Cheesecake Factory

A new week, a new Onion Ring destination. Today we were going to go to Popeye's....but we decided to go to Cheesecake Factory instead (sorry, J!). So just a hop, jump, and a skip away we went to the Houston Galleria!

Sidebar: The Houston Galleria is far superior to the Dallas Galleria. I mean, our skating rink is much bigger and our stores are much better. Why is there even a debate about this?

Apparently F had already experienced Cheesecake Factory's Hand Battered Onion Rings a year ago, but she was willing to try them again. I mean, it had been an entire year since she had them. And she remembered them being like Red Robin. Excellent! Our destination was set.

As soon as the waiter gets there, we order our drinks and the Onion Rings. We are both super excited! We also order our main lunches - F got pasta, I got a soup/salad/sandwich combo. Soup of the day was a rustic lentil and bacon soup. Forest asked what a lentil was....and all I could come up with is that it was a type of bean. Not far off, right?

Anway, back to the point. The onion rings came out in a small tower, reminding us of Red Robin.



F said she could feel the heat radiating off of the tower of onions.

So they obviously were not crunchy like their RR counterparts. They sure looked good, though. So we took a bite...

Then I was taken by surprise. The batter was probably the thickest we have had thus far, and had more of a feel of a funnel cake. When I said this, F asked what a funnel cake was. I said it was a fried food that they served at state fairs and the like. She looked at me with a blank expression.

"What's a state fair?"

Insert about 20 mintues of explaining state fairs, carnivals, and the types of fried goodness each event offers.

The onion itself was thick and sweet. F asked if they put more than one onion in it. No, turns out they just made really thick slices.

Our main dishes came out. And boy was there a lot of food! F ended up taking half of her food home, and I took home my soup (it was so yummy!!!). And we were both too full to indulge in some cheesecake. Probably for the best...I mean, I can't be too stuffed with fattening foods for my afternoon workout.

Verdict: Surprisingly good!

F even liked them. Yes, F, who is the one who seems to only like breaded O Rings. I personally couldn't get past the funnel cake batter. It wasn't that it wasn't good, it was just unexpected.

So that was our Onion Ring adventure for today. Let us know if there are any spots you would like us to go try!

Kenny & Ziggy's Deli

So today was a day of firsts - first day of school, first day of my new HMC work schedule, and the first day of Onion Ring Monday. That's right, with our school schedules in full mode, F and I are only working together on Mondays and Fridays. So Onion Ring Thursday is now Onion Ring Monday. Can you think of a better way to start the week? Neither can I.

So today we decided we could do one of 2 things: go to Popeye's (suggested by our office mate J) or get sandwiches and ORings to-go from K&Z's. We decided to do the latter. (We'll do Popeye's soon, J!)

But before I go into today's adventure, this needs a background story. Get ready, it's a doozy.

So one of my first weeks into my MBA program, I was sitting in my seat waiting for class to start, minding my own business, when some random guy decided to include me in his conversation. Um...do I know you? But it's always nice to make new friends (as Giselle reminded me this weekend when I watched Enchanted for the umpteenth time), so I decided I'd humor him.

Little did I know that this random guy would become a lifesaver. I'm serious, if I hadn't met K, I don't think I could have made it through my finance classes. Our Saturday mornings were marked by having study dates at Panera Bread (I was usually still wearing my pj's), and K explaining finance concepts to me over and over and over again. Sometimes I got it, sometimes I...didn't. But he would patiently explain things to me.

Well this past spring semester, I learned he was going to Brazil for work. For 3-6 months. Um, excuse me? Who said that K, my study buddy, could just be relocated without my permission? No bueno. So a week or so after our last finance final, he jetted off to the Southern Hemisphere.

This has a point, I promise.

Back in June...July?...one of those summer months...he had to come back to H-Town to check back in with HQ. By now, he knew all about my Onion Ring adventures. So we decide to have lunch at Kenny & Ziggy's. Apparently this deli is a big hit in the Jewish community. And the Houston community. And it was on Triple D. So I mean, if Guy Fieri went there, it has to be good. I'm in. K also made it a point to order ORings. Yessssss! Let me just say that these were amazing and I knew I had to bring F here eventually. Unfortunately, I couldn't post this adventure in this blog because it wasn't with F. K was sad (sorry!). But that all changed today.

So F and I decide to place a to-go order at K&Z for their amazing onion rings. We then head to get sandwiches. Now most of the time, I'm down for my $5 foot long. But today, I needed heat - heat that comes in the form of hot peppers. And that led us to Potbelly. Mmmm, Potbelly. The office regularly orders Potbelly sandwiches with the Committee Memebers come for lunch meetings because it's quick and easy. Luckily for me, there are usually leftovers in the fridge the next day, which is a great surprise when I forgot to eat breakfast before coming in to work. :-)

So armed with our rings and sandwiches, we head to my place to chow down. And we bit into the onion rings...

If you like breaded onion rings like Red Robin, you will like K&Z. It has an extra crunch that you just can't get from battered onion rings. Sorry, Pete's, but these were really good. They were fried to perfection, and the onion itself was sweet and delicious. Honestly, they're much better when they're fresh and you eat them in the deli itself, but this experience wasn't so bad. I mean, they were still really tasty. And F liked the crunch. Yes, this mission was a success.

While we were eating, we also decided we needed to come up with some standards to judge these rings. I mean, I try to explain them as best as I can, but sometimes I wonder if the point gets through. What do you think, loyal reader(s)? What would you like to see in the descriptions of the Onion Rings?

So...

Verdict: Yum. Enough said.

When we drove back to the office, the only parking spot left was one where a huge SUV was parked on the line. So I had to squeeze in YET AGAIN. Seriously, people, learn how to park.

Yes, that about sums up today's adventure. If you have a favorite onion ring spot you'd like us to try, leave us a comment! We will go to every suggested place (seriously, we have an ongoing list!), and we love comments. *hint, hint*

Whataburger

This week, we finally got around to going to Whataburger. When we first started this quest, a long lost friend posted on my Facebook that our search would end at Whataburger. Whataburger was also listed as one of Houston's top onion ring spot. And the 3 week buildup to these onion rings really made us excited to try these!

I personally love Whataburger. It's the place I go when I feel like splurging (read: I'm tired of McDonald's dollar menu). And as a Texas institution, it's one of the best burger fast food chains here in the state. My dad would go as far as calling their burgers gourmet burgers, but don't tell that to my culinary friends... To us foodies, gourmet burgers mean big, juicy patties, exotic toppings, and big, toasty, fluffy buns. While Whataburger is not gourmet, it is definately in the upper echelon of the finer fast food burgers.

We decided to go to the Whataburger near the Galleria on Chimney Rock near Westheimer. I have gone to this location frequently since moving back to H-Town, and I've never had a problem with them. We were both excited to be here!

F also noticed that I was dressed in Whataburger colors!

We ordered 2 meals and found a table. The food came out pretty fast, which made us happy. However, they brought us two orders of fries. Not cool...we're on an Onion Ring mission! We wanted to send the fries back, but the worker insisted we keep both fries and brought us our Onion Rings. So nice!

The onion rings looked amazing. We were both super excited.



We took a bite...



And were slightly disappointed. They weren't crispy like I was hoping. Nor were they crunchy like F likes them. Plus, the batter was a little undercooked in the middle, which probably explains the non-crispiness.

So disappointing after such a big build up.

But the burger was good. Yum!
One thing I do have to say about this Whataburger location is that they have EXCELLENT customer service. But then, I'm comparing them to the Waco Whataburger. Last time I was there, I was participating in Baylor's Pigskin Revue

and dressed as a red crayon. And they asked if I was part of the carnival. Thanks...

Me in the parking lot of the Waco Whataburger.



But I digress...

Verdict: They were OK... But they are still one of my favorite burger joints!

Since we've had so many battered onion rings lately, and F keeps comparing everything to Red Robin O Rings, I know just the place to take her...

Kenny and Ziggy's.

Someburger

I know...we haven't updated in a while...

We've been busy!!!

Last week was a birthday lunch on onion ring day, so obviously we decided to take the birthday lunch. And this week...well...life got in the way. But I thought I'd update with what we had 3 weeks ago....Someburger!



Someburger is this little green shack (literally a shack) in the Heights off of Studewood and 11th. One would completely miss it if they weren't looking for it. And I actually almost missed it! Thank goodness F pointed it out or else I would have kept driving.

We had gotten rave reviews about Someburger, so we were both very excited to try this new place. We went up to the window and ordered a cheeseburger, fries, chicken nuggets, and onion rings. Yum!

Since the Houston heat is not pleasant to eat in, we eagerly headed back to the office to enjoy our meal. That joy soon disappeared... The cheeseburger was...under par. The chicken nuggets looked liked something you would get from McDonald's. The fries were...ok at best... Honestly, the onion rings were the best part of the meal, and they weren't even the best onion rings we've had.

Verdict: bleh. Don't go here for the food, except if you're in the mood for semi decent onion rings.

Disappointing, no?

The funniest part of the experience was trying to park back at the office. The only spot available was between these two big cars/SUVs who decided to park ridiculously close to the lines of my poor little parking space... Hilarity ensude...



Stay tuned. Next stop: Whataburger!