The Hungover Gourmet

12/10/2024

I see a lot of stops on my way to Long Beach Island!

🚨 Exciting news, Cherry Hill! 🚨 Roy Rogers is making its grand return to Southern New Jersey and the Philadelphia area with a brand-new location opening in Spring 2025! Get ready for our iconic Fixin’s Bar, roast beef, burgers, fried chicken & more! 🍔 Stay tuned for more updates!

12/10/2024

And they say dreams don't come true!

12/10/2024

Back for a limited time! For $25 you'll get copies of all five in print issues of The Hungover Gourmet (while supplies last). Issues 6 and 8 are in very limited supply and will not be reprinted as individual issues. Offer available for US addresses only. Store link in comments.

Est. 1995

12/05/2024

New Zapp’s flavor at Wawa today. If the idea of kettle chips coated in radioactive orange cheddar cheese dust sounds good, have I got the chip for you. Surprisingly addictive, but don’t eat while wearing white.

11/27/2024

Hey, it's Wednesday, so time for another food recall!

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) announced a recall of ready-to-eat meat and poultry products from Yu Shang Food, Inc. due to possible Listeria contamination. Here's what to know.

11/27/2024

Burger King and KFC ask the question, why can't we be friends?

Squashed beef never looked so delicious.

11/26/2024

What’s in the cast iron skillet, Sophia Loren?

11/20/2024

Yes!

sighting confirmed: McRib szn starts 12.3

11/17/2024

Busy morning! Coffee and a food truck breakfast sandwich at the farmers market in Baltimore. Made quiche for our breakfasts for the week, deboned and marinated chicken thighs for lunches. Saved the skins to air fry for football.

11/16/2024

Fremont Fish Market Dynamite Shrimp with Bang Bang Sauce – Not to be confused with their Boom Boom Shrimp, this is ALDI’s latest frozen appetizer aimed at fans of Bonefish Grill’s Bang Bang Shrimp. Like me. When we had a BG near us, Bang Bang Shrimp was my favorite dish—a heaping helping of crispy fried shrimp tossed in a creamy sauce with a kick. Unfortunately, the dish is tougher to replicate at home that you’d think. Believe me, I’ve tried. So, when these appeared in our freezer case, they were a must buy—especially with a Thursday night Eagles game screaming for apps and cheesesteaks. I followed the directions for conventional oven cooking but after the specified time the shrimp looked anemic and not golden brown (not to mention undercooked), so I left them in a little longer. Meanwhile, I warmed up the sauce packets in some water and waited for the magic to happen. When I removed the cooked shrimp from the oven it became clear disaster awaited. Even the slightest movement caused the coating to slide off the shrimp, and once tossed with the sauce we had a bowl of slightly coated shrimp and slightly coated shrimp coating. Too bad, since the sauce was tasty, even if it wasn’t anything like Bonefish Grill’s signature sauce. The box also includes air fryer instructions, but did not specify if that preparation was recommended over conventional oven prep. If I was to get these again (and that’s a big if), I’d go the air fryer route. Personally, I think the Boom Boom Shrimp are much closer to the big chain fave and will be on the lookout for them in the coming months.

11/14/2024

So it’s popcorn. That tastes like a cake pop? And that’s somehow related to the holidays? im so confused.

11/14/2024

I’m eyeing up the Pickle Ranch Whopper this weekend. Anybody else taking the plunge?

Burger King has been on fire with new releases and we're getting THREE new Whoppers *and* Pickle Fries tomorrow (Nov 14th).

Earlier this year Burger King had the Million Dollar Whopper contest and now we get to try the three finalists to decide which one will be crowned the Million Dollar Whopper! Check these out:

Fried Pickle Ranch Whopper (Created by Fabian of California) – Features ¼ lb. beef patty, topped with pickle ranch, lettuce, fried pickles, bacon, and Swiss cheese on a toasted sesame see bun

Maple Bourbon BBQ Whopper (Created by Calvin of California) – Features ¼ lb. beef patty, topped with maple bourbon BBQ sauce, crispy onions & jalapeños, maple bacon seasoning, bacon, and American cheese on a toasted sesame seed bun.

Mexican Street Corn Whopper (Created by Kelsie of Nebraska) – Features ¼ lb beef patty, topped with street corn spread, lettuce, tomato, Southwest seasoned tortilla crisps, and Mexican spicy queso on a toasted sesame seed bun.

And thanks to Fabian creating the Fried Pickle Ranch Whopper, Burger King is also selling Pickle Fries as a side option as well with Hidden Valley Ranch to dip in.

Are you excited to try any of these flavors? I'm curious to see which Whopper you all like the most!

11/13/2024

Thanks to ALDI, I have become the de facto pizza/flatbread provider for our Friday night neighborhood happy hours. Oh sure, I might go crazy and bring Tempura Shrimp or Everything Pigs in a Blanket, but most weeks I’ll swing by ALDI after our round of golf and select some options for that evening. This week, we sampled the Buffalo Mozzarella & Spinach Pizza alongside the BBQ Chicken Thin Crust Pizza. Both items were in the freezer case and though cooking temps were slightly different, I put them in the oven together (I don’t recall what temperature I settled on) and cooked for about 12 minutes. Some folks had remarked that the crème fraiche sauce on the Spinach Pizza could be watery, but we did not have that issue. After cooking and cooling slightly, both pizzas were sliced into smaller portion slices than advertised and hustled across the street to my neighbor’s garage where the crew was ready. Based on the empty platter, the BBQ Chicken Pizza (which featured white meat chicken, red onion, cheese and a tangy BBQ sauce) was the winner as it was almost gone before I could grab a slice. The Buffalo Mozzarella was a slightly slower mover (maybe not everyone loves spinach as much as me?) and I ended up bringing a few pieces home, which my wife and daughter scooped up for lunch the next day. I would definitely purchase both again (the $5 price points are hard to resist) but in typical ALDI fashion I believe both are already out of the rotation.

11/05/2024

Has “sushi” gone too far?

10/26/2024

I rarely eat at McDonald's aside from grabbing a cheeseburger if I don't feel like stopping on a road trip or my annual Filet-O-Fish. But when they announced their Chicken Big Mac I knew I'd have to give it a try. Why? Because I'm a sucker. I'd heard from a few folks that it was like a McNugget burger but the sandwich I received was devoid of flavor other than the "special sauce" and pickles. I thought maybe the patty would have flavor if I tried it without anything on it, but even that was flavorless. Lots of bread, no flavor (other than the aforementioned sauce and pickles). I snagged one of Ryan's McNuggets for comparison and though I'm not a fan I'd have welcomed whatever it is they taste like.