El Azteco

15 03 2009
  • 225 Ann Street
  • East Lansing, MI 48823
  • (517) 351-9111
  • No Known Website
  • Menu
El Azteco on Ann Street in downtown East Lansing.

El Azteco on Ann Street in downtown East Lansing.

I have no idea why I’ve been craving Mexican lately, but it’s been like an everyday thing.  J’s step-dad headed back to Chicago, but her mom stayed for another day.  We made a run to Howell after breakfast then did some grocery shopping at Horrocks and Walmart.  By the time we got home, we were all starting to get a little hungry.  I sat down in front of the computer and asked what they were in the mood for.  To my surprise, J said Mexican which is what I was thinking.  Instead of going to one of the two places that are close to our apartment, I wanted to go to East Lansing and try one of the most popular restaurants in downtown.

El Azteco is on Ann Street near the Marriot in a that strip of restaurants at the corner of M.A.C. and Ann.  From all the things I’ve read, El Azteco made it’s name at a different location a few blocks that wasn’t nearly as flashy or noticeable as the new building.  While I love atmosphere, restaurants don’t survive without good food.  It was the good food we were really after.

We walked into El Azteco just after 6:00 on a Sunday night.  It was still spring break at MSU, so the clientel was mostly older people and families.  Someone in the kitchen noticed us and told us to take a seat in one of the front dining rooms.  There are actually three dining room areas.  Two of them are are in the front and look out to Ann Street.  The third is off to the left when you walk in and it runs along the kitchen.  We took a booth along the wall.  As you can imagine, the decor has sort of a southwest feel.  The tables are primitive with no frills.  The benches of the booth are all wood with no padding.  They are also pretty close to the table.  They really force good posture. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Downtown, East Lansing, Mexican, Michigan, Restaurant, Reviews

Golden Harvest

15 03 2009
  • 1625 Turner Street
  • Lansing, MI 48906
  • (517) 485-3663
  • Website
  • Menu
Golden Harvest on Turner Street in Lansings Old Town neighborhood

Golden Harvest on Turner Street in Lansing's Old Town neighborhood

OH! MY! GOD!  Why did it take me a year to find Golden Harvest?  Why did no one twist my arm, grab me by the ear and drag me there? Seriously? 

J’s parents were still in town and they’re big breakfast people, so we decided to get up and go for breakfast.  I think I remember someone suggesting it a long time ago, but we don’t usually get up for breakfast, so we never considered it.  I was surfing the web looking for breakfast and found some pretty glowing reviews for the place. 

Golden Harvest is in Old Town on Turner Street.  We found it was a little tough to find when going north due to the configuration of Larch Street right before you get to the restaurant.  The GPS didn’t update fast enough and we missed a right turn, but went around the block and made it back.  The building is very tiny and it sits right on the corner.  When we pulled up, there was a line out the door.  I got out to see how deep the line was.  Since it was only two parties in front of us, we got in line and waited it out. 

It took about twenty minutes for a table to clear up.  When it did, two actually opened up.  One was a table for two.  The other was a table for four.  The party in front of us was just two women.  Guess where they sat.  Seriously, the two of them took the table for four instead of the table for two.  J asked them if they would mind taking the other table.  They hesitantly did.  Seriously!  Who does that? Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : breakfast, Lansing, Michigan, Old Town, Restaurant, Reviews

Art’s Bar & Grill – Revisited

14 03 2009
Arts Bar & Grill on Kalamazoo in Lansing.

Art's Bar & Grill on Kalamazoo in Lansing.

It’s been almost a year since our first visit to Art’s Bar & Grill.  It was one of the first places we ate at after moving to Lansing.  The building didn’t look like much, but I had heard the food was some of the best in town.  After a little hesitation, we went in and had one of the best meals we’ve had in town.

J’s parents were in town and we needed someplace to eat.  The original plan was to eat in Mt. Pleasant after gambling for a little bit, but we were still full from lunch, so we headed back to Lansing.  We tossed around a few ideas, but eventually settled on Art’s.  I had heard good things about their pizza and we hadn’t tried it yet.  By hitting up a bar, we could get a pizza and J’s parents could get burgers.

We stopped in around 7:00 on a Saturday.  There were quite a few people, but we found a table in the middle of the dining room.  Just like last time, a waitress noticed us right away and yelled over that she would be right with us.  A few minutes later, she dropped off menus while she was taking care of the rest of the dining room.  There were only two waitresses for the whole building and the one we had was working her butt off.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Bar, Burgers, Lansing, Local Flavor, Michigan, Pizza

Soaring Eagle Casino and Resort

14 03 2009
  • 6800 E. Soaring Eagle Boulevard
  • Mt. Pleasant, MI 48858
  • (989) 775-5777
  • Website
Leaving Soaring Eagle Casino and Resort in Mt. Pleasant

Leaving Soaring Eagle Casino and Resort in Mt. Pleasant

When my parents come to town, I pretty much expect going to a casino.  I don’t expect it when J’s parents come, but we were in Midland and needed something else to do up that way, so I suggested Soaring Eagle.  I had been there once before with my parents, aunt, brother, and sister-in-law.  My parents loved it calling it one of the nicest casino’s they’ve ever been to.  My brother hated it.  He tried turning $20 into $80 so he could pay for a hotel room back in Lansing.  Instead, he lost $80 in about fifteen minutes and pouted the rest of the night.

Soaring Eagle Casino is on the edge of Mt. Pleasant off of Leaton Road.  The whole property is beautiful.  In Illinois, all the casino’s are built around old riverboat casinos, so they don’t look anything like the Indian casino’s in Michigan.  There’s an abundance of parking.  We found a spot in a lot that was a little bit of a walk from the entrance.  After a big BBQ lunch, I needed it.

The inside is just gorgeous.  When you walk in, you almost come in right on the gaming floor.  The thing that has surprised me both times is that there’s not really a single entrance to the gaming floor that is watched by a security guard checking ID’s.  Again, at the casino’s in Illinois, if you’re under 40, they’ll take your id, put it on a scanner then make you look in to a camera so they have it on file.  There’s only one way in and one way out.  I’ve been surprised both times that we walked onto the gaming floor without talking to or being stopped by anyone.  Hell, we even got stopped twice in Windsor. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Entertainment Venues, Michigan, Mt. Pleasant

Dow Gardens

14 03 2009
  • 1809 Eastman Ave.
  • Midland, MI 48640
  • (989) 631-2677
  • Website
Dow Gardens in Midland

Dow Gardens in Midland

Why not drive an hour and a half to look at butterflies?  J and her mom were both super excited about the Butterflies in Bloom exhibit that is going on at Dow Gardens and since they just happened to decide to visit us while it was going on, we took a road trip north. 

Dow Gardens is on Eastman Road right next to the Midland Center for the Arts on Eastman Road.  They sort of share a parking lot so if you’re unfamiliar with the area, your tempted towards the bigger building, but the Dow Gardens is actually the smaller of the two tucked in near the back of the lot.  Don’t worry, there’s a big sign out front.

Your first stop is the visitors center which is where you pay admission.  There’s also a gift shop which they have set up as your last stop on your way out.  If you live in Midland or the surrounding area, your much better off buying a season pass at $10.  Since two of us were from Chicago and the other two from Lansing, we just opted for the day pass which is $5.  Obviously, if you plan on visiting more than twice, the season pass is the better deal.  Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Entertainment Venues, Michigan, Midland, Reviews

Bone Daddy’s BBQ

14 03 2009
  • 3216 Bay City Road
  • Midland, MI 48642
  • (989) 496-2266
  • Website (disabled)
  • Menu
Bone Daddy BBQ on Bay City Road in Midland

Bone Daddy BBQ on Bay City Road in Midland

Last year, I saw a story in the LSJ about a BBQ place in Midland that won a rib cook off in Las Vegas.  I told J then that we needed to find an excuse to go to Midland.  I always thought the excuse would be a baseball game.  Turns out, the excuse was butterflies.

J’s parents were in town and both J and her mom wanted to see the butterfly exhibit at Dow Gardens.  They had been to similar exhibits in Chicago and thought this would be a neat way to spend a Saturday afternoon together.  I didn’t object because it means we had our excuse to go to Midland.

Bone Daddy BBQ is on the corner of Bay City Road and Waldo Road in Midland.  We took a wrong turn off the highway because my GPS showed an address both in the city of Midland and the adjoining township (that, for postal reasons, has a Midland address) and I chose the wrong one.  It was only a mile out of the way.  I turned around and headed two miles in the opposite direction and we found our destination on the left.

There’s not much of a parking lot in front of the building and what few spaces there are are taken up by Bone Daddy’s trucks.  I drove around the building and weaved in between the two giant smokers to find another parking lot behind the catering business. 

Once inside, you order at the counter then they bring you your food.  There are menus in bins on the wall as well as paper menus and a menu board above the counter.  The place was pretty packed.  There are two dining areas in the small building.  Each has maybe a half a dozen tables or so.  There was a kids birthday party in one room, so I grabbed a table in the other room while J and her mom put in our orders. Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : BBQ, Michigan, Midland, Restaurant, Reviews, Sandwiches

Free Morels?!

13 03 2009

If you’re a hardcore foodie, that should have gotten your attention.  I got an e-mail this morning inviting me to enter a contest at MarxFoods.com.  Unfortunately, I’m not a mushroom person.  I’ve never had a morel so I have no idea what I would actually do with 2lbs of them, but I figured some of you might be interested.  Just follow the link and it will bring you to a blog post with all the details and an opportunity to enter.

Marx Foods – The First Morels of the Year Up for Grabs


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Categories : Food News

Press Release – Mitchell’s Fresh Escapes Sweepstakes

13 03 2009

From a Ruth’s Chris Hospitality Group press release….

Escape the Winter Blahs and Head to Sunny Tampa with

“Mitchell’s Fresh Escapes” Sweepstakes

 

HEATHROW, Fla. (March 11, 2009) – Yearning to feel the hot summer sun instead of the cold, winter winds? Wishing you had a few extra dollars to take your sweetie to a delicious seafood dinner? Mitchell’s Fish Market’s “Mitchell’s Fresh Escapes Sweepstakes,” offers guests the opportunity to win a fabulous beach excursion vacation; a complimentary party at the nearest Fish Market or $100 in gift cards: 

  • Grand Prize (1 winner): Win a trip for 2 to Tampa Bay, Fla., including: 
  •  
    • Airfare
    • Two nights at the four-star Sheraton Sand Key Resort, located on ten acres of white sandy beach nestled between the Gulf of Mexico and Tampa Bay, minutes from Clearwater Beach
    • Florida Aquarium tickets that include an eco-tour boat ride and reef adventure, featuring more than 20,000 aquatic plants and animals from Florida and around the world
    • Dinner at the Mitchell’s Fish Market in Tampa
  • First Prize (1 winner): Party for up to 6 guests at the nearest Mitchell’s Fish Market
  • Second Prize (10 winners): $100 Mitchell’s Fish Market gift card 

 

Guests may sign up online at www.MitchellsFreshEscapes.com or in-store at the nearest location, now until March 31. Guests may enter once per day to increase their odds. What are you waiting for? Take a chance – try your “fin” at escaping to paradise.

Florida Aquarium tickets that include an eco-tour boat ride and reef adventure, featuring more than 20,000 aquatic plants and animals from Florida and around the world
Dinner at the Mitchell’s Fish Market in Tampa
First Prize (1 winner): Party for up to 6 guests at the nearest Mitchell’s Fish Market
Second Prize (10 winners): $100 Mitchell’s Fish Market gift card

Guests may sign up online at www.MitchellsFreshEscapes.com or in-store at the nearest location, now until March 31. Guests may enter once per day to increase their odds. What are you waiting for? Take a chance – try your “fin” at escaping to paradise.


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Categories : Food News, Press Releases

Thanksgiving In March – Updated x3

13 03 2009

For most people, cooking a turkey once a year is more than enough.  I’m not quite most people.  Around Christmas time, my mom called and said someone was having a sale and she picked up some meat for me.  Normally, I’d be stocked because that usually means pork loins or ribeyes.  Not this time.  She bought two turkeys and two hams.  What the hell I’m supposed to do with two turkeys and two hams I’m not sure, but I figured eventually I’d cook them.  I cooked one of the hams a few months ago, but I still have two turkeys taking up a lot of space in my deep freezer. 

I’m going to be pretty busy for the next month with work, so I figured today was as good a day as any to finally cook a turkey.

I started three days ago by defrosting in the fridge.  Last night, I put together a brine with vegetable stock, water, black peppercorns, brown sugar, salt, and allspice berries and started that process.  This is what J saw when she got home from work  last night.

Read the rest of this entry »


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Categories : Michigan

Press Release – Community Garden Project

12 03 2009

From a press release….

Would you like your own vegetable garden but don’t have the space or
the know-how?  The Garden Project is here to help.  We provide gardening
space in community gardens, and home garden tilling for households on a
budget.  We also provide seeds, plants, training and a tool-lending
library for our registered gardeners.  Our monthly newsletter is full of
helpful gardening ideas, and staff is available to answer your gardening
questions.  Our workshops and classes include not only gardening but
food preservation techniques like canning as well.  For more information
contact The Garden Project at (517) 887-4660 or gardenproject@ingham.org
 Our registration is online at www.lansingfoodbank.org  Just click on
The Garden Project.

The Garden Project
A program of the Greater Lansing Food Bank
PO Box 30161
Lansing, MI 48909-7661
Phone: (517)-887-4660
Email: gardenproject@ingham.org


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Categories : Press Releases

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