Ray's Tapeyac Tamales

Ray's Tapeyac is one restaurant that I have never walked away from without feeling like I need a nap. They just give you a lot of food. Now there Tamales are no exception coming with beans and rice. There is nothing I enjoy more than scooping up those beans with the chips that come with every meal.

Now, the Tamales are not very traditional. The masa is rather smooth and these are not hot at all. I was surprised at just how mild these were. 

Ray's Tamales are fine and all but there are much better things on the menu. 

Nutty But Nice Lime & Jalapeno Almond Dip

'Nutty But Nice' makes four almond dips of which 'Lime & Jalapeno' is one. I will point out that the jalapeno in this is rather mild but the lime is rather strong. I found this to be a creamy delight that helped my brother eat his raw vegetables. I would buy this again.  

Old Town Baking Company Pretzel Bread Burger Bun

'Old Town Baking Company' has a booth in my local farmer's market and they had these 'Pretzel Bread Burger Bun'. Now I've only officially had Ralphs Pretzel Bread and I hated that so this had to be a step up and I go looking for new things to try at my farmer's market every week.

So, I tried these and i will say they are very good. Not the best for you and much better warm but they make a better burger than a normal bun will. These are not pre-cut but not hard to slice so making them into sandwiches is easy. They are better if you heat them up some but over all a great buy.

Knudsen Cottage Cheese 4% Milkfat Min - Small Curd

Some one asked me what I put in my melons. Well, this. Sometimes anyway. Knudsen Cottage Cheese 4% Milkfat Min - Small Curd is, well, Cottage Cheese. I'm not sure what else to say about it past that. I mean, creamy, cold, and satisfying Knurdsen makes my melon complete .

Why is it you can never find large curd now days? 

Zen Tea House Organic Rooibos

Zen Tea House's Organic Rooibos is a tisane that yields a brown tea like beverage that is not bitter. I liked if far batter as an ice tea than a hot one. I will note that some of the leaves got past the strainer so be wary of that aspect. 

All in all I think this is good stuff. It is not caffeinated and has a high level of Vitamin C. I think this is good for you but who can be sure?

Trader Joe's Veggie & Flaxseed Tortilla Chips

Trader Joe's 'Veggie & Flaxseed Tortilla Chips' are some of the best chips I've had in the tortilla or flax department. They have a strong enough flavor to be eaten on their own or with dip.

I have to say that these are so good that I'm putting them on my buy list. Total win. 

Pagasa Tomato Spaghetti

Pagasa Tomato Spaghetti is something of a let down. It tastes about like normal spaghetti and boasts of very little in the way of health upgrades to the normal spaghetti as well.

All in all it was worth trying but unless you eat a good deal of spaghetti then this is not worth buying. Then, I got it at a dollar store and it was only a buck. 

Sundried Tomato & Basil Wheat Thins

'Sundried Tomato & Basil Wheat Thins' are like wheat thins with a flavor boost. This was the last box on the store shelf when I found them and I thought they were totally kicking. I hope to see these again.

Canada Dry Lemon Lime Sparkling Seltzer Water

I ran into 'Canada Dry Lemon Lime Sparkling Seltzer Water' and thought it was soda. It's not soda because it is not sweetened in any way. Sporting zero calories is a plus and I do find this refreshing.

I can't say I'm putting this on my buy list, but I can't say I'm keeping it off.

Wild Mike's Ultimate Pizza Pepperoni

Wild Mike's Ultimate Pizza Pepperoni is about as wild as I would expect a man named Mike to be. Well, it's about as wild as a man named Erwin would be expected to be in a sitcom about taxes.

That is to say the only wild thing about this pizza is that it is larger than other pizza. I've had cups of black coffee wilder than this!

Coco's Bakery Whole Grain and Nut Pancakes

Coco's Bakery Whole Grain and Nut Pancakes where on the menu at my local Coco's but I can't find them on line. Well, as pancakes go these are very good and they only have enough calories to make two meals. I'm going to start adding nuts into my pancakes just to see if I can make these myself. 

Coco's Bakery Hash Browns

Coco's Bakery Hash Browns are the same thing you get just about any where. Honestly, it's getting creepy just how often I've had these things in my life.

Jack in the Box Crispy Chicken Strips

Of the things in this fast food world that are recognizable from there image chicken strips are one. In these live the ghost of chicken past that once was battered and fried.

These strips are not wonderful but they are not terrible. Back in the day when I had Jack I thought it was nasty. Now, I just think it's middle of the road. Good job, Jack.

Jack in the Box Caramel Iced Coffee

Jack in the Box Caramel Iced Coffee is an ice coffee with the caramel missing. It was okay.

Jack in the Box French Fries

Jack in the Box French Fries are french fries. They are about as middle ground as I can find in the way of fries. They get the job done but are otherwise not worth eating.

End-Cut Pork Chops

I'm reviewing here the 'End-Cut Pork Chop' which is a pork chop that is irregular and may ore may not have a bone. You need to watch out for these because they're almost worthless for baking. These are best for stewing or anything where you're going to cut up the meat. It's hard to give everyone the right amount with these because of their odd shapes.

Trader Joe's 10 Minute Farro

Farro is a kind of wheat, well, any of three kinds of wheat, but it's still wheat. Eating this stuff is kind of a way to get back to nature, because you're eating a grain without making it into bread. I'm not sure if that makes it better four you but Farro is a great substitute for rice or barley.

Again, this stuff is just grain so unless you want to get back to nature or you're interested in eating healthy this is not for you. For those of us who would like to not look like me: great stuff.  

Subway Sandwiches Nine Grain Honey Oat Bread

Subway Sandwiches 'Nine Grain Honey Oat' Bread is the same as wheat bread only rolled in oats. I will point out that it has more character than normal wheat bread.  

Still, if you think you're getting something all that much better you're just wrong.

Trader Joe's Premium Chunk White Chicken

Trader Joe's "Premium Chunk White Chicken" is a canned chicken I picked up to get my brother to eat more salad. This failed miserably but it's good chicken. 

I'll grand you that canned chicken isn't much of a thing to review, but I put most of this in a salad and the rest I grilled with mushrooms to add to pasta. It worked rather well for both. 

If you like salad this is a great thing to have around the house.

Peru Chanchamayo Dark Roast

Peru Chanchamayo Dark Roast is a dark coffee that will get you up in the morning. It's not a feel good coffee like Equal Exchange but this is a great coffee.

I still get better stuff at my local Trader Joe's but this is good too.

Claim Jumper Classic Cheeseburger

Coming with cheddar, greens, tomato, and Thousand Island dressing Claim Jumper's 'Classic Cheeseburger' is sort of a classic. It is normally what someone gets when they get dragged to Claim Jumper but they're not into stuffing their face until they get sick.

It's an okay burger about as good as I would get from a mom and pop burger shop but it's no In N' Out.

Claim Jumper Hand-battered Onion Rings

Once again I'm subjected to onion rings and I don't like onions. Claim Jumper's "Hand-battered Onion Rings" are of the more tolerable variety. Half the rings I had didn't separate from the batter and the other half did leaving me with a mouthful of onion. 

Good onion rings don't come away from the onion and when these don't come away they are very good but when they do they are disappointing.  

Claim Jumper Bread

Much like 'Outback Stake House', 'Claim Jumper' has bread that comes to you with a knife stuck in it to prove that the staff freshly killed it for you.

I will say that this is a bread, not a great bread, but one with stuff on it that tastes good. I would have proffered if the flavor had been throughout rather than just on top.

Further, They only served one of these rather than bringing more. I will say that I was stuffed after my meal so I didn't need more bread, but I would have liked them to ask. 

Pepsi Cola Made with Real Sugar

My biggest problem with Pepsi Cola Made with Real Sugar is that I had to take this kind of a picture because I keep drinking it before I got around to making a meal around this beverage.

This stuff is totally kicking, I recommend it for a mixer with good whisky. I generally save this for the Wild Turkey 101. Real sugar is always better.

Campfire Ghostbusters Marshmallows

Campfire Ghostbusters Marshmallows are, well, big marshmallows. The biggest difference is the size. I'll admit I haven't tried roasting these, but they're just big marshmallows that come stuck together in the pack. 

SpaghettiOs Beefy TacOs

I ran across these SpaghettiOs 'Beefy TacOs' at my local dollar store and figured that they would make a great review. As they taste nothing like tacos they make a poor product but who wouldn't want to know more about a taco related topic. 

There is no hint of tortilla or taco shell and the spice is almost unnoticeable. These are so a bust. Richard is sad.

Hostess Twinkies Key Lime Slime

Hostess Twinkies Key Lime Slime were put into production for the new Ghostbusters movie and look kind of nasty. I can see how they were somewhat hard to find.

They taste a good deal better than they look and in fact once my brother tried them he wouldn't stop asking if we had more until I got ticked off at him for interrupting my work.

I have never had Key Lime pie so I can't say if these taste like the real deal. I can say that I think they are better than normal Twinkies, but I haven't had one of those in years. 

Carmagnola Tomato & Basil

Carmagnola 'Tomato & Basil' is a pasta sauce more suited for boiling your meatballs because it's smoother than less sticky that other sauces. Thus it can stand a good deal more boiling without burning.

This is a sauce made in Italy so I guess it's authentic. I think it was just strong enough so that if you like to spice up you're sauce with you're own herbs you can. 

I will have to look closer at the labels next time I head for good old Prego with this stuff around so, yes, I thought this was very good.

Jack Daniel's No. 2

Definitely an improvement over Jack No.1, Jack No.2 is almost worth drinking. It's still a collectors addition alcohol for people who aren't smart enough to know that alcohol should be for drinking. I wouldn't buy this unless it was cheaper than the normal fair and I needed the money but it didn't suck.

Paisley Farms Organic Marinated Mushrooms

Paisley Farms 'Marinated Mushrooms' are a preserved mushroom for your salad. I'd cut these up if I were you because they're large for preserved mushrooms but very flavorful. I have to say these are about as good as the ones I get at Trader Joe's only larger. These are a buy.

Cooked Perfect Turkey Meatballs

Any company calling itself 'Cooked Perfect' has a big name to live up to and these Turkey Meatballs don't come close. They tasted okay but had a soft texture that didn't feel like meat. I've had better and I've had worse. I would say if you have no other alternative go with these but there are better turkey meatballs in this world.

Panera Bread Caramel Latte

The Panera Bread Caramel Latte looks nothing like the picture online. At Three Hundred and ninety food calories I would also have to point out that it's much more calories than a soda and a good deal less refreshing. 

I didn't think much of this offering from Panera Bread and health wise you should be more interested in the smoothies than this liquid candy. 

Momentum Brands 9" Glass Flower Design Bowl Rose

I ran into these glass bowls at a dollar store and paid two dollars for each. That's some funny math for you.

To add insult to injury I have one brake when I stopped hard on the way home. Momentum killed my Momentum Brands bowl?! So that was ironic but the bowls stood up to the dishwasher and held salad which is what I got them for. I can't figure how I could say a bowl is a good or bad product but this is 'Richard Review Everything' so every now and again I have to review something that tickles my brain some  and this fit the bill. If you need salad bowls these work just fine and I will be looking to replace the one that broke.