The Best Burger Joint In Edmonton

So, I have been sick for about 2 weeks, and before that Chrissy was sick for a week, so I haven't been doing too much worthwhile to post. One of the benefits of being sick is not eating and dropping a few pounds. But, then when you do get hungry, you get really hungry.

On one such occasion Chrissy and I decided it was time to cash in my groupon and check out the newish Soda Jerks Edmonton.  We went in pretty much completely blind in expectations and I was pleasantly greeted with the sight of Pop Shoppe sodas.

I of course love Pop Shoppe as we used to have the distribution rights at our Gas Station in Humboldt. At this point I was already over the moon. The menu also had some cool other soda options like Jones Soda and Dad's Rootbeer.

Looking through the menu there was some great sounding burgers and dogs but my eye got drawn to the big momma of their burgers: "The Doris".

Doris is not a lightweight woman. She contains: 4 pieces of sourdough, 8 strips of bacon, 4 pieces of cheddar cheese, 2 beef patties, 1 fried egg, mayo, lettuce, tomato and onion.

The shot from above looks ok...

But now check that out...

That's right. Two full grill cheese and bacon sandwiches as the bun of the burger. Outstanding!
Christina was slightly disgusted at the sight of me eating the burger - I don't recommend it for a first date.

Christina got the Traditional and thought it was pretty awesome. She really liked the fries too.

I can say with certainty that this is the best burger joint in Edmonton. Do yourself a favor and go check it out.

Things I have seen the last few weeks

Babysitting

I ended up babysitting last night for my sisters kids. The Patriots vs. Broncos game was on so I wasn't a very good uncle - I just watched TV while the kids played on their own.  As the game got completely out of reach I interacted a bit more with the kids and eventually bribed them into entertaining me to earn cupcakes.
Here is their first attempt.

Their eventual successful attempt. 

I told them no at the end, but they wore me down....

So yeah, I expect the babysitter of the year award in the mail soon.

New Years Eve

Christina and I celebrated New Years Eve in Edmonton together for 2011.

We started with a nice home cooked meal of lobster tails and shrimp pasta.

After eating we got all dressed up for a big night out at a masquerade ball at the Matrix Hotel a few blocks away.  We arrived pretty early - 9ish - to mix and mingle with the other revellers for the night. We had high hopes for the event and were dressed to the nines.

We were greeted by some lovely ticket takers and led to the side area to select a mask. 

 There was some pretty cool ones available and I think Chrissy and I got the best of the bunch.

The Cat that Wore the Canary and the Rosebush Phantom out on the town.

Unfortunately, the masks were the only highpoint of the event. They ran out of appetizers around 10pm before we could get any, the line-ups for booze were way too long, the staff was indifferent to doing their jobs and the crowd wasn't really very sociable. We were genuinely disappointed but couldn't complain too loudly as the whole purpose of the event was to fundraise for Oxfam. We donned our caps and jackets and headed back to my place to change and hit the downtown.

After a quick change and some bundling up we headed out once again. This time towards City Hall and the first night of Metropolis. Churchill Square was really hopping (the Edm Journal said 25,000 people) and we entered the crowds to hit the temporary pavilions set up.

 We were excited to discover what was inside of each of the covered buildings and we queued up politely with the rest of the citizenry. Eventually we reached the entry to the first large tent and found....local artists showing their paintings. Now, I am a fan of local art and local painters but it was severely underwhelming. Most people that were lined up simply walked through the middle of the tent and out the other side. We walked through and looked at everyones wares, but it didn't seem like the best place or time. As we walked out by the lineups of people waiting to get in I heard them speculating on what was inside: A live band, dancers, beer. Boy where they going to be disappointed.  Eventually, we did find a band and where treated to the groan worthy question "Who rode public transit here?....Did you take the #5? The #12? The #3? The LRT?" They then broke into Fool In The Rain by Led Zeppelin. I winced and led Chrissy away from the area to City Hall.

City Hall looked fantastic, unfortunately we just missed the in-house band and by the time we reached the 3rd floor to enjoy the view we were told to vacate it.

We headed outside to find a spot for the fireworks but the pavilions set up for Metropolis obscured a lot of site lines. We were lucky enough to find a spot near the beer tent (which was not set-up for the night...Boo!) and get an ok view - or at least a lot better than most other people. 

Seemingly from reading this blog I had a horrible time. Although each event held nothing but disappointment I had a great time. 

We had a nice meal, the weather was nice, I got to gawk at Chrissy in her fancy dress, and everybody around us was in a positive mood. New Years Eve never match's expectations, but it didn't matter as my company for the night exceeded it.

Christmas 2011 - Saskatoon

On Boxing Day Chrissy and I got in her mighty Corolla and hit the Yellowhead east to Saskatoon. We settled in at Mom's place and gathered with the family Kehrig for Pizza on the 27th.

That night I finally got to see Rob and the Berk family again. I can't be 100% sure but I am pretty sure that this was the longest time between actually talking to Rob face to face since I met him about 15 years ago. His kids are fricking tall - they made me feel old. Unfortunately, no pictures.

There were many other highlights from the trip home.

Mom took me and Chrissy out for lunch at the new Concordia Club (German Club) and apple turnover.

Chrissy, Steph, Sonia, Liam and I went for a skate at a local rink and a hockey game broke out.

We went to a Christmas display at the Mendel Art Gallery.

Bryce raced home through treacherous conditions to grab a drink with Kelly B, Chrissy and Me.

With the exception of some unfortunate news regarding winter driving it was a great visit and I look forward to getting back home soon. 

Christmas 2011 - Edmonton

This year I spent my second Christmas day away from Saskatchewan. For better or worse I am becoming settled here in Edmonton.
My holiday season started early this year with the my workplaces "Kids Christmas Party". I decided to attend as I am still relatively new to the company and it would be a good opportunity to further learn about my coworkers.
The party included many fun events including the Awesomehots  playing sing along Christmas Carols. Note the sweet bass drum made from an old clothes hamper. You can buy their songs on itunes here.

Everybody that came to the party was greeted with a fun accessory and the option of face painting. Christina and I chose the reindeer antlers.

With the kids all being entertained by a magician we snuck off to the back to design our own gingerbread men

 Christina got quite the surprise when she bit the poor man's arms  off.

Finally, Santa arrived and began the gifting of presents to all the good girls and boys. At this point, we thought it best to sneak out the back after our 'evil' gingerbread man experience.

 Later in the month we had an ugly Christmas sweater Friday at the office. I grabbed a quick couple of pics of some of my favourites.

 Not to be outdone Chrissy modeled her ugly sweater for me this year. The curlers are a nice touch.

Besides all of the work fun, I was fortunate enough to help Chrissy put up her tree again this year. Although she has a much better sense of style (as witnessed above) she always insists that I help.

  Note my stocking hung with care behind me.

 Whenever I give Chrissy the request to pose sexy - this is the look I get.

For Christmas Eve I joined the Okinczyc family at her Baba and Gido's for the 'meatless feast' and the opening of presents. The food was awesome with a traditional wheat dish and cabbage soup for starters. This was followed up by about 6 different types of pyrogys (including blueberry and prune), savory cabbage rolls and fresh pickerel.
With lots of little kids now in her family there was a ton of presents under the tree and lot of action.

For Christmas morning I joined Christina at her parents place for a giant breakfast and more gifts. I like how the tree in the window contrasts to the tree inside on this picture.

The Roughriders jersey was a gift from Christina last year so I thought it was ok to wear in enemy territory.

Due to the great hospitality it was a great Christmas - Awesome company, Fantastic food, and a pretty good haul of gifts including this new Elvis singing ornament from Chrissy.

Next stop - Boxing day in Saskatoon.