Scrambling to Westminster for Breakfast Burritos

Ham 'n Scram

5871 Westminster Ave. 

Westminster, CA 92683

Katie and I have been doing a lot of walking lately. Of course one of the reasons for this is to get a little extra exercise, but I also have some ulterior motives. I usually try to pick walking trails that are next to places that I have wanted to try for a long while. So, after a five-mile walk along the San Gabriel River Trail in the Long Beach and Seal Beach area, we had worked up quite an appetite. This was reason enough to continue our quest to find a great breakfast burrito in OC, and we headed to a joint that we had heard great things about, Ham 'n Scram in Westminster.

Ham 'n Scram caught my attention when they were featured and finished third in a search for America's Best Burritos, which you can see the results here. This was pretty impressive because they were not only going up against a great list legendary burrito spots, but they also were up against all styles of burritos, not just the breakfast variety. Ham 'n Scram has also been highlighted in the OC Register, OC Weekly, The Fork Report, and Carson Daly's Radio Show. All of these gave glowing reviews.

Run by a father and son team, son Jeremy is the man in the kitchen, and dad Forrest runs the front of the house, expediting and taking orders, dishing out samples of their soups, dispensing with little jokes, which I'm sure he repeats hourly, and making sure all guests have everything that they need to make their burrito-eating experience everything that it should be. Forrest explained to us that since this is just a four-table restaurant, they want you to enjoy your ham, and then scram. It did not come across as a jerk thing to say, it's just the way it is at this almost always line out the door restaurant, which is located in one of the smallest strip malls you will ever visit, located just west of Springdale and Westminster Avenue.

We must have hit a rare time, because we had no problem getting one of their four tables, and went right inside to order at the counter. The menu here is pretty straight forward. They offer seven breakfast items, along with some sandwiches, and the aforementioned soup for people who want to forgo the first meal of the day. Ham 'n Scram is only open until 3 on weekdays, and 2 pm on weekends, so plan accordingly. Let's take a look at what has made this place such a cult favorite.

While our burritos were being prepared, we were brought out a sample of each of their soups that they had featured on this day. They were a Three Bean and a Split Pea. Katie and I had a difference of opinion on which one of these we liked better. She liked the three bean because it had bigger chunks of ham, which she felt highlighted their marquee item better. I enjoyed the smooth and easy split pea, which had a good consistency to it, and did not have to rely on big flavor from added meat. I'd really enjoy making it up here on a Friday when they offer their Ham Chowder, which I've heard good things about.

When Katie's Ham 'n Egg Burrito ($8.50) hit the table, I was immediately struck by the beauty of it. This burrito, also known as the original, comes with bacon, ham, egg, hash browns, bell pepper, onion, and cheese. Katie really liked this burrito. It had a real good smooth texture to it, the ham was prominent, and it was way more manageable than she had imagined it would be. She also was a fan of the salsa here, which did not overpower with spice but instead added a little moisture to this solid burrito.

When I saw that Ham 'n Scram offered a Double Meat Burrito ($10), of course, that's what I had to get. This is their original burrito, but with double the meat, which can never be a bad thing. Just like Katie, I really enjoyed this burrito. I loved that they grilled the tortilla, which added a subtle crunch to it. The guts of this burrito were very smooth. The cheese, eggs, and potatoes were creamy, while the ham added a nice smoky flavor. The bacon, onions, and bell pepper could have been more prominent, but I liked that this lacked a greasiness that a lot of breakfast burritos possess. I kind of felt that the salsa here was good for adding a little moisture to the burrito, but I should have gotten up to get some Cholula for an added flavor boost.

When we were leaving Ham 'n Scram, both Katie and I remarked that this is one of the lighter breakfast burritos we have consumed. These are not overly large breakfast burritos, but you will not leave here hungry. I'm usually not a ham guy, but the pork was good and tender here. As far as breakfast burritos that I've had so far, this one was good, but I still have to give a slight edge to the one that I had at Lucky Boy in Pasadena, and due to the inclusion of avocado, and other breakfast meats, I like the one I had at Nate's Korner in Santa Ana, slightly ahead of this one at Ham 'n Scram. Katie, however, claims that this is the best breakfast burrito she's had. I guess she likes a more basic version, while I enjoy more options when it comes to my breakfast burritos. Service here was very homey, and Forrest really made us feel welcome, and we enjoyed hearing his story and getting to see how proud he is of his product. It was well worth going through a five-mile walk to come here.

Out of five nuclear reactors, (because the emergency shutdown switch for a nuclear reactor is called a SCRAM), five being best to zero being worst, Ham 'n Scram gets 3.5 nuclear reactors.

For more information about Ham 'n Scram, head to their website here: http://hamnscram.com/

Destination Dessert in Westminster! - CLOSED

Crepe Corner

9329 Bolsa Avenue

Westminster, CA 92683

We had just finished a meal, but still had a little room for dessert. There is always room for dessert right? Our Asian food expert, Kat from Kat's 9 Lives, was with us and knew just the spot we should try for dessert, Crepe Corner.

I admit it, I get totally lost when I am in this area. Luckily, Kat knows her way around this neighborhood like the back of her hand. Crepe Corner is a restaurant inside another restaurant. The restaurant with a bigger sign and area is Zen Vegetarian Restaurant. Not exactly my favorite kind of place, so I was a little skeptical.

We got to Crepe Corner at about nine on a Friday night. The restaurant was buzzing with activity. I do not hang out in this area of town often, but almost all the places we passed on the streets had lots of people inside of them, and Zen/Crepe Corner was no exception. During our visit, large families, couples on dates, and older people came through the door, mainly for vegetarian food. The two restaurants are not overly large. Maybe fifteen tables, with a large stage off to the side that is used for Karaoke. Thankfully, that had not started during our visit, or I would have had to bust out my rendition of Monkey by George Michael.

Ordering for Crepe Corner is done at the counter to the right, as you walk in the door. Their menu includes four all-ready-made crepes, that come with specific toppings, or they offer a checklist-style of order, which is the route we went. The base price for each crepe is $2.49, and toppings, fruits, spreads, and ice cream is extra. After ordering, we found a table in the dining room and waited for the crepes to come out. After a wait of ten minutes, this is what came out for us.

Let's start with my crepe creation. At Crepe Corner you have the option of having your crepe crunchy or soft. We all went for the crunchy version. I think I would try the soft version the next time I come here. I kind of like a slight chew to the crepe skin. I added peanut butter, banana, vanilla ice cream, and chocolate sauce to my crepe. The chocolate sauce was used very sparingly, so I did not get much of that. The peanut butter was good, but a little dry. Two scoops of ice cream may have been needed to moisten up this crepe. The banana was ripe and was probably the add on that stood out the most.

Katie had almost the exact opposite crepe as me. Yes, she did have it crispy, but that is where the similarities end. She got hers with chocolate ice cream, caramel sauce, and strawberries. When this came out of the kitchen the strawberries were absent, but she ate this anyways. She liked it but was not wowed by it. She also felt that the crispy crepe skin was a little off.

Here's a quick look at Kat's crepe. I know for sure that she added Nutella to her crepe, but I am not sure what else she added. She did seem very pleased with her choice though.

Crepe Corner is one of those places that I think you need to go to more than one time to find your perfect crepe. They offer 8 kinds of fruit, 9 kinds of spreads, 4 kinds of ice cream, and 12 kinds of toppings. I am no mathematician, but even I know that makes for a lot of different combinations that can be made. The prices here were not too bad for dessert. I got the most things on my crepe, and it came out to less than $6. The service was fair here. We did not have a waitress or anything, so when we were done we walked back up to the counter and asked for our check. Not exactly destination dining, but if you are in the area, and craving a light dessert, this might be the place for you.

Out of five drive-in theaters, (in honor of this being our first Westminster review, and the last drive-in theater in OC appeared in this city up until 1997), five being best to zero being worst, Crepe Corner gets 2.5 drive-in theaters.

For more information on Crepe Corner, click here: http://crepe-corner.com/