Spartan Stadium

9 11 2008
  • 248 Jennison Fieldhouse
  • East Lansing, MI 48824
  • (517) 355-1610
  • Website
A full endzone at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing

A full endzone at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing

Finally!  When we moved here, I was really hoping to shoot a football game at Spartan Stadium and Michigan Stadium.  Spartan Stadium finally happened.  Michigan Stadium will have to wait and hopefully happen next year.  I’ve now shot games at six of the eleven Big Ten football stadiums (Memorial Stadium (IL), Ross-Ade Stadium (Purdue), Ryan Field (Northwestern), Kinnick Stadium (Iowa), and Camp Randall (Wisc)).  From a working standpoint, Spartan Stadium doesn’t rate that high.  Lack of elevators and access knock it down a lot.  Putting the camera deck in a location that’s not cut off totally from the public knocks it down too.  Parking, however, is one of the best.  They let us park not far from the truck which is outstanding.  I don’t have to carry all the stuff I may need two miles.  I can leave my rain gear until it rains.

So, as most of you know, Spartan Stadium sits on the campus of Michigan State University near the other sports facilities on MSU’s campus.  The first thing I noticed is that it looks much bigger from the outside than it does inside.  The luxury suites and press box tower make it look huge, but that structure also takes away a lot of seats.  Still, the facility hold close around 75,000, so it’s not small either.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Big Ten Tour, East Lansing, Entertainment Venues, Michigan, Reviews

Press Release – Breakin Bread with the Blues

7 11 2008

From a press release

Breakin Bread with the Blues

What: 5th Annual Capital Area Blues Society food drive for the Greater Lansing Food Bank

When: Sunday November 16, 2008 from 4 p.m. to midnight

Where: Green Door Blues Bar and Grill
2005 E Michigan Ave
Lansing

Breakin Bread with the Blues has been sponsored by the Capital Area Blues Society for 5 years. The line up is:
Jimmy G and the Capitals, Those Delta Rhythm Kings, Lansing All Stars: Frog, Stan Budzynski, and Bill Malone, Marble Garden, and the Alligators.
Admission is $5.00 for the Blues Society and canned food for the Greater Lansing Food Bank. Donations of food have totaled 100’s of pounds in the past.


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Categories : Food News, Lansing, Michigan, Press Releases

Little Caesars – Holt

7 11 2008
  • 2221 Cedar St.
  • Holt, MI 48842
  • (517) 694-8099
  • Website
  • Menu
Little Caesars on Cedar St in Holt.

Little Caesars on Cedar St in Holt.

It’s been a long time since I’ve eaten at Little Caesars.  The last time, I actually had to order a pizza.  They didn’t have the $5 Hot-N-Ready.  I needed to run to the post office this morning and the closest post office is in Holt.  I told J I was running and she decided to tag along.  It was about lunch time so why not just stop somewhere.  I asked what she wanted and two weird things happened.  1.) She didn’t say “I don’t know.”  2.) She said she was hungry for pizza and suggested Little Caesars.  I made my run to the post office and fought some pretty heavy traffic for Holt to get back to Little Caesars.

Little Caesars is in a tiny little building on Cedar St near Aurelius.  The surprising thing is that there is a drive thru window.  There were five or six cars in the drive thru line so we parked and I headed into the building.  The shop is strictly carry out.  The building is pretty much just the kitchen.   There is a small counter near the front of the building and a couple chairs if you have to wait.  There was a family there waiting for a pizza, so I was wondering if I’d even be able to get a “Hot-N-Ready” pizza.  There were two people working and both were in the back frantically making pies.  The phones were ringing, there was a line in the drive thru and then, there was me waiting at the counter.  One of the girls stopped making pizzas and came to the front to ask what I wanted.  Fortunately, I just wanted a cheese pizza and there were two of them sitting there waiting to go.  She turned around, grabbed a pizza, and handed it to me.  With tax, the pie cost me $5.20.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chains, Holt, Michigan, Pizza, Reviews

Lansing Fish Market

6 11 2008
  • 815 Edgewood Blvd.
  • Lansing MI 48911
  • (517) 882-2676
  • No Known Website
  • Menu
Lansing Fish Market on Edgewood and Washington in Lansing.

Lansing Fish Market on Edgewood and Washington in Lansing.

I’ve seen a couple of these “You Buy, We Fry” places around town and I’ve been curious.  I don’t like fish, so that’s kept me out, but for some reason, I was cutting across Edgewood Blvd. a few weeks ago and noticed the Lansing Fish Market.  It said they also did chicken, so I made a plan to go back.  J wasn’t able to come home for dinner tonight, so I was free to explore a little bit and not drag her to a place she might not like. 

The Lansing Fish Market is on the corner of Edgewood and Washington right next to a liquor store in a little strip mall.  There’s not much to the place.  There is a small dining room on the right side of the room with less than six tables.  On the other side of the room, there’s a fresh fish case with different fishies on ice.  There was no menu posted, but they did have paper menus in a couple different locations.  I grabbed one on my way in and flipped back to the chicken section.  They have a number of different options mostly consisting of whole chicken wings.  There’s also options for half a chicken and a “specials” board had buffalo wings and chicken strips.  I settled on the 6 wing dinner since it was pretty cheap and came with coleslaw, fries, and bread.  The clerk was on his cell phone when I walked in and didn’t even set it down when I ordered.  He was kind enough to the person he was talking to to move the phone away from his face so when he asked me what I wanted they didn’t have to hear it.  He never did tell me how much my food was.  He just kept going with his conversation.  I handed him a ten knowing it would be around five bucks. Turns out, it was just under five bucks.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Chicken, Lansing, Michigan, Reviews

Tony’s Party Store

4 11 2008
  • 6100 S. Cedar St.
  • Lansing, MI 48911
  • (517) 882-2311
  • No Known Website
Tonys Party Store on Cedar and Miller Roads in South Lansing

Tony's Party Store on Cedar and Miller Roads in South Lansing

I’m really not a fan of liquor stores…or party stores as they’re called here.  I had stopped at a few places, including Meijer, looking for just a small bottle of Tequila.  J picked up this margarita mixers at Linens ‘N Things store closing sale a few weeks ago and we keep forgetting to get some tequila to finish them off.  Since election day is stressful in her line of work, I thought I’d be nice and have a margarita waiting when she got home.  I only needed three shots and we don’t drink a lot of liquor so I didn’t want to spend $25 on a big bottle that would never get drank.  I thought a liquor store would be my best bet.

Tony’s Party Store is on the corner of Cedar and Miller Roads.  I’ve been in there a few times in the past.  El Oasis has a counter there and we stopped for lunch one day (review HERE).  While getting food that day, I also noticed they have Pepsi in a glass bottle, so I’ve stopped a few times for that. 

Like the other places I had been to today, all the hard liquor is behind the counter.  I hate that.  I want to be able to find what I want without pressure.  I was tired of looking so I finally gave in.  I went to the pop cooler and grabbed a Sprite Zero (another recent 0 calorie find that tastes exactly like the full calorie version) then headed to the counter.  I didn’t see any tequila so I asked the clerk and he pointed it out.  I just told him to give me a bottle of Cuervo.   Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Lansing, Michigan, Reviews

Goodrich’s Shop-Rite

4 11 2008
  • 940 Trowbridge Rd
  • East Lansing, MI 48823
  • (517) 351-5820
  • Website
Goodrichs Shop-Rite in Trowbridge Plaze in East Lansing.

Goodrich's Shop-Rite in Trowbridge Plaze in East Lansing.

Another recommendation by regular commenter Corky.  Since we were already at Hobie’s (review HERE), we took a few minutes to walk over the Goodrich’s Shop-Rite to check the place out.  Corky and a few other people have told me they carry Zingerman’s bread so that’s what we went looking for.

Goodrich’s Shop-Rite is in the Trowbridge Plaza near MSU’s campus.  When we walked in, my first impression is that it wasn’t going to be much different than any other grocery store.  We walked quickly through a lot of the GM section looking for the bakery and deli section.  On the way, we made a quick run through the meat department.  The thing I noticed here is that they put signs up letting you know where all their meat came from.  I’ve been noticing that a lot more lately.

We finally made our way to the deli and what a surprise.  I was a little unimpressed up until that point.  Once we turned the corner, my impression changed.  The deli/bakery section is rather large.  There are racks of bread throughout the area.  I didn’t find any Zingerman’s so I didn’t buy anything, but there was a lot of different fresh baked bread.  The deli case was also huge.  Lots of different meats and cheeses. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : East Lansing, Grocery, Local Flavor, Michigan, Reviews

Election Day BBQ Redux

4 11 2008

Some people throw BBQ’s on Memorial Day.  Some people on Fourth of July.  Not me.  I do my BBQing on Election Day!  I got up about 10:30 this morning to go wait in line to cast my vote.  Afterwards, we headed home and I fired up the grill.  J works in an industry that causes her to stay late on election night, so we grabbed a couple pork butts from Kroger for her and her co-workers.  Since I don’t need an excuse to BBQ, I was more than willing to offer my services.  Just like last time, I’ll be updating during the day because I know J’s co-workers will be reading.

If you missed last time, check out THAT POST for recipes and such..this time, it’s just pics….also too, to get things started, here’s what I started with…

 

 

 

 

 

 

UPDATE 1:13 PM – One hour in.  Having some trouble with my fire.  I bought a new kind of charcoal and I hate it.  I couldn’t find any lump charcoal when I was looking, all I could find was natural briquettes.  I had never seen that before and since it still claimed to be natural, I gave it a shot.  It sucks.  I can’t wait until I’m done with this bag.  Anyway, here’s what they look like an hour in….

 

 

MAKE SURE TO CLICK THE “READ MORE” LINK TO CHECK FOR UPDATES!! Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Michigan

Hobie’s Cafe & Pub

3 11 2008
  • 930 Trowbridge Rd.
  • East Lansing, MI 48823
  • (517) 351-3800
  • Website
  • Menu

Hobie's Cafe and Pub in the Trowbridge Plaza in East Lansing.

I do love me a good sandwich. After reviewing Menna’s Joint (review HERE), frequent commenter Corky suggested we check out Hobie’s in the Trowbridge Plaza in East Lansing.  I got lazy and uninspired when dinner time rolled around.  I e-mailed J to see what she wanted to do and she said we should just go out.  Since it was recommended, looked cheap, and looked good, we decided to check Hobie’s out for ourselves.

Hobie’s is in a pretty interesting location.  It’s sandwiched between Goodrich’s Shop-Rite and a Subway.  We made our way inside and found a huge menu chalkboard right away.  After deciding on sandwiches, we walked up to the “Place Orders Here” sign.  It didnt’ really look right, but we did what the sign said anyway.  After a few minutes, a very hesitant employee came over to take our orders.  My guess is he is pretty new.  He didn’t seem to sure of himself taking our orders. 

J ordered the Chicken Breast which came with their special “South of the Border” sauce, cheddar cheese, lettuce, and tomato on wheat bread.  She asked to keep the tomato off, but they put it on anyway.  She loved the sandwich.  Neither of us could really pinpoint what was in the sauce, but she said it was delicious.  Getting the tomato on the sandwich is a little disappointing, but not that big of a deal.  They were small enough that they didn’t leave a lot of residue on the sandwich. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : East Lansing, Local Flavor, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Big Ten Holt Party Store

3 11 2008
  • 2005 Eifert Rd.
  • Holt, MI 48842
  • (517) 694-8632
  • Website
The Big Ten Holt Party Store on Eifert Road in Holt.

The Big Ten Holt Party Store on Eifert Road in Holt.

Why are they called “party stores” in this town?  Again, just curious.  I guess it sounds better than liquor store, but why not call a spade a spade?  After leaving Brower with just my Pepsi, I headed down to the Big Ten Holt Party Store.  I’ve seen a couple of these around town, but never been into one of the Big Ten locations.  I was a little bit curious because they all say “deli” along with the usual suspects.

The Big Ten Holt store is on the corner of Holt and Eifert Roads.  Just like the other stores in the small, local chain, they are painted in the colors of the hometown Spartans.  The building isn’t that big, but there are two parking lots.  One of the Eifert Rd side and one on the Holt Rd side.  I parked on the Holt Road side and made my way in.  I was still looking for a small bottle of tequila.  I thought a party store would put them out on display.   I was wrong.

The inside of the store was really cramped.  There were a couple aisles of items and the back wall was all coolers of beer.  The wine was out on display, but the hard liquor was once again behind the counter.  I gave it a quick look, but didn’t really see what I was looking for.

As for the deli, there was some pizza and a deli case of something.  I didn’t really look.  I do like that they had pizza by the slice that looked to be homemade.  Other than that, I wasn’t really impressed.  There wasn’t much I couldn’t find at a grocery store…maybe a few more selections of micro brews, but nothing great.

I don’t frequent liquor stores often, so I’m not really an expert, but I do know when I pick a liquor or “party store” over a supermarket, I’m looking for a better selection.  I didn’t really get that at the Big Ten Holt Party Store.


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Categories : Grocery, Local Flavor, Michigan, Reviews

Brower Food & Hardware

3 11 2008
  • 2102 Aurelius Rd.
  • Holt, MI 48842
  • (517) 694-0531
  • No Known Website
Brower Food & Hardware on Aurelius Rd. in Holt, MI

Brower Food & Hardware on Aurelius Rd. in Holt, MI

I have been stopping by Brower Food & Hardware for several months now after seeing a review for a deli located inside the little grocery store.  Each time I’ve tried to stop at Big T Deli & Grill, I’ve come up disappointed.  I dont’ know if they stopped doing the deli or what.

This time, I wasn’t looking so much for lunch as I was a small bottle of tequila.  Brower Food & Hardware sits on Aurelius Road near the Holt Plaza.  There’s a very small parking lot in front of the store.  Inside, there’s not a whole lot.  There are a few pantry items, pop, and of course, liquor.  I went to the pop cooler first to grab a Pepsi then headed over to the liquor.  I’m not a big fan of places that keep their hard liquor behind the counter because I always feel so rushed to make a decision and I can’t really see the prices.  That’s how Brower is set up.  The wine is out on shelves and the beer is in coolers.  I didn’t see what I was really looking for so I just paid for my Pepsi and got out. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Grocery, Holt, Local Flavor, Michigan, Reviews

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