Connect with us

fight news

D.C.'s Fight Club bucks the conventions of traditional sandwich shops – The Washington Post

Published

on





A restaurant is not a metaphor, and I’m not the kind of guy who usually goes around trying to find deeper meaning in a place to eat, but every time I set foot in Fight Club, I can’t help but think that this Capitol Hill sandwich shop is here not just to feed us, but to remind us to take some chances. It’s as if the proprietors have absorbed the truth of a quote often attributed to filmmaker David Cronenberg, who never met a boundary he didn’t like to push.
“Everybody’s a mad scientist,” Cronenberg said, probably to a giant talking beetle, “and life is their lab.”
Yasmine is a kebab house inside Union Market, and so much more
Fight Club started life as a pandemic-era pop-up inside Beuchert’s Saloon, serving up big, sloppy, sneaky-clever takeaway sandwiches at a time when we were all looking for something tasty we could eat anywhere but a restaurant. Fight Club is now a stand-alone operation, tucked into the former Hank’s on the Hill space, where, much like the characters in the novel from which the business borrows its name, the team continues to rebel against the numbing strictures of society. Or at least against the tired expectations of a sandwich shop.
Nothing is what it seems at Fight Club. The banh mi is not a classic banh mi — you know, a mini-baguette layered with Vietnamese mayo, pâté, meats, pickled veggies, ringlets of jalapeño and a scattering of cilantro a considered collision of textures and tastes. No, the Fight Club version is just a collision. Chef and co-owner Andrew Markert grafts Chinese shrimp toast onto a Vietnamese banh mi with an application of a Philippine-style crab fat sauce, the latter fortified with enough crab meat to resemble a kind of pâté.
I was fascinated by Markert’s shrimp toast banh mi from the moment I saw it on the menu. The sandwich dares to double down on carbs, the so-called bad kind, in defiance of all things holy, or at least whole grain. I ordered this sucker twice. I still don’t get it. Nothing pops for me; the sandwich feels weighed down by its own ingenuity.
But you know what? It doesn’t matter. I may not love the shrimp toast banh mi, but I love what it represents: a fearlessness in the face of convention. A willingness to follow your passion regardless of what anyone thinks, least of all a food critic. Markert likes banh mis and shrimp toast, and he loves the combo together. Maybe he’s right. Maybe this Frankenwich will become his “Nevermind,” first panned, later beloved, ultimately a classic.
Markert is the link between Fight Club, the pop-up at Beuchert’s, and its bricks-and-mortar successor. He is mastermind of the menus that have graced both places. With the permanent location, Markert has partnered with beverage director/co-owner MacKenzie Conway and bar manager Cory Holzerland, and together, the trio have created a beast that follows its own impish impulses. The guys give off the impression, both online and in person, that they just want to take the starch out of this stuffed-shirt town.
You’ll find gnomes on the shelves, showing a little cheek. You’ll find draft punches and Jell-O shots on the cocktail menu, the latter in “seasonal flavors.” You’ll find Hamm’s on the beer list, injecting a little mid-century nostalgia into a decidedly modern shop that describes its sandwiches as “off center & on point.” You’ll find regular events at the restaurant, including the inaugural Fight Club Anti-Commitment Ball, a recent Valentine’s-themed promotion that mocked the very idea of romance.
Markert’s sandwiches may play fast and loose with their inspirations, but the chef clearly has respect for the classics, even if his creations test your ability to pick them up with two hands. His Primanti Bros. homage features Italian meats, provolone, cabbage slaw and a thick layer of tots (not fries), the entire stack enriched with the runny yolk of a fried egg. His FC Chicken Doink is a fried chicken-thigh sandwich by way of chicken and waffles, all served on dense housemade maple cakes. His Das Sandwich is a big breaded pork cutlet smothered with German potato salad, a combination that ridicules the toasted bun that tries to contain it. I lost the battle with each of these sandwiches, their contents spilling onto plates and takeaway boxes. But that didn’t stop me from using a fork, or my fingers, to scoop up every last bite.
I will confess, though, that my preferred sandwiches at Fight Club tend to hold their shape. Markert’s pastrami variation, dubbed Rarebit and Rye, comes packed with browned onions and Welsh rarebit, transforming this deli standard into something more sweet and luxurious. His French dip doesn’t even bother with the beef; the chef subs roasted oyster and maitake mushrooms for the animal protein and then pairs the fungi with grilled onions, the umami rush so deep and undeniable that you won’t miss the meat. His meatball sub, the Mamma Mia, is also vegetarian, replacing the ground-beef orbs with arancini. He then tops the risotto balls with marinara, pickled banana peppers, provolone and parmesan cheese. The surprising sandwich ranks up there with my favorites this year any year, really.
The snacks, like the sandwiches, are created as if Markert believes the old William Blake saw that the road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom rather than, you know, angioplasty. His burnt ends flatbread is a hedonist’s paradise, the smoky nuggets of beef accessorized with coleslaw, scallions, fried onions, melted cheddar, barbecue sauce and a gnawing sense of regret. If his pork cheek nachos are five layers of wrong, then I don’t want to be right. Even the wedge salad lives in a fantasy world of Markert’s creation, the iceberg tower erupting with blue cheese dressing, bacon, tomatoes and, for good measure, everything bagel spice. I could not eat this thing fast enough.
Lest you think Fight Club is just one stoner joke after another, I’d like to point out a simple fact: At present, the menu does not include the Heir to the BLT, arguably Markert’s masterpiece, a sandwich that landed on my best sandwiches list in 2021. The chef won’t make it available till tomato season. I respect his caution, which underscores something perhaps not instantly apparent inside the four walls of Fight Club: Underneath all the fun and cleverness, there is real intention.
633 Pennsylvania Ave. SE; 202-885-9714; fightclubdc.com.
Hours: 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday; 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday.
Nearest Metro: Eastern Market, with a short walk to the restaurant.
Prices: $4 to $18 for all food items on the menu.

source



fight news

Boxing News: Early Results from Verona, NY » September 25, 2023 – Fight News

Published

on





By Boxing Bob Newman at ringside
In a highly skilled and very tactical fight, Junior Lightweights Abraham “Super” Nova and Adam “Blu Nose” Lopez lived up to the predictions that they might deliver the fight of the night. After three tactical rounds, things heated up in the fourth with a nice toe to toe exchange late in the round. In the fifth, a beautiful right-left-right combination deposited Lopez hard on his back. As Nova tried to cut off the ring and follow up on his advantage, he could be heard saying, “It’s my birthday…I got to get this win,” to a retreating Lopez. (It is in fact Nova’s 29th birthday). Nova was credited with another knockdown in the sixth, as Lopez tried to hold on after being raked along the ropes and stumbled to the canvas when he couldn’t keep his grip on a backpedaling Nova. Lopez managed to gather himself in the seventh and actually appeared to take the eighth, snapping Nova’s head with some beautiful combinations at the end of the round.
Nova was able to hop on his bicycle in the ninth and hold off a charging Lopez with his jab. The tenth and final round was something out of the movies. Both men teed off on each other seemingly non-Stop for easily two out of the three minutes that the round lasted. It was amazing that nobody went down, but Nova capped the round and the fight off by staggering Lopez with the final blows of the fight. Even though 2023 is only 14 days old, it will take some doing to pass this is the round of the year! The final scores were 97-91 and 98-90 twice, all for Nova who comes back with a hard fought win after his loss to Robeisy Ramirez last year, raising his record to 22-1 15 KOs. The hard luck Lopez falls to 16-4, KOs.
Photos: Bob Newman
_

Other Results…
Jr. Lightweight prospect Haven Brady, Jr. had a tougher than expected task in Colombian Ruben Cervera. While Brady looked to pick his shots, Cervera was landing a few of his own, bloodying Brady’s lower lip by the end of the second. It became a game of single shots where Brady would vocalize with each blow he threw. Seconds before the end of the fifth, Cervera nailed Brady with an overhand right that stunned him. Cervera tries to follow up and one of his blows did land after the bell, prompting a warning from referee Benjy Esteves, Jr. It appeared that Brady was a bit busier each in each round and really capped it off in the eighth and final round by controlling the ring and dictating the action to the final bell. The final tally read: 78-74, 79-73 and 80-72, all for Brady, Jr. who moves to 9-0, 4 KOs. Cervera slides to 13-4, 11 KOs.
* * *
Local darling Bryce Mills, fighting in front of hometown fans for the first time in his young career put on a solid, workman like performance over tough Margarito Hernandez. Mills displayed excellent skills, footwork and angles in systematically controlling Hernandez over the six rounds. At the end of the second, referee Charlie Fitch called in the doctor to check for bleeding from the left ear of Hernandez, which turned out to be a cut just inside the ear and not internal bleeding from the eardrum. Try as he might Mills could not stop or even drop Hernandez and he did take a few shots from the gritty Washingtonian. In the end, all three judges saw it 60-54 for Mills 11-1, 4KOs. Hernandez slips under .500 at 3-4-1.
* * *
Rising welterweight knockout artist Brian Norman, Jr. tried to blitz Rodrigo Coria in the opening round and almost pulled off the trick. Coria appeared out on his feet seconds into the about, the bottom strand of rope in the neutral corner holding him up, but referee Mark Nelson let matters continue when Coria fought back. Norman Jr. appeared to tire and then paced himself for the rest of the round, letting Coria off the hook. The pace slowed markedly the second, then Norman picked things up a little bit more in the third, but Coria did back Norman to the ropes with some good body work. Coria controlled the fourth with good jabs and body work again along the ropes.
The fifth round saw both men doing good work, each taking a turn controlling pieces of the action. In the seventh, Coria landed some telling headshots in rapid succession, buckling Norman’s knees and having him groggy along the ropes. Norman was able to escape and survive the round but the crowd was now revved up! Seconds into the eighth and final round, Norman had Coria in a neutral corner when he himself was clipped and buckled again. He quickly recovered encountered cleanly, dropping Coria to his knees and bringing the crowd to its feet. It wasn’t over though as Coria fought back and stunned Norman again along the ropes. There would be no knockout. The scores were 79-72 and 77-74 twice, all for Norman, Jr. who moves to 23-0, 19 KOs, while the gallant Coria falls to 10-5, 2 KOs.
* * *
In the second fight of the night, featherweight prospect Bruce “Shu Shu” Carrington controlled Juan Antonio Lopez over 6 pedestrian rounds for a 60-54 sweep on all three judges’ scorecards. Lopez talked almost as much as he threw punches, trying to psych out the highly touted prospect Carrington. Neither fighter was hurt along the way. “Shu Shu” moves to 6-0, 3 KOs, while Lopez falls to 17-13-1, 7 KOs.
* * *
In a rare battle of novice unbeatens, Dante Benjamin, Jr. took on Emmanueal Austin in a scheduled six round light heavyweight opener. After a half round of feeling each other out, Benjamin shook Austin with a combination, finally dropping him near his own corner. A follow-up barrage had Austin reeling, forcing referee Mark Nelson to stop matters at 2:50 of the opening stanza. Benjamin Jr is now 5-0, 3KOs, while Austin loses his first at 6-1, 6KO.
That’s a great win for Nova coming off a blowout loss.
I absolutely HATE when they put another sport on right before the fight because you know it’s going to run over. It’s worst when it’s baseball, but with all those timeouts at the end of close basketball games, those things can run on and on and on.
Let’s see him step it up now

Session expired
Please log in again. The login page will open in a new tab. After logging in you can close it and return to this page.

Advertisement

source



Continue Reading

fight news

One Brutal Scene of Edward Norton's Hulk That Makes Him Way … – FandomWire

Published

on







You are here:


The Marvel Cinematic Universe keeps its movies PG-13 for a reason. Kids as well as adults enjoy these superhero movies but the MCU has broken the rule several times. Edward Norton portrayed the character of Hulk in 2008’s The Incredible Hulk quite more brutally than Mark Ruffalo.
Talking about the movie that wasn’t much of a success, fans were reminded of what the early MCU used to look like. In a brutal scene in the movie, people around the world were quit shocked when Edward Norton’s Hulk kicks Tim Roth’s Abomination into a tree with a little blood splattering on-screen!
Admittedly, the MCU hadn’t fully established itself as a cinematic universe when The Incredible Hulk was released back in 2008 the Hulk was still a part of the Marvel comics. Edward Norton, from the Fight Club fame, decided to join in for the ride by portraying the role of Bruce Banner in the movie.
Also read: “This ain’t gonna work”: Matt Damon Made a Life Changing Decision With Ben Affleck After Edward Norton Schooled Him in an Audition For an Oscar Worthy Role
Although the movie did not meet people’s expectations, the film had its fair share of iconic scenes and clips. One of the notable scenes was the Hulk fighting against Tim Roth’s Emil Blonsky. Being a fearless soldier tasked with killing Bruce Banner, Tim Roth had an exceptional fight scene with the Hulk.
After the fight is over, Blonsky walks up to Norton in his Hulk form and asks “Is that it? Is that all you got?”. This results in the Hulk getting angrier and kicking Blonsky so hard that he flies a few feet away. The scene depicts Blonsky hitting the ground and rolling towards a tree stump. With a hard thud, the character lands face-first into the tree stump and his body sinks to the ground.
Although the focus is on General Ross during that scene, the out-of-focus face of Blonsky shows quite a significant amount of bleeding. The scene is intense and terrifying at the same time which showcased the fact that Edward Norton’s Hulk was indeed more devastating and chaotic compared to Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk in the MCU.
Suggested: ‘The Godfather’ Director Chose Matt Damon Over Marvel Star Edward Norton Because of Damon’s $100 Million War Movie With Denzel Washington
Related: “I didn’t feel that it was honored”: Breaking Bad Star Bryan Cranston Revealed He Would Never Work With Director Who Clashed With Edward Norton During Their $20M Movie
It could have been a very likely possibility that the scene mentioned above was written by Edward Norton himself. According to film trivia, Tim Roth (who got kicked in the face) stated that Norton used to re-write his scenes every day while on the sets of The Incredible Hulk.
The Fight Club actor and Liv Tyler also used to sit down every day and talk for hours before filming would start. As per the trivia, the duo would discuss their character’s lives especially before Bruce Banner became the Hulk which helped with the bonding between them. The Incredible Hulk received a rating of 6.6/10 on IMDB and 67% on Rotten Tomatoes and wasn’t much of a success. The 2008 film is available to stream on Disney+.
Source: ScreenRant, IMDB

Visarg Acharya joined FandomWire in 2022 as a Content Writer. Along with a penchant for writing, Visarg claims that words are the only true language made for him. Currently pursuing his B.Sc in Physics, the combination of Physics and Marvel make up for an interesting talk. Visarg Acharya has authored over 500 articles and reads books in his spare time along with an occasional series to accompany him.
Want more stuff like this?
Get the best viral stories straight into your inbox!


Don't worry, we don't spam
© FandomWire, LLC. All rights reserved.

source



Continue Reading

fight news

Computers have moved on, but sons can still put dads in their place… – The Guardian

Published

on





My son has started coding. He’s only five and I reckon we may have to expand the definition of coding a little, but he has joined something called Coding Club at his school. It involves him and his classmates sitting at computers and, well, I’m not sure what happens after that, since he observes a Fight Club-style omertà when it comes to anything he does at school.
He is familiar with computers and often joins me in my office – his baby sister’s bedroom – while I work on these very articles. It would be charming if I could say he’s helped much in their writing, perhaps offered a paragraph or two you’ve enjoyed – but this has not been the case. He mostly enjoys opening a new document and using the keyboard to write the longest, rudest words he can spell (‘poo-trampoline’ being a favourite) and I am left to do the grunt work myself.
I read that Coding Club uses a game-based platform that enables students to ‘code sprites to move around in different environments’ in which they make ‘rockets, trucks, spiders and even Cinderella!’ It sounds impressive, so I look online to find the module and try it myself. I am presented with a cheery little penguin suspended in the void. As I move said bird, a readout displays his grid coordinates. There are dozens of toolbars and dropdown tabs which, I presume, allow you to do magnificent things with this penguin, but after about four minutes I realise I have no idea what I’m doing and return to my oppressive deadlines.
My own instruction in computing was mostly at home. I was lucky in that my dad was an early adopter, who first caught the tech bug in the 90s. As a civil engineer, his job had little to do with computers, but his fondness for anything square, beige and bleeping meant he was drafted as an ad-hoc IT department for his office and our garage soon became an angular graveyard of discarded CPUs, printers, scanners and servers, with which he would mess, fiddle and, occasionally, perform resurrections. It was here that my little brother and I spent a large part of our childhood, setting up battered servers and mounting local area networks to play Doom on salvaged PCs. We repaid our dad by telling him, ‘You’re doing it wrong’ the second our skills overpassed his own.
The instruction I received in school was paltry in comparison. I did my GCSE in ICT in 2002, a year before the curriculum was updated, working from decade-old textbooks that referred exclusively to ‘electronic mail’ and mentioned the internet only briefly by saying ‘as many as 4 million people may soon be on the world wide web’. An accurate number for 2002 would have been 560m, it’s now almost 6bn, my son among them.
I won’t have him falling behind. When he comes in from school, I show him I have the module right here at home and wiggle the little penguin around for his edification. ‘Daddy,’ he says, ‘you’re doing it wrong,’ and something inside me dies.
Did Ye Hear Mammy Died? by Séamas O’Reilly is out now (Little, Brown, £16.99). Buy a copy from guardianbookshop at £14.78
Follow Séamas on Twitter @shockproofbeats

source



Continue Reading

Trending