Orange County

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Dining Around Orange County

An April 2006 trip to Orange County by stvchin Best of IgoUgo

Tia JuanaMore Photos

The chronicles of my dining experiences in Orange County! I'm always looking for new and exciting restaurants, so maybe this will help you out!

  • 59 reviews
  • 170 photos

Dining Around Orange CountyBest of IgoUgo

Overview

John Wayne Airport
For many years, Orange County, California, has been the unknown space in between Los Angeles and San Diego. But TV shows like "The OC" and "Real Housewives of Orange County" and the MTV show "Laguna Beach: The Real OC," have helped to highlight Orange County. Sporting events such as the Anaheim Angels winning the 2002 World Series and the Mighty Ducks, and the ever popular beach volleyball and surfing in the area.

Orange County has really grown up, and so has the property value and income level. Accordingly, Orange County residents' tastes have become more sophisticated.

Orange County has also become a destination in itself. It is a business hub, with Irvine being billed as the "Silicon Valley of the south" and many automakers locating their design centers here to tap into the Southern California car culture. It's an entertainment hub, with Disneyland, Knott's Berry Farm, as well as other venues and resorts, such as Laguna Beach and Newport Beach! Such sophisticated tastes lead to great dining at great restaurants!

One of my favorite things to do is try out new places to eat with my friends Andrew and Thomas! (It helps that my best friend used to work at Orange County Environmental Health and has inspected pretty much every place that serves any type of food in Orange County!) These are the chronicles of our journey dining around Orange County. Hopefully you will find these dining reviews useful, whether you live in Orange County, or whether you are visiting the area. After all, everybody likes a good meal at a nice place!

Quick Tips:

Orange County is ethnically diverse, and you can find genuine ethnic restaurants in these areas. There are plenty of Vietnamese restaurants in Westminster and parts of Garden Grove. There are Korean restaurants in Garden Grove. Genuine Mexican restaurants can be found in Santa Ana and Anaheim. There are Persian restaurants in Irvine and Newport Beach.

Just remember, because there are LOTS of restaurants in an area, it doesn't mean they are necessarily GOOD restaurants. It seems like a lot of people that immigrate to the area from abroad think they can open a restaurant serving food from their old country.

Best Way To Get Around:

Orange County has planes, trains, and automobiles. The local commercial airport is located next to Irvine and Newport Beach. Orange County Airport is also named John Wayne Airport with the identifier SNA.

There is the Metrolink and Amtrak, which runs between Los Angeles and San Diego. But by far, pretty much the only way to really get around is by private automobile. Because Orange County isn't a centralized area like New York or Chicago, and there is no real downtown, everything is spread out. Orange County has an extensive (even if somewhat crowded) freeway system, and plenty of roads to utilize.

Surf And Sand HotelBest of IgoUgo

Hotel | "Surf & Sand Resort"

View from the Surf and Sand Resort
The Surf & Sand Resort is a luxury resort located on the ocean side of South Coast Highway in Laguna Beach.

Upon arrival, we noticed the parking lot is quite small, so we used the valet parking. The exterior of the 165 room hotel building looks to be an older building, with exterior hallways. There are a series of newer buildings just to the right of the hotel which house meeting and conference rooms, the gift shop, spa, and other amenities. The pool deck is below the hotel, just steps away from the beach.

We checked in and received room 259. Interestingly enough, the 2nd floor is the main entrance level. Our room was all the way on the leftmost side of the hotel. We had a King-A room. The room is described as 500 SQ Ft. with a king bed, small seating area with a sofa sleeper. It has a nice private balcony overlooking the beach and Pacific Ocean. The room also has a large LCD panel TV/monitor, DVD/CD player/clock/alarm/MP3/iPod docking station. There were also nice robes and towels with the resort's name and logo embroidered on. Very nice.

The rooms that face away from the ocean are meeting rooms. We peeked inside one of these rooms. They feature their own bathroom and a wetbar. They are nicely adorned with crown moulding, which hide the florescent lighting fixtures.

There is a gift shop and spa to the right of the hotel tower. The upstairs portion of the spa has a nice deck overlooking the ocean. Down the stairs from here is the pool area, which also has a small, staffed bar/towel area. There is direct access to the beach from the pool area.

Also just to the right of the hotel tower is their on-site restaurant, Splashes, which we dined at (separate review).

We witnessed a wedding coordinator at the hotel take a engaged couple for a tour of the facilities. As we wandered on, we also actually saw a photographer taking photos for wedding and reception taking place at the Surf & Sand that day.

Our room was very nice and quiet. There is the occasional sound of waves crashing onto the beach, but that beats the sound of airplanes taking off, or freeway traffic anyday. The view is spectacular, especially when you stand at the patio and gaze out at a nice Pacific sunset. The rooms were clean, staff were courteous, very attentive and prompt to our needs.

The room was $340 for a weekend night. If you want a nice luxurious, romantic getaway, (or facilities for a wedding and reception) I highly recommend the Surf & Sand Resort.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on January 8, 2007

Surf And Sand Hotel
1555 SOUTH COAST HIGHWAY Laguna Beach, California 92651
949-497-4477

Wood Ranch BBQ & GrillBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Wood Ranch BBQ & Grill"

Tri-Tip Steak
Many of my friends have told me good things about Wood Ranch BBQ & Grill, so I decided to give it a try. It's located south of the 91 Freeway by the Wier Canyon off-ramp and Santa Ana Canyon Road. It sits directly across the parking lot from the Edwards movie theatre.

I arrived around dinnertime with a friend, and found a long line out the door of Wood Ranch. Wood Ranch doesn't take reservations unfortunately, but we were seated rather quickly. The decor is quite nice, with highly polished wood tables and a modern feel to it. There was plenty of people-watching to be had, as many of the people dressed and looked quite nice here. I'd consider Wood Ranch BBQ to be a moderately upscale restaurant.

Our server was quick to get us drinks (we both had lemonades) and a basket of warm moist rolls covered in a butter/pesto glaze. After tasting the rolls, I wondered if we even needed to order.

The waiter recommended the tri-tip steak, as it is the most popular selection. He said the tri-tip is so tender, it is served as a solid steak, and doesn't need to be cut into thin strips. I ordered the tri-tip with sides of peanut coleslaw and mashed sweet potatoes. My friend ordered the baby back ribs and sides of coleslaw as well, and corn on the cob.

When our food arrived, we were quite impressed at the presentation on the plate. The food was colorful and looked quite delectable. My tri-tip was quite tender and very moist and juicy. It was good by itself and didn't need to be drowned in sauces. The peanut coleslaw had a slightly sour tangy taste to it and the texture of the peanuts was quite pleasant. I found the mashed sweet potatoes a bit too sweet for my tastes, but that's just my opinion. The mashed sweet potatoes were made with marshmallows, so that explained the sweetness.

My friend's baby back ribs were quite tender and didn't require a lot of effort to remove the meat from the bone. He tried eating the ribs with a fork and knife, and was moderately successful, but later resorted to using his hands. He didn't need any extra sauce for the ribs either. He said the grilled corn on the cob was quite good.

We both finished everything on our plates! The waiter came over to tell us about dessert, but unfortunately we were both too full. I wish I had some room, as the desserts at the other tables looked totally delicious. There was cheesecake, and an Oreo ice-cream cookie concoction I really wanted to try.

Our bill was about $60 for the both of us. The food was well worth the price. I would definitely recommend this to everybody. The service was great, and the food was phenomenal!
  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by stvchin on April 29, 2006

Wood Ranch BBQ & Grill
8022 E. Santa Ana Canyon Rd. Anaheim, California 92808
(714) 974-6660

Skosh MonahansBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Bacon wrapped filet mignon at Skosh Monahan's
When one thinks of an Irish pub in Orange County, Skosh Monahans should come to mind. It's owned and operated by Gary Monahan, currently a Costa Mesa council member.

From the outside, it looks like a typical bar, but once inside, the atmosphere is surprisingly kid-friendly. (Most of the kids do filter out around 9pm, so it really does becomes an Irish pub… ) The booths were comfortable and the waitresses were young and friendly.

The menu wasn't overly large, but it had plenty. There were steaks, seafood, Irish specialties such as bangers and mash and Irish coddle. For appetizers, we shared a lobster bisque, fried calamari, bruschetta, and shrimp cocktail. All of the appetizers were good, the shrimp were especially huge, but alas, there were only four shrimp and three of us… (we had to fight over the last shrimp). My only disappointment was the bruschetta. Apparently Skosh Monahans must have a panini machine, since the bread appeared to have been squashed in such a machine, which gave it an odd barbecued taste I wasn't accustomed to. But your taste may be different. The brushetta topping was excellent though.

For our main course, I had fish, shrimp, and chips, my friends had seared ahi, and the special of the day, sirloin and shrimp skewer. All of these were excellent. The presentation was good, the veggies were crisp, and so were my fries!

For dessert, we shared an apple cobbler, which was just absolutely delicious. Every now and then, I would end up with a lump of brown sugar on my fork, which ended up being a really tasty treat! Imagine that.

Overall, the atmosphere was casual, even kid-friendly earlier in the day. They have specials every day, and children's specials during Sunday.

I spoke briefly with the owner, Gary Monahan. They are doing a TACA promotional night sometime in May 2006. TACA is Talk About Curing Autism. One of Gary Monahan's children has autism, so this is quite close and personal to him. I think the personal touches, atmosphere, and phenomenal food make this the best Irish pub in O.C.!
  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by stvchin on April 30, 2006

Skosh Monahans
2000 Newport Blvd Costa Mesa, California 92627
(949) 548-0099

Lucille's SmokehouseBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Fun at Lucille's.
When I think of barbecue, I think of Lucille's Smokehouse. The one in Brea is located on Imperial Highway at the 57 Freeway northbound off ramp. The long lines out the door and the blue smoke coming out the chimney give you a not so subtle hint where it's located.

It's a very casual place, probably best described what I'd think of as a casual Louisiana rib joint. We had reservations, but ended up having to wait a short while anyway. Once we were led into the dining area, there's this odd stainless steel smoker sitting in the middle of it. It's definitely not a prop, as a cook was loading dozens of racks of ribs into it. The aroma of the barbecue wafting out of the machine drove us nuts!

We ordered the backyard family feast, which consists of two racks of ribs, and two half chickens, plus four sides. We chose a baby back and St. Louis rack, Honey Roasted Peanut Slaw, macaroni and cheese, Flame Roasted Sweet Corn, and the Southern Sweet Potatoes as sides.

While we waited, we were served warm biscuits with apple butter. They were delicious, but only due to the apple butter. I probably would have preferred rolls, but that's just my preference.

The main course came out and all talking stopped as we concentrated on eating. Everything was absolutely delicious. I think these are the best baby back ribs I've had at any barbecue restaurant in the area!

We had no room for dessert, in fact, we had to take several boxes home. There were four of us, and the backyard family feast was $75, so with a few drinks, it ended up being between $20-30 per person. Highly recommended.

There's a location in Torrance and the Long Beach Town Centrer in Los Angeles County. Plus there's a Lucille's being built in Tustin at The District (still under construction) at Jamboree and Barranca in Tustin. It's supposed to open in Spring 2007, I can't wait! Heh… it's just 2 miles from me!

I found out there is a live blues band playing there on Saturday and Sundays!
  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by stvchin on April 30, 2006

Lucille's Smokehouse
1639 East Imperial Highway Brea, California 92821
(714) 990-4944

Tia Juana's Long Bar & GrillBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Tia Juana's Long Bar & Grill"

Tia Juana's at night. (their photo)
Tia Juana's is a lively Mexican restaurant in Old Town Irvine (corner of Burt and Sand Canyon Road) that doubles as a nightclub in the evening. Tia Juana's is located inside a set of refurbished grain silos(?) visible from the 5 Freeway. Inside, it looks like a barn, with half of it sectioned off as a bar and the other half as the restaurant.My friend and I stopped by early Tuesday for dinner. Tia Juana's was having Taco Tuesday in the bar section, so we chose that. (Apparently the $0.50 tacos aren't available in the dining section.) You can choose either $0.50 chicken or beef tacos. A "taco server" with a stainless steel tray of tacos and plates came out to see if we wanted tacos. We ordered 6 tacos each. I chose all beef while my friend Dave chose all chicken. The server gave us our tacos and we had to pay him cash at that time. The tacos were deep fried, but had fresh cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes. They were actually quite good for 50 cent tacos. After we wolfed them down, we ordered a steak quesadilla from the menu, which came out quickly. It was quite good as well. My only reservation was that a side of sour cream is an extra charge.As we ate, more people kept pouring in for drinks after work. A live mariachi band started playing. We talked to the waitress, and there are usually Salsa dancing lessons later in the evening, but there is an entry fee if you wish to dance. As we left, we noticed that quite a few families with children were happily dining in the restaurant side.All in all, the food was good, the atmosphere was lively. It's a pretty good Tex/Mex restaurant with some sort of entertainment every night.Our bill with 12 tacos, 1 steak quesadilla (under the appetizer section of the menu,) and 2 soft drinks came out to $15, including tip! (I later found out that appetizers are half off during Taco Tuesday!) I'd definitely go back for Taco Tuesday at Tia Juana's.

** Note, the photos I took aren't that good due to the low lighting in the restaurant. I didn't use flash because it made the photo too bright.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on May 12, 2006

Tia Juana's Long Bar & Grill
14988 Sand Canyon Ave Irvine, California 92618
(949) 551-2998

Orange Hill RestaurantBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Orange Hill Restaurant
I went to the Orange Hill Restaurant as a guest for a birthday dinner. It's supposed to be one for the premier banquet/restaurant facilities in central OC. The entrance to the restaurant is a windy private road just off Chapman Avenue just east of Crawford Canyon. It's located at the top of a hill in Orange, hence the name Orange Hill Restaurant. It's east of the Orange County Mining Company, also off of Chapman Avenue. Only valet parking is available, there's NO self parking. We waited in the lobby for the rest of our party. The lobby features a wide and interesting display of cigars for sale.

There were only three of us in our party, so we were seated quickly. The dining room views gaze west/southwest over Orange County. They say you can see out to Catalina Island on a good day. Unfortunately we couldn't see squat due to the haze. We did make out 17th Street and the 55 Freeway due to the car lights, but that was about it. There are seats with fire pits lining the outside patio area, and a few couples were taking advantage of this. The bar area is pretty basic, but since it was Sunday evening, there weren't too many people there.

The bread basket had three different types, a regular french bread, a tasty raisin type bread, and a savory bread with a pesto spread on the outside. We ordered the crab stuffed mushrooms and jumbo shrimp cocktail appetizers. I ordered the Filet Oscar, which are 2 filet mignon medallions with a king crab meat topping and bearnaise sauce. My friend Mike also ordered the Filet Oscar, and the birthday girl ordered the Broiled Australian Lobster Tail.

The jumbo shrimp cocktail had 5 huge shrimp and were gobbled up quickly. The crab stuffed mushrooms were exceptionally good too. When our main courses arrived, we quickly dug in. The Filet Oscar was excellent. The filet mignon was so tender, a knife was barely required. The veggies (asparagus and carrots) were crisp and tasty. The birthday girl loved the lobster, naturally.

I snuck out back to ask the waitress for a birthday cake. She showed me dessert platter, which included cheesecakes, small round chocolate cakes, and a key lime cake! I chose the chocolate cake.

A bit later, the waitress came over the remove our dinner plates and brought over the chocolate cake. It was extremely rich and thick, the way I like it. Unfortunately it was too sweet for the birthday girl, so I ate the rest!

The birthday girl had $200 worth of Orange Hill gift certificates. That covered our three meals, two appetizers, one soft drink, four cocktails, and tip! I would definitely bring somebody special here again, but it is a bit expensive.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on May 22, 2006

Orange Hill Restaurant
6410 E. Chapman Ave. Orange, California 92869
(714) 997-2910

Sam Woo RestaurantBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Sam Woo BBQ Restaurant"

First off, there are two sides to the Sam Woo Restaurant. There is Sam Woo BBQ Restaurant and a Sam Woo Seafood Restaurant, located next to each other. This is a review of the BBQ side only.

Once you enter, there is a large take out section with all sorts of roasted and Bbqed meats hanging in a display case. They have roasted duck, roasted pig, BBQ pork, sausage, roasted squid, (?) and just about all sorts of things available in addition to the standard fare of fried rice and traditional Chinese dishes. To the left of that is the seated dining area. During lunch and dinner, there is usually a small wait.

Once seated, the waiter plops down a kettle of tea and our menus. The menu is typical of any Cantonese Chinese restaurant. They all seem to serve the same food. The front of the menu did offer some of the Asian "boba" tapioca drinks in it.

My friend ordered a roast duck and rice plate, I ordered Beef Chow Mien (crispy noodles with beef and veggies in sauce.) In a short while, our food arrived. There isn't much to describe the food. It tastes as it's supposed to, so that makes it good. My beef noodles were nice and saucy, the beef was a slight bit tough though, but that's expected. In total, our total bill was $14. We don't tip much because that's expected for the level of "service" we received.

I've eaten at similar Chinese restaurants before, so don't expect much from the atmosphere or service attitude. This is no exception. There is no atmosphere, and the servers rarely say anything to you. In fact, the servers usually frown upon being bothered for such things other than to take your order and bring you your food. They say that if the waiters are nice and attentive, then it's NOT authentic Chinese food!

Sam Woo BBQ Restaurant is one of the few authentic Chinese restaurants in Irvine, so if you want good, authentic dine-in Chinese food, you're held hostage to the bad service. That's the ONLY reason I say it's recommended. Remember that when you wonder why the waiters don't smile or talk to you. Oh yeah, they take CASH ONLY, no credit cards or checks.

The Sam Woo Seafood side is different, and I'll write a review on that later.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on May 22, 2006

Sam Woo Restaurant
15333 Culver Dr Ste 720 Irvine, California 92604
(949) 262-0888

Original Pancake HouseBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "The Original Pancake House"

Eggs Benedict
The Original Pancake House is a chain of specialty breakfast restaurants with a focus on pancakes, naturally. I went to the one in Aliso Viejo with two friends on Sunday Morning. There are other location in Orange County in Yorba Linda and Anaheim.

There is always a line and a wait. We waited about 25 minutes outside until they called our name. Once inside and seated, the decor is very plain, simply a breakfast/coffee house with no real decoration. But we're not here to stare at the walls, we're here for the breakfast.

We were served our coffee and juice quickly. My friends ordered the strawberry pancakes with a side of bacon, and the eggs benedict. I ordered the eggs and links. As we waited and chatted, we saw The Original Pancake House specialties come out of the kitchen, the Dutch Baby and the Apple Pancake. The Dutch Baby appears to be a sweet souffle that deflates when you put a fork into it. The Apple Pancake looks like a huge apple fritter donut.

Our orders finally came out. The strawberry pancakes were a collection of 8 smaller pancakes, arranged in a circular overlapping pattern with plenty of strawberries and whipped cream on top. My friend said they were totally delicious. The eggs benedict came out with four potato pancakes, and were pretty good. My friend said the only thing she would have liked were gooier egg yolks, but that's her personal preference. My eggs and sausage came out over easy and I gobbled them up rather quickly.

Our bill came out to about $41 for two coffees, one large orange juice, eggs benedict, side of bacon, strawberry pancakes, eggs and links, including tax and tip. The food is pricier than at most other breakfast restaurants, but it's worth the difference.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on June 4, 2006

Original Pancake House
26951 Moulton Parkway Aliso Viejo, California 92656
(949) 643-8591

Duke's Huntington BeachBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Duke's"

Duke's right on the beach.
Duke’s is a higher end small chain restaurant originally from Hawaii, serving American cuisine with a Hawaiian flair. Duke’s is located next to the pier in Huntington Beach at the intersection of Pacific Coast Highway and the dead end of Main Street. While we waited, we went over to the pier and people watched. After a 40 minute wait, we were seated at a nice table with a view of the beach. There is a restaurant called Chimayo located on the floor under Duke’s. We didn’t wander there, but maybe sometime in the future we will.

Duke’s décor is Hawaiian, with lots of wooden construction and plenty of tropical plants in the lobby. There is also a balcony section outside on the beach side. The servers all wore Hawaiian print shirts and a girl in a Hawaiian dress made the rounds selling leis. We ordered soft drinks and were served them rather quickly, with a nice basket of warm sourdough rolls and butter. My friends chose fried calamari appetizer, the teriyaki sirloin steak, the Huli Huli chicken, and I chose the prime rib. The entrees come with garlic mashed potatoes, but anything other sides or substitutions, including a baked potato, are a la carte. The waiter who took out order memorized the whole order without writing anything down.

The fried calamari arrived quickly, and we could immediately tell it came from a box. The plate of calamari wasn’t big at all, and the pieces of calamari are obviously processed, as they look more like steak fries than squid. The flavor was pretty fair, but it was served in the cocktail sauce. I would have preferred the cocktail sauce on the side, and a side of tartar sauce too.

Our dinners came out shortly thereafter. My friend’s teriyaki sirloin came out with a grilled fresh pineapple slice and mushrooms for garnish and looked quite good. I tried some of my friend’s Huli Huli chicken breast and found it tasty, but a slight bit dry inside. My prime rib came with au jus sauce already poured all over it. I didn’t mind it that much as I did with the calamari’s sauce. The prime rib and the garlic mashed potatoes that came with it were good too. Although the prime rib was good, there wasn’t much that distinguished it from any other good prime rib I’ve had.

After clearing off our empty dinner plates, our waiter recited the desserts us and described each of them from memory. All of the dessert items sounded quite good, from the fresh key lime pie to the hula pie. Unfortunately we were all full and passed on the dessert. In total, our bill came to $69, not including tip or tax.

In summary, Duke’s is a nice upper scale restaurant to go to once in a while for the Hawaiian and beach atmosphere to people watch, as there are some nicely dressed and good looking people dining there. It’s slightly pricey, but still fairly good.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on June 4, 2006

Duke's Huntington Beach
317 Pacific Coast Hwy. Huntington Beach, California 92648
(714) 374-6446

Roy's Hawaiian Fusion CuisineBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

It's interesting going to Roy's one day after going to Duke's, as they are both higher-end Hawaiian themed restaurants. Roy's is located in Fashion Island in Newport Beach. It's adjacent to Flemings, and the entrance is at the opposite side of the building that houses both.

Roy's is a Hawaiian themed restaurant with more of an Asian feel than Duke's. It's definitely feels more formal too. They just happened to have a table ready for us, so there was no wait. The waitresses and servers wore Chinese style blouses, not Hawaiian shirts like they do at Duke's. We noticed quite a large number of dressed up young prom-goers dining there. Ahh...those ol'days...heh...

There were a lot of items on the menu, as well as a sushi section. (they have a sushi bar too.) Both of us ordered the Prix Fixe (Price Fixed menu) which is $33 for an appetizer, entree, and dessert. The appetizer is Roy's Hawaiian Fusion Sampler, which consists of a Shrimp on a Stick with Wasabi Cocktail Sauce, Wood Grilled Szechuan Spiced Baby Back Pork Ribs, and a Chef's special creation, which was a tasty crispy seafood potsticker. We had our choice of entrees, from Slow Braised and Charbroiled Shortribs of Beef, Hibachi Style Grilled Salmon or Macadamia Nut Crusted Mahi Mahi with Lobster Butter Sauce. I chose the shortribs and my friend chose the Mahi Mahi. We had our choice of two desserts, Roy's Melting Hot Chocolate Soufflé or Caramel Macadamia Nut Almond Tart with Vanilla Bean ice cream. We each chose one of the desserts.

A server came out and personally served us fresh rolls with butter, rather than leaving a bread basket on the table. Our appetizer came out moments later. The portions weren't large, but tasty. The shrimp on a stick was literally that with a unique sesame taste. The rib and potsticker were quite good too.

Our dinner came out, and I was very happy with my short ribs. If I ate nothing else but the short ribs, I'd still be happy. My friend noticed her Mahi Mahi was a bit raw, so she had it sent back. The Mahi Mahi was returned to her by the manager, who took great care to make sure she was happy with it, and she was.

Our dessert came out after we were done with the main course. The chocolate souffle was extremely rich, and served with raspberry sauce and vanilla bean ice cream. My caramel macadamia nut tart was good and nutty, but I did tire of it after a few bites, preferring to munch on my friend's chocolate souffle.

Our bill, with two prix fixe meals and two soft drinks, came out to $80 before tip. I'd recommend Roy's, it's a bit pricey, but still good nonetheless if you like Hawaiian/Asian fusion cuisine.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on June 4, 2006

Roy's Hawaiian Fusion Cuisine
453 Newport Center Drive Newport Beach, California 92660
(949) 640-7697

Black Angus SteakhouseBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Stuart Anderson's Black Angus Steakhouse"

Wagon wheel appetizer at the Black Angus
Stuart Anderson's Black Angus Steakhouse is a US West Coast steak restaurant chain. I normally don't go to Black Angus, but my friend had a gift certificate plus received a mailer coupon. We went to the closest one, which is in the Tustin Marketplace. The Tustin Marketplace is located in Orange County on Jamboree Road just one block north of Interstate 5. The Black Angus is located at the corner of Jamboree and El Camino Real on the Tustin side of the Marketplace, next to In-N-Out and Best Buy.

From what I know, Black Angus' menu has been updated, revamped, and the menu changed to re-attract customers. The inside has been changed with an updated look with neon lights and a modern appearance. When I went to Black Angus years ago, all of the restaurants had heavy logs incorporated into the design, and lots of 1970s style decor. Obviously that has been changed to attract a younger crowd.

We went on a Friday, so there were quite a few people waiting in the restaurant lobby. We were seated after a 15 minute wait. We were seated in a comfortable booth, no more heavy cloth seat backs, but nice cushy vinyl (I'm sure they weren't leather) booths.

Our server greeted us quickly after we took our seats and went off with our drink orders. We both ordered soft drinks. The menu is very typical of a chain steakhouse.

Since we had the local mailer coupon, which advertised a steak dinner for two with appetizer and dessert. The choices were two sirloin dinners for $34, two prime rib for $36, or two filet mignon for $38. We chose the prime rib dinner for two.

Our waiter brought us the warm bread and butter moments later. It's a loaf of whole grain bread with oats on top.

Our "wagon wheel" appetizer and our salads came out. It consists of buffalo strips and accompanying garnish, potato skins, shrimp cocktail, fried zucchini. The salads were both garden salads, and pretty basic, but tasted as expected and were good.

Our prime rib dinners came out. We both ordered ours medium rare, and they came out correctly. There was a small metal ramekin with au jus sauce and another with horseradish. In trying to stay health conscious (ahem...yeah right...) we both ordered the vegetable medley as a side dish. That consisted of zuchini, squash, brocoli, and baby carrots. The dinner tasted pretty good.

Our dessert was the chocolate lava cake. It's a chocolate cake with fudge in the center, and topped with chocolate shavings and ice cream. It's a very rich cake.

Our total bill with the packaged $36 coupon meal and two soft drinks came out to $41.48 with tax. My friend had a $25 gift card, so we paid and left quite satisfied.

Stuart Anderson's Black Angus is a fairly good steakhouse for a chain. You get good bang for your buck here. Normally this would cost 50-70% more elsewhere. I'd recommend it.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on June 17, 2006

Black Angus Steakhouse
3030 El Camino Real Tustin, California 92782
(714) 573-4888

Gulliver'sBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Prime rib at Gulliver's
Gulliver's is an 18th-century English restaurant specializing in prime rib. It's located directly across from the front of John Wayne Airport in Orange County. I hadn't been to Gulliver's before and I had a gift certificate, so I decided to treat a friend to a nice lunch there. It's located off MacArthur and the 405 freeway behind El Torito and near the International House of Pancakes.

We were seated rather quickly, since we arrived just as they opened up at 11:30am for lunch. Our waitress seated us at a booth. The booths are made of dark wood with a padded seat. The waitress moved the table a bit diagonally for us to slide into the booth. As we looked around the restaurant, it suddenly dawned on me that the name referred to Gulliver of Jonathan Swift's book, Gulliver's Travels. It was quite dimly lit in the restaurant, and had old sailing ship models and other Olde English paraphernalia handing on the walls. We even saw a picture of Gulliver being tied down by the Liliputians. All of the waitresses were dressed up as Olde English barmaids too.

The lunch menu featured steaks, sandwiches, salads, and seafood. It was somewhat pricey, as a sandwich went for around $10 while a lunch steak goes for $15. I ordered the chicken cordon bleu lunch special while my friend ordered the filet medallions.

A basket of warm sourdough bread and cheesy bread sticks came out along with a ramekin of butter. The sourdough bread was good, but the cheesy bread sticks were actually a bit dry and tasteless.

Our orders came out rather quickly. My friend's filet medallions looked quite good, and there were three medallions of filet mignon, along with sauce, veggies, and mashed potatoes. My chicken cordon bleu came looked good, with white sauce, veggies, and mashed potatoes. (I tried taking photos, but the lighting was quite dim and I was borrowing a camera and didn't figure out how to set the flash, sorry.)

The portions were quite large and the food tasted great! I tried my friend's filet medallions and was surprised at how tender they were.

By the time we were done, the restaurant was almost completely full. I would say 90% of the customers were business diners, as some had out papers and were discussing work matters while waiting for their lunches.

Due to my own personal tastes, I didn't care for the hard wooden backs of the booth seating, nor the dark environment. It was slightly pricey, but you get what you pay for. Our bill came out to $40.21 with two lunches, a coffee, salad, and soft drink. Slightly pricey for lunch, but the portions were fairly large. The food and service were good.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on June 17, 2006

Gulliver's
18482 MacArthur Blvd. Irvine, California 92612
(949) 833-8411

Millie's Restaurant & BakeryBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Millie's Restaurant & Bakery"

Macaroni & Cheese Dinner w/ salad.
Millie's is a small local chain restaurant and bakery restaurants. It's similar in type to Coco's and Carrows and Hof's Hut. There are two in Orange County, one in Anaheim and the other in Brea. I went with two friends to the Brea location for dinner. The Brea Millie's is at the intersection of Imperial and Randolph, just across from the Brea Mall. This was my first time at Millie's.

We arrived and were seated immediately. The restaurant wasn't full during dinner, probably because the nearby Brea Mall has all sorts of other restaurants available. The decor and layout at Millie's is similar to a coffee shop like Denny's, no frills and quite conservative. The front counter display has all sorts of delicious looking strawberry pies and other baked goods.

Our waiter brought us waters and took our drink orders. The menu has the standard coffee shop fare such as breakfast, sandwiches, burgers, salads, and typical dinner entrees such as meatloaf and spaghetti and meatballs.

Our waiter returned and took our orders. I ordered the triple decker club sandwich and substituted fries for onion rings for a few cents more. My friend Andrew ordered the macaroni and cheese dinner, which comes with a salad, and he chose Caesar. My other friend Thomas ordered the albacore tuna melt with fries. Our waiter asked if we wanted an appetizer and suggested the spinach artichoke dip. That sounded good and we ordered the spinach artichoke dip.

All three of us got busy in a conversation and realized the spinach artichoke dip was never brought out. We saw our waiter come to our table with our dinner entrees and Andrew's salad. We asked the waiter about the dip, and he admitted he forgot to place the order. He apologized and asked us if we still wanted it. We told him we didn't, since dinner was already before us. Our waiter said he would provide us with a free dessert if we wished. We told him we might take him up on the free dessert.

Our dinners looked pretty good. Thomas enjoyed his albacore tuna melt. I liked my triple decker club sandwich. Andrew liked his Caesar salad. He said his macaroni and cheese was a bit bland and the sauce was a tad bit watery. During dinner, the restaurant manager came out to check on us and to apologize for forgetting the appetizer and told us we could have whatever dessert we would like when we were ready.

We finished dinner and decided on the Triple Layer Ghirardelli Chocolate Cake. The waiter brought our cake with a scoop of ice-cream. The cake was pretty good.

Overall, the food was less than fair, two out of three tasted as they should. The macaroni and cheese wasn't so good. The service wasn't terrible, the waiter simply forgot to order our appetizer, so we got a free dessert out of that incident. But I'm not planning on returning soon. Total bill was $36 with tax and tip.
  • Member Rating 1 out of 5 by stvchin on June 19, 2006

Millie's Restaurant & Bakery
297 S. Randolph Ave. Brea, California 92821
(714) 990-4291

IslandsBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Dessert at Islands
Islands is a casual sit-down burger chain with a Hawaiian/surfer theme. I went with three friends to the location in Fullerton by Amerige Heights. There are many other locations in and around Orange County, including Irvine, Foothill Ranch, Mission Viejo, Huntington Beach, Orange, Anaheim Hills, and more.

We were seated fairly quickly. The decor attempts to simulate a hut made of thatch and bamboo, with surfboards and other surf related memorabilia around. Even the employees are all dressed in Hawaiian print shirts! Our table was fashioned to resemble a surfboard. The atmosphere is light and lively and has a generally happy feel to it.

The menus are tucked in the corner of the table. The menu basically has burgers, chicken sandwiches, salads, appetizers, and other inexpensive fare. Most all of the items are under $10 each. My friends ordered the North Shore fish tacos (Three flour tortillas stuffed with spicy chicken, cheddar, lettuce, and tomatoes with salsa on the side,) a Sandpiper grilled chicken sandwich with choice of wholewheat bun (comes with sauteed mushrooms, lettuce, tomato, swiss, and mayo,) and I ordered the Big Wave burger with bacon (burger with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, and mustard.) We also ordered a side of island fries (basically french fries.)

Our orders came out within 10 minutes. They all looked good and tasted even better. Sometimes there's nothing like sinking your teeth into a good burger, and Islands definitely fulfilled that desire. The fries were nice and crisp too. We were all quite happy during and after our meal.

Our waitress asked if we wanted dessert, and we chose the New York Style Cheesecake and Kona Pie (Mocha almond fudge ice-cream and cookie crust topped with chocolate fudge, roasted almonds, and whipped cream) The Kona Pie is basically the same as a Mud Pie. The desserts came out looking totally delectable (see the pictures, you'll understand.) The Kona Pie was drizzled with ribbons of chocolate sauce, and the cheesecake was topped with strawberry sauce. I sampled both and they were terrific. Being a chocolate lover, I preferred the Kona Pie, but I would have gone for either one!

After all was said and done, our total bill came out to about $45 before tip. That included the tacos and two burgers, fries, one soft drink, and two desserts. Not bad at all! I'd consider this one of my semi-regular places to visit every month or so!

Some can say that Islands is just an expensive sit down burger joint, so why go here when you can go to a drive-thru burger stand? Well, I think the quality and taste of the food at Islands justifies the cost. You do get what you pay for, and we still didn't pay that much!
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on June 26, 2006

Islands
2201 W. Malvern Ave. Fullerton, California 92833
(714) 992-6685

Russell's Seafood PalaceBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Beef chow mein & house chicken!
Russell's Seafood Palace was a nice surprise. It's a Chinese restaurant located near John Wayne Airport (SNA) at the corner of Main and MacArthur. It sits behind the Mcdonalds and Agorra restaurant, so doesn't get much street visibility.

A friend and I visited Russell's for lunch. Upon entering the restaurant, it's apparent from the decor that the former tenant was probably a fine steak or seafood restaurant. I've come to learn that good Chinese restaurants don't give a damn about decor. Either way, the decor was nice, but unusual.

We were seated quickly and given a pot of hot tea. We saw lots of Asians already seated and eating. They say that if you go to an Asian restaurant, and there aren't Asians eating there, you'd best leave.

There were three dim sum carts making their way around the dining room. Two were "hot" carts carrying steamed buns and Chinese porridge. There was a "cold" cart carrying dishes of baked goods and desserts. For those that do not know what Dim Sum is, it translates into "heart's delights" in Chinese. Dim Sum is a type of brunch consisting of a variety of little dishes, including meats, veggies, pastries, and desserts.

We chose a steamed pork buns during one pass of the carts, and pork potstickers and shrimp balls (on a stick?) on the next pass. The pork buns and potstickers were great. The shrimp balls were a bit interesting, as I've never had them before, but they were good nonetheless. The shrimp balls are best described as ground up shrimp molded into a ball, breaded and deep fried. A sliver of sugar cane is stuck into it as a "handle."

Customers can also order from the kitchen, and we placed an order of beef chow mein and the house fried chicken with the waiter. The waiter gave us each a bowl of hot and sour soup. I've never liked hot and sour soup, so I'm not the best judge. My friend said his was quite good. It has bits of veggies and strips of tofu in it. Obviously hot and sour soup is quite hot, yet tangy.

Our dishes came out a few moments after we were done with the soup. My beef chow mein was quite good. Beef chow mein consists of pan fried noodles topped off with stir fried beef and veggies in sauce. The sauce on top of the fried noodles makes them soft. I like my noodles soggier than they were served, but that's my personal preference. My friend's house fried chicken resembled large bits of popcorn chicken tossed in chives and jalapeno cross slices. The chicken was surprisingly good, with a hint of sweetness.

Our bill with 3 Dim Sum dishes and 2 kitchen dishes was $32.33 before tip. Russell's is a pretty good Chinese restaurant, and the Dim Sum service was a nice surprise. There isn't much Dim Sum in Orange County! It's not the best Chinese restaurant, but it's definitely good and worth going back!
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on June 30, 2006

Russell's Seafood Palace
1818 Main St. Irvine, California 92614
(949) 476-1818

Knowlwood RestaurantBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Pancake sandwich breakfast
Knowlwood Restaurant is located in "Old Town Irvine" at the intersection of Burt/Sand Canyon and the 5 Freeway. Knowlwood is in the same block as the La Quinta Inn, Dennys, and TiaJuana's Long Bar and Grill. From what I hear, it has a pretty good local following and has been around quite some time.

The inside of Knowlwood resembles an old barn with lots of antiques from the 1920's decorating the walls and ceilings. There is an old 1930's pickup truck converted into a table, and a pool table off to one corner. There is patio seating at the front of the restaurant.

Knowlwood was about 80% full, and we arrived at 8:45 AM on a Sunday morning. The waitress told us to select any table we wished, and we chose a comfy booth. Our waitress gave us our breakfast menus and took our drink orders.

Knowlwood has "the world's best hamburger" written on the side of their building. I've tried their hamburger on a previous visit, and it's quite good as far as a gourmet burger goes, but it doesn't strike me as the "world's best." I'm guessing they must have won an award or survey regarding this sometime in the past.

Our waitress returned with out drinks and we were ready to order. My friend ordered the French toast, but made her eggs scrambled egg whites only. My other friend ordered the chicken fried steak, which came with toast. I ordered the "pancake sandwich" which consists of 2 pancakes, 2 eggs, and 2 bacon (or one sausage) I asked for 2 more pancakes, as I was quite hungry.

A bit later, our orders came out. It was obvious that the "pancake sandwich" wasn't really a sandwich, but just a name for a pancake entree with eggs and meat. We greedily ate our breakfasts and sampled each other's meals. Personally, I found my pancakes a bit bland before butter and syrup. I would have liked them sweeter, as I've found at other breakfast restaurants.

Our total bill came out to $25 before tip. That includes the 3 breakfasts and 2 large orange juices. Our food was pretty good for the most part, but there wasn't anything that distinguished it from any other breakfast served anywhere else. So we liked it, and I'd go back if I couldn't find anything else.
  • Member Rating 2 out of 5 by stvchin on July 3, 2006

Knowlwood Restaurant
14952 Sand Canyon Ave. Irvine, California 92618
(949) 857-8927

Stubrik's Steakhouse and BarBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Beef Stroganoff at Stubrik's
Stubrik's is located off Commonwealth between Harbor and Lemon in the city of Fullerton. It actually shares the parking lot with the Fullerton Train station. It's located directly west of the Slidebar Cafe.

We entered Stubrik's from the rear, where the parking lot is located. We walked past the rear dining area, which was lit up, but was still quite dark. The front dining area was quite packed in and featured lots of brick and dark wood. There is a small stage with a few amplifiers set up in the front. It's very obvious that this was a bar converted into a restaurant. There's an upstairs dining are, but we didn't get a chance to go there.

We were seated quickly, despite the restaurant being packed. We ordered our drinks and perused the menu. Most of the menu items featured steaks, seafood, and other steakhouse fare. Our waiter returned with our drinks, and we ordered. My friends ordered the Beef Stroganoff, pork chops, chicken fettuccini carcofi, and I ordered the black and blue top sirloin steak.

We were served our salads (included in our meals.) The salads were quite large and topped off with sunflower seeds. I didn't care for that much. Other than that, I enjoyed the salad. Another annoyance was that Stubrik's didn't have thousand island dressing for the salad, so I opted for ranch instead.

After our salads, our entrees came. The beef stroganoff was topped off with a healthy dollop of sour cream and served with veggies. The chicken fettuccini carcofi had artichoke hearts and grilled chicken slices. My friend's pork chops were grilled with rosemary and served with potatoes au gratin and veggies. My black and blue top sirloin steak was topped with a burgundy blue cheese sauce and served alongside mashed potatoes and gravy and veggies.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on July 3, 2006

Stubrik's Steakhouse and Bar
118 E. Commonwealth Ave. Fullerton, California 92832
(714) 871-1290

Pat & Oscar'sBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Pat & Oscar's"

Drumsticks and pasta at Pat & Oscar's.
Pat & Oscars is a casual dining restaurant best known for their scrumptious bread sticks. They've lately become known for other dishes too, like their chicken, ribs, and pizza!

We ate dinner on a Friday night at Pat & Oscar's in Irvine. The first thing we noticed when we entered is that the place was packed. There was an unusually large proportion of teenagers to adults, but then again, it was a Friday night and it's next to the movie theater. There is a line at the cashier to order from a menu board on the back wall. Once ordered and paid for, the cashier gives you a number, and you place it on the condiment caddy at your table.

We ordered a chicken and pasta meal for 2, and 3 soft drinks. We had a $5 off coupon which came in the mail, so our total bill was $17. Not bad at all considering the meal for 2 actually serves 3. Once we got our number, we had to look around for a table and we spied somebody leaving, so we waited as the busboy cleaned off our table.

The atmosphere is a bit loud, as there are a lot of people in the dining area, but it was generally a festive atmosphere. We got our plastic plates, silverware, napkins, and salad dressing at a caddy built into the center of the dining area. All the staff really does here is clean the tables and bring out the food, and it seems to work quite efficiently that way.

Our salad and dozen bread sticks arrived in a few minutes. Our meal for 2 comes with either a Greek or Caesar salad (we chose Greek) and a basket of a dozen fresh bread sticks. The fresh bread sticks are to die for here! That's what Pat & Oscar's was originally known for. They coat the bread sticks in oil and little bits of garlic and salt. I like my bread sticks with a little ranch dressing, which is available upon request. The Greek salad was pretty good too, but I was more focused on scarfing down bread sticks.

Our main course of 9 lemon pepper drumsticks and pasta with marinara sauce arrived, and the server took our little number, indicating that the order has been filled. The lemon pepper drumsticks are quite savory and full of flavor. There is a BBQ flavor available, but I don't find it as good as the lemon pepper. The pasta was okay, there's nothing really notable about it, but it was still good.

Pat & Oscars has other locations in Buena Park, Orange, and Santa Ana near South Coast Plaza, as well as some in San Diego county. I've tried their pizza before, and it's very good. They've circulated mailers with coupons and new product announcements. They have such things as tri-tip sandwiches, different types of pizza, new types of salads, and so forth. They also serve beer and wine.

I highly recommend Pat & Oscars!
  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by stvchin on July 8, 2006

Pat & Oscar's
13786 Jamboree Rd. Ste. A Irvine, California 92602
(714) 505-6070

Fish Market and Grill on the LakeBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Shrimp and chips!
The Fish Market and Grill on the Lake is located on Lake Mission Viejo. It sits at the front of the mall away from Las Brisas. The restaurant doesn't look like much outside, but the inside is quite nice. The center of the Fish Market & Grill on the Lake features a circular bar with the main dining area behind it overlooking the lake. There is an outdoor patio seating on the lake. There is a grand piano off to the side of the restaurant by the bar, but nobody was playing when we were there.

Our seat out on the patio was nice, with a nice tranquil view of Lake Mission Viejo. Our waiter came out to take our drink orders and gave us a basket of warm sourdough bread and soft butter. My friends ordered the seafood wrap, 4 grilled halibut tacos, and I ordered the shrimp and chips.

Our orders came out after about 15-20 minutes later. The seafood wrap is a mix of shrimp, cod, and crab mixed in with rice, lettuce, and cheese. It's wrapped up in a sun-dried tomato tortilla and served with fries and fresh fruit. (cole slaw was a choice too.) The grilled halibut tacos consist of seasoned and grilled halibut on warm corn tortillas with lettuce, lime, and white sauce. My shrimp and chips are breaded and fried shrimp served with fries and either fruit or cole slaw.

Our food was excellent. Of particular note is the fact that one of my friends is co-founder of a restaurant chain that specializes in fish tacos. She says the grilled halibut tacos at Fish Market and Grill on the Lake are the best fish tacos she's ever had so far.

Our total bill for the 3 entrees came out to $38. Not bad for an excellent meal. The atmosphere is nice and relaxing. The restaurant isn't too upscale, but it's quite nice. My friend definitely recommends the Fish Market and Grill on the Lake. She visits regularly for the grilled halibut tacos!

Of note is that there is an older sister restaurant located on Ortega Highway in San Juan Capistrano. It's definitely an older location with more of a casual cafe style. The San Juan Capistrano doesn't have a full menu, as the steaks and ribs (which are featured here in Mission Viejo) are missing from their menu.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on July 18, 2006

Fish Market and Grill on the Lake
27732 Vista Del Lago Mission Viejo, California 92692
(949) 600-7771

Fish Market and Grill San Juan CapistranoBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Halibut sandwich
The Fish Market and Grill in San Juan Capistrano is the little sister restaurant to the Fish Market and Grill on The Lake in Mission Viejo. It's more of a cafe style versus it's sister restaurant's fine dining style.

The Fish Market and Grill is located on Ortega Highway just east of the 5 Freeway in a strip mall on the north side of Ortega. Parking can be a little hard to come by, especially during lunchtime.

The interior resembles a cafe. It has a very relaxed and casual feel to it. There is also patio seating outside. We were invited to choose whichever seats we wanted. We picked a nice seat by the window.

Our waitress came by promptly and took our drink order. My friend chose the halibut sandwich and I chose the seafood wrap. I did notice that the menu here does not have some items the Fish Market and Grill on the Lake has. The missing items seem to be the higher end grilled entrees, such as steaks and ribs. I'm guessing they don't have the capability of preparing those items here. It didn't matter to us much as the menu still has a good selection.

About 15-20 minutes later, our orders came out. The seafood wrap is a mix of shrimp, cod, and crab mixed in with rice, lettuce, and cheese. It's wrapped up in a sun-dried tomato tortilla and served with fries and your choice of cole slaw or fresh fruit. My friend's halibut sandwich was charbroiled halibut on fresh toasted bun with tartar sauce, tomato, lettuce and onion. It's served with fries and your choice of cole slaw or fresh fruit. Both tasted great.

I can say that I've tasted the seafood wrap at the location in Mission Viejo and it tastes consistent with the one here in San Juan Capistrano, so that's good. My friend thoroughly enjoyed the halibut sandwich.

Out total bill with 2 soft drinks and 2 entrees and tax came out to $27. I recommend this restaurant. I confess that I am a bit spoiled by the newer location on the lake in Mission Viejo though.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on July 18, 2006

Fish Market and Grill San Juan Capistrano
27221 Ortega Highway. #G San Juan Capistrano, California
(949) 248-0055

Romano's Macaroni GrillBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Calamari Fritti
I generally don't go to large chain restaurants much, but I've always enjoyed the food and atmosphere at Macaroni Grill. I visited the one in Irvine off Jamboree at the Marketplace on a Friday night. There are many other locations nationwide.

The wait on a Friday night wasn't too long, 25-30 minutes. We seated near the kitchen. I've always enjoyed the atmosphere and decor at the Macaroni Grills. Mac Grill seems to be the antithesis of the traditional Italian restaurant as there is plenty of open dining space with an open kitchen viewable from most of the dining room. The server station is situated smack in the middle of the dining area. The atmosphere is bustling and loud. The designers intentionally used noise reflecting materials such as faux stone columns and stained concrete floors. The loud atmosphere serves to make you feel a sense of excitement, but it also serves to cut down on intimate chatter. This forces some diners to finish their meals and leave in a timely manner to free up the table.

Our waiter was friendly and attentive. She brought us our drinks quickly and also brought us a loaf(?) of Macaroni Grill's signature rosemary bread. We had a coupon which offered a free appetizer with an order of their new seafood linguine. So we ordered the seafood linguine, pasta milano, and calamari appetizer.

The calamari fritti appetizer came out first. It didn't come with any lemon, but the waiter realized that already and brought us a little plate full of lemons. The calamari was pretty good, fried with a light batter.

Our entrees came out next. The seafood linguine was fairly good. It had clams, shrimp, and some miscellaneous white fish in ti. I didn't enjoy the clams as much, as I don't prefer them, but it tasted okay. I tried my friend's pasta milano and actually liked that better than my seafood linguine. Pasta milano is imported bow-tie pasta with mushrooms, chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, and white sauce.

Our entrees were quite big, and we had to box them to take them home for lunch tomorrow. We didn't order any dessert. We did see some of the servers carrying out some sort of chocolate cake with large scoops of vanilla ice cream that looked quite yummy.

Our total bill with the free appetizer coupon came out to $33 with tax and 2 lemonades. The food was good and consistent with my previous visits. The atmosphere is loud but quite fun. I highly recommend Romano's Macaroni Grill.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on July 22, 2006

Romano's Macaroni Grill
13652 Jamboree Road Irvine, California 92602
(714) 508-7990

Marie Callender's GrillBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Artichoke & Mushroom Halibut
Marie Callender's Grill is supposed to be a higher-end version of their Marie Callender's Bakery restaurants. I visited the Huntington Beach Marie Callender's Grill near Beach and Edinger.

The front of the restaurant has a modern look with faux stack stone and stucco, much like the newer stores and restaurants in the area. The interior is nicely appointed with nice dark woods and granite counter tops. Of course, there is the standard pie display ever present in all Marie Callender's.

We came at 6:30pm and were surprised that only about a quarter of the restaurant was full. We were seated without any wait. Our waitress came to take our drink orders and brought them out quickly.

The menu actually isn't too different from a regular Marie Callender's menu. There is one page that has grill items, but there are only about a dozen extra items, such as some ribs, steaks, and fish.

My friends ordered the scampi-style halibut and the artichoke-and-mushroom halibut. I ordered the pepper-crusted hand-carved tri tip. We also ordered an spinach artichoke dip. We all ordered salads with our entrees too.

The dip came out shortly thereafter, along with a nice warm loaf of cornbread with honey drizzled on top. The cornbread was well worth the visit! We weren't too crazy about the spinach artichoke dip. It was a bit watery for our tastes.

Our entrees came out looking quite delicious. The scampi-style halibut is grilled Alaskan halibut topped with shrimp scampi and capers and lemon garlic sauce. My friend said it tasted pretty good. My other friend had the artichoke-and-mushroom halibut, which came topped with a nice olive oil herb cream sauce. He said that was especially good. My pepper-crusted hand-carved tri tip looked great. It came served with steamed broccoli and mashed potatoes topped with melted cheese, bacon bits, and chives. The tri tip was really tender, but they could have eased off on the pepper crusting a bit. The potatoes were great, though.

We didn't have room for dessert, so we got our check. The total with tip was $66. That included the three entrees, appetizer, three salads, and two soft drinks.

Overall, this was a fair dining experience. I think we expected a different menu. If you like Marie Callender's pies or their regular menu anyways, then this Marie Callender's Grill is recommended. This can simply be classified as a regular Marie Callender's with nicer decor and a few extra menu items.
  • Member Rating 2 out of 5 by stvchin on July 26, 2006

Marie Callender's Grill
16390 Beach Blvd. Westminster 92683
(714) 847-6600

Lonestar Steakhouse & SaloonBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Lonestar Steakhouse & Saloon"

Salads at Lonestar Steakhouse
The Lonestar Steakhouse & Saloon is a smaller national chain of Steakhouses. Nearby locations in Tustin, Laguna Hills, Long Beach, and Corona. This is a review of the Tustin Lonestar Steakhouse & Saloon for dinner.

There is always a wait during dinner at this Lonestar location. We put our name down and waited about 30 minutes before we were called. We were led to our table, a nice comfy booth in the middle of the restaurant. Lonestar's decor is pretty much old Texan saloon. There's a big dining area and a bar off to one side. There's lots of dark wood paneling on the walls, skulls of bulls with horns hanging on the walls, wagon wheels, and other old west paraphernalia as decor. There were a lot of couples and families with kids dining here.

We each ordered a soft drink and started browsing the menu. We were both in the mood for steak. My friend ordered the 12 ounce prime rib, she chose the sweet potato and their signature Wedge salad. I chose the 14 ounce Texas rib-eye steak medium rare, Texas rice, and house salad with thousand island dressing. The soup or salad and side dish are all included in the entree.

We were brought our salads right away. I really like Lonestar's salads. My house salad had lettuce, red onion rings, diced tomatoes, shredded cheddar cheese, croutons, slivers of red lettuce, and thousand island dressing. It tasted quite crisp and fresh and was pretty sweet. My friend's Wedge salad is essentially a quarter of iceberg lettuce with diced tomatoes and bleu cheese. Besides looking quite interesting, she found it pretty tasty.

The fresh baked rolls arrived a few moments later. The warm fluffy rolls are about the size of a lopsided softball. It was accompanied by whipped honey butter. I probably would have eaten this for dinner alone if I didn't order anything. These rolls with honey butter are quite addictive.

Our entrees arrived after we finished with out salads. My friend's prime rib was supposed to be medium rare, but looked more like medium. It was tasty, but a bit firm. The baked sweet potato was huge and could have been it's own meal. It was loaded with honey butter and cinnamon mixed with sugar. It was really sweet! My Texas ribeye is a nicely grilled medium rare 14 ounce steak. I chose the Texas rice, which is savory brown rice with peas and mushrooms. My steak was nice and juicy and hit the spot! We had no room for any dessert.

At the hour, every hour, the music blared up and the servers broke out into a few minutes of country line dancing.

The total bill came out to $45 before tip. That includes the 2 soft drinks and our 2 entrees. Really not too bad pricing. Besides the prime rib being a bit firm, I found everything else perfect. I often dine here as it's one of my favorite restaurants. I highly recommend Lonestar Steakhouse & Saloon.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on August 2, 2006

Lonestar Steakhouse & Saloon
1222 East Irvine Boulevard Tustin, California 92780
(714) 508-9053

Arnie's Manhattan Restaurant & DelicatessenBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Arnie's Manhattan Restaurant & Delicatessen"

Corned beef on rye!
Arnie's Manhattan Restaurant & Delicatessen is located in Newport Beach, near John Wayne Airport (SNA.) It's a bit hard to find; it's in a strip mall on the north side of Dove between Birch and Von Karman. It's only open from 10:30am to 4pm. Obviously I went there for lunch.

Business was pretty brisk, and we were seated shortly after our arrival. There are murals of different parts of New York City painted on the walls. Our table had a jar of deli mustard and a jar of pickles.

Our waitress was friendly and service was quick. We both ordered soft drinks and scanned the menu. Most of the items were sandwiches, hot dogs, and other deli fare. My friend decided on the super corned beef sandwich on rye bread with a side of potato salad. I decided on the super pastrami sandwich on rye with a side of creamy coleslaw. Both of our sandwiches include the side dish. The super sandwiches are $9.95 each.

We munched on the pickles and chatted as we awaited our order. We noted that there is a carryout section with deli items on display near the front door.

Our orders came out quickly. I was quite amazed, as the super sandwiches are huge! The cooks basically roll the 10 ounces of meat into a big ball and stuff it between the bread. Upon my first bite, I noticed how soft the rye bread was. My friend, who frequents Arnie's quite a bit, said they bake their own rye bread! Needless to say, our sandwiches were delicious. My friend loved his corned beef on rye so much, he refused to share with me!

Our total bill came out to $25.75, that's two super sandwiches and two soft drinks and tax. I'm always looking for good deli food, and this is one of the best pastrami sandwiches I've had in a long while.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on August 4, 2006

Arnie's Manhattan Restaurant & Delicatessen
1660 Dove St Newport Beach, California 92660
(949) 252-8646

Riley's BarbecueBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Wagon wheel BBQ at Riley's
My friends and I went looking for Love's BBQ in Brea, and found that it had been changed to Riley's BBQ. Riley's is at the corner of Brea Blvd and State College Blvd. in the Von's shopping center.

From the outside, there's no real indication that it has changed name. The only indication is "Riley's Barbecue" painted on the glass by the front doors. The outside looked like it needs some repainting. We stepped inside and felt like we stepped into an old Love's circa 1980. The inside was full of wood paneling and dark wooden booths. We were getting apprehensive about eating here, as the inside looked very, very tired. We went for dinner on a Friday, and the restaurant didn't have too many people in it at all.


Our waitress was quite friendly and brought our drink orders rather quickly. All three of us decided to get the "wagon wheel" BBQ sampler. That has BBQ baby back, BBQ beef, BBQ chicken, buffalo wings, and three side orders and cheesy bread.

After a 15- to 20-minute wait, our waitress brought out a wooden box filled with BBQ meats, corncobs, and a set of tongs stuck in the middle. I figure it's supposed to represent a wagon, but without wheels. It's quite impressive looking! Our waitress brought out our side orders, extra napkins, and wet wipes. Our side orders were onion rings, steamed veggies, cheesy bread, and cole slaw.

We set out to work on this mountain of food. The BBQ beef ribs were excellent, not the most tender, but very flavorful. The BBQ baby back ribs were excellent, again, not the most tender, but full of flavor. The chicken was good, but a bit dry on the inside. There was an odd type of rib, perhaps the St Louis rib(?) that seemed to have a unusual amount of fat on it, and it wasn't that flavorful. The corn on the cob was very sweet. The side dishes were good, too. The buffalo wings weren't very memorable.

We managed to work through about 80% of the big pile of BBQ before we called it quits. It sure was a lot of food, and only some of the buffalo wings were left over. Our total bill came out to $47.75, including tax, for three wagon wheel BBQ entrees and three soft drinks.

For a fair cost, Riley's is somewhat good. The food is quite fair, but the atmosphere is quite lacking. If you like Love's BBQ, then Riley's mimic's it quite well. Riley's is located in a somewhat remote area away from other attractions, so it's bit of a drive to any evening entertainment. If you are looking for a more festive and upscale atmosphere to go along with your BBQ, I'd probably go to Wood Ranch or Lucille's.
  • Member Rating 2 out of 5 by stvchin on August 5, 2006

Riley's Barbecue
720 N. Brea Blvd. Brea, California 92821
(714) 529-3914

Whitehouse of Laguna BeachBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Eggs Benedict
White House is located on Coast Highway just south of Forest Avenue opposite of the beach. It's a narrow restaurant with a dining side, bar side with stage, and patio. (The White House Restaurant in Laguna Beach doesn't appear to be affiliated with the Anaheim White House Restaurant.)

I went with 2 friends for Sunday brunch. We waited a few minutes. It was a busy restaurant, but the turnover was going at a good rate. The atmosphere is bustling and a bit noisy, but happy.

My friends ordered decafs, and then we ordered our brunch. My only real complaint is that the menu is a bit small, and doesnt have pancakes, but that's just my personal preference. My friends ordered the eggs Benedict and Wyland's Omelet. I ordered the White House Bacon Burger.

Our orders came out about 10 minutes later and they all looked good. My friend said the eggs Benedict were tasty, but slightly overdone. She likes the egg yolks runny, but they were cooked somewhat solid.

My friend's Wyland Omelette was pretty good. It's a 3 egg omelette with bacon, mushrooms avocado, jack and cheddar cheese, and salsa on the side.

My White House Bacon Burger was big and delicious. It's a half pound beef patty with a sesame seed bun. It comes with lettuce, tomato, bacon, thinly sliced red onions, smoked Gouda cheese, and avocado slices. The patty is slightly crispy on the outside, and the red onions aren't overwhelming.

Our total bill came out to $30 including tax, 3 brunch entrees, and 2 coffees. The food is good, the atmosphere is active. It's also a good place to people watch as you dine.


I also went to White House the previous Friday for dinner with a friend. The atmosphere was busier, as Laguna Beach is a very popular destination these days. Definitely a good place to people watch.

We had several glasses of wine, a house salad and Caesar salad, and shrimp scampi and fish of the day (seared ahi.) Our total bill for dinner was $75 including tip. The food was excellent, and portions were big.

There is live music during the evenings. For Friday evening though, they simply had a DJ. On Sunday and Mondays, there is supposed to be live reggae music.

People tell me the White House is one of the most popular restaurants in Laguna Beach. I can definitely see why. Good food, good entertainment, and great location.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on August 6, 2006

Whitehouse of Laguna Beach
340 South Coast Highway Laguna Beach, California
(949) 494-8088

T.G.I. Friday'sBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "TGI Friday's Restaurant"

Pecan-Crusted Chicken Salad
TGI Friday’s is a chain of family-friendly restaurants emphasizing moderately priced, yet fun foods. The TGI Friday’s location we visited is located in the South Coast region of Costa Mesa. It’s located at the corner of Anton and Plaza Drive. Validated parking is available in the parking structure directly behind TGI Friday’s.

My friend that dined with me said she had worked at this located about 30 years ago, so apparently this TGI Friday’s is one of the older locations. We were greeted at the door by the hostess and seated in a raised dining area behind the bar. The décor is a bit eclectic, with odds and ends suspended from the walls and ceilings, such as aircraft parts, street signs, and other types of memorabilia.

Our waitress gave us a cheery greeting and took our drink orders. I chose their strawberry lemonade slush, and my friend chose an Arnold Palmer. She returned quickly with our drinks and took our food orders. There are a lot of items on the menu, ranging from various appetizers, to burgers, salads, steaks, seafood, and pasta. There’s even an Atkins’ diet section of the menu. I ordered a cheesy bacon cheeseburger with fries. My friend ordered the pecan crusted chicken salad.

My strawberry lemonade slush was very good, but quite cold and I got a “brain freeze” after drinking the entire glass. The waitress came back and asked if I wanted to try any of their other slush drinks, no extra charge. I opted for the watermelon slush.

About 10 minutes later, our food came out. My friend commented that her pecan-crusted chicken salad was good, but the chicken was cold. She was expecting the chicken to be warm. However, she wasn’t sure if it was actually supposed to be served cold or not. My cheesy bacon cheeseburger was very good!

We were too full to order dessert, so our bill came out. Our total was $30 including tax and tip for both entrees and both drinks. I did note as we were leaving that appetizers were half off during happy hour in the bar section. The waitress validated my parking stub before we left.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on September 3, 2006

T.G.I. Friday's
601 Anton Blvd. Costa Mesa, California 92626
(714) 540-2227

Slide CafeBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "The Slide Bar Cafe"

The bar of The Slide Bar Cafe
The Slide Bar Café is located on Commonwealth near Lemon Street. It shares the parking lot with the Fullerton Amtrak Station. I dined there with friends on a weekday evening. There is a patio outside facing the parking lot, which was almost full. There is also valet parking available, but we didn’t have much trouble finding a place to park.

We were greeted at the door and decided to dine inside. The inside is decorated in a rock-n-roll / music store theme. The tables resemble band equipment cases and the menus resemble LP record covers. We were seated at a booth near the corner of the restaurant. There is a large bar area near the back. Most of the people were outside sitting on the patio. Unfortunately we were seated near the speakers, and there was loud rock-n-roll music blaring, which made it hard to hold a conversation. There are flat panel TVs near the bar showing the accompanying music videos to the blaring music.

Most of the menu items are standard café fare of salads, appetizers, burgers, pasta, some steak and specialty entrees. I chose the beef stroganoff, my friends chose the tuna melt and roast chicken breast.

Our entrees came out about 12 to 15 minutes later. My beef stroganoff was very good, with plenty of sauce and a big dollop of sour cream in the center. The beef was chopped sirloin and was flavorful and tender. My friend’s tuna melt was very good too. The sandwich was grilled in a Panini grill. His sandwich came with seasoned fries, which I couldn’t help constantly stealing off his plate. My other friend’s roasted chicken was quite good, although there was some labor to removing the meat from the bones. His chicken included a fresh veggies and a side of fries.

We did note that one of our favorite desserts, bananas foster, was on the menu. Unfortunately, we were too stuffed to try their dessert. My beef stroganoff was so big, I ended up taking half of it home.

Our total bill with tax and tip came to $46, which included one drink, the chicken, tuna melt, and stroganoff. The service was fast and friendly and the atmosphere was unique. The only thing I didn’t like was the music was too loud. We did note that is live music at the Slide Bar Café on certain days of the week.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on September 3, 2006

Slide Cafe
122 E Commonwealth Ave. Fullerton, California
(714) 871-2233

Citrus CafeBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Saganaki
Citrus Cafe is a fine dining restaurant located at the corner of Redhill and Edinger in Tustin. A friend and I dined at Citrus Cafe for dinner.

Dinner wasn't too busy, so we were seated immediately. The interior is decorated as a fine French or Greek restaurant. There is a bar to one side with the kitchen area visible behind it.

Our waiter came over and gave us a basket of warm bread with a vinaigrette dressing for dipping. There is a pretty sizeable wine list. The menu had plenty of items ranging from appetizers such as crab cakes, saganaki (Greek cheese flambe) and calamari, lite fare such as burgers, to pasta, fish, and meat dishes such as stuffed chicken breast and Filet Mignon. We were both in the mood for a good bleu cheese burger, so we ordered that and the saganaki appetizer.

The saganaki appetizer came out. It's a "loaf" of Greek cheese. Our server placed it on a small tray table and poured an alcohol (I think it was brandy) over it and ignited it. I chuckled as our server didn't realize the flames would be around two to three feet high. About 20 seconds later, the flames had subsided and our server placed the cheese on our table and slided it for us. The saganaki has an interesting taste that takes a bit of getting used to. I believe the Greek cheese must have been a type of goat cheese. I liked it, but the saganaki does have a slightly sour aftertaste that keeps me from eating too much of it.

The table bread is quite soft and has some seasoning in it. I really like dipping it in the vinaigrette dressing. We finished off the bread and asked for more!

Our bleu cheese burgers arrived. Mine was served with fries and my friend's burger was accompanied with fresh fruit. Our burgers were excellent! The thick patties were cooked just right, and quite juicy. The bleu cheese on top enhanced the flavor.

We were too full for dessert, so we asked for our check. Our total with 2 drinks, saganaki, and 2 bleu cheese burgers was $37.50, which included both tax and tip.

I have dined at Citrus Cafe once before and had their stuffed chicken breast, which is baked chicken breast stuffed with spinach and feta cheese. It's served atop a bed of rice with lemon-dill sauce and fresh veggies. I must say that it's to die for. The sauce is nice and sweet and the chicken is very savory and full of flavor. Mixing the sauce with rice makes a nice impromptu risotto.

The Citrus Cafe is located in a light industrial area that is undergoing heavy street construction, so unfortunately it doesn't get much dinner business. I recommend Citrus Cafe. I've seen the parking lot during breakfast and lunchtime and it's quite full. I must return to try the breakfast sometime.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on September 13, 2006

Citrus Cafe
1481 Edinger Avenue Tustin, California 92680
(714) 258-2404

BJ's Restaurant & BrewhouseBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse"

Together at last appetizer!
BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse is an immensely popular chain with restaurants in California, Oregon, Texas, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, and Hawaii. I visited the Brea Mall location with two friends for dinner. The Brea Mall location is off of Imperial Highway just west of the 57 Freeway. It's in the same parking lot as the Cheesecake Factory.

It's always busy at BJ's, and there's always a wait. We only waited 10 minutes or so and were seated in a nice comfy booth. The atmosphere is lively, bustling, and busy! This BJ's location includes a brewery. My friend ordered the Jeremiah Red, BJ's own brew. He said it was nice and hearty, but not too overwhelming or bitter.

We ordered the Together At Last appetizer, which is their spinach and artichoke dip and bruschetta appetizers in one. I ordered a medium pizza with half BJ's Favorite and the other half blackened chicken. My friends ordered the jambalaya and pot roast sandwich with steamed veggies for the side.

The Together At Last appetizer arrived shortly. The spinach artichoke dip was nice and creamy with chunks of artichoke. The bruschetta is very savory. The topping of tomatoes and herbs is very good and tangy, due to the balsamic vinegar in it. We ran out of chips and bread, but our server brought us more (free of charge according to the bill!).

About 15 minutes later (time passes by fast in there), our entrees came out. The pot roast sandwich has tender slices of Angus pot roast slices on a garlic cheese roll with a scoop of cheddar mashed potatoes and gravy on top. My friend really liked it and said it was very juicy. The jambalaya is blackened chicken, shrimp, and chicken sausage; veggies; and a spicy sauce on top of a fluffy bed of rice pilaf. He totally loved the dish and said it was really savory.

My medium deep dish pizza was a half-half BJ's Favorite, which has meatballs, pepperoni, sausage, tomatoes, peppers, olives, and onions. The other half was the blackened chicken, which has blackened chicken breast, corn, creamy Alfredo sauce, green onions, and roasted red peppers. it was totally delicious.

Our entrees were quite big and we didn't finish them, so we had our server box up the remains for lunch the next day. But we did make sure to save room for dessert. We already knew we wanted the Pizookie, which is their famous warm cookie with ice-cream dessert. They had choices of chocolate chunk, white chocolate macadamia nut, peanut butter, or oatmeal raisin walnut. After much debate, the three of us chose to share the white chocolate macadamia nut.

About 10 minutes later, our Pizookie arrived. It's served in the aluminum miniature deep-dish pizza pan it's baked in. It was topped with a huge scoop of vanilla ice cream. It was totally delicious and decadent, yet simple.

Our total bill, including tax and tip, was $72. It's one of our favorite restaurants!
  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by stvchin on September 14, 2006

BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse
600 Brea Mall Drive Brea, California 92821
(714) 990-2095

Cheesecake FactoryBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "The Cheesecake Factory"

Chicken Salad Sandwich
The Cheesecake Factory is a national chain of restaurants. It doesn't take a genius to figure out what they specialize in. In OC, there are locations at Irvine Spectrum, Newport Beach, Brea, Mission Viejo, and here in Huntington Beach.

We dined at the Huntington Beach location. It is located at the Bella Terra center off the 405 Freeway and Beach Blvd.

Due to its immense popularity, there's always a wait at the Cheesecake Factory. It wasn't too bad, as we waited about 15 minutes to be seated. The atmosphere is eclectic Italian with faux painted walls and granite tables. It's loud inside, but not too hard to hold a conversation.

Our waiter took our drink orders and gave us a basket of warm bread and butter. The bread was quite good. There was both whole-grain and French baguettes in the basket.

Our waitress was quite knowledgeable about the dishes. She said that during training, the staff is "required" to sample the food, including all the cheesecakes. Tough training. LOL! My friend ordered the Chicken Salad Sandwich and I ordered the Chicken Madeira. Our waitress took our orders by memory and left.

About 15 short minutes later, we got our entrees. My friend loved his Chicken Salad Sandwich. It's chicken salad with roasted almonds, lettuce, tomato, and mayo. It's served on grilled brioche bread. Instead of fries, my friend had a salad with it. My Chicken Madeira was absolutely scrumptious. No wonder it's their favorite chicken dish. It's sauteed chicken breast topped with fresh asparagus and melted mozzarella cheese, covered with fresh mushroom Madeira sauce. It's served with mashed red potatoes. The Madeira sauce gives it a sweet taste. The portions were just right too, allowing us enough room for dessert.

After our waitress removed our places, she asked us if we wanted dessert. She said they have cheesecakes, ice cream, and cakes. Well, I came to a place called THE CHEESECAKE FACTORY for a reason, so I chose the Godiva Chocolate Cheesecake and my friend chose the White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cheesecake. There are about 35 different types of cheesecakes and 10 or so cakes.

Our cheesecakes were totally delicious. Both cheesecakes were very dense and rich. My Godive Chocolate Cheesecake has a layer of flour-less chocolate cake, chocolate mousse, and Godiva Chocolate Cheesecake. My friend's White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cheesecake is a nice thick cheesecake swirled with raspberry and white chocolate.

We only finished half of our cheesecakes and had to take the leftovers home. The cheesecakes are much to rich for us to eat in one sitting.

Our total bill was $44. That includes one soft drink, Chicken Madeira, Chicken Salad Sandwich, two cheesecakes, and tip. Not bad for a really good meal and great dessert, and good service too.

We've been to different Cheesecake Factory locations, and service has always been good and food has always been consistent from location to location. It's one of our favorite restaurants to frequent. Remember to save room for dessert!
  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by stvchin on September 22, 2006

Cheesecake Factory
7871 Edinger Ave Huntington Beach, California 92647
(714) 889-1500

Chili'sBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Chili's Classic Sirloin
Chili's is a national chain of grill and bar restaurants with a Southwestern flair. There are other locations throughout Orange County in Irvine, Yorba Linda, Orange, Huntington Beach, Foothill Ranch, Buena Park, Mission Viejo, and Aliso Viejo. We went to La Habra location for dinner.

We had a 10-minute wait to be seated. We were seated in a comfortable booth near the middle of the restaurant. The decor is eclectic, with street signs, pictures, and other interesting items. It somewhat similar to a TGI Friday's.

Our waiter took our drink orders and brought them to us rather quickly. We had already looked at the menu while waiting to be seated and ordered. My friends ordered the Chili's Classic Sirloin and the Grilled Chicken Sandwich, and I chose the Flame Grilled Ribeye. We chose the Skillet Queso as an appetizer.

The Skillet Queso appetizer arrived shortly thereafter. It's a warm cheese dip with seasoned beef served in a warm iron skillet. It's served with tostada chips. It's a very savory and cheesy, if fattening appetizer. All of us polished it off in a few moments.

A while later, our entrees arrived. My friend's Grilled Chicken Sandwich looked very good. It made of marinated grilled chicken, applewood smoked bacon, lettuce, tomato, Swiss cheese, and honey mustard dressing served on a warm bun. My friend said it was very good and the bacon's smoky flavor made it that much better. It's served with steak fries.

My other friend's Chili's Classic Sirloin is a seasoned 8 ounce sirloin, with savory steak butter and herb au jus sauce. It's served with garlic toast and cheesy mashed potatoes and steamed veggies. My friend had his prepared medium and loved every bite of it. The savory steak butter really enhanced the flavor.

My Flame Grilled Ribeye is a seasoned 12 ounce ribeye steak topped with garlic butter and roasted au jus. It also came with garlic toast, cheesy mashed potatoes and steamed veggies. I had my ribeye prepared medium rare. It was very juicy and tasty. The garlic butter gave it a rich buttery taste.

We easily polished off our entrees and were ready for dessert. We chose to share the Chocolate Chip Paradise Pie. It arrived moments later. The Chocolate Chip Paradise Pie is a warm chewy chocolate chip cookie bar with walnuts and coconut. It's topped with vanilla ice cream drizzled with hot fudge and caramel. We made short work of it. The coconut and walnuts really brings out the flavor of the cookie bar.

Our total bill with the appetizer, 3 dinners, dessert, and 2 sodas was $61. Not too bad for a nice satisfying dining experience. We've been to other Chili's before and the food is consistently good from location to location. It's not the best steak I've ever had, but nowhere near the worst. It's good food at an affordable price in a fun, yet relaxing atmosphere.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on September 30, 2006

Chili's
1600 W Imperial Highway La Habra, California 90631
(562) 690-7491

Yard House Restaurant - Downtown BreaBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Chicken Enchilada Stack
The Yard House Restaurant is located in the northern section of Downtown Brea, just north of the Brea/Birch intersection. There are other Orange County Yard House locations in Irvine and Costa Mesa.

I went with three friends for dinner. We waited only about 10 minutes before we were seated in a comfy booth. The Yard House's atmosphere is basically a sports bar, with an emphasis on it's large selection of draft beers. It's a bit dark inside, but that helps to view the numerous flat panel big screen TV's around the dining areas. There's a large island-type bar in the center of the restaurant, and an impressive open kitchen near the rear. It's a bit loud inside due to the number of people and the building materials used, but it's not too hard to hold a conversation.

Our waiter was prompt with our drink orders. The menu features many appetizers (unfortunately we missed the 3 to 6 PM happy hour with half priced appetizers,) steaks, seafood, pasta, sandwiches, and other favorites. Two of my friends ordered their favorite, the Chicken Enchilada Stack, my other friend ordered the Angel Hair Pasta, and I ordered the (Mac + Cheese)2. We also got a fried calamari appetizer.

Our fried calamari appetizer arrived quickly. It comes with sides of marinara and tartar sauce and a slice of lemon. It was crispy and tasty and we all made short work of it.

Our entrees arrived next. My friends' Chicken Enchilada Stacks looked like works of art. It's chicken and roasted pasilla peppers in garlic cream layered with jack cheese, corn tortillas, pinto beans, red chile sauce, and a tomatillo with fried leaves on the side. My friends said the sauces bring all the flavors together quite nicely. It's both of my friends' absolute favorite dishes at the Yard House.

My other friend's Angel Hair Pasta is made of roma tomatoes, roasted eggplant, garlic, basil, pine nuts, feta and parmesan cheese and olive oil. She found it full of flavor, but my friend didn't like the texture of the eggplant as much as she thought. But it sure didn't keep her from devouring the entree.

I had the (Mac + Cheese)2. It's supposed to be Mac and Cheese SQUARED. It's roasted chicken breast, applewood smoked bacon, wild mushrooms, cheddar and parmesan cheese with castellane pasta, and white truffle oil. I totally loved it. I already like mac & cheese as a comfort food, but the bacon and chicken breast just brings everything together.

After enjoying our meals, we left a bit of room for dessert. We decided to share a Kona Coffee Ice Cream Sundae. A few moments later, we were quickly devouring the dessert. It's made of java chip ice cream topped with Oreo cookie bits, macadamia nuts, chocolate sauce, and a big almond cookie.

Our total bill was $86 with tax. The Yard House serves good food, has a good selection of draft beers, and a lively atmosphere. It's one of our favorites!
  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by stvchin on October 5, 2006

Yard House Restaurant - Downtown Brea
160 South Brea Blvd. Brea, California 92821
(714) 529-9273

Yard House Restaurant - Irvine SpectrumBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Spicy chicken breast sandwich
The Yard House Restaurant at the Irvine Spectrum is located adjacent to the Improv, near one of the parking garages. There are other Yard House OC locations in Costa Mesa and Brea.

I went with a friend for lunch. The Yard House is known for its large selection of draft beers. By the front lobby, there's a little window into the beer fridge that confirms this. The kegs go as far back as the eye can see, so I just had to take a photo of this to share. Unfortunately since we had to return to work after lunch, we couldn't sample some of the many beers available.

We were seated after about 20 minutes. The restaurant is centered around a large bar, with table seating surrounding the bar, and booth seating on the outside edges of the restaurant. The atmosphere is loud and bustling, and there's aways a game on on the of the numerous TV screens.

My friend ordered the spicy chicken breast sandwich, and I ordered the fish and chips. The same menu is used for both lunch and dinner. We also ordered a fried calamari appetizer.

A short while later, our server came back with our fried calamari. It looked yummy, with sides of tartar sauce, marinara, and a wedge of lemon. The calamari was very crispy and tasty.

Our lunch arrived about ten minutes after that. My friend's spicy chicken breast sandwich looked like an intricate work of art. It's a blackened chicken breast, shredded cabbage, cheddar & jack cheese with Cajun aïoli on cheese flat bread. The cheese bread had an interesting look to it, almost resembling a piece of clay sculpturing. My friend really liked the way it tasted, but found the cheese flat bread a bit drier than he would have liked.

My Iceland cod fish and chips were great. A dab of lemon juice, malt vinegar and tartar sauce made it perfect. I asked for a side of ranch dressing to dip the fries in. All of these flavors just made my day.

We didn't have room for dessert and sure didn't feel like returning to work. Our total bill came out to $43 including tax. That's for the 2 drinks, fried calamari appetizer, chicken sandwich, and fish & chips. Not too bad for a really big lunch, especially since it went on an expense account.

I really like the Yard House and it's one of my favorite restaurants. I've been to other locations and the food is always consistently good, service is prompt and friendly. It's a good place to unwind after work too since they have a weekday happy hour from 3 to 6 PM and appetizers are half price. It's a good place to eat, have a drink, and maybe even watch a game or two.
  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by stvchin on October 5, 2006

Yard House Restaurant - Irvine Spectrum
71 Fortune Dr. Irvine, California 92618
(949) 753-9373

Agora ChurrascariaBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Sirloins on a skewer!
Agora Churrascaria is a buffet style Brazilian steakhouse, where the meats are brought out to you on skewers by Gauchos. Agora is located at the corner of Main and MacArthur in Irvine. It's the odd looking building with a river rock exterior on the SW corner. I went with a friend for lunch to Agora.

Upon entering, we were seated after a short wait. There is a small sign at the front counter that stated the dress code. One can tell Agora is a fine dining establishment. There are high ceilings, fine linens, and a large wine display on the rear wall of the restaurant. There is a buffet near the front of the restaurant.

After being seated, our waitress greeted us and explained how the restaurant worked. We were given paper discs (resembling coasters) which were green on one side and red on the other. When the green side is up, it signals the Gauchos (servers who bring the meat tableside on skewers) to come to your table. If you wish to take a break from the food, just put the red side up, that tells the Gauchos to bypass your table. Interesting.

The price of $21 per person includes use of the buffet as well. The buffet has all sorts of nice foods such as lox, all sorts of salads and condiments, ensalata al caprese, bread, and a big wheel of nicely aged Swiss cheese. There are also hot dishes, such as beef stroganoff, warm rice, mussels, crab, and soup. Directly behind the buffet is a big window to the kitchen where they roast the meat on the skewers.

The buffet food was good, but I wanted the meat, so I flipped my little disc to the green side up and the Gauchos started coming!

Alcatra: cut from top sirlon, cut was succulent and tender. This was one of my favorites.

File con Bacon: Filet mignon morsels wrapped in bacon. I really liked the filet, but the bacon made it a tad bit salty.

Lombo de Porco: Seasoned pork loin roasted in a marinade. I'm used to pork being a bit dry, but this was actually quite juicy.

Skirt Steak: this was my favorite as it was juicy and very full of flavor!

Frango: Marinated chicken legs. I tried one and it was juicy.

Linguica: Delicately seasoned pork sausage. I didn't really like this as much as I thought. The taste was a bit new to me.

Picanha: Traditional Brazilian cut of sirloin served seasoned with rock salt. This was my second favorite! Tender and juicy.

File: Filet mignon. Very, very good too.

Lomba de Porco on Queijo: Pork loin roasted with Parmesan cheese. I just wasn't used to the two tastes together.

There were many other meats which I didn't try due to time and a finite appetite.

Lunch is $21 per person. I think dinner is $33. Soft drinks are $3.50. While this may seem steep, think about the price at a regular steakhouse! Highly Recommended!
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on November 11, 2006

Agora Churrascaria
1830 Main St. Irvine, California 92614
(949) 222-9910

Wilma's PatioBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Baked Chicken Dinner
Wilma's Patio is located on Balboa Island on Marine Way. It's literally 5 minutes walk to the edge of the island. It's a pretty low-key casual family dining restaurant.

Some of my friends told me Wilma's Patio has a good breakfast. I visited Wilma's for a weekday dinner. Wilma's Patio has a patio (hence the name) that fronts up to Marine Way. We opted to sit inside since it was cold this evening. The inside sports country decor, with plenty of whitewashed wood paneling and trim. There is a full bar off to the left, and a separate dining area through a door to the right. We sat in a comfy booth in the middle section.

Service was prompt and friendly, we browsed the menu and most of the menu are breakfast items, salads, sandwiches, burgers, some pasta, and family favorites such as baked chicken and such. My friends opted for the baked chicken and tuna melt. I ordered a Reuben sandwich with the sauerkraut on the side.

About 10 to 12 minutes later, our entrées arrived. My friend said his baked half chicken was pretty good. It was fairly moist inside. The spices and seasonings on the skin were quite good (my friend doesn't eat the skin, so I ate his). His baked chicken came with sides of steamed veggies, rice pilaf, and a roll. My other friend had the tuna melt with a side of fries. The fries aren't traditions shoestring type fries, but potato rounds. They weren't bad, but we would have preferred crispier fries (with more surface area.) My friend said his tuna melt wasn't too bad, but the tuna tasted fishier than he had expected.

My Reuben sandwich basically became a corned beef sandwich when I excluded the sauerkraut. The corned beef was too fatty for me. When I took a bite, the fatty tendons on the corned beef snapped back, or they didn't separate and I needed to pull the sandwich to separate the bites. My fries were the same as my friend's. They were served with ranch dressing, and I ended up eating all my fries. I didn't finish my sandwich due to difficulty eating it.

Our total bill before tips was $37.38, with 3 entrées and one iced tea. Service was good, but the food was a bit less than desirable. The environment is very low-key. It was nice and quiet until several families with screaming kids walked in and were seated around us halfway through our meal. I would think there are other menu items that are better than what we tried. Still, I want to come back to Wilma's Patio and try the breakfast that all of my friends rave about.
  • Member Rating 2 out of 5 by stvchin on November 19, 2006

Ruth's Chris Steak HouseBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

The Filet
Ruth's Chris Steak House is a very fine dining steakhouse known throughout the US for their heavenly steaks. You are not required to make reservations, but if you don't there's probably a 3 hour wait. We made reservations for 5 people on a Saturday and received an 8pm reservation.

The Irvine Ruth's Chris is located at the corner of Michelson and Jamboree, just south of the 405 Freeway. There is a business casual dress code, with no hats, and the code is enforced.

We entered Ruth's Chris, checked in and waited about 10 minutes for the staff to prepare our table. The restaurant is a bit dark inside, but quite nicely adorned with nice dark hardwoods, romantic lighting, and rich linens. We were seated at a table in a round dining section at one end of the restaurant.

The waitstaff were quite prompt and attentive. We placed our drink orders and were brought a basket of warm French bread and soft butter.

We didn't take long to decide, and we placed our orders. Two of my friends ordered the lamb chops, one ordered the fillet, and another ordered the ribeye. The entrées are served ala carte, so there are no side dishes included. The side dishes at Ruth's Chris are quite large and feed the whole table. We ordered sides of potatoes au gratin, sweet potato casserole, and the fresh broccoli. We also ordered a Veal Osso Buco Ravioli appetizer.

Our Veal Osso Buco Ravioli appetizer came out first and it was very nice and saucy. The veal inside was quite tender. It was served with a delicious sauteed spinach.

About 20 minutes later, our entrées and side dishes arrived. The steaks and pork chops look absolutely scrumptious! They are seared to perfection under extremely high temperatures, and finished off with a nice healthy (well, not literally) dollop of butter, which melts and blends with the flavor of the meat.

My friends' pork chop entrées came with three pork chops. They said it was absolutely tender and full of flavor. My fillet was nice and tender, and the butter really brought out the flavor of the meat. I can say this is one of the best steaks I have ever had! My other friend with the rib eye was very happy with his selection too.

With steaks and pork chops like this, who needs anything else. Well, I guess side dishes wouldn't hurt. The fresh broccoli was drowned with cheddar cheese and baked. It was extremely good, if guiltful. The mashed sweet potatoes were very sweet. The pecan crust fooled us into believing we had a sweet potato pie. The potatoes au gratin were wonderful, the cheddar cheese sauce wasn't too heavy and didn't overwhelm the potatoes. There were onions blended in which made it taste just right!

We had no room for dessert. Our total bill with 5 entrées, 3 side dishes, appetizer, 2 drinks came out to $248! Yes, it's expensive, but it's definitely worth it on occasion.
  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by stvchin on November 20, 2006

Ruth's Chris Steak House
2961 Michelson Dr., Ste. A Irvine, California 92612
(949) 252-8848

Lido DinerBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Bruschetta chicken
Lido Diner is a 1930s themed diner in Newport Beach's Lido area. It's located in the Via Lido Plaza right next to the movie theater. It's visible from the intersection of Newport Blvd. and Via Lido. You can park in the lot behind the diner/movie theater.

We arrived for dinner, and there was no waiting. Apparently a lot of the diners ate before the movie theater's next showing and left for the movies a few minutes before we arrived. The atmosphere is that of an upscale 1930s diner with lots of 1930s memorabilia, such as pictures from that decade, a jukebox, and 1930s model cars. There is a full bar near the entrance, and a dessert display next to the bar with all sorts goodies I must try later.

The menu features some breakfast items (I found out later that only a few omlettes were available after breakfast hours) sandwiches, salads, some grill items, and dessert. My friends opted for the tuna salad sandwich with fries, bruschetta chicken (not on the regular menu, but on a special limited time menu) and I ordered the Newport Club (basically a club sandwich.)

About 10-15 minutes later, we received our entrées. My friend loved his bruschetta chicken. It's chicken medallions prepared with a basil sauce and served with tomatoes and herbs, much like bruschetta, hence the name. It's served on a nice warm bed of rice pilaf and veggies on the side.

My other friend had the tuna salad sandwich. He liked the sandwich and fries. The fries seem to be coated with some type of batter which made them crispier than fries usually are.

I liked the Newport Club. It has ham, turkey, and bacon with tomatoes and lettuce. My only complaint is that there needs to me more mayonnaise on the bread, but that's just my personal preference. It was served with fries as well.

We made it a point to save room for dessert. My friend ordered an Oreo milkshake, standard diner fare. My other friend had the Lido Sundae, which is two scoops of premium ice cream topped with hot fudge and butterscotch, whipped cream, nuts, and a cherry on top. I had an item out of the dessert display, a lemon cake. There were other items in the display, such as various cheesecakes, a carrot cake, and a German chocolate cake. The dessert menu has all sorts of shakes, floats, flavored sodas, and phosphate drinks (soda water and syrup... in case you were wondering about the phosphate drinks...)

My lemon cake was delicious. The cake is actually larger than the photograph depicts due to the angle of the shot. There is a very lemony filling between the layers of lemon cake. My friends loved their Lido Sundae and Oreo shake. The Oreo shake was served with the remainder in a stainless steel container.

Our total bill was $65.65 which included tax and tip. This is a great place to eat before/after catching a movie at the theater next door.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on January 8, 2007

Lido Diner
3461 Via Lido Newport Beach, California 92663
(949) 723-8777

Beach HouseBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Beach House - Dana Point"

View from the front of The Beach House
The Beach House Restaurant in Dana Point is located on the Dana Point Harbor near the breakwater's edge. To get there, from Dana Point Harbor Drive, go to Island Drive onto the harbor, take a left at Dana Drive and follow it until you see the restaurant. There is valet parking out in front of the restaurant. It's well worth it too since parking is quite limited in the harbor.

The view from the front of the Beach House is quite scenic as it looks out towards the mouth of Dana Point Harbor and beyond to the Pacific Ocean. Inside, we were seated immediately, as we had made reservations a week in advance. Our table was on the upper section near the rear of the restaurant. Even though we were further back, we still had a pretty good view out the windows back towards Dana Point Harbor.

Our server was prompt and friendly. He took our drink orders and let us browse the menu. The Beach House has all sorts of seafood, steaks, pasta, and other items on the menu. The Beach House is known for its lobster dishes.

I ordered the filet mignon. My other friends ordered the chicken and one ordered the lobster tail. After taking our orders, he brought us a basket of sourdough bread and butter.

As we waited and munched on the bread, we noticed that a lot of events were happening at the Beach House. We saw a few birthday parties going on, as well as a large dinner party celebrating something in the private dining area in the top-most deck.

We had Caesar salad and clam chowders brought out to our table. The Caesar was pretty good. I didn't have the clam chowder, but since most everybody finished theirs, I can safely say they enjoyed it.

Ahh...dinner. A dollop of herbed butter was still melting off the top of my filet mignon. My medium-rare bacon-wrapped filet mignon was quite tender and juicy.

My friends had the baked chicken marsala and said it was pretty good. It's baked with sun-dried tomatoes in a marsala sauce, served on a bed of garlic mashed potatoes alongside fresh veggies. My friend with the lobster tail wouldn't let anybody touch it, so I can assume he really liked it.

I ordered a white chocolate cheesecake, which comes with a raspberry sauce and chocolate cookie crust. Everybody ate off my cheesecake and really liked it. It was rich by itself, and the raspberry sauce made it even richer, but just right.

Our total bill was $241 including tax for 6 entrées and drinks and my dessert. You get what you pay for. Good service, great food, and a great atmosphere with views of Dana Point Harbor and the ocean. I can honestly say I felt quite relaxed and had a great time while dining here. I highly recommend The Beach House at Dana Point Harbor.

There are also other Beach House locations in Laguna Beach and Cardiff by San Diego.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on January 8, 2007

Beach House
25001 Dana Drive Dana Point, California 92629
(949) 496-7310

SplashesBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Pork medallion with shrimp.
Splashes is a fine dining restaurant located inside the Surf & Sand Resort in Laguna Beach. We had to make reservations in advance.

Upon arrival, we were seated at a table in the dining room. There is seating in the dining room as well as dining alfresco on the outside patio. The dining room has tables along the windows which offer a panoramic view of the beach and Pacific Ocean. The bar sits alone the east wall of the restaurant.

The decor is quite elegant with fine linens and china, but the real feature is the view. We dressed casual, but a very nice casual. This is a formal restaurant, but it's still the beach.

Our waiter went over the menu with us and gave us some recommendations. He said the menu changes daily depending on what is available fresh and what the culinary team comes up with. The menu features a lot of fresh local ingredients. Our waiter also went over a few wines in their vast collection and suggested pairings of wine to food.

We both chose the lobster bisque. My companion chose the New York Steak and I chose the pork loin with prawns (there was a more formal name for my entree, but I don't recall). Our waiter took the orders by memory and went off to place them. A server brought us a basket of warm rolls and butter.

We ate a few rolls and commented on how beautiful the view of the ocean was. The sun had already set by now, but we could still see from a lot from the remaining glow of daylight.

Our lobster bisque was brought out to us and we eagerly dug in. The lobster bisque contained bits of real lobster and was just absolutely rich and creamy. Although some say it's improper, we happily dipped our bread into the lobster bisque.

Our entrees came out about 10-15 minutes later. It's hard to tell since there is so much else to keep your attention diverted from the wait. My companion's New York Steak had a nice peppercorn sauce and a big rich dollop of butter on top. It was served with veggies and mashed potatoes. The steak just melts in your mouth. My pork loin with prawns was good too. There were 3 large prawns and a seared pork loin sitting on a bed of mashed potatoes with veggies on the side. The prawns were very good. I'm normally not a fan of pork, but the waiter talked me into it and I was glad he did. The pork was tender and juicy, not much different than a nice cut of beef.

We didn't save room for dessert, but Splashes has different desserts such as cheesecake, eclairs, etc...

Our total bill came out to $135 before tip. That's for 2 lobster bisques, 2 entrees, and a bottle of wine. The food was great, our waiter was very helpful and personable, the view is spectacular.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on January 9, 2007

Caffe PaniniBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Banana Bread Pudding Dessert
Caffe Panini is located on MacArthur Blvd. just south of Birch Street, near John Wayne Airport. I went with a friend during a weekday lunch, and there was parking, but it took a little while to locate. There is valet parking available.

The restaurant was quite busy, but we lucked out and we were seated outside on one of the two covered patios. This is a very popular lunch spot. Our server, Kerry, brought us our drink orders and gave us a few menu suggestions.

The menu is Italian/Mediterranean influenced, with all sorts of salads, pizzas, and appetizers, such as Babaganooj, Dolmita, and Tatziki. Of course, there are the paninis (hence the name Caffe Panini.) A panini is an Italian sandwich served on focaccia bread and pressed in a panini grill, which compresses it and leaves grill marks on the surface of the bread. It's similar to a grilled cheese sandwich or tuna melt, but the compressing action seems to fuse the flavors together. There are also grill items, such as chicken and steak kabobs. The back of the menu had breakfast items, but they stopped serving that at 11am.

My friend ordered the Deli-Style California Roast Beef "Panini" Sandwich and I ordered the Roast Beef Panini Melt. Both of us chose the bow-tie pasta as side dishes. We also chose the traditional bruschetta with tomatoes, basil, and garlic as an appetizer.

Our appetizer arrived a few moments later. While the presentation was very nice, I was a little underwhelmed by the size of the bruschetta. It was quite good, which left me wishing there was more if it. There is a mixed green salad heavily infused with balsamic vinegar with the bruschetta appetizer. That was quite tangy and hit the spot.

Our lunch entrées arrived a few minutes later. The presentation on both were quite nice as well. My friend's Deli-Style California Roast Beef "Panini" Sandwich is not actually a panini sandwich. It's a sandwich served on a baguette. It's sliced roast beef with mixed greens, Roma tomatoes, red onions, cheese, mayo, and Dijon mustard. My friend liked it a lot.

My Roast Beef Panini Melt is an actual panini and has grilled roast beef, grilled onions, provologne cheese on focaccia bread and grilled in the panini press. I liked the panini, the beef was tender and the cheese was gooey. The side of bow-tie pasta was okay, it didn't have too much flavor to it though.

We opted for dessert. The dessert items aren't on the menu, but Kerry, our server, told us there was cheesecake, tiramisu, and banana bread pudding. We chose the banana bread pudding. The warm pudding came out topped with vanilla ice cream and a strawberry sauce. It was very "springy" and delicious.

Our total bill was $45.90 before tip. That includes the appetizer, two lunch entrées, dessert, 2 soft drinks and 2 coffees. It was a bit more than what we were used to for lunch, but worth it.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on January 9, 2007

Caffe Panini
4647 MacArthur Blvd. Newport Beach, California 92660
(949) 660-1019

Fox Sports GrillBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

The view at Fox Sports Grill
Well, not sure how to catagorize Fox Sports Grill. It's a sports bar/restaurant/bowling alley/pool hall/night club. It's located at the corner of Fortune and Pacifica in the Irvine Spectrum where Interstates 405 and 5 meet.

I happened to go with friends on a Sunday at noon to watch football. We made reservations the night before and secured a table, and we were very glad we did. When the game started, there was standing room only. I think there were probably 350 people here.

Fox Sports Grill is affiliated with Fox Sports. There is a separate dining room and bar area. The dining room has a few flat panel TVs, and the bar area has over 20 large screen LCD TVs and two huge projection screens up high near the ceiling offering views from pretty much anywhere in the bar area. The bar itself is football shaped, and the bar areas are arranged around this football shape, much like a stadium. There is also a private area upstairs that was reserved for parties. There's a fireplace, wine cellar dining, lounge seating, and pool tables in these private areas.

There is a small bowling alley area between the bar and restaurant area. It's not a regulation bowling alley, but a bit shorter. There is also a room off to the side with a few pool tables. Of course, there are also several TVs along the walls of these rooms as well.

When a good game is being shown, there's definitely a great deal of energy in the place. Lots of cheering and howling and laughter, and lively conversation in the bar area. Our booth table was in the upper area of the bar and we stayed the whole 4-hour duration of the game with no pressure to leave.

The menu at Fox Sports Grill offers a wide variety of appetizers, salads, pizzas, soups, sandwiches and burgers, steaks, fish, and rich desserts. My friends munched on appetizers as they watched the game, but I was hungry and had the club sandwich, which comes with fries. The club sandwich was quite good, the bread was nicely grilled, and the bacon was slightly crisp, just the way I like it. I munched off my friends' fried calamari, and it was quite good.

For dessert, we shared a warm upside down apple pie. It's apple pie with a crispy pecan topping, served warm with butterscotch sauce and vanilla bean ice cream.

After the game, the bar featured lively booming dance music to dine/drink/mingle to. It's a great place for people-watching, with lots of good-looking people here too.

The price of the food isn't too bad, with the appetizers around $7 to $11, sandwiches hovering around $8 to $15, depending on selection, and steaks and other grill items for $22 to $30. If you can't be at the ball game, Fox Sports Grill is the next best place!

There is happy hour from 4pm to 7pm on weekdays, and there's a no-cover nightclub on Friday nights!
  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by stvchin on January 15, 2007

Fox Sports Grill
31 Fortune Drive Irvine, California 92618
(949) 753-1369

FuddruckersBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Dessert!
Fuddruckers is a chain of 1950s themed burger restaurants featuring topping bars where you basically build your own burger. We visited the location in Lake Forest off El Toro Blvd. and Rockfield. It seems to be in an older section of a renovated mall area.

You line up at a counter to order your meals, then are given a number and pick up your food. There's a burger bar where you can top your burger with all sorts of veggies, condiments, and seasonings. We lined up and looked over the menu above the counter. They have burgers, chicken and fish sandwiches, soups, salads, and sides.

Unfortunately the wait was about 20 minutes in line to order our food. Our gripe was that there weren't that many people in line to begin with. Once it was our turn to order, I ordered the 1/3 pound cheddar bacon burger and fries, and my friend ordered the Rajun Cajun chicken sandwich. Both orders came with fries, but we substituted half onion rings and half fries. I also ordered an Oreo cookie milkshake and two drinks. The cashier said we each get a free fresh baked cookie. I was handed drink cups and a little receipt to claim the cookies and milkshake.

My friend went to find us a table while I went to the bakery counter. Fuddruckers has a full service bakery which bakes its buns onsite, as well as brownies, cakes, and cookies. I gave the bakery attendant the receipt and she gave me three cookies. I chose a chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, and white chocolate macadamia cookie. She made my Oreo milkshake in front of me and poured it out into a glass and gave me the remainder of the mixer container too.

I found my friend's table and brought over the desserts. The decor inside Fuddruckers is eclectic 1950s memorabilia, such as signs, photos, a gas pump. The lighting was a bit dark, which made the decor look a bit tired. We munched on the cookies and shakes, which were excellent, especially the Oreo shake.

Our number was called, and I went to the counter to pick up our burgers. I moved over to the burger topping bar next to the counter. They have fresh lettuce, onions, tomatoes, and other veggies. There are also dispensers for ketchup, mustard, and cheese sauce. My real complaint is that there is no salad dressing available. I prefer my burgers with a bit of Thousand Island or Ranch dressing.

Our burgers were fairly okay. There wasn't anything that stood out about our food. I liked the onion rings, but disliked the thick cut fries. Personally, I like thinner fries.

Our bill was about $21 for two entrees, cookies, two drinks, and a milkshake. The food was okay, but nothing that really merits a special trip back to Fuddruckers. Fuddruckers sits in a renovated shopping area with many other choices of new restaurants. It really needs to update and enchance its menu to compete.
  • Member Rating 2 out of 5 by stvchin on February 20, 2007

Fuddruckers
23621 El Toro Road Orange County, California 92630
(949) 830-7210

Red RobinBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Royal Red Robin Burger!
Red Robin is an casual dining family restaurant focusing on gourmet burgers. Red Robin bills itslef as having something for everybody, good food, bar for the adults, kid friendly menu and atmosphere.

I dined at the Irvine Spectrum Red Robin on a Saturday evening. The Red Robin is located at the Spectrum near the Dave and Busters and the northern parking structure. We waited about 30 minutes to be seated. Looking around, Red Robin features eclectic decor such as an abundance of 1950's classic photos.

Once seated, we gave our server our drink orders and looked over the menu. The menu isn't too big, most of it features appetizers, burgers, and sandwiches, salads, and other dinner entrees, such as fish and chips, and some southwest/Mexican fare. My friends chose the Ensenada Chicken Platter, Clamdigger's Clam Chowder, and the Crispy Chicken Burger. I opted for the Royal Red Robin Burger.

About 15-20 minutes later, our waitress returned with our dinners. She brought out my friend's clam chowder with the rest of our entrees. My friend's clam chowder was served with two wedges of house bread. He loved the clam chowder. The house bread seemed more like foccacia bread, and he didn't have much of an interest in it. He enoyed his Crispy Chicken Burger though. It's a crispy fried chicken breast isandwich with fresh lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, onions and mayo.

My other friend enjoyed her Ensenada Chicken Platter. It's made of two charbroiled chicken breasts basted with a blend of Mexican seasonings, then charbroiled. It's served with a side salad and salsa and creamy lime dipping sauces. The chicken breast wasn't too dry. She would have preferred her side salad without the fried tortilla strips though.

I had the Royal Red Robin Burger. It's a bug juicy burger topped with a fresh fried egg. It also has three strips of hickory maple-smoked bacon, American cheese, crisp lettuce, tomatoes and mayo. The fried egg makes the burger taste just right. I really like it when you bite into it and the yolk comes oozing out. It really intensifies the flavors of the burger. In addition, my burger and my friend's crispy chicken sandwich came with bottomless fries. These fries are steak fries, but personally, I prefer thinner fries.

Our total bill was $40.44 including tip. That's for 3 soft drinks, 3 entrees, and one soup. The service wasn't the greatest, but it was a weekend night and it was extremely busy.

Red Robin is a good place to come if you have small children. The staff hands out crayons and paper with designs to color in to keep the kids occupied. The food is kid friendly (burgers and fries.) Plus they have good food for the adults. The even have a baby stroller parking area. I highly recommend Red Robin.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on March 4, 2007

Ruby's DinerBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Malts and floats!
Ruby's Diner is a west coast chain of 1950's themed diner restaurants. I visited the Ruby's Diner in "downtown" San Juan Capistrano. It's located at the corner of Camino Capistrano and Ortega Highway. It's right across from the Amtrak Station.

This particular Ruby's is appropriately decorated with model trains running on a track mounted overhead and a large model locomotive in the middle of the dinng area. The staff is dressed in 1950's style diner attire with white shirts and matching white pants or skirts. Almost all of the seating at Ruby's is a nice comfy vinyl booth.

Our waitress promptly greeted us and took our drink orders. I ordered a Hershey's chocolate syrup milkshake and my friend ordered a root beer float. True to 1950's diner fashion, Ruby's has a large number of different fountain drinks, floats, and about 15-20 different milkshakes and malts.

Ruby's menu has typical American fare such as burgers, sandwiches, salads, as well as specialty items such as tacos and seafood. I chose a bacon cheeseburger and my friend ordered the Cobb salad. Our server returned with out drinks and took our food orders.

I loved my hand dipped chocolate milkshake. It comes with the remainder in the chrome mixing cup. My friend's root beer float is made with soft serve ice cream and she loved it too.

About 10-15 minutes later, our entrees arrived. My friend's Cobb salad has fresh greens, chopped egg, avocado, fresh baked turkey, bleu cheese, tomatoes, mushrooms, bacon, and olives. She liked her salad, especially the bacon. However she did find a few bits of lettuce which were a bit stale and old. We think an older batch of lettuce was mixed in with this salad. It was still a good salad, and my friend didn't think the small bit of old greens was enough to warrant a complaint.

I enjoyed my bacon cheeseburger. It has thick bacon slices and double swiss cheese. The beef patty was moist and juicy and not overcooked. We shared a side of half fries and half onion rings.

We were too stuffed for dessert and asked for our bill. Our total was $22 for a shake, float, two entrees, and a side of fries/onion rings. A good price for some good food. One of the reasons I like Ruby's is because the food and service are both consistently good, like how things were back in the good ol' 1950's.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on March 21, 2007

Benjie's DeliBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Benjie's Deli!
Benjie's Delicatessen is a New York deli style restaurant open since 1967 and still going strong. Benjie's is located on Tustin Avenue, just north of 17th Street in the city of Santa Ana. It's at the tip of a triangular lot where Old Tustin Ave splits from Tustin Ave.

At first glance, Benjie's looks like an unassuming low-key family restaurant. Upon entering, there is a deli counter in the lobby. The deli counter sells the traditional New York style deli meats, sausages, cheeses, and desserts. Next to the deli counter is a door to a separate bar area, called the Bamboo Bar. Leading towards the dining area is counter dining with the accompanying round stools. The dining area itself is filled with cozy booths.

The decor in the dining area is very modest, with several photos of New York scenes, including the World Trade Center, Times Square, and other famous scenes. The crowd in Benjies is mainly made up of families and an older crowd.

Our waitress was prompt and friendly. She brought our a little dish of pickles then took our drink orders. The menu features a whole bevy of breakfast items (until 11am) and a very large selection of traditional New York style deli items, such as sandwiches, melts, burgers, salads, smoked fish, traditional American dinner entrées, as well as appetizers and noshes. Benjie's caters too.

I love pastrami, and Benjie's has a lot of different pastrami sandwiches. They have the Benjie, which is pastrami topped with coleslaw and Russian dressing on rye, there's a huge triple decker pastrami sandwich, regular pastrami sandwich, hot dipped pastrami sandwich, and a pastrami burger. I settled on the traditional pastrami sandwich and fries. I had a choice of rye, sourdough, wheat, pumpernickel, egg, white bread, onion, or Kaiser roll. I opted for the traditional rye bread on my pastrami. My friend ordered the matzo ball soup.

About 10-12 minutes later, our entrées arrived. My friend's matzo ball soup came with a slice of fresh rye bread and butter. She loved her matzo ball soup, which has a big matzo ball in the middle, with bits of chicken and carrots in the soup. My pastrami sandwich was overflowing with pastrami. The rye bread was fresh and very soft. The pastrami was very tasty and not too fat.

Benjies has cheesecake, blintzes, cheesecake, brownies, cookies, baklava, strudel, eclairs, and other sweet desserts. But we were way too stuffed after our meal for dessert.

Our total bill before tip was $19 for a sandwich, matzo ball soup, and two drinks. Not bad for very good deli food.

While the atmosphere at Benjie's isn't as lively as other restaurants, they've met and exceeded my palette. They seem to have a steady and loyal stream of customers who enjoy good New York style deli.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on March 22, 2007

Benjie's Deli
1828 N. Tustin Ave. Santa Ana, California 92705
(714) 541-6263

Maggiano's Little ItalyBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Maggiano's"

Stuffed Chicken Fontina
Maggiano's Little Italy is a very popular chain of higher-end Italian restaurants. I visited the Maggiano's at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa on weeknight. Maggiano's is located on a separate pad from the mall near the corner of Bristol and Sunflower by Sears. It shares the building with Corner Bakery.

The main entrance is on the east side of the building and not very obvious, looking more like a secondary fire door. There's always a wait at Maggiano's. After about 30 minutes, we were seated at a booth at the edge of the 270 seat dining room. The dining room features dark woods, black and white pictures of celebrities, checkered tablecloths, classic Southern Italian. The dining room was quite packed and noisy, but a very lively, energetic type of noise. There's a small patio for outdoor dining, and a separate bar area near the entrance.

Our waiter brought us a basket of warm whole grain bread and mixed us a little plate of olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dipping. Maggiano's menu has a regular dining section and a family dining multi-course prix-fixe menu. The regular menu features mostly southern Italian favorites, such as lasagna, spaghetti and meatballs, as well as seafood, chicken, beef steaks, veal, and house specialties, salads, appetizers, and so on. The family menu has a combination of these as different courses. There is also a very extensive wine list as well, with some wine and food pairing suggestions.

I chose the lobster ravioli, and my friends chose the half order of spaghetti and meatball, and the stuffed chicken Fontina. We split a full size Caesar salad. While waiting, we munched on the delicious bread.

About 10 minutes later, our Caesar salad arrived, and it was huge. It's basically a traditional Caesar salad of romaine lettuce tossed with Caesar dressing, croutons, and shaved Parmesan cheese. This is one of the best Caesar salads I've ever had. The taste of the garlic and anchovy is quite strong and really does enhance the flavor of the salad. It's almost addictive, as all of us raced to finish the salad.

After we finished our salad, our entrées arrived. My friend's half order of spaghetti and meatball was huge and could have probably fed 2-3 people. It had a big meatball on top the size of a softball. He said it was absolutely delicious, but overkill on the size.

My other friend's stuffed chicken Fontina is made of 2 chicken breasts stuffed with mushrooms and Fontina cheese and served with garlic mashed potatoes. He really enjoyed his meal. The chicken was a slight bit crispy on the outside and nice and cheesy on the inside.

My lobster ravioli was very good. It's basil and saffron pasta filled with fresh lobster meat in a light lobster cream sauce. You could definitely tell it was made fresh.

Our total bill was $66.64 before tip. Good portions, very good food. Maggiano's is great for family dining, parties, celebrations, or a date!
  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by stvchin on March 23, 2007

Maggiano's Little Italy
3333 Bristol St. Costa Mesa, California 92626
(714) 546-9550

Tummy StufferBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Pastrami with the works!
Tummy Stuffer is a small "mom-and-pop" fast service sandwich shop. It's located on Seventeenth Street in Costa Mesa between Newport and Irvine Blvd. It's directly across the street from the Von's market.

I heard about Tummy Stuffer from a friend who regularly goes there for lunch and decided to try it out. Tummy Stuffer is located in a little strip mall. If you come at noon, be prepared to hunt for parking though. The decor at Tummy Stuffer is pretty bare bones. There's a counter, a few tables, and photos of some of their sandwiches. There is a large menu board next to the counter. I was tempted to try a sandwich that looked like a pepperoni pizza, but I decided on pastrami with bacon and cheese. My friend ordered a pastrami and cheese with the works. Our total bill for 2 sandwiches, 2 bags of chips, and drinks was $14.

We sat at a table by the back corner and waited for our food, which took about 10 minutes. We picked up our orders at the counter and sat back down to eat. My friend's pastrami and cheese with the works had pickles, onions, provolone cheese, gourmet mustard (as opposed to yellow mustard) in it. He said it was pretty good.

My pastrami and cheese with bacon had provolone cheese, onions, and yellow mustard. I enjoyed my sandwich. The pastrami was nice and warm, there wasn't too much fat on the pastrami. The yellow mustard made the pastrami a bit sour for me, but nothing really to complain about.

By the time we were finished eating our sandwiches, it was noon. The lunchtime crowd had grown pretty big and you could also see that people were busy driving around the parking lot looking for empty parking spaces.

While I enjoyed the sandwich, it wasn't anything special. I am curious about some of the other sandwiches, such as the pizza omelet though. If you want a fairly good sandwich for a quick and easy lunch, I'd give Tummy Stuffer a try. If you're looking for something more gourmet, there are other places.
  • Member Rating 2 out of 5 by stvchin on March 28, 2007

Tummy Stuffer
369 E. 17th St. #18 Costa Mesa, California 92627
(949) 642-6661

The HatBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

The Hat
The Hat is a small chain of fast food sandwich restaurants, specializing in their World Famous Pastrami. I visited The Hat in Lake Forest. It's on Rockfield, just west of Lake Forest Drive and one light north of the 5 Freeway. There are also a few other Hat locations in Brea, Los Angeles County, and Riverside County.

The Hat is basically a no-frills, greasy spoon type of joint. When we arrived, it was packed full of hungry people. The menuboard above the front counter features The Original Pastrami Dip, burgers, hot dogs, chili burgers, chili dogs, and cold sandwiches, too. They have sides such as fries, onion rings, chili fries, and wet fries.

I ordered an Original Pastrami Dip and wet fries to share. My friends ordered a steak sandwich, chicken salad sandwich, and a hot dog, as well as drinks. Our total was $28. We were given a receipt with our number and our drink cups.

We found a comfy booth off in the corner of the restaurant. The decor at The Hat is no frills: wood panel walls, florescent lighting, wooden booths. They have pictures of various The Hat restaurants since the Fifties.

Their drink dispensers feature the normal soft drinks you'd expect to find, but they also have BANG. BANG is a non-carbonated whipped soft drink, with flavors such as orange BANG (which tastes similar to Orange Julius's whipped orange drink,) lemonade BANG, and Pina Colada BANG.

About 10 minutes later, we heard our number over the speakers and I went to pick up our food at the counter. Our food came in brown paper bags and grey recycled cardboard trays. This really is a no-frills place! Along the counter is a huge array of dispensers for every condiment imaginable in single serve packets.

I tore into my Original Pastrami Dip. It's a huge heap of thinly sliced pastrami dipped in it's own juices and stuffed in a soft French roll. I think The Hat makes the best pastrami sandwich I've ever had. The wet fries are fries smothered in brown gravy. Kinda reminds you of mashed potatoes and gravy, doesn't it? The wet fries are very good and very addictive. One order is big enough to serve 4.

My friend loved his steak sandwich. Instead of one long piece of steak, there are 4-5 smaller pieces of tender steak. It's much easier to bite into the sandwich.

My other friend enjoyed his hot dog. The all beef hot dog wiener was cut in half lenghtwise for more efficient grilling, and you can taste the results!

He shared his chicken salad sandwich with me. I may have found a second favorite in the chicken salad sandwich. There's so much chicken salad it overflows! There's also lettuce and tomatoes on your choice of very soft bread. You can taste the celery and onions, and it's very sweet and creamy.

I very highly recommend The Hat for really tasty, filling, yet inexpensive food. It's just good stuff.
  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by stvchin on April 15, 2007

The Hat
23641 Rockfield Blvd. Lake Forest Lake Forest, California 92630
(949) 586-9200

Crab CookerBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Australian Lobster Tail
The Crab Cooker is a no-frills seafood restaurant. They specialize in crab, lobster, shrimp, and a few types of fish. There is another Crab Cooker location in Newport Beach.

The Tustin crab cooker is a slight bit harder to find. It's actually on Yorba, just south of 17th Street. Upon entering, there's a seafood counter with all sorts of frozen and fresh fish and shellfish for sale. We were given a friendly welcome by the greeter and seated in the dining room. The decor is best described as "old salty fisherman decor." There are nets, glass ball floaters, fishing poles, plastic fish models, and photos of old Tustin in the 1930s.

If you came here for surf and turf, too bad, since there is no turf. Everything on the menu is seafood, except for the salad. Most of the menu features crab legs, crab claws, seasonal local crab, and local California spiny lobster. They also have some fish, if you feel that cracking shells is too much hard work for you. We ordered the seafood salad and clam chowder, Alaska king crab legs, and Australian lobster tail, and a side of sourdough bread and fried calamari appetizer.

Since the Crab Cooker is a no-frills place, all the food came on disposable hard paper plates and plasticware. Even the drinks came in disposable plastic cups. I'm sure it saves on the dishwashing expenses. Only the wine came in glasses. There are dry breadsticks and little bread puffs on the table. I didn't particularly like these because they were extremely dry.

Our calamari appetizer came out early. The fry batter is lighter than I'm accustomed to, but it's still quite good. The warm sourdough bread was also quite yummy. The sourdough bread is not free, the Crab Cooker charges $1.50 for it.

Our entrees finally came out. The Alaskan king crab legs came out with two side dishes. My friend chose the cole slaw and mashed potatoes. The two huge steamed Alaskan king crab legs were pre-slitted for easy shell removal. They were served with lots of lemon and butter. Yummy.

My Australian lobster tail came with cole slaw and rice pilaf. I found the preparation unusual. The lobster tail is already shelled and laid out on a big skewer and grilled. Personally, I like the shell on for the presentation, but the taste was very good. Plenty of lemon and butter go with this lobster tail as well.

Our total bill was $106, including crab legs, lobster tail, salad, chowder, drinks, and 4 glasses of wine. The entrees average around $10 cheaper than at a nice fancy seafood restaurant. This is a no-frills place that passes on the savings to the diners through good prices.

If you want good shellfish for a fair price, and a fairly good atmosphere, the Crab Cooker is for you.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on May 6, 2007

Crab Cooker
17260 E. 17th St. Tustin, California 92780
(714) 573-1077

Taco RosaBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Two Carnitas Tacos
Taco Rosa is a new restaurant in the Marketplace in Irvine, just north of the 5 Freeway on Jamboree. This Irvine location is the younger sister to their Taco Rosa location in Newport Beach.

I went with a friend for an early dinner, and there was still a 15 minute wait at the door. After we were seated, I looked around at the decor I commented to my friend that it reminded me of a restaurant in Cancun. My friend said it reminded her of a restaurant in Acapulco. There's a lot of thick, dark wood used, from the heavy wooden tables with the big square metal studs in the side, to the heavy wooden chairs. The ceiling is draped in an off-white cloth canopy that flutters in the breeze coming from the open windows. This really is reminiscent of a little cantina just south of the border. One of the staff, presumably the manager, was wearing an olive green military-style uniform complete with square-brimmed cap and sunglasses ala Che Guevarra. I love it!

Our server brought us a complimentary house appetizer. Instead of chips and salsa, they brought out a little dish that had a bean taco, pickled carrots and peppers, and a cheese taquito. It didn't exactly seem like much food, but it was unique and the presentation was very colorful.

My friend ordered a plate of two carnitas tacos and I ordered the Alambre quesadilla. As we waited for our food, we noticed this was a good place for people-watching. All sorts of people were lounging by the bar near the front of the restaurant. There's an open kitchen in the middle.

About 10-12 minutes later, our food arrived. My friend's carnitas taco plate came with two tacos in corn tortillas, and a bunch of spicy pickled carrots. She said they were quite delicious, the carnitas were nice and soft, with a little bit of crunch on the outside where it was seared prior to being shredded. My Alambre quesadilla is made with cubed steak grilled with bacon, red onions, pasilla peppers and a blend of cheeses. The quesadilla is normally served in hand-pressed corn tortillas. I didn't want corn, so I asked for flour tortillas. The meat was nicely seasoned, moist, and very delicious.

We had a movie to catch in the theater next door, so we got our bill of $18. That's not bad for two drinks, two tacos, and a quesadilla. I really like Taco Rosa Cantina. The atmosphere is great, the food is delicious, and it's conveniently located near the movies for a complete night out.

I noticed that Taco Rosa is open for breakfast. There aren't too many other places open for breakfast in the area (other than IHOP) so I plan to return for breakfast in the near future.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on June 2, 2007

Taco Rosa
Tustin Marketplace Irvine, California 92670
(714) 505-6080

California Fish GrillBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

California Fish Grill
California Fish Grill is a newer chain of fast service seafood restaurants with a few locations in Orange County. Their take is fresh seafood at an affordable price. I went with a friend for lunch to the Anaheim location off Imperial and La Palma.

When we stepped inside the restaurant, there was quite a line at the front counter. We browsed the menu board as we waited our turn to order. California Fish Grill offers various grilled fish dishes such as trout, halibut, as well as others. They obviously don’t have lobster or king crap legs, but more basic seafood dishes. They also have fried fish and chips, wraps, and bowl type meals. When it was our turn to order, I ordered a shrimp wrap and side of fried calamari and a drink. My friend ordered a grilled trout entrée Cajun style with rice and bread and a drink. The grilled items can be topped with garlic butter sauce or Cajun style, fries or rice, cole slaw and bread. Our total was about $29.

California Fish Grill features an open kitchen where you can see most of the food preparation taking place. I chuckled as I noticed the deep fryer appeared to be the centerpiece of the kitchen. But true to their name, there is a grill right next to the deep fryer.

We were given a number and left to find an empty table. The restaurant was quite packed, but we managed to find a table in the far corner. There’s a self serve drink station with soft drink machines and ice tea dispensers. Next to that is a fresh condiment station with lemons and limes, salsas, tartar sauce, as well as others, all self serve.

After a few minutes, our food arrived all at once. My friend’s grilled seasoned trout was served on a bed of white rice and accompanied by a slice of soft French bread. He said his trout was fairly good, not dry as some white fish tends to be. I had the shrimp wrap and a side of fried calamari. My fried calamari was forgettable, and it seemed to be a prepackaged frozen side item hastily thrown in the deep fryer. The calamari was thick, and not very flavorful. On the other hand, my shrimp wrap was quite good. It’s basically seasoned and grilled shrimp, seasoned rice, cole slaw, and a slightly sour white sauce wrapped in a flour tortilla wrap. The rice, sauce, and shrimp formed a nice tasty combination.

The food here is pretty good, with the exception of the fried calamari. The prices are a bit higher than I would have liked, but it wasn’t too bad. The atmosphere is a bit loud, but lively. I recommend California Fish Grill.
  • Member Rating 3 out of 5 by stvchin on September 3, 2007

California Fish Grill
5675 E La Palma Ave. Anaheim, California 92807
(714) 777-5710

Inka GrillBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant

Arroz con Marisco
My friend and I decided we wanted something different for lunch and settled on Inka Grill. Inka Grill is a Peruvian restaurant located at the corner of Redhill and Bristol in Costa Mesa. At first glance, you could guess that it occupies the building of some former fast food restaurant. However once we walked in, things were quite different. We were greeted by the receptionist and guided to a nice window seat.

The restaurant is decorated with a lot of bright colors, orangish-tan, blues, and other popular colors I’d imagine you’d see in Inka regions of Peru. We gave our drink orders and turned to browse the menu. I think a lot of people assume that Peruvian food is probably similar to Mexican food. Well, it’s definitely not. A lot of dishes on the menu were accompanied with rice, not corn tortillas, or other thinks common to Mexican cuisine. They have fish, lamb, beef, and chicken dishes. My friend settled on seafood paella (Arroz con Marisco) and I opted for the beef combo. There were a lot of other dishes that got my interest, but I figure I’d pick these and see how they taste first.

Also unlike a Mexican restaurant, we received warm French bread, butter, and a spicy pesto-like sauce on the side, no chips and salsa. The bread with sauce was quite good, and we actually finished off a basket of bread in quick order. We looked around and noticed the dining room has suddenly become quite full and loud. Inka Grill seems to be very popular with the lunch crowd.

Our food arrived about 15 minutes later. My friend’s Arroz con Marisco was served in a stainless steel dish with side handles, much like a small wok. The seafood paella had clams, mussels, bits of white fish, and calamari rings, seasoned rice, bits of corn and peas, and red onions on the side. He said it was very good and even asked for extra bread to eat with the paella. It was a bit spicy, but a very good mix of flavors.

My beef combo has seasoned and pan fried beef with green and red onions, served with white rice and black beans. I found that mixing all three together formed a very tasty combo. I normally don’t find black beans all that flavorful, but this was quite good. I had no problem finishing off my lunch.

I really like Inka Grill, the food is different, quite good, and not a rip on your pocketbook. The atmosphere is a breath of fresh air and quite lively, if a bit loud with other customers.

Our total bill with tax was $31.70, which included two entrées and two drinks.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on September 3, 2007

Inka Grill
260 Bristol St. Costa Mesa, California 92626
(714) 444-4652

Wahoo's Fish TacoBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Wahoo's Fish Tacos"

Wahoo's wet carne asada burrito.
Wahoo’s Fish Tacos is a local fast service chain of Mexican restaurants with a healthy emphasis and a pop/surf culture atmosphere. I went with a friend to the Costa Mesa location off Bristol and Baker, just south of the 405 Freeway. The restaurant’s windows are plastered with all sorts of stickers from popular clothing, surfing, skating, and other companies.

We went inside to the counter to order. The menu board has all sorts of burritos, tacos, and other familiar Mexican favorites with an emphasis on food from the Baja region. They also have bowl meals, such as a fish taco bowl, but with rice instead of a tortilla. I ordered a “wet” steak burrito. The “wet” portion is a topping of red sauce and cheese. My friend ordered the 3 fish taco combo and a side of chips and salsa.

We paid at the counter and were given a number to place on our table. We got cups for our drinks and wandered off to find an empty table. There’s a side area with self serve drink machines dispensing soda, lemonade, and all sorts of iced teas. The dining area has a few big flat screen TVs suspended up on the wall playing surfing videos. There’s a wall full of photos of frequent customers and yet more stickers.

A few moments later, our chips and salsa arrived. We scarfed them down and awaited our food. When our food arrived, my steak burrito looked absolutely delicious. It was dripping with red sauce and cheese, so this definitely isn’t a burrito you’d eat with your hands. A nice healthy dab of fresh salsa and guacamole accompanied it. The burrito was great, the steak is nicely seared, the sauce wasn’t watery, but quite tasty.

My friend had the 3 fish tacos. They arrived double clad in corn tortillas and plenty of shredded lettuce, fresh salsa, cheese, and white sauce. The fish isn’t fried, but grilled for a healthy twist on a Baja Mexican favorite. After a squeeze of lime, my friend ate them up in quick order and proclaimed them excellent.

Our total bill was $17.44 for two entrées, a plate of chips and salsa, and two drinks. The food is good; the atmosphere is quite lively and friendly for a fast service restaurant. I recommend Wahoo’s Fish Tacos. This company has really expanded over the years to become a favorite of surfers and skaters and really embodies the Southern California pop culture lifestyle.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on September 3, 2007

Wahoo's Fish Taco
3000 Bristol St. Costa Mesa, California 92626
(714) 435-0130

Oggi's Pizza & Brewing CompanyBest of IgoUgo

Restaurant | "Oggi's Pizza & Brewing Company"

Pizza!
Oggi's Pizza & Brewing Company is a small chain of sports bar/brewpubs originating in San Diego and spreading out to other counties. We went to the Orange location at the Village (formerly the Orange Mall.)

My friends and I had heard good things about Oggi’s, but we had to find out for ourselves. We checked in for a table and were seated within a few minutes for dinner. It was early, so there wasn’t much of a crowd yet. We were seated at a nice comfy booth in the rear of the dining room, but with a good view of the 20 or so televisions surrounding the room. There were all sorts of different sports shown on the various screens. The front of the dining room features a bar with some more televisions and one big screen in the middle featuring the Chargers game.

Oggi’s menu is pretty typical of most brewery restaurants, with favorites such as salads, all sorts of appetizers, burgers, and steaks, as well as Italian food, including pizzas. We asked the waitress what she recommended, and she said the pizzas are their specialty. We ordered a half Oggi’s special and half-World Cup pizza, the Pollo Limone, lasagna, and decided to split a Caesar salad.

We got our drinks and we sat back watching some of the football game. In a short 5 minutes, our Caesar salad came out with breadsticks. It was quite tasty, with real Parmesan cheese, zesty sauce, and crisp Romaine hearts.

Later on, our entrees came out. The pizza is a half Oggi’s special, which has pepperoni, Italian sausage, fresh mushrooms, red onions, green bell pepper and fresh tomato, the other half is the World Cup, which has Alfredo sauce, Brazilian tri-pepper sausage, roasted garlic, red bell peppers, red onions and cheddar cheese. I tried a slice of both and they were really good. However what really stood out about the pizza was the crust. It’s nicely baked in a deep dish pan with plenty of butter or oil. That makes the crust nice and crispy and caramelizes the crust on the bottom. Really really good.

My friends had the Lasagna, which has a great blend of Ricotta, Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. I tried a bite and it was really tasty. The Pollo Limone is a boneless, skinless, chicken breast sautéed in lemon, butter, caper, mushroom cream sauce. It was served with linguine. I tried some and it was really buttery and rich. I’ll have to order this when we return.

Our total came out to $32 with food and drinks. It got busier and busier as the night went on and the atmosphere got livelier and rowdier as the football game progressed, so Oggi’s is definately a good place to take in a game or two with some good food and drinks.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on November 25, 2007

Hornblower Newport Harbor Dining CruiseBest of IgoUgo

Attraction

Newport Harbor at start of the cruise
Hornblower Cruises and Events is a company that does dining cruises around Newport Beach, San Diego, Marina Del Rey, San Francisco, and Berkeley. This is a review of the Newport Beach dinner dancing cruise.

I found the Hornblower's website and booked 2 reservations via telephone, using a AAA discount of 25%. The evening cruise was for Saturday July 1, 2006. Attire is technically business casual, but you can wear really nice $150 jeans.

We arrived at 6:45 in the parking lot of the Hornblower offices, and it was full, so we were directed to the parking lot on the other side of PCH behind Jacks Shrimp. It's a metered public parking lot, but it's free after 6 PM.

We waited in line by the berth until 7 PM, then we boarded in groups of 10. We boarded the Hornblower Entertainer, a triple decked yacht. The first deck we boarded on wasn't being used for this cruise. The second deck was the dining and dancing floor. Tables were set up 4 abreast, 2 on each side and a dance floor between each side. A DJ was set up at the back. There is an outside deck on the bow another deck aft. There was a large table set up there, presumably for a special dinner party.

We checked in with the hostess and were given out table number, and went to find it. Our table was not a window table, but an aisle table. It was okay, since we spent most of the time on the top deck.

The top deck is all outside. There are 3 large ottomans set up with pillows for stargazing and plastic tables and chairs in the middle.

They usually cast off at 7:15PM, but we didn't get underway until 7:45PM. We backed out and headed southbound, towards the entrance to Newport Harbor.

Since we stayed inside the harbor the entire time, the cruise was VERY SMOOTH, even smoother than a train ride. We watched the sun set behind the Newport Peninsula. I love seeing the sun glisten off the waves. We watched the super expensive waterfront homes pass by, with their yachts docked off their private piers. We watched other boats pass by and waved to them. It was also quite interesting trying to identify things as seen from the harbor, since we're accustomed to seeing them from the land side.

We wandered back down to the dining deck for a ravioli and bow tie pasta appetizer. We kept going back up top and returning for each course. We had warm rolls, salad, filet mignon and salmon entree, cheesecake for dessert. After dessert, the DJ opened up the dance floor.

The food is okay, but it's not the main reason for going. The DJ announced many guest birthdays, anniversaries, and a graduation. We returned at 10:20pm. Our total cost for 2 people was $109 for the cruise and $52 for drinks and optional appetizer. I'd highly recommend this. This is just a really fun/romantic event.
  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by stvchin on July 3, 2006

Hornblower Newport Harbor Dining Cruise
2431 W Coast Hwy Newport Beach, California 92663

Angels BaseballBest of IgoUgo

Attraction | "Angels Game"

Warmup before the game.
The local team here is the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. The name is a bit confusing, since they were the Anaheim Angels before being renamed, and Los Angeles is 35 miles away. Aside from all that, Angels baseball is definitely fun to watch. The team has been in Anaheim since 1966 and is very much loved and respected by the fans here.

Angels Stadium is in Anaheim near where the 57, 22, and 5 Freeways meet. It's across the 57 Freeway from the Arrowhead Pond where the NHL team Anaheim Ducks play. The main entrance to Angels Stadium parking lot is off of Orangewood Avenue. Parking costs $8, but you can easily find cheaper off-site parking offered by some of the neighboring businesses.

A friend gave me a few of his season tickets, but my seats would have been $6 per ticket had I paid. I went to the Sept 29th game versus the Oakland A's. I sat in section 530, which are the view seats near the top of the stadium, which still provide very clear views of the action.

Being at the game is definitely different than watching it on TV. For one, since there is no commentary, you have to be aware of what's going on. If you turn your head for a few moments, you could be missing some of the big plays. It's fun to see plays develop in person, without the commentary telling you what's going on. In the eighth, we watched a double by Angel's Chone Figgins develop into an home run as the Oakland outfielder struggled to recover the ball and ended up slipping and falling. The energy of the crowd cheering as they realized what was developing was enormous.

Another big difference is the crowd appreciation of our Angels. Even though the Angels just got squeezed out of the playoffs this season, the fans still love them. It was another sellout game. Every time #15, Tim Salmon, came up to bat, the crowd cheered and gave him a standing ovation. Salmon is about to retire in 2 more games at the end of the season, and everyone wants to see him get his 300th career home run.

Every Friday home game is Friday Night Bang, which is a fireworks show with music after the game. This particular Friday Night Bang was quite long and very cool. It's was the last Friday Night Bang and the 3rd game until the end of the season for the Angels and the 3rd game until retirement Tim Salmon. After a video tribute to Salmon, the fireworks show went for a while and was waaay cool.

There are plenty of restaurants and concession stands around the ballpark on all levels, as well as plenty of restrooms. All in all, this is a fun, family oriented event and a really fun way to spend an evening.

The Angels are really a competitive team, 2002 World Series Champs and 2004 & 2005 Division Champs. Very highly recommended!
  • Member Rating 5 out of 5 by stvchin on September 30, 2006

Angels Baseball
2000 E Gene Autry Way Anaheim, California 92806
(714) 634-2000

The Irvine SpectrumBest of IgoUgo

Attraction

Spectrum Entertainment Center
The Irvine Spectrum Entertainment Center is an outdoor mall at where Interstate 5 and Interstate 405 meet in Orange County. It's actual address is 71 Fortune in Irvine. Some call it the Irvine Spectrum, but technically the term Irvine Spectrum actually refers to the entire area, including office buildings, residential, and vacant lots.

The Irvine Spectrum Entertainment Center was first opened in 1996 and was one of the first outdoor malls that was designed as an entertainment center, rather than a traditional shopping center or shopping mall. When it first opened, there were no shops at all. It was entered around a 21 screen movie theater with an IMAX big screen theater, some flagship restaurants, and a food court. Years later, more restaurants and some stores were added.

After the initial opening phase, the Spectrum Entertainment Center's architecture was designed to resemble a bazaar found in Morocco. A lot of attention to detail was placed in crafting Moorish arches, fountains, concrete stamping, latticework, and other minor details to make you feel like you're wandering in a bazaar somewhere in Marrakesh.

The restaurants include California Pizza Kitchen, The Yard House, Fox Sports Grill, Javier's Mexican Cantina, Champp's Americana, PF Chang's, The Cheesecake Factory, The Fish Market, and many others. There are also fast dining restaurants such as Johnny Rocket's, Rubio's Fish Tacos, Coldstone Creamery, among a few. There are also dinner/entertainment venues such as the Improv Comedy Club and Dave and Buster's.

There are large retailers such as Nordstrom's and Macy's, as well as Target, Oakley, Ann Taylor, and many other smaller non-chain clothing, curio, sports, and other stores. In addition, there are countless carts in the mall offering everything from cell phones to babywear to temporary tattoos and back massages.

The Irvine Spectrum Entertainment Center has really grown and it's parking has grown too. Although on a weekend night, it'll take a little bit to find some parking, things have gotten better. There is valet parking, as well as two new parking structures. The parking structures feature displays to tell you how many empty spaces are on each level.

The Irvine Spectrum Entertainment center pretty much has something for everyone. It's has a ferris wheel and merry-go-round for the children, a seasonal ice rink, and other attractions. Whether you simply need to buy something, grab a bite to eat, or spend a fun evening, the Irvine Spectrum Entertainment Center is a good (and convenient) place to go.
  • Member Rating 4 out of 5 by stvchin on January 22, 2007

The Irvine Spectrum
Where Interstate 5 and Interstate 405 meet Orange County, California

About the Writer

stvchin
stvchin
Tustin, California

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