Chow Time at Wood Ranch

Wood Ranch BBQ and Grill

22352 El Paseo

Rancho Santa Margarita, CA 92688

We were going to be leaving for vacation, and Katie's family wanted to see her one last time before we were off to New York. So we stopped packing and made the trip out to Wood Ranch BBQ in Rancho Santa Margarita. I have kind of become jaded when going to chain barbecue places, but I have always kind of liked WR and have yet to review it, so that is where we are headed.

Wood Ranch operates 13 restaurants, including the other OC location in Anaheim Hills. They also will be opening an Irvine location at the Spectrum this summer. Their menu features steaks, seafood, burgers, and barbecue. Their barbecue is cooked in a two-step process, first, it is roasted overnight, and then it is cooked to order.  Let's see how all the food turned out.

At Wood Ranch, they serve you these garlic rolls, instead of a bread basket. These came out nice and warm and were very full of garlic. As these cooled, they lost a little bit of their softness, but they were still pretty good.

To start off our meal we went with the BBQ Chicken Potato Skins. These potato skins came with cheese, barbecue sauce, and chicken. I felt the potato part of these was a little too crisp, and they could have been a little more generous with the cheese and chicken on these. The barbecue sauce on these was the standout flavor here.

Katie's Dad was not too hungry so he opted to get a bowl of Clam Chowder soup. This soup looked watery and average to me. Dennis did not rave about the soup but said it was fine. Not exactly a rave review for this soup.

Katie must have forgotten that she was at a barbecue restaurant because she ordered a salad. At least she got a salad with some meat on it, the Wood Roasted Tri-Tip Salad. This salad featured baby greens, romaine, tomatoes, Gorgonzola, tri-tip, and mint julep dressing. I had a few bites of this salad and found it to be quite good. The tri-tip was flavorful and the dressing was a good compliment to the meat. Katie would have liked the meat to have been warmer and juicier.

Sara and Lynn both got BBQ Pork Pulled Sandwiches. Both the sliders and the traditional sandwich are served with Carolina slaw and pickle chips. The barbecue sauce is served on the side. Sara, the kind-hearted woman that she is, even gave me half of her sandwich. Thanks, Sara! Anyways, I found the meat to have a decent flavor, not over-powering, and it was paired nicely with the slaw and barbecue sauce. I would get this sandwich again.

Kevin's, "go to",  item in restaurants is a hamburger, and at Wood Ranch, he stuck true to form with the Buckeye Burger. This burger came with BBQ sauce, bacon, and Tillamook cheddar cheese. I did not get a chance to sample this burger, but from across the table, it looked pretty good. Kevin had no complaints about this burger.

I was in a barbecue restaurant, so I went with actual barbecue food. I had the two-item WR BBQ Combo with tri-tip and baby back ribs. The tri-tip was the best thing on the plate. Tender and moist would be used to describe the tri-tip. The baby backs were good but made better by their barbecue sauce. I liked the barbecue sauce here. Usually, I am more of a spice guy, but when it comes to barbecue sauce I like it better on the sweeter side. The side items were just average. The Peanut Cole Slaw was bland, and the Lauren's Favorite Mac and Cheese was a little light on the cheese. Not so great.

We got to Wood Ranch on a Friday night at 7 and they were very busy. We were seated on the very crowded outside patio. It was way too cramped out there, and servers were having to dodge customers all night. Our overly enthusiastic server was fine but left us for long stretches of time. Luckily we were in no rush, as we were enjoying each other's company, even Sara's.

I think I am ready to deem Wood Ranch my favorite barbecue chain restaurant. Over the years they have been way more consistent than Lucille's, and way better than Tony Roma's. Geez, are there even any more Tony Romas around? Their prices are on par, if not better than other barbecue joints, with plates averaging just under twenty dollars. The barbecue here can not compete with small independent places like Blake's Place and Bad to the Bone, but I think that is because they are cooking in such large volumes.

So out of five wranglers, (because wranglers live on ranches), five being best to zero being worst, Wood Ranch gets 3 wranglers.

For more information on Wood Ranch, click here: https://www.woodranch.com/

Searching for a Great Cuban Meal

Felix Continental Cafe

36 Plaza Square

Orange, CA 92866

Both Katie and I have been craving Cuban food ever since we got back from Miami in November. Our Cuban experience was so good there, we wanted to find the best Cuban food in the OC. So we start our quest at Felix Continental Cafe in the Orange Circle.

Felix has been around since the late seventies. In those thirty plus years, I have always heard great things about this place. Every time I have been to the circle, there is always a wait to eat here. Every time I mention restaurants in the circle, someone always tells me to try Felix's. Reviews from the newspapers and blogs are all glowing, so I was very excited to give Felix a try.

We arrived at seven on a Saturday night, and true to form there was a forty-five-minute wait to be seated inside or a five-minute wait to be seated outside under the heat lamps. We chose the latter, because I was really hungry, and I can brave the chilly 60-degree weather. After a little delay, the waiter came over and this is what came out for us.

I always enjoy showing you the breadbasket, and here is the one for this night. The bread was average and a little squashed, but they definitely gave the three of us more than enough. Maybe they saw in my eyes that I was very hungry.

The only appetizer we ordered was the Empanadita Criolla. This was filled with spiced ground beef and tasted great. Katie asked for some salsa with this, and it was nice and spicy. A very good accompaniment to the empanada.

All of the entrees came with either soup or salad. Katie and Clay each got the salad. They felt it was nothing special. I went with Garbanzo Soup. This was a pleasant tasting mellow soup. There was no shortage of garbanzos in this soup either. I was a little surprised to find a bay leaf in the soup, but no big deal.

We will start the entree portion of the night with Clay's choice, the Carne Con Papas. Tips of boneless beef and potatoes cooked in a Cuban beef sauce. This stew-like meal was called average by Clay, who also said some of the beef pieces were not very tender.

Felix is known as the House of Paella, so that is what Katie wanted to try. The Paella Valenciana is a Spanish holiday dish that presents many different items in the same bowl. Included in this paella were saffron rice, shellfish, calamari, chicken, pork, fish, and Spanish chorizo. Katie felt this was a solid dish and that the meats were just okay. She could not finish this, so I took it for lunch the next day. I really enjoyed this. Kind of like a jambalaya, I really liked the flavor of this. My only complaint would be about the shellfish. It was served in a shell of course, but there was nothing to crack it open with. The dish was good without the crab meat but would have been made better with it.

The menu at Felix kind of intimidated me. There were so many options that I could not decide on a dish, so I took a chance with the Boliche Mechado. Eye of round steak stuffed with chorizo sausage and cooked in its own juices. The chorizo was invisible. The meat itself was tough, and not flavored well. The rice was okay. Not the best choice I could have made here. I should have gone with a pork or chicken dish.

Maybe a Cuban Sandwich could make me forget my entree. A Cuban sandwich is composed of a leg of pork, ham, Swiss cheese, pickles, and mustard all on a Cuban baguette. This Cuban sandwich was not even close to the great one we had in Miami. The pork was kind of dry, and the cheese was a little off. It could have been a texture issue with the cheese. The mustard was not very prominent, and the pickles were sparsely spread through the sandwich. Not a good sandwich.

What almost made up for my entree was the desserts at Felix. With your entree, you are also given your choice of dessert. I had the Vanilla Pudding which was good and creamy and sprinkled with cinnamon. The real choice for dessert is the Tres Leches Cake. This moist cake was fantastic. Kind of had a moist Twinkie taste, but even better. The real whipping cream on top of this was the proverbial cherry on top. I can not recommend this dessert more.

Okay, so I guess after reading this you know how I am going to rate Felix. There were some bright spots, the paella, empanadas, and desserts. There were also some very low parts, the beef entrees, and the Cuban sandwich. This seems like a restaurant we will have to come back to explore their menu more. I will stay away from the beef items here and focus on pork and chicken items.  The service on our visit was fine, and I felt that the prices seemed fair.

Out of five cigars, (no explanation needed right?), five being best to zero being worst, Felix Continental Cafe gets 2.5 cigars.

For more information on Felix Continental Cafe click here: http://www.felixcontinentalcafe.com/

The Highs and Lows at Landmark CLOSED

Landmark Steakhouse

3520 E. Coast Highway

Corona Del Mar, CA 92625

I have been craving a big steak lately. So when my buddy Matt wanted some guy time, he suggested we head to Landmark to try one of their slabs of meat.

Neither of us had been to this beach area steakhouse before. Most of the reviews on Yelp are all about the night club. Landmark opens at five, and the DJ starts spinning at ten. According to their website they have recently renovated their dining rooms. They kind of have a retro kind of feel to it. High leather booths, dark lighting, and wood tables.

On this rainy Wednesday night there were only four tables being used in the dining room. Most of the action was going on in the very crowded bar area. Our server was nice, but we kind of felt that she forgot about us for long periods of time. Let's see if the food can make up for this.

First up is the bread basket. The bread was good, but had a harder than normal crust around it. I was very hungry and devoured two pieces of this rather quickly.

Both Matt and I decided to split two appetizers. His choice is above, the Blackend Seared Ahi. This was served with a seaweed salad and a wasabi red onion sauce. Matt called this the best ahi he has ever had. I liked the meatiness of the ahi, and the sauce was sweet, even though it had a wasabi base. Both the sauce and the ahi complimented each other well.

For my appetizer I went with the Filet Mignon Tacos. The meat on these were very tender and plentiful. Made even better with the guacamole. This would definitely be my go to appetizer when coming back here.

Next up is the healthy portion of the night, the salads. My option for a salad was the Chopped Iceberg. This salad included bacon, blue cheese crumbles, tomatoes, hearts of palm, and blue cheese dressing. Okay, mine was not so healthy, but it was a good tasting salad. It had the right amount of dressing on it, and the bacon added a lot of flavor.

Matt paying homage to Popeye ordered the Spinach Salad. Popeye, I mean Matt, felt that this salad was just average. He is used to a warmer spinach salad, and he thought this needed more blue cheese in it. This salad also came with dried cranberries and candied pecans, all tossed with a bacon vinaigrette.

This drab looking plate was Matt's entree, the Blackened Rib Eye. Matt said he would rate this steak about a B+. He liked the taste of this steak, and found little fat on this juicy hunk of meat. He was not a fan of the mashed potatoes, but liked the mushrooms. He also got a side order of Broccolini, but did not mention his thoughts on it. I tried the broccolini and felt it was just okay, it needed more seasoning on it.

After a long debate I decided on the LM Filet Mignon. The first bites of this ten ounce, medium rare steak were pretty good, but this steak cooled quickly, and became just an average filet. If the steak was average, the side items served with this were well below that. The mashed potatoes were bland and lumpy. The sauteed spinach was some of the worst I have ever had. The sauce, (either lemon or vinegar), was awful, and should be retired.

Trying to finish on a high note, we ordered dessert. Matt went with the Creme Brulee topped with fresh berries. He thought this was okay, but was not wowed by this. I liked this also, but felt that it could have been richer. I ordered  the Melted Chocolate Chip Cookie, which is served with vanilla bean ice cream. This dessert was better than the Creme Brulee, but it was not as good as the Pizookie served at BJ's. It needed to be served warmer and the cookie was not as good as it could be.

How to rate Landmark? As the meal went on my opinion of this place wained. The appetizers were real good, the salads were slightly above average, but the entrees failed to impress, and the desserts were just okay. I kind of felt that I was paying for their location, because the prices were too high for the quality of food that we received. I also got the vibe that this is a night club first and a restaurant second. I would come back here, but will stick to appetizers.

Out of five pyramids, (because they are some of the most popular landmarks in the world), five being best to zero being worst,. Landmark Steakhouse gets 2.5 pyramids.

For more information on Landmark Steakhouse, click here: http://www.landmarknewport.com/index.html

Heading to Santa Monica for Umami

Umami Burger

525 Broadway

Santa Monica, CA 90401

I have been hearing whisperings about the great Umami Burger for a while now. Deemed the Best Hamburger in America by GQ magazine, raved about in food blogs, and fawned over in the print media, it was a no-brainer where we would be going when my good friend Ed was in Santa Monica for a job interview.

What is Umami? To be honest I am still not sure. The definition of umami is a pleasant savory taste imparted by glutamate, an amino acid, and ribonucleotides. Those are probably some of the biggest words I have ever typed on this blog. Anyways, umami blends well with other foods and supposedly expands and rounds out flavors. To know anymore I may need a science degree, but I am here to eat burgers, not become a scientist, so let's check out the burgers and sides.

To start off our meal we got the three side items above. The best of the bunch for me was the Tempura Onion Rings. These had a very light batter, and taste to match. The onion part of this really tried to be the star of the show, which is rare for an onion ring. We all thought that the Thin Fries were just your basic fries, and nothing special. The Sweet Potato Fries are not my cup of tea, but both Ed and Katie felt that these light fries were very good. With each side, you get to choose one condiment to accompany your side item. Our choices were the Roasted Garlic Aioli, Jalapeno Ranch, and Umami Ketchup. To my surprise, I enjoyed the aioli the most. The ranch failed to pack the punch I would have liked, and the ketchup was just okay.

Here is the reason so many people come here, the signature Umami Burger. Grilled shitake mushrooms, caramelized onions, Parmesan cheese, and roasted tomatoes combined to make up this burger. I did not try this burger, because Ed did not share with me, thanks a lot bug guy. Anyways, he threw out adjectives between bites to describe his umami experience. They were, manageable, messy, exotic, juicy, and adventurous. I take it from these that he was satisfied with his burger.

Katie went with the Truffle Burger. This simple looking burger was made with truffle glaze and house made truffle cheese. She liked the simplicity of this burger and felt that it had a great taste. I had a small bite of this burger and I would have to concur, it was very flavorful and rich.

The first of my two burgers are above, the Triple Pork Burger. This had the hat trick of swine, ground pork patty, chorizo, and bacon, paired with manchego cheese and pimento aioli. I loved the saltiness of this burger. This, like the other burgers, was very juicy, but the pimento aioli kind of got lost here, but that is to be expected with all of these pork products. I would definitely get this burger again.

The Manly Burger was my second burger of the night. This burger was made up of beer cheddar cheese, smoked salt onion strings, and bacon lardons. The burger was cooked perfectly, all of their burgers are cooked medium rare. The juiciness of this burger was definitely evident. The bacon could have been more prominent though. The buns here were very good. They stood up to the toppings well and complimented the burger and its contents perfectly.

Dessert was the last stop for us, and Katie went with a Root Beer Float. This was made with Abita root beer, which is made with real pure cane sugar. This float was good and creamy. The Ice Cream Sandwich is made by Milk, the trendy LA ice cream parlor/eatery. I went with a rocky road version of this sandwich, and I have to admit it was pretty good. The ice cream was smooth, and the sandwich part of this was way better than any that you could get at your local grocery store.

Umami Burger was as advertised. The Santa Monica location is small, and kind of hidden behind a Fred Segal. The service was slow the night we were here, but we were relegated to the picnic tables outside. The waitress was pleasant though. The food was good, but the prices were a little on the high side for burgers just a size bigger than a larger slider. Burgers run in the $9 to $12 range, but they offer a combo meal that includes a burger, a side item, and a beverage, for $16. I easily ate two of these burgers.

If you are here on a busy night be prepared to wait. The waitress told us that people have waited up to two hours to be seated on weekends. I am not sure I would wait that long, but I was definitely happy that we saw what all the fuss was about here. And, it was just okay seeing my friend Ed. Just kidding big guy.

Out of five fortune cookies, (not because of the Asian influence of the burgers here, but because the motto of Santa Monica is, "Fortunate people in a fortunate land"), five being best to zero being worst, Umami Burger gets 3.5 fortune cookies.

For more information on Umami Burger, click here: http://umamiburger.com/

Danny K's Hoping Not to Scratch

Danny K's

1096 North Main St.

Orange, CA 92867

We have been using the hockey season to find the best places to eat around the Honda Center. With many mixed results. This is our last game of the season, and for it, we chose to go to Danny K's.

Danny K's has been around for a long time. The owner Danny Kuykendall is a big-time pocket billiards player, so that is the main emphasis for this place. They have a bunch of pool tables, all are in pretty good shape, and they hold lots of tournaments and leagues here. Aside from billiards, they also have 33 TVs spread throughout the place. So, there is always a wide variety of games on in this large sports bar. The atmosphere is right up our alley, but let's check out the food.

To start off we went with the #3 Potato Skin Platter. Three potato halves topped with cheese and bacon and served with sour cream and salsa. To be honest these were not the best potato skins ever. They had too much potato, which made these very starchy. I know, wow a potato being starchy, what did I expect? Okay, guilty as charged, but when it comes to potato skins, the toppings are what make them great. There was too much potato on these, so the toppings could not shine. These really should be sold as a baked potato, and not a potato skin. I would not get these again.

Katie felt like a sandwich, so she went with Danny's Turkey Sandwich. This turkey sandwich was served on squaw bread and came with lettuce, tomato, avocado, onions, and mayonnaise. Katie also chose a dinner salad as her side item. She really enjoyed this sandwich but felt that there was too much onion, so she took some of it out. She was not too impressed with the salad.

From the, Why don't more restaurants offer this sandwich department?, came Jamie's Sandwich. The hat trick of great meats, (pastrami, bacon, and turkey), are served on cheese bread with tomato, lettuce, and onion. The mellowness of the turkey contrasted beautifully with the salty, more direct taste of the bacon and pastrami. My only complaint about this sandwich was that they put too little of the thousand island dressing on this. The fries are average, nothing special.

Danny K's serves its purpose. They offer a sports bar that is within a fifteen-minute walk to the Honda Center, they serve decent food and have plenty of TVs so you can watch a game. The service was good this night, but it was not overly crowded. You are not going to go out of your way to eat here, but to take advantage of the free parking, and avoid getting gouged for mediocre food at the Honda Center, this sports bar is a prudent option.

Out of five racks, (because this is primarily a billiards bar, and you can not play pool unless you have a rack), five being best to zero being worst, Danny K's gets 2.5 racks.

For more information on Danny K's, click here: http://dannyks.com/