The end of the Experiment.

The experiment has come to an end. Living in a smaller place close to work, riding a bike, trying new food. Well it really hasn't come to an end because it has become a life style. The situation has changed though.

In late July I decided to take a job position at another store officially ending my living arrangements and my time in Rochester NY.  I took a position closer to Atlanta to be near mom & my pumpkin.

 The experience was nice. It made life simple in many aspects. I didn't have to worry as much about cleaning because I had the smaller space. I got to get more sleep because the commute to work was much simpler. The only downside was running into a lot of people from work and the smaller kitchen. Being farther from the main shopping areas wasn't so bad being the staples were close by.

To be honest I liked it so much I have kept to most of the same things at my new place. I live close to work ( I walk to work). I even decided to go without cable. I just have an antenna that gets three channels. I did however get a luxury apartment this time around so the downsizing didn't stick. I still have been trying not to just fill the place with stuff I don't really need. The extra space is nice to host guests (like my niece :) ). The larger kitchen has made it easier for my food experiments even though this kitchen it way to big for me. I do like the simple approach though it makes life easier.  I plan on trying to keep with it. I'll post a video of my new place soon.

New recipe & restaurant review

Hey all! I tried a few. We recipes since my last post. One was from a coworker. It is an original ( can't find it online). She called it a poor man's burger. It is really just a baked open face burger. You season the ground meat as you would normally. You set the oven to 350. Put a few slices of bread on a baking pan. Take the burgers & put them on each slice of bread & bake it. I added BBQ sauce on the top of one & cheese on the others 5 minutes before being finished. Bake for 25-40 minutes depending how well you like your burgers cooked.

This was a cool twist to a regular dish. It wasn't to much different from just making a burger & putting it on a slice of bread. The big difference was really in the bread. Toasted on the bottom & a little moist on the burger side.

I also have got to try Three new restaurants in Rochester. A Mexican, Dominican & pub style restaurant. All three are locally owned.

3 Latino Restaurant
This place is a Dominican place. The food was great. I had beef with rice & beans. I also ordered a side of Plantains. This is the best spanish place I have had since I moved here. Food was authentic not commercialized Spanish food. The portion size was large for its price. I got the "medium" plate & had enough for two meals. The restaurant itself is not very fancy & the inside looks a little worn. The service was quick.

The place is hidden & only Dominicans were eating there when I went. Would highly recommend this place.Check it out: 211 W Ridge Rd Rochester NY

The filling Station
This one was a little far from where I live but I went here to meet with a few friends for dinner. The place was recommended to us. It had the typical pub type of food. I got wings, a "plate" & a beer. One of the people I was with got the fish fry & said it was good. The price & the food was average.

What made this place unique was it was in a converted house & not on a typical commercial road. It also had friendly staff, great atmosphere, lots of big screens & a dart board. The place seemed to be one of those places with a lot of regulars like everyone knew each other. It was also relatively quiet in the place for a Friday. This isn't a place I would go out of my way to go to but if I was on that side of tow. Would stop in. So if you are in Webster NY & looking for some food here you go: 1839 Ridge Road, Webster, NY 14580


Itacate
The third place is a Mexican restaurant that just opened up down the street. I heard a few things about it so I checked it out. I went for lunch to see what the talk was about. When I walked in the guy at the counter was REAL friendly. He explained the menu & offered a taste sample of the special. He also gave me a recommendation based on what I mentioned I liked. I ended up getting a burrito. They had home made salsa & toppings. They also offered other authentic Mexican food. The price was comparable to Moes or Chipotle except they offered more things. The food was ok.

The place is a little funny because it is located inside a gas station (Arrow Mart) & all the signs including the menu board are hand made. I would rather drive the extra to go to my local favorite Johns tex mex if I was craving a burrito. I would eat here again if I wanted something fast that wasn't pizza or chinese. Try it for yourself: 4179 Buffalo Road Rochester, NY

New recipes

As part of my move I Wanted to try a series of new things. One was new recipes. One a week is the goal. Not necessarily new food just things I haven't made before. I have tried 3 since I started. All relatively conservative as far as food I would eat.

I have been collecting recipes from people to try. I haven't dared to venture off to new foods yet but it is quickly approaching that time. Here are the items I have made so far.

1. Taco Salad- this was simple & quick. It even came out better then I thought. As I often like to do I change the recipe slightly, leaving out the salad dressing.

2. Fried Ravioli w/ marinara sauce- this was something I never tried but close to something I have eaten a bunch of. This was also a simple recipe. The seasons with bread crumbs made awesome dish. I didn't make the sauce homemade but will have to try next time. Although it was yummy It had more of an appetizer feel to it but was filling and could work as a meal with a side (some sort of bread?).

3. Sweet & sour chicken w/ rice - this is a dish I would normally pick up from a Chinese restaurant. This was the most complicated of the three. It required some frying, baking & making a sauce. I never really have made a sauce totally from scratch before so I was a little concerned. According to a few people who tried it the meal came out pretty close to the take-out you would get. Since I used brown rice instead of the white rice it did add a little twist.

I will continue to post more updates on my new food journey. I plan on trying some new foods soon. I will also post the recipes going forward.

Aparment Before & After

The apartment still needs some work. I just realized the before video is not very good. I hope you enjoyed the tour.

Apartment update

I am pretty settled in now. I am enjoying it so far. It is kind of weird not having anyone home ever bc I live alone.

I got a chance to scoop out the area. Although I am further from a Wegmans, Walmart, mall & Target they are still not to far.

With the exception of a mall I am pretty close to a lot. A locally owned grocery store (big plus), Dollar General, a few local (my favorite kind) restaurants, 2 gas stations, Tim Hortons, CVS, Subway, Pizza place & chinese place are all only .5 miles away. I really enjoy that the Grocery store is an independent store.

It is not all good. Being in an apartment above a house makes feel like I can't do my workouts because I am making to much noise. I also still have to drive my car more then I would like. I don't have a Laundromat close by but that isn't so bad.

I am hoping to post the before and after videos up soon I would just like to finish one or two more things in the apartment first.

New Beginning

I have moved to a new location. The apartment is smaller. It isn't to nice. My decision to move here was for an experiment I have always wanted to do. Actually several things That I have always wanted to do. These are: living close to work, living in a small apartment, riding my bike to work. I will be saving some extra money that can help with some of my the things on this years business Agenda (Previous post).

I will be posting about my experience with this. I will post some pictures of the place before and after I set it up, the area and how I am liking the new experience.