Feeling the Love at Ramos House Cafe

The Ramos House Cafe

31725 Los Rios St. 

San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675

With all the recent world events going on, Valentine's Day seems like it was about ten years ago. In reality, of course, it was only less than two months ago from when I'm writing this review. Katie and I are not really too into Valentine's Day. We prefer to stay home usually, as most restaurants are too crowded, have limited menus, and try to rush you out so they can turn over tables for the other waiting patrons.

We decided to break our Valentine's Day restaurant moratorium when we found out that we were both going to be off during the morning portion of the day before Katie had to head up to Westlake Village for an overnight business trip. We figured brunch wouldn't be too crazy, and I knew exactly where I wanted to try, the legendary Ramos House Cafe in San Juan Capistrano.

Situated on the oldest street in California, Los Rios Street (1794), the Ramos House was constructed in 1881. It was home to one of the founding families of San Juan for a long time. The Ramos House Cafe began its current life as a restaurant and residence when Chef and Owner John Q. Humphreys opened for business in October of 1995.

Ramos House is open every day from 9am to 2:30pm, except on Wednesdays, when they are closed. On the weekdays they have an ala carte menu, but on weekends, and on this Valentine's Day they have a brunch menu, where it's $35 a person, no matter your age, so you might want to leave the small kiddos at home when visiting Ramos House on weekends.

The easiest place to park in this sometimes challenging area of town is in Los Rios Park, which has a gravel lot, but usually has plenty of parking and is a short stroll to the restaurant. We arrived at 10am and only had to wait about ten minutes for a table to open up. This is patio seating, but they have plenty of heaters warming customers up on chilly mornings. We were also joined by the house cat, Mr. Pickles who lazily slept on a chair at our table for most of our meal.

The menu at Ramos House Cafe is not going to shock you with a dazzling array of selections. The brunch menu is pretty compact, with six small plates and 11 big plates offered, and you get to choose one of each on weekends and holidays, like this particular Valentine's Day. Let's see if the food at Ramos House will be love at first sight or a blind date gone wrong.

I thought for sure that Katie was going to start with the lentil soup as her small plate option, but she threw me a curve by getting the Small Basil Cured Salmon Lox. She claims that she has dreamt about this dish many times since we visited Ramos House. Thinly sliced salmon is the base of this and is layered with diced hard-boiled egg, red onions, and capers, which provided a nice flavor boost. This small plate is rounded out with toast points and basil. Katie loved the lightness of this dish, which did not overcompensate by adding something that would take away from the fresh salmon. She was a big fan. 

I went the sweet route with my smaller plate selection and had these Cinnamon Apple Beignets. They were good, but I expected a bit more sweetness and missed the apple portion of this, as it was not very prevalent. I thought the sauce lining the plate was a little drab and did not add enough in my opinion. I do give them credit for serving these nice and hot. I'd probably try their Nutella-banana french toast on my next visit.

Entrees were out next, and Katie got the Bubble and Squeak, which I learned is a British breakfast dish that is traditionally made with potatoes and cabbage. I'm not sure if the cabbage was included in this one, but the potato was here in the form of a very well-done fried potato patty on the bottom of the scrambled egg, bacon, onions, and vinegar tomatoes. This was an excellent breakfast plate. I liked the contrasting textures and the flavors kept things interesting throughout the short time this was around.

Similar in presentation to Katie's choice, I had the Crab Hash. Another winner. The crab cake was fresh and not filled with very much filler. It incorporated into the eggs and bacon wonderfully, but what tied this all together for me was the dollop of citrus cream that I used in alternating bites. Another plate I enjoyed immensely from my first to my last bite.

As an added bonus with the brunch menu, we got to each have a Buttermilk Biscuit with Apple Butter. I was a little let down by this. I thought the biscuit was a tad on the drab side, while the apple butter consistency was too runny, and I'm not sure there was even any butter included in this.

Even with the few minor missteps this morning (the beignets and the biscuit), both Katie and I really enjoyed our Valentine's Day brunch at Ramos House. It's not only well-executed and quaint food, but the whole feeling of the place is also one that will bring you back for special occasions and when you want to have the feeling of a little mini-vacation for an hour or two. This entire area of San Juan Capistrano is like stepping back in time and visiting Ramos House is just like visiting someone's home for breakfast, which you basically are doing. Service was warm and hospitable, and all the overall-clad young servers really seemed happy to be at work and share this place with their guests. A feeling that I definitely could agree with while writing this review.

Out of five mulberry trees, (in honor of the tree that you will dine next to on the patio of this very restaurant), five being best to zero being worst, The Ramos House Cafe gets 3.5 mulberry trees.

For more information about The Ramos House Cafe, check out their website by clicking here: https://www.ramoshouse.com/

Slow Start, Great Food at Oliver's Osteria

Oliver's Osteria

853 Laguna Canyon Road

Laguna Beach, CA 92651

I'm usually overly polite when I am out in public and dealing with people that are on the clock. It's probably my 30 plus years in the grocery business and seeing how awful a lot of people can be that is the reason for this. I do have my limit though. My politeness goes away when I'm hungry and I feel like I'm not being treated right. This was the way I felt at the start of our evening at Oliver's Osteria in Laguna Beach.

Let's start at the beginning. Oliver's opened in late October of 2018. There is no Oliver here, it's actually the name of Chef and Owner Erik De Marchi's son, who just happened to be born on the same day this restaurant opened. Talk about doing double duty. Chef De Marchi was born and raised in Italy, graduated from culinary school, moved to LA in 2002, and worked at the well known and respected Angelini Osteria in the Fairfax area of Los Angeles.

Oliver's is the culmination of all of his hard work. It's his first restaurant, and although it's not located in the heart of downtown Laguna, it's gotten some very positive press. Three stars and a glowing review from Orange Coast Magazine, numerous mentions in the OC Register, including Restaurant Critic Brad A. Johnson exclaiming that this is the best Italian restaurant to open in OC in many years. Oliver's gets 4 and a half stars on Yelp with close to 200 reviews and many OC based food journalists that I look up to and admire have cited Oliver's Osteria as the best Italian they have had outside of Italy. Big time praise indeed.

That brings us to our visit. We were going to be dining with our good friends Tom and Daniele, who had tried Oliver's food at the Taste of Laguna a few months ago, and were very eager to try this place. Anticipating a busy restaurant on a Friday evening, I made reservations for 8pm. We arrived five minutes prior to our time and were told that our table would be available in 15 minutes, which is not such a big deal, as it gave us time to catch up, and there's never any shortage of conversation between the four of us.

Around half-past 8 we inquired about our table and were told that our table would be ready soon, and they offered us each a glass of champagne. Nice touch, but I was getting hungry. As 8:50 rolled around we started to think about bolting for one of the other nearby Laguna restaurants. I imposed a 9pm cutoff time, but we were sat at a very small table right at the front entrance of the restaurant right before my arbitrary deadline time, which was an hour past our reservation time. My stomach was doing summersaults by this time.

This table was clearly meant for 2 people only, as both Tom and I were a big obstacle for the staff to get around each time one of them had to get by this high traffic area. Within five minutes we were on the move again to a much more comfortable table on the patio in the front of the restaurant. Truth be told, I was kind of over Oliver's by this time, thinking that no restaurant could be worth all of this hassle and wondering how I was going to write a fair and impartial review about the food we were going to have here. That was until I tasted the food here.

To make up for the long delay and switching tables they made us a Charcutturie Platter for the four of us to share. I did not see this on any of their menus, so I'm not really sure this is offered on a regular basis at Oliver's. This helped smooth things over in my mind, as it was a nice gesture and an even better charcuterie board. I really enjoyed all the meats  It was a little light on the cheeses, but the blue cheese was a favorite.

Instead of just a boring bread basket, at Oliver's you get this elongated plate with homemade Foccacia and a little bowl of diced tomatoes to start out with. A kind of build your own bruschetta. Truth be told, I'm not really a big fan of chopped tomatoes so I let the three of them share this. They all remarked how fresh the tomatoes were and were marinated nicely. I did try the bread, which I found to be light and spongy.

Entree time and Tom was very excited about trying one of their dinner specials, the Spaghetti Scoglio ($32). This seafood-centric dish had a whole cavalcade of seafood in it; mussels, calamari rings, clams, and I believe lobster pieces. Tom was as exuberant as I've ever seen him with this meal, and I've enjoyed many meals with him over the years. The seafood was fresh, they did not try to do too much with it, and the pasta, which I spied some black squid pasta included here was some of the best he has had outside of Italy. Very high praise from Tom, who definitely knows good food when he has it.

I was a little surprised that Katie went with the Strozzapreti Alla Norcini ($28) on this evening. She was sure glad she did. This utilized the hand-rolled twist pasta and included ground sausage, a black truffle for richness, and a touch of cream to the sauce. A very balanced dish, it hit high notes of richness, without being too overbearing. Katie cleared her plate rather quickly, as she exclaimed that this was the best pasta dish she has consumed in a very long time.

This Ravioli Burro Salvia ($24) did what I thought would be impossible. It kept our good friend Daniele quiet for almost five minutes straight. A new personal best, and some much-needed relief to her dear husband, Tom I'm sure. All kidding aside, this spinach and ricotta ravioli was nicely executed and finished off with a very nice butter sage sauce. Daniele, who practices portion control when we eat out, was having a hard time stopping herself from eating all of this. Another winning entree for our table. 

I was hoping that the winning streak would continue with my pick on this late evening, the Lasagna Classico ($26). It did. This was one of the lightest, but best lasagnas I have had. It had both a bechamel sauce and a meat ragu, which is always a great combo. I was a little skeptical that this was going to fill me up, but it did. Not like any Americanized lasagna I have had. This made me very excited to come back and try more of their menu very soon.

Truth be told, I'm not really a big fan of Italian desserts, but everyone else wanted to give them a try. We settled on Tiramisu ($12) and the Semifreddo Zabaione ($12). The tiramisu was a little too heavy on the coffee flavor for my tastes, but the others really seemed to like it. I'm just weird and am not a fan of tiramisu normally. The zabaione was better, as it seemed kind of like a scoop of french vanilla ice cream, but not as sweet and not as structured. It was fine, but I'd probably skip this next time we visited Oliver's.

This is my new favorite authentic Italian restaurant in OC. Even with the hour wait with a reservation, the switching of the tables, and the desserts that were not too much to my liking, I eagerly look forward to coming back to Oliver's to experience more of their authentic Italian cuisine. Be advised that the menu is seasonal, so it does change every so often, but based on this visit, I don't think you will have trouble finding something delicious to consume at Oliver's. Our server Marco had the difficult task of serving four very hungry people who were not in the best of moods when we sat down, but he did a wonderful job of making us converts. Prices are a tad on the high side, but I'd argue that you are paying for heightened Italian food, which is always worth it in the end. It's also worth the minor hiccups that we experienced from the front of the house staff.

Out of five Ferrari's, (because Chef De Marchi is from Imola, Italy, which used to host the San Marino Grand Prix, and that car brand won the race more than any other), five being best to zero being worst, Oliver's Osteria gets 4 Ferrari's.

For more information about Oliver's Osteria, head to their website here: https://oliversosteria.com/

A House Divided, One Part Sushi the Other Part Ramen

Sushi Ramen House

25260 La Paz Road Suite A

Laguna Hills, CA 92653

There was not much good that came out of Katie's last place of employment. She had to deal with an inept division head, her direct supervisor overtly harassed her, and the so-called human resource department sat on their hands while a scathing write-up, which definitely had the tone of being more like a personal attack that had little to do with her job performance, was written and rewritten three times by this bungling management team.

It was time to leave this train wreck of a company behind. The one bright spot that Katie took out of that horrible one and a half year experience was that she made some pretty good friends there. People she has kept in contact with since she left. One of those people was Mazi and his recently wed wife, Marita. We see them frequently with our sporadic walks and dinner afterward. They even introduced us to this restaurant, Sushi Ramen House in Laguna Hills.

Located in the same shopping plaza as Ironwood, Cecilia's, Villa Roma, and Heidelberg Bakery, Sushi Ramen House took over for another Japanese restaurant in early 2019. In those 15 months, they have now garnered a four and a half star rating, with over 200 reviews. Pretty good for a  restaurant that is easy to overlook with their much more visible and highly regarded restaurant neighbors.

We decided to forgo our walk with Mazi and Marita on a rather chilly Thursday evening and instead met for dinner at Sushi Ramen House. This small corner restaurant has about 10 to 15 tables, many of which were filled during our visit. The dining room vibe is what I'd call sleek, with its darkly painted ceilings and walls, and sparse decor. The menu predictably offers plenty in the way of ramen and sushi, but there are also 21 appetizers, salads, and bowls to choose from. Let's check out the food.

Katie and I really just ordered this California Roll ($6.50) because we were hungry and knew it was going to come out faster than our entrees. A little something to tide us over. This was your basic California roll that you've had all over with imitation crab, cucumber, and a smidge of avocado wrapped up around rice and seaweed. Nothing special.

In hindsight, we probably could have done without the average California roll above, because the ramen came out pretty quickly. Katie had this Chicken Ramen ($11.95). This is made up of chicken broth with sliced chicken, half an egg, green onion, and noodles. It also usually comes with fungus and bamboo, but she held off on those. She liked this ramen but was not wowed by it. It was very middle of the road and she's had better. It did end up satisfying her ramen craving on this evening.

Mazi and Marita both got the Tonkotsu Ramen, which is a pork-based broth and joined in the bowl by a half an egg, green onion, noodles, and simmered pork. No bamboo or fungus for them either. I had this the one other time we came here and found it to be pretty solid, although I am by no means an expert when it comes to ramen. I liked the thicker broth and found the pork to be pretty tender. Like Katie, I was not too fond of the egg though. As for Mazi and Marita, this is what they get every time they visit Sushi Ramen House. It's right near their house and they find it's perfect on the rather chilly evenings we have been having lately.

I'm not really into ramen, so I decided to go my own route and try one of their bowls. This Spicy Tuna and Shrimp Rice Bowl ($11.95) was larger than I was expecting. Half was spicy tuna and the other half was tempura-like shrimp which had a sweetness to the sauce on top of it, kind of like honey walnut shrimp, but not as sweet. This bowl was fine, but kind of awkward. On one side you have the cold and softened tuna and the other was the warmed and crunchy shrimp. I'm all for contrast in my meals, but this was a little too much. I'd probably just get all shrimp next time.

Katie made a very late decision to order one more thing, the Spicy Tuna with Crispy Rice ($6.50) off of the appetizer portion of the menu. It was probably the best thing I had all evening. I really liked the contrasts of the crispy rice, the smooth sliced avocado, and the soft spicy tuna perched on top. I could have eaten a couple more of these in no time flat.

Rereading what I have written above, it sounds a bit harsher than I intended it to. Sushi Ramen House is fine, but it's not going to blow you away. It's like the restaurant that you go to if you want some ramen or sushi, but don't want to veer too far from home. Not really destination dining, but it will do in a pinch. The few times we have been here the service has been very good and the kitchen gets the food out in a very timely manner. I'm glad Katie's old place of employment is a thing of the past, but I'm also happy that it gave us the opportunity to spend some time with our new friends Mazi and Marita.

Out of five dollars, (because Lagna Hills is where Aloe Blacc the musician grew up, and his first hit was, "I Need a Dollar,") five being best to zero being worst, Sushi Ramen House gets 2.5 dollars.

Sushi Ramen House does not have a website, but you can find info about them on their Yelp page here: https://www.yelp.com/biz/sushi-ramen-house-laguna-hills

Jetting off After a Meal at Alejo's

Alejo's Presto Trattoria 

8343 Lincoln Blvd. 

Westchester, CA 90045

It's been a long while since we've been up in this neck of the woods. It's been about a year or so since we've taken our good friends Chaz and Stephanie to LAX, so they can jet off to visit their grandkids in South Carolina. We have a simple agreement, we battle Friday evening traffic up the 405 in exchange for a free dinner. It works out great for all involved. They avoid paying the outrageous parking fees at the airport, while I get to pick a restaurant in a part of So Cal that I would usually not be around.

Chuck and Stephanie were pretty much up for any kind of food, but I know that they are partial to Italian, so I went to Yelp to find a spot near LAX that serves classic Italian cuisine. Mission accomplished. Alejo's is situated a few blocks north of the always busy runways of LAX, they had a four-star Yelp rating with over 600 reviews, and most importantly, their prices were pretty modest, which is a big plus for Chuck, (although it is fun to watch his eyes bug out when he sees the check come at more expensive places).

The story of this restaurant is a pretty interesting one. It was started by Alejo Castro, a native of Spain. After a few stops across the globe, he mastered the art of making pasta. He next made his home in the US, where he accepted a position at the now-shuttered La Scala in Malibu. Chef Alejo then branched out on his own and opened La Traviata in Hermosa Beach. A return to Spain resulted in that restaurant being sold. Missing Southern California, Alejo opened this current version of his namesake restaurant in 1991.

Now run by his sons, Tony and Christian, they have kept things relatively the same since the days when their father ran the place. They make all of their pasta, bread, and pizza on the premises. The large menu is dotted with all of your Italian favorites; pizza, pasta dishes, lasagna, chicken and seafood options, and of course some salads. Almost all the items on this menu list two prices which I assume is for smaller portion sizes. Only a few things at Alejo's pass the $20 threshold.

We arrived here on a Friday evening at 7:30. Parking can be a little tricky along this section of Lincoln, but we were fortunate enough to find a spot in their tiny lot behind their restaurant. The dining room is pretty laidback, with very minimal decor populating the space. There's a wall that features framed pictures of famous people that have eaten here, some, what I assume to be, family members portraits, and community awards they have received throughout the years and decades they have been in business. Let's check out the food to see if this was a great sendoff for our friends on their way to the East Coast.

Probably one of the most overflowing bread baskets we have ever received during the ten year run of this restaurant blog. After seeing how quickly this disappeared between the four of us, I guess they knew what they were doing. The Bread and accompanying Garlic Dip were addicting, to say the least. There was also oil and vinegar as well, but for any garlic lover, the garlic sauce is what you want. It's bordering on pungent, but man was it awesome. I had the taste with me for the whole car ride home. The bread was good as well. The cut-up ciabatta bread was a great vessel for either the garlic or the oil and vinegar.

Both Katie and I opted to get salads to start our meal off at Alejo's. She had the Chopped Salad ($8.95) which came with garbanzo beans, tomatoes, diced up salami, and mozzarella cheese, with finely chopped greens and their house dressing, which seemed like a creamy Italian from where I was sitting. Katie loved this salad, which was chopped nicely so it was easy to handle, and the flavors kept her interested during the short life of this salad. She'd probably try the Alejo Salad the next time, which is this same salad with turkey, bacon, and red cabbage added.

I went with my usual salad, a Caesar ($7). This traditional version of my favorite salad came with chopped romaine, anchovies, croutons, a sprinkle of parmesan, and Caesar dressing. This was a wonderful start to my time at Alejo's. The greens were fresh, there was just the right amount of dressing on this, and the anchovy added a burst of saltiness that perked up my tastebuds. Bear in mind that these are the half portions, which were more than enough for someone that's getting something else to eat in a few minutes.

Katie had the Spaghetti Carbonara ($15.95) this evening. Carbonara was one of the first meals I made for her when we started dating all those years ago, but this one blew mine away easily. This version utilizes a pink sauce and comes with crumbled bacon and mushrooms to round it out. A very rich dish, but she polished this off with no problem. The fresh pasta and the wonderful pink sauce made this non-traditional carbonara a winner.

My go-to meal in an Italian restaurant for the first time is usually Lasagna ($15.95). I figure if they can make a good version of this dish, you can expect good things from everything else they make. After my first bite of this one, I knew we had stumbled upon a very solid Italian restaurant. At Alejo's they have three versions of lasagna; beef, chicken, or vegetable. No shock to anyone reading this, I went with the beef. The ratio of beef, sauce, and cheese was pretty stellar. I liked that they threw in some spinach lasagna noodles for a little different spin. The beef was seasoned very well, and the red sauce surrounding this square of deliciousness really shined. One of the better lasagnas I have had in recent memory.

Not wanting to get too full on their flight, Chuck and Stephanie agreed to split this Pepperoni Pizza ($17) between them. They were also generous enough to let me have what they did not eat on this evening, which was three of the slices. The pizzas at Alejo's are cooked in a brick oven, the dough is made daily, and kneaded by hand. You can taste the quality of the ingredients. There was no orange grease running down your arm eating this and the cheese and pepperoni tasted very fresh, even after being heated up the next day. It would be hard for me to come here and not get the lasagna that I had, but the pizzas would be a close second choice.

Alejo's ended up being a great place to eat before Chuck and Stephanie jetted off. We have taken them to LAX at least 20 times, and this is one of the best places we have eaten at up this way. This is the kind of restaurant that you wish was in your neighborhood. I feel a slight animosity towards the people of Westchester, who get to eat here whenever they want and some who probably even take it for granted. It's a good, honest, and low-key Italian place that serves some really solid food. With so much good going on here, I do have to mention that the service was not the best. After we were seated, it took about five minutes for us to be acknowledged, but our waiter did improve slightly throughout our stay. Even with the mediocre service, Chuck has mentioned that we need to come back here the next time we take them to LAX. That's fine with Katie and me, especially since he will paying.

Out of five owls, (because not only is Westchester the home of LMU, but also the Otis College of Art and Design, and their mascot is Otis the Owl), five being best to zero being worst, Alejo's Presto Trattoria gets 3.5 owls.

For more information about Alejo's Presto Trattoria, head to their website here: https://alejosrestaurant.com/

May I Present to You, Mr. Katsu

Mr. Katsu

3165 Yorba Linda Blvd. 

Fullerton, CA 92831

Do you hate going to the dentist? Just like you, I'm not really fond of some guy poking around my mouth, drilling into my jaw, or sucking out my spit through a tube, (sorry, I know this is not the most appetizing way to be starting off a restaurant review, especially a restaurant that I actually liked).

Going to the dentist gets me out of my normal routine a bit by placing me in North OC right around lunchtime. This, in turn, gives me a chance to try a new place for lunch. An added bonus on this trip was that my new boss was going to be joining me on this little restaurant adventure. Melissa is one hundred times better than my old boss, who thankfully was put out to pasture last year.

Anyways, we decided to meet up at Mr. Katsu, which I've wanted to try forever. It's located along Yorba Linda Boulevard, in the same shopping center as Vendome Liquor, Gem Supermarket, and a bunch of smaller storefronts. From what I've been able to learn Mr. Katus has been here since late in 2014, and in those five-plus years they have amassed quite a following. They have over 1100 reviews and a four and a half star rating on Yelp. They were also called one of the best surprising sandwiches in OC by Orange Coast Magazine.

Mr. Katsu can best be described as a Japanese fusion restaurant that takes pork cutlets and incorporates them into one of their 11 sandwiches. Not a fan of pork? They also have chicken cutlets or grilled chicken as options. Prices range between $9 to $11 for the sandwiches. They also have a version of Korean loaded fries, a Korean fusion bowl, and potato puffs. Ordering is done at the counter and then you find a seat at one of the ten or so tables. Not really anything too remarkable about the dining area, but Melissa and I were hoping that the food could be described that way. Let's check it out.

I was a little worried that these WTFF Fries ($9), AKA What The Frick Fries were going to be just a gimmicky Instagram dish, but after the first bite, I was proved wrong. The fries were your basic fast-food french fry, but the marinated beef kalbi, sauteed kimchi, and party sauce topping this elevated ho-hum fries into something magical. The short rib kalbi was nicely flavored, and the kimchi was mellower than I imagined it would be. I'm not entirely sure what the party sauce was, maybe mayo-based with some Sriracha thrown in, but it did a great job of tieing everything together. Definitely worth ordering when visiting Mr. Katsu. 

As if we did not have enough potatoes with the fries above, we also got five Potato Puffs ($3) to share. These were better than the fries. They had a decent crunchy outer shell and had an almost mashed potato feel to them on the inside. We got the regular, but I will try the curry-flavored next time I visit. The only drawback with these was that there was an odd number served, and with just the two of us, it was going to be a little uncomfortable about who was going to have the last one. Melissa ended the stalemate by snagging the last one without even offering to split it. Rude.

After the potato puff incident above, I knew there was going to be no way that Melissa was going to share a bite of her Chipotle Asiago Sandwich ($11). This pork cutlet came with chipotle aioli, asiago cheese, and plenty of coleslaw. She really enjoyed this spicy sandwich. The cheese did seem to get a little lost here, maybe due to the fact that there was so much slaw on this. The thick bread, maybe egg bread, was soft and a great vessel for the sandwiches. It did a great job of keeping everything together. She'd definitely come back and try other sandwiches next time. Just don't expect her to share.

My selection was what they claim is their most popular, the Habanero Pesto Sandwich ($10). This also came with a pork cutlet, as well as more coleslaw, pesto, and habanero aioli. This sandwich had a much bigger spicy kick than I was expecting. It did not overpower, but it lingered on the back end of each bite. I'd probably ask for extra next time. The pesto was a nice touch and made me realize that I do not have pesto nearly enough. The pork cutlet was moist and flavorful with a nice crunch to the outside of it. It's easy to see why this would be such a popular sandwich at Mr. Katsu.

This was a great find and I can see why they get so much love from everyone. Even though both Melissa and I got pretty basic sandwiches, they were delicious and pretty filling. Prices were very fair for the amount of food that you receive. Yes, the dining area is a little sparse, but you are here for the sandwiches, not the ambiance. I look forward to trying their Bacon Avocado and the Bleu Cheese Buffalo the next time I'm in the area around lunchtime, maybe in six months when my next dental appointment is scheduled.

Out of five hornets, (in honor of Fullerton College, who's mascot is Buzzy the Hornet, and it's one of the numerous JC's that I attended), five being best to zero being worst, Mr. Katsu gets 3.5 hornets.

Mr. Katsu does not have a website, but you can find more info about them on their Yelp page here: https://www.yelp.com/biz/mr-katsu-fullerton-3

Another Year Older and Another Birthday Dinner

Meizhou Dongpo

15363 Culver Dr. 

Irvine, CA 92604

I've known my coworker/friend David for close to ten years now. We have a pretty good work relationship. He works way harder than me, while I try to get out of doing as much work as possible. He always comes to work happy, whereas I sometimes show up a little frustrated or moody. He speaks very little, while I'm pretty much talking nonstop. Okay, maybe we are complete opposites, but it's worked for nearly a decade now.

One thing we are not opposite about is food. He loves to eat, almost as much as I do. So when it's our birthday we take the other out to dinner. I usually ask him where he wants to go, and he'll usually defer to my choice. So when his birthday rolled around this year I knew I wanted to try Meizhou Dongpo, which has been on my list of places to go forever.  That's where we headed, along with Katie and David's mom on a recent Wednesday evening.

Meizhou Dongpo sprang to life in 1996 in China. Started by a husband and wife team, Wang Gang and Liang Di, they now have over one hundred locations in China and more spread throughout the world. Their website states that they specialize in authentic and fresh Chinese cuisine, with an emphasis on the Sichuan region. They have also been quoted as saying that they want to bring elevated Chinese food to the rest of the world, including their four Southern California locations; Arcadia, Century City, Universal City, and this Irvine branch.

Mission accomplished with this Irvine spot that is situated in the always busy Culver Plaza, which is also home to the 99 Ranch Market, Tasty Noodle House, and the always-packed Sam Woo Seafood and BBQ Restaurant. Walking into Meizhou Dongpo I was taken aback by the spaciousness of the restaurant. It doesn't look that big from the outside, but they can accommodate a bunch of customers at the same time, which is a good thing since they almost always have a wait. The dining space has high ceilings, lovely hanging lanterns, and eye-catching blue hues throughout the space.

The menu is equally as impressive. It's not even really a menu, more of a high fashion magazine, but instead of models gracing its pages, there's nicely plated food in the professionally done pictures, with a list of ingredients listed per item. Literally taking a page from the menu they have at Cheesecake Factory, with about a hundred items available for your perusal.

The menu starts off with their signature item, the Roast Duck, which you will see upcoming. There's also plenty to choose from with the rest of the menu as well. Appetizers, seafood, beef, poultry, pork, veggies, noodles, buns, and rice selections are aplenty. Prices hover around the $20 mark for most things, but there are some notable exceptions to that price point, including $68 for short ribs and a $45 sweet and sour fish dish. A little too rich for my tastes, but let's see what we did end up having this evening to celebrate David's birthday.

We might as well get this one out of the way first, as it was my least favorite of the evening. I'm usually a big fan of pork belly, but this Dongpo Pork Belly with Preserved Vegetables ($19.95) started us off on the wrong foot here. I guess I'm more into crisp pork belly, and this one I think was steamed, which left it more on the limp side. I'm also not sure what veggies they had under the layers of pork belly, maybe some kind of greens, but the two flavors did not mesh well with me. I stayed away from this plate for the rest of the night.

Listed under the appetizer section of the menu, our server suggested that we give the Meizhou Dongpo Sausage ($15.95) a try. He also suggested that we try both the spicy and non-spicy. I liked both versions. I did not find the spiciness to be overwhelming, but it was definitely present. The sausages themselves were dense with meaty flavor, and not at all greasy, which is rare when it comes to sausage. They did come out lukewarm, but I'm not sure if that's how they are normally served.

My mom's favorite thing to eat at P.F. Chang's is Dan Dan Noodles ($4.95), (even though they are not on the official menu anymore you can still ask and they will make them for you), but that version could not hold a candle to these at Meizhou Dongpo. This was more of a single serving but was enough for both Katie and me. The noodles were fresh and the pork mixture had some nice flavor to it, but the broth is what tied everything together for me. Katie thought it was on the spicy side, as it cleared out her sinuses, but I liked the heat level of this. It will be hard for me to go back to P.F. Chang's and have their bland version again.

Another of Katie's picks was this Wonton Soup ($4.95). I did not have any of this, but she liked the lightness of this, which she found soothing after the heat she got from dan dan noodles. One of the better versions she has had.

The birthday boy David selected this dish, the Sauteed Beef Fillet with Black Pepper ($22.95). This was composed of cubed pieces of beef, onions, three broccoli florets, and a little garlic. I liked this dish, but the pepper was not present and the beef was not as good as the one I had across the parking lot at Sam Woo for six dollars less. I'd skip this the next time I'm here. 

Another Katie pick, the Meizhou Pork Buns ($4.95). She was generous enough to allow me to have one of these, and just like her, I thought these were unremarkable. Very plain and the outer dumpling really overtook the pork inside. Nowhere near the best dumplings, we have consumed. 

Another David pick, the Spicy Chicken ($17.95) looked really intimidating when it hit the table. It's listed on the menu with three peppers next to it, indicating that it's one of their spiciest items available. I managed the heat fine, but with all of the dried peppers covering this it kind of pushed the chicken off to the side. I did like the addition of the french fries on this. It reminded me of a Chinese version of lomo saltado. 

When you first get to your table, and before you order, your server will ask if you would like to order their famous Meizhou Roasted Duck ($38.90 for the half) since it takes time to prepare. You will definitely want to answer in the affirmative. This was the best duck I have ever had. Sliced in the kitchen and brought out on a serving tray, it truly was incredible. This came with sauce, sliced cucumber and wraps, but I found myself just eating this tender bird by itself. I could not get enough. The skin was nice and crispy and our server suggested adding some sugar to it, which made it even better. This is the duck that will be used to judge all others for me now.

David's mom was pretty quiet when it came to selecting plates for us all to share, except when it came to these Wok-Fried String Beans ($13.95). These were done pretty straightforwardly. They had a nice crunch to them and the sliced garlic and peppers added to this dish. It's always good to have at least one vegetable dish on the table.

Our last dish was the Beef Fried Rice ($12.95). A nice side dish, but it could not really stand on its own. Again, it was not as greasy as most others, but the beef did not star and the rest of this was a tad salty. We probably would have been better off just getting plain steamed rice.

Not everything wowed us at Meizhou Dongpo, but the duck, dan dan noodles, and the sausage made up for the slight misses. With a menu as varied as this, we would definitely come back and try more items. Prices are about five dollars more per plate than you'd pay elsewhere, but I'd argue that the quality and ambiance is better than your typical Chinese restaurant. We experienced wonderful service this evening, as our server answered all of our questions, and guided us as to some of his favorites. It was probably our best dinner while celebrating David's birthday and we can't wait to do it again next year.

Out of five pandas, (because the Sichuan region, where this restaurant is from is home to a majority of these iconic black and white bears), five being best to zero being worst, Meizhou Dongpo gets 3.5 pandas.

Meizhou Dongo does not have a website, but you can check out their Yelp page here for more information: https://www.yelp.com/biz/meizhou-dongpo-irvine