Mark "Shoehead" E.'s Profile

My friend Angie treated  me to what she promised would be the best burger in Kansas City, and to my surprise (being the burger connoisseur I am) I believe Hayes Hamburger & Chili delivered! A fantastic patty, topped with grilled onions, cooked perfectly, and complimented by a side of crispy onion rings! Perhaps one of the highlights of my experince here in Kansas City, We were served by a guy named James, who was as friendly as can be. He turned an already awesome burger into a great dinig experience. I'd recommend this place to anyone!

I'd been seeing this cute little burger stand (And it's identical twin three blocks away) since I arrived in Kansas City, and kept saying to myself, "I need to try it!" Well, finally, last night I had the opportunity.
Basically, it's a standard diner burger. The grilled onions on it were fantastic, and it was cooked a little bit to well for me, but it was excellent! Good size, great flavor. I had onion rings and friends which were just OK, but the burger made up for it. In all its greasy goodness, the burger did not disappoint.
I'll definitely be back.
OH, I almost forgot about the shake. A perfect, hand-made rich chocolate shake, like I'd just stepped into a time machine into the 1950's. I could go here for the shake alone!

A great place. Of course, being right across the street from my house, I may be a little biased. (Having a convenience store right across the street is very convenient!) They have cold beer, including "loosies" in ice bins right by the checkout! The staff is awesome, and honestly, it's a fun little place. Tiny complaint-- they don't have Redbox, they have this Blue Box movie rental... Hmmm Otherwise, four SOLID stars, and if I'm in a good mood, five! :)

I forgot to mention that SB stands for "Sketchy Broad's". Almost willing to kick in that half a star for that alone. We'll just wait and see...

I just LOVE Green Eggs and Ham! I do, I do, oh Sam I Am... When I saw them on the menu, I couldn't order anything else. The "green" part of the eggs was the yummy basil pesto sauce. So I had scrambled eggs, a nice grilled piece of thick ham, and pesto with home potatoes. it was excellent! It came accompanied by a slice of homemade green chili cheese bread. My friend Melissa Chambers of EXIT HORIZONS REALTY (Let her find you the perfect house!) had a great omelet. one of those "make-your-own" types when you choose your ingredients. It was very nice as well.
The place has a great atmosphere, very friendly and comfortable. Our server was a cool young lady named Eve, and she was attentive and cheerful. We've attempted to dine here before, and usually we'd be in a hurry and the wait was too long for us. As we finally made it to dine here, it was definitely worth the anticipation. i'll definitely be back. Their lunch menu looked very appealing, so i'll Yelp that as well!

OK, I try not to just toss out 5 star ratings like Halloween candy, but 3 simple words clinched it for Isaac's-- DUCK FAT FRIES. Oh, yeah! Leave your "Eat This, Not That" book in the car, and step in for a serving of the yummiest plate of fries imaginable!
Isaac's is a great little Old West-style saloon/restaurant, in the cute, quaint, funky/quirky/artsy little town of Silver City. As my good friend Melissa Chambers (Of EXIT Horizons Realty, Las Cruces--Let her find just the right home for you! ***She paid for the meal. Will work for food!***) and I dined here, most of the clientele were watching the Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers thwart their final challengers to Super Bowl glory. The was a nice-sized TV at the main bar, and a giant-screen theater-style lounge in the back, filled with fans.  The entire atmosphere, football-mania aside, was friendly and comfortable.
We had a great waitress; friendly and attentive. The menu was upscale bar fare. Melissa and I were both drawn to the bison burgers; hers with swiss cheese, mine with swiss and sauteed onions and mushrooms. Both were accompanied by the aforementioned duck fat fries. Everything was a delight! The burgers were outstanding, the fries delivered on their promise. It truly was an excellent, even remarkable meal.
I enjoyed Silver City so much, that I plan to visit regularly, and Isaac's will be a frequent stop as well!

KFC, is basically KFC. I've long been a fan of its greasy goodness. And I don't think people need my Yelp to form or even sway their own opinions about Colonel Sanders' tasty legacy.
BUT, I'm dedicating today's Yelp to the new Double Down sandwich. Like they did some years past with their Classic Bowls, the KFC research and development team seems to have reached into my very epicurean soul and created exactly the right item for me yet once again!
This particular item seems to have its genesis in an R&D guy saying, "What if we just used 2 chicken breasts instead of the bun???" And voilá... The Double Down came to be!
Let's get down to it. There's really not much to be said. 2 strips of bacon, cheese, and some kind of yummy sauce between two KFC breasts. To give the product review, I really don't have much to add to that. But it was AWESOME down to its last yummy, greasy bite!
I will definitely have another as soon as possible! Kudos, KFC! The Colonel would be proud!

Downshift into waddle, it's another buffet!
Unlike most of my previous Yelps in Las Cruces, this was not an eagerly awaited visit. Golden Corral, to me,  has always been, well... Golden Corral--mediocre, hit-or-miss buffet-style comfort food for when you need cheap fuel, and your body's grease level is somewhat depleted. (I.e. hangover)  Today's visit was possibly the result of a residual hangover, since I didn't drink last night, but did consume perhaps a gallon or two of rum the night before. However the reasoning, Golden Corral was the suggested fare with which to start the day, and there we have it... I did make the mistake of not wearing sweatpants, or other adjustable-waist "comfy-pants" to this venue, but otherwise the overall experience was exactly what I'd expected from Corral D'oro...
The food was, true to its consistency, hit-or-miss. I did pile my plate ridiculously full, because I did arrive famished. The eggs were OK, the bacon was OK; I had two mini-quiche that were pretty good, both spinach AND bacon/cheese. The CFS was disgustingly delicious (Country-fried Steak, for the uninitiated), and there was a potato/bacon/cheese casserole that was pretty darn good! Come to think of it, as I write this review a full four hours after my visit; the food coma having worn off, pretty much everything on my plate the first buffet round was some sort of potato/cheese amalgamation. I also had some pretty good bacon strips (is it actually possible to screw those up?) and some uninspiring sausage-- a trifecta of link, smoked, and patty. Greasy mediocrity, at its mediocre best!
One thing I can say about the place is that there's a ton of variety. There were stations my quickly-quenched appetite didn't give me opportunity to explore. I missed the Mexican section, but my perusal offered me a look at some nice looking tamales, and intriguing enchiladas. I also didn't partake of the salad station, though the offerings looked decent (excepting the shrimp, which looked like a bowlful of salmonella).
Overall, the offerings of this establishment were filling, and unremarkable. One station that did stand out as sucking was the maple section--pancakes, French toast, et al... Just cold, rubbery and tired.  As mentioned before, my visit was not terrible. I managed to gluttonize myself into a waddling stupor, and made it home just in time as the carbs burned off and I fell into a happy slumber...
Will I be back? LOL, what do you think?
Oh, yeah-- Lest I leave out the staff was very friendly and attentive. In fact, because of them I'm bumping up my 2 stars to three.

This was one of the first nightspots I went to upon my arrival in Las Cruces. I attended the Hatch Chili Festival the same afternoon, and sampled in the beer tent High Desert's Peach Lager, and it was amazing! Not overly peachy, but a great full-bodied lager with a nice peach finish. It was a refreshing treat from the commercial domestics that are the usual offerings in festival beer tents. By chance we sat next to the nicest couple visiting from Minnesota in the beer tent. As we struck up a conversation, we all decided to meet later on back in Las Cruces at the High Desert.
So, that evening the four of us got a nice outdoor table on their patio. Most of us ordered the Peach Lager, which was just as refreshing as our afternoon festival beers. I also tried their IPA (one of my favorite all-time beers, and my measuring standard for brewpubs and microbreweries). Their IPA did not disappoint! A nice clean, yet slightly hoppy taste, with a great finish. So far, so good.
We all ordered food, and I had a most excellent mushroom and Swiss burger. I'm a huge cheeseburger fan, and amongst the plethora of cheeseburgers I consume in the course of my life, I can tell you that as I'm writing this review six weeks after my visit, this was a standout burger. I still think about how awesome this burger was. Coupled with sweet potato fries, this was as good as any fine dining establishment burger, and I was employing it as bar food. To that I give major kudos to the chef and kitchen staff.
Our waiter was a cool, fun guy and very attentive. In the next room, a band was beginning to set up as we drank, dined, and drank. The crowd on the patio was lively and friendly. It was a great atmosphere to entertain our new Minnesota friends. Most importantly, I think it helped to give a great impression of Las Cruces that they'll take back with them. AND, when they decide to move to Las Cruces, my good friend Melissa Chambers of EXIT Realty Horizons can sell them a house! (Shameless plug, I know, but Melissa promised me another of these awesome cheeseburgers to put it in here. Will work for food!)
I'll definitely come back, in fact, I look forward to my next return to High Desert Brewing Co. In fact, if my next visit or two is as good as the impression I got from the first visit, i might even come back and give them that fifth star!

Being both a coffee lover (addict?) and a huge fan of boho-style coffee shops, this was an anticipated stop since my friend Melissa C took me to Mesilla the first time. This morning's visit, however wasn't about the coffee. We were starving, and wanted some gourmet-style food in this earthy-chic atmosphere. All about the food, baby!
First off, "The Bean" has, for the past 10 years, been my clique's nickname for The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, the Starbucks knock-off chain almost as ubiquitous in Los Angeles as Starbucks. So I couldn't help but make an association. But this is nothing like LA's "Bean"-- very hippy-dippy and laid back.
I also loved the fact that it occupies a former gas station/ repair garage. For some reason I always love to dream up new uses for old gas stations every time I see one. The Bean even retained the old gas pump canopy , which now covers a fantastic stone patio. The entire atmosphere is friendly and comfortable.
The lunch items we ordered (actually from their breakfast menu) arrived. I'd ordered an omelet with pesto, ham and Swiss cheese. Melissa ordered an omelet with ham, tomato, onion, and Swiss. When the food arrived, Melissa tried in vain to locate her Swiss cheese, to no avail. We surmised that the menu stated 3 items per omelet, so they probably denied her that fourth item. Just a guess. They also didn't have any ketchup for our home fries, but they did provide some salsa. The omelets were both very good, cheese omission aside. My pesto omelet was excellent, however; a nice flavor mix with the Swiss and the ham. (I was lucky enough to find Swiss cheese in my omelet.)
Having drank about a pot of coffee prior to the visit to the Bean, I opted for iced tea. Melissa did try a cup of "Mississippi Malabar" or "Meringue Malabar" or "Mustachio Malabar", or something like that. It was a nice flavorful coffee, I'm imagining, before Melissa put in all that cream and sugar.
Overall, I really enjoyed the food, as well as the vibe at Mesilla's "Bean". I definitely think I'll come back, and I'd recommend this place to anyone who likes a nice coffee-house atmosphere, and doesn't like ketchup.