Trip to Zuppas Restaurant

Recently I had the opportunity to check out a new restaurant I found on Twitter called Zuppas in Neenah. I heard a lot of great reviews about this place especially because Zuppas provides fresh locally grown products. As I arrived at the restaurant I was curious of what I was going to try on the menu. I noticed there are daily special that gives you a bang for your buck. I tried a roast beef Panini with chips and fresh squeezed lemonade. The sandwich was delicious, and I could tell the roast beef was freshly sliced and made to perfection. Although I was full I couldn't resist buying their famous mac and cheese with bread crumbs on top. It was worth the two dollars I spent on it. Zuppas is also known for their catering business and casual dining. I was highly satisfied making a trip to Zuppas, and knowing what I ate supported local farms and businesses. I am looking forward coming back to Zuppas in the near future, and I hope you have the chance to do the same. Cheers, Lee IV

Fun Day in March

G’day Mates, welcome back to another exciting voyage back to Milwaukee. On March 13, I headed back down to the Food Expo with the baking crew early in the morning. The baking crew was preparing quick breads and other tasty treats to demonstrate for guests to learn new techniques. Since they were doing that I was able to check out the show floor since I missed it the previous day because of competing. I met a lot of people that day from Fox 6, reporter Justine, Cheese Lady Sarah and many others. I was astonished about all the people I was networking with because they gave me a lot of tips of how I can improve my goals and help others with theirs. Not only did I talk to a lot of people, I was able to eat a lot of tasty foods from steak to gyros. The abundance of samples made me full, but I made sure I tried everything to experience flavors I never had before. I recommend if you ever have the chance to check out a Food Expo you should, otherwise you are missing out on a lot of things. After having a good time at the Food Expo it was time to head back to Fond du Lac, because I had class that evening. I must say although I haven’t had much sleep this week, I am having a great time! On my next voyage I’ll be sailing off to Moraine Park’s Beaver Dam campus. I am excited to tour the campus and help select a candidate for the Student of the Year Award. See you soon, ciao!

Cheers,
Lee IV

Game Day

G’day Mates! Monday, March 12 was the official day of the hot plate food competition in Milwaukee, Wisconsin at the American Airline Center. After a day of practice our team was feeling pretty good about winning today, although we were a little nervous. I learned if you are nervous about something, that it means you really care about the thing you are doing. As we approached our destination I was becoming super excited to get our food competition started to show what we can bring to the table. Since we had some time to spare before we started, I decided to check out the keynote speaker Duff Goodman. He is famous for his hit television show Ace of Cakes on the Food Network channel. He was an excellent speaker; I was able to take a couple of pictures, and video clip of his presentation. Shortly afterwards it was time for our team to get ready for our competition. We started to plan out what order things were going to be cooked in, then once 12:30 hit it was time for us to start cooking. In the beginning we were talking, laughing, and having a good time because this is what we do best. Midway through the competition things got a little scary because some of the food wasn’t turning out correctly, but we kept our cool and “shake and bake.” The judges kept coming around, checking to see how well we were doing, and asking us questions about ourselves and food. With 5 minutes left we were pushing for time, and then within 30 seconds left I realized I needed to plate my rice. So I quickly ran to grab the rice and shape it on the plate, and then ran the plate to the judges. I felt like the television show, Chopped, when a contestant almost forgets the key ingredient, which is one feeling when your stomach just drops. Afterwards we clapped and took a group picture. Afterwards we had some free time to walk around before the judges came around to critique us.

Thirty minutes passed and the judges came by to critique us, and it wasn’t too good. The way we were judge on didn’t seem like the judges liked our food because there were mixed reviews. After that our confident level went down, and we thought our chance of placing was shot down. Therefore going to the award ceremony we were sad, but something changed our feeling. As they announced the 3rd place winner, they called out Moraine Park team 2. We were stunned; I was like is this real and once it was, I jumped in joy and I think I screamed a little but it didn’t matter because I was glad our team placed. We haven’t placed in four years, so this was a huge accomplishment. Afterwards we took group pictures with our medals and trophy. After an emotional rollercoaster day, our hard work paid off. Some of us were even thinking about competing again, and our next goal is to beat Fox Valley Tech since they came in first this year. We headed home in tears of joy and celebrating our goal. Well mates after a long emotional day, it is time for me to dock the ship because there’s another early voyage tomorrow as I finally get to check out the Food Expo floor. Until then ciao!

Cheers,
Lee IV

Sweet Home Chicago!

January 16 was the day I finally got the chance to take a small trip to Chicago to visit my family. The last time I was in the windy city was last September when I went to watch the Bears game with my friend Tyler at Soldier Field. I decided the best and cheapest way for me to travel was for me to drive to Milwaukee and park at the Amtrak parking lot then take the Mega bus to Chicago. Mega bus is a bus service that offers cheap prices to various locations throughout the Midwest region. My bus ticket only cost me $12.50 for a round trip from Milwaukee to Chicago. After a two hour bus ride I finally made it to sweet home Chicago. As I arrived in the city my family came to pick me up. It was great seeing them because I missed them a lot and I have not seen them in awhile. We decided to head out to the mall in Orland Park, Illinois. Compared to Fond du Lac’s Forest Mall Orland was twice the size and has stores on two levels. I forgot how busy places in my hometown can be, but I wasn’t complaining. I miss all the loud noises and so many things to do. My family and I did a little shopping around checking the latest deals and clearance. We found some good stuff ranging from shoes to clothing items. The shopping made us a little hungry so we got some food from the food court. Afterwards it was time to head home to get ready for dinner. My mom and I have this little competition of who can find a restaurant that one of us hasn’t tried yet. So she picked this restaurant named Tuscany which is an Italian restaurant located in the city of Chicago. This place was amazing; the atmosphere was unique because it reminded me of being in Italy. The people were friendly, and most important the food was fantastic. I decided to get veal ravioli served with Alfredo sauce, my mom got a chicken dish served with potatoes and vegetables, and my step-dad got a rack of lamb ribs from New Zealand served with vegetables. Like I said before everything tasted great. I tried to utilize some French words I learned and remember, and the people working there were impressing. Although I know very little of French any attempt is always appreciated. We ended our meal with Tiramisu for dessert; if you never tried this dish then you are missing out. This dessert is delicious, soft, and full of flavors so don’t miss out on this amazing dessert. We were super stuffed, but in a good way. I will definitely come back to this place and bring others. Well after an amazing day, I call it a day. Until next time, I’ll catch you up on my voyage in Chicago. Cheers, Lee IV