A Slice of New York in El Segundo - CLOSED

Grimaldi's

2121 Rosecrans Ave. Ste. 1399

El Segundo, CA 90266

I was skeptical walking in here. A few years ago, I had a great pizza at the Grimaldi's underneath the Brooklyn Bridge in New York. Whether it's the water, the weather, or the crazy toppings we put on our pizzas, the West Coast has always been treated as a stepchild regarding great pizza in the US. Chicago has its fantastic deep dish, New York is celebrated for its thin crust, and we have pineapple on pizza, which is blasphemous to other areas of the country. Yes, Southern California is not known for its pizzas, but I hoped Grimaldi's opening here would bring us some pizza cred.

I was skeptical because I was worried this would not be as good as the pizza we had in New York. Grimaldi's has been around for over a hundred years. They cook their pizzas in a coal-fired brick oven, giving them a crispness and flavor you can't get from other pizza ovens. Along with the oven lore, they also have a secret dough and pizza sauce recipe, and they have tried to replicate the New York water over the years and feel they have a good handle on it now. The pizza oven is 25 tons and burns at 1200 degrees. We were excited to see if this pizza could live up to what we experienced in Brooklyn.

Our reason for being up in this neck of the woods was that we were taking Chuck and Stephanie to LAX for their red-eye flight back to North Carolina. We arrived at Grimaldi's at just after eight on a Saturday night. There was plenty of parking in the structure at the back of this location. When leaving the structure, make your way towards Rosecrans, where Grimaldi's is situated. The Brooklyn location is notorious for its long lines throughout the day, but that was not the case in El Segundo. We were seated right away.

This is a much more spacious space than the East Coast location. The tables are spread out a lot more. There's a sleek kind of vibe here, with lots of dark woods, exposed brick, and their signature red and white tablecloths. The menu here is straightforward. Starters include six different kinds of salads; the rest of the menu is left for pizzas and calzones. No pasta dishes or other entrees are offered at Grimaldi's. This is strictly a pizza place, so you should move along if you're not in the mood for pizza. Luckily, we were all ready for pizza, so we ordered and eagerly awaited our food.

I'm always partial to Caesar Salads ($11), so I roped our party of four into giving the one at Grimaldi's a try. This is the large version of this salad, which barely fed the four of us. This Caesar had all the usual suspects included; shaved Parmesan, romaine lettuce, Caesar dressing, and croutons. The freshness of the romaine was definitely evident in these pictures. The vibrant green was very pleasing, and plenty of Parmesan and croutons were included in this. This salad failed due to the minimal use of dressing. It was barely noticeable throughout the salad. Yes, we could have asked for more, but I would like the food to come out as the kitchen envisions it. The lack of dressing on this made this salad average, which was disappointing.

Katie's pizza made its way to the table first. She had a personal-size pizza. There are no specialty pizzas here; you choose the size you want and what kind of sauce you desire, and then pick your toppings, which range in price from $2 to $5. She went with a Personal White with Garlic pizza and added Spicy Chicken Sausage and Artichoke Hearts ($19). Katie was pretty blown away with this pizza, which she said was on par with our one in Brooklyn. This personal pizza was the perfect size for her, and she was even generous enough to share two slices with the three of us while we were waiting for our pizza to come out. I liked the spicy sausage, which added a kick, and the garlic in the front and center of this pizza. Big-time flavors.

A long time passed between when Katie's pizza came out and when ours hit the table. It was nearly twenty minutes, but the manager was right on top of things. He apologized for the wait, explaining that our pizza was burnt accidentally and he would take it off the bill. This was very generous of him, and I liked that he admitted their snafu. However, this large pizza ($23 with toppings) was worth waiting for. We selected jalapenos, pepperoni, and sausage to top our pie. This is usually my go-to order when trying a new pizza place. The toppings were evenly spread across the pizza. This pizza was not overly cheesy, but you could still tell it was there. The crust stayed crisp, and the edges were not excessively bready, which I liked. My one complaint is that there was too little sauce used on this, but that's just my preference. When we were done, I also noticed a lack of grease on the pizza pan. I attribute this to the high-quality toppings and cheese they use here. This is not an overly heavy pizza, which made Stephanie and Chuck happy since they would sit on a plane for the next four hours.

Since our pizza was being taken off the bill, we decided to splurge on dessert. At Grimaldi's, there are three desserts to choose from, or you could get the Dessert Trio ($10) and sample all three. This trio comprised tiramisu, your choice of one of their house-made cheesecakes, and their signature cannoli. I liked the cheesecake the best, which is odd because I'm not usually a fan. This one was not too chalky, though, and was more creamy. There was also no shortage of Oreo crumbs on this. The cannoli was good, but splitting between four people took a lot of work to get a sound bite. A good crunch to it, and the filling inside was solid. The tiramisu was decent but too bland. I liked that they did offer this option so you could try all of their desserts because sometimes it's too hard to pick just one.

Okay, first and foremost, many of you are thinking about Grimaldi's being too expensive. $19 for a personal-size pizza is too much, and I agree with that. In this case, though, you do get what you pay for. If you are a true pizza fan, you will want to experience what Grimaldi's has offered for over a hundred years, no matter the price. The pizzas here are worth it every once in a while, especially when you consider that a large pizza at Round Table or Lamppost costs over the $20 mark, and although they are good, they can not compete with what is offered at Grimaldi's. This was a much more comfortable setting than the cramped Brooklyn location we visited. Besides the unfortunate burning of our pizza, service was definitely not an issue on this night. Our waitress was over to our table every so often to maintain drink levels and meet our needs. Even when Chuck and Stephanie returned to town, they remarked how much they enjoyed this pizza. Having Grimaldi's in Southern California will gain us some pizza cred until someone orders pineapple on their pizza.

Out of five Barbie dolls (because the city of El Segundo is the corporate home to Mattel, makers of the famous blond doll), five being best to zero being worst, Grimaldi's gets 3.5 Barbie dolls.

For more information on Grimaldi's, go to their website here: http://www.grimaldispizzeria.com/

Watch Out, Fred's is Smoking - CLOSED

Smokey Fred's BBQ

129 East Collins Ave.

Orange, CA 92867

I know, another Orange restaurant. It seems like lately, we have been meeting up with our north OC friends halfway between us and them. Since we live in Mission Viejo, and they live north of the 91 Freeway, Orange has been the first city that has popped into my mind about a possible meeting spot. With lots of great restaurants to offer, Orange has provided us with some great meals recently, and we hoped that the trend would continue when we visited Smokey Fred's BBQ.

We were meeting my parents on this trip on a recent Friday evening. We got here a few minutes earlier than my parents, (a rare occurrence), and surveyed the area a bit. This is not a fancy shopping center, to say the least. There's a liquor store at one corner, and an apparent local favorite, Pancho's Mexican restaurant, which had a very steady stream of customers making their way into it for what I have heard are combination plates smothered in cheese. We contemplated jumping ship and trying Pancho's, but we held our ground and entered Fred's.

Smokey Fred's is not a big place, and it's not going to blow you away with its decor. There are three tables, a long bar with some chairs facing the wall, no soda fountain, and no air conditioning. What Fred does have is the sweet smell of barbecue when you walk through the door. That was more than enough for me to be excited about this place.

Fred was behind the counter when we walked in, he was very cordial, explained his menu, answered all of our questions, and really made us feel welcome. He has tried to incorporate the four different, but equally delicious styles of barbecue at his restaurant. Kansas City is represented by a sweet and spicy sauce, Carolina shows up on the menu with their signature pulled pork, Memphis is highlighted for their ribs, and no one could pass up the Texas barbecue staple, brisket. Fred's mantra, which is splashed across his website is, "low and slow baby!" I was getting excited just hearing him talk about what was good on this day. We hit this place at just the right time, pulled two-2 person tables together, and waited for the food to make it out to our table. Let's see how Fred's barbecue stacks up against others in OC.

I kind of went big here at Smokey Fred's, starting with this Half Rack of Baby Back Ribs ($12.99). These came pre-cut, with your choice of sauce or naked. I almost always prefer to have the sauce left on the side, so I can taste the meat. These were some damn good ribs. They had plenty of meat on them, they definitely were smokey, but not in an overbearing way, and they were tender enough to come off the bone with just a little bit of effort. The sweet Kansas City barbecue sauce went well with these. I got these to share with the table but had a hard time parting with any of them. Excellent.

Both Katie and my mom got the Lexington Pulled Pork Sandwich ($7.99). This Carolina inspired sandwich comes with plenty of pulled pork, coleslaw, and a Carolina barbecue sauce, which is tangier than the sweeter Kansas City variety. My mom is not a fan of coleslaw on sandwiches but liked the crunch it gave this sandwich. The pulled pork was smokey, tender, and full of flavor. This was a good-sized sandwich, with plenty of pulled pork falling out of the sides of the sandwich. According to Katie, there was just the right amount of the vinegar-based sauce here, as to not overshadow the star of the show, the pork. She'd get this sandwich again.

The sandwich parade just kept on rolling when my dad selected the Danewich Sliders ($7.99) as his meal. This was made up of three sliders with your choice of meat. He went with one brisket and two pulled pork sliders, which were served on mini Hawaiian rolls. He really liked these sandwiches but thought they should have come with a side item. He went up and ordered a side of potato salad, which you will see in a bit. When pinned down, he liked the brisket slider a little better than the pork, but both varieties were good.

So remember when I told you I went big here, I was not lying. This is part two of my meal, the Double Barbecue Plate ($11.99). My choice of meats was the smoked brisket and the Louisiana hotlink. This is some of the best brisket I have had. Very tender and flavorful, with tiny little pockets of fat that added some intense flavor. So good, it's been a few weeks since we have been here, and I still crave this brisket. The hotlink was not too shabby either. Not crazy, over the top hot, but a decent heat to it. The only drawback of my visit to Smokey Fred's was the chili that I picked as my side. A very watery chili, with not much spice to it. I will choose something else for my next side item on my frequent future visits here.

Since my dad was still a little hungry after his three sliders, he decided to have a side of Potato Salad ($1.00). This was a much better choice than the chili. This potato salad reminded me of my mom's version, which is still my favorite. This potato salad is a recipe from Fred's family. The mustard was not over the top, the potatoes were fork tender, and there was not too much pickle used here. A dash of paprika on top for seasoning, and you have a pretty stellar potato salad.

I was really excited by the barbecue at Smokey Fred's. It's definitely right up there with my favorite BBQ place in OC, Blake's Place. The meats here are awesome and worth the drive to experience them. I wish the restaurant itself was a little more conducive to larger groups, and I wish it were a little more comfortable eating here. The brisket and ribs are worth the minor inconvenience of not having a soda fountain and no providing air conditioning. I have a feeling that once people find out about this place, it will become harder to snag one of the three tables at Fred's. It looks like we have found our new spot to have a pregame meal before going to the Ducks games this Fall.

Out of five campaign hats, (because that is the official name of the hat that Smokey Bear wears), five being best to zero being worst, Smokey Fred's BBQ gets a strong 3.5 campaign hats.

For more information about Smokey Fred's BBQ, go to their website here: http://smokeyfredsbbq.com/

Garlic Sauce Greatness at Zena's?

Zena's Lebanese Cuisine

2094 N. Tustin Rd.

Orange, CA 92865

Katie used to work in Ontario, and although the one-and-a-half-hour drive was killing her, she did find one benefit to the drive. Near her office was a Lebanese restaurant she and her coworkers frequented. Katie claimed that the garlic sauce they had there was medicinal and could cure anything that ailed her. Now that her company has moved back to OC, she has been searching for an OC equivalent to that garlic sauce. She was hoping it would be found at Zena's Lebanese Cuisine.

We went out with our friends Alex and Jaszlyn. Alex is not a fan of Mediterranean food, but I know his fiance is, so I searched for a place we could meet, and Zena's came up as highly rated. Many of the reviewers mention their love of this family-run business and how they treat you like family. We did not receive that kind of welcome, probably because we were with Alex, but everyone was still amicable when we walked in just after 6 on a recent Wednesday night.

Zena's has been in business for over 30 years and is located just across the street from Orange Mall and in the same shopping center as Staples and French's Bakery. The restaurant is bigger than it appears from the outside, with about thirty or so tables. There was some light, what I assumed to be Lebanese music playing over the speakers. The restaurant was not too crowded during our visit, but there was a slow trickle of customers making their way inside during our two-hour stay there.

The menu at Zena's is pretty extensive but very easy to follow for novice Lebanese eaters such as me. The menu does an excellent job of explaining the dishes, and if you're embarrassed about messing up the name of the item you want to order, you can order by number. I butchered the name of my entree, but at least I tried. Let's see if Katie has found her ultimate garlic sauce here at Zena's.

Of course, before we got to the garlic sauce, we had to try the Humus Bettheen ($9.95). Humus is pretty mainstream, but for those who are not sure what it is, it's mashed-up garbanzo beans mixed with tahini, garlic, lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, and other assorted spices. This version was pretty good texture-wise but kind of bland regarding flavor. Not bad, but I expected a little more from the humus. The pita this came with was fresh and a suitable vessel for the hummus.

As I was reading reviews before coming to Zena's, one thing people kept talking about was the Arnabeet ($10.95). This fried cauliflower was worth all the praise that it gets. Think of this as Lebanese fair food. The cauliflower was fried but not dripping in grease, with a nice crunchy texture to it. It was served with a tahini sauce, which could have been a little thicker, but it still did a good job coating the cauliflower. Don't skip this appetizer.

Alex sure did eat this Beef Kabob ($22.95) pretty quickly for someone not really into Mediterranean cuisine. This plate contained two skewers of marinated top sirloin, rice, and hummus. Alex is a man of few words, but he did mention that the meat here was pretty tender, and the rice was okay.

Just like her husband-to-be, Jaszlyn went with a kabob plate as well. She selected the ever-popular Chicken Kabob ($21.95). This plate also came with two skewers featuring boneless chicken breast, rice, and hummus. She liked this plate but has had better chicken kabobs at other places.

Katie is pretty predictable when eating in Lebanese restaurants, so it was no surprise that she had the Shawarma ($19.95). Shawarma is a marinated rotisserie beef sliced and served alongside onions, tomatoes, mint, hummus, and tahini sauce. Katie also wanted garlic sauce to go along with this naturally. She liked the flavor of the beef, which had a tanginess. All the items on the plate interacted so nicely together that Katie could not see herself getting anything else on future visits to Zena's. Unfortunately, the garlic sauce served here did not live up to the one she had near her work in Ontario. This one was a little thinner, and the garlic was not as pronounced. So the great garlic sauce search continues.

This night, I went a little out of my comfort zone when I ordered Kafta B'Seneyee ($20.95). This dish was definitely new to me, but it got my attention from their menu's description immediately. It's lean ground beef mixed with parsley, onions, and other spices to create a Lebanese meatloaf. It's then baked with tomatoes, potatoes, and a tomato sauce and served with rice. This was a pretty hearty meal. The potatoes were fork tender, while the meat had a dense meatball feel. The tomato sauce was surprisingly light, which came out of the kitchen scalding hot. I would get this again, but maybe when the weather is cooler. I imagine this would be great on those cooler nights in OC when the temperatures get down into the low 60s.

None of the four of us really had any big-time issues with the food we ordered this night. It was all pretty good, but it did not really blow any of us away. I would not classify this as destination dining, but if we were in the area again and wanted to have Lebanese, we would not hesitate to come back here. We all did think that the prices were a little on the high side here, though, maybe by as much as five dollars a plate. The service was pretty good on this night. They were not totally busy, so our waiter was around enough to keep tabs on anything that we may have needed. Glad we got a chance to catch up with our friends Alex and Jaszlyn, and we look forward to continuing our search for OC's greatest garlic sauce.

Out of five chairlifts (because I recently found out that Lebanon lays claim to six ski resorts in the country, so it's possible to ski in the morning and swim at the beach in the afternoon), five being best to zero being worst, Zena's Lebanese Cuisine gets 3 chairlifts.

For more information about Zena's Lebanese Cuisine, head to their website by clicking here: https://zenaslebanese.com/

Betting On a Good Time at Sammy's

Sammy's Original

23221 Lake Center Drive

Lake Forest, CA 92630

You have probably driven by it numerous times, and wondered what was going to become of the old Black Angus that used to sit adjacent to the North 5 Freeway, between El Toro Road and Lake Forest Drive. Yes, the inevitable had happened to that Black Angus spot, it finally succumbed to mediocre food and a bad location. If you were stuck in some traffic on the freeway, you might have spied some work being done on the old building earlier this year. There is a new restaurant taking a crack at this space, Sammy's Original.

I had heard about Sammy's awhile back, and have seen some pictures of their food, and other goings on at the restaurant on their Instagram page. They opened in February of this year, and have had big crowds for each of the triple crown horse races this year. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that Sammy's is an off track betting spot, where you can watch and bet on horse races throughout the country. This is the second OC business that has taken advantage of a 2007 law which allows satellite wagering at bars and restaurants, we also reviewed the other spot, OC Tavern down in San Clemente.

If you had ever been to this location when it was a Black Angus, you will be in for a shock. Gone is the dark and dusty feel of that restaurant, replaced with a brighter and cleaner feel at Sammy's. Of course the brightness could be coming from one of their more than 120 TVs, or maybe the lights on the wall that spell out Sammy's. Definitely a Vegas sports book kind of vibe here, and be aware that no one under 21 is even allowed inside this restaurant. For customers unfamiliar with betting on horse racing, there are cards on each table explaining the betting process and rules. I like to bet on horses, but I was more eager to experience their food and dining experience at Sammy's.

We arrived at 6PM on a recent Saturday night. The place was pretty empty, except for our party of seven and a couple of older gentlemen, who did not seem to care about the food or drinks here, but were content rooting on their horses. Think grizzled Vegas old men, who probably know more about horses than I know about hockey. Since we were the only group eating during our entire stay at Sammy's, we had the full attention of our very attentive waiter.

The kitchen at Sammy's is run by a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and former Head Chef and Owner of Vine Restaurant in San Clemente, Justin Monson. He has created a menu that has all of the things you would expect to see on a sports bar menu, but with a gourmet twist on many items. I was pretty excited to see what this new restaurant had in store for us.

The only one of us drinking on this night was Lynn, (no surprise there). She considers herself to be a bloody mary connoisseur, so I was not shocked that she wanted to try this Sammy's Bloody Mary ($10). The house bloody mary at Sammy's uses Absolut Peppar vodka, Demetrius bloody mary seasoning, Tapatio, and then garnished with half a pickled egg, a shishito pepper, and bacon. Lynn liked this bloody mary, but did send it back for a less spicy one. She has a pretty low tolerance for spice, as does the rest of her brood. She liked the non-spicy version much better.

As is customary when we go out to dinner with Katie's family, we always order appetizers. This evening we ordered three, starting with these Crispy Chicken Wings ($9). These came topped with shishito peppers, a touch of soy sauce, and lemon. These wings were pretty good sized, with plenty of meat on them, and they were fried crisp. They were kind of tame in the flavor department though, which suited Katie's family just fine.

We also tried the Vintage Hot Wings ($9) as well. These were much better than the first ones, because they had more flavor to them. They were served with the traditional celery and carrots, and a very well made blue cheese dip, which I took full advantage of. The meatiness and crispness of these wings made these a clear winner in this unofficial battle of the wings at Sammy's. I'd definitely get these again.

The one non-wing starer that we ordered were these Pale Ale Beer Battered Green Beans ($7). Growing up I was never really a fan of green beans, maybe because we only had the canned ones, but these prove that anything deep fried can be made delicious. The batter was light, but still had a decent crunch to it, which did not overpower the green bean inside. These came with another well made sauce, this time it was a roasted garlic chipotle dipping sauce. This sauce went well with the green beans, but in truthfulness, this sauce would have gone great with anything. These disappeared quickly from our table.

Even though we had three appetizers for the table, I still felt the need to have this Wedge ($8) at Sammy's. When it hit the table, I was even more glad that I decided to have it. This colorful salad contained the traditional quartered iceberg lettuce head, then was topped with bacon, red onion, tomato, blue cheese crumbles, green onions, and the same very good blue cheese dressing that was served with the wings. I liked this wedge salad a lot. It had plenty of dressing on it, the tomatoes did not over take the salad, and there was plenty of bacon on this. There was not only bacon crumbles, but also a strip of bacon included on this. There was so much bacon on this that Scott Slater would even be proud of it.

Even after five years of being together, and most of that time feels like it has been in restaurants, Katie still surprises me with some of the things that she orders. Take for instance this Ham Banh Mi Sandwich ($8). I never would have guessed that Katie would have gotten this, but there it was sitting in front of her. This Vietnamese inspired sandwich started with a base of black forest ham, and then was topped with pickled carrots, jalapenos, and mayo, all on a brioche roll. Katie did not really get a banh mi kind of feel to this sandwich. The carrots kind of tasted bland, not pickled at all, and the jalapenos used here were extremely hot, and took over this sandwich big time. The sandwich also was dry, and only made better when she asked for another side of mayo. She would forgo this sandwich on future visits.

Both Jimmy and Emily had the Sammy's Burger ($10), which is listed on the menu as using prime American beef, then topped with caramelized onions, cheddar, arugula, and roasted tomato mayo. Both of them liked their burger, and Emily was even gracious enough to cut me off a quarter of her burger for me to try. She probably did this because she's not used to eating so much, but I did appreciate it. She had requested her burger to be well done, which is not my preferred way to have my burger, so I was not in love with the burger portion that I ate here. The patty was definitely well done, and not juicy. No fault of Sammy's on this one, since this is the way that Emily likes her burger. The fries were okay here, and they sure did give out a good amount of them.

Both Dennis and Jason were enticed by the special that was offered on this night, the Prime Rib Sandwich ($11). This sandwich was served on ciabatta, with what appeared to be shredded beef in a barbecue sauce and cheese. Not really what either one of them was picturing when they ordered this. Neither one was really excited by this sandwich, and Jason even though it was a little on the boring side. This was served with potato chips that must not have made too big of an impression, because they never even mentioned them.

Katie's mom Lynn was all about trying the Fish and Chips ($13) on this night. At Sammy's they use fresh Atlantic cod as the fried fish, and she left here pretty happy with her choice. She liked the lighter than usual breading, felt the fish lacked the greasiness that other fish and chips sometimes posses, and felt the serving size was just the right size for her smaller appetite. This fish came with the same fries that made their way out with the burgers, and a side of coleslaw, which was a little on the dry side. The tarter sauce served with this fish was very fresh, and made me think that it was made here.

I really had a tough time deciding what to have at Sammy's, and I finally settled on this Reuben Sandwich ($10) after everyone else had made their picks. This sandwich included pastrami, thousand island dressing, sauerkraut, and Swiss cheese, all on marbled rye. This was not a good version of this sandwich. The pastrami was not very good quality, and it was sliced too thick for even my tastes. The rest of the sandwich kind of got lost in the shuffle as well. The thousand island was spread a little too lightly, the cheese was barely noticeable, and the sauerkraut did not have its usual zing. The only part of this sandwich that did its job was the bread. It stayed firm, and kept everything together. This came with coleslaw as well, and it was again pretty tame, providing little to no excitement level. I'd skip this sandwich on future visits.

We were not really planning on getting dessert, but our waiter brought out these Funnel Cake Fries ($5) since he heard Katie and I would be getting married soon. These were just like your carnival style funnel cakes, but in stick form. They were served with a trio of sauces; chocolate, caramel, and raspberry. The best of these three was the raspberry, which when dipped, resembled one of the Hostess O's donuts that left supermarket shelves years ago. I liked these, but wished that the sticks were a little bigger, so they could hold more of the sauces.

The food at Sammy's is definitely not triple crown worthy, it's not even one leg of the triple crown worthy. The stuff we had on this night was mostly average. The appetizers and salads were pretty good, but the dinners we had failed down the stretch. Sammy's is a new restaurant, having been in business for only five months now, so it's not surprising that they still might be experiencing some growing pains. Their menu that is posted online is seriously out of date, with many things on it that are not even offered now. Maybe they will find their groove eventually with the entrees, but for now appetizers are the way to go here. The service we experienced on this night was very solid, but we were our waiters only table. He knew the menu pretty well, and answered all of our questions competently. I'd leave it as this, if you are a big fan of horse racing, want to bet on horse racing, or just don't want to drive to the nearest track, this is the place for you. If you're more into getting a great meal, don't bet on getting one at Sammy's.

Out of five bugles, (because they are the musical instrument that is used to start a horse race), five being best to zero being worst, Sammy's Original gets 2.5 bugles.

For more information about Sammy's Original, go to their website here: http://sammysoriginal.com/index.shtml