No Cliffhanger About the Food at the Cliff Restaurant

 The Cliff Restaurant and Bar

577 South Coast Highway

Laguna Beach, CA 92651

With some exceptions, I have come to a conclusion about restaurants that have spectacular views. Unfortunately, most are not very good when it comes to the food that they serve. They think they can just get by because people like to eat while taking in the breathtaking scenery. In OC, we have a couple of these restaurants; Orange County Mining Company, Las Brisas, Orange Hill Restaurant, Wind and Sea Restaurant, and Harpoon Henery's, to name a few off the top of my head. 

My aunt and uncle had wanted to meet up with us for lunch, and they had requested that I pick somewhere with a nice view. I racked my brain trying to come up with some places that are known for their view, but also places that I had never been, so I could take the opportunity to write a review. Finally, I sent them three or four places I had found, and they selected The Cliff Restaurant in Laguna to try. 

With the help of my good friend Darin, who runs one of the many parking lots in the city, parking was a breeze on this particular Sunday at noon. The Cliff is notorious for its long waits for tables, especially on days when the weather is beautiful in this seaside community. So I joined the waitlist on Yelp at just the right time to have our table ready at noon. We were called to the hostess stand at noon but were not seated until twenty minutes later, which was still way better than waiting in front of the restaurant for two hours, which is what they were quoting as the time to be seated.  

The dining area is a multi-level patio with plenty of blue umbrellas to shield you from the elements as you eat. The view was as advertised. Magnificent and stunning are words that come to mind. I must not be the only one to think so, as everyone's instinct when seated here is to whip out their phones and snap many pictures. The setting brought to mind what I'd expect it feels like to dine along the Agean Sea in the Greek Islands, even though I've never had that pleasure. 

The lunch menu at the Cliff is a one-page affair divided into starters, salads, burgers, sandwiches, seafood specialties, and Mexican-style items. Prices for mains range between $16 and $33, while appetizers will set you back at around $16. We were all hungry, so we made our selections rather quickly as we caught up on each other's goings-on. Let's see if The Cliff is just a pretty spot to eat or does the food match this exquisite view.

Jenny starts things off with the Soup of the Day ($6), which on Sundays is Lobster Bisque. They also have clam chowder every day, but it wasn't ready when we visited. Jenny reports that this bisque was okay but not as rich as others she has had, and there were no little bits of lobster running through it. However, the chowder gets a lot more love online, so that might be the way to go if you are in the mood for soup. 

Cutting down on my writing time, three of my family members got the Fish and Shrimp Combo ($20). This fried combo consisted of three rather large shrimp, three pieces of cod, and a pile of fries. A good-sized plate, but unfortunately, the fish did not win many rave reviews from these three. They felt the breading on the fish was not as crunchy as they would have liked, and the fish underneath refused to give up that pop of flavor that would have compensated for that. The shrimp still had the breading issue but was way more flavorful and was their clear favorite. The fries were fine but unremarkable. 

My aunt bucked the trend from the rest of her immediate family by selecting this Baja Burrito ($16). This burrito uses tempura Mahi Mahi as its base, adding shredded cabbage, pico de Gallo, white cheddar cheese, and chipotle aioli to fill the slightly grilled tortilla. Not the best seafood burrito my aunt has consumed, but passable. 

Even though we were feet away from the ocean, Katie and I veered away from seafood at The Cliff, as she went with the Crispy Fried Chicken Sandwich ($16). Everyone is doing a fried chicken sandwich these days, and The Cliff adds pickles and a spicy ranch to theirs. Katie liked the chicken, which was tender and juicy, but this needed way more of the spicy ranch to make it better. 

Last but not least, I finally ordered the Prime Rib Dip ($21) after much deliberation. I probably should have gone with my first option. Unfortunately, this was not an excellent prime rib sandwich. The bread was hard, and the meat tasted less like prime rib and more like that dried beef that you get at the supermarket in the jar. The meat was more than likely leftovers from the evening before. Thank god there was au jus to dunk this in; otherwise, it would have been pretty hard to choke it down. That and the only other saving grace was the horseradish, which provided the only flavor I detected while eating this. The fries were okay and probably the star of this plate. Not a good sign when frozen fries are the best part of your meal. 

Sadly, The Cliff Restaurant's food could not compete with its spectacular view. At best, the food is average, and as with my prime rib sandwich, way worse than that. The food took a while to make its way from the kitchen, so maybe they were short-staffed or just having a bad day. I thought the price point was more than fair, especially considering this neighborhood. Our server was fine but might have been stretched too thin, another sign of the labor shortage hitting the restaurant industry. 

Out of five thunderbolts (because the largest cliff in the world is Mount Thor on Baffin Island in Canada, and it's named after the Norse god of thunder), five being best to zero being worst, The Cliff Restaurant gets 2 thunderbolts. 

For more information about The Cliff Restaurant, head to their website here: https://www.thecliffrestaurant.com/

Up and Down Night at El Mercado

El Mercado Modern Cuisine

301 North Spurgeon Street

Santa Ana, CA 92701

Now that restaurants and other businesses are opening back up, it's time to face some facts. It's going to still take some time for things to get back to where they were before. Restaurants have had to pivot in all sorts of directions in the last year. Delivery and takeout ordering only, placing their employees on furlough or letting them go permanently, social distancing guidelines, mask-wearing mandates, and dealing with people who do not want to comply, are just a small percentage of what restaurants have had to deal with. 

So, as we move forward it's important to remember that we've all been through a lot, so a little compassion and understanding needs to be the rule of the land. I bring this up because there's going to be some growing pains at some of your favorite spots, including our recent visit to El Mercado in Santa Ana. This was not the smoothest of evenings that we have encountered in a restaurant. 

I am totally cognizant that restaurants are having a hard time finding staff, that there might be new cooks in their kitchens and there could be new management running your favorite restaurant. Since people read this restaurant review site to help them decide if they want to part with their hard-earned money on a particular place, I feel it's my duty to give you an unbiased, honest review, even if there might be some issues with a place that I'm unaware of. They may have just had an off night or maybe it's a regularly occurring problem, but the following was our experience. 

Last month was Orange County Restaurant Week, and since both Katie and I had gotten our first shot, we felt comfortable enough to head out and support Orange County restaurants. I had made a plan to eat from six restaurants in seven days, all but this meal at El Mercado was going to be eaten at home. I made reservations at El Mercado for 2 at 7pm on a Saturday evening. We arrived promptly and were seated near the back of the restaurant, close to the bar. 

El Mercado is situated in Downtown Santa Ana, right by the Yost Theater, and a stone's throw away from Playground, Wursthaus, and 4th Street Market, among others. Their menu leads off with nine appetizers, there's four taco plates to choose from, and ten entrees to select from. Prices range between $13 to $29 for entrees. I was going to be having the prix-fixe $30 restaurant week menu and Katie decided to order off of the regular menu. 

I always like to start out by showing a picture of the Chips and Salsa when eating in a Mexican restaurant. These from El Mercado were pretty solid. The tortilla chips were nicely fried and salted perfectly. The salsa had a good consistency to it, but I would have liked a little more heat to be present. 

A big thing for Katie growing up was ordering Chips and Guacamole ($9.00) as an appetizer at every  Mexican restaurant that they would eat at. It's a tradition that her parents still do to this day, sometimes ordering two or three if it's the ten of us. This version at El Mercado was pretty stellar. It had a good chunky consistency to it, was seasoned well, and came with pepitas, tomatoes, and onion. They also have a version that includes crickets, but Katie chickened out when I suggested trying it. 

Brussels Sprouts ($12) are having their moment in the sun right now, as they are on almost every menu in OC, including this one. At El Mercado, they crisp up their sprouts nicely and then add parmesan cheese, pickled veggies, and toss it with a chile ancho and xocconostle sauce. Balsamic was not used here, they instead utilized the contrasting slightly sweet and sour sauce, which was a breath of fresh air. I was also a fan of the pickled vegetables that were added. A nice choice of stater if you are a fan of Brussels sprouts. 

We've had the good, now the ugly. With my OC Restaurant Week pre-fixe menu, I could choose between either chicken or vegetable enchiladas, or what I went with the Carnitas ($18). Even the vegetable enchiladas had to be a better option than what I got. This big chunk of pork was as dry as August in Palm Springs. It came with a moat of pork jus, pickled onion, and a sprig of cilantro. The menu said that it was supposed to come with some salsa verde, but they must have forgotten it. It definitely needed it. Each bite was like sandpaper going down. I tried to salvage this by asking for some sour cream to help moisten things up a bit, but the small, thimble-sized amount of sour cream I was given was no match for this dried-up piece of swine that I left half-eaten as our plates were taken away. This was really one of the most awful meals I've had in recent memory. Barely edible. 

As I was struggling with my meal, Katie was waiting another 20 minutes for her Mole ($19). There must have been a snafu in the kitchen or our server did not key in the order. This chicken breast was placed in a pool of reddish mole, with dots of pea puree and jocoque on the plate and plenty of toasted sesame seeds and finely diced onion topping the bird. The chicken itself was for the most part pretty good, but some bites were a little on the dry side. I expected a little more depth of flavor from the mole, but it was passable. Katie ended up liking this more than I did, but she'd get something else if she came here again. 

The last part of my restaurant week experience was this Carrot Cake ($9). The carrot cake was formed into a mini loaf, with a pineapple compote placed on the side and plenty of whipped cream on top. The cake on its own was fine, moist, but not overly sweet. The sweetness of this dessert was provided by the pineapple and whipped cream. I liked this take on a carrot cake, but I do admit to missing the traditional cream cheese frosting that is a big part of any carrot cake experience. 

Okay, so our visit to El Mercado started off really well, and then took a deep drop off as soon as my meal reached the table. Like I said earlier, maybe they have new chefs in the kitchen, maybe they were having an off day, or some other unforeseen things were happening here, but I expected more especially after the glowing reviews I have read about this place from other food writers who I respect. I do give our server and the manager credit that they did try to make things right by giving Katie a free carrot cake, and free guacamole to take home, but I did have to end up getting something at the food truck outside. Other than the long wait for Katie's meal, the service was pretty solid on this evening. I'm going to chalk this one up to getting back into the swing of things after a long year, but I'd definitely avoid the carnitas on future visits. 

Out of five walnuts, (because this restaurant sits on Spurgeon Street, named after the founder of Santa Ana, William Spurgeon, who not only was the towns first mayor but also was a walnut farmer),  five being best to zero being worst, El Mercado Modern cuisine gets 2 walnuts. 

For more information about El Mercado Modern Cuisine, head to their website here: https://www.mercadomodern.com/

Hoping for a Friendly Meetup at GuacAmigos

GuacAmigos

2607 Pacific Coast Highway 

Newport Beach, CA 92663

Katie and I are pretty much similar except for one glaring difference, I'm definitely a morning person and she would prefer to sleep in until 11am. I'm fine with it most of the time, but it does put a crimp into one of my favorite meals that we don't get to have enough, brunch. By the time she gets moving, gets dressed, stops at Starbuck's for her twice-daily dose of caffeine, and fight traffic to get where we are going, most restaurants are wrapping up brunch service and getting ready for dinner.

Katie made a real effort to wake up "early" on a recent Sunday when we actually made a jaunt out to experience brunch with our very good friend, Becky. Becky suggested that we try out one of her favorite places as of late, GuacAmigos in Newport. I had only heard of this restaurant when I read a blistering review about it in the OC Register. Brad A. Johnson called it one of the worst new restaurants to open in 2019. I was definitely intrigued to see if it was as bad as he made it out to be.

GuacAmigos comes to us from the duo of skateboarding legend, Tony Hawk and former Playboy Playmate, Nicole Dahm, who along with her sisters formed the famous Dahm Triplets, who were featured in numerous issues of the magazine at the turn of the century. They took over the old Joe's Crab Shack spot in April of last year. 

The Guacamigos team has made great strides in opening up this restaurant from the old days when it was Joe's. It's a lot less cluttered from what I remember, with very comfy booths lining the large windows overlooking beautiful Newport Harbor. I was a little afraid that this being a celebrity-owned restaurant that there would be way too much memorabilia busying up the place. There is a surfboard from Kelly Slater, a snowboard from Saun White, plus other action sports items from others, including Tony Hawk himself, but they are spread out enough, and I think most visitors might not even notice them.

The brunch menu is pretty compact here, with only six entree options available, plus 2 kids meals. Prices are not too crazy when you consider the rents in this area of town. Nothing will set you back more than $17. Drinks are about the same, but there is a  cocktail appropriately called the High Roller, which goes for $40. A little rich for my blood, but let's take a look at what we did end up having on this Sunday Funday.

The obligatory Chips and Salsa shot is up first. The chips were pretty light with a slight dusting of chili powder. The salsa was very mild and needed to have a little more chunk to it for my tastes, along with some spice. Not awful, but nothing that blew us away.

One of the things that almost every employee pushed for us to get was the Tableside Guacamole ($15). We would have probably have gotten it anyway, even without the gentle upselling suggestion. With this one, they roll out a cart and you build your own guacamole with the provided 12 ingredients and 2 avocados. Both Katie and Becky let me be the shot caller in building our guacamole. I went with red onions, garlic, jalapenos, bacon, cilantro, and red pepper. The grilled pineapple intrigued me, but I left it out. The result was a pretty solid version of guacamole. I should have added a bit more bacon and red pepper for a slightly spicier zing.

Both Katie and Becky got the Cali Classic Breakfast Burrito ($13), but with different meats in them. Becky got hers with sausage, while Katie went with chicken tinga. The burritos also came filled with hash browns, cheddar cheese, and sour cream and salsa served on the side. I did not really question Becky about her burrito since we were catching up on how things are going for her, but Katie felt hers was just okay. She liked that they held it on the flattop for a little bit to give the tortilla a little crunch. The inside was a little overwhelmed by the amount of potato included here. She'd probably also get bacon next time, as the tinga lacked the pop of flavor she was hoping for. Kind of just an average breakfast burrito.

I'm crazy for Chilaquiles ($14) and was excited to have them here at GuacAmigos. They start this off with a layer of seasoned tortilla chips and then add ranchero sauce, black beans, chicken, sour cream, a small scoop of guacamole, and two sunny-side-up eggs. Again, this was not anything that blew me away, as it was a pretty pedestrian version of my favorite Mexican breakfast dish. The tortilla chips were pretty limp, the chicken was not present, and this needed a tad more spice to wake up my taste buds.

My opinion of GuacAmigos was not as dire as what I read in that scathing OC Register review, but they do have a lot of work to do if they want to compete with the other Mexican restaurants in the area. The food here was not even close to as good as what we have had at nearby Sol Cocina, Playa Mesa, El Ranchito, El Matador, Red O, and Mi Casa, to name a few. The nice views of the harbor will get people to visit once, but the food and a good beverage program are what they need to have people make return visits. Based on this visit, both of these things need to change. Add some spice to the food, upgrade the ingredients, and make the cocktails a little more affordable are a few of my suggestions. People online have not been kind about the service they have received here, but we experienced none of that. Everyone we encountered was very friendly and seemed to genuinely care about our visit, which was nice. Maybe the food at GuacAmigos was not the best choice to get Katie out of bed, but at least we had the chance for a long-overdue meet up with Becky and got to experience a beautiful view. No need to fret, Katie did get a three-hour nap afterward.

Out of five video games, (because owner Tony Hawk not only is a legendary skateboarder, but he's also put out close to 20 wildly popular video games since 1999), five being best to zero being worst, GuacAmigos gets 2 video games.

For more information about GuacAmigos, head to their website here: https://guacamigos.com/

Far from Classic Chinese Fare

Classic Chinese Restaurant

23565 Moulton Parkway #C

Laguna Hills, CA 92653

There are few things in life that I look forward to more than the end of the holiday season. Yes, I know, bah humbug and all that. I used to like holidays, but that was before I got a job, paid my own way, and had to do a bunch of running around from one family function to another. Once the new year begins, it's like a big weight is lifted off of me.

One of the things I totally look forward to is getting back into my regular groove of venturing out to restaurants again, and this time we were taking my good friend David out for his birthday. He had just recently visited Classic Chinese in Laguna Hills and claims that they serve some really good food. We decided this is where we'd have his birthday dinner this year, and also celebrate another year of making it through the difficult holiday season.

Classic Chinese is situated on Moulton, in the same shopping plaza as the DMV, Polly's Pie's, Big Lots, and Kosher Bite Deli, which I definitely need to hit up soon to get my pastrami fix. Classic Chinese has been around for three and a half years now. They replaced Long River Restaurant, which was another restaurant that served Chinese food in this spot for a good many years.

We arrived at Classic Chinese at just before 6pm on a recent Thursday. This part of the shopping center was pretty quiet outside, but that was a stark contrast to the bustling energy inside this crowded restaurant. Even with a nearly full restaurant, we were seated right away near the back of the restaurant. The menu here is pretty overwhelming with 183 items listed, but thankfully they are separated by sections. All of your favorite Chinese-American dishes are present here, but there are some more exotic offerings for those of you that like to get a little more adventurous. Think squid, jellyfish head, duck jaw, and six varieties of porridge, which I did not even realize was a thing in Chinese restaurants. We stuck to pretty much the basics, so let's see how David's birthday dinner turned out for us.

I guess I did not get the memo when Katie and David agreed that we were going to get these Crispy Fried Wontons ($6.95) to start out with. These came six to an order and came filled with cream cheese. Both David and Katie assumed this when the order was placed, but it came as a jolt to me when I bit into one when it came out. I'm not a big fan of cream cheese, so I finished that one and let them have the rest. Some meat filled wontons or a better name for this on the menu would have made me happier.

Photo credit goes to the birthday boy for this picture of the Sizzling Filet Mignon ($15.95). He got the better shot because the steam coming from this flew right into my direction. This fajita inspired plate was the best beef dish I have ever had in a Chinese restaurant, hands down. It came out on an iron plate, filled with chopped onion, a couple of mushrooms, red and green bell pepper, and some melt in your mouth filet mignon. As other dishes came to our table, this is the one that I found myself coming back to over and over again. It did not have an overpowering sauce, so the beef and veggies were the stars of the show. A very good start to our meal.

This is when it had started to turn for us at Classic Chinese though. We had wanted the Shredded Pork in Garlic Sauce, but they brought out this BBQ Pork with Pan Fried Noodles ($11.95) instead. This was probably my least favorite entree of the evening. Too many veggies, pork that was very tough and resembled beef jerky, and the crispy noodles added an awkward feel to this plate. We should have asked for our original selection to be brought out instead.

This Chicken Pan Fried Noodle ($12.95) was better, but not by much. It was colorfully presented with plenty of red and green peppers, a better-fried noodle, and plenty of strips of the chicken running through it. The sauce was a little better here but did not wow any of us.

Rounding things out for us on this evening was some Chicken Fried Rice ($11,95). We had wanted to try the house special fried rice, but it has shrimp in it, and Katie does not handle shrimp too well, so we went with this version instead. It was one of the most boring fried rice dishes I have had. Very bland and after my initial scoop, I kept my distance.

I guess it's safe to say that David's birthday dinner was kind of a bust when it came to the food on this evening. With the exception of that awesome sizzling beef dish, the selections that we made failed to impress. Maybe if you stick with the traditional dishes like beef and broccoli, sweet and sour pork, or orange chicken you might have a better experience than we did on this evening. The wait staff was not very friendly. They seemed like they were just there to move things along and get people in an out of the place. No checking up on us, no drink refills until we asked for them, and no smiles from any of them. Even though this restaurant failed to live up to our expectations, I'm still excited that the holiday season is over and that we can get back into a regular routine again.

Out of five eye charts, (because this restaurant is situated in the same shopping center as the DMV, and eye charts are an important part of getting your drivers license), five being best to zero being worst, Classic Chinese Restaurant gets 2 eye charts.

Classic Chinese Restaurant does not have a website, but you can find plenty of information about them on their Yelp page here: https://www.yelp.com/biz/classic-chinese-restaurant-laguna-hills

Hoping La Choza Will Be a Good Choice - CLOSED

La Choza

7402 Edinger Ave.

Huntington Beach, CA 92647

I love restaurant lists. Half of the bookmarks I save on my web browser are restaurant lists. I can't resist the best Chinese food in OC or a list of the top ten most romantic restaurants. I quickly save these and use them for later. This brought us and our good friends Scott and Cynthia to La Choza in Huntington Beach.

In the middle of last year, OC Register restaurant critic Brad A. Johnson published his list of OC's 20 best full-service Mexican restaurants. I had been to fifteen of the restaurants on his list, and some I agreed with (Gabbi's Solita and Sol Agave), while others I was not so keen on (Puesto, Carmelita's, and one of the most overrated, Javier's). Lists are subjective, so I gave Mr. Johnson a pass on the clunkers that populated his list and decided to give some of the ones I had yet to eat a try. La Choza was one of those.

La Choza comes to us from Enrique Haro, who opened the original La Choza in West Los Angeles 1976. After a remodel, he renamed his Olympic Boulevard restaurant Tia Juana's and updated the menu by adding some seafood dishes. It stood until 2007 when they had to move to make way for Walgreens. Enrique brought back the La Choza name for the move to Huntington Beach. Still, he kept the Tia Juana's menu and many of the employees, including his mother, Alicia, who has run the kitchen since the first inception of La Chozza all those years ago.

Sitting across the street from an apartment complex and a block west of the always-busy Bella Terra Shopping Center, La Choza brings to mind the old-school Mexican restaurants I'd sometimes visit with my family. When walking into La Choza, a lady making tortillas behind a glass partition counts out the number of your party, and then the server sends over the freshly made tortillas. The whole restaurant feels old-school with its brightly painted walls and an extensive menu that features plenty of combo plates, seafood, burritos, and regional specialties from around Mexico. We could only talk for so long to Scott, who is always charismatic, so let's find out if La Choza belongs on the list of best Mexican restaurants in OC.

As always, I like to share what the Chips and Salsa look like when dining at a Mexican restaurant. These were run-of-the-mill tortilla chips, but I did enjoy the choice of having the red and green salsa. Both were solid flavorwise, with the green being a tad spicier, but I missed having some chunks included in these salsas. Some chopped-up tomatoes and onions would have made these a bit better.

I usually do not partake in alcohol when we are out; I usually try to focus on the food instead, but since Scott was going on and on about his love for his future bride, Cynthia, I felt the need to dull the pain of listening to this lovesick puppy by partaking in a Margarita on the Rocks ($8.75). Cynthia must have felt the same, as she had the Blended Margarita ($8.75). Both were solid, with a good balance of margarita mix and tequila, which was evenly distributed once I stirred it up with my straw. This was a little more tart than I usually like, but it did the trick of helping me forget what Scott was talking about. Man, that guy can be a real chatterbox.

Katie and I have gotten into Queso Fundidio ($7.75) since we started this restaurant blog, and with the fresh tortillas served here, we felt we needed to try this one. This was not the best version of this delicious starter that we have ever had. The menu claims this had chorizo, but if it did, it was just a tiny bit, and I did not detect any. I got some shredded chile strips but needed more to make this average. Not only was the flavor lacking, but the consistency of this needed to be corrected, and it was very oily. Not even La Choza's delicious tortillas could have helped this out.

As is her usual tradition in a Mexican restaurant, Katie always gets an appetizer of Guacamole ($7.95). She learned this from her dad, who I have seen do this many times in the almost decade I have known him. This was average guacamole. A little on the runny side, I like my guac the same way I like my salsa, with some chunks to it. This runny green puddle was splashed with a little tomato sauce (why?) and sprinkled with a few shreds of cheese, which did little to save this from being anything other than mediocre guacamole.

Most meals at La Choza include your choice of soup or salad, which I always appreciate. We all picked the salad, which fit in with the theme of our meal so far but was very lackluster in looks and taste. The iceberg lettuce was very pale and only garnished with a tiny amount of shredded carrots and very thin salad dressing. Until this point, La Choza was consistent with their food; bland, thin sauces, and not very photogenic. I would like a turnaround once our entrees come out for us.

The first plate to make its way out to us was Katie's, and she had the Two Taco Combination Plate ($14.95). The menu states that these are hard-shelled tacos, but they let her have one soft-shell chicken taco with their hard-shelled version. She felt this was an okay plate, nothing special. The tortillas highlighted her meal, but they could not hide the fact that the chicken was dry and bland. Not one of her favorites.

Mr. Personality, AKA Scott, selected this Carne Asada Burrito ($9.95) as his evening meal. This wet burrito was topped with red enchilada sauce and cheese, while the inside contained broiled steak, beans, and salsa ranchera. This was a large burrito, but our good friend Scott finished it like a champ. However, he was not too impressed with it, as the beef inside was a little bland. He'd probably get something else the next time he was here.

Scott's way better half opted for the simple Carne Asada Taco Combo Plate ($10.95). Cynthia chose to have this taco soft instead of crispy. She agreed with both Katie and Scott that this taco was nothing special and that she'd try something else next time she was here.

When I'm new to a Mexican restaurant, I usually gravitate towards Carnitas ($14.95) on my maiden visit. The carnitas at La Choza were listed under their menu's regional section, with Michoacan as their area of origin. I had heard that this was where this pork dish was created, but I had never had the pork prepared this way in little cubes. They were okay, but I missed the crispy ends when the carnitas were shredded. The beans and rice were adequate, but more guacamole would have been better. Kind of an awkward plate, and I'm in agreement that I'd probably get something different on another visit here.

I should have snapped a picture of the tortillas earlier, but I got this one before Katie snapped it up. The tortillas are the best thing about this restaurant, and to their credit, they were not shy about getting you some more when you scarfed down each round they'd bring.

It baffled me how La Choza could end up in the top 20 Mexican restaurants in the OC Register. Our experience was far from top list material, but as is the case with all of these lists, they are subjective, and restaurant reviewers have different tastes depending on their visits. Even though the food we ordered failed to impress, the tortillas were tremendous and made us wish that more Mexican restaurants would offer freshly made tortillas, even though it was time-consuming. None of us would return to La Choza, but please let us know if you have a different experience.

Out of five pizzas (because choza translates to hut in Spanish, and the most famous hut is probably Pizza Hut), five being best to zero being worst, La Choza gets 2 pizzas.

For more information about La Choza, head to their website here: https://www.lachozaoc.com/

Legado Hoping to Create a Legacy for Themselves - CLOSED

Legado Bar + Kitchen

30065 Alicia Parkway

Laguna Niguel, CA 92677

There's not too much that I like about the holidays. Not to get too much bah humbug on ya, but my real job is in retail, and the holidays make people lose their minds. It's like they haven't bought butter all year long, and they just stare at it endlessly as other people are trying to get into the case.  The holidays also bring in people that have never been in a supermarket before. No, we don't have tennis balls, and why would a supermarket carry sporting goods? That's just one example, and I have much more I'm saving for my upcoming book that I plan to write after I retire.

Anyways, I bring this up because there are very few things that I enjoy about the holidays. There is a newish tradition of Katie and I go out with her parents a few days before Christmas that I really like. It's a time to reset before the craziness at work, and they let me pick the restaurant we are going to eat at. This has been going on for probably five years now, and for this years pick we went to a restaurant near her parent's house, Legado Bar + Kitchen.

Legado has been open since April of last year. This used to be a Pick Up Stix, but it's pretty unrecognizable from those days. Once you walk in the door there's a u-shaped bar, and behind that, there's a view of the happenings in the kitchen. The dining room is pretty narrow but comfortable enough. Table spacing was good, and you did not feel like you were eating right on top of other customers.

Before coming to Legado, I checked out their menu, and it kind of intrigued me, and with all the places I have eaten, that does not happen too often. Almost all of their menu allows you to pick a full or small-sized portion of your entree, pasta, salad, or starter. This is great for someone like me who is a big eater and can get two small entrees so I can try twice as much. I was also interested to see how they pull off such a varied menu. For a small restaurant, there's a lot to choose from. 16 appetizers, 8 pasta choices, 11 salad options, and 13 entrees. Let's see how our first Legado experience played out.

Up first is the small-sized Wedge Salad ($7). This was a pretty traditional version of a wedge. Iceberg lettuce, cherry tomatoes, red onion, crumbled bacon, and a liberal amount of blue cheese dressing was included on this. Katie's mom Lynn had no qualms with this wedge. She loved the freshness of the produce, the salty bits of bacon, and the tinge of flavor that the red onion provided. A winner in her book.

Katie's dad Dennis was also fond of this 3 Cheese Heirloom Stack ($9). The three kinds of cheese used in between the sliced tomatoes were gorgonzola, goat cheese, and fresh mozzarella. This stack was finished off with some red onions and a cabernet vinaigrette. Dennis praised the fresh tomatoes here, and also liked the uniqueness of this salad, with the use of the three kinds of cheese.  He'd get this one again.

I think Katie and her family think they are aspiring hand models or something, as they always manage to get a hand in the pictures. Not off the salad portion of the menu, was Katie's selection of the Ahi Tartare ($9). This starter had a lot going on with it. It was formed in a mini-tower, with layers of ahi, cubed mango, cucumbers, red onion, avocado, and a streak of a sweet Thai chili sauce across the plate. She really liked this starter, as the tuna was fresher than she imagined it would be, she liked the different layers and what they added as far as taste, but she was not really too big of a fan of the tuiles, the baked wafer that this came with. It was too sweet, and a bit awkward to go along with this appetizer.

Back to the salads, and of course, my choice this evening would be the Caesar Salad ($6). This might look like a pretty boring version of a Caesar, but it left me satisfied. It had good-sized pieces of shaved parmesan, crunchy croutons, and just the right amount of Caesar dressing. Nothing too crazy or out of the norm, but I enjoyed this and would order it again.

Not content with just a salad alone, I was the only one at the table to order an appetizer as well. There were plenty of options but I zeroed in on this House Made Meatball ($8). This 4-ounce meatball was made with ground beef and then is doused with marinara and some parmesan. Not bad, but nothing really made this stand out either. The meatball was not crazy tender or seasoned enough to make it stand out. The marinara was fine and I liked the inclusion of the shaved parm, but this meatball was nothing that got me too excited.

Entrees were up next and we'll start with the Pappardelle Carbonara ($11) that Katie got. I was surprised that the small-sized portion of this was as big as it was. It was the perfect size for Katie. This was a classic presentation of a carbonara; bacon, egg, and grated parmesan cheese topping the pappardelle noodles. Katie felt this was fine, but it lacked a pop of flavor and the egg was overcooked in this. She would get something else on her next visit to Legado.

Chicken Piccata ($12) is a favorite on menus across our county, and this was what Katie's mom went with on this evening. Not to ruin the rest of this review for you, but as far as the rest of the entrees went, she was the only one of the four of us that loved her entree. Again, this is the small-sized portion, which was a very large chicken breast with a lemon cream sauce and capers covering it. She found the chicken to be tender and was a big fan of the interaction between the lemon sauce and the capers. She might have found her go-to item at Legado on her first visit.

I've never really been a fan of Beef Stroganoff ($13),(too many experiences with my mom's lackluster version growing up, sorry mom), but Katie's dad is very fond of this comforting dish. The version here is served with pappardelle noodles, mushrooms, and cut up steak. I'm not sure what kind of steak they used in this, but it was not the most tender of beef. The sauce was okay according to Dennis, but it did not really overwhelm him as being the best stroganoff he has had.

I took advantage of the small-sized entrees at Legado, and ordered two different things, the first being this Homemade Meatloaf ($11). This meatloaf gets a lot of praise on Yelp, but this was overcooked and rather dry. The crust of the meatloaf was pretty tough to get through and the center parts were not much easier. The brown gravy did not add too much flavor and did little to moisten this up. The best part of this plate was the mashed potatoes, which were fine but nothing special. I used alternating forkfuls of the potatoes to help me finish off this disappointing meatloaf.

I was hoping for a better result with my second plate, the Short Rib ($15). It didn't happen. It's really a shame when a short rib is not tender and flavorful, and that was the case with the one on this evening at Legado. The beef was tough and the same gravy that was used on the meatloaf failed to give this an extra pop. The mashed potatoes were okay, but the best part of this plate was probably the crispy onions topping the bland short ribs. Beef might not be the thing to get here.

Dessert would be our last hurrah at Legado, and we tried two of their six house-made offerings. The better of the two was the Chef's Bread Pudding ($10). Bread pudding is a tricky dessert, as a lot of them are either too moist or to dry. This one was just right. It kind of reminded me of the cinnamon roll that I love at the OC Fair. A nice crust and softer inside. I was sad that Katie's mom had picked this, as I would have abandoned my selection, the Peanut Butter Mousse ($7) for it. The mousse was heavier than it should have been and the peanut butter flavor kind of got tiresome after a few bites. Maybe a drizzle of chocolate would have helped keep me interested in this dessert.

Our visit to Legado started out promising, but after the salads, the meal went downhill fast. Maybe they were having an off night, but the entrees that we got were nothing above average, and not anything that we are excited to return for. I liked the variety of the menu and the fact that you have the option to pick your entree size, I just wish the execution was better. Service was spot on this evening, even with a pretty full house. Our food came out in a timely manner and our server could not have been nicer. Even though Legado failed to impress it did not damper one of the few traditions that I enjoy about the holidays.

Out of five masks, (because there used to be an annual professional wrestling event in Mexico called Legado, and many of the wrestlers participating wore masks), five being best to zero being worst, Legado Kitchen + Bar get 2 masks.

For more information about Legado Bar + Kitchen, head to their website here: https://www.legadobarandkitchen.com/