Amerikanische Burger Essen

Stuttgarter Hofbräu!

It's been a while since I had a food post on here, but I had a very nice little dinner the other day. It centered around this nice little gift brought back to me by my wife from Germany, a bottle of her local Stuttgarter Hofbräu. I grilled a couple of pounds of hamburgers, which is always fun. I tried a new dish for me, which was grilled broccoli. I mostly followed this recipe, leaving out the Parmesan, instead of our usual steamed. It was fine, not great. I fried some Onion Rings for Son Number Two, who really loves them. But the real pièce de résistance was my Brussels Sprouts. Yes, the Brussels Sprouts. I can't hardly get the vile things down when they are steamed, but during a recent trip to New York, I left a $50 steak on the plate and ordered a second helping of their fried Brussels Sprouts. Delicious, and this recipe is basically what I had. It's easy, and awesome.

Lessons in Anti-Monarchicalism

SIC SEMPER CERISIAE
Originally uploaded by The Gonk

I've carried some cheap bottle opener on my keychain for about fifteen years. It was given to me by some long ago unreadable vendor, and has served me long and dutifully, well above and beyond the call of duty for a normal bottle opener. He finally gave up the ghost, and I got an almost identical replacement the very next day from Mik. However, this replacement was in name only, not spirit, as he lasted only a few short months. I decided to purchase one, and figuring with luck it would amortize at under $1 a year, I bought a $20 one and got it engraved. I thought I had picked a cool quote any wargamer would recognize...but apparently, I was wrong, as none of my friends appeared to know the reference!! "Sic semper tyrannis!" shouted Brutus, when he stabbed the tyrant Caesar (or so the dramatists say). It is a phrase I've often considered getting as a tattoo, on the off chance I could become the king of Sweden (Field Marshall Bernadotte was rumored to have had this tattoo). The translation: "Thus always to Tyrants!" Listening to the History of Rome podcast, he mentioned how Emperor Diocletian ordered (unsuccessfully) price fixing across the Roman Empire, and how these prices have survived history and included the names of three different types of beer. A little research on the Interwebs turned up CERVISIA as a Celtic wheat beer. As a big fan of Hefeweizen, the epiphany struck-- a keychain with which I could exclaim, "Thus always to beer!" as I killed yet another one.