Going Back in Time at Yen Ching - CLOSED

Yen Ching Restaurant

574 S. Glassell St. 

Orange, CA 92866

Yen Ching was the very first place where I ever experienced Chinese food. The year was 1982. My family was conservative regarding the food we ate when we sporadically went out to eat. We had burgers, pizza, and hot dogs, and if my parents were feeling a little crazy, we might even go to Don Jose for some Mexican food. My mom had just started a new job in Orange, and she went to Yen Ching for lunch with coworkers, and that's how I eventually got introduced to Americanized Chinese food.

This was before there was a Chinese restaurant in almost every other shopping center. Kind of crazy to think that there are now 1,800 locations of Panda Express doting the US and several other countries. Orange chicken, beef with broccoli, and honey walnut shrimp are now commonplace with American consumers. I had wanted to return to where my Chinese food journey had begun to see if it was still as good as I remembered when I was eleven.

For as long as I can remember, the rumors are always flying around that Yen Ching will be closing in the not-so-distant future, so just in case this happened, I wanted to make it back to Yen Ching. Supposedly, the land this restaurant is on belongs to the Catholic church, and there are whispers that they want to expand the nearby Holy Family Cathedral complex. But, for now, this A-frame restaurant that has been here since 1978 shows no signs of moving anywhere, and they are just as busy as they have been for the last 40 years.

That's why we decided to meet my parents at 4pm on a recent Saturday for a quick dinner to avoid the sometimes-hour wait to get a table and what my dad calls one of the loudest restaurants in OC. I'm not sure about that, but the dining room was only a quarter full at this early bird dinner hour, so it was quiet enough for my dad's sensitive ears. The dining room has gotten a modern update since the last time we were here a good many years ago. It was lightened up with a paint job and white linens on the tables.

I'm not sure about your plan of attack when eating in a Chinese restaurant, but I like to do it family-style by ordering a bunch of dishes and sharing everything. The menu at Yen Ching is pretty good sized, with plenty of seafood, beef, chicken, pork, and noodle dishes. There's also a prix-fixe menu priced at $23 per person, which includes soup and appetizer, but there are only five entree options to choose from, and we wanted to pick our own, so we went the a la carte route. Let's see if Yen Ching is just as good as when I came here as a kid.

Katie is always up for an appetizer, and even though I knew we would be having a lot of food coming our way, we tried these Potstickers ($9.75). These pan-fried dumplings were filled with pork and vegetables and were just okay. However, the outer dumpling was rubbery, and the pork and veggies inside failed to make any impression on my taste buds. These were boosted a bit by a plum sauce, but not enough for us to order these again.

Entrees came out in waves all of a sudden, and the first to hit the table was the Mongolian Beef ($16.95). This Chinese classic is a favorite at Yen Ching. The sliced beef is served with green onions and a thin brown sauce. I'm always a little partial to this dish. The meat was tender, and I liked the way the green onions added a tinge of flavor to this. The sauce adds sweetness but does not overpower the overall aura of this entree.

Our noodle choice this early evening was this Chow Mein Combo ($12.95). This big mound of noodles included shrimp, chicken, beef, and veggies. I liked this chow mein as it was not too greasy and had plenty of shrimp and meat. A nicely done version.

Not the most popular of chicken dishes here would probably be the flaming pineapple chicken, but we got the Yen Ching Chicken ($16.95). Tiny cuts of chicken are coated in their signature sauce, which is equal parts savory and sweet, and then sauteed with chopped green onions. I liked this as well. It came out nice and hot, the chicken was tender, and the sauce kept me interested. They also offer this sauce with their Yen Ching Beef.

My dad has always inspired to be a hand model, apparently, and here's another one he can add to his portfolio. I used to love the Sweet and Sour Pork ($15.25) here, but it kind of fell flat on this visit. The fried pork was not very tender, and the sweet and sour sauce was lackluster. However, I liked the pineapple pieces in this, as I tried to sneak a few extra bits for myself while no one was looking. 

Shrimp with Walnuts ($18.95)  has always been my favorite, so we tried it at Yen Ching. Like the pork dish, this one kind of disappointed us. On the plus side, the shrimp here were pretty good-sized and cooked well, but the sauce was not very sweet and could best be described as drab. Minimal flavor to this entree. When this dish is executed well, it's magical with the briny shrimp, sweet sauce, and nutty walnuts. Unfortunately, this plate was let down by the sauce.

Dessert is almost always complimentary when dining at Yen Ching, even though the Golden Caramelized Apple is listed on the menu for a dollar each. They always bring these and the plastic-wrapped fortune cookies with the check for as long as we have been coming here. The apple is baked inside a very thick caramelized crust with a nice sweet sauce. A sweet ending to our meal and even sweeter because it was free.

This visit brought back many memories of our numerous family dinners at Yen Ching. The food seemed the same as I remember eating as a kid. Most items we had this early evening were solid but did not blow me away. I'd call this above-average Chinese food, but I know there is better. My parents thought the prices here were a little on the high side, but with the food only, we paid $23 a person and had plenty of leftovers for the next day. A pretty good bargain, I would say. The service was polite and professional but not overly friendly. I'm glad Yen Ching is still around, as it's part of my food history that has led me to my love of reviewing restaurants.

Out of five hungry hippos (because the tabletop game Hungry Hungry Hippos was first made available in 1978, the same years as this restaurant), five being best to zero being worst, Yen Ching  Restaurant gets 3 hungry hippos.

For more information about Yen Ching, head to their website here: http://yenchingoc.com/

Not a Boneheaded Move Going to Bonefish Grill - CLOSED

Bonefish Grill

3040 El Camino Real

Tustin, CA 92782

The options for seafood when I was a kid was either H. Salt Fish and Chips or frozen fish sticks when we were going to be babysat. I can remember the first time my parents brought home some swordfish steaks, I must have been about seven or eight. I was surprised they did not have a breading and that my dad was barbecuing them instead of taking them from the freezer and warming them up in the oven. That fresh swordfish opened my eyes to the wonderful world of seafood, and I have been a fan ever since.

Nowadays seafood can be found more readily than when I was growing up. Not just at restaurants, we would consider fancy anymore. Seafood restaurants run the gamut from fast-casual places, to restaurants that feature valet parking and near triple-digit entree prices. We were recently invited to a place that is comfortably in the middle of these two extremes, Bonefish Grill in the Tustin Marketplace.

Bonefish Grill kind of gets overlooked because they only have two locations in California, but I was surprised to learn that they have close to 200 locations in 32 states. They must be doing something right to be able to operate all of those locations, and we were pretty excited to come in and partake in some of their summer specials, including their Bangin' BFG Sandwich that we have heard so much about.

We arrived at Bonefish Grill at 5pm on a recent Saturday. A little earlier than we like to eat, but we had a prior commitment, and knew there would not be great food there, so we stopped at Bonefish first. The restaurant was fairly full when we walked in, but almost all the tables were filled up during our visit. This used to be the site of the former Black Angus back in the day but is now unrecognizable from those times. The casual/modern decor reminded me of the feel of maybe Paul Martin's or a brighter more lively P.F Chang's.

The menu is predictably seafood-focused with many grilled options, signature favorites, and handhelds dotting the menu. Not a fan of creatures from the sea? There are three steak selections for you to choose from, along with a burger which I've heard good things about. We were here to try their new sandwiches from their specials menu, which on this evening also featured a delicious sounding Spinach, Bacon, and Blue Cheese Grouper that I'll have to come back and try next time. For now, let's see how this visit went.

Every meal at Bonefish Grill starts with their fantastic bread service, which is hard to resist. It came out warm and fresh with a side of olive oil and pesto for dipping. They were not shy about refilling this frequently, as Katie and I could not stop eating this. We finally managed to stop at two loaves, but the struggle to have more was real.

Katie is almost an addict when it comes to ahi, so she had to succumb and give their Ahi Tuna Sashimi ($15.50) a try. This is listed as a starter but could easily be an entree option for some of you lighter eaters. The sushi grade tuna was seared to a nice rare and was sesame crusted. It was presented on a bed of greens and topped with Bonefish Grill's signature Bang Bang sauce, which is one of the better sauces around, as it has a nice creamy texture and provides a kick of spice at the tail end of it, without being too overpowering. Katie was very satisfied with this starter.

I went without an appetizer on this evening, instead opting for this Classic Caesar Salad ($4.50 with the purchase of an entree). This was a nearly perfect simple Caesar. It came out on a nicely chilled plate, with plenty of chopped romaine, garlic croutons, and plenty of grated parmesan. I would have liked a tad more dressing on this though, but still pretty solid.

Now on to the real reason we were invited here, to try their Bangin' BFG Sandwiches ($19.90). They offer three varieties to choose from; grilled, fried, or the one that Katie selected, blackened. At this Tustin location, they use rockfish as the centerpiece for this sandwich. It is joined on the very well made bun with sliced tomato, coleslaw, and the Bang Bang sauce that was used earlier on the tuna appetizer. Katie loved this sandwich, calling it delicious. She liked the spiciness of the blackening seasoning and felt that the bun really held up well. She thought the fries were done nicely.

Not surprising to longtime readers of this restaurant blog, I went with the fried version of the Bangin' BFG Sandwich. I liked that the breading was not greasy at all, which allowed the natural flavor of the mellow rockfish to shine through. The breading did have a good crunch to it, but the sandwich was a little hard to eat, as the piece of fish was too big for the bun and fell out frequently. I eventually just ate the rockfish with a fork dipping it into the addictive Bang Bang Sauce. Even though the menu said this was served with fries, our server told us we could pick any of their signature sides to go along with this sandwich, so I selected the Potato Au Gratin, which was fine, but I liked Katie's fries better.

Fresh Strawberry Shortcake ($8.30) was offered as the lone dessert on their specials menu on this evening and that just happens to be one of Katie's favorite desserts, even though it's not one of mine, but we got it anyways. Sometimes I can be a good husband. This utilized a split shortcake biscuit which was topped with strawberries, whipped cream, and creme anglaise for a little sweetness. Katie enjoyed that Bonefish Grill did not feel the need to douse the strawberries in a heavy syrup, which made this a lighter summer dessert that you can feel less guilty about eating.

This visit to Bonefish Grill has reopened our eyes to this wonderful seafood restaurant which we have in the past overlooked for one reason or the other. Not only were the Bangin' BFG Sandwiches good, but we look forward to coming back again real soon to experience their popular Bang Bang Shrimp appetizer, some of their signature seafood offerings, and maybe their coconut pie for dessert. Our server Brett was fantastic on this evening, as he met our every need and we got to know him a little bit. We also had a great visit with Managing Partner Donna Maniscalco who was working the dining room to ensure that every guest was enjoying their visit. We enjoyed our chat, Donna. I also am happy that seafood has evoved from when I was a kid, and there are tons more options than way back in those long ago days.

For more information about Bonefish Grill and to keep track of their specials, head to their website here: https://www.bonefishgrill.com/

Cooling down at the Coast - CLOSED

H.H. Cotton's

201 Avenida Del Mar

San Clemente, CA 92672

When the temps start climbing into the triple digits, we look for any excuse to head to the beach cities for relief. As our first summer heat wave was searing into South OC, we had plans with our great friends Tom and Daniele to meet up, catch up on all of their big news, and, of course, have dinner out somewhere. Since we are food bloggers, or in Tom's case, a recovering food blogger, it's always a spirited discussion on where we will eat.  They must have liked my suggestion of going towards the coast and trying H.H. Cotton's in San Clemente.

The twenty-degree temperature change was very noticeable once we arrived at this seaside paradise. I had not been in this bustling area of San Clemente in quite a long while. It immediately reminded me of Manhattan Beach but on a smaller scale. We were not the only ones in OC with the great idea of beating the heat inland and making a beeline for the coast. There are numerous restaurant options in this area of Del Mar; Nick's, Avila's El Ranchito, Beach Fire, and The Cellar, all packed on this Friday evening.

We had wisely made dinner reservations at H.H. Cotton's beforehand, so we only had to wait about five minutes after our arrival time of 7:30. We were seated deep inside the deceptively large restaurant, where the air conditioning seemed to be working the best. H.H. Cotton's had a real Jimmy's Famous American Tavern feel, with reclaimed wood throughout the space, a rowdy bar near the front door, and a darkened dining room.

One thing that is certain from dining here is that they are proud to be part of the San Clemente community. Not only do they have the names of San Clemente streets proudly displayed inside their booths and a large city map projected across the back wall of the restaurant, but this place is named after one of the two founders of this beautiful city, H.H. Cotton. He's Hamilton H. Cotton, to be precise, and he led a very colorful life, which included being the builder of his self-named estate, which we all know better as the Western White House, which not only was the home to President Nixon but also hosted FDR during his trips to the west coast.

The restaurant H. H. Cotton's is a joint effort by four local families. Their vision for their restaurant is to provide a family-friendly atmosphere, a place where locals come to celebrate milestones and others come to partake in the packed bar while watching local sports on one of the five TVs scattered throughout the restaurant. Like their Chef Jason Gamble, the menu draws inspiration from many places he's lived, including New Orleans, Hawaii, and California's Central Coast. Intrigued, we made our selections, and while we waited, we listened non-stop to our good friend Daniele's ongoing stories that we had definitely heard before since she had posted them all on her Facebook wall since the last time we had seen her. Here are my thoughts on the food we had this evening.

We were supposed to have two appetizers this evening, but our server only brought these Thai BBQ Wings and Drums ($14), so the poke would have to wait until our next visit. I'm usually partial to the spicier buffalo variety of wings, but this sweeter Thai sauce was nice for a change. The wings were very meaty, with tender, not overdone chicken underneath. The sauce was not too sticky, which made these very easy to eat with your hands.

Daniele had heard that it was National Fried Chicken Day on this particular Friday, so she wanted to get in the mood by trying out the Fried Chicken and Waffles ($21). She raved about this plate. She loved the fried chicken, which she called nearly perfect. The waffle was also good, and she loved this plate's sweet and savory feel. We finally got a respite from listening to her drone on and on about things while she ate this. The silence did us some good. The portion size did not warrant a price over twenty dollars, but that's my opinion.

Katie did not know it was fried chicken day but unwittingly participated by getting this Bird's the Word Chicken Sandwich ($14). I actually tried this, and it was a delicious chicken sandwich. You can get this either grilled or fried, and it comes with arugula, tomato, caramelized onion, and the unusual curry aioli. The bun was nice and soft, the chicken tender and the curry aioli added a good flavor boost to this sandwich. Katie chose the side salad with her sandwich instead of the fries. It was a basic but fresh side salad.

Tom finally broke the chicken juggernaut we had going here at H. H. Cotton's when he ordered this BBQ Spare Rib Plate ($18). This came with five pork ribs on a cutting board, coleslaw, half an ear of corn, and a cheddar biscuit. Let's start with the ribs. They were dry and challenging, and they needed the sauce they came out with to make them go down easier. I did not get a report on the corn, biscuit, or coleslaw, but Tom did finish them, which is a good sign.

When I saw the description of the Chili Verde ($17) on the menu here, I veered toward it, thanks in part to the inclusion of cheesy grits. I have been craving them since Lillie's Q closed almost two years ago. Including the grits, this was a chili verde with a southern slant. Also included in this was some shredded pork shank, salsa verde, cotija cheese, pickled onion, and, of course, those grits. This plate was good but a little disjointed. The pork was delicious, but not enough in here, and it was too small of pieces. The grits were done well, but the salsa and cotija cheese felt out of place here. About three-fourths of my way through this, I found the corn tortillas that came with this as they hid alongside the bottom of this rather large bowl. I don't know why they needed such a large bowl with the portion size that this came out with.

This meal taught us this evening that they do chicken rather well at H.H. Cotton's, but the other proteins fell flat. Tom and I would get something else next time, as I have my eye on one of their four burgers. I understand the higher price points at beach area restaurants, but they could have offered more significant portions, especially with my and Daniele's meals. Service was definitely spotty, to say the least. As mentioned, our server just plain forgot about our poke appetizer. Refilling or taking drink orders was not too quick, leaving us to fend for ourselves for long periods, especially when it came time to pay the check. Beach casual is to be expected, though, and luckily, we were not in that much of a rush since we were catching up. Even with these few hiccups, we would return and give them another try if we were in the area and wanted an opportunity to cool down during one of our summer heatwaves.

Out of five memoirs (because the Western White House, which H.H. Cotton had built is where Richard Nixon came to write his memoirs after his presidency ended), five being best to zero being worst, H.H. Cotton's gets 3 memoirs.

For more information about H.H. Cotton's, head to their website here: https://www.hhcottons.com/

Dipping into Poqet Donuts - CLOSED

Poqet Donuts

17655 Harvard Ave. 

Irvine, CA 92614

Ever since I was a little kid, I have loved donuts. Not only are they delicious, but they were part of my morning ritual with my dad while growing up. My mom and sister always slept in, so it would just be my dad, and I left to fend for ourselves for breakfast. Sometimes, he would make pancakes, but because he made so much noise, he would usually opt to just head to Winchell's or any other local donut shop to buy a dozen for us and my sleeping mom and sister.

He always let me pick out the dozen. I felt like a kid in a candy store (okay, a donut store would be more precise). I knew all of my family's favorites. My mom was partial to the crumb, my dad enjoyed the chocolate long john, and my sister liked the rainbow sprinkle, even though she only ate the top portion with the frosting and sprinkles. I loved every donut. I swear I could have eaten the whole dozen by myself, but my dad limited me to three, which usually meant the crumb, devil's food, and the buttermilk bar would be my choices before I was cut off for my own good.

My point is that I still have a deep-rooted love for donuts to this day. As the years have gone by, my tastes in donuts have also evolved. I'm no longer satisfied with the donuts offered in the supermarket's bakery section. With the exception of an occasional Entenmann's, I don't get my donuts on the bread aisle anymore, either. I do, however, perk up when I see someone at work bring in a pink box from one of the neighborhood donut shops.

In recent years, I have become a big fan of the gourmet donut genre that has sprung up. It started when Sidecar Doughnuts opened up in Costa Mesa in late 2012. These are the gold standard of donuts I have tried, and I've had them numerous times in the six years they have been around, and they just keep improving. Not that I have dismissed others. We briefly had the Donut Bar in Fountain Valley, which turned into Crafted Donuts, which I have yet to try, but I've heard good things. Just like I had heard good things about the shop I had chosen to visit on this day, Poqet Donuts in Irvine.

Poqet, pronounced like "pocket," has been around for three years. My friend Danny and I had eaten lunch nearby and wanted to try this place. I was a little nervous because I know that as the day goes on in a donut shop or bakery, things get picked over and are less fresh.  I knew we were pushing it to show up here at close to 2 pm, but we were met by a full display case featuring a good assortment of their most popular flavors.

Poqet Donuts differs from its competitors because it allows you to customize your donuts. You build your own donut masterpiece by picking the kind of donut you want to use and adding your favorite fillings and toppings to finish it off. It would be cool to try this, but for now, Danny and I just picked the donuts we wanted from behind the case, some for here and some for his family waiting patiently at home.

Here's a quick overview of what we got. The top picture shows the ones Danny was going to bring home to his family. The bottom picture shows the ones we were going to try out in front of their shop. Let's take a closer look at each and our thoughts on it.

First out of the box for us was this Oreo Cookies and Cream ($3). This used a slightly glazed donut as its base, which was then topped with plenty of Oreo cookie crumbs and finished off with piped cream over half of the doughnut. This was not as sweet as I expected and did not convey the Oreo cookie vibe I had hoped it would. The problem was that the cream was only over half the donut, so there were only half the bites that resembled America's favorite cookie. A more spread-out cream would have made this more enjoyable.

As I stated above, one of my favorite donuts growing up was the crumb, so we had to try this Vanilla Coffee Cake Donut ($2.75). Glad we did. This was a good rendition of one of my favorite donuts growing up. There was plenty of cinnamon crumb topping, a nice crunch to the outward donut portion, and it was soft and moist on the inside. The sweetness was toned down by the cinnamon, a nice touch. It is one of the better versions we experienced this afternoon.
 

A little more elaborate than your normal donut, this is the Apple Pie ($3.75). This was a glazed donut with apple pie filling in the hole portion, with graham cracker crumbs, a caramel drizzle, and a dollop of cream topping this visually appealing donut. It was good, but there was not enough apple on this to really make it stand out. It was a very sweet donut, but I'd probably pass on it the next time I was here.

Lastly, one of the most popular donuts at legendary M and M Donuts in Anaheim, which you do not have to wait in line for at ten o'clock at night here at Poqet Donuts, was their version of a Blueberry Donut ($3). I actually liked the simplicity of this donut. It had a fair amount of blueberry specks in the cake portion of the donut, and the icing had a nice mellow flavor. Very well done.

Even though we had shown up at an awkward hour for a donut shop, our trip to Poqet Donuts this afternoon was solid. Yes, the donuts did not blow us away like Sidecar, but they are better quality than many mom-and-pop donut shops in almost any shopping center. You can tell they use high-quality products, resulting in a lighter, less greasy product than many competitors. I liked the simpler donuts we ordered rather than the more outrageous ones we indulged in. Service was pleasant enough, especially since we were here about an hour before closing. The three-dollar price per donut is a little exorbitant, but these are more like special occasion donuts. A donut for when you want to pamper yourself. Or think back to a particular time you experienced as a kid with your dad. You can't put a price on memories that bring you back to those great times. 

Out of five computers (because one of the first portable computers available to the public was the Poqet PC, which sold for $2000 back in 1989), five being best to zero being worst, Poqet Donuts gets 3 computers.

For more information about Poqet Donuts, head to their website here: http://poqetdonuts.com/

Shooting for the Moon at Luna Grill

Luna Grill

26921 Aliso Creek Road

Aliso Viejo, CA 92656

I think that it's safe to say that Mediterranean cuisine has hit the mainstream. It used to be that if you wanted some hummus, kabobs, or falafel you would have to seek out a sit-down restaurant a few cities over. Now it seems that Mediterranean options abound, and almost every shopping center has at least one option where you can partake of skewered proteins, delicious basmati rice, and fresh pita bread. One quick service restaurant that is leading the charge to bring this food to the masses is Luna Grill.

Luna Grill was founded by Sean and Maria Pourteymour back in 2004. They started this business because they were looking for a quick and healthy option to provide for their daughter. Back then the options would have been a Happy Meal or maybe some fried chicken from a supermarket. Not the case anymore thanks to their Luna Grill, which has now expanded to 49 locations in California and Texas.

Luna Grill serves a fusion of Mediterranian and Middle Eastern cuisines, which not only tastes good but is way more healthier than a lot of the other options out there. Sean and Maria are doing things the right way here, as they provide food that is sourced with a focus on sustainability, quality, and animal welfare. They also support locally harvested produce on their plates, which means a fresher and better meal for you and your family.

I had never visited Luna Grill before we were invited in to experience what they have to offer. Katie was traveling for work, so I grabbed my good friend Oz, who was a Luna Grill veteran to come with me and show me the ropes here. We arrived at the Aliso Viejo location right after 6 on a recent Wednesday evening. The restaurant was pretty packed, with plenty of people happily eating in their deceptively spacious dining room, and out on the patio to the right of the restaurant. Oz and I quickly made our selections at the register and found a nice table near the window, which was ideal for people watching while we vented about work. After a short time, our food was brought out to our table.

We started things off with one of the newest items on the Luna Gill menu, this Dip Trio ($7.75). Can't decide between your favorite Mediterranean dips and sauces?  This is the starter for you. You get your choice of spicy or regular hummus, garlic sauce, and spicy feta. It's also served with sliced carrots and celery, along with soft and fresh pita. One of my favorite things about eating Mediterranean food is the sauces and this was a great option to go along with our meal. The spicy hummus had a nice kick to it, which kept me coming back for more. I liked the garlic sauce with my chicken entree which you will see coming up. I was not in love with the spicy feta, but I'm not normally a feta fan, but Oz seemed to enjoy all right.

Both Oz and I got the same thing, which benefits you as it's less of my awful writing that you have to endure. The Flat Cut Chicken Kabob Plate ($12.75) would be our meal this evening. This very balanced meal came with thinly sliced chicken, a house salad, a big mound of basmati rice, sliced pita, a grilled tomato garnish, and plenty of cucumber yogurt sauce. I'm always a little leery about getting chicken in restaurants because a lot of time its overcooked and comes out dry. That was not the case here at Luna Grill. The chicken was tender and moist and got a good char on it from the grill. It was made even better when I alternated eating it with the garlic sauce from the dip trio and the addictive cucumber yogurt sauce. The serving size of the rice was more than adequate for me, and the salad featured a butter lettuce and romaine duo with red onion, cucumber, and a tangy house vinaigrette. I'd probably forgo the vinaigrette next time in favor of the cucumber yogurt sauce, which I would imagine would be an excellent dressing for my salad.

I left Luna Grill full and satisfied but did not have that sluggish feeling that I usually get when exiting a restaurant. I felt pretty good eating this healthier and lighter meal than I am used to. My body seemed to be thanking me for taking care of it. I'm not going to shy away from burgers, burritos, and pizzas anytime soon, but I probably will find the time to come back to Luna Grill rather frequently. The food made me feel good, they got it out quickly, and the staff here were very welcoming. We saw them checking on their guests in their dining room numerous times during our stay. I'm eyeing the lamb or the filet on my next visit. Glad Mediterranean cuisine is more readily available these days.

For your nearest location or for more information about Luna Grill, head to their website here: https://lunagrill.com/

Trying to Reveal the Identity of Heroes and Legends - CLOSED

Heroes and Legends

22741 Lambert St.

Lake Forest, CA 92630

This place had a familiar feel to it. You know, the feeling you get when walking into your old elementary school or maybe a former workplace. This place felt like the Heroes in Fullerton and Riverside, right down to the peanut shells littering the floor, but they almost didn't want to advertise the connection between these places. I even asked our server, who played coy, and she told me there was a connection, but she's not sure what it is. There's not even a website for this bar and grill. They do know that this is 2018, right?

Another odd thing about Heroes and Legends is that they have been open for two years, and I'm just finding out about them now. I used to think I was pretty knowledgeable about restaurants, but they kept sneaking up on me. I find it funny that I live and work near this place, and no one has ever mentioned it. It's a secret that no one wanted to share, even though I'm a big fan of Heroes in Fullerton and Riverside.

They may be flying under the radar, but not on purpose. When my sister and I arrived here just after 3pm, we were two of the six customers. As our visit stretched into more regular after-work hours, this restaurant and bar never filled up with more than a handful of people at one time. Unheard of for the Riverside or Fullerton locations. When we inquired with our server whether Heroes and Legends ever really gets busy, she said not and suggested that a lack of a happy hour might be at the root of it.

The menu here is slightly more condensed than its stepsister restaurants, but there is plenty of overlap, even with some of the names. Yes, the famous Chili Nachos come out on a pizza pan and can easily feed three to four people. Both menus have Bud's Chili-size burgers, and a Southwest Meatloaf is also offered here. At this location, they do not match the 100-plus taps that the others possess, but they offer a very respectable 70 beers on tap, one of the largest I have seen down this way. Now,  I was intrigued to see if the food would also be the same. Let's check it out.

Here's a bit of a personal note before we go any further. I've been doing this food blogging for nine years now, and in that time, my dining partners have graciously allowed me to take numerous pictures of their food before they have dug in. Since they are nice enough to allow me to do this, I try not to steer them into getting what I want. It's a give-and-take thing. When my sister inquired about these Fresh Oysters on the Half Shell ($16/market price), I was slightly worried about her. She's been dieting and found a new love for oysters a month ago. Oysters in a not-very-busy restaurant and this far from the ocean always make me nervous, but our server assured her they were very fresh. Eight rather large oysters came out over ice, with sliced lemon and a combination of cocktail sauce and horseradish. I tried the oysters, which were fresh and not too gritty. The sauces provided made them go down as easily as oysters can. I will still not get these here on my next visit, but they were fine on this particular day.

No diet for me, of course. I went with one of my favorites at Heroes, the Patty Melt ($12.99). It was the same here at Heroes and Legends. The beef patty is joined on the grilled parmesan by Swiss and cheddar cheese slices and grilled onions. I usually like some Thousand Island dressing on the side with my patty melt, but the juiciness of this negated the need for it. I had asked for this to be medium, but it came out more of a medium rare, which I did not mind. The curly fries were just like the ones at the other locations. Seasoned well, coming out hot, and more than enough to share with my sister, who broke her diet by having a few of these fries. Sorry to blow your cover, sis. Yes, they charge an extra 75 cents for ranch dressing, which is a bone of contention for many online reviewers, but having curly fries without ranch would be sacrilege. I'll gladly pay the three quarters.

Since my sister took me out for a belated birthday meal, some cake had to be had. I'm a big fan of Carrot Cake ($8); this one was all right. They did not make this here but tried to jazz it up with a little extra icing. I appreciated the effort, but the cake could have been more moist and was served ice cold, which led me to believe it came right out of the fridge. I took half home and let it sit out. It was noticeably better when eaten at room temperature.

I left Heroes and Legends excited about the food we encountered this early evening but also perplexed as to why this restaurant and bar were not busier. It could be the business park setting, but more than likely, it's the lukewarm reviews they get on Yelp for their service. We had no issues with the service, except at the start of our meal when it took a few minutes to get things rolling as our server wanted to finish her conversation with the bartender. Nothing too tragic since my sister and I had some significant catching up to do. I look forward to coming back soon and trying more of their menu, including their thick-cut pastrami sandwich, more of their burgers, and chili spaghetti. Hopefully, I will have learned the secret connection between this place and the other locations by then. For now, I'm glad it'll cut down on my long car trips to Fullerton and Riverside.

Out of five bowls of cereal (because Lake Forest is the final resting place for William Hanna, producer of all the best cartoons of my youth, and I watched them all with a bowl of cereal in my lap), five being best to zero being worst, Heroes and Legends gets 3 bowls of cereal.

As I mentioned before, Heroes and Legends has no website, so you can find out information about them from their Yelp Page here: https://www.yelp.com/biz/heroes-and-legends-bar-and-grill-lake-forest

Hoping the Yolks Not on Us - CLOSED

Stacks and Yolks

30281 Golden Lantern

Laguna Niguel, CA 92677

Breakfast can either ruin your whole day or give you the energy to power your way through a productive day. Nevermind the quality of the food you are going to consume at the start of your day,  I'm talking about the amount of food you are going to eat. I have very little willpower when it comes to the first meal of the day, so I usually go big and then want to come back home and take a nap after eating out for breakfast. Not too smart, since I had just woken up about two hours earlier, and I'm pretty much food wasted for the rest of the day.

Checking out Stacks and Yolks, newly opened in Laguna Niguel, I had a feeling I wouldn't be very useful the rest of the day after eating here. So, I decided that if I was going to be down and out for the rest of the day, I was not going to be alone. I enlisted the rest of my family to come and try out the new breakfast spot in town.

Stacks and Yolks is an import from Las Vegas, not that you'd probably know that since their two locations are well off the strip hidden in North Las Vegas. From what I can gather they opened in 2010 under the name Griddle Cakes and changed their name in 2014 to Stacks and Yolks. Their second location opened in 2016, and they have now branched out with an outpost in Laguna Niguel of all places. Maybe one of the owners was tired of the desert heat and wanted to be closer to the beach?

This Laguna Niguel spot, located in the Laguna Heights Marketplace, on the corner of Marina Hills and Golden Lantern has not really had a very auspicious opening. Opened since early this year, I had heard that they had a kitchen fire that had them close for a bit, and their service and food has really taken a beating on Yelp, which has resulted in a 2 and a half star rating, with over 100 reviews and counting so far. I'm not a big fan of Yelp ratings, so we had to give Stacks and Yolks a try for ourselves.

Our party of seven showed up on a recent Sunday morning,  just before nine, and we were met with a nearly empty restaurant, which I thought was a little odd for such a new place. The decor here could best be described as peppy and colorful. There's a patio out front, which did not get used during the entirety of our visit. Inside, there are about fifteen tables, which are spaced a little too close for comfort to each other for my liking.

This is a breakfast-centric restaurant, although they do serve lunch as well until they close at 3pm. The breakfast menu features plenty in the way of different types of pancakes, egg dishes, and a number of house specialties. I had already known what I was going to have before leaving home, so I just had to wait for the rest of our indecisive party to make their selections. They finally did, and this is how everything turned out for us on this visit.

I was a little surprised that my sister in law Emily went with this Florentine Benedict ($12.99), as she's a very basic eater usually, just opting for a simple egg dish most mornings. She must have been feeling pretty adventurous getting this benedict with its three poached eggs, spinach, tomato, home fries, hollandaise sauce, all perched atop a split English muffin. True to form she only ate a quarter of this, but did take the rest home. She liked this well enough but did not think it was anything above average. The hollandaise sauce was very thick and kind of overpowered the rest of the dish. The poached eggs were overcooked, but she did enjoy the home fries which were hidden underneath.

Both of my brother in law's got the Lumberjack Breakfast ($13,99) which comes with two buttermilk pancakes, three eggs, home fries, and choice of bacon or sausage. They both thought this was okay, but nothing that really blew them away. Jason felt his pancakes were a little on the doughy side, and could have been a little better if they were left on the griddle a bit longer. Eggs were done the way they had requested and the bacon was cooked nice and crisp. Potatoes were definitely on the dry side and needed to be seasoned up a bit, along with some ketchup added to moisten them up.

I'm always partial to skillet breakfasts because I feel you get to experience almost all of the breakfast items in the kitchen all on one plate. When I read the description of this Meat Lovers Scramble ($12.99) I knew I was going to order it. Three eggs piled on top of home fries and then topped with the holy trinity of breakfast meats; ham, bacon, and sausage, and then finished off with grated cheese. As if that was not enough, the plate also featured a split biscuit with plenty of gravy. Let's start with the biscuits and gravy. The biscuits seemed to be a little on the stale side, and I'm not sure that they were even made here. The gravy was okay, but no depth of flavor. The scramble was fine, but I expected a little more from it. The breakfast meats kind of canceled each other out and I could not get a really good bite of this massive heaping of food. It might have been better if I had gotten my eggs sunny side up instead of scrambled because the yolk would have been a good binding agent on this. It was fine, but kind of disappointing because I had expected a bit more from this based on the description on the menu.

Another one of my things when eating out at a breakfast restaurant, I always need a good mix of sweet to go along with my savory dish. This morning that meant I had to get a Short Stack of Elvis Pancakes ($8.99). These pancakes used a peanut butter batter and were studded with a good amount of chocolate chips and whipped cream. I liked my pancakes, as there was an abundance of chocolate included, but I did not get the slightest tinge of peanut butter from the pancakes themselves. Definitely forgo the short stack here, as these pancakes are about the size of a human head, and one will feed most people easily.

My sister in law Sara loves French Toast ($7.99) and she went big here with three slices, which she shared with her well behaved son, Andrew. Predictably she only ate half a slice, and Andrew was more interested in watching YouTube videos than eating anything. She did claim that the french toast was pretty good, but this is coming from someone that thinks the best Mexican restaurant in OC is Javier's. So misguided is my sister in law Sara.

Katie stuck to her usual when eating breakfast out when she got this Breakfast Burrito ($10.99). This burrito was filled with ham, green peppers, onions, and shredded cheese. She ended up liking this a lot more than she thought she would, but she would get this with avocado next time to boost it up a bit. She was not a big fan of the salsa that was served on the side of this burrito, as she called it salsa that you could get at any supermarket in the Midwest.

With a few exceptions, none of us were all too thrilled with what we had at Stacks and Yolks on this particular morning. Nothing was too awful, but in an area that has quite a few options for good breakfast spots, Stacks and Yolks are going to have to step up their game to compete. Not even close to the great breakfasts at Stacks Pancake House, Paul's Pantry, Mollies Country Kitchen, or What A Dish, but they were probably on par with your local Denny's and definitely better than the atrocious meal I had at the Broken Yolk in Mission Viejo. Service was not awful like a lot of the online reviews have stated, but while we were here there seemed to be one server for each of the occupied tables, so maybe service suffers when they are busier.  True to form, and with the help of the huge portions and my lack of willpower, I was in a food coma for the rest of this Sunday.

Out of five ziggurats, (because one of the most dominant features of the city of Laguna Niguel is the Chet Holifield Federal Building, which resembles a ziggurat), five being best to zero being worst, Stacks and Yolks gets 2.5 ziggurats.

For more information about Stacks and Yolks, head to their website here: http://www.stacksnyolks.com/