Stranger Things 4: The Food!

I have been a fan of Stranger Things since it debuted on Netflix in 2016, so the 3 year wait for season 4 was killing me! I loved season 3, but it left me wanting more. Luckily for us fans part 1 of season 4 dropped last week and I really enjoyed watching it with my wife and daughter. I got both of them hooked on the show and have even sucked them in to all the tie ins that have come along with the success of Stranger Things. Nothing can top the Baskin Robbins marketing from 2019 when they transformed their stores into Scoops Ahoy Ice Cream parlors, but I was excited to see this cryptic web page pop up for Domino's a few weeks ago.

I was hoping we would get a fantastic 80's themed, interactive version of Domino's pizza stores, but that was not to be. We got a fairly lame "Mind Ordering" app that doesn't even work on my phone for some compatibility reason! In my opinion the app was a bust, but at least we got...

these SWEET retro 80's Domino's Pizza boxes. The boxes hide all sorts of little Stranger Things Easter eggs. If you get one, I suggest you check every nook & cranny for some Hawkins inspired fun! The other cool thing about this promotion was the ad promoting the campaign. It features Dustin & Lucas going to their local Domino's, when all of a sudden strange things start to happen!

The app may have been a miss for me, but this promotional campaign was a sure fire home run! The next cool food tie-in for Stranger Things season 4 came to us courtesy of Doritos!

Each bag of Doritos is adorned with the creepy image of a Demogorgon getting ready to strike. I love the design of this villain. It is one of the coolest monster creations that I have seen in a long time, but just as the evil of the Upside Down has spread all over Hawkins...

the Stranger Things branding made it's way over to the Doritos 3Ds bags! I have never tried this "Spicy Ranch" flavor before, but it is fantastic! Myself and my daughter snacked on these while we watched the first few episodes of season 4 and we were not disappointed in the flavor or the excitement of the new season! You may have noticed the "FREE TICKET" graphics on each of these bags and that's the really cool thing about this crossover. On June 23rd there will be a concert "Live From The Upside Down" featuring Corey Heart, Soft Cell, The Go-Go's and for some unknown reason Charlie XCX. You get to view this streaming concert for free after you scan your bag of Doritos. You better believe I already scanned and have my passes ready for the show! Check out the add below for more deets on this concert event!

Another oddity from the rush of Stranger Things foods are these Skinny Butcher "Crazy Crispy Chick'N Nuggets". 

From what I've seen so far, there is no tie to the show. Nobody eats these nuggets, the Skinny Butcher is not a brand from the show and were "Plant Based" meat items even a thing in the 80's? Anyway, I was suckered in based on the Stranger Things logo on the box and honestly, these weren't that bad. My wife threw them in the air fryer and my kids even enjoyed them. Still scratching my head on the connection to Stranger Things though? Do they raise plant based chickens in the Upside Down?

By far, my favorite Stranger Things Season 4 food has to be these Surfer Boy frozen pizzas from Walmart. Surfer Boy Pizza is a fictional California based pizza place created specifically for the show. Jonathan's friend Argyle works at the shop and acts as the comedic relief during the gang's trip across America to find Eleven. I like his character. He has some flaws, but hey, we all do! Anyway, back to the pizza, Surfer Boy Pizza comes in 4 flavors: Pineapple Jalapeno, Pepperoni, Supreme and Multi-Meat. So far we have tried the Pineapple Jalapeno & Multi-Meat. They are not bad! If you feel like calling Surfer Boy Pizza in an attempt to order your own za, you can actually call Argyle at 805-45-PIZZA and don't forget to try before you deny!

That's it for now. I can't wait for Part 2 of Season 4 to drop on July 1st! It's gonna be AMAZING!!! Is anyone else hungry now?

Discontinued Candy I Want Back!

I don't know about you but there are just certain things in life that can bring back strong nostalgia and make those memories of the good old days flood back to you. Certain smells, beats & lyrics from a favorite song or tastes of a favorite food or drink can make those good times come back if not only for a quick minute. For me certain candies can transport me back to my childhood in the 80's & 90's. Fortunately for us, a lot of those candies are still around, but in some instances they have been discontinued and we will never experience them again! If I owned my own candy company, these are the sugary treats I would like to revive...

Bonkers Fruit Candy

Nabisco brands produced these chewy fruit flavored candies in the 80's & early 90's. My favorite was the grape flavored. One of the most amazing aspects of this candy was the incredible advertising campaign that was created to help sell Bonkers. Typically there was an older lady who would be crushed by giant fruits that would crash through her ceiling and while this woman was trapped underneath, she would laugh out loud while the slogan "Bonkers Bonks You Out" was said on screen. If you have never seen these commercials, you can check out one at the bottom of this article. Recently the Bonkers brand was bought by LEAF and allegedly they are in the process of bringing these back! According to the LEAF website they... "are in the process of acquiring the machinery needed to wrap these amazing fruit chews." 

Candilicious

This 80's candy was created by the same company that brought us Bubblicious Bubble Gum. Candilicious was created to be a competitor to Starburst candies. If memory serves me right, these came in packs of 12 candies that were assorted flavors and they were a little bigger and softer than Starburst. Once again, my interest for this 80's candy was based solely on the commercials that I would see on T.V. I remember seeing them mostly while I would watch "Saved By The Bell" on Saturday mornings. 

The Real Ghostbusters Gummy Ghost Candies

I searched all the internets and could not find a picture of the Ghostbusters gummy ghosts that were around in the late 80's/early 90's, but they were extremely similar to these gummy bugs you see above. The major difference was that the candy was shaped like ghosts and the packaging was classic RGB. I have fantastic memories of grabbing these gummy candies from the Triple Brook Camping Resort in Blairstown, NJ. We would ride our bikes to the camp and buy these for a quarter. I also remember the store having Punch-Out and Tron arcade cabinets that we would spend our hard earned cash on! I know they still make gummy bugs, but it just doesn't have that same feeling as the Ghostbuster candy from my great summer memories!!

Wonka Jumbo Nerds

I really liked Jumbo Nerds. When we would go into Hartung's General store in Hope, NJ and my dad would let us pick a candy, I would definitely choose Nerds of the Jumbo variety over the regular ones. Jumbo Nerds were so much bigger than regular Nerds and the boxes had a bunch of flavors mixed into one. I just felt they had more flavor, but I'm sure that is just my bias towards these awesome Wonka confections.

Life Savers Holes

These 90's candies released by Wrigley's were notorious for being a choking hazard. That is what ultimately led to them being taken off of store shelves. I think Wrigley's did not want to deal with the headaches and lawsuits, but there are other similar candies still being sold today like Tic-Tac. Those are a choking hazard, but people still buy them! I guess I am still a little salty that Holes were discontinued. I liked the flavor of these small round shaped candies. They were of course just differently shaped Life Savers, but the real draw was the container they came in. Don't act like you didn't save a few of these containers for future use!

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Ooze Squeeze Candy

I remember getting a tube of this candy from the KB Toys store in the Rockaway Mall in Rockaway, NJ. I remember it being at the front counter where we were paying for a toy, probably a Ninja Turtle action figure. I picked one up and was not disappointed by the flavor. I believe it was supposed to be a watermelon type of goo? This candy was the perfect tie in to the ultra popular movie, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze! Now I know Hubba Bubba makes a similar squeeze candy today, but once again our green heroes and nostalgia has made this version the best squeeze candy ever created by man...at least in my mind.

Nestle Alpine White

Yes, the notorious Nestle Alpine White Bar! This candy was marketed to the sophisticated adult candy connoisseur, so the one time I actually had the pleasure of eating one I felt like the coolest person in the world! I was not transported to a soap opera like winter fantasy land which was a disappointment, but I do remember liking the taste. I will have to say though, thanks to all the great options competing for my sweet tooth, I would have probably picked something else over an Alpine White Bar. After saying all that, damn those commercials were freakin' fantastic though! Below you can find an example of this marketing wonder along with a few other commercials featuring some of the amazing discontinued candies listed above...ENJOY!!!

Cakes my Wife Made!

Last week when I posted about my 40th birthday haul, I had mentioned that my wife had created a "One-Eyed Willie Goonies Map" cake for me. This got a lot of reaction and people wanted to see the cake. Well, check out the picture above! My wife got into cake making back when our first daughter turned 1.

For that momentous occasion, she created this amazing giraffe cake. She makes the cake from box mix, but everything else is handmade from the frosting to the fondant. She has also made candy sugar glass for the ice castle from Frozen and an Ooze Canister from TMNT!

This year my twins asked for an Evee Pokemon cake and a Ghostbusters Ghost Trap cake! It took her a couple days and a few setbacks changed the final product, but the wife pulled it off again! She even added lights to the outside and inside of the Ghost Trap! Needless to say the kids were amazed and extremely happy!

Over the years she has learned new techniques and has become a master at making candy flowers, water that looks real and ways to frost cakes with some pretty cool baking tools.

Co-workers, family members and friends have asked her to make cakes for their kids birthdays and my wife being the kind person that she is, takes the time to help with some of their requests. Most of the time, she does not have the avaialability to make these herself, but she offers to help them make the cakes and they always turn out looking fantastic!

No matter what kind of crazy cakes we ask my wife to make, she always comes through and not only do they look great, but they taste delicious! She works part time, is a mom full time and still finds a few hours a year to make us all happy! So lucky to have her for this reason and about a million others! Here are some more outstanding cakes she has made for me and our kids over the years! Start drooling...NOW!

Going Home: Part 4

 A few weeks ago my family and I embarked on a journey back to my home state of New Jersey. The best part of the trip in my opinion was taking my kids to some of my favorite places to eat in the Garden State. Of course we stopped by Cliff's Dairy Maid on Route 10 in Ledgewood, NJ. I used to love their Smurf ice cream, but this time around I got some double peanut butter fudge and it was AMAZING! The kids loved it, but the lack of a bathroom posed a problem for my son. 

There are no 7-11's near where we live, so we had to make a stop at the 7-11 in Panther Valley so the kids could get a taste of mixing all the flavors together in 1 cup! Also, I had been craving some good pizza from people who know how to make pizza! It is hard to find a good slice where we currently reside, so I had to order a "Garbage Pizza" from Dominic's in Blairstown, NJ. It was topped with pepperoni, sausage, meat balls, onions, peppers and onions. In addition to that I had to get some hoagies to fulfill my cravings!

Speaking of cravings, I took the family to White Castle for lunch one day during our trip. My daughter loves onions, so I knew she would enjoy the little steamed burgers of goodness. After we ate, I had the kids pose like the Beastie Boys in front of the restaurant. We were filled and moved on to the next destination. 

I have a friend who works at the M&M Mars factory in Hackettstown, NJ and he tried to get us a tour, but failed in doing so. I still wanted to show the kids where some of their favorite candies come from, so we stopped by and walked around the campus for a minute while taking in the wonderful aroma of chocolate being made.

This next spot has nothing to do with food, but my son wanted to go to a Gamestop for some reason, so we hit up the one in Ledgewood, NJ. As we were walking out, I had to show them Santana's Hair Salon which is owned by WWE legend Tito Santana. The kids and wife were not as impressed by this as I thought they would be.

The last stop before heading home was a 3 hour layover in Minneapolis. Since we had a ton of time to kill, the kids grabbed some McDonald's for lunch and we walked around the airport. We saw this cool Snoopy statue and visited the Prince store. Sadly they did not have the one Prince album for sale that I was looking for...the BATMAN movie soundtrack. Overall we had an AMAZING time going back home to my old stomping grounds, but unfortunately all good things must eventually come to an end. As we left, I started feeling homesick, because as this old picture that has been hanging in my Mom's house for as long as I can remember says...