A Hot Wing and a Prayer

Santora's Hot Wings

28251 Marguerite Parkway

Mission Viejo, CA 92692

Both basketball and hockey are wrapping up their seasons now. Baseball season has been going on for two months, and football is right around the corner. As an added bonus, this is also an Olympic year, and nothing says Olympics like buffalo wings. Okay maybe that is a stretch, but with all of these sports going on, or coming up, I was really in the mood for some good wings. Enter my friend Drew.

Drew works with me, and he asked me where I think the best wings in our great county come from. I had a hard time answering his question. I have been to the chain places, (Hooters, Wingnuts, and Buffalo Wild Wings), I have been to some pizza places that also serve wings, (Pizza Store), and then some of the fast/casual places, (like Wingstop and Wing Street). I would probably say that my favorites up until this point have been Wings N Things in HB, Wingstop for their garlic Parmesan wings, and then Hooters, for their uh, great ambiance. I know, not a very impressive list. So let's see if Santora's can crack this list.

Santora's is located in a strip mall across from Saddleback College. We walked in right after work at 3:30 on a Wednesday afternoon. To my surprise the bar was packed with what looked like regulars, and there were plenty of people eating at the numerous tables. They have TVs tuned to various games, pop music blaring from the speakers, including Drew's favorites Christina Aguilera and Justin Bieber, (sorry to tell your secrets big guy), and plenty of what looks like family portraits all over the walls. The owner was our waitress, and she told us that they have been here for 23 years. That will explain the homey feel of this restaurant. After getting a cocktail, I was ready for some food. Let's see how it came out.

Before we get to the wings, we started with some Potato Skins ($9.75). These spuds were topped with mozzarella cheese, grated Romano cheese, bacon bits, and chives. I might have been hungry, or these might have actually been pretty good potato skins. The mozzarella was a nice change of pace, and the Romano cheese added another nice surprise. I am pretty sure the bacon bits were not made of real bacon, but it still tasted okay. These could have been made better if they were just a little crisper. Even with the fake bacon and the odd choice of mozzarella and Romano cheese, I would get these skins again.

Here is what we came here for, The Original Buffalo Hot Wings ($14.95, or because it was Wing Wednesday these 20 wings were $9.99). At Santora's they of course have different degrees of heat for their wings; mild, medium, hot, extra hot, and nuclear. I went with all hot, while Drew mixed it up by getting ten hot and ten medium wings. The hot did have a nice slow burn to them. There was plenty of sauce, the plate was drenched in it. I liked these when they cooled and the sauce stuck to the wings, with a slight crunch to the skin. I don't know if it was just by luck or not, but I mostly got all drumettes. There was also plenty of meat on these wings. We got both blue cheese and ranch dressing with these wings, but it was hard to tell the difference between the two.

Santora's probably does make my list as some of the best wings I have had in OC to date. I thought they had a good sauce on them, plenty of meat, and because it was Wing Wednesday, these were a great value at 50 cents a wing. Even at the regular price of 75 cents a wing, these would have been worth it. The service we got at Santora's was good, but not on the overly friendly side. This could have been due to the fact that they were a little busy though. Even with the gruff service, I really liked the vibe of Santora's. It kind of felt like an east coast kind of dive, with all of the old guys lining the bar in the early afternoon, sports on TVs, and the good wings. I am glad Drew told me about this place.

Out of five gauchos, (because this restaurant is right across from Saddleback College, and that is their mascot), five being best to zero being worst, Santora's Hot Wings gets 3 gauchos.

Santora's Hot Wings does not have a web site, but you can find info about them here: http://www.yelp.com/biz/santoras-pizza-subs-and-wings-mission-viejo

Mexican/French Food? Yes Please!

Anepalco's Cafe

3737 W. Chapman Ave.

Orange, CA 92868

Nothing gets me out of bed quicker than a good Mexican breakfast. Breakfast burritos, huevos rancheros, and chilaquiles. I love them all, and will even go without sleep for them, and I love to sleep! When we finally made plans to make it up to Anepalco's Cafe, I was up and ready almost before sunrise, that's how excited I was.

Anepalco's Cafe is not your typical Mexican breakfast place. Sure they have the usual Mexican breakfast staples, but they are a little different. Anepalco's is a fusion restaurant of Mexican and French food. I have not come across too many of these types of restaurants, so I was excited to see what they had in store for us.

This is the second location of Anepalco's. Their first location is also located in Orange, on Main Street. That location is only open for breakfast and lunch. This new location that we went to is open for brunch and dinner. It is located conveniently right at the corner of Chapman and State College, adjoining the Ayres Hotel. They have been in this location for two months now.

We got to the restaurant right at 11am. We were one of three tables at 11, but during our visit, the place was filling up, and there was plenty of people out on the patio in the front of the restaurant when we left. Inside the restaurant, there are about thirty or so tables. The decor is nice and understated. Dominated by dark woods and browns. By this point I was hungry, so let's see if the food lives up to its billing.

This colorful plate was Katie's selection for brunch, the Huevos Divorciados ($9.70). Hope this selection was not a secret sign about our relationship. Anyways, this plate had a little bit of everything included. Tortillas, ham, eggs, bacon, red onion, avocado, cotija cheese, sour cream, and cilantro, along with two sauces, red and green. When I pressed Katie as to which sauce she liked better, she could not choose. She did say that these sauces worked well together though. She was also impressed with the way the eggs were cooked here. She did mention that this did have temperature issues, but not enough that she would have sent it back.

This is probably the menu item that has put Anepalco's on the map, so it definitely deserves two pictures. The Anepalco's Chilaquiles ($8.60) was going to be what I was going to order, but my Mom beat me to the punch. This is not like any chilaquiles I have ever had. All of the basic ingredients are here, tortilla chips, eggs, red sauce, cotija cheese, sour cream, avocado mousse, and pico de gallo, but they are presented in a way that makes this a most unusual chilaquiles. I did get to have half of this, thanks, Mom! I thought the red sauce was not as overpowering as it can be in some other versions of this dish. I like a runny egg a little more than scrambled, but this egg was light and cooked perfectly. This was not served hot, but maybe lukewarm, it could have been hotter. What really stood out for me on this was the avocado mousse. Wow! Very light, and one of the best ways I have ever had an avocado. If this had been my plate, I would have asked for a side of this mousse and eaten it with a spoon. It was that good. I can see why this is Anepalco's signature item.

My Dad also went the breakfast route with this Green Eggs Benedictos ($9.70). This twist on an eggs benedict included the usual poached eggs, but then it took a left turn with spinach, tomato, and pesto sauce, served on sliced ciabatta bread. My Dad thought this was very good, pleasant flavor, and light tasting. The only minor qualm he had with this was that the crust of the ciabatta was a little too crunchy, but he would not hesitate to get this again. This was served with some very good roasted potatoes.

Since everyone else was getting breakfast foods, I decided that I would get something off of the lunch area of the menu. The Carnitas Sandwich ($9.80) had my name written all over it. Shredded pork, chicharron, avocado, mixed greens, radish, chipotle ranch, and cilantro piled on ciabatta bread. This sandwich was a little more subtle than I thought it would be. None of the contents of the sandwich really stood out for me, besides the pork. The carnitas was juicy and flavored simply. I would have liked the chicharron or the chipotle ranch to be more prominent, but this was not the case. What did capture my attention here was the Cream of Parsley soup that was served alongside this sandwich. I was not expecting much from a soup that is made from a garnish, but this made me rethink that little sprig that my Uncle used to eat when we went out to dinner with him. The soup was creamy, full of muted flavor, and went down nice and easy. If this is one of their daily soups on a day you are eating here, do yourself a favor and order it.

I am thrilled to report that this place made me happy to get out of bed on a Sunday morning. The food really lived up to the hype that I had read online. I was not so excited by my carnitas sandwich, but everything else I tried was right on point. As you can see, prices were not even close to being bad at Anepalco's. The food presentation is also worth noting here. They really go out of their way to make the food look as appealing as it is delicious. We had great service on the morning of our visit. The food did take a little longer to get out, but that is probably just because we were one of the first tables of the day. Be advised that this location of Anepalco's opens for brunch from 11 to 2pm, then closes until dinner is served from 5:30 till 9. After this brunch, we are really looking forward to trying their dinner menu in the near future.

Out of five stethoscopes, (because this location of Anepalco's is located across the street from UCI Medical Center, and I am sure that many doctors eat here), five being best to zero being worst, Anepalco's Cafe gets 3.5 stethoscopes.

For more information on Anepalco's Cafe, click here: http://www.anepalco.com/home-1.html

Hot Night at the Chili Pepper? - CLOSED

Chili Pepper

167 S. Main

Orange, CA 92868

I admit I was a little nervous coming here. The food had nothing to do with it. We are closing in on our third anniversary with this blog, and I have yet to have a restaurant ask me not to take pictures. In fact, I have never really had a run-in with any restaurant. I did a little research online, and more than one reviewer mentioned that they do not allow pictures to be taken in this restaurant. So, I was prepared to have this be the first incident between a restaurant and myself. Fortunately, this was not the case. I quickly took pictures of the food on the down-low. This explains the blurriness of some of the images. At least, that's the excuse I am sticking with.

Chili Pepper has been in this location since I was a kid long ago. My parents swear this place was owned by the same people who ran the now-defunct Juana Maria's over on Katella Avenue. I am not sure about this, but like the great child that I am, I will go with what my parents tell me. Outside the restaurant is a very tiny parking lot, but there is plenty of parking on the street in the back.

Once inside, you are transported to an old school, an over-the-top Mexican restaurant featuring waiters singing with overly giant sombreros, pinatas hanging from the ceiling, and a dizzying array of colors that one other reviewer described as "a box of melted crayons." Classic! As if all this was not enough, they also have tons of plants all over the restaurant to transport you to Puerto Vallarta without the humidity. I kept my camera on the seat, ready for an all-clear moment. Let's see how this meal turned out.

After we were seated, we were given chips and salsa. The lightly fried chips here go well with this mild salsa, which I really liked because it was chunky. Recently, we have had watery salsa every time we go to a Mexican restaurant. This was a nice change of pace.

We were in a Mexican restaurant, so Katie wanted a side of Guacamole ($4.99). The guacamole is lightly garnished with a few tomatoes and onions at the Chili Pepper. This was pedestrian guacamole. It was fresh but not overly flavorful, and it needed more seasoning. It's a good-sized serving, though.

Chris and Adrienne split their version of a dinner salad, the Ensalada Compuesta ($3.49). Translated, this means composed salad. Reading my blog can help you learn a new language. I should come clean; I just Googled this to understand what it means. This salad comprised mixed greens, shredded carrots, tomato, and ranch dressing. It was a basic salad, but like the guacamole, it was a good size for the price.

Time for the main meals, and starting us off is Katie's selection, the Guanajuato Burrito ($6.99). This unique-sounding burrito was filled with chicken, potatoes, onions, tomatoes, and beans, then topped with red sauce and cheese. Katie sounded more like Goldilocks when describing the portion size of this burrito, calling it "not too big, and not too small, but just right." She was also pleased with the taste of this burrito. She liked the chicken and potato and felt the red sauce perfectly rounded this out.

When coming to Chili Pepper, Chris usually goes for the carnitas fajitas, but this night, he felt the Steak Fajitas ($8.99). He thought these were okay, but he would have rather had the pork if given a do-over. These are your standard fajitas with onions, tomatoes, and peppers.

Adrienne loves the food at Chili Pepper and got this Two Item Combo ($7.99) with a Pork Tamale and a Cheese Enchilada. Adrienne called both of these items "delicious," she loves the red sauce this plate is drenched in. The beans and rice round out this plate nicely. She also wanted a special shout-out for the Margaritas ($4.99) here. She enjoys hers with no salt and on the rocks. I ordered mine the same way. They are open about pouring the tequila into these. After a few of these margaritas, I am sure many people break the awkward glasses these come in.

As many of you loyal readers of this blog know, I usually base my initial visit to a Mexican restaurant on a Carnitas Plate ($9.19), and here was no different. This carnitas really surprised me. Excellent flavor, crispy end pieces, and moist. These are the ways that carnitas need to be cooked. One of the best I have had in a while. I wished the portion size was more significant, but this plate was priced under ten dollars. The rice was cooked well but a little on the plain side. The beans were good, but more of them were needed. I will probably ask for double beans next time. Very satisfying meal.

One of the things I remember from my childhood when coming here was the complimentary apple-filled tacos at the end of the meal. I used to think it was the coolest thing to be given free food in a restaurant, and it still is cool now. We let these sit for a while because they came to our table hot. The shell of these is fried lightly and rolled in cinnamon and sugar. Inside is an apple mixture that is reminiscent of an apple-filled donut. It was a pleasant end to our meal.

Chili Pepper has been here a long time, and I can see why. This will not be the best Mexican food you have ever eaten, but everything was pretty solid. The portion sizes were average here, but there is little to complain about with these prices. They are definitely not gouging anyone. Reading other reviews, I see that service can sometimes be an issue here, but we had no complaints on this night. Our waiter was on his game all evening and kept things moving. After all the fuss about no pictures in the restaurant, I made it out unscathed.

Out of five Scoville units (because that is the scale for determining the spiciness of peppers), five being the best and zero being the worst, the Chili Pepper gets 3 Scoville units.

For more information about The Chili Pepper, head to their website here: https://www.thechilipepperrestaurant.com/

Cheese-topia in RSM - CLOSED

Mi Casa

22322 El Paseo

Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688

Rancho Santa Margarita is not somewhere that you often think of with awesome dining options. This inland oasis is all of the sudden burgeonings with new restaurants. BJ's opened up late last year, Bruxie opened this past week, and now Costa Mesa's favorite, Mi Casa is now gracing inland diners with their Mexican staples.

We reviewed Mi Casa about a year ago. You can read that review here. At that time we went twice for dinner, which we have also done at this new outpost in RSM. This new Mi Casa has a much more modern feel to it. Taking over the old El Torito space, this restaurant seems brighter, with windows dominating one entire side of the eating area. There is also a large patio area that offers customers the chance to eat outside.

Both times we have been here having been on Friday nights at six. Our first trip was their first Friday being opened. Of course, there were the usual hiccups of any new restaurant. Our wait time was said to be thirty minutes when in reality it was just over an hour to get to the table. Service was spotty on our first visit. Waiters were missing for long stretches, and food was taking a long time to make it out of the kitchen. The staff at times really seemed a little overwhelmed. All of these were totally understandable to me. So, when Chuck and Stephanie decided they wanted to hang out with us, we suggested trying Mi Casa again to see if some of the bugs have been worked out. Let's see if this was the case.

After we were seated we were brought these chips and salsa, then we ordered the Guacamole ($3). The first basket of chips was all broken, small pieces, so we asked for another basket. These were much better. The salsa here is a little on the runny side, but with a gentle kick. Stephanie likes a spicier salsa, so they brought us out a Habanero salsa. This was the real stuff. Very spicy, and a little more chunky. I will ask for this on future visits here. The guacamole was fair, nothing too out of the ordinary.

For those of you that have been to either Mi Casa restaurant, you know that this place is all about the cheese. They cheese everything, including this appetizer, the Carne Asada Fries ($9). This appetizer is made up of seasoned fries, cheese, carne asada, cheese, sour cream, cheese, chives, and cheese. This was gone in an instant. The cheese really dominates this plate, but the steak and fries are prevalent here. The fries could be a little crisper, and this would make this even better. Four people could split this easily. We did not get the nachos, but they looked really good as well.

Both Chuck and I got the same thing. Way to be original Chuck! We both went with the Large Mexican Pizza ($14). He ordered his with chicken and I got mine with Chile Verde pork. Here they take a tortilla and top it with the meat of your choice and a plethora of items including; olives, tomatoes, beans, green chiles, onions, cheese, guacamole, and sour cream. The menu says this serves 2 to 3 people, but I had no problem finishing this. I had wanted this without olives, but it came with them anyways. Chuck really seemed to like his dinner as well, but he had more to take home than me.

Both of the girls got Combination Dinners at Mi Casa. Let's start with Katie's 2 Item Combo ($11). She went with her standard combo meal at a Mexican restaurant, a Chicken Taco, and a Cheese Enchilada. Katie felt both of these items were very solid. She opted for the black beans, instead of the refried beans, and was happy with her choice. This platter of food was so big, that she had plenty of food to send with me to work the next day.

Sorry for the lack of diversity on this trip. I guess they all forgot I was food blogging. Chuck's much better half, Stephanie got a Two Item Combo ($12), as well. She changed it up a bit from Katie's by getting a Chile Verde Enchilada and the same Chicken Taco that Katie got. This plate was so big that she had the pork enchilada put in a box for lunch the next day. She really enjoyed the chicken taco with the habanero salsa. The beans were more to her liking than the rice.

After eating at Mi Casa twice in the last two weeks I have come to the conclusion that I like Mi Casa, but I am not in love with it. I really enjoy the fact that they opened up in RSM though. This is the kind of Mexican comfort food that this area needed. The Mexican food here is not going to wow anyone, but it is consistently good, in a very safe way. Mi Casa kind of has a Don Jose's vibe to it. The service was much better on our second trip here. They really righted the ship quickly. Food came out very fast, and our waiter was on top of everything all night long. We will definitely be back to have a side of Mexican food, with our cheese.

Out of five lips, (because President George H. Bush once ate at the Costa Mesa location of Mi Casa, and he once famously asked us to read his lips), five being best to zero being worst, Mi Casa gets 2.5 lips.

For more information about Mi Casa, click here: http://www.micasa1.com/

Just Finding Out About Original Pizza - CLOSED

Original Pizza

2121 W. Balboa Blvd.

Newport Beach, CA 92663

I have lived in OC all of my life. I feel I have a pretty good grasp on some of the best eats around our great county. I have to admit I did not know about this pizza place until a truck driver from my work, who lives in the Inland Empire told me about Original Pizza in Newport. I even lived in Newport for ten years and had never been here before. Maybe besides the pizza I am about to eat, I should order a slice of humble pie.

The truck driver at work told me that he drives the 50 miles from Riverside to come here, and this is a guy that drives for a living. That would be like an accountant getting off of work, then doing all his neighbors taxes, just for the fun of it. I am sure this guy is not getting back on the roads for just any old pizza, so needless to say, I was really looking forward to seeing what Original Pizza had in store for us.

Original Pizza has been located near the pier in Newport since 1963. I must have passed this place about a hundred times in various forms of sobriety over the years. Inside the restaurant, there is not much to look at. If you are into decor, go elsewhere. There are eight tables, stark white walls, and enough room for about ten tables. The menu is not going to blow you away with its diversity. This is simply a pizza place. They have ten specialty pizzas offered, along with one or two salads, and during lunch hours they offer pizza by the slice. Let's see how everything came out for us.

After ordering at the counter the girl brought out our drinks. We were talking about the kind of ice we like in restaurants at poker the other night, and this kind of ice was the clear favorite. Small little pellets that are like snow always seem to make drinks taste better and colder. Just wanted to share this little trivial tidbit with you.

Katie and I split this Tossed Dinner Salad ($3.50). This salad featured lettuce, pepperoni, red cabbage, mozzarella cheese, carrots, cucumbers, and pepperoncini's. We got this salad with blue cheese dressing. The salad was average, but we were not expecting more than that. The produce was fresh, the dressing was passable, and the mozzarella was thickly grated, which added more flavor here. We have had much worse salads.

Here is the reason that we came in, the Meat Lover's Medium Pizza ($17.25). This fourteen-inch pizza included pepperoni, sausage, and Canadian bacon. Even though you can see grease on the pan above, I was surprised by the lack of grease on this. There was plenty of cheese and toppings here, which were solid. The crust had a great chew to it but did not get in the way of the toppings. This really did remind me of an East Coast pizza, to a lesser degree. We made very quick work of this very good pizza.

Original Pizza is a very solid pizza joint. Best in OC? Probably not, but definitely in the top echelon of traditional pizzas we have had so far. The pizza did not blow me away, but when I am back in the area and craving pizza, we will not overlook this tiny pizzeria anymore. Some people might feel that the prices were a little on the high side for pizza, but to feed two people for $8.50 a piece is kind of a bargain, especially in this neighborhood. Service on the Friday night we were here was very good, even with a very loud youth church group in attendance. Special note, this place is cash only, so be advised of that. Glad my coworker from the Inland Empire could turn me on to a place that has been under my nose my whole life.

Out of five Neapolitans, (no not the three striped ice cream, but people from the city of Naples, the city that is the originator of the modern day pizza), five being best to zero being worst, Original Pizza gets 3 Neapolitans.

Original Pizza does not have a website, but you can find information about them here: http://www.yelp.com/biz/original-pizza-newport-beach

Gratifying Grub at Gabbi's

Gabbi's Mexican Kitchen

141 S. Glassell St.

Orange, CA 92866

I am probably the last blogger to visit Gabbi's. It is not like we haven't tried to make it up to this Orange eatery before. A few times we came up here, and the wait was over an hour, so we went to other restaurants. It always seems that whenever we walk by here they always have a lot of people milling around their hostess stand waiting for a table. So, I really had high hopes that this was going to be a great place.

I was meeting my cousin Daryl up here for dinner. He recently graduated from art school, and this is where he picked to eat. After having a few cocktails over at Haven Gastropub, we walked across the street to eat at Gabbi's. At seven o'clock we were told it was going to be a forty-five minute wait, but there were seats open at the bar. I don't even think she finished that sentence before we made a beeline to the bar and found two empty seats.

Gabbi's is a long, narrow restaurant framed by red brick walls. There are some big pieces of art along the walls, to help break up the pattern of the bricks. The lighting is darkened, to lend to the hip vibe of this restaurant. You would never know that this building is over a hundred years old. With all of the activity in the restaurant it really makes the place feel so much younger.

Gabbi's has been in this location since July of 2006. In that time, Gabbi's has really had great buzz associated with it. Most of that is due to Gabriela Patrick-Salazar, and the food that has come out of her kitchen. She has been in the restaurant business for a long while. Helping manage her parents two LA restaurants, earning her culinary degree at UCLA, opening her own successful Costa Mesa catering company, and finally fulfilling her dream of opening Gabbi's, with her husband Ed. I was finally ready to see if this food would match my anticipation for it. Let's find out.

As with most Mexican restaurants, we will show you the Chips and Salsa first. The chips were fresh, and had a decent flavor to them. The salsa really over shadowed the chips here. It had a good kick to it, but I would have liked it to be a little more chunky.

I may have a problem. About two months ago I had my first queso fundido, and now I have to try it whenever I see it on a menu. At Gabbi's it was no different. There version is called the Queso Fundido con Chorizo de Casa ($10). This rich appetizer is a baked cheese dish, with house made chorizo added. Talk about a heavy appetizer, but so addicting. At Gabbi's this is served with guacamole and some great flour tortillas. I knew I had a meal coming, and that the cheese would expand in my stomach, but I had to try to finish this. I paid for it later, but it was so worth it. The lesson I learned this night, order this with more than two people to avoid over stuffing yourself.

When we were ordering Daryl really wanted to have their fish special, but they were all out of it. He told me that he always gets side tracked by the specials, but this time he went with something off of the regular menu, the delicious sounding Tacos Puebla ($15). If this taco does not sound good to you, you might be reading the wrong blog. Grilled skirt steak, applewood smoked bacon, Portuguese sausage, grilled onions, and Oaxaca cheese were involved in the making of these tacos. Why isn't this on more menus? These were delicious. I mean, how could bacon and sausage not be good in a taco. These breakfast meats did overpower the skirt steak to a degree, but this is definitely a must get the next time we are here. This was served with beans and rice, which were okay, nothing that was out of the ordinary.

My dinner was a bit of a mystery to me. A lot of the time when I am eating in a new Mexican restaurant, I usually get a carnitas dish to christen the place. This was the case at Gabbi's with the Carnitas Nortenas ($15). I say this dish was a mystery to me because at times I was not so sold on the pork. It seemed like it could not stand on its own, but it must have been a bad piece, because other pieces I had really turned out well. I really liked combining the beans, rice, and pork in their very good flour tortillas. Decent plate, but there are lots of other options here that will tempt me on my next trip here.

Before I even made it to Gabbi's, I had heard about their churros. They have a chocolate churro, but we went with the Churros con Cajeta ($8). Writing this review I learned that cajeta is a thickened syrup of caramelized milk. This was served as one of the dipping sauces, and the other was a chocolate chile sauce. Our favorite was the cajeta sauce. It really went well with the churro. The chile sauce was fine, but we did not think it went well with the sugary churro. The churros also deserve some recognition. They were warm, had a good crunch, and were soft inside. Probably the best I have had in a restaurant. Do yourself a favor and get these when you come here, you can thank me later.

I am sure after reading this review you can tell that I was very pleased with this meal. This is not your typical Mexican food that you can get just anywhere. This is special occasion Mexican food. Everything was very flavorful, fresh, and made me want to come back here and try other things as well. I am not going to lie to you and tell you this place is a great value, because it is not. I do not think that the prices at Gabbi's match up with the amount of food you get, but the quality of the food almost makes up for that. This Mexican eatery is on par with some of the others of their genre, like Sol Cocina and Cha Cha's Latin Kitchen. Service was great the night we were here. The bartenders really took good care of us on this busy night. One other note, there is no sign for Gabbi's, so just look for all the people waiting on the sidewalk waiting to be seated. Really glad we made it up here finally.

Out of five panthers, (because this is the mascot of nearby Chapman University, and the night we were here their students were staging an undie run to mark the end of finals), five being best to zero being worst, Gabbi's Mexican Kitchen gets 3.5 panthers.

For more information about Gabbi's Mexican Kitchen, click here: http://www.gabbipatrick.com/