Tortilla Grill

A quick meetup for lunch with Owen a few weeks ago, and we wanted to eat somewhere not RIGHT next to his workplace (he's quickly exhausting all the options around him), so I drove down to Abbot Kinney, which was close enough to his workplace but not close enough for him to walk to. We settled on Tortilla Grill, as we hadn't been there in awhile and I didn't feel like pizza that day.

I had been here a few times during college, but not recently. I was a bit apprehensive, because I remembered their meat to be way dry and overcooked, but I was willing to give them another chance. After ordering at the front, awkardly, in front of a large glass case filled with salsas, flan and other random things that needed to be refridgerated. We sat in the small eating area - and when our food was ready, this is what we got...

I ordered a carnitas torta, which came with some chips. They don't have a salsa bar, you have to ask them for small prepacked salsas that are stored in that case, which was a bit bothersome, as I had to flag someone down so I could get my pico de gallo on. Other than that - this was one of the best carinitas tortas I've ever had in my life, hands down. The carnitas meat was amazingly moist, with crunchy porky skin bits in it. Oh MAN. That was good. The veggies were nice and fresh, it was hard for me to even pause this long to take this picture. I really enjoyed this, and want another one soon!

Owen got a grilled chicken plate, which came with a few tortillas. I was really suspect of the white meat grilled chicken, but when I tried a piece, it was super moist and flavorful! I was pleasantly surprised! They also gave a generous amount. The pinto beans, rice, and sour cream were good accompaniments, this whole plate was a win, and Owen scraped it clean (well, most of the sour cream still remained, he doesn't really like it.)

I was completely satisfied with the meal, and I'll be back soon, I hope, to get another torta!

Tortilla Grill
1357 Abbot Kinney Blvd
Venice, CA 90291
(310) 581-9953

California Roll Factory

When looking through my archives, I realized I hadn't done a review of California Roll Factory - how in the world could I not have reviewed this place properly?! This place was an old haunt for Amber and I back when we were in college, as it was across the street from the Art Store (back then, now it's renamed Dick Blick and down the street from its' original location).

Since then, I've been back periodically, a craving that I never really shaken, even though I've eaten at much better sushi places since my old college days when I was really pinching pennies (although, I'm STILL pinching pennies!). I think mainly it's because their California rolls are an exact copy of the kind of California rolls I fell in love with back in San Jose, at Miyake. (by the way, that place was great in high school, not so much now. Just saying.) The crab mixture is spot on, not too much mayo, generous on the crab, sweet tasting. I mean, of course it's not REAL crab or anything, but it's a nostalgic taste that I can't hate.

This is not a place for people who are sushi aficionados. This is a place for people who want huge, filling, unconventional rolls. I had taken Owen here a lot when he was warming up to the idea of sushi (can you believe he used to HATE sushi? He hated raw fish...I'm glad he has since changed his mind, hah), because they have a lot of varieties of rolls that include cooked stuff instead of just raw. The walls are lined with little pieces of paper, with funny names and descriptions of rolls ("420 Roll"? Nice.), the waitstaff usually consists of one person who is also manning the cash register. This is not a place for ambiance and romance. The business here is to get rolls into you as fast as possible.

Daphne and I were sharing a few rolls, and honestly I don't remember exactly what the name of these rolls were. I'm horrible! But from what I remember: The roll to the upper right was a tempura roll, with a baked salmon filling on the inside, with eel sauce on top. The lower left roll was a roll with a spicy salmon mixture. Both were huge rolls, with substantial fillings. I liked the tempura one just a tiny bit more, I think mainly because I liked how they did the tempura seaweed, and the salmon mixture had a few tendons laced among it. Both of these were plenty for us to chow down on, but we also ordered...

...a sashimi tempura roll. This is one of my favorite things here, especially when they do it right. It's a salmon and tuna sashimi, with some asparagus, rolled into some seaweed, rolled into tempura batter and quickly fried. The dipping sauce for this is a spicy mayo with roe and green onion.


Here's a close up of one of the pieces of the roll. The frying process makes the outside slightly cooked, sometimes they cook it too much so a lot of the fish is cooked, but they did it right today. It's really filling, there's a lot of good fish in there, and it's just a delicious treat. Worth every bite.

Again, this is place is not for hardcore sushi fans. If you want that, go elsewhere. This is a place for filling rolls!

California Roll Factory
11629 Santa Monica Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90025
(310) 996-2366
www.calrollfactory.com

Buddha's Belly Part 2

So remember when I went to Buddha's Belly the first time? Maybe I was a bit harsh. No, I am pretty sure I was just hungry. I went with Daphne to the Santa Monica location of Buddha's Belly to celebrate getting back into town after the holidays, because it is one of her favorite places. I was willing to give it another shot. And to not order a salad.

The space in the Santa Monica location is much nicer than the one on Beverly, I think. More space, cooler materials, and a chill atmosphere that I dug. Good start...

Daph and I ordered some drinks...she got an herbal tonic, which was served "sparkling, on ice". I don't remember exactly which tonic it was that she got (I suspect the "depth recharger" or the "power plant") but she liked it a lot either way. I liked that it was a sparkling drink! I got my usual arnold palmer, which was spot on, and nice to drink out of those bamboo fashioned glasses again.

I decided I wanted to give an appetizer a try, and after some hesitation, I went with the Chilled Vietnamese Rolls - shrimp, chicken breast, rice vermicelli, mint, cilantro, fried onion rolled in tender rice paper, sweet chili & sake reduction dipping sauces. The fusion part of this roll is the chicken breast, which I don't think is traditionally in vietnamese spring rolls. They were decent, everything was fresh, and I liked the dipping sauces. Yum.

Daphne ordered the same dish Evan had the last time I was at Buddha's Belly - the Spicy Peanut Noodles -shrimp, chicken breast, flat rice noodles, celery, mushrooms, edamame, spicy peanut sauce. Again, they smelled and tasted great, I had a bite and swore to myself next time that I'd order this dish. She barely managed to finish the whole thing, which was a feat because the serving was generous (the shrimp especially looked appetizing.)

I decided on the Ahi Tuna Burger with Sweet Potato Fries - medium-rare ground sushi-grade ahi tuna patty, sweet hawaiian bun, lettuce, tomato, avocado, spicy mayo, sesame seeds, with a side of sweet potato fries. This was a much better choice than my salad last time. I liked the ahi tuna, although it wasn't really medium rare, or medium anything. It was pretty much cooked all the way through, what's the point of having ahi if it's going to be fully cooked? It was still decently spiced, and good as the patty between the quality bun. The sweet potato fries were delicious, I am a great fan of sweet potato fries - they're better for you, right? Heh.

Dipping sauces for the burger and fries - spicy mayo and ketchup. The spicy mayo really wasn't very spicy, but it was good to dip the sweet potatoes in there anyways. Good texture.

Buddha's Belly has redeemed itself, but maybe it's because of the different location. I can see myself coming back to this location, service was friendly and quick, and afterwards, I can walk around the stores at 3rd Street promenade.

205 Broadway, Santa Monica, CA 90401
Phone: (310)458-2500
http://www.bbfood.com

My mom's "french toast"

I had forgotten to post this, but I have a little bit of a story to share with the few readers I have of this blog. I don't know if I've discussed my dislike of french toast with this blog, but if I haven't, now you know - I hate french toast. And not really because french toast is gross, or off putting. Most french toast looks and tastes amazing. I mainly hate french toast because my mom would make "french toast". Let me delve deeper.

My mom did a lot for us growing up, although I didn't appreciate it at the time, as most kids don't. She stressed the importance of having breakfast before going to school, which was one of the last things we wanted to do, as we wanted to sleep more. One of the things she would make for us, when the Wonder Bread was starting to go bad, was "French Toast". I truly dreaded those days. It was more like a slightly coated, soggy abomination to bread, and topped with...a kraft cheese slice. How is this french toast, I don't know, but that's what she called it. I would try to choke that down, but honestly, it was disgusting. Really disgusting.

Fast forward to today. Owen loves french toast, but I'm very adverse to it, I usually have MAYBE a bite, and just don't feel like having any more. It's not logical, I know, as what my mom made was completely different than an order of french toast at a diner...but...I still don't like it.

I went home for the holidays this past Christmas, and one morning I woke up...to the sound of mom saying, "GET UP! Hurry up and eat because I made FRENCH TOAST!" My insides did a somersault, I was filled with dread. My dad saw my hesitation, and he said, "Just think of it as "Chinese Toast". I think that helped. And I think my mom has gotten better at making it, or the bread wasn't as stale as it was in the past...here's a shot of it...

I admit, it's not so bad. No Kraft singles in sight this time too. I still don't like it. Don't ask me why. I'm never going to like french toast. Sorry mom.

Cafe Flore

One of my ex-coworkers Victor and I decided to meet up for a lunch, to catch up and chat. He suggested we go to Cafe Flore, as he had heard great things about it and read some good reviews. I eagerly jumped at the chance to try something new, outside of the usual haunts I hit up.

I don't know why Cafe Flore touts its' vast amount of parking spaces on its' own writeup on restaurant.com, as there is only metered parking in front. There is parking in the back streets but gets crowded when school lets out (which is when I was there.) Anyhow, as I sat down, I was greeted by the waiter, and initially sat outside to wait for Victor. I ordered an arnold palmer to enjoy while I waited...

They used a different kind of iced tea, very flowery tasting. I think the ratio of iced tea to lemonade was a bit strong, (too much lemonade, which made it a bit more sweet that I like) but it was still refreshing.

To start, I ordered a french onion soup. I figured, well, this is a French restaurant, they should do french onion soup right, right? Well...I mean..not exactly. It's more like french onion soup, deconstructed. The onion soup itself had a deep rich flavor, dark brown, with lovely cooked down onions. But just a onion soup does not a french onion soup make. They gave this to me on the side...

...a plate of mini toasts, with cheese on them. What? Am I suppose to dunk these toasts in myself? This isn't...really...the way french onion soup is supposed to be. The toasts were also pretty cold by the time they got to the table. Thumbs up on the soup, thumbs down on these toasts.

Victor had done his homework and had ordered their famous duck and apple ravioli. I guess they run out of this dish sometimes, but luckily, they had it today. The taste I had was spectacular. I haven't been to France yet, but the decadence of this dish was is what I think French cooking should be! The cream sauce was perfect tasting, the duck meat was awesome, everything was awesome. Yum.

I felt like going for some smoked salmon, so I ordered a Open-faced salmon sandwich - Smoked salmon, tomatoes with a sour cream, chive, and dill sauce, all on toasted French Olive bread, with fries on the side. The fries were heavily covered in dried dill, which was not necessary but it didn't bother me too much. There was a generous amount of smoked salmon, although it was a bit more fishy tasting than usual smoked salmon I get from other places. The olive bread was quite nice, the toasting of the bread gave it a nice texture on the outside, and it was soft in the middle, studded with flavorful olives. It was good, but in comparison to the ravioli, this paled in comparison, deliciousness wise. Note to self, order the ravioli next time!

We couldn't skip out on dessert, so we each got one, to try out. Victor got the really pretty looking one - some sort of creamy pudding in a pretty glass cup presentation, complete with little glass lid! Lying atop the pudding, was a chocolate wafer with a fleur de lis printed on it. All in all, the taste of the dessert was nothing to scream home about but the presentation was very nice.

I chose the bread pudding, which came with a sliced up strawberry, which was surprisingly sweet. I admit that the bread pudding wasn't exactly much to my liking - too much honey, and not enough baked crunch and not soft and delicious in the middle. I should have opted for the raspberry tart, which also looked good. Ah, well.

I might come back here, but only if I'm in the area - but there's a lot of other places I need to try in the area first. Maybe just for the duck ravioli! Thanks for meeting up Victor!

Cafe Flore
214 S Robertson Blvd
Beverly Hills, CA 90211
(310) 659-6877
http://www.cafeflore.us

Uncle Darrows

In the spirit of saving money, I've been using those restaurant.com coupons here and there, as I did a few posts ago. I didn't feel like cooking one night, so we decided to use a coupon I had for Uncle Darrows, a small place right off of Lincoln Blvd, and fairly close to Owen's workplace.

We walked in, and it was basically a ghost town - the only person there was the cashier/cook. I guess this place isn't too hopping on a weeknight. We were pretty straightforward with our orders, as they didn't have some things we wanted (didn't have oysters, or gumbo that night, no wonder, as there wasn't anyone there).

Owen wanted a po'boy, and the cashier/cook suggested the "Zeke Po'Boy", which contained catfish and shrimp, with potato salad as a binder/condiment substitute. The bread was just right, as most po'boy bread should be - light, not crusty bread. The fillings were good in the sandwich, I'll discuss more about fillings in a sec...because I basically got...

...the same thing, reconstructed. It was a catfish and shrimp plate, that comes with two sides, and I chose potato salad and red beans and rice. It came with one piece of bread, cut up, instead of a whole roll. The red beans and rice were excellent, a decent facsimile of the kind we had in New Orleans. Potato salad was a bit sweet. Here's close up of the catfish and shrimp...

The breading on the catfish and shrimp was all cornmeal. This was a very generous portion of both, but the taste got a ittle tiresome after awhile, as the fried cornmeal got heavy to eat. The catfish and shrimp were much better in the sandwich, eaten all together in one bite, with the potato salad. The desconstructed version I ate forced me to eat each part separately, so it wasn't as tasty as big bites of this between bread. I doused the fish with a ton of hot sauce, but I wish I had some tartar sauce - is that sacrilidge?

Uncle Darrows is a pretty quick little place to get some New Orleans style food, but it really doesn't hold a candle to the real thing. It'll do to fulfill your fix though.

Uncle Darrows
2560 Lincoln Blvd
Venice, CA 90291
(310) 306-4862
www.uncledarrows.com

Hop Woo

I took a bookmaking class at Nucleus Gallery, so I happened to be out in Alhambra. Stupidly, I didn't really eat lunch before class, and ended up out of class at 6:30pm, starving and ready to keel over. Bryan was cool enough to hang around until after my class ended, and we walked down the street to go to Hop Woo, which had some sort of red egg and ginger ceremony going on. They assured us there was seating in the back, and we were lead to a tiny table underneath a flatscreen playing a basketball game. I wasn't going to complain too much though, I was starving!

Our first order was honey walnut shrimp. The shrimp they used were jumbo sized, so they had a lot of meat to them, and they were PERFECTLY fried. Not too much mayo either. The candied walnuts were great too. A well done version of this dish, I hope to have it again soon.

Dry flat beef noodles, a favorite of my brothers' (me too!). This was also a very good version, good "wok hay", noodles were noodley tasty, nice and coated with the XO-soy sauce, and the beef was nice and tender. Good amount of sprouts, too. Delicious.

Because I was craving something super comforting, I ordered a hot pot - beef and turnip stew. The rich gravy kept me going back for more. The turnips were soft to bite into, and slightly sweet tasting. The tendons of the beef were the best part of this hotpot - cooked down, they had soaked up all of the flavors of the sauce. The texture of the tendons were like savory jello...that doesn't SOUND good but it sure tastes good.

I was pleasantly content with the place, even though they had a huge banquet going on, they were fairly prompt and the food was great. If I'm back in Alhambra again I want to come back!

Hop Woo
1 W. Main St. (Garfield Ave.)
Alhambra, CA 91801
626-289-7938