Because Everything’s Better When You’re Having Some Pie

Ready or not, the holidays are upon us, and this means time with loved ones but more importantly loads of food. Recently, on a weekend trip to the small mountain town of Julian, CA (east of North County San Diego), I had a burning bush moment. While walking down main street, I discovered the Julian Pie Company and their world famous Apple Mountain Berry Pie. Obviously anything labeled as “world famous” deserves a bit of scrutiny. One bite (or was it one pie?) later, I became a believer.

The Apple Mountain Berry Pie is perfectly crafted with a moist, yet flaky crust, a tangy and sweet filling, and a crumb top made of pure magic. However, it should be known that my description serves little justice to this incredible dessert.

The coming holidays are a perfect time to check out the Julian Pie Company;it’s the only time where gluttony is forgiven, nay encouraged. Bust out your eating pants and enjoy.

Cost: $15

Also See: The Gear Burger | Kansas City Steak Company

And An Expert’s Advice on How to Use It

Thanks to Mother Nature, man is genetically equipped with many of the fundamental skills required for survival. Unfortunately, unless Mike Tyson happens to be your role model, you’ll never successfully navigate modern social obligations on baser instincts alone.

Take throwing your upcoming holiday cocktail party. Ignore the voice in your gut telling you a case of Natty Light and a 5th of Thunderbird is all it’ll take to pull it off. Obeying it will ensure you’ll never see a cocktail dress again.

Instead, add sophistication to your festive shindig with cheese. Your guests will appreciate having food around to balance their drinking, and if chosen correctly, the mix of flavors should make everyone’s palate appreciative of that extra coin you shelled out for classy drinks.

Wondering how to serve it? We suggest the Metrokane Complete Cheese Service (pictured above). For less than $40, this classic bamboo tray provides enough real estate for all manner of nibbles while conveniently storing its included serving utensils underneath.

When it comes to choosing what to serve though, we’ll always defer to the experts. So to help us out, we sat down to talk with Christine Hyatt founder of Cheese Chick, member of the Board of Directors of the American Cheese Society, and monthly columnist for the Oregon Wine Press.

Find out what we learned after the jump.

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Two Hands Required

The 2008 Gear Patrol Gear Burger. Joygasm.    Click Image To Enlarge & Savor

What do you get when you mix two hungry Gear Patrol Editors, a classically trained Executive Chef, an empty restaurant and liberal amounts of free time? If you said complete and utter mayhem, then you’d be right.

Just for the record, I knew from the beginning the blowtorch would be a bad idea.

Mission: Set out to construct a better burger achievable by man in his own home.

Result: A masterpiece worthy of the GP seal of approval. Lucky for you we like to share. We’re going to show you how you can construct your own bewildering behemoth, impress your buddies (everyone actually), and dominate grillisto’s the world over.

From the mad minds of Gear Patrol and Executive Chef Richard Parente (of Sentrista Grill), we present the 2008 Gear Burger. Buckle up.

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Restaurant Review

Recession proof steakhouse.

New York is full of famous steak houses. There’s Peter Luger’s, Wolfgang’s (not Puck), and of course the infamous Sparks (where a certain Gambino crime boss met his demise). Yes, all three are good and I have neglected many. But all the good places in the city have one thing in common: they’re expensive. So where can you go in the New York area for a good cheap steak; a steak for the recession minded connoisseur? Well, you’ll have to travel west across the Hudson River to Hoboken, New Jersey to a place called Arthur’s Tavern.

Full review after the jump.

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Restaurant Review

Dinner? Breakfast? Lunch? Yes.

Its gastro-pub ambiance hides the fact that The Spotted Pig here in New York’s West Village, helmed by April Bloomfield (chef and principal owner) is a traditionalist’s delight. That traditionalist being me. I am a self-professed antagonist of the modern-day bloated über-restaurant, something major metropolitan areas are teeming with. The Spotted Pig’s menu features traditional pub/bar fare, but executed with fine and fresh ingredients. It sounded worthy of Gear Patrol scrutiny.

Attending for the requisite New York weekend brunch, after an unavoidable two-hour wait we ordered the Chargrilled burger with Roquefort Cheese & Shoestring fries and Two Fried Eggs with Homefries, both perfect fodder for our photograph. The food was delicious, the wait was not. For my next visit, I’ll be going during a weekday lunch. Swarms are not for me.

The intersting facet of The Spotted Pig is that it is far from swanky in theme or ritzy in demeanor. There’s literally a bar that serves cask brews and French press coffee within arms reach, you’re piled on top of your neighbor whether you like it or not and the selections range from comfort food to comfort food with a Michelin Star earning twist. And they have earned that star, four years running. It’s all quite charming yet insane and I loved every bite.

The Spotted Pig | 314 W. 11th St. at Greenwich St. New York, NY 10014 (212-620-0393)

Also See: House of Nanking | 10 Best Sandwiches In America

Lock, Stock And One Online Grocery List

For those men that declare themselves as foodies (and those that don’t) the concept of grocery shopping is typically an annoyance. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to automatically jot down a reminder every time you run out of a certain product? Sea salt, import lagers, aged angus beef, free range eggs, 9-grain bread, olive oil, pappardelle, oh and toilet paper.

Enter Ikan. Ikan scans the UPC barcode on any package you’re finished (or not finished) with and automatically adds that product to an online shipping cart. The cart remains stored until you’re ready to make a grocery order thereby eliminating the hassle of going through a mental or physical inventory.

If the barcode isn’t clever enough, you can use the voice recorder to add items (”Q-Tips. Almonds. Beer!”) or the built-in Search & Add feature. Set the Ikan to automatically send email reminders or if you prefer shopping in person, the Ikan can also print out your saved shopping list to take with you.

After all, every man should find himself well-acquainted with the local grocery’s meat aisle and butcher/monger. It’s your god-given right and duty.

Cost: $399 @ Ikan | Check Available Retailers

Also See: 131 Best Grocery Foods For Men @ Men’s Health