Soothing the Craving

Friday nite, I took Jay out to Burger Jones for a date night with some tasty burgers and beers.  Low and behold, as we waited for our table, the Mayor and lil Mayor appeared out of the darkness, ready to dine on some delicious grub as well.  It was an awesome surprise and a delight to have them join us for dinner.

Last summer, BJ had the Nacho Burger on special.  Jay ordered it and I got my standard plain burger.  Tempted throughout the meal by the toppings, I begged Jay for a bite... then another... and another.  It was so amazing.  And every month after, I checked the Specials board each time, hoping and praying for the burger to come back so I could reunite with taste-bud splendor.... but that time did not come.

So, Friday night, I decided to build my own!  Luckily, Chonny was the Exec Chef on duty and he remembered my favorite special from months gone by and was able to recreate... better yet, improve upon.... the dining memories I had.

As we waited on our dinner, we split an order of Poutine - fries covered in beef gravy, bacon, raw cheese curds and green onion... oh my!

Once the meal arrived, I was blown away by the burger I've waited so long to reunite with.  Hand-pattied beef, in-house sesame bun, avocado mayo, jalepenos, beans, Chonny nacho cheese, lettuce, and salsa, fresh cilantro and, you guessed it, tortilla chips!

I've never finished a 1/2 lb. burger ... but this night I did.  I have no idea if anyone was sitting at the tables next to us, I struggled to remember Jay's Chubby Cheddar burger or what was on the TV overhead... I was in my own world with my burger, my taste-buds, and the adventure we embarked upon.  I slowly devoured the burger, impressed by every bite, and my stomach so addicted that it never waivered or asked me to stop....  it was better than I ever remembered and I can only beg and plead for them to bring it back again.

At the end of the night, we retreated home to snuggle on the couch and bathe in our dining euphoria.  Yeah, the name Burger Jones is dead-on.  Go there.  Satiate that Jones.

Loving being a grown-up-eater!

Kristy Kreme

Happy Birthday, Rosco P Coltrane!!

This weekend we celebrated Rosco's 1st Birthday!

It's so hard to imagine that only one year ago my lil munchie was the size of my thumb and squirming around with no idea where to go. Now, he's a lil snuggler and awesome part of the family.

We had spoken to the breeder for a week about his puppies, and fallen in love with a beautiful white and brown piebald puppy with green eyes. We went down on a Saturday morning and met him and watched a litter of puppies play with each other and check us out in the summer sun. Although we thought we were there to meet the piebald, I'd also seen a tiny lil red brindle boy I wanted to meet. The piebald was super shy but you knew he really wanted to say hi. The lil brindle, though, was all over the place. Crawling on Jay's chest as he laid in the grass, and explored the yard with his siblings without fear.

I fell in love instantly! It was the hardest thing to admit, though, that we had changed our minds, but we were so happy to take home the lil fuzz ball we named Rosco. Don't worry, there was a family to adopt the beloved cow-dog too.

Rosco's first day with his new family... so tiny!

Now our lil man is FULL of personality, taking up all the space in the room with his overwhelming desire to be part of the action and giving everyone all the love they can stand. At night, he snuggles by our feet as we fall asleep... and by the time I wake up, he's lying on his back with his head on the pillow, under the blanket like a lil person.

Rosco P. Coltrane, you've brought such warmth & joy to our home, I can't kiss you enough to thank you! (even though you can't read..yet) Love you tons, lil puppy, and excited to celebrate many more birthdays with you!!

Proud mama,

Kristy Kreme

Adventures in Dining

After 30 years as a picky eater, I've found my palate taking on the ultimate challenge... trying new things....

I'm really not sure where it came from, but recently I've found myself ordering a different item off the menu every time I visited my favorite restaurant for the past few months. Maybe it was my husband's description of my order as "like a child would eat it" each time we phoned in take-out.. Maybe it was a desire to try something new..

Either way, I've found my plain-burger-loving self eating outside my comfort zone and loving the restaurant experience more than ever before. Where, do you ask? None other than Burger Jones in Uptown! Whereas Jay is an UBER fan of the White Trash Burger (7oz. hand-made burger, slathered in Velteeta cheese, chicken fried bacon, and a handful of cheese curds), I always found myself getting beef and bun.

But a few months ago, it went from the Nathan's Weiner (yeah, I said weiner!)... to the Always Summer Salad (spring greens, chicken, dried cranberries, goat cheese, Grannysmith apples, and hazelnuts with balsalmic vinagrette) with Mom as we sat in the sun on her birthday and I marveled over her Chipotle Chicken Melt.... to the full-on flavor assault!

Plain fries with ketchup? NO! Poutine.. hand-cut fries with beef gravy, un-battered cheese curds, crisp bacon bits, and green onion... so scared, but so very delicious!

Cheese burger? NOO! Chubby Cheddar burger... patty STUFFED with cheddar, oozing out with every bite, covered with even MORE Merkt's cheddar... wow! Lactose intolerance be damned!

Plain burger? ABSOLUTELY NOT! Two burgers completely BLEW ME AWAY!

1. Green Chile Cheeseburger - Pepperjack cheese, some amazing green chili salsa, and an onion ring on a hand-pattied burger with fresh-made sesame bun... ay carumba!

2. My new personal favorite.. The Hangover... Same awesome patty & bun, generously topped with cheddar cheese, bacon, hot sauce and a fried egg. The second it hit my belly, I called Jay and boasted about my new, other lover. I only wish our schedules weren't so off this week so we could go back!

I'm sure a lot of other racers out there are on their slim-down, training program, but this year has me working a ton and refocusing my efforts on family and the shop. And what do I like doing most with my hubby (other than 'that')? Going out to dinner! So we've celebrated life and love by enjoying great dining adventures and amazingly well done meals at home.

Pair that with amazing atmospheres and a great time EVERY time, we've loved spending time with Burger Jones, our family, and our friends. Thank you to all!!!

Loving life and enjoying every bite,

Kristy Kreme