Pardon Moi

In my many hours of looking for products to tell you all about, I found something that was not only clever but could save someone’s life too.



Why or how can something I reviewed do that?



Pardon Moi has a vast line of products for everyone. Items that caught my eye were for allergy sufferers. The line is open to quite a bit of health related issues from diabetes, to autism, dietary restrictions, custom allergy shirt, in addition to the nuts, eggs, dairy and much more. When sending a child off to a party, do they all want to tell you they can’t have that ice cream? Probably not, so here is your solution. Throw one of these easy shirts on them as a reminder for the overwhelmed parent and you’re done.



Are you single and looking to mingle? Pardon Moi can help with that, too. In a distinctive way to do it, standing out from the crowd you can. Once you get past that awkward first date using your Shaken, not stirred cards, you need a checklist. Make sure that all the pieces fall into place. Right? Well, use the Dating Bliss notepad. Seriously, it’s all right to say what you want and how you want in this day and age. Men and women alike are still single, divorced and separated looking to get back on the market. You have standards though, right? You don't want to waste time though, right? Pardon Moi saves you just that and you don’t have to look pretentious just cautious. Not only are they available in business cards in a nifty little carrying case, they come in napkins too. Now you have to throw a party, invite your single friends, have them invite their single friends and so on. Let Pardon Moi do the talking for you … good or bad. Let’s hope it’s all good!



Clever and fun, all and one say it one way or another.


~ * ~ * ~ * ~

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

~ * ~ * ~ * ~


Pardon Moi

Labels: clothes, food, Pardon Moi, review, safety, t-shirt

Pamper your Chef at your fingertips

It’s as easy as one, two, three, you can order online, from a catalog and surprise someone, or get a last minute gift. My friend was so accommodating with her help and waiting until the new catalog came out. In March it sure did so I want to share those new products with you as well as the stones that I love and happen to own at least one of each one if not more. I swear by them. I should take pictures of my kitchen one day and you can see the use it gets. It’s pretty fancy and I love it more then anything. I use top of the line products and PC is everywhere.



The Stoneware is made from natural stone clay and distributes heat efficiently for even baking and browning, you can’t get that just anywhere. You can buy the pans in glazed or unglazed and they come in a variety of sizes with recipes to boot!



Sizes include:

• 12-Cup Muffin Pan
• Deep Covered Baker - Cranberry
• Deep Dish Baker - Cranberry
• Deep Dish Pie Plate - Cranberry
• Deep Dish Pie Plate - Vanilla
• Insulated Tote
• Large Bar Pan
• Large Rack
• Large Round Stone
• Medium & Rectangle Rack
• Medium Bar Pan
• Medium Round Stone
• Mini Loaf Pan
• Mini-Baker - Cranberry
• Nylon Pan Scrapers- These clean the pans and are phenomenal!
• Oval Baker - Cranberry
• Rectangle Stone
• Rectangular Baker
• Rectangular Baker - Cranberry
• Rectangular Baker - Vanilla
• Round Stone with Handles - Large
• Small Bar Pan
• Square Baker - Cranberry
• Square Baker - Vanilla
• Stoneware Fluted Pan
• Stoneware Loaf Pan

Now a tip, you don’t want to wash your pans in the dish washer bust buy hand with water, no soap. Trust me. The germs and all the other particles bake out in several rounds of the pans. They come with explicit directions to help you along in the process.

Another one of my favorites is the pantry! The great line of spices and flavors to add you goodies.



Here’s a list that lines my pantry if you were to look right now:

• All-Purpose Dill Mix
• Asian Seasoning Mix
• Basil Blend Canola Oil
• Beer Bread Mix
• Chipotle Rub
• Cinnamon Plus® Spice Blend
• Citrus & Basil Rub
• Crushed Peppercorn & Garlic Rub
• Double-Strength Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Extract
• Garlic-Infused Canola Oil
• Greek Rub
• Italian Seasoning Mix
• Jamaican Jerk Rub
• Korintje Cinnamon
• Moroccan Rub
• Pizza Crust & Roll Mix
• Rosemary Herb Seasoning Mix
• Smoky Barbecue Rub
• Southwestern Seasoning Mix
• Sweet Caramel Sprinkle
• Sweet Cinnamon Sprinkle

Now Nicole’s customer service is above the moon. She will break her back and go to the ends of the earth to make sure you are happy. As a mother of two, I don’t know how she does it. You can contact her at nicoleshottenkirk@comcast.net to place an order or if you are local - in Colorado - to host a party.

Click on over to www.pamperedchef.com and view what you NEED to buy and place an order from her, tell her I sent ya.



Oh, by the way we had this at my last home party … for a girl (me) who hates sweets it was to die for!

Quick Apple Crisp

5 Granny Smith apples
1 package (9 ounces) yellow cake mix
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
1/2 cup chopped nuts
Vanilla ice cream or thawed, frozen whipped topping (optional)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Peel, core and slice apples using Apple Peeler/Corer/Slicer. Cut apples in half using Utility Knife. Place apples in Deep Dish Baker.
2. Combine cake mix, sugar, cinnamon, butter and nuts in Classic Batter Bowl. Mix until crumbly using Classic Scraper. Sprinkle mixture evenly over apples.
3. Bake 35-40 minutes or until apples are tender. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped topping, if desired.

Yield: 10 servings

Nutrients per serving: Calories 240, Total Fat 12 g, Saturated Fat 3.5 g, Cholesterol 15 mg, Carbohydrate 33 g, Protein 2 g, Sodium 210 mg, Fiber 2 g

©The Pampered Chef, Ltd. 2008

Now you have nothing stopping you!



Email nicoleshottenkirk@comcast.net and place your pampered chef order now! Mother’s day is just around the corner!

Labels: cooking, cookware, food, kitchen, kitchen utensils, Pampered Chef, review, seasoning, utensils

A Little Dash of… Bacon

My family likes to eat.



I’m willing to bet many of you have noticed the same desires from your families. We eat dinner together each and every day. On the weekends, my husband will often put a special breakfast feast together for us all to enjoy together. During the holidays, we eat especially well, finding the occasion to convene for fantastic meals that include a plethora of delights.

As long as we eat, we are happy.

As a wife and mother of two, the challenge is rarely found in providing meals my family will appreciate (while my loved ones can often be picky, they are not in a hurry to turn down food). The challenge comes in finding ways to do something different that won’t result in wasted food. Serving the same rotation of foods can get rather boring and it is variety that keeps us all happy and will often lead my children, all too set in their ways, to try something new.

The fine folks at J&D’s Down Home Enterprises have just made that job a little less challenging.

A few weeks ago, I was surfing the net for new products and innovations in the food industry and came across a link that, as a leader of a carnivorous clan of gourmets, caught my eye. Without delay I ran my cursor over the words that seemed all too inviting, hit the left button on my mouse, and I was there.

www.baconsalt.com

I was taken to a site that would make most believe the product was the invention of an industry giant. An enticing rotation of pictures all depicting the delicacies any red-blooded American would salivate over stream across the front page, headed by a slogan that could serve as my oldest daughter’s life motto: "Everything should taste like bacon."



That is the thought behind Justin and Dave’s creation and the driving force for their quest to put Bacon Salt on every table in every kitchen across the country. Their story strikes a chord that could have been written by just about anyone. "We’re just two regular guys who love grilling and football on Sunday afternoons, eating until we can’t get off the couch and of course, the taste of great bacon." These fellows worked in the IT sector for years and found their mutual affection for the pork product we often find next to our pancakes at breakfast was too much to ignore. Justin had envisioned the creation for some time and Dave, along with a fellow co-worker named Kara, drove him to give the idea the attention and dedication it deserved.

The end product is Bacon Salt, a tasty spice that works just as it sounds. Imagine the convenience and ease of salt, but tastefully laced with the flavor of bacon. As the site suggests, the uses are endless and can be matched only by the joy this simple but divine little product could bring to each and every food lover on the planet.

The boys were nice enough send a couple of bottles my way, and my husband wasted no time putting the concoction to the test.

We started with breakfast the first (and possibly most obvious) target: Eggs. My husband takes his over easy while the kids and I enjoy a good poached egg. Eggs laced with a touch of Bacon Salt were a hit, earning rave reviews all the way around the table. Since then, we’ve tried the tasty spice on just about everything.

Salads, sandwiches, soups, toast, vegetables, steaks, potatoes, popcorn, and just about any and everything in between: Bacon Salt is a fine compliment to any snack or meal you could be preparing. I have found new life in a once-forgotten plate of tuna casserole. My husband has grown an almost-neurotic affection for peanut butter-and-Bacon Salt sandwiches. Our kids have started to ask for it at the movie theater with their cinematic snacks (and yes, they do think we are crazy) I was tempted to entice our dog to consume his heartworm medicine with the taste I’m sure he would find irresistible (but I thought wiser). We have all fallen victim to the intriguing flavor of Bacon Salt, and I believe you will do the same.



Bacon Salt comes in three delicious flavors, including Original Smokey, Peppered, and our favorite, Hickory. The site is easy to manage and all-too useful, including links to their MySpace and Facebook groups where you’ll find a long and helpful list of fans and suggestions for experimentation. Jason and Dave have also included a great page of recipes for your consideration (I might be able to con my husband into eating salmon with the enticing Bacon Salt Baked Salmon recipe). On their “Buy It” page, you’ll find special packages to fill all of your Bacon Salt needs, instructions for ordering online, and a list of retail locations that will help you find Bacon Salt on a shelf near you. They even offer in impressive menu of merchandise, including T-shirts, posters, aprons, and hats.

If you like bacon (or if your husband, or kids, or boyfriend, or girlfriend, or father, or uncle… you get the idea), try Bacon Salt today. You’ll be happy you did!

Labels: bacon, bacon salt, flavors, food, J and D's Down Home Enterprises, review, seasoning

Is there a Gourmet hiding in your cupboard

Teri Dempsey of The Gourmet Cupboard is going to be your new savior and best friend come dinner time. When I put out an email asking for people who wanted me to review their products, she replied with enthusiasm.


I just let her know to send me a few things to taste test and that we would go from there. Within days, the products were in my hot little hands and waiting to be made. Mexican meatloaf, old fashioned cinnamon pecan pancake, baked potato soup all sounding equally great. I liked the balance - something for breakfast, a bigger dinner item, and something lighter to have if we wanted a dinner with a side. The Gourmet Cupboard offers that variety everywhere on their site. Each mix is dry, and you simply add one or two of the following: water, sour cream, cream cheese, etc. There are a few that do differ from the common ingredients. Mexican meatloaf is one where you need several extra ingredients. But it’s worth it!



The soup was first up here, and it was not only simple and tasty but filling, too. It was a simple as the following (taken from the package and website).

Baked Potato Soup
Description: The taste of a baked potato with cheese, bacon, and chives- all in a soup! Add milk and water to make 7 cups of soup.

Instructions: Boil 4 cups of water and 2 cups milk. (Substitute half and half for milk for an extra rich soup) Add soup mix. Stir and serve! Yields 7 cups.

My kids who don’t like anything that isn’t their norm loved it and Teri better count me in for the long haul as a customer.



Next was the Meatloaf, and I like it spicy. I was in for it!

Mexican Meatloaf
Description: This is just one of the many products we're proud to put our name on! This popular recipe has been in the family for years. Requires picante sauce, grated cheese, green chilies, and ground meat. Makes 9x5 loaf

Instructions: Combine 1 lb ground beef, half-cup picante sauce, and contents of package. Mix well and press into ungreased 9x5 loaf pan. Combine ½ cup picante sauce, ½ can chopped green chiles, and ½ cup cheese and pour over top. Bake 375 for 30 minutes.

I’ll tell you now if you don’t like it on the spicy side, omit some of the chiles or be forewarned. My oldest didn’t like it because of that but my youngest went to town. She eats actual green chili dip or what you smother a burrito in by the spoonful and she is 6.



Last but not least, the old-fashioned cinnamon pecan pancake. Can I tell you frankly, I’m a French toast gal, I don’t like pancakes. I tried them anyway. I was impressed.

Description: Requires 1 egg, oil, and milk. Yields 7-10 pancakes.

Instructions: Mix contents of bag, 1 egg, l Tbsp oil, and 1 cup milk. Place ½ cup batter into hot skillet. Flip when bubbles appear and brown the other side.

The kids liked them, my husband liked them, and I’d say they were an all around hit.

Teri is extremely easy to talk to and a complete joy to be quite honest. I was very impressed. I’ve tried several of these “make-at-home” meals and there are few that I like as many as I like much as enjoyed this.

I did include the directions so that you can see the simplicity in the recipes. If you are a parent-on-the-go as most of us are, you throw a few things together and you go. I threw the seasoning together and put in the oven or whatever and clean, do homework with the kids, and let the aromas of the cooking take over. Then enjoy the food and relax.

To contact Teri, email her at dempsey1[at]sbcglobal[dot]net and she can help you start your culinary adventure at www.thegourmetcupboard.com.

Labels: directions, filling, food, meals, meatloaf, pancakes, recipes, review, soup, spicy, The Gourmet Cupboard

Bizzy Lizzy

I must confide in you all… there are times when my I want to hurt my husband. There are times when I literally want to hurt him because I fear he is doing just that to himself. He isn’t a spring chicken by any means, but he is too young to have the digestive problems he is having. Years of physical abuse and refusing to live health have taken a toll, and now that he is realizing the consequences of those decisions, it is difficult for him to deal.



More than anything, he gets upset about the simple act of eating. The doctors have told him to take so much of what he loves out of his diet, and he gets frustrated. It’s a struggle to find things that work for his health but keep him happy. Breakfast may be the worst. So much of what is viewed as the norm for breakfast is troubling for a person with a bad stomach. The dirty-spoon diner isn’t an option these days, and many of the choices that are put forth for his consideration are bland. Breakfast shakes don’t fill him up, most breakfast bars lack flavor, and there is little for a person on the go that isn’t a pain.

That made the call from Bizzy Lizzy Bakery so rewarding. Shelia Rae gave me a call to discuss her Hearty Gourmet Oatmeal Cookies, and at first, I assumed they were your average treat for the sweet-tooth portion of your day. I was wrong… Bizzy Lizzy Bakery makes cookies that are aimed to solve the problems many of us as parents face. Our children are barraged with commercials and ad campaigns aimed to keep the cereal market in business. Many of those cereals are nothing more than sugar and filler, horrible alternatives for a meal (much less the most important meal of the day). Bizzy Lizzy wanted to find something that would draw kids in but wouldn’t fill their veins with the fuel of the devil.

Thus the Hearty Gourmet Oatmeal Cookie was born. These cookies are made with wholesome ingredients aimed at promoting health and balance in the diet. They look like cookies… they taste like cookies… everything about them says cookie, but they offer a new and exciting chapter on the breakfast bar. I told Shelia to hook me up with a couple and I would give them to the biggest kid in my house (after all, he may be old, but he is as childish as any 30-something man you’ll meet and he used to eat all the cereal in the house anyway). It sounded like a great alternative for him to try, and I was anxious to offer him something that would excite him.

Within a couple of days, the cookies arrived, neatly packaged in a colorful Chinese-style serving box. Each cookie is individually sealed and wrapped to insure freshness and to retain moisture. I threw them in front of my husband with simple instructions: These are your breakfast this week. Enjoy.

A week later, he was a bit upset they were gone. Apparently, Bizzy Lizzy had hit the spot. The cookies are moist and filled with great ingredients, including whole-grain oatmeal and chocolate if desired. He was amazed at how moist the cookies were despite travel and time. The packaging was easy to open but did a great job. The cookies were filling and full of flavor, and he said eating one did him right for the entire morning. “They were cookies… just like eating cookies, but for breakfast. I can get with that.”



He was happy and I was more than happy to put something in his hand that got him excited about putting something into his diet that worked on all fronts. These cookies are flavorful, healthy, and work great for a family short on time. He leaves in the morning with one in hand and doesn’t miss a beat, and I don’t have to worry about the temptation of other alternatives that fit that bill but miss on the ability to keep him progressing towards health.

Bizzy Lizzy gets a big thumb’s up from Mom in the Know, and I couldn’t be happier.

Labels: bizzy lizzy bakery, breakfast, cookies, food, husband, review

Still your Mom’s Watkins and more!

When I was looking for products to review, I happened to cross paths with Lin Ridley, an Independent Associate for Watkins. Sure I had heard of Watkins before, when I was a child I remember seeing the bottles in my grandma's cabinets. I thought for a moment before deciding to give it a try, what harm could be done? None except childhood memories, right?



Let me lead off by telling you I have a vivacious seven year old daughter who would live in a mud puddle if I would let her. Daughter + BRAND NEW JEANS + mud puddle = disaster = frantic mom. Not with Watkins Laundry Detergent ($11.99 up to 80 loads). A simple name for a life and laundry saving product stain remover needed. As someone who is usually adding any “get that stain out” ingredient, I was shocked to see that the mud was g-o-n-e, gone. I didn’t need to wash them three times, scrub at them, and use several products. How many times can I relay this?!? It works!

Along the food lines, I sampled onion soup & gravy base, beef soup & gravy base, and cinnamon. I made a fabulous pot roast with the onion and beef mixes. They complimented each other nicely, while still having their own unique tastes. The prices are right (7.49/8.29oz) for investing in the bases. Soups, gravies, a variety of options and there are several flavors for your palate. I made cinnamon and sugar toast for my family and again, not overwhelming and a pure, earthy taste that you know isn’t processed. You can’t fake that!



Last but not forgotten is the shea butter samples, which in Colorado our skin sucked up. Don’t be surprised if you see quite a few lotion reviews on here! Watkins has a lot to offer in the bath and body, home care and home remedies lines, which you may or may not be aware. We sampled the lavender shea butter (7.49/7oz), lemon shea butter ($7.49/7oz) and ultra rich hand cream ($6.49/8oz). Shea butter offers incredibly rich blend of shea butter, cocoa butter and whipped for a smooth, creamy feel. The driest and roughest hand are helped by the ultra rich cream, so if you or someone you know works with their hands or even washes them a lot, it a great idea! It’s helps seal in moisture and protect at the same time, as with most hand creams but this one will not rub off with contact.



With over 300 products, I like the variety they have to offer. Watkins has been in business since 1868 & offers a 100% money back guarantee on all products.

If you would like Watkins products or information on Watkins, you can contact Lin at jordankane@verizon.net or her website at www.allinthestore.com.

Labels: beef, cleaning products, detergent, food, gravy, lavender, lotion, money back, mud puddles, review, shea butter, Watkins

Here's the beef

One of the most stressful points of the day for a wife and/or mother is dinner. Rarely are we graced with the luxury of time. Often we are faced with the obstacle of taste. For many of us, the issue of health also looms large. Meeting all of those needs without sacrificing the sanity that will bring it all together is one of the more daunting tasks we will face during the day, and finding meals to ease that pain can be just as troublesome.



There are a variety of choices available to help in the cause to excel in this situation, but many of those options leave little to be desired. Frozen foods can be troublesome and may lack the ability to meet all of the needs you face. Prepared meals can be very convenient but may lack the taste or quality your family desires. For many, the option of choice may be right in front of your face… sitting next to you on the sofa… the primary voice of support for the meal. That option may be your husband. Give a man a grill and a fire and you may be shocked at the effort he suddenly puts forth to make a great meal.

Of course, no great deal is struck without compromise, and more often than not, that compromise will come at the choice of food. Men like meat. They like to grill meat. Beef, in any of its wonderful forms, tends to be the subject of choice when our male counterparts hit the porch and stoke the coals that will get dinner on the table. However, in today’s market, it has become almost impossible to find quality beef capable of filling an entire family at a reasonable cost without conceding either time, convenience, or health. Beef from the typical grocery store often comes from unreliable sources where the conditions would make it difficult for anyone to eat red meat without feelings of concern. The fat content is too high, the beef has come from tainted cattle loaded with chemicals, or the meat has been treated after processing with preservatives or additives that will mask just how dated and aged the product may be. All of this contributes to bad health in numerous ways, not to mention the price paid and the time lost traveling to and from the store to add it to the menu.



Enter La Cense Beef. In a world that turns towards healthy living and a view towards the future, La Cense is a wonderful new company that has taken that same approach and applied to a market few would consider for such motives: Healthy, convenient, quality beef products.

The La Cense Ranch resides in Montana, sitting along the Blacktail Mountains as one of the most storied and reputable cattle operations in the nation. They’ve been raising cattle since 1869 and done with a pure desire to raise the best cattle in the country. This area of the union happens to possess what may be the best environment available for this kind of farming as grass and hay rich in nutrients for the cattle to eat. This is the driving force of La Cense’s approach to the market, offering Black Angus cattle raised on natural grass, void of chemicals and preservatives. The ranchers provide a quality environment where cattle are treated as valuable commodities and are not forced to live in unsanitary conditions.



With this in mind, Heidi Toyne with La Cense dropped me a line and thought we should give their service a whirl. Their site (lacensebeef.com) offers a wide variety of products revolving around their primary product of mail-order beef. It may not seem wise to order beef products through the mail, but La Cense makes it all simple and worthwhile. The menu of choices is phenomenal, including a wide array of steaks, roasts, burgers, ribs, and various cuts including brisket, liver, and stewing beef. There is even a section of options for your dog, including meat and bones. If you like good meat, these guys have it covered and will bring it right to your door.

All orders are vacuum sealed in a USDA certified facility where the beef is dry aged for 19 days, enhancing the tenderness of the cuts. The meat is then frozen immediately after processing to insure no time is wasted and freshness is saved. Your order is sent in an insulated container with dry ice (a phenomenal idea as the dry ice evaporates, leaving no mess to clean) or freezer gel packs. Customers have just two choices for shipping, including next day or 2nd day air, an understandable practice considering the commodity at hand. The site includes a page that provides a detailed chart of the process and delivery times and schedules. You’ll make your order and know exactly when it will arrive.



The site is a great tool for those with remaining trepidation. Sections discussing their feeding processes, the La Cense philosophies of raising cattle and doing business, and the benefits of adding such products to your diet are there for your consideration, and you’ll also find a wonderful page of recipes and cooking instructions to help your efforts.

If you struggle to find great meals the meet your needs for health, convenience, and taste, you should give La Cense a shot. The meat is absolutely wonderful. Heidi was nice enough to send some burgers our way and they could not have been better. The meat, unlike the ground beef from the local market, was a solid beef patty void of fat or gristle. The flavor was perfect and they cooked as well on the grill as we could hope. Nice, thick, hamburger patties that were easy to make and flavorful… hard to believe you could get such a great product through the mail. If you struggle from dietary or digestion problems, this meat is a perfect solution. The lack of fat, chemical, and waste offers a burger that eats more like a steak.



Overall, this was a wonderful experience I would suggest to anyone. I realize the cost may be a bit prohibitive, but the expense is well worth it. The meat at the store may be cheaper, but after you factor the quality, the time and energy wasted going to the store, and the benefits for your health, you are sure to find the investment in adding La Cense to your list of options is a choice well made.

Labels: beef, Black Angus, brisket, filet mignon, food, hamburger patties, healthy, La Cense, mail-order beef, meat, natural, prime rib, review, ribs, roast, steak, steak burger

A menu as big as my head!

Fast food has come a long way in recent years. For my generation, fast food during our childhood years (when fast food is always at it’s best) consisted of burgers, burgers, and burgers. Pizza took more than 30 minutes for delivery, you didn’t have too many options, and life was drab.


Today, fast food has evolved in rapid fashion. You can choose what you eat, where you eat, and how you eat, and the list of options seems endless. Things are specialized s restaurants find their niche, drive it to your television and magazines with advertising, and hope you walk in the door with cash in hand.

With those changes comes good and bad. Finding a wealth of poor choices, especially for those of us with families on the go, is all too easy. Maybe it was my lack of knowledge or my desire to stick with the lessons I learned as a youth, but I failed to realize just how many choices there were… but Qdoba has changed my view.


A few short weeks ago, Scott from Qdoba dropped me a line and suggested we give it whirl. He sent some menus and vouchers for meals with a simple suggestion: “Check us out, I think you’ll be glad you did.”

To be honest, my view of Qdoba up to that point was fairly limited. I had been there once shortly after they opened their first store in our area and walked away with a simple impression. As had become the rave in fast food, Qdoba offered burritos that weighed as much as a roll-off dumpster, stuffed with various ingredients that were certainly filling but left little to be desired in terms of variety. If you liked enormous burritos, you couldn’t go wrong. If not, you went elsewhere.



Much to my surprise, unlike other restaurants that shoot for the same vein, Qdoba has moved on and discovered the rewards of choice.

My husband and I opened the menu Scott had provided, and while the burritos were there in all of their glory (they are damn good burritos), there was so much more. Soups, salads, quesadillas, nachos, tacos, and various other offerings led us to believe we should put the dated opinions of this restaurant behind and give it a go. We cleaned the slate, talked the kids into leaving the Xbox for a while, and took a drive.

After a short drive to the closest spot, we were standing in front of the site and made one immediate observation. “This place is pretty big.” Similar eateries tend to keep the dining space available onsite to a minimum, maybe a few indoor stools along a dining bar with a handful of tables. Qdoba offers a full-size dining room complete with the dining bar but also accentuated with booths, dining tables, and plenty of space for many to enjoy their meals without feeling rushed to do so. “I’ll guess we’ll eat here, huh?” my husband asked (he’s a total homebody… getting him to leave the house is like getting Bush to leave Iraq… it doesn’t happen). Mark one win for Qdoba.



We entered to review the menu, and to our shock and amazement, there stood before us a specialized menu… for children. A kid’s menu… I won’t repeat what my lovely-but-salty tongued husband stated, but needless to say we were both pleasantly surprised. In recent years, there has been a dramatic rise in what I like to call the “upscale” fast food restaurant. These places offer food aimed at pleasing adults and the appetites adults will bring and seek to calm. The vast majority of these eateries rarely, if ever, offer any options that would work for children. Qdoba has an entire menu dedicated to the mouths of our children, a definitive bonus for a family on the go. Don’t believe me? Try this… go to a similar place and try to talk yourself AND your kids into eating a burrito that weighs more than their overloaded book bags from school. Experience that and then tell me you wouldn’t rather have the options of tacos or quesadillas.



My husband is on a restrictive diet and tends to stress trips to almost any restaurant. He’s not allowed to eat anything spicy, fried, or based in tomatoes. Despite the concerns, he was easy to please, ordering a Vegetarian Burrito. I decided to go out of my own comfort zone and selected the Mexican Gumbo. My oldest picked up an order of nachos while our youngest picked cheese quesadillas.

Clean and comfy atmosphere, food made quickly to our liking right in front of us, something for us all to enjoy… it was a wonderful experience. Qdoba has raised the bar on “fast” food, though it may not be fair to label them as such. Your grub gets done as quickly, if not more so, than most fast food joints, but there is no comparison in terms of flavor, service, and quality. My hubby was beyond happy, being able to eat out without worrying about his dietary and health issues. Our kids didn’t have to be conned into meals they didn’t want and we didn’t have to stress the waste of food and money on two meals for our children. I had options so many restaurants in this position fail to offer.


I struggle to list a negative from the entire experience. That is rare for a wife, mother of two, and lover of good food. If you have kids or not, this is an excellent option for a great meal at a reasonable cost, and the options beyond that are nothing short of refreshing.

Qdoba - www.qdoba.com

Labels: burrito, food, nachos, Qdoba, quesadilla, restaurants, review, taco