life hereafter

random musings from a wannabe economist

I came across something during my Sunday shopping routine that really bothered me today. Recently I have been drinking those V8 Splash, vegetable juice hidden in fruit juice, things. I noticed they make a “light” version which has half the calories and sugar content as the regular version. Upon closer inspection I determined that the actual juice content of the “light” version was 42% juice while the regular version was 100% juice. Could this be? V8 is cutting down on the calories and sugar by simply adding more water to the regular product and selling it at the same price? So simple! So genius!

I noticed the same thing with Tropicana Orange Juice. New “light” version where the only decernable difference in the two products is the fact that the light version is only 50% juice!

It is so, companies have found a way to get consumers to self-select even in the juice aisle. For those of you who are price conscious, my recommendation is to simply buy the regular version and add your own water. (It’ll last longer that way!)

I trekked out to Northern Liberties last night to try out the Royal with Cheese from PYT (Pick Your Topping.) I had trouble getting a cab so I ended up walking, which wasn’t bad. It only took about 25 minutes from my place to the Piazza.

Honestly, I have to say that this is the best burger I have had in Philly so far. Its got just the right amount of “juicy”, American cheese, and Martin’s Potato roll. Not to mention the fact that their “special sauce” is nice and unique. There are some nice little chopped up sautéed red onions. Oh man, I could go for another one right now. I’m pretty sure if you ate that burger five times a week you would be making a nice trip to the cardiologist in short order.

Another interesting tid-bit about PYT is that if you go to the back of the unisex bathroom and enter the unassuming, “looks like a storage closet” door, you’ll enter the back-room club with a live DJ. Pretty unique for a burger joint.

While there, I was convinced that I had to try their Pickle Shot. This particular concoction is basically a shot of whiskey chased by a shot of pickle juice. Personally, I hate pickles and I was also pretty sure I hate pickle juice. Everyone at the table and the waitress managed to convince me that it would be the best thing I ever had. So I tried it, and as predicted I almost gagged on the pickle juice. Although everyone else said that it covered up the burn of the whiskey quite nicely. The shot was only $3, so if you just want some cheap whiskey, you might as well order that.

All in all, even though the pictures on the wall of people eating overly gooey burgers are incredibly disgusting and the pickle shot was the worst idea in the world, they make a pretty damn good burger which in the end is what I was looking for. I will definitely be back.

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Between Shake Shack, PYT, Square Burger and Cavanaugh’s I think I am developing a new found love for the cheeseburger. I’m not saying I want to be one of those people who wants to try every burger in every state in the union, but I really do enjoy a good one

This hotel has seriously disappointed me. The TV here does not have TBS or TNT.

What kind of outfit are they running here?! I guess I’m not going to be able to watch family guy, 10 items or less and burn notice.

Oh well. At least they comped me dinner for delivering it to my room an hour and a half late.

In the past two weeks I have managed to find myself at a hibachi restaurant in two different states. Somewhere in the course of both of those dinners I became addicted to yum yum sauce aka shrimp or white sauce. The stuff is amazing. It is a dipping sauce that pretty much works for everything, including being poured all over your fried rice. I am not afraid to admit that I demanded someone take me to hibachi for dinner tonight because I had a craving.

That lead to me scouring the intertubs for a recipe, and I think I did one better. I stumbled upon this absolutely awful website which just happens to sell a kit to make your own! Honestly, its just overpriced seasoning but hey, it saves time and looks delicious. I placed my order today

I also found what looks like a decent recipe which at least explains where all the delicious flavors come into play:

1-1/4 cup mayonnaise (full fat, none of that “light” or fat free crap)
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon melted butter
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon paprika
dash cayenne pepper

Using a whisk, blend all ingredients together until well mixed and the sauce is smooth. Refrigerate overnight to allow flavors to blend. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Mmmmm…

Watch the video on this site. Absolutely hilarious.

Wow, I am really behind the curve on this one, but POM has decided to stop selling their tea in glass bottles. I’m not sure if my local supermarket just finally cycled through all the old stock or what, but I noticed in the store today that there were no glass containers of POM Tea. Initially I figured they had just run out, but when I got home I did a quick google search and sure enough, the glass bottles have been replaced by plastic.

The company cites the reduction in energy used to produce the plastic bottle vs. the glass and the fact that you will get more actual product in the plastic container. However, they neglect to mention that

1. Glass is more likely to be recycled or reused than plastic
2. Plastic alters the way products taste and chemicals can leech from the plastic into the product there-by slowly poising humanity and the rest of the animal world.
3. Plastic never actually goes away, it just breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces which end up in our water supply and the animals which we consume. No one really knows what the long-term effects of this cycle will be.

POM is clearly going to alienate customers and hurt their brand image. Those containers are one of the things that made them unique. Now, you might as well buy the Tropicana or any other brand of those teas which also come in plastic containers. Smart companies are moving their products away from plastic…

I really liked the fact that after you were done with the Tea you could wash the glass and use it again. I guess what I have left are just collectors items now…

PETA has made an awesome parody of the game Cooking Mama, Cooking Mama : Mama Kills Animals : The Unauthorized PETA edition. While I do not agree in whole with PETA’s principles and methods, I do find some of the things they do to be utterly hilarious.

The objective of the game is to cook a Thanksgiving dinner the bloody (PETA) way. First you defeather the turkey, then you stuff him and cook him in the oven. Finally, you use the innards to make a gruesome gravy. The game isn’t entirely true to life, last I checked eggs don’t bleed when you crack them open, but it’s still pretty fun and a good way to kill (pun intended) some time this thanksgiving.

As a follow up to an earlier post about KFC, I found this game which is a lot less bloody than the above.