Happy Birthday Crystal!!!

This was a busy weekend camping and then a birthday. My fiance' (I can call her that because we just recently got engaged) Cynthia sister Crystal celebrated her 30th birthday this weekend at the Matador on 8th street in downtown Boise http://matadorseattle.com/location/location-boise/ This resturant sports tequila and lots of it, most of it is top shelf and a shot will run you between $8 to $120 (I so wanted to order one just to see what a shot of tequila that was as much as my cable bill tasted like). I order a tequila flyer which for $16.50 you get three 1oz shots.

The food was fairly good nothing special actually nothing that you can't find in most Southwestern resturants in the Boise area. As my girl said "they are probably known more for the tequila bar rather than their food". I could have saved a lot of money going to a taco truck with a fifth of Jose' (jk).
After we left their we began our pub walk and went to The Lobby, a new bar that sits directly across from the Qwest Arena nothing real special here seems as though they are still trying to figure out in what direction the bar wants to move towards. After we spent about a half hour there we went to the Montego Bay. This is a dance club and I hvae not been to a dance club in FOREVER, and from what Cynthia told me my dance skills definatly show it, haha. I was doing the robot...thats not cool anymore? Next post will be about the camping trip and our engagement..ready those hanky's it's a tear jerker.

She is so beautiful even though I pissed her off in this picture!!

Cynthia, JoJo, and Crystal

If you look closely you can see Santa, he is on vacation in downtown Boise!!

Seattle Rock and Roll Marathon Part 2

Well my great friends decided that we needed to have a beer to celebrate Cynthia's completing her 3rd Marathon. So we decided on the very popular Naked City Brewery & Taphouse located 8564Greenwood Ave. N Seattle, Wa 98103. http://nakedcitybrewing.com/flash/#home this place was awesome. I had the pickled hops and if you have never had these, heard of these, or even contemplated eating "DO IT" It was definatly a suprise when they brought them out.

So good!!!

Enjoying 1 of many beers that night

Cynthia enjoying a Cider

The Naked City Taphouse has "Beer Can Racing" and all sorts of other events. So back to the afternoon. Lance his wife Miko and a friend I met that day named Mike tried in vain to go through as many of the beers as we could but unfortunalty we actually had to give up our ambitions when a tap went dead. Right before we were getting to leave Mike brought us all a gift.

A Naked City Growler Koozie

If you are in Seattle visit this place you will not reget it. the drive back was not as enjoyable as I had hoped but the gatoraid and water really help, haha.
As of late Cynthia and I are training for the City of Trees half marathon it should be great fun. I have too burn off some of this winter weight. After we come back from our camping trip we are going to hit up Kahootz Steak and Ale House http://gotokahootz.com/ I have not been here before but I have nothing but great things about it.
Remember if I see you out say HI and I will buy the first round of beers.

Seattle Rock and Roll Marathon Part 1

Ok I know I am not winning any awards for being the "Best Blogger" but hey I am back so at least you can't say that I am not inconsistant. I will try and be better about getting the word out about some of the places I have been too lately.
Cynthia and I took a trip to Seattle this month were she ran the Seattle Rock n Roll Marathon, being the supportive fiance that I am I ventured to a new venue the Pyramid Brewery.

It's very awe inspiring, huh?

The food here was fairly good but that was not the real reason I went, I wanted some brews fresh from the tap. Being in Boise Pyramid only comes from the store. I went with my nephew Niko while my brother and the girls enjoyed the Expo at the Convention Center. I went for a short wihle and even found something for me.

I even won a free shirt, my wardrobe is looking up, haha

Niko convinced me that he loves Hot Wings so I ordered us a plate and he took one bite began to drink his soda and proceeded to tell me that "I reall like these" I could totally tell that he was far from enjoying them but like a trooper he ate one more and called it quits.

Who could say no to that face?

Needless to say I had  about six of their seasonal drafts on tap and they were AMAZING!!! I would highly recommend the Pyramid Brewery not so much for the food but the atmosphere is pretty low key and people are nice. The service left a little to be desired but in all fairness it was busy because of the 26,000 runners that had poured into Downtown Seattle.

Me and the love of my life Pre-Race!!

Post Race and she finished with a time 4:07 very proud of her!

Well there is more to come so I don't want to Spoil it but...Naked City Brewery & Taphouse was the next stop in this adventure. My best friend Lance and his wonderful wife Miko were the best hosts.

I Know..I know..WTF?

I know it has been forever so here are a few of my new photos...enjoy!!

13th Street Pub & Grill

With a sunny and beautiful day Cynthia and I decided that lunch at Hyde Park was definatly in order. So we took the short trip down there and found the 13th Street Pub & Grill. Sitting outside I ordered a Brown Shugga Ale and sat back to soak up the sun and chat with my most favorite girl.

She is so beautiful huh?

Besides having a great beer I ordered the Prawn Caprese and Beef Skewers with an awesome horseradish sauce.


Very Yummy!!

 The atmosphere was friendly and out watress Yasemin was friendly and made us feel like we were the most important patrons she had. When you go ask to sit in her section she is awesome. As always if you see me there I will buy the first beer.

Yasemin and I

While enjoying the weather Cynthia was able to talk with another runner. Funny, that she can find runners anywhere.

Brown Shugga Ale (Cask too)

After lunch we did a little antique shopping and took the time to do an inprompt too photo shoot. Here are a few of my photos.

Retirement Beer

So with the end of one chapter another begins..ok,ok unless it's the end of the book. This weekend (actually the 1st of April) is my actual retirement day. After 21 1/2 years of military service I am actually going to be done. Now with that I am also getting ready to try my first batch of Czech Lager. I am really not to sure which one I am more excited about!!! So with that I will post pictures of the beer and of my first beer as a retired man....Ok all lets go get a beer!!

Pictures

An old Ice Cream Truck I found in Puyallup

Stadium High School in Tacoma Wa

A sunset at camp Ramrod in Afghanistan

The Harmon Resturant in Tacoma

Pictures of Mine

Taken in Squim, Washington

Northern State Mental Hospital

The Dairy at Northern State Hospital

Creepy!!

Bittercreek Brewery

We went to the Bittercreek brewery last weekend (sorry about the delay posting, work has been brutal) and it was fantastic. The last time I patronized Bitter creek was with my brother when he had come to visit me here in Boise about 3 years ago. We both loved it and I thought the Huckleberry Ale was to die for. I went back in the hopes that I would again be able to enjoy this libation. Unfortunately they were not serving that particular beer but they were saving some tasty ones that I was more than happy to try. What was great about the beer menu is it has the name of the beer, the name of the brewery and the distance the brewery is from Bittercreek. I will also list the same way, so the last number you see will be the distance the beer travelled to be in my hands. So here goes;
Big Creek Trappist, Sockeye Brewing, Boise, Idaho 4.4 miles (This is a very light beer and if you fill up on stouts like I did it is a great refreshing beer to enjoy)
Helldiver, Sockeye Brewing, Boise, Idaho 4.4 miles (If you like IPA's you will love this crisp hoppy beer)
Wyld, Organic Extra Pale Ale, Unita Brewing Company, Salt Lake City, Utah 340 miles (very, very, very light beer enjoyable for even the none beer drinker. Cynthia actually enjoyed the light and none overpowering characteristics of this beer.)
Hairy Eyeball, Lagunitas Brewing Company, Petaluma, California 640 miles (this beer is acutally VERY sweet, good beer but not really my style)
Cappuccino Stout, Imperial Stout, Lagunitas Brewing Company, Petaluma, California 640 miles ( I started with this beer and it was AWESOME. I never really liked Stouts but have slowly started warming up to them. This is a YUMMY choice)

This was how good my Cappuccino Stout was!!

If you are looking for a change from beer or have a significant other that enjoys mixed drinks Bittercreek also offers season drinks that include: Spring Flower (Vodka, St. Germain, Lemon, Orange bitters, and Sparkling Wine) or the Nui Nui (Gold Rum, Fresh Lime,Fresh Orange, Cinnamon-Vanilla Cordial). They also offer the more serious drinks no, seriously like the Smoking Gun (Laphroig 10yr, fernet, Brown Sugar Cordial, and Bitters) also the Teomixcurvatney, say that fast 3 times, actually say that fast once, haha (Bison Grass Vodka, Lillet Blanc, Flamed Lemon)

The service at Bittercreek was so awesome Emily our Waitress was very knowledgeable about each beer and was very friendly. The food was great I ordered the Mac and Cheese, this was not like Kraft but instead was made with Pepper Jack Cheese which added a little spice. How good is this when it accompanies some great beers!!! I hope I have made you want to go and try the Bittercreek Brewery because it was a great experience that also welcomes children until 10pm. Come visit and if you see me as always I will buy the first round.

Not your Mom's Mac and Cheese

I also brewed my first batch of Lager last weekend and will bottle it on the 18th. It smelled really good while the grains were boiling and when Cynthia's sister came over she thought I was making lunch..imagine her surprise when the answer was "No, he is brewing beer" haha. Here a few pictures;

The Mash

My batch..I will be happier to try it out in a few weeks.
I will let you know how it turns out.

Buffalo Wild Wings

So my new days off are Friday and Saturday, it works out great because Friday everyone else is working and I get to enjoy the most fantastic, great, spectacular, awesome and any other word I can use to describe my new place for Friday libations; Buffalo Wild Wings located at 3223 East Louise Drive Meridian, ID 83646-5073.

What to get? But the beers were definatly first!!

My angel and I decided we would check out the happy hour which goes from 2-6pm. I was amazed the appetizers were buy one get one free and if that is not enticing enough the beers are buy one get one free as well. They have trivia on the screens (my angel and I are addicted to the trivia in these places and often go out of our way to find places that have them) the competition was stiff but she pulled out the win. That is until someone else started playing..haha j/k baby.

My Angel..check out her Blog

Overall the experience was good, unfortunately our waitress left a little to be desired and seemed more interested in the two guys siting at the bar rather than me. I actually had to go to the bar and order and when my waitress returned to ask me if I would like another beer I had to tell her that I went ahead and ordered at the bar. Other than this the wings were fantastic and the ambiance of the place is great.
Go and enjoy folks and if your there on Friday look for me..this has now become our new Friday ritual and as always I will buy you a beer!!

This weekend I will be brewing a Lager so pictures to follow....

Happy Late Birthday Angel!!

I know I sure do! Well yesterday was my first and only day off this week (which explains why I have not posted any good beer places lately). So I decided to take my angel to the Olive Garden along with Ma and Pop Burton to celebrate her birthday though it was a month late. I missed her birthday last year because I was in Afhanistan and I missed her birthday this year because I was at the Peace Officer Standards and Training Academy her in Boise, while she was closing down our house in Tacoma. So I definatly owed her a good time.

Her Puppy Birthday cake..cute!!

She had a Strawberry Mango Margarita and I had a couple Blue Moons.

I must admit I did feel a little blue because I would have loved to have more. Lunch and service was AWESOME!! I really like the fact the staff take the time to check on you and ensure you are in fact having a good experience. Good Job Olive Garden!!!

Caprese bread appetizer

There will be more to follow so please don't ditch me yet. It will get better promise so here are some pictures for you to enjoy.

Brewforia

I went to Brewforia in Meridian yesterday  http://brewforia.com/ with the intention to try a few brews while my girlfriend travelled to Caldwell to spend time with her family. So I scooped up my best friend Darren and in the Camaro we went.  I felt privileged to be able to not only look at “Lola” but to actually rest my butt on her leather seats. 

Darren and "Lola". He's single girls.....

The ambiance of Brewforia is one of comfort and as my friend described it “like Starbucks, but with beer instead of coffee”. There was a small couch (the plastic chairs at the tables really need to be replaced with a few plush recliners or a Lazy-boy) in front of the fireplace and the smell of the craft bread baking made my stomach growl, I did not try it but it gives me a reason to back again.  The staff was friendly, helpful, and even brought me a few samples of the different beers on tap they really made the visit worthwhile. I had a pint of Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous brewed by the masterminds at the Stone Brewery Co http://www.stonebrew.com/sublimely/ in California, a dark beer that is awesome. My second pint was Great Divide Hades brewed by the Great Divide Brewing Co http://www.greatdivide.com/ Go to Brewforia today and I guarantee you that you will have a great experience, If not I will buy you a beer.  

The taplist..

Darren enjoying a Franziskaner Weissbier

Two for home...

Rick's Press Room Grill & Bar

This afternoon’s adventure landed me and the family at Rick’s Press Room Grill & Bar 130 East Idaho Street in Meridian, Idaho.

 It was not what I had expected a rather small place that could have passed as a little store much like the ones that surrounded it. I guess I had assumed that this place was going to be as big as the press it has been receiving. Featured on Guy Fieri's "Diners, Drive-ins, & Dives" this little restaurant packs a heck of a punch when it comes to taste and service. We ordered the Fried Rock Shrimp, Served with Rick's Chile, Garlic Sauce & Homemade Celery Slaw to start out with and let me tell you the Celery Slaw is to die for. My girlfriend is not a mayonnaise fan but she absolutely loved the Celery Slaw with fresh dill over the top. I ordered the Press Room Burger which is a 6 oz. fresh ground beef served with two of the following: Cheese, sun dried tomato pesto, roasted bell peppers, pepperoncini’s, and a fried egg. Yes, I got the fried egg to the amazement of my lunch party…let me tell you it was amazing. The first bite allowed the yolk to intermix with the hamburger meat and fused it together in a cheesy goodness…I am drooling just thinking about it. 

This is so yummy!!!

 I accompanied this with a Manny’s Pale Ale with the slight bitterness of the beer, the warm goodness of the hamburger made this lunch a dream.

Here's to you Ma (Marge) and Pop (Bob)

When you look around the restaurant you see many comments on the wall written in black sharpie that announced the patron’s favorite meal and complemented the salmon, the desert, or the Rueben (I am going back to try the much touted Reuben). The service was a one woman show and she did an amazing job as waitress and bartender. I would recommend this place to everyone living or passing through the great state of Idaho.
After lunch my girlfriend took me to the Brewforia Beer Market on Overland Street

where the selection of beers both foreign and domestic will make the mouth water. They have about 5 beers on tap from what I could see. The furnishings are sparse and there are only about 4 seats at the counter but that will not hinder me from making my return to try some of the beers on tap. I picked up 2 beers to enjoy at my friend Darren’s House and am letting the chill before I break open the cap on these.

So kids the moral of this story is GO TO RICK’S and after you eat you can than me for the splendid experience.
Beer to try today is the St Peter’s Golden Ale which is brewed in Suffolk, U.K. Made with traditional malts and English hops creating a distinctive golden ale with a delicate, fresh, grainy after taste.

Thank you to my photographer the lovely Cynthia!!!