US Open Food Prices

The US Open is arguably the most popular tennis tournament in the world.  This year, from August 27-September 9, hundreds of thousands of spectators will travel to the courts in Flushing to watch some high quality tennis.  Millions of other people will watch the action on TV and online at Usopen.org.

I had the chance to attend the US Open myself on Tuesday.  It was a remarkable experience, and totally worth the $59 I spent on my Gounds Pass ticket. 

For those of you who plan to attend the US Open this labor day weekend, you will probably end up getting something to eat or drink.  The following are the prices of some of the food items that are available at the US Open: (~ means approximate price)

Evian Water (Small): $3.75
Evian Water (Large): $5.00
Gatorade: $5.00
Strawberry Slushie: $5.50
Snapple: $5.50
Mixed Berry Smoothie: ~$6.00
Frozen Lemonade (Small): $5.00
Frozen Lemonade (Large): $7.00
Heineken: ~$6.00
Yogurt Parfait: $6.50


Pretzel: ~$5.00
Four Cheese Pizza: $8.50
Hamburger: ~$6.75
Grilled Chicken Sandwich: $9.75
Hotdog: ~$6.50
Turkey Sandwich: $8.75
Tuna Salad Sandwich: $8.75
Steak Sandwich: $13.00
Lobster Sandwich: ~$17.50
Curly Fries: $4.75

(I had a Four Cheeze Pizza, and I enjoyed it.  It was a relatively small size, but it had flavor and a lot of crust, which is my favorite part.  I would recommend it.)

Lobster Mania!

This summer has been like heaven for lobster lovers.  There has been an abundance of lobster, which has caused the price to go down.  Where I live, lobster can be bought for under $5.00 a pound!  In the Portland area, retailers have been selling lobsters for as little as $3.79 a pound.

The reason for the low prices is because in the springtime, the lobster fishermen had an unusually strong catch.  This resulted in a "backlog", an overflow of lobsters.  Because lobsters can't be shipped (they are too fragile to survive the long journey), they have a limited geographical location where they can be sold.  This causes an overabundance, and therefore, low prices.

For more information, check out the article below.  In the meantime, I will be enjoying more lobster.

Main Lobstermen Reeling From Low Prices

Hate vegetables? I have a solution!

Hate vegetables?  Won't even go near them, let alone eat them?  I may have a solution for you.  It comes in the name of Ronzoni Garden Delight pasta, and it has a FULL SERVING of vegetables for every 4 oz portion!

Ronzoni Garden Delight Pasta provides the nutrition of pasta and vegetables while retaining the flavor of pasta.  I recently tried the Radiatore version.  When I was eating the pasta, I couldn't taste the vegetables at all!  The pasta has dried carrot, dried tomato, and dried spinach hidden inside.

In addition to providing you with a full serving of vegetables, each 4 oz portion provides you with 8g of fiber and 14g of protein!  Vegetables, fiber, and protein: now that's a triple threat!

Evol Food Bowls and Burritos

For those of you who are interested in buying frozen food meals for your dorm room, apartment, or house, I have a new recommmendation for you: Evol Foods.  Evol Foods is a relatively new name that started in 2009.  Their foods include burritos, pizzas, and food bowls.

Personally, I have tried a few of their food items (like the fire grilled steak and teriyaki chicken wrap) and found them to be pleasantly satisfying.  The fire grilled steak (shown below) featured vegetables that were tasty and had flavor (unlike most frozen vegetables), had a good amount of steak, and a nice cilantro lime pesto sauce. The portion size wasn't that big, but the quality was good.  It was a bit pricey (it cost me about $6 at my school), but I would say it's worth it to try it out.

Evol foods are relatively new and therefore hard to find.  I did manage to find some at a local Stop & Shop for a pretty good price (~$4.59 for a food bowl and ~$3.50 for a burrito).  I believe that with time, the popularity of Evol Foods will grow and they will become more readily available to the public.

If you are interested in Evol products, visit their website www.evolfoods.com for more information.

Baja Fresh Wahoo Taco

Wahoo.  When I first saw this offered in a Taco at Baja Fresh, I thought they had made up a name.  Wahoo, a type of seafood?  What kind of seafood has the name of "Wahoo"?

After doing some research, I found out that there is actually a Wahoo Fish.  In fact, it is one of the faster fish in the sea, capable of swimming up to 50 mph!

Wahoo is known to have a variety of nutritional benefits.  Wahoo is an excellent source of selenium, potassium, niacin, phosphorus, and omega-3 fatty acids.  In addition, this fish is low in calories, which gives you even more incentive to try it out.

I got a Wahoo taco at Baja Fresh the other day as part of the Catch 2 deal, and I have to say: The fish was pretty tasty.  It was accompanied by a few slices of avocado, some tomatoes, and lettuce.  All of this was wrapped in two soft taco shells.  I also tried the garlic lime shrimp taco, and likewise, found it good.  The shrimp had a "grilled smoky" taste to it, and you could taste the lime.  Overall, the meal cost $7.99, which isn't bad considering they give you a side of rice and beans as well.

*For those of you looking to get an even better deal, there are coupons you can get online.  $2.00 off if you spend $8, or $5.00 off if you spend $15*

Source: http://mauinow.com/2010/11/19/safe-fish-eating-tips-in-hawaii/

Usain Bolt's Secret to Success

Over the years, especially recently, McDonald's has taken flack for serving "unhealthy" foods, such as hamburgers, chicken nuggets, and french fries.  Their food is probably among the most notorious for being bad.  If you have been staying away from McDonald's, you may want to reconsider your decision.

It turns out that Jamaican sensation Usain Bolt, 6X Gold Medal winner, eats McDonald's before his races.  Before his final in London, Bolt said he had a chicken and vegetable wrap from McDonald's.  When asked about his decision, Bolt replied, "It was healthy.  Don't judge me."

McDonald's helps Bolt break world records and win Olympic Gold medals.  What can McDonald's do for you?

Olympic Village Dining Hall

A few days ago, I came across this article about the Olympic Village Dining Hall.  I found it very interesting.  For example, the dining hall is open 24 hours a day and is free to all athletes.  Over the course of the Olympics, there was an estimated 17 million meals served!

There is food for everyone including halal, African, Caribbean, Indian, Asian, Polish, Mediterranean, and McDonalds.  This is a welcome change to Beijing, when there were only three choices in the dining hall: international, Mediterranean, and Asian.  As expected, the food is top quality.  The milk is organic, the coffee is free-trade, and the eggs are free-range.  The chicken carries Britain's "Freedom Food" label.

For more information about the Dining hall, click on the link below.

Olympic Village Dining Hall: Best food court ever?

As for my favorite moment of the games?  There's too many to list, but one that stands out is Manteo Mitchell.  This guy broke his leg in the middle of a 4x400 relay race, but managed to finish his lap and successfully hand off the baton.  Running 200M on a broken leg?  Now that's just incredible.  I remember I once sprained my ankle playing basketball, I couldn't even walk for a few days.  I had to hop on one foot.  But this guy Manteo Mitchell?  This guy is just unbelievable. 

Olympic Medalist Yohan Blake's Secret to Success

Olympic Medalist and World Champion Yohan Blake has shared his secrets to his success in becoming the second fastest man in the world.  The secrets: training, music, and bananas.

Blake says that he eats 16 ripe bananas every day as part of his diet.  He says that bananas help restore the potassium he has lost from sweat during his intense training sessions.  It seems to have paid off.  He came second only to Usain Bolt in the 100M and 200M races.

He still has a chance to get a Gold Medal in the 4X100M relay, which is tonight in London.  With Bolt this time on his team, I wouldn't bet against it.

Go Naturally Organic Hard Candies

If you are looking for a Hardy Candy to satisfy your sweet tooth, I recomment Go Naturally Organic Hard Candies.  These candies are naturally sweetened and contain natural fruit flavors.  As a bonus, they are gluten free and contain no artificial colors or flavors.  A bag cost me around $2.50.

In the Pomegranate flavor I bought (shown above), the ingredient list reads like this: Organic evaporated cane juice, organic brown rice syrup, citric acid, natural pomegranate flavor.  That's it.  Pretty good, right?

The candy has a sweet-like taste, but not sugary sweet (I assume because of the cane juice and brown rice syrup).  The pomegranate flavor adds a bit of tartness.  I like it.

If pomegranate isn't your thing, don't fret.  Other flavors include apple, cherry, blood orange, and iced mint mango.

Outback Steakhouse Bushman Bread Calories

This past weekend, me and my parents went to Outback Steakhouse for the first time.  While we were waiting for our food to arrive, we got some bread to snack on:

This bread is called Honey Wheat Bushman Bread, and it has a slight sweetness to it.  It is very good, I must say.  Unfortunately, it's also very bad for you.  Each loaf with butter consists of 467 calories!

Trust me, the loaf looks big, but it's not.  I could have easily eaten 2 by myself.  That would be over 900 calories right there.  Fortunately, I "limited" myself to about 3/4 of a loaf.  That's over 300 calories, but a lot less then it could have been.

Source: Eat This Not That Diet

Denny's Interview with Monica

Recently, I was fortunate to able to talk to my friend Monica, who works at Denny's.  I am not familiar with Denny's myself, so I was able to learn some information about this restaurant chain.  Enjoy the interview.

Introduction: My name is Monica and I am a former pharmacy student at St. John's University. I am transferring to the Richard Stockton College in the fall as a biochemistry major. I will miss all of the St. John's friends that I made, especially Eric Char. Lol. Ever since I moved to Galloway, NJ from Atlantic City, I have fallen in love with America's diner, Denny's. I decided to apply for a summer job and fortunately, I was able to get it!

Questions:

1. To be honest, I am not that familiar with Denny’s. What is it?

Denny's is an American diner that is open 24/7. It's known as "America's Diner." There are over 4600 Denny's worldwide. 

2. What is your job at Denny’s? 

Currently, I am a server (waitress). But before, I was hired as a hostess as preparation to becoming a server.

3. How long have you been working there?

I started working there at the beginning of June so almost 2 months.

4. What are the most popular foods at Denny’s?

Denny's is probably the most famous for its breakfast. But we serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner any time of the day. 

5. Are there any specials going on right now?

Right now, we have our "Tour of America" special menu in addition to our core menu. We have six meals inspired by American places- Midwest Sandwich, Malibu fish tacos, Brooklyn Spaghetti and Meatballs, Florida Sunshine Salad, Southern Slam, and the Red, White, and Blue pancakes/breakfast. We also have a $2, $4, $6, $8 menu that allows people to chose certain food items based on those respective prices.

6. What do you mean by the $2 $4 $6 $8 menu? For example, can I pay $2 and still get myself some pancakes and milk?

There are different options you can get with the $2 $4 $6 $8 option. For example, off the top of my head, you can get two pancakes or cheese quesadillas or a pancake puppy sundae or a biscuit w/ gravy and an egg or hashbrowns for $2. 

For $4, you can get a skillet cookie dessert, the Everyday Value Slam (pancakes, eggs, and sausage or bacon), or chicken wraps.

For $6, you can get a burger and fries, a chicken sandwich...

For $8, you can get an even bigger option breakfast or chicken parmesan, etc. These options come with a drink.
All you need to do is pay tax, too.

7. Has working at Denny’s taught you anything about food and nutrition? If so, what?

Denny's is my first job. Personally, I believe I have been spoiled ever since a child. I never had to cook for the family because my parents and grandparents always took care of that. Therefore, I don't know a lot about food- prepping it, cooking it, cross-contamination, etc. So yes, I have learned a lot and I'm still learning.

Chinese Medicine Scam!

!WARNING!

This post is a bit off topic, but I feel I have to tell you guys this: Chinese Medicine is a SCAM!  Do not buy any Chinese Medicine if you go to China.  It's a total waste of money.

While I was in China, I had the unfortunate chance to visit 2 different Chinese medicine stores.  Basically, a self proclaimed Chinese "doctor" came in and started talking about health and happiness.  Then, he began to lecture us about his wonderful products that can help cure us of our illness and diseases, like lack of sleep, kidney problems, swollen ankles, and mosquito bites.

After his lecture, he came up to us, stare into our souls, and magically figure out everything about us health wise.  Coincidentally, everyone of us had a health problem.  For instance, he told one of the women that she had kidney problems because her skin was yellow.  This caused her husband to proclaim "Her skin is yellow because she's Asian, not because she has kidney problems."  That made me laugh.

Later, I had a conversation with the husband.  We brought up some very good points.  If these self-proclaimed doctors are so smart, then why isn't all of China healthy?  Why is there sick people in the world? Bottom line: Don't buy any Chinese Medicine in China, they are just trying to scam you out of your money.  Instead, buy something like a Bic Mac from McDonald's.  It's better than the fake crap they sell at these medicine stores.