Breakfast on the Go...

So I have been thinking a lot about breakfast. It has been hailed as the most important meal of the day. When a person is dieting, or trying to eat healthier, it is drilled into them how important it is to get the day off on the right foot. The U.S. Department of Agriculture recommends the average woman consume between 1,800 and 2,400 calories per day, while the average male should get between 2,400 and 3,000 calories daily. These are for the average folk, not voluptuous (read as tubby) like me and himself. The number of these calories that you devote to breakfast depends on how you divide your meals for the day. Most diets say a healthy breakfast should be between 350-500 calories. Although an article in Medical News Today talks about a study from Tel Aviv University that says a good breakfast should be 700 calories a day and your other meals should be smaller.  That is an interesting concept that I may look into at a later time, today I am looking at eating healthy via convenience.

As a working Mom with a life that has to be on the road at OMG o'clock in the morning, making a hearty, filling, and healthy breakfast at home is almost never a feasible option. Not without a ton of planning, anyway. So a lot of days Himself and I stop and grab something, along with the heavens nectar that is coffee.

The real truth!

We started discussing all these options one morning on our commute as we ran through (the shits inducing hell that is) McDonald's.

Here are the three things I know about breakfast food:

  1. It is a cheap meal to make so it is a huge money maker to restaurants

  2. It is not a hard meal to make, so no rocket science needed.

  3. It can be customized to suit every dietary need.

KNOWING these things... why is it so hard to get a good healthy fast food breakfast, or even just a healthy, breakfast on the go?!

Perfect examples:  McDonald's has some 'healthier' options, but does not list saturated fat or sodium in the nutritional info, only total fat. It also loads up it's lower fat options (Fruit and Yogurt Parfait) with sugar. 
 

Dunkin' Donuts offers healthier options for under 400 calories or with whole grains or lower fat, and their website also provides more detailed information. It gives sodium, saturated fat, and sugars information. It does offer some options.



What if a person does not have time for that? What if they need gas, so stopping at a convenience store is the only option? Here things get tricky. On the way into work Himself and I pass no less than 4 Turkey Hill Minut Marts, 1-2 Sheetz,  and 1 Wawa, probably more, but I am only mentioning the ones we have stopped or are willing to stop at. 

I will also narrow down the playing field since Himself has an aversion to Sheetz on the whole. (I want to SEE my food prepared if I can... not wonder what happened behind that unclean soda fountain machine) That leaves Wawa and an assortment of Turkey Hills. 

Wawa has, hands down, the better coffee, but let's look at food options. Not all Turkey Hills are the same; some have little kitchen stations, some are pretty bare bones. The one that we stop at for gas most frequently is a bare bones Turkey Hill, little to no fresh fruit, no hot food, and a few protein bar choices (protein bars taste like chalk or maybe dirt, although maybe fortunately take forever to eat, so I must be burning calories while chewing!). They have a couple things of yogurt in a case, and donuts in a donuts dehydrator (SERIOUSLY... What Wiley Coyote GENIUS decided to put a power ventilator on the doughnut cases???   Himself says HARRUMPH!).  

When I was on Weight Watchers, at Turkey Hill I would get an Uncrustable PB&J that came in at a ridiculous 7 points. With really no fresh fruit option on other plans like the 21 day fix or Whole 30, it is not a option to eat anything there at all. 

Wawa does better in that they always have fresh fruit options, and a decent amount of yogurt and hot food options (egg white and turkey sausage on whole wheat English muffin is actually pretty tasty!). 

They also have some things that sound like a good option, but are in fact lies. Their protein snack pack, with cheddar cheese, grapes, almonds, and a little muffiny/ bread thing comes in at 14 Weight Watcher points. I know nuts are high in fats but they are good fats. Cheese is a good source of protein but also high in fats. And grapes should be free (zero points). 

I guess I am just very grumbly about having so few good convenience options when one wants to eat healthy on the go. Breakfast is one of my favorite meals when done right. 

I once read a quote by John Gunther, "All happiness depends on a leisurely breakfast," add to that a tasty cup of coffee and the company of a good partner, and I can see where Mr. Gunther was going there. 

My food for thought, maybe happiness just cannot be found in hasty breakfast.





About me... more than you wanted to know...

So this is a food-blog kinda thing.... I suppose I should talk about how that connects with me?

Okay, so I'm a foodie... sorta.   Many moons ago, in a former lifetime, I had cable TV that included the Food Network.  On the Food Network, I found Emeril Lagasse.  BAM.... I was hooked.  Get it?  BAM!.  Oh... never mind.

Anyway, back at the ranch, I've been cooking since I was 6 years old, if my mother was to be believed.   Eggs, I heard it was. She said other things too, so who knows what really happened?

I like flavor.   I'd leave it at that, but I just can't.

Flavor is.... life.  I'm not talking about 'How hot a pepper can you survive'.  I'm talking about the right flavors at the right time in the right way.

A dirty water hot dog slathered with mustard and relish may not be 'Good Eats' in a 3-star restaurant.  On the other hand, move the dog to a street cart in front of Lancaster center square, and suddenly that meat-treat could be ambrosia.  COULD be.... if it's that good.  Like close-your-eyes and live in that moment good.

Any salad is improved when STEAK is added!

Yes, I'll swing through McBarf and grab a cheeseburger and fries on occasion, mostly when I've been bad and need to be punished.  I'll even eat a can of Chef Boyo's best ravioli for lunch, cold from the can.  There's a big difference between Fuel and Fooooood.....

Fuel makes the man-puppet dance.  Fooood makes the man-puppet's life worth living.

Making Chili is a favorite of mine.  Like a good beef stew, Chili is all about layering in flavors till it's just right.  A bit of this, a sploosh of that, maybe add some beer or chocolate.... and it becomes an experience rather than a meal.

Corn bread, an example.  I love the Jiffy corn bread mix.  Add an egg and milk, give it a stir, dump in hot cast iron, and abracadabra, Bob's your uncle.  On the other hand..... let that milk be *Buttermilk* instead. Now, whisk the egg in, and add some red pepper flakes (Just a pinch).  Add a few drops of Crystal hot sauce. Give it a while (20 min) for the red pepper to bloom. Now fold in the Jiffy mix, and let it stand (this is important) for 20 minutes while the cast iron pan heats in the 400 degree oven.  Pull the pan from the oven (With a potholder, you knucklehead), drop in a whole stick of butter (Trust me on this), and let it melt till it begins to brown a bit.  Swish it while it melts. Ploop in the corn bread mix, and return the pan to the oven.  Start testing for done at 25 minutes or so, pulling from the heat just before it's 100% completely done.  Let it sit in the hot pan for another 5 minutes, and then turn out on a plate.

Ribbbbbbbssssss, my precious!

See what I did there?  Using slight changes in ingredients and technique, the flavor explodes from 'corn bread' into 'OMG this is the best corn bread I've ever had OMG'.  The red pepper flakes counter the sweetness of the mix, while the Buttermilk and butter make the corn bread stunningly rich. Dropping in a hot buttered cast iron pan gives a perfect crunchy crust to the bread.

There's my corn bread secret... you're welcome.

That's to illustrate how I feel about good food.  Prepare it with care and love, and it's a whole new world of fantastic hedonistic experience.  

I feel the same about good whiskey, good beer, and some wines too.

So why the food blog?   It's like this... Herself and I are doing this stuff all the time anyway. We go out to eat, we take pictures of the food, we comment on the restaurant, we try to divine the ingredients, etc.  Now we are just doing it in front of you.  Don't you feel special?

Steaks on the grill!  Rubbed with sea salt and fresh ground pepper, with a pinch of garlic powder. Have the steaks warmed to room temperature, so they cook fast and retain their tasty juices.

There's nothing like a good BLT, where the bacon is crispy, and the tomatoes are fresh picked, and Duke's mayonnaise is used, and the bread is fresh and toasted just right......

Commonwealth on Queen, Lancaster Pa.

Dateline: Sunday, 8-28-16, 1:40 pm.

Commonwealth on Queen. 301 N. Queen St., Lancaster, Pennsylvania. 

Yeah, so they closed at 2.  We should probably have noticed (I (Carolyn) noticed and was hungry, so I did not care) It can change what service looks like at a lot of places. It fortunately didn't here. Honestly, I (Art) didn't know they were closing till we were ready to leave, and chairs started going up on tables.  Ah Ha!  That's why the sign said Brunch!  I can be so clueless at times.... sigh. (It is honestly part of his charm.)

Anyway, we wandered into Commonwealth on Queen because the doughnut shop across the street sucked us out of our car with a flashing 'Open' sign, just to betray our trust by really being closed.  That left us bereft, needing to drown our damaged souls with something.... tasty.  (He leaves out that we thought about breaking into said Doughnut Shop to turn off the on sign. It would have been a courtesy to other hungry travellers!) Across the street, Commonwealth not only had an Open sign, but actual customers visible inside.  Promising!

His First Impressions:  Bright. Loud. Lively. Clean. Modern. Too many skinny people.    One could suspect an alternative name for the restaurant might have been 'The Uppity Yuppie'.  It's a place that tries to be hip, and pretty much nails it.  Is that a good or bad thing?   Well.... consider it to be flavor for the eyes and other senses.  It's part of setting the stage.

Her First Impressions: Loud. Cheerful. Clean. It smelled like toast and coffee. The chairs are not very comfortable. It is a small place so maybe they don't want you to get too comfortable so they have quick turnover? The young lady seated us politely. I am immediately excited because they are advertising a lot of locally sourced ingredients (at one point the lady walked through with fresh bread from a local bakery, they had macaroons from Rice and Noodle, and were advertising local fresh juices and ice cream). It is an eclectic crowd.

Our waitress, Sam (She of the purple hair.... (it was lavender babe not purple!), brought us a chilled bottle of water and two glasses.  A cute bottle. The kind with the old fashioned snap on cap and wire bail, like grandma used for home made Root Beer sixty years ago.  Plus-one for putting lots of chilled water right where we could reach it.  Minus-10 for it being city tap water, tasting of Chlorine or whatever else they put in city water (Devils! They put devils in the city water, and poo).

Yeah... we are water snobs. We live in the sticks and drink wonderful water from a deep well.  Usually 'City Water' gets sent away, since it only clutters the table with disappointment.  This time, we were thirsty enough to just deal with it.... and it was nicely chilled, and in such a cool bottle.

The menu is varied, interesting, and descriptive enough to generate some salivation.  This day, it was 'Brunch, Lunch, and Sweets'. A menu with really good and creative descriptions of the food helps to build a picture in the mind of the diner.  This is a good thing, as it makes choosing the meal easier.  It also builds anticipation, which has a flavor all it's own in this process.   On the other hand.... the meal on the plate better meet the imagined one in the diners mind (or be better),  lest anticipation turn into disappointment.  In our case, the delivered dishes were pretty much spot on the descriptions on the menu. An aside on the menu from my perspective, they had a few items that said things like, "Ask about fillings" This day the Stuffed Brioche French Toast was filled with Cookie Dough... yes I said COOKIE DOUGH! It really is unfortunate I did not want something sweet. 

Herself ordered the Fruit and Goat Cheese Salad, while crabby old Meself ordered an Everything Bagel with Cream Cheese.

For liquids, she ordered Apricot Iced Tea, and I had a Red Eye..... a cup of plain coffee with a shot of espresso.   

The apricot tea was bright and clean tasting, with a slightly floral note. I loved that they offered packets of Truvia! They also had Raw Sugar, Splenda, and the Pink and Blue packets of artificial sweetness. 

The coffee was... coffee.   Yeah, we are coffee snobs too.  At home we grind high quality roasted beans, right before putting them in a percolator with filtered well water.   The Red Eye from Commonwealth was... coffee.  Frankly, nothing impressive in flavor, bouquet, or richness.  It was just plain workmanlike coffee.

Herself's salad: My salad came in at $9.99. It was a mixed greens salad with goat cheese, fresh strawberries, dried cranberries, and candied pecans. It was served with a champagne vinaigrette. I wanted to love it because of the friendly amazing staff, and charm of the restaurant. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't amazing. The dressing was nice. It had a tart, clean flavor. It went well with the creaminess of the goat cheese and the bright fresh flavor of the strawberries. It is summer though and in Lancaster County there are a huge amount of other fresh fruits you can use, so I did not understand the dried cranberries. The biggest disappointment for me were the brown wilty greens. I am very picky about my greens, especially if they are serving a fairly simple salad. The greens need to stand up to the task. These did not.

Herself's salad wilty lettuce remains: 

Meself's bagel:

Yup.... that thar is a warmed up everything bagel, spread with soft cream cheese.  Pretty much exactly as described on the menu.  The two thin slices of watermelon as edible garnish were... nice?

Look, I'll be honest.  It was underwhelming.  It was only $2.95, and that's not bad by any means.  Still... it was a $2.95 bagel with cream cheese.    I'd order it again, as it was tasty even if very, very plain and simple. (Mr. Grumblepants you could have had the lox as well!)  On the other hand, if some thought, soul, and artistry went into it I'd happily pay twice as much.  Maybe a better or bigger bagel.  Maybe a house-made soft cheese with herbs.  Something besides an ordinary blah bagel with ordinary blah cream cheese. Not that blah bagel and blah cream cheese is necessarily bad, but it certainly fails to create a memory.  I'll not fade off into sleep tonight thinking about how spectacular that bagel with cream cheese was.... but it could have been that way.... it could have.

Overall impressions:   We'll go back some day when we are walking past and have the nibbles.  It's clean, has a neat atmosphere, and the service was perfect.  The menu is promising, and worth another shot.

A last note:  Paying the check, I was asked how it was.  I replied... "Okay.... just okay".  The young man questioned what could have been better, and I mentioned the sadness of the salad greens on Herself's dish.  He immediately took that dish off the check, even as we told him he didn't have to.  What he said was interesting; "You don't have to come eat here.  We need to make you happy so you'll come back!".  I take that as a very customer-satisfaction oriented attitude, and that in itself would make Commonwealth on Queen worth another visit.

I agree the atmosphere and the staff make this worth another try. My ice tea was lovely. My salad wasn't bad, just not exciting. The lady at the table next to us has an amazing looking Poached Egg Dish (most likely Eggs Benedict Florentine without the Hollandaise sauce?) and then there is that stuffed french toast..... Look out Commonwealth on Queen we will descend on you again! 

Overall I give this restaurant:
3 out of 5 forks for flavor
4 out of 5 forks for atmosphere
3 out of 5 forks for location (city = poopy parking)
5 out of 5 forks for service
3.75 forks overall