May 03, 2006

iSHARK.... FREEBIRD!

I have a few things for today. First, after making fun of the iPod for years and buying the dell mp3 player I switched to the video ipod. Now after being a 1 button mouse biggot for years I broke down and just purchased my first mac. Maybee i'm becoming a brooklyn hipster and I will start wearing brown sox with puma's. It's all marketing and those latest commercials witht he Bill Gates look alike sold me on iLIfE.

Freebird? Why is it automatic that at concert, a recital, church or even a wedding that I just went to people, including myself, yelling freebird? Why and will I stop? Where do you go to find out how it started. You have to check Wikipedia. Essentially, lynard skynard always left that song to last and it was included on a live album. Then a radio dj picked up on it and had fans go to a florence henderson concert and yell freebird. A great bit of useful knowledge for all to have.

homeland.jpgJ9 and I are getting ready for my first pilgramage to the motherland, my IRELAND. I can't wait. 9 Days of driving on the left side of the road, sleeping in strangers houses and of course drink a few Guinness along the way.


Finally, why is myspace so insane? I was looking at who hits my web site and they all refer from myspace. When i found a profiles that reference my site, I see that they took a picture of my brother in law this post and put comments under it. I didn't realize it was such a funny picture until i saw these myspace sites. The internet is a strange, strange place and gets stranger by the day.

myspace site w/ image - scroll down

Posted by Patrick at 08:57 PM | Comments (0)

April 19, 2006

crab rangoon, crab rangoon! Petition your local chinese take-out!

crabrangoon.jpg I have a friend in college who when you were ordering chinese food would run into the room and yell, crab rangoon, crab rangoon! could there be a better word on earth than RANGOON! I didn't even know what the crab rangoon was until college, but quickly became attached to this fried wonton-philly cream cheese wonder. The beauty of this delicious starter is that it was one of the earliest forms of chinese-american fusion, combining american cream cheese, fake crab meat and the fried wonton. Wikipedia states the crab rangoon was first served in the us in the early 1950's at Trader Vic's in California. It made it's way across the united states, tearing up wisconsin take out, hit middle america, 2 types in chi-town, upstate new york and made it as a staple on the boston area chinese food menu. Go check your appetizer section of your chinese food menu is it on your menu? please comment below! If you are on the west coast or in New York metro area chances are slim to none - no rangoon for you! Why? Some blogs who have tackled this thread on the web state it is due to the fact it is not really chinese food. Ok, I can buy that for a minute until i get to the chicken wing and bbq spareribs section of the menu. Also, chinese food take out in NYC have started to spin off mexican take out since they have mastered the art of quick quality food to your door in rain, sleet, snow or hail. So I still don't get it. Are they made fresh and require extra orders of philly cream cheese that can't be used in other dishes? I know new yorkers love fake crab and anything fried or random.I guess that leaves conspiracy. I found a handful of restuarants out of the 10 zillion in nyc that offer the dish, none in Brooklyn. I have listed them below. In the city where you can get anything at any time of the day or night, you can not get a crab rangoon and that is a shame, a real travesty. Any rangoons on the menu in jersey? I may have to move there sooner than later.

Tribeca
Fulton Chef
64 Fulton St | At Gold St

Lower East Side
China Town
250 E Houston St | Btwn Ave A & Ave B
China Wok
199 E 3rd St | At Ave B
Our Kitchen
520 E 14th St | Btwn Ave A & Ave B
Six Happy Kitchen
213 E Broadway | Btwn Jefferson & Clinton St

Gramercy
Galaxy Global Eatery
Noodles on 28
394 3rd Ave | At 28th St

Hell's Kitchen
Gourmet Wok
597 10th Ave | Btwn 43rd & 44th St
Xing
785 9th Ave | At 52nd St

Brooklyn 0
Upper West Side
Wok City
153 Amsterdam Ave | Btwn 66th & 67th St
Upper East Side
Noodles 28
1643 2nd Ave | At 85th St
Wang's
1217 1st Ave | Btwn 65th & 66th St

Image courtesy of trainorphans.org

Posted by Patrick at 09:35 PM | Comments (4)

April 27, 2005

Barbicide Rocks

barbicide.jpgIf you know me, you know i love niche companies - niche will get you rich. Wd-40 is a good example. Companies and family businesses that find a need in the economy, fill it, get rich and then continue to care and feed for it - never ever selling out! Recently over dinner someone told me about the blue stuff that is next to your barber's mirror that they clean the comb off with when they drop it, Barbicide (Which actually means, barber killer) He told me only one company makes this stuff and they have worldwide domination. I looked it up and he was right. One guy had the idea and mastered it in good old Brooklyn and it still serves the need of all the barbers in the world right from brooklyn! What was their key to growth?. not tv, radio.. it was their simple, yet brilliant, recognizable comb and scissor holding tank with the name barbicide on it and just good old day to day relationships. It is now in the smithsonian and is now as famous as the barber pole. My barber in HK told me he has dealt with them for many years and the price has not really gone up (which is rare in monopolies!) Go check it out and read it for yourself

King Research - Barbicide's web site

Barbicide article in ny times

Barbicide video clip with Charles Kuralt

Posted by Patrick at 07:12 PM | Comments (0)