Miscellany . . .

Another day eating lunch out.  Lunch was a dumpling repeat so nothing more to say on that.  I get the same thing every time.  Small pork; mild sauce. I had chicken once then got sick later in the day.  Coincidence? Doesn't matter.  It was enough to put me off the chicken for eternity.  

Turns out the reason I am eating out so much this week is because I have been designated "Back-up Lunch Buddy" while Primary Lunch Buddy is away on vacation.  I don't have strong feelings about that either way so, whatever.

Since I have already written about dumplings, I'm devoting this post to other aspects of my meal.  Namely; my drink, the location and a Great American Cookie sugar cookie.

I have to tell you, this has been a banner day so far.  First I get a free car wash as a result of Hubs obsessive carwashing, then we get the big booth at the food court for dumplings!  Just the other day I was expressing my desire for the coveted big booth.  Ask and you shall receive.  How it played out was totally sweet.  We walked up right as two gals were packing up their trash, they moved out and we moved in.  I was like the Godfather of the food court sitting in my booth.

it wasn't this booth but one just like it.  Pretty awesome when compared to the little Formica tables and uncomfortable chairs, eh?  So, as you see the dumplings are in a food court in a mall in an office building.  Looks like a pretty depressing place to eat huh?  Hellz yes it is!  I hate going there actually, but the dumplings are enough of a draw plus there is a Chik-fil-a as back up in the event you don't want dumplings.  One thing about the dumpling place- it has crap drinks.  You know this b/c the majority of people who eat there just get the free 8 oz styrofoam cup of water from the cooler they have.  The whole place is primitive even by food court standards.  No fountain drinks, no condiments station just some cardboard boxes of plastic silverware and chopsticks laid out on a table on the way out of the queue and some elaborately fanned napkins.  Oh and this-- an insane amount of plastic bags that some poor sucker had to open up and stack to get ready for boxes of dumplings:

And they have more than just this.  This is the stack on the side of the counter they are not working on.  It is insanity.

Instead of free water I saunter across the path to the Starbucks for some iced tea or something.  Of late I have been enamoured with the new Refreshers drinks with the green caffeine.  Whatever the hell that is.  As long as caffeine is in the name I am all over it.  Refershers come in hibiscus or lime. Have had both but prefer the lime.  Has a nice minty flavor, not really lime at all to be honest but its not as sweet as the hibiscus.  Hibiscus is also good but it has some odd undertone I am not really down with.  So here is a venti refresher:

oooh it looks so cool and . . . refreshing!  I'd like it more if it didn't have so much ice in it.  I feel like I am really paying $4 for a tall with a buttload of ice.  I drink it in about 2 sips and these are pricey.  I'm not usually real excited about paying a lot for a cold drink but the dumplings are cheap so I don't mind in this case.  Now, you see the lime garnish in the drink?  Nice touch right?  Except today it is a nasty dried out lime that had no business being offered up in a drink.

Come on Starbucks.  You can't do better than that?  You need to send someone to retrain your peeps at the Park Shops in downtown Houston. That shiz should be in the trash.  If I wasn't so lazy (which I think we have documented that I am) I would have marched that right back to the Starbucks and asked for a new drink and a fresh lime.  Besides being lazy my other problem is that I can't point these things out without sounding like a dick, so I passed and just threw away the lime.  But really, are you feeling me here?  That is just dried out and brown and way below Starbuck standards. I'm pretty surprised actually that it was even still in rotation to be used.  The rind didn't photograph as brown as it was in reality.

Moving on . . . 

Now we come to the cookie.  Another bonus b/c I got this from Lunch Buddy who had a coupon for buy one get one free. Score!  Although it turns out that a sugar cookie so soon after the Corner Bakery sugar cookie is a bad idea.  This was a Great American Cookie cookie.  It also has frosted sugar but they are of the sugar and crisco frosting family.  It's cool though. I can appreciate that too and like to partake of my fair share of whipped sugar and fat.  Who doesn't?  I just needed more time between Corner Bakery and this.  I mean, it was ok but not a 5.  the CB cookie is a 5 hands down.  On the heels of a CB cookie this one was a 2 or maybe a 3.  It lacks the homemade flavor that makes the Corner Bakery cookie so fantastic.  But you know, it's fine.

See?  Just fine.  In fact, uncharacteristically I did not even finish this.

So overall lunch was good.  Company good, food court is like a 3, dumplings solid, drink good but overpriced despite the nasty lime.  Cookie a 2.  Overall I think that would average into a 3 total experience.  It might have been higher if I had not been Back up Lunch Buddy.

Still considering the blog name change.  All 3 of my readers have failed to opine on the matter.  Obviously I am going it alone here.

Yodi out.