Tummy Tukwila

Sorry, readers. With vacations and crazy schedules, the summer has proven to be very busy for us here at T2. We'll pick it up again later this fall. Meanwhile - head out to some of our favorite places and enjoy some of the local characters of Tukwila!

After an extended absence which involved first graduating, then spending a couple of months doing nothing that required thinking, J makes his triumphant return to Tummy Tukwila. Endlessly attending University of Washington has resulted in many routines that he is now trying to break. One of these routines is always ordering the same thing at restaurants. From now until 2010, J will select something he has never or rarely eaten at the T2 gang's familiar haunts, and review his experiences. August 4 Familiar Haunt: Joeys [sic] J's Routine: Better Beef Dip with Skinny Fries The T2 crew was joined for lunch today by frequent guest star Power Womon as they headed to Joeys for a healthy dose of T&A (that's "tasty" and "appetizing," pervert) vittles. At first, everyone tried something different--Joeys had a bland, unappealing male host instead of Paris Hilton, and the crew sat in the actual restaurant instead of the bar, an experience not unlike attending th

The Frau and B have something in common - they both prefer bad boys. Today at the Pita Pit, the Frau was all over some poor guy and his tattoos. She actually left the register to get to this guy so she could fondle his tattoos. Either the woman has some serious juevos, or a complete lack of perception about people's personal space. Speaking of - to my great relief (literally), the lock on the bathroom door has been changed from a terribly, difficult pinhole, to a standard no-instructions-needed key hole. Thanks, Pita Pit! In other news - it's much cooler in Tukwila today.

It's time again for Hot Dogs & Angels ! Stuff your chowder-hole with hot dogs and punch! Play "Which dot in the sky is a Blue Angel?"! Compete for fabulous prizes! Hmmm... nothxbuhbye. After last year's embarrassingly anticlimactic hot dog eating contest, where the contestants gingerly nibbled at their hot dogs, while the winner won by barely eating 4, I'll be at the Pita Pit where playing " Stick the key in the hole, and wiggle it around " with Frau Farbissina is somehow more exhilarating.

Stupid. This weather is stupid. B said that someone here at the Compound was threatening to call the police on this weather. I agree - let's have this weather arrested for impersonating Phoenix, Arizona. Today we were forced to go to Blue C Sushi - the food is cold and so is the service (we still miss you DeDe... wherever you are). It's too hot to type, so I'll leave you with this: http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=icebergs&form=QBIR&qs=n #

B is out of the office this week, so today J and I ventured up to White Center for some Tacos Guaymas - I was in need of some Mexican food therapy after having a hectic week at the Compound. Guaymas is always a good choice for fast Mexican food - it's about as authentic as you can get being 2,000 miles from the border of Mexico. I had a veggie burrito, J had something new for a change - chicken tamales. And although the chips tasted like they were fried in month-old oil, and then left to sit in a dark, dank drawer in the storage closet, the food was excellent. Afterwards, we walked over to a new ice cream/arcade in White Center called Full Tilt . Full Tilt, like Molly Moon, offers weird ice cream concoctions (cardamon, horchata, and the flavor of the month for everyone one making anything around town - salted caramel) in a video arcade of the 1980s setting. I had the horchata and J got the Blue Moon and mint chocolate chip - all were deelish and highly recommended. We were there f

Good, Lord! Is that meat in that delicious-looking burger? No... heck no. It's the black bean burger at Zippy's in West Seattle, and it is some unholy goodness. If you can get past the strange location (next to a weird quicky mart, across from a fire station, in the middle of a seedy neighborhood), this is a seriously excellent find. I've been driving past this place every night for the past year, and lately they've had a line out the door that would make Molly Moon jealous. I kept wondering what the heck, and then my friend, GQ suggested we go there after a grueling, hot run around Lincoln Park. I was feeling adventurous, and she was paying, so naturally, I was in. Turns out that Zippy's is this funky little burger joint, with walls filled with burger paraphernalia of a time gone by (remember when Happy Meals came in cardboard carriers?), and killer hamburgers. Oh, and if you love onion rings? These babies bite all the way through - no pulling out soggy onion strin

Yesterday, B and I went to Blue C with the Bird Killer. Because he's easy to manipulate, BK was made to drive us in his young, aggressive male, luxury, sport sedan that is nearly 10 years old, covered in bird droppings, tree sap and pollen, and is growing spider webs in the back seat - where I had to sit. What in the heck? BK - you cart your family around in your Spidey mobile, for the love of birds - take it to the Brown Bear already! After an incredible escape from a spider nest on wheels, I ate sushi. Let me tell you - Blue C is not like it was. The T2 crew no longer receive the celebrity treatment when they walk in the door, this is probably due to the fact that the entire staff has switched over, and have no clue to the fun we had there with DeDe, Pink Shirt Guy, Michael and the Lesbian. Neither do they know what shook down last March . I suppose it's a good thing - it offers a fresh start... right? There could be another DeDe type, there could be more goodness, star treat

For the month of June, T2 was on vacation. But now we're back and looking forward to reviewing outdoor seating, food just beyond the Tukwila line, and bringing you new and exciting T2 characters and guest contributors. Nothing happened today, unless you count the Restaurant City avatar that served J and I at Mali Thai.

Today, we have a special report from faithful (and intrepid) reader, M. on the Riverside Casino: Today I rolled the dice and had lunch at the Riverside Casino. Thai Curry Chicken Fried Rice was highly recommended to me by someone....that I can only assume doesn't eat out much. I mean the guy raved about this dinner and I just don't get the hub-bub. But they do have pad t hai and I'm a sucker for pad t hai so I might actually venture back one day. Their parking lot is packed lunch & dinner hours and I mean PACKED! I don't feel I have solved the mystery is it food or the card games? On a positive note, the service was fast. You will not get a seat at the Baccarat table - that area is non-stop action from open to close, but the restaurant portion has plenty of open tables if you go before 1pm. The place is open 24/7 and serves breakfast, lunch or dinner anytime. No website. The place does not smell like smoke - it had a recent remodel and is decent. And I have easil

This past week I've been in my home town, Salt Lake City, Utah. A lot has changed here, but thank goodness, one thing has remained the same: the Iceberg in Draper. When I was eight years old, I was on a all-boys baseball team. Anytime we won a game, our coach would take us to the Iceberg for burgers and shakes. It is one of those happy childhood memories that incredibly, has stayed trapped in time. I ordered what I always had - fish fillet sandwich, hand-cut fries, and a hand-mixed, hot fudge, banana shake. It's a heart attack in a sack for sure, but since it's a rare occasion, I indulged. If you're ever passing through cow town, Draper, Utah - stop in. It's been there since 1960, and judging by endless stream of Mormons stopping in for ice cream (aka: Mormon foreplay), it'll be there for a long time still.

mmmm.. garlic water....

Today's treat was Annie Chun's Udon Noodle Soup. It was sort of flavorless, and I much prefer the original LL lunch - garlic water and noodles from Trader Joes. T2 has been busy traveling the world, but a quick synapsis of the past happenings: Blue C: now with a whole lot of unknown faces - has the lesbian quit his job? He was no where in sight... stay tuned. A visit to BJ's where The Chef attempted to eat her weight in soup and salad, only to be blocked by the over-salted, watery soup choices. And a forgettable pre-Cinco de Mayo, free from swine flu celebration lunch at Azteca. Not much happening here... but stay tuned - faithful reader M. is in the field and will be reporting on just what all the fuss is about at the Riverside Casino lunch buffet.

B is sitting here with Power Woman with a few additional (lesser known) details concerning the past two lunch events. 1. At Claim Jumper our server attempted to strong arm Power Womon to gain control of an extra cup of potato cheddar soup. PW attempted to charm our obviously un -interested server into letting her keep the extra soup, however he did not relent. Of course the Birdkiller got involved, since the extra cup of soup would potentially be free, however the server stood firm. He's wasted at Claim Jumper, he should be working at the US mint. 2. Birdkiller kept using inappropriate language at our Simply Thai lunch. Poo-poo, pee-pee, chi-chi, tee-tee, whoo -ha. Stop with the baby talk BK! The BK would also like all pregnant women to turn their car's air bags off. It's apparently very dangerous. Who knew BK is gunning to be the new Dr. Spock? 3. During the CeFiore "Cops" incident, I swear that the female was mad at the male due to his laughter at her orde

It's the second day in a row that B, Power Womon, Bird Killer and I all had lunch together. This time we all met at Simply Thai for some bomb-diggity Simply Thai Noodles. B and I were surprised that the PW even wanted to go to Thai, everyone knows that the Power Womon only eats small amounts of meat and fruit from places like Red Robin. But she agreed to go, and even drove us there. It was a big step for PW, and we were proud. B and I are always trying to encourage PW to try new foods. Today, she ordered the chicken and pineapple fried rice (note: meat and fruit), and when it arrived, she spent a good 5 minutes moving all the ingredients around on the plate, sifting through the vegetables, rice and egg for those bits of meat and fruit. She looked at a sweat pea pod and asked: "What is this, edamame?" B said, "No, it's a pea pod - try it, you'll like it." PW cautiously licked the side of the pod, carefully bit it in two, chewed, chewed, and then proclaim

What the heck? Apparently, my mobile posts aren't working... what I was trying to say was - "We are on our way to Claim Jumper for a Power Womon celebration, sitting in the back seat - it's me, PW and the Bird Killer . Each left-hand turn gets a CORNER! and the opportunity to squish the BK. Good times: 5/5 so far!" Lunch at Claim Jumper took a very loooong time. It took us 45 minutes to get food, and when it came, it was just okay. The waiter was mostly hands-off and during the 90 minutes we were there - he came by maybe 4 times - and 2 of those were to either get or bring our order. For dessert PW ordered a chocolate chip calzone and graciously shared it with the table. Even though it was so undercooked that PW was nearly able to blow a bubble with the raw, doughy center, it was still pretty good. The highlight - PW confronting the BK about him spreading rumors about her sexuality. The lowlight - reading the calorie content of all the dishes at the Claim Jumper... y

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Because some idiot scheduled J and I in a 12:30pm meeting, we were forced into an hourly worker's lunch today. And because J can't eat at TDM (one of the best, fastest lunches in town) without becoming violently ill, we hit up the Pita Pit. Today the Pit was on backward. The Frau was not at the register - - she was rolling pitas. And the guy who is usually rolling pitas - - was at the register. It had the same kind of feeling as putting your underwear on inside out by mistake (or on purpose - I'm not going to judge you). The roller - with his one job - couldn't call out the orders properly - chickenCeSAR! was more like CHICKEN-cesar. And the Frau cannot (and should not) roll a decent pita to save her life. All the "honey" and "sweetie" in the world only creates an awkward diversion as she drowns your hummus pita in Dijon mustard, it doesn't make it any sweeter to eat. And while the she's busy distracting you with pet names, she's murderi

B moved one step closer to the grave over the weekend, so the T2 crew decided to push him over the edge by clogging his arteries with fried food today. The chosen venue for this cholesterol-fest was Elliott Bay Brewing Company in Burien, an establishment raved about by B & R, but one never before frequented by J. The posse was joined by special guest diner, The Chef, who was rocking a totally cute new short haircut. J first started to suspect the veracity of the claims of culinary delirium by R & B when they pulled into a strip mall parking lot full of stores with the names like La Preciosa, and a travel agency with a window full of scary carousel horses and a fully decorated Christmas tree. Despite these misgivings, J gamely soldiered on, and entered the restaurant. EBBC is austere in appearance, decorated with lots of square furniture and sharp corners. The dining room is dark and the tables are oddly arranged with some sort of weird seperation dividing the senior citizens f

Happy Birthday, B! For B's birthday, T2 and The Chef took a trip up to Burien for the best Burien find: Elliot Bay Brewing Company. B spotted a giant Bavarian pretzel on the menu for which his heart was hungry, so we ordered it. When I was thinking giant pretzel, I pictured a pretzel about the size of a dinner plate. Instead - it was bigger than The Chef's head - really. Very tasty and well worth the $6.95, though a note to EBBC - we'd like to see more of a sauce selection - - maybe butter and/or honey? The service was below par - our waitress surprised us with passion fruit scented iced tea (J made an enemy in her when he demanded that she take it back and replace it with a diet soda). And as far as atmosphere goes - it's usually a fine place, but today there were paintings on the wall that J deemed racist - I suppose he'll have to say why exactly, but my guess was that the people depicted looked like they had been objectified for the artist's personal gl

I really thought B was wiping away tears when we realized that the Taco Queen was standing behind the line at the Southcenter Taco Del Mar. Welcome back, Taco Queen. We noticed your court works harder to keep the place in order when you're around. Side note: it appears my royalty is finally being recognized. The Taco Queen knelt before me and picked up the napkin that had dropped out of my lap. That's right, I'm the Taco Empress ... kneel before me! In other Tukwila news: B had to go to the post office to deliver a package to his grandmother. I've got to say that the Southcenter post office is the worst I've ever been in. If you want to have a depressing lunch hour, hit up the Saddest Subway in America, and then stop by the Saddest Post Office in America - - on tax day. The worst part came when we were treated to these lovely slacks. Look, even if these pants are on sale, even if they are the last pants in the world, even if you are in your underwear - please

The Tace Queen has come back to us! R and I went to TDM for free taco day. On our way, I used the power of positive thinking and visualized the Taco Queen behind the taco counter, and there she was! Holiday! Celebrate!

Happy Tax Day! To celebrate, Taco Del Mar is giving you a free taco ( you'll need this coupon ). So head out to the Southcenter TDM and get yours. Be on the look out for R & B, the Psychic Paleontologist, the Taco Queen (hopefully) and her court.

On Tuesday, R, the Birdkiller (yes the Birdkiller) and I went for a lunch adventure to What the Pho in the Southcenter area (close to my favorite spot, Chipotle). The big news here is that the coupon loving, freebie coveting Birdkiller PAID FOR EVERYONE'S LUNCH! Now that you've recovered from the shock, here's the low down on Pho of Woe. I thought the place was closed; the windows are so heavily tinted. I thought either a) this spot didn't last long or b) they were hiding something. In fact, they were hiding something, a sophisticated and well designed dining area (which are few and far between in the Southcenter area). We sat in a booth by the bar and watched three Vietnamese coffees s l o w l y dripping simultaneously (sort of the equivalent of watching paint dry). The menu offers a wide array of options for non-pho lovers (which I am- I'm always worried about chicken feet), many sound highly delightful. The service was efficient and VERY polite(bonus point for at

J wrote me first thing this morning and said that he was up for an adventure - well, he asked for it - read on. When I think lunchtime adventure - I think: not Tukwila. And then usually the first place to come to mind is Luna Park - the food is excellent, so is the service and it's only 10 minutes north of the Compound. We invited the Chef out to meet us - I had breakfast, the Chef had a patty melt, and J gave into temptation - devoured a butterscotch milkshake and washed it down with a egg-topped burger. Today, the fries were so good, I distracted the Chef with Popples (lunch box hanging in the top-right corner of this photo) while I gobbled up some of hers. Afterwards, I had to run to the bank to deposit a check, so we headed up the hill to the WaMu on California. I know that WaMu is the walking the Green Mile, but you would think that with the power of a bank like Chase, they could spruce the place up a bit. That WaMu has got to be the saddest WaMu in Seattle - they've taken

What the heck happened to the landscape at Azteca? All of the trees that surround it, no longer have branches - just stubs. Weird. J thinks it may be some attempt at making it look like a more authentic Mexican restaurant, by bringing the Mexican landscape to you. I'm wondering if they are getting ready to cut all of the trees down in order to plow over Azteca and replace it with another useless bank (like at the mall). Anyway, for whatever reason Azteca tasted better than ever. I'm going to blame it on the fact that it's been about 6 months since we were last there, since I know in my heart of hearts, Azteca is not usually as good as it seemed today. I ordered a Macho Burrito, veggie style (I think the macho bit is all its freakishly large size - it was literally falling off the edges of my plate), and J changed things up by ordering a chimicanga instead of his usual chicken taquito plato. He even ordered an iced tea... highly irregular. I'll blame that one on the fact

On M's suggestion, B and I went to ACME Bowl for lunch today. I had the veggie burger, and B had the Chipotle burger, both were above average for bowling alley fare, and the service was good, but slow. I suspected that our waiter was also the cook, since he would disappear for periods of time into the kitchen, and come out later with trays of food. While the restaurant was slow (there were only two other tables besides us), the alley was busy with lots of teenagers, single ladies, and divorced fathers with their kids. There was one family whose mother and father were both such bad bowlers that their three sons, ages 8 - 5 were wiping the alleys with them. One final score was Mom: 60, little Johnny: 75. All I kept thinking was - how embarrassing to be so bad at a sport that even a child is better than you. I mean, even though I myself bowl a 65, at least I don't have some toddler hanging around trying to showing me up! Anyway - it was a fun adventure, and outside the norm. B a

R and B ate at Taco Del Mar on Friday, a few things of note: 1) According to the Taco Princess, the Taco Queen has returned- although R and B did not see her on Friday. :( B is going to start eating at TDM every day until he sees the glory of the Queen. R doesn't even remember what the Queen looks like. 2) R has a new code name. The Taco Empress (yes, that trumps the Queen). R is confident she can make any item on the TDM menu at a moment's notice. 3) The Psychic Paleontologist was also at TDM on Friday (the burrito licker). She seemed drained of her normal psychic enthusiasm, B did not witness a single burrito licking incident. 4) R spotted some polka-dotted black and white underwear on a TDM patron. The underwear was not a thong, thank goodness. 5) There's a new man in the TDM house. Very young, very timid, yet unnamed. We'll get back to you on this one. 6) The fish tacos were delicious, as usual. Food: 5/5 Atmosphere: 4/5 (The reappearance of the Psychic Paleontolog

DeDe wins by a landslide! Not a surprise that the Bird Killer lost horribly without a single vote. Since J and B are on vacation, this week's lunches will be filled with exciting options from the LL Lunch selection. Today I enjoyed Trader Ming's Jasmine Rice with Tom Yum Sauce and Vegetables (the only sign of a vegetable I saw were a couple of sad, chopped up baby corn cobs). Compared with Garlic Water, it wasn't all that bad. I'm looking forward to lunchtime returning to normal on Thursday... or as normal as it can be without Blue C one a week. Yes, I'm still sore.

So, it looks as if DeDe won't be back at Blue C - fine. DeDe: if you're reading this - you have a job at the Compound, if you want it. The past few days have been messy - B's had other plans, J's in Spain, and I've been eating lunch at my desk. So nothing terribly exciting to report. We'll be back next week with more exciting adventures from Tukwila.

Impressive reach: The co-founder of Blue C, Steve Rosen wrote us back to say that he loves DeDe too, but in a way that we could never know - she sucked bad enough to can her. Well, I still find it hard to believe that unless DeDe was embezzling from the company, why management and DeDe couldn't work through their differences, and find a way to retain an experienced, well loved employee. It's a major failing on behalf of the management, and I'll miss DeDe almost as much as I'll miss spending $30 for lunch two times a week. Here's the email: Dear R, Thank you so much for taking the time to email us about your strong affection for DeDe. I completely understand your frustration because she is such an excellent server, and so great with guests--really great. For this reason it was even more frustrating for us to part ways with her. For obvious reasons I cannot go into any specifics out of respect for DeDe, but it's safe to say that there are two sides to our business

J is on vacation in Spain, so Power Womon is our guest blogger today. Enjoy: Thursday was my 1st experience at Blue C Sushi. I have heard so much about this establishment and especially about Dede. I'm a SUPER picky eater and was a little nervous about the type of food they serve and if there would be something on the menu for me. But, from hearing about Dede and how friendly she is and how she takes care of her people, I was a little less "on edge". To make a long story short, the company was a little slumber when the news was broken. I took that time to use the "facilities" and was highly intrigued by the motion activated hand soap dispenser, water and the highly powered hand dryer (like one I've never seen before)! Needless to say, I washed my hands twice! For a little distraction from the devastating news, we kept an eye on a couple that was about to make a family restaurant turn into an X rated movie! Wow, what entertainment. After lunch, we headed to

What is this world coming to? First the AIG fools get bonuses, now we have to live without Dede. That's right, we found out that Dede was fired from Blue C today. My heart is heavy. I'm not taking this lying down. I will write, I will call, I will fight for our right to be served by Dede! Here's the letter I sent to Blue C today: I am really unhappy. My colleagues and I love Blue C at South Center and visit weekly, if not twice a week. We like the food, but the real reason we go is for the service. Specifically, the service provided by our favorite server Dede. Today I found out that Dede was terminated by a new manager, apparently over a personality conflict. Are you kidding me? I don't expect you to comment on personnel issues, however this is one of the most ignorant, arrogant and quite frankly, stupidest business decisions I've heard. I am not related to Dede, but her bubbly personality, attention to detail, flawless service and welcoming smile make her feel lik

DeDe, our favorite server has been terminated from Blue C. In protest, T2 is boycotting Blue C, and asks that you join us. You can also write an email in support of DeDe and send it to: feedback@bluecsushi.com . Here is what we sent to Blue C: Over the past year, my colleagues and I have frequented the Tukwila Blue C Sushi once, sometimes twice a week. We also run a blog about our lunchtime adventures in Tukwila and have written many times about Blue C - maybe even to the exhaustion of our readers ( http://tummytukwila.blogspot.com/ ). One draw was definitely the good food, but one of the best things about the Tukwila location was DeDe... Today we were shocked to learn that DeDe had been terminated last week by a new (possibly clueless) manager. I am very unhappy to learn this, especially since DeDe consistently gave me the best restaurant service I'd ever experienced - she was fun, energetic, knew our names and our orders by heart, and always had a smile on her face, even when she

Tummy Tukwila is on vacation today. Check back next week for all new adventures. B is committed to trying one never before visited lunch location next week. Any suggestions? We love you all.

You know we love nicknames at Tummy Tukwila (the only person we call by their real name is DeDe). I'm proud to introduce the latest addition to our nickname family....Pita Don Juan. Pita Don Juan works at the Pita Pit (shocker) and likes to wear his official pita visor just barely cocked to the side and his official pita t-shirt one size too small. While R was struggling with the bathroom, I observed Pita Don Juan welcoming two Joeys-esque ladies into his eating establishment. Pita Don Juan has never welcomed R or I in the same hyper-friendly manner...go figure. Watch out Frau, you've got some competition. Maybe Pita Don Juan can hook up with Taco Lolita...hmmmmmm... Food: 4.5/5 Minus.5 for the ongoing lettuce issue. Atmosphere: 4/5 The Frau was not wearing her African peace hat this visit. Good Times: 3/5 Minus 2 for missing R's X rated bathroom visit. Pita Don Juan's actual Don Juan appeal: 3/5 He's slightly above average.

In our poll: Who has better for yo, ceFiore wins by one point. Stay tuned next week when we ask: Who is the best character on Tummy Tukwila.

B and I visited the Pita Pit today. The scene there was the everyday usual: Frau Farbissina yelling back meat orders, line cooks scurrying around fulfilling requests, brown lettuce. At the register, Frau asked if we'd ever been to the Pit before. How long will it take until she recognized us? I mean, really - how many times do you need to patronize a place before the people who work there recognize you? I ordered the tuna pita because I wanted to hear Frau yell it back to the line: bringoutthe tu-NAH!, but instead, she whispered it to a passing line employee: bringoutthetuna. We should have known right then that today was going to be different. The visit went from annoying to awkward when I went to use the restroom. Frau gave me a key to the bathroom door which was shaped more like a swizzle stick than a door key. She warned me that it sometimes gets stuck, but I figured, how hard could it be? I pushed the stick into the hole (this is where it starts) and Frau began to shout inst

Most Fridays, the T2 authors, no matter what we're busy doing - take time to venture out together for a Friday executive lunch. This Friday was different. B was missing today. J and I met in front of his office, but his chair was empty. We stuck around for a bit, poked around on his iPhone, snooped through his snack drawer, and J even had time to fill out B's Assertive Communication model on his white board. After waiting a good 10 minutes for B to return to his office, J and I gave up and headed out to meet the Chef for lunch. We decided that since B was MIA, we could hit up the Red Robin for some "gourmet" burgers. The Chef, instead of ordering her usual Bonzai Boca Burger, got experimental and ordered a Burning Love burger. It came chock-full of spicy items: deep-fried jalapenos, spicy Chipotle mayo, and a chili roasted Boca patty. It was so chock-full that she had to dismantle it to fit it in her face. J and I were boring and had the usual Clucks 'n Fries for

DeDe is back! R, the Chef and I went to Blue C today and spotted our favorite Southside server, Dede. (Yes, we were spying though the outside windows. If DeDe wasn't there we were going to the food court). Great food, great company, great miso. R commented that "everything tastes better with DeDe". I think the "fat girl" could learn a thing or two (or ten dozen things from Dede). Now if only the Taco Queen would return. It's a good day. My heart is full. Food 5/5 Atmosphere 5/5 Dining with DeDe: priceless

I went to Simply Thai today with a new T2 character - AquaMan. He and I go way back in Compound days, and it was great to catch up with him, and the fact that he likes to SCUBA during his off hours makes for interesting conversation (trying not to think of drowning while eating curry is a hard thing to do). When we walked in, I saw The Fat Girl and got an automatic knee-jerk reaction that I should run, but it quickly passed since B was no where in sight, and The Fat Girl (whose not all that fat) was actually pretty nice today. I had the red curry, 2-stars. It was just okay. The peas in the dish were really dried out, like any day they would morph into marbles, so that was kind of different for Simply Thai since their fresh vegetables have always been my favorite thing about them. Atmosphere: 5/5 Food: 4/5 (minus one point for eating nearly-marbles) Good times: 5/5 (extra points for catching up with old friends)

R, B and J have been cheating on our one true love, Blue C Sushi, lately, and when we finally returned, we were dismayed to see that our one true love had not waited for us. Instead of sassy servers and smiling, lithe homosexual managers with questionable hair choices, we were greeted at the door by what appeared to be the cast offs of a frat party. It only went downhill from there. DeDe knows how to work us for those tips--she has our drinks ready for us and places our special orders before we even make them. She is intuitive and efficient, knowing when to sit down and talk with us and when to leave us alone. When she and Matthew the Manager are around, it's all VIP, baby. Today was anything but VIP. No cushy corner booth, orders came out wrong, and everything took forever. B and J complained often and audibly, while R clandestinely munched her way through 19 plates in sullen silence. The atmosphere was also odd today. Weird music pervaded the air, prompting B to speculate that pe