As it turns out, Sunday was all about food. We had planned our day around a trip to the airport (as noted in our last installment) to pick up Paul and Athena. Fortunately, before we braved the trek back to the airport, we realized they weren't actually coming in until Monday. Doh!
John spent much of the morning working on the 'Collecting Ralph McQuarrie' PowerPoint presentation for the show (don't get him started on PowerPoint—that was the requirement of the event hosts). He was excited to find these interesting wall murals online, and can't wait go get back home to work with Vonna on determining which walls in the house will get one.
We decided to head out to breakfast, and since the line for IHOP extended out the door and into the Florida heat, we opted for Denny's instead. The fact that the line did NOT extend out the door into the heat should have been our first clue, but heck, if it was good enough for Jameson Kenerly, Miss Georgia's Outstanding Teen, we figured it had to be good enough for 2 Idiots and Vonna.
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| Good luck, Jameson! |
The food was what you might expect from Denny's, and the service was certainly lacking. The memorable moment from the meal was when the two small kids at the table behind us started swinging their toy lightsabers around, and one decided Stanley's head looked just a little too similar to a training remote and swung for the fences. Needless to say, we won't be returning to Denny's on this trip, Miss Outstanding Teen contestants or not.
Vonna dumped us back at the townhouse and proceeded to the Publix grocery store to stock up on food (in part to ensure we wouldn't have to eat breakfast out again). She bought enough to warrant getting help out to the car—timed perfectly with the arrival of a rainstorm. Once safely back within the confines of the townhouse, the question was where to put everything?
Since we determined that we didn't need to head out to the airport, we decided it might be a good night to return to our favorite Steak House in Orlando, Christopher's. Unfortunately, we determined that the restaurant we had been telling people about for the past two years doesn't exist. Our challenge became to find the Steak House not called Christopher's that we had enjoyed so much in 2010. First stop—the 2 Idiots Strike Back blog. No luck. We don't know how that meal didn't make it into the blog, but as we were sure that we had taken a picture of John's head (for scale) next to several raw cuts of beef, it was just a question of where those photos ended up.
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| Used for illustrative purposes only—this is NOT the same meat (but that IS the same John). |
Thanks to Facebook's unending archive of everything you've ever said, done or posted (let that be a lesson to you all), we found it. Unfortunately, we didn't mention the name of Not-Christopher's Steakhouse there, either. With minimal Googling, we were able to ascertain that the restaurant in question was not Christner's Del Frisco, but Charley's Steakhouse. Success!
Charley’s Steak House has created a unique dining experience unsurpassed in the industry. Featuring only Midwest grain-fed USDA Prime & Choice beef, aged on-site for 4 to 6 weeks, and have management cut meat daily and season for 30 hours to create distinctive flavor. The steak is then flame-grilled over a 1200-degree open pit, fueled with a combination of oak & Florida citrus wood. This carefully monitored process provides for quality, tenderness and a tantalizing taste that elevates Charley’s to the ultimate steakhouse experience.
Lest there be any doubt, one just had to view the array of meats in the case up front to know we were in the right place.
We did find ourselves mocking the third dessert from the left on the top shelf. Either the runt of the litter, or a dessert mistakenly delivered to the wrong restaurant... in any case, it warranted documentation here.
We were graciously welcomed by our evening's entertainment, David, who gave us the introductory lesson on all things meat (imagine the tray above without John's head). Stan decided on the Rib-Eye, Vonna opted for the smallest selection in a 10oz Filet Mignon, and John chose the Porterhouse (the 24oz cut, not the fabled 50oz cut seemingly not fit for human consumption).
For startes, Vonna and Stan thoroughly enjoyed the Escargot, as well as a Beefsteak tomato with Vidalia onions.
The bread served with dinner had a baked cheese topping and was brushed with Rosemary butter before serving. The house salads were unremarkable in comparison to the rest of the meal, but Stanley enjoyed his Blue Cheese smothered Iceberg Wedge salad with smoked bacon. John enjoyed a nearly-fully stuffed baked potato with his meal.
David made sure we were well taken care of all night, and kept Stanley's drink glass full as the evening progressed (sorry, no double-mug shots today. You'll have to use your imagination!).
The main courses were amazing (with a disaster promptly averted when it was quickly identified that the kitchen brought out a Bison Rib-Eye for Stanley in place of his requested Moo Rib-Eye).
We new better than to try and eat everything served, so we left plenty of leftovers to bring back to the townhouse for later enjoyment. We also took advantage of the dessert cart on a to-go basis.
Vonna selected the caramel cheesecake with a layer of chocolate (front right). John jumped at the chance to wrestle the huge wedge of carrot cake into submission (middle back), and Stanley chose, of all things, the runt of the litter we had spotted earlier—a deceptively small slice of key lime pie (front and center).
At this point in the meal, John remembered the parting words of Stan's roommate back home—Stan was required to make at least one new friend on this trip. After several hours of his putting up with our antics (and he certainly held his own)—we decided this distinction would be awarded to our delightful server, David. Our apologies in advance to any future applicants. The position has been filled.
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| Stan and his new friend David |
We had a grand time, only to find ourselves amidst a downpour as we were leaving the restaurant. Vonna made a mad dash for the van, and swung around to pick us up, minimizing the drenching of our voluminous leftover and dessert selection.
Once back in the townhouse, we settled in with our desserts (John seemed the clear winner in the dessert sweepstakes with the amazing carrot cake that will surely last the duration of our stay), and were able to view the final cut of our Ralph McQuarrie tribute video prepared for the show, which our pal Steve Ewertz uploaded for our review. We're extremely happy with how it turned out, and think Ralph's fans will really enjoy hearing stories from... well, let's not ruin any surprises. We'll have a full report on that in our Friday wrap-up later in the week.
So that's it for Sunday. Monday we'll make a trip out to the airport, and possibly check out one of the many theme parks this town has to offer. Until then 2 Idiots (and Vonna) signing off!
P.S. When in Orlando, be sure to stop by Charley's Steakhouse. And be sure to ask for David!
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