Reviews by Friends of jro

KriticalKen says "Neos overshoes make you braver when you brave the elements" about Neos - Explorer Overshoe

KriticalKen — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 15:12:46 GMT

What are they?

Waterproof, boot-soled footwear that you wear over your shoes to keep footwear and pant legs completely free from rain, snow, slush and other icky stuff when the weather is bad.

How do they work?

The Neos overshoes open all the way up the front, from toes to shins, with a thick strip of Velcro, so they’re a snap to get on and off. Think about the horrible rubber galoshes that your mother made you wear when you were a kid, the ones that were impossible to put on or take off, and were hot and awful to wear. Now imagine the complete opposite of that bad experience, and you’ve got a good understanding of what awaits you with Neos.

What in the world did I do before I had Neos overshoes?

I wore my nice shoes and ruined them. I got my pant cuffs stained with slush and road salt. I put on my hiking boots and carried my shoes back and forth to work. None of them very attractive options.

My Viewpoint

Neos overshoes are an essential part of your winter wardrobe (unless you live...

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Meredith says "Big Star wins!" about Big Star - Chicago, IL

Meredith — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 05:48:05 GMT

I really love the new Tex-Mex cantina in Wicker Park - Big Star. The owners of Avec started Big Star... nice group. Let's just say I went there 3 nights in a row so it must be good. Located across from The Violet Hour on Damen near Milwaukee. Great vibe, greater food and drinks. I'm in love.

The highlights...

- $2 tacos (chicken, fish, pork, veggie)

- Impressive tequila & bourbon list. Plus, a ginger & beer cocktail that I love. Most cocktails are $7.

- On tap: Goose Island's Matilda ($6), Lagunita lager ($4) & Schlitz ($1)

- Super fresh quacamole, handmade tortillas

- Chill atmosphere, friendly staff

- Good music. They play records. Yes real records on a record player! Mostly rockabilly, old country (think Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash)

Go early-ish for any hope of getting a seat at the bar or seats anywhere, for that matter.

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Matt says "Chimney Rock Cabernet was not a crowd pleaser but I liked it" about Chimney Rock Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Sauvignon

Matt — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 17:35:37 GMT

We held a wine tasting in our office yesterday with all of our employees. All age ranges and all different tastes in wine. I thought the Chimney Rock Cabernet was plesant, smooth and packed a punch in the back of your mouth. I would describe it as having a medium body with a hint of plums. I like a nice full body red wine without a lot of tannins that make your mouth pucker. Apparently a few other members of the staff thought the Chimney Rock Cab was a little boring and light for what they expected from a Cab.

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KriticalKen says "Not your everyday Sauvignon Blanc" about Chimney Rock Sauvignon Blanc, White Wine Blend

KriticalKen — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 19:51:42 GMT

An interesting and unusual wine! The label says "Elevage Blanc," which is a new one to me (not like I'm the World's Leading Authority but still...). Elevage is, apparently, what Chimney Rock calls their blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Sauvignon Gris grapes, to make a white in the style of the wines of Graves, in Bordeaux.

Tasting notes

If you are looking for a very bright, assertively fruity, New Zealand-style Sauvignon Blanc, this is probably not the right choice for you. I would describe this wine as full-bodied, subtle, and smooth, with grassy notes and a little bite at the end. It had moderate complexity and was enjoyable to drink.

I ate this with Cypress Grove's Midnight Moon cheese, which was a very satisfying pairing.

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leon says "The best sheet feed scanner ever and the best gadget I own!" about Fujitsu Scansnap S510M

leon — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 21:17:52 GMT

About a year ago I purchased a Fujisu Scansnap S510M. For some reason I never spent much time with it until recently, and I've fallen in love with it...it's the best desktop feed scanner I've ever owned or used. As a well known geek-about-town in most of the circles I travel in I get a lot of questions about my favorite hardware and software. This fast scanner is now at the top of any list.

The Fujitsu Scansnap S510M is probably the single most critical component of my home office. It is a feed scanner (not a flat bed) that scans pages so fast it is mind boggling.It only rarely jams, and when it does, I just hit one button and the entire front component flips out for easy clearing. It could not possibly be any faster or easier to get documents scanned.

I can stack 40 pages of two-sided documents, hit one button, and walk away while the documents are scanned at an insane 18 pages per minute. It can handle documents as small as business card or as big as legal pages and it scans both sides...

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jdt2912 says "Great way to stream TV" about Roku - Roku HD Player

jdt2912 — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 17:05:44 GMT

Devices that stream programming from online to your TV sound great, but the ones I have tried before have been fairly glitchy and hard to set up. So I was a bit apprehensive about getting a Roku HD Player, but I kept hearing great things from people I knew and reading good things in articles that I had to give it a try.

Here's how it works -- you hook this very small black box up to your TV, connect it to your wireless network (you can also use a cable) and then you use it to access your online Netflix subscription. Sounds simple, right?

Well, it really was. I (and by I, I mean my wife, who is the go-to electronics set up person in our home) had it up and working in short order and the image quality and reception were great. The way you access movies is through your Netflix Instant Queue via an onscreen menu. So you need to go online, add movies to the queue that are cleared for instant viewing, and then you're set. The best part? Netflix doesn't charge you to watch any of these movies...

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tim2 says "quite possibly the best veggie burger I have ever had" about Hop Haus - Chicago, IL

tim2 — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 06:24:33 GMT

When my coworkers were discussing Hop Haus for lunch one day, the question on everyone's mind was which wild game burger (kangaroo, ostrich, bison, boar, etc) to have that day. Being vegetarian, I wasn't sure what options I would have - but I had never been and wanted to give the place a try. The menu has a pseudo burgers section and listed a "Homemade Vegan" burger. I know what you are thinking...vegan?...how could that be any good? Well, I have got to tell you that it was quite possibly the best veggie burger I have ever had. This one was cooked perfectly and was dressed with sauteed mushrooms, avocado and italian dressing. I was completely impressed and would absolutely recommend anyone try it.

It is worth noting that our party arrived right at noon and were able to get a table without a wait. The rest of the group enjoyed their wild game burgers. The total per person (no drinks, including tax and tip) was around $15.

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Jolie says "buyuggsboot.net is a scam! Ugg Boots from China that are fake." about www.buyuggsboot.net

Jolie — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 05:22:46 GMT

Background on Buyuggsboot.net

A friend of mine at Viewpoints recently passed along a site called www.buyuggsboot.net. She found it online. www.buyuggsboot.net is a web site that sells all styles of Ugg Boots at discounted prices.

We werent certain if www.buyuggsboot.net were the real or not. But after a thorough review of the site, we thought it was legit. Buyuggsboot.net looks like a reasonable reseller of Ugg Boots. The page is designed well, the pictures look authentic and they make claim to having the real deal. They also consistently site throughout the web site having customer satisfaction commitments.

To add to the thought it was authentic, the pricing seemed good but not amazing. As you probably know a typical pair of Ugg Boots cost about $110. On Buyuggsboot.net the cost was $89.00- approximately a $20 savings. Seemed like a good deal, but they werent so cheap that I thought it could be scam. As an aside, last year Nordstrom had a similiar sale on Ugg boots so the pricing seemed...

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wildcatkatie says "I am now a fan of boxed wine because of the Target Wine Cube." about Target Wine Cube

wildcatkatie — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 17:32:44 GMT

Target Wine Cubes are just another reason why I love this retailer!

I would not call myself a wine snob. However, I do appreciate a good wine (particularly red). I want a wine that goes down easily and has a lot of flavor. Harsh wine is the worst! That is why I have never been a fan of boxed wine. It has never tasted right to me; it is always too chalky and rough. I just tried a Target Wine Cube over Thanksgiving dinner and it has forever changed my opinion of boxed wine!

Target Wine Cubes come in three sizes: (1) a 3-liter box equivalent to 4 bottles of wine, (2) a 1.5-liter box equivalent to 2 bottles of wine and (3) a 4-pack of small boxes equivalent to just over a glass of wine. They are perfectly packaged in colorful square boxes that you can stack and carry just about anywhere. The box was designed so that air does not enter the packaging as you drain the wine in to your glass to drink. This means the wine lasts four weeks after opening the box!

Target Wine Cubes come in eight different...

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Buggheart says "This is one tempting soap!" about LUSH Temptation Soap

Buggheart — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 02:22:18 GMT

While I still like stuff from LUSH, I have too much of it and am trying really hard to not buy any new stuff until I make a huge dent in my stash of products. Yep, I have a huge Rubbermaid box just full of bath and body stuff that I MUST use up.

So while I was recently digging thru that box, I found a bar of LUSH's Temptation soap that I don't even remember buying. I know it's an apple-scented soap and I love apples so I'm sure that's what cause me to buy it but that's really all I knew until a few weeks ago when I unwrapped it and stuck it in my shower to give it a try. Good news! Temptation soap is a hit!

LUSH.com describes Temptation as follows: Named after the Adam and Eve story, this apple soap exists to lure people off the road to smelly hell and towards scented heaven. It tempts the reluctant bather to the tub with the scent of freshly bitten apples. We put refreshing orange blossom absolute in this soap too, along with warming cinnamon leaf and mystical myrrh. How does the...

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