Random Thoughts That Don't Deserve Their Own Thread Go Here

[miami_fan]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Somebody else's discussion caused me to try to figure out the last thing I watched on "traditional TV" other than live sports.

Best we could figure out, the answer is April 2020. (The mid-season finale of TWD S10)

I've watched a few Netflix series (all Will prompted), one Amazon series (Fallout) but other than that, I can't think of anything scripted on regular ol' channels. And I don't feel the slightest sense of loss about that, not one iota.

I mention that largely just to say how kinda, well, crazy that seems. Scripted just doesn't have much appeal to me in years and apparently nothing outside of a few streaming services even gets that close.

I am sure I have not watched a network TV series on network TV in at least ten years and that is being conservative.

[Ksyrup]

Shout out to Red Robbin for giving a free burger of your choice as a birthday reward (with $4.99 purchase). That's a solid perk. Others seem to be going with a free dessert (email freebies from Red Lobster, Olive Garden, and our local high-end steakhouse Malone's where we're eating Friday night), or Buffalo Wild Wings is offering a free 6 count wings.

[Suicane75]

Anyone ever been to a Pizza Hut classic? Buddy and I are thinking of making the 2 hour trip even though I imagine the food will be on par with the modern carry out places. Still, the red pitchers and actual pans have me nostalgic.

[stevew]

Like a sit down Pizza Hut? The pizza tastes so much better in the hot pan.

[stevew]

Why is spring water so much better than any of the purified waters? I can throw a bottle of spring water in my car and it’s 100° outside and I can still drink that. Purified water tastes like garbage even when it’s ice cold

[dubb93]

Originally Posted by stevew

Why is spring water so much better than any of the purified waters? I can throw a bottle of spring water in my car and it’s 100° outside and I can still drink that. Purified water tastes like garbage even when it’s ice cold

It’s so bitter if it isn't spring water. I’ve met people that prefer "drinking water" over spring water and they are generally the same people that will eat a ribeye well done.

[Ghost Econ]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Shout out to Red Robbin for giving a free burger of your choice as a birthday reward (with $4.99 purchase). That's a solid perk. Others seem to be going with a free dessert (email freebies from Red Lobster, Olive Garden, and our local high-end steakhouse Malone's where we're eating Friday night), or Buffalo Wild Wings is offering a free 6 count wings.

Burger used to be free, no other purchase necessary. These freebies have gotten more restrictive everywhere.

[Ksyrup]

Well, I'm married so unless I was going to force my wife to watch me eat my free burger, the $5 purchase was pretty much irrelevant. But yeah, I can understand it if you're single. Just buy a shake, I guess.

[cuervo72]

Originally Posted by stevew

Like a sit down Pizza Hut? The pizza tastes so much better in the hot pan.

Frederick used to have three sit down Pizza Huts. Two closed, and the one remaining has finally reopened the seating area, but they won't actually serve you. You can basically order and take it back to your table.

But yes - it used to taste better fresh from the pan.

[cuervo72]

Originally Posted by GrantDawg

Pretty sure that's the one. They are good, but I will warn you that bag has way more peanuts than I thought.

The boy was home last week, so I figured that was as good a time as any to try the boiled peanuts. Found the 24oz bag of raw peanuts that our Food Lion sells (they are not in the nut section but in produce), which was pretty much the right size for the Instant Pot. (It might have held a bit more, but likely not two bags.) Basically used this recipe, though I added vinegar and probably didn't use that much cajun seasoning (I am running a bit low). Of course I guess it wasn't two whole pounds of peanuts anyway.

Turned out great (liquid smoke is a winner) -- the only thing I would probably do is to cook them for a few minutes longer, and maybe add a bit more water to make sure all were totally covered. I think I prefer mine just a *tad* mushier than how they turned out. VERY minor tweak.

[GrantDawg]

I just ordered lunch, or your comment would have made me get some boiled peanuts. All it takes is a mention, and I start craving.

Sent from my SM-S916U using Tapatalk

[Suicane75]

Originally Posted by stevew

Like a sit down Pizza Hut? The pizza tastes so much better in the hot pan.

Yup. Same decor & ambiance, pan made, dine in. Unfortunately I called and they have no jukebox or arcade games, but what can ya do.

[stevew]

I worked at one maybe 10 years ago but it has since closed. Most of the ones now don’t run waitresses but you can eat in but it’s in a cardboard box. There are supposedly still buffets around but not many.

[Ksyrup]

I can only think of two places I have gone for pizza in a restaurant in the past 20 years. And one of those is Uno Pizzeria, and I don't think we've been since well before Covid. The other is a local place in Lexington that's too far for carry out or delivery. We did go to a Detroit-style pizzeria in Asheville last month that was excellent. I'll gladly hit that place every time we visit my parents.

That said, regardless of whether we get local or chain delivery, I almost always fire up the toaster oven and bake mine to make it crispy and hot. Every time.

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by stevew

I worked at one maybe 10 years ago but it has since closed. Most of the ones now don’t run waitresses but you can eat in but it’s in a cardboard box. There are supposedly still buffets around but not many.

We still have one in town. I have been a couple of times post-Covid and they still had the lunch buffet. I'll admit I haven't been in a year or so. I'm not sure they still do. They did the redesign in the early 2000's, so not exactly classic but the inside is still pretty close.

[Ksyrup]

Man, when I was a law clerk and cub attorney working for the state, one of my fondest memories was the 2-3 hour lunches a group of us would take to various buffets around Tallahassee. One of those was the Pizza Hut less than 10 minutes away from the office. We'd wreck that buffet.

[NobodyHere]

I've never heard of a Sheetz gas station but my area is about to get 8 of them.

[dubb93]

Our Pizza Hut went out of business. We only have a couple of local pizza places too, but Pizza Hut's business model just doesn't really fit rural midwest anymore. They never opened the dining room again after COVID which was strike one and strike two is how expensive everything is if you call in. A good amount of the young people here move away to larger communities for convenience and/or to pursue their careers. Our community is aging. The people with money here aren't using apps to order food.

A good example was a couple of years ago I took my kids over to my dads to watch the NFL playoffs. The kids wanted Pizza Hut. I said let me get on the app and find a deal. Dad said he was paying and wasn't using an app. We got 3 pizzas at $25 a pop, a couple of orders of breadsticks and extra cheese(plus a hefty delivery fee.) He paid over $100 with the tip. I probably could have gotten that for $40-50 on the app. People just stopped ordering them because at that price the quality just isn't there.

[dubb93]

I will add when I was in my early 20's I had a good friend that worked at Pizza Hut and he would always make pizzas with an absurd amount of toppings and cheese and bring them over after work for us to cook when we were done drinking for the night.

[Lathum]

I am lucky to be in Jersey and we have at least 15-20 amazing pizza places withing a 15 minute or less drive all of them dine in and many with outside patios.

[stevew]

Originally Posted by NobodyHere

I've never heard of a Sheetz gas station but my area is about to get 8 of them.

Welcome to the club!

average freezer apps. Subs kind of suck. App works well though. $6 app sampler is a decent deal(chicken bites/mac and cheese bites/cheese sticks/fryz/jal poppers). Parking lot will likely be the most dangerous place on earth with the way people drive typically at all the ones nearby.

[Lathum]

Sheetz is a shitty wanna be version of WaWa

[cuervo72]

Originally Posted by Lathum

Sheetz is a shitty wanna be version of WaWa

Correct! We have a Sheetz down the road, Wawa is a bit further out. Always opt for Wawa. The only thing I'll say for Sheetz is that they are decent to stop at on the drive west on 70 (until they disappear) and that they have good cheese curds. The subs though, those suck and you have to pay for damn near every ingredient.

[cuervo72]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

That said, regardless of whether we get local or chain delivery, I almost always fire up the toaster oven and bake mine to make it crispy and hot. Every time.

I've stopped going to one of our local places because the pizza -- which should be foldable -- is always too crispy. If you're going to make NY style pizza, don't cook it until it stands on end k thx.

I will reheat leftover pizza in the toaster oven though. Tip: drip some olive oil on the crust, then sprinkle on some sea salt. Perks dry crust right up.

[stevew]

Air fryer is great for reheating pizza

[Ksyrup]

WaWa is invading Kentucky. There's one being built right down the road from my in-laws. I'm familiar with the name because my wife's family is mostly from NJ. It's not going to impact my life - the only time I ever go into a gas station-attached convenience store is when I'm travelling. So, I doubt I'll ever step foot in a local WaWa, just like I don't step foot in any of the others.

Speaking of which, a bunch of station convenience stores here suddenly became something called Good Stop. Never heard of it before.

[cuervo72]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Speaking of which, a bunch of station convenience stores here suddenly became something called Good Stop. Never heard of it before.

Man, there's a B-52's marketing opportunity there.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

WaWa is invading Kentucky. There's one being built right down the road from my in-laws. I'm familiar with the name because my wife's family is mostly from NJ. It's not going to impact my life - the only time I ever go into a gas station-attached convenience store is when I'm travelling. So, I doubt I'll ever step foot in a local WaWa, just like I don't step foot in any of the others.

Speaking of which, a bunch of station convenience stores here suddenly became something called Good Stop. Never heard of it before.

There are 4 Sheetzes opening in Metro Detroit. For some reason this is considered newsworthy. I’m with you, I never go into a gas station convenience store other than on road trips.

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

WaWa is invading Kentucky. There's one being built right down the road from my in-laws. I'm familiar with the name because my wife's family is mostly from NJ. It's not going to impact my life - the only time I ever go into a gas station-attached convenience store is when I'm travelling. So, I doubt I'll ever step foot in a local WaWa, just like I don't step foot in any of the others.

Speaking of which, a bunch of station convenience stores here suddenly became something called Good Stop. Never heard of it before.

You’re making a mistake. Wawa is far more than a “gas station convenience store.” They were actually a deli long before they started doing gas. They do a lot of things and about all of them well. I highly recommended putting them on your rotation.

[GrantDawg]

My favorite quick and easy lunch is a grilled cheese from QT. I work out of a truck, so I am in gas stations all the time. When we traveled up north we yri3d a WaWa and a Sheetz. They would be handy to have around here.

Sent from my SM-S916U using Tapatalk

[Ghost Econ]

If you're ever in SC, stop at a Spinx gas station at breakfast for a chicken biscuit. Their tendies are crack when fresh. The biscuit itself is pretty trash but buttery, but it you can get it freshly made the tenders have a good crunch, flavor and juiciness. There's one I can walk to from my house and will wander about once a week before work.

[Ksyrup]

Yeah, not gonna happen. We have Bucc-ee's here and they have some decent food. We've grabbed a quick lunch before. But guess where? Not at the one close to us. The ones in other states ,while travelling.

I will not be getting food at home from a convenience store. In fact, it never even crossed my mind to do so until this thread, even though I'm obviously aware people do it. I just don't have that kind of job where I need to eat on the go (which totally makes sense when you've got limited time and need to eat), and when I'm able to go out for lunch/dinner, it isn't going to be to grab food at a gas station.

[Lathum]

It.Isn't.A.Convience.Store.

I will die on the WaWa hill.

[cuervo72]

Yeah, curious if Ksyrup would ever get food from Subway, Jersey Mike's, Panera, etc. Or I guess by his definition, convenience stores w/o gas.

[cuervo72]

(Regarding Subway -- we will get hoagies from Wawa 19 out of 20 times vs Subway, even if the latter is like .2 miles from the house. Besides having iced coffee drinks, the food is magnitudes better. The only complaint is that Wawa for whatever reason doesn't do black olives.)

[Ksyrup]

Gas station convenience stores specialize in selling all sorts of items, and fresh food is typically an add-on "convenience" that sacrifices quality. What you described are fast food restaurants that only sell fast food. You might like one over another and/or they may be of varying quality in general, but the fresh food they sell is their only stock in trade.

If WaWa is that good, I'd suggest they start operating apart from gas stations. And by the way, when I've needed to eat on the road and the most convenient (or sometimes only) option is a fast food restaurant attached to a gas station, I have found that about 90% of the time, there is a noticeable decline in the usual quality of whatever fast food place it is. The place might be mediocre, but the gas station version is nearly always worse than that.

[Ksyrup]

What I'm hearing you say is that in terms of food quality, WaWa is to gas station convenience stores what Publix is to grocery stores. Noted. It'll still be an usual set of circumstances that would have me stopping at a local WaWa to get food, rather than literally dozens of other, more appealing options.

[cuervo72]

"I am too fancy to eat sandwiches."

[Ksyrup]

I eat sandwiches all the time. Had one today, in fact, that I made. Guaranteed it was better than I'd get from WaWa.

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Gas station convenience stores specialize in selling all sorts of items, and fresh food is typically an add-on "convenience" that sacrifices quality. What you described are fast food restaurants that only sell fast food. You might like one over another and/or they may be of varying quality in general, but the fresh food they sell is their only stock in trade.

If WaWa is that good, I'd suggest they start operating apart from gas stations. And by the way, when I've needed to eat on the road and the most convenient (or sometimes only) option is a fast food restaurant attached to a gas station, I have found that about 90% of the time, there is a noticeable decline in the usual quality of whatever fast food place it is. The place might be mediocre, but the gas station version is nearly always worse than that.

And this is why you need to redshift your thinking. Btw not all wawas have gas. Their ingredients are fresher and better than any other chain type place and most mom and pop places. You have to look at them more as a general store/deli and not like a 7-11 with shriveled hot dogs in a roller and pre made soggy sandwich’s.

[Lathum]

Wawa has been around since 1964 but didn't start selling gas until 1996. You are completely mislabeling it. And missing out.

[Ksyrup]

I mean, OK. It's not the end of the world. If they wanted to be known for, and primarily sell, food, they could concentrate on establishing stand-alone restaurants like the rest of the food industry. Even in a mall food court would be a step up.

I just don't find it appetizing, either as a general idea or based on personal experience, to eat food made/cooked in a store at a gas station. Especially not chains.

[cuervo72]

It's not like any of the workers doing the food have anything to do with the pumps. Going to WaWa is not like stopping at the Flying J or Pilot or TA or something, either. Should supermarkets stop selling gas? Does the existence of a gas pump outside of them somehow degrade the produce inside?

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

I mean, OK. It's not the end of the world. If they wanted to be known for, and primarily sell, food, they could concentrate on establishing stand-alone restaurants like the rest of the food industry. Even in a mall food court would be a step up.

I just don't find it appetizing, either as a general idea or based on personal experience, to eat food made/cooked in a store at a gas station. Especially not chains.

That’s like saying Publix should be in a food court. Wawa is a market, not a restaurant and certainly not a gas station convenience store. Try it once. If you’re not sold I’ll Venmo you.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by cuervo72

It's not like any of the workers doing the food have anything to do with the pumps. Going to WaWa is not like stopping at the Flying J or Pilot or TA or something, either. Should supermarkets stop selling gas? Does the existence of a gas pump outside of them somehow degrade the produce inside?

They also typically don't have anything to do with food preparation. It has less to do with gas pumps and more to do with being a convenience store where making fresh food is not the primary purpose of the place.

Grocery stores' primary purpose is to sell groceries. I don't see the tie to degrading the food Kroger sells and I do use Kroger gas occasionally simply because of the rewards aspect, but I typically buy gas at gas stations. I've never bought gas at Wal-Mart, for example (except for in Hawaii because it was a rental car and all I cared about was price).

I guess I tend to avoid shopping at places where what I'm buying isn't what the place is known for.

I get that WaWa might be different, but there's nothing that tells me they are any different from a Circle K or 7-11 or even a Bucc-ee's that would make me want to go there to eat.

*shurg*?

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by Lathum

That’s like saying Publix should be in a food court. Wawa is a market, not a restaurant and certainly not a gas station convenience store. Try it once. If you’re not sold I’ll Venmo you.

No, because Publix entire brand is selling food. Fresh food prep is certainly a natural extension of that.

You're asking me to do something that's so out of the ordinary for me that it just won't happen. I can't even imagine the look on my wife's face if I told her I was going to stop at WaWa's to pick up dinner. Even if I told her their food has rave reviews from many people.

"Honey, listen, all the people, they tell me, 'Sir, sir, you won't believe how good the food at WaWa's is'!"

[cuervo72]

If you saw these commercials, what would you think this brand focuses on?

- YouTube
- YouTube
- YouTube
- YouTube
- YouTube
- YouTube
- YouTube

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

They also typically don't have anything to do with food preparation. It has less to do with gas pumps and more to do with being a convenience store where making fresh food is not the primary purpose of the place.
*?

And this is where I am telling you as a life long Wawa consumer you are wrong. Their primary focus is absolutely making fresh food. That have all kinds of freshly prepared food with fresh ingredients. Soups. Wraps. Salads. Bowls. They are much closer, and actually superior, to a chipotle or Panera than a gas station or 7-11.

[cuervo72]

"Fresh food" is literally in the first half-dozen words of their "About" blurb on their YouTube page:

Wawa offers a large fresh food selection, including Wawa brands like Built-to-Order® Hoagies which come in four sizes. We are also proud to offer our award-winning Freshly Brewed Coffee (over 195 million cups sold each year), the Sizzli® hot breakfast sandwich, quality dairy products and Wawa brand juices and teas. All Wawa stores feature a wide selection of ready-to-go salads, and fresh fruits.

[Ksyrup]

That's cool. I appreciate the education. Seriously. They also should consider not being attached to gas stations because it is not a good look to people like me who wouldn't know any better and would never buy food from a place that looks, from the outside, like a Circle K.