Logan Bell

Won the Best of the Season vegetable box
by cracking the code to get into Sandwich Castle

Logan and his wife Lizzy at Alinea

How did you hear about the game?

I got the Alinea 15th anniversary e-mail.  I'm interested in anything with a puzzle, especially with great prizes!  Throw in some extra free time and I’m definitely in.

How many of the puzzles have you solved?

All of them (so far)!  Sandwich Castle was definitely the most time intensive, but they've all required a lot of thinking (and spreadsheets, of course).

Walk me through your experience with solving the Sandwich Puzzle puzzle.

The game itself was a blast, but it can't be that easy, right?  Lots of trial and error after finishing the game portion. I can't count how many times I re-arranged words to find a pattern that didn't exist.  I knew to pay attention to things like the King's position because of the similar details in the earlier puzzles, but this one really stumped me for a while. The reference to the trophies was helpful, but the updated hint at the end of the game (with the reference to starting in the northwest) a few hours after the puzzle was first posted made a huge difference and I was able to figure the rest out from there.

What other kinds of puzzles or games do you play?

Judging by the reports of previous winners, Jeopardy! counts - I was on the show when I was in high school (way back in Trebek's mustache days).  I've played Magic on and off since middle school (and nobody ever really quits that game).  Recently, I've been playing a tabletop RPG (designed locally) called The WitchBorn which has been a lot of fun.  Aside from that, my wife and I like board games, whether it be Codenames or co-op stuff like Forbidden Desert.

What was the first video game or game system you loved? 

When I was 4, I would play my older brother's original NES while he was at school.  Of course, I got kicked off of it once he got home, but I got a lot of good hours playing Super Mario Brothers and Duck Hunt.  Video games were a huge part of my childhood, but that was probably the most memorable system.

Any video games you really enjoy now?

Parenthood and real life have really limited my video gaming time over the years, but my wife and I have gotten back into some co-op games during quarantine - primarily Portal 2 and Overcooked.  We had a few Jackbox game nights with friends over video chat, too. The last game I finished before quarantine was Thimbleweed Park - I loved Maniac Mansion and Day of the Tentacle (and pretty much any point-and-click adventure game), so it was a lot of fun.

Have dined at Alinea or our other restaurants?

My wife and I finally got a chance to dine at Alinea this January - we had a blast!  We've been to Next a couple of times, and the Aviary is one of our go-to celebration destinations, so we've been there several times, as well. 

How do you spend your days?

I'm a dentist, so my workload (limited to emergencies) during quarantine was much, much lighter.  My wife works from home, so I've been a stay-at-home dad for the last 2 months.  Our son is almost 2, so the silver lining of all of this was getting to spend a ton of time with him that I wouldn't get under any other circumstances.  

How are you keeping healthy and sane during quarantine?

I've certainly been getting a lot more exercise.  Chasing a toddler around the house or pulling him in the bike trailer burns a lot of calories.  Aside from that, we've just been cooking at home even more than usual, so I'm really looking forward to the Best of the Season box.