The Gout got me

Well all my years of eating rich, decadent food has finally caught up to me, I have gout! Known in the past as the King's disease(that's kind of cool right) is because of too much uric acid. The uric acid creates crystals in the foot that hurt like hell when you walk. The things that create uric acid are beer, red meat, pork, shell fish, seafood, high fructose corn syrup, you know all the stuff I love. Gout goes away but it will come back, so for the last week I've cut out all those things. I have not eaten out once, I've cooked everything I've ate. I feel good, my foot is about 85% and I'm excited about the future. So your asking me Jason what is your diet like now? Chicken and veggies, I ate cottage cheese for the first time ever this morning. I still have coffee though. It's strange I didn't realize until I started writing this how much I was going to miss eating out :((( Well life goes on and so will this blog, I might have to jump into the past for restaurant reviews or start posting pictures and recipes of what healthy stuff I'm eating!!

More from Alaska

My friend Seth and I BBQ'd these pork ribs before finishing them in the oven. In Alaska everything goes with Crown Royal, it's the state drink. The ribs were a little charred but they still tasted amazing!

Smoke City Market

When it comes to BBQ in Los Angeles there are only a few places that really matter. Smoke City Market in Sherman Oaks is one of them. SCM is pure indulgent Texas BBQ, very beef centric, to tell you the truth I have only ate beef there, I haven't even tried any of there sides. SCM has a road house vibe that even includes old Coke machines and a paper towel machine on the wall instead of napkins. All meat is by the pound and is served to you on a piece of wax paper. There are two kinds of brisket, lean & moist, with the 3rd option of cutters choice. I go with moist and you can count on a few pieces of white bread to accompany the meat. The beef has a pink smoke line thru it that you have never seen before. Another great option is the rib, the giant 1 pound rib still has the prime rib attached too it. The homemade sausages are to die for also, pick regular or spicy cheddar. The meat will literally melt in your mouth, it's that amazing! The only other BBQ joint in the city with any thing even close is Bludsoes in Compton. Go to Sherman Oaks and get some of this amazing BBQ and a pint of Shiner Bach, Texas favorite beer.

Kansas City BBQ in North Hollywood

There are allot of things I love about Kansas City BBQ, a NOHO favorite of mine for the last 6 years. The first is the sliced beef brisket, I suggest the sandwich, it's a ton of meat packed between three slices of white bread. For a side I suggest the steak fries and the beans(the beans also have brisket in them).  They have two sauces a mild and a spicy, both have an amazing flavor that I never get tired of and pour on everything.  Another great thing about Kansas City is the price.  It shouldn't cost you 20 dollars to eat well, 14 bucks fills me and a friend up every time.  They also have a bar that's a great place to grab a beer with some NOHO locals and watch the Lakers play. When it comes to LA BBQ, I put KC around 3rd or 4th, but that's still pretty good. Check out Smoke City Market or Bludsoes for the next level stuff.