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Invertalon

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Everything posted by Invertalon

  1. Latest pies! A little Ooni action this weekend with a cheese and olive pizza... Then a Detroit from last week (Supreme).
  2. Yeah, same here. I think the texture of the pizza is better for it as there is less moisture directly on the dough... So you get better crisp and the sauce tends to be brighter and more 'punchy'. Love it! Now my latest... Two pies from this past weekend, both NY style, a plain cheese and a supreme (with sauce dolloped on top!).
  3. A little Ooni action last night... Two day cold ferment sourdough dough, whole milk mozz, fresh basil from the garden and some EVOO drizzled on top. Sauce was strained Stanislaus Tomato Magic. No added salt/sugar/spices.
  4. On average, two per week I'd say. Usually we make them just one day a week, often on the weekend (and then eat the leftovers later in the week), but we have been known to make them twice a week here and there! When we do make them, it's usually just a single pizza (especially when doing a Sicilian, Detroit-Style or a 16 or 18" NY-Style). But we will make two if doing smaller Neapolitan (14" or so) or our coal fired ones. Surprisingly enough, after years and years of eating so much Pizza (and beer!), have not gained any weight at all... Lol. But we do indeed balance the rest of the days with healthier stuff we cook of course (lots of veggies/salads, vegetarian-based dishes, freshly baked breads (little to no sugar added), lean meats, etc...) plus good exercise with the dog every day... Always getting our 10K steps and such. Def has turned into a passion of mine, though, trying to perfect the pizza! lol
  5. Another Sicilian/Detroit hybrid from last night... However, after another trip to NYC recently for 'research', one of the prevalent flavors in more of my favorite slices (Joe's, for example) is a buttery character from the cheese used. I've been through a handful of different types of mozz cheese (block v. per-shred, various blends, different brands, etc...) but unable to find that cheese that gives that signature flavor I've been after. Found a new whole milk, low moisture mozz to try this weekend, and I think I found my new go-to cheese! That signature buttery aroma and rich flavor was there and it was SO delicious. The melt of this cheese as well, is just stunning. Really looking forward to making a NY style cheese this coming weekend with it. This particular pie was 1/3 extra cheese (for science!) and 2/3 a mix of Sausage/Pepper/Onion. I call it a "Detroit Hybrid" only because I also got a bunch of Wisconsin Brick cheese which is the go-to cheese on Detroit style pizzas for that delicious crust. First time I had seen it locally, so picked up a chonk of it. It's only used on the very edge of the pizza for a cheesy-crispy crust.
  6. Yeah, I basically set up the heat deflector plate on the grate and use 4 stainless steel elbow brackets to get the pizza stone above it a few inches in order to get the pizza higher in the dome for more top heat. In the picture above, I tried putting a pizza steel down first and then a stone directly on top of that to see how that did (if it would help the stone retain heat when doing a few back-to-back pizzas). Didn't really notice much difference though. So next time I will go back to just doing the deflector plate - brackets/risers - pizza stone setup. But yeah, I really love the flavor of doing pizzas in the Kamado. The added touch of smoke is quite nice! Make sure to use hardwood lump (not charcoal) as it gets much hotter and performs better for pizzas. It will easily get to 700F+ and cook them up in minutes. It posted out of order, but the pizza above the Kamado setup picture is the pizza end result from that day (one of three).
  7. It's been a minute, so here is a collection of my pizzas the past few weeks. Mostly been doing 18" NY style, but also have Sicilian and some coal-fired pizzas in there as well.
  8. In a nutshell, it does not matter which way the lateral support goes... It either puts that lateral column in compression or tension depending on which direction and is typically chosen based on space considerations. Nothing odd at all here.
  9. For me, it would be to fly into Frankfurt and get over to Cologne for Phantasialand... Then go to Toverland (just over an hour into Holland). Then just take the drive down south to get to Europa (~4hr drive). On the way down or back up, hit up Holiday Park. Phantasialand and Europa are some of the best parks in the region. Also, for a trip this short, just get a car. You can specifically rent an auto. We just got back from a 9-10 day drip through Holland/Belgium/France/German and our car for the entire time was only like $280 for an automatic. Driving there is far less stressful than in the US, they are MUCH better drivers. And the autobahn is a blast, too.
  10. I was thinking/planning on bringing flip flops that have been worn/smooshed basically flat. So that may just be enough to squeak by!
  11. So it appears Intamin rolled the dice and decided on a 196cm max rider height for this one, per the website. Kondaa was 195cm, which prevented me from riding (height checked and denied). Yet Toutatis was 198cm and I was able... And of course, no issue with Velocicoaster or Taron. Pantheon is 193cm, but somehow I squeaked by on that for a few rides without issue, which is crazy, considering the multiple height check positions in place when there. I just wish Intamin would just default to a single max height, like 198cm or something and stick to it... Wonder if they will strongly enforce this one or not. I was surprised Kondaa was 195cm, given the proximity to Holland and how tall that population is. One place that I did not feel so tall for once! But just so frustrating, though... It seems a bit silly to me limiting people at 6'5" or 6'6" in height... That's not really that freakishly tall or anything. I can see something like 6'8" or above. I know Intamin does this to ensure the head is supported by the headrest, but peoples body proportions are different. I don't have a lengthy torso, so my head/neck are fully supported on any new-school Intamin without issue. FWIW, I am 196cm without shoes on... So with shoes, that throws me up to about 198cm (I'm sure they won't let me take shoes off, like kids who get to put shoes on to make height...) We are planning a Barcelona/Madrid trip in the fall, so obviously I would like to ride Gothem City, so it would be a bummer. But so is life with new Intamin rides. I wonder how strictly they will enforce this one. (The only rides I ever have been denied out of 350+ due to my height have been Green Lantern at SFMM and Kondaa).
  12. Just got back from our Euro trip and while I do plan a small TR in the future for each park, I will say Toutatis was sooo good! We both thought it was a very solid upgrade over Pantheon. Theming aside, it just had a better flow of elements, more complete layout and especially the first half being significantly better prior to the swing launch. Add in the theming, easy win for Toutatis. I still keep VC as my top Intamin for those types of rides, but Toutatis is pretty close! Really great ride.
  13. Typical RMC. I think this same exact thing about Vengeance, Twisted Timbers, Storm Chaser, etc.... The endings are just too much, too abrupt and it's just terribly uncomfortable. I don't "get" it, personally. The endings are the worst part of most RMC's. That is why Iron Gwazi is an easy top RMC for me... Larger elements, don't need 50 abrupt little bunny hills to snap my shins in half. It also gets super repetitive. Ever since Arie was announced, the ending looked horrible to me. The first half looks really great, but that finale sequence is a big nope.
  14. Bummer on Zeus, we will be there in about a month on our trip and looking forward to it. Thought it was running better than it sounds, though. Oh well. Still really looking forward to Oziris and Toutatis, though! (And the rest of the park).
  15. 18" NY Style pie we made for NYE.
  16. I think I've been to BGT 4 times over the years since FF has been there and never once see the thing run, let alone be open. Quite crazy they never figured the thing out.
  17. Haha, I'd probably ride it just for the experience. I'm not a credit whore by any means and often skip boomerangs/SLC's/wild mice and the like everywhere we go, among other rides (S&S freespins, looking at you!)... BUT... This one intrigues me simply because it's the first. So I may just have to suffer through it I have ridden T3 and while it was quite the experience, the newer trains on that one did help. I think I actually found the one at Canada's Wonderland worse, probably just due to restraints. On a side note, we did come up with a "Plan B" if Walibi Belgium is not open the day we need... Simply drive a few hours south and go to Parc Asterix instead (which now we will do anyway as they already have released their operating calendar for 2023 and will be open!). Ideally, we do both though if we can.
  18. Same as any other day, likely. Honestly, there used to be slow periods and times to visit in the past, but not anymore. It's just either busy or very busy, in my experience.
  19. Currently in process of planning a trip mid to late May to the Netherlands/Germany/Belgium. When do the Walibi parks (Holland/Belgium) post their operating calendars for the year typically? Efteling, Phantasialand and Plopsaland, which are the other parks being planned on this trip, all seem (historically) open every day of the week come May, so no issues there... But both Walibi parks tend to be limited to just Thur-Sun or Fri-Sun in May and into June. This makes planning a bit more difficult between these two. Unless they were more limited this year due to COVID and such and typically open all week in May? Side question; I assume there is a train you can take from AMS central station to Walibi Holland without much issue? (Google was having issues with any route but driving...). We will be getting a car, but not until we depart AMS after a few days, unless we need sooner. EDIT: Did email Walibi Holland and they had emailed back saying the calendar would be released in March... Which is way too late for planning purposes for us. So worst case we skip Walibi Belgium if not open during the week at the end of May.
  20. Most recent visit was Feb of this year. My previous visit a couple years ago was much better. Not sure what was up, but it certainly felt nothing like a CF park in regards to staffing/operations. As far as SFMM, which we have been to three times now the past few years, overall the experiences have been really good. The park is always really clean, staff is friendly. The big issue is ride downtime/maintenance, more than anything. Things are just constantly going down, especially our last visit... Oh, and X2 being closed 2/3 of those visits all day. But we also go off-peak times, so I have not seen that park with a decent sized crowd, so I have only experienced SFMM when it's practically dead.
  21. I don't know if Knott's is really much better. It may be the lesser of two evils, but honestly, our last visit to Knott's was worse than SFMM. The crews were far slower, horrid capacity on everything (mega-stacking on Silver Bullet, Ghostride is insanity with how poor the crews are, etc...). I mean, some of the worst Cedar Fair operations I have experienced at any of their parks both visits. Employee's also looked completely miserable, everywhere. Complete opposite of SFMM, believe it or not, who had energetic crews having fun. It was night and day difference. You would have thought it would be the opposite. I dunno, neither are great for different reasons. Disneyland obviously will be best operation wise, but uh, it's Disney. So...
  22. Continuing the pizza tour, this time in LA. We had only two days, so we chose to get to Joe's (basically the same, but not, of the original in NYC... But some lawsuits and other fun behind it all...!) and Apollonia's which is a highly regarded place in the area. Joe's was really good, but I do give the edge to the NYC OG, and not just because of it's location or anything. It just wow'd me a touch more. But still a stunning pie. Half cheese, half with fresh basil. Yum. Apollonia's was the second stop, and wow, SO good. The sicillian slices were amazing. One was pepperoni, garlic and basil, while the other was topped with garlic, olive oil, ricotta, mozzarella, pecorino romano, oregano, grape tomatoes, arugula and truffle oil. As good as it sounds. We also got two original NYC style slices, one cheese and one pepperoni. We both preferred the Apollonia's slices over Joe's of LA. If you ever find yourself in the area, go here! (Cash only!).
  23. Visited SFMM on the 28th and unfortunately, yet again, X2 remain closed all day. Boo. Same deal when we were there back in January, so it’s a bummer we are 1 for 3 for X2 being open when we have visited, haha. Park was dead though, so we did ride everything else with little to no wait at all… Wonder Woman was a bit disappointing, I think I prefer the smaller raptors overall but don’t particularly like the style all that much. It just does little to nothing for me and far prefer Twisted Colossus within the park. It just feels a bit ‘carny’ ride to me, or something along those lines. I prefer a bit of refinement to my rides, or something? But I know I am an outlier with that opinion.
  24. Was at BGT on Tuesday and thankfully was able to get on Iron Gwazi... It was up and running 2 trains just fine up until about 2 or so, when it went down. Eventually we went over and asked if it would reopen and was told it would not for the rest of the day. Bummer, as we wanted a few rides before heading out, but at least we got on in the morning a few times. IG by the way is easily my favorite RMC. Completely kills Vengeance in my mind, no question (I really, really hate the ending of Vengeance...). It was a stunning ride and took my #1 spot for RMC, at least. It was good redemption after riding Wonder Woman at SFMM days prior and how terrible that thing was... But yeah, even the trains were better than usual. RMC must have made some tweaks from many of their other rides so the shin bar isn't actually pressing against my shin, leaving a bit of room, so it doesn't feel like it will snap my leg in two during airtime moments like so many of their other rides. HUGE improvement there.
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