2nd opinion

JAMES CONEY ISLAND

James Coney Island has been a houston staple for over 80 years, serving delicious hotdogs, hamburgers and their world famous chili since 1923. The hotdog joint, which is what I like to refer to it, excels at producing simple “chili coneys” every sunday for 99 cents, which has chili and onions. I am a huge fan of their Chicago style dog, made with mustard, relish, onions, sport peppers, a pickle spear and topped with celery salt. It’s one of the best Chicago style dogs i’ve ever had. Any hotdog can be made with their “Regular Dog” (which is made of half pork, half beef) or their “Jumbo Dog” (made of 100% all beef). I recommend adding chili and cheese to a side order of fries, but not necessarily with the tots (the tots tend to break when chili and cheese are added). New York style dogs are served as well as Texas style chili dogs. Chili Frito Pies are available as well as bowls of chili with a side of crackers, which have been fan favorites of Houstonians for years. Their homemade “hot sauce”, which can be found at the condiment stand, is a hot sauce which no other hot dog joint has ever come close to replicating. I definitely suggest that you try it.

I recently went in James Coney Island to try their new “Sonoran Dog”. A 100% all beef dog wrapped with applewood smoked bacon, accompanied with diced onions, tomatoes, pinto beans topped with chipotle mayo, a special mustard and an avocado sauce. I decided to get the combo, which contains two of these Mexican-style dogs, a side order of fries or tots, and a drink. After one sonoran, I quickly found myself full. This combo is definitely one for those with a larger appetite. I added chili and cheese to my fries, which are never disappointing. I ended up boxing the second sonoran to go. It’s a good dog, very delicious, and very big. Once again, it’s a hotdog for those with larger appetites, which is who I recommend the dog to.

Before I start with my review of this movie, I’d like to share a moment leading up to the film.

So I get to the theater around 11:45 am, and realized that I didn’t want to miss the previews, so I get tickets to the next showing, which was at 12:15p. After getting the tickets, I make my way to theater #23. When I walk in I notice that the movie is playing. I asked the usher, “Did the movie already start?”. He replied, “No, it’s about to end.” Puzzled, I stand next to the entrance, and then slowly, one by one, the longest line of children I have ever seen, start pouring out of the theater. Within a few minutes, the theater lobby was insanely packed with elementary school children. All of them donned their handmade crowns, howling like the beasts in the film…..and as they are still exiting theater #23, I stand there, alone wearing my aviator sunglasses, looking like either the dorkiest twenty-something or the biggest pedophile in the city of Houston. So, the children finally all exit the thing, and after a 10-15 minute wait for the crew to clean up after the little monsters, I go in and grab just about the best seat in the house…..

Everyone that has read “Where The Wild Things Are” are very familiar with the story (written by Maurice Sendak). Directed by Spike Jonze, the very popular indie director, the story of a child’s imagination was incredibly captivated in the opening sequence. Jonze was able to realistically display our beloved character Max with his wild imagination of play while also suprisingly incorporating a very emotional story. (screenplay by Dave Eggers and Spike Jonze) I really haven’t seen anything done like this since Jack The Bear. Max Records plays the wild-hearted child and does so with great spirit, a truly incredible performance. I can see him being the next child with an oscar nomination. A really good cast was put together for this one as well. James Gandolfini, Forrest Whitaker and Katherine O’Hara are just a few of the actors that did the voices for the wild creatures of the film. Jonze did a great job with this one, as I definitely recommend it for everyone to see. A great, simple story stuffed with adventure and emotion, Where The Wild Things Are is definitely one to go see.

I recently attended the austin city limits festival (Oct. 2-4) for the first time. I’m usually in Austin for the SXSW festival so I usually end up spending all of my money there. I was given the opportunity to go this year, so I took it. Friends of mine usually tell me how fun ACL is, so I had to go find out first hand.

The first thing I noticed when I arrived at Zilker park was, in fact, how insanely crowded it was. If you don’t do well with ridiculously large crowds, it’s not the place for you. As I fought my way through the crowds, I managed to go by the food stands and beer booths, all of which seemed to be very moderately priced (I guess, for festival standards). 12 ounce cans of beer for $4 and 24 oz. cans for $8, and food went anywhere from $3-$12. Not bad.

The festival took place in October for the first time (previously being held during the month of August). The weather Friday was absolutely perfect, sunny, but not hot, with a nice consistent breeze. Saturday’s weather ended up getting rainy, and by the time Sunday came around, the place was a complete mud pit. Personally, I was not very well prepared for the mud, so my Sunday experience didn’t go so well for me, however, if sloppy, sludgy mud isn’t a problem for you, then you’d probably love it.

Band merch was kind of ridiculous, I think $30 for a t-shirt is a little too much. But I guess if the band is worth it, it’s worth it.

Despite what most people I’ve talked to, who were there, I thought the Kings of Leon put on a great show. Their set was tightly played, vocals and occasional harmonies were solid. They played quite a few songs from their first 3 albums, which was great (and it’s probably why most people didn’t like it, it appeared as if EVERYONE was waiting for “Be Somebody”, which frankly, I’m tired of hearing, and I’m sure, they’re tired of playing). I was able to catch Grizzly Bear as well, and they really surprised me. I didn’t think they would be able to replicate the harmonies live like they display on their album, but they certainly proved me wrong. Ghostland Observatory put on a great show as well, having the UT marching band come in for their last song was great. Flogging Molly was great as well, playing their traditional irish/punk music. I was moving around so much that I wasn’t able to catch every band I wanted to see, but overall I had a great time, and I would definitely recommend it for others.