Fishers – Riviera Maya

Located in the heart of Fishers Rivera Maya has found a way to be successful in a building that’s changed hands no less than 5 times in the past 10 years. There’s no shortage of Mexican restaurants in the area and they all pretty much look and server the same thing.  Riviera Maya does set itself apart in a few ways.

Upon entering you are immediately greeted with a friendly staff member who will seat you right away (if there are tables available of course).  This place has been known to get very crowded on Friday/Saturday nights and I recommend reservations if you are going to have a big group or limited time.

Overall the place feels really big.  It’s very open with high ceilings and plenty of decoration in the Mayan motif.  In typical Mexican restaurant style, you are immediately served tortilla chips and salsa while looking over the menu and picking out your food.

The chips and salsa are pretty standard and always fresh.  I always have to watch myself because it’s easy to ruin your appetite on the free appetizer.  I always equate the chips & salsa to the bread basket at other places (and it’s usually better).

No veggies here, just meat, seafood & cheese!

The very first thing I tried at Riviera Maya is the dish I’ve been loyal to,   The Burrito Loco.  The $9.99 dish is one of the things I think sets it apart from other Mexican restaurants.  Take a 12″ flour tortilla, stuff it with grilled steak, chicken and shrimp, roll it up and smother it in cheese sauce.  That’s it, no vegetables, no beans, no rice, just a big burrito on a plate.  I’ve had this dish probably a dozen times and it’s been very consistent in both preparation and flavor.

Each ingredient in the Burrito Loco is seasoned and grilled just right;  the shrimp are especially tasty and good-sized.  Something you don’t get very often in Indiana.

22 oz, it was a "school night"

A”nother great thing about this place is their Dos Equis XX Dark in 16,22 and, 34 oz sizes.  I like the 34 oz served in a huge frosted mug.  I have never had beer so cold as I’ve had at Riviera Maya.  I always like to say if you can’t lift the 32 oz mug you’ve had enough to drink.  My wife says the Margaritas are very good as well.

We’ve dined at Riviera Maya several times and have always had good service.  You get a lot of food for your money and the atmosphere is a lot of fun (although it can get a little loud at times).  This is the only Mexican restaurant we go to in Fishers.  I’m already looking forward to my next Burrito Loco!

Another great review (with much better pictures) can be found at the “Would I Buy It Again” blog.  These guys are covering the city at a quick pace and their reviews are always top-notch.

Riviera Maya on Urbanspoon

Braised Short Ribs

It’s officially cold in the Hoosier State and that means I’m in the mood for hearty comfort food that makes the house smell incredible (and helps keep the winter blues at bay).  My wife and I had an incredible tasting menu at Pizzology last year (special New Years Eve event) and the Braised Short Ribs stood out to me more than everything else (although it was all very good).  After that meal I knew I had to try to replicate the dish and start serving it to the family on a semi-regular basis.

English Cut Short Ribs

There are two different types of Short Rib cuts.  The ribs can be separated and cut into short lengths (typically about 2 inches long), called an “English cut” or the “flanken cut” which is achieved by cutting across the bones (typically about 1/2 inch thick).  This recipe calls for the English Cut and will need 2 ribs per person.

Flanken Cut Short Ribs

Once reduced the cooking liquid can be thickened with a roux or served as is.  The ribs go very well with a starch such as mashed parsnips, or potatoes.

One of the most consistent source for English Style Short Ribs in Central Indiana has been The Fresh Market in Broad Ripple and Carmel.  Even if they don’t have them in the case just ask, they’ll most likely cut them fresh for you.

 Braised Short Ribs (serves 4)

1 bottle Cabernet Sauvignon (Spend around $10-12)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
8 short ribs, trimmed
1 teaspoon black peppercorns, crushed
Flour, for dredging
10 cloves garlic, peeled
8 large shallots, peeled, and split in half
2 medium carrots, peeled, and cut into 1-inch lengths
2 stalks celery, peeled, and cut into 1-inch lengths
1 medium leek, white and light green parts only, coarsely chopped
6 sprigs Italian parsley
4 sprigs thyme
3 bay leaves
3 tablespoons tomato paste
2 quarts unsalted beef stock or chicken stock
Freshly ground white pepper
Kosher Salt

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or large casserole, large enough to hold 6 ribs, over medium-high heat. Season the ribs all over with salt and the crushed pepper. Dust the ribs with flour and then when the oil is hot, place the ribs into the pot and sear for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until well browned.

Transfer the browned ribs to a plate. Remove all but 1 tablespoon of fat from the pot; lower the heat to medium, and toss in the vegetables and herbs. Brown the vegetables lightly, 6 to 7 minutes, then stir in the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute to blend.

Add the wine, browned ribs, and stock to the pot. Bring to a boil; cover the pot tightly, and slide it into the oven to braise for about 2 1/2 hours, or until the ribs are tender enough to be easily pierced with a fork. Every 30 minutes or so, lift the lid and skim and discard whatever fat may have bubbled up to the surface.

Carefully transfer the meat to a heated serving platter with a lip and keep warm. Boil the pan liquid until it thickens and reduces to approximately 1 quart. Season with salt and pepper and pass through a fine-mesh strainer; discard the solids.

Pour the sauce over the meat. Serve with vegetables of your choice.

Is the iPad Compromising the IT Industry?

It’s kind of like the perfect storm…  The Internet has exploded in growth and its ubiquity directly corresponds to the Commoditization of “Connected Devices”.  It started with devices such as the iPhone and Blackberry and it’s spiked again with the introduction of the iPad.

Gartner announced this week: Without Proper Planning, Enterprises Deploying iPads Will Need 300% More Wi-Fi.  This is pretty serious if you’re the one responsible for making sure these enterprise systems work reliably.

I’ve been in the IT industry for a while now and I can tell you from experience the adoption of new technology has ALWAYS been a hard sell to upper management.  Then the iPad hits the market and the drive for adoption starts coming  from the TOP of the orginization.  The “Cool Factor” of the device made it the “thing” to have in the board room.

The fact that the iPad is NOT a laptop replacement is lost on the CEO, CFO, COO, etc..  I’ve seen people who once had to have perfection in their “productivity tools” all of a sudden accept the major limitations of their new toy.  These limitations are not only limited to the iPad, all the tablets being wedged into the corporate world have limited features and poor security.

To be fair, I’ve tested the iPad & it was a fun toy.  If you just want to surf the web and check your email it will do that just fine.  If you want to use your accounting applications, ERP system, or edit complicated spreadsheets it’s going to have its challenges.  I’m now testing the Blackberry Playbook which has similar limitations and a lot less available applications.

The only “Tablet” that I’ve ever used that, in my opinion, was worth anything was a Tablet PC where the screen could be rotated and reversed allowing you to use its 14″ touch screen.  This, to me, is the best of both worlds.  Full featured, powerful, and completely compatible with your existing workflow and environment.  Is it a little bigger than the iPad?  Sure it is but that difference is 100% worth it to me.

Do you have an iPad (or other tablet)?  Does it do everything you expect?

 

 

 

Do the Freemasons Run Facebook?

Happy Sunday morning everyone!  I love Sunday mornings.  It’s a time where the family sleeps in and I spend some quiet time reflecting on the past week and preparing for another exciting seven days.

There’s nothing like a good conspiracy theory to get the mind thinking about all kinds of crazy stuff.  I shared the following on Facebook a few days ago & have thought about it ever since.

From a profile of Mark Zuckerberg on Forbes.com:

What the CIA failed to do in 60 years, Zuck has done in 7: knowing what 800 million people–more than 10% of the world’s population–think, read and listen to, plus who they know, what they like and where they live, travel, vote, shop, worship. U.S. users spend more time on Facebook–on average 6.3 hours a month–than on any other site.

Is it possible that Facebook (a once private Social Network) is run by the Freemasons (a private Social Network)?  Of course it’s possible and Zuckerberg could be at the 33rd level.

There have always been strong ties between the US Government and the Free Masons.  The “All Seeing Eye” is on our currency after all.  It isn’t surprising the US Government (CIA, NSA, et al) have a HUGE interest in the information we all freely share with our “friends”.

On episode 353 of the “No Agenda” podcast Adam discussed the similarities of the “Two Ball Cane” to the Facebook logo:

Sometimes the truth is staring us right in the face every day

So what do you think?  Is Facebook just another company that’s found its Niche in Society or is it part of a greater evil that’s taking the opportunity to gather as much information on you as possible?

As an aside (and a bit of humor) you can see below it’s easy to change an existing logo to make a new one with a completely different meaning:

I love the Death Star/Wikipedia comparison

 

Tweets from 1939

Every once in a while a great idea comes along that, once you hear it, is so obvious!

On Aug 31, 2011 a British man named Alwyn Collinson started a 6 year project that uses Twitter to send out messages from World War II.  These messages are reports of the war as they happen on the same day and time over 70 years ago.  The messages are brief and often have links to related historical images.

@RealTimeWWII has grown in popularity over the months and as of the time of this writing has 160,000 users following the action.

As you can imagine there’s a lot of information to be relayed and the timing of the messages are what makes this so unique.  Mr. Collinson uses an online scheduling tool called SocialOomph to keep the entire project moving.

I first learned about this project from an article in the New York Times.  They have a great writeup that also talks about other similar projects.

If you’re a WWII fan you should check this out. An RSS feed is also available but requires a Facebook account to access.

Hey Indianapolis, do I have a DEAL for you!

If you’re a Big Mac fan, this is for you…  50% off & 26,000+already purchased!

It’s all about the margins I guess…  Hard to believe Ronald went to a discount site for its latest promotion.  What’s next?  15 Dave’s Hot and Tasty’s from Wendy’s for $20?  I’m not linking to the deal above, I just can’t do it…