East Coast-Day 3-To Queens

I think I slept a grand total of two hours thanks to a certain relative's snoring...I got out of bed around 5:45 and did 15 minutes on the elliptical, followed by eating two inedible cheese omelets and a couple pieces of wheat toast with peanut butter and fruit.

I headed upstairs around 6:30 to get ready. I used my new straight razors and shaving foam since I felt I was looking like a grizzly bear, even after one day without my Phillips. I guess that gash near my Adams apple still hasn't totally healed yet. All I had to do was touch the razor to the area, and blood slowly started to ooze down from my throat. A shower and a few minutes of towel pressure took care of that.

Then Mom drove me to the New London train station, she was heading up to Hartford to fly home later that morning. Downtown New London really looked desolate and dull, I never remembered it looking that way in all the years I had been visiting there. The Amtrak train left 15 minutes late, but I still arrived at Penn Station in Manhattan around 10:15, right on time. I really enjoy the train ride since it goes right down the coastline. For $34, not too bad a ride.

I took the 1 train downtown to 14th Street when I realized I got on the right train, but going the right direction. Yeah, that was pretty brutal. I guess I never noticed which stairway said Uptown and which said Downtown. Then I took the 2 back up to Times Square, where I caught the Queens-bound 7 train. I got off at 69th Street and dropped my luggage off with a friend before getting back on the subway to head to Citi Field. I stepped off the train and saw the classic Home Run apple and Jackie Robinson Rotunda. It may not be the best stadium in baseball, but in sports terms, it's my home. It's that simple. I had a little time before my friend Maria arrived so I took some time to run around the old Shea Stadium bases in the parking lot. I know I'm in my 30's, but it's still kind of cool to imagine I'm Lenny Dykstra, Mookie Wilson, or Jose Reyes flying around those bags.

Maria arrived at noon and we gave each other a big hug; it was our first meeting. Much to my amazement, she got me a gift: New York Rangers sport utility gloves. I was really surprised and appreciative. She also bought water bottles for us to take into the park. Unfortunately, she had just pulled them out of her freezer and they were still ice, not liquid. Since they were ice, the security staff did not let us bring them in and she was pissed over it! I reminded her it was only a couple of bucks worth and it was okay. Took her a few minutes to calm down though.

The cold wasn't fun, but we were lucky enough to be sitting in the sun; that made it much more tolerable. All I ate was a Premio sausage sandwich that got cold almost immediately! I drank a Brick iced tea and I learned that Brisk is the only tea that's never seen a tea leaf. The game was a total snoozefest for 3 hours and 10 minutes until John Buck's solo homer in the bottom of the ninth inning. But the Mets were unable to get any more runners on base and they fell to the Padres 2-1.

We took the 7 train back, Maria got off at Woodside, and we said our goodbyes. I headed into Port Authority with CI and we grabbed a bite at the Heartland Brewery. As we walked past the crowded bar to the much more open dining room, I noticed the beer memorabilia on the wall, which pretty much spelled out what this place was all about. I ordered a pint of Red Rooster ale, which our waiter said tasted similar to a Bass or Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. I'm a big fan of Bass and with the cold temperatures outside, I thought I'd go for something a little darker than what I normally drink. It was darker than those other beers and had a bitter taste, which I didn't especially like. I also tried a taste of the Cornhusker lager, but it was just too light for my taste. So I can't say I was in love with the local brews.

For a starter, we went with the BBQ spice rub shrimp. I likes that it came with some fresh guacamole along with a salsa wit poblano peppers and lime. It had some heat to it, but it wasn't overwhelming. Good opener.
I ordered the bison burger and I love that it came on a Martin's potato roll, maybe the best bun for a burger in the world. which is always a good sign. The bison was juicy, it wasn't a huge sized burger though. It cost me $2.50 to add American cheese and sautéed onions which were great additions, but what made the burger outstanding was the side of chipotle BBQ sauce. I put some of that on the burger and used the rest of it to dip my fresh cut fries in. This was an excellent smoky and spicy BBQ sauce. I also sampled the fish and chips and although the fish's coating was crunchy, I felt the fish was not moist and a little bit overdone.

I mentioned I had a surprise for dessert. I insisted the B train was the best way to go to where we needed to: the upper west side near the tip of Central Park. She didn't seem to believe me, but it was only seven stops form Port Authority, so I guess I got that one right. We got off at 102nd St and walked three blocks northwest to a place I had seen on Bacon Paradise 2 on the Travel Channel. Yes, I mentioned dessert earlier. And I just mentioned bacon two sentences ago.

To the manager: if the Baconery starts franchising, I will run the Chicago location! I got to visit this past weekend and I had a ball. I love the bacon-themed decorations on the wall, especially "The Rules of Bacon." The staff is engaging, smart, and they know their products well.

Oh, there's the food. I'll put it this way, I don't even eat chocolate and I was blown away by this place! We were offered a taste of a bacon-marshmallow bar, kind of like a Rice Krispie treat with bacon in it. Excellent! I bought my dad a bacon-chocolate pretzel rod and when I gave it to him the next day, he started making plans to visit the Baconery. She had a bacon hot chocolate, chocolate bacon peanut butter cookies, chocolate-covered bacon etc. Suffice to say, I think I've created a monster by taking her here!

As for me, the bacon pecan pie is one of the best desserts I have ever had. Perfect individual size, flaky crust, large pecans, the crispiness of the bacon, the richness of the syrup. Forget cake, this is all I would ever want for my birthday! The oatmeal cranberry bacon cookie was fine, really sugary, but I like the sweetness of the cranberries along with the bacon. A place that is unique, fun, creative, and just makes you feel good. It's just one of a kind! Only request...regular milk needs to be on the menu!

Then it was the B to the F to the M and the walk to Juniper Valley Rd in Middle Village around 9 pm. I watched the end of a couple hockey games with Francis and Ellen before hitting the sack.