The Cheesecake factory, a unique restaurant

A cheesecake facotry finally opened in my area, and after almost a year of ignoring what would seem a typical chain restaurant, I finally dinned there. I have never been so surprised by a national chain restaurant unlike the usual Fridays, Outback, or Caraba's The factory's food and drink are as good as it's young energetic atmosphere. Beauitfully decorated The restaurant offers a very cunning cross between something that screams youth, or class. There is a bar, which you'll become aquainted withg due to the non-stop waiting list, decorated with large flat-screen T.V's. The facory also has a very clever "open line" where the kitchen is seemingly open for view, but convientiently can't really be seen from any table in the house.

I had a mojito which was much to my surprise the best I have had in a very long time. I was fully preppared for the usual chain drink which entails a goldfishbowl the size of your head, and very little taste, but the Factory gave a modest sized cocktail that tasted wonderful. My meal began with an order of "Buffalo blasts" a delightfully decedant treat. Buffalo tyle chicken meat packed inside of a fried wonton. Served with buffalo sauce, and blue cheese. For an entree I choose The fried pork piccata style, served with macaroni and cheese. The pork, pounded untra thin, was fantastic! Topped with a handfull of capers. The Macaroni and cheese was also a great surprise with at least three exotic cheeses flavoring this normally 'back yard' style treat. My dining companion also had an outstanding dinner, in the Jambalaya pasta.

Outstanding food and drinks made this a memorable dining experiance. With a rather large menu to choose from the facory can satisfy nearly every appetite, from hamburgers to sea bass. My sole complaint would be the tables themselves, packed tightly together, I sometimes felt as though I was eating with complete strangers. My complaints are minor, the Cheesecake factory has re-defined what a chain restaurantr can be. I will most certainly be dining there again.

Stanley cup play-offs are almost here!!

while NHL hockey is our second favorite sport here at football and beer, we always acknowledge that Lord Stanley's Cup is the hardest trophey to bring home. Seven game series in each round of the p[layoffs, including god knows how many overtimes, makes hockey the hardest sport to win a championship in. The non-stop night after night, banging, crashing, slashing, punching, and shot blocking fury of playoff hockey is about as adrenaline filled a testosterone ride as there is.....don't miss this. If your not a hockey fan, I implore you to watch opne series of playoff hockey. Any series will do, and you'll never look back. Whethere it's a goal-tender making improbable save after improbable save, under the most harsh of offensive onslaughts or a true goal scorer turning the tides of a scoreless game with first rate stick handling and skating abiliity, the stanley cup playoffs has it all. A defenseman laying it all on the line for his team and blocking a slap shot with velocity near 100mph is not only heroic, it's common place when fighting for a hockey championship.

We will be covering the quest for cup here at football and beer, and I urge newcomers to the sport to watch and enjoy!

Sorry little girl....HE'S GAY, GAY, GAY!!!!

The 50 signs your getting older

1) You still think tattoos are edgey.
2) You still believe that smoking makes someone tough and cool
3) You refer to women as broads
4) You refer to broads as chicks
5) You are still amazed every time you see breakdancing
6) You no-longer like music that has been re-made
7) You find sports like golf, and bowling increasingly intruigeing
8) You refuse to replace your DVD collection with blue-rays
9) You were also the last person to replace his VHS collection with DVD's
10) You are baffled by the I-pod's "wheel."
11) You continually comment on the overabundance of Starbucks
12) You often complain about never seeing 'Star-trek the next generation' re-runs
13) Every time you spot 'Big League Chew' you say "oooh."
14) You still contemplate whether MC Hammer was a great dancer, or was it those magnificent pants?
15) You can't believe you can take pictures with your telephone
16) You get overly excited when you see retro clothing at the mall
17) You still remember Jayne Seymour as "one spicey mamma."
18) You referance 'L.A Law' as the greatest legal drama ever made
19) You frequently immitate the sounds that an old dial up computer connection makes
20) You giggle at your dial-up connection impression
21) You get every SINGLE obscure reference on the 'Family Guy'
22) You insist the writers of 'Family Guy' must be "real cool dudes."
23) You smile every times Randy Jackson says, "dope," and no one laughs at him
24) You eagerly await anoher comedy from that youngster John Cusack
25) You watch 'deal or no deal' to see if Howie Mandell will put a rubber glove on his head
26) You talked about Rocky 6 for weeks before it's release
27) You still compare every great videogame to 'golden-eye'
28) You talk about that one great snow storm that was like no other
29) You know who played in Super bowl I
30) You love humerous bumper-stickers
31) You can't figure out how to scilence the messagging noises on your IM
32) You mute your entire PC to over IM noises
33) Somewhere in your basement you own 'Jarts' thye lawn darts game
34) Every summer you bum rush the 'slip n' slide' trying desperately to emulate that dam commercial
35) The only way you are exposed to modern music is by watching 'American Idol'
36) You still plan to eventually conquer the 'Rubix Cube'
37) You DVR the A-team every chance ytou get
38) Every time you watch the late show you wonder what ever happened to Connans side kick? You know, that guy that was actually funny
39) You know all of the 'Golden Girls' names. First and last
40) Every comedian you ever liked now hosts a game-show. You also notice that Jeff Foxworthy hosts a game show
41) every time another Jurassic park comes out you say: "It's about time."
42) You think fast zombies are an obscenity
43) You can't fathom Eddie murphy making family comedies
44) You still wonder how pumping up your sneakers can possibly help
45) You are still laughing about Randy Jackson saying "Dope"
46) You insist that clothing sizes run smaller than they used to
47) You fantascize about napping more than sex
48) In the morning you no longer have the strength to hold off relieving yourself untill after you have made the coffee
49) You count CSI as mental stimulation
50) You once rode the party line, but now say that all politicians are full of crap

Reins on NBC, I love it!!!

Cool, unique, deifferent, and awsome new detective show is the only way to describe NBC's "Reins." Detective Reins, played by Jeff Goldbloom, solves cases by visualizing the victims in his cases. But Reins visuals, are startlingly life like, and even talk to him. Although the dead people Reins talks to don't actually give the detective clues, but only serve as his way of visulaizing various events, or following logic strings while trying to solve murder cases. Jeff Goldbloom is his usual brilliant self, and is very humerous with his dead pan style of one-liners. Although I have only seen the piliot, I can't wait to see this show again! Reins has great potential.

Won't you help feed Lance Briggs??

Lance Briggs is preparred to hold out for the season. Briggs says there is no long term stability with the Bears who are preppared to pay him over seven million dollars for next season. Whats more is, Briggs says this with a straight face. Lance is ready to take out a loan so he can live while holding out....I couldn't make this stuff up. So out of touch with reality is todays athlete, that they actually expect us to pitty them when they cannot possibly find "long term stability" in SEVEN MILLION FREAKING DOLLARS. Heres a tip Lance, if you want to talk like some SNL skit characture of a pampered athlete then save it for your agent, the rest us don't wanna hear this crap.

Gay rights groups are clearly prejudice

Here is a snipit taken from NFL.com: "Some local and national gay rights groups have questioned Dungy's decision to appear at a fundraising banquet this month for the institute, which has been a leading supporter of a proposed state constitutional amendment defining marriage as only between one man and one woman".


The institute in question is a conservative christian group, but I question the wisdom of making such bold acusations against coach Dungey just for making a key note adresse. don't think for a second that this isn't discrimination, and downright slander. I shudder to think what would be said if Elton John was accused of being anti-semitic for attending a Mel Gibson movie premiere. There comes a time when every "Equal rights" group gets just a tad too big for their britches, and begins runnign rampant through society with the righteous indigation of Nelson Mandella himslef. I for one have had enough of the double standard, and we are now ready for these poor downtrodden control freak groups to shut the hell up. Even if Coach Dun gy didn't believe in same sex marriage....so what, this is still America isn't it? Since when is it a crime to disagree in this country? There is a very dangerous trend lately for for certain issues to be treated as matters of fact, and not as opinion which they most certainly are. Issues aren't black and white, they are not right and wrong, they are matters of opinion for open debate amounst the masses. This is America isn't it?

Season one of "The Loop" is a breath of fresh air

In an era filled with copy cat sitcoms and an endless brigade of investigative dramas, Fox's "The Loop" is a fresh and bright new comedy ripe with potential. If your sick and tired of the same old married life comedys, or single guy sitcoms then "The Loop" is definately for you. Much like NBC's "The Office" The show takes us into the corporate space for some unique humor, but "The Loop" relies more heavily on snappy dialouge and clever word play than "The office" does. Loop deals with that strange time in life between college and growing up. Our main character Sam, played by Bret Harrison, is a twenty something airline executive trying desperately to balance work and play. Sams brother and two roomates make getting to bed on time, and working at home nearly impossible and usually find a way for Sam to be fashionably late to important meetings,ill preparred, or at the very least inapropriately dressed. Sam does have an ally at work in the form of his fourty something year old superior Meryl, played by Mimi Rogers. Meryl has the hots for Sam, and often protects him from the big boss Russ, played by the brilliant Philip Baker Hall. Russ is the engine that drives this clever show with his perfect delivery of funny one-liners, and his wonderfully unflappable expression even in the face of madness.

The Piolit epside of "The Loop" is positively hysterical wasting no time, and jumping right into a story as if we have already known all of the key characters and it seems like we do. I particularly like the way characters are first introduced with a brief freeze frame and a humerous two or three word subtitle summary of the character. One unlikeable repeat character is simply introduced as: Derek (Deuche). The second episode of season one is entitled "Jack air." This episode is worth the entire purchase price of the Loop season one. "Jack air" is as funny a thirty minutes of television as I have ever seen. Sam finds a humerous flaw with a new lost cost airline pitch, and suddenly finds himself in charge of re-vamping the project. Unfortunately for Sam he has very little time to work on the project when he falls into a steamy romance with a girl who works for a major tequilla company. More complitcations arise when Sam fails his physical after competing in an egg eating contest. The hilarity ensues as Sam tries desperately to get back from Mexico, lower his cholesterol, and come up with a low cost airline pitch for Russ.

Every episode of "The Loop" season one is littered with funny one-liners and unique story lines, coming up with a variety of clever ways for sams roomates to get him into trouble. Wheather they have stolen his car, taken the sleeves from his work shirts, or shaved a stripe on his head for passing out drunk. The season is only seven episodes long but none of them disapoint, and the DVD leaves me chomping at the bit for the new season to begin. I can only hope that the cast remains stable, and the writing stays this fresh for a long time to come. Joy Osmanski is also worth mentioning for her role as Sams secrectary, Darcy. Darcy is a Chineese MIT graduate and has a variety of wonderful punchlines delievered in believable dead-pan fashion. "The Loop" is great fun with a nice blend of high and low brow comedey with both work and social settings to play with, Loop story lines are almost limitless. The paceing of the show is phenominal and the half hour shows pass like ten minutes. Snappy line, after snappy line keeps the laughs rolling and you wondering how the situations Sam is in will possibly be resolved. Wheather Sam is cutting out of work to keep his life long crush, Piper, from hooking up with the wrong guy, or Sam is trying to give a work presentation with a magic marker bra drawn onto his naked chest, the laughs keep coming and coming. The writers of this show come up witrh the most unique story lines, and the way the funny coincidences and mishaps end up comning full circle is pure genious, in that respect this show reminds me a bit of "Frasier." While it's not fair to compare any show one one of the all time greats, "The Loops" is as crisp, smart, and fresh as any show in recent memory. I highly reccomend picking up a copy of season one.

Things that irritate the crap out of me

Why is it that every time a single snow flake falls, the stores and gas stations are flooded with every moron on the face of the planet. In this day and age the worst of weather conditions only have you cooped up in the house for maybe a day. Yet every pre-storm visit to wal-mart features the same old pandemonia. People stocking up on can goods as if it were the nuclear holocost!! On the eve of the last great N.Y snow storm I saw a woman with THREE 24 packs of toilet papper. You couldn't go that much if you were stuck in the house for a month. All I really wanted was a tweleve pack of beer and a movie, but instead I get stuck in line behind the same three hundred idieots that will soon rush the gas station because they are afraid they will STUCK IN THE HOUSE...NOT DRIVING ANYWHERE!!!!!!

omething else I have grtown particularly tired of, is people in restaurant who are bapparently too weak to open their menu's. There is nothing more annoying than a couple of old bags sitting down and asking their server threehundred questions about food, because they are too dumb, and or, lazy to open the menu and read all about the food. It's a stunning concept really, food listed in menus....WOW! At what age does soup become the single most important piece of information available to mankind??

Heres another idea for eeating out: Try picking something out a fifty plus item menu, and eating it. Stick your modification up you A@$, it doesn't make you picky or special to change everything you eat until it doesn't even resemble any type of food the eatery is good at making. Odd's are Emeril isn't in the back, you should stick to the formula. I recently waited on a "man" who sent his entree back because there was too much parsely on it, and parsely chokes him. The obvious outrage in this is that you would have to turn in your testicles to say that "prsely chokes me," but the funny part is that this particular fat slob was two fisting handfulls of the bars popcorn....worried about the parsely???

The Black Donnellys premieres

(The Donnelley brothers aren't nearly as cheery as this fellow, but they are about as stereotypical as our leprachaun friend.)

Kevin, Sean, Jimmy, and Tommy Donnelly are four "typical" Irish brothers growing up in the local pub as all Irish brothers do. Naturally the brothers are always up to all kinds of mischif and tom foolery. Thanksfully one brother is smarter than the others and he gets the other three out of trouble. Even the good son gets himself in a jam when he starts a mob war with the Itallians to defend his family. Thats about all you need to know.

Despite it's deceptively simple plot line, this is actually a pretty entertaining show. The acting is very good, and the story telling is compelling. The mood, and look of the show is fantastic. I would definately watch this one again.

Know the beer your drinking!!

It's March 1st and the Sam Adams season is White ale. I'm sure most of you have already enjoyed a few pints, but do you really know what it is your pouring down your fat gullets?? Fear notgentle citizens, that what I'm here for.

This beer's roots are in Belgium, and the classic Wit biers produced by Belgium's brewers. The style gets its name from the white, milky appearance of this unfiltered wheat ale. The brewers of Samuel Adams® beer, taking inspiration from the Belgians, have created a classic of their own. On the malt side, we use malted two row Pale barley, malted wheat, and Munich malt to give this beer a crisp, malty, cereal finish and smooth mouth feel. The hops used are Noble Tettnang Tettnanger hops. At the end of the kettle boil, we add a proprietary spice blend to give Samuel Adams® White Ale a unique and complex flavor, without being overpowering or cloying. The spice blend includes orange and lemon peel, dried plum, grains of paradise, coriander, anise, hibiscus, rose hips, tamarind, and vanilla. It is this special blend of spices that gives Samuel Adams® White Ale its unique character, complexity and refreshing drinkability. The beer is coarse filtered, leaving a white haze from the malt proteins. Our proprietary top fermenting ale yeast ferments the beer, imparting its signature character - bright and slightly fruity.

Antonella Barba says: "I love Head."