Category: Personal

Surprise surprise, yes the Burger Challenge is still on. I’ve got a few places I still need to try out before I end this but I’ve been very busy (i.e. lazy) so I haven’t been able to get around to it. Anyway two people previously commented that I should try out this burger place in Al Manshar mall so I decided to pass by today and see what it was about.

First lets get the weird part out of the way. The place doesn’t have a name. I don’t know how that’s even legally possible! How could a place not have a name? I asked the employee what the place was called and her reply was that they don’t have a name but that it belongs to the same owners of Papa Johns Pizza. I think that’s very strange but I have a theory on why it doesn’t have a name which I will share later on in this post. For now though I’ve decided to call the place “Papa John’s Burgers”. Cheesy I know but its there fault for not coming up with one themselves and I need a name for this post.

Their burger surprisingly turned out to be really good. I had a cheeseburger combo with an extra cheeseburger on the side and although I wasn’t expecting to like it I actually ended up loving it. Their beef patties are ground fresh every morning and their buns are very McDonalds Fillet-O-Fish like so the end result is pretty similar to Johnny Rockets except for one thing, the sauce. The sauce they put with the burger is wayy better than anything I’ve had at Johnny Rockets, its kinda like the Rocket Single sauce except better.

Now the bad news. Their patties are pretty thin and I think that has to do with the price since their cheeseburger costs only 650fils. The result is too little meat for the bun, it looks kinda ok in the picture above but thats because I actually pulled the meat out so it would show in the picture. If it had double the patty it might have been a strong competitor for best burger in Kuwait but its not so I rate this burger a 3.5 out of 5.

Now that we’ve got that out of the way I can talk about other things not related to the review. First of all the price, its unbelievably cheap! Imagine a Johnny Rockets burger for only 650fils because that’s exactly what this is! A combo consisting of cheeseburger, fries and coke is only KD1.100! Thats cheaper than McDonalds and even cheaper than Naif! Their location really sucks, they’re located on the mezzanine floor of Fun Ahoy (an arcade/themepark) right next to Papa John’s Pizza. Which brings me to my theory on why the place doesn’t have a name. The owners of Papa John’s also own Fuddruckers so my theory is they needed a cheap burger place to serve the kids at Fun Ahoy so they probably use the same meat that they use at Fuddruckers and also have Fudds make their buns. Now legally I don’t think they can own another burger brand since they have Fudds so they just opened this random place that serves burgers and doesn’t have a name. Its only a theory of course so don’t take my word for it. If you do end up passing by which you should, be sure to do so in the middle of the week when there won’t be much kids around.

Papa John’s Burger is located in Al Manshar Mall in Fahaheel.
The cost of the Cheese Burger is KD0.650

Here are the burger places I’ve reviewed so far:
Applebee’s
Bredz
Burger Boutique
Fuddruckers
Hashi
Gaucho Gril
Gourmet Burger Kitchen
Johnny Rockets
Munch
Prime & Toast
Ruby Tuesday
Slider Station
Sheraton Hotel
The Burger Hub
The Little Oven
Wimpy

I picked up my Tamiya Lunch Box kit today. The Lunch Box is based on an old dodge van and was originally released I think in 1988. Recently though Tamiya has been re-releasing some of their “greater hits” and the Lunch Box is one of them.

Sadly I won’t be building this truck yet since I’ve ordered some parts off eBay (metal bearings / a faster motor) and they still haven’t arrived. For now I’ve started with the painting. Originally the Lunch Box is supposed to be painted yellow but I saw a guy online who had his painted military green and I decided to basically copy him. Its my first time painting and I think I’m doing good for a beginner.

I was a bit heavy handed with the spray paint at first and I am not too patient waiting for the different coats to dry but I’m still learning so I should be better the next time. I think I need to pass by the dealer later in the evening and pick up another can of paint just to be safe.

Beautiful weather today so I took my Tamiya car to a parking lot across the street from my house to play around with. I even tried shooting a video (below) which didn’t come out as I planned! Its a really cool car but I keep wishing I had the real version instead. I am going to get soooo much more Tamiya cars though, its like I finally found myself a hobby! [YouTube]

So last week I bought two tickets to London since I am going to be there from the 27th of January till the 31st. Well today I wake up and check my email and it tells me I can now check in. I look at the email closely and it turns out I booked the tickets for December 27th and not January 27th! I now can’t fucking change my booking online for some reason, British Airways is currently closed and the flight is 8:55AM tomorrow! What is there I can do?? I have no clue how I booked December instead of January, no clue whatsoever!

Update: I couldn’t cancel or change my online booking because the departure time was less than 24 hours. I couldn’t get a hold of BA in Kuwait or UAE. I tried calling the UK office but it kept giving me errors since the number I found only works if you call from within the UK. Finally I tried with Skype and I got through somehow. The BA agent on the other end of the line was extremely nice and helpful. He fixed my booking and saved my ass basically. I think this is the last time Nat is going to make me handle anything related to traveling especially after my last fuck up in Paris!

Aramex dropped off my first Tamiya radio control kit this morning. The Frog which I purchased early in the month was a ready built model but now since I really want to get into this hobby I ordered two more car kits so I could enjoy building them.

I originally wanted to purchased the Tamiya’s from the local dealer since his prices are cheaper than the Internet but both of the cars I wanted were out of stock here, actually one of them (pictured above), the Lancia Delta HF Integrale was a discontinued model so I only managed to find it on eBay. The other car, an old Dodge van nicknamed the Lunch Box was coming in the next shipment due to arrive in February but I couldn’t wait that long so I also ordered it from eBay.

First thing I did once I got my kit today was pass by the Tamiya workshop in Muthana and pick up a metal ball bearing set and some spray paint which I am going to use once the Lunch Box arrives next week. Now I am going to spend all day and put this kit together. Will post pictures once I am done. The fact that my car was delivered to me on Christmas morning makes me feel like a kid all over again.

Update: Ok it took me around 5 hours but I finally was able to put the whole thing together and take it out for a spin in my parking lot. The car is great but I definitely need to do some upgrades, first thing will probably be a more powerful engine motor followed by better grip tires and probably a suspension upgrade.

The tiny “Print” and “Email” buttons under every post are now working again. The “Print” button simplifies the post so that it looks clear when you print while the “Email” button is useful if you want to send a friend a link to the post.

Back in October my agency pitched for and won the Wataniya Airways account. For those of you who don’t know, Wataniya Airways is the new “premium” Kuwaiti airline. I am highlighting the word premium because many people including me originally thought Wataniya Airways was going to be competing against the likes of Jazeera Airways as an economy no frills airline, it’s not. Wataniya Airways won’t even be using the regular airport instead they will be flying in and out of the new Royal Aviation Terminal, the exclusive terminal used by private jets. Anyway, the TV commercial is finally completed and here it is. I might later add some behind the scenes (making of) pictures but only if I find interesting ones. [YouTube]

update: Added a few behind the scenes photos below, might add more later.

Back in June when the price of a barrel of oil hit $142 it kinda made sense why Aramex sent the email below:

Thank you for using our SHOP&SHIP service. Our aim is to continuously enhance your shopping experience with us.

Aramex has found it necessary to increase the SHOP&SHIP rates to offset the increase in fuel price and operating costs. Effective July 1st 2008, our new rates will be as follows:

First ½ kg K.D. 3.000
Each additional ½ kg K.D. 2.500

We appreciate your understanding as this situation is completely outside the scope of our direct control since fuel represents a significant variable cost in the provision of transportation services.

Today the price of oil is around $40 a barrel so why hasn’t Aramex decreased their shipping prices yet?

Has anyone stayed at an easyHotel before? easyHotel is a no frills super budget hotel. I am going to London next month for 4 nights and I am looking for a cheap place to stay. The hotel I usually stay in costs around 130 pounds a night and isn’t anything special at all. I was checking out tripadvisor.com for other hotels in the area and I came across easyHotel in Paddington. It doesn’t have a closet, or a desk, or a phone, or Internet, or a safe but the room does have a double bed, window (there is cheaper option without one), and a cozy looking bathroom thats a size of a plane bathroom. The price for 4 nights comes out to 168 pounds. There is a flat screen TV but to use it I need to rent a remote which goes for 15 pounds for 5 days. House keeping is another 10 pounds. Reviews are all positive and since its in Paddington its 15 minutes from the airport via Heathrow Express so it seems practical. Still though, not too sure if I should go for it or not, should be an interesting experience if I do. They are opening up in Dubai next year which should be a big hit.

Update: Just booked a standard room with a window and a double sized bed for four nights. Total price with tax KD79. Thats just an extremely good deal. Makes London more affordable specially with the special offers like the one British Airways had, KD150 Kuwait – London Kuwait. Also found out they do have internet, 10 pounds for 24 hours and an extra towel is 1 pound. They also can store my bags, 5 pounds for 24 hours for up to 3 items. Thats perfect cuz last day my checkout is 11AM but my flight is in the evening so I can just store my bags with them while I shop. Early check in is also available for only 15 pounds. (1KD = 2.4 pounds)

I don’t like the Ruby Tuesday on the Gulf Road for numerous reasons so when I saw the one at Avenues opening I didn’t think much of it. That is until I heard that the Ruby Tuesday in Avenues was owned by someone else. Turns out there is a new owner of Ruby Tuesday in Kuwait and the previous owner is not letting go of the brand which makes things a bit of a mess. Anyway the Ruby Tuesday at the Avenues is the first location opened up by the new owner and I passed by and had dinner there tonight and I liked it.

Ruby Tuesday is located in the food court but its a big location and has an amazing view of the 5th ring road. The decoration was very cozy, the service was very friendly and the food was great. Overall it was a huge contrast over the Gulf Road version and I would definitely go back.

Update: According to a reader both the previous owners and the new owners are legit Ruby Tuesday franchise holders. If that is the case or not, it doesn’t change the fact that the new Ruby Tuesday at the Avenues follows the original US franchise a lot closer in my view. So far the menu seems to be exactly the same as the US one which you can view [Here]

Update2: I got the following in my email today…

Dear Mark,

National Arabic Company holds the master franchise in the middle east, they gave Sultan group a sub-licance to operate in the avenues. NAC is monitoring the Avenues Branch. The menu MUST be the same. There are no options regarding that.

thanks

While out playing with my Tamiya Frog today I hit this big rock and ended up dislocating the drive shaft from the rear axle and ripping up the joint boot. Its not a problem though since I already took apart the rear of the Frog and will fix it and put it back together again tonight. Just need to pass by the My Toy workshop in Muthana and pick up some grease and a new joint boot. This is what I love about these RC cars, you can take them apart and put them back together or swap out parts when something goes wrong just like real cars.

I needed to get a 7up so I went downstairs to the coke machine under my house and put 100fils in it and nothing happened. I put another 100fils and it still wouldn’t give me a 7up. The machine ate my money so I hit it a few times and pressed the money return button a few times and ended up getting KD1.200 back in change!

I’ve had this cookie recipe ever since I was in university and when used with proper ingredients it never failed me. Problem is I can’t find good chocolate chips in Kuwait. My favorite used to be Baker’s Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chunks but all I can find in Kuwait are the Nestle and Hershey ones which suck. Anyway I baked some cookies today (used the Hershey chocolate chip) and I think they came out a 2.5 out of 5. I might be able to score a 3 if I use better brown sugar next time but it would still be a hopeless case without the proper chocolate. Maybe I should just order packs from Amazon..

My favorite cookie recipe

1 cup (2 sticks) (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup (150 grams) white sugar

1 1/4 cups (270 grams) firmly packed light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 3/4 cups (525 grams) all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons (10 grams) baking soda

1 1/4 teaspoons (6 grams) baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups (375 grams) semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 165 degrees celsius. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper (or use non stick cookie pans).

In a mixing bowl cream the butter. Add the sugars and beat until well combined. Beat in eggs one at a time making sure to beat well after each addition. Add vanilla and beat until incorporated.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and beat until just incorporated. Stir in the chocolate chips and nuts, if using. The cookie mixture will be moist and hold together.

Using two tablespoons, drop about 2 tablespoons of dough (38 grams) on the prepared baking sheets. Do not flatten cookies. Bake on the center rack of oven for 12 minutes, or until golden brown and still soft when gently pressed.

Makes about 48 cookies.

Took the Frog out for some bashing in the sun. It was a lot of fun, check out some more pictures below.

I passed by My Toy a few hours ago and picked up a Tamiya Frog radio controlled buggy. Originally released in 1983 the Frog was re-released in 2006 and I think its one of the coolest looking buggies. Interesting fact, the largest off-road track in the world is currently being built in Kuwait. Check out this link for some pictures. [Link]

update: In case anyone is interested here is the phone number of My Toy 22256707