Junk Food Nation, continuing on with my Vegas recap, I wanted to describe some of the characters I hung out with for the weekend. First, there was the BQB, of Fall football-pick-fame on this blog. Then there was CP (correlated parlay), a teacher and human stat machine whose college basketball prowess nailed a winner on the Georgia State game. The Elbow was next, a giant of a man who towered over me by more than 1.5 feet. BC (bubble craps) was a fellow attorney from Boston, and finally Irish P – the man behind the screen pulling all the strings. BTW, these are not nicknames anyone called each other – I just made them up like we were the cast of the Italian Job.

Before crashing the night of Day 1, the CP told me: we needed to be at the Mirage sports book before the first game of the tournament. When I stepped onto the Mirage sports book floor at 8:15am on Thursday morning, I could see why – the whole place was BUZZING. Easily one of the biggest sports books on the strip, they had the most open betting windows of any casino I saw and had multiple gigantic screens. Bets were being argued aloud, people were circling the lit boards showing the spreads; it felt like the New York Stock Exchange.

These big leather/pleather couches in the back of the sports book were on a raised stage, semi-stadium seating, with a view of the whole sports book and of all the screens. The little sign on the end table told me to talk to “Tommy G” or something to reserve. I found Tommy G – a tall guy in a maroon sweater – who informed me that each couch was $1500 for the day, unlimited food and drink. The couches sat four, so $375 a piece? Not a horrible deal, I guess…plus, you could always split it with more friends, I guess, and rotate through whenever. The dudes I talked to sitting on one couch said they reserved two weeks prior.

The seats on the floor of the Mirage were where the high roller sports gamblers sat – those were amazingly only $150 for the day, AND you received $150 in food/drink credits. However, when I asked one of them how far in advance they reserved, they indicated they weren’t open for reservation – the casino host had set it up for them. So…not for us common folk.

In the very very BACK of the Mirage sports book were some additional couches which the bros sitting in them said they waited in line since 3:00am for.  Wow.

The sports book had its share of characters. THESE guys were excited. They were looking to take down those bastards from the University of Phoenix.

Sure enough, as the CP described, as the first game (Notre Dame/Northeastern) began to show the players huddling up before taking the floor, the entire sports book began to clap and whistle until finally the whole group exploded with cheering with the first tip.

The rest of the morning was a blur. The CP convinced our entire group to go in on Georgia State over Baylor both ways – ML and Spread. When the coach’s son nailed the 30-foot 3-pointer to upset the Bears, the entire sports book exploded. It was incredible – all of us were jumping up and down hugging like maniacs. The CP grabbed me by the shoulders, shook me, and screamed “WELCOME TO VEGAS!!!!!”

That evening, despite the fact that I had just eaten two burgers the night before, the group went out for burgers again that evening. BLT Burger is a fast casual spin off of the nationwide BLT Steak brand. Plus, it was one of the only restaurants in the Mirage that still had huge screen TVs, so we were able to munch and not miss a second of Kentucky vs. Hampton.

Would the $14 BLT Burger be better than the $3-$4 In-N-Out Double-Double I had the night before? Hmmm.

BLT Milkshakes! The Twinkie Boy called to me.

You know, I took this picture of the BLT Desserts because I wanted to discuss the Deep Fried Oreos dessert, but I just noticed that one of the sides was “Fat Fries” Fat Fries??? I love honesty. I didn’t even get to ask what those were.

I ended up ordering these Loaded Waffle Fries.  Not as good as Loaded Tots, as the Waffle Fries were overly greasy and didn’t impart very much potato flavor. Plus, the melted cheese didn’t taste very creamy…these reminded me a lot of TGIFridays Potato Skins…which I am not a huge fan of either. These were just a salty grease bomb. Pass, next time.

BLT Burger’s Loaded Nachos, however, were ON POINT.  Good chili, good salsa, great spice, prefectly light chips. Yum yum yum….exactly what you want from a 2000-calories bowl of gooey/crunchy goodness.

I settled on the BLT Cowboy Burger, your standard bacon, chipotle BBQ sauce, onions, pickles, pepperjack burger, with curly fries. Looked a mess, tasted amazing. Nice soft bun, super crispy bacon, sweet sauce – it just worked. Of course, after eating three burgers in two days, I LITERALLY felt my fingertips starting to go numb. I have to admit – that scared me.

More on Vegas later – let me know if you have any comments below!

Today’s junk food: New Sweet & Spicy Chipotle Wheat Thins!!

Oh, Wheat Thins. I love you. And I love pretty much all the flavored varieties that had been previously released. Well, throw another flavor onto the pile: New Sweet & Spicy Chipotle Wheat Thins are here.

I’ve eaten a chipotle pepper before. It’s spicy. Not SUPER spicy, but eat enough of them and your eyes will be watering. I was hoping these would be spicy Wheat Thins, which would be awesome, but it looked like these New Sweet & Spicy Chipotle Wheat Thins aren’t going to go that route.

New Sweet & Spicy Chipotle Wheat Thins contain chipotle chili pepper powder and some smoke…the flavor is already starting to crystallize in my head…

When I opened this box of New Sweet & Spicy Chipotle Wheat Thins, I could smell a general savory flavor, with a bit of smoke – sort of like smelling a bag of BBQ Lays. A bit of sweetness in the air.

Munching on a few of these New Sweet & Spicy Chipotle Wheat Thins, I can say these were definitely tasty. I noted previously that they smelled like BBQ Lays potato chips…and the flavor? Well, that was pretty much a good comparator of the taste as well.

The first taste I got was sweetness, sort of like a sweet BBQ sauce. It was nice and tangy, and definitely woke up my taste buds. As I chewed, the deeper smoky flavor of the chipotle pepper really came out…there was a distinct chipotle pepper flavor that I recognized underneath all the BBQ/smoke flavor. That certain, I dunno, vegetable-y pepper bitterness that chipotle peppers distinctly posess.

Chewed all together, these were a nice smoky BBQ-sauce-like Wheat Thin. It’s interesting, because there already EXISTS a Smoky BBQ Wheat Thin flavor… I think what sets this flavor apart is that chipotle pepper flavor which was subtle, but present. Still, for less-discerning palettes, these will taste similar to the other flavor.

BUT, that being said, I enjoyed these – like I enjoy most Wheat Thins – and would munch again. Don’t buy these if you’re looking for a brand new flavor experience. But, if you’re someone who likes a nice chipotle BBQ flavor – these are your jam.

PURCHASED AT: Safeway, Chevy Chase, DC

COST: $2.99 on sale

Thoughts? Please comment below or hit me up on Twitter @junkfoodguy or LIKE my Facebook Page and message me there. I also have Google+!! Let’s hang out.

Sincerely,

Junk Food Guy