Joseph C.'s Profile

Fox 31 has it's ups and downs as far as their news goes. I mean there is only so much I can take of Ron Zappolo and Libby Weaver chatting as if they're at some boring dinner party instead of actually reporting the news. I don't wish to hear your opinions after every single news story!

The sports department is horrible, Zubin and Josina just don't do sports they way it should be done. Though they're not as bad as a couple of other stations in the area of who I wont mention names (2 and 9) or should I say channel numbers.

Where Fox 31 has it going on is in the mornings. Peggy Bunker and Crystal Egger are definite eye candy and though I'm not a Fox 31 loyalist, they do make my mornings a little easier to get through before heading out to work. But this is of course after 7am and CBS4 has turned itself over to national morning shows. The entire morning cast, Ken, Shaul, Chris, etc on Fox 31 seem to be pretty down to earth and I like that. And let's not leave out that Dan Daru, he cracks me up!

Why is that every Mexican restaurant I go into that starts with "Las" or "Los" doesn't seem to live up to the idea of great Mexican food that is a little spicy. I went here two weeks ago on a Saturday night around 7pm and the place was nearly empty, which I wasn't expecting from what I had heard about this place. But because it was nearly empty it only raised my expectations on what I thought should have been good service. Service was decent. Our food came out right away as if all it took was a few punches on the microwave and "Bing!" dinner is now served. I understand that it's not rocket science to build a burrito, but at least allow me to want or anticipate my meal and what I might expect. I do give them points for including sour cream with my meal without me having to ask. I'm sorry but you should not even consider yourself a Mexican restaurant if I have to ask for sour cream, no matter what I order. Our waiter did come over once after presenting our meals to see if everything was OK and then we never saw him again until it we asked for the check. What?! No refill on my drink? Aside from what was bland food, you don't come by and offer to refill my drink or my glass of water? What kind of service is this?! Well it's one that I will certainly not pay for again at this place. Senor Ric's I'm coming home!!!

Count me in as a big fan of The Bent Fork! I had dinner here last evening and the reason I am a fan for one reason would be the atmosphere here  is simple and comfortable with a slight hint of sophistication but not in a snobbish sort of way. Dim lighting, dark furniture, with black and white photos lining the wall.

I started with the cream of mushroom soup as my starter and for the main dish I then decided on having the Rosemary Chipotle Lamb Shank with a glass of Martin Codax wine from Spain. The lamb was very tender and easy to separate from the bone with very little effort at all. The real reason I ordered this dish was for the vegetables. I know what you're thinking who orders a main dish just for the vegetables. Well I dont do it often but this time I had to. See I've never had lamb first of all before last night, and I was very happy with the lamb after all, but it was the butternut squash that I wanted to have more than anything, which was very very good.

The Bent Fork does a good job of not offering too many options with their menu and I like that as I always have a hard time trying to decide what I want to eat. Though I wasn't impressed with the slim pickings when it came time for dessert, so I opted for an Irish Coffee instead.
If I could ask for one thing for the Bent Fork to do would be to open a location downtown, then I could go here all the time.

I love AFW! They've gotten plenty of my business over the last few months and with good reason. The sales people are always there to answer your questions and are friendly and helpful. And they're not hounding you by following you around while you shop. They go about their business elsewhere and may return to see if you may have any questions. Prices and quality are other reasons I shop here. There is always a sale of some kind going on at AFW and with the enormous amount of inventory that they carry, you are sure to find something to match your tastes. AFW will always be first on my list when it comes to buying furniture!

Service.....good and fast.
Price..... great!
Food.....bland as hell.
Having to pay for a second basket of chips and salsa.....loco!

What can I say besides WOW!!! I had been looking for a new place for coffee, so this afternoon I decided to stop in here for a mocha and a bite to eat. I ordered a white mocha and a roast beef sandwich. The roast beef sandwich like all of their sandwiches cost around $8, but let me tell you that it was one of the best roast beef sandwiches I've ever had. First of all it is served on ciabatta bread and there is a special house dressing that is added to the sandwich which only added to the experience.

I usually order a white chocolate mocha when I go to Starbucks but what I got this afternoon at ink, was enough to make me forget about that other place. Great job ink!!! Starbucks may want to keep an eye out for the new kid on the block. If they keep this up, they too may be on every corner in every state!

Bagels, paninis, espressos...oh my!

I decided to try this place out as I was wanting something really light for lunch. First off I like the red walls when you first walk in. There are a couple of pieces of artwork on the walls. Along with a LCD TV in the right corner. I also noticed a huge map of Bulgaria up above the door behind the counter

The older gentleman behind the counter was a little difficult to understand as his English was not so great, but I can't hold that against him.

This place offers paninis, bagels, salads, wraps, and different types of coffees. I decided to try the Italian Combo Panini, which was very good  by the way. The panins here are round and the prices are reasonable as my panini was $6.99. Nice size, big enough for 2 people to share, but light enough for a single person to enjoy by themselves.

If there was a single thing that was not so good on this day it was that there was no ice in the fountain machine. So instead I decided only to have water in a complimentary cup. The other thing was when it was time for me to pay for my meal, the gentleman wasnt sure how to work the credit card machine. So he called in a life line and got it to work properly.

I really want to give them a higher rating. The food is good, there's a good variety of what they do offer, including pizzas. I will have to go back at a different time and see how the service is the next time around.

So I decided to stop in here Friday night to look at what Tommy has to offer as of late. Hilfiger is not my favorite designer as I have not shopped in a Hilfiger store in 8 or 9 years. So I didn't expect a lot from this visit honestly. First thing as I walked into the store there was customer service. And not the "I just walked onto the car lot and was swarmed by 10 salespersons type" either. Arianna was her name. She was busy working on a floorset and took the time to ask me if I needed any help. Those are always big points in my book when you take this step, not to mention it being a part of your job. I looked around and noticed a couple of things and decided that I would leave and possibly return later. When I did return Arianna assisted me with those few items and was eager to see that I had a dressing room if I needed one. Another associate also came to see if I was finding everything that I needed. Maybe a bad economy brings out the best customer service in people, but this kind of service felt more authentic than desperate.  I ended up leaving Tommy with 3 items and a good feeling for not only the bargains I left the store with, but also the eye opening experience I had as well. Thank you Arianna and the rest of the Hilfiger staff.

How often is it when you actually get something extra for free at a fast food joint because you had to wait for something you ordered that wasn't readily available at the time? Well it happened to me a few weeks ago. It was just a simple 2 orders of their 5-piece chicken nuggets. And because they didn't have any ready, I had to wait and when I finally got my order the staff person told me that they had given me an extra order because I had to wait. My first thought was "Wow!"

Now I didn't need another order of nuggets, but the fact that they gave me something for free that I didnt have to bitch and complain to someone for was a surprise to me. Dave Thomas would be proud of that type of customer service.

One of the worst McD's locations in the city. This one always has a bunch of vagrants seated at the tables who stare you down as you walk down 16th street like you stole something of theirs. Like they'd have something anyone would want to steal in the first place.

This location is one of the dirtiest I've ever been in anywhere in the country. The ATM machine wasn't working the morning I went in here a couple of weeks ago,...figures. Do yourself a favor and order your food and leave. You cant help but feel a bit uncomfortable eating in this place with dirty, hungry people with their beady eyes watching you as you bite into the double cheeseburger you waited so long for.