mkultra25

Somehow Frosty Travelers escaped my attention all these years, until I ran across a mention of it last year. I took advantage of the next time I was in the neighborhood to drop in and grab a burger, but based on some of the online reviews I've seen since then (as well as Firebird65's comment about the CFS sandwich), I foresee at least a couple more visits to explore the menu further. Sam's was a longtime favorite as well. I agree that it's not quite the same since Hungry Farmer bought out Sam's heirs. The food is different from the original Hungry Farmer location on Crosstimbers, and of the two I've gotta say that I prefer the Crosstimbers location. That Veterans Memorial Sam's never could seem to get its act together. I used to eat there occasionally when I worked near Greens Crossing several years ago, and the place always seemed like it was in a constant state of disorganization. I wasn't real impressed with their portion sizes or the quality of their meat, either. Still, there wasn't exactly a surplus of halfway-decent BBQ joints in the vicinity, so I guess that's how they managed to hang on as long as they did. I hadn't realized they'd closed until a couple of months ago when I was out and about with my dad and we thought about having lunch there, only to find that it was no more.

Both of these features would have been at home on a Maybach. Still, the S-Klasse is the showcase model for Mercedes, and they've never been shy about packing it with new features. Bet it'll be a while before we see Swarovski crystals on a Genesis or Lexus. The new S looks very nice judging from the rear three-quarter view. But if I were among the independently wealthy, I might prefer something a bit more subtle for daily driving:

As the old saying goes, it's a lot more fun to drive a slow car fast than it is to drive a fast car slow.

Flying Saucer is definitely the gold standard for pies in Houston. The thousands of folks who line up around the block every Thanksgiving would no doubt agree. Make mine a chocolate cream. Purpledevil, did you (or any other Aldine HAIFers) ever frequent Frosty Travelers on Airline at Raymac?

Great pic! Thanks for posting this, Subdude!

I just ran across Mr. Holder's obituary in the Chronicle yesterday (just now catching up on the past couple of Sunday papers). I didn't know him personally, but I certainly knew of him. A tremendous loss to the community. What dealership did he used to run?

The screen size isn't the problem, it's what they're using to project the image onto it. 4K projection should stack up adequately against standard 35mm projection. 35mm film has at best about 6K lines of resolution, although this is a rough number because film grain doesn't map precisely to pixels/lines of resolution. In practice, this "6K" is often much less as there's usually several levels of duplication in between the original camera negative and a release print, and you lose resolution at each one of those levels. "Real" IMAX is 15-perforation 70mm film running horizontally instead of vertically, and as such has a vastly larger surface area and ultimate resolution compared to 35mm. It's usually said to have about 18K of resolution. When theatrical digital projection first started to take hold, 2K projection was the standard. 4K projectors have since become more common, and while the image a 4K projector throws onto a 60x80 foot IMAX screen probably won't suck, it's also nowhere near what's possible with 15/70 IMAX. But most people probably won't care, because it's "digital".

Wow. I don't think I'd consider that an "upgrade". I wonder if any IMAX licensing fees may have played a part in this decision? Sad that the first IMAX venue in Houston is no more, leaving the Edwards IMAX as the only true local IMAX theater.

Interesting. I knew Chrysler had benefited from some parts-sharing back when the parent company was still DaimlerChrysler, but didn't know about this specifically. I assume by "underpinnings" you're talking about suspension components or subassemblies, and not the chassis itself? I'd think any handling shortcomings would be the result of weight distribution issues more than the suspension; the F/R balance of the 2013 Challenger was roughly 55/45 with the big 392 Hemi, and is listed as 52/48 for the 2014 model, but that number was with the V-6, so not sure that it's significantly different than the 2013 once a V-8 is factored in.

http://youtu.be/6Z7I022m5GI

I think it's better than Stanton's, and I like Stanton's quite a bit (just ate lunch there earlier this week, in fact).

The fried chicken is outstanding. My wife thought it was the best she'd ever had in town, but she didn't arrive in Houston until the late 80s and never got to eat at the Wind Swept Inn. Don't go when you're pressed for time, as you'll need to allow 20-30 minutes prep time for the chicken (I think this is mentioned on the menu, and the waitress will definitely remind anyone that orders it as well).

Be sure to specify "fresh ground cheeseburger" when you order. It's actually listed separately from the "regular" cheeseburger on the menu, and costs a little more.

I firmly believe that the fresh ground cheeseburger at Triple A is the most underrated burger in Houston. Or maybe not so much underrated as unheralded - if more people knew about it, they'd be lining up for it.

It's not bad, and is certainly better than some other places I could name. But your comment reminded me of the Barbecue Inn - I've known many people who swear they've eaten there for years and never had the barbecue. The seafood's definitely the main attraction (although not having been there in several years, I'll confess to having sticker shock when I looked at their menu online the other day and saw that the price for my favorite dish had increased significantly since my last visit).

It apparently horrified Anthony Bourdain enough for him to coin his memorable characterization of it as "warm crap in a bag". Oh well, even Homer nods.

Heh. After reading more of this thread than I probably should've, a similar thought occurred to me - not the movie, but the infamous 1970s arcade videogame "Death Race". Points were racked up by running down zombie pedestrians, and when you did so, they screamed and a tombstone popped up. Apparently Exidy only made 500 or so units, but Houston must've been a popular market for them, as I remember seeing (and playing) several of them. Clearly this must've been an insidious plot to prepare countless kids to mete out gasoline-powered justice to careless pedestrians once they reached adulthood and became card-carrying members of the Cult of the Automobile.

A former coworker's name sounded just like a reference to a "marital aid". Once, during a meeting with a potential new vendor, the around-the-table introductions were proceeding when my coworker was asked to repeat his name. He did so, enunciating very deliberately and with emphasis, at which point the vendor rep smiled and said "I bet 8th grade was awesome". Of course, everyone burst out laughing. Unfortunately, blame can't be laid at his parents' feet, as this was his family name as opposed to his given name.

OTOH, "Houston" is a better choice than "Hashtag": http://www.csmonitor.com/Innovation/Tech-Culture/2012/1128/Baby-named-Hashtag-draws-Internet-fame-ire-skepticism

Believe it or not, I think it's still occupied. I drive by it frequently and see lights on inside occasionally. I used to know the guy who owned it, but I haven't seen him in quite a few years. He and his wife got divorced, and she wound up with the house and is still listed as the current owner by HCAD. He did custom furniture building and antique furniture restoration, and given his skill in woodworking I suspect that the house wouldn't have lapsed into its current state if he'd continued living there. Every time I see it, I wonder when the owner's going to decide to cash out. It would be great to see it sold to someone who'd restore the house to its former glory instead of redeveloping the property.

Memorial Baptist Church was certainly a community landmark for a long time. As I'm sure you know, it's now the Cathedral of Saint Matthew (http://www.cathedralofsaintmatthew.com/) - was that the entity that purchased the property from Memorial Baptist, or were there any other churches that occupied that space in between those two?

Right you are - the name escaped me when I posted that. It was known as "Reid Casa de Alabanza" or just "Casa de Alabanza" for a while after the transition, and I believe it may have changed names one more time after that, but the signs have since been taken down. The property has been for sale for a while, so I suppose it's only a matter of time until it's redeveloped - they're sitting on a pretty decent-sized chunk of land right on the light rail line.

Purpledevil, if you've never been to the Texas Room at the Ideson building, it probably bears mentioning that the procedures there are a little different than the regular library due to the rarity of the materials it houses. You have to sign in at the entrance to the Texas Room, and backpacks or other bags are not allowed inside (lockers are available to store your belongings in while visiting). Also, ink pens are not allowed, only pencils. Laptops and tablets are OK. As you might expect, the reference librarians are extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Let them know it's your first visit and what your areas of interest are, and they'll point you in the right direction.

Ever been to the Airline flea markets on the weekend? The traffic rivals the West Loop during rush hour. I don't doubt that there are more than enough customers just on the weekends along to keep every taqueria on Airline doing a healthy business.

Many thanks for this, Firebird65. HCAD's ownership history for 181 W. Dyna only went back to 2000, and I think that threw me off a bit. You'd think I'd have been able to remember the exact location, as we used to eat there semi-frequently when I was growing up. Square Pan Pizza was a regular stop as well. Not on W. Dyna, but another former fast food location in the vicinity that occurred to me earlier: First Mate, on the NE corner of I-45 and W. Mount Houston/249. It was a seafood place with a nautical theme that was similar to Long John Silver's in terms of the food (low-priced, mainly fried seafood combos). The original sign frame, one of the taller ones in the area, is still there, and along with the building itself has been updated numerous times to reflect the succession of restaurants that followed First Mate. It's currently a BreWingZ. Edit: I think we must have a quorum in this thread of HAIFers who are former Aldine/HIdden Valley/Northline Terrace residents.