Gelato Fiasco Product Review

Amazing!

(12/08/2016)--- Oh my God! this is probably the best gelato that I had in the United States, I even liked better than Talenti, I have really no words or proper adjectives to describe this delicacy because I wouldn't make any justice to the flavor and texture of the body.

I have to confess I saw it for the first time at the Publix where I work, it got my attention because of the elegance of the logo as well the typography. It is such a beautiful minimalist logotype, that evokes old family shields from Europe and the typography is quite similar to find in old printed books.

It is quite strange to find northern products in Florida, or almost anything that is not common to see in Georgia or Tennessee, so being quite of a novelty I didn't hesitate to buy it even if it's a little bit pricey.

Gelato Fiasco (Homepage - About Us)  started in Maine as the founders Bruno Tropeano & Joshua Davis graduated from college; as many product development Gelato Fiasco started as the necessity of bringing that was missing and allocating the proper target demographics. At first the business went door to door and one of the reasons the brand took the name Fiasco as it was a product that was fighting against the trend setters; then, everything took of and new markets started to open.

It is always refreshing to see products as this one in Florida, is quite strange that a State as this one rarely contains variety towards the food proposal, even on the supermarkets you always find the same products or same brands; and seeing something as delicious as this it was an experience that made my entire week.

I wish one of the franchise would open in Tampa or at least in Orlando, it could be fun to visit a place that could offer a different proposal to the gastronomic market; something that is not Cold Stone or Ben & Jerry. In fact, if the Florida economical climate was open to new and small businesses we could have more than the classical franchises.

To know more about Gelato Fiasco (homepage) check their website, it is actually cool and also check on their section of flavors (Homepage - Flavors) because I can assure you "you will try to find if they sell it on your local store"

References:

• Web retrieved: About Us - Gelato Fiasco: http://www.gelatofiasco.com/our-story/
• Web retrieved: Homepage - http://www.gelatofiasco.com/
• Web retrieved: Flavor Vault - http://www.gelatofiasco.com/flavor-vault/

Busch Gardens Where to Eat Twisted Tails Pretzels

Twisted Tails Pretzles Facade

 12/01/2016 ---- "It is the most wonderful time of the year" I swear I don't believe those words anymore because there is a point at the end of the year where the flux of people just make impossible to travel around freely or go almost anywhere without feeling trapped in a theory of Temple Gradin about cattle.

That is unfortunately the ultimate reality about theme parks, they can be overcrowded on the peak seasons that is quite difficult to travel around; but, whenever is almost any other time of the year is just amazing to go to a theme park when is not crowded.

Inside

Twisted Tails Pretzels is in the hub of Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, in the heart of Pantopia, right next to Falcon's Fury. We aren't going to talk about Falcon's Fury yet, we are leaving the rides for another series of entries, Today we are going to talk about why pretzels are awesome and why is worth stopping on this joint to enjoy a pretzel or a pretzel dog.

You need to know that finding a good pretzel spot is unique, and enjoying a good pretzel in a nice enviroment can be difficult; but, God! finally deciding to take a chance and enjoy the food after many years of ignoring it because around a decade ago theme park food sucked, in almost every single theme park had overpriced food that wasn't even remote edible.

Yes, the food is still pricey but is one of the spots where the theme parks make much of their profit besides memorabilia and souvenirs. Probably, after living in Florida for almost ten years, I enjoyed some things that I wanted to do when I was a tourist and I have to confess "there are plenty of interesting things to do in a State that is mostly oriented to tourism and it was essentially the idea I got  when I decided to open this blog many years ago"

The Pretzels

The pretzels are just fantastic, probably my favorite one is the Pretzel Dog but the Cinnamon Pretzel is not far behind, One tip of advice I recommend to everyone is to purchase a commemorative mug and buy the refill package for the entire day, it can be on a long run cheaper since the single small drinks cost almost 4 dollars each and the mug is 12, especially on a hot day or when you are eating there you can save some cash towards the fountain drinks.

They also sell small containers of spicy mustard and cheese, that you can put on the pretzels. Also, this food join is the only one I'd seen some commemorative jars to Falcon Fury that I haven't even spot on Emporium or any other place on the theme park; which it could be a good memorabilia to purchase eventually.

One aspect that is cool about this place, is what we mentioned earlier "you can sit below Falcon's Fury and enjoy the riders going up and down, also is one of the best spots with some shade around the theme park.

Pretzel Dog and Chips

Is probably true, knowing a theme park in three days won't be completely possible, because you can miss small shows, food venues, some rides as well some other events and entertainment that the park can offer beyond the rides.

As a ending note, always enjoy what you like and what you love to eat, because that is one of the most wonderful experiences of being alive and travel around.

Good Eats Sultan's Sweets at Busch Gardens

Sultan Sweet's Second Facade

11/26/2016 --- Hello everyone, I know I haven't wrote anything in a while but I was in the need of a long break in order to gain some strengths and to continue with my idea of entertain you, as well finding good places, to tourist, to enjoy and to eat around Florida.

When I first started to blog about food many years ago, my idea was to show some cool easy to make recipes as well to eat as much as I could outside within a budget; it took me an effort to socialize again and to go out and enjoy the world. Even if the world sometimes doesn't look as a friendly place, there is still plenty of places to do and discover.

Almost for a year, I been enjoying the idea of going to theme parks on a regular basis; I won't deny it, I do enjoy it a lot but going outside and drive too much it is not an option at the moment, albeit on the near future I would love to spend some time in Universal Studios as well around Magic Kingdom.

Sultan Sweet Merchandise Display

I won't deny that many years, almost a decade ago food in theme parks was actually quite tasteless and over priced, it is still over priced but that is one of the points where they make a profit besides the souvenirs. Over the past decade food has improved on almost every theme park, up to the point that is actually worth of saving some money and explore the food joints that are on the different theme parks around Florida.

On our first trip we are going to start exploring around Busch Gardens food venues as well the different rides that constitute the entertainment factor of the park, but food can be a nice incentive to hunt around the different venues.

Display of Candies

They serve different varieties of candies, I essentially went insane for about 20 minutes when I saw everything but reality struck after seeing some of the prices, yet I won't deny that I went for a small piece of orange cream fudge and it was amazing, deliciously amazing, it was full of sugar and orange natural flavor, that I can't describe it within a simple paragraph.

Another good aspect about this location is that they sell coffee, Starbucks brand but to be honest who wants coffee when you are in a paradise full of candy?

More candy,really more candy!

The best part the confectionery is that everything is made on the premises, but God, they have a lot of nice items, incredible nice items that are just amazing. If I knew my sugar levels would go to the roof and I would be set into a diabetic coma I would enjoy all of the items and scream in pleasure and ecstasy.

The enviroment of the cafeteria is mostly oriented into an old American confectionery shop that is blended into an area that tries to emulate some of the Marrakesh architecture but is mostly fusion between an international style and old Americana.



---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PHOTOS

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dad's Old Fashioned Products Evaluation Analysis

Dad's Old Fashioned Brand

(8/7/2016) --- I have been an enthusiast of home-brew soda's; I can't deny I find them fascinating. Even I learned how to do my own back at home but there are plenty of national brands in the market such as Dad's Old Fashioned line of products.

Dad's product line is quite amazing but the presence in Florida fails short and they are almost impossible to find; there aren't even advertising on television and on newspapers. Much of the reason I discovered this brand is solely based that it started selling at Publix (which is my supermarket of choice).

The product itself got my attention because it was colorful and as I mentioned before I love sodas; after some curiosity I started to find information that was available about the product and market expansion in Florida, as well the online presence and channels used from the company to position their brand with the general audience.

The company was founded in 1937, but operations had been mostly set in Chicago and started expanding to national markets in 2007 (Dad's Root Beer - History) but the online presence of the company is minimal, the benefits of knowing the online metrics could involve a potential expansion on different areas as well knowing which products could be allocated in each region and explore opportunities such as introducing the products to new audiences.

A major setback is that without a physical proof of the product it should be noticed that cognitive-dissonance could be mixed in, in order to know what the customers think through sampling, which can be used to gather feedback but also encouraging the customers to leave any reactions to the product online and ask them to visit the website but also social media (Clow 2015).

The expansion on social could be critical as more people are engaged into reviewing the products using social channels, such as Instagram in which people are using the #dadsrootbeer hashtag but there is no Dad's profile on Instagram; Facebook and Twitter don't count with a wide presence either; Facebook barely having 6,000 engaged in the brand and Twitter a roughly 1,000 followers. 

References:

1. Web retrieved: Dad's Root Beet -History: http://www.dadsrootbeer.com/dads/dads.nsf/vwContent/History
2. Integrated Advertising, Promotion, and Marketing Communications, Chapter 15
3. Web retrieved: https://www.facebook.com/Dads-Old-Fashioned-Root-Beer-and-Cream-Soda-117159998301204/home
4. Web retrieved: https://twitter.com/ilovedads

Private Brand Analysis 7Select and their Organic Sweet Tea

7-Select

(7/29/2016) --- As consumers tend to go and find products that we are familiar with. Brand acquisition and branding can be the best tools in a company to position themselves in the market; even if in the behavior of consumers, they are feeling tempted to pay more for a retailer brand because they can sense quality.

As consumers tend to move towards certain patterns in their shopping habits, such as focusing on their health but also consumers tend to go on what it gets their attention. It is not a big secret that on a retail environment, brands pay grocers to position their products on a spot that will generate revenues, but also the design of the products or goods has to be "flashy" enough to catch the attention and spark the interest of the purchase.

7-11 is a well-known brand towards the United States; many people probably had seen and been at a 7-11, they form part of the Americana pop culture but also many people had engaged business towards the store goods besides purchasing gas. I won't deny, I had purchased certain private goods from them and enjoy them (7-11, Private Brand).

Towards the year 2015, the company added certain products such as pizzas and expanded their brand to the sub-brands of GoYum! and GoSmart! The products are actually fair priced and tasty; towards the GoSmart which is their marketing option that appeals for consumers that seek "healthier options". In their line, they started to experiment with teas, organic teas, which towards flavor and body they aren't actually as good as any national brands.

The position they give on their stops shelves isn't actually the most proper one, they are almost placed on the bottom or far away from expensive brands. Why I am calling a product with the "organic" seal good, even if other products without that seal are probably even better? Because one aspect is the price, is actually cheap and second is the flavor. It is refreshing to see something that taste nice and also that is not expensive on a convenience store and it can be appealed to the public, not because the "organic strategy" to sell but rather because of it's affordability.

References:

1. Web Retrieved: http://corp.7-eleven.com/news/06-25-2015-7-eleven-sets-private-brand-bar-higher

Home Made Ice-Cream with two Ingridients

Home made ice-cream

(7/29/2016) --- Hello everyone, I been lately experiment with ice-cream, and with generally everything sweet. Probably the only time I use the word "experiment"  as I enjoy food more than I enjoy life on certain occasions, albeit with ice-cream for me is just mere joy and bliss.

I won't deny this was the first time I actually did ice-cream ever, it wasn't that bad but I am thinking seriously into buying the ice-cream machine, since they sell it at Target, Walmart or almost anywhere. I won't deny it was fun to do it without anything else except mere muscle power.

OK, not muscle power but just an effort; because talking about muscles I probably would need to hit the gym whenever I am not working in retail as the physical impact on my body will be diminished but no complains I am not giving ice-cream away.

OK so here is the list of ingredients:

1.  1- 14 oz condensed sweet milk (They sell this type quite cheap on certain bodegas and Latino supermarkets)
2. Two tablespoons of Nutella (please don't buy generic, it sucks on some occasions)
3. Mashed Oreo's (Don't forget to take out the filling, take it with a knife and then eat it all together in a frenzy where you know your life is finally complete)
4. 2-cups of heavy cream (Please remember to wisp it until is properly done)

What to do next:

1. Put the Oreo's a cup to be exact on a plate; take the filling out and place it on a side. You are not going to use it for the recipe, you are going to eat them and make a realization why your life is complete.
2. Then put the Oreo's inside a plastic bag and smash them like the Hulk.
3. Pour the sweet condensed milk in a bowl.
4. Scoop the Nutella inside the bowl with the condensed milk and blend it together (Any remains lick it, because life is not complete without Nutella!)
5. Whip the heavy cream; that's it. After Whip Nae-Nae I hate the word whip.
6. Gently mix a scoop of the whip cream into the condensed milk and light the condensed milk.
7. Transfer the rest of of the whip cream in to the mix.
8. Let it freeze for six to twelve hours and enjoy; FYI the best quality will only last five days to a week.

Enjoy y'all and remember vaccines don't cause autism and save lives!

Marketing Research Strategy for Guayaki: Acquisition of New Customers Through Traditional Media with Yerba Mate

Yerba Mate

As a rich and delicious drinks for the hot summer what Yerba Mate and Guayaki, the developer of the brand should consider the costs of expanding their marketing outreach of the brand beyond the use of social media, even if it has to create an additional cost in order to maximize the presence of the brand and products in the State of Florida.

The best approach is to re-think the grocery and convenience stores as Sweet Bay being the main center of distribution has ceased operations in Florida, leaving retailers as Publix or Target, even Walmart as focal points to execute business and think how much it can be invested on inventory. Tagging health stores such as Whole Foods or “natural” stores is limiting the selection of the outreach, and expand on how the product can be sell to new customers (Guayaki – Store Locator)

Redefining the product as a “health alternative” to tea or other caffeinated drinks could limit the customer who don’t enjoy “healthy” alternatives but also to attract customers from Hispanic heritage that enjoy what is Yerba Mate as a product; because we as a company we need to understand the cultural aspect of Mate, is not a healthy drink as is being promoted but is used as a refresher but as well as a drink that can be enjoyed at certain times.

Understanding the key demographics that can be exploited and position the brand not as a luxury item but as a good that is linked to the history of Latin America and Brazil, it can open the world to people who enjoy trying products that are outside their ordinary as well appeal to the Hispanics community; when we as a company understand that then we can start developing research strategies in order to execute a marketing campaign and which media can be used.

Traditional media can play an important role, the reason is using only digital media and viral campaigns will limit the viewers if there is no a proper use of the understanding of the protocols such as Twitter Business, Facebook Ads or Google Ad-words (applied to both Blogger and Youtube). Talking on a regional level the best approach is in a traditional marketing approach, samplings could be the best way to grab information and knowing what changes can be made to improve the flavor (Clown, 334) and it can be mixed towards the use of social by letting the customers know we response in the least time as possible.

The reason of using sampling is to make the customers getting used to the flavor and also it can serve to gather criteria in order to find out what approach to take. The company has been using digital media as the way to reach consumers; but on an anecdotal level speaking, I didn’t know about this drink until it got my attention with the logo and it wasn’t even located on a proper spot on the shelve, it was almost on the bottom and I was curious when I saw it.

The best approach to take is to invest into television advertisement, as people still use television as the media to gather information about newer products or products they hadn’t seen. Creating a 30 second advertisement where the potential customers can be directed to the company website and showing them the benefits of the products, could a considerable approach; also showing them the ethos of the company and the preservation Guayaki takes could bring potential new ones.

Towards the use of digital media and a digital marketing approach; as it was mentioned that the exploitation of the business model could bring significant revenue as the hashtags would be promoted but it will involve investing more money within the campaigns.

References:

http://guayaki.com/index.php?p=retailers&state=&zip=33647&radius=20  

Kola Roman with Condensed Milk Popsicles

Popsicles with Condensed Milk

(7/4/2016) --- Hello everyone, I hope everyone is having a nice day so far and I wish everyone a safe Fourth of July and also since summer is here let's all enjoy some nice cold snack, in this case we are making red cola Popsicle with condensed milk.

I used to enjoy a lot these kind of Popsicle's when I was younger back in Cartagena, Colombia and especially during the summer times. There were two sodas I enjoyed a lot, one of of them was the Kola Roman (Anderson, 2011) and the other was Kola Postobon (Kola Postobon Website).

On 2008, I moved to the United States; it took me a few years to start seeing some of the products I enjoyed a lot without me traveling to Miami or at least ordering them online.

The idea of these Popsicle's is to use as less ingredients as possible. With this one I made I only used Kola Roman and condensed milk. You don't need anything else to do this; the trick goes to measure how much you need, in my case the containers that I have are rather quite small, so what I do is add a cup of condensed milk and fill the rest of the measuring cup with the soda. Mix them together and then pour them inside the Popsicle containers, but don't fill the Popsicle all way up because the carbonation will make the soda rise up and you will have a mess in your cooler to clean later.

Overall I hope you all enjoy and don't forget to let them froze for at least overnight.

References:

1. Web Retrieved: Kola Postobon - Official Website: http://www.postobon.com/ (Español)
2. Web Retrieved: Peter Anderson - dizzyfrinks.com: http://www.dizzyfrinks.com/kola-roman/

Organic Valley Good To Go Chocolate Milk Product Review

Organic Valley Good to Go Chocolate Milk

(5/24/2016) --- Hello everyone, I hope everyone is having a good week at this moment. I had to take a break from blogging in order to create a strategy with my time management as well to recover the interest I have to try new products.

A few days I went to the gas station, yes you read it right, you can find interesting stuff at the gas station (almost any) which prices aren't over inflated as Whole Food or Chipotle and surely you won't get Ebola, get E.coli, get poisoned or your wallet will suffer as going into those places.

I always love analyzing the products from the consumer point of view as well applying some branding and graphic design strategies that are given to the product in the container or envelope; and see how much bullshit can be found within the sales good.

First of all let's talk about the flavor before we go on the backside of the label. The flavor is quite bland to be chocolate milk, why these chocolate flavored milk that had or convey some sort of philosophy in their message always taste so bland? Is as the producers trying to say "we believe in fair trade and "organic" so that means because of the"purity" all of our products will taste quite mild" or it could be because of the sweetener they use? Who knows.

I couldn't pass it, it says on the bottle Chocolatey Delicious & Nutricious, seriously it wasn't deliciously -Nesquick is delicious, Publix chocolate milk is amazing, Walmart chocolate milk is OK- and for something as expensive (I got it for US$1.99, I still think it was expensive but I wanted to try it) it should taste as Ambrosia apples mixed with Honeycrisp (yes, GMO My God, Those are Tasty) instead you can taste the milk more rather than the chocolate itself.

The composition of Organic Valley products are always gorgeous, I have to give them points on that because usually with manufacturer brands they invest quite well on the design versus the private brands in order to sell more. As many of their products, you can find primary colors with a soft tonality in order to evoke a "country-like" feeling.

There is a beautiful fluid composition of a chocolate milk being dropped inside a container, it gives an idea that the product is "rich and fluffy" but to be honest the milk itself is quite and as I mentioned before flavorless.

No transparency on what they are really selling

Let's take a look on the graphic that is on the right side of the screen. What you see is simple and mere manipulation, please click, why the fear of antiobiotics? If there is a positive result that is not safe for the human consumption is thrown out as well highly toxic pesticides? With the diseases that are resistance and common ones, if there aren't pesticides around I wouldn't buy the product (FDA Milk Regulation and NPMF) but the best freaking blow is GMO, the product has no GMO's. How the hell a product don't contain any GMOS? Of course Organic Valley is just feeding their brand with the anti-science hysteria by fulling the bullshit in order to sell.

And before you call me a shill, sellout or ignorant, or sheeple (yes is a plural noun) please think twice before you succumb to the facts of a trend before embarking yourself on the next one; because goods as this one they are designed to make you feel good and pay more while you can find something good and better for a lower price.

References:

1. https://www.cga.ct.gov/PS94/rpt/olr/htm/94-R-0128.htm
2. http://www.nmpf.org/latest-news/press-releases/mar-2015/fda-analysis-demonstrates-us-milk-supply-safe-drug-residues

Sponsoring Vape Business Phils Puff Juice

(1/28/2016) --- Following the example of my idol, well one of my idols (I am a fanboy between Kavin Sanapathy, Yvette D'Entremont and Dr. Kevin Folta) Yvette the SciBabe plays with the idea of sponsoring different products and services that differ from her online persona.

Mostly I saw a couple who are dear friends of mine are on the testing stages of their business Phil's Puff Juice and they are looking for testers in the Tampa Bay Area; for more information go to the link and send them a message that you were refereed by Gus.

More information and updates to come. 

Yellow Squash, Cucumber, Sweet Corn Saute in Garlic Butter

(1/26/2016) --- Hello my readers, I hope everyone had a nice weekend. Let's do something simple and easy, a small medley with yellow squash, cucumber, sweet corn and saute in garlic butter.

I have to confess when I bough the cucumber and the squash were because they were cheaper and bigger than the non-marked ones mostly because they were on sale for the week and the portions were perfect for me; otherwise I wouldn't bought them because lets face it "food with philosophy is not worth it" and the USDA: Organic seal is just pretentious.

So to start with this recipe slice the squashes a la Julianne; or if you are like me, slice them around 5 cm each and discard the tops and butts of the squashes. We are cooking for 2 people in this case so 3 medium size squashes is good to fill up the dish.

GMO OMG, look at the size!

Ingredients:

1. 1-cup of corn.
2. 4 Table spoons of Turbinado Sugar.
3. 1 very large cucumber. The largest the better.
4. 3 yellow squashes.
5. 1 TBS of melted butter.
6. Garlic powder.

So the first step that we are going to do is to melt the butter on the saucepan; while we slice the cucumber and the squashes. If you are going to cook for yourself just save what you won't cook and eat on a plastic container on the fridge, it will be OK for about five days.

On another saucepan we are going to heat the corn while he add the 4 spoons of turbinado sugar; you will know that is ready when the corn takes a gold crispy color.

When the main saucepan is hot enough and buttery, add the squash and the cucumber and cook them for about 10 minutes, until they are tender, while in the process we add the garlic. When the vegetables are warm and tender enough transfer them to a dish and mix them together.

I like to add some Parmesan cheese on some occasions, besides that the way you want to enjoy it, it will depend on what you like to mix and match.

Enjoy.

Boars Head Top Roast Beef Sandwich

(1/25/2016) Tampa, Fl --- Hello everyone; I am going to take a small moment to post a small indulgence Boars Head Roast Beef. I usually making sandwiches with Boars Head products, their cheeses are superb and their meat selection is just quite spectacular.

Personally, I do not care what other people are saying about deli meats, these people have no idea what they are talking about and they are missing something delicious and actually quite nutritious.

There are plenty of brands to chose on the United States as well elsewhere, here in Florida the Boars Head brand is find mostly at Publix as well at the Land & Sea Market (that is as far as I can remember). One tip I always recommend everyone before they buy meat or cheese at their deli, ask the clerks for samples to see how thick or thin you want your slices.

The first step we are going to do is try heat a pan with salted butter, unsalted if you feel tempted also but at the end it doesn't matter, what it matters is to enjoy what are you eating. In this case I have to slices of bread that I covered with honey on both sides and I am going to toast until they are golden brown on each side.

You can use bagels instead of bread slices; it will give you a meal similar to the ones that they sale on Bagel Bros or Dunkin Donuts; it is really easy to make and it doesn't take too much time to do.

When the breads are golden toasted pull them out of the skillet and we can use the heat to roast the meat, albeit it's not necessary if you don't want to; albeit it is my decision just to cook it a little bit.

Medium rate is the best to cook it; albeit with me within my own taste I rather go medium well but it is just a personal preference.

Always when you go to your local deli or supermarket check for the weekly sales item, not only the Boars Head but to see what fantastic things they have to try for a lesser price and see if you like it and maybe will repeat them. Within this meat I didn't use any condiments or anything else to give it some extra flavor, the reason is the boars head selection already has an amazing flavor that don't need anything extra in the cooking process.

One aspect when I am cooking my sandwiches I tend to cook them as separate items; I do not add them all together and heat them I cook the bread first, heat or cook a little and then lastly I melt the cheese.

One of the reasons I do this is because it gives me better control on how I want to strike the presentation. Another reason I like to melt the cheese by itself it's because I can fold it into a small roll leaving the center almost melted and it's quite a surprise when you are eating the sandwich.

I enjoy using at least a handful of shredded cheese, the reason is I love cheese.

This is the reason I like making a sandwich in sections, I can control how I want to create it and fix it better without creating a mess.

The roast beef I fold it perfectly inside the bread, I place a small hint of sweet mustard in between the meat and the cheese.

Enjoy and I hope this small tutorial was to your please; also whenever you go to your local supermarket or deli always say thank you to the clerks, because they are doing an amazing job by assisting you on all your needs as a customer.

Boars Head Roast Beef.