Restaurant Reviews

New Italian Restaurant At Mirage, Las Vegas: Osteria Costa Review

May 29, 2018By Edward Pizzarello0 Comments

Mirage in Las Vegas has a new Italian restaurant, Osteria Costa. It replaces the aging Samba Brazilian Steakhouse. Here are my impressions from my first visit.

Restaurant Review: Bam Bam, Vietnamese Cajun At Houston Bush Airport (IAH)

February 22, 2018By Edward Pizzarello4 Comments

Wondering if there’s good food in airports? Contrary to popular belief, you might be surprised. I found some pretty good food at Houston Bush Airport (IAH).

89 Agave. Where To Go For Dinner In Sedona, Arizona

February 11, 2018By Edward Pizzarello1 Comment

89 Agave is a Mexican restaurant in Sedona, Arizona. Located in downtown, it’s a great, casual place with authentic Mexican food. Try the grilled corn!

Restaurant Review: Monk’s BBQ in Purcellville, Virginia

September 26, 2017By Edward Pizzarello6 Comments

Is there real Texas BBQ in Northern Virginia? Not exactly, but it’s close.

Our Favorite Restaurant In Salzburg Was Awesome Italian Cuisine!

July 23, 2017By Edward Pizzarello2 Comments

Hiding in plain sight in Salzburg is a wonderful Italian restaurant. Friendly staff cater to families with great Italian food at reasonable prices. Here’s why L’Osteria should be on your list when you’re in Salzburg.

Sicily And Salzburg. Our Favorite Part of Taormina

June 5, 2017By Edward Pizzarello0 Comments

We’ve been so lucky in our travels to discover some real gems. Food is a big motivator to me when we travel. I love experiencing the best local cuisine a place has to offer. That’s what makes this experience our favorite part of Taormina.

Boneshaker and Beast. Anything But An Ordinary Day Of Paris Dining

June 3, 2017By Edward Pizzarello0 Comments

Look At That Meringue!

I love food. More specifically, I love food that’s not the healthiest. What if I went to Paris for just one day and avoided traditional Parisian food? I’d have a great story about a truly memorable day of dining with great friends.

Mr. Wong Restaurant Review. 54 Hours In Sydney

April 30, 2017By Edward Pizzarello2 Comments

The food at Mr. Wong in Sydney is simple and awesome. It’s a vibrant environment, a great place to eat dinner.

Donuts Across America: Getting Started

September 7, 2016By Edward Pizzarello4 Comments

Donuts are one of my favorite sinful treat. Take a quick spin through where my donut craze started and where I plan to take us on this donut ride.

Over Amsterdam Canals To Get Pancakes! Athens & Paris For Dollars A Day

June 18, 2016By Edward Pizzarello4 Comments

With only one day in Amsterdam and being a bit tired from a long trip, we decided to go simple for our last family meal. We couldn’t’ have picked a better choice for us!

The Craziest Story I Heard About Maximizing Black Friday This Year

It seems like every year I find myself in a conversation with my fellow miles and points nerds about how someone scored an incredible deal on Black Friday by stacking cash back portals and other bonuses with ridiculously low prices. Sometimes there’s FOMO, other times just appreciation from a fellow deal junkie. This year was a mostly quiet Black Friday for me. As the day wound down I texted in a group chat with some good friends who share my love for all things travel. One of the folks in […]

The One Credit Card I’ll Be Using On Black Friday

Bilt Rewards has an exceptional promotion for Black Friday. Earn 5 points per dollar on all purchases on Black Friday. Get instant approval for the card and get a digital card number to use immediately.

Help Some Tiny Wings Fly

I’m getting ready to do something crazy again and I hope you’ll consider helping. The two best ways you can help are by sharing this story with a friend and donating to our fundraiser. Let me give you a bit of background. Give Kids The World is a fabulous charity organization located in Central Florida. They’re not terribly well-known, unless you’re a Disney nerd like me. But, they perform a very important missions. They house the Make a Wish kids who come to Disney World. Thanks to the generosity of […]

The One Key Factor That Has Made Hundreds Of Trips Easy For Me

It’s crazy to think that I’ve been a road warrior for over 20 years. Prior to that I loved traveling for fun but only occasionally traveled for work. Over the years, I’ve had more elite status than I can probably remember. The very first loyalty program I signed up for was the Best Western Gold Crown Club. Even back in the early 90s I understood these loyalty programs had value. Along the way, I’ve had top tier elite status with: American Airlines (I think that was the first program I […]

Why This September 11th Is Just A Little Bit Different For Me

It’s a day to stop and think about the bravery it must have taken for first responders in lower Manhattan to watch the first tower collapse, then run up the stairs into the second tower to try to rescue survivors. I started forming the thoughts for this story a few weeks ago. My plan was to publish it last week, but as with so many things lately, time got away from me. So, here we sit on the 20th anniversary of 9/11. In some ways, September 11th is just another […]

I Flew Frontier, Saved $400 And Didn’t Die. My Frontier Airlines Review

Those low-cost carriers always have very appetizing fare sales. Who wouldn’t want to pay $20 to fly somewhere? But, what does $20 really buy you? I found out exactly what Frontier does (and doesn’t) offer customers on my first flight with them recently.

How To Use New Metro Silver Line To Get Between Dulles and Reagan National Airports

People talk about how bad the traffic is in places like Los Angeles with plenty of adjectives. And, it is quite bad. But, the traffic in DC is what I refer to as “stealthy bad”. It doesn’t get the same press that LA traffic does, but a trip that normally takes an hour can easily turn into a 3-hour ordeal. With visiting dignitaries, protests and construction as variables, weather can also wreak havoc on a system that consistently backs up during rush hour. For those of us that live in […]

Update: American Airlines Variable Choice Plus Pricing A Feature, Not A Bug

I have to admit, I was pretty pleased with the original announcement that American Airlines was creating bundled pricing that included change fees at a lower apparent cost. Things got a little better when American also announced they were expanding the timeframe you could request a same day change to your flight. And, then things started to get a bit screwy. It started with just one flight I couldn’t get to price right with Choice Plus as an add-on. But, then I did a bit more digging and found out […]

A Summary Of United Airlines Global Services Benefits

As travel has gotten more stressful the benefits of elite status are even more valuable. In some cases, what used to be free for everyone is now only free for those customers that fly most frequently. I value my American Airlines Executive Platinum status more highly than any status I’ve earned, including 1K service with United Airlines. However, Global Services is another matter. For those not aware, Global Services is an invitation-only status level that United bestows on their best customers. What defines a best customer? Well, United doesn’t list […]

Is Foursquare Dead?

Venture Beat doesn’t think so, and I’m not 100% sure they’re wrong. But, before I discuss the article, a little background on why someone allergic to social media like me became a Foursquare nut. A few years ago, a company called TopGuest came up with this concept where you could earn airline miles and hotel points for checking in at various places on Foursquare. I can’t say I thought it was a terribly good business model, but they convinced a bunch of hotel chains to hand out miles for this. […]