I have blogged about Tahoe and San Fran before, but I hit up a couple more spots on this trip so I thought that I would share my thoughts on them. The 10 day adventure out west included 6 days in Tahoe and 4 in San Fran. I got into Tahoe late on Friday night and stayed at Harrah's for the first time. It was a very nice hotel, with much larger rooms than Harvey's across the street. The rate that we got was excellent at $84 per night + tax. It's definitely the nicest of the casinos within the South Lake Tahoe area. Our first dinner of the trip was at New York Pizza on the Nevada side. The pizza was big and very meaty, which is very appealing to me. It had good flavor and was the best pizza that I've had in my 4 trips to the Tahoe area. Breakfast on day 3 consisted of Chicken Fried Chicken with biscuits and gravy and scrambled eggs at Cecil's. It was called country gravy, but was nothing like what we have here in the south. It was a good breakfast for the West Coast, but I would recommend Cracker Barrel to anyone that really wants a Southern Breakfast. Other stops on the Tahoe part of the trip included some fast food and a trip to Applebee's and Hard Rock, both of which were pretty crappy. The food at Northstar at Tahoe was marginal. The burger was terrible (tasted like the soy burgers that you would get in elementary school) but the Rosemary & Garlic Fries were very good. Barbecue (Beef Brisket) at the 360 degree smokehouse at Sierra was very good and was probably the best ski resort food that I have had. I have officially taken Heavenly off of my list for ski destinations as there is way too much flat ground. It is simply a pain in the ass for a snowboarder to have to skate across the flat terrain all day. I spent much more energy taking my board on and off along with the skating than I did actually boarding down the mountain. I think I was able to convince my dad and step mom to take it off their list as well which made the trip a resounding success. Northstar at Tahoe is a nice little resort on the north side of the lake. It doesn't have the vertical drop that some of the others in the area have, but for those that like a terrain park and blue runs, this is the place to go. Sierra at Tahoe remains my favorite of the mountains that I have boarded in the Tahoe area. We also got 6 days of fresh powder which was very, very nice.
After, 6 days of boarding in Tahoe, it was off to San Francisco for Valentine's Weekend with Caroline. I made a short trip out to Point Reyes National Seashore before getting into San Francisco. It was almost dark when I got there, but from what I could see, it is definitely a place that I would like to return to. The lighthouse was closed when I got there, but the view along the coast was priceless. I saw a ton of deer, a fox, a rabbit and lots of cows in the 20 or so minutes that I was there. The drive down Hwy 1 from Point Reyes to San Fran is a slow one and would probably be gorgeous in the daytime, but I couldn't see anything except for all of the curves. Meal #1 after picking up Caro from the airport was In N Out and it was nothing short of spectacular. I made my typical morning stop at Stella's Pastries on Friday and Saturday. We had lunch at Scoma's (Fisherman's Wharf) for a dungeness crab on Friday afternoon. At $26, it was very reasonably priced. Dinner was at Rogue Public Ale House for a Kobe Beef Burger (still the best burger that I have ever had). The beers were very good, Double Dead Guy, I2PA and Triple Jump IPA. There were also some very bad beers Menage Frog, Bullfrog Ale and a couple of others. Lunch on Saturday came by way of a recommendation from Guy Fieri. We went to Tommy's Joynt for a sandwich. The sandwiches were very good with freshly carved meats (roast beef, ham, turkey, brisket and several others). Caroline chose the Ham and I chose the BBQ Beef Brisket. Her side of choice was cole slaw, while mine was mashed potatoes. I ate all of mine and was quite miserable afterwards due to the amount of food that they give you. It was $19 for both of our meals which I considered an excellent price. I will definitely make a return trip the next time I go out. Valentine's Dinner included a trip to Trattoria Contadina, a small Italian restaurant at Mason and Union. The food was very good (better than Calzone's). I had a Gnocchi pasta with a tomato cream sauce and grilled chicken. Caro had some kind of meatball with marinara type of pasta. She enjoyed it, but even the small size was more than she could eat. The fresh sourdough bread with olive oil is a great starter, along with the Clams and Mussels in a white wine sauce. The prices are very reasonable as 2 appetizers, 4 or 5 drinks and 2 entrees was just under $100. I will make a return trip and try out some of the other dishes on the menu on my next San Francisco trip.
Once again, the food and beer options that San Fran has to offer are unmatched by many cities in the states. The culture and overall beauty, along with the food and beer keep it at the top of my list of favorite US Cities with Portland, New York, Denver and New Orleans rounding out the top 5.
Monday, February 16, 2009
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Tempe, AZ
UGA vs. ASU on September 20th, the Bulldogs first trip outside the southeast for a regular season game in about 50 years and there was no way I was going to miss this one. I flew into Vegas for some work and made the 5 hour drive down to Tempe with a trip across the Hoover Dam and through the desert of Arizona. I was expecting a little more scenery from the drive, but was a little disappointed. There were a lot of saguaro cacti and small Joshua trees along the way, but that was about it. When I got into Tempe, I stayed just off campus at a small 4 Points by Sheraton. The hotel was very nice as it had just opened. The place was full of other Dawg fans that had made the trip from across the country. The bar of choice on the trip was the Library, check the website. Its basically a bar/restaurant with very scantily clad women. The beer choices were average with your typical beers on tap and in the bottle. The food was pretty good with your typical bar food. The burgers were good as was the appetizer sampler with the beef sliders. The main attraction at the Library is not the food, its not the drinks, its simply the girls. Other bars that we checked out were Zuma and Gordon Biersch, both of which are located along Mill Avenue. Zuma was more upscale than the Library. Gordon Biersch is your typical Gordon Biersch with good food and great beers on tap. The strategy of drinking one glass of water for every 1 to 2 beers is probably a wise one. I didn't use that strategy the first night and paid for it dearly the next day as I laid in bed for most of the day after trying to venture across campus when it was 100 degrees outside. Gameday was much more successful for me as I practiced this strategy the night before and throughout the day. The Tempe heat is nothing to mess with. Sun Devil Stadium is a pretty nice stadium, but fails in comparison to many of the SEC Stadiums that I have been to. The game was a lot of fun though as it was one of the few games that we actually came to play in during the 2008 season. We capped off the trip with a stop at In-N-Out Burger for a Double-Double with Cheese and some fries.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
Road Trip 2008
It's been a while as I had a busy end to my year with all of the crappy football that UGA played throughout the fall. The baseball road trip of 2008 was simply awesome. Me and 7 friends started out in Atlanta and made our way up the east coast with stops in Washington DC, Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York and Boston to catch 6 different baseball games in 6 different stadiums in 6 days. Based on that I guess you can figure out that most of our time was either spent in the well equipped mini van that we drove or at one of the 6 stadiums that we visited.
Game #1 on the trip was in Baltimore for the Orioles and Rangers. For those that have not been to Baltimore, they have done an amazing job with the area around the stadiums (Oriole Park at Camden Yards and MB&T Stadium Home of the Ravens). There are several bars that surround the stadiums and the stadiums sit near the inner harbor. Prior to departing for the road trip, we had Indians jerseys made with the names of several of the characters from the movie Major League. For this trip, we had Roger Dorn, Rick Vaughn, Jake Taylor, Rube Baker, Pedro Cerrano, Lou Brown and Willie Mays Hays. The jerseys were a big hit at most of the bars that we hit up on the trip. We stopped at a bar just across the street from Oriole Park in Baltimore and I am almost certain the name was Pickles Pub. We all had several drinks before heading over to the game. Oriole Park is probably my second favorite stadium that I have been to thus far (behind Coor's Field). The layout is great and there doesn't appear to be a bad seat in the Stadium. Pickles was the only bar we hit in Baltimore, but I highly recommend it to anyone that will be attending an Orioles game in the near future.
Game #2 on our trip took us to Philadelphia and Citizens Bank Park. After a quick stop at Jim's Steaks in South Philly (Best Cheesesteak in Town) and quick pose with the Rocky Statue, we made our way to the Stadium. I had been to Citizens Bank last October for the playoff series against the Rockies and the atmosphere was very similar this time around as the Mets were in town. We had seats in the upper deck behind home plate. We made friends with the guys sitting behind us and that turned out to be a great idea as they had brought in a flask of Ketel One. The game was extra long due to a rain delay that happened late in the game. After the game, we made our way down to the bar that is attached to the stadium, McFadden's. It is a very cool bar and is great place to grab a drink after the game while the traffic dies down. I honestly don't remember a whole lot about it due to the fact that the Ketel One started to kick in at this point. Based on conversations with other folks in the group, its a must stop for those attending a Phillies Game. Other highlights of Citizens Bank include the Cheesesteak concessions out in Right Center Field. Both Tony Lukes and Pats have Concessions at the stadium.
Game #3 required a stop in the Bronx for the Yankees and Red Sox. We stayed in Manhattan and hit up a couple of the bars in the Times Square area, none of which that I would really recommend to anyone traveling up there. We did make a stop at Lombardi's Pizza, the oldest Pizzeria in the U.S. prior to our trip up to the Bronx. The pizza was very good, but is still a distant 2nd to John's on Bleecker. There are a couple of other locations including one in Times Square at 8th and 44th. As for the game, we caught a good one as the Yankees came from behind to beat the Red Sox. As for the stadium itself, its probably a good thing that they are tearing it down because the place is definitely showing its age. The $10 beers are also a little steep for my budget, but I did have one. It was nice getting to experience Yankee Stadium in its final season. I am very much looking forward to the new stadium and hope to get by there sometime this summer.
Game #4 came at historic Fenway Park in Boston. We stayed at the Westin Boston Waterfront and ate at a seafood restaurant that was not far from there. The seafood restaurant was worse than Captain D's or Long John Silvers. I can't remember the name of the place but its near the Waterfront and most the seafood is broiled. After dinner we made our way to Fenway. We had one of our seats located behind one of the famous poles that sit throughout the stands at Fenway, obstructing the view of most of the field. Aside from that, there are very few sporting experiences like a baseball game at Fenway. I had a Fenway Frank, wasn't quite as good as I had expected, but it was still a solid hot dog. After singing Sweet Caroline and watching the end of the game, we made our way over to the Cask & Flagon, voted the #1 Baseball Bar in America and I would have to agree with them. We arrived just before 11, about 1 hour before the celebration of my 25th birthday. We met some very nice people and had several drinks with our new friends. It was a great way to kickoff the celebration of my 25th. I definitely recommend the Cask & Flagon for anyone going to a Bo Sox game.
Game #5 (My 25th Birthday) had us back in New York for a game between the Mets and Giants at Shea Stadium. Shea Stadium is one of my least favorite stadiums that I have been to. The place is a dump, has airplanes flying overhead at all time, the Mets play there and there is a lot of orange throughout. None of which excite me a whole lot. We did tailgate on the train while we made our way out to Queens for the game. After departing the dump known as Shea, we made our way down to Little Italy for my favorite italian meal, Lobster Fettucini at Il Cortile. It would have to be considered one my Top 3 Restaurants in the Country. The food is excellent, the beer is good (Peroni is offered) and the atmosphere is special. After a wonderful meal, we made our way to McSorley's, one of the oldest pubs in NYC. They offer two kinds of beer, light and dark. They are both cask ales which means there is no carbonation. This allows for a much smoother beer and allows you to drink them much faster which can be good and bad. Its good in the sense that you typically will develop a buzz faster, but bad in the sense that they aren't cheap. It costs $9 for two 10 oz mugs which are about 50%-75% full. The server brings them to the table about 10 to 20 at a time. Cash only accepted at this place, so don't go in with a card. Know what you want when you are ordering and in most cases, you will be sat with other people that you don't know. Its a good way to meet people and in most cases, the folks that you meet are very entertaining. This was the conclusion to my 25th Birthday which turned out to be a very good one.
Game #6 was our final stop of the trip and it was along the Potomac in Washington DC at the new Nationals Ballpark. The ballpark was very nice and relatively empty as they are one of the worst teams in baseball. There are supposed to be considerable renovations to the surrounding areas that will give the stadium and surrounding areas a much needed improvement for gameday atmosphere. When in DC, make a stop at Old Ebbits Grill for excellent food and drinks at a place that has been around since the mid 1850's. It also has a great location near the White House. I have not had the opportunity to try any other pubs or breweries in the DC area, so if you have some that you recommend, please let me know.
After the game, we had an overnight drive back to the ATL. The trip was a fantastic one with a whole lot of driving, a whole lot of baseball and quite a few frosty beverages. 2009 will not see a baseball road trip, but it should be back on in 2010 with the midwest looking like the likely destination.
Game #1 on the trip was in Baltimore for the Orioles and Rangers. For those that have not been to Baltimore, they have done an amazing job with the area around the stadiums (Oriole Park at Camden Yards and MB&T Stadium Home of the Ravens). There are several bars that surround the stadiums and the stadiums sit near the inner harbor. Prior to departing for the road trip, we had Indians jerseys made with the names of several of the characters from the movie Major League. For this trip, we had Roger Dorn, Rick Vaughn, Jake Taylor, Rube Baker, Pedro Cerrano, Lou Brown and Willie Mays Hays. The jerseys were a big hit at most of the bars that we hit up on the trip. We stopped at a bar just across the street from Oriole Park in Baltimore and I am almost certain the name was Pickles Pub. We all had several drinks before heading over to the game. Oriole Park is probably my second favorite stadium that I have been to thus far (behind Coor's Field). The layout is great and there doesn't appear to be a bad seat in the Stadium. Pickles was the only bar we hit in Baltimore, but I highly recommend it to anyone that will be attending an Orioles game in the near future.
Game #2 on our trip took us to Philadelphia and Citizens Bank Park. After a quick stop at Jim's Steaks in South Philly (Best Cheesesteak in Town) and quick pose with the Rocky Statue, we made our way to the Stadium. I had been to Citizens Bank last October for the playoff series against the Rockies and the atmosphere was very similar this time around as the Mets were in town. We had seats in the upper deck behind home plate. We made friends with the guys sitting behind us and that turned out to be a great idea as they had brought in a flask of Ketel One. The game was extra long due to a rain delay that happened late in the game. After the game, we made our way down to the bar that is attached to the stadium, McFadden's. It is a very cool bar and is great place to grab a drink after the game while the traffic dies down. I honestly don't remember a whole lot about it due to the fact that the Ketel One started to kick in at this point. Based on conversations with other folks in the group, its a must stop for those attending a Phillies Game. Other highlights of Citizens Bank include the Cheesesteak concessions out in Right Center Field. Both Tony Lukes and Pats have Concessions at the stadium.
Game #3 required a stop in the Bronx for the Yankees and Red Sox. We stayed in Manhattan and hit up a couple of the bars in the Times Square area, none of which that I would really recommend to anyone traveling up there. We did make a stop at Lombardi's Pizza, the oldest Pizzeria in the U.S. prior to our trip up to the Bronx. The pizza was very good, but is still a distant 2nd to John's on Bleecker. There are a couple of other locations including one in Times Square at 8th and 44th. As for the game, we caught a good one as the Yankees came from behind to beat the Red Sox. As for the stadium itself, its probably a good thing that they are tearing it down because the place is definitely showing its age. The $10 beers are also a little steep for my budget, but I did have one. It was nice getting to experience Yankee Stadium in its final season. I am very much looking forward to the new stadium and hope to get by there sometime this summer.
Game #4 came at historic Fenway Park in Boston. We stayed at the Westin Boston Waterfront and ate at a seafood restaurant that was not far from there. The seafood restaurant was worse than Captain D's or Long John Silvers. I can't remember the name of the place but its near the Waterfront and most the seafood is broiled. After dinner we made our way to Fenway. We had one of our seats located behind one of the famous poles that sit throughout the stands at Fenway, obstructing the view of most of the field. Aside from that, there are very few sporting experiences like a baseball game at Fenway. I had a Fenway Frank, wasn't quite as good as I had expected, but it was still a solid hot dog. After singing Sweet Caroline and watching the end of the game, we made our way over to the Cask & Flagon, voted the #1 Baseball Bar in America and I would have to agree with them. We arrived just before 11, about 1 hour before the celebration of my 25th birthday. We met some very nice people and had several drinks with our new friends. It was a great way to kickoff the celebration of my 25th. I definitely recommend the Cask & Flagon for anyone going to a Bo Sox game.
Game #5 (My 25th Birthday) had us back in New York for a game between the Mets and Giants at Shea Stadium. Shea Stadium is one of my least favorite stadiums that I have been to. The place is a dump, has airplanes flying overhead at all time, the Mets play there and there is a lot of orange throughout. None of which excite me a whole lot. We did tailgate on the train while we made our way out to Queens for the game. After departing the dump known as Shea, we made our way down to Little Italy for my favorite italian meal, Lobster Fettucini at Il Cortile. It would have to be considered one my Top 3 Restaurants in the Country. The food is excellent, the beer is good (Peroni is offered) and the atmosphere is special. After a wonderful meal, we made our way to McSorley's, one of the oldest pubs in NYC. They offer two kinds of beer, light and dark. They are both cask ales which means there is no carbonation. This allows for a much smoother beer and allows you to drink them much faster which can be good and bad. Its good in the sense that you typically will develop a buzz faster, but bad in the sense that they aren't cheap. It costs $9 for two 10 oz mugs which are about 50%-75% full. The server brings them to the table about 10 to 20 at a time. Cash only accepted at this place, so don't go in with a card. Know what you want when you are ordering and in most cases, you will be sat with other people that you don't know. Its a good way to meet people and in most cases, the folks that you meet are very entertaining. This was the conclusion to my 25th Birthday which turned out to be a very good one.
Game #6 was our final stop of the trip and it was along the Potomac in Washington DC at the new Nationals Ballpark. The ballpark was very nice and relatively empty as they are one of the worst teams in baseball. There are supposed to be considerable renovations to the surrounding areas that will give the stadium and surrounding areas a much needed improvement for gameday atmosphere. When in DC, make a stop at Old Ebbits Grill for excellent food and drinks at a place that has been around since the mid 1850's. It also has a great location near the White House. I have not had the opportunity to try any other pubs or breweries in the DC area, so if you have some that you recommend, please let me know.
After the game, we had an overnight drive back to the ATL. The trip was a fantastic one with a whole lot of driving, a whole lot of baseball and quite a few frosty beverages. 2009 will not see a baseball road trip, but it should be back on in 2010 with the midwest looking like the likely destination.
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