Sunday, February 26, 2012

Monterey Hill Restaurant

I had a great dinner the other night with friends at the Monterey Hill Steakhouse in Monterey Park, California.



I've had the pleasure of dining here in the past but it has been some time.  I'm happy to report that the food is still terrific.

I had their signature 14 oz Roast Prime Rib of Beef. 


The cooking staff won't give up any recipe secrets but I'm thinking that it was dry aged with a rub of fennel, coriander, caraway, black peppercorns, sea salt, and garlic, then slow oven roasted.

For those of you who know me the more garlic the better, but in this case they keep it mild so it's not overwhelming. 

And, yes, it should have come with a side order of an aspirin and a defibrillator.  But I only indulge like this on rare occasion because I may be a few more Prime Rib dinners away from a major cardiac event. 

I didn't try to fit this dinner into my Weight Watchers app.  I'm just figuring it was all of my extra points for the next four to six weeks.

They serve it with a great mashed potato and market fresh sauteed vegetables, which happen to be green beans this time of year here in California.  There's also a very tasty au jus and a house made whipped horseradish that did not  overwhelm the flavor of the meat. 

I did restrain myself and not lick the plate when I was done, but the thought did come to mind.

They have a number of restaurants nationwide and I suggest you give them a try.



Sunday, February 12, 2012

Whitney: What Have You Done For Us Lately?

Twitter exploded yesterday with the announcement that singer Whitney Houston had died.  While it's sad to hear anyone has passed away, I noticed that there were a ton of famous people saying she was the greatest singer of all times.


The reason I question this is that's the same thing everyone said when Michael Jackson died;  and the same thing was said when James Brown died; and the same... You see what I mean.

I'm not arguing that she was a pretty terrific singer but it's also been a while since she had a hit (17 years).  And given Whitney's history of drugs and alcohol I can't say I was really surprised.  Sort of like when Amy Winehouse died.  No big surprise there either.

Let's look at Whitney's top songs according to Billboard.


Exhale (1995)
I Will Always Love You (1992)
All The Man That I Need (1990)
I'm Your Baby Tonight (1990)
I Wanna Dance With Somebody (1987)
So Emotional (1987)
Didn't We Almost Have It All (1987)
Greatest Love Of All (1986)
How Will I Know (1985)
Saving All My Love For You (1985)


Probably the saddest thing is that many people will only remember her for that train wreck of a reality show she and her husband did in 1995.


So, yes, it's sad she died at the early age of 48; but the best singer in history?  I don't think so.

Thursday, February 2, 2012

Smoking Cigars

This is an excellent review of what you need to know about smoking cigars.


http://www.thesmokingjacket.com/lifestyle/cigar-facts-trivia-information

Friday, January 20, 2012

Caesar & Otto's Summer Camp Massacre

Here's a look at our latest movie.