The Cocky Rooster @ An Choi NYC

I grew up in Southeast Asia, and the two condiments that you absolutely had to have around were Sriracha sauce and Maggi Seasoning Sauce. This stuff was critical to ensuring you took your food to the next level & I haven't gone more than a few weeks without integrating either into a meal for as long as I can remember.  So I nearly fell out of my bed while reading the latest issue of GQ Mag, when I came across a cocktail recipe that managed to include both of these ingredients.  Apparently some genius at the An Choi Vietnamese eatery in NYC concocted a drink called "The Cocky Rooster"(named after the iconic Rooster featured on bottles of Sriracha). Here's the recipe that was in that issue of GQ:

• Lager Beer (An Choi uses "33 Import" but you can easily go with a Tecate-like lager
• Several generous squeezes of Sriracha
• 3 dashes of Maggi Seasoning Sauce
• Sea Salt
• Lime Juice (to taste, I'd say a healthy squeeze from one lime wedge)
• 2-3 slices of Jalapeno (go seedless if you can't handle the heat, you Sally)

In a salt rimmed glass full of ice, mix the Srirachi, Maggi, Lime Juice and Beer. Drop in Jalapeno slices and garnish with lime wedge. Enjoy.

The Burger @ Stella's Lounge, Grand Rapids MI

There's a great piece in GQ Mag about how some of the best food in America is found at the most unexpected of places. Food trucks, hospitals, arcades, car washes and many other shitty establishments you normally wouldn't be caught dead ingesting food.  See, all that seems to be changing, as even the biggest deadbeats these days appear to be demanding higher quality food. I'd imagine this is precisely why the food truck movement is so successful. Deadbeats (read: hipsters, millenials, occupy-ers, etc.) evidently enjoy good eats, in between debates about Obama's healthcare policy and why the Chevy Volt is a better choice for an electric car than the Nissan Leaf. Stella's Lounge in Grand Rapids Michigan, appears to be such an establishment. Self described as a place where one can find, "strong drinks, cheep beer, loud music, no bullshit," Stella's strikes me as a place that would have a dude named Bubba who just got out of jail working a tiny kitchen right next to the men's bathroom. Not so. What's more, the food is good. Damn good, according to GQ. "The best burger in America" good, in fact. The Big Ballah Burger ($11) in particular, caught my attention. While many of Stella's burgers are stuffed (with blue cheese & bacon, jalapenos & pepper jack, white chedder cheese), The Ballah features a non-stuffed patty, but it does come topped with chedder stuffed jalapenos, bacon and an onion ring. Oh, and by the way, if you find yourself bored out of your mind in Grand Rapids on a Sunday, remember that it's "Shit Show Sundays" at Stella's. 1/2 off select whiskey, $1 off local beer and a gong show karaoke. What is it that the hipsters say these days...amazeballs?

The $1 Billion Home

That there is Nita Ambani, wife of Mukesh Ambani who happens to be one of the richest human beings on our planet, as the Chairman and Managing Director of Mumbai based Reliance Industries.  Now, I couldn't tell you what Reliance sells, but whatever it is, a lot of people must be buying it.  I make this assumption because Mr. Ambani and his wife have been able to build the world's first $1 billion home.  Words won't do justice to this ridiculous structure, so here's a photo gallery on Vanity Fair that'll give you a sense of how much home you get for a cool billion these days (in India, anyway).  There are also a few shots of the life and times of the Ambani's in there as well, including some of the work they've been doing with the community.  Anyhow back to the house.  Here are some key specs: 27 storeys, 400,000 square feet, a multi-storey garage, a ballroom, a theater, guest suites, a number of terraced gardens and three helipads.  Because, honestly, there's nothing more annoying than coming home from work in your helicopter, just to have your wife unloading groceries from her helicopter on the one helipad in the entire house.

The Most Stylish Cars of the Past 50 Years

GQ Mag features a nifty little slideshow of the Most Stylish Cars of the past 50 years.  The slideshow is convenienly organized by decade (60s-2000s), just in case you had a favorite period.  For example, if badass muscle cars is your thing, you may be interested in the 60s and 70s. The 80s featured the introduction of some iconic cars that have become instant classics: the BMW 3 series, Range Rover, & Audi Quatro are just some examples. The 90s seemed to be about finally getting the aesthetics right on our cars, as eye-pleasing rides such as the Nissan 300ZX, Acura NSX, and Audi TT helped redefine style for the automotive industry.  The 2000s were about creating new categories of cars, as manufacturers jostled to win over market share, creating demand for new types of vehicles: Crossover Utility Vehicles (CUVs), Sport Sedans (4 doors in a sports car?!?), Family Coupes (4 people in a sports car?!?!)  Difficult to pick a favorite in all of this but if you had to pick one, you'd HAVE to go with the 1981-1982 Delorean DMC-12 of Back To The Future Fame, no?

Intercontinental Shimao Shanghai

These days, it seems like if you can dream it, someone will create it.  In the case of the Intercontinental Shimao Shanghai Wonderland, that someone is British engineering firm Atkins.  You see, the good people at Atkins recently won the rights to design the Intercon Shimao, which is set to open in early 2015.  What makes this project a bit more interesting is that the hotel would be built alongside what is essentially a giant 100 meter hole in the ground, making it somewhat of an "underground" hotel.  According to luxury blog Luxuo, the property will feature about 380 rooms, an underwater restaurant and a massive 60-meter tall glass curtain that would run adjacent to the main structure, allowing guests to descend down the rockface like a waterfall.  The designs on Luxuo look crazy, almost surreal but it seems as though they've already broke ground on this project.  I'll believe it when I see it....

2013 Range Rover Sport GT Limited Edition

Anybody who knows me, knows that I'm a sucker for specials.  I'm the guy that walks into the restaurant, digs through the dinner menu and definitively decides on the 22 oz dry aged rib eye.  Until that is, the waiter stops by our table and informs us that the special of the day is a seafood tower that was literally caught several hours ago from a body of water not far from here.  And that it was carefully hand-delivered to this establishment just so I may enjoy it. There is something to be said about wonderful experiences such as this, shared by the few. Which is why I love the idea of limited edition toys such as the 2013 Range Rover Sport GT that recently debuted at the New York Auto Show. This thing is a beast, to say the least.  510 horses & a supercharged 5.0 liter V-8 will allow you to giddy up from 0-60 in a mere 5.1 seconds.  Granted, you'll probably easily blow $150 per tank of gas with this thing, but who cares?  Look how glorious it is! And like most attractive human beings, it is just as beautiful inside as it is outside.  To start, the exterior brake calipers of the Limited Edition are in a very sporty shade of red that pops.  This is matched up with accent color contrasts that come in either Fuji White on Santorini Black.  Inside, there's carbon-fiber trip and leather seating with contrasting-color stiching. Leave us not forget the [standard] 17 speaker Harmon/Kardon audio system. You know, I had previously stated that I would like to buy myself a Rolex Oyster Perpetual Collection wristwatch for my 40th birthday someday.  To hell with that.  I want this instead.

Modern-Chic Sustainable Home, Costa Rica

Casa Mecano in Costa Rica's Peninsula de Osa, is a breathtaking structure perched atop a hill overlooking some pretty amazing landscape.  Designed by Arquitectos Costa Rica, this sustainable home is self sufficient and is described as "functioning as an organism that adapts to its environment."  You know, that's all fine and good, but I'm personally drawn to the crazy infiniti pool that seems to pour right into the Costa Rican jungle and the bright, modern interior design that's as welcoming and comforting as it is ultra chic. Click on either image to see more stunning photos of Casa Mecano.  What is it they say in this part of the world: "Mi casa es su casa..."?