Menchie's

I went to a place called Menchie's. It was kind of new, since it had been open for 2 months. If you don't know what a Menchie's is, it's a fro-yo(frozen yogurt) place that started in LA and is now all over the world, and there are 3 in Maryland.

When we came in, there wasn't any one there, just the cashier! As I looked around, I saw Menchie's T-Shirts, fold-able cars, and Menchie's balloons. There was also a chalk board where you could write your name and cartons of fro-yo to go.

There were flavors like pistachio, vanilla snow, red velvet royal, and chocolate bar. Then, there were toppings like Captain Crunch Berry Cereal, Chocolate Sunflower Seeds, Mochi, Sour Gummy Worms, and Maraschino Cherries. Before I decided what to get, I tasted some flavors, since they let us get the samples ourselves. But, finally, I decided to chose a mixture of eggnog and dulce de leche with grasshopper chocolate mint cookies, dark chocolate chips, and milk chocolate fudge in a waffle cone(with no extra charge!).

My mixture was delicious! The waffle cone was crunchy, the fro-yo was creamy, smooth, and tasted exactly like what it was supposed to be.

After we ate, I wrote my name on the chalk board, and my brother and sister got fold-able cars and balloons. I also got my picture taken with the owner, and I even signed the photo!

I give ***** stars for food and ***** stars for kid friendly.The reason why I give 5 stars for kid friendly is because that during the summer, there will probably more people there.

I would really want to come back here in the summer. Well, that's all. Bye, and hope you have a happy New Year!

My Interview for "So, You Want to be a Chef"

I was interviewed for the book "So, You Want to be a Chef" about my blog. You can order it online at Amazon.com or Barnes & Noble.

Shoo-Fly Diner Opening Night

I went to a place called the Shoo-Fly Diner. I went because it was not only new, but it was their first night open. The owner of the restaurant also owns Woodberry Kitchen, which I went to once before I had my blog.

When I first came in, it was moderately crowded. Also, I noticed it was supposed to resemble a diner and an old fashioned restaurant. Since it was going to be a while, the person at the front desk said there was a kids room on the lower floor, so we decided to check it out. The kids floor was on the the lowest floor, and boy was it fun! There were puzzles, dominoes, rocking horses, and even a pinball machine. I had so much fun, I was at my table before I knew it!

On the menu, you could get breakfast anytime, like the Toad in a Hole, which is popular in Britain, and is made with spelt toast with an egg in the middle served with GKF salad or Hillbilly Surfboard, which is a waffle with Asian pear and apple-butter butter. You could also get sandwiches like the Chesapeake Crab Roll Sandwich or Grilled Cheddar & Pickle. They also have Meat Loaf and a Fried Chicken Supper. There was also a kids menu with items like Pork, Grilled Cheese, and Mac 'n Cheese.

I had a Griddled PB&J, my brother had Buttered Noodles, my sister had Mac 'n Cheese, my mother had Egg Salad on Toast, and my father had a Scrappledelphia sandwich, which is apples, griddled onions, scrapple, melted cheddar, and mustard on toast. We also shared an appetizer of Disco Fries, which are fries with cheese curd, pepper gravy and a fried egg.

While we waited, I read the menu. I saw that they had a homemade hot sauce called snake oil, but the special thing about it was that all the ingredients they used to make it was grown in Maryland. Also, the restaurant was originally a shoe store, called Hess, which was built in 1948, and had a slide as one of the railings for little kids. Unfortunately, the floor is low enough that now the slide can't be used, though it's still there.

The Disco Fries and kids meals came out together. I liked how the fries had the cheese on them and the pepper gravy gave them a nice taste. I didn't like the fried egg though because I don't like eggs.

My PB&J was delicious! The peanut butter was creamy and smooth, and you could really taste the jelly. There was also salad with my meal. Even though I usually don't like salad, my dad told me to give it a try, since it had homemade ranch dressing on it (which I usually don't like either), but the salad was great! The tomatoes and lettuce were juicy, the carrots were crunchy, and the ranch was not sour like I thought it might be and made it taste better. I also tried some of Olivia's Mac 'n Cheese. It was cheesy and the cheese was smooth and creamy.

It took a while for my parents food to come out, but that was only because they were really busy at that time. My parents ordered our dessert while they ate. There was Salted Caramel Soft-Serve, Apple Cider Soft-Serve, Shoo-fly pie, $1000 Apple Pie, and Texas Sheet Cake. Both my brother and I had had a twist of the two Soft-Serve ice creams, my sister had a Chocolate Chip Cookie, and mom and dad split a Paw Paw Bunt Cake a la mode with Brown Sugar Peach Sorbet.

My soft-serve was brilliant! It was cold, smooth, creamy, and the caramel and the apple complemented each other perfectly! I also tried some of Olivia's cookie. It was fantastic! It was warm, crunchy, and the chocolate flavor was very strong. And I tried some of the Brown Sugar Peach Sorbet. You could really taste the brown sugar but the peach flavor was a little dim.

I give ***** stars for kid friendliness because they had a kids menu, kids room and activities like a crossword puzzle on the menu. I also give ***** stars for food. I would've given 6 stars for food if I could, but that would be unfair to other restaurants.

I would love to come back again, but I think that they're going to busy for a while since it just opened. Well, that's all. Bye!

Coal Fire

I went to a new place called the Coal Fire. It's a pizza place in Hunt Valley, and since I really like pizza, my dad drove us there.

When we got there, we had to wait for a table. While I was waiting, I noticed that there was outside seating and a bar as well as a place were you can see the chefs make the pizza, which is heated up in a coal oven, like the name suggests. Though we didn't have to wait long, and soon we were at our seats.

On the menu there were pizzas like Margherita, which is basically cheese pizza with basil and tomato sauce, Bianco Speciale, which is white pizza with Parmesan cheese and tomatoes, and Ring of Fire, which is a pizza with banana peppers, Italian sausage, and mozzarella cheese. There were also salads on the menu, like Greek, House, and Field Greens. There was pasta like Pesto, Coalby's , which is like a sub sandwich, like Ribeye, and Coal Fire Wings, which were just chicken wings baked in the coal oven. Finally, there was a kids menu, but the only item I can remember that was on it was Macaroni & Cheese. My family split a white pizza and some wings, except for my sister, who had the Macaroni & Cheese.

While we waited, we did the activities on the kids menu. After that, my dad decided to get a beer called Monty Python's Holy Grail, and since my dad owns the movie, he decided to try it.

Finally, our food came. The pizza was delicious! It wasn't greasy at all and the crust was thin. You could really taste the white sauce. The wings were tender and juicy, but the skin was kind of tough. Finally, I want to comment on the Macaroni & Cheese because my sister didn't like it, and the reason why I think is that the cheese taste was too rich for a kids menu food item.

I give **** stars for food and ****1/2 stars for kid friendliness. The reason why I only gave 4 1/2 stars for kid friendliness was because they needed more entertainment like more activities.

I would suggest making the skin on the Chicken Wings less tough and the Macaroni & Cheese taste less rich

I would love to come here again, especially so I can try the Ribeye Coalby. Well, that's all. Bye!

Bird-in-Hand Bakery and Creamery

I went to another place during my vacation in Pennsylvania called Bird-in-Hand Bakery and Creamery. I went here for dessert instead of getting milkshakes at Jake's Wayback Burgers, since my mom wanted to try Shoo Fly Pie.

From the road, it looked almost like one of the other houses, except for it's sign out front. The Store was closed, but it's ice cream window was open. There were only 2 places to sit outside, though there was no one eating there.

On the menu, there were items like hand dipped ice cream and soft serve. They also had some items from their store, like snicker doodle cookies and slices of pie, that you could order.

I had a twist soft serve sundae with marshmallow topping, while my brother had a twist soft serve sundae with caramel topping. My mom had Shoo Fly Pie and my dad and sister shared Snicker doodle cookies to go.

My ice cream was delicious! It was creamy and the marshmallow topping was a great addition to it. I also tried some of my mom's Shoo Fly Pie. It was delicious! It was moist and almost tasted like there was apple in it. And the best part was it was homemade from scratch!

I give ***** stars for food. The reason why I didn't give a rating for kid friendliness was because it only sold dessert there, and anyplace that sells dessert is a 5 star rating for kid friendliness to me!

I would like to come back here for some more ice cream and baked goods. Well, that's all. Bye!

Jake's Wayback Burgers

I went to a place called Jake's Wayback Burgers during my vacation in Pennsylvania. My dad said that it was a great place to get burgers, and he suggested we go there. I said yes, since I love burgers(especially if they have bacon and BBQ sauce on them).

The restaurant was a fast food chain in a diner theme. I saw lots of old photographs on the walls and a television.

On the menu, there were items like the the Cheesy Burger, a Turkey Burger Club, Chicken Caesar Salad, a Chili Cheese Dog, and their special Triple Triple Burger. There was also a kids menu, which had items like Chicken Tenders, Grilled Cheese, and a Junior Cheeseburger. Finally, they had milkshakes like Black and White, Orange Cream, and Chocolate Banana.

I had a Junior Cheeseburger with BBQ Sauce, but without bacon, since my dad said no when I asked him, while my brother got a Cheeseburger with Ketchup and Mustard, and my dad had a Jake's Cheesy Burger. I also wanted a milkshake, but we decided to go somewhere else for dessert (you will have to read my next review).

It didn't take long for the food to come out and my burger was delicious! The patty was moist, tender, and juicy, and the BBQ sauce tasted great with the beef burger.

I give ***** stars for food and **** stars for kid friendliness. The reason why I only gave **** stars for kid friendliness is because even though there was a kids menu, a television, and fast service, there really wasn't anything else there. I would recommend adding something else for kids to do, like a coloring page or a type of toy with the kids menu.

I would really like to go back there, especially to try their milkshakes. Well, that's all. Bye!

Bogey Macaws

I went to a place called Bogey Macaws with my family. The reason why we came here was because my Aunt Lisa thought this would be a good place for me to review.

The restaurant is located on a golf course. We went on a Sunday night and there was almost no one there. It was separated into different sections and you could even sit outside on the deck. We were seated in room that looked like it was reserved for parties. The restaurant also had TVs and a game room with an arcade and Ballocity play area.

The menu had lots of items like Hand Tossed Pizzas, lots of different kinds of fries and Hot Dogs like Cheese Steak Fries and Bogey dog, a Waffle Club Sandwich, Burgers, Chicken Wings, a Broiled Crab Cake, and Buffalo Chicken Salad. There was also an all-new kids menu, which had Grilled Cheese, Chicken Tenders, Macaroni and Cheese Spaghetti & Meatballs, Grilled Chicken, Grilled Hot Dog and French Bread Pizza. With any kids meal, you could get the Super Kids Menu for an additional price including 20 tokens and Ballocity play.

My brother, sister, and me all got the Super Kids Menu. Owen and Olivia got French Bread Pizzas, while I got Spaghetti & Meatballs.

While we waited for our food, we played in the arcade and Ballocity. The arcade had games like Big Bass, Connect Four, Skeeball, and Toy Soldier. Ballocity wasn't a ball pit, like my dad suspected, but a challenging game where you use balls to shoot targets and each other. There's also a slide, punching bags, a zip line, and a maze of fun obstacles.

Our food took awhile to come but we didn't mind because we were having so much fun! Finally, it came, and I thought my Spaghetti & Meatballs were delicious! The meatballs were juicy and tender, and the sauce tasted like it was homemade!

I give ***** stars for food and ***** stars for kid friendliness.

I would really like to come back here, whether it is when I'm still a kid, or with my kids when I grow up(if I have kids, that is). Well, that's all. Bye!