The Bucket List

The Bucket List was finally available at the Red Box in our Vons store, so we picked it up. I am a fan of both Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman, so I had some pretty high hopes. While I don't think this is anywhere near one of my favorite movies, it didn't disappoint.

The movie starts out with a brief introduction of the characters. Morgan Freeman is Carter Chambers, a lifelong auto mechanic with a fairly solid family structure, a love of trivia (Jeopardy in particular), and is an all-around good guy. Edward Cole, played by Jack Nicholson, is introduced in the monologue as a man full of life, who died with a smile on his face. When you meet Edward Cole for the first time, you can tell where the movie is going to go. He is a very worldly man, out only for himself. You know he is bound to meet Carter, and you don't have to wait long.

Both characters end up in the hospital fairly quickly. Through an interesting turn of events, Cole ends up a patient in his own hospital, one that he proudly advertises has "two beds to a room, no exceptions." He runs "hospitals, not health spas". This is the reason he doesn't have his own room. His assistant insists that it will be bad PR to break the rule for himself.

Eventually both men get the prognosis of less than one year to live. Just before learning this news, Carter begins reconstructing something he wrote without taking seriously some time before. It is called the "bucket list". What things do you want to accomplish before you "kick the bucket"? Once he finds out the news of his impending death, he decides it is worthless and trashes it. Cole finds the list and convinces Carter to go on a trip. This is where the fun begins.

As they travel from place to place, you see the friendship developing between these two strangers. They start opening up about their lives, and then both contribute to a rift by trying to fix the other one. I will leave the details and the ending for you to watch for yourself.

This movie is directed by Rob Reiner. I didn't know this until the closing credits. I am not a fan of Reiner by any stretch of the word. I think he is a liberal political crony, who is usually on the wrong side of any issue. It appears that his directing is somewhat detached from his personality, though. I don't think his left-wing agenda played too big a part in this movie, and for that I am glad. I will probably watch this movie again, but I don't think it is one for my personal collection.

I recommend this one for a rental.

RATING:

Peking Chinese Restaurant- An Updated Review

Peking Chinese Restaurant
5960 Telegraph Rd, Ventura
Phone: 805-644-7777
Cuisine: Chinese

I first reviewed this restaurant a couple months ago. You can read that review here. I went with my wife and son last night, and felt I needed to review it again. I did not have the same pleasant experience this time around.

To be fair, most of what I am about to write about may be partially explained by the knowledge that there was only one cook there. I don't know how many cooks are normally there, but presumably it is more than one.

The waiter tonight seemed very sure of himself, but wasn't terribly helpful. He was not overly friendly either. The busboy did a much better job. The restaurant felt a lot dirtier as well. I visited the restroom for the first (and hopefully last) time. That was an experience.

Picture a 1970s style mobile home or church building, and you will get an idea of what greeted me there. The bathroom smelled pretty awful. Being near the back of the restaurant, it probably doesn't get the attention it requires. The urinal was set pretty high on the wall. So high in fact that there is a step that you must use to reach it. I found that entertaining. That is all I will say about the bathroom. Let's move on.

We ordered the cheaper of the three meal choices this time, both preferring the options in that price range. Roughly $12 a person gets you (per person) a spring roll, a piece of paper-wrapped (really aluminum foil) chicken, Egg Drop soup, a cream cheese wonton, and an entre. I went with the Kung Pao again, though I forgot to read my earlier post about how mild it was. My wife ordered the Beef and Broccoli, as she was sharing with my son who is a broccoli lover. I should have asked for more peppers. Next time I will remember to read my own reviews.

The paper-wrapped chicken was by far the best item of the night's fare. It tastes like the fillings of potstickers, which my wife and I both enjoy. The spring rolls are good, but not anything to really write about. The won ton tasted great as well. This Egg Drop soup comes with a bit of a twist. Chopped nuts are added. This soup was good too, but not as good as others.

The Beef and Broccoli tasted pretty good. I normally don't like this dish, but it was not too bad. It had a lot of garlic, which always is a good thing. My Kung Pao Chicken only had two peppers. This was really mild. I still enjoyed the lack of water chestnuts and celery. This is all chicken, peppers and peanuts. Just the way I like it.

One positive note was the Pepsi. I prefer restaurants who serve Pepsi, and I rate the quality of Pepsi wherever I go. This was not the greatest, but it was still really good. Much better than many other small restaurants.

Overall, last night's service was nowhere near the level it was during our first visit. The last experience, plus the Pepsi bring the rating up quite a bit. I am hoping that on my next visit they have recovered from whatever happened in between visits.

RATING:

The Dark Knight

The first thing I can say about The Dark Knight is, WOW! This is one intense movie. I have not been so exhausted after a movie since The Passion of the Christ. I am surprised this movie got away with a PG-13 rating. Sure there was no sex or nudity, no language that I remember, and while there was some gore there wasn't too much blood if any. I think this movie is way too intense for children however. On that note, let's get into this.

I have been a fan of Heath Ledger for years. I haven't been terribly fond of his last couple of movies, so I had high hopes for this one. He certainly delivered. It was not just Heath Ledger though. Christian Bale, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine, Aaron Eckhart, and Gary Oldman all did a terrific job.

I am attempting to stay away from spoilers here, so you should be safe in reading this if you don't like surprises. That being said, I will cover some of the basic scenes of interest.

The movie begins with a bank heist, as super hero movies often can. Unlike most super hero movies though, the action only accelerates from there. From the moment the Joker is introduced, there is a heavy psychological element. Think along the lines of Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs. This guy is crazy in a scary way.

Batman himself is no saint in this movie. He reveals the darker side that Michael Keaton only hinted at. This Batman is grittier than the first version Bale played. He still learns through the school of hard knocks, which is part of why we like Batman. He is a regular guy, with regular weaknesses. Sure he is really smart, but he has no super powers.

The action sequences are really intense. You get to see how crazy the Joker really is. He has no goal but pure mayhem. He wants to watch everything burn. How do you stop someone who has no goal but chaos? Batman must answer this question. He has to decide how far he is willing to go to stop this guy. For those of you afraid I will give something away, I will leave the point here.

As I said before, this movie isn't terribly gory. There are some murders here and there, but those aren't nearly as scary as the scenes where someone isn't killed. Watching the Joker go on a rant, and wondering where he will stop is pretty intense. It is the potential for violence and not the violence itself that is so staggering. Will he or won't he? Will he really follow through on his threat, or is he bluffing? Every scene with the Joker will keep you glued to your seat.

As great as the acting is, and as intense and thrilling this movie is, I am not sure how to rank it. I plan on owning this movie, just as I own the previous versions of Batman. This will be more of a once or twice a year viewing for me though. I don't know if I can watch this as often as Spider-Man or X-Men. I think this is definitely a movie worth seeing in the theater. I reiterate the point that this movie is not for kids. I am sure the headlines are coming about how many nightmares this movie has caused.

The Dark Knight is an incredible roller coaster. It grabs hold of you and jerks you all over the place. If you are a fan of the real Batman, not the 60's spoof Batman, then you want to see this movie. Be prepared for the ride of your life.

RATING:

PlaySkool Busy Ball Popper

When my son was younger we bought him a Busy Ball Popperfrom Playskool. Apparently Hasbro bought Playskool, as Amazon.com calls it a "Hasbro Playskool Busy Ball Popper." He was about 9 months old when we bought it, and was not very mobile. We thought this could entertain him while he was sitting around.

The ball popper is a pretty basic toy. There is a fan that circulates air through a tube and shoots balls up through the top, where they go down a spiral slide and start the process all over again. When my wife first described the toy to me before we bought it, I thought it sounded dangerous. "Just what our boy needs", I thought. "Something that can shoot him in the eye." She assured me that it was perfectly safe, and it turns out she was right. There is not a lot of force behind the balls as they launch, and he never stuck his face in the path.

Our initial reaction when we installed the batteries and turned it on was of disappointment. The balls didn't seem to have enough oomph to make it out of the tube. I could create a vacuum with my hand that would launch the balls, but it seemed to us that something was wrong. We returned it to Target and replaced it.

The second one worked much better. It turned out the first one was a fluke. This one had plenty of power to get the balls launched. My son was too young to understand how to push the lever to get the thing going, so he would make us do it. Over and over. As he began walking he would sometimes try to carry it to us so we would push it. Not only was my son fascinated with the whirring of the fan, there are a number of different songs it plays while the balls are in motion. Among them are "Rockin' Robin" and "Flight of the Bumblebees", both classics from their respective eras.

The only thing really wrong with the product is that sometimes the balls shoot too high and miss the slide. If you are monitoring your child's use of this product (as I highly recommend you do if your child is under two years old), you can stick your hand a few inches above the tube to knock the balls back down onto the slide. I don't think this glitch is too big a deal.

Here is what the manufacturer has to say about the product:

Get silly with poppin', droppin' colored balls! Pump the plunger and drop the balls onto the spiral track. When they reach the bottom, look out - the balls pop out the top! Giggles are guaranteed with wacky sound effects and 8 lively songs to help keep the fun rolling along. The Playskool Busy Ball Popper has won numerous toy awards, including American Baby's Best Toy, Child Magazine's Best Toy, and the NAPPA Gold Award. Requires 4 "D" Batteries.

Tonight my 2 year old son was playing with his Busy Ball Popper,having long since mastered it. He learned early on how to get the vacuum going with his hand when he loses a ball now and then. Tonight he had a lot of fun with it. He has had it about a year and a half now, and it has been a great product.

I highly recommend this product for your child's enjoyment.

RATING:

Disney - The Jungle Book

I know this movie has been out for a long time, since 1967 in fact. I was watching the special features and decided it was worth a brief review. The Jungle Bookhas long been one of my favorite Disney movies.

This movie, as most of you know, is based on Rudyard Kipling's story of the same name. It tells the story of a boy named Mowgli. In Disney's version, the animals all talk and sing and dance, which makes it a hit with kids.

The music is what makes it a hit with adults too. Most of the songs are catchy, and I have seen adults get excited about the songs when they come on, myself included. Knowing that the music is one of the reasons this is among my favorite Disney cartoons, I watched the special feature about deleted songs. Let me tell you, I was pretty surprised.

Some of these songs were plain awful. The original demo of "The Bare Necessities" sounds like it belongs in the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland. The original version of "That's What Friends Are For" involved a Beatle's/British Invasion inspired tune and included a character that was also deleted. It was okay as far as copying the Beatle's style, but that character that was axed was awful to.

I can't imagine what would have happened if these songs stayed in the movie. I certainly would not have enjoyed it as much as I do. I was glad to see Rocky the Rhino didn't make it to the final version. I was glad "The Bare Necessities" was transformed into its current version. I am glad the vultures sing a barbershop "That's What Friends Are For" and not the Beatle's-based version. I am glad that Disney had the wisdom to cut the bad parts and leave in the good. If only George Lucas had used the same level of discernment.

I liked this movie a lot before, and I like it even more now. It could have been much worse, as the special features can attest. I highly recommend this for your family's movie collection.

RATING:

Vantage Point

We picked up Vantage Pointfrom the Red Box at the grocery store last night.

The movie stars Dennis Quaid, Forest Whitaker, and William Hurt. It starts into the action fairly quickly. There are a couple of gun shots, a couple of explosions, and then the scene rewinds itself. The scene starts again from the point of view of the next character.

This process repeats a few times. Scene happens, rewinds, and starts again with the next character. I didn't mind this, since I knew from the previews it would happen. My wife got bored and left the room after the second rewind.

I liked the different perspectives presented. I thought some of the scenes were better than others, but for the most part I was enjoying the movie. Near the end there is a pretty cool car chase. One of the best car chases in recent memory.

Unfortunately the car chase was the climax. The final scene went really fast and was over before I expected. I could have done with something a little more exciting, especially since most of the movie was a repeat of the same scene.

Overall, I still think this was a pretty good movie. I would recommend a rental definitely. I don't think I will be adding this to my collection, though.

RATING:

Top Droppers - June 2008

Thank you to all of my Entrecard droppers. I appreciate your visits. There were a lot of ties this month. Here are June's Top Droppers:

1. SurfJedi's Musings
2. Thailand Land of Smiles
2. Paperkraft.net
3. Crissy's Haven
4. Obscure History
4. Inside My Wild Mind
4. Pinoy Raket Online
4. chorva!
4. Lofty Matters
4. Only in Silence

My top droppers will be:

• Added to my StumbleUpon favorites
• Added to my Technorati favorites
• Followed on Twitter
• Bookmarked in del.icio.us

If you are already listed in the above ways, I will think of some other way to reward you.

Thanks again everyone.

Wall-E

My son is a HUGE Pixar fan. My wife and I don't often get to see movies in the theater because our son is too young. We didn't think he would sit through anything that has come out recently until now. My son knows "Toy Story" backwards and forwards. He loves "Monsters, Inc." He has seen "Cars" a hundred times, and "Ratatouille" is catching up. Again, he LOVES Pixar. With this in mind, we took him to see Wall-E today.

I knew coming into this that there would be minimal dialog. Being a huge Star Wars fan, I am used to robots communicating through beeps and whistles, so I didn't think I would mind.

The movie starts by introducing Wall-E, whose name comes is an acronym of Waste Allocation Load Lifter, Earth-Class. Humans have all left the Earth 700 years prior, and he is the only robot left still functioning in his capacity as a global janitor. He has created lots of trash skyscrapers, and it is obvious that he is making slow progress.

Wall-E collects certain things that interest him. He found a tape of a Musical, and he has learned at least one song from it. This song continues to play throughout the film.

Eventually he is introduced to EVE. She turns out to be one of the better characters in this movie. Her first few scenes have her blasting anything that startles her with a high-powered laser. The explosions are pretty cool.

The movie progresses from there, and Wall-E ends up following EVE to space when she gets whisked away. Wall-E meets some other robots along the way, some nice, some not so nice. He also makes friends with a couple of humans.

Pixar did something interesting in this movie. They inserted live-action acting into a cartoon. It was a huge deal a while back when the opposite happened. Think back to "Mary Poppins" or "Who Framed Roger Rabbit", where cartoons were added to a live-action film.

The film started slowly and didn't do much to pick up speed. It felt like a very long version of the short films that usually proceed the features. The story didn't really hold our interest. There were a few laughs, but otherwise I shold have saved it for Netflix like I originally planned. My son seemed to like it a lot more than we did, which was the point of our going. Since he liked it, I will give it a little boost in my ranking. I say save it for a rental. It isn't worth a theater viewing.

RATING:

Jersey Mike's Subs

Jersey Mike's Subs
1231 South Victoria Ave.
Oxnard, CA 93035

Jersey Mike's Subs is a fairly typical subway sandwich shop. They lean more toward Quiznos and Togos rather than Subway. My wife is a pretty big fan of this place, so this is the second time she has taken me there. The first time I went I liked the restaurant, but not my food. I figured I would try it again before I reviewed it. Today was the day.

Walking in, we were greeted by the whole staff, Starbucks and Coldstone Creamery style. They were pretty friendly. There wasn't a long line, so we ordered quickly.

Like Togo's and Quiznos they have a pretty set menu, and it doesn't feel they are too comfortable with additional items. Subway pretty much raised all our expectations in this area.

I ordered the Roast Beef sandwich, Mike's style. My wife got the Turkey sandwich, also Mike's style. Mike's style includes lettuce, tomato, pickles, oil and vinegar, salt and pepper. I added peperocini and jalepenos, and my wife added just the peperocinis.

For a sandwich, this was pretty good. I prefer hot sandwiches, but today's was of the cold variety. All in all it was a decent meal. I think the sizes are a little hard to gauge accurately. The regular looks small, so I ordered the large. It was way bigger than I intended to get, but for $10, I should hope it was huge.

This place didn't impress me, but it wasn't bad either. This is a pretty average place. The Pepsi is pretty good though, which makes a big difference to me. (I am a huge Pepsi fan). Go to Jersey Mike's for a decent meal.

RATING:

Courtyard by Marriott - Buena Park

Courtyard by Marriott
7621 Beach Boulevard
Buena Park, California 90620

For my wedding night I chose a hotel near LAX, as we were flying to Cabo San Lucas the next day. I chose a Marriott hotel called the Renaissance Montura. They had a great "romance package" that I thought my wife would love. Chocolate covered strawberries and a bottle of Champagne or Sparkling Cider upon arrival, rose petals on the bed, a bath drawn by a hotel staff member with rose petals, and breakfast with room service are all included in the package. This left quite the impression on my wife, and we have looked forward to a repeat visit ever since.

I joined the frequent guest program so we could earn our way back to the Renaissance. This is the reason I chose the Courtyard by Marriott hotel for my wife's birthday this year. Unfortunately this hotel did not live up to our expectations of Marriott.

The outside of the Courtyard as well as the lobby looked very clean and was as expected. Once we got to our room it was a different story. The couch had a large black stain on both the cushions. The room was arranged in an odd manner so that the bathroom door and closet doors interfered with each other. The bed was very comfortable to lounge on, but it was terrible to sleep on. During the night, my sheets came off the mattress and I had to get out of bed to fix them. The room also had a slightly musty smell, the kind normally present in a Motel 6.

The week prior we had stayed in a Holiday Inn Express. That room was much nicer and cost half as much. I sent an email relating my story to Marriott but have not heard back from them. I did fill out the survey they emailed me. I hope they would be interested in the quality of their hotel rooms. I will post an update to this blog if I hear from them.

I hope that my stay at the Renaissance did not taint my idea of what Marriott should be. I suppose only time will tell. Time, and a future stay. Until then, I recommend you stay away from the Courtyard by Marriott in Buena Park.

RATING:

Fool's Gold

Fool's Gold: Flopped. My wife and I rented Fool's Gold from Netflix and we were pretty disappointed. The movie starts off with a pretty cool boat explosion scene, but it went downhill from there.

I am normally a fan of Donald Sutherland's movies, and he was indeed one of the best characters in this movie. Matthew McConaughey keeps making the same movie with different titles, and this time it didn't pan out. Sahara was much better in my opinion. Kate Hudson is usually more interesting to watch as well. Perhaps the most annoying character was Gemma Honeycutt, played by Alexis Dziena. I have never seen her acting before, so I am giving her the benefit of the doubt here. She played a ditzy girl apparently modeled in look and voice after That 70's Show's character Jackie.

The whole movie I was trying to figure out if this was a romantic comedy or an action adventure. There were some funny scenes, I will admit. Kate Hudson beating all the bad guys with a shovel was definitely funny. The movie just didn't really go anywhere.

I will give the movie credit for some decent stunts. There were explions, a boat launching off a wave, a cliff-top motorcycle accident, and more. This is part of the reason I couldn't tell what genre the movie was supposed to be in.

The effects and Donald Sutherland contribute almost all of the points on this one. I don't recommend this movie. 1.5 out of 5.

RATING:

The Incredible Hulk

Which Hulk was better - Ang Lee's or Louis Leterrier's? I think everyone was dreading a repeat of the Ang Lee disaster from a few years ago. I was hopeful coming into this version. Iron Man exceeded my expectations, as high as they already were. I figured if Marvel could knock Iron Man out of the ballpark, the Hulk stood a pretty good chance. I was right.

Instead of doing an origin story the movie starts in on Bruce Banner trying to cure himself of his gamma radiation. This is a throwback to the Hulk TV series from the 70s. They did throw in some origin stuff, which necessarily ignored the Ang Lee version. This movie showed Bruce trying to work on his anger management, including training in martial arts. This allowed for one of the few action scenes Bruce Banner was in, rather than the Hulk.

The acting took a little getting used to, as I had to forget about the previous characters. There was a hint of the annoying Star Wars prequel dialog during a scene in Betty Ross's house. This did not last long, and the movie recovered from there.

The action sequences were pretty cool, and we got to see some more of the Hulk's moves, including the sonic clap. The battle with Abomination was fun to watch, even if it didn't last long. These action scenes were far better than the mutated dogs or whatever Bruce's dad became in the Ang Lee version.

The Hulk is not my favorite character from the Marvel universe, but I like him enough to be interested in how the movie treated him. I was very happy with this version. The cameo by Tony Stark in the end was cool, as it introduced the coming Avengers movie. Considering how much I liked Iron Man and the Incredible Hulk, the Avengers movie is going to be great.

Decent acting, great directing and writing, and some pretty cool explosions give this summer movie a 3.5 out of 5. I recommend you see this movie if you like action films, regardless of your like or dislike of comic book movies.

RATING:

Wendy's Strawberry Frosty Shake

originally posted on SurfJedi's Musings

My wife saw an ad in the window at Wendy's as we were heading to the Del Taco next door. It was for a new line of Frosty Shakes. This did not interest me, as Del Taco has excellent shakes. I gave in and we went to the Wendy's drive through on the way home.

My wife found her shake to be "just okay". Hers would turn out to be much better than mine. My first taste barely made it to the swallow. There was an acrid taste that I had not experienced in a long time. After a few attempts to stomach it I finally remembered the last time I had tasted something so awful. I was working out quite a bit a couple of years ago, and bought a few containers of Whey Protein powder. I enjoyed the chocolate shakes, but the strawberry one was so bad I ended up discarding it. Tonight's shake tasted exactly like the Whey Protein shake.

I tried to stir the shake to see if it just was poorly mixed. It helped a little, but it was still a chore to drink it. I felt that the price alone justified trying to finish the drink, as for the two shakes it was almost $8.00.

If you go to Wendy's, stick with the chocolate Frosty. There is no other frozen drink worth the money there. As good as the Frosty is, I expected much more of the shakes.

RATING:

Weezer - Red Album

originally posted on SurfJedi's Musings

The new album from Weezer is out, and I couldn't wait to get a copy. My wife and I downloaded the album on mp3 shortly after it was released. I must say that initially I was not too impressed. We burned it to a CD and played it for the first time on a road trip. I am pretty fond of playing Weezer albums at the beginning of a road trip, so this release was timed particularly well.

As I said before, my initial experience was less than I had hoped for. I think part of the reason was a difference in how I listened the first time. Typically I play an album a couple of times through, usually in my car. This time the album was on as background noise. It was easy to compare it to the Green Album, as there were no songs that immediately jumped out at me. I will note at this point that the Blue and Green albums are my favorites so far. I think ultimately this way of listening skewed my initial experience. I listened to it again today again with less distraction. This time I heard what I was looking for.

When one listens to Weezer, one can expect a certain style. There are usually familiar guitar riffs, and the songs vary from soft and harmonious to rockin'. This variety is part of what makes them such a great band. I listened to the album three more times this afternoon on my way home. I think the Red Album is definitely one worthy of the name Weezer. It may not have all the catchy tunes that the Blue and Green albums have, but it is still loaded with the things that make Weezer great.

If you are only a casual Weezer fan I do not recommend this album to you. If you are more attracted to songs like "Beverly Hills", "Buddy Holly", or "Hash Pipe" you will only find one song here called "Pork and Beans". If you are in fact a fan of Weezer though I think you will love this album. It is full of harmony, random compilations and classic Weezer rock. I plan to continue to listen to this album for a long time to come.

I added some Weezer clips in my sidebar, courtesy of Amazon.com. You may also click any of the above links to hear more of this album. Amazon sells DRM-free music. You can play it on your iPods or other mp3 players, and you can burn the album to a CD.

Note: Amazon.com did not sponsor this post, but this author is a member of the Amazon.com affiliate program.

RATING:

TGI Friday's

originally posted on SurfJedi's Musings

T.G.I. Friday's
2181 N. Rose Ave.
Oxnard, CA 93030
Cuisine: American

Tonight my wife and I went to T.G.I. Friday's with one of my best friends. It has been a long time since I went last, and I had yet to try the one in Oxnard. I used to be a weekly customer, so I had higher than average expectations tonight. Fortunately I was not disappointed.

The restaurant was not as crowded as I expected, considering the Lakers played game 3 tonight versus the Celtics. The bar had the usual game crowds, but we were seated quickly.

The waiter came out promptly and took our drink and appetizer orders. He returned quickly with the drinks. I used to regularly order the Jack Daniels Tower, which was a three-plate tower with fried shrimp, bbq ribs, and glazed fried chicken strips. They all had their own unique Jack Daniels sauces. This tower sadly doesn't exist now, but they still have the same type of appetizer. It is now just a single platter and only one sauce is included. It still tastes great though, as I confirmed tonight.

Another reason I love Friday's is the French Onion soup. Every other restaurant gets compared to Friday's when I order the French Onion soup. Tonight the cheese portion was not as generous as normal, but it was close enough for me.

My wife and buddy got pasta dishes, and I went with the Jack Daniels burger. All of the orders were enjoyed. I am particularly fond of the Jack Daniels sauces if you haven't guessed by now. They are a great blend of sweet and tangy. I could eat this stuff everyday if gas prices didn't prevent me. :)

The server could have been a little better, but he was still good. The restaurant was clean and the food was good. 4.5 out of 5 for service and food. I definitely recommend this restaurant.

RATING:

Jiffy Lube? Not Quite

originally posted on SurfJedi's Musings

I let my car go further than I would have liked without an oil change, so I took it in today. Things kept coming up to prevent my task, so I had no choice but to just get it done today. Unfortunately the place advertising $14.95 oil changes was not open today. I decided to give Jiffy Lube a chance.

When I got there I was pleased to find a short line. This short line turned out to be misleading. The people were very friendly when I pulled up, and pointed out where I should park my car. If you read my post about Wal-Mart you would know that this was a great start to my day. I was told to sit down and a guy would fill out the paperwork. I had my wife with me in her car, as oil changes typically take forever. The plan was to go to lunch and pick up my car when we were done. This was not to be.

A few minutes go by and nobody has contacted me regarding paper work. I walk outside from time to time to make sure I have been noticed, and after 15 minutes or so I was approached. I was on the phone with my wife who was still waiting in her car when the guy started calling out some name. It wasn't mine so I kept talking. Finally he got my attention and repeated this name and confirmed I had the Taurus. I told him the Taurus was mine but he had the wrong name. I then remembered the JiffyLube sticker on my windshield. The last owner was in the system.

I went through the process with the guy, making sure all my data was recorded. He tried to sell me the usual extras, but I had found out a moment before that the price would be more than double what I usually pay at Wal-Mart. I told him I would wait to buy the extras until the "sticker shock" wore off in the future. As he got to the bottom of the form, a older lady pulled up in her truck. He told me to "Hold on sec" and tried to convince the lady to sell him her truck. Apparently he either knew her or she was a regular customer, as they continued to talk as old friends. I finally got his attention and asked how much longer the process would take, as I wanted to go to lunch with my wife. He said "15 minutes". I told my wife it would be 15 minutes. It wasn't.

A quick price comparison follows:

	Wal-Mart	Jiffy Lube
Oil Change	$27	$39
Tire Rotation	$1.50/tire	$20

While I was waiting a lady was called to the front because her car was finished. He gave her the final price and she was confused. She asked him if they had done all the extra stuff. Apparently the price was lower than she expected. She had asked for a fuel filter and a tire rotation. This wasn't on the paper work he told her so she asked him to do the work. To their credit he went into the garage and hounded the guys to get her stuff finished quickly. At least they didn't try to argue with her.

Finally my turn came. He gave me the final price which turned out to be slightly lower than the quote. It was only a dollar or two, but I was still happy about it. When all was said and done it took about an hour. Considering the fact that my car was first in line in it's particular stall, I don't think it should have taken an hour. I will be making the trek to Simi Valley to let Wal-Mart do my next oil change.

RATING:

California Pizza Kitchen

originally posted on SurfJedi's Musings

California Pizza Kitchen
Pacific View Mall
3301 E. Main Street
Ventura, CA 93003

My wife has been trying to drag me to the California Pizza Kitchen for a long time, and I have resisted for a number of reasons. One of the main reasons is the perception that it is geared toward the female gender. One doesn't often hear about a group of guys going to the California Pizza Kitchen. Tonight I let her drag me in, and we both regretted it.

To begin, we were promptly seated by the hostess, which was good. We waited more than 15 minutes for our waitress to acknowledge our presence, which was bad. It kept going from there. We finally got our drinks and appetizers ordered, and 10 minutes later the waitress came back with the drinks. The iced tea tasted like it had been brewed too long, and we had to send it back. The Pepsi was good though. Next was the mystery of the bread.

Apparently bread is supposed to be served to the tables. We witnessed many other customers getting bread almost immediately. We finally asked about it. At this point 30 minutes had passed since we arrived. Another 10 minutes pass, and the bread arrives. 45 minutes now, and no appetizers. We notice other couples who sat after us had not only drinks and bread within 5 minutes, they got their food as well. Still no appetizers. We decided to let the manager know that our night was not progressing well. He apologized and offered us a free dessert to make up for it. We accepted this and continued to wait for our food.

Finally our appetizers arrive. They were pretty good. We ordered a flour tortilla spring roll that reminded me of the Southwest Egg Rolls at Chili's. Even my wife liked these, though they normally don't appeal to her. If it hadn't taken the better part of an hour to get them we would have been much happier. The food arrived another 20 minutes later. I had a Tostada Pizza, and my wife had a salad with candied walnuts, blue cheese, and chicken. I can't remember the name of it. Both were just okay. The best part about mine was the crust. It tasted like a Greek flat bread. I wanted to order some Hummus to go with it. Since we knew we were getting dessert free, we ordered an apple crisp.

One would think that they would have tried to redeem themselves by now, but no. The crust was burnt and the apples were mushy and just unappealing. My wife thought they tasted a bit fermented. We told the waitress about the dessert, though hesitating to do so. She offered to replace it but we were ready to get out of there. This was more than two hours since we had been seated. The manager came back and we told him what was wrong. He pulled the dessert off the order completely, and gave us the appetizers for free. We thanked him and finally were able to pay and be on our way.

1.5 out of 5 for service, and 1.5 for food. The 1.5 for service includes the helpful manager. I do not recommend this place to anyone.

RATING:

Mas de Caralt - 2003

originally posted on SurfJedi's Musings

Label: Mas de Caralt
Vintage: 2003
Type: Tempranillo
Country: Spain
Region: Penedes

I picked up this bottle about a year ago, and finally opened it up tonight. When I first opened the bottle I could smell a pleasant, fruity aroma. It smelled a lot like one of my favorite wines, in part because the Tempranillo grape is part of the blend. I am a huge Tempranillo fan. I let my wife smell the bottle too, even though she is not a red wine person. She thought it smelled pretty good.

When I swirled my glass I was able to see it had some pretty good legs on it. Not too thick, but definitely enough to notice. The taste followed the smell, and I could pick up the fruit pretty clearly. The next test was to put it together with my steak, and it worked perfectly.

I had a grilled 18 ounce New York Strip, with sauteed mushrooms and onions. My wife sauteed them with olive oil and butter, and once the mushrooms had a nice crust, added some salt and some of the red wine. Add some garlic bread and some jalepeno corn, and my meal was complete. The corn recipe involves a fresh jalapeno pepper, white corn, and cream cheese. I was a little nervous that the cream cheese would throw off the taste of the wine, but it worked out.

The bottle says that the wine includes Penedes, Tempranillo, Granache, and Monastrell grapes, and it is aged in oak. It says to expect fresh berries with floral notes, and describes it as smooth and silky. I think the bottle was not exaggerating here. My above description seems to fit with the one from the bottle. I always look at the bottle after the tasting, so it won't influence my interpretation.

If you are looking for a decent table wine, I recommend the Mas de Caralt. Beverages and More (BevMo) sells it for about $5, so it is a really good wine for the price. I think they only sell the 2006 now, but I am sure it will be just as good.

RATING:

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

originally posted on SurfJedi's Musings

I went to see Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull tonight. I am going to have to disagree with a lot of the critics on this one. This was definitely an Indiana Jones movie. While I could have done without a few of the scenes, I think it still came out well in the end.

The movie begins in Roswell, New Mexico, which is an indication of where the rest of the movie is going. Meet Indy's new brother-in-arms, who has an irritating habit of calling Indiana by the nickname "Jonesy". "Jonesy." Really? What about "Indy", or "Indiana", or even "Junior?" This was one of my few gripes.

For the first 20 minutes or so, it was hard for me to get behind the fact that it was really Indiana Jones, with the exception of the escape from the warehouse. He wasn't wearing his trademark jacket, and the hat seemed to morph from the trademark, to some bleached out, white-ish hat, and then finally back to the one we know and love. Once he gets to Peru with Mutt, things get back on track.

This movie was full of improbable fights, action sequences, and escapes, which is why we all watch Indy movies. Again, parting ways with the critics, these things are why we watch summer hits. We don't want excellent dialog, or well-manicured lines. We want to see stuff blow up. George Lucas has a habit of ruining dialog, so none of us expected anything good in that department anyway.

If I could change something, I would have Indy use his whip more. He gets it out a couple times, but it seemed like he forgot he had it for a while. Another element missing was the name "Indiana Jones". He went by Henry for most of the movie, only referring to himself as Indiana once, but then catches himself and goes with Henry. I think the point was to honor his dad or something, but I thought it was a little lame.

The above gripes notwithstanding, this is a MUST SEE, though I doubt I needed to tell you that. This installment definitely was more appealing to me than "Temple of Doom", so I would rank this one 3rd place of the 4 movies. As far as comparing to other movies, 4 out of 5. I loved it.

RATING:

Iron Man

originally posted on SurfJedi's Musings

This is a bit overdue, but I have been wanting to write about this for a couple of weeks. If you have not seen Iron Man yet, I would highly recommend that you do so. I am assuming all the comic book fans out there have seen it by now, but this movie isn't just for them. Normal people should like it too.

Iron Man is not as well known as some of the other Marvel, or even D.C. superheroes. He is one of the rare ones who doesn't have a super power. He is just an everyday guy with everyday problems. He is easier to relate to in some ways than even Spider-Man. Marvel Comics itself was showing a vulnerability this time around, as this was their baby all the way. Marvel is now in the movie business in a big way.

All comic book movies have been adapted for the big screen, and this one is no exception. There are some minor changes here, but for an Origin story, I thought this worked out pretty well. Tony Stark is a wealthy playboy who drives fast cars and dates beautiful women. He makes his money selling high-tech weapons to the military. One day his own weapon nearly kills him, and he ends up creating a device to keep shrapnel out of his heart. He then goes on a crusade to undo the damage he has done with his weapons.

The acting was particularly good in this film, especially in comparison to Elektra, Daredevil, the Incredible Hulk, and Spider-Man 3. Robert Downey Jr. was a perfect Tony Stark. All the weaknesses Downey has been famous for are shared with the character Tony Stark. I am not a Gwyneth Paltrow fan, but I thought she did well in her roll. Jeff Bridges was great. A lot of people didn't even recognize him with the bald head and thick goatee.

While the movie was somewhat predictable, I expected it and was looking forward to it. I don't know where Entertainment Weekly and all the other reviewers get the idea that fans don't like the same old routine. We flock to the same old movies every year, in spite of the critics. I think it is time some of them looked for work elsewhere. I go to a comic book movie to see explosions, to laugh, to be excited as the hero saves the day. I don't care that it has been done a hundred times. A blockbuster is just that...a blockbuster. The critics should leave it at that.

The special effects were particularly good in this film. When Iron Man was flying, it looked like he was flying, not some computer animation. The jet battle was a pretty good example of the realistic look and feel of the movie.

Good acting, good writing, and a good director make this movie a must see. This was a great Marvel debut. I am even looking forward to the Incredible Hulk, in spite of Ang Lee's attempt to mess up the franchise. Summer movie season has begun. I give Iron Man an 4.5 out of 5.

RATING:

Burger King Loaded Steakhouse Burger

originally posted on SurfJedi's Musings

I went to an Oxnard Burger King for lunch today, since they got the rights to market Indiana Jones. I thought it would be cool to help my son build his collection of useless kid's meal toys, so to Burger King we went. As for cleanliness, this is one of the nicest Burger King restaurants that I have been to.

When I went to Burger King last week I saw they had a new burger called the Loaded Steakhouse burger. Having learned my lesson from the Angus burgers, I chose to stick with a Whopper. Well, today I wasn't so smart. I went for the loaded burger. I was pretty disappointed.

Parts of the burger tasted really good. It reminded me of the Western Bacon Cheeseburger from Carl's Jr. As I got further into the burger I started noticing strange tastes. At one point it tasted as if they put A-1 into the bbq sauce. I like A-1, so I kept eating. The main problem is that they put a mashed/baked potato concoction on top of the patty. I was more than halfway through before I figured out exactly what it was. I finally pulled all the potato out and finished the burger. At least I had learned my other lesson and didn't order the onion rings. My wife made that mistake this time.

Overall, the experience was good. I would highly recommend that you avoid the Loaded Steakhouse Burger at all costs. It was a huge mistake. If Burger King would bring back the onion rings of the early 1980's it would be great too. They changed the recipe when I was a kid and it never tasted good since. So, while this Burger King deserves props for how nice and clean they are, especially considering the Oxnard address, this burger tanked. 1 out of 5.

RATING:

Victoria Pub & Grill

originally posted on SurfJedi's Musings

Victoria Pub & Grill
1413 S Victoria Ave, Ventura
Phone: 805-650-0060
Cuisine: American/British, Seafood

I took my wife and son to the Victoria Pub & Grill for lunch today. This was not my first visit, but it was for my wife and son. My friend had introduced me to it shortly after he moved to the area, and I have gone back several times.

From the outside the building looks pretty ordinary. Once you go inside though, you see that it has the look and feel of a British pub. There are two floors, and on a typical evening visit the first floor is packed to capacity. This has served my friend and me well, as there are two dart boards on the second floor, and usually we are the only ones playing upstairs.

I didn't go upstairs this time, so from memory I only recall the two dart boards. I don't recall any other games. The downstairs has one dart board that I saw, though I didn't check near the bar. The atmosphere is dark and you can smell the food from the kitchen as you walk in.

We were told to sit wherever we would like, which to my wife and me means somewhere where there is a booth so we can keep my son from roaming while avoiding the fit that would ensue by putting him in a high chair. We found a nice corner to hole up in, and the waiter came by shortly.

I ordered my usual Guinness, and my wife ordered a coke for herself and water for the boy. For whatever reason, it seems pretty consistent that my first pint of Guinness is from the bottom of a keg, and the second pint is from a newly tapped keg. I am not sure how it seems to always work out that way, but the second pint is usually better. I was unable to test my theory today, though I would have liked to. My Guinness was very satisfying, but it seemed to me that the bottom of the keg experience was playing out. I figured that at 11:30 in the morning my chances of them needing to change out the keg were much smaller, so I stayed with the one pint.

I ordered my usual there, the Cajun Chicken sandwich. This sandwich is so good that I crave it pretty consistently. Today I changed it up a bit when the waiter asked if I would like to add an avocado to my sandwich. I ordered my usual onion rings as well. My wife ordered the fish & chips, and my son was ordered a corn dog.

Typically when I eat at the pub it is pretty busy, as I mentioned before. This usually means that we have to wait a bit for our food. This is never a problem, as we are usually busy throwing darts. Today, since it was early, there were no crowds. We got our food much earlier than normal.

I knew I would be talking about the food, so I made sure to sample my wife's and my son's food. The corn dog had a thick, sweet batter, and it tasted pretty good. I wasn't sure what the hot dog was made of, but it almost tasted like chicken. He enjoyed it quite a bit. My wife's fish was lightly battered, though the batter was pretty tasty. She ordered the Halibut, and it was well cooked. I would order the fish & chips if I could keep from ordering the Cajun sandwich. The avocado made a great sandwich tasted even better. The spices were just right, and had just the right amount of kick, that is for the average person at least. I would love for it to have a bit more kick, but it was still really good.

The waiter was friendly and though he was not the fastest in the business, we felt he did a good job. The service gets a 3.5 out of 5. The ambiance was great, the food was great, and the Guinness was great. The food gets a 4.5 out of 5. I highly recommend this pub to anyone.

RATING:

Acapulco

originally posted on SurfJedi's Musings

Acapulco Mexican Restaurant
725 S Victoria Ave, Ventura
(805) 644-3952
Cuisine: Mexican

I took my wife and son to Acapulco tonight. As a kid, Acapulco was a family treat, so I have a lot of good memories at various Acapulco restaurants. The last time I went was when my wife and I were first married, and we had a bad experience. I have been trying to convince her to go back ever since. The guacamole there is addictive.

We were seated pretty soon, which is always good when you have a two year old in tow. The waiter asked us what we wanted to drink, and another waiter brought us our chips and salsa, but we didn't get any water. I thought this was a little strange. My son got a little too eager with the salsa and we had to wait for his drink to come in order to sooth his tongue.

The waiter was otherwise friendly, and came back shortly with our order of guacamole. I am telling you, this stuff is so worth the trip to this place. He made the salsa and I asked for the jalapeños on the side, since my son isn't quite as tough as he would have us think. ;)

My wife ordered a Carne Asada salad, my son got a bowl of fried chicken strips and fries, and I got the chicken fajitas. I find that good fajitas, as well as good Chile Rellenos can tell you a lot about a restaurant. I usually get the Chimichanga or the four item mega platter, so I thought I would change it up a bit.

The Carne Asada was really good. I had a few bites of my wife's salad. Her pregnancy-skewed taste buds didn't appreciate it as much as I did, but that is becoming more and more common these days. My Fajitas were really good, though a little heavy on the bell peppers. My son's chicken was pretty good too.

Though I did like the food tonight, I have had better dinners at Acapulco, so I will go with a 3.5 out of 5 for the food. The service was a little off. My wife had to ask for a refill. I asked for a refill just before we left, and it was not the drink I had ordered. The first glass of Pepsi had hit the spot. I think he put Diet Pepsi in the refill. He took a long time to give us the bill, and a longer time to process it. The service was much better than my last Acapulco visit (in Moreno Valley), but I have had better. I think tonight's service ranked a 2.5 out of 5.

These are pretty low marks for one of my favorite restaurants. I will be going back because of my past experiences. Tonight was pretty expensive for the quality we received. I still recommend this restaurant, and you MUST try the guacamole!

RATING:

Juno - Finally A Movie Worth Watching

Originally posted on SurfJedi's Musings.

My wife and I have been consistently disappointed with the quality of the movies that Hollywood keeps hyping as "Must See" and "The Best Film of the Year". The Academy Awards were full of movies that we couldn't believe made it. The 2 year old pretty much guarantees we don't see many movies in theaters, so we have to rent them usually. This is fortunate due to the high price of movies these days. We suffered through "No Country for Old Men" and "Michael Clayton" among other lame movies.

"Juno" is the latest movie Netflix has delivered. The acting is pretty good. I didn't hear too much hype about it, which probably helped. There are some pretty funny parts, and I was not bored watching it. It has a lot of folk music that really fits the movie.

There are a lot of themes that would probably require further discussion, but that is for another blog.

I think Juno turned out far better than most of the garbage that made its way across the stage on Oscar night. At least it won for writing. Good music, good writing, and good acting. I would recommend this movie.

RATING:

Time Warner Cable

I switched to Time Warner Cable when I left Dish Network. Part of the reason I left Dish Network involved my DVR breaking, and therefore an inability to record shows, pause, rewind, fast-forward and such. This is a feature that one has to pay for, and I expect it to work. Dish Network didn't seem to agree, and I was to find out only too soon, neither does Time Warner.

At the time I signed up, I was in the process of leaving Verizon's DSL and Phone services. I was looking for the fastest internet connection I could get, which at the time was Verizon. I knew Time Warner had an Internet Service Provider (ISP) called Roadrunner, which in past experience was a nightmare. The salesman signed me up for the three pack bundle, which included 10mbps internet, cable TV, and a voice-over-IP phone service. He told me that I was in a fiber optic area, and that I would really be getting 15mbps, which I was pretty stoked about. He was wrong.

Considering the 10/15mbps rates were identical, I didn't complain when I found that I was in reality getting the 10mbps speed. What I did complain about was the fact that my upstairs DVR stopped recording. I was annoyed at the fact that I had to rent two DVRs for Time Warner, when Dish Network only took one. I was far more than annoyed when the thing broke in the first three days.

Eventually the DVR fixed itself, about a week later. We thought that we were out of the woods. We weren't. The downstairs DVR decided to fail. At this point we were also wondering what happened to our phone service, as our install date had passed. I called to figure out what was going on.

As for the phone, apparently the salesman screwed up and the phone order was dropped without notification. The DVR support person made me jump through some hoops, and nothing happened. It eventually fixed itself, as the upstairs one had done before. A couple of weeks later guess what happened. Yup, the upstairs DVR broke again.

In the mean time Dish Network had offered me a sweet deal to come back, so I decided to take them up on it. I got a salesgirl who didn't want my business, so I was forced to crawl back to Time Warner. I called and asked for a technician to come in, and asked for all charges to be reduced/dropped. They complied to their credit, and sent a tech out.

The tech was pretty good, and found that our signal was weak, and did his best to fix it. He boosted the signal by 4 times the original strength. The DVR was still out, so he replaced it. He offered to come by without a work order if anything wasn't working, which we are about to take him up on. Want to know what happened as soon as he left? The downstairs DVR broke again! Now I am furious with Time Warner. This stuff is way too expensive to put up with this kind of garbage.

I went back to Dish Network, hoping to get a more cooperative salesman. I managed to find one, and began the sign-up process when I hit another roadblock. This time it was not the salesman, but Dish Network itself that didn't want my business. I explain this in my Dish Network review, so I will move on.

I am now at a crossroads. I can't get Dish Network, and don't want Time Warner. One of my friends has gone the Netflix only route, which I am tempted to try. I can get DVDs of my favorite shows for less than half the price of cable. What is a disgruntled consumer to do?

Time Warner cable has a few redeeming qualities which I will cover to make this a fair review. Every time I have called I got a very friendly customer service rep. They aren't all knowledgeable, but at least they are friendly. The last guy I talked to was VERY good. He listened to my technical opinions and agreed that I was on the right track with my assessment. He sent out a tech and credited my account with no hassle.

The tech was another asset to Time Warner. He went above and beyond when he made the house call. My wife was very impressed with his service and he was on time. This is something that can be rare in the cable business.

The two positives mentioned above being considered, I still cannot recommend Time Warner cable. I plan to remain on the RoadRunner ISP, which the tech was able to fix, but I cannot justify wasting any more money on Time Warner's cable service. I give Time Warner a .5 out of 5 for value, but an 3 out of 5 for the customer service personnel I have encountered. Overall, 1 out of 5.

RATING:

Dish Network

I was a Dish Network customer in Cherry Valley, CA for 2 years when I moved to Oxnard. During that whole time I had a great experience. Everything worked as it was supposed to, and the one time it broke they fixed it quickly. Keep in mind that Cherry Valley is in the middle of nowhere.

I moved to Oxnard and intended to cancel my service, as I had been told I would have to pay for the move since I refused to pay an extra $6 per month for insurance. When I called to cancel they convinced me to sign another two year contract without paying to move my service. I should have followed my gut on this one.

The Dish Network tech came to my house and installed the service. Within a day we lost the ability to watch TV upstairs. I looked the connections over, and then called customer service. They walked me through some stuff, but were unable to resolve the issue. They were going to send a tech out, so we ended the call amiably. I took another look at the cabling, and decided the tech didn't know what he was doing. I had uninstalled the unit from my old house, and knew how it was supposed to look. In moments I fixed the TV. I rerouted the cabling to the appropriate places and changed the signal from air to cable, as it was plugged in by a coax cable. This fixed the problem so we called off the house call.

Well, a few days later it broke again. My wife called and they attempted to force us to pay for the house call. She explained that one was already going to be sent, that we fixed the first problem ourselves, and had only had our service for three days. This fell on deaf ears. Finally she asked to talk to the manager, at which point the girl immediately approved the house call at no charge.

Well, it turned out that the tech had put a staple through the coax cable when he tried to hide it under the carpet near my fireplace. He replaced the cable and things started working...until the DVR broke.

I ordered a new DVR and waited for it. What happened next wasn't Dish Network's fault, but the way they handled it made them complicit. The forecast that week was the biggest storm California had seen in years. All the news stations were preparing us for some massive rain storms to come through southern California, dropping as much as 14 inches of rain in the first day. What did UPS do about this? They left my new DVR in a puddle at my front door, in open sky getting rained on. I put the box on some towels and promptly called Dish Network to arrange for another DVR, explaining what had happened.

I was told that I had to turn in the wet DVR before I could get another one, so I got the instructions for returning it. I told them I wasn't going to pay for service since I wasn't receiving service, and he told me that he credited my account. Apparently he didn't pass the word on to his company, as they cut off the service for nonpayment. This was after I had confirmed with 3 separate people on 3 separate days that I owed nothing.

I was not happy, to put it as kindly as possible. I spent the next week on the phone with customer service, trying to get the mess sorted out. I logged 12 hours in three days during that week, and was so fed up with Dish Network that I decided to move on.

While I had great service in Cherry Valley, my horrible experience in Oxnard forces me to give Dish Network a rating of 1 out of 10 for both value and customer service.

********Update**********

After switching to Time Warner Cable I received a call from Dish Network's retention department. They offered me a pretty sweet deal, but I told her I would be in a better position to decide in a couple of days and she should call me back. The deal was 3 months free (1st, 10th, and 20th months), $14 off the first 6 months, and no contract.

I called back a couple of weeks later and was told that the girl had no business offering me that deal, and that she couldn't honor it. I was dismayed, but accepted my fate. Things kept getting worse with Time Warner, so I tried again. Apparently I was two weeks too late this time. I was signing up for the exact deal I mention above, when my credit card raised a flag on their system. He asked me if it was a real credit card or a debit card. I told him it was a debit card with a Visa logo on it, therefore making it qualify as a Visa.

He explained to me that two weeks ago Dish Network implemented a rule that only credit card holders could become new customers. The DVR costs $600, it was explained to me, and Dish Network wanted to protect themselves from loss. Having already turned in my broken DVR and following their instructions to the letter, I found this rather insulting. I do not have a credit card, as I prefer to pay for any luxuries in cash, thus better managing my money. The fact that I don't have a credit card should not be the reason I don't qualify for a service I had for two years. I never missed a payment, and they got their equipment back. They even managed to purge me from the system, so even if I was delinquent, which I wasn't they had no way of proving it. I was denied solely because I am being responsible with my money. Bad form Dish Network, bad form.

RATING:

Casa de Soria

Casa De Soria
1961 E Thompson Blvd, Ventura
Phone: 805-648-2083
Cuisine: Mexican

Tonight I took my wife and son to Casa de Soria in Ventura. This was our second visit. The first was on a Friday night and the place was so packed, we waited thirty plus minutes to be seated. The experience from that point on was identical to tonight, so I will talk mainly about tonight.

It was much less crowded tonight, so we were seated immediately. We like to sit at booths since my son rebels against high chairs and booster seats and we can contain him in a booth. The booths here are a little narrow, and sitting across from a pregnant woman and having the table touching both of our stomachs gets a little uncomfortable. This is the only downside to the restaurant.

The service is amazing. Before we had settled in a waiter brought us chips and salsa and asked for our drink order. He was very courteous and promptly brought our drinks back. He came back just as we were ready to order. As we waited for our food the chips began to run low, and a waiter promptly gave us a new bowl of chips. We asked the waiter for some spicier salsa, which he also promptly brought us. More on the salsa to come. A moment later our food arrived. We had waited less than 5 minutes from the time we ordered. This was the same speedy service we received on the previous visit, even with the huge crowd. Our waiter came back and refilled our drinks as we needed them. As we were eating, he noticed that our bowl of chips had a lot of broken pieces. He told us it was no good and brought us a fresh bowl with larger, unbroken chips. Once we were done, he quickly brought us our check. We were in and out in less than thirty minutes.

The food here is among the best I have had in California, and definitely in Ventura County. This counts all food, and not just Mexican food. There are two things I order when I want to get a feel for a new Mexican restaurant: shredded beef and a Chile Relleno. From those two items I can tell if I am going to like a place or not. Technically the salsa is a third indicator, but it is not something I have to order so I won't count it for the moment. The first visit I ordered a mini burrito with shredded beef and a Chile Relleno combo plate. For a mini burrito, it was pretty substantial. Between the two items and the chips and salsa, I had a very satisfying and filling meal.

Tonight I ordered the Carne Ranchero, which is basically Carne Asada with a side of guacamole and Pico de Gallo. The meat was incredibly tender, and there was plenty of it. They served it with a choice of flour or corn tortillas. I favor flour tortillas typically, so I ordered the flour. They served two large, apparently home-made flour tortillas piping hot with my meal. I could have used a third one, but I am trying to cut back a little on carbs at the moment, so I didn't mind only having two. This was the best Carne Asada I have had in a restaurant. My wife was pretty impressed too when she tasted it. She has only ordered the Chile Verde so far, which she loves.

The salsa is pretty mild, and my two year old son has no problem eating it. I asked for a spicier salsa and it was really good. It tasted a little like a Chile Relleno, so I am guessing it had more than one kind of pepper in it. It had a nice aftertaste, and that is when you feel the heat. I have had far spicier salsas, but this one was both spicy and great-tasting. In my opinion it doesn't matter how hot it is if it tastes bad. I would definitely recommend the spicy salsa.

On a side note, my wife has banned myself and my mom from judging heat for anything she eats. Things I thing are ridiculously mild have burned her mouth more than a couple of times. I had her taste the mild salsa tonight so I could be sure I gave a fair review of the heat. Again, my two year old could eat it without drinking any water, so it is a pretty safe bet when I call it mild.

The service and food here are really good. I give a 4.5 out of 5 for service, and a 4.5 for the food. My wife and I intend to become regular customers here.

RATING:

Peking Chinese Restaurant

Peking Chinese Restaurant
5960 Telegraph Rd, Ventura
Phone: 805-644-7777
Cuisine: Chinese

A few weeks ago I took my wife and son to the Peking Chinese Restaurant in Ventura. We were driving around indecisively when we stumbled across it. My wife loves Chinese food, and swears by the quality of Chinese food in Oregon. Having received more than an adequate dose of it last year, I came to the conclusion that she was wrong and that California has better Chinese food. So, we have been on a quest of sorts ever since, trying to find Chinese food that we both like. This is why we decided to give this place a try.

When we first walked in, we were greeted cordially. The place was pretty dark, and the decorations were pretty plain, which was fine with us. It seemed that we were in for some pretty basic fare, but we were determined to give it a shot. We found that they had a choice of three different prices for entrees and appetizers. Having been accustomed to Panda Express, we assumed we had to share the appetizers. We ordered the medium priced option, and were pleasantly surprised when they brought us each the appetizers. We had spring rolls, paper wrapped chicken, and a cream-cheese stuffed won-ton. We both had Egg Drop soup, which was pretty good.

The soft drinks were served in large cups, and the refills were prompt. The wait staff was very friendly, and we did not lack anything the entire time.

I ordered the Kung Pao chicken, as I use this dish to determine the quality of a Chinese restaurant. My wife ordered a chicken dish which is escaping recollection at the moment. I will ask her about it and update this post. The ratio of chicken to water chestnuts was acceptable. I hate it when restaurants add tons of celery or water chestnuts and skimp on the chicken. This place passed this particular test. The heat was a little low on my preferred scale, but was too spicy for my wife. This means that it had some measure of heat, though I couldn't taste it. My wife's heat sensors are far more sensitive than mine. It was still pretty good though, and had plenty of peppers to make up the heat.

The wait staff was pretty impressive, as was the food. I give the service an 4 out of 5, and the food gets an 4 as well. This is the best Chinese food we have had in Ventura County so far.

RATING:

Mandarin House

Mandarin House
4020 E. Main St., Ventura
Phone: (805) 654-0933
Cuisine: Chinese

Sunday evening I took my wife and son to the Mandarin House. It appears to be a chain, so I will add that I went to the one on Main Street in Ventura. This place got high marks for both food and service at ventura.com.

When we arrived we were cordially greeted and promptly seated. We were seated near the fish tank, which thrilled my two year old son. The waiter arrived with our crispy noodles and sweet and sour sauce, and then disappeared. A few minutes later the waiter came by to ask what we wanted to drink. My wife ordered a Coke, but I, being a Pepsi guy wanted to see what alternatives to Coke there were. This seemed to confuse the waiter, and it turned out the choices were Coke or Diet Coke. I chose an iced tea, and immediately regretted it. It was horrible. I sucked it up and asked for a Coke to replace it. The water came just after we had ordered our drinks.

It seems to be a pattern at Chinese restaurants where a couple can order an all-inclusive meal from one of three categories, with the appetizers and entrees getting better as the price goes up. We tend to settle for the middle road, as we did last night. I tried to ask about the appetizers in the highest price level, since I did not know what Pu Pu meant. He just told me it was a combination, but didn't tell me what was in it. We ordered the other option, since we at least knew what we would be getting.

The lady who seated us came back and brought us more crispy noodles, just as our first batch ran low. The waiter arrived shortly after with the soup. He poured three bowls for us, and left the larger bowl on the table for us to finish. The Egg Flower soup was really good, and my son couldn't get enough of it. Daddy had to eat with his left hand while he fed him with his right hand, as the large spoon was a little awkward for my son.

The appetizers came next, and for the most part were pretty good. The spring rolls were the worst of the bunch, but still not that bad. They seemed to be pretty heavily infused with black pepper. After dipping them in a variety of sauces they became more palatable. The paper wrapped chicken was pretty good, as was the fried shrimp.

The meal came shortly after, and the portions were pretty large. The Kung Pao chicken I ordered was so mild that even my son could eat it without flinching. To me, if you aren't drinking after every bite, it is not hot enough. That being the case, I think this could have used quite a bit more heat. The Kung Pao was pretty much even in the chicken to water chestnut ratio, which is a good thing. A lot of places lately are adding so many water chestnuts or other filler that you don't get to taste the chicken. My wife's Almond Chicken had much more flavor, with a strong hint of garlic. We both liked it quite a bit more than the Kung Pao.

The waiter came back a couple of times to refill our drinks, but made himself scarce for the most part. I found that we had to wait longer than necessary for refills, considering the sparse crowd in the restaurant. That being said, I think I would give the service a 3.5 out of 5. The food would be about a 3.5 as well. This was a pretty decent restaurant, and we would both consider going back.

RATING:

Why I Won't Shop at the Oxnard Wal-Mart Again

I went to Wal-Mart last weekend to get my oil changed. I have been going to Wal-Mart for years now, as I like all the extra stuff they do for the price. Typically, I park my car somewhere near the garage, walk to the counter, hand them my key, tell them where to find my car, and all is good. Occasionally there will be someone guiding traffic, and I will arrange for the oil change right there.

This day turned out to be different. This is my first oil change since moving to Oxnard last October. Some of you are thinking I should have had my oil changed long before last week, and you would be right. I am well aware of how I should have done this far sooner.

Now, this Wal-Mart is already pretty ghetto, but I was hoping for some sense of normalcy in the automotive department. I pull my car into a spot near the garage, and walk in to turn in my key. The person behind the counter tells me that I do not set up the oil change inside, but am supposed to talk to the guy that is out there. She also told me to park my car in the back of the line outside. I had just taken my son out of his car seat, and in a two-door car, this is a somewhat difficult task. I informed them that there was no guy outside, and it would have been nice to know the arrangement before I took him out of his car seat. She just shrugged. I was mildly annoyed, but thought I would just get over it and go about my day.

I was meeting my wife at the Wal-Mart so we could do our grocery shopping elsewhere while we waited, and managed to meet up with her on the way back to my car. I told her of my annoyance, and gave my son to her so I wouldn't have to put him back in the car seat. I then pulled into the line. Again, nobody was standing around, and I saw one guy pull the first car in line into the garage, so I thought I was in the right place. I leave my engine running and step out of the car part-way, trying to scope out the situation. I was quickly confronted with an angry voice telling me that the line didn't start where I was. I looked around, saw no other cars, and waited until he finished his reproach. There was no attempt at customer service, no "Hey, I noticed you aren't familiar with this particular Wal-Mart's procedures, let me help you out." No, I just got railed on for no apparent reason.

At this point I was more than slightly annoyed. I expressed my dissatisfaction by commenting on how the process was incredibly stupid. The next thing I know, he is rushing me with violent intent in his eyes, and he demanded to know if I called him stupid. Of all the things I wanted to say at that point, I informed him that I was calling Wal-Mart's procedures stupid, and not him. It took a little time for this to sink in, and he continued his approach. I had to open the door wider to keep him from being able to physically assault me. Can you imagine that? Instead of customer service I get confronted with a seemingly imminent assault?

I don't know if I managed to appease him, or if he realized there was a woman with her kids watching, or what, but he finally backed off and walked away. Needless to say I did not get my oil changed that day. I was pretty fired up at that point, and spent the next half an hour venting my frustration in a more productive manner than the one almost used against me.

I was already having second thoughts about this particular Wal-Mart, but this event seems reason enough to boycott the Oxnard Wal-Mart for the foreseeable future.

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