Crazy Greek

Many Richmonders think I'm crazy for having gone this long without it...but I just hadn't heard of it before, ok?! Get off my back. The Crazy Greek is a restaurant staple in Richmond.

When I went to school in Harrisonburg, there was a "Greek" restaurant that had an awesome rooftop and cheap drinks and decent food. I wouldn't really call them Greek though just because they made a pretty good gyro.

After eating at The Crazy Greek, I think that restaurant in Harrisonburg is a joke compared to it. I've now eaten at The Crazy Greek twice: the first time with Sean, getting a gyro with fries, and the second time with my lovely girlfriend, getting pastichio/patitsio and a Greek beer. The gyro was delicious with fresh green crunchy lettuce, a juicy tomato slice, juicy lamb, and some of the best tzatziki sauce I've had. Yet, the pastichio is what really blew me away. It is essentially Greek lasagna, and it is good at The Crazy Greek. The noodles at the bottom were delicious and cooked perfectly. The beef was fantastic and was definitely cooked in some special kind of sauce that I couldn't place, but it was spectacular. The top layer was a fantastic creamy sauce that was binding it all together as a perfect meal. I finished my meal, was absolutely stuffed, yet considered ordering another just to take it home. Yet, to polish it off and wash it all down, I took the last few swigs of the amazing Alpha beer that I ordered.

So, overall The Crazy Greek has a delicious menu, catering to Italian and Greek specialties for us picky Americans, serves a good selection of beers, and has a good environment (despite one REALLY awkward waiter). While I'd say it definitely isn't the most Greek restaurant you can find, it definitely serves up some amazing food. They know what they're good at, and they're good at food over at The Crazy Greek. So, any time you're in Richmond, I strongly recommend you hit them up. Enjoy!

PS: Good luck finding their official website. It doesn't seem to exist.

If you wish to leave comments or check out older posts: www.tylerconta.blogspot.com

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Happy Birthday Pops

I'm not sure when it started, but a few years ago I started calling my mom and dad, "momma" and "pops." I sort of say it with what little Southern accent I actually have. Well...today is my pops birthday. He's kind of a weird guy. I think I look a lot like my mom and act a lot like my dad. Thus meaning I too am weird. Yet, I'm pretty sure my dad is weirder.

Examples:
My dad's career involves working with, and testing, dirt. Weird.
My dad gets up before the sun rises, takes hours to eat breakfast and read the newspaper, and he often goes to the YMCA to exercise in his morning routine as well. Weird.
My dad randomly bursts into song. Weird.
My dad makes terrible jokes, usually puns. Weird.
My dad attempts to pound it and make Your Mom jokes, but fails 95% of the time. Weird.
My dad tucks his pants into his socks when he's in the woods. Weird.
My dad built a machine called an amoozemeter. Weird.
My dad's favorite food is pasties....and they are disgusting. Weird.

As a matter of fact, we only eat pasties on his birthday because one time, when I was 11 or 12, we had them and I realized how much I hated them. They're like chicken pot pies but replace all the good stuff with crap, beef, and possibly little bits of Count Chocula. I can't be sure about the Count. Just a theory. Anyways...I hated it so much I cried and pretty much couldn't eat it. It took me over an hour to finish it. Every bite was torture. I gagged dozens of times too. Well...my dad may be a little weird sometimes, but then again I do some of those weird things he does too. And I love my dad and I will do my best to attempt to eat some pasties tonight. Yum.

Happy Birthday Dad!

If you wish to find a recipe for a pasty...please...don't look it up. And if you wish to leave comments or check out older posts: www.tylerconta.blogspot.com

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Alabama, Arkansas, I do love me that cole slaw!

If you understood the reference made in the title of this post...BONUS POINTS. If you don't, then please refer to what has possibly been the most popular Song of the Moment with the fans: here. It was used back in early August, so that's the Pre-Blogging period. We're currently in the Blogging Period, getting ready to progress into the Triassic Period next. I can't wait!

Except, this post isn't about music. It's about food...in Alabama. Yes. 'Bama. I love BBQ, and that's what this post is about.

I was helping Heidi, one of my best friends, a girl from the Safe Harbor, move down to Florida for Navy stuff. At the time I didn't have a job so I figured: Free trip to Florida?! Sure!
Well, on the drive down we stopped a few times to see some good friends like Christian and Hollee in NC, Chaney in GA, and then we were on our way......until Montgomery, AL. Heidi and I got there, used her GPS to try to find a place to eat. Well, let's just say the capital of Alabama wasn't exactly what we expected. Half the places we went to were either super ghetto or closed down. Eventually, we stumbled upon greatness: Dreamland BBQ.

That right there is where we ate. Great location, great atmosphere, great food. The walls were filled with old signs, paintings, and photos of the 1950's, including things regarding the original owner and his family. So we sat down at a high table, ordered a drink, then looked at the menu. It's a BBQ joint, so everything looks good to me, and you never really know what to order until the last second (especially if you're Heidi). To me, a BBQ place is great if they an pull off the seemingly simple pulled pork BBQ sandwich. I ordered, with a side of fries, and Heidi got the same with a side of mac-n-cheese. The food arrived, with BBQ sauce on the side, and I was in heaven. Let me be clear: Dreamland BBQ literally has the BEST barbeque sauce I have ever tasted. It's rumored that it has a little bit of moonshine in it. I put it on my sandwich, dipped my fries in it, and worse...it was so good I literally used my finger to lick up the last drops when I was done. Not only that, but the fries were great. They were a really unique thin and crispy cut, very unusual for southern food and BBQ places especially, that usually stick to thick fries. I also sampled a bite of Heidi's mac-n-cheese, and it was so good that we both ordered another side of it after our meal. It was a strange sort of dessert, but it was delicious!

So...I hope I'm getting my point across here: while I assume most of my readers are not from Alabama...if you ever go near there (there's even 2 locations in Georgia), please don't miss out! One of the best meals I've ever had in my ENTIRE life. Literally.

With my ranking system that I am just now making up on the spot...I give Dreamland BBQ a ranking (based on presentation, taste, atmosphere/environment, more taste, and originality) of....

4 out of 5 Sporks. Way to go Dreamland BBQ.




If you wish to leave comments or check out older posts: www.tylerconta.blogspot.com

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Working for the Weekend too?

Well actually I didn't work Thursday or today...so I stopped working for the weekend on Wednesday. Sorry. In other news: in a few short hours I return to my other home. I'm going back to JMU for Homecoming 2010!!

I'm not sure what to do with myself. I'm excited to pick up Chaney for the drive, I'm pumped to see Kevin Gibson and SEBO, my lady, all my O-Team friends, my Safe Harbor girls, some SA friends, and a bunch of those random folks I don't care about. (Kidding) Because of my excitement to return home for my first ever Homecoming as an alum...I truly don't know what to do with myself...so I'm going to lay a bunch of my blogging crap on you. Most of it will deal with JMU-type things...so if you didn't go to JMU...then I feel sorry for you. Also, if you didn't go there, then just say "I missed out" and go ahead and check out what I got for you anyways! Enjoy!
PS: Go Dukes!!

Music:
Song of the Moment 10/15
Paris (Ooh La La) by Grace Potter & The Nocturnals


Food:
Peanut Butter Ice Cream

First off...WTF?! According to the blog spell check "ice cream" is 2 words?! Well that's news to me! Anyways...if you're ever eating some place that is a buffet (D-Hall/E-Hall/Mrs. Green's/Golden Corral?) you need to make your own dessert. Side note: NEVER spell "dessert" wrong. We always want more of it, that's why it has more "s"s in the word. Duh. So, you need to grab a bowl about the size of a cereal bowl. Go for the soft-serve vanilla ice cream (try chocolate later if you'd like) and get a decent portion with room to spare. Then head to wherever they have peanut butter and hit that stuff up. Drop in a large spoonful of creamy peanut butter. Then, grab a seat, grab a spoon, vigorously stir it up so the peanut butter is evenly distributed, then enjoy. It's good stuff.

Quote:
I think this is all too true...
"Ask yourself whether you are happy and you cease to be so." - John Stuart Mill
For the most part, I agree. I think that once you question your happiness, you then doubt your happiness, and doubt can be a destructive thing, thus ending your happiness. Yet, I think Abe Lincoln spoke equally true words when he said....
"Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be. " - Abraham Lincoln
So...just be happy my friends!



Do-It:
Enjoy your weekend. Whether it's at JMU or not. Just live it up. Get up early, go for a hike or a walk in your park. Go to your local farmer's market. Go to the JMU football game. Go out for a drink with a friend you haven't seen in a while. Soak it all up while you live it up. It's going to be a great weekend with the potential to be a fantastic one. So.....LIVE IT UP.

That's all I've got for you peeps. Now stop reading this crap and go do something.

Munchies: Midnight Snack

Here's a little something to munch on suckas.

Cinnabons are awesome...correct?
Cereal is great too....right?
Well why not combine the two? Ok.

BAM! Welcome to the best thing since....ever: Cinnabon Cereal.
I rate it 4 out of 5 spoons.



This deliciousness is tough not to eat as a dessert, breakfast, lunch, and of course a midnight snack. It's actually a lot tastier than you might think. My big concerns with cereal are taste and crunchiness+milk. It tastes great. It takes much longer than most cereals to get soggy in milk. Plus it's multi-grain. That means the dozens of grams of sugar I'm taking in from it aren't that bad for me because the word "grain" means I'm being healthy! Right?

Don't care. I'm off to eat my midnight snack.

Fast Food is the Fast Track...

...to death.

I swear that after I first ate a KFC Double Down (and yes I got the crispy deep fried battered deliciousness and not the lame "healthy" grilled one) I thought I might die. And I don't mean the kind of "die because I'm so happy" kind of death. This was more of a "I had always hoped I'd die a quick death" feeling. It was surprisingly delicious though. How could cheese, bacon, and special sauce between 2 crispy chicken breasts not be tasty? Well after I realized this might be the end of me, I said a little prayer, and kept on eating the fatty goodness and sipping on my Mountain Dew.

Arby's curly fries: pure heaven? or artery clogging hell?! Medium curly fries are 540 calories and 29 grams of fat. Wait...it also has 6% of my daily value of Vitamin C?! Perfect. I'm being healthy.

The Hamburglar isn't just stealing your burgers...he's also stealing years of your life. At McDonald's my favorite thing is their strawberry milkshakes. I once got a large shake, drank the whole thing in 30 minutes, then proceeded to have what I call "dairy throat" afterward. Well, that large milkshake I had was a tiny 26 grams of fat....but don't worry it only has 2 grams of Trans Fat. That's the stuff that'll kill you. The other stuff is harmless. Right?

Lastly, let's make my old roommates feel terrible and knock out Wendy's. Of course we must analyze their favorite: The Baconator. Having any sort of "Terminator" nickname + bacon = a definite death...and one more Terminator play on words the world didn't need. Just throwing that equation out there. Archimedes said it. Anyways, their favorite burger, let's assume they got a Baconator Double, has 980 calories, 63 grams of fat, 1830 mg of sodium, but it's definitely good for you because if you're trying to bulk up after the gym it has 58 grams of protein. Screw protein shakes.

PS: In case you were wondering...KFC's Double Down is 0 grams of fat, -735 calories, and 0.00001 mgs of sodium. Trust me. I'm an expert.