DBZ Syndrome

I watch a bit of anime. Not much; mostly stuff that runs on Adult Swim and a few things on Youtube and Netflix. While I've enjoyed a number of shows, there have also been several that have frustrated me because of a thing I call DBZ Syndome. If you haven't guessed, DBZ stands for Dragon Ball Z, the name of a famous anime from the 90s. Simply put, DBZ Syndrome is when you have an episode of a show where a whole lot of nothing happens. Usually this involves a lot of stare-downs between characters, shouting, power-ups, narration, inner monologues and more time wasters that are intended to build drama or suspense, but utterly fail to accomplish anything but fill up time. I coined the term DBZ Syndrome after watching a number of episodes of Dragon Ball Z. At one point there was a fight between two characters that lasted five episodes, but everything that happened in those five episodes could have been done (far more effectively) in two. Reflecting on this needlessly drawn-out fight scene, I came to realize that the problems found therein were also present in several other animes that I had seen, and thus the concept of DBZ Syndrome was born in my head.

I'm guessing people more familiar with anime might say that what I call DBZ Syndrome is just a Japanese way of conveying emotion and building drama. I'm not saying they're wrong in that regard, I'm just saying DBZ Syndrome sucks.

A Taste of Boulder: Beau Jo's

It’s time for another entry in A Taste of Boulder. Today’s featured restaurant is a pizza establishment called Beau Jo’s. I’ve been meaning to do an entry on this place for a while, but it wasn’t until recently that I got the photos I wanted to showcase for it.

As said earlier, Beau Jo’s specialty is pizza, though not just any type of pizza. What Beau Jo’s is best known for are “mountain pies” which are slightly smaller but very dense pizzas. Mountain pies look much like a regular pizza, though with a large, thick crust. See the photo below for an idea of what I’m talking about.

You can order a specialty pizza, or create your own. All the various cheeses, sauces and toppings that you would expect are available. There’s even a substantial gluten-free section of the menu. You can also order a pasta or sandwich, but that’s not the reason you go to Beau Jo’s. Your drinks are served in glass jars manufactured by Ball, a Colorado firm that also builds satellites. One more nice touch, and one of my favorite things about Beau Jo’s, is the honey you are given with the pizza. This may seem like an odd thing, but the purpose of the honey is that you put it on the crust of the pizza, so you get something akin to bread and honey when you get to that part of the pizza. It is of course completely optional, but I think you’re missing out if you don’t take advantage of it.

Ed (left) and Shawn (right) ponder the possibilities.

The last time I was there with my friends Ed and Shawn, we ordered one of their specialty pizzas that was called the Motherlode, and I can only describe as meat, on top of meat, on top of meat, on top of meat. I remember it had pepperonis, sausage, ham, salami, and meatballs. Needless to say, it was delicious (but if you are vegetarian or vegan I imagine you would find it horrific).

Digging in. You can see the complementary honey in the bottom center of the photo.

I cannot stress enough how filling these pizzas are. Their appearance is deceptive and you might think that you should have ordered a larger size when they bring your pizza out. Beware, these are not the sort of pizzas you get from the likes of Dominos or Papa John’s where a young male can easily devour a medium size pizza in a single sitting. Beau Jo’s pizzas are not the biggest, but are very filling. The pizza shown in the photos above that my friends and I ate was packed with toppings and it was a team effort by all of us to consume the whole thing. For those of you who scoff at our small stomachs, you can always prove your manhood by taking “the challenge”, which is an actual menu option. If you choose to do so, you will be served a 14 pound pizza and given one hour to eat it (you are allowed a partner to help, which is recommended). Successfully consuming the whole thing within one hour means the pizza is free and you get recognition for beating the challenge. Failure results in you having to pay for the pizza, which I believe costs about $80.

Congratulations, you completed “the challenge” of reading this blog post. More will go up in the coming months as I can get proper photos.