Sidetrack Bar & Grill, Ypsilanti, MI

So it's #19 on the list of "20 Burgers You Must Eat Before You Die". The list is compiled by a) a Men's magazine (GQ) and b) Alan Richman a writer for GQ and NPR correspondent (so maybe take it with a grain of salt). I've talked about burgers with a lot of people and here are, in order of importance, my top requirements in a great burger:

1. Healthy meat (no hormones, antibiotics & preferably ground on-site)

2. Tasty, not dry bun - and it should be heated and/or toasted on the grill

3. Fresh condiments - fresh, clean lettuce & a slice of ripe red tomato with dijon mustard & fresh ground pepper available

4. Fries must be included - What's up with having to order fries separately? (Yes, Burger Bar at Mandalay Bay, not ok!)

The rest are no-brainers. It should be cooked how you order it, it should arrive hot (meat hot, veggies cool) and the meat should reach the edges of the bun. I get that the meat is often weighed, but it's not a meatball sandwich, it's a burger!

My favorite burger (and Dave concurs) is probably at the original Mo's in North Beach in San Francisco. Mo's grinds their own meat, cooks it over an open flame (rotating grill), provides fresh veggies (romaine lettuce), bun is better than average (doesn't fall apart) and the meat reaches the edges of the bun! So yummy. And, they make hand-dipped shakes there (I don't usually order one, but the sips I've had are delish!). A close second is Burgermeister (multiple locations). Niman Ranch beef, decent bun, fresh veggies (green leaf lettuce) and good fries.

Ypsilanti is right over the highway from Ann Arbor so we decided to check it out. The place is cute - kind of a bar slash grill with an extensive menu. It was early afternoon but pretty much everything coming out of the kitchen was a burger and fries. So the verdict? Well, it arrived hot and cooked to order (check!) and it came with fresh veggies (in winter, in MI? check!) and fries (just ok, not crispy enough for me). But it had that Burger Bar problem where the meat didn't reach the edges of the bun and sort of crumbled when I ate it. On the plus side, they let me drink the caffeine free diet coke I had in my bag (I know, so dorky!) and they had a nice big parking lot out back. Definitely tasty and satisfying, but I don't know about being the 19th best in the country. . . .

Cloverfield was Cool!

Being on/near a university really does have its perks. We got to see a sneak-peek preview of J.J. Abrams' new move "Cloverfield" on campus last week, a full 8 days before it officially is released. I feel like I'm in the cool kids club as this movie has had all kinds of buzz surrounding the storyline, the monster, the actors, etc. Of course, I was completely immune to all the viral marketing (Yes, I'm on facebook, but apparently, not in the right places!) and so had no idea that I was witnessing an "event" (ok a small-time event, but an event nonetheless!). So I won't give away any spoilers. I'll just say that depsite the fact that I am not a monster movie person, I don't really like movies with shaky hand-held cameras and I do like some sort of closure at the end, I enjoyed this one. J.J. Abrams keeps his street cred in my opinion. Go see it and check back! (Who am I kidding, none of you are going to see this movie. . . .but at least watch the trailer and be impressed with how I embedded it!)

明けましておめでとう!!! (Happy New Year!!)

Belated Happy New Year wishes to everyone! Hope 2008 brings health and prosperity to all. I didn't make any new years resolutions, but now that I think about it, I think I will try to find some lost friends and stay in better touch. I saw an old coworker over the holidays - hadn't talked to her in over a year - and found out she's prego with twins, due in May! So I think I'll try to find Gary Lue and a few other old coworkers - probably my friend Tonya who used to work for me but moved to London with her husband. Easy enough, right?

The New Years celebration at Hata-central was the usual craziness of cooking and running around. This year, we added even more stuff when we decided to do crafts with the kids. We helped them make samurai hats (origami) and koinobori fish (no pictures, too busy making crafts!). But the food was good and the company even better. My addition to the feast this year was te-maki (hand rolls). We always have make-your-own-sushi, but people don't do it, so I thought if I made some, people might get the idea. Not sure if it worked, but it sure looked good. And personally, I liked my spicy tuna.

Anyone else have new years resolutions? Let's hear them!

Crafty Christmas

Every year I get really excited about crafty ideas I see in magazines or on the internet. And each year, I make an attempt at something - but it's usually a dessert or something from a kit (I made a stocking for Joji last year). This year, my plan was to do some baking, participate in the annual homemade ornament exchange AND make some super-cute aprons for friends. In the end, the cookies and crepe cake came out fine and the ornaments were pretty, if a bit uninspired. But the aprons turned into ONE apron - and one my mom had to save! I'm not a sewer, but how hard can an apron be? Well, after I did some stitching and an attempt at the gathering, she told me to pull out what I had done and that'd she'd finish it for me. I was so not insulted and was happy she could help me! Take a look at the finished products:

Hope everyone had a fabulous holiday season and Happy New Year!!