Gio Gutierrez

Heeeeeeere’s Johnny

// Monday, April 12th, 2010 07:00 pm GMT -5 // No Comments » // Personal

So finally I got the chance to meet Johnny Cupcakes this weekend as he made a stop in Miami as part of his back to basics tour. He was set to arrive at Friends With You at 6pm in the Design District. There were about 50 people in line already by 3pm and over 150 by the time he arrived. The limited shirts being sold from suitcases were great, I picked up 2 and Lauren even ended up getting one for herself. Johnny even had a limited print of 50 that was a collaboration with Friends With You that was sold out by the time I got to the checkout “suitcase”. Johnny himself couldn’t be any cooler and personal. He chatted with every one, gave each of us some personal attention and signed anything and everything. You can understand why people love him and the cult that is his brand which undeniable rocks.

Ps. Funny enough, I wore his shirt that evening and received 6 compliments from random strangers.

El Mercadito Review

// Tuesday, April 6th, 2010 10:33 am GMT -5 // No Comments » // Food, Personal

El Mercadito is a new, elegant mexican tapas restaurant next to Sugar Cane in Midtown (another tapas place). Great ambience, music, etc. A perfect place for a nice date or for a group of friends to have some tequila shots – which they have plenty of a selection. Everything except Patron which according to the bartender, they purposely don’t carry due to their farming practices. A move I respect without explanation. Mixed drinks were also a delight. We had “El Pirata” which was a concoction of beer, tequila, spices and pineapple. Our waitress (whose name unfortunately I can’t remember) was awesome. Honest about everything, passionate, knowledgeable, I go on and on about her.

On to food. TACOS!!! Such good tacos. You get 4 tiny tacos per order that are perfectly well balanced with flavors and spices on a corn tortilla. Specially the Shrimp. We had to even order another order of these before we left. CEVICHES was another hit. We ordered all three varieties (snapper, shrimp and mahi mahi) and all of them passed the test.

I would give them 5 stars except the GUACAMOLE wasn’t that great. We tried 3 different ones and none of them hit the spot. Rosa Mexicana’s is way better and according to my friends at the table, even I make a better one (I really do actually – pomegranates and mango – I digress).The other flaw was dessert. Highly disappointed although they were working on it and we gave them honest feedback on their Creme Burlee – Pineapple – Foam mashup. Looking forward to visiting them again real soon.

Sugarcane Review

// Monday, February 15th, 2010 11:23 am GMT -5 // 1 Comment » // Personal

Sugarcane is a great new spot from owners of SushiSamba. The place is beautiful, airy, big fans, very tropical. Decor is lovely, random chairs, tile, wood floors, very rustic and homey.

Sugarcane has 3 separate kitchens scattered through out:
• A Raw Bar
• Japanese Grill
• Hot Kitchen

Think tapas with an exotic/asian flare – not your typical spanish tapas. If you’ve been to Señora Martinez, you know what to expect except this was way more affordable and better tasting in every way. We tried 10 dishes and they came fast and prompt. Favorites were:
• Florida Tomatoes w/ burrata cheese, strawberries and balsamic
• Golden Beets salad
• Goat Cheese Croquettes w/ marmalade
• The Sugarcane Lobster roll w/ peanut soy
• Madagascar Shrimp w/ sweet chili
• Yellowtail Crudos w/ grapefruit and avocado

Last but not least, the Torrejas dessert which was soaked in custard for 24 hours and baked w/ fiji apples and served w/ vanilla bean ice cream.

Staff was wonderfully flashing smiles left and right. Our waiter came thru with every suggestion. Can’t wait to come back for Happy Hour and get a pitcher of the red sangria.

PS I added some pics so make sure to scope them out.

3 things Apple needs for iPad

// Wednesday, February 10th, 2010 11:02 am GMT -5 // No Comments » // Personal, Random

So I’ve come to the conclusion that not only do I want an iPad, but I need one. Yes, I’m a card carrying Apple Fan Boy. With that being said, here are the 3 things Apple needs to implement right now. There’s a good chance some of these wishes will have to wait until iPad 2.0, but we’re hoping Apple has some cards to play and will further enhance its device before the March launch-date.

1. Printing from iPad

The brief iWork demos showed how capable these apps are, but no mention was made about printing. We’re hoping there’s direct network printing from iPad apps, because without this functionality, iPad will sit squarely in the ‘peripheral’ category.

PS. I know you can print now from an iPhone but you need to install an app on your Mac/PC as well as the iPhone. This should be native using existing technologies such as Bonjour/Wifi/Bluetooth.

2. A front-facing iPad camera

Only crazy people want to be able to use iPad for taking photos. A 10-inch flatscreen device is more than a little unwieldy for such endeavors. However, we already know a number of people that consider the lack of an iPad webcam a deal-breaker. Video chatting never became ubiquitous in the manner shown in sci-fi movies, but it’s popular with some, especially anyone with friends and family overseas via Skype, iChat etc.

3. Wireless device syncing

If you’ve got a Mac or PC, you can back-up your iPad to it via a sync, just like an iPod/iPhone. Big hard drive space is now very much needed as your main computer has to store backups of these devices. There needs to be a optional way to backup wireless via MobileMe at prices similar to Amazon’s S3 storage.

Neutered Netflix

// Friday, February 5th, 2010 10:50 am GMT -5 // No Comments » // Personal

Netflix signed a frightening deal with Warner Bros, delaying new releases from going out to customers until 28 days of purgatory pass. TechCrunch dug through Netflix’s top January rentals, and they yanked any title that’s within 28 days of release. Over half (13 of 24) would be missing. Here’s an example:

1) Julie & Julia: December 8 — No

2) District 9: December 22 —- No

3) 500 Days of Summer: December 22 —- No

4) Angels and Demons: November 24 -– Yes

5) The Proposal: October 13 —-Yes

6) The Hangover: December 15 —- No

7) Star Trek: November 17 -Yes

Up: November 10 —-Yes

9) The Taking Of Pelham 123: November 3 -– Yes

10) Night At The Museum 2: December 1 -– Yes

11) The Ugly Truth: November 10 —- Yes

12) Public Enemies: December 8 -– No

13) The Hurt Locker: January 12 —- No

14) Inglourious Basterds: December 15 —- No

15) Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs: January 5 — No

16) Funny People: November 24 — Yes

17) G.I. Joe: November 3 — Yes

18) Harry Potter 6: December 8 —- No

19) Terminator 4: December 1 – Yes

20) Gamer: January 19 — No

21) A Perfect Getaway: December 29 — No

22) Extract: December 22 — No

23) 9: December 29 —– No

24) Transformers 2: October 20 — Yes

25) Ghosts Of Girlfriends Past: September 22 — Yes

Netflix has developed an amazing rental infrastructure. But they need to become as media savvy as Apple if they want to make it worth a damn. I personally take this as an insult coming from Warner Bros as they are giving consumers no alternate option than to purchase a $35 Blue-Ray movie that I’ll watch maybe two times. This whole fiasco is going to make people pirate (their) movies even more. Mark my words.

Japan, WTF… Seriously?

// Thursday, February 4th, 2010 08:40 am GMT -5 // No Comments » // Personal, Random

Wow… Japan never ceases to amaze me. Seriously, here’s some DVD for sale of women crying. I’m sure it’s some sick masochistic fetish to some but as a DVD for sale it’s well… unique and brilliant. I hope they make millions so please buy yours here: Crying Girl DVD Helps Men Feel Strong.

Straight from product page:

It may not be The Crying Game but “Crying Girl” (Nakigao, in Japanese) from Amuse Soft Entertainment has its fair share of crying. In fact, it’s almost ALL crying. One after another, 11 minor female celebs shed real tears as they recount some of the worst days of their lives.

The “11 stories of people crying in earnest”, as the DVD’s tag line states, include some that really don’t seem so terrible but instead reflect the rigors of being an up & coming model in Japan’s fiercely competitive “idol” culture:

• Marika, who was yelled at by her manager.

• Risa, who had been jilted by her boyfriend.

• Nana, who saw a bad picture of herself in a magazine.

• Shiho, who cried when her boyfriend said goodbye.

• Mai, who cried “touching the loneliness of the city”.

• Yutaka, who has a friend with breast cancer who’s engaged to marry.

First thoughts on the iPad

// Wednesday, January 27th, 2010 08:39 pm GMT -5 // 4 Comments » // Design, Personal

While we ate lunch and followed the announcement, David asked me: but if you have an iPhone and a MacBook Pro, why would you need an iPad? It’s a good question. Perhaps if you don’t have a laptop it’s a great way to own a second, more mobile computer that’s more powerful than the iPhone. Maybe it’s great for my mom as she just uses it to surf the web, facebook and pay bills. But is there really a need for a third, in-between semi-mobile computer?

I’m trying to imagine the situations: at home, in the office, I have my MBP hooked up to the 24? LED Display and various hard drives so to all intents and purposes it’s a desktop, but I can take it with me when I’m travelling (which I do a lot) and that’s why I love having the flexibility of a laptop. But would I use an iPad when I’m at work? No, I’d use my MBP. What about that other common situation, where I’m sitting in front of the TV at night — casually replying to emails or surfing the web (as I am now)? Would I use an iPad then? No, probably not because truthfully I’m working as well and need access to Photoshop, Coda, etc. I’m pretty sure I’d continue to use the laptop on almost all occasions. Ok, so what about on very small journeys where it’s between home and work without getting out the laptop? In those circumstances I usually use the iPhone to reply to emails and I guess that would be an instance where it’d be preferable to do it on an iPad. But is that it?!? Is there really a need for a third, in-between semi-mobile computer?

I do see scenarios for the iPad: My mom for example. I just bought her first computer and the cheapest Mac I got her was a white MB for $999 (God knows how much time I would have spent doing tech support if I had bought her a cheap PC). All she does is surf the web, pays her bills online, facebook, transfers some photos, emails me spam and that’s about it. This would have been perfect for her and at half the price. She would even save money in the long run with the unlimited $30 a month of AT&T’s 3G as opposed to Comcast’s $50 for hi-speed cable. Another use would be for a student who uses iWork/Office for schoolwork except this doubles as a gaming device and iPod as well. Or an iPad as a replacement to our more pricier “Office Laptop” that we use solely for the purpose of  keynote/powerpoint presentations that we can do now on our iPad. So I do see potential.

Let’s go back in time and look at a few of the reviews about the iPhone when it was launched:

The iPhone: Apple’s First Flop

Initial review of iPhone

iPhone Already Getting Some Negative Reviews – Yep, It’s the Touchscreen

iPhone 1.0: Looks 10, Utility 3? Wait for Version 2 in October

iPhone: Good News and Bad

Apple iPhone Review Roundup

The Big But

I’m disappointed that the iPad isn’t a device that can dock with another Mac. I feel a little let-down that’s not being quite as ground-breaking as I’d hoped. And I’m concerned that there may not be an actual need for it (I guess only time will tell). But has Apple created another gorgeous device? Yes. Have they pushed yet more UI design boundaries? Yes. And have they come through and delivered it all at a reasonable price? Amazingly, yes. So I’m still pretty excited.

I’m prepared to admit that — as a self-confessed Apple fanboy and a designer with a soft spot for all things pretty — the device’s beauty is possibly overpowering my logical reasoning, but the iPad really does look like an amazing piece of kit and it’s one I can’t wait to try out, as that’s the only way these concerns might be confirmed or quashed. Is it actually worth buying? It’s simply too soon to tell but I’ll make sure I have one and be the one to judge.

LMAO with YouTube…

// Friday, January 15th, 2010 06:41 pm GMT -5 // No Comments » // Personal, Random

I’ll be talking to my grandkids & tell them “this is what we spent the time playing with back in the day.”

“You mean while you weren’t fixing the climate catastrophe?” they’ll ask.

“Hush, and put on your respiratory, you’ll need the extra oxygen for this belly laugh”

Verdict of Domino’s New Pizza

// Monday, January 11th, 2010 11:13 pm GMT -5 // 3 Comments » // Personal

New Years Resolution: 2010

// Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009 03:16 pm GMT -5 // No Comments » // Personal

I’ve been thinking about my New Years Resolution for 2009 and I’m happy to say I’ve actually accomplished the majority of them such as meeting my cousins Hector in London and Aryam in Canada, developed an iPhone App, payed off all my student loans, did several workshops, celebrated my birthday in Epcot having a drink in every country, changed all lightbulbs to CFL & only using rechargable batteries, purchased 3 new pieces of art, had a stainless dishwasher installed, travelled to Sonoma/Napa Valley, Philly, South of France in addendum to the previously mentioned and started a new venture – iChatHelp.

I didn’t stay as healthy as I wanted (going on the wagon every 3 months) but I am attending bootcamp religiously for 4 months now. I didn’t save as much moola as I wanted although I added a couple of stocks to my portfolio that I’m excited about – specifically Microsoft (I know I know – blame it on Windows 7, Surface and Project Natal) and I still have yet to visit my homeland, DC, Vegas and Iceland. So here’s what I have so far for 2010:

• Visit the above locations (Cuba, DC, Vegas & Iceland)
• Learn how to solve the Rubiks Cube
• Moisturize my face everyday now that I’m 32 lol
• Removal of this tattoo on my back that I got when I was 16 that’s barely visible
• Changing my own oil in my Prius
• Go to MacWorld & ComicCon with Dave
• Run a 5K/10K marathon
• Cook more Indian at home