Go to Pizano’s, Oprah goes there!

We needed a break, some time together. I had been away for most of the past two months, so the prospect of taking a plane again wasn’t really appealing. But I was convinced that it was for a good cause, and that I could get some baseball game out of it. We picked Chicago. We got our flights, got a good deal at the Hilton Palmer House and set out fo Chicago. We made it intact, despite slight delays, we checked-in promptly, we unpacked very little and we decided that lunch was needed. The Palmer House concierge was called on to advise us on a good lunch place nearby, in the heart of what is known in Chicago as The Loop. I hinted strongly that I was quite keen to discover Chicago’s Deep Dish Pizza. “You got to go to Pizano’s. It is a good restaurant, Oprah goes there. It’s…

Read more!

The BK Stuffed (Sprinkled) Steakhouse

Burger King is once again trying to bring some heat to their burger line (to their Steakhouse XT line to be specific), this time in the form of a jalapeños and cheddar stuffed pattie, the basis of their new BK Stuffed Steakhouse. Jalapeños and Cheddar. In it, not on it, says Burger King. The stuffed burger was introduced in Canada on February 24th, 2011, 6 weeks after first bringing it south of the border. This new menu addition is available across Canada for a limited time at a suggested retail price of $4.99. Here is how the King is describing their new creation: “When you take a flame-broiled patty, stuff it with jalapeños and processed cheddar cheese on the inside, top it with creamy poblano sauce, ripe tomato and crisp iceberg lettuce, and put it all inside a toasted, corn-dusted bun … well, you’ve got yourself a fire hazard. What…

Read more!

Breakfast Sliders at Tutti Frutti

People love breakfast, and they love eating out for breakfast. You can eat for cheap, food menus are simple and therefore hard to screw up, bottomless coffee cups are offered in a lot of cases. So it is not surprising to see more and more speacialized breakfast chains moving in to capitalize on that lucrative market. I’m not talking Donuts shop or Fast Food chains. I’m talking Breakfast chains like Cora (1987). Eggspectation (1993). Eggsquis (1995). Ben & Florentine (2008). And Tutti Frutti, which was founded as a franchise in 1992 by the Pentefoutas family in Montreal. The chain has been growing steadily ever since, and was acquired in September 2008 by the MTY Group, the franchise giant behind 26 banners (over 1700 locations) such as Sushi Shop, Vanelli’s and TCBY. Tutti Frutti is now expanding into Ontario, after establishing themselves solidly in Quebec. Tutti Frutti has just expanded into…

Read more!

Skipping the Chili at Chili’s

We were on our way back to the Fort Lauderdale airport as our vacation was coming to an end. All week, Melissa had been talking about going to Chili’s. Why? I think she has been craving Chili’s because of all the ads she sees when I force her to watch American Football. Which, of course, I never do. Founded in Dallas in 1975, Chili’s has over 1400 locations in 32 countries around the world, most of them in the United States. There are 14 locations in Canada, all in Alberta except for 2 in Saskatchewan and 1 in Ontaro. We were driving south on the I-95 and our appetites were growing, so I started looking for a Chili’s location on the GPS. There are a lot of Chili’s in Florida, so I had no trouble picking one – we stopped in Wellington, Florida, a well-off village in Palm Beach County.…

Read more!

Pep’s Stone Crab

As we were making our way towards the John Dickinson State Park, we were keeping an eye out for a place to have dinner before getting to our vacation accomodation. The Waffle Jr. had just woken up and was, also, eager for dinner. We made an infructuous stop at Duffy’s Sports Grill on Indiantown road in Jupiter (The parking lot was full, it was Friday Night, it was a Sports grill – we though better than bringing in a starving baby). We kept going North on Highway 1, until a colourful sign attracted our attention. We were at Pep’s Island Grill in Tequesta, Florida. It being Florida, we decided that despite the cool evening, we had to have our first vacation meal outside. Pep’s has a very large deck, surrounded by palm trees and going all the way around the corner. There is also a Tiki bar at the back.…

Read more!