Instagram Brought Us to Tacos Don Goyo

 Tacos Don Goyo

379 West Central Avenue

Brea, CA 92821

When scrolling through my Instagram feed, I usually mindlessly try to get to the next thing. It's infrequent that I stop and notice what I see on my phone screen. What had me drooling, you ask? It was Tacos Don Goyo and their carne asada fries. Well, it was really everything on their Instagram page, but the way they showed them making their Don Goyo-style loaded fries made me take notice. I almost immediately made plans to meet my parents here that weekend. 

Tacos Don Goyo has three locations, this Brea spot and others in the City of Industry and Downey. The Downey location opened in 2018 and is named after chef and owner Ricardo Jasso's late father. Ricardo describes his Mexican cuisine here as a cross between the food you can get in Mexico City and Tijuana. He's a native of Mexico City, and this place is an homage to the taqueros of that city. It also filled a void for good tacos he craved when he first came to the United States.  

If it weren't for Instagram, I never would have known about Tacos Don Goyo. This location in Brea is far removed from the busy area near the mall, in a small strip of stores alongside Central Avenue, between Tamarack Avenue and Memory Garden Memorial Park. There's a hearing aid store and urgent care, and the only other notable storefront is the Phoenix Club, now based here after many years near the Honda Center. I made a note and must return to satisfy my bratwurst and schnitzel cravings.  

Back to Tacos Don Goyo. We arrived at 5 p.m. on a Saturday, walked right in, and ordered at the counter. However, that was not the case as our visit went along. They got pretty busy, and the line stretched almost to the front door for the remainder of our stay. Maybe one reason for the long line was the considerable menu. It's a little overwhelming, even for me. They offer ten types of meat and fifteen ways to utilize them, such as tacos, burritos, mulitas, and more. Depending on the item, they also have a top sirloin option, which costs between thirty cents to a couple dollars more. We grabbed a table and waited for our number to be called. 

I've said it often, but my mom is a light eater. This evening, she only had one Carnitas Taco ($3.07 plus 52 cents for adding cheese). She also requested no onions or cilantro on it. This is not a good representation of a Don Goyo taco, but I wanted to include it to show they are willing to accommodate their guests. My mom loved this taco and thought they were generous with the pork they provided. She was also excited that guacamole was included at no additional charge. 

My dad selected this Chicken Taco ($3.07) as the first of two items he'd be having at Tacos Don Goyo. He loved it, featuring plenty of seasoned chicken, onions, cilantro, and guacamole. He felt it was in the upper echelon of chicken tacos he had. He wouldn't hesitate to get it again. 

My dad is approaching 80, and this is his first time having a Mulita ($4.68). He selected carnitas as his protein of choice, and he might just be a mulita convert now. For those of you who are unsure what a mulita is, it's best described as a quesadilla, but instead of one folded tortilla, it uses two tortillas with the filling sandwiched between them. This one had shredded pork, cilantro, onion, and guacamole. I stole a piece of the carnitas that had fallen out and felt the pork was good. It had the consistency of pulled pork that is served in barbecue restaurants. Almost a little too moist, but still good.  

Like father, like son, I got my own mulita but opted for the Chorizo Mulita ($4.68). The chorizo was a good choice; it had a big flavor boost and went well with the other ingredients. I enjoyed the corn tortilla here, as it was left on the grill just enough to make it sturdy enough to pick up and hold most of the inner workings of the mulita inside. 

I like to try as many different kinds of meats as possible at any Mexican restaurant, so I got both a  Pastor Taco ($3.07) and a Buche Taco ($3.07). Both were good, but the al-pastor was the better of the two. The marinade they use on the pork has an excellent flavor profile, with equal parts sweet and savory in each bite. The pork was tender, and the taco was traditionally served with a pineapple slice. Not all pastor tacos are created equally; this one at Don Goyo was one of my favorites. Buche is not something that most people like, but I'm a fan. For those unaware, buche is the pig's stomach lining, stewed for several hours until it becomes soft. I've had some excellent buche, and some were pretty bad. This is in the former group.  It had a good chew to it but was not overwhelmingly tough. If you're curious about buche, this might be the spot to start your buche journey. 

Since I enjoyed the al pastor so much, I also got it in their Quesotaco ($3.38). This one came with everything in their regular tacos but had fried cheese. It was well worth the extra thirty-one cent upcharge. I'll get all my tacos like this on future visits to Tacos Don Goyo. 

Saving the best for last, here's what got me to visit Tacos Don Goyo, their Don Goyo Fries ($17.67). I selected the carne asada for these fries, which were topped with beef, nacho and white cheese, onions, guacamole, sour cream, and cilantro. I was full after all that I had eaten here up until this point, but I could not stop myself from trying to finish this. It's meant for more than one person, but I had little help from my tablemates with this. They were very generous with the toppings here, and plenty of carne asada was included, and it had a nice smokiness. It is one of the better care asada fries I have had. I'm usually averse to nacho cheese, but it worked here. Their Instagram page showing this being made got me here, but after having this, it's also what will bring me back. 

We did not have any misses on our trip to Tacos Don Goyo. It's a legit taqueria that I look forward to trying again soon. I am already planning what I will have next time; one of their burritos, a quesadilla, and the papa loka, a loaded baked potato with your choice of meat and cheese. I'll also be hard-pressed not to get the Don Goyo fries next time. The prices were not too outrageous here, as the tacos were packed with meat, and the serving size of the Don Goyo fries was more than generous. The girl at the counter was patient as we took a little time to order our food. Be aware that this place gets packed with people at peak meal times. They may also have seen Don Goyo's Instagram posts and decided to head over. It was an excellent decision.  

Out of five oil derricks (because the flag, seal, and logo of Brea all feature an oil derrick alluding to the economic boom that helped the founding of the city in 1917), five being best to zero being worst, Tacos Don Goyo gets 3.5 oil derricks. 

Tacos Don Goyo does not have a website, but you can find out more about them by checking out their Yelp page by clicking here: https://www.yelp.com/biz/tacos-don-goyo-brea-brea

Julep, Good Enough to Toast To?

 Julep

3325 East Imperial Highway 

Brea, CA 92823

It was day two of birthday dinners for Katie, and this time it was my family's turn to spoil the birthday girl. As is her custom, Katie yields the restaurant selection to me. This is not due to my prowess in picking great restaurants. It's more about me choosing a spot that will satisfy her and my family. After many minutes of research online, I finally decided on Julep in Brea. 

Julep burst onto the scene eight months ago and is situated in the old Jimmy's Famous Tavern spot on the corner of Valencia and Imperial Highway in the La Floresta Shopping Center, which is anchored by Whole Foods, Mendocino Farms, and Urban Plates. Julep comes to us from the Toast Restaurant Group, which runs Mimosas Brunch and Dinner in both Whittier and Anaheim Hills,  Benediction in the City of Industry, and Toast, which boasts three locations in Downey, Whittier, and down the road in Brea. 

This is the least brunch-centric of their concepts, even though they offer a brunch menu on weekends from 8am til 3. The lunch and dinner menus are the same, and all items on both are offered after 11am daily. Julep has plenty of options for you to consider when dining here. They offer 13 appetizers, along with soups and salads. Burgers, sandwiches, and pasta dishes are available, with 14 more significant entrees of steaks, seafood, and chicken dishes. Prices range between  $12 to $25 for starters, and entrees will set you back anywhere between $14 to $55 for their filet mignon. 

They take reservations through their Yelp page, but only for parties of four or fewer. For bigger parties, you are asked to phone the restaurant, which I did since we were a party of six, but after numerous calls spread over several days with no one answering the phone, I decided we'd chance it and just show up. We met at half past four on a Sunday, which is not precisely peak meal-eating time. After a wait of about five minutes, we were seated. 

The dining area conveys a pleasant and relaxed vibe with its exposed dark wood beams on the ceiling, striped tiled flooring, and glass roll-up doors allowing plenty of natural light to permeate the restaurant. The space is still recognizable from when this was Jimmy's, but they have added their own touches like the dragonflies and empty bird cages adorning the walls and the whimsical art spread throughout the restaurant. 

We started with two appetizers, the first of which was the Corn Fritters ($13). These yellow corn fritters resembled tater tots, with a crunchy outer shell and a cornbread mixture inside. They came with a maple bourbon sauce for dipping. I'm not a huge cornbread fan, but everyone else enjoyed these. I enjoyed the choice of the dipping sauce, which saved these for me. 

The Ahi Tuna Tartare ($18) gets a lot of love online. This tuna tower uses cubed tuna mixed with a sesame dressing as its base and then is topped with an avocado mash. It comes with wonton chips for scooping. I liked this, but I only had a couple bites since it was split among six people. The tuna was fresh but could have been seasoned a bit more. I enjoyed the avocado on top, which stole the show for me with this plate. 

This Fried Chicken ($20) wins the award for most photogenic dish of the evening. The chicken breast was fried nicely with a delightful crunch when bitten into. It was also surprisingly tender all the way through. It was served with a large spoonful of garlic pomme puree, which you might know better as garlic mashed potatoes. They were very buttery, but the promised garlic was very muted. The plate was rounded out by a Dijon mustard sauce that lined the bottom and served as a gravy over the fried chicken. An odd choice that worked well because the mustard was not too front and center. My mom and sister enjoyed Julep's take on this American classic. 

The birthday girl Katie picked the Beef Stroganoff ($25) as her celebratory meal. I'm sure I have not mentioned it, but Julep is a cast iron skillet restaurant, meaning all their entrees are cooked in or finished in a cast iron skillet. I think this dish was just finished in the cast iron. This meal was made up of filet mignon, pappardelle, and the same Dijon mustard sauce that was used on the fried chicken. Katie liked this version of the comfort food classic. The noodles were cooked nicely, the steak was tender, and she appreciated the uniqueness of the mustard sauce. She scrapped this plate clean. 

It's always entertaining to see what my dad will order when we go out to eat. He did not disappoint by getting this Cast Iron Trout ($21). This rather large piece of trout was cooked to where it was flaky, but it was a little too mild in the flavor department for my tastes. The garlic mashed potatoes, and the green bean baby friese citrus salad did an admirable job of livening things up. 

My brother-in-law had heard good things about the Shrimp and Grits ($21) at Julep, so he tried them. This was another interesting interpretation of a dish we've all had. The garlic shrimp and grits were placed on top of four asparagus spears and some red wine demi glaze and then topped with fried onions. This was too busy. The red wine sauce seemed out of place, and the asparagus should have been situated to the side, along with the fried onion strings. The shrimp and the grits were good but were overwhelmed by the other components of this plate. 

I usually avoid getting ribs and other barbecue items at non-barbecue restaurants, but for some reason, these Coca-Cola Beef Ribs ($25) piqued my interest enough to order them. They were decent and better than some I have had in actual barbecue spots in OC. Plenty of tender and flavorful meat on these one-and-a-half ribs, and the barbecue sauce added a tinge of sweetness to each bite. I usually like to apply my own barbecue sauce to my meat, but this sauce was pretty solid. The plate was rounded out by some coleslaw and french fries, both of which were satisfying. 

I admit I did not have the highest hopes for a good meal when we entered Julep this early Sunday evening. I changed my tune when we had finished eating, though. The food here will not blow you away and make you want to immediately return, but the menu is varied enough that almost anyone can find something at Julep that they will like. The little twists they add sometimes miss the mark, but not enough to ruin your meal. The service this evening could best be described as slow. Our server had a bunch of tables to attend to while other servers walked around aimlessly, not doing too much or helping our server out. It's a young staff, so they may find their way. The price point here was more than fair for the portion sizes. Not to break my arm, patting myself on my back, but this was a pretty good spot that I picked for my family to celebrate Katie's birthday. Everyone left here happy. 

Out of five horses (because the most well-known julep is the mint julep, famous for being served at the Kentucky Derby), five being best to zero being worst, Julep gets 3 horses. 

For more information about Julep, head to their website by clicking here: https://www.julepbrea.com/ 

Hoping This Toast Will Be the Toast of the Town

 Toast Kitchen and Bar

190 South State College

Brea, CA 92821

The restaurant business, just like other parts of society is a trend-based culture. If someone comes upon a really good thing, others seem to copy it. Remember when frozen yogurt shops were sprouting up almost everywhere? Then people seemed to turn their attention to poke, and you could get those fish cubes almost everywhere. Now it seems like the tides have turned once again, and it's not a type of restaurant that is the new hot thing, but rather a name. 

A quick Yelp search of the restaurants with the name Toast yields six results throughout southern California. Okay, maybe it's not as big of a trend as the others I had mentioned, but it could be a little confusing if your friend mentions that they want to eat at Toast, and you both show up at different restaurants. To help you out a bit, I think I got all these Toast restaurants figured out until another one sprouts up. 

There's the wildly popular Toast Kitchen and Bakery in Costa Mesa, which almost always requires a wait for a table, especially on weekends. Toast in Temecula is also a very popular spot and gets some great reviews online. Toast Bakery and Cafe is yet another one up in LA and is situated on trendy Third Street. Don't worry people of North San Diego County, you are not to be left out with your very own, Toast Gastrobrunch. 

The aforementioned Toast restaurants are all independent of each other, with no connection that I'm aware of. That brings us to Toast, which has been operating in Whittier since 2016. They have a sister restaurant at the corner of Birch and State College in Brea, which they initially called The Dylan, but it has recently been renamed, and you guessed it, it's now Toast Kitchen and Bar. Confused? I'm sure you're not the only one. 

I recently ventured to Toast in Brea with my parents right around the time of their name change. At the time they still had a banner over their old name, so I assume the name change was just made recently from the time of my visit. I had not been to the Dylan, but I had been here when it was a Claim Jumper, several years ago. The dining area is much more opened up and brighter from what I remember during these CJ days, with some very high ceilings and plenty of white paint on the walls. 

The all-day menu predictably is breakfast-focused, but they are now open until 8pm, so there's salads, entrees, burgers, and sandwiches to choose from as well. Breakfast options hover around the $17 price point, but the steak and eggs will set you back $29. My parents and I had looked at the menu online and were pretty quick to make our selections. Here's how everything turned out for us on this late Thursday morning. 

Let's start things off with my dad's selection, the Bacon Avocado Benedict ($16). This is one of the nine benedicts available here at Toast. It came layered with an avocado mash on the bottom, two strips of bacon, poached egg, and hollandaise sauce blanketing the penthouse level. My dad called this excellent, even though there were temperature issues with this. He was a big fan of the generous amount of bacon and avocado that came with it. He'd totally get this again. 

Breakfast sandwiches are my mom's thing, so she had to give this Breakfast Croissant ($14) a try. This sandwich had a little more heft to it than she's used to on other breakfast sandwiches she's had at other places. They use both black forest ham and bacon at Toast, then top it with an egg, sliced Tillamook cheddar cheese, and a touch of dijon aioli to round things out. She had asked for this to come with the egg over hard, but it came out with scrambled eggs instead. Not wanting to make a fuss, she ate it anyway and enjoyed it just the same. Both my mom and dad opted for the fresh fruit as their side, and they could not have been happier with their choice. They felt the fruit selection here was an upgrade from their usual breakfast spots. 

If my mom's thing is breakfast sandwiches, mine right as of this moment is breakfast burgers, as I've had many over the last month or so. This Brunch Burger ($17) is made up of an eight-ounce patty featuring both chorizo and beef and is then built up with a slice of white cheddar, bacon, sunny side up egg, and avocado all on a brioche bun. The patty really distinguished itself, with a more striking flavor profile due to the inclusion of the chorizo. The rest of the assembled cast added good texture and flavor in bursts. The yolk was runny and helped bind everything together, so my extra side of aioli that I asked for was not needed too much. I was intrigued by the description of the Hash Brown Chips, which the menu described as a cross between fries, potato chips, and hash browns. The menu got this right, but they were awkward to eat, as they were fried crispy and I wanted to eat them with my fingers like chips or fries, but they were too little to get a good handle on. It was also futile to eat them with my fork, as I could only pick them up one at a time. I'd prefer getting their country potatoes next time with cheese and jalapenos added. 

Toast Kitchen and Bar was better than I imagined it would be. It was definitely an improved alternative to a recent brunch we had at the nearby Lazy Dog Cafe on Mother's Day. I liked almost everything we had but did find the prices a few dollars too high on most items. There were also some issues with the kitchen on this visit, most noticeably the lukewarm temperature of my dad's meal and my mom's eggs being scrambled instead of over hard as she had instructed. Service was fine, but not especially warm and inviting. Even though Toast is not the most original name for a breakfast spot, I'd return here to try more of their menu. I'll just have to make sure that whoever I'm meeting knows what Toast to show up at. 

Out of five Ferris wheels, (because like the electric toaster, the Ferris wheel came into existence in 1893), five being best to zero being worst, Toast Kitchen and Bar gets 3 Ferris wheels. 

For more information about Toast Kitchen and Bar, head to their website here: https://www.toastbrea.com/

Catching Fire in Brea

 Fire Wings

985 East Birch St. Suite D

Brea, CA 92821

Due to the pandemic, we have only seen my family a handful of times. Mostly for holidays for a brief time, a few meals at restaurants when outside dining was permitted, and this trip to see them was for a long-overdue family picture. I have not aged much since our last picture over a decade ago, but my three nieces have all grown into beautiful young women, and we definitely needed a new picture to document their transformation. 

As usual, it was my job to come up with a place for the nine of us to eat after a hard afternoon of modeling. It's pretty challenging to come up with a spot that everyone will like. My nieces are pretty picky eaters, my parents like modest prices, my sister really just wants a place that she can enjoy a beer with her meal, and I always want to find the best food possible. I ended up going with Fire Wings in Brea because everyone seems to be on a chicken kick these days. 

Fire Wings is a chain from up in Northern California. They are planning a significant expansion in our area, with their website stating that they have spots opening soon in Irvine and Fountain Valley, but this Brea location is their first in OC. It's located across the street from the Brea Mall in the Brea Marketplace Shopping Center, which also includes Sprouts, Stonefire Grill, and CVS Pharmacy. 

Now that you have the lay of the land, let's focus on the menu at this chicken-centric establishment. Fire Wings features 21 different wing flavors, they offer bone-in and boneless, and you have the option of getting your chicken as part of a combo meal or by the piece in increments of 10, 20, 40, or more. Prefer your chicken in the form of a sandwich? They have three types for you to choose from. There's also a quartet of salads and fifteen sides to pick from to accompany your meal. With so many choices I was a little overwhelmed but I eventually managed to pull it together and select a good deal of food to try. Let's take a look at it. 

Naturally, I had to try their wings first, so I went with the 20 Piece Wings ($21.09). With this option, you can pick three different wing flavors to create your own personal sampler plate. With 21 different flavor profiles, it was a little tough to narrow it down. I eventually went with the mango habanero, garlic parmesan, and the unusual peanut butter. I was pretty pleased with the wings here. They had plenty of meat on them, they were fried well with a good crunch to them, and all the flavors I had were pretty stellar. I liked the mango habanero the best, with a slight heat to it, finished with a burst of sweetness coming through at the end of each bite. The dry rub garlic parmesan was another favorite, with plenty of flavors and it highlighted the crunchy exterior of each piece. The peanut butter was interesting, with most of the nuttiness coming from the sprinkling of crushed peanuts over the top of the wings, while the sauce kind of resembled the same one used for the mango habanero, minus the heat. Still good, and I'd actually get these three flavors again after trying different ones on future visits. I only used the provided ranch for the garlic parmesan wings, which shows that these wings could stand on their own. 

As if I did not have enough on my plate with the 20 wings, I also tried the Nashville Fire Sandwich ($8.99). This breaded chicken sandwich comes with coleslaw, pickles, and spicy sauce. The sandwich comes in four heat levels; hot, extra hot, super fire, and super hot fire. I went with the super fire heat level and it was very spicy even for me, who can tolerate spice pretty well. I'd go down to the extra hot heat level next time, so I could enjoy the sandwich a little more. The chicken itself had a nice crunchy breading to it, while the chicken inside was just juicy enough. I liked the coleslaw, but they could have used a bit more sauce on this, so I used my remaining ranch instead, which seemed to help with cooling this sandwich down a bit. I also have to point out that this picture doesn't really show it as well as the picture you will see below, but the buns they were using on this day were almost burnt on top, which kind of detracted from the insides of the sandwich. 

Katie has never been a big fan of wings because, like many others, she's not fond of eating off of the bones. She instead ordered the 4 Piece Boneless Chicken Mini Meal ($5.39). This meal also came with fries and a drink, a pretty good deal for lighter eaters. She picked the original buffalo sauce to coat her boneless wings. She liked the flavor of the traditional sauce and the chicken inside was pretty solid. Since she's doing the keto thing she left the fries to me, and they were fine, but nothing really made them stand out. She also selected this House Salad ($5.49) to round out her meal. This salad was made up of a romaine and spring mix, sliced red onion, cucumbers, tomatoes, and grated cheese. It usually comes with Italian dressing, but she opted for blue cheese dressing, which she loved. This salad did the trick, as it featured fresh veggies and was pretty good sized. 

My sister had the Mozzarella Sticks ($4.99) and the 6 Piece Salt and Pepper Boneless Chicken ($10.79). I tried one of the mozzarella sticks and they were pretty basic, and she agreed that they really did not wow her. She was, however, a fan of the chicken. The breading was crunchy and the salt and pepper flavor came out big time in this dry rub. It went well with the well-made ranch dressing. She ended up enjoying her meal very much, even as her daughters bickered at the table. Oh, the joys of motherhood. 

Here's a quick shot of my brother in law's meal, the Large Chili Cheese Fries ($5.99) and his Original Chicken Sandwich ($8.99). You can see from the above picture of the sandwich what I was talking about with the bun being baked a little too long. He liked this original chicken sandwich version, which comes with pepper jack cheese, lettuce, tomato, and mayo. The chili cheese fries failed to make much of an impression. The fries were topped with a meaty chili that resembled the one from Wienerschnitzel and liquid cheese. I'm always partial to grated cheese, so I did not try these, but he felt they were just okay, and nothing he would get on future visits to Fire Wings. . 

This was a good place for our afterparty for our family picture. The menu was diverse enough that it allowed even the pickiest eater in our group, (my niece Lillie), to find something to keep her happy. I'd sum up Fire Wings as a better version of Buffalo Wild Wings, as far as the wings go. I liked the chicken and flavors here better than at most wing spots, but the sides were just average, almost bordering on mediocre. It's probably best to focus mainly on the chicken here, which should keep you pretty happy. The prices were not too outrageous, and I liked that they offered plenty of options depending on how hungry you happen to be while visiting here. You can get anywhere from 4 to 100 wings, and if you can consume 100 wings in a single seating, my hat goes off to you. Our family picture turned out fine, and when placed side by side with the one we took ten years ago, we all seem to be aging like a fine wine. 

Out of five dinosaur bones, (because brea in Spanish translates to tar, and dinosaur bones are found at the La Brea Tar Pits in LA), five being best to zero being worst, Fire Wings gets 3 dinosaur bones. 

For more information about Fire Wings, head to their website here: https://www.firewings.com/ 

Starting off Vacation at El Durango Grill - CLOSED

El Durango Grill

730 East Imperial Highway 

Brea, CA 92821

For those of you that are unaware, my real job, the one that makes me just enough money to eat at all of these restaurants, is working in a grocery store. I'm probably one of the few people that you will meet that is still working at their job they had while in high school. Yes, that's right, 32 years and counting at the same place. The end is near, as I think I have about 3 more years left in me before I can retire and head off to my next chapter. 

I bring this up because this is the time of year that really drains me. Holiday time in a supermarket is not a fun place. You can see people's eyes glaze over when they are deciding what kind of butter to buy, they forget basic things like nonfat and fat-free means the same thing, and they are so rushed for time that common courtesy goes out the window. So, as we approach the last couple of months of the year, I try to sneak in a vacation, and that's why I was meeting my mom and dad on a recent early afternoon at El Durango Grill in Brea. 

El Durango Grill came across my radar after reading an article from Brad A. Johnson in the Orange County Register a year and a half ago. As I faintly recall, he was very high on their carne asada, calling it one of the best around. I'm not usually one to order carne asada, as I prefer pork, but I was pretty impressed because Brad is a pretty tough critic. 

I arrived at the restaurant right at 11am, and true to form, my parents were way ahead of me patiently waiting. El Durango Grill is Brea Mall adjacent, as it's just past it if you are coming from the 57 Freeway on the left side of Imperial Highway. There's a 99 Cents Only Store, Fitness 19, and a Lamps Plus in this center if that helps you out a bit. 

This is an order at the counter place with a pretty good-sized menu. Their offerings include a good number of burritos, tacos, tortas, quesadillas, nachos, enchiladas, and breakfast items, which are served all day long. Almost everything here is in the single-digit range, except for a couple of entrees and a lobster burrito. They have moved some tables outside into their parking lot during these challenging times. Good thing too, since they had a very steady stream of people throughout our visit coming here on their lunch breaks. I was excited to find out if it was the great food that brought everyone to El Durango Grill. 

Since it was Tuesday, it was logical that my parents would take advantage of the Taco Tuesday specials that they have here all day long at El Durango Grill. My mom went with the Carnitas Taco ($1.50), while my dad had the Adobada ($1.50), Chile Verde ($1.50), and the Chicken ($1.50). They seemed pretty happy with their $6 lunch. My mom liked the carnitas and was impressed with the amount of pork that they included in the corn tortilla. My dad liked the chile verde and adobada tacos the best, while he thought the chicken was nothing to write home about. Not sure why he's still writing letters in the digital age, but to each his own. 

The taco train kept on chugging away with my three selections. I selected the Carnitas ($1.50), Asada ($2.75), and the Chicken Taco ($1.50). I'm not sure why mine came with salsa and chips on a real plate, while my parent's tacos came out on a paper plate without any chips and salsa. They probably just liked me better. The asada was as advertised, as it was the best of the bunch. Moist and tender, dressed simply with a sprinkling of onion and cilantro. I usually find asada to be a bit bland, but this version wasn't. The chicken taco was fine, but the tortilla on this one did not stand a chance as it ripped apart as I picked it up. I ended up just eating the insides of it with my fork. The carnitas was the weakest link here, as it was bland and dry. The salsa did end up helping though.  

Man can not live by tacos alone, or maybe they can, and I was just ravenous during this lunch. When I saw this Frontera Burrito ($11.99) online, I knew that I was going to have to give it a whirl, as it was one of the most photogenic burritos I have seen recently. A homage to the Mexican flag, the insides of this burrito was steak, onions, and peppers. It was fajita-style, wrapped in a tortilla. The steak was good, but as is the reason I avoid fajitas in most places, they used too many onions and peppers and the meat did not shine through. I was also a little disappointed with the size of the burrito for the price. It was a little on the small size, as I was expecting a bigger version. I'd save the three dollars and just get the regular steak burrito on my next visit.  

My parents did also get this Chicken Taquito ($1.50) to round out their meal at El Durango Grill. This was not a frozen then fried taquito you get at a lot of places. It was hand-rolled, filled with plenty of chicken, and then fried. Nicely done. I'm getting their beef taquitos next time. 

A few hiccups at El Durango Grill for me, but for the most part, this is a solid Mexican spot alongside busy Imperial Highway. Their Taco Tuesday deals are pretty stellar, and they do not skimp on the meat like you see at a lot of other Taco Tuesday spots. There's much more I'd like to try on return visits, like their alambre taco, adobada quesadilla, and chilaquiles. If I lived in the area this place would definitely be in my rotation of restaurants I'd return to on a fairly consistent basis. This was a good place to start off my vacation of eating, catching up on things around the house, and getting ready for the busy holiday season. 

Out of five scorpions, (because the state of Durango in Mexico is famous for their abundance of these dangerous arachnids), five being best to zero being worst, El Durango Grill gets 3 scorpions. 

El Durango Grill does not have a website, so click here to visit their Yelp page for more information: https://www.yelp.com/biz/el-durango-grill-brea

Checking Out the Pace at Tempo Cantina

 

Tempo Cantina

1060 East Imperial Highway

Brea, CA 92821

My work life improved when my last boss waltzed into the retirement sunset with below-average managerial and people skills. He not only killed morale, but he killed the business. Enter Melissa, who brought a new aura to our workplace. She made people actually want to work for her. Of course, this would be brown-nosing, but she rarely reads my blog, preferring to just check out my Instagram feed. 

I bring this up because I had checked out in those dark times and never would have imagined going out to dinner with coworkers. I could not stand anything about my workplace, even though I liked some of my coworkers. But, fast forward a year into this new regime, and here I was, finding myself having dinner with my coworkers/friends at Tempo Cantina in Brea. 

Much like my different feelings about my job, I'd say that Tempo has also gone through a metamorphosis since it opened back in 2014. Back then, they were probably best described as a molecular restaurant with a regularly changed menu. Many top-rated OC chefs have been part of the Tempo team at one time or another. I think I'd describe their menu now as Mexican, with some fusion items thrown in from Asia, the US, and other areas of Latin America. 

The man behind this restaurant and his many other ventures is Jorge Cueva, known more commonly on social media as Mr. Tempo. He came to the US not speaking a word of English and now helms a restaurant empire that includes three locations of Tempo Cantina (Brea, Anaheim Hills, and Downey) and King and Queen Cantina, which boasts locations in San Diego, Valle De Guadalupe Mexico, and his newest spot up north a bit in Santa Monica. He also has plans for restaurants in New York, Hawaii, Miami, and other international locations in the works as well. 

Back here in Brea, our group of seven had reservations at 5pm on a recent Saturday evening. During these turbulent times, tables have been moved outside into the front of the restaurant. Tempo Cantina was packed this evening with very long wait times for tables. They had a 90-minute limit for each party, but they did not seem to enforce this, as we were probably here for a total of two hours. The vibe here was a party atmosphere, which I admit was refreshing, as it reminded me of what it was like pre-pandemic. To be clear, servers were wearing gloves, masks, and tables were spaced out rather well. 

The Tempo dinner menu was almost bordering on overwhelming. There were so many things to choose from. Tacos, burritos, and starters take up a whole page of the two-page menu. Seafood and meat entrees, fusion sushi rolls, and meals for two people are included on the other page. Prices range between $10 to $20 for most items, with the platters for two getting a little more pricey, like the ribeye for $60 or the forty-ounce tomahawk steak for $110. A little rich for my blood, but let's check out what we indulged in this evening.  

I did not partake in this Margarita Flight ($25), instead having my usual rum and coke, but I liked this picture and wanted to share it. This flight included flavors of cucumber, watermelon, pomegranate, mango, and Gardez, which is a mango-pineapple-Serrano mashup. All were garnished with Tajin around the rim. A perfect choice for those that are indecisive or want to try a little bit of everything. 

Mike and his wife Jessica started things off with this Guacamole and Chips ($12). The guacamole was made with tomatoes, onions, and queso fresco crumbles. It was fresh, but more seasoning would have been appreciated to boost the flavor. I was also surprised that the serving size was so small compared to the price. The chips were fresh and had an excellent crunch, while the salsa that came with this was fine but did not stand out too much from my memory or notes. 

Katie must have been hungry because she had a big meal, but she wanted to try the Shishito Peppers ($9) at Tempo. These peppers were blistered, came with a soy glaze, and were salted. There were also a couple of dots of lime crema for dipping. I liked this but did have some qualms with it. The peppers themselves were excellent, and I really liked the kiss of soy glaze that each one had. I did not get any scorching ones, but Katie felt a little kick from some she had. I had wished that instead of being so cute with the plating, they would have just put the lime crema in a dipping cup so it could have been used to its full potential. Still a solid starter

Sorry, it's not the best picture ever, but Melissa was very hungry, and I did not want to lose a finger as she was very excited to dig into these Cueva Tacos ($15). Named after their owner, these three shrimp tacos came dressed with serrano sauce, lime crema, cabbage, micro cilantro, and a crispy cheese flour tortilla. I got to have one of these, which was very good. The chipotle shrimp was tender, and the rest of the things in the taco complemented the shrimp well. I'm always a big fan of crispy cheese, and this version did not disappoint at Tempo. I'd like to try some of their other tacos next time I'm here, like their Mr. Tempo taco with pork belly and shrimp. It sounds delicious and decadent. 

I'm not saying that Mike is cheap, but he probably spent his monthly food budget on this Sope Trio ($14) that he and Jessica split. This trio included one each of an asada, pork belly, and chicken sope topped with beans, lime crema, pickled onions, pico de gallo, and queso fresco. No complaints from the happy couple about their meal, probably because Jessica is used to having to split meals with him. Come on, Mike, splurge a little. 

I told you that Katie had a big meal coming, and here it is. This Fajita Grill ($38) could feed two with no problem. This fajita platter came with asada, chicken, and seasonal grilled veggies, including nopal, saffron rice, a side of beans, guacamole, and corn tortillas. Both proteins were pretty good, had enough seasonings to stand independently, and went well with the provided accompaniments. A nice deviation from the tired fajitas with the bland onions and peppers you can get at almost every other Mexican spot in OC.  

Since Katie was going to need some help finishing her meal, I just got these Tinga Taquitos ($12). These came in three to an order and were rolled with chicken and topped with pickled red onion, radish, and a sprinkling of pecorino cheese. They were fried nicely, but what made these for me was the trio of sauces that came with them. The serrano sauce, lime crema, and chipotle aioli were superb and a nice change-up from bite to bite.  

Enrique is a big wing fan, as I've seen him have plenty of wings on his lunch break over the last year. So it was no surprise he went with the Pow Pow Wings ($12) this evening. These six wings came with a garlic chipotle sauce, and I noticed no dipping sauce from my view from the other end of the table. The wings looked good-sized, but at $2 per wing, the price point is a bit too high, but Enrique is a big baller and probably just scoffed at the price. 

I liked this visit to Tempo even better than the last time I went to the Anaheim Hills location. Sometimes when the bar program seems like the focal point of a restaurant, the food suffers. That was not the case at Tempo based on this visit. The food was all delicious and unique. Tempo Cantina is definitely not your typical Mexcian restaurant. Yes, the prices are a tad high, but I'd consider this restaurant a special occasion spot instead of an every-week place. I feel that they are coming into their own after many incarnations of their food. Service was pretty good when you consider how busy they were. I'm so happy that my work life has turned around enough that I can go out to dinner with the people I work with, and even more pleased that I can call them friends.  

Out of five windshield wipers (because the Ford Tempo was a car sold between 1984 to 1993, and if you still have one, you've probably gone through a whole bunch of windshield wipers), five being best to zero being worst, Tempo Cantina gets 3 solid windshield wipers. 

For more information on Tempo Cantina, head to their website here: https://tempocantina.com/