Esteban "The bottomless pit" P.'s Profile

First of all, they really do live up to their name.  This lil hot pink truck with flames and spinner hubs is pretty Sweet, and full of Sweets too.

This is the first cupcake truck I've bumped into, so I was excited.  They were unfortunetly running low on Sweets during my first encounter.  I picked up an original Whoopie Pie and a Chocoloate Cupcake.  I ate the Whoopie Pie myself, but shared the Cupcake.  They both have a mild sweetness, which is nice that it's not all sugar, but I favored the Whoopie Pie more.  Some people have complained that Whoopie Pies are dry, but that's by design.  They are not moist spongy cupcakes, they are two rounded halves of sugary bread surrounding whoopie creamy goodness.  They wouldn't even taste good if they were make like cupcakes, not to mention they'd be a bit messy to eat.

Since my first visit, I "Liked" them on Facebook and am able to track their whereabouts, as well as sales and new items.  You can also "Follow" them on Twitter.

On my last visit I picked up a Red Velvet Cupcake and a Red Velvet Whoopie Pie.  The cupcake was just ok - I think it needed a bit more sweetness to it - but the Whoopie Pie was great.  I guess I'm a Whoopie Pie guy (woe, that rhymes!).  The Whoopie Pie did have distinct chocolate taste unlike the cupcake.  Give em both a try and let me know what you think.  I think I'm just hard on red velvet since my I haven't found anyone that makes it better than my friend does.

So yes I'm a fan, and so long as they are in close proximity to where I am, I'm sure I'll find them.  I'll probably only stick with the sales though, because the goods are a bit over priced if you ask me.

What can I say that everyone else hasn't all ready? Hmmmm.... probably nothing, so this will mostly be for my friends on Facebook since I share my reviews there.

Hey friends! GO GET PIE HERE!  That is all.  :)

Seriously though, as many others, I'm in love with the Hoosier Sugar Creme Pie.  This must be the most popular pie as they often sell out.  I am a fan of creme and custard pies and have only tried a couple of her fruit pies, usually the seasonal variations; I remember having some special pie during November.

Since I don't drink much coffee, I have asked for a glass of milk on occasion.  It's not on the menu, but they've poured me a tall glass whole milk whenever I ask for it.  My last visited I ordered a hot tea, but really wish I had ordered milk.  Also, I did manage to grab the last slice of Hoosier Sugar Creme Pie.  It was a bit smaller than normal, so they gave me a discount.  I also noticed that they gave the person in front of me a free "Hand Pie" with order of a full Savory pie.

Ah yes, they sell Sweet pies (creme, custard, chess) and Savory pies.  I have yet to try a savory pie, but I will.  So the skinny.  If you have not noticed, the address includes 1/2, so that means this place is tiny.  They do have two two-person tables and one four-person table, so you might want to check if seating is available before you put too much money on the meter; and yes, the meter police LOVE to give tickets on that block.

Have a few back up selections in mind because they do often sell out of pies and you really don't want to hold up the line too much.

You may also order a whole pie - or pies - 48 hours in advance.  I think I heard the owner mention that they back 6 pies at a time and they take 3 hours each, and that they often back until midnight or 1 am.

I picked up a gift certificate for Aroma Workshop at one of the Yelp Elite events. It seemed that making your own scent would be a pretty neat gift.  Though I gave the cert as a gift I was pretty excited.  I read Dhruv P's review and released I should call again, so I did, and I spoke with a very nice guy.  He seemed a little unorganized with picking a time for me, but after realizing I was from Yelp he commented that the slot he gave me would allow for some extra time.  Wow, great! This place is sounding pretty good.

So we arrived exactly on time, and there was a couple finishing up before us.  I thought it was odd that the perfumer did not great us, but I dismissed it.  Well, I guess that was a signal, because the perfumer we were working with seemed like she would rather have been any place but there.  I can understand that job becoming repetitive, but she did not even feign interest.

Getting her to talk was like pulling teeth.  This lack of rapport turned what we expected to be a great experience, into and uncomfortable situation that seemed as if we were imposing just being there.  As you can imagine, we did not get much input from the perfumer, who seemed to get more aggregated each time we asked for a new sample to be mixed up.  If she really did not feel well, perhaps she should have taken a sick day.

In the end she took the two oils selected - "White Tea" and "Pomegranate" - poured equal parts into a bottle, added some cologne base and bid us a good day.  I think Aroma Workshop is a pretty neat place, I think it could have been a great experience, but the service we received just fell short.  I am glad that we had a gift certificate to use because I could not justify paying full price for the service.  Jasmin M's review seemed to mirror our experience which makes me wonder if full paying customers receive better service.

I look forward to Christkindlmarket ever year, and have made this one of my holiday traditions. Christkindlmarket is definitely one of the best events in Chicago!

I can't tell you how many times I've passed Christkindlmarket in the past, not knowing what it was and too timid to investigate.  Boy was I missing out!  I first visited Christkindlmarket with a co-worker of mine back in 2004.  He turned me on to Leberkäse which wikipedia will tell you is a meat loaf made of corned beef, pork, bacon and onions.  They serve it up with Sauerkraut on a bread roll. Of course you have to also get an order of Potato Pancakes with Apple Sauce and Sour Creme.  Mmmmmm, I can almost taste it now.

Though before you even begin thinking of food and other tasty treats or gifts, the first order of business is to find yourself a Mug of the Hot Spiced Wine called Glühwein.  Your first Glühwein is served in a collectible refillable Mug which is usually in the shape of a boot (I tote around my non-boot mug from 2008 just to different :} ).  The Hot Glühwein is just what you need to keep you warm while you peruse the market and help you wash down all of those tasty treats.

Christkindlmarket is a celebration, so don't be shy! If you need a place to sit or a table to eat, squeeze into a space and make new friends.  It's then that you learn another benefit of the Glühwein, and that's the wonderful gift of conversation.

The market of course is full of many food and non-food vendors.  Be sure to peruse the booths and shops.  Admire the smells of the foods and deserts and the beauty of the crafts and ornaments.  Leave with a few gifts and some holiday cheer!  Just be sure not to exit the fenced area with any alcoholic beverages.

I'm a big fan of Philly's Best.

In the UIC area we have many food choices, and being in Greektown, you might think that Philly's Best seems a big out of place - let alone in the wrong city - but it's just that that makes Philly's Best so successful.

I usually rotate between the Chicken Philly or the Philly Cheese Steak, and occasionally opt for the Philly Cheese Steak pizza.

But you have to do it right if you getting yourself a Chicken Philly or Philly Cheese Steak.  Ask for it on Garlic Bread, with peppers and mushrooms.  I always forget about the peppers and mushrooms; so don't make my mistake.

The other thing I get is a side of Seasoned Cheese Fries.  Yes that is all a heart attack waiting to happen, but you have to go somehow. ;)

Finally, next to the soda fountain machine sits all of the condiments. They have Ketchup, BBQ sauce and sometimes a Hot BBQ Sauce.  If something is missing just ask the cashier and they'll get you a fresh bottle.

Oh, they have free wifi too, but I can never get it to work on my iPhone, nor did it work with my friend's Pre.

Last tidbit of advise... they have many Oven Baked Grinders on the menu but I haven't been able to try one yet.  They take 15 minutes to cook, so my advise would be to order ahead of time and have a hot Grinder waiting for you to arrive.  I'll try to do that next time; if I remember.

Eating at JJ Twig's has been a post PQ tradition of our dojo for quite some time.  I visit the Combat Arts Institute dojo (see my review on Yelp) at least on the second Friday of every even numbered month for promotion qualifications.  After working up a big appetite, we all head over to JJ Twig's for some good pizza and conversation.

The staff at JJ Twig's is very accommodating.  There have been plenty of times we arrive close to closing hours, yet they stay working late just to feed us.  They even provide separate checks for each of us.  You can't ask for anything more out of a place, and that's why JJ Twig's will be our spot for a long long time.

But what about the food?  For being a Chicago suburban pizza joint, they do alright.  I've tried almost all of their thin crust specialty pizzas and enjoy them all.  The BBQ Chicken, Hawaiian and Western are quite tasty... oh, so is the Italian Beef pizza.  The crust is so thin and crispy, and has a good taste to it, and the grid cut slices are just the right size.

Just a note, the BBQ Chicken and Hawaiian pizzas are on the sweet side, but are quite tasty if you into that.

Two visits back I ordered a thin pepperoni and green pepper pizza, and my friend Jose ordered the same, but as a Double Decker Pizza.  I had never even gotten that far on the menu to see that option. LOL  Well needless to say we swapped slices and the double decker was amazing!  It really is two pizzas on top of each other with a nice thick pan style crust.  I was hooked!  This last visit I ordered my own double decker :D

If you are looking for a place to accommodate your mid-sized group, I'd highly recommend JJ Twig's.

Eh... It's ok.

My girlfriend wanted to go to a haunted house this year, so we decided to give this place a go. We opted for the VIP tickets, which were $5 more, because the line was pretty long. With VIP we were taken straight through to the staging area door, so I think it was worth the extra dollars.

It takes a lot to scare or even startle me, and Fear just didn't do it. My girlfriend on the other hand was scared. She screamed and hid from the actors; it was great.

So although Fear didn't do it for me, I did enjoy myself watching her react, and seeing the other people freak out. I was also able to scare a few people myself at one point by banging on a fiberglass window at one point where the lone double-backed on itself; I just couldn't help myself. ;)

I love tacos, and probably eat tacos at least once a week, so I know tacos. So after visiting this place a couple of times, I have to say they are just your average tacos.

They are very generous with their meat portions, which are served on a two tortillas a topped with onions and cilantro.  But you'll notice that the meat is chewy.  This is because they keep the meat in warming bins and just reheat them on order.

Good tacos are made to order, not made, then ordered.  I think customers would appreciate better tasting food if they had to wait just a little bit longer.

Because of this 'reheating' of the meat, my al pastor (pork) tacos were extremely charred the on my first visit.  On my second they they were not charred, but they tasted funny (freezer burned?).  Part of the problem is that you don't see an al pastor spit, so this pork isn't as fresh as it should be.  I knew this going in, both times, but I had to give them a fair try.

One plus is that their tortilla chips are freshly fried daily, and they have really good guacamole.  The green salsa is pretty good too.  They also have pretty tasted chorizo, despite it's eerie reddish color.

Helix, I've given up.  To get to the point... my experiences with Helix have slightly varied, but in the end I never departed feeling good about shopping at Helix.  I've realized that if you are not a regular or dropping mad stacks (um, making a big purchase) you basically invisible.

Furthermore, I have yet to purchase something that wasn't "the last one in stock" which is usually a open box item.  I find that completely interesting because they have a 10 day defective return policy, so... is my product defective?  Twice I've been offered the demo item, but they say "well, it's a new item so it's full price." What!? I don't think so.

In the end I've made the purchase, but I feel gypped.

Since the customer service sucks, item availability sucks, return policy sucks, hours suck, and prices suck, I have to give this a 1 star.  I will only visit Helix in an extreme emergency, or to play with the products before I buy them online (at a cheaper price with a better return policy, btw).

I've eaten here three times already, and it's confirmed... this place is GOOD!

I can not put all of the awesomeness of this place into words.  I'll try, but you'll just have to visit yourself for the experience.

Come hungry and with a sense of adventure.  These $5 tortas are GINORMOUS.  They are served on what looks like a 12 inch bolillo (Mexican baguette), and STUFFED with HUGE portions of MANY different types of MEAT.  You can even get avocado, cheese, pineapples, hot dogs, OH MY!!!!

The table salsa is a spicy avocado salsa.  This is the only restaurant I've ever been to with avocado salsa, let alone as a table salsa.  I only know of avocado salsa because of my girlfriend's father, who makes an amazing avocado salsa.

When I first saw the menu, I was like a deer in headlights.  I was overwhelmed with different emotions; shock, confusion, excitement, fear, and of course HUNGER.  I couldn't figure out what to eat, so I decided to go down the list.  I started with #1 and worked my way to a #3, which is so far my favorite; in fact each torta just gets better and better!  With about 40 CrAzY tortas, I have my work cut out for me.  We'll see how long this adventure will take.

I'll update this review after every 5th torta unless I encounter a really nummy torta that needs to be mentioned.

The #1 is La Chilanga milanesa with chorizo, jamon y queso blanco (breaded steak, mexican sausage, ham & fresh cheese)

The #2 is La Senorita milanesa with pierna, jamon y queso (breaded steak, pork)

The #3 is La Dona Guapachosa with milanesa, pierna, queso amarillo, jamon y salchicha (breaded steak, flank steak, cheddar cheese & mexican sausage )

So as you can see, this is not  your typical torta!  Doña Torta Chilanga is in a class all by itself!