Semi Thumbs Up!

For some reason, Jecilyn LOVES Applebees. It's not like she gets some super meal there...it's the same thing EVERY SINGLE TIME....Mac & Cheese. And, not to toot my own horn, but MY Mac & Cheese is WAY better than Applebees. Mine is usually homemade...and usually organic. It is not the stuff that comes in a blue and yellow package and is likely PROCESSED just around the corner at Kraft. Although it claims to be the "cheesist," I'm pretty sure what it really is a whole lot of chemicals colored and flavored with petroleum to taste like cheese. In fact, the label reads as follows:

ENRICHED MACARONI PRODUCT (DURUM WHEAT FLOUR, WHEAT FLOUR, NIACIN, FERROUS SULFATE, THIAMIN MONONITRATE [VITAMIN B1], RIBOFLAVIN [VITAMIN B2], FOLIC ACID), CHEESE SAUCE MIX (WHEY, MILKFAT, MILK PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, SALT, CALCIUM CARBONATE, SODIUM TRIPOLYPHOSPHATE, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF CITRC ACID, SODIUM PHOSPHATE, LACTIC ACID, MILK, YELLOW 5, YELLOW 6, ENZYMES, CHEESE CULTURE).

My mac & cheese consists of organic pasta (made from 100% Durum Semolina), organic milk, and cheese. One would think that Kraft may be accused of false advertising, since, clearly, my Mac & Cheese contains more cheese than theirs. However, I actually looked up the definition of "Cheesiest." According to Merriam-Webster, the definition is as follows:

Main Entry: cheesy
Pronunciation: \ˈchē-zē\
Function: adjective
Inflected Form(s): chees·i·er; chees·i·est
Date: 14th century
1 a: resembling or suggesting cheese especially in consistency or odor b: containing cheese
2: shabby 3c, cheap < cheesy movie>
— chees·i·ness noun

So, although my homemade Mac & Cheese does contain more cheese, by definition, I suppose Kraft's is the "cheesiest." Or, at least cheesier than mine...but I digress...

The point--and I had one when I started this post--was to tell you about our trip to Applebees yesterday. Nettie suggested I take pictures...but, I couldn't find the camera in the pit that is my car....so, you'll just have to settle for the story. Jecilyn, of course, ordered the aforementioned cheesiest mac & cheese. For Treavor, I ordered two mini hamburgers--no roll, no butter, no cheese, and applesauce not fries. Treavor, being Treavor, decided to throw a tantrum while we waited for our food. The waitress came over and asked if she could bring over some crackers for him. I told her that he couldn't have crackers. She replied, "Oh, yeah, that's right...you said he's allergic to bread...so I guess that means no crackers too." I thanked her, and she returned to the kitchen. A few minutes later she returned. Treavor had calmed down by this point (or perhaps I had just tuned him out!). She asked if he could have fruit. Then, she returned with a whole plate of fruit from the bar...pineapple, strawberry, orange slices, apples balls (looked like they used a melon baller--is that what it's called?--to scoop them out), and cherries. How cool!!! Treavor loved it! Jecilyn was jealous!

So, even though I'm pretty sure this incident was situational--a good waitress who wanted to shut up my snot nosed kid so he wouldn't disturb other guests--I'm still giving Applebees a Thumbs Up!