We also weren’t sure what the name of the place was, since everyone seems to call it something different. Mr. Frosty’s? Frosty Root Beer? For future reference: Frosty Drive N.

Frosty Drive N is hell of quaint and yes old dudes talk to one another over the lunch counter like one of them just bought a steamer trunk for good old George Bailey.  The burgers are totally decent and anything fried is delicious. It also seems as if the last time they adjusted their prices was about 1989. At something like three bucks for burger combo, this stuff is priced to move.

Diana had some steak fingers the last time we went and they were way more well built than you normally find with an item like that. Even 20-30 minutes after we got our food, the steak fingers tender, not greasy, and still hot. The fries are good. The onion rings are terrific to the point of being unlike any onion rings I’ve ever had, and I eat an onion ring pretty much whenever I get the chance.

The real showstopper here is the root beer, though, and from what I can tell, they make their own. They serve it in frozen mugs made of thick glass, and everything involved gets so cold, the root beer freezes for a while. Not into a slush and not into a sheet. The root beer freezes into its own ice cubes.

Let me repeat that: The root beer freezes into its own ice cubes.

How the hell do you even do that? How do you plan the physics or the hydrodynamics of a process like that? Like it isn’t enough that this is bound to be the best root beer you’ve ever had. The family secret just happens to be some sort of delicious soft drink alchemy.

Diana tells me that when she went for the first time a few weeks ago, the owner told her about how his family has owned and operated the place for three generations. I think that’s cool. I like a meal with a narrative.

Score: Frosty Drive N gets a 4.5 out of 5.

• Avocado California Roll and Sushi (2430 S Interstate 35 E):  This place is not too bad.  I would say if you are looking for an entry-level place, this would be a good place to go.  It’s certainly not what I would call authentic, but if you’re looking for a for-reals sushi experience, you should probably stay at home and learn how to make the shit yourself.  Avocado has a pretty aggressive menu of weird rolls, so it’s a pretty safe bet that anyone can find something they’ll enjoy.  They even offer a California roll with fried chicken stuffed inside it, which I’m not ashamed to say I ate the hell out of.  The service is good, and the space is nice, though they are in one of the worst imaginable spots, real-estate wise.  If you didn’t know where it was already, you’d probably never know it was there.  But definitely worthwhile.

Yup.

• Keiichi (500 N Elm St):  The good-this joint is totally legit.  The menu changes daily depending on which fish is currently awesome.  Keiichi gives you the most honest sushi experience you’ll find pretty much anywhere.  The bad-pretty much everything else.  Seating is limited to 10 people.  Service is balls.  And I don’t know about you, but I feel like an asshole after paying $15 for a spicy tuna roll, and then have to share an eating space with drunken lawyers out having ‘salaryman night’.  But if you’re into that, go to Keiichi.

• Royal East Asian Cuisine (1622 West University Drive):  Royal East looks ghetto, and it kind of is, but it is also tied with J Sushi for my favorite place.  It’s really a Korean restaurant that also does a little sushi, but it does it all really, really well.  Nothing suffers.  The service is hands down the best service I’ve ever had in any restaurant.  The head dude in charge (Collin, I think? The white guy who meets you at the door.) knows EVERYTHING about EVERYTHING on the menu, and even got me to re-try sake after a previously disastrous experience.  It was totes good.  The sushi menu has a nice variety without being totally balls-out, and it’s always been super-fresh and tremendous.  The traditional Korean offerings are also way good and prepared with flair.  Slightly pricey, but worth the money.  Also, my secret record shop spot is conveniently located next door.  OR IS IT?

• I Love Sushi (917 Sunset St):  I don’t understand why people have such a boner for this place.  Truly awful.  Squishy is their mission statement.  Please do me a personal solid, and don’t go here.

• J Sushi(1400 S. Loop 288):  My personal favorite for the past couple of months.  J Sushi is pretty new, nestled on a strip corner next door to a Buffalo Wild Wings, but don’t let that fool you.  The worst thing I can say about this place is that it has a vague sports bar vibe, in that they consistently have ESPN on the giant TV over the bar, but the sound is never on, so it’s never intrusive.  The space is huge, with plenty of seating both at tables and at the bar.  Service=quick and attentive.  Most of my experiences here have been lunch, where they offer a gigantic bento box for round-eyes.  Every bit of it is terrific, and you have 7-8 different ways to customize it.  Along with Royal East, my highest recommendation.

Bear in mind I’m probably leaving some places out.  Also, I passed on any grocery store sushi.  While I hear that the university Kroger makes some respectable rolls, I’ve been burned one too many times on deli sushi.

Score(s): Avocado gets a 3/Keiichi gets a 3/Royal East gets a 5/I Love Sushi gets a 1/J Sushi gets a 5 out of 5.

Let's Roll

Since all of these things are truths about who I am, they naturally compliment the rest of my life: a high-technology RPG played aggressively at everyone else’s expense, every day. I love the capabilities of the internet and social media. Not only do they make the whole world smaller, bringing the rest of the Earth into your living room; they also explode the community in which you live, allowing you to explore mysteries and wonderful accidents of providence in your own backyard.

Texas is unique among many states that aren’t New York, Massachusetts, and California in that it has a vibrant online community. Texas organized politically on the internet before most other states and people have been crowdsourcing the chronicle of what’s going on in Austin and Dallas since the dotcom days. Our Denton has cultivated some excellent digital community in the last few years despite being a little late to the party.

(THAT WAS A JOKE ABOUT HOW NOTHING IN DENTON STARTS ON TIME AND NO ONE SHOWS UP TO STUFF ON TIME, ESPECIALLY PARTIES)

Not all blogs / sites are good, of course, but Denton’s batting average is pretty high. Most of the websites are primarily concerned with nightlife and shows, but there are exceptions if you want to talk about something other than Midlake.

If you USE the INTERNET and live in Denton, adding these to your reading list is worth it. I been in this blog game so damn long, I recognize game, you know what? Here’s some shit that’s looking pretty familiar:

• WE DENTON DO IT
  Not traditional, not necessarily cohesive, but still producing quality interviews with and profiles of interesting acts around town. Plus, they produce good video. That’s what the future of interweb is.

• THINK DENTON / DRINK & THINK
  Kevin Roden brings you smart reportage and insightful writing about how Denton works, as well as larger issues like culture, philosophy, and politics. Also, you can check out what the topics of discussion will be at upcoming Drink & Thinks, which is sort of like Denton’s bowling league for smart, talky people that don’t like to bowl.

• BIKE DENTON
  Shit just got real. The writing is quality, content output is strong and regular, and these dudes are serious enough to affect change in their environment. They socially organize for biking advocacy at city council meetings and even convinced the Denton Police Department to track stats on bike accidents. Bike Denton represents like you wish you did – this is how this stuff is supposed to work.

• DAYBOWBOW
  If you want to dig deep into the Dallas / Denton / Fort Worth music scene, DayBowBow is to it what Bike Denton is to bikes and shit. There’s all kinds of interesting takes on shows, albums, bands and happenings, Track Of The Day does it to you in your earhole (often with stuff that you normally wouldn’t shove in there) and they hit you with it basically 24 hours a damn day. Their previews and coverage of NX35 were a treat.

• SUBSERVIENT EXPERIMENT
  Don’t let the design (blogspot Fantasy circa 2003) fool you. SubEx is a very good local music blog and they will whip a dolphin ass without thinking twice. Even better, the dudes that write it are genuinely funny. The old tymey design combined with good writing has made me think of SubEx in the past as “blog noir.” Did I mention that both guys are named Cory? That’s pretty much boners, right?

• YO DENTON!
  Wondering which barstaurant has specials today? Curious about shows happening around town tonight? The prime directive of Yo Denton! is to fulfill the role of “quick reference guide for what is all up in your town right now.” Also, Yo Denton! is the latest good work of Nina Chantanapumma, a mystical Denton unicorn who writes for everyone and seemingly glues all the disparate dance crews together.

As a final word, consider this – if you’re going to be a part of something larger than yourself, these days the easiest and best window for seeing what that could be is more often than not the internet. Being involved in your community or block or town always pays off, and you always get more out of it than you put into it. If you live here among us in Denton, these portals are a good place to start.

I read a management philosophy book once, so I’m going to write this review in the form of a Compliment Sandwich. That’s where you say something positive, and then you introduce a criticism, and then you finish up with another positive observation. Here goes:

New China King Buffet is conveniently located on 380 / University, near Carroll!

The food was cold.
Our waitress was rude.
The sushi guy told me something was a salmon roll and it was spicy tuna.
For two buffets, a water, and an iced tea the bill was 22 dollars.
Whatever wasn’t bland tasted weird.
Ever since I got home I’ve had awful shits.
Seriously.
We ate there at about 8, and it is 2:30 in the morning.
I’m sitting here sweating and shivering like a hound dog trying to shit a peach pit.

They have a deep freezer with real ice cream:
I had cookies and cream, which was pretty good!

Score: New China King Buffet gets a 1 out of 5.

Score

This Will Destroy You eats it.

Mr. Chopsticks is not crazy gourmet. I think of it as the Asian equivalent of a really good neighborhood deli or pizza joint. I love eating here because I’ve been eating here for years, I am familiar with the staff, and I see my friends there all the time.

Not all of the food is incredible, but it is all at least pretty good. Some of the selections – like the pho, for instance, or the pad thai – are as good as you would find at a more specialized restaurant of comparable quality. The service at Chopsticks is usually quite good.

I think people that complain about the sushi here have unrealistic expectations, or maybe have developed a more refined sushi palette than Chopsticks or any local non-specialty, non-gourmet place can deliver. This is like a Level 2 Sommelier complaining about the house wine at Olive Garden. Stop being a jerkhammer.

The recent expansions have done a lot of class the place up.

People give Chopsticks bad reviews because they think it is something other than what it really is. Chopsticks is a pretty good, totally local restaurant that is fun to go to with a bunch of friends. If you think it is something other than that or expect something more, you’ll be disappointed. But then again, you probably feel that way all the time, so what’s new?

Score

Mr Chopsticks gets a 4 out of 5.

Buffet King is always packed and Diana and I wanted to know why. You find out one reason when you walk in the front door: the prices are reasonable. Lunch buffet on the weekend was $7 and change, and the total bill for two buffets and two drinks was right at $20.

This is a nice change from some other places in Denton that try to class it up, like Red Peppers, where you can spend $30 between two people. After that you think, “HEY DAMMIT I COULD HAVE GONE TO CHILI’S FOR THAT” and the crab legs aren’t even worth it. Am I right?

So anyways, the food at Buffet King is hot and fresh, which is a big deal for Chinese buffet food. This is likely a byproduct of how busy the joint is, but the service – which here consists of drink refills and table busing – are also very efficient, so speed is obviously a focus.

Included in your meal is a sushi bar with all the beginner stuff like tuna rolls, California rolls, and Philadelphia rolls. The Mongolian grill is basically what you would find any place that advertises it and is almost as good as the one in Vista Ridge Mall; if you know your mall Mongolian grills, you know that Mongol Bowl at Vista Ridge Mall is the Cadillac of mall Mongolian grills.

The buffet offerings are pretty standard, with some exceptions. Sure, you can rock a sugar biscuit or some teriyaki chicken so hard, but they also have a gang of weird shit, like baby octopi. If you’re into that, congratulations.

The desserts are good too, although they are unlabeled. I had some appie pie that was pretty solid, along with fresh fruit. Diana had some soft serve which was rad, but then she also had something that looked like a danish which seemed to have shrimp and mayonnaise in it.

I think Buffet King is probably the best buffet in town. If you like beginner sushi and basic Chinese fare, the bargain here is obvious.

Score

Buffet King is pretty good, and it is the best Chinese buffet in town thus far. For this, Buffet King gets 4 out of 5.