The Tuesday Taste: Papa John's Pizza

 

Sometimes I get overcharged

That's when you

see sparks

They ask me where the hell

I'm going

At a thousand feet

per second

Another Tuesday, another Taste. I've managed to avoid being run down by the complete maniacs driving cars in this city for another week, and to celebrate that I went for a pizza at Papa John's!

Ugh... what a week.

Some quick history: the origin of Papa John's dates back to Jeffersonville, Indiana in 1984, when founder John Schnatter began operating a pizzeria out of the back of his father's tavern. This proved popular enough for him to open his own separate restaurant within a year, and by the 1990s it had become a franchise with hundreds of locations. In recent years Schnatter has (very) reluctantly stepped somewhat aside from the company on account of numerous controversies... having a scummy dude as the name and face of your product can't be good for business. I mean, watch this abomination if you're not convinced... pure cringe. 

Papa John's seems relatively new to Canada... I don't recall seeing any at all until sometime in the past decade. There happens to be one a pretty close walk from me, so I made my way up there, dodged an asshole fuck who nearly pancaked me with an SUV, and ordered a large four topping. 

This was a frustrating experience: the lady taking my order, while friendly, didn't seem to understand I was trying to order parmesan cheese as a topping. Seriously, this took a minute to explain... and in the end it still got screwed up. I also requested a garlic dipping sauce and instead got a ranch. What, did I trample the flowers in some karmic garden or something? Good gawd.

Needless to say, considering the shitty founder, dim service and my own general rage at nearly being a traffic casualty (yet again)... I was ready to rip this pizza a new orifice. It would've been delightful to do so, but I'm also a fair monster and I actually can't insult Papa John's pizza. At least, not very much. It's actually rather decent... damnit.

My four toppings were an attempt to recreate a pizza I loved as a kid, sort of a meaty, cheesy Hawaiian style. Bacon (which was bacon crumble, so minus points there), pepperoni, pineapple and then parmesan to add something dry alongside the salty and sweet. Well there's definitely no parmesan on this, but otherwise the three turned out to be a successful combination. The pepperoni is a bit buried in there and not super plentiful, so you definitely taste more of the salty bacon bits and sweet pineapple. 

Quality-wise... meh. It's very ordinary. The pepperoni is generic, the bacon crumble is bacon crumble (try it once you've tried em all) and the pineapple is semi-dry and not particularly juicy (this is what happens when you bake canned pineapple instead of the fresh stuff. When fresh it can hold it's consistency better in heat). Also can we talk about pineapple on pizza again for a quick moment? I just don't get why some people are so militant about it, like it violates some sacred standard of pizzas. I've met chefs like this as well, it's not just a layman thing. Frankly I've heard of people eating peanut butter, jam and pickle sandwiches, which while completely disgusting to my taste I don't think it breaks some kind of PB and J sandwich code. Ah whatever, I'm grouchy this week. Get off my lawn! 

Finishing up my thoughts on this offensively okay pizza... the sauce is your typical "whatever tomato sauce" with a texture so unremarkable it's not even worth acknowledging again once this sentence is over. The crust though... probably the best base element of the pie. There's a light wheatiness to the dough, reminding me of a white bread baked in a supermarket, and the softness (at least when fresh) is quite enjoyable. As for the cheese... I get the sense either they thought I ordered double mozzarella (ecch, I never do that) or that they like to really load the cheese on there to hide the scarcity of the toppings. Probably a bit of both, but I am glad the sheer amount of cheese doesn't strangle this thing to death (call it The Domino's Effect, heh). The reheat value is solid as well, with the ingredients not becoming gross or stale after a few hours.

Overall! Man, this is twice in a row I've gone for a pizza review very ready to unleash some venomous slander... instead I get mediocrity thrown at me again. Does this mean when I finally review 2-4-1 Pizza it might not be awful? (I wouldn't cross my fingers). Anyhow, I wouldn't call Papa John's good in any way... like Domino's it tricks you when fresh because the sensation of eating warm pizza is so enjoyable. This is better than Domino's though: while the ingredients are as generic, the outer dough isn't as stiff, the overdone (and overcooked) cheese at least doesn't blanket every corner and you don't get that weird cornmeal crumble at the bottom. There's actually a place called Rosina here in Toronto that makes excellent pizza (reviewed em once before) and I loved everything about it except that they do that same cornmeal thing. Those little bits are distracting and the cornmeal base for whatever reason dries out and doesn't reheat well. 

Lets give Papa John's a 'C' grade. Perfectly acceptable and better than Little Caesars (bland) or Domino's. It's so painfully average though in every way I'm not even sure what could make it better... a deeper, more interesting sauce perhaps? More variety of toppings? (their selection was pathetically limited). People who know what freaking parmesan cheese is? All right I've got to go yell at a cloud.

 

Burnt Ends -- It's been a week of editing! Mostly on my look at the Led Zeppelin albums, which I think will be ready around the time of next week's TT. Beyond that, trying to find a way to watch the Star Wars prequels so to torture mysel-- I mean review the Star Wars movies! Frankly it'll just be a lot of fun to write such a thing... explore the history of the franchise as an appreciator of the universe but someone far from hardcore fandom. Still thinking that could be my big "end of 2021" piece but I'll have to get on that wagon soon. 

 

Okay, Blue Jays -- So you're telling me that while the Jays lost both Marcus Semien and Robbie Ray to free agency, neither are going to the Yankees or Red Sox or AL East... meanwhile Toronto locks up Jose Berrios and nabs another high price pitcher in Kevin Gausman. Some will always throw thorns at this front office, but you can't say they've been off the ball or cheap here in this case.  

 

Bikes and Cars -- Look, people know that I'm both a committed cyclist and I complain about drivers a lot. Thing is, I'm not at all interested in the "bikes versus cars" debate Toronto seems to like having and that's because it's a stupid fucking debate. Like seriously, what does that accomplish? The real problem isn't cyclists are entitled idiots or drivers are stupid and dangerous... the problem is stupid and careless fucking people. 

Take it from me, your friendly neighbourhood foodman, in that certain cases it doesn't matter whether somebody is driving a car, riding a bike, gliding on a scooter or using their feet... they're just a complete clueless moron endangering people around them. Maybe they have the awareness of a hammer, maybe they just don't give a shit about anybody but themselves? I dunno! I'm not a pathetic waste of skin.

I see people make the argument that cyclists should have registrations and licenses and what not... okay sure but then you gotta do the same thing for e-Bikes, electric scooters... I dunno anything that can travel faster than 10km? I understand the spirit of the idea, but you also have to consider this will act as a further hindrance to people getting on a bike at all (and the dangers of riding downtown is a big enough hindrance as it is). Hey, I love having open lanes all to myself but I also think as a society we should be biking more, not less. 

My biggest argument against cars isn't that the drivers are overall dumber, it's the 1/100 buffoon you encounter is operating a two tonne death machine that can and does kill people. If you want to counter me with a "bicycles can hit and hurt people too!" argument, well you're an idiot and should probably stop reading this. Consider: I crashed into a thin tree once on my bike, probably with the circumference of a beer tall can. Damaged my bike a bit, maybe the tree was scuffed and I had a few bruises. A car crashes into that same tree? It's completely destroyed, probably uprooted and is off to be kindling. Trees: also not quite as soft or delicate as human bones and organs.   

This is becoming longer than my actual review (almost getting run over by a cretin will do that) but regardless, my argument stands that this isn't a vehicle problem but a human stupidity one. I've got so many insane stories in my years biking... one drunk fuck took a swing at me riding past him, an e-Bike riding the opposite direction on a One Way Street full speed towards me on Richmond (and told me to fuck off)... plus I've been hit by cars twice! Literally fucking twice, both on green lights for me. If Thing is, I've had altercations with dumbass pedestrians and just total prick cyclists as often as negligent drivers. Huh, maybe when I said I was a "committed" cyclist, what I meant was that I should be committed somewhere.... heyo! That's how you end a rant, people. 

 

Tuesday Tune -- I had a totally different song and band in mind this week, but to be honest this whole review has not gone according to plan. My intention was to try a completely different restaurant but their internet was down and were cash only, and since my bank is nowhere nearby I had to adjust. Then that fucker in the SUV almost runs me over at Kingston and Silver Birch (for the record, when you have to jump out of the way and they're not signalling, I think that qualifies). Sorry not sorry for my crassness this week, go enjoy this wonderful song sung by a man very rightfully afraid of cars. 

 

 

That's it for me. Until next time, stay safe out there, don't act like an entitled and dangerous jerk, be kind to each other and don't spill that mustard. 

 

The Tuesday Taste: A&W's Teen Burger + Mozza Burger

 

I was, smoking with the boys upstairs when I

heard about the whole affair

I said "Whoa no

William and Mary won't do now"

Well I did not think the girl

could be so cruel 

And I'm never, going back

to my old school

 

Another Tuesday... you know what that means. We've got a double (heck, triple) feature on the Taste this week, meaning I'll be a bit more concise than usual? Fat chance! Tune out now while you still can!

Luckily to all of you still with me, this nostalgia is a good story. I've commented on the weekly show how it's oddly funny I've reviewed A&W multiple times via their veggie burger or Nashville chicken attempt... yet never an actual beef burger from them. Wendy's, McD's, freaking Burger King... an A&W beef option seems pretty overdue. Once I found out there was an A&W location on the corner of Church Street and Hayden here in Toronto... well there are A&Ws basically everywhere now in Toronto but that particular spot has extra personal meaning. 

In that carefree spring/summer of 2015, I was in an inbetween situation. Still adjusting to living in an awkwardly inaccessible area of the city (which is still my home), but more crucially battling a job market while trying to balance a university schedule. One job had proven to be pathetic in providing me hours (and featuring a "hands on" manager so clueless he'd probably go hands onto a hot iron despite warnings)... I needed something else desperately and Spirits Bar and Grill rescued me for a few months.

I grew up in the Church/Wellesley area, went to high school there, and while it was never one of my underage watering holes (RIP Duke of Gloucester) I always was aware of Spirits. Getting an interview there, despite living a dozen kilometers away, and getting hired on the spot... still lingers as one of my finer "selling what I can do" moments. The job was strictly daytimes and I mostly greeted people as they entered the pub, sat them at tables with menus... then when we got super busy I'd switch into food running mode and handle the complications of our busy lunch services. I was 27, had bartended somewhat already but man, I just really liked the vibe of the place... my coworkers were friendly and worked even harder than I... the management stern but fair... the owner... well I helped her move a huge 50 pound microwave out of the unit above the restaurant and she bought me a beer for it... damn I genuinely loved working there. Getting a free meal every shift also helped, but also the money wasn't great and I'm the worst morning person who ever lived. The fact I did this, biked 12 km at 9am from Monday to Friday for five months, and still was sad when it suddenly ended... 

And end suddenly it did. The news ambushed me after one slow shift, but there had been a lot of those and they simply couldn't afford me. I recall the newly opened Firkin On Bloor stealing some of our business and personally swearing to never support a Firkin ever... little did I know. Within a year or two the owner, wanting to retire after decades, sold the building and Spirits was no more. I'd figured, like everything of Bloor/Yonge I remember between 1994-2008, the building would be demolished and some cold new lifeless steel thing would take its place. Nah... instead, it's a(nother) fucking A&W. The building still stands though.

Renovations have made the original interior layout unrecognizable: the main entrance (where a small front patio was) which led to the tiny bar has been completely erased. Instead, the new entryway leads into the main seating section of the old pub, where they once had musical acts and comedy nights. The ordering station cuts off a huge back section of seating that used to lead into their formidable back patio, which instead of showing dozens of tables is now a parking area with a dumpster hidden away. The benches built along the wooden outer walls are still there, as a final remnant of what once was there. I'd show up an hour early to power wash this patio every Monday... now it rests next to dumpsters. Time waits for no one. 

Hey, was this supposed to be a food review? It was, you say? Your romanticism towards the past is excessive, you say? Sickening, you say? Fork in the eye, you say? Bah. Look, we're talking Canadian A&W here. In my opinion, they're reliably... reliable. I'll get into it, don't worry, but dissecting A&W is like picking apart something you think is overly adequate. It could be a lot better in many ways, but they do a lot of things right. So 15 million memory lane words later, lets talk about A&W and compare their two flagship options: the Teen Burger and the Mozza, while also grading them upon their individual merits. 

Here's the Teen first: I think this is a burger that can fool you if you're not paying attention. Not that it's bad, but it perhaps relies on an overwhelming exposure of flavour to hide it's averageness. Consider the dominant taste of a Teen Burger: what is it? To me, I get a lot of ketchup and pickle... then some bacon and burger patty... a bit of sliced tomato (no onions for me ever) and a stiff but light toasted bun just firm enough to keep it together. The varying tastes are salty (bacon and beef) against sweet (pickle, ketchup and tomato) and while it all works there's no middle ground where both meet. The cheddar cheese barely factors in and the beef patty itself is mere salty texture against these stronger presences. It's a burger that tricks your tounge by being so flavourful, yet it's dominant flavours aren't all that deep, or really compliment each other well. I'm still much, much happier to eat a Teen over a Whopper or a Big Mac (both of which lack flavour to offensive levels) and a bacon cheeseburger is always a bacon cheeseburger... I'd recommend less or no ketchup and (to the irritation of friends of mine) eliminate the pickles. 

How about the Mozza: when it comes to burgers I've always been one to veer on the side of simplicity. My level of minimalism (lettuce, mustard, mayo and maybe cucumbers) is probably not for anyone, but in this case it's damn effective revealing the overall quality of a burger without bitter or sugary shields. The result: pretty decent? Shrug? Some tasty elements: the bacon on a Mozza burger jumps out at you much more this time, as does the cheese (more in texture than taste... you get some buttery-ness and know it's there at least) which speaks to how less can be more. No ketchup, no pickles, no onions... just a "secret sauce" type spread (mayo, relish and something sweet blended hard together) along with the cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato and beef. I like the Mozza burger more as a reviewer (since I can appreciate it with less obstruction) and as a consumer, since it's more of what I want. I wanna taste that bacon, that crunchy lettuce, that salty beef patty, that burger sauce on the tip of my mouth... it just works better. Still plenty of flavour, but they work in better harmony here.

Now look, I have to comment on the A&W beef and this is the same for both burgers I tried... they remind me of ground beef you probably overcooked the first time, but keep reheating again and again. It's not overly chewy, but its rather lifeless and empty beyond the outer layer... the juiciness cooked out of it and no amount of over-seasoning and salt can hide that. Hey though, at least it still tastes like actual beef... there's enough of that left to convince even a killjoy like me that this is the real thing. Overdone and reheated yes... but there isn't that gross processed McDonald's taste, or Krusty brand imitation gruel of Burger King. 

Overall... the Mozza burger is a consistently good late night burger. The Teen is solid as well, once you tone down the secondary elements. I enjoyed eating both of these, and did so within five minutes of each other because I'm a glutt... I mean I biked 33 km that day. Their burgers are far still too salty/over seasoned (hiding their absence of texture) but otherwise, hard to find a more prevalent late night food chain with this level of acceptable quality. Not a recommendation, rather an acknowledgement of solidness.           

 

Burnt Ends -- Geez, enough of me already. Here's my latest Star Trek review (of an actually great TNG episode by the way) and I did a baseball thing evaluating the top 60ish MLB free agents and how they could fit on the Blue Jays. 5500 words on the latter... yeah I need a life or a girlfriend or something. But read those articles anyway!

 

Caesar Me? Caesar Him! -- Oh yes, there's an extra review this week. 

 

 

So Settle in! Here comes my super duper extensive look at these canned Caesar cocktails... don't even think of drinking another drink in your life until you read these next few words!

 

   

Motts -- A smooth initial greeting and finish, though inescapably artificial in feel... very salty... tastes decent but also like it's very very bad for you. It's fairly okay.

 

 

Matt & Steve's -- More of a pickled taste, which I like... more of a something to it. Still not like the real thing: a drink mixed with skill and care by a talented bartender, with fresher non-canned ingredients... I mean there's no substitute for that ever. Again this is quite decent though.

 

 

Walter -- The most genuine of the three and perhaps the weakest, undone by it's better quality. Hard to explain, but this one forgoes an accessibly thin and salty texture for pure tomato paste. It's thick enough to stick a finger in and residue lingers on the release... clearly this recipe strove for something resembling the real thing and only just missed the mark via its ambition. The salty tomato taste is there, and I don't mind the thicker texture (just takes longer to drink, longer to enjoy it) but damnit it needs more of a kick, more of a punch. Not just alcohol-wise (4.5 percent) just something beyond thick gulps of tomato dipped in celery salt... a stronger version of this would be delightful. Anyhow, this could be an excellent substitute for Clamato if you plan on trying homemade caesars... kinda recommend that, to be honest.    

Tuesday Tune -- What? No, you've used up your reserve nostalgia privileges for the next seven decades. Bah, while the jury sorts that out (the trial never ends, Jean-Luc)... enjoy a song I've loved since I was 14 years old. A band that fools you with a smooth sound while singing a different story. 

That's it for me! Bit of a longer one this week, hope you all enjoyed the journey that eventually (I hope) led to a satisfying conclusion. Until next time, stay safe, be well, send some well wishes and perhaps help, if you can, to those folks affected by the horrible mudslides and weather on the west coast. Turns out climate change is a thing, who knew? Right, basically every expert ever. Anyhow, don't spill that mustard. 

This Week In Star Trek: TNG -- The Nth Degree

 

 

 

We're back everybody, with another look at a Trek episode! We've been looking at some pretty goofy ones lately (Abe Lincoln in space, 1940s casino cliche land) so it seems a good time to veer in a different direction. Also: here be spoilers. Always forget to add that with these.

The Nth Degree is a Season 4 episode of Next Generation that sees the return of beloved guest character Reg Barclay. Apparently bringing Barclay back was something that took the writers a while: they loved the character but didn't want to tell the same story as they had with Hollow Pursuits. 

What really makes Barclay work as a character (and likewise this story focused around him) is how he comes across as a real, believable person. Our main characters, while certainly with their own little blemishes, really can seem like Starfleet Superheroes... like they're the Space Avengers or something. Whereas Barclay with his extreme social phobias, nervous quirks and general discomfort makes him relatably human, and guest actor Dwight Schultz nails the visible awkwardness of the role. 

What also works for Nth Degree is how genuinely funny it is. Despite not being a straight up comedy or farce (like Fistful of Datas) the show sprinkles in these delightful little moments throughout, such as Barclay's cringeworthy acting as Cyrano in the opening scene (Dr. Crusher's desire to run a theatre on the ship always struck me as odd, though Barclay as Cyrano is an effective literary parallel). By contrast, another scene you get is the then enhanced Barclay attempting to smoothly pick up Troi in Ten Forward, with Riker later asking her if it worked... which she smirks at and walks off. It's these little interactions and moments that feel so natural which give really good Trek episodes so much to them. 

This story itself takes some inspiration from classic sci-fi tales, "Flowers For Algernon" jumps to mind, as it follows a man (Barclay) suddenly given super intelligence and abilities... exploring what that means both for himself and for the ship on which he serves. Unlike say a tragic monster character who's new abilities lead them to evil, Barclay's biggest crime becomes smug confidence, which thankfully isn't overplayed or used as some kind of cheap lesson in the end. Barclay is now the smartest person onboard but doesn't lord the fact over anybody, at first his instincts and intentions are still to want to help the ship from his same standing. 

What frustrates him is how the tools to do so have become inadequate to his advanced state, which leads to his solution of merging his mind with the Enterprise computer. I remember this reveal freaking me out when I was younger, seeing this spooky blue light with these laser beams darting upon Barclay's head... his voice calmly explaining what has happened while his face just looks on without expression... seems something out of a classic horror movie. Once Barclay begins a dangerous experiment with the ship, the tragic monster plot appears to be where we're heading. You know the one: the crew comes up with a crazy solution just in the nick of time and somehow everything is back to normal. Instead, perhaps surprisingly, the crew actually fails to stop Super Barclay. 

Fortunately for everyone, the experiment works and launches the ship into the middle of the galaxy, where an alien race appears (as a giant head on the bridge! Classic) to explain the reason for all the weirdness: they're driven explorers who never leave their own solar system and so bring other species to their world, learning about the universe that way. Kind of a lazy way of doing things but interesting nonetheless, just maybe don't try that with the Klingons or the Borg eh? 

Barclay also appears on the bridge to help explain, now disconnected from the computer and his regular human smarts restored. They do hit the reset button on this story pretty quickly, which is its only weakness. It would've been nice to learn a bit more about these aliens beyond just one scene, or why this "travel across the galaxy instantly" propulsion technique could only be used this episode. Otherwise, hey USS Voyager! Stranded in the Delta Quadrant? Just travel to the middle of the galaxy and find these goofy aliens! Watch out for the Evil God from Star Trek V!. 

It never feels like a high stakes episode, yet there are multiple moments with genuine urgency and tension. Nth Degree mixes good character scenes, humour, sci-fi horror elements and just a terrific performance by the guest star. Schultz's Barclay convincingly evolves through this episode from the nervous wreck we know... into a man given an intellectual gift he is slowly realizing... into a factual supercomputer attempting to happily explain how he's doing what's best for everyone. It never seems like he isn't himself or possessed by some other consciousness, rather that he is a different version of who he is. His comment in the final scene of feeling "smaller, much smaller" now that he's back to normal sums up the experience with understated self-reflection, telling you everything you need to know. It's a stellar episode, finishing strong on that closing bit of Barclay and Troi walking by a chess table and him making a brilliant move to win a stranger's game. "I didn't know you played chess?" "I don't!" Just great stuff. Warp 8 all the way.               

The Tuesday Taste: Dave's Hot Chicken

 

Keep believing the things

that you tell yourself

Everyone needs something

they can tell themselves

To hold onto cause after all of it's said

and done will you know

 

Another Tuesday, another Taste! Oh yeah. After doing pizza (and beer!) last week it's time to mix things up a bit... really dive into something new, something we definitely haven't reviewed here on the TT... a fried chicken sandwich! 

How has such a popular food item slipped under my radar? Well it's.... sorry what's that? We have reviewed a fried chicken sandwich before? Multiple times you say. To the point of madness, you say. Damn, after like 38 of these you'd think we'd be more on top of things... guess it's time to fire all of my many assistants... one moment please...

All kidding aside, I'd been curious to try Dave's Hot Chicken for quite some time. And, seeing as I recently tried Chica's out in The Junction (which was damn amazing) and also want to erase the KFC Double Down from my mind (not damn amazing)... it seemed like an ideal moment to move onto Dave's.

There are now three locations of DHC here in Toronto, one short of my usual criteria of needing at least four to qualify for the Tuesday review. However, there are at least a dozen more throughout the United States, mostly in southern California, Texas and a couple scattered about in Michigan and Illinois. Their story is pretty cool: basically four friends (including the titular Dave, a trained chef) started up a food stand pop-up in an East Hollywood parking lot and thanks to online buzz became an overnight sensation. 

Lets see how this sensation has translated up north. I went to their new spot in Leslieville, exactly where the beloved Stratengers pub used to be, and walking inside was definitely weird as hell. Where the pool tables were is now closed off by newly built walls, making this new interior significantly more narrow and tighter than my old post-softball game watering hole once was. At least they've utilized the upstairs as a seating area, which was an often forgotten and neglected section of the departed pub. 

I looked up their menu online beforehand and was baffled by the bare simplicity of it, assuming it to be a website bug of some kind. Nope, instead it really is pretty straight forward once you wrap your brain juices around it. They offer chicken tenders and sliders (initially worrying, considering the small size associated with those) which can be ordered in combos. Meanwhile everything non-combo is considered a side: tenders, sliders, fries, cheese fries and mac n' cheese. Considering the gigantic font size of the combo options and the relatively cast aside menu for the sides, it's no mystery which direction they're trying to steer ya.

Not a fan of fast food combos in general, I went for a slider with cheese fries (because, come on. They're cheese fries). They have a specific spice scale you order, starting at no spice whatsoever up to "Primal Rage" or "Super Death" or whatever (it's actually called "Reaper" which I assume is a nod to the Carolina Reaper hot pepper). Normally I go "medium" for these reviews to get a better taste of the main item itself... but damnit "hot" is in the Dave's Hot Chicken name, so I went with that ("Hot" is the third highest on the scale).

 

First the cheese fries. My two biggest complaints immediately: this is not a large portion for six bucks, and there's barely any cheese sauce on here (as you can see). Blame it on personal taste, but when I go for cheese fries I want those potatoes drenched my friend. This is the opposite of that. Seeing as this is clearly a side portion of fries anyway... you're paying an extra dollar for a teeny little drizzle of sauce, like it's caramel on a fancy dessert. Lame.

Complaints aside, these are quite good. The fries themselves (crinkle cut is always a nice touch) find that perfect combination of light and crispy: wonderfully soft and fluffy yet with just a slight crisp give that feels satisfying to chomp into. They're well seasoned also, not overly salty or anything but just enough to remind you there's something there. The cheese sauce definitely has that gooey element you find in a melty nacho cheese, except this has less of that 7/11 plastic dispenser flavour and more of an understated orange cheddary kick. Damn tasty fries, good mix of textures, an agreeable sauce... why isn't there more of it?

 

Lets move onto the sandwich, the real make-or-break. Despite being called a slider, this is a decent enough size. I hear "slider" and think either baseball or a tiny sandwich you can conceal by closing your hand around it. Thankfully this is larger than that. A bit unwieldy considering the awkward cut of the chicken doesn't fit in the bun, but I'll take that 100 times over a cookie cutter processed "chicken" product that aligns with perfect snugness. I'd estimate this is about the same size as a Popeye's chicken sandwich, maybe slightly smaller... but there's a lot more to it. 

First, this combination of red cabbage and a herb (maybe cilantro) mixed with a relishy mayo sauce which makes their slaw. It's creamy yes, but also modestly crunchy, a bit peppery and leafy bitter... possibly not for everyone but I found it interesting and different. They also don't shy away from loading pickle slices on this thing, which is probably the most uninteresting element here because there are so many other flavours working in better harmony... you can barely notice the pickles are there. 

The chicken itself... well it's very soft and juicy, even the thicker parts of the piece. Not really crunchy in any part, aside from the more cooked edges that are mostly skin and batter. It's an incredibly oily affair: even the bun will leave some residue on your finger tips, so stock up on napkins. 

How about the spice? I'd describe it as accessibly hot. Frankly it reminds me of a vindaloo maybe, a gradual earthy heat that never stings or overwhelms but sneaks in just enough in spikes. It's definitely a sauce, as the drier seasoned parts of the chicken are not spicy... rather the thicker parts where it has seeped into the bird itself. I quite like it, there's a very good flavour in there balanced with enough of a spicy jab to the corners of your mouth.

Overall... it's a bit overpriced portion-wise (especially the fries) but the quality is there and the sandwich itself really goes in a neat direction. The slaw is unique compared to your standard coleslaws the likes of KFC and Popeyes offer, while the chicken is both deliciously cooked and really loaded with interesting tastes and texture. I've seen on Google that this location has a 3.1/5 rating and I'm somewhat confused by that: either people have the same complaints I do (which are valid) or people have gone in and gotten something entirely different than they expected. I'm not suggesting that those reviewers are incorrect in their opinions, just that after trying* and reviewing many various fried chickens this past year it was refreshing to experience something a little different. Worth a try, I'd say. 

*I still gotta give it up to Chica's though. Seriously if you're near Keele and Dundas West that place is great.

 

Burnt Ends -- I swear, often I wonder if I've started writing Star Trek reviews as some passive agressive way of converting everyone I know (and perhaps strangers) into the greatness of classic Trek. It's almost definitely not working, but hey read my review of a TNG episode anyway. It's Riker, Worf and Data in a 1930s/50s/??? casino simulation and is way goofier than you could possibly imagine. 

Beyond that, bah it's the usual editing ideas and such. Might have a baseball thing up soon on one of those other websites I sometimes write for (yep, I'm clearly a two-timing swine).

 

Tuesday Callback -- I've already reviewed Burger's Priest before (they know how to smother their cheese fries right) and came across this article about the original founder of The Priest, who has since moved on from the chain and into pizza (good man) with Fourth Man In The Fire. To be honest, the article is pretty vacuous beyond that the dude is quite pleased to see that something he helped start has become so wildly successful now, with their 26th location opening in Newmarket. Annnnnd I've now told you every bit of relevant information in that article with about 300 fewer words.   

Anyways, I maintain Burger's Priest is pretty overrated but 4th Man In The Fire is legitimately terrific, check them out.

 

My Old Street -- There's a reason (well several) I don't live in downtown Toronto anymore and have no intention of ever doing so again. Because of constant condo development my old neighbourhood is barely recognizable now as is, and here is yet another step towards that. My thoughts exactly.

 

Tuesday Tune -- Finishing on some good news, one of my favourite bands has just announced they're releasing a new album next February... their first since 2017! In honour of that, here's a great tune from their great 2002 record Kill The Moonlight.

 

   

That's it for this week! It's starting to get cold out, which will make these adventures to try places a bit more interesting/challenging. So if there's a blizzard for a week... I dunno I'll probably just review something at A&W I haven't tried yet or something. They did finally open one here in the Beaches... Anyhow until next time, stay safe, be well, enjoy these remaining days of temperatures in the positives and don't spill that mustard.

 

         

 

This Week In Star Trek: TNG -- The Royale

 

We are back with another Star Trek episode review! After a pair of forays into the wildly uneven third season of the original show, time to jump forward a couple decades into the Trek show I grew up with: good old Next Generation.

The Royale is a season 2 episode, which like TOS season 3 was extremely chaotic. Gates McFadden had temporarily left the show (her and then producer Maurice Hurley did not get along, to put it mildly), there was a writer's strike looming (an explanation, not a forgiveness, for the all-time worst Shades of Grey) and the overall quality of TNG was still lacking. However, the show was improving and pieces were falling into the right places, such as La Forge becoming the chief engineer or Worf getting some character development. Season 2 features some truly exceptional episodes and of course Riker growing his trademark beard (he just looks dopey without it). 

While not good, The Royale could be described as a guilty pleasure. The Enterprise-D discovers traces of a destroyed Earth vessel from the mid 21st century, the wreckage of which when transported aboard has 'NASA' printed upon the hull fragment. How lucky they beamed up that exact piece! Or that it is still intact enough to spell 'NASA'. The debris leads them to a planet completely uninhabitable to human life, aside from an inexplicable small pocket of breathable atmosphere. Riker, Worf and Data beam down to investigate, find a revolving door within the dark void, and then the episode gets real silly.

The biggest problem is how little of a story there is, and as a result the episode is filled with scenes that carry little purpose. To its benefit there is some creepy atmosphere, with most of the characters of the casino completely ignoring our heroes as they inquire what's happening... and the reveal when they realize they're trapped here is unsettling. But then the story farts around a bit, with the (annoying) Texan character and the vacuous woman he's clearly bamboozling... or the hotel manager who is clearly not helpful yet they keep asking him questions... or the bellboy with the cliche lovestory and even more cliche dialogue. 

It is meant to be a parody of such drugstore novels of course, and its self-awareness of this is what salvages the episode. This isn't taking itself too seriously, which gives it some charm. Picard's visible yet subtle exasperation at the grating, awful plot of the Royale novel (revealed as the basis for this simulation) is quite amusing. Same with the little bits where Data, Worf and Riker are confused how an elevator works, or what room service is. The episode over indulges on this though, as it does the overall corniness of the Royale world... which is to its greatest detriment. As for the ending, with our heroes winning enough at Craps to buy the casino thanks to Data manipulating the dice... it's cheesy and predictable. Which is the point! It's just way overdone by its own parody and isn't particularly enjoyable as such. 

Plus there's the weird coda with Picard discussing Fermat's Last Theorem, a famously unsolved mathematics problem that tries to be some kind of allegory for the episode... but just doesn't fit in here thematically at all. Riker and Picard try to make sense of the Royale simulation (window dressing for a NASA astronaut marooned accidentally by aliens) and Picard muses how like Fermat's Last Theorem it is a mystery that may never be solved. Except it was, in 1994 (six years after this episode aired). Ah well, can't blame the show for that one I suppose. 

Overall... it's a bad episode but with enough charm here and there to save it from being completely pointless and terrible. How dated it feels, in story and style, hurts it quite a bit, and it really needed more in the way of substance or perhaps a more immediate threat. Still, if you're like me and enjoy rolling your eyes at laughably bad drama (which the characters of the simulation definitely provide) then you'll probably like this episode more than its weak reputation suggests. It's definitely below average though, a Warp 4.   

    

The Tuesday Taste: Little Caesars' Deep! Deep! Dish Pizza (and more!)

 

Down in the street below

Hear the drunken archangel sing

I know what's on your mind, my boy

cause I can see, oh everything

Lead pipes, your fortunes made

Well take a tip from me

 

Another Tuesday, another Taste! Last week's detour into sweet toothery behind us, it is time to revisit a food so close to my heart I'm known for loving it to hilarious excess.

Yep, it's another pizza. Bet ya didn't see that coming.

I wrote a brief blurb on Little Caesars back in 2018 when I wrote my Toronto Pizza Chain rankings piece, not at all knowing it would be the ignition into me eventually trying over 100 pizza places and writing about each one... totally a sane thing to do. Anyhow, I actually wrote that review on memory... as in some of those places (like 2-4-1) I hadn't eaten in years but still commented upon their quality (or lack there of). Little Caesars was another I threw under a truck without having tried it in seven years, its badness leaving such a grotesque impression I didn't feel the need to ever subject myself to it again.

Hey though, here at the TT we don't goof around, damnit. I ate a Whopper for this show, if you need any further proof. Besides, tastes can change as can recipes (even from gigantic super chains). It'd been a decade and while my expectations were low, I was curious how Little Caesars would settle with me now. 

Some quick backstory: Little Caesars was founded in 1959 and set up in a strip mall out in a Detroit suburb. The founders were a husband and wife team, Mike and Marian Ilitch, who eventually became also well known as the owners of the Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Tigers. Marian Ilitch is still one of the richest women in the world, according to Forbes. 

Since they're a chain that began (and is still headquartered) out of Detroit, it seemed appropriate that I try their attempt at a Detroit style pizza. The rectangular deep dish style that joints like Descendant have done absolute masterful justice to (I still have to try Gianna's in Parkdale or 8 Mile... very curious about those). 

I wasn't exactly sure what toppings I wanted, so I elected upon their "Quattro" pizza you see above, with each quarter of the pie containing different combinations (cheese, pepperoni, meat lovers and deluxe respectably). Not wanting one of their "Hot-N-Ready" options (which was what revolted me before) I requested no onions so to get a pizza certain to be fresh from the oven. Gotta at least try to judge them at their best.

Being told my pizza would be "ten minutes" was a quick red flag considering deep dish pizza, which usually take significantly longer to cook properly. Sure enough, this pie is a bit on the doughier side once you advance beyond the crusts. The dough though (d'oh!) is actually quite decent... the softness reminds me of eating a doughnut (and not one that's been mummified sitting under a heat lamp for eleven hours). It also has the oiliness of a doughnut, which is where this pizza runs into some issues.

Yeah, this is one greasy pie. My biggest gripe with Pizza Hut is the overwhelming grease, like "drip through the box" level stuff. Little Caesars isn't quite that bad but as this pizza cools off that taste of oil becomes increasingly present. My unlikely theory is this thing was pan fried instead of baked, explaining the outer crispiness in such a short cooking time.

This wouldn't be such a problem if this pie had significantly more flavour: as is it tastes pretty darn bland beyond mere texture. Nothing jumps out for attention: the tomato sauce, which is plentiful thankfully to at least provide balance, just resembles a generic pre-packaged offering you find in any supermarket. There's a bit of acidic sting to it, but as a sauce it's much too processed and lacking depth. 

Really, there isn't anything overtly gross about this pizza... but nothing particularly impressive either. The primary elements are all varying levels of below average to mediocre. Of the four different slices, the meat lovers is the strongest simply by having the most going on with it. The cheese slice was okay when warm and gooey (but rather tasteless and bad when reheated), the pepperoni one very "meh" via how uninteresting the pepperoni is, and the deluxe slice undone by the withered and dry green peppers (a shame, since some fresh veggie crunch could have made it work). They use bacon crumble instead of strip bacon, usually a bad sign in terms of quality, although the Italian sausage bits were quite juicy and sharply seasoned... by far the best topping featured here. 

My final conclusions would be how I need to reassess how I feel about Little Caesars. My 2018 review regarded them as awful with a D- grade... but this pizza wasn't awful. Bland? Unexciting? Very much so. It's not one I'd seek to order again, despite it being quite filling. This desperately needs more to it... better ingredients, any kind of seasoning... I mean when your crust is the most interesting and maybe most flavourful part (and it's thin, soft crispiness is quite good) you gotta step up your game. The deep dish aspect is the only thing going for this, which makes me suspect their regular pizzas, if made similarly, might be much much worse. 

For now, this gets elevated to something like a C-, maybe a C--. It's below average without a doubt, but there's enough competence here that I won't continue slagging it for being horrific. This is without a doubt better than Pizza Pizza at least.      

 

Bonus Round! -- Wait, you mean there's more this week? OHHHH MYYY GODDDDDDDD

Sure! You see, Sunday afternoon I was working a bar at BMO Field here in Toronto that sold only cans of Mill Street beers. I used to really like their offerings, until one by one they discontinued every beer they made I actually liked. The Coffee Porter, the Belgian Wit, Lemon Tea, Tankhouse, that legendary Blueberry Wheat beer I even asked about while getting a tour of their brewery... all gone. Naturally, I've stopped buying their remaining or new products. This made for some awkward fibbing when a few patrons came up to my stand and asked for my recommendations... since beyond the flagship Organic Lager and maaaaybe the Pilsner, I'd never tried any of these. 

 

 

Thus, an idea was born. I went off to my local LCBO and bought as many of those beers I was selling on Sunday that they had, so to try them for myself and share my conclusions with you! Consider it a boozy dessert after the main pizza course of this article.

Organic Lager

 

Easy drinking, about as light as water. Legendarily inoffensive, the kind of beer agreeable at a party to anybody walking in the door who isn't a teetotaler or a complete suds snob. Unsurprisingly, it was the beer I sold the most of that shift. I don't love it, and I'd never go out of my way to purchase some (especially at $3.40 a can now? wtf)... but unlike your Bud Lights of the world this does at least taste like beer, with enough of that taste present to provide a beer drinking experience (Bud Light is the beer equivalent to mixing your dish soap with water to make it last longer... except that would have more flavour). Mill Street Organic has never been my kind of beer, but I confess it's rather alright. 

Organic Pilsner

  

Gee, they sure plaster the "organic" moniker on everything, don't they. Like the lager, it's fairly smooth, but there's a bit more malt and barley to the initial flavour. Still doesn't leave much of a lasting feel. Very average, very accessible. Cool, I guess.

Watermelon Wheat

  

Smells quite nice, with that faint sweetness of actual watermelon. The flavour is much the same, not overly thick or murky like many (really good) wheat beers often are... with a subtle sweet acting like a thin blanket over a very ordinary brew. Sensing a theme yet? This is the one I like best so far, and is quite refreshing... but still just too light for me personally. 

Hazy Organic IPA

  

Last one... will we finally get a brew with at least a little punch to it? Smell wise, you get that classic pine scent of an IPA... promising. It is somewhat hazy in appearance also. The flavour... like everything else here it's strangely smooth, especially for 6 percent. Definitely not overly hoppy, which depending on your taste is a good thing or a bad thing (I go back and forth myself). Not much aftertaste either... hoppier beers tend to linger on your tongue rather prominently and this one feels easy to wash away. I like the initial taste but there isn't a lot of depth to it. 

Honestly... as beers these are all fine, it's just that beyond subtle differences they all kinda taste the same. Smooth, not much aftertaste, semi-watery... acceptable as a "premium" option for mass consumption but pretty uninspiring to a more expanded palette. Perfectly average, perfectly accessible. Mill Street's story of a little independent brewery in the Distillery District starting out in the early 2000s (well before the craft beer boon here in Toronto) and reaching such heights and success... damn good on them. However, I really miss their more creative, interesting options when they were still owned independently. That Lemon Tea Beer man... instead now it seems like they're just making slight variations of the same brew over and over.     

 

Burnt Ends -- Nothing much to report on the writing front beyond that I'm editing a bunch of things. Got another Star Trek review on the horizon, still plugging away and adding to my look at the Led Zeppelin discography... stuff like that. I find editing extremely fun but it's certainly not very interesting to talk about.

One nugget of news though: I'm determined to finally do a ranking of the Star Wars trilogy films before the year is out... so be ready for that around the holidays (and be ready for my very bad Star Wars takes, being a far bigger Trek fan and all).

 

Tuesday Tune -- What can I say, I'm a sucker for early 2000s garage rock.

 

    

That's all for another week! Hope you all enjoyed the dual pizza and beer review, might try something like that again sometime (and doing the food before the beer was a good call). Until next time, be well, be kind, enjoy these warm November days but don't spill that mustard. 

The Tuesday Taste: Halloween Candy Edition!

Oh no, here it comes again

Can't remember when we came

so close to love before

Hold on, good things never last

Nothing's in the past

it always seems to come again

Another Tuesday.... another spooky Taste! This is the first ever Halloween episode of the weekly show, and since this is a favourite holiday of mine I wanted to switch gears for a moment and do something a bit different this time around. 

So yeah, as the header photo has already revealed... it's a chocolate bar tasting showdown! 

I'll jump into this quickly I swear, but first I should explain my specific choices here. These are six chocolate bars I vividly remember receiving vast quantities of (in "Fun" size form) on childhood Halloweens wandering the bountiful side streets of the Annex with my dad. The Annex of my costumed youth was the true zenith for Toronto trick or treating and you'll never convince me otherwise. A wealthy area with plenty of accessible houses packed close together, tons of families and perfect for on foot travelers? Yeah get lost Forest Hill, Rosedale or Bridle Path... The Annex kicks your gated asses. Once older I used to even plan with my dad the best strategic routes for optimal candy... it was in our mutual interest after all. I even trick-or-treated at Margaret Atwood's door a couple times (unsurprisingly she does not know video game characters). 

Enough of my tricks, onto the treats. I regret four omissions: Mr. Big, Caramilk, Crispy Crunch and Wunderbars, all of which would be usually plentiful in the evenings loot. I'm also an adult, bought full size versions of these and frankly my weakness towards chocolate and candy has never matched that towards my true chips and dip master. Wunderbar is the one I really would've liked to try again though... I always loved those but sadly could not find it at the singular place I looked. 

I'm also no culinary dessert expert (or expert on anything really beyond Star Trek before 1993) so my observations will be more on taste and feel over what makes the actual ingredients in these things go. Hint: it's sugar. Okay lets ring these doorbells.

 

Snickers 

 

Cheating here somewhat by starting with a longtime favourite, one of the few candy bars I've actively purchased in my 30s. I've always liked how as you chomp down, the layers of flavour and texture come to you in succession: the outer layer of chocolate, then the caramel below that, then the nuts combine with the bottom deposit of nougat (totally had to look up what it was) to finish off the Snickers experience. There's a softness to the bite wonderfully balanced by the peanuts inside, while the gooey sweetness of the caramel gives you a bit of everything. This really is the chocolate bar I think about twice a year when I unexpectedly crave such things. 

 

Mars Bar

 

 

Makes sense to jump here next, as Snickers is produced by Mars Inc. and the two bars are visually nearly identical (only by the cross section cut could I myself be sure which was which).

They are different enough in taste though: Mars bars ditch the nuts for a less crunchy ride and a far more chewy one. This allows the bottom layer, which seems more taffy-like (still apparently nougat) to dominate the texture while the top caramel takes the steering wheel of the flavour. As a child a Mars was acceptable (duh) but never a first choice... now I think I can appreciate the slow chew of it quite a bit more. Snickers is the quick snack while Mars is the slow treat. I'd still pick Snickers but both have their time and place.

 

Oh Henry!

 

 

Now we're combining the chewy and the nutty, and Oh Henry! is nutty to the point of being committed. Eating one again though, after probably eight years... I can understand why in my teen years I couldn't get enough of these. We supposedly get fudge instead of nougat here, making this a less sweet affair (I've never had a sweet tooth anyway) and a more chocolatey one. Texture-wise it's a bit uneven to eat due to it's composition. The mis-shapenness of it is amusing to me, ditching the perfectly rectangular bar form for a lumpy log one could describe looks turd-like in nature. I know this guy would do such a thing.

 

Kit Kat

 

I need a break... lets cross the pond into wafer territory. Kit Kat (originally created in the UK) is extraordinary simple: it's a wafer bar covered in chocolate. You could make them at home without much difficulty (some cooking chocolate, wafers and a freezer I'm guessing). What makes them appealing is that crispy wafer within, dissolving in your mouth while that coated chocolate doubles down and coats your taste buds as well. Wafers on their own are quite dry even with the filling... I think as a pre-teen I used to buy a pack of vanilla ones and dip them in peanut butter. Geez, it's a damn miracle I don't weigh 300 pounds (bless you, obsessive bicycling). 

Kit Kats are enjoyable within their simplicity as long as you like that chocolate, since that's 80 percent of what you taste here (95 percent if it's a Kit Kat Chunky). I also recommend the "put them in the fridge" trick... then you get that real good "snap".

 

Coffee Crisp

 

 

Now we're closer to home... Canadian innovation baby! Well sorta... it was invented here in the 1930s but distributed by Rowntree's, a UK company until Nestle bought them out. Basically any pre-wrapped and branded chocolate bar you find in most stores anywhere is going to be blanket owned by some super mega corporation. 

When younger, when things like these mattered so much, Coffee Crisp was a divisive candy. Many truly hated it, but I was never one among them. Its uniqueness appealed to me: how it tasted, crunched and crumbled like no other chocolate bar around at the time (and I truly was an expert on these matters, my credentials being that I was a ten year old boy).

Two decades later, I can give it the same compliments now as I did then. Like Kit Kat it utilizes wafers internally (must be that British influence) but Coffee Crisp is like if you stacked a brick of Kit Kat wafers and brushed the chocolate gently around them, as opposed to coating a layer of chocolate housing insulation. The texture is like a brick, you can knock your knuckles on this thing, and biting into it is like you're a Godzilla creature chomping on a skyscraper and feeling the walls collapse around your teeth. 

It's on the drier for a chocolate bar, which is a fair criticism. I've just always liked that rich flavour, a hint of coffee and vanilla faint enough to dance along the tongue... and I don't even drink coffee. 

 

Reese's Peanut Butter Cup

 

 

Without a doubt one of the most widely known treats of our time, an ingenious merging of two forces into one entity so powerful even Family Guy referenced it. Okay, that's not saying much... I just wanted to share that clip.

I do enjoy them: the chocolate/peanut butter ratio is just on point and they're even better after some time in the fridge to truly harden up that chocolate shell. The peanut butter just doesn't do it for me though... the feel and taste of it bothers my mouth and I'm certain it's the excess sugar in this thing. Once upon a time I loved my Skippy on some English Muffins in the morning... smoother the better. Now, any rare occasion I buy peanut butter I go straight for the certified organic stuff as chunky as possible. Like I need to taste the air of the peanut shell within the spread.

Reeses peanut butter cups are a tasty treat and a classic, but they always leave my throat feeling kinda gross... or I get a slight sugar headache. Not for me anymore, it seems. I do recommend getting a homemade one from a chocolate shop sometime if you can though.

Final verdicts! I'm not gonna grade these (because how could I) but I can rank them by preference:

 

1. Snickers 

2. Coffee Crisp

3. Oh Henry!

4. Mars

5. Kit Kat

6. Reese's

 

None are bad... each one is enjoyable in its own way. Now excuse me for a moment, all that sweet sugar is making my head spin and my stomach groan.... glad I only ate half of each one.

 

 

Burnt Ends -- It's been a busy-ish week here on the ol writing train. Wrote another Star Trek review, back to season 3 of the 60s series with "The Mark of Gideon". Beyond that, I jumped head first into looking at the Led Zeppelin discography... enough so that my first draft is complete! All 5500 words of it. It'll need a few edits no doubt, hopefully to subtract some of that length but no promises.

The Unworldly Series -- Rather sad to say, as an enormous baseball fan, that I haven't watched a single second of the currently ongoing World Series. Hell, I didn't watch the LCS series either. The combination of how the Blue Jays season ended (still not completely over that) and basically how I dislike every single playoff team with the exception of the Brewers and Giants... who go figure were both knocked out quickly. Yep, the last 2021 MLB baseball I saw was the horrible checked swing call to end that otherwise fabulous Dodgers-Giants Game 5. Worst... postseason... ever... 

That said, I still love the game of course. Here's a pretty interesting article I read about baseball's connection with the literary world, both in regards to baseball's use as a setting or event in literary works, or just lingo from the game itself we use in everyday phrases (even by those who don't know or follow the game). It's a good read. 

 

Attack of the Phone(ys) -- Have you noticed we're starting to see provincial attack ads recently? Gimme a goddamn break. Isn't the election not slated until next year anyway? Can't we at least get a somewhat extended reprieve from this garbage? Sigh. 

Anyhow, I did chuckle at the PC ad attacking the Ontario NDP for "she says she wants to reduce gridlock, yet Horwath opposes new highways..." Ummm... like not wanting to destroy unique wildlife and forests for a fucking slab of concrete is a bad thing? Well done, fellas. Besides, this proposed 413 highway seems to be a rather gross and slimy affair.  

Look, I get that people have to get around to where they have to go... we all do... I just prefer a solution that also leaves us with breathable air and a livable climate by the middle of the century.

 

Tuesday Tune -- Kind of crazy I haven't featured a song by this band on the TT yet. So here is some fast power for your Tuesday ears. This tune makes me wanna go run a mile in like twenty seconds.

 

 

That's for me this week. Hope you all enjoyed the spooky holidays and are gorging on leftover candy as you read this. Until next time, we well, be kind and don't spill that mustard.