BBQ'd Productions Sports Bar & Grill - Lake Zurich, IL

This is the second time I have eaten at BBQ'd Productions Sports Bar & Grill in Lake Zurich, IL.

The first time, I had Rib Tips.  This time, I had the Brisket Sandwich.

Every time I go to BBQ places now, I compared their BBQ meats to my own, asking myself if mine is better or if theirs better.

In this case, I'd have to say, their brisket is better than mine.  But, I haven't smoked that many briskets... I mainly smoke pork products.  However, if I had to compare the "smokiness" of their meat to mine, I'd say my meats are right up there with theirs.

The brisket sandwich was very good.  Brisket was nice and tender and smoky in flavor.  Their sauce had a nice kick to it as well.  The fries were typical fries.

Overall, I'd recommend this restaurant if you want a smoked brisket or some kind of BBQ flavored item.  They seem to do a good job.

Fire & Wine - Glen Ellyn, IL

My daughter and son-in-law treated my wife and me to a dinner at Fire & Wine in Glen Ellyn, IL on Sunday.

My daughter ordered the Rigatoni Bolognese, my son-in-law had the Beef Medallions, my wife had the Summer Chopped Salad and I ordered the Barbecue Chicken and Pancetta Oven-Fired Pizza.

The beef medallions looked really good... but I'd have to reserved the taste to my son-in-law.  He said they were good, however.  The Rigatoni Bolognese looked good too but to me, didn't seem to be enough.  Still, my daughter took half of it home.  My wife's salad looked sparse to me.  While there was what appeared to be a chicken breast there, for the price, they could have made the salad with more lettuce!  Really, how much does lettuce cost?  If I were the owner of the restaurant, I'd pump that thing up a bit so at least you feel you got enough salad.  My wife said she didn't really like the dressing either.  That's too bad.

My pizza was good though.  The crust was thin and it did seem a bit oily on the bottom near the center, but it did taste good.  The BBQ sauce was a bit too sweet though, but the pancetta was good and the chicken was good too (short of the sweetness of the sauce).  The cheese was not the shredded variety, but appeared to have been sliced and placed on the pizza.  The outer crust was crunchy and my wife ate several sections of that.

Overall, I felt the restaurant was ok.  The waiter was very attentive.  Being more upscale in pricing for the dishes, I thought the only real miss was the salad.  Oh, my daughter also ordered some fried zucchini for my wife as an appetizer, but the breading  on it was a bit greasy making it soggy.  Again, portions was small for the price.  The ranch dressing was good though on that.

Still, it was a good time getting together with my daughter and son-in-law and I appreciate their generosity for picking up the tab.

Los Arcos Mexican Grill - Palatine, IL

My wife and I went to Los Arcos Mexican Grill in Palatine, IL today for lunch.  It was our 34th wedding anniversary!  We purchased a $15 coupon deal on LocalFlavors.com for a $30 value to use at the restaurant.

Every time we go out for Mexican food, I think of my time living in San Diego.  We lived there for eight years, and it just brings me back whenever I'm at a Mexican restaurant!  I've told my Mexican brides (I'm a former wedding photographer) that whenever I hear mariachi bands at their weddings, I reminisce about my San Diego weddings!  I guess I just like Mexican culture and food!

The waitress brought out chips and salsa (most Mexican restaurants do) which kept us busy while we waited for our lunches.

My wife had the Pollo Fajita meal (chicken) and I had the Burrito Suizo with al pastor meal.  This is typical of what she would order and what I would order when going to a Mexican restaurant.

We both thought our meals were excellent.  Value-wise, I think I got the better deal as her meal had mostly peppers than chicken, but she still felt the taste was very good.  My meal was drenched in suiza sauce, sour cream and cheese... just the way I like it!  She finished half her meal and brought the rest home... I finished my entire meal (typical of me).

I found the restaurant very quaint and decorated in the typical Mexican style.  They had a digital jukebox on the wall as well as lighting and DJ gear with a projector and screen which they could pull down from the wall.  I assume they must use this for parties.  TV's were set up around the room as well.

Overall, I'd recommend this restaurant.  It's a bit pricey, but not out of reach for the average person.  But if you want an authentic Mexican meal with a Mexican decor, you might want to check out Los Arcos.

Photos taken with the Canon G7xMkII point and shoot camera. By the way, I really like having this camera with me at all times. Much better than shooting with an iPhone and I carry it with me always on my belt in a small case. I tend to use this camera more than my Nikon D850 at this point because it's always with me. If I need high quality shots, of course I would use my D850. But just having a camera with me at all times that is small and has full manual capabilities that can do f1.8 for an aperture really pays off!

Cooper's Hawk - Wheeling

My brother, friends and I went to Cooper's Hawk in Wheeling to celebrate one of my friends' birthday.

The last time I went to Cooper's Hawk was for my wife's birthday in October 2018, but it was at the Arlington Heights location.  It wasn't so good at that time.

This time, I ordered the same meal as before, but this time the burger and fries were good.  The bun was not dry this time and was really good and the fries were hot.  I even ate the pickle!

While still expensive for what it is, it was much better this time around.  My friend has a big gluten issue and this restaurant has a very good gluten-free selection, so we went here.  I can see we might be coming here more often to replace our former go-to place, RAM which closed.

Burgers are around $12.95 for lunch which is expensive for a burger in my opinion, but you pay for the atmosphere here.  But if we only do this four times a year with my brother and friends, it's ok.

HuHot Mongolian Grill Kenosha Wisconsin

Smoking Ribs on the 18.5" Weber Smokey Mountain Smoker - WSM

Father's Day 2019 - Min Hing Restaurant - Rolling Meadows, IL

The place was packed 

 We ordered Dim Sum for lunch

 Har Gow (Shrimp Dumplings)

 Shrimp Spring Rolls

 BBQ Pork Buns

 Beef Chow Fun (Rice Noodles)

 Pork Spring Rolls

 Shrimp Cheung Fun (Rice Noodles)

 Tofu Skin Wrapped Pork

 Sesame Balls

 Jelly Fish (Cold Dish)

 Fried Taro

 Glutenous Rice in Lotus Leaf

Short Ribs

An overview of just part of our table

My family and I went to Min Hing in Rolling Meadows for Father's Day lunch.  They open at 10 AM and we got there a little after 10:30 AM.  The place was packed!  We got a number (#19) and waited perhaps around 45 minutes to get a table.

Food was great as usual.  Atmosphere was noisy as usual.  Min Hing has been recognized by the Michelin Guide for four years in a row so they are quite popular.  Worth checking out if you are in the area.

Baby Back Ribs and Pork Butt on the WSM Smokers

I made baby back ribs for my sister's family when they came to visit us and today I'm making pulled pork for my niece and future nephew-in-law!

I smoked the ribs on the 18.5" Weber Smokey Mountain (WSM) and the 15 lbs of pork butt on the 22.5" WSM.

The meats were purchased from Costco this time and I'd have to say that their meat tends to work best in my smokers.  The local grocery store just doesn't seem to have the same quality!

Sausage Omelette and Pancakes - Walker Brothers

My sister's family took me out to Walker Brother's for breakfast after we all went fishing in the morning!

I've been to a Walker Brothers in the past and it was good then as it was this time.  The food tends to be a bit expensive in my opinion, but the quality makes up for it.  The sausage omelet was huge and very good!  While only 3 eggs, they really whip that thing up to make it big.  The pancakes were excellent as well.  Yes, that's a huge amount of butter next to the pancakes!

Well worth going if you want decent breakfast food!

Ribs and Pulled Pork on the 18.5" WSM In The Rain

A little bit of rain won't stop the smoking!! Moved the 18.5" WSM under the umbrella.

Pork Butt on the middle grate, ribs on the upper grate. On the smoker at 6:40 AM. Doing 3-2-0.5 today for the ribs. The butt is cut in half (as I usually do) to speed up the cook for pulled pork.

Temp is monitored with two ThermoWorks Smoke units. Two probes in each half of the butt and one in one slab of the ribs (yeah, no need, but I like watching the temp anyway!)

Hoping for ribs for lunch and pulled pork for whenever it's done!
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After just 1 hour and 20 minutes, you can see how much the ribs have already started to shrink!  Compare this image below with the image above.

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The finished ribs below... These finished up a lot faster than I thought they would.  I ended up doing 2.5 hour and then 1.5 hours sauced and wrapped.  I did not bother with tightening them up again back on the grate.  They turned out great for St Louis Ribs with its rib tips.  Still, my wife prefers baby back ribs since they are less fatty, but I was ok with these ribs!  Decent "pull back" on the bones too.  A bit longer and it would have been better, but I was hungry.  What can I say...

The pulled pork is still in the smoker; however, one of the halves is already well past its doneness at 208 degrees internal.  The other half is only at 197 degrees, so I thought I'd just wait and take them both out when the other hits 202 or 203 degrees.  They are both wrapped in the same foil pan, so I really can't take just one out.  No big deal.  I'm sure they will be good anyway if the ribs are any indication!!

Memorial Day - Shrimp On The Barbie!

A little rain won't stop us... Shrimp On The Barbie!

Remembering those who fought hard to keep us free...