Chains

Nearly every coffee shop has their version of a blended coffee creation – Starbuck’s has the Frappucino, Dunkin’ Donuts has the Coolatta, Seattle’s Best has the JavaKula, and many neighborhood coffee shops have their own version – they’re all the rage!  Sweeter and thicker than a latte, they are part coffee and part frozen treat.  You’ll need a sweet tooth to enjoy these creations, but they are a cool treat and can be a nice break from your standard cup of joe, while still offering the jolt you need.

When I heard that Cold Stone Creamery had introduced their own blended coffee drinks, Sweet Cream Lattes and Flavored Lattes, I was intrigued.  Cold Stone’s Lattes are avaible iced or blended and come in three sizes - Like It, Love It, and Gotta Have It (aka small, medium, and large).  I eagerly ordered up a small Raspberry Truffle Mocha Latte Light (the light is lower in fat).   The clerk seemed confused by my order and took a very long time for my drink to be made. 

When my drink was finished, I peered into the cup.  It was a pinkish-greyish color but it appeared thick and frappe-like.  I took a sip.  At first, it tasted like nothing…then, a horribly bitter after-taste.  I refrained from grimacing in the store, but when we left I scowled.  I thought that perhaps my drink hadn’t been well-blended enough, so I stirred it vigorously with the straw and tried it again.  Still, I couldn’t detect any chocolate or raspberry flavoring - it was thick and bland with a bitter aftertaste, probably from whatever coffee product was within.  I stirred it again and my husband tried it – sure that my face was an exaggeration - but he grimaced and asked if we should go try to get our money back (we didn’t).  I tried one more sip, just to remind myself that it was okay to throw away an entire coffee drink, and then tossed it.  I drink Starbuck’s Frappucino Lites often enough to know that a blended coffee drink should not taste like this.

I headed to a nearby Borders where I ordered a Cookies N’ Cream flavored JavaKula at the Seattle’s Best Cafe within the store.  Much, much better – it was sweet, with nice flavors of chocolate and coffee and lovely bits of chocolate cookie throughout.  A perfect treat for a summer afternoon – and, as a bonus, it got the taste of the Sweet Cream Latte out of my  mouth (which wasn’t sweet or latte-like at all).  I guess the moral of the story is to stick to Cold Stone for ice cream and coffee shops for blended coffee drinks.

I love bagels in all their chewy, bready goodness.  Plain bagels, flavored bagels, with or without cream cheese, I love them all.  So, I was excited when I saw an ad (and, even better coupons!) for Einstein Bros Bagels new Bagel Poppers – cute little bagel bites that you can dip, pop in your mouth, and enjoy on the go.  Or so I thought.

I stopped by a local Einstein’s franchise this weekend and split two order of bagel poppers with my husband – blueberry and cinnamon sugar.  (We skipped the third flavor, an unappetizing sweet cream cheese).  I expected them to taste like, well, bagels.  We were sorely disappointed to find the bagel poppers tasted more like donut holes than bagel holes.  The blueberry variety had a sticky glaze on the outside that stuck to my fingers and made the poppers cloyingly sweet (and I love my sweets).  The cinnamon sugar flavor tasted more like fried dough dipped in cinnamon sugar.  Neither variety would be a good option for food on the go.  Despite being served in a plastic travel cup with a lid, the bagel poppers are too sticky and messy to enjoy without a napkin, or preferably a sink nearby.  If you don’t want to start your day with dessert, you’d do best to stick with your traditional bagel. And if you do want a sugary jolt to start your day, I’d recommend sticking to a classic donut.  If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!

I first became a Papa John’s convert (okay, maybe addict is a better word?) in my freshman year of college.  In a coup of brilliant marketing, their phone number was easy to memorize – 564-PAPA (see, I still remember it many years later!) and they delivered until the wee, wee hours.  Nary a weekend went by that Papa wasn’t at the door with his breadsticks.

Then, there were many sad, lonely years where Papa was not within a reasonable distance from home.  My husband grew weary of hearing about the Legend of Papa’s.  He claimed to have tried them and not liked them, but I told him that this was impossible (I’m stubborn like that).  Finally, a local branch opened, and we ordered take-out.  It was like introducing him to a long-lost friend, and it was really important to me that they get along.  To my relief, they did – we all did.  Now Papa is a regular guest in our house.  My husband particularly loves the breadsticks, which are great – they are nothing like the limp, fatty breadsticks of rival chain pizza places.  Papa’s isn’t lazy…they don’t take a bare pizza crust, butter it, and bake it.  This dough was born to be in breadsticks – they are thick and they actually taste like good bread, with no butter or fakey herb toppings.  Even better, there are myriad dipping sauces to choose from – ranging from the healthy (pizza tomato sauce) to the artery-clogging (cheese or garlic) - though dipping sauces beyond one token pizza sauce come at an additional cost.  I should mention that Papa John’s also offers flavored breadsticks, but I’m a purist – I like good, basic, doughy bread.

The pizza is nothing to sneeze at, either.  I am shocked and dismayed when people claim that other pizza chains like Domino’s, Pizza Hut, or Papa Gino’s (wrong Papa!) are better – I don’t think that they come close.  Papa’s is generous with the toppings, they taste relatively fresh for having come from a chain/delivery place, the toppings are proportionate to each other (i.e. it’s not all sauce, no cheese) and the crust is almost as delicous as the breadsticks – and equally great with the dipping sauces.  More importantly, Papa’s is consistent – I don’t worry when we order that it will be an “off night” like I do with other pizza places.

At about $18 for an order of breadsticks and a large pizza (together, enough to feed about 4 people) the price is reasonable.

On the down side – I guess there’s always a down side – but it’s relatively minor…there are no gourmet toppings to choose from – no eggplant, no fancy cheeses, just the basics – though Papa’s does have some specialty pizzas available.  Also, my husband seems to run into at least one snafu every time he places a take-out order by phone (we have yet to try their online ordering) and every time he goes to pick up the order…but it doesn’t stop him from craving and retrieving the pizza and breadsticks.  He is now a fellow convert (or addict).  So, call Papa, and enjoy!

The afternoon doldrums brought me to Starbucks.  I like Starbucks; I like the fancy drinks (although the prices pain me).  I often think that I’d prefer to support the neighborhood coffee shops, but Starbucks put a lot of them out of business.  The only one left within a convenient distance to my current home just isn’t that good.

I particularly enjoy Starbucks’ specialty drinks.  Their regular coffee is simply too bitter for me.  Every once in awhile I give it another try, I ask them to leave me a lot of extra room for milk or cream, but I still end up dumping half of the coffee in the trash so that I can mask the bitterness with milk/cream and sugar.  Palates differ greatly, though - my husband can drink (and enjoy) their coffee black.

On this visit to Starbucks I was hoping for a new seasonal coffee drink; I love the seasonal concoctions – Pumpkin Lattes, Eggnog Lattes, and possibly my all-time favorite, the Leprechaun Lattes.  When I want less caffeine and more comfort, I love the new Signature Hot Chocolates.  In the summer, I drink light Frappucinos.  So, I was surprised to walk into Starbucks after several weeks of Starbucks withdrawal to find that not only were there no new specialty coffee drinks but that the coffee menu had been taken over by (gasp!) teas.

Don’t get me wrong – I like tea.  But it’s generally not why I go to Starbucks.  I do occasionally order a chai tea latte, but like their coffee, it tastes as if it was overbrewed and the strong black tea flavor overwhelms the spices that make chai special.  The new menu at Starbucks features several Tazo tea latte drinks and tea infusions.  I will probably try one of these at some point, but I’m hugely disappointed to see tea taking over the menu.

Several hours after my Starbucks excursion I discovered that Starbucks is facing financial troubles and may be closing as many as 300 more locations (they closed several in 2008 already).  Which leads me to think…perhaps Starbucks should stick to what they do best?

There’s a list of chain restaurants that I avoid…I want to like them because of their convenience and affordability, but after food poisoining from one, hair in my food at another, and general disappointment at many,  I created a mental list of “chain restaurants to avoid.”  Chili’s Grill and Bar was on this list for awhile – not for any great offense, simply because I often left disappointed.  However, after receiving some gift cards for chain restaurants for the holidays, I’m back in the (chain restaurant) saddle.

One reason that I avoided Chili’s was the seemingly unavoidable noise, even on a weeknight.  My husband and I returned to Chili’s on a weeknight, and while it wasn’t quiet, I was pleased that we could hear each other easily.  The noise certainly didn’t detract from our meal.

Our waiter was warm, friendly, and attentive.   He was quick to take our drink order and to deliver them.  I ordered a Chambord 1800, a margarita on the rocks  with a kick of Chambord.  My husband ordered a Long Island Iced Tea.  Both drinks were sweet and enjoyable, if a little too full of ice.

For dinner,  I had the chicken tacos with sides of rice and black beans.  My husband had steak and portobello fajitas with rice.  My tacos were good but I found the chicken filling somewhat sparse and the cheese almost non-existent – the filling was predominantly iceberg lettuce and tomatoes.  I was surprised that I needed to eat all three tacos to feel full (I was looking forward to left-overs!).   The soft taco shell/tortilla was soft and just bready enough to be satisfying.  The rice, on the other hand, was so salty it was nearly inedible.  Interestingly, my husband had what appeared to be the same rice but we both found his appropriately seasoned and agreed that mine tasted like a salt shaker.  The black beans were cooked appropriately and were decent.  My husband also enjoyed his fajitas but the portabello mushrooms were very few and far between, and he also complained of the lack of cheese.

For dessert, we split a gargantuan order of chocolate chip cookie molten cake.  It was a warm, moist white cake full of chocolate chips and topped with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream.  There were two chocolate sauces on the dessert - an enjoyable chocolate shell that ensconced the ice cream, and a soft chocolate sauce that surrounded the cake.  It was decadent.

Our bill came to just over $50 including tip, a fairly reasonable price.  I recommend Chili’s for their fun drinks and desserts, but entrees can be inconsistent.  Regardless, I think Chili’ls has redeemed itself enough to be removed from my list.