Pearls Deluxe Burger

Justin: Let me tell you a little story. For my birthday a few years ago, Chels had bought us tickets to see Conan O’Brien at the Masonic Center. The condition was that I pick a place to go to dinner beforehand. I chose Pearl’s Deluxe Burger, only a few blocks down the hill. As we walked up to the place, Chels was convinced that this little hole in the wall burger place would be a let down. I had heard otherwise, but seeing the tiny burgerstand, I also had my doubts. We ate. It was a revelation, at least for me. I remember stepping out and thinking, “what a cool neighborhood?” A few months later, we moved just two blocks away. That’s how good those burgers are. This article is about the Post St. location, not the new one on Market which I’ve yet to try. Here’s the drill: they have fresh gourmet buns delivered daily. They have the absolute best meat, allowing you to upgrade to Buffalo if you’re into that. The menu is simple. Burger’s, toppings, fries, sweet potato fries, a huge variety of milkshakes, soda, your standard burger fare. It’s so damn good though. Sometimes simple is better. The burgers are huge and juicy, and are always hooked up with the quality extras. Unlimited free pickle spears? Check. The shakes are also damn good, but they shorten my lifespan by a few months each time. I most always get the Bomb Burger, an open face chili/cheese burger. I’m also quite down with the “spries” mix of fries and sweet potato fries. Here’s the drill: with more than two or three people, do not plan to eat in. It’s freaking tiny. For bigger groups call in your order ahead and carry out. These burgers are enormous and delicious. They used to be open until 3AM, but those days are sadly over. Pearl’s is cheaper than Denny’s, but clearly superior to a lot of “fancy” restaurant burger’s I’ve experienced in my day. This place has become another one of those “you have to go here” places for people who come to visit us out of town. I might just have to indulge in one of these right now. Conan was awesome, by the way.

Chels: How is it possible that we don't have a review for Pearls yet? Justin and I come here all of the time, and when we're not physically there stuffing our burger loving faces to capacity we're raving about it to anyone who will listen. "Oh you haven't heard of Pearls? Well then let me take you and show you what you've been deprived of your entire life." - and by take you there I completely mean let-you-buy-me-a-burger-because-you're-just-so-grateful-that-I-expanded-your-burger-horizons. Pearl's is located DANGEROUSLY close to my apartment and I find myself coming up with excuses to eat here more and more frequently. "Whats that? It's Thursday?! Well I gotta go to Pearls!" "Whats that now? It's raining?!? Well I should go to Pearls." "WHAT'S THAT YOU SAY?? OBAMA APPROVES OF SAME SEX MARRIAGE?? Well now I'm definitely going to Pearls." I have two burgers that I rotate between. The first, The Prized Pearl, comes with blue cheese crumbles, mushrooms, bacon, and lettuce - hold all that other bells and whistles - I like my burgers like I like my whiskey, DRY. My other staple burger is the Pearls Deluxe with bacon and American cheese (stop judging me, it totally 'real cheese'). Their garlic fries can not be beat. Hands down the best fries in the City. I would horrible, horrible things for those fries. HORRIBLE, so don't ask me, okay fine, I'll do it. If you've got a sweet tooth do not miss out on their shakes, specifically my favorite, Mint Oreo. I just want to dunk my face in a giant vat of this milky, creamy, minty goodness. Hmmm, that gives me an idea ... So, now my reviews done, guess I should, go to Pearl's? **I would answer that rhetorical question, but now my mouth is full of cheeseburger.**

Marvel's The Avengers

Chels: Let's just get this out of the way now. I think it's sooo incredibly lame that Chris Evans was re-cast as Captain America. It infuriates me actually. YOU ALREADY USED HIM, HE PICKED HIS MARVEL CHARACTER. Granted, it was the Human Torch (booo) whom only appeared in the Fantastic 4 franchise (suuucks). But still, once you cashed that check there's no do overs. Now, I fully understand he was already on their pay roll, and I'm not saying that he doesn't make a good Captain America (he is bad ass), but I just think it's shows such a lack of effort by the studio, when they just cherry pick an actor that they already used and re-use him for a different character. < end of rant > But The Avengers was a fantastic movie (see what I did there). I would enthusiastically recommend this movie to any and everyone. Justin and I saw it in 3-D, which definitely made some of the epic intergalactic fight scenes immensely better. Everything's better with an extra dimension, right? The main standout for me, and what has me the most excited for Avenger spin off movies, is Mark Ruffalo as The Hulk. I looove me some Mark Ruffalo (13 Going on 30, anyone?), glad to see he's getting some work. And his Hulk is awesome. I don't even want to compare him to Eric Bana's Hulk - we all know that was shit-tastic. And Ed Norton's Hulk just makes me sad, or maybe that's because I was forced to look at Liv Tyler's droopy dog face throughout the entirety of the movie. Who knows, either way, Mark Ruffalo is waaaaaaay better. Thinking back on it, all of my favorite parts from The Avengers include The Hulkster (some others include Chris Hemsworth, but that's mostly because he's beautiful). There are some great one liners in this movie, it's wonderfully written. Serious enough to get points across, but it's completely conscious of itself - which I believe allows it to tap into a fresh vein when it comes to attempting to create a successful action/comedy franchise. It goes without saying that this is an action movie, but I also find it to be extremely witty. Combine the brilliant writing with some great actors/performances and you get what is sure to be THE blockbuster movie to beat this summer.  CHELS SMASH!

Justin: Oh man, what a movie. Not surprised this movie broke some records. It’s the first real summer blockbuster of the year in my opinion, and people were ready for something big. Hunger Games was good, this is freaking epic. Say what you will about Joss Whedon. I’m pretty down with some his stuff, but I’m not super into Buffy or Firefly. Firefly is good stuff but I never watched them back to back. This project is a perfect fit for him, and the screenwriting is goddamn amazing. Funny, action packed, thrilling, vertigo inducing and produced on a massive scale from beginning to end. I really think he did the franchise justice. It’s too good. There’s so much character to learn, so many balls in the air, so many different threads in the action. How he managed to weave this altogether is almost miraculous to me, as a writer. Where do I start? Ruffalo, dude. Thor? Iron Man? There’s too much I could say about this, but I’m not spoiling anything here. If you’re a fan of Marvel's (or should I say Disney’s) recent fare, you’ll be right at home with the characters. It’s so fun to see the heroes match up and clash as they find each other faced with a terrifying situation. As they grow to trust each other, they work together and save each other in what ends up being such an inspiring tale of teamwork and beating the odds it almost makes me misty. Yeah. I loved it. I might see it again. Sorry to gush, I guess I forgot to criticize anything. This movie has not one, but two, post credit scenes. The reveal in the first of these scenes made my inner comic book nerd cream so hard I’m embarrassed to confess it. Chels was like “who’s that?” The second post credit scene? Stick around and check it out.

Sushi Zen

Chels: There is no possible way for me to convey the awesomeness of Sushi Zen. Both words and pictures will always fail to do it justice. So many countless good times have been had in Sushi Zen. Many a date night has ended with Justin and I rolling ourselves down Taraval to our old apartment (it should be noted that Sushi Zen is the #1 thing I miss from my old neighborhood).  I have a yearly tradition of consuming sushi and imbibing sake on my birthday, three of the last 5 have been at Sushi Zen. While Sushi Zen is amazing both day and night, the lunch specials are what really push this place from awesome-hole-in-the-wall-sushi to BLOW-YOUR-MIND-BEYOND-DELICIOUS-BARGAIN-SUSHI (obviously you can infer from that I am cheap, and enjoy not spending money - or is that Justin?). The lunch specials offered are out of this world, both in flavor and cheapness. Being located across from a high school does have its perks for Sushi Zen, they have a virtually endless line of little groms waiting for food around lunch time (AVOID PEAK LUNCH HOURS 12 PM - 1 PM), it can get a little crowded during this time, but nothing you haven't seen before (remember, you live in San Francisco). But it's thanks to these little brats that the lunch special prices are so insanely affordable. I almost don't want to tell you about the specials, but with all this development that would just be bad form, but I don't want this little secret getting out. I trust you, but only you, so don't go blabbing about this to your interweb friends. HUGE BENTO BOXES - $7 (Teriyaki Chicken, Rice, Ca. Roll, Miso Soup, Salad)  DOUBLE SUSHI ROLLS - $7 (Super Dynamite + Shrimp Tempura)  TEMPURA UDON BOWLS -$7 (they give you soup BEFORE your soup)  The list goes on and on really, something for everyone at a price for every budget.But if/when you make it out to Sushi Zen (I will admit that it's officially in the boons) be sure to do yourself a favor and order the Winter Wonderland roll. This roll is incredibly delicious and original to Sushi Zen. No other roll has ever tasted as good, or been as filing as the Winter Wonderland. PS - THEY GIVE YOU FREE ICECREAM. FREE ICE CREAM.

Justin: Another mainstay during our Parkside days, Sushi Zen is one of my favorite sushi restaurants of all time. It’s a hole in the wall, nothing to write home about from the décor standpoint. Yellow walls and hundreds of photos of satisfied sushi fanatics plaster most every open surface in the place. They have a small sushi bar and a very friendly chef who will happy take a shot of sake with whomever. This place is right around the corner from a high school, so every day it over run by a thousand punk high school kids. This means one thing: awesome, cheap lunch special menu. Also don’t go there at noon on a weekday. The lunch menu is awesome. They a have a shrimp tempura/dynamite roll combo for less than 8 bucks that’s an incredible value.They also have cheap bento boxes which are a common choice of mine. If you go in the evening, the selection is a little more expensive, but still cheap compared to a lot of the “theme” sushi restaurants in the city. Here’s what makes it stand out: the sushi. This place knows how to make a fat, tasty, perfect roll. Try the WinterWonderland roll. Shrimp tempura inside, crab and some kind of teriyaki sweet sauce and tobiko on top. Incredibly decadent and delicious. For the longest time it was 9.99, now I think it’s a few bucks more. Worth it. This was a go to place when we lived on Taraval, and we make a point to stop in whenever we head back that way. Hell, it’s the main excuse we have for going to Parkside, period. Free Ice Cream is not a myth. Just wait. It always appears magically, right when everyone is ready to hit the door and heavily laden with some of the finest, most affordable sushi in the whole of San Francisco. Almost cruel! If given a choice, I recommend the mango.