Excellent Adventure at Ted's?

Ted's Place

23990 Aliso Creek Road

Laguna Niguel, CA 92677

Almost every neighborhood (okay, maybe not Aliso Viejo, but almost everywhere else) has a place like Ted's Place. Usually, it is owned by a Greek family, the menu is enormous, and most of the time, locals crowd this kind of restaurant on weekend mornings to eat large breakfasts. Ted's is no exception to these generalizations.

Ted's Place has been around for as long as I have lived in South OC (almost ten years). It is owned by a Greek family, and the owner is here nearly every time I visit. The menu features breakfast items, sandwiches, Mexican Favorites, Greek meals, salads, and full-on dinners, like seafood plates and meatloaf. I won a bet from Mario at my work, so he owed me a meal here. After ordering at the counter, this is how Mario paid his debt to me.

I started with a heaping plate of Chili Cheese Fries. This portion was about the size of a football. I know the fries are probably frozen and not made fresh, but they are fried to perfection and complimented the chili and cheese well. The chili is not spicy nor significant in flavor, but it works. Almost every fry was covered in chili and cheese.

I was a little full from all the fries, but I still managed to finish this Bacon Avocado Cheeseburger. This burger was good, but I do not understand why it is good. The patty is skinny and probably made well in advance. The cheese is okay, nothing spectacular. The avocado was fresh but unremarkable. The bun is sturdy, but it does not add too much to the overall taste of the burger. Bacon is always good, but I can not detect the difference between this swine and others. I concluded that the burger works because these ingredients interact to create a satisfying burger.

Mario and Mike each ordered the same burger, Ted's Signature Burger. This burger came with a treasure trove of condiments. Swiss cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato, raw onion, onion rings, and Cole slaw. I am sure I forget some of the hundred things on this burger. But, again, Mario and Mike felt this burger was delicious. All of the big flavors worked together to form a great-tasting burger.

I am trying to explain why I like Ted's Place so much. Maybe it's because of the portion sizes. Burgers and other plates are enormous here.  I have had much better burgers, but I feel delighted whenever I leave Ted's. The service is okay here, and the owner is very nice. Prices are pretty good for what you get. Burgers are in the $4 to $7 range. They even offer a one-pound cheeseburger with fries and a drink for $10. The breakfasts here are pretty good as well. They make a decent breakfast burrito, and all of their breakfast skillets will keep you stuffed well into dinner time. I'm glad I went to Ted's Place. I just am not sure why I liked it. Guess it is best not to overanalyze it and enjoy the food coma.

Out of five bears (in reference to teddy bears), five being best to zero being worst, Ted's Place gets 3 teddy bears.

For more information about Ted's Place, head to their website by clicking here: https://tedsplacelaguna.com/