Meatloaf Zombie

We just had our pre-Halloween party this past weekend. and we wanted everything to be ghoulish and creepy.

We created the dead body set up for our eating table. The top of the head of course was the Meatloaf Zombie.

Since, it was going to be about 20-40 people there, and the party was between 7 pm and 12 am. I made two Meatloaf Zombies to switch out. This was only my second attempt at making meatloaf, and I thought it turned out delicious and juicy.

I bought about 3 lbs of ground meat which was 93% lean.
I mixed in with the ground beef:
-2 eggs
-1 1/2 chopped onion (saved the other half for teeth and eyes)
- 2 cups of almond milk
- 2 cups of crumbled stuffing mix
- 2 tablespoons of brown sugar
- 4 tablespoons of mustard
- 2/3 cup of ketchup
-salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste

After mixing all the ingredients shape your meatloaf (split in half) into a skull shape. Leave indentations for your meatloaf for the eyes and teeth. Layer the bacon on the top, and bake the meatloaf at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. Then once completed top with ketchup. The indentations you create for the eyes and mouth will gather pools of oil/juices. Siphon the juice out and place the onions in 5 minutes before taking the meatloaf out of the oven.

Zombie meatloaf before baking

Let me know how it turns out, and any if you tried anything different.

The Soap Factory Haunted Basement Review

***Spoiler Alert***

I had been greatly anticipating this event to be the scariest Haunted House I will ever experience in my lifetime, and because I had such high hopes it left me pretty disappointed. Although I enjoyed the theme and concept of the The Soap Factory, it was definitely something different than the typical Haunted Houses, I was severely lacking on the surprise or being startled portion of Haunted Houses.

We just went to The Soap Factory Haunted Basement this past weekend. It was a group of four of us, but we got split up to the couples.

Everyone entering had to wear a face mask. They spaced it out where it was just the two of us, and there was a "creature" which lead us to a direction for a moment and then they left us to wander on our own. It was super dark and an awesome experience to move the sheets and anxiously anticipating what we would stumble upon with each sheet. However, we ran into other groups/people who were ahead of us and heard them being scared/screaming before we were scared. Also, I made the mistake of pointing out all the creatures that were going to jump out at us to my BF instead of letting them jump out at him and scaring him. I'm pretty much the worst person to go through a haunted house with. There was one time that I was startled by an actor that grabbed at my foot, but I wasn't frightened more so pleasantly surprised that I was actually surprised once.

All the actors did a great job, and I appreciated their effort. There was one demon creature who made an awesome vampire/demon sound and looked super creepy that may haunt my nightmares, but other than that it was pretty not scary.

They tried to separate us a few times, but I didn't allow it and just held on to my boyfriend's hand tighter, but eventually I  just let them separate us as one person tried to shove him into a box. Then I ran into him again and had to ask "Are you my boyfriend?" since it was dark and as mentioned earlier we were wearing masks. Then another attempt to separate us. They took him into a pitch black room and apparently just made a lot of noise. I was hoping that would scare him, but he wasn't or so he said. I just waited patiently by the door for him to exit. When we tried to enter they would just slam the door on us. We also ran into the other couple who was at the event. I think what made the event lacking in the scare factor was all of the people what was in our time slot. It was too crowded, which resulted in bad timing. Others ahead of us where scared which made everything predictable.

Even though, it wasn't as scary as I had anticipated. I think it's definitely an event to experience at least once. I'd actually give this another chance having experienced it once. I'm excited to see what they will come up with for next year's Halloween, and I might even be so bold as to let us get separated.

Mask from Haunted Basement

Let me know if you've gone before and what your thoughts are. How does it compare to this year's theme?

Gandhi Mahal Restaurant Review

We went to Gandhi Mahal last night for the BF's birthday dinner.

It was a decent meal, but it was probably one of my least favorite Indian restaurant in the Twin Cities that I've experienced so far. Everything was just very mediocre and decent.

We ordered the Masu Karma Platter for two. We both received our own platter which was nice, since my BF prefers his food a little spicier. It was supposed to come with the following: vegetable pakora, aloo pakora, papadam with chutney, lamb curry, chicken korma, basmati rice, and raita yogurt sauce. We also received a rice pudding for dessert. It was different from what was actually listed on the menu, but it was a good ending dessert as we were already fairly full.

We actually got the papadam with chutney, before we even ordered and didn't get any additional.

I don't think I'd try this place again, but if someone else suggested it I wouldn't be completely opposed to it though. I liked the overall atmosphere of the place, and I thought the customer service was again...sticking to the theme...decent.

I prefer Copper Pot and Indian House to Gandhi Mahal for good Indian cuisine though.

Inside of Gandhi Mahal

Masu Karma Platter

Rice Pudding Dessert

Smash Burgers Review

I know it seems a bit strange for me to be reviewing a fast food franchise such as Smash Burgers, but it was my first time trying Smash Burgers. My BF and I have been eating more "clean," low-carb meals and detox smoothies for dinner.

It's been tough, but we've been managing. Him better than me of course. Yesterday, we were both famished after work I was exclaiming how I could go for a big fat greasy juicy burger. We decided on Smash Burgers for our cheat meal. I ordered the Truffle Mushroom Swiss burger. I though the burger was better than Five Guys. It was seasoned a lot better. The patty was thinner though, but it was still nice and juicy.

I also loved the variety of burgers and sides that they had. If I had to choose between Five Guys and Smash Burgers, I'd pick Smash Burgers. However, I might have to revisit this when I haven't been eating so "clean". I might have a change of heart.

What are some of your favorite burger joints?

Grumpy's Bar and Grill Review

Last minute impulse stop at Grumpy's.

I've always wanted to try this place. It was pretty much as expected. If you are a huge football fan, I think this would be a great stop for you. There's TVs at every angle, and you will be able to watch any game you'd like.

They also had a $4 bloody mary bar, which I didn't take advantage of, but was glad to see the option.

In regards to their food, it was pretty mediocre and basic. It's nothing worth bragging about. We went there on a Sunday during brunch time. Tosh ordered the biggest breakfast with jalapeno bacon, and I ordered biscuit and gravy.

Let me know what you've had here and what you'd suggest if I make another visit here. 

New Bohemia 2nd Annual Oktoberfest

I've always heard about Oktoberfest and have always wanted to attend an event despite the fact that I'm not a huge beer drinker.

However, my BF is a big fan of beer. I got us tickets off of Living Social for the New Bohemia 2nd Annual Oktoberfest for $30 each. It included all you can drink beer and a $20 credit for Uber for safe transportation to and from the event.

I would definitely not go to the event again. When we entered they put a wrist band on us. However, we were not allowed to leave the event. The food options were limited and as usual over-priced. There were only porter potties available. There were long waits for everything. This wouldn't have been a big issue if we were allowed to leave and come back to the event, we had already paid and their actually restaurant was just a few feet away. It would have been nice to be able to go to the event and go use the bathroom in the restaurant or if they provided water as well. The no entry was complete crap.

They also had other activities there such as life-size jenga, bean bag toss, and keg bowl. Most of the events were too crowded and busy to even play. There were about 12 different kinds of beer on tap. If you are a beer lover and could drink your money's worth in beer. It could have possibly been fun for you. There was also a decent DJ at the event. The event also lasted for a long time from 12 pm to 12 am on Saturday.

Overall, I was too sober and uncomfortable from the event. However, I was pretty impressed and amazed with UBER cab.