Local Spot #25 : Poutineville

Shortly after a concert one night, a friend and I headed over to Poutineville by Spadina and Brunswick.  I was surprised about how nice it looked inside.  I was expecting something a little smaller like Smoke's or one of the many burger spots downtown but this place was a legit restaurant.  The main part of their menu is quite interesting as they allow you to create you own poutine (you may also choose one of the ones they concocted) and you have your choice of potato (highly recommend trying their Crushed Potatoes, cheeses, veggies, meats (try them with Pogos!) and gravy.  This is by far the best poutine spot in town (sorry Smoke's).  The portions were great, they came out from the kitchen quick, and most importantly, the poutine was fantastic as everything was cooked just right.

Local Food Spot #24 : Real Sports Bar

This is a hard bar to get into most of the time since it's located right outside the Air Canada Centre so it draws a lot of the higher class crowd but when the game is on, they get drowned out by the die hard fans.  Once in a while you'll bump into a pro athlete or coach (I have a few times).  Also, they have a good sports bar menu but it's a little on the pricey side.  I went for lunch there one time and ordered a Footlong Chili Cheese Dog.  It was good, but wasn't great but this place is good enough to catch a game and have a drink.

Local Food Spot #23 : Rock Lobster

On Queen St., there's a casual seafood restaurant that serves a wide range of seafood such as lobster tacos, calimari, huge fish n' chips, etc. But they also something that I needed to try: a Lobster Poutine.  It was understandably pricey but how often are you going to find lobster in a poutine?

Food Stop #30 : Chicago #2

There's a little restaurant called bopNGrill in Chicago that has a pretty unique menu as they do a Korean fusion with their food which is mostly concentrated on burgers.  Their menu contain things that have a Korean flair to American food and vice versa from Kim Chi Fries to Philly Cheesesteak Egg Rolls.  It's worth a visit.

Food Stop #29 : Milwaukee #3

My uncle took me to this little spot called Solly's Grille which had something I didn't even know existed which is apparently a Wisconsin thing: butter burgers.  Essentially, the bottom of the burgers are drenched with butter.  I of course ordered that and it was fantastic despite being a small burger, this butter really adds to it.  A simple yet effective idea.

Other Sporting Venues #9 : BMO Harris Bradley Center

I had some time to kill in Milwaukee so I decided to go to a Milwaukee Bucks preseason game.  It helped that the tickets were only $11.  The arena felt a little small inside compared to the Air Canada Centre as the hallways didn't have much action going on, and the crowd was really empty.  Sure it was preseason but the arena felt more like it houses a minor league team.

Food Stop #28 : Milwaukee #2

In my first trip to Milwaukee, I discovered this little bar downtown called Upper 90 Sports Pub that served Alligator Bites since I felt like trying something "exotic".  With my luck, a group earlier that day bought all of them out so I was left that night super disappointed since I had driven about half a day and I had no idea if I'd have a chance to try them.  Luckily, I had my chance a year and a half later.  This time we ordered beer battered cheese curds(I had to try some cheese from a state known for it) and the Alligator Bites.   The cheese curds were a bit salty but they were cheesy which is what counted.  The Alligator Bites had a chickeny texture with a bit of spice which I'm assuming came from the breading, and not the alligator meat.  It was an interesting appetizer so if you're daring enough to try a different type of meat,

Alligator Bites

Deep Fried Beer Battered Cheese Curds

Local Food Spot #12 : The Musket

Since it was October, I felt it would be fitting to get some German food.  My friend took me to The Musket in Etobicoke.  I decided to order Wiener Schnitzel, an apple strudel with ice cream, and a pint of beer of course.  I was told this was the best German restaurant around and after eating the schnitzel, I wouldn't doubt that.  It was crunchy yet tender but the underrated hero of the dish was the potatoes which were cooked just right.  The strudel was the perfect compliment for the schnitzel since it was sweet to offset the slightly salty entree.  This place is recommended.

Two Weeks In a Selfie Nutshell

Sometime in the summer, I got this sudden urgency to finish my list of visiting every baseball stadium in the league and that lead me to not only seeing 7 different ballparks in 2014 alone, I did 4 within a couple weeks.  This was feasible by visiting all the ballparks that were close to eachother so it allowed me to knock off stadiums without adding much extra travelling.  Here's a mini collage of what transpired near the end of the summer to cap off my 2014 baseball sightseeing season.

One Eventful Week in New York

This is a different post since I won't be mentioning food or sports but the point of my blog is to encourage traveling so I have to show what you can do in such a big city in New York (and with a short trip to Philadelphia).  I did this week on a tighter budget than usual so finding things to do over a week was a bit of a challenge but it made me figure things out more creatively.

I'm going to end this post with a final thought: 

Go out and travel.  Life's too short to stay in one place all the time.

MLB Ballpark #15/30 : Queens, New York

This marks my third stadium in four days, and fourth in two weeks.  It's probably an understatement to say that I was exhausted but all this travelling was definitely worth it.  Hell, it even took me about an hour and a half from where I was staying just to get to Citi Field.  It did feel like a slight accomplishment that the second I stepped foot inside the stadium, that I've officially visited half the ballparks in Major League Baseball.   It didn't seem like much at first, but then I realized I traveled all over the U.S.A. to see them and it took me years to do.  I can't wait to get started on the second half of the league.

Citi Field - New York, New York

Visited - September 2014

Impressions: I didn't have much expectations before I got here but this field surprised me in a good way.  It was by far the cleanest stadium I've been to.  It's a pretty modern field which is expected since it opened in 2009 but everything did feel up to date inside and it even had free WiFi for the fans.  In the outfield, it was neat to see that giant apple behind the fence.  The views were great from the seats and it was short walk from the subway which is very convenient.  

 

Food Stop #27 : New York #2

I was recommended this small burger spot in the East Village called Paul's Da Burger Joint and I went there as soon as I got off the bus from Philly.  It's a small little place but their burger packs a huge punch.  I added fries and an ice cold orange cream soda which was clutch in the humidity but the spotlight is on the terrifically juicy burger.  It was full of flavour and not pricey at all.  If I'm ever back in Manhattan, I'm going back here.

Food Stop #26 : Philadelphia #4

I went out to get yet another cheesesteak but this one was much much different.  Luckily the restaurant Chickie & Pete's was in between Citizens Bank Park and my hotel, and what I had there was one of the best meals I've had in my life.  Let's start with one of their specialties called Crab Fries which are fries sprinkled with a secret seasoning and served with a cheese sauce.  Now I'm going to introduce the cheesesteak.  This cheesesteak combines two of my favorite things to eat: lobsters and cheesesteaks.  Yes, I had a Lobster Cheesesteak.  I even added a pint of Heineken on the side just for fun.  I savoured that meal for as long as I could.  It really does speak for itself.

MLB Ballpark #14/30 : Philadelphia

After walking for a couple hours downtown, it was nice to be able to sit and enjoy a baseball game.  It was cool to see all the sports venues right beside each other.  It's too bad that I couldn't watch the Phillies when they had Roy Halladay though.

Citizens Bank Park - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Visited - September 2014

Impressions: Not going to lie, it did feel like an average field.  The only thing really unique about the stadium was seeing the giant neon bell behind right-centerfield gap.  There wasn't too much to do inside so all the entertainment seemed to be quite reliant on their on-field product.

Food Spot #25 : Philadelphia #3

The morning after the Yankees game, I took a bus over to Philadelphia.  It was my second time in the city but this was the first time I actually got to roam around and see the area.  Of course, the walking got me hungry and I had to once again get a cheesesteak.  This time around, I went to Jim's Steak South St. which was a little east of Broad St.  The sandwich was extremely satisfying and what made it better was the energetic cook that helped add to the experience.

Food Stop #24 : New Jersey #1

My cousin took me to this pizza joint called Razza over in Jersey City.  This wasn't your typical pizza spot as they serve wood-fired pizza along with cocktails, beer, and wine so it was bit pricier than usual.  I ordered a Maple Bacon pizza and it was great.  It was cheesy but the maple added a sweetness to it.  Visit here if you can.

MLB Ballpark #13/30 : The Bronx, New York

As much as I hate the Yankees, I respect Derek Jeter and I did take pleasure in seeing him play live one last time in his home park.

Yankee Stadium - New York, New York

Visited - September 2014

Impressions: Being Yankee Stadium, it's pretty obvious history bleeds inside the park.  Everywhere you walk is a constant reminder of their vast history from their legends and numerous World Series.  Most of its character lies inside the hallways though as the field itself didn't have much to make it special.  Then again, when you have that much greatness in the past, take advantage of it.  

Food Stop #23 : New York #1

A week after my Pittsburgh trip I took a flight to New York.  This is my first time in New York so I decided to spend a week there just because there's just so much to do.  The first place I went to in Manhattan was Shake Shack.  From what I heard, it was normally busy but I got lucky and there wasn't a crowd.  This was a pretty heavy and greasy burger but that's rarely a bad thing.

MLB Ballpark #12/30 : Pittsburgh

This started a hectic 2 weeks for me where I went travelling like crazy.  This is also another case of finding a stadium that's driving distance from me just by actually looking at a map.  So one weekend, I took a 6 hour drive down to the Steel City to catch a Pirates game.  It was pouring just before the first pitch but luckily the weather cleared up in time.

PNC Park - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Visited - August 2014

Impressions: Such a beautiful park.  One of the better backgrounds for a baseball field to have with the left field rotunda and the Pittsburgh signature Roberto Clemente Bridge behind centerfield.  The open space in the outfield stands make the stadium feel more vast.  It's definitely one of the better stadiums in the league.

MLB Ballpark #11/30 : Detroit

For some reason, I kept forgetting that Detroit is the closest MLB city to me so my friends and I one day decided to do a day trip over to Comerica Park.  After about a 4 hour drive, we arrived at the park.

Bacon on a Stick (can't pass up on bacon) and a local craft beer

Tater tots covered in eggs and buffalo sauce

Comerica Park - Detroit, Michigan

Visited - July 2014

Impressions: I'm going straight to the point: this is one of the better ballparks around.  There's a lot of history inside the hallways of the park with several Tigers memorabilia scattered along the brick interior which really emphasizes the fact its a park solely made for baseball.  For the casual spectator, they have a cool food and plenty of craft beers which is great as it shows off what the Michigan craft beer scene is capable of.  They even have a carousel for the kids in the Big Cat Court (where many of the awesome food is located), and a giant tiger statue outside of the stadium which is perfect for photo ops.  As an added bonus, it was a treat to witness one of the game's greats in Miguel Cabrera in action.