CRAZY BLOCK CHEESECAKE

A local pop-up purveyor of multi flavored cheesecakes has opened a brick and mortar restaurant. They serve an eclectic mix of menu items that include bbq, latkes and cheesecakes. Crazy Block Cheesecakes located on Lakeshore Avenue in  Oakland California serves two of my favorite food groups; cheesecake & bbq. I had to give them a try. My parking karma found me a metered spot a block and ½ away. If you know the Lakeshore area this is considered a win.

Crazy Block had only been open for a couple of weeks. It has that freshly opened look. They have a graffiti type slash skateboard vibe inside and out. The servers were young and very friendly.  The enthusiastic owner was also present and was more than willing to assist with any menu questions. I ordered a three way combo of smoked chicken, lamb and brisket. It came with several options for a side and I chose macaroni & cheese. I had to order a cheesecake and I got a mini chocolate and caramel offering.

You want to love a new restaurant. You hope for their success. Hopefully I caught them on an off day but my meal was very unspectacular. The meats were over smoked. The chicken was tough. I am glad I knew this was lamb because I would have never guessed. The presentation of the chopped meats had a cat food type look. The brisket was meh. One nibble of the mac & cheese and I stopped abruptly for fear of being overwrought with melancholy. The cheesecake I had such high hopes for. It was not terrible and I am possibly being generous. I will not return.

ANGELO'S BEEF JERKY

 

Angleo makes the best beef jerky. He is pretty spry for being in his 90's. He is at work 6 days a week and stays very busy. I visited him last week and picked up a sampler pack of his jerky. So good!

Angelo’s Meats

2700 Adobe Road

Petaluma, CA 94954

707-763-9586

SAINT PATRICK WAS ITALIAN

 Saint Patrick was not Italian but we celebrated his day at the Colombo Italian Club. We had some of the most fantastic pesto pasta with a side of corned beef. This beef was boiled and served with cabbage. This is not my favorite way to cook this traditional faire. It does make it easy to serve the hungry club and with a good dosing of mustard it is very tasty.

My favorite method of cooking corned beef is on the smoker. This is a Snake River Farm corned beef round using American Wagyu beef.............So good.

BACKYARD ON THE GRAPE 2025

 Backyard on the Grape is a practice bbq contest held at the fairgrounds in Lodi California. 14 teams dusted the cobwebs from their smokers/bbq's and did a mock battle. A winner was declared but  the teams were there mainly for the open face to face critique judging format. Normally the judging is blind. This means judges never see the cooks and do not know who cooked the entry. Today the cook submits his entry and the judges critique his entry face to face. It is a good learning experined for judges and cook. It helps the cook see what judges are looking for and makes judges articulate their scores.

It was a fun tasty day. Let the bbq season begin.

TALES OF THE CRUMBSWEEPER

Last night we celebrated our 32nd wedding anniversary and my birthday. We went to the swanky steakhouse in San Francisco called Harris’. They advertise; acclaimed dry-aged steaks served in a posh, wood-paneled dining room, plus live jazz in the bar. There is a dress code of ‘Business Casual”. We have certain high expectations of the night. Food, service, ambiance and importantly will the ‘Crumbsweeper make an appearance? The Crumbsweeper is a very important aspect of service extraordinaire. The Crumbsweeper is the crescendo of a fine dining experience. The simple act of crumb sweeping is a gesture which cleanses the table after the entrees.  It is not an act of finality but a ritual to prepare you for the decadent courses to follow.

The Crumbsweeper magically appeared twice. The photo is blurry because the Crumbsweeper was so fast and would not slow down for a silly photo. The steaks last night were high and lofty with a price tag to match. My bone-in dry aged N.Y. Strip steak was a buttery/umami bomb. The aging process added certain funkiness and the most beautiful savory flavor. Ms. Goofy had a prime rib that put the “House” down the street on notice. It was tender and beefy which was enjoyed. 

Overall, this was a wonderful celebration. All our expectations were met and we had multiple visits from the Crumbsweeper.  I love you Ms. Goofy. To quote “The Great One” (Jackie Gleason); ‘Baby, you’re the greatest!!’

BOWL OF RED

 We love chili and a bowl of red is a great way to warm up a chilly afternoon. We decided to give Texas Chili Seasoning by Meat Church BBQ a try. Meat Church makes some pretty decent bbq rubs. We browned a pound of hamburger and added the recomended amount of seasoning. We then added some diced tomatoes and a few beans. How did it taste you ask?

    The flavor was good with chili and cumin. There was a slight actually big problem of the amount of salt in this mix. Ms. Goofy got half-way through her bowl and proclamed; Too Salty. You can't win them all. Today was a fail.

CARROT CAKE

 

I am so spoiled by Ms. Goofy. Nobody can say I am not eating my vegetables.