Home of gourmet burgers (Zagat rated them #1) and Endless Fries™, Red Robin is sort of 50′s-ish diner in execution…and sort of not (I’m pretty sure 50′s diners never had in-floor TV’s or flat screens in every corner). They have fantastic drinks, too…all-in-all a recommended restaurant. I even got to watch my Panthers take the lead over the Cowboys while I was there Monday (9/28/09)—we won’t discuss the second half…(40 years of Monday Night Football!!! crazy!!!)

The bathroom is a pretty happy place at Red Robin (like the rest of the restaurant)—lots of bright vibrant colors and a friendly reminder as you walk in to wash your hands after using the restroom (check it out in the entrance picture). Oddly enough there’s only one urinal in here, too (and emergency lights…still laughin’)—maybe it’s a new-restaurant-in-Lincoln thing (both Red Robin and Mimi’s were built here within the last couple of years). Three-and-a-half rolls for the clean well-lit brightly colored bathroom.

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I dropped by Mimi’s for breakfast yesterday (9/28/09)—they have good food and a wide array of breakfast (and lunch and dinner, but I was there for breakfast) options. I’m especially fond of the Pain Purdue—cream cheese and orange marmelade stuffed between two layers of French toast. I wouldn’t recommend this as a daily meal but on the rare occasion that I have it, I’m sure it shortens my lifespan. Oh well, it tastes good. I’m not sure why they serve muffins with the pp but they do, so that muffin became this morning’s breakfast (when a single muffin has more calories, fat, etc. than French toast stuffed with cream cheese…well, it’s best not to do that more than once in a great while). Not realizing it, I got Mimi’s Meaningful Muffin, for which they donated $1 to Share Our Strength®, an organization dedicated to ending childhood hunger. All I was thinking was “Pineapple Coconut Crumb sounds pretty good…” (it was, by the way). If you’re interested, you have two more days (the muffins are served til 9/30/09) to grab one. I suggest you do—help out a great cause and get a tasty muffin.

Overall, the bathroom is clean and well-designed. I’m not sure why there’s only one urinal, that seems odd where the minimum is usually two. It’s not a big deal or a dealbreaker, just odd. I love the tile floor you can see in picture three, and I had to laugh when I looked at the emergency lights (shown in picture four). The thought of getting stuck in a bathroom when an emergency occurs and having it lit up like a football stadium makes me laugh. Yeah, I probably do need help. Three-and-a-half rolls.

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I have a couple favorite coffee shops in the area. One in Loomis, that I’ll review one of these days when I get out there next, and one in Rocklin, much closer to my home. Being the timely individual that I am, I’ve finallly caught up, and this review actually occurred this morning (wow, amazing, huh?). On top of having great coffee drinks (highly recommended), everyone that works here, from the owner to the manager to every employee is pleasant. That’s really a huge deal for me, because it seems that people as a whole walk around miserable. Most people I see day-to-day don’t smile, and I’ve noticed that over the last few years (sorry, I don’t buy that it’s a “down economy” thing—of course that has an effect, but even when the economy was strong people walked around frowning). Maybe I’m imagining all this and I’m the one who’s crazy…but I walk into Sierra Roasting and employees and customers alike are enjoying themselves…what a novel idea.

Alright, so enough gushing about the coffee house, time to gush about the bathroom. Take a look at the pictures, they decorate with paintings, ornate mirrors, there’s a steamer trunk in there (I’ll get some more pictures next time I go in…someone was practically breaking down the door this morning so I didn’t have time to finish photographing). It’s a little on the dark side and my Instinct has no flash, so some of the pictures aren’t great (are they ever?). All told, someone actually put some time into the design here. I’ll give them my first four-and-a-half rating…this bathroom is cozy, warm, inviting, and well thought-out without being over-the-top or cluttered.

(edit 9/29/09: added pictures four through six)

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If you’ve never been in a Lowe’s…maybe you just prefer mom-and-pop hardware stores. I can’t fault ya for that. Maybe you don’t own a home (doesn’t seem so silly paying rent instead of a credit score-crushing mortgage anymore, huh?)…or maybe you just prefer one of the other corporate home-improvement stores. I’m not brand-specific when it comes to my choice of a hardware store, Lowe’s is closer to Waffle Farm.

If you’ve already seen the pictures, you’re probably wondering “What’s the deal with picture number four?!?” or “Why would he post that?”—fear not, I briefly entertained the same thoughts. Then…enlightenment…I re-read the brand of toilet seat cover dispenser…and started laughing again. Puns may suck, and puns as brand names might not work so great, but if you make toilet seat cover holders what are you gonna do? Can you imagine the group naming sessions for toilet seat cover dispensers? “Rest Assured” seems like a much better idea than anything I would come up with (I don’t think you could print—or sell—anything I’d come up with). The bathroom is decorated in tans and browns (with blue notices in-line with the Lowe’s brand), and they have two kidney-shaped sinks that I think are pretty cool…complete with sensors for saving water. For a clean bathroom with a few cool aspects, I give ‘em three-and-a-half rolls.

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