Should This Little Sister Be in Time Out?

 Little Sister

896 Spectrum Center Dr. 

Irvine, CA 92618

The Irvine Spectrum's dining scene always seems to be evolving. The openings and restaurant announcements from just the last few months have been dizzying. Silverlake Ramen, Burnin' Mouth hot chicken, and GrammOO Pasta opened recently, while Shake Shack, Roll Em Up Taquitos, Sprinkles, and Le Shrimp Noodle Bar are all poised to make their debuts within this calendar year. So yes, those parking structures will be even more jam-packed now. 

With all the restaurant comings and goings at the Spectrum, it's easy to understand that I might have let one slip through the cracks. When I discovered that Little Sister had been open for two years, I felt ashamed that I had not been. My audiobook obsession has apparently taken precedence over more than I thought. 

Little Sister opened near Target, in the southeast corner of the Spectrum, near H&M, 85 Degrees Bakery, and the Apple Store. We were here Saturday evening at 6 for a long overdue dinner with my aunt and uncle. There were eight of us, but we had made reservations via the OpenTable website. This was fortunate because the restaurant was jam-packed, and judging from all the people milling about the front of the restaurant, the wait time for a table appeared to be quite lengthy. 

Much like my little sister, this restaurant is quite loud. Little Sister features a wraparound patio for outdoor dining when the weather calls for it and, in addition to, an outdoor lounge across from the entrance to the restaurant featuring a bar and tables shaded by trees in a parklike setting. The inside of the dining space is dominated by a large bar in the middle of the room, with tables of varying sizes surrounding it. The high ceilings, wood flooring, dimmed lighting, and the house music blaring from the speakers brought to mind more of a club atmosphere than a restaurant. 

On their website, Little Sister describes their food as blending the spices and flavors of Southeast Asia while utilizing the European techniques that dominate the region due to the colonization that was rampant for so many years. The result is a menu that might appear too exotic for some, but if you have visited any Vietnamese, Thai, or Laotian spots or are open to trying new things, you will definitely find something on this menu to order. 

The menu is divided into starters, a smattering of rice paper rolls, a few salad offerings, soups and noodle dishes, and entrees. Even though some items might sound intimidating, the menu does a great job of explaining in detail what each dish is made up of. Our server, for some reason, explained that most dishes are meant for sharing, but we did not find this to be the case. She seemed slightly exacerbated when we all ordered, and our orders were less diverse than she felt they should be. As you will see in the upcoming photos, the meals did not seem conducive to sharing, especially for someone like me with a more enormous appetite. So without further ado, let's check out the food from Little Sister. 

We started with two starters, the first of which was the Sesame Sourdough Baugette ($8). The bread is accompanied by a smear of sea-salted butter, pate, and a sour tomato jam. I liked the sturdy bread and the variety of the spreads, but it would have been better if they had sliced it to make it easier to serve once it hit the table. The pate was the best of the spreads, with a vibrant depth of flavor. 

A little more exotic of the two starters for us was the Nem Nuong (Pork Spring Rolls), $13. These came four to an order and, along with the grilled pork, included mint, carrot, cucumber, and red leaf lettuce wrapped tightly in rice paper. It comes with a delicious peanut-type sauce. Due to the overabundance of veggies wrapped in there, the pork got overshadowed. I was rather impressed that these held together so well as I ate them. 

If you check the Yelps reviews for Little Sister, you'll soon realize this plate is easily the most popular item ordered here. The Shaky Shaky Beef ($35) is marinated in a burnt butter soy glaze and served with garlic tomato rice and a watercress salad. Unfortunately, the steak was inconsistent. Some bites were divine, but others were a little tough. The rice was nicely done, but I was not a big fan of the salad dressing used on the watercress salad. It was on the sour side for my taste. 

Much like the steak dish from above, this Suong Nuong (Pork Chop) for $32 had some good bites and others that could have been better. The bites taken from the ends were nice and tender, with a very pleasing taste. However, the inside pieces were dry and overcooked. The chicken fat rice was good, with a sunny-side-up egg perched above the scoop of rice. When broken, the yolk added a nice creamy texture to the rice. I left most of the salad, as it was too bland. 

The House Triple Garlic Noodles ($18) really fell flat. Half the people in our party ordered this, and it was unanimous that these could have been better. They lacked any noticeable tinge of garlic and were way overpriced at $18 for such a small portion. They were made a little better when someone asked for some chili oil to bring up the flavor profile. Disappointing. 

Last is the House Spiced Crispy Chicken ($29). I am not a chicken person when eating out in restaurants. Most of the time, I find that places overcook chicken and often find it dry and bland. That is not the case at Little Sister. This half-bird featured a very crispy skin with tender meat underneath, and it was made even better with the provided chili-ginger sauce, equal parts sweet and savory. I only got the leg, but it was suitable from beginning to end. 

We all left Little Sister a little underwhelmed. Nothing was awful, but I'd describe this restaurant as inconsistent. Some bites were good, while others were not. Nothing we had on this evening would entice me to revisit, but if a friend wanted to meet me here, I'd reluctantly give it another try. Still, I would only hold out a little hope that it would be much better than what we already experienced. Much like Javier's, also at the Irvine Spectrum, most people eat at Little Sister because of this restaurant's hip vibe rather than the food that comes out of the kitchen. That may be harsh, but I'm already looking forward to what's coming next at the Spectrum. 

Out of five pacifiers (because one of the most iconic little sisters of all time is Maggie Simpson, who is never too far from her pacifier on The Simpsons), five being best to zero being worst, Little Sister gets 2.5 pacifiers. 

For more information about Little Sister, head to their website by clicking here: https://www.dinelittlesister.com/