A little mix

What an incredible end to a great game.

The Champions League Final was all it was cracked up to be, and then some. No regrets skipping lunch and leaving work at 2:30 to head to the pub to watch all 120 minutes, plus pks of that game. Great match, great finale. Couldn't have asked for more. Congrats to Man U for their double.

After eating a burger from Five Guys yesterday for lunch, it can be said that their burgers and fries are the bomb... this fact cannot be argued.

Seeing as though I've gotten around of late (in the traveling sense of course), I've decided to figure out how the different food joints I've eaten at lately stack up with one another. Not only will this help me straighten out this dilemma in my own mind, but it will undoubtedly be of huge help to you, my friends, as you travel to these different places and look for an excellent place to grab a bite.

Round 1 - The previously aforementioned cheeseburger.

I think I've narrowed it down to three places, all chains.

Five Guys (Everywhere except for the far northeast, southeast and northwest)

vs.

In-N-Out Burger (California and the southeast)

vs.

Burgerville (Washington & Oregon)

This one is a toughy, and will require another visit to In-N-Out burger next week when in SacTown, and maybe a stop up at Burgerville when I go up to Portland for a weekend. I shall address this one in a week or two.

Round 2 - Sushi

I would love to say that I've found a great place in Maryland, but I haven't. Only been to a few, and haven't been happy with any. I'm under the assumption that an amazing place exists in DC, but until I find it, I'm going to have to venture to two other cities for this one.

RAW Sushi & Sake Lounge (Center City, Philadelphia)

vs.

Sushi King Japanese Cuisine & Sushi Bar (Sacramento)

I'm sure there's much better places out there, but these two are at the top of my list as of right now. Sushi King edges out RAW in regards to hospitality and the fact that they will make anything your clever little mind can come up with. RAW however had some bomb ass lunch platters and one of the greatest bathrooms I've ever urinated in. It's a toss-up. I recommend eating at each if your in the neighborhood.

Round 3 - Pho

Unfortunately, there isn't any debate right now.

PhoNam (Gaithersburg, MD) takes the cake for the time being. I've yet to eat at a comparable place. I'm determined to find one out in Sacramento that stacks up. Wish me luck.

Round 4 - Steaks & Hoagies

This is the debate of all debates. I don't think it possible to say that one place has the best cheesesteak or best hoagie, but I'll throw out some of my favorites.
For steaks, I have to go with Jims (South Street, Phila.), Pat's (9th, Wharton & Passyunk, S. Phila.), and Brothers, which I grew up with (Harleysville). Nearly every pizza shop in southeast PA and S Jersey has a great steak though.

Hoagies are pretty much in the same boat. Again, there are so many delis and pizza shops in the Philadelphia area that make amazing hoagies, it's hard to pick a favorite. The most important thing is to use Amoroso's bread, and never put too much meat on the hoagie.

I have however, finally found a crazy good shop down here in Maryland. The Italian Market up in Gaithersburg has by far, the best hoagies I've come across in MD. I had high hopes for a place called Philly Mike's down in Bethesda, but it's just not that great.

It's been nice being home for the past few weeks. This year has been a bit hectic thus far, hopefully the next few months will involve a little less travel... or at least more local work.

Been doing a bit of everything since I got back. Had the chance the frequent some of the local watering holes, played some basketball, some tennis and a little soccer. Even got out this past weekend and messed around with some roller-hockey with Ryan & J. Played a few games of beer-pong, decided to hop a fence at a local community center and play some hockey. Felt like a little kid... definitely brought back some memories.

Got out and played a round of golf for the first time this week as well... I choose not to reveal my score, seeing as though I played the worst round of golf since I was maybe 16. But it was fun regardless. I'm now committing myself to dropping my score and bettering my game. I'm going to play a quick 9 tomorrow morning with J.

As I said earlier in the blog, I'm headed back to the Sac Tuesday after Memorial Day. Will be out there for a two week stint. Shouldn't be too bad, aside from the triple digit temps. I'll be sure to keep those of you who are interested enough in my goings on to check this blog, up to date.

Apparently I'm making a vacation out of my work trip. I'm heading up to Portland for a weekend, and hitting up Tucson for a 3 night stint on my way back. Bringing the clubs with me; They'll be getting plenty of use.

As of right now, the plans are that I'll travel up to visit my older brother man, Matt, in Portland, my second weekend there. Then on Friday the 13th (dum dum dummmm), I'll head over to Tucson to visit my main man Walsh till Monday. Golf shall be played at each location, and it will be glorious.

So, over the next 3 weeks, I plan on hitting up the Central Valley in CA, driving to the west coast (ie San Fran) for a day, shooting up to Portland, OR for a weekend, then flying into Phoenix and driving down to Tucson for a long weekend, including of course, a trip to Mexico... Playing golf all along the way. We'll see how this plays out. I've enjoyed chilling out around here for the last few weeks, but fuck it, if the opportunity presents itself, why not travel? I'm a transient, what can I say. I'm just waiting for something to make me stop moving. Until that comes, I'm gonna keep doing my thing.