fresh tomatoes.

Japan: rice and raw tuna.

Lebanon: lavash, fattoush and a sprig of herbs.

Korea: Kimbap and sauces

Spain: chorizo and rice.

Switzerland: charcuteries and emmental.

Thailand: sweet chili sauce, shredded coconut and blue swimmer crab.

Turkey: rosewater lokum (Turkish Delight).

England: scone, whipped cream and jams. United States: hotdogs, ketchup and mustard

Vietnam: rambutan, lychees and starfruit.Awesome photos incorporating international flavours and (of all things) heraldry… for some reason I’m feeling pecking now.

Eyebrow Food

Posted on April 5, 2013 by borysSNORC

Most people choose food based on what they want to eat, and what they ‘feel’ like eating at the time. Personally, I choose food based on things that I ‘feel’ like eating AND things that will fit into my mouth with some measure of decorum! You see, as it turns out, in addition to having tiny feet, tiny hands and tiny ears… I also have a rather small mouth – enough with the tittering from you lot sitting in the cheap seats – something that my dentist reminds me of every time I front up for a check up and can’t go ‘Aaaah!’ enough for him.

As a result I tend to steer away from really large food… I despise the massive two hander burger, have a love hate relationship with kebabs and burritos, and even choose my sushi judiciously based, not so much on ingredients, but rather what I can eat without invariably dropping half of it down my shirt! Now apparently, when I do attempt to eat large food, I am reliably informed that my eyebrows shoot up as I attempt to enclose the oversized victual with my small jaw… hence the term: Eyebrow Food.

Well, one such prolific vendor of Eyebrow Food is a chain of burger restaurants called Grill’d. They have a wide and varied menu and for the most part their food is very tasty and appears to be much healthier than your run of the mill burger joint. Only problem is that their burgers are about three inches high! And I haven’t got a hope in hell of picking up that thing and fitting it in my gob! 🙁 I have in the past actually been forced to whip out a pocket knife and hack a burger into quarters in order to make them more easily consumed. Long and the short of it is, I rarely go to Grill’d for that reason and for that reason alone, cos basically the food is quite good. Yeah, it’s a bit pathetic really.

Well, I was in there the other day and it seems I might not be alone… they’ve started providing serrated edged steak knives for those of us who can’t wrap their mouths around their ginormous burgers! So kudos to Grill’d for providing some knives, I won’t be so reluctant to go back more often now, but thank a bunch for sticking the boot in while you’re at it and commenting that the small of mouth ‘can’t handle’ your wares.