CRAVE Redux

I was at Crave again in Orlando but I needed a burger so i went with that. I asked for their Cheesy Penne as aside. I notice dthis time that it's not bread crumbs baked on top but parmesan! Huge ups on the side dish.

Grooveshark Mel's Mac N Cheese Roux

You may or may not know that one of my three day jobs requires me to work in the offices of Grooveshark.com. I'm there relatively often mostly because they have a team of Chefs working to cook 3 meals a day for us nerds. The food is generally delicious and occasionally cooked to order. Melissa (one of the chefs) made us some mac n cheese last week without knowing what she was getting into. She will probably read this but that won't hinder my honesty.

As most of you know by now, I love Mac N Cheese so I instinctively lean towards positive reviews. You really have to mess up the experience to get burned here. That being said, my goal here is to help people identify the characteristics that they love in Mac N Cheese and choose their meals based on that. There is surprisingly little critical literature on the subject and if I can add even a little bit to the discourse then I can rest easy.

Melissa's Mac N Cheese was a roux which I guess most Mac N Cheese is. A roux is a reduction that I believe (if I am not mistaken) uses butter and flour as the base. Go on, you say? I imagine the cheese to have been garden variety supermarket bought block or shredded (not an indictment of quality). It had a hint of black pepper but I could taste any other distinguishable seasoning. The pepper was enough. Not too salty. In fact I didn't taste any additional salt at all. It didn't sit like an average MNC. It was lobbed on top of standard elbow fare and the diner was tasked with mixing it in. Presented in a Dixie brand paper bowl and served with a plastic spoon, which is perfectly acceptable for MNC.

I can't say that I was dissatisfied with the dish. It was different than any I have ever had but not unwelcome. 4 Stars on level of Cheesiness.  I hope she makes it again (today).

Oh. I accidentally took video instead of pics of the "before".

Big Burger Now with Cheesy Side Dishes

If you are in the market for for a giant burger in Gainesville chances are you've already had a Big Burger. They recently expanded their menu to encompass a vast array BBQ favorites. I'm going to save the fried Mac 'N Cheese wedge review for later because it's really their traditional Mac 'N Cheese that steals the show. It's made primarily of hard cheeses, melted over elbows and served in an authentic styrofoam cup. It's no Cali Chix but it's good enough for a lunch break in the downtown Gainesville area.

CRAVE: Mac N' Cheese w/ Chicken (Again???)

Lots of Mac 'N Cheese with Chicken mixes these days. Must be the new thing. I went to CRAVE near the Mall of Millennia a few weeks back and it was hard to pass up. Especially since I had plans of keeping this site up to date even though I wasn't actually doing it. This Mac 'N Cheese was truly sublime and the bowl it comes in is deceptively deep. Excellent natural chicken and extra creamy cheese w/ breadcrumbs baked on top. It's really the perfect storm. Nothing in this dish tastes cheap. The cheese was certainly a homemade recipe, havy and tangy with a hint of heavy cream that gives its a slightly afredo-y taste and texture. This is the best Mac N Cheese in the Metro West area for sure. Decent date atmosphere and conveniently located, if of course you are shopping for poorly made Scandinavian furniture.

Pom Pom's Spicy Turkey Mac 'N Cheese

If you live in the downtown Orlando, FL and you ride your bike a lot (those are two requirements) you no doubt have heard of Pom Pom's Tea House. With sandwiches like "Mama Ling Ling's Thanksgiving" (my personal favorite) and the Low Rider, their sandwich menu easily overshadows their cheesy treats. One shining star of the Pom Pom Bill of Fare is the Spicy Turkey Mac 'N Cheese.  The name says it all. Spicy, check. Turkey, so check. Mac 'N Cheese? Why else would I be writing about it? Like everything at Pom Pom's it's top notch.

I hate some things about this site

like how it is designed. I am working on improving that.

Feature Removed: Star Ratings!

Tired of them. Just look at the pictures. Don't even bother reading this blog.

Blake's Mac and Cheese with Chicken

Found in the freezer section of any fad-concious supermarket Blake's adds a not-so-clever twist to their teeny-sized Mac N' Cheese... Chicken. Not that I don't appreciate the meat toping, nor the organic certification of the pasta and chicken but in the world of Mac 'N Cheese, size matters. The cheese was tasty and the chicken was pretty decent. I love bow-tie pasta so that works for me as well but I would barely call this a side-dish let alone a meal.

Sorry for the Downtime

No excuses, and its not like I stopped eating mac n' cheese for like 3 months. Quite to the contrary! I've been eating more than ever. I took a 48 hour break to try the master cleanse but that ended in a burrito frenzy. The truth is I've just been super busy. But I am back now and while I am in the airport I aim to catch up and keep up for good this time.