Wake me up when September Ends

Almost a whole month of neglecting... wow.  So sorry.

In truth, I've been horrendously busy - Working two jobs, totalling around the 55hr/week mark pretty consistently and I've also gone back to school (granted, only one course).  For those of you wondering, I'm taking Intro Financial Accounting.  So far I really like it.  One thing I've realized is that I don't mind desk work as long as I find it challenging and not as boring as rocks, like archiving is 90% of the time (IN MY OPINION...).

I don't have a whole lot of restaurant reviews even to cover the month. This is mostly due to illness.  After the UTI fiasco that was the end of August, I broke out into a terrifying rash all over my body.  This time, armed with internet informations, I found a walk in clinic where I could get in within an hour almost consistently.  The first time I went to the walk-in, I stumped the doc.  He wouldn't really tell me what he thought, but he prescribed me some antibiotics and asked about my living conditions (particularly mould). He also told me that if my temperature elevates, I should seek immediate medical attention (emerg). I was on antibiotics for a week, but the rash continued to get worse.  I went back to the walk-in and saw another doctor, who decided to read the previous doctor's notes out loud. Terrifying shit - Impetigo, Mould poisoning, Scarlet Fever.  Yeah.  This doctor's first reaction was, "SCABIES" (equally terrifying).  Luckily, after further assessment, we determined it was not scabies. She then started to describe a condition called Pityriasis Rosea... and it brought back some painful memories of being treated for psoriasis by a dermatologist years back... and it being eczema the entire time.  I demanded a high-strength corticosteroid cream. She thought I was crazy... but I was right.  The rash is now almost complete gone.  Eczema can really look like some scary shit. On top of all my terrifying skin problems, the boyfriend developed Strep throat. Luckily he got it while I was on antibiotics so I ended up not catching it.  Funny how that worked out...

Another September fun-time was checking out ManyFest which happens on Broadway every year.  Apparently they call it ManyFest because there were so many festivals going on at the same time that it was difficult to distinguish between them.  This year the focus was a food truck war that took up a tonne of space on Memorial.  You purchase tickets at the ManyFest booth for food items at the trucks.  The unfortunate side of this was the long lines (people waited up to 45 minutes per truck) and trucks often ran out of food because the event was well-attended (probably more than expected).  Instead of this, the BF and I decided to try out beer and wine sampling.  I had a farmery, he had some Granville Island.  We then did some wine tasting (rather, he did, the wine made me sick last time).  It was nice to be out and about for the last hurrah of summer.  There were also tonnes of vendors with cool shit for sale and live music.

Speaking of live music, I also saw the Creepshow when they came to Winnipeg on September 14th at Union Sound Hall.  Overall, a great set.  The first band (whoever they were) was terrible, but the Hellbound Hepcats rocked it out as well.  Drinks were way too expensive, but hey, it's a club... (it sucks when you're used to Foufs).

Sushi Cushi

The boyfriend and I love sushi, so we end up going on sushi dates probably more than our pocket books really like us to.  We were in the Polo Park vicinity and were craving sushi, so we decided on a place called "Sushi Cushi" in the west end.  It was great since it was right next to an XS Cargo, and we all know how much I love looking at useless crap.

This was your typical sushi joint with some fantastic additions.  Firstly, they serve bubble tea.  Like to your table.  It's the little things that make an experience so much better.  I had yet to be to a sushi place in Winnipeg that does this.  Both the BF and I are huge bubble tea fans so this was a huge plus.  I also found the prices to be extremely reasonable for the portions that you ended up getting.  It's not Wako cheap, but for a sit-in, it's very good value.

Our service was so-so but existent.  I found that food took a little bit longer than normally noted.  However, the sushi was fresh and delicious.

Will return.

8.5/10

Dairi-Wip

A combination of hunger and not feeling well led us (the boyfriend and I, my partner in crime when it comes to trying new restos) to Dairi-Wip, a drive in located in St. Boniface.  I was dressed in icky sweats and did not want a sit-down meal.  I wanted greasy deliciousness that wasn't McDonalds.

Perhaps it's because I didn't grow up in Winnipeg and drive ins are not a huge thing in BC, but I'm enthralled by the concept of these little burger joints.  I should also mention I have yet to have a fat boy (also not a thing in BC).  Unlike other drive-ins I've seen, Dairi-Wip has fish and chips on the menu.  That's what I was feeling like, so that's what I had.

They made my fish fresh, so it took about 10 minutes.  That was fine. It was totally worth it.  The staff were unpleasant, but I didn't really care.  In this context, it didn't really seem to matter.

What did matter however, is how freakin' good my fish and chips were.  The fish (which I'm thinking was pickerel because it was so buttery and awesome) was fantastic and just the right about of fish and grease.  It came on a bed of fries, which were phenomenal and so good they didn't require ketchup.  They were somewhere between a shoe-string fry and a normal-sized fry.

The only downside I see here is that this joint is cash-only.

9/10

Sargent Sundae

Winnipeg has a plethora of ice cream shops that operate in the summer.  It makes sense - summer is short, winter is long.  Winnipeggers enjoy all the summer they can before the -40 hits.

Sargent Sundae is located across from Assiniboine Park in St. James (all you have to do is cross the river to get to the park - they have a cute little bridge for this).

Ice cream was good. Staff were friendly.  Apparently it's the "BDI" of this side of the world.  Apparently it's an institution, but neither of my parents had heard of it (my dad grew up in River Heights, my mom in East Kildonan) because they both went to BDI.

I've heard a rumour they have pumpkin soft-serve that I absolutely have to try...

9/10

Banana Boat 

In all honesty, the only reason we went to Banana Boat was because I had an Entertainment Book coupon that I snagged from my roommate (and the more I think about it... I need to use up the ones I clipped since the majority expire in November).  It's really your standard ice cream shop - they have hard ice cream as well as soft serve.  What stood out for me was the myriad of toppings you can get to turn your ice cream into a sundae.  I had an excellently gross combination of some sweet cake-flavoured hard ice cream with marshmallow on top.  Fabulous.

The nice thing about Banana Boat is the location - it's right on Osborne past confusion corner so it's a five minute drive from the house.  Great for an ice cream craving and open pretty late too.  Winnipeg and their ice cream, I tells ya.

Overall a very fun post-bowling treat.

9/10