Why I love Austin, Reason #1

March 13, 2009 · Posted in Austin · 4 Comments 

BREAKFAST TACOS

Eggs, potatos and chorizo from Taco Shack

Cheap Eats: 25% off at New Outback Jacks in Northbridge

March 12, 2009 · Posted in Cheap Eats · 3 Comments 

Some of you may remember my battle with the 1 kilo of steak plus 1 kilo of wedges at Outback Jacks (if you eat it all, you get it for half price plus a free tshirt). Well, if you live in Perth, now you too can try their insane challenge on the cheap - even if if you fail, which you will - at their new restaurant in Northbridge, thanks to this nice ghetto email coupon that they sent me for 25% off the final bill, plus a free Corona for the challenger (like that will really help…). Of course, if the challenge doesn’t tickle your fancy, you can get anything else off their menu for 25% off too. It’s good until March 31, and I figure you can just print out as many as you want until then and go get fat on steak for the next two weeks. Good times.

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25% Discount Off total bill when this cut-out is presented. Please inform waitperson when ordering that you will be using this promotion when paying.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Offer is valid when details are completed on this coupon.

Name:_____________________________________________________________________

Address:___________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________Postal Code:_______________

Tel/Mobile:_________________________________________________________________

Email:_____________________________________________________________________

Thanks for Supporting Outback Jacks Northbridge.

Offer expiring 31st March 2009. This promotion cannot be used with other specials or promotions. Only meals will be discounted, alcoholic beverages are still at standard prices.

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Extreme Food Dating: Lava Stonegrill

March 9, 2009 · Posted in Extreme Food Dating, Locations, Perth, Australia · Comment 

A mere few blocks away from my old home in Mount Lawley there exists a restaurant where they bring you a stack of raw meat and a rock that was supposedly thrown out of an erupting volcano. This rock is heated to an insane temperature - hot enough to make your face sweat the entire meal - and delivered to you at your fancy white linen covered table so that you might cook your food upon it. Reservations are a must.

I had been curious about this place - the Lava Stonegrill - for a while. But it wasn’t quite quirky enough for Extreme Food Dating. It just sounded like a variation on Korean BBQ. Then, a friend of mine took some girl from the internet on a date there and liked it (and the date worked out well…). He reported back that they had along with the beef and chicken stacks of raw meat, they also had a game platter, featuring crocodile fillet, venison steak (although, I feel I must tell you that they promised me “venison” on the menu), wild boar and kangaroo steak, all served with a bush tomato chutney. Sold!

mostly cooked

For extra bonus fun points (but not intentionally), the date was scheduled to occur during a brief period when I was on a some rather innocuous medication that, despite its supposed innocuous nature, had the side effect of messing with my head (if you have ever tried old school anti-malarials, it was something like that, but more of the daytime weirdness and less of the sleeping weirdness).

So, the date started out well (at least it seemed so to my foggy brain). We arrived at the grill - it was packed and swanky and somehow fully stocked with hot gay waiters. Despite their hotness, these waiters kinda sucked at waiting in a timely fashion.

I mean really, how long does it take to prepare food that I cook myself?

This is something I’ve noticed that is annoyingly common with Perth cafes and restaurants. Even with no one else in the cafe, it often takes them a good 5 minutes to take the cookie out of a jar, put it in a bag and charge me for it. One time I waited 15 min just to get a pre-made sandwich warmed up.

As advertised, the plate of uncooked meat and a sizzling lava rock came with the tomato chutney, and some other delicious yet unidentified dip type thing. The waiter hurriedly told me what each piece of meat was, and then scurried away, and I immediately forgot what everything was, except for the one that looked like chicken (the rest were all red meat) - that one was crocodile. When I finally hailed the water down again to ask which meat was what, he claimed they had been reorganized and couldn’t tell me. So, my dear readers, I cannot give you much of a review of each meat, other than the crocodile tasted like chicken. Surprise.

This was $34. I had to order the steamed vegetables on the side - another $7.90. Some readers might remember the kilo of steak and kilo of chips I had at Outback Jack’s, all of which were a mere $36.

When I was done the cooking, I wanted the hot rock to go away because they made me feel like I was going through menopause. I’m not sure if this was from my crazy drugs or the heat of the sizzling plate before me. But either way, you can imagine its not so pleasant to have a sizzling hot rock cooking your face while you’re trying to enjoy your dinner.

All and all, overpriced and underserved. Also, more craziness next time please.

First Weird Drinks video review: Ginseng D!

March 6, 2009 · Posted in Weird Drinks · 3 Comments 


David C. Fono reviews the somewhat scary Ginseng D mystery drink.