No Waffling About Sweet Combforts - CLOSED

Sweet Combforts

2222 Michelson Dr.

Irvine, CA 92612

If you've been following along on our food journey in order, you know that our last two reviews took place at the new Trade Food Hall in Irvine. We started with an excellent fried chicken sandwich and followed that up with the very impressive Mac Daddy Burger, which utilized two fried mac and cheese patties for the bun. Yes, we were feeling pretty good but needed something a little sweet to finish this evening off. Luckily, there is one place at Trade to get your sugar fix, so we headed to Sweet Combforts.

Sweet Combforts is brought to us by the same guys who run Pig Pen Delicacy, their neighbor at Trade, Portside, and GD Bro Burger. Sweet Combforts debuted at Coachella this spring, and one news article about them said they were the only reason to make the trek out to the desert. I'm not sure if that is a dis about the music or if their Instagram-worthy food is really that good.

Now, with a permanent home at Trade, their chef is Anne Marie Damaso. She hails from California's Central Coast but has worked at numerous OC restaurants in different capacities. At Sweet Combforts, she uses a scratch-made liege waffle batter infused with pearl sugars and then coated with cookie butter and assorted toppings. After the savory part of our visit to Trade, we were excited to try Sweet Combforts.

When entering the Trade Food Hall, Sweet Combforts will be the first stall on your left. The menu featured six different kinds of waffles on a stick with assorted toppings, five varieties of ice cream, and two shakes. Katie ordered for us, and about five to ten minutes later, we had our stuff. Let's see how it all turned out.

First, courtesy of Katie's excellent hand modeling is the Churro Crunch Waffle ($6). This waffle was coated with cinnamon sugar and Cinnamon Toast Crunch and finished off with a cream cheese drizzle. I was underwhelmed with this. I thought the churro flavor would be slightly more pronounced, but it fell flat. The only flavor I really got here was from the cereal on this. I would have liked a little more cream cheese drizzle, and the bottom of our waffle, near the stick, was very well done, almost bordering on burnt. We should have tried one of the other five kinds of waffles offered.

In case we did not have enough food during our visit to Trade, Katie also gave us some ice cream. She got me a Single Scoop of Peanut Butter and Chocolate ($3) and a Scoop of Salted Caramel ($3). Hers was the better of the two. The saltiness came through while the caramel lingered in the background. I was expecting a caramel ribbon through this, but no such luck with my bite. The peanut butter and chocolate were disappointing as well. With the amount of chocolate included here, calling this peanut butter and chocolate was grounds for false advertising. Little specks of chocolate, smaller than chips, do not add enough to get equal billing here. In fact, it could have been called vanilla ice cream because the tiny ribbon of peanut butter did not add too much, either. I don't know if they make their own ice cream, but a chocolate ice cream base with a large ribbon of peanut butter running through it would have made this way more enjoyable and more accurate to what they were going for.

Sweet Combforts did not really shine for us this evening. I'd give them another shot because they are the only dessert game in town at Trade. Next time, I'd try their Oreo cookie-inspired waffle or their version with Circus Animal cookies. The Cookie Monster Shake seems really popular and is my choice over the scoops of ice cream. A better option is to leave Trade and head to Afters Ice Cream on the other side of the 405 Freeway for their delicious Milky Bun or more comprehensive ice cream selection. Since you have mastered the parking at Trade, it should be no problem getting a spot at the always-crowded Diamond Jamboree.

Out of five mallets (because this place debuted at Coachella, which is held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, and you can't play polo without a mallet, or a horse for that matter), five being best to zero being worst, Sweet Combforts gets 2.5 mallets.

For more information about Sweet Combforts, head to their website here: http://www.sweetcombforts.com/

Getting down and Dirty at Pig Pen Delicacy - CLOSED

Pig Pen Delicacy

2222 Michelson Dr. 

Irvine, CA 92612

It's probably not any surprise to most of you that my Instagram feed is filled with tons of food pictures. I follow a few friends and family, but other than that my IG feed is filled with photos from restaurants, fellow food bloggers, and other food people I have managed to pick up along the way.

As a result, I see a lot of what I would term, Instagram-inspired food creations dominating my food feed. Some examples include unicorn/rainbow-colored foods, food taken with pets, outrageously large foods, and one of the most popular kinds of Instagram-inspired foods, the mash-up, which brings two kinds of foods together to form an almost Frankenstein kind of creation. It's one of those that got me to visit Pig Pen Delicacy recently.

Pig Pen Delicacy used to inhabit another OC food hall, the 4th Street Market, but now they have taken up residency at the newly opened Trade Food Hall in Irvine, along with a spot at Steelcraft Marketplace in Long Beach. PPD comes to us from the successful guys that have brought us the wildly popular Afters Ice Cream, and one of my favorite burger spots, GD Bro Burger. PPD is their ode to pork and using it to update American comfort foods. That sentence alone has got me excited to try the food here.

Pig Pen Delicacy is located straight back from the entrance of Trade Food Hall, right between Andrew Gruel's veggie concept Butterleaf, and the seafood-centric Portside, which I've made a mental note to visit very soon. When we got here at just a little after 6 on a recent Tuesday evening, I was relieved to find that there was no line, which is not usually the case on weekends and at lunchtime during the workweek. I ordered rather quickly because of course, I knew what I wanted before even getting into my car to come here. Let's see if all the praise on Instagram is warranted.

Before we get to the real reason I came here, I started with these Parmesan Truffle Tots ($6.49) which were a special offered on this particular day. I know that the pork belly fries are the most popular item here, but I had other things to eat and wanted something a little lighter to go along with my heavier entree. There's something about these little barrels of potato which just evokes happiness over me. These tots were dressed with truffle oil, lightly salted, and then finished off with a drizzle of garlic aioli, parsley, and parmesan cheese. Since these were not drowned in stuff they retained their crunch throughout their short stay at our table. I got the hint of truffle, which is what you really want since truffle oil can really overpower. A little more garlic aioli would have made these even better.

Now the real reason I came here, the Mac Daddy Burger ($11.49). Yes, what you are seeing is real, and it actually rocked. This burger starts with a third-pound beef patty and is then topped with American cheese, candied bacon, and barbecue sauce, then sandwiched between two mac and cheese buns. I was afraid the fried mac and cheese buns would fall apart, but they held together very well. The candied bacon did get lost here, but the sweet barbecue sauce helped to cut the cheese a bit. Predictably this was a very filling burger, but not as greasy as I imagined it would be.

Even though I came to Pig Pen Delicacy to try what I'd consider being a novelty burger, I gained a new respect for the food here. This is not just a burger that is meant to shock you, they also want you to enjoy it, and I see myself enjoying it many times over with each passing visit to Trade Food Hall. I also look forward to trying their other creations, such as their pulled pork sandwich, pork belly sliders, and their buffalo tots. I also have a feeling that PPD is not ones to rest on their laurels, they will most likely come up with something new, which will undoubtedly become a big hit on Instagram, and get me to try it right away.

Out of five peanuts, (because according to a Gallup survey, the 5th most popular Peanuts character is Pig Pen, the always dirty friend of Charlie Brown), five being best to zero being worst, Pig Pen Delicacy gets 3.5 peanuts.

For more information about Pig Pen Delicacy, head to their website here: http://pigpendelicacy.com/

Happy as a Lark at Two Birds - CLOSED

Two Birds

2222 Michelson Dr. 

Irvine, CA 92612

Food halls are all the rage right now, and Orange County has an embarrassment of riches when it comes to them. I think it started with 4th Street Market in Santa Ana and kind of exploded from there. Union Market in Irvine and Mission Viejo, McFadden Public Market in Santa Ana, Pacific City in HB, the always-crowded Anaheim Packing House, and now Trade in Irvine are barraged by hungry patrons.

Food halls seem like the perfect spot to try out a new concept. The rents are generally lower, and you definitely get a lot of foot traffic. With the younger demographic that usually inhabits these places, you get lots of exposure on Instagram and other social media outlets. It also seems like concepts that populate food hall stands are much more adventurous about their peddling products.

My love for Slapfish is pretty well known. I suggest it to anyone who wants to have delicious seafood at a reasonable price. I was excited to learn that Chef Andrew Gruel, the man behind Slapfish, was opening two concepts at the newly opened Trade Food Hall. One is the veggie-based Butterleaf, which Chef Andrew has described as plant-based food for people who love to eat. With this concept, he wants people to know you can get a hearty meal without meat, leaving them satisfied and full. I'll try it next time I'm here, but I was all about Chef Andrew's other stall at Trade, Two Birds, on this visit.

Two Birds is tucked behind the Central Hub Bar, which is to the right of the main dining area of Trade. Once you find this stall, you will be met by an uncomplicated menu. You choose between either crispy or grilled chicken, then pick whether you want the poultry in a salad or as a sandwich and if you want a double or single serving. Two Birds uses Jidori chicken, which I had just heard of coming here. Jidori is a locally raised chicken that is free-range and is fed a vegetarian diet without using antibiotics. This type of chicken is prevalent in Japan but gaining popularity in the US. We quickly ordered and found ourselves a table nearby to wait patiently for our food to find its way out to us.

I was also in awe when this Double Bird In the Hand Sandwich ($13) came out. My first thought was, how will I put my mouth around this to answer that question? I took out one of the chicken pieces to make it more manageable. This simply dressed sandwich came with crunchy slaw and tiger sauce, a mildly peppery and tangy concoction that goes well with the perfectly done chicken. The chicken was very clean tasting, not as greasy as I expected, and had a nice crunch around its large surface. The bun did a great job staying together with all the heft going on in between its buns. It is one of the best chicken sandwiches I have had.

I have a natural affinity for cottage fries, so when I saw them on the menu at Two Birds, I knew we had to try them. These Cheesy Cottage Fries ($5) were loaded with a few cubes of pork, a sprinkle of shredded parmesan cheese, and a smooth cheese sauce that reminded me of a bechamel, or at least that's the vibe I got. The cottage fries did get a little soggy near the end as the sauce settled down near the bottom of the bowl, but that's to be expected. The first half of this was on point. I might get this again with the cheese sauce on the side next time.

I'm usually not one to order chicken when I'm out to eat, but that sandwich from Two Birds will be hard to resist when I return to the Trade Food Hall. That's saying something with all the other options there. It's safe to say that Chef Andrew has another winner on his hands with this concept. I used to think it was crazy to create a chicken-focused concept, but with the success of Raising Cane's and the surprising longevity of KFC and their awful chicken, I can admit when I am wrong. Two Birds might have a fundamental menu, but if you are looking for one of the best chicken sandwiches you will encounter, you need to head to Two Birds very soon.

Out of five volcanos (because there's a 2008 Icelandic short film titled Two Birds, Iceland has many active volcanos), five being best to zero being worst, Two Birds gets 3.5 volcanos.

For more information about Two Birds, check out their website here: http://www.twobirdsrestaurant.com/

A Taste of Jerez in OC at Burritos La Palma

Burritos La Palma

410 North Bristol St. 

Santa Ana, CA 92703

If you read the OC Weekly's food coverage religiously like I do, you know their love of Burritos La Palma is almost bordering on restraining order status. It seems like almost every week there's a new mention or accolade for this restaurant, which sprang from a food truck, which launched them into a brick and mortar site in El Monte, and now they have another location in Santa Ana.

Burritos La Palma won the best taco at LA's prestigious Tacolandia last year, they were named one of the best burritos in America by Food and Wine magazine, they are loved not only by the staff of the OC Weekly but also Jonathan Gold, who is the preeminent food critic in not only LA but probably all of the United States. Any best of list relating to Mexcian food invariably includes a mention, if not a spot near the top, for Burritos La Palma. With all of these accolades, I moved them to the top of my own personal restaurant wishlist and enlisted my good friend Ozker to give them a try with me.

After a pretty hard day of working, for me, not Ozker, we made the trek up to Santa Ana to try out Burritos La Palma's newest location. This spot used to be the home of 1 More Pizza, which closed a year ago. This small shopping plaza on the corner of Santa Ana Boulevard and Bristol has a beauty salon, dentist, and donut shop among its tenants, and I imagine parking might get a little tricky around here during peak hours, but we were here near 4 pm on a Thursday, and we had no problem getting a spot.

Burritos La Palma comes to us from Alberto and Lauren Banuelos, a local couple who have been making flour tortillas in Lake Forest, before they moved their operations to El Monte. Their tortillas have won critical acclaim across the Southland. The food part of Burritos La Palma started as a small chain in Jerez, Zacatecas Mexico, and now they are bringing the food of Jerez to Southern California. Let's see what all the hype is all about.

I kind of froze when ordering, as I knew what I had wanted when I walked in, but I just ordered a hodgepodge of things once I was standing in front of the register, starting with this Birria Quesadilla ($3.85). After my first bite of this quesadilla, I knew people were right about the tortillas here. They had a buttery quality to them, and they were moist but held everything inside of them nicely. I had always been told that birria is simmered goat, but at Burritos La Palma it's made with shredded beef in a slightly spicy sauce. It really melded well with the cheese and gave this a real comforting feel. Delicious.

I took a shot in the dark when ordering the Platillo Especial ($9.75), but I'm glad I did. For this one, they take two of their birria burritos, top them with cheese, and then pour a green chile pork sauce over them. Kind of an enchilada vibe to these. The green chile sauce was good, but it kind of detracted from the tortillas, which are definitely a highlight at Burritos La Palma. I feel weird typing that, but the tortillas are really that good. This is an excellent option for people that want to switch it up from the burritos. This comes with beans, which were good, and a salad which went untouched since I ordered one more item.

I'll probably be lambasted for this, but my favorite item on this visit was the Torta Especial ($8.00). This sandwich came packed with tender pork loin, ham, melted cheese, creamy avocado, and some jalapenos. A very well balanced sandwich that was made even better when I added some of their salsa and refried beans to it. The bread was excellent and this was a very filling and satisfying sandwich which I'll be hard pressed to pass up on future visits to Burritos La Palma.

I really enjoyed Burritos La Palma, but I feel like I have to say that it's probably not for everyone. This is not like every other Mexican restaurant in OC. This is specifically a Zacatecas focused restaurant. They have no carnitas, fajitas, seafood, nachos, or California burritos here. They have six burritos on their menu, three quesadillas, and two tortas. The flautas are coming soon they promise. A very basic menu, but if you are open to expanding your horizons a bit, and also having one of the best flour tortillas you will ever consume, Burritos La Palma will not fail to please. Also, be advised that you'll need more than one of their burritos to fill you up. They are small but mighty. Prices seemed very fair, as the cost of a quesadilla here is at least a couple dollars cheaper than almost anywhere else, even the ones at Del Taco. A real bargain. Service was very pleasant on this early afternoon. I'm not as ready as the guys at the OC Weekly to declare these the best burritos in OC, but they are right up there with anything I have had up until this point.

Out of five bulls, (because on Holy Saturday every year, the town of Jerez has a running of the bulls), five being best to zero being worst, Burritos La Palma gets 3.5 bulls.

For more information about Burritos La Palma, head to their website here: http://www.burritoslapalma.net/

Barbecue Showcase at the House of Blues

House of Blues

Anaheim Garden Walk

400 Disney Way #337

Anaheim, CA 92802

Okay, let's get this out of the way right now. Yes, the Anaheim Garden Walk has been one of the most disappointing shopping centers that Orange County has ever seen. Probably even more than the Kaleidoscope in Mission Viejo, which also definitely has its share of problems getting people into that freeway close, but desolate shopping and entertainment complex. Garden Walk has the same problems, with lots of empty storefronts, little to no foot traffic, (especially towards the back area of the center), and no big draws to get tourists to maybe skip eating or visiting a nearby Disney restaurant or property. There does appear to be a ray of hope for the Garden Walk though.

That ray of hope comes in the form of the House of Blues, which opened here in early March, after leaving the family friendly, overly touristy Downtown Disney District. We've heard some grumblings that Disney was pretty conservative about what events and artists could play at HOB, but those, of course, have never been confirmed by either side. We were at Garden Walk earlier this month for another event and saw a huge line for a concert going on at HOB. So, House of Blues appears to be doing their part by getting foot traffic into this sparsely populated shopping plaza.

The same was true on the recent Wednesday evening we were visiting HOB. We were here to try some barbecue items off their menu, but there were tons of young girls, with parents in tow, snaked around the upper level of Garden Walk many times over. The band was Catfish and the Bottlemen, which I hear is an upcoming British band. We did not get a chance to listen to them because us old people had to get home before they even started to play. With us there, it would have doubled the average age of the audience easily.

When we waltzed by the waiting teenagers into the restaurant, we were ushered into one of the many private rooms that are available for parties at the new House of Blues. What I noticed most about this new space, as compared to the old one at Downtown Disney was the openness of it, and it seemed to be brighter. Even though we were separated from the main dining room by a couple of roll-up doors, we could still hear the music in the dining room clearly. Checking out their event calendar, you can find out not only who is performing in their concert hall, but you can also check out who is performing in the dining room and lively bar area of the restaurant. After some mingling among the food media, we were all pretty excited to see what Chef Kelvin Crisostomo had in store for us with this barbecue showcase.

Up first was not something I was expecting and was definitely an Asian twist on the barbecue theme of the evening. These Korean Riblets are available every evening in the exclusive Foundation Room every night of the week. I'm not really big on riblets, but these had plenty of meat on them and went well with the very well done kimchi. In fact, this could have been some of the best fermented veggies I have had. I also enjoyed the tinge of spice from the provided sliced jalapenos topping each riblet.

Our barbecue march continued on at the House of Blues with this Pulled Pork Sandwich ($11). Chef Kelvin told us that they smoke this pork for 12 to 14 hours before it's hand pulled and mixed with barbecue sauce and placed between a structurally sound bun. The pork was tender, but I wished that they would have allowed me to apply the barbecue sauce, instead of it already coming out dressed. The coleslaw was very solid and had an excellent crunch to it. I added it to my sandwich, which provided a nice textural element. The fries were hot and crisp.

Best dish of the evening belongs to these Smokehouse St. Louis Ribs ($17). This is the half rack size, but you might as well splurge and upgrade to the full rack for an extra seven dollars, you'll thank me later. These ribs are rubbed with their special House of Blues Cajun seasoning, then smoked, and lightly brushed with barbecue sauce. The result was a very tender, fall off the bone rib, which had nearly everyone at our table very excited about this slab. These were served with a little extra sauce, the same excellent coleslaw that we came with the pork sandwich, and BBQ Baked Beans. A very satisfying plate, and one we will come back for very soon.

Last but not least, the Bourbon Bread Pudding ($7) gets a lot of love here, and rightfully so. This sturdy bread pudding was not as damp as others we have had, which is a plus in my book. It was still moist and came with a very nice caramel pool surrounding it, which added just the right amount of sweetness.

I think it's safe to say that the House of Blues has made a very graceful transition to their new home at the Garden Walk. Starting from the ground up, they have seemed to fix some of the minor glitches of their old venue and created a much more inviting and open space. Based on our two visits to this center, the House of Blues is definitely doing their part by bringing some much-needed foot traffic into this very quiet shopping center. Time will tell if it's enough to save the Garden Walk, but with the great concert lineup and the food we had on this evening, we are guessing that this is definitely the shot in the arm this shopping and entertainment complex needed.

For more information about the House of Blues, head to their website here: http://www.houseofblues.com/anaheim

Meeting an Old Friend at 333 Pacific

333 Pacific

333 North Pacific Street

Oceanside, CA 92054

Katie and I have a tradition of going down to the Carlsbad Outlets around her birthday and getting her a new purse at Coach. I like this tradition for two reasons. One is that they give you a coupon when you walk in the store for half off your entire purchase, and that saves us a bunch of money. The second reason I like coming down here is because it gives us a chance to try a new restaurant, in an area we don't make to that often. Since my parents were going to be joining us, I knew exactly where I wanted to eat down here, 333 Pacific.

It was not just because I have heard good things about this restaurant, which I have, but because I had the chance to surprise my parents with someone from their past. When we were growing up in Yorba Linda, we were very close to the neighbors down the street, but they moved in the late 80's. I reconnected with Andrea, the youngest member of their household on Facebook a few years ago, and knew that she worked at 333 as a bartender. I also knew that she worked on Sunday afternoons, which just so happened to be when we were going to be in the area.

My surprise worked like a charm. After the initial shock, the long overdue hugs, and the catching up, I knew we could finally get down to the business of eating, which I was pretty excited to do after an hour and a half of shopping. 333 Pacific is part of the Cohn Restaurant Group which has quite the presence in the San Diego area. They operate 19 different restaurants in San Diego County, along with one in Long Beach and another in picturesque Maui.

333 Pacific was pretty picturesque itself. Located steps away from the famous Oceanside Pier, this was our first visit to Oceanside, and with the beautiful weather, and all the restaurants around, it probably won't be our last. Parking was a little tricky on this beautiful spring day, but persistence paid off, and we found a spot not far from 333 Pacific, which takes up residence on the bottom floor of the Wyndham Oceanside Pier Resort.

Being this close to the coastline, of course, the menu here is seafood driven, but there are other things for people who are not into fish. We never ventured farther inside the restaurant than the small bar area at the front of the restaurant, but checking out the pictures from online, 333 has a great patio, with an awesome view of the pier and the passing traffic on Pacific Street. Let's see how everything turned out for us on this afternoon of surprises.

Since I was with my parents a drink was definitely in order. Kidding of course, maybe. The bar at 333 Pacific is kind of a vodka-centric bar. Okay, this is an understatement. They have a massive amount of vodkas to choose from. A quick, unofficial count online gave me the tally of 110 different varieties of vodka to choose from. Most impressive. Also impressive is that it's always vodka happy hour in the lounge, with $8 vodka drinks all the time. I took advantage of this by getting the 333 Mule ($8). I really liked this mule, which utilizes Svedka vodka, ginger beer, and a fresh squeeze of lime. Very refreshing, but on my next visit I might ask for a variation on the type of vodka used. Maybe the Hanson Habanero vodka for a bit of spice.

I guess my parents were not as hungry as Katie and me, as they decided to split this Big Kid's Grilled Cheese ($15). For this one, they use local bread purveyor Bread and Cie's, bacon bread, and sandwich it with fontina, PointReyess blue cheese, white cheddar, a basil aioli, bacon, and tomato.  I was a little surprised that my mom wanted to try this, as she's not really a fan of blue cheese, but she liked it well enough to have a few bites, and then turn the rest of the sandwich over to my dad, who really enjoyed this upscale grilled cheese. I snagged a bite and really loved the contrast between the crunchy bread and the creamy inside. This also came with a charred tomato bisque which I did not get a chance to try.

When Katie inquired about what kind of fish was the fresh catch of the day, and Andrea replied that it was salmon, that's all it took for Katie to order it. This Griddled Fresh Catch ($31) came with a nice piece of perfectly cooked salmon perched on top of a chilled quinoa salad and a muted lemon vinaigrette dressing, marinated tomatoes, and arugula. Katie devoured this in record time. She felt this was cooked well and the salmon was very fresh, without a fishy taste. The flavor of the salmon and the quinoa salad worked well together here. I thought the serving size of this was a little sparse for a dish over $30, but Katie loved the quality of it.

Even though we were steps from the sand, I didn't get any fish. After reading the description of this Bacon Wagyu Baja Burger ($19) I did not really want to try anything else. This burger had my name written all over it. It starts with a half pound of beef and is then joined on the very solid Bread and Cie brioche bun with an ancho aioli, crispy onions, guacamole, bacon, and is then finished off with a sunny side up egg. I might have had too high of hopes for this burger. It was fine but did not knock my socks off. The beef was overcooked, and the rest of the items on this burger kind of got overshadowed by the very runny egg. The bacon and guacamole did not really stand out and that's a shame because those are two of my favorite things to have on a burger. The house cut fries that came with this were very solid, and the crispy ones were among some of the best I have had recently.

Dessert would close us out at 333 Pacific, and we decided to splurge and try two of their seven dessert selections. I picked the Sweet Corn Brulee ($10) just for the novelty of it. This Brulee had a different flavor profile than the usual vanilla creme brulee that can be found on menus all over. The sweetness was muted a bit, and the smoked salt added a depth to this dessert. The candied jalapenos topping this were a little out of place here, and not really needed. Since I'm a big Reese's fan, I also had to try the Peanut Butter Bombe ($10). This bombe used a chocolate cookie crust and was filled with a peanut butter mousse that was served with slices of bruleed bananas. The peanut butter mousse was too dense in this, and the peanut butter flavor really needed to be heightened here. Not bad, but I'd probably not get this one again.

The food on this trip to 333 Pacific was good, but most items did not wow us. Yes, the fish dish was the exception, and since this is more a seafood-focused restaurant, fish might be the thing to get here, instead of the burger. Listening to locals at the bar, they were pretty keen on the happy hour here, which goes from 4 to 7 pm on most days, and offers $8 items which is great news for those of you wanting to avoid paying entree prices here, which hover around the $40 and up mark. A little steep, but understandable being this close to the beach. Service was, of course, superb, even though Andrea had a full bar at most times during our stay. She kept on top of everything, like the pro that she is. Glad my little surprise worked out so well, and I hope that it doesn't take us close to 30 years to see our great friend Andrea again. In fact, I know we will be seeing here sooner, rather than later.

Out of five floppy discs, (because State Route 333 in New York runs through the town Campbell, which happens to be the birthplace of IBM founder Thomas Watson, which was my first computer growing up), five being best to zero being worst, 333 Pacific gets 3 floppy discs.

For more information about 333 Pacific, head to their website here: https://www.cohnrestaurants.com/333pacific