OMGWTFBBQ

^ haha to whoever coined that term ^

hay party people, meese, piggies, and horsies!

About a month back, I checked out a popular BBQ joint chain called Lucille's BBQ. I had been here once before a few years ago, but didn't remember much besides big portions and drinks being served in mason jars. I'm no expert on BBQ like The New Diner, but here's my humble take on this Zagat promoted southern Cali institution.

I have been on this sweet tea binge lately (McDonald's large sweet tea for a buck, holla) and quickly got my fix before I started throwing a hissy fit from withdrawal.

Damn I love sweet tea way too much. I know I'm stopping by Mickey D's today before my class to get my daily dose. Type 2 diabetes here I come!

Although your meats can come out sopped wet or dry, Lucille's offers some additional sauces to try. I love BBQ sauce, but nothing really stood out here. The spicy was weak, and the Memphis, to my disappointment, was mainly just a mix of ketchup and mustard. I think my favorite sauce has to be from Phil's in SD.

Soon enough, some freshly made biscuits arrived. These were pretty filling, and the apple butter that came along with it was delicious.

They did offer lunch specials for the evening, but I was greedy and wanted two sides, so stuck with the dinner option and ordered the tri tip with some greens and beans.

The Angus beef tri tip was quite tender, and the sides were good although I didn't appreciate the burnt and dry pieces of scrap meat in my collard greens. My friend ordered the ribs and let me try one. Both of us weren't too impressed as they tasted like they had been overcooked. Overall, I thought the meal was ok, but this wasn't knock my socks off bbq like the reviews would have had me believe. If anything, I left with the revelation that I don't like tri tip cooked that way. The total including tax and tip was a little under $30, which to me is a bit pricey although I did leave stuffed. Service was great...no complaints there.

Lucille's Smokehouse BBQ: 1639 East Imperial Highway, Brea, CA 92821-5809

Lastly, I just wanted to share that I got into Kansas State! Yippee yai yay m****f*****! And I got an interview to Davis! And I put my pants on all by myself this morning! I feel like I should be going ape shit right now, but the news hasn't fully sunk in yet because all I can think about is the interview. It's Davis ffs! Last week I felt like I was soaring. Now I'm just stuck deciding whether I should be waiting for the other shoe to drop or ride my luck by playing some 21 at the casinos. My Barona!

Ickle Me Pickle Me Tickle Me too

If you don't know what the title is a reference to, shame on you. I had written about Honda ya once before and have gone a few more times since then. Here's a short blurb of the last visit w/ some family during Christmas break.

I noticed this time, as we were seated, we were given some free house pickled cucumbers or pickles, wtf? LOL (I hate that word, but it seemed right to use it here) seriously what's the difference? And more importantly, where did word pickle come from? It's a funny little word, giving a short, light tickle on my brain every time I say or think of it. (Research shows that 50% of the people who read this just said "pickle" aloud). According to WikiAnswers, "English got the word pickle from Middle Low German pekel, which means 'sharp in taste.' Words like pike and picket also derive from the same source as pickle." But I digress. These pickles (roffle) had a pleasant spicy note to it.

For the starters, we ordered some nasu miso (eggplant). If you like eggplant and have never tried this before, this is something worth checking out. Nutty and not too salty...I want to learn how to make this.

and stewed kabocha, which was served cold. Sweet and salty. I ate the rind too. Another thing to try making; I found a recipe on a blog called "The Sprout and the Bean."

My cousin went for the Udon with mountain yam (grated tororo), but she didn't like it because the yam made everything else too gooey.

After some deliberation (they offer a wide variety of food on their menu), I decided to be boring and ordered the kimchi ramen again. I was disappointed that it wasn't as spicy as last time, but still a nice thing to have on a winter night (take that with a large block of salt as I do live in southern California).

The service was slow this time around. The other times I haven't had any complaints, but our waitress just wasn't on the ball that night.

With some dessert at Yogurtland(my goodness, it's ridiculous how many of these are popping up with its dopplegangers right across the bloody street), we drank hot cocoa and ate popcorn by the fireplace while playing a lopsided game of Monopoly, in which my sister killed us all. Needless to say, I don't have a strong desire to play that game for a while.

Of course, we ordered some skewers from the grill, but I didn't take any pictures of those, seeing how I had enough already from the last post.