Mini-Reviews: Hank's 44th Birthday Blitz

Yep, I'm 44.  Deal with it!

Okay readers. One of the advantages of joining a restaurant chain's eClub is you get coupons, discounts and usually a free or reduced price item over a week to 10 days surrounding your birthday, or in some rare cases, for the whole birthday month.  I decided to to use the plethora of birthday promos I received in my EMail this year as a basis for this blog post, and give you the best ones I received.  However, before I dig into this, I want to make a disclaimer:

I DO NOT CONDONE NOR AM I SUGGESTING THAT ANYONE USE OR ABUSE A RESTAURANT LOYALTY PROGRAM, TO CONDUCT ANY FRAUDULENT ACTIVITY OR TO BE A CHEAPSKATE.  I BOUGHT OTHER ITEMS BESIDES THE FREE ITEM.  I TIPPED ANY WAIT STAFF ON FULL BASE PRICE OF FOOD, PLUS EXTRA DUE TO THE DISCOUNT. 

RESTAURANTS ARE BUSINESSES THAT EMPLOY PEOPLE WHO NEED THOSE JOBS TO BE ABLE TO LIVE AND EVERYONE SHOULD BE RESPECTFUL OF THAT.   

Now that I got that bit of business out of the way, let's talk food and birthdays.  As much as these restaurants use these birthday promos to drum up business and boost revenue, they generate an amazing amount of good will for the business, and for the foodie, you can get some nice food at a fair discount on your birthday.  I was fairly happy with the following items from different companies for my birthday:

1.  Steak 'n Shake:  Free Doublesteakburger with Cheese'n Fries

Chocolate Banana Shake

Personally, I like the Steak 'n Shake chain and have reviewed it before.  They have a great variety of shakes, they have great burgers and they also occasionally have some great deals.  2 PM to 4PM and 2 AM to 4 AM are Happy Hours where all shakes and soft drinks are half price.  Also, joining their eClub gets you a deal for the week of your birthday and coupons in the mail or in your email.  I enjoyed a wonderful Doublesteakburger with Cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickles sliced the long way and Frisco Sauce, with bacon cheddar fries.  And I was there during Happy Hour, so I also got a chocolate banana shake at half price.  Wonderful meal.  Wonderful deal for my birthday.  The chocolate banana shake was especially good, and pickles cut the long way are always right on a good double cheese burger.  Grade: A 

North Coast Old Rasputin

2.  Free Pint from the Tap wall at The Flying Saucer Draught Emporium
The Flying Saucer in Sugar Land has become my local watering hole due to my goal of getting a spot on their Ring of Honor by trying 200 different craft brews in a year.  Since this pint was free, I decided to choose the rarest and highest end pint I could that fell into one of my favourite beer categories (stouts, dark ales, alt, bock).  After conversing with the barkeep, I went with the North Coast Old Rasputin. Brewed in the traditional style of imperial stout, this is a classic example. This black top fermented beer has an aroma of roasted barley & coffee. It is full-bodied with a palate of slightly bitter coffee, chocolate, sweet malt & some alcohol. Lingering finish.  Grade: A++ 

Getting the shakes
At the Counter!!! 

3.  Free Shake at The Counter with the purchase of a Burger
The Counter on Washington Ave. is one of my fave high end burger joints.  I go there a few times a year and have yet to ever have anything but a wonderful experience.  I decided to build a Hank on Food Burger with what ingredients they had and substituted others they did not have.  I ordered one of their Peanut Butter Chocolate banana shakes at my son Jason's suggestion.  It was sweet, a little sticky and salty, choclatey and ooohhhhhh so coool on a hot day in Houston!  Grade: A

4. Free Entrée with purchase of Same at The Union Kitchen

Paul's chicken
camerafail. 

The Union Kitchen is one of the best places I've tried this year.  I really wished I'd tried them sooner.  Between Jack Tyler Dines and a student whose dad does all their printing, I was nudged enough to give them a try and I've been back again for their wonderful brunch.  I had Paul's Chicken (Grilled Chicken with signature Smokey BBQ Sauce, applewood Smoked Bacon and Cheddar Cheese).  This was smokey, juicy, grilled perfection.  A real winner!!!
Grade: A+

Sirloin Nachos

5.  Free Appetizer at Texas Land & Cattle
Texas Land & Cattle is a great steak chain I've reviewed before.  It's an old standby whose spicy Caesar salad always makes me happy as a prelude to their glorious porterhouse T-bones and well marbled ribeyes.     You really can't go wrong with a good steak, and nachos are always good, so I went with their Smoked Sirloin Nachos.  These are old school baked nachos, with sour cream and lettuce in center for dipping, but they are loaded with sliced sirloin steak atop the chips and below the cheese.  Crunchy, cheesey, sirloiny goodness!!!   Grade: A

6.  Free Chips & Queso at Bullritos

Chips & Queso at Bullritos

This top contender following my Battle of the Burritos last year has a great eClub called "The Herd" that always alerts you to specials.  Bullritos is a great local chain and I had their chips and queso.  Very crunchy.  Very cheesy.  Nice peppers and tomatoes.  I usually get my Bullritos done as nachos anyhoo, but this was just plain good snacking.    Grade: A-  

7.  Free Appetizer at Longhorn Steakhouse

Bacon-Wrapped Potato Wedges at
Longhorn Steakhouse

Bacon wrapped potato wedges, GET IN MAH BELLY!!!  This was some of the best of the best.  I love crunchy outside, soft inside Yukon Gold potato wedges.  I love bacon.  I love herbs and cheese.  Wrap up those potato wedges with the bacon and spritz with the herbs and cheese, and you've got one of the best new appetizers I've had in a long time!  Epic win!!!  Grade: A++

Birthday Bundt Cake and
Decaf Sumatra 

8.  Free Birthday Treat at The Corner Bakery and Café
I haven't given The Corner Bakery and Café a proper review yet, though this high end chain is on my short list of places I want to give a proper write up for.  It's  a take off on a Chicago or New York Style bakery/café that serves great sandwiches and baked goods.  I chose to get a Birthday mini Bundt cake with a small cup of Decaf Sumatra coffee.  The cake was dense, very sweet and just enough to satisfy a sweet tooth, but not so much as to overpower it.  The icing was a little heavy, but the confetti in it was fun.  The Decaf Sumatra coffee is very good and was fresh.  Grade: B+

9.  Free Birthday Burger at Red Robin.  

Tavern Double, with Hatch
Green Chiles/GC Aioli

Red Robin is a chain I discovered when I moved to the Seattle area in the late 1990s.  I moved back to Houston 7 months later, but I was happy when they opened up shop in Houston about a year after I came back.  They have managed to stay alive in our cut throat dining market and it's one of those casual chains that began expanding our thoughts about what could go on a burger decades ago.  What's also great is if you get a RedRobinRoyalty loyalty card AND register it online, you get a free burger during your birthday month. My usual standby is is the Royal Red--can't help but love a burger with bacon and a fried egg on it!  However this time I tried their new Tavern Double.  Two patties, cheese, tavern sauce, lettuce, tomato and pickles.  I styled it up with pepper jack cheese,  Hatch green chile peppers and green chile aioli.  I wanted to spring for a Fried egg on it, but they said no add ons.  That's fine.  It was was quite good as is.  Grade: A-

House Cheeseburger at
The Brick House

10. Brick House Tavern & Tap House Cheeseburger & Fries
Personally I like how this burger is shaped like a long hoagie sandwich.  The beef is sweet and juicy.  The veggies tasted fresh and it was a nice, satisfying, gastropub style burger.  The atmosphere at The Brick House doesn't hurt either.  They may claim to be changing some of their model (per the Houston Press), but each time I go their, the model looks the same and I'm happy with it.  This burger was very satisfying and Brick House is always awesome. Grade: B+ 

11.  Einstein Bros. Free Breakfast Sandwich with beverage purchase

Nova Lox at Einstein Bros. 

Einstein Bro. Bagels is a great chain that has a nice selection of bagels (asiago cheese is a fave), schmears of cream cheese (sun dried tomato is my fave), breakfast sandwiches and darn good coffee.  I selected a Nova Lox (smoked Atlantic Salmon caught near Nova Scotia, Canada) Breakfast sandwich on a good grains bagel, with plain cream cheese, capers and tomato.  I had it with Melvyn's Dark Roast Coffee.  This is a great, rib-sticking breakfast that stays with you all morning.  the salmon is smokey and yet delicate, well complemented by the cream cheese, tomato and capers.  It came with red onion rings that I removed.  Grade: A

Folks, at 44 years old, my life is well under way. One of the great joys of my life has always been sharing good food with family and good friends--whether I've been the chef or it's been a great restaurant.  This blog has been my way of sharing good food that I like with folks from all over the planet who also share this love.  As long as I can continue to share great food healthily with you all, I will keep on writing this blog.

As always my motto is for you to Eat Happy!
Zao an, Y'all!!!

Hank L.
HankonFood.com