Starting the Day Off Right at Kay's

Kay's Orcutt Country Kitchen

135 E. Clark Avenue

Santa Maria, CA 93455

We had the whole day to hang out in Santa Maria recently. My friend was having his wedding up here, but the ceremony did not get underway until 4, so that meant we had plenty of time to check out our surroundings on this early fall weekend. We had plans to see the Santa Maria Museum of Flight, and maybe if we had time, we would swing by the Santa Maria Town Center for some shopping. Of course with all of this planned, we had to start our day with breakfast.

I had bookmarked a breakfast restaurant in Orcutt before we left OC. Orcutt is an unincorporated area of Santa Maria, which is an oil town. This community is named after William Warren Orcutt, who not only was an oilman, but he also brought the fossils at the La Brea Tar Pits to the attention of scientists. Old Town Orcutt has a small-town feel to it, even though there are 35,000 people living here now. This main commercial area has an old west kind of vibe going for it, without being too hokey.

We pulled up to Kay's Orcutt Country Kitchen at 10:30 and had about a fifteen-minute wait. They were kind enough to have coffee outside for those wanting to eat here. Kay's has been around for over 14 years now, and word has definitely gotten out about this restaurant that's only open until 2pm. There's a nice heated patio here, but we were seated in one of the rooms near the front of the restaurant. This restaurant is housed in a building that dates from 1904, and it has been restored while Kay's been in charge. Walls are adorned with lots of photographs of local history. The menu is what you would expect from a breakfast joint; scrambles, omelets, and pancakes, but there's also a small selection of sandwiches and burgers here for those not wishing to partake in breakfast. We were here for the first meal of the day though, so let's see how that worked out for us.

Katie will start us off with her choice this morning, the Garden Scramble ($10.95). This veggie egg dish included sliced bell peppers, red onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, and spinach, then topped with avocado and cheddar and jack cheeses. Katie liked the fluffiness of the eggs, which with the fresh produce really made this omelet a winner. Her choice for a breakfast bread was a homemade biscuit. This was a very good biscuit. It was buttery and not dry at all. This made us wish that we had ordered these biscuits with some gravy.

I did not have a hangover, but I could not resist the allure of having this Too Much To Drink Last Night Omelette ($10.95). Inside this omelet was diced up chicken fried steak and bacon, then it was topped with cheddar and jack cheeses and smothered with bacon and sausage gravy. I'm surprised I have never seen an omelet with chicken fried steak in it before. Predictably this was a delicious omelet. The gravy was full of flavor but did not overshadow the insides of the omelet, a very hard balance to achieve. The cheese did get a little lost here though. You get your choice of either hash browns or home fries with this meal, and I went with the hash browns, which were just okay. I should have maybe gone with home fries instead. For my bread option, I had their seasonal muffin, which just happened to be Pumpkin Spice. This was a pretty good muffin, which did not go overboard on the cinnamon and nutmeg, like other, "pumpkin", items tend to do.

Kay's Orcutt Country Kitchen was a great way to start our day in Santa Maria. The breakfasts here are pretty good-sized, so make sure you bring your appetite. We did not think the prices were way out of line for this much food. The service we received from our waitress Kristen was personable and she really made us feel at home, even though we were probably one of the few parties that were not from around here. If we are back in the area again, this is a definite place for us to hit up for breakfast. Of course, after all this food, we predictably skipped our plans to go to the museum and went back to our hotel for a two-hour nap before the wedding. So much for the best-laid plans.

Out of five oil rigs, (since Orcutt is an old oil town), five being best to zero being worst, Kay's Orcutt Country Kitchen gets 3.5 oil rigs.

For more information about Kay's Orcutt Country Kitchen, go to their website here: https://www.kayscountrykitchen.com/

Sampling Salvadoran Food in Santa Maria

Las Comadres

202 W. Main St.

Santa Maria, CA 93458

I have one rule when we are on vacation. I never want to eat at a restaurant that I could eat when I am at home. That's why you won't see me going to Cheesecake Factory in Boston, scarfing down chicken strips in Times Square at Friday's, or when I'm in Vegas, eating at Javier's. Okay, I don't eat at Javier's here either, but that's just because it's not good. Anyways, the point is that we look for places where the locals eat. These seem to be the best places, and that's what we were hoping for when we went to Las Comadres in Santa Maria.

Las Comadres is a restaurant that hit all of our key points.  It's a Salvadoran restaurant that seemed to get really good reviews on Yelp, it's something that we haven't had at home, and as an added bonus, it was just right down the street from our hotel. How could we not eat here? I did a quick check of Salvadorian restaurants in OC, and Yelp gave me 16 to try, so if we liked the food here at Las Comadres, then we might have to check some of those restaurants out.

After freshening up after our long car ride, we made it to Las Comadres at about 7pm on a Friday night. Not exactly in the most happening part of town, we were welcomed by their neon sign assuring us that they were open. There were a few TVs turned to some novellas, a few soccer jerseys hanging on the brightly colored walls, and some maps of El Salvador thrown in for decor. That's about it for ambiance. This is a no-frills kind of place, where you seat yourself, and then they bring you a menu.

If you are expecting some Mexican cuisine to be hidden on this menu, you might as well keep driving. Salvadoran tamales, yuca frita, and probably the most notable dish from this Central American country, pupusas rule the roost here. The menu might seem a little adventurous, but we were pretty excited to finally try this cuisine. We asked some questions to our waitress and waited for our food to make its way out to us.

I guess I spent all this time telling you this isn't like a Mexican restaurant, and then they place Chips and Salsa in front of us. Okay, there's a tiny bit of crossover here. These were some pretty sturdy tortilla chips, which were almost on the verge of being overcooked. The salsa was on the watery side, but I liked the large pieces of onion in there. This salsa had a big tomato flavor but hit you with a good amount of spice near the end. I had a meal coming my way, but it was hard to resist this salsa.

Whenever it's unlikely we will be back to a restaurant again, I always gravitate towards combination plates, and Katie must have picked this up from me, as she selected Combo #4  which includes 2 Pupusas, a Tamal, Yuca Frita, Beans and Rice ($12.99). She chose to have one of her pupusas filled with just cheese, and the other to have cheese and squash. The cheese they use in these was a Salvadoran soft cheese called quesillo. Katie was really excited by these pupusas. The squash was really fresh, and the cheese was not crazy heavy. The outer corn portion of the pupusa was a great vessel for the insides. The rest of the plate was pretty good as well. The yuca frita was probably the best version I have had. Fried perfectly, very crisp, and not greasy, it was made even better when dipped in the beans. If I had to pick a weak spot here, it would have to be the rice, which was a little on the bland side. Katie left here very happy though.

Not the most beautifully plated dish, I went with a combo as well. The #1 Combo included 2 Pupusas, 1 Chicken Tamal, and half a Plantain ($8.59). I enjoyed my food as well. I had pork, cheese, and beans in my pupusas, which is also known as the Revueltas pupusa. The pupusas are not filled to the brim here, but they will fill you up. The tamal is not like the Mexican versions I have had. These are very moist, not overly stuffed with chicken, and they have a lightness about them. I've never really been a fan of plantain, but this one was one of the best I have had. Not sure what they did to this, but if more plantains tasted like this, I'd order them way more than I do. A very solid plate of food.

It's safe to say that the food at Las Comadres piqued my interest in Salvadorian food. I've already got a place bookmarked that is near my house. As for Las Comadres, this is a no-frills place serving up some delicious Central American cuisine. If you come here with an open mind, and not expecting Mexican food, you will definitely leave here happy. The service we experienced on this night was very pleasant. Glad we shied away from the norm and went with something that was a bit out of our comfort zone. A real hidden gem in Santa Maria.

Out of five video games, (because before his name was famous for being on a video game, John Madden was head coach of Santa Maria's Allan Hancock College's football team), five being best to zero being worst, Las Comadres gets 3.5 video games.

For more information about Las Comadres, check out their website here: https://www.lascomadressalvadoreanfood.com/

Possibly Perfect Pastrami at Langer's

Langer's Deli

704 South Alvarado St. 

Los Angeles, CA 90057

This is a restaurant that is as elusive as finding a parking space at the mall during the last two weeks of December. It's only open from 8 to 4 on weekdays and Saturdays, the closed on Sundays. Not ideal for me since I'm always at work during those hours, and my day off also is the day Langer's is closed. Then you throw in geography, since I'm coming from Orange County, and I thought I would never make it up here to try this legendary restaurant.

Just when I thought all was lost, my buddy was having a wedding up north, so we were going to be going right by here on a weekday. I finally had hope that we could actually make this happen. We left OC at a strategic time, to avoid the lunch rush, avoid some traffic,  and hit Langer's with plenty of time to make it before their 4pm closing time. Mission accomplished. We rolled in close to 2, and were seated right away.

Langer's Deli is proud to call itself old school, because they genuinely are. Opening their doors in 1947, back when Truman ruled the White House, Al Langer had just 12 seats in his deli, which would eventually become a restaurant where many generations of families would visit over and over again. Running the show now is Al's son Norm, who got a little bit of luck when a subway stop opened near the restaurant, which saved this historic restaurant from possible closure.

Langer's is located across the street from MacArthur Park, an area that has definitely seen better days. Mainly a Hispanic area now, and ringed by Chinatown, Koreatown, and Historic Filipinotown, Langer's is not in an area that I expected to find what some people call the greatest pastrami sandwich in the world. I walked in the door and immediately understood why this Jewish deli is still here. No matter who you are, if there's good food available, you will want to eat it. Inside Langer's was a great cross section of America. This place brought everyone here to eat, and I could not wait to try the food here. We quickly ordered and waited for our food to arrive.

Katie started things off for us with what she likes to call, "Jewish penicillin," Matzo Ball Soup ($3.95). This is a very basic soup. No veggies or noodles included, just the broth and the matzo ball in the cup. This is definitely worth getting. The matzo ball was well made, and not clumpy like others we have had. The broth had a lot of flavor, and this soup worked wonders on Katie's sinuses. This soup wraps your insides like a comfy blanket on a winter day.

Well here is the sandwich that has brought all these people to Langer's, and helped make it a cultural icon, the #19 Pastrami, Swiss Cheese, and Coleslaw ($15.95). For the sandwich not being stacked as high as I imagined, it sure did have lots of pastrami on here. The meat was tender and full of flavor. I liked the thickness of the cut also. If I'm going to have pastrami, I want to be able to taste it, and you can't do that when it's cut paper thin. The coleslaw added a good crunch and had the right consistency, without being too soupy. The Swiss cheese got a little lost on here though. The rye bread was very soft in the middle, and the crust portion was hard. It really helped keep the sandwich together and structurally sound. I really enjoyed this sandwich even more with their house made Russian dressing, which would even be good on a shoe. It's that good. A really good sandwich that I was happy to have tried.

Katie's choice on this afternoon was the #44 Hot Pastrami Sandwich ($15.95). This classic sandwich came on grilled rye, with sauerkraut, a good amount of pastrami, and  nippy cheese. I had never heard of nippy cheese before, but it's basically a sharp American cheese. Katie felt this sandwich was really good and rich. It was made even better with the addition of the Russian dressing. I really liked the rye bread toasted at Langer's. It definitely added a crunch to the bread, which helped with the texture of this sandwich. I'm much more of a hot sandwich guy, so this one was right up my alley. Another winner.

I really do not have too much to say about their Russian dressing, only this. Make sure you order a side of it. It's the best I have had to date, and I'm already making plans on trying to smuggle some out of here on my next visit. It made both of our sandwiches better.

Even though we had a three hour car ride ahead of us, we needed to try one of their desserts at Langer's. We selected the Apple Pie Ala Mode ($7.09) to fill this need. This apple pie came topped with one of the most generous servings of ice cream we have seen with pie. I'm not sure what kind of ice cream they use here, but it was great. The pie was a little on the syrupy side. The apples had a good crunch to them, and they did not rely on an abundance of cinnamon to flavor this pie. The crust was well made, and could have been showcased a little more without all the syrup used here.

Sometimes it takes me a long time to come up with what to say about a restaurant, this was not one of those times. Langer's definitely deserves all of the heaps of praise that it receives. Their pastrami is all it's cracked up to be, and we do look forward to finding more reasons to come by this way in the future. To call this the best pastrami I have ever had, I'd have to have a side by side taste test with the pastrami from Brent's Deli in Northridge. It really is that close to call, and I raved about Brent's, just like I raved about Langer's for weeks after my visit. Even though Langer's is not in the best part of town, I love the charm of it. It makes it even more special than it is. Service was stellar during our stay. Our waiter definitely kept tabs on us all afternoon. The prices might be a tad high, but this is quality eats that you are getting at Langer's, and it's well worth it. Glad we could finally scratch this restaurant off of our restaurant bucket list.

Out of five cakes, (since this restaurant is located across the street from MacArthur Park, and there was a famous song written about leaving a cake out in the rain in that park), five being best to zero being worst, Langer's Deli gets 4 cakes.

For more information about Langer's Deli, go to their website here: http://www.langersdeli.com/

Taking a Break at Aldo's in San Juan - CLOSED

Aldo's Sidewalk Caffe

31882 Del Obispo St. 

San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675

I never knew how much stuff really went into planning a wedding. Yes, I have been to weddings before, but I never really thought about getting the flowers together, picking colors, getting a DJ, acquiring an officiant, gathering addresses, shooting save the date pictures, picking out formal attire, selecting a honeymoon spot, finding the perfect venue, and all the rest that goes into it. Most of the time I just sit here thinking how much easier it would be going to Vegas or swinging by the OC Courthouse. Of course, that's not going to happen with Katie's large family and my large group of friends. So when it's a rare night that we are not wedding planning, going out with friends, or attending a food event, we want to stay close to home and relax. That's when I go on Yelp to find a restaurant with a good amount of stars and plenty of reviews. That's how we came upon this place, Aldo's Sidewalk Caffe.

Aldo's has four solid stars and 121 reviews on Yelp, so we headed three exits down the 5 Freeway to try this place out. In a city known for some pretty good Mexican food, Aldo's has been in business for twenty years in San Juan. Located in the big shopping center off of Del Obispo, Aldo's is right next door to a Subway, and near the Marshall's.

On this Saturday night, we were greeted warmly by whom we perceived to be Aldo, even though no formal introduction was ever made. This restaurant is not overly huge, with six tables inside, and a good majority of the customers opting to sit outside on their eight table patio. Aldo made his rounds from table to table talking to each customer as if they were lifelong friends. On this night they were not overly busy, but we hear that during all you can eat pasta night, which is on Wednesdays, this place gets a little crazy. The menu is typical Italian fare, with a good amount of sandwiches offered, pasta dishes, salads, and meat dishes were thrown in. We made our choices and waited for our food to arrive.

We were presented with this bread to start things off. The bread here was pretty standard. I liked that they placed it on the grill for a few seconds and that it was served warm. The packaged butter was served at just the right temperature, so that it was spreadable, without being too warm. Other than that, just kind of average bread.

I've said it before, but I really like that most Italian dinners include a salad with the meal. Wish more restaurants would do this. At Aldo's Sidewalk Caffe, you get a Caesar salad with each meal. As you can see in the picture, the produce was fresh and bright green. It was sprinkled with a good amount of grated Parmesan. The dressing left a little to be desired though. It was more of an oily Caesar dressing, instead of my preferred creamy variety. The menu claims that their Caesars have croutons included, but not a one was found in this salad. Having croutons would have helped by adding some texture and flavor to this good sized salad.

I was not too excited by any of the four appetizers that were offered here at Aldo's, but Katie really wanted to try their Bruschetta ($5.95), so that's what we ordered. There was a lot going on with this bruschetta. The toasted bread was topped with basil, garlic, Kalamata olives, red onions, and of course tomatoes, then tossed with olive oil. I'm not a big fan of bruschetta, but Katie felt this was one of the messier ones that she has had. The bread did not stand up to the weight of the toppings, and this version was a little more oily than it should have been. Not awful, but a little awkward to eat.

Definitely not the most photogenic of plates, Katie's selection was this Ravioli with Smoked King Salmon ($14.95). With this dish, the cheese ravioli was topped with salmon and a garlic cream sauce. Katie really enjoyed the creamy sauce, and I used her excess to dip the bread in after she was done. She would have liked the salmon in bigger pieces though. She was also pretty impressed with the well-made pasta on this plate. A very filling dinner, she would get this again sometime.

As is my usual routine in an Italian joint, I always have a hard time picking what I want to eat. I went a little out of my norm by ordering a chicken dish. The Penne Veneziane ($14.95) was a very generous serving size. Joining the pasta on the plate was chicken, garlic, mushrooms, and red pepper flakes, all in a tomato cream sauce. I really enjoyed the sauce with this, but it was not spicy like it was advertised on the menu. After I asked for more red pepper flakes, this became more enjoyable and awakened my taste buds. The chicken was kind of lost here, as it was cut in very small pieces. Good, but I'd probably try something else on my next visit.

Both Katie and left Aldo's Sidewalk Caffe pretty full. We did not even contemplate getting dessert, so you must know that we were pretty stuffed. I liked Aldo's but was not in love with it. Since it's so close to our home, we will definitely be back on nights we don't want to venture too far. I've heard good things about their sandwiches here, and I might try some other pasta dishes in the future. Service was pretty spotty during our stay. Our waiter was nice, but refills and clearing of the plates did not seem to be his forte. I thought the prices were pretty fair. I found a menu online for this place, but it was from 2007, and much to my surprise Aldo's prices have only gone up fifty cents on some items, and a lot of the items have stayed the same. Pretty crazy that in 7 years no prices increases. There's probably not a lot of restaurants where that's the case. Aldo's was a very nice break from all the wedding chaos, but now I have to get back to gathering peoples addresses for the save the date magnets. Ugh.

Out of five motor buggies, (because in 1910 there was a motor buggy available named the Aldo, which sold for $395), five being best to zero being worst, Aldo's Sidewalk Caffe gets 2.5 motor buggies.

Aldo's does not have a website, but you can check out their reviews and other info on their Yelp page here: http://www.yelp.com/biz/aldos-sidewalk-caffe-san-juan-capistrano

Stefano's is Like Going Home Again

Stefano's Golden Baked Hams

18220 Yorba Linda Blvd. #307

Yorba Linda, CA 92886

Even though I only live about forty minutes away, give or take depending on traffic, coming back to Yorba Linda always feels like going home. I grew up in this North OC city. I lived here from the age of four, and stayed here for the next 18 years. My parents still live in the same house, my nieces go to the same schools I went to, and a lot of the same restaurants that piqued my interest in food are still in business.

Not yet in business when I lived in the, "land of gracious living", Stefano's Golden Hams has been around a long time too. They were established in 2003, and have stayed in their original location at the corner of Imperial and Yorba Linda Boulevard, which is the same shopping center as Chili's, 24 Hour Fitness, and the long departed Goodie Bag, (if you remember that place, you are definitely an old school YL resident).

Stefano's is truly a family business. It was started by Frank and Colleen Stefano, who now run the restaurant with their son Frankie and daughter Alana, both of whom we met on a recent Wednesday night. I tried to get Frankie to say that he does more work than his sister, but he wouldn't throw her under the bus, like I would to my sister. They both seem to be doing what they love, and it shows. Stefano's has a huge catering business, they sell their hams to other retailers, such as Bristol Farms, and on the restaurant side of things, they have exceeded their sales projection by 20 percent each year. It seems that the word has gotten out about Stefano's, and we were very excited to be invited here to see what has all of North OC so thrilled about this restaurant.

Stefano's is not only known for their hams, but they like to say that they did not invent the panini sandwich, but they perfected it. They currently have 14 panini sandwiches on their menu, along with salads, wraps, and hot and cold sandwiches. Stefano's recently also started a Dinner To Go offer on Tuesday and Thursday nights, where they prepare a family meal for four, which includes an entree and a salad. A very good idea for busy people that don't have the time or energy to make dinner for their family. All this talk about food was making us hungry, so we trusted Alana to bring us out some of her favorites. This is what came out to our table on this night.

We decided to forgo salads, so we could save some room for dessert. What a sacrifice we made. Since there were four of us, they brought out three different sandwiches cut in half for easy sharing. Or maybe they know that my Dad is not the best with sharing his food. Either way, let's take a look at each of these sandwiches up close.

With all due respect to my mom's meatloaf sandwiches, this Meatloaf Sandwich ($10.50) rocked it. A very tender and savory house made meatloaf is joined on rye bread with a chipotle mayo, crispy fried onions, provolone cheese, bacon, and pickles. This was a meatloaf sandwich with a tang to it. I really enjoyed all the textures and flavor layers going on here. The crunch of the fried onions, the slight sourness from the pickles, the unmistakable taste of bacon, and the softness and stability of the rye bread were all great contrasts, which did not distract from this meaty meatloaf. Well done Stefano's, making a classic your own.

When my dad sees pastrami on a menu, he always wants it to be sliced as thin as possible. Alana assured him that she slices her pastrami at a zero for the Rue-Bini ($9.25). He must believe her now, because he said this was one of the best Reuben's he has eaten. Besides the sliced pastrami, this sandwich was made up of Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, thousand island dressing, and red onion. I was not as enthusiastic about the thinly sliced pastrami. It was good quality pastrami, but I like it to be a little more whole, as this was almost ground up. I did like the rest of the sandwich. The crunch of the bread fresh from the panini maker, the tang of the sauerkraut, and the right amount of thousand island used here. This sandwich made my dad so happy, that he's not sure if he will stray away from it on future visits to Stefano's.

Just like my dad was enamored with the Rue-Bini, this Bostonian ($9.50) was the blue ribbon winner for the rest of us. If you want a panini with a little spice, that will linger for awhile, this is the one for you. Roasted turkey, roast beef, a jalapeno and garlic cream cheese, tomato, avocado, onion, pepper jack cheese, and pepperoncinis gave this panini a heat that was definitely present, but not, "smoke coming out your ears," excessive. I'm not usually one for cream cheese, but it kind of melted into the sandwich, and just added a slight creaminess. I've had their highly talked about Burg-Gini before, but this one might be better, and I loved that sandwich.

Dessert time at Stefano's, and on this night they brought out three of their rotating desserts. I'm not much of a cheesecake kind of guy, but the Eggnog Cheesecake was pretty solid. A slight tinge of eggnog flavor, this was a sturdy cheesecake, that had a lightness about it, while not being too chalky like other cheesecakes tend to be. Of course Stefano's has to have a Chocolate Chip Cannoli on their menu, and this one is right up there with the one I had in Boston. They have the cannoli shells made for them by an outside vendor, and then they are filled with the traditional sweetened ricotta cheese filling. There was a good crunch to the shell, and the cream inside was sweet, without the sourness that sometimes accompanies cannolis. The lone blight on this dessert tray for us was the Chess Pie. I had never heard of a chess pie before. It's a custard pie that utilizes cornmeal in it, and has a very mild flavor. It wasn't bad, but kind of bland. If I'm going to splurge on dessert, I want something that makes an impression. This pie was like me at every school dance I was ever at, almost invisible and sulking in the corner. Such a childhood I had.

It's going to get busy around the upcoming holidays, and if you feel too rushed or stressed out, Stefano's is a great respite for a quick dinner. Their wide array of sandwiches and salad options will keep you happy during this stressful time of the year. Of course if you are really pressed for time, Stefano's could help you out by just making your holiday meal. I've never had their holiday foods, but if they are anything like what we had on this night, your family won't be disappointed with their holiday meals. I'm glad that when I come back home, I can always stop in at Stefano's, and try one of their great paninis.

We would like to thank everyone at Stefano's for the invite to come try their sandwiches. We had a great time engaging with the staff, they all seemed extremely proud of this restaurant, and it genuinely seemed like they all were happy to be there. Also thanks to Alana and Frankie for taking time out of a busy Wednesday night to talk with us, explain their philosophy, and showcase their food. We really appreciated it.

If you would like to experience Stefano's for yourself, or would like more information about their food or catering options, head to their website here: http://www.stefanoshams.com/