Georgetown Cupcakes Satisfy Sweet Tooth

By Haley Denehy, Narjes Bencheikh and Maddi Burcher

Staff Writers

Red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese icing. Or think about vanilla birthday flavor with creamy vanilla icing and rainbow sprinkles. Chocolate cupcake with a creamy, delicious, peanut butter filling topped with a peanut butter chocolate icing. These are all made with the very best valrahona chocolate, Madagascar vanilla, European sweet cream butter and gourmet chocolate sprinkles.  This and so much more at the world famous Georgetown Cupcakes.

Georgetown Cupcakes is located in Georgetown, Washington D.C., and Bethesda, Maryland, with new locations coming soon, in SOHO, New York and Boston, Massachusetts. No matter where you go, there will always be the longest line for these delicious cupcakes. If you wish to bypass the line, you may pre-order and pick up at any of these locations. If you have a birthday or a special occasion coming up, Georgetown cupcakes will gladly cater to your event.

Have you ever heard of the show, D.C. Cupcakes on TLC hosted by the owners of the Georgetown Cupcakes shop, Sisters Katherine and Sophie? Then you probably know that the shop on the show is fairly close to here. The cupcakes are a bit pricey, $2.75 each, $15 a half dozen and $29 a dozen, but once you taste the deliciousness of the cupcakes you know the prices are worth it. Every day they have a special, including Chocolate Mint, Salted Caramel, Cookies and Crème, and so many more. They also have Seasonal Flavors each month such as, Toasted Marshmallow Fudge, Banana Split, German Chocolate Fudge, and so many more.

We all agree Georgetown cupcakes are the best of the best!  We highly recommend for anyone with a sweet tooth to try these cupcakes. Whether you’re a coffee lover or a chocoholic, there’s a flavor for you! We know you will NEVER go back to those old, boring box mix cupcakes.

We give Georgetown cupcakes a 6 out of 6 cupcake rating!!! If you don’t believe us…try it out for yourself!

Grimm Offers New Twist on Fairytales

By Krista Andre

Staff Writer

One TV show that should have the highest ratings is Grimm, which airs on TV on Fridays at 9 p.m. EST on NBC. The show is relatively gruesome, strange, and puts a creepy twist on the fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm.

David Giuntoli plays the homicide Detective Nick Burkhardt, who begins to see strange things. He finds a case that consists of a girl in a red running suit that had gone jogging in the morning, too bad she didn’t know that it would be her final run. When Nick finds her, many of her body parts are scattered around. This relates to the story of Little Red Riding Hood, but is not as cheery as the original.

The characters consist of Nick’s co-worker and close friend, Hank Griffin; Nick’s girlfriend, Juliette Silverton, his cancerous aunt, Marie Kessler, and many other, somewhat strange characters. The person who supplies the best quotes is probably Nick. His happy-go-lucky nature is not befitting of a homicide detective. This is a conversation between him and Hank following an innocent suspect is being let go:

Hank: Pretty excited about being let go.
Nick: Oh yeah, I had to stop him from yodeling.

My personal favorite episode is Danse Macabre, which is about a violin teacher who is killed by rats. Nick thinks that it is the work of a criminal mastermind and later goes after the teacher’s top student. It was impossible for the student to go after the teacher, because he is also a rave DJ, tagged Retched Kat, and had a gig the night of the murder. It makes Nick uneasy that the kid has a way of controlling rats. To know the rest you have to watch it.

Grimm is definitely not a show for young kids. It is rated TV-14 and is pretty gruesome. Other than that it is an interesting show, with creepy scenes. Grimm, though it is gory, and creepy, deserves 500 out of 5 stars.

Five Guys Brings Good and Bad

By Sean Epstein

Staff Writer

Even though it hasn’t been here very long, Five Guys Burger and Fries hamburgers have always been one of my favorite fast food menu items. I usually get the Bacon Burger, which has, of course, bacon on a burger. What people probably never realized though, is how much fat and how many calories are in each burger.

When I eat my burger, I always see the grease dripping down, showing that the amount of fat in the burger is somewhat a lot. In a regular hamburger, there are 700 calories and 43 grams of fat. As the number of added condiments on your burger rises, the number of calories also rises. Take this frequently bought hamburger for example. A Cheeseburger with ketchup, lettuce, tomatoes, and onions, equals to 868 calories. I think the average person would not mind eating 868 calories, with a soda, but if you are trying to cut down on your fat, this kind of hamburger would not suit you.

The hamburgers are not the only good options on the menu. It’s called Five Guys Burgers and Fries for a reason. Along with your hamburger, you can order either a regular or a large cup of fries. This of course adds to the number of calories you are consuming. The fries though are made from freshly grown Idaho potatoes and are cooked alongside your burger. The other interesting food you can have is the free peanuts. They give them out in baskets around the casual restaurant. You can get however many you want to eat. I personally do not get the peanuts, as I like to wait in suspense for the delicious burger that I ordered.

The general atmosphere in Five Guys is one you would not expect for a fast food place. It is very open in the building, with lots of place to walk, and not as many tables you would think. It smells like a hamburger place, with the occasional peanut or fries smell creeping in. The service is very superb.  The wait is short; just about 10 minutes for your burger to be cooked and packaged. Although the floor can sometimes be dirty, you won’t be looking at it when your burger comes out.

The food, service, and appearance all are very good. The only concern I would have is the fact that the most of the menu items are very fatty and are high in calories. If you are still working on your new year’s resolution to cut down a few pounds, Five Guys might not be your place to eat. If not, Five Guys should be on your good list for 2012.  It meets expectations and is a good meal on any day. My rating: 4 stars out of 5.

Costco Gives Its All

By Parul Sharma

Staff Writer

Costco is the best place ever. Costco, a warehouse store, is open on Monday - Friday 10 a.m. - 8:30 p.m., Saturdays 9:30 a.m. - 6 p.m. and Sundays 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. The closest location in Springfield, Virginia.

Costco used to be called Price Club. It was founded in Seattle, Washington on Sep. 15, 1983.  The main competitors are Sam’s Club and BJs wholesale. All of the employees are very friendly. The service is also wonderful.

They sell almost everything you can find in a mall. From food to clothes and from furniture to books. They also sell TVs, video games, laptops, office supplies, cakes, etc. They give you a choice on organic foods and non organic foods. You name it and you will find it at Costco.

I love Costco. It is the best place to get anything. However, if you want to go to Costco you need to have a membership. No worries, A Gold Star or Business Costco membership costs $50 per year. An Executive membership costs $100 per year. All the prices are marked down to prices you can’t find anywhere else. I personally love the free samples that they give during lunch or dinner. I like it because it is a little way to see if you like it or not before you buy it. I also like the brownies; they are crunchy on the outside but soft and moist on the inside.

The best place in the world is Costco.  If you have never been there you are missing out on something in your life. You should go to see for yourself. You won’t be disappointed. It is the best place to get anything you need or want.

BGR Delivers on Taste

By Tommy Faiella and Huey Webb

Staff Writers

BGR, also known as The Burger Joint, is a burger retaurant in Springfield where you can enjoy a delicious succulent burger, crisp fries, and a nice cold soda. Diners start off at the counter and place an order. The BGR staff asks what you want on the burger and how you wanted it cooked or you can order one of nine specialty burgers. Then customers walk over to the insane freestyle soda machine which has all the Coca Cola products and all of their flavors. You take your seat and dig in to your burger.

The burger is perfect anyway you order it, whether it is medium rare or medium well. The freestyle soda machine is a great asset to the burger joint. The shakes are also very delicious and mouth watering. BGR also has a flavor of the month for those who want something different than a standard milkshake.

They’re sauces and extras are good too. They have many mouth craving items like mojo sauce. And with burgers like the Cuban, the veggie burger, the south westerner, the wellington, a turkey burger, sliders, the nine pounder, the Greek, Ahi tuna, or the lobster—the sauce goes perfect.

Fries like the gold standard, the orange standard or the green standard fill the menu. The fries were very enjoyable and one can also get onion rings which are very delicious. The fries are not, however, as good as the burger. The fries are very good and crispy. The fries are a very large serving which is a good thing and a bad thing cause it is a little unhealthy.

Our final rating for BGR is a nine out of ten. The reason that it doesn’t get a perfect ten is because the restaurant is always swarming with children who are screaming and the food is a little expensive. However, keep in mind that if you show your student ID then you only have to spend $7.99 which gets you a burger, fries, and a soda.

The Thrill and Ferocity of Warriors Leaves Readers Begging for More

By Austin Naughton

Staff Writer

Wanna take a trip to the wild side of life? Well open up a Warriors' book and slip into the adventure in the eyes of a cat, journey into the fray of survival, voyage into the pages of this amazing series of novels. Travel into Warriors, a series oozing with creativity and action. The eternal plight has spread to the pages that you grip with your feeble hands and astounded eyes. Flip the pages as your interest gets absorbed into the world of Warriors!

                When I found this book in a library five years ago I had no idea the potential it had to offer my mind.  I checked it out with no idea the chain reaction I set off. I got home and opened up the book, it read Warriors: Into the Wild, the first book of the mind blowing series. It started with a mysterious prologue, talking about prophecies and other puzzling sentences. Then I read on, it was based on a cat named Rusty (a kittypet as called in the book) who lived with humans (named Two-legs). He decides to journey into a nearby forest rumored to have horrors and evil cats. Bravely he marches into the forest to be attacked by a cat.  This cat was an apprentice (“paw”) in the clan Thunderclan.

                Now for a little background info, the forest is home to four clans of rival cats. Thunderclan roam the forests, Shadowclan camp in the swamps, Riverclan existing in a sort of marsh, and Windclan who have set up their home in a small foothill. They all share a fate that when cats die they go to Starclan (like the Heaven clan). Now for the different roles of the clan, let’s start with the kits. Kits are newborn cats that simply stay in camp and play. They are extremely envious and impatient to become warriors.  After six moons they can become an Apprentice. Now for the Apprentice, apprentices are assigned to train under the wing of a Warrior; Warriors are… well they’re warriors. The medicine cat is a sort of doctor who uses herbs to heal wounds and other problems. The medicine cat is forbidden to love for it would interrupt their duties. Then there is the deputy who is second in command, they organize hunting parties and border patrols. Finally there is the leader, they have been granted nine lives from Starclan. They are in charge of all cats in a clan. Every full moon the cats meet in a peace to share news.

                Now for information about real life, such as the author, Erin Hunter is an imaginary character. Four individual authors work under that name. They are Victoria Holmes, Cherith Baldry, Kate Cary, and Tui Sutherland. Victoria handles the story ideas and make sure all the books are consistent. Kate, Tui, and Cherith take turns writing the actual story. They made up the title Erin Hunter to avoid confusion with readers, if you ask me it worked. There are almost 50 Warrior books in total; they are varied among the four sets and some manga and super editions. The manga and super editions are there to explain the unexplained of the four sets. The most recent set (Omen of the Stars) was an amazing achievement. Warriors are the #1 national bestselling series, I completely agree. The books are sold in any decent bookshop such as Barnes and Nobles. The books come in sets or in separate books. The website (warriorcats.com) explains information in forms such as maps, charts, FAQS, forums, and biographies.

Overall Warriors was a great read, I don’t regret a single second that I spent reading this series. I experienced the love, the betrayal, the fear, the courage, and all the pain the Warriors cats go through to survive. In fact this series has inspired me in many ways like the stories that my school requires. This series is just plain amazing; I’d like to see someone think different. This book should have its own genre. It’s like a smoothie of fantasy and adventure, of drama and action, of horror and romance.  It’s out of the norm of regular books; it demonstrates the ferocious ways of nature and the world of war in the eyes of a cat. You should probably go shopping now, literally now! Now go get sucked into the realm, the kingdom, the fray, the series of Warriors!