Happy Diwali from Tamarind of London, Plus a Giveaway - CLOSED

Tamarind of London

7862 E. Pacific Coast Highway

Newport Beach, CA 92660

Yes, we just visited Tamarind about two months ago. This jewel of Indian cuisine by the sea, really awakened our love of Indian food when we were here last. So when we were offered a chance to try their Diwali menu, and give away a $100 gift card to one of our readers, we could not have been happier to make the sacrifice to dine at Tamarind again.

First of course I had to look up what Diwali was. I knew it was a holiday celebrated in India, Pakistan and other countries, but I did not know much else until I took a trip to Google. There I learned it is a Hindu fall festival, which celebrates the victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and hope over despair. On Diwali night Hindus dress up in their best clothes, light up candles and lamps, participate in family prayers, and then partake in a family feast and exchange presents. Sounds like a great night, and we got a little taste of it at Tamarind at Newport Coast last week.

For those of you not sure where Tamarind is located, it's in the same shopping center as Javier's, right along scenic Coast Highway. The accolades keep piling up for this restaurant. Not only was this named, "the best Indian food" in Southern California, by famed LA Times restaurant critic Jonathan Gold, but they also just won a Golden Foodie Award for best Indian food in all of OC, an honor they have won before. After eating here a couple months ago, we felt all this praise was well warranted.

We arrived here for this visit at 6pm on a recent Monday night. The dining room is very elegant, with a nice view of the kitchen , and a closeup look at the tandoori ovens. Since we were eating with other raucous food bloggers, we were sat on the bar side, which had a nice and peaceful spa feeling to it. Our dining companions for this evening were Shelly from Nibbles of Tidbits, Wendy from Wendyfulworld, Michael from Eating Around So Cal, Chelsea from OC Food Diva, and our good friend Minerva, from the great Much Ado About Fooding. It's always wonderful to catch up with these guys, and even better when there's great food involved. The food was starting to make its way out to us, so lets see if this experience would be as good as our last.

We started things off with these Fried Naan and a Trio of Chutneys. I had never had fried naan before, and I have to say I was impressed. I prefer this to the papadam we had on our first visit here. The naan had a crunch to it, and was still a little soft on the inside. The chutneys of course were all great, but my favorite was the apricot-fennel one. I liked the sweetness in it.

There were two platters offered for the first course, the first of which was this Vegetarian Platter. Most of you know by now that I am pretty partial to meat, but this was not too bad. This plate featured from left to right, Hara Bara, Paneer Tikka, and Aloo Tikki. The hara bara is very falafel like, but it's made out spinach instead of chickpeas, with potatoes and peas added. This North Indian snack was paired with my favorite chutney, the apricot one. The paneer tikka was not greasy like some versions can be, and the cheese was subtle. My favorite of the three was the Aloo Tikki, which is a potato cake with cumin and ginger present, and a smoked tomato chutney smeared alongside of it. Chef Imran Ali made me like vegetables with this platter.

Of course I was much more in my comfort zone when my Kebab Platter arrived with Malai Chicken, Swordfish Tikka, and Lamb Kebab. The lamb was not my favorite thing on this plate. It was a tad over cooked, and kind of on the gritty side. One thing we learned on our last visit here, is that they do seafood perfectly at Tamarind. We had an excellent sea bass on that visit, and the tradition continues with this swordfish. It had a wonderful flavor, and was cooked to a perfect tenderness. I could have eaten a lot more of this, than the chunk we were given. The chicken was equally tender, which is a rarity these days when we go out to eat. A very good start to our Diwali menu.

The drink menu at Tamarind is not meant to be overlooked. Even though Katie doesn't like to drink, she had plenty of options on this night. She selected the Strawberry Mojito. This classic mojito had all the usual suspects included, mint and lime muddled together, and mixed with fresh strawberries, then topped with Sprite. Not as sweet as she expected, this was a very refreshing mock-tail. The last time I was here I had their Tower of London, which I liked, but I wanted to try something different. So I went with the Narangi Crush. This citrus based beverage contained vodka, Chase Elderflower, muddled blood oranges in a simple syrup, and a splash of grapefruit, which toned down the sweetness in this drink. When drinking this it was like liquid sunshine. A very happy drink, that could really get me into some trouble if I hadn't limited myself to only one of these. I think I have found my favorite beverage on their drink menu.

The food was just about to make its way out for us, but first they brought out some Garlic Naan, which is very addictive. The garlic was very prevalent on this, and the aroma could be whiffed from across the table. They are wizards with the tandoori ovens that churn out this naan at Tamarind.

Since we were such a large group, we were served family style from the four offerings of the Diwali menu. Not only were there four entrees, but they also provided Saffron Rice, Raita, and Dal Amritsari, which is a Northern Indian dish of lentils, which was quite hearty. All of the sides were well made and delicious. Let's take a closer look at the entrees we had on this night.

I've never really been a big fan of eggplant. I think it might be a texture thing, but this Achari Baingan is the closest I have come to liking the purple vegetable. The version had baby eggplant paired with tomatoes, Frank pepper, and a Kashmiri chili stew. This had a great spice to it, which intensified when I took this for lunch the next day. If you like eggplant, and love spice, this is definitely for you.

Katie's favorite item at Tamarind when we went here the first time was this Butter Chicken, and I have to admit I was pretty excited to see it on this Diwali menu as well. Bite sized chicken pieces are bathed in a creamy light tomato sauce, which I swear would be great on anything. The chicken was tender, and that sauce was full of flavor. Still one of our favorites here.

Again the only miss for me on this night involved the lamb again. This Classic Rogan Josh had large pieces lamb in a Kashmiri stew that was not as spicy as the one used in the eggplant dish. The lamb was a little overcooked, and the stew was a little too passive for my tastes.

I was shocked that this vegetarian entree impressed me as much as it did. The Navrattan Khorma included seasonal veggies, paneer and pomegranate, all in a rich curry. I must not have been the only one to like this, as there was not any left for us to take home. Going to try this again on my next visit to Tamarind.

The dessert course of this Diwali menu was a Chef's Platter with Diwali Sweets. Just like the last time we were here, Pastry Chef Mark Medina made a traditional rice pudding with pistachios on top, a rose flavored paneer, and my favorite of the three, a honey filled doughnut like concoction, which brought to mind the loukoumades that we get at the Greek booth at the Orange Street Fair every year. This was all capped with a mint covered leaf drizzled in chocolate.

Unfortunately I did not get this post done in time for you all to enjoy this Diwali menu, but the good news is that no matter what you choose to eat at Tamarind, chances are that you will leave happy. See for yourself if all of the awards and accolades are deserved at Tamarind by entering our contest to win a $100 gift card. Just follow the steps below, and you might be a winner.

We need to thank everyone at Tamarind for their warm hospitality. Everyone from the hostess, the bussers, wait staff, and the manager were all so nice and answered all of our inquiries. We would also like to thank the very talented chef, Imran Ali for all the fantastic food, and even taking the time away from his busy kitchen to make sure we were enjoying our meal. Thanks for everything Chef.

For more information about Tamarind of London, go to their website here: http://www.tamarindoflondon.com/

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A Little Taste of the New World at Old World

Grinderz

7561 Center Ave. #53

Huntington Beach, CA 92647

One of my favorite times of the year is fall. As with most of us in Southern California, you are probably tired of the scorching weather we have had the last two months. I long for the crispness of autumn, but that's not the only reason I love this time of year. For me, fall means that hockey is back. Soon our nights will be full of driving up the 55 Freeway trying to make it to Honda Center before the puck drops at 7. This ritual always starts with us picking up our tickets from our good friend Steve. He lives in Rossmoor, so we always try to select a place in the middle of both of us. This time we chose to meet at Grinderz in Huntington Beach.

Grinderz is located in Old World Village, across the street from the Bella Terra shopping complex. Of course this time of year Old World is buzzing with activity, because Oktoberfest is in full effect. Grinderz is located on the outer edges of Old World, and is a great place to get a good base going when headed to Oktoberfest to indulge in some good German beers. Also for those of you that are averse to German food, Grinderz offers a great alternative to the brats, sauerkraut, and strudel.

We arrived here on the very first Sunday of Oktoberfest, which is a much more mellow time at Old World, than the drunken Friday and Saturday nights we have spent here. There's no air conditioning inside Grinderz, so if you are here on a sultry day like we were, be prepared to sweat a lot. As is our custom, we select our Ducks games first, and then eat. Much like the small dining area, the menu at Grinderz is not going to blow you away with its variety. They offer burgers, a chicken sandwich, and a couple of side items. There's also a couple beers on tap. The day we were here they had a couple of versions of Saint Archer's, a few Sam Adams varieties, and that all-American standard, Pabst Blue Ribbon. We were done sorting our tickets, so it was time to eat. Let's see what we thought of Grinderz.

We started things off with two sides, the first of which was this 50/50 Basket of Fries and Onion Rings ($4.00. This was a good sized portion for under five dollars. The fries here are advertised on the menu as being beer battered. they were pretty good, and came out nice and hot. The onion rings were okay. Dominated by the breading, the onion inside kind of got lost. Glad they sent this out with a side of ranch dressing.

Much more to all of our liking was this secret menu item, the Pig Sty ($6.50). This is not advertised at the restaurant, but you can find this on their menu online. It seems like everyone is doing a kind of version of In-N-Out's animal fries these days. This version at Grinderz was one of the best we have had. It starts with their fries, then they are topped with thousand island dressing, crumbled bacon, grilled onions, cheese and avocado slices. The fries stayed crispy, and everything worked really well here. The avocado was a new element, and added a nice creaminess, while helping to ease the saltiness. Again the portion size was more than enough for two or more people. Grab a friend and make sure to get this when you visit.

Both Katie and my dad got the same thing, so that helps to cut down on the writing. Thanks guys. They both opted to have the Cheeseburger ($4.25). The burgers here come with lettuce, red onion, tomato, pickles, and thousand island dressing. They also offer chipotle mayo for those that like a little spice. My dad did not say much about this burger, but Katie threw around words like, "classic", "fresh", and "a simple cheeseburger", to describe her love for this burger. She was plenty happy with her burger, and would get this again for sure.

I of course went big here, with their Double Cheeseburger with Bacon added ($6.75). This was a very solid burger. The beef was fresh, the bun absorbed all of the juiciness of the meat, while maintaining its integrity, and the produce used on this was pretty high quality. What kept this burger from reaching the next level was the lack of condiments on here. I could not detect the thousand island on this, and the bacon somehow got lost on this burger as well. Still a very good burger, and one that I look forward to having again in the future, but with thousand island on the side.

Except for the sweltering heat, Grinderz was a great place to meet up with our friend Steve, and pick our Ducks tickets. The burgers here are good and honest, and will make burger lovers happy. Their version of animal fries was one of the better ones we have had. This really is a no frills restaurant. Ordering is done at the counter, and you grab a seat in their sparsely decorated dining area. The guys and gals behind the counter were all very friendly, and answered all of our questions we had. Glad we picked this restaurant for one of our favorite times of the year. Now we just wish the weather would become more fall-like.

Out of five skateboards, (because this restaurant is located next to a Vans skate park, and Grinderz definitely has a skateboarding vibe to it), five being best to zero being worst, Grinderz gets 3.5 skateboards.

For more information about Grinderz, go to their website here: http://www.grinderzhb.com/

A Sweet Opening at SOCO

Susie Cakes

3321 Hyland Ave.

Costa Mesa, CA 92626

I should really head over to South Coast Collection way more than I do. It seems like every two weeks they are opening a new foodie destination that I add to my ever-growing list of restaurants to hit up. Right now languishing on my, "must go to" list is Taco Maria, Shuck Oyster Bar, Arc, and the Iron Press. We will definitely hit these places up soon.

I was bummed to hear that one of the places we have actually been to at SOCO is no more. We liked Christopher Garren's Bakery when we were here early last year, but they shuttered their storefront on December 31st. I had wondered what happened to their old space and had heard that a new bakery was opening up shop there, Susie Cakes.

Susie Cakes recently opened up their second OC location, with more in the work for sure. We heard about a Laguna Niguel spot but did not get a date or an exact location, so keep an eye out for that. Susie Cakes has numerous Northern California outposts, and have begun a conquest of Southern California recently.

Susie Cakes comes to us from Susan Sarich, who grew up in Chicago, where she came home from school every day to her grandmother's baked treats. It is these handwritten recipes that accompanied Susan to the West Coast, where she wanted to share all these fantastic baked goods with all of us. Their philosophy at Susie Cakes is that they don't bake with anything they can't spell. They don't use mixes, artificial preservatives, or high fructose corn syrups. This scratch bakery also uses only the highest quality ingredients they can find.

We arrived at the Susie Cakes Bakery during their grand opening celebration. There was definitely a carnival atmosphere going on here. Face painting, pictures in a classic Ford Mustang, and of course, sweets. The bakery was packed with people getting a large assortment of baked goods. My favorite feature of the space is the open kitchen, which allows you to see that this really is a scratch bakery. I could have sat there and watched the workers bake all day, but we had some big decisions to make at the bustling counter.

As you can see from the pictures, I was a little trigger happy with my camera, as all the baked goods were pretty photogenic. Behind the case at Susie Cakes were plenty of varieties of cookies, cakes, pies, bars, and their famous cupcakes. This was going to be tough to just pick a few things to come home with. After much consideration, we made our selections and were on our way home to enjoy our haul.

I can usually judge a bakery by what kind of cookies they make, and after eating this Chocolate Chip Cookie ($2), I had a pretty good feeling about Susie Cakes. I'm always partial to cookies that are crunchy on the outside, and softer in the middle. This cookie had passed that test, and I liked that there were plenty of chocolate chips in this cookie as well. Probably one of the most homemade tasting cookies I have had from a bakery. Really tasty.

I had read on Yelp that Susie Cakes is known for their 7 Layer Bars ($3), so that was a definite must-try this afternoon. I'm a big fan of Eagle Brand's Magic Bar recipe, and these were just as good. A mixture of butterscotch, coconut, chocolate chips, nuts, and who knows what else, combined to make these just as good as any Magic Bar I have had.

Carrot Cake ($6.25) is one of the most polarizing desserts out there, but you can count me as being one of its biggest fans. This version at Susie Cakes was good, but not the best I have had. Their frosting is what made this cake for me. Not overly big on the cream cheese, this was more of a sweeter icing than most carrot cakes use normally. The cake portion of this is where I have to dock points. It was moist, but I expected a little more cinnamon used here, and there were some big chunks of nuts in the batter. I also would have liked a little more icing used in between the layers. Still a good slice of cake though.

The last thing we tried on this afternoon was this Apple Cider Cupcake ($3.25). This seasonal cupcake came highly recommended by our guy behind the counter, and he was not just blowing smoke. It had a very good apple flavor to it, the cake portion was moist, but the best part for me was the icing again. With just the right amount of sweetness, it pushed this cupcake to another level. Really tasty, and much better than a lot of the specialty cupcakes I have had.

I was really sad to hear of Christopher Garren's closing, but I'm more than happy that Susie Cakes has taken over their spot. Everything really did taste homemade here, and I am surprised that it was as affordable as it is. You can definitely add Susie Cakes to the many reasons to come to SOCO. We can't wait to come back.

Out of five typewriters, (because whenever I hear the name Susie, I think of the TV series Private Secretary, with Ann Sothern, who played a character named Susie), five being best to zero being worst, Susie Cakes gets 3 typewriters.

For more information about Susie Cakes, go to their website here: http://susiecakes.com/