Universal Studios Hollywood Food

 I visited Universal Studios Hollywood twice in the past year. The initial visit was to see the park for the first time (alongside Disneyland). A few months later, my schedule and budget allowed me to go a second time to see Hollywood's version of Halloween Horror Nights. 

First food in the park was from a hot dog cart in the upper lot. I ordered the Californian. This was a Nathan's hot dog topped with guacamole, diced tomatoes, cilantro, and Takis. Very topping heavy. They were really generous with the guacamole and cilantro, which I won't argue with. 

When I returned a few months later, I walked by this same hot dog stand. All of the interesting hot dog toppings were replaced with basically one option: A 22" Chili Cheese Dog. Nowhere as exciting...

French Street Bistro:

I tried a brownie from the French Street Bistro. 

City Snack Shop:

I had this during Halloween Horror Nights. I had a Strawberry Spiral Croissant. This round croissant was partially stuffed with whipped cream, with some strawberries topping the cream. Pretty tasty.

Magic Kingdom Food (Casey's Corner and Sunshine Tree Terrace)

It's been a while since I've had food at the Magic Kingdom. Since the last post on this blog was about Disneyland, why not write about the similar castle park in Florida.

Casey's Corner:

I've lived in Orlando most of my life and have been to the Magic Kingdom countless times, but somehow I had never been to Casey's Corner on Main Street. I've heard the restaurant hyped up quite often, so on my last visit to Magic Kingdom I finally had lunch there. I ordered the Chipotle Barbecue All-Beef Foot-long Hot Dog. It was a hot dog topped with pulled pork, coleslaw, and barbeque sauce. Good for Disney serving more than plain hot dogs. Toppings always make them more interesting.  This was fine. Not anything great that I'd go back for again though. As I write this, I'm realizing that this had very similar ingredients to the Ronto Wrap at Galaxy's Edge. Slightly different forms of the ingredients, but it was essentially the same thing.

Sunshine Tree Terrace:

I had the I Lava You Float. Orange Dole Whip topped with strawberry Fanta, passionfruit syrup, and Pop Rocks. This was a good dessert.

Chicago Food (Twin Anchors, Pequod's Pizza, Ann Sather Restaurant, Futatsuki Ramen, Lickety Split Frozen Custard, Dao Thai Restaurant, Star Grill, The Weiner's Circle, Venice Cafe, and Pierogi Crib)

I recently went on a trip to visit Chicago. I had never been to the city and while there I tasted some of Chicago's food.

Twin Anchors:

Apparently Chicago is known for their barbecue. I wasn't aware of this before visiting the city, but smoked meat was added to the list of Chicago foods to try. I ended up at a restaurant called Twin Anchors. They have been open since 1932 and boast that Frank Sinatra was one of their regular customers.

I ordered a half slab of ribs with a side of onion rings and cole-slaw. The ribs were good enough. I found the meat to be a little on the dry side. Not the best I've ever had but good enough to keep the restaurant open since the 1930s.

Pequod's Pizza:

This restaurant was recommended as one of the best places to get Chicago-style pizza in the city. I'm still a bit confused on the different nomenclature of Chicago-style pizza, and the explanation that I got here didn't help. There is apparently pan pizza, deep dish pizza, and stuffed pizza. I think I understand that stuffed pizza is what Giordano's serves (seems like nobody in Chicago actually likes Giordano's). Haven't really figured out the difference between pan and deep dish though, and I don't know which version of the pizza I ate here.

Started out with a side salad.

The pizza, topped with Italian sausage and spinach. I enjoyed this pie. It wasn't the complete overload of cheese like you get a Giordano's and was much better proportioned. I did really enjoy the crust which got nice and crispy around the outer, vertical edge of the pie.

Ann Sather Restaurant:

This was a Swedish diner, which was a new concept to me. I visited them for breakfast and ordered one of the specials, which was a Swedish breakfast sampler. It started with two very large cinnamon rolls. I was pretty much full after both of these. 

This was followed with a plate filled with a Swedish pancake with lingonberry jam, a Swedish meatball with gravy, a Swedish sausage, scrambled eggs, and a fruit salad. I liked it all with the exception of the sausage. I believe it was a pork and potato sausage that lacked flavor.

Futatsuki Ramen:

A friend in Chicago said the ramen in this restaurant is amazing. He was right. Futatsuki was a very efficient restaurant with only a few things on the menu. There was tonkotsu ramen, curry pork, and some appetizers. 

The large bowl of ramen had a milky white broth with was delicious. From what I understand, the broth takes a while to cook, getting its color from pork fat and bone marrow slowly seeping into the soup. Ramen noodles were hidden underneath the broth. Two slices of pork, scallions, pickled vegetables, an egg, and nori finished off the bowl. I don't like making bold statements when it comes to food, but this just might be some of the best ramen I've ever had!

Lickety Split Frozen Custard:

Frozen custard, desserts, and candies was what Lickety Split sold.

I had the Bing Crosberry Concrete. This was cherries and raspberries mixed together with cheesecake, graham cracker crust, and vanilla custard. It was tasty, but I thought it was a bit on the expensive side for the small size of the cup which it was served in.

Dao Thai Restaurant:

Had Thai food in Downtown Chicago here.

Chicken Satay:

Wonton and BBQ Pork soup. The menu made this sound more exiting in my head then it was. This was basically a huge bowl of wonton soup that you can find in any Chinese restaurant.

Star Grill: 

This was my first attempt at having a Chicago style hot dog. I got caught in a nasty rain storm so I hid in a restaurant called Star Grill to wait out the rain. I was told by a Chicago local that these weren't authentic Chicago dogs because of the toppings. The two hot dogs came topped with mustard, pickle spear, peppers, and tomatoes in the form of salsa. Apparently the salsa was the offender. Tomatoes on an authentic Chicago dog need to be sliced...

The Weiner's Circle:

My second attempt at finding an authentic Chicago Dog was at The Weiner's Circle. Besides the hot dogs, this restaurant's gimmick is being nasty to the customers. Unfortunately, there's a difference between being clever about insults and just coming across as bigoted. Using the gimmick to ignore the people complaining about food/wrong orders is an interesting way to do customer service. I guess there's a reason that there were only tourists in here...

The hot dog was very adequate. The toppings were on in the right form, unlike my previous experience with a Chicago dog. The bun had poppy seeds on it. I've had better Chicago style dogs with more generous toppings in Florida. We won't mention the cheese fries. They were cold and soggy topped with something that didn't really resemble cheese besides color. The majority of these were thrown out.

Venice Cafe:

Got a quick slice of pizza for a snack from this restaurant near the Willis Tower. I decided to try a NY style slice in Chicago. In my head, it was what I would expect NY style pizza to be like in the midwest. Way too much cheese and a bit doughy.

Pierogi Crib:

I visited a food hall in Chicago called the French Market. After wandering around a bit, I decided to try a booth called Pierogi Crib.

I had a Pierogi Bowl. This was an assortment of six pierogi served over a spinach salad, topped with bacon, grilled onions, red cabbage, and sour cream. I very much enjoyed this meal.

And that was my trip to Chicago. I tried most of the stereotypical Chicago foods on my list, along with foods I wasn't expecting to try. Never got around to trying an Italian Beef Sandwich though. Guess I have to go back...

Biker Jim's Gourmet Dogs in Denver, CO

I went on a trip to the Denver area for a few days recently. One of my first dining experiences in Denver was at a restaurant called Biker Jim's Gourmet Dogs.

Before I visited Denver, this was one of the restaurants that I got a recommendation to try. Biker Jim's doesn't serve your standard hot dog. The dogs that they serve contain exotic meats. They had reindeer dogs. There were jack-a-lope dogs. The hot dog that I tried was the Rattlesnake and Pheasant. The sausage was filled with two meats that I had never tried before. Pheasant, a wild game bird, combined with venomous reptiles. How could I resist trying something like that!?

I had my dog topped with The Desert. This was harissa roasted cactus, Malaysian curry jam scallions, cilantro, with fried and grilled onions. For the sausage itself, the pheasant and rattlesnake combination had a very poultry-like flavor and consistency. If I didn't know what I had ordered, I'd assume this was a standard chicken or turkey sausage. It makes sense with the pheasant, but rattlesnake was an unknown. I guess rattlesnake tastes like chicken? The toppings really made the hot dog. I think if it was only the sausage, I'd be disappointed with Biker Jim's (besides the thrill of eating venomous snake). The cactus was delicious, and along side the other toppings, provided a delicious flavor combination.

Biker Jim's Gourmet Dogs was probably one of the most unique hot dog restaurants I've been to. It was a very nice introduction to food in Colorado...

Shake Shack in Winter Park, FL

I was invited to a Shake Shack Housewarming Party for the new restaurant in Winter Park. Shake Shack is a burger chain which originated out of New York and has quite the following. My only previous experience with Shake Shack was when I attempted to eat at their South Beach location. There was a line pouring out of the restaurant and half way up the block, all in pouring rain. I didn't feel like getting soaked for burgers, but it showed that Shake Shack has some loyal customers with that many people willing to wait in line in the rain. I finally had my chance to give Shake Shack a try with their first Orlando area location in Winter Park. Would it live up to the hype?

I sampled three of Shake Shack's burgers. The first was the ShackBurger. This was a cheeseburger topped with lettuce, tomato, and ShackSauce. Was it an amazing burger that lived up to Shake Shack's hype? It's hard to say. I'm honestly not much of a burger person so I'm not the best judge. This was my second favorite burger that I tried at Shake Shack.

Up next was the 'Shroom Burger. This was a vegetarian option which consisted of crisp-fried portobello mushroom filled with melted muenster and cheddar cheeses, topped with lettuce, tomato, and ShackSauce. This was my least favorite of the three burgers. I found the hot gooey cheese inside the mushrooms was a bit dangerous to eat as it exploded everywhere as I bit into the burger.

The third burger was the SmokeShack. This was a cheeseburger topped with all-natural applewood smoked bacon, chopped cherry pepper, and ShackSauce. Out of the three burgers, this was my favorite. The cherry pepper provided a nice, spicy kick.

The Cheese Fries were crinkle cut Yukon potatoes with a side of cheddar and American cheese sauce.

Hot Dog with fries. This was pretty standard as far as hot dogs go.

Since the restaurant was called Shake Shack, I couldn't leave without trying a shake. Here's the Vanilla Shake:

I enjoyed trying Shake Shack. Was it everything that I was told it would be? The food was good. I don't know if I would say these were the best burgers ever, but definitely better than some other fast food chains. Like I said, I'm a horrible judge of burgers. I've disliked enough burgers to mostly stop ordering them at restaurants. I suppose Shake Shack did indeed pass the burger test for me because I'd go back again. Now that they're officially open, I wonder if the Winter Park Shack Shack will get lines out of the restaurant like I encountered in Miami?

Ben's Chili Bowl in Washington DC

Ben's Chili Bowl is a restaurant in Washington DC that is pretty famous. As their sign says out front, it's been a Washington Landmark since 1958. When I got out of the U Street Metro Station and saw Ben's Chili Bowl across the street and recognized the name, I decided I must eat there.

They have had some pretty famous customers. Apparently Bill Cosby is a regular here. President Obama also ate here as well, and Ben's Chili Bowl definitely wants you to know this. Both are showcased on a huge mural on the side of the restaurant.

Ben's Chili Bowl was pretty crowded on the night I visited. The line went almost out the door. Seems like this place is also popular with the late night bar crowd.

Even though the restaurant is called Ben's Chili Bowl, it seemed like hot dogs called smokes were featured more on the menu than the actual chili. Lots and lots of these smokes were being grilled just behind the restaurant's front window.

I went in planning on just trying the chili. We had already had dinner earlier, but I figured why not get a snack and try a Washington landmark restaurant while I was there. When I actually got to the restaurant, I changed my mind and decided to try Bill Cosby's Favorite Original Half-Smoke. I'm not even a big fan of hot dogs, but I figured I'd find out what the fuss was about. This was a 1/4 pound, half pork/half beef smoked sausage topped with mustard, onions, and chili. Potato chips were served on the side. The most surprising thing about the whole dish was actually the chili. I have a pretty high tolerance for spicy foods, but this chili had quite the kick to it. Spicy chili is good! Besides the chili, everything else seemed pretty standard for a chili dog to me.

I don't think I'd go out of my way to return to Ben's Chili Bowl, but I can now say I've eaten Bill Cosby's favorite chili dog in a Washington landmark that has fed presidents. I don't know what it is, but classic hot dog/hamburger restaurants like this always have a nice vibe to them, but the food just doesn't do it for me. Perhaps if I liked hot dogs a bit more? Much like The Varsity in Atlanta or Nathan's in Coney Island, I can cross Ben's Chili Bowl off my list as a must-eat food experience.

Nathan's in Coney Island, NY

I was in New York. I had just rode thirteen miles on a unicycle from the Brooklyn Bridge to Coney Island. The end of this epic ride was in front of the original Nathan's Famous hot dogs. It was time to eat and a hot dog seemed like an appropriate food.

The inside of Nathan's was very busy with lines stretching out of the building. I got the feeling that most people in here were tourists, just like me, coming to get their taste of a famous Coney Island food.

I ordered a hot dog with sauerkraut. It was exactly as I expected, just like what is served at the countless other Nathan's locations around the country. It was a hot dog, nothing more. The sauerkraut did dress it up a bit, but in the end it was still a pretty standard hot dog.

Nathan's hot dogs are highly overrated, but a visit to Nathan's in Coney Island isn't really about the food. It's about the whole experience of going to a fast food landmark. Just don't throw up your hot dog when you get sick on the Cyclone or Wonder Wheel afterwards...

Bite in Longwood, FL

Tomorrow is July 4. Seems like Independence Day in the United States has become one of the biggest hot dog days of the year (mostly due to the Nathan's contest). Because of the holiday, I suppose a blog post about hot dogs is in order. One of my recent excursions into the world of hot dogs was at Bite in Longwood. Bite is connected to Jeremiah's Italian Ices and does mostly hot dogs and burgers.

I tried their Chicago dog. The dog was topped with tomato, onion, relish, peppers, celery salt, and mustard on a poppy seed bun. Normally dressing a hot dog up vastly improves a plain hot dog, but the toppings didn't do much for me in this case. The amount of toppings seemed skimpy to me and they ended up making the bun really soggy. Some pretty good fries were served on the side.

The Southern slaw dog, topped with cole slaw, jalapenos, and fried onions was also ordered at our table. I personally didn't taste this one, but heard good things about it.

The hot dogs at Bite were okay, but not anything extraordinary. They seemed a bit small for the price and the menu here really didn't do much for me. It really couldn't compete with the menu at Mustard's Last Stand in Melbourne. I did notice a review of Bite on Yelp mentioned hot dogs that were no longer on the menu that sounded a bit more interesting than what they serve now. I'm not sure if I'd go out of my way to return here.