Dining Out in Omaha...

Why is it that every time we have guests in town Mr. P and I become drawn like magnets to any foods that are 90% Crisco? This weekend Iowa neighbors Joe and Mary came for a quick visit and we decided to hit The Twisted Fork for one of our favorite treats.

I give you Exhibit A - fried pickles:



With a side of ranch, of course. The deep fried batter wasn't enough - it MUST be dipped in a condiment made entirely of mayonaise and LDL (bad cholesterol for those of us who weren't pre-med majors for all of three months).

But wait! What's this? A new item on the menu? Well it's only right that we give it a whirl. And that's how we got to exhibit B - country-fried bacon:



Yes you read correctly - FRIED BACON. Wrong. Wrong on SO many levels. And yet so so right.

And those were just the appetizers. Dinner for me consisted of a turkey, cheddar and tomato sandwich. Doesn't sound so bad, right? Well it is when you add ranch dressing, bacon, Texas toast and a side of french fries. Gross.

You'll be happy to know that we skipped dessert. At the restaurant. We walked half a block to the Old Market Candy Shop for some mud balls:



A mud ball is like a chocolate Oreo cheesecake ball dipped in more chocolate. Mortal sin in bite-sized chunks.

I'm fairly certain we burned some of the calories during a heated Wii Karaoke session. But then we loaded up again the next morning with a trip back to Dixie Quicks where I ordered French toast the size of my sofa:



Today I start my new Ex-Lax and cucumber diet. I'll let you know how it goes...right after I get one last Dairy Queen Tagalong Blizzard.