Xtreme Juice – Tampa, FL

This morning we were out of milk and low on breakfast foods in general (funny enough, we had a Breakfast for Dinner potluck tonight so now we have more breakfast than we know what to do with…) Since Sunday is BOGO day at Xtreme Juice, I picked us up some smoothies. 

Xtreme Juice has been around since 1997, and growing up in Tampa I’ve been there plenty of times.  It is right next to an Einstein Brothers bagel shop and recently Trader Joe's opened across the street.  

They have a huge selection of smoothie varieties, along with wheat grass and smoothie popsicles.  Sundays are usually packed, but today was actually pretty quiet. 

I got the Summertime Lime and Lance got the Peanut Butter Whirl.  We probably picked two of the least healthy ones on the menu – mine was a mix of lime sherbet and pineapple, and Lance’s was milk, peanut butter, banana, honey, and yogurt. 

The Peanut Butter Whirl tastes more like a milkshake.  And the Summertime Lime was tart and refreshing.  Nice for a hot day like today.  

Xtreme Juice is located at 619 S Dale Mabry Hwy, Tampa, FL 33609 and is open 6:45am – 9pm Monday through Thursday, 6:45 – 8pm Friday, 8am – 8pm Saturday, and 8am – 7pm on Sundays. 

Villars Dark Chocolate with Absinthe

When we go to ABC to pick up beers, I’m always tempted to buy all their fancy snacks.  This time I splurged and bought bar of dark chocolate filled with absinthe.  It is made by Villars, which is based out of Switzerland, so I figured it had to be good. 

The writing on the bar was in Swiss, but there was a sticker over the back showing the nutritional facts in English.  We broke it open when we got home – the bar is divided in sections and each piece has a liquid center. 

It is very rich dark chocolate.  The center has a little bit of the licorice flavor from the anise spice in the absinthe, but not so much that you can’t appreciate the dark chocolate.  It actually only has 5% alcohol so it isn’t too strong (doubt you’d feel tipsy even if you ate the whole bar).  Nice to try something different every once in awhile. 

Blue Diamond Wasabi & Soy Sauce and Honey Roasted Chipotle Almonds

One of the first reviews I did was for Blue Diamond Toasted Coconut almonds.  Our Sunday paper had a coupon for Blue Diamond last week, so I decided to try a few more varieties.  This time I bought “Wasabi & Soy Sauce” and “Honey Roasted Chipotle” almonds. 

So far I haven’t found a variety I don’t like!  The Wasabi Soy is like a crunchier version of wasabi peas.  And the Honey Roasted Chipotle is the perfect blend of sweet and spicy.  They are really coated in the flavoring – but surprisingly they don’t have all that much sodium or sugar, and they are high in protein, so they are actually healthy!  Each serving size is about 28 nuts, which is plenty to fill you up for a quick snack. 

Still more flavors left to try!  I think I’ll buy the Lime & Chili next time…

IKEA Breakfast

When Lance & I used to work together, we would go to IKEA breakfast on Sundays before work, and then wander around and check out the furniture.  Not to say their breakfast is anything that spectacular, but $5 can easily fill the two of us there. 

We were both off today, so this morning we headed to IKEA.  The breakfast starts 30 minutes before the store opens.  It is a very casual cafeteria-style restaurant.  The tables, chairs, and pendants decorating the dining area are all ones they sell (they even sell their cups, plates, and silverware). 

I’m pretty sure they lose money on the breakfast just to keep people in the store longer with the hopes they’ll stick around longer to shop on a full stomach.  They have a 99¢ breakfast plate with 2 sausages, potatoes, and scrambled eggs.  I got that with a side of the Swedish pancakes.  Lance had the corned beef hash and frittata.  

The food is very filling – they don’t season it much, but they do have salt, pepper, and Cholula hot sauce at all the tables.  Afterwards we took a lap around the store to work off our meal.  If you haven’t been before, you may be lost for hours.   We actually hadn’t visited in a long time, so we spent over an hour wandering around.  

We ended with their $1 frozen yogurts - vanilla yogurt served on cake cones. 

Since everything is so cheap there, it’s hard to go home empty-handed.  Today we bought 3 succulents for our coffee table.  

If you want to check out the food at IKEA, the restaurant is open 9:30am – 8:30pm Monday through Saturdays and 10:30am – 6:30pm on Sundays.  IKEA Tampa is located at 1103 N. 22nd Street, Tampa, FL 33605.