Monthly Archives: August 2023

NEW WEird diffERENT Special and Limited Edition Foods for August 2023

There’s always something new, weird, different, special, or limited edition in the wonderful world of food. We never know WTFork we will come across when we shop for food. Up above is

DIFFERENT – Post Disney 100 years of Wonder naturally and artificially flavored “FRUITY” flavored cereal…?????? Fruity can be anything…….it can even be castoreum. I sure hope that it’s not castoreum because that is the fluid from the beaver’s castor sac gland by his butthole……Well whatever this stuff is made from it looks like you will poop Christmas from eating it.

NEW – Wonderworks Keto Friendly Cereal that’s naturally and artificially flavored FRUITY…YIKES Fruity again!

DIFFERENT – Wonderworks Keto Friendly Peanut Butter Cereal….Try this maybe you will go nuts for it?

DIFFERENT – Wonderworks Keto Friendly NATURALLY Flavored chocolate cereal…..Sounds good but don’t know.

DIFFERENT – Kellogg’s It’s Back Cinnabon Cinnamon Roll Cereal….Might be good…might suck?

SPECIAL EDITION – Kellogg’s Red & Blue Color Mix Rice Krispies. Red and blue mixed together makes purple…So that means you will poop purple after eating this.

DIFFERENT – Bushwick Kitchen Trees Knees Spicy Maple Syrup…..This looks like a shampoo bottle…….???? What were they thinking?

NEW – Campbell’s Chuncky Spicy Chicken Quesadilla…….This flavor can’t be good. Who wants a soggy quesadilla?

LIMITED EDITION – Van Leeuwen Campfire S’Mores French Ice Cream. Might be good or just ok…The regular flavors of this ice cream usually are very good.

LIMITED EDITION – Van Leeuwen Hot Honey French Ice Cream – I almost cracked and almost picked this up….Sounds like a hot mess that might be…..(BEE)……delicious????????

DIFFERENT – Hershey’s MILKLICIOUS Kisses…..????? It seems these days they will add anything to Waterdown the chocolate……..

DIFFERENT – Mr Beast Quinoa Crunch Chocolate Bar…..????…..Mr Beast eats quinoa? Who knew?

WEIRD – Cap’n Crunch’s naturally and artificially crunch berry rice crisp bar…..This is the stuff that fuels CEREAL KILLERS.

DIFFERENT – Kettle brand air fried potato chips in jalapeƱo and Himalayan salt flavored…..Sounds like a great idea!

DIFFERENT – Dr Pepper zero sugar strawberries and cream……It’s different than Dr Pepper….Maybe Dr Pepper when he is sick?

DIFFERENT – Crush Soda in Strawberry and Grapefruit……Crush always was an orange flavored soda…..Nothing is forever anymore.

LIMITED EDITION – Old Bay seasoned Goldfish crackers. They’d be good in soup!

DIFFERENT – Kroger low-fat deluxe artificially colored watermelon chocolate chip sherbet….?????

WEIRD – Kroger Deluxe Mermaid Sparkle….WTFork! is that? Blended up Mermaids with fish scales and hair…YUK! Someone must have been on drugs to come up with this one.

And there is usually something Oreo.

DIFFERENT – Deluxe Oreo Brownie made with Oreo Cookie Pieces (probably the little ends that break off in production?)

Well that was the new, weird, different, limited, and special edition for August 2023. Who knows WTFork we’ll come across next month?

The Forking Truth

My Trip to Seafood City – North Las Vegas NV

Seafood City is a Filipino Supermarket Chain with locations in California, Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada, and Washington.They also have Canadian locations in Ontario, Alberta, and Manitoba.

The North Las Vegas Location has a bakery inside called Red Ribbon Bakeshop.

They also have a Filipino BBQ called Grill City.

We decided to try Grill City.

There is a lot to see. Some of the pans are marked but with no explanation so some people have to use cell phone for google. Saw Balut here…….(undeveloped bird eggs).

They don’t sell skewers by the each and you have to buy five. My husband got a mix of pork and chicken skewers. He also got a longanisa sausage skewer.

He said that the meat on the skewers was tender but wasn’t a fan of the sweet sauce on them. He did like the sausage!

I saw 4 different fish dishes and picked the fish that I thought looked best and an ear of corn. We also shared a side order of rice.

This fish turned out to be grilled bangus. It’s also known as vinegar marinated milkfish served with spicy vinegar on the side.

This one is stuffed with onions, tomatoes, and peppers…..At first I didn’t like it but for some reason it did taste better when I added the spicy vinegar. The meat is a little dry but not hard and chewy like from the last Filipino restaurant I went to.

The corn is on the dried out side too.

We are done with lunch and are looking around some. There are lots of dry goods, baked goods, produce, and fish here. I saw prepared foods, live plants, and liquor too!

LOTS of fish here.

Surprisingly it doesn’t smell like fish here.

I’m going to buy halibut collars next time.

There is lots of milkfish here and lots of frozen milkfish here.

milkfish in citrus pepper

smoked milkfish

milkfish belly

Not all but some of the potato chips are very expensive.

$20.89 for an 8 oz bag of potato chips…My husband said he read duck eggs were an ingredient.

They also sell pig heads here.

We bought salmon here that seemed very fresh and my husband smoked it on aider wood and it came out really great! We also bought bok choy that was very good.

That was my first trip to Seafood City.

6435 N Decatur Blvd Las Vegas NV – 702-425-6973

www.SeafoodCity.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

My Trip to Smoke & Fire BBQ Las Vegas NV – Worth a Try!

Smoke & Fire BBQ is located in Las Vegas Nevada. One of their signature dishes might be a blueberry chicken sandwich or it might be the massive burger called, The Smoke Show.” They offer starters such as sliders, smoked chicken wings, and loaded bbq fries. They also offer a fire Caesar salad, smoked ribs, burgers, sandwiches, and meat plates.

It’s slightly casual. You seat yourself at the bar, patio, or dining room. You do need a cellphone to view the QR menu. Then someone takes your order.

I tried the Fire Caesar Salad with added chicken.

I received a large aluminum tin filled with crunchy romaine, shreds of nutty Italian type cheese, crunchy nicely flavored croutons, spicy but delicious chipotle Caesar dressing, and pulled chicken on the side. This all taste much better than I was expecting. It is actually very good. The dressing is so darn flavorful that you only want a little and this is just right. The cheese and the croutons are just delicious. The pulled chicken is moist, tender, and delicious. It is a really great salad! It’s also big I enjoyed it for lunch and dinner!

We also shared a side order of macaroni and cheese.

It’s pretty good…Lots of cheeses and doesn’t taste like Velveta.

My husband got the burger that they call Smoke Show………It’s a whole bunch of stuff!

1/2 pound Angus burger patty, bacon, 3oz. brisket, 2 oz. pulled chicken, 2 oz, pulled pork, American cheese, pepper jack cheese, crispy onions, fries, fire sauce, mustard bbq sauce, spicy bbq sauce, and bbq sauce on brioche bun with fries. He said that it was a very good burger. He asked for medium-rare and he thought it came out closer to medium but was still very good because it was juicy and moist. He thought all the separate meats were very good. This was also a very rare time when my husband had leftovers to bring home.

Smoke & Fire BBQ is for sure Worth a Try!

Smoke & Fire – 3315 E Russell Rd Las Vegas NV – 725-214-5398

www.SmokeandFireLV.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Those Guys Pies – North Las Vegas NV – Worth a Fork!

Those Guys Pies is a pizza and sandwich shop with three locations in Las Vegas Nevada. The North Las Vegas location looks pretty much like most pizza restaurants……..BUT if they look familiar to you it might be because this restaurant was on Food Network’s Diners, Drive-Inns, and Dives TV Show.

You order and pay at the counter. Then you grab a beverage and seat yourself. I noticed something very unusual here…………

…………They have a dog biscuit vending machine here! I never saw one before. Dogs are allowed on the patio. I’ll bring my dogs here when the weather is better.

Anyway back to the food……

I tried the chicken steak hoagie (no cheese) with a side of cherry peppers.

It’s PRETTY GOOD! It might be better than an actual chicken steak from Philly (I’m originally from the Philadelphia area). Instead of shaved or foamed chicken like what many places serve here they chop up moist chicken breast. To my surprise they don’t slather the bread with mayo either. They use oil and vinegar seasoned with Italian seasoning and the cherry peppers are vinegar brined and HOT! The bread isn’t Amorosa’s but holds up to the filling and isn’t as squishy as what most places serve. This is also a very large sandwich to me so I ate half. My husband said that he wouldn’t mind eating the other half later so I guess he will.

He got rib eye pizza steak with cherry peppers and American cheese instead of mozzarella.

He enjoyed it and ate the whole thing!

On another visit we started out by sharing a large lake side salad (mixed greens, roasted tomatoes, pickled red onions, smoked almonds, cranberries, goat cheese, and balsamic vinaigrette)

It tasty and something a little different.

We also shared a regular sized (14 inch) Italian White Pie (with the sausage on the side). (ricotta, mozzarella, broccoli rabe, sausage, garlic, caramelized onion, roasted tomato, lemon oil)

WOW! This one is very delicious with all kinds of flavors and it taste like a good amount of quality ricotta was used too! This is a really great pizza!

Those Guys Pies is Worth a Fork!

Worth a Fork!

Those Guys Pies

5585 Simmons Street North Las Vegas NV – 725-251-5826

www.ThoseGuysPies.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Miso Honey Butter Carrots & Cabbage with Ichimi Togarashi & Sesame Seeds Recipe

I was thinking about a recipe by James Beard winner and Top Chef finalist Shota Nakajima. It was his Watermelon Salad in Miso Honey Dressing Recipe. I did my twist on it and it came out FORKING DELICIOUS.

Watermelon Salad with Miso Honey Dressing

So I changed it up again and still came up with something delicious!

Serving size always varies. The vegetables are different in size and so are we with different appetites. This for me worked out to 6 side servings for dinner so I’ll say 6 servings.

Ingredients for around 6 servings.

2 lbs carrots – remove skin if not organic cut however you like but that will change up the timing. I cut mine in a rough cut like this.

1/2 a cabbage – remove core and rough cut

1/2 onion – cut in slices and cut slices in half

2 Tablespoons butter – melted (doesn’t matter if sweet or salted because you adjust salt to your liking)

1/3 cup white miso

1/3 cup honey

1 Tablespoon fresh grated ginger or 1 teaspoon ground dry ginger

4 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 Tablespoon toasted sesame seeds – to finish

2 scallions – sliced thin or cut on diagonal – to finish

ichimi togarashi – a light sprinkle to finish

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F

Depending on the size of your pan you need either one or two pans and all the carrots, cabbage and onions goes in the pan or pans.

Then in a small bow mix together the butter, miso, honey, ginger, and vinegar. Then pour it evenly over all the vegetables.

Cover pan(s) with foil. Roast until vegetables are cooked all the way threw. (timing will differ but in my oven this took 60 minutes.)

Then remove foil and place back in till lightly charred. about another 20-30 minutes.

Finish with scallions, sesame seeds and ichimi togarashi.

Miso Honey Butter Carrots & Cabbage with Ichimi Togarashi and Sesame Seeds

It’s DELICIOUS!

A Special THANKS!!! To chef Shota Nakajima who wrote a recipe to inspire me to create what I got here.

The Forking Truth

A Little Taste of Bravo “Top Chefs” in Las Vegas Nevada****UPDATES

I noticed that there are several Bravo Top Chefs in Las Vegas Nevada. So far I’ve been to four of them but hope to get to rest eventually.

The first one I tried was The Black Sheep by Top Chef contestant Jamie Tran. It’s a modern Vietnamese Eatery that is simply amazing! If you try this restaurant then you can taste why chef Jamie Tran made it to the Bravo show Top Chef.

Everything was FORKING AMAZING but I will cut them all down to a couple so this isn’t too long.

hamachi crudo

This hamachi crudo maybe was the best I ever had anywhere.

Boneless crispy trout

The boneless crispy trout is unique, delicious, and easy to eat. It sure is a top fish dish in Vegas by a Top Chef! We were lucky and got to see the chef Jamie Tran hard at work in her restaurant.

The Black Sheep – 8680 W Warm Springs Rd Las Vegas NV – 702-954-3998

www.BlackSheepVegas.com

We made it to Soulbelly BBQ in the arts district downtown. This restaurant is by chef Bruce Kalman. It’s casual but sort of refined BBQ with live music at certain times.

Caesar Salad with BBQ Turkey

My salad might look average but it doesn’t taste average. The turkey is moist, developed with delicious flavors. When I tried the salad I discovered that it sort of is deconstructed…..I was missing flavors from the dressing and then “BANG” the missing flavors and MORE are in the FORKING AMAZING black pepper corn bread croutons. This was an unexpected joy to eat.

My husband tried a sandwich called “The Belly of Soul.” (brisket, pickled onions, crispy onions, cheese sauce, fried egg, spicy BBQ sauce)

I tried a tiny bite of the brisket and is was really great! My husband said that all the flavors went really well together and said that he’d like to eat this sandwich again!

Soulbelly BBQ – 1327 S. Main St Las Vegas NV – 702-483- 4404

www.SoulbellyBBQ.com

********UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS*******138 Degrees Craft Chophouse, Killer Burgers, Bourbon, & Brunch is a chef crafted quality brunch, bar, and steakhouse by chef Matt Meyer with consulting chef and managing partner Alex Resnik (Bravo Top Chef). This is a place where they dry age their own meats and do their own smoking. They even culture their own sour cream.

We tried brunch shared the very best tacos (so far that I’ve tasted in Nevada. Smoked King Salmon Tacos. The fish was fish house quality, prepared to perfection, and these tacos were complex with flavors. The in-house made tortillas were also extra delicious. I also enjoyed an avocado toast.

My husband enjoyed a Salvadorian style pancake called a pupusa.

soft egg, brisket, cheese with fried bananas on the side. I was told that it was very good!

138 degrees Bar, Bourbon, Killer Burgers, Steakhouse – 1450 W Horizon Ridge PKWY Henderson NV – 702-272-0839 *****UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS*****

www.138Restaurant.com

Ai Pono Cafe is expected to open November 20th 2023 at the soon-to-open Durango Resort in Las Vegas around 8 miles from the Strip. It’s a chef crafted Hawaiian Plate Lunch Type of restaurant by (Bravo Top Chef) chef Gene Villatra. This past June I we were lucky to try a “Pop Up” of Ai Pono Cafe at The Red Rock Casino. The (Bravo Top Chef) Gene Villatra was there hard at work too!

Everything was good. However I couldn’t try every dish that was on the menu but out what I tried the favorite was the sandwich called, Da Side Chick. It was a guava chile breaded chicken sandwich.

I remember that the sandwich was big and tasty. It also only cost slightly more than fast food. ($10.) and this tasty delicious sandwich was a whole bunch better than anything fast food.

I hope to try-

Retro By Voltaggio by Bravo Top Chefs Michael & Bryan Voltaggio

Limoncello Fresh Italian by Bravo Top Chef Carla Pellegrino****UPDATE Top chef Carla Pellegrino is no longer with this restaurant**********

Boom Bang Fine Foods & Cocktails by Bravo Top Chef Elia Aboumrad

STK Steakhouse (Cosmopolitan) Bravo Top Chef Stephen Hopcraft

That was a little taste of Bravo Top Chefs in Las Vegas NV.

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

Twice Baked Gourmet Potato Restaurant Las Vegas NV – Worth a Try!****UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS****

*******UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS********Twice Baked Gourmet Potato Restaurant is a casual order and pay at the counter type of restaurant in Las Vegas Nevada.

They offer a menu of around eleven different potatoes stuffed with a variety of proteins. They also offer vegetarian and a vegan choice. You can also custom your own potato. Besides the main dig…….POTATOES…….They also offer crisp rolls in either meat or vegetarian, they also offer tacos with flour or corn shells, salad, and soft beverages.

I tried a salmon potato today.

The potato is unusually tasty. It’s perfect with very tasty ingredients (cheese sauce, shredded cheese, white onions, scallions, sour cream, red pepper flakes) The salmon isn’t fish house quality but hey..you don’t expect that here.

My husband tried the potato called, “some like it hot……” (spicy turkey sausage, red peppers, shredded spicy cheese, cheese sauce, jalapeƱos, it also gets sour cream but he requested no sour cream, and habanero pepper flakes.)

This one was very good!

They offer three desserts that sound interesting and unique but after a stuffed baked potato there isn’t much room for dessert. They offer something called strawberry poppers, a lemon supreme pie, and a stuffed sweet potato dessert.

******UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS*********

Twice Baked is Worth a Try!

Twice Baked – 6020 W Craig Rd Las Vegas NV – 702-626-2833

www.EatTwiceBaked.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

A Taste of 138 degrees Craft Chophouse Killer Burgers Bourbon & Brunch – Henderson NV – Worth a Fork!***UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS

******UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS*****138 degrees Craft Chophouse Killer Burgers Bourbon & Brunch is located in Henderson Nevada a short distance from the Las Vegas Strip.

This is a high quality globally inspired Brunch & Steakhouse and more sort of restaurant. They do their own in-house dry aging of steaks. They also offer house cured salmon.

A few of the other in-house chef crafted items are….. house smoked bacon, house cured 21 day brisket, house cured ham, house made English muffins, and house made heirloom corn tortillas. They offer a weekend brunch and happy hour, and dinner.

You have your choice of bar seating, a small outside patio, and indoor seating.

We started out by sharing the blackened king salmon street tacos. (Brunch menu)

They are very well packed for street tacos and have beautiful medium-ish rare king salmon on top of the most flavorful double shelled thin corn tortillas I had in a while. The tacos are topped with finely shredded red cabbage and a spicy fresh mango pico.

My husband tried the pupusa. (Salvadorian style stuffed soft corn pancakes) (Brunch menu)

He received two fresh made pupusa that were stuffed with cheese and some of the shredded house brisket. This was topped with a little more brisket, slaw, red salsa, a soft sunny egg, cheese, and caramelized bananas on the side.

I tried the avocado toast. (brunch menu)

The toast is a rich slightly sweet bread that seems like challah. it’s topped with smashed avocado, house cured king salmon, peppery arugula, infused cherry tomatoes, rich sweet balsamic, and chives. It’s a mix of sweet, savory, and other things in-between.

This was a high quality detailed brunch and it was reasonably priced too!

******UPDATE NOW CLOSED FOR BUSINESS*******

That’s Worth a Fork!

Worth a Fork!

138 degrees Craft Chophouse Killer Burgers Bourbon & Brunch by Matt Meyer

1450 W Horizon Ridge PKWY Henderson NV

702-272-0839

www.138Restaurant.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

HAPPIEST Happy Hour (so far) at The Pepper Club Las Vegas NV – Worth a Fork!****UPDATE Menu and prices have changed

The Pepper Club is an Artsy Type of restaurant by James Beard Award Wining Chef Todd English. The restaurant is located in downtown Las Vegas in the arts district.

The restaurant is named after the chef’s dog Pepper.

The restaurant offers a full bar with cocktails and a fresh seafood and sushi heavy menu that’s laced with Asian inspiration.

There are many choices to suit most people’s tastes. The majority of the food and drink choices are $8.00 each.******UPDATE MENU and PRICES HAVE CHANGED

Over a few visits we tried –

Lets taco about it – spicy tuna tacos with garlic aioli, fried garlic, and scallions – YUM!

Taco Belle – Pulled Teriyaki short ribs, serrano rings, spicy citrus slaw, micro cilantro – really delicious!

Crispy Rice – Coconut rice, spicy tuna, avocado, microgreens – just tasty

Salmon Spring Rolls – avocado, Philly cream cheese, honey mustard miso – just tasty

(2) yuzu hama – yellowtail hand rolls with yuzu kosho -YUM! the yuzu kosho (Japanese condiment of hot pepper, garlic, and yuzu) adds something so special to sushi. It should be offered everywhere that offers sushi.

Spicy Tuna Roll – As fresh as can be! Today not very spicy but today I noticed how truly FORKING AMAZING that this was. This had to be the best wasabi that there is anywhere. It really elevated the whole thing.

oishi shrimp – I didn’t eat the shrimp but I tasted the Japanese cocktail sauce and OMG! YUM! it’s the best cocktail sauce that I have ever tasted……IDK but I think it was made with yuzu kosho and rice vinegar? (I’m going to have to try making this myself.)

super smashed taters – with kizam chimichurri – Just delicious with creamy textured potatoes.

Toga Onions – Tempura battered onion rings that are seasoned just so…….and comes with shish ranch and gochujang cream…YUM!

JFC (Japanese fried chicken) sliders – with Nippon coleslaw and pickles……SUPER delicious but ask for extra pickles next time….The pickles are really amazing and make the sandwich BURST into a party in your mouth. They put enough pickles on the full size JFC sandwich but the sliders do need a second pickle so you can get the full experience.

I do have to say that the Happiest Hour menu from The Pepper Club is certainly Worth a Fork!

Worth a Fork!

The Pepper Club

921 S. Main Street Las Vegas NV – 725-228-2393

www.ThePepperClub.com

Every THING is subject to change.

The Forking Truth

FORKING Great Deviled Eggs Recipe

This is how I make my basic Deviled Eggs. If you eat two halves as a serving then this will make 9 servings with a few extra whites that you can snack on.

Ingredients for around 9 servings.

12 eggs – boiled till hard (10 minutes) soaked in ice bath till cold, then peeled, cut in halves. Rice the yolks.

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1/2 teaspoon piment d’ espelette + plus extra to sprinkle the cooked whites

2 Tablespoons Dijon but preferably Amora Brand

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 dashes Worcestershire sauce

smoked sea salt – to taste

9 small celery leaves

Directions

Lightly sprinkle the egg whites on both sides with smoked sea salt and piment d’ espelette.

In a medium bowl the riced yolks, mayonnaise, 1/2 teaspoon piment d’ espelette, Dijon, dry mustard, white pepper, cayenne pepper, and Worcestershire sauce together.

This mixture gets spooned or piped into the egg whites. Finish with a piece of celery leaf.

Everybody loves them. You will be a hit!

FORKING Great Deviled Eggs

ENJOY!!!!!!!

The Forking Truth