Burger City Grill (Downey) 9.5.14

So, a funny thing happened in the last 3 weeks.  The semester began, effectively ending my joyous summer romp through new dining adventures.  It's not that I haven't been eating, but I've been relying on the restaurants I know, eating a ton of take out and sometimes resorting to really ugly food (seriously, two weeks ago, I brought 2 slices of ham with a slice of cheese and some rice crackers for lunch at one of my school sites--it was the ugliest thing I've eaten in a long time. Tasty, but not photo worthy.

But, last night, my brother was in town so we decided to stop by downtown Downey for some delicious burger goodness at Burger City Grill.  I had sent him the website to preview the menu a week earlier when we were deciding where to go and he said, "I hear my arteries clogging already! EXCELLENT!" A pretty accurate assessment of the menu.

Burger City Grill (BCG for short) specializes in hand-made burgers from certified angus beef.  Their menu is simple and you can sub any burger with a turkey of veggie patty, but we are all about the beef so we ordered a City Slicker (Applewood smoked bacon, Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce) with cheese and an Aloha (Applewood smoked bacon, teriyaki glaze and fresh grilled pineapple slices).  All the burgers also come with BCG spread (their version of 1000 island), dill pickle chips, roma tomatoes, leaf lettuce and red onions on a bun. We also decided on an order of Sloppy Fries (chili cheese fries) and BCG Fries (Bacon, Cheese--I got Cheddar, and Grilled Onions w BCG Spread) and two sodas.

City Slicker with Sloppy Fries

My brother's order was the City Slicker (no tomato, add cheese--I don't actually remember what cheese he got, but you can choose from American, Cheddar, Swiss, Pepper Jack, Provolone & Bleu cheese) with Sloppy Fries.  Since I didn't try his burger I can't say much about it, but I did try the fries.  The chili was tasty and very meaty (no bean, all meat homemade chili) and because they use a thicker cut on their fries, they still held up consistency under the pile of chili and cheese.

Aloha Burger with BCG Fries & Pickles on the side

This was my order.  Here's a closer pic of my burger:

Aloha burger close-up (so you can see the bacon & pineapple--YUM)

When I saw my meal, I felt compelled to tweet and IG "Fatty Heaven" and well, it's true, but hey, you only live once.  I loved my Aloha Burger and BCG Fries.  While the burger was probably a bit more well done than I would have liked, the meat was still really juicy and tasty; the pineapple was well-grilled and copious; and the bacon was perfectly cooked on both the burger and fries--not overly crispy so you can't taste the delicious smokiness, but also not soggy so you feel like you're eating bacon grease.  Everything was held together by a tasty house bun.  An awesome burger and super filling.  In fact, so filling that I couldn't finish the AMAZING BCG Fries.  Seriously, these were some fantastic fries.  If you like loaded baked potatoes, it's a lot like that with a little grilled onion and sauce. So, so tasty.  I brought them home and even rewarmed this morning, my son and husband cleaned them all up (and seriously most fries are disgusting rewarmed the next day).

Oh, and as an added bonus, there's a Coke Freestyle Machine.  I don't usually drink a lot of soda, but I had to try the machine: 

Coca-Cola Freestyle Machine

I got a Cherry Coke, not like a Cherry Coke that you get in cans, like the perfect blend of coke syrup, cherry syrup, and soda water.  It seriously tasted like I got it from a soda fountain.  I kinda wish I liked soda more so I could revel in the awesomeness of this machine.  For non-soda drinkers, there's also passion fruit iced tea, hand-schooled shakes and craft beers.

Can't wait to come back here with my husband and son (BCG Kids meal--burger & fries for $5) when we're on this side of town (or when I have a Porto's craving...but I'll talk about that in the next blog post....)

A Few Days in Food: Binh Minh (Garden Grove); Han Yang (Buena Park) and Soy-Citrus Deliciousness

To food blog or not to food blog, that is the question...especially when I'm eating one-dish, take-out or home-cooked meals.  So, why not food blog all three together?  Here goes:

Binh Minh Restaurant (Garden Grove)

Bun Thit Nuong Cha Gio: Grilled Pork & Egg Roll Vermicelli

Our first stop on this mini-culinary tour is Binh Minh in Garden Grove, which is a small shop in a strip mall between an 85 degrees and a 99 cent store where I had the grilled pork and egg roll vermicelli.  This is one of my favorite Vietnamese dishes.  The pork, egg roll and vermicelli were served on a bed of shredded lettuce and it is a fresh dish that I feel good after eating (yes, even with the fried egg roll goodness).  This was an okay version of the dish with the stand out being the crispy egg rolls which were really outstanding.  The meat was grilled well, but pretty fatty and not as flavorful as I've had it at other places and the sauce for the dish didn't add a lot of flavor either.  I also had a lemonade with soda water which is my favorite Vietnamese drink and that was good.  A nice blend of sweet and balance with the soda water.   I'd come back for egg rolls and lemonade if I was in the area but I definitely wouldn't make a special trip. 

Han Yang Restaurant (Buena Park)

Bibimbap (Bulgogi) w/ soup & banchan (house kimchi) 

I had a real hankering for Korean food today and after scouring yelp reviews, I decided to go with Han Yang which is relatively close by. I have to preface this review by saying that Han Yang is actually famous for it's Galbi Tang (Beef Short Rib Soup) and it's Octopus Rice (Spicy Octopus Bibimbap) so going with the bulgogi bibimbap, I wasn't expecting it to be necessarily stand out.  Actually, though it was good, particularly with the mustard green kimchi which was really flavorful.  The spicy sauce gave it a bit of a kick, but wasn't overwhelming, although I have had more flavorful in the past.  The miso soup though was a little bland and I wasn't as in to the cabbage & turnip kimchi, but you can't win them all.  Overall, there was a ton of food (enough for lunch tomorrow as well) and it was tasty, but not the best bibimbap I've had (that's what I get for not trying the specialty of the house).  I'll definitely have to go back for the Galbi Tang at some point, but I may have to continue the quest for a great bibimbap.  

Soy-Lime Pork Cutlet & Soy Citrus Salad

Soy-Lime Pork Cutlet w Rice & Soy-Citrus Salad

Finally, from my own kitchen, some soy-citrus love.  Tonight I was having a friend over and decided to make some dinner.  Easy peasy & delicious soy marinade for my pork consisted of: 

• Soy sauce
• Ginger
• Lime Zest & juice of 2 limes
• White wine (I used Pino Grigio) 
• Yellow Miso (optional)
• Thai Basil 

Tasted to my liking, threw that in a gallon size freezer bag and marinated pork cutlets for a few hours; 2 minutes each side on a medium-high grill (we also used the leftover marinade on tofu--YUM) and voila--a delicious entree. 

Continuing with the soy-citrus theme, I made a simple salad of baby lettuce, cucumber & heirloom tomatoes with a soy-citrus vinaigrette: 

• Soy sauce
• Trader Joe's Orange Muscat Champagne Vinegar
• Freshly Ground Pepper
• Good olive oil 

The salad dressing--so simple and SO GOOD.  

Soy-citrus heaven on a plate--quick & easy.  Probably less than 20 minutes active time (although my husband grilled while I did the salad).

So, there you have it.  A few days in food.  Hope you had good eats this weekend too! 

Brew Hawg (Orange) 8.12.14

I love good BBQ and I've been eating around my neighborhood a lot so when we had an out of town guest, we decided to branch out and search for something new on yelp.  My search led me to a little hole-in-the-wall BBQ spot called Brew Hawg.  From reading the reviews and looking at the website, Brew Hawg seems mostly to have been a catering and to-go establishment that now also serves to a small dining area of 4 indoor tables (16 seats) and 2 outdoor tables.

Brew Hawg has a variety of sandwiches as well as BBQ plates, an assortment of sides, kids' plates and non-alcoholic beverages (no alcohol in the restaurant as of yet) including fresh brewed root beer (which is delicious!).  With 3 adults and an 8-year old, we got a fair sample of some of their most popular dishes and a majority of their sides.

Kids' hot dog with fries

So, at the last bbq place I went to, they didn't have any kid options on the menu in case kids don't like barbecue sauce.  While I love bbq, my kid doesn't so it was nice that in addition to kids sliders (2 small sliders with a choice of meat and a side), they have the hot dog and grilled cheese options (which also come with a side).  And, the portion on the kids hot dog was huge.  The dog had to be at least 1/3 a pound (way bigger than my son could finish) and a ton of fries.  It doesn't come with a drink, but there are kid-friendly drinks like lemonade and root beer (and an assortment of canned sodas, bottled water, etc.) that can be added on if you like. 

"The Duke": Pulled Pork w/ Mac & Cheese on Texas Toast (with a side)

My friend, Mike, decided to try "the Duke," one of Brew Hawg's most popular sandwiches which combines a healthy serving of bbq pulled pork with mac & cheese and puts it in between two slices of  Texas toast (he got an extra side of mac and cheese for good measure).  I tried a bit of this and it was AMAZING.  I actually really loved the Texas toast in combination with the creaminess of the mac and cheese and the sweet savoriness of the pork.  I tried the mac and cheese on its own and had the pork as part of my BBQ plate and while both were tasty alone, the whole of the Duke is even better than its individual consistent parts. 

The "Standard": Choice of Meat with cranberry peanut slaw on a bun

& a side of coconut creamed corn

So, this was my husband's dish and he got the vegan option which uses a vegan meat substitute.  I tried a little bit, but I'm not a fan of vegan meat.  More importantly though, he liked it, and, it is AWESOME to have a BBQ place near my home that EVERYONE in my family can eat at (with my husband not resorting to a meal of only sides)! It was a happy day.  I really liked the slaw which had a lot of depth to it with the sweet tart of the cranberry, the nuttiness of the peanut.  Normally, I'm not a mayonnaise based slaw fan, but it was really good, especially in the sandwich. I could definitely see myself chowing down on a pulled pork version of the Standard.  My husband chose the coconut creamed corn which was really good (if you like coconut) and really unique. 

BBQ Heaven: 2 meats, 2 sides, bread and bliss 

(literally, that's what the menu reads!)

Finally, I went for the bbq plate with pulled pork, tri-tip, baked beans and potato salad which comes with a square of cornbread.  The cornbread was a little dry, the potato salad was fine, but a little bland (I like mine with a bit more tang), and the beans were good, but also could have used a bit more nuance in the flavor.  The meat itself was good.  The tri-tip was a little chewy, but the pulled pork was really delicious and I like their sauce, which is not too sweet, but has a good blend of hickory and spices.  And there was more than enough for lunch today.  I think next time I'll probably do the brisket & tri-tip and maybe change up the sides or go for a sandwich, but there will definitely be a next time. 

Random final notes: Again, despite the "brew" in the name, Brew Hawg doesn't brew alcohol, but has DELICIOUS root beer.  The service is great.  While the staff may not be at the front of the house when you walk in, if you just call out a "hello," someone will come to meet you right away, will explain the menu if it's your first time and if you're eating in will check and make sure everything's okay.  I'm excited to have found Brew Hawg and am glad to support such a nice local business that's close to home.  

Rolling Boil (Anaheim) 8.11.14

When I was a child, most New Year's Days, we would go over to my aunt's house for Chinese hot pot.  At the time, I hated it.  I mean, it was mean and vegetables boiled in water.  I didn't like the Chinese BBQ sauce which was my only "dipping sauce" option and I was terrible with chop sticks which meant that most of the meat was both tasteless and overcooked.

So, I've never understood hot pot and shabu shabu as an experience.  After all, it seemed reminiscent of those sad New Year's Days of yesteryear.  Granted, I'm much better with chopsticks and I've heard there are better sauces, but, I was still dubious.

Luckily, my friend is a huge shabu shabu fan and wanted me to give the whole shabu/ hot pot concept a try.  And, she wanted to see the Packing House, so she came over and we went to Rolling Boil.

Rolling Boil is a Chinese Hot Pot restaurant that prides itself on its house made broths.  There are two choices--the Szechuan Spicy broth and the Vegetarian broth or you can go half and half.  You could also just go for plain water (which they serve with soy sauce & chili oil), but the restaurant prides itself on their broths and let me tell you, boiled meat in water is not yummy, so I'd recommend the broth.

Half & half broth (see how red it is! That's the Szechuan talking), Chinese BBQ (Sa cha) & Sesame sauces

We ended up getting half and half broth, which honestly was too spicy for me, but that's my own fault.  I should know better than to get anything with the word Szechuan in it.  If you're not sure, you can probably ask for a small sample of each broth before deciding (the server gave the party next to us a small sample of the vegetarian broth).  For those of you not familiar with hot pot, the pot of soup is placed on a burner in front of you and you cook various meats, seafoods and veggies in the soup, then take out the protein/veggies, dip it in a sauce of your choosing (they had a house made Chinese BBQ--much better than that of my childhood--savory with a bit of hoisin, dried onion, sesame oil flavor, a sesame sauce--very much like a sesame flavored version of a "peanut sauce", and a citrus sauce--which is a bit like a soy based ponzu with much more vinegar) and eat it with rice.  After you're done with your meat and rice (brown or white, unlimited refills), ask for a soup bowl, and put the remainder of your veggies, plus the udon noodles they're served with in the soup broth for a finishing soup.

Veggie/tofu plate w/ udon noodles (hidden under cabbage) to cook in broth

Each order comes with a veggie plate, rice (brown or white) and your choice of 2 sauces as well as your broth.  We ordered the salmon (other seafood selections included gulf shrimp & scallops) and NY steak (other selections included rib-eye steak, kobe, pork and chicken).  Between us, we also got all 3 sauces. (Shockingly, I think I liked their take on the Chinese BBQ sauce the best!) 

Steak & Salmon

While I probably wouldn't end up getting the Szechuan broth again, I really enjoyed the experience and think I am cured of my hot pot phobia.  Thanks to my friend, Linda, for showing me the ropes in this first step of hot pot rehabilitation.  

Gypsy Den (Anaheim) 8.11.14

Yesterday, I was looking for a healthy brunch place to meet with some out-of-town friends but also make my 11:30 pick-up time for my son from his half-day camp.  So, we ended up at Gypsy Den near the end of Center Street Promenade.  I had been to Gypsy Den for lunch and for coffee, but not for breakfast/brunch so we decided to give it a try.  We settled in with iced coffees & jasmine tea and looked over the brunch choices.  Our server noted the popular dishes as the Eggs Ole, Breakfast Sandwich and Brioche French Toast and while I really wanted to try the French Toast, I figured, protein would be in order so I went with the breakfast sandwich.

Breakfast Sandwich

The Gypsy Den Breakfast Sandwich is fried egg, lettuce, tomato and choice of real or veggie bacon on a potato bun, served with fresh fruit or red potatoes (they were out of red potatoes when we went but I wanted fruit anyways).  The bacon was a little crispy for me, but probably not for a normal person (I really like soft, some would call it soggy, bacon), but the egg was nicely cooked with a runny yolk and the potato bun was a soft delight.  I appreciated the assortment of fruit that clearly wasn't melon from a bag.  It was a pretty yummy breakfast sandwich.  Definitely simple, but satisfying.

One of my friends ordered the house made granola with seasonal berries, yogurt and honey (adding almond butter and banana which came out beautifully presented and she said was really tasty.  (I would have considered getting this too, but this is my breakfast staple at home so I thought I'd splurge a bit on the breakfast sandwich): 

Housemade Granola

Our other friend ordered the spinach scramble: spinach, feta, onion, egg with veggie sausage (or bacon) served with toast and fruit (or potatoes) with added avocado.  He also enjoyed his plate and was impressed with the presentation of the food: 

Spinach Scramble

Both my friends really enjoyed the funky vibe of the Gypsy Den space (where they also hold Open Mic and host live music regularly in the evenings) and we enjoyed eating on the outside patio (which is also dog-friendly) as we caught up and talked about their Southern California adventures and the importance of GPS.  I often forget about the Gypsy Den because it's all the way down Center Street Promenade, but I was glad to have a good excuse for brunch to rediscover this gem.  

Umami Burger (Anaheim) 8.10.14

After returning from my short trip to San Diego with the family, I got to go out with a couple of my girlfriends for dinner.  We wanted a place with good food, a full bar, where we could hear one another within walking distance from my space.  On the weekend, that pretty much meant the packing house was out (it's got great food options, but to have real conversation and a drink with dinner, was a taller order.  So, we just walked over to Umami Burger.  

I'm a fan of Umami Burger and this location in particular, since it is my child's favorite restaurant in the world (What can I say? He's the child of a foodie) and lately, though the food and service are always consistently good, I've been feeling in a little bit of an umami rut.  So, it was really nice to come with my friends who haven't been to Umami before.  

FYI on the drinks, we each had a black razz mojito which was really refreshing and not overly sugary which is really nice.  It wasn't particularly strong and didn't taste like alcohol, but it was yummy. I probably wouldn't have splurged on yummy at $12 a drink if I wasn't with friends, but they also do a late night and 3-6 Happy Hour where signature cocktails are $8.  (Note: I've also had Rico Suave which was stronger and is also good) 

So, onto the food: 

 House Pickle Plate

Okay, so I never would have ordered this plate, but one of my friends loves pickles so she had to try it.  Top (L--> R): Pickles, beets, teriyaki mushrooms; Bottom: Snap peas, carrots, sweet/spicy peppers.  It was actually pretty good though.  I am not a beet fan, the snap peas/ peppers were a little spicy and the carrots were a little weird texturally for me, but I really liked the mushrooms and the pickles themselves.  The pickles were crunchy with great flavor that wasn't overwhelming at all.  The mushrooms were a little sweet and delicious.  

Thin Fries 

Sweet Potato Fries

Umami Sauces

I like Umami potatoes and sauces.  We went with the thin fries & sweet potato fries although usually I end up getting the smushed potatoes. (I was having a thin fry craving) Umami does potatoes well and serves them with a trio of: garlic aioli, diablo sauce & jalapeño ranch as well as a bottle of their special umami ketchup.  The aioli was a little off last night, but is usually my favorite with the ketchup a close second.  Fries were hot and crispy; sweet potato fries were sweet, crunchy and caramelized. Not much else to say here except well cooked potatoes = happiness.  

The Original

So, I am a sucker for the Original which is an umami patty (they grind their own sirloin for the patty) with a parmesan crisp, roasted tomato, shiitake mushroom on their house bun, prepared medium.  Juicy, umami goodness.  I love this burger.  

My friend had the green bird without cheese and said it was amazing (my other friend also had the original, but couldn't finish hers because there's a good chunk of meat on the burger).  I've also had the ahi tuna burger which I love when I'm a little burnt out on red meat.  My husband gets the Sloppy Mami (a vegetarian sloppy joe) whenever we come here as a family and FYI, for families, the kids meal here (slider, side & a drink) prices out to be about the same as a kids meal at IHOP with a drink ($8:  Seriously, no contest on taste). 

I have 9 Yelp Check-Ins at Umami Burger and that only counts the number of times I remember to check in here, so yeah, definitely a fan and hope you will be too.  Happy Eating! 

Snooze (Hillcrest, San Diego) 8.10.14

Okay, so, I didn't try everything, but based on my meal, the look of everyone else's meal AND the fact that I had a 1.5 hour wait, the summary is this: Snooze is AMAZING. I don't even like brunch that much and it was completely worth every minute of the wait. Yum. So yummy. If you're in the area, go to Snooze, even if you have to go to a nearby coffee shop or grab a jamba juice while you're waiting.  It is so good.

So, here's the food, but I'm just going to talk about what I actually ate (I was there with friends and picking off most of your friends' plates is just uncouth...):

Breakfast Pot Pie: Rosemary Sausage Gravy over puffed pastry topped with a sunny side up egg with a side of hash browns

3 eggs anyway (in this case scrambled with mushrooms & spinach), hashbrowns & a sweet potato pancake (topped with ginger butter & caramel)

Snoooze Spuds Deluxe: Hash browns with cheddar & jack cheese & choice of two toppings (in this case, tofu & spinach) 

Kids Pancake platter (with plain pancake, fruit & hash brown)

So, before we get to my dish, I just want to say that everyone was happy with their plate and I really appreciated Snooze's philosophy of custom creations so everyone gets what they want.  Normally the three egg plate comes with toast, but my friend subbed a pancake, my husband could get something that was meat & egg-less. My kid got fruit that was not defrosted melon & grapes (I love good melon, but a "fruit cup" at a lot of breakfast places. Ugh, gross.  Real berries--YUM).  Happy.  Really happy. 

Caprese Benedict: Summer ripe heirloom tomatoes tossed with pesto, cream cheese hollandaise over poached egg over mozzarella on toasted ciabatta bread with a drizzle of balsamic reduction & house hash browns.  

Holy Mother of breakfast.  This was AMAZING.  Literally, one of the best breakfasts I've had in recent memory. I loved the cream cheese hollandaise.  You could definitely taste a bit of cream cheese, but mostly it added richness to a mild hollandaise.  The balsamic & tomatoes added a little acidity.  The eggs were perfect, the mozzarella had just the right firmness and the ciabatta was the perfect toasty bread layer.  The pesto was light and didn't overwhelm the natural sweetness of the heirlooms.  And those hash browns, crispy on the outside, soft on the inside.  Great to mop up some of the residual hollandaise & egg yolk.  Yum x infinity.  I could eat this every other day of summer (with a day in between for some type of juice cleanse that would allow me to digest the richness of this breakfast). So, so good. 

Service was good and friendly.  Food was fantastic.  Wait was lengthy, but worth it.  Try Snooze.