Largest free-standing White Castle in the world opens it’s doors in Orlando, FL!

Growing up in Long Island, NY, White Castle was a big part of my childhood. In Massapequa, NY stood my local White Castle, which is one of their 360 stores over 13 states. When I moved to Florida in 2010, I have spend the last 11 years craving America’s first fast-food hamburger chain, White Castle. White Castle was founded in 1921 as a family-owned business satisfying cravings and is currently celebrating its 100th anniversary. Well my years of waiting are now over, since the Orlando Castle marks the iconic brand’s return to Florida since operating a Castle in Miami in the 1960s. The Orlando Castle, scheduled to open on May 3rd, is located in southwest Orlando at 11595 Daryl Carter Parkway at The Village at O-Town West, part of the $1 billion O-Town West mixed-use development at the intersection of Palm Parkway and Daryl Carter Parkway off of I-4. The 4,567-square-foot restaurant includes 72 indoors and 56 outdoors seating and 2 Drive Thru lanes. This newest Castle features the iconic tower in a sleek, modern industrial-style architectural design. To provide a memorable experience for customers, hospitality doors will take the place of Drive Thru windows to allow team members to walk out to cars in the Drive Thru lane. After seeing it for myself just know that it is literally better than any “fast food” restaurant that I have ever seen. But as bragging rights for me will lie in the fact that I know have the largest free-standing White Castle in the world right in my backyard.

Having been onsite already to this new location and trying the food, I can say that they definitely have succeeded in bringing quality of White Castle to Florida! I couldn’t have asked for more. The staff was on-point. The kitchen looks like a well-oiled machine. The management seem just as excited as us fans that came. That’s the best part is sharing stories with other White Castle fans. I just hope that this White Castle partners with UBER EATS because I will be using that service very frequently my weekly Crave Cases personal cravings. Seriously though, I going to need to be able to order these sliders daily for sure!

If you want to be one of the first try the new White Castle, the Orlando Castle will be open for take-out, dine-in and drive-through service from 8 a.m. to 1 a.m. on grand opening day, May 3rd, and then reopen on Tuesday with regular operating hours, 9 a.m. to 1 a.m., seven days per week. At some point in the future, White Castle will operate 24 hours per day. Guests can “crave on” with a maximum order of 60 sliders per visit. So calling all White Castle fans!! Let’s prove that bringing White Castle to Orlando was not a mistake and that we want it to stay and grow here in Orlando. See you out there May 3rd!

About White Castle®
White Castle, America’s first fast-food hamburger chain, has been making hot and tasty Sliders as a family-owned business for 100 years. Based in Columbus, Ohio, White Castle started serving The Original Slider® in 1921. Today White Castle owns and operates more than 360 restaurants dedicated to satisfying customers’ cravings morning, noon and night and sells its famous fare in retail stores nationwide. The Original Slider, named in 2014 as Time Magazine’s most influential burger of all time, is served alongside a menu of creatively crafted sliders and other mouthwatering food options, including White Castle’s Impossible™ Slider, named by Thrillist in 2019 as the “Best Plant-Based Fast Food Burger.” White Castle’s commitment to maintaining the highest quality products extends to the company owning and operating its own meat processing plants, bakeries and frozen-food processing plants. White Castle is known for its faithful fans, affectionately referred to as Cravers, many of whom compete each year for entry into the Cravers Hall of Fame. The official White Castle app, available at iTunes App Store or Google Play, makes it easy for Cravers to access sweet deals and place pickup orders any time. They can also have their orders delivered using one of White Castle’s delivery partners. For more information on White Castle, visit whitecastle.com.

CD Review: 3 Doors Down “Us And The Night”

“Us And The Night”

3 Doors Down
Republic
Producer: Matt Wallace
Tracks: 11

Our Score: 3.5 out of 5 stars

The Grammy Award-nominated 3 Doors Down is back with a brand new album titled “Us And The Night”. The album which is being released via Republic Records is the first album to feature new material from the chart topping Mississippi natives in five years. Produced by Matt Wallace (Maroon 5, O.A.R.) the album features 11 tracks chocked full of the groups signature rock

With five years between the bands last album “Time of My Life” and “Us And The Night” is was certainly more than anxious to see where the band would take things with their most recent release. The 11 tracks which make up the groups sixth studio album all have potential to be hits as the album is spilling over with pop like hooks which are set nicely against a rock and roll background making for a great listening experience. From the driving bass lines of “In The Dark” to the chugging solo infused “Believe It” the band does a good job revisiting their hard rock roots while expanding on their musicality with tracks like the expansive “Inside of Me” which blends piano and acoustic filled verses with huge crescendoing choruses while the track “Pieces of Me” is on the other side of the spectrum featuring a scaled back arrangement that despite less instrumentation is an equally powerful performance.

Time away certainly did not hurt 3 Doors Down as their latest offering has everything fans have come to expect from the band who brought us hits like “Kryptonite” and “Here Without You” and maybe a little more. “Us And The Night” is packed with an even blend of pop appeal and edginess which harkens back to the band’s debut release. Though there are a few slower moments on the records I could have done without with as I much more prefer the harder side of this band however the album mixes things up nicely and is an enjoyable listen.

Track Listing:

1.) The Broken
2.) In The Dark
3.) Still Alive
4.) Believe It
5.) Living In Your Hell
6.) Inside of Me
7.) I Don’t Wanna Know
8.) Pieces of Me
9.) Love Is a Lie
10.) Us And The Night
11.) Fell From the Moon

Concert Review: 3 Doors Down and Daughtry – Main Street Armory, Rochester, NY

“3 Doors Down and Daughtry”
Aranda, 3 Doors Down, Daughtry
Date: Saturday, February 9th 2013
Venue: Main Street Armory, Rochester, NY

Our Score: 3 out of 5 stars

The second leg of the 3 Doors Down & Daughtry tour made its way to the Main Street Armory in Rochester, NY on Saturday despite cancelling the previous night’s show due to extreme weather conditions. Though some of that weather was still lingering it didn’t stop any of the bands from putting on a solid show for the near capacity crowd.

The hard rock band Aranda would open up the night and though their set was brief the band definitely seemed to give it their all. At one point during the 30 minute set guitarist Dameon Aranda began playing slide guitar with his boot. An interesting touch if I do say so myself. 3 Doors Down would be up next and from the first notes of “Time of My Life” to the closing sounds of “When I’m Gone” singer Brad Arnold and the boys commanded the stage. Though the setlist was virtually unchanged from the first leg of the tour the band sounded just as good if not better. To take things up another notch Chris Daughtry would make a guest appearance on the bands most notable hit “Kryptonite” sharing vocal duties.

Daughtry and company would close out the night performing a somewhat hodge podge of songs from the American Idol alums 3 albums. The beginning of the set started off a little rough as it was plagued with sound issues causing the fans in the first few rows closest to the stage to begin voicing their displeasures. As the set progressed the sound seemed to get better however the crowd began to noticeably thin out only after a few of Daughtry’s song. This really made me question the lineup for the evening. Those things aside probably the most exciting part of Daughtry’s set was the cover of Phil Collins classic song “In the Air Tonight” which featured Brad Arnold returning the favor as a guest vocalist.

If you didn’t have a chance to catch this lineup on the first leg of the tour and are a fan of either artist you surely won’t want to miss your second chance. All three acts put on a solid show belting out hit after hit which makes for a great night of music that the whole family can enjoy.

3 Doors Down Set List:
1.) Time of My Life
2.) It’s Not my Time
3.) Duck and Run
4.) The Road I’m On
5.) Away From the Sun
6.) Let Me Go
7.) Goodbye
8.) Loser
9.) There’s a Life
10.) Landing in London
11.) One Light
12.) Here Without You
13.) Citizen/Soldier
14.) Symphony of Destruction (Megadeth Cover)
15.) The Better Life
16.) Kryptonite (w/ Chris Daughtry)
17.) When I’m Gone

Daughtry Set List:
1.) Break the Spell
2.) Feels Like Tonight
3.) Outta My Head
4.) Crawling Back to You
5.) What I Want
6.) Renegade
7.) Start of Something
8.) Gone Too Soon
9.) Tennessee Line
10.) Over You
11.) No Surprise
12.) In The Air Tonight (Phil Collins Cover)(w/ Brad Arnold)
13.) Every Time You Turn Around
14.) We’re Not Gonna Fall
15.) Home
16.) September
17.) It’s Not Over

Concert Review: Daughtry and 3 Doors Down – Binghamton, NY

“Daughtry and 3 Doors Down”
Daughtry, 3 Doors Down, Otherwise
Date: Saturday, December 1st, 2012
Venue: Broome County Veterans Arena, Binghamton, NY

Our Score: 4 out of 5 stars

The co-headlining tour of Daughtry and 3 Doors Down made their way to the quaint Veterans Arena located in upstate Binghamton NY, on Saturday, December 1st where they performed to a near capacity crowd. Those in attendance were treated to hit after hit as both acts put on a stellar show that had something for everyone.

Kicking of the night was the hard rock act Otherwise. Vocalist Adrian Patrick and company provided a high energy performance which did a great job setting the stage for what was to come later in the evening. The band performed songs off their latest album titled “True Love Never Dies” with songs such as “Soldiers” and “I Don’t Apologize” garnering the biggest applause. 3 Doors Down were up next and proceeded to take things up a notch by blasting out hit after hit. The band performed several new tracks such as “There’s a Life” and “One Light” which are both contained on the bands recently released greatest hits album. The set also featured a dual drum solo between vocalist Brad Arnold and Greg Upchurch during the performance of “Citizen/Soldier”. “American Idol” season 5 finalist Chris Daughtry closed out the night and had fans on their feet from the opening notes. Fans were treated to songs off Daughtry’s latest album “Break the Spell” as well as fan favorites such as “Feels Like Tonight” and “Over You” during which Chris brought one lucky fan on stage to sing with him. Other notable performances during the set were a great a duet between Chris and Brad Arnold from 3 Doors Down on the song “Tennessee Line” as well as a solid interlude performance of Pink Floyd’s classic “In the Flesh”.

The night was packed full of hits which kept the crowd’s attention and energy going throughout the night. Not only were fans treated to great sounding performances but they were all visually appealing as well. The lineup of Daughtry and 3 Doors Down offers the perfect blend of emotion and sound that transcends perfectly to audiences of all ages. Definitely get your tickets for this tour as there are still a few remaining dates left on this run.

 3 Doors Down Set List:
1.)    Time of My Life
2.)    It’s Not My Time
3.)    Duck and Run
4.)    The Road I’m On
5.)    Away From the Sun
6.)    Let Me Go
7.)    Goodbye
8.)    Loser
9.)    There’s a Life
10.)  Landing In London
11.)  One Light
12.)  Here Without You
13.)  Citizen/Soldier
14.)  Symphony of Destruction (Megadeth Cover)
15.)  The Better Life
16.)  Kryptonite
17.)  When I’m Gone

Daughtry Set List:
1.) Break the Spell
2.) Feels Like Tonight
3.) Outta My Head
4.) Crawling Back to You
5.) What I Want
6.) Start of Something Good
7.) Gone Too Soon
8.) Tennessee Line
9.) Over You
10.) No Surprise
11.) Every Time You Turn Around
12.) We’re Not Gonna Fall
13.) It’s Not Over
14.) Home
15.) September

3 Doors Down’s Brad Arnold talks about new “Greatest Hits” album

Brad Arnold is the lead singer of the multi-platinum selling rock group 3 Doors Down. The group is set to release a greatest hits album in November and will also be hitting the road in support of that album. Media Mikes had the chance to talk with Brad about the album and the bands new line up.

Adam Lawton: Can you tell us about the greatest hits album and the 3 new songs which will be featured on it?
Brad Arnold: This album is really a look back through our first 10 or 12 years of being a band. We took the biggest songs from each album and combined them on to one. The songs feature a little bit different take as we used some of the new technology that is available and did some modernizing. The songs still all sound the same only more modern. As far as the 3 new songs being on a greatest hits record we felt we needed to put some songs on there we thought could be greatest hits of their own. I am proud of these new songs and they stand up. All 3 of them have a really good mix.

AL: How was it working with on new material with the bands new line up?
BA: We still kind of wrote everything the same way. We actually co-wrote two of the new songs with Marty Frederickson and the other song was one that didn’t make it on to our last record. It was great having Chet Roberts in the studio as he is a great musician and very creative. Chet is a real good dude.

AL: What are the bands current thoughts towards a new full length album?
BA: We really want to get on that pretty quick. I think we have left a little too much space between our records. That is something that is easy to do because you spend so much time writing and recording the songs then you spend more time on the road promoting and touring. Before you know it 2 years have gone by. We don’t want to do that this time. While we are out on tour with Daughtry we are going to be focusing on writing new material.

AL: Is writing on the road something the band does often?
BA: In the past we have set specific time aside to write when we are not on the road. We also are the guys who will often procrastinate. (Laughs) We really don’t want to do that anymore as we want to have some new material to play.

AL: How did the band get involved with playing the Republican National Convention?
BA: It was really cool to be invited down to play that. Our management had been approached to see if we had any interest in doing it and we said sure. We are not a political band but we felt it was a good place to debut the song “One Light”. The song is not a political but it’s about taking the world and making it a better place. I think if everyone did that we would live in a pretty good world.

AL: Can you tell us about the upcoming tour?
BA: This is going to be a great tour. We are heading out for 19 shows initially. There have been recent talks to take it to Mexico. It’s crazy as the tour hasn’t even started yet and we are already talking about extending it. We are also looking at taking the show over to Europe as well. I think people will really enjoy the show. Chris Daughtry is a good friend of mine and we know the P.O.D. guys pretty well also so I think this tour is going to be greater than its parts. We are bringing a show that families can come to and not worry about hearing the F bomb all the time. I like looking out and seeing parents and kids jamming along to the music together. That makes you feel really good.

AL: What other projects to you have going on in the coming months?
BA: We have The Better Life Foundation event kicking off the tour on November 17th in Mississippi. Along with that we do a big motorcycle ride which will have around 500 or more riders participating. That’s going to be a good positive note to start the tour off on. Again we will be out on the road doing shows and writing new material.

 

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Blu-ray Review “The Doors: Mr Mojo Risin’ -The Story of L.A. Woman”

Directors: Martin R. Smith
Starring: The Doors
Rated: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Eagle Rock Entertainment
Run Time: 94 minutes

Film: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Extras: 3.5 out of 5 stars

“Mr Mojo Risin’” focuses on Jim Morrison’s last album “L.A. Woman” with The Doors. The special itself run about 60 minutes and feels a little short but still entertains. This goes into great depth on the band, how the album was made track by track and also about its recording. 2011 was actually the 40th anniversary of the album’s release and Morrison’s death, so it is definitely relevant. If you are fans of The Doors this definitely leave you satisfied.

Some of tracks included in the special are “The Changeling”, “Love Her Madly”, “Hyacinth House”, “Crawling King Snake”, “Riders On The Storm”, “Light My Fire”, “People Are Strange” and “Hello, I Love You”…plus many more. This film included new interviews with the three surviving members of the band included Ray Manzarek, Robbie Krieger and John Densmore. There are also new interviews from Jac Holzman (founder of their label Elektra Records), Bill Siddons (ex-manager), Bruce Botnick (co-producer of the album). I also enjoyed the archive footage of the Doors performing, as well as new musical performances from the remaining members.

The special features included about 30 minutes of additional interviews. Not sure why they were not cut back into the film, since I think it would have enhances the film. Some of the extra footage includes John Densmore talks further L.A. Woman, more on the making of “Riders On The Storm” and “Crawling King Snake”, live performance of “Thoughts On Performing” and The Doors Guide To LA. Overall the extras are impressive and worth checking out.

CD Review: Astral Doors “Jerusalem”

Astral Doors
“Jerusalem”
Locomotive Music
Producers: Daniel Bergstrand
Tracks: 10

Our Score: 3 out of 5 stars

“Jerusalem” produced by Daniel Bergstrand is the 6th and latest  full length studio album from the metal group Astral Doors. “Jerusalem” is the follow up to the bands 2010 release titled “Requiem of Time”. The album is being released via Locomotive Music.

Fans of classic metal will definitely want to take a listen to “Jerusalem”. The album is packed full of straight forward metal riffs and vocals that are very reminiscent of the late, great Ronnie James Dio. The album features 11 new studio tracks that from the very start of the album captivated me as a listener. Tracks such as “Children of Rock N’ Roll”, “Lost Crucifix” and the acoustic tinged “The Day After Yesterday” I felt really showcased what the Astral Doors has to offer. The overall mix of the album I thought sounded great as it really complimented the playing of the band.

Heavy metal purists may be quick to accuse the band of merely copying what has previously been done however “Jerusalem” is much more than that. This album is an updated take on the classic metal albums fans of the genre grew up on. Yes the sound of the band may be a bit dated in terms of the new metal material being released these days but that doesn’t stop this album from being a solid all around metal album.

Track Listing:
1.)    Seventh Crusade
2.)    With A Stranger’s Eye
3.)    Child of Rock N’ Roll
4.)    Pearl Harbor
5.)    Lost Crucifix
6.)    Babylon Rise
7.)    Suicide Rime
8.)    The Battle of Jacob’s Ford
9.)    Operation Freedom
10.)  The Day After Yesterday
11.)  Jerusalem

 

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