A Cut Above the Rest?

The Cut

3831 Alton Parkway Suite C

Irvine, CA 92606

Irvine is quickly becoming the burger capital of Orange County. In a city that already touts G Burger, Burger Lounge, Mooyah, The Stand, Mick's Karma Bar, The Counter, Umami Burger, and others, Irvine has an embarrassment of riches when it comes to ground beef sandwiched between two buns. Until this point, the leaders in the clubhouse are The Counter and G Burger. I like the others, but these two spots are in my upper echelon of burger spots in OC. I always get a little giddy trying a new burger restaurant, as I hope it will be able to overtake my latest favorites. I had that same giddiness when we recently tried the newest kid on the block, The Cut.

I admit, I had no idea that this restaurant started as a food truck. My food truck game is a little rusty, I guess. The three business partners started their food truck in 2014 and have won much praise and accolades for their burgers. In 2015 they won a critics choice award from the OC Register as Best Food Truck, and a year later, they were nominated as Best Burger in OC. As is the case with most successful food trucks, they eventually achieved their goal of opening a restaurant, and that recently happened for the guys at The Cut when they set up shop at the Westpark Plaza in Irvine three months ago.

They say on their website that they want to serve simple burgers without gimmicks. They use free-range, humanely raised, hormone and antibiotic-free beef in their burgers, which are ground fresh daily in their restaurant. Don't feel like a burger?  Go somewhere else. Just kidding. The Cut also has four sandwiches, a good assortment of starters, and three salads for you to choose from. Prices range between $7 to $12 for appetizers, and burgers run in the $9 to $16 range.

In its former life, this location was home to a Smashburger but is unrecognizable from those dark days. There's an eight-seat bar where I imagine the register might have been during the Smashburger era, an estimated 15 tables in the well-lit, white-bricked walled dining area, and a small patio out front separated from the dining room by a sliding glass door. Refreshingly, this is not a quick-service restaurant. Instead, you are seated by a host and order through a server. A nice change for a burger spot at this price point. So now you have the lay of the land here, let's check out the food we consumed on this early evening.

I was a little skeptical when Katie ordered this Hummus ($7) at a burger restaurant, but I have to say I was blown away by this. The smashed chickpeas surrounded a small pool of cilantro and roasted jalapeno pesto, giving off a tremendous burst of heat with each dip of a carrot, celery stick, or toast point. I was also a big fan of the slivered almonds, which added a bit of unexpected texture to the smooth hummus. A wonderful start.

We might as well stay with Katie's selections, as she was on a roll. She decided to try the TBD Cutlet ($11). I'm not sure what the TBD stands for with this sandwich, but it came with plenty of jidori chicken, aioli, fennel slaw, and shaved parmesan. The buns at The Cut are pretty stellar and keep everything together. The chicken was moist and tender, with a good flavor.  Katie loved that they did not over-sauce, allowing the chicken to shine.

When I'm at a new burger spot, I usually do not shy away from my classic bacon cheeseburger love, but I decided to go a little bigger for my maiden burger at The Cut. I had the Sweet and Spicy ($12) with bacon and pepper jack cheese, aioli, arugula, and a honey sriracha sauce. They should have called this the sweet burger, as there was no spiciness detected in any of the bites I had. The honey sriracha sauce really dominated this burger and neutralized everything else on this burger. Blindfolded, I would not have even known that this burger had bacon, cheese, or anything else. I'll get one of their other seven burger options on my next visit.

It gets on my nerves when a restaurant calls something poutine when it's just loaded fries. Don't get me wrong, I love loaded fries like the next guy, but poutine is a different animal. Poutine is a traditional Canadian dish that uses fries as a base and then tops them with cheese curds and gravy. Something that is very seldom found in Southern California. This so-called poutine at The Cut had sliced brisket, mozzarella cheese, and a delicious cilantro chimichurri topping the fries. Even though this was not technically poutine, I still enjoyed it. The chimichurri was reminiscent of the good ones I've had in Argentine restaurants but not as oily. I liked the cheese and brisket but had hoped it would have been better layered. Near the end of this plate, we were left with a plate of fries, and all the toppings had been consumed. Whatever they call this, it was still worth getting.

The Cut has two dessert options: a cookie ice cream sandwich and a Tres Leches Bread Pudding ($6). This was not really what I had anticipated when we ordered this. It was more like a Pizookie than a bread pudding. It came out scalding hot in an iron skillet with chocolate pieces and a scoop of vanilla ice cream drizzled with salted caramel. The tres leches feel they were going for with this did not really come through, but it was good nonetheless. I would have liked the chocolate to have been more prominent instead of just in half of the bites. Also, a little more ice cream would have been preferred, but I say that with almost every dessert that features ice cream.

The Cut is a welcome addition to what is becoming the OC Capital City of Burgers, Irvine. Is it the best we have had in Irvine? No, but it was excellent. I might change my mind if I have a different burger on my next trip here, but for now, The Cut still ranks behind The Counter and G Burger, in my opinion. The sides were impressive, especially the hummus, which I packaged up to go, and ate the next day. As I said earlier, I liked that this was a full-service restaurant, as it was a nice change of pace from how other burger spots are operating these days. Service was stellar, and our server gave us excellent recommendations and kept tabs on us all throughout our visit. Welcome to Burger Town USA. I think The Cut is going to fit right in. 

Out of five ribeyes (which happens to be my favorite cut of beef), five being best to zero being worst, The Cut gets 3 ribeyes.

For more information about The Cut, head over to their website here: https://www.thecuthcb.com/

Here's a Reunion You Won't Want to Miss

Reunion Kitchen ad Drink

610 North Coast Highway #102

Laguna Beach, CA 92651

Yes, we had just been to this exact same shopping center recently to visit Asada. The Boat Canyon Shopping Center won the restaurant lottery when Mexican favorite, Asada, and one of our favorite spots from Anaheim Hills opened in this Pavillions anchored shopping plaza right around this time last year. For those of you that are not sure where the Boat Canyon Shopping Center is, it's in North Laguna, just a couple of blocks away from Downtown Laguna. There's plenty of parking, a much more relaxed feel, and now a great restaurant to visit.

If you happen to follow me on Instagram or Twitter, you know my love for Reunion, and now we don't have to tackle the freeway traffic on the 55 to make it to Anaheim Hills. Since I introduced my parents to the Reunion up by their house, there has not been a family birthday, anniversary, or any other family celebration that they have had anywhere else other than Reunion. So, I was pretty stoked to get an invite to visit their Laguna outpost.

When I walked in this former Umami Burger spot, it felt like home. They recreated the vibe of the Anaheim Hills venue, but on a smaller scale. Exposed wooden beams, dangling light fixtures, and a picturesque wine display are highlights of this slightly more relaxed and laid back beach vibe restaurant. Even though it's situated in this often forgotten about shopping center, the restaurant filled up during our stay and remained that way until our last bite.

The reason for the crowd on a recent Wednesday evening is, of course, the food. You can thank the man behind this restaurant, Scott McIntosh, for that. Scott worked for years at Claim Jumper Restaurants, as well as at other spots around OC. It's his time at CJ that I feel is his inspiration for the American comfort food that is served here. The cuisine reminds me of a time before Claim Jumper was bought out by a large restaurant company that cared more about making money than serving delicious food. The portions at Reunion are not going to rival the king-sized plates that used to exist at CJ, but that just means that the quality will not dwindle like Scott's former employer. Speaking of the food, let's see what came out for us on this evening.

When coming to Reunion, I always have to start things off with their Loaded Potato Skins ($7.25). Not only because these skins are fried perfectly so the edges provide a nice crunch, while the center of the potato is light and fluffy, but they serve these wedges of tater with a sour cream chive dip that is exactly like the one they used to serve at Claim Jumper. It has just the right consistency to it, so it's not too thick, but not too watery. It goes well with the cheddar, bacon and, green onion topping the potatoes. Wonderfully done, and a must try when visiting here.

For the most part, Katie and I are pretty much alike. One aspect of our life where I think we will never agree on is veggie burgers. Predictably, you can probably guess that I'm not really a fan, while Katie likes to try them in almost every restaurant that we eat at. She gave this House Made Veggie Burger ($13.50) a try. I'm not really clear what the patty was made up of, but it came topped with avocado, Swiss cheese, tomato, crispy onion strings, and a smear of garlic aioli all sandwiched between a whole wheat bun. Katie really enjoyed this burger. She liked how all the parts of this worked so well with each other. I admit I tried this burger, but I don't think I'm quite ready to turn into a veggie burger lover anytime soon.

On a menu that just screams comfort food, this Rosemary's Chicken and Biscuits ($17.95) might be the most comforting and popular item at Reunion. I looked around all the nearby tables where we were seated and this dish was on nearly all of them. Two boneless chicken cutlets are pounded thin, hand battered, and fried, then served with a mound of mashed potatoes and sausage gravy, and one of the better biscuits that you will ever have. The chicken was fork tender and made even better after being dredged through the flavorful gravy. I made quick work of this plate, alternating between forkfuls of the chicken and the Yukon gold mashed potatoes. I saved the biscuit for last. It was slightly dense, and buttery on its own, but of course, I added the extra butter as well. Wouldn't want it to go to waste.

Speaking of butter, if you come to Reunion and don't get this Butter Cake ($8.95) you are really doing yourself a real disservice. There's a lot on the dessert menu that I would love to try, but I always find myself getting the butter cake here. It's right up there with some of the better ones I have had, and it comes with a very generous scoop of vanilla bean ice cream, whipped cream, and a splash of raspberry puree streaked across the plate. For people that have never had a butter cake, I always describe it as a Twinkie on steroids, and this one definitely qualifies as that. A great end to our meal.

I was so happy that this Laguna Beach Reunion was just as good as the original up in Anaheim Hills. It's going to be way more convenient for us, and we will get the chance to share our love for this restaurant with some of Katie's family that does not like to travel more than ten miles from their homes. The food was just as good, and there were not the big wait times like when we have visited the Anaheim one without a reservation. Along with the chicken that I had on this evening, I can also recommend the Meatloaf, Prime Rib, and the Cafe Patty Melt as favorites of mine. Our server Alexa was amazing, and her great dedication to detail was appreciated. Thanks to everyone at Reunion Kitchen and Drink for this excellent opportunity to try this location. Everything was awesome, and we look forward to making many more return trips to the Boat Canyon Shopping Center in the very near future.

For more information about Reunion Kitchen and Drink, head to their website here: http://reunionkitchen.net/

MMCXLV

2145 Pizza

2145 Placentia Avenue

Costa Mesa, CA 92627

It sees to me that some restaurants kind of love to be a bit vague. 2145 is one of those restaurants. If you've driven by their corner at Victoria and Placentia Avenue, you have seen their sign, which only lists their numeric name and mentions nothing else like what kind of restaurant this is, if this is even a restaurant, and the sing is even lacking a logo. Kind of refreshing but at the same time a gamble as to whether people will stop and give them a try.

We were out with our very good friends Tom and Daniele, Daniele of the very popular Dani's Decadent Deals. They had heard of this place, and I had just read a review of it in the OC Register and OC Weekly. Even with all the ambiguity about this place, we arrived at a full restaurant on a recent Saturday night. Guess their gamble has paid off.

2145 is housed in a former auto garage. There are the large roll-up doors out front, which served as auto bays in former days. The kitchen appears to be the former office, and now houses a large pizza oven, which is really the only clue you get from the street that this is a restaurant. There's a quaint back patio, which had lights strung up to provide a hipster, but very comfortable feel to it. The clientele here is varied but skewed towards a younger, more millennial demographic.

The menu is pizza-focused, and Chef Eduardo Salcedo uses Japanese flour to create his pies in the large, wood-fueled pizza oven. If I hadn't had read that he uses a Japanese flour, I never would have known. It's exactly like the double 00 variety that we have had at Neapolitan pizza places. Besides the seven varieties of pizzas offered, there's three salads, seven small plates, and the only other entree offered other than the pizzas is a steak sandwich, which we hear is more of a deconstructed sandwich. Pretty hungry by the time late stragglers Tom and Daniele moseyed in, we hurriedly made our dinner selections.

We started things off with these Garlic Fries ($6). These fries were outstanding. Freshly cut, and with your choice of sauce, we had the very solid garlic aioli, these fries had me wanting more. They came out fresh and hot, and even though these were garlic fries, they were not overloaded with garlic flavor. A very nicely balanced french fry.

Brussels Sprouts ($8) used to get a bad rap when I was growing up, but thanks to many talented chefs, they have made a resurgence.  The sprouts were flash fried with some red wine mustard vinaigrette and then some toasted pistachios were added into the mix. A refreshing change from the suddenly predictable bacon centric version that many chefs go for. The mustard did not take over this plate but starred alongside its sprout counterpart.

Daniele, the only salad eater amongst us tried out this Mixed Green Salad ($9) and enjoyed it immensely. This is not your basic garden salad. They start with a bed of farmers market fresh greens, then add crumbled gorgonzola and candied pecans, and finish it off with a balsamic vinaigrette. At nine dollars there was more than enough for Daniele to share with Tom. I liked this simple salad and loved the crunch from the pecans the best. This salad inspired me to try their grilled romaine salad on my next visit to 2145.

The most talked about pizza on 2145's Yelp page is this Blue Cheese Honey Pizza ($15). I kind of winced when I heard about this pie. Honey and blue cheese did not really seem like it would work for me, but I must admit that I did enjoy it to an extent. I liked the piece that I had, but I think my taste buds would have been bored by eating this whole pizza. The sweet counteracted the slightly mellower gorgonzola used on this pizza, and the white cheddar and mascarpone kind of helped to even it out a bit. Not really a pizza for everyone, but Daniele was in love with this one, and had a hard time sharing any part of it with us. Very selfish.

More in line with what you expect when coming to a pizza place, this very photogenic Margherita ($13) not only dazzled with its looks but was very tasty as well. This classic Italian pizza used crushed San Marzonos tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and a few torn pieces of basil. Katie loved this pizza and said it was one of her favorite versions of a Margherita pizza that she's had. She loved the lightness of the pizza, but it did not sacrifice flavor by being so light.

Proving once again that great minds think alike, both Tom and I gravitated towards this Pancetta and Egg Pizza ($17). This breakfast-styled pizza impressed. Of course, I loved the pancetta and the yolky egg topping this, but it also included some mushrooms, smoked mozzarella, red onion, and rosemary mascarpone. The dough at 2145 was sturdy enough to stand up to all of these toppings, without getting too soggy, which is usually my biggest complaint with these kinds of pizzas. I could eat it with my hands, and not worry about it falling apart on me. I also enjoyed the slightly charred crust on this, as it added a slightly smoked flavor to this pizza.

Not to ruin it for you, but skip the desserts at 2145. The Yuzu Creme Brulee ($6) could be one of the worst things I have eaten all year. The pistachio and candied ginger cookie that our server raved about was on the dry side and did not really satisfy. The worst part was the yuzu flavor that was running through the creme brulee. This might have been my first time having yuzu, which is a super sour and tart citrus fruit and comes to us from Asia. It'll probably be my last time having yuzu, which ruined one of my favorite kinds of dessert. The Horchata Tiramisu ($5) was not what we were expecting, but anything was better than that creme brulee. More of a budino than a tiramisu, the mascarpone, salted caramel, Mexican chocolate, and whipped cream did not really bring out a tiramisu vibe, but it was decent and helped get the yuzu flavor out of my mouth.

With the exception of the desserts, everything was pretty great at 2145 Pizza. I'd definitely come back and have their pizzas, fries, and sprouts again, but I also might like to try their pork belly and asparagus, corn dogs, and rigatoni on my next visit. The wine and beer list here were small but mighty, and they seemed to have something for everyone. Service was another story. At the start of our meal, our server was around making sure everything was alright, but as the evening went on he became AWOL a good amount of the time, and this was as the restaurant was thinning out, so it was not as busy as when we first showed up. Still, nothing that would make me skip this place though. I'm happy that we had found out about this restaurant, even if the sign out front was a bit vague.

Out of five video games, (because the Doom 3 video game released in 2004 takes place in the year 2145), five being best to zero being worst, 2145 Pizza gets 3.5 video games.

For more information about 2145 Pizza, head to their website here: http://www.2145eat.com/

Anchors Aweigh Stevie

Garage Kitchen + Bar

655 4th Street 

San Diego, CA

It's pretty crazy that we haven't been to San Diego in over eight years. Besides being one of the most beautiful cities in the US, there's always tons to do here. There are the museums at Balboa Park, walking around Old Town, taking in a baseball game at Petco Park, and of course a ton of restaurants. It was definitely time to review our first restaurant in what some call, America's finest city. 

We came down this way not only to eat but also to tour the USS Midway, which is permanently docked in San Diego Bay. Katie's uncle Jim is a docent on the ship and gave us and her cousins a private tour. This trip held another special purpose, as our cousin Stevie has enlisted in the Navy and leaves for basic training this week. This tour kind of gave him an idea of what he's got to look forward to in the next few years. 

After walking around this massive ship for close to five hours, it was definitely time to eat, and of course, when that time comes, all eyes fall on me to make a decision on where to head. Since we were so close to one of my favorite restaurants downtown, we headed to La Puerta. No good. Downton San Diego was buzzing with lots of people roaming the streets and La Puerta had about an hour wait for a party of seven, so a quick search of Yelp led us one block north to the Garage Kitchen and Bar. 

We arrived at the Garage just before half past two and were a little bummed that they were not serving their lunch/dinner menu, but instead offered their brunch menu until 3. Not wanting to wait, and eager to get some nourishment, we decided not to be picky by this point. We were quickly seated in the front portion of the restaurant, adjacent to the pretty crowded bar area. The Garage is part restaurant and part large music venue, which I spied as I went to the restroom. Both areas are separated by a hallway, so I imagine even if there's a show going on you'll still be able to hear your tablemates. Something I wish I wasn't able to do on this afternoon since I was sitting next to cousin Yvette, one of Katie's more questionable family members.

The Garage pays homage to all the San Diego bands out there that started in garages. This historic building also used to be home to Carriage Works, which started in 1890 until 1902. After that, the building was purchased by the Lyons Implement Company, which housed the complete line of Studebaker vehicles.  The structure has been other things as well but has been home to the Garage Kitchen and Bar since late 2014.

Executive Chef Brent Hersant is the man in charge of the menu at the Garage, and his goal is to use sustainable ingredients, create modern approachable food, and offer it at a fair price point.  We were all pretty excited to see if he had achieved his goal. So let's check out the food at the Garage.

As I said earlier, we were all famished by the time we finally sat down at the table, so Katie alertly ordered two sides of Fries ($3.50). These were thick cut, very sturdy french fries that came garnished with what I believed to be crispy shallots. Not too bad, they were obviously freshly cut and fried to perfection. The crispy shallots really did not add too much, and we discarded them to dip the fries in ketchup. 

I was sitting next to Yvette, so I definitely needed to drown my sorrows with alcohol. The Moment in Paradise ($9) would be my diversion drink on this late afternoon. Sky Vodka is the base of this tropical beverage, then they add pineapple and lime juice, then spice things up a bit with some cayenne pepper. I enjoyed this drink as it kept me interested with the unexpected spiciness from the cayenne, unlike my lack of interest from listening to Yvette drone on and on about her fascination with water. Ugh. 

Katie's much better cousin Steve ordered this San-Di-Cristo ($14) as his entree on this fine Sunday afternoon. I had actually debated on whether to get this sandwich or not. Between the two pieces of creme brulee french toast was a good amount of smoked ham, pork, swiss cheese, caramelized onion, and pear. I did not get a chance to try this one, but from the looks of it, it kind of had a Cuban feel to the sandwich, without the pickles and mustard. Steve said it was alright, and nothing that really made him stand up and take notice. 

This good looking burger is the Butcher's Burger ($15). The patty is made up of bison, boar, and grass fed Angus beef. It's then stacked with cheddar, bacon jam, crispy shallots, house sauce, and served with fries. This burger was juicy, but I kind of expected more from it. The patty was fine, but I think it might have just been better with the beef alone. The boar and bison did not really add too much. I've never really been a fan of bacon jam, and this one had made me wish they would have just stuck with good old fashioned strips of bacon. The house sauce was mellow and was much more pronounced when I asked for an extra side of it. A solid effort, but maybe they tried too hard to make this an extra special burger when they could have just stuck to the basics. Still a beautiful looking burger though. 

Last but not least was Katie's selection, The Benny ($14). Benedicts have become pretty original nowadays, and this one from the Garage wasn't any different. Perched atop a cheddar and chive biscuit, a poached egg is topped with sliced, roasted tomato, smoked ham, and then drenched with a saffron hollandaise sauce. Katie really liked this little tweak on a traditional Benedict. The hollandaise was a little on the thin side, but she loved the saffron tinge it had. She was also stoked on the use of a biscuit instead of the usual English muffin, which gave this a little more depth. This also came with some very fresh and vibrant fruit and rosemary potatoes which were okay. 

The Garage filled in nicely as a backup for the restaurant which we had originally set out to try. Even though the brunch menu was relatively small, and we would have liked to have been able to order off of the much more diverse dinner menu, we all found something that we all kind of liked. I enjoyed that the chef took chances with the food here and made regular breakfast items his own. Some worked, and some didn't but I enjoyed the effort. Service was spot on for our party of seven, and our server made sure we had plenty of refills at all times. A bittersweet meal since we will probably not see our cousin Stevie for a long while, as he's off to the navy, but hopefully this was a sweet send off for him. 

Out of five gas lamps, (in honor of our first San Diego restaurant review, and the area of town this restaurant is located in), five being best to zero being worst, the Garage Kitchen and Bar gets 3 gas lamps. 

For more information about the Garage Kitchen and Bar, head to their website here: http://www.garagekitchenbar.com/ 

Marching to Their Own Beat at Tempo

Tempo Urban Kitchen

731 South Weir Canyon Road #147

Anaheim, CA 92808

Here's another restaurant that I've wanted to try for more time than I can remember. It's also an overdue meet-up with our good friends Erven and Rocio, who we can never see enough of. They have triplets and another kid, so it's hard to get together between soccer games, school functions, and family vacations. Persistence paid off, though, as we planned to meet near their house and try Tempo Urban Kitchen.

Since I first heard of Tempo, they have gone through an evolution and quite a few high-profile chefs. From the outside, it seems like they were trying to find their identity. When they first opened in late 2014 in Brea, they were described as a molecular-styled menu, frequently changing. Then they switched things up and focused more on a traditional menu with twists and turns on almost every item. The food can be described as Mexican cuisine, which is influenced by other cuisines worldwide. Since we ate here a little over a month ago, they now have another new menu, which features ten new items.

The man behind Tempo is Jorge Cueva, the president of the Lascari Restaurant Group. He worked at Daphne's Greek Cafe and Sharkey's Woodfired Grill. Tempo has been described as his passion project. Besides the original Brea location and this one perched up in Anaheim Hills, there's also been a lot of talk about expanding this concept to other areas. Las Vegas, Downey, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Newport Beach, Tuscon, Buena Park, and even across the border in Mexico have been mentioned. It'll be interesting to see how these lofty expansion plans work out.

We arrived at the Anaheim Hills spot, located in Ralph's shopping plaza and is also home to the wildly popular Mediterranean restaurant Rosine's, just before 5 pm on a Sunday afternoon. The restaurant was busier than I expected it to be at this relatively early dinner hour, and by the time we left the restaurant, it was full of patrons. Nevertheless, I liked the feel of the place, with its hanging light fixtures, the active bar along the space's back wall, and the decor hanging on the walls, including the plate installation along the far wall. I imagine this restaurant can seem a little cramped during peak times, and the tables did seem a little too close together, but that might be necessary because they are so busy.

Before we get to the food at Tempo, I have to highlight this Tableside Hickory Smoke Old Fashion ($16). I'm a sucker for any dramatic tableside presentation, and this one was pretty special. Our waitress came over to our table, smoked some hickory under the glass, then blow-torched an orange rind, and then finished this little presentation by concocting this delicious cocktail. I'm not much of a bourbon drinker, but this was one of the best old fashions I have ever had. Not that I've had too many. Erven loved this drink so much that he had it again, but they made it behind the bar, which saved $4. I kind of missed the dramatics, though.

Tempo has an awe-inspiring happy hour lineup, and the good news is that it's offered seven days a week, most days from 4 to 6 pm, and then it starts up again at 9 pm until close. Along with drink specials, there is a boatload of $5, $7, and $9 priced bar bites, and we took advantage of a few of them before moving on to the entrees. The Tinga Taquitos ($7) was a good choice. The chicken inside of these taquitos was solid, and they also came with lime crema and a serrano sauce, which added a touch of heat. I've said it a million times, if you see pork belly on a menu, you need to order it. I took my own advice by ordering the Pork Belly Bites ($9). These cubed pieces of pork were a little overcooked, but some parts had the spongy quality I look for when consuming pork belly. They were accompanied by spicy honey and corn tortillas, which I did not use. The Fresh Oysters ($5) were an Erven pick, and I always think it's a roll of the dice to get oysters at a non-seafood-specific restaurant. These oysters were fresh, tasted great, and lacked the grittiness that can ruin an oyster experience for me.

I've been on a taco kick all summer, and it continued at Tempo with this House Taco Selection ($15). This is an excellent option for indecisive people or someone that wants to get the lay of the land at Tempo. This taco platter came with a beef cheek, carnitas, a Korean pork belly, and a short rib taco. I loved the variety of this. My favorite out of the bunch was the Short Rib Mole, which included pickled red onion, lime crema, and crispy carrot shards. The short rib was predictably tender, and the mole was excellent. I was also fond of the way the different textures combined with each other while consuming this taco. The beef cheek taco was prepared with pickled red onion and cilantro, allowing the beef cheek to be the show's star. My usual favorite carnitas was relegated to third place here, as the carnitas were kind of bland and not really enhanced by the roasted pepitas or the mole verde. The worst was the Korean pork belly, which had too much going on. The mango, red cabbage slaw, chile-soy, and lime crema ended up masking the pork on this, which is a shame because, unlike the pork belly bites appetizer, the pork belly on this was not overcooked.

Sorry for the poor picture quality of this Costa Azul ($14), but my camera was having issues. These bacon-wrapped shrimp were stuffed with cheese and were as good as they sounded. The shrimp were very good-sized; the bacon was crisp, but the cheese got lost in the shuffle. I did enjoy the sauce that came with this, which I'd describe as a chipotle mayo. These also came with spiced honey, but I stayed away from that.

I guess Katie wasn't feeling any of the entrees at Tempo, as she got these Nachos Gordos ($14) off the appetizer menu. Based on this name, I expected a lot bigger pile of chips on this, but it was the perfect size for Katie this evening. The chips were topped with an exciting blend of cheeses; mozzarella, cheddar, pecorino, jalapenos, pico de gallo, guacamole, pinto beans, and her choice of a protein, chicken tinga, rounded out this plate of nachos. She felt this was a lighter version of nachos than she was expecting. The chicken was good, but there could have been more of it on here, along with more cheese and everything else.

The best item for the night for me was this Seafood Rice ($16). Saffron rice was mixed with octopus, shrimp, calamari, and other seafood, and it was all tied together with a chipotle sauce. Very flavorful, and the seafood was very fresh and prepared well. This was a very comforting dish and one I would usually overlook, so I was glad that Erven wanted to try it. This will not be my last time having this at Tempo.

Rocio went a little rouge at Tempo when she ordered this Chili Relleno ($12). The usual chile relleno at Tempo comes with short-rib chorizo beans and is encased in a corn dog batter. Instead, Rocio went for a more traditional version, with just the cheese inside of it and a red sauce ringing the chili relleno. She seemed to like this a lot but was getting full before finishing it. I like that Tempo was very accommodating with modifications to their menu items, which is not too common in chef-driven restaurants like this.

Dessert was the last thing on our agenda this evening, not that I needed it. We all split the Tres Leches Cake ($8). This was a decent rendition of this classic cake. However, it was not as moist as a lot of them that we have had, and the frosting could have been a little sweeter. I'd probably try the churros the next time I'm here.

Glad we finally made it to Tempo. Where does Tempo rank in my most recent Mexican restaurant experiences? I like Tempo better than Puesto, but not as much as Urbana in Anaheim. It's definitely in the middle of these two other similar, upscale Mexican restaurants. It will not be our last trip to Tempo, as there's way more to explore on their menu than we could have managed on this trip. The shareable urban grills, tortas, and flatbreads have caught my eye for next time. Service was exceptional on this visit, as our server Lana did an impressive job taking care of us during our nearly two-hour stay. It'll be interesting to see how Tempo evolves because with their impending expansion and the feeling I get that their menu will constantly be tweaked here and there, with items being switched back and forth depending on the whim of the person in charge of this kitchen. As for now, this is a pretty solid spot, and it was an excellent restaurant for Erven and Rocio to catch their breath from chasing around their four kids.

Out of five gold stars (because Tempo is the name of the largest brewer in Israel, and one of their three brands of beer they manufacture is Goldstar), five being best to zero being worst, Tempo Urban Kitchen gets 3 gold stars.

For more information about Tempo Urban Kitchen, head to their website here: https://tempourbankitchen.com/