The Unvegan

7/13/2009 Rants and Raves

Cured Meats Might Need to be Renamed “Treating Meats”

I was always under the impression that curing meats was simply a process of making meats taste better, but now it looks like curing has a double meaning. No, the meats aren’t exactly going to cure you of anything, but they just might help you treat some and prevent some diseases. The key is the nitrates and nitrites that we’ve all been taught to avoid.

According to Feedstuffs.com, “…the dietary inclusion of nitrites and nitrates may provide a rescue or protective pathway for people at risk for cardiovascular disease…[and] may also provide protection against tissue damage.”

Bacon Cured Meats Food Health Hot Dogs Meat

7/13/2009 Reviews El Segundo

The Inaccurately Named Stuft Pizza

One day I was reading about Stuft Pizza and saw somewhere that they had dollar slices on Mondays. Figuring that was a pretty awesome deal, I called them up to see if the dollar slices still existed. When I got a quick confirmation on the phone, I headed over for a cheap lunch.

At first, I was disappointed because the pizza rotating in the little pizza by the slice heater wasn’t even stuffed. Instead it looked like any other pizza and begged the question of how the place got its name.

Nonetheless, I was already there and determined to eat pizza, so I ordered three slices of pepperoni and waited for the man behind the counter to ask me for three bucks. This sound never came, as the man asked me for a total that far exceeded three bucks.

El Segundo Food Italian Los Angeles Meat Pepperoni Pizza Restaurants

7/10/2009 Strange Eats

Strange Meats: Chicken Head

It’s been a while since I’ve written about one of my strange meat escapades, so here’s a new one.

Hiking in the Cordillera Mountains of the Philippines, I got to experience some of the freshest food I’ve ever eaten. Along the way, I stayed in local homes and ate the way that the locals ate. I quickly learned that Chicken Adobo is a local specialty and although adobo can be found throughout the Latin American world, I found it to be a bit different in the Philippines.

Adobo Chicken Chicken Head Cordillera Mountains Hiking Ifugao Luzon Philippines Strange Eats

7/10/2009 Reviews Bloomington

Tastes of the Northwoods, Part V: Crave

Not exactly what I ordered... — Not exactly what I ordered…

Before leaving the Northwoods, I made a stop at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota to eat at Crave. Although the Mall of America can hardly be considered part of the Northwoods, it’s close enough to be included in my weekly special.

Crave was a nice and spacious restaurant that came highly recommended by my family that was taking me there. A whole lot of food on the menu looked great and we started by ordering appetizers. We got the Mini-Burgers, which the menu said came with bacon, cheddar and rosemary. We also ordered the Lemon Garlic Wings, which came with “Amablu cheese dressing” and cucumbers. Since the family likes cucumbers, I didn’t order the dish without them and just hoped they didn’t touch any of the wings I wanted to eat.

Bloomington Burgers Chicken Wings Crave Hamburgers Macaroni and Cheese Mall of America Meat Mini-Burgers Minneapolis Minnesota Northwoods Restaurants St. Paul Travel Truffles

7/9/2009 Reviews Lake Nebagamon

Tastes of the Northwoods, Part IV: Pizza Fries

So good I just can't explain. — So good I just can’t explain.

Bridge’s Tavern in Lake Nebagamon, Wisconsin has no kitchen. In a lot of bars this can be a problem if I get the drunken munchies. Not at Bridge’s though, because despite their kitchen handicap they make Pizza Fries.

Pizza Fries aren’t too different from pizza, and they’re not really even close to being fries aside from abstract similarities in shape. Yet, Pizza Fries is the name that has been chosen for them. The closest thing they resemble is cheesey breadsticks, but this isn’t some gimmick to get people to buy an already existent product like when Burger King started making “Chicken Fries” (chicken tenders). There is just something about Pizza Fries that transcends any other nomenclature.

Bar Food Bars Bridge's Tavern Food Lake Nebagamon Northwoods Pizza Pizza Fries Travel Wisconsin

7/9/2009 Heroes and Villains

Obituary: Oscar G. Mayer, Jr.

At age 95, Oscar G. Mayer, the meat mogul himself has passed away. He is said to have died of natural causes. Oscar Mayer is one of the great meat-producing companies in the world (although it is now part of Kraft). He and his meat prowess will certainly be missed. Cheer up, though, we still have this:

(via CBS News)

Obits Obituaries Oscar G. Mayer Oscar Mayer

7/9/2009 Events

Free Food Alert: Chick-fil-A Cow Appreciation Day

July 10th, Chick-fil-A will be having a Cow Appreciation Day to try to get people to eat more chicken. Honestly, I couldn’t think of a better way to appreciate a cow than by eating it, kind of like how in the movies some Native Americans would eat the heart of a warrior they just killed to show their appreciation. But I digress. In Chick-fil-A’s case, all you have to do for Cow Appreciation Day is show up to one of their restaurants dressed up as a cow. If you do, they’ll give you a free meal of chicken, which I hear can be quite tasty.

Chick-Fil-A Cow Appreciation Day Cows Fast Food Free Food Meat

7/8/2009 Rants and Raves

Meat Makes Us Human

According to this news release, we owe meat for our very existence as higher life forms. Released by the University of California – Berkeley (the hippie vegetarian capital of the academic world), it says that as our ancestors began to spread out in Africa, they started replacing vegetables with meat to compensate for the lack of edible vegetables.

Ancestors Diet Evolution Meat University of California - Berkeley

7/8/2009 Reviews Duluth

Tastes of the Northwoods, Part III: The Green Mill

The Green Mill (affectionately referred to as “The Mill”) in Duluth is a place I have to visit every time I’m in the area. It not only has good food and drinks, but it has a great happy hour as well. What used to be 1/2 price appetizers and wings has now become 5 bucks. This isn’t such a big deal, since the prices are still so low.

Through many visits, I finally discovered the best that The Mill has to offer, Dixie Wings. These are wings with a buffalo-like sauce that stings the mouth, but always leaves me wanting more. The Mill is also one of the few places where I opt for boneless wings versus the much manlier wings with bones. For some reason, the Dixie Wing sauce just seems to work so much better with boneless wings.

Bar Food Beer Buffalo Wings Canal Park Chicken Food Green Mill Happy Hour Meat Northwoods Restaurants Reviews Travel Wings

7/7/2009 Reviews Duluth

Tastes of the Northwoods, Part II: Old Chicago

I know it isn’t technically limited to the Northwoods, but I will always associate Old Chicago with Duluth, Minnesota, because that’s where I always seem to get it.

With a huge beer selection that includes my perennial favorite, Leinenkugel’s Honeyweiss, Old Chicago also has a decent food menu. Looking it over for a while, I eventually decided on the Meatball Stromboli, mostly due to its lack of vegetables.

Beer Canal Park Duluth Food Italian Leinenkugel's Meat Minnesota Northwoods Old Chicago Restaurants Sandwiches Stromboli

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