For the Carnivorous Foodie in all of us….by Jessica Chang

WHO IS THE AUTHOR OF THIS BLOG?

Contrary to societal belief, the author is not the MEAT-O-METER.

So here’s some info about me:

Years doing Crossfit:  I started in 2007

Years doing Paleo: it’s a bit of a grayish.  We have our peaks of being clean and lows of course.

Full time job:  Event Coordinator and many other things.

Years it took to actually become 95.0% Paleo:  0.75, it’s a gradual process.

# of diets before Paleo:  0.00

Thoughts about becoming Paleo before I was Paleo:  ”R u crazy!”, “Whatchoo talkin’ about Willis?”, “Helllllllll no”, “You must be crazy”, “HAHAHAHAHAHA!  that’s funny……….oh, you’re serious?”, “No rice?  But I’m Asian!”

Thoughts about Paleo afterwards:  No more eczema on-my-face-that-I’ve-had-my-entire-life!  No more dozing off at my desk after lunch!  Lost 5 pounds-when-I-thought-I-couldn’t! I feel awake, clear-headed and non-sluggish!  I have a lot of energy!  Wooohoo!!!

Favorite Food that I dont’ eat…a lot:  good bread

Favorite Paleo Food:  Thai Barbecue Game Hen

Favorite Food Genre:  Korean

Favorite things to do: looking at and obtaining shiny things, collecting and adhering stickers to things, singing Journey songs, playing piano, watching incredible hip-hop dancers on tv and in real life, watching musicals, olympic lifting, pull ups and rope climbs.

Favorite sports to play/do:  Ultimate Frisbee, Crossfit!

Non-favorite things:  Rowing, burpees and being injured.

Writing this blog is a new found passion of mine.  Thanks everyone for their feedback.  More changes and improvements are still to come.  I would love to hear more of peoples’ thoughts.  Please leave comments.  Thanks for reading!

WHO IS THE MEAT-O-METER?

That is a question I frequently receive. He is mysterious and is an anomaly to many people. However, I seem to understand his logic very well. I may not agree or think that he is making sense, but he is very logical, almost to the degree of an algorithm and he is very special to me. He is a co-owner of Crossfit Portland and very passionate about food. He doesn’t like getting jacked, as do I. After several discussions and restaurants where we did get JACKED,  we were stumped at the lack of information and certain restaurant reviews regarding MEAT. Hence, MEATEATS.COM.

Favorite car: His Prius

Favorite pants: his slightly too expensive, but worth it NAU pants

Favorite food: actually it’s dumplings

Favorite MEAT:  ribs with the cartilage

Some things to keep in mind when deciphering the MEAT-O-METER’s rankings.  Not only is there the thumbs up and thumbs down and everything in-between, take note of the facial expression.  The MEAT-O-METER does have high standards and will therefore NOT smile very often.  There are a lot of facial expressions to consider and you will become familiar with them as more reviews are written.    Eating at these restaurants, reading our justifications for our reviews and comparing them to the MEAT-O-METER’s facial expressions, we think you will find them right on.

and there, ladies and gentlemen, is your MEAT-O-METER.

ODE TO SCOTT

The trainers at Crossfit Portland are great.  They have a plethora of information about living a healthy lifestyle.  Take advantage of your 1 on 1′s if you’re a member or just the fact that the trainers are around to answer questions and help you out.

For more info, you can read Scott’s blog at:

http://www.crossfitportland.com/scott/

To buy his cook book go to:

www.performancemenu.com

Gift Certificates, Gift Certificates, Gift Certificates!

Phew!  Try saying that 3 times!

When you find something great, you want to tell the whole world about it, right?

The following takes a little bit of effort, but bear with me!  A co-worker of mine told me of a way to get discounts at restaurants.  www.restaurant.com.  They sell gift certificates (gc’s) for restaurants in your neighborhood.  They sell $25-$50 gift certificates for $10-$20.   But wait! The best thing is the website www.slickdeals.net.  Here you can find PROMO codes for www.restaurant.com that will save you 70-80% on the gc’s!  (type “restaurant” in the search box)

For example, one of our favorite restaurants is Cafe Francis on NE 26th and Alberta (review coming soon!).  Restaurant.com sells the $25 gift certificate for $10.  Using the PROMO code I found on http://www.slickdeals.net, I got a 70% off discount and only paid $3.  Some of the $10 gc’s sell for $3 and with the 80% discount, you pay $0.60!

There are some stipulations of course.  These PROMO codes expire and come out at random times.  You have to spend $35 to use the $25 gc (be sure to read the fine print).  You can buy a max of 4 coupons per restaurant, but you can only use one coupon per party, per month.  You can buy as many different restaurant coupons as you want.  Their selection is not bad, a little mix of local restaurants and some chains; all range in prices.

To sum up, if you order exactly $35 worth of food, you end up paying $10 for the meal, $7 for tip and $3 for the gc.  So you spend $20 for a $35 meal.  That’s a 43% savings!  The gc’s are e-coupons so you just print and go!  Some coupons have bigger savings than others, just depends on your own take of it.

This is a great way to save money on those restaurants you’ve never thought about going to especially if you’re afraid of ordering Paleo and getting jipped.

Pleasant surprises are awaiting!   Treat yourself this month and go get a discount at a fancy restaurant!

THE ART OF ASKING FOR SUBSTITUTIONS

YES YOU CAN!!!

Yes, you can go out to a restaurant and eat with other non-paleo humans and still eat paleo.

Asking for Substitutions is a skill you will acquire the more you go out and eat Paleo.  You HAVE to do it if you’re going to survive on this diet in society.  My friends are pretty used to it by now.  Order last because you will take the longest.  Here’s a typical conversation at a sit down restaurant:

Waiter/waitres:  What would you like to order?

Paleo customer:  Can I substitute the potatoes for something else?

waiter/waitress: Yes we can do that

Paleo customer:  What are some of the possibilities?

Waiter/waitress:  grilled veggies, side of fruit, salad…

Paleo Customer:  I’ll take the salad, no croutons or cheese please.

waiter/waitress:  ranch, italian, french…?

Paleo customer:  balsamic vinegar please.  Is there cheese in this entree?….

Yeah, so you can see how long it will take.  Unfortunately in some cases you will be “that” customer and well, you MAY GET JACKED.  But that’s OK, this is why this blog exists.  To help those living an alternative healthy lifestyle and being successful with it. This blog is like a representation of our persistent and ever steadfast mission to find restaurants that will satisfy our appetite and allow us to live as healthy and “clean” as possible.

(A small opinionated rant from the Admin. follows….)

The Paleo lifestyle is considered an extreme version of what is considered a healthy diet in today’s society.  Being Crossfitters, extreme is sort of a characteristic in all of us.  When I say I’m on the Paleo diet, I actually mean, I live a Paleo lifestyle.  My diet is not completely devoid of the luxury of having ice cream once in a while in my life.  We are humans and processed foods are everywhere!!  You can’t get away from it. I can’t get away from it at work.  My co-worker has a large bowl on her desk specifically dedicated to hold an assortment of sugar infested treats related to whatever holiday is coming next.  It’s FREE!  How can you not take one?  One piece of candy, one beer, one piece of bread is not going to kill you.  It’ll make you feel like crap afterwards, but it’s not the end of the world.  This is what is called “cheating”.  It’s part of the Paleo lifestyle.  I know, with such a bad connotation, unfortunately how can “cheating” not make you feel guilty, right?  But it’s a mad mad mad world out there and you need to live your life.  Life’s too short to feel guilty about every little processed food you decide to ingest.  Like anything else it doesn’t have to be Black or White.  It’s about taking steps, evolving, working towards improvement and being comfortable with yourself.

On that note, I hope this blog gives you tips and some light insight in helping you in your journey in living a little bit “cleaner”.