Pizza Party in the Pizza Capital of OC

TJ's Woodfire Pizza

641 Camino de Los Mares

San Clemente, CA 92673

After almost eight years of writing restaurant reviews, I have learned that there are some foods that are more controversial than others. I judge this by the comments I receive, and the page views that a particular review gets. Burgers, barbecue, and sushi get their fair share of attention from our readers, but by far the biggest response I get is when I review pizza places.

If I had to give a reason for this, I'd say it's because, like barbecue, pizza is really a regional food. Depending on where you are from, or if you just prefer a certain type, you are pretty passionate about your favorite kinds of pizza. Chicago, of course, has a deep dish, New York has their hand-tossed, thin crust pizzas, and California even got into the act by coming up with single-serving pizzas, topped with non-traditional toppings like chicken, barbecue sauce, salmon, and other things that were not included on pizza before the early 1980s. Then there's Neapolitan, which comes to us from the birthplace of the modern pizza, Naples, Italy. With so many options, it's no wonder no one can agree on what kind of pizza is the best.

For the record, I enjoy deep-dish pizza the best, but I've had some really good versions of all pizzas, and try not to discriminate against any kind of pizza. I'm always intrigued by best-of lists, and I took note of Brad A Johnson's, top 20 Pizzas in OC, which was published in the Orange County Register last March. I was a little bummed that my favorite pizza place, Tony's Little Italy did not make the cut, but I realize everyone has different tastes. I did make note of the number one spot on his list, and we finally made it to TJ's Woodfired Pizza nine months later.

Not only had this restaurant gotten the coveted number one spot from Brad Johnson, but another tough cookie, Gustavo Arellano from the OC Weekly gave this pizza a glowing review. Needless to say, my hopes for this pizza were at an all-time high. TJ's gained some acclaim by selling their pizzas out of a trailer at the Great Park Farmer's Market starting in 2011. They got their own restaurant in late 2015, in this pizza-rich city of San Clemente, which already boasts Pizza Port, Sonny's, Cassano's, Brick, and Selma's. Not deterred by the competition, TJ's has been thriving with a four-star rating on Yelp, and all of the good press I mentioned earlier.

We got to TJ's at the weird time of 3 pm on a recent Saturday, which is right after the lunch rush, and before the start of dinner. Predictably, we were the only ones in the restaurant at this time, but as time went by, a few other people trickled in. Being in the same shopping center as a Krikorian Movie Theater, a Juice Stop, and a Wahoo's, I could imagine that parking could be at a premium during the weekends and meal times. We quickly made our pizza selections, ordered at the counter, and found a table close to the TVs, which were broadcasting the NFL playoffs. Let's see if TJ's can live up to their number one pizza reputation.

We had a lot of food coming our way, but I could not resist getting a Caesar Salad ($7.95) to start things out. This was a very basic version, which came with chopped romaine, shaved parmesan, and a few small croutons. It was decent but did not blow me away. The romaine was very fresh, but they were very conservative applying the dressing on this, to the point that nearly half of the produce was not covered by any dressing. A few more of their crunchy and pretty solid croutons would have helped as well. This was still a good-sized salad, which easily fed both Katie and me for under $8. We'll just ask for extra dressing next time.

Like my obsession with Caesar salads, Katie has an affinity for Garlic Knots ($6.75). Her best to date was from Oggi's, but these rivaled them. Their dough is tied in knots, baked, and then coated with a fire-roasted garlic sauce, Italian parsley, and parmesan, and served with marinara and ranch dressing. I liked these, even though I thought they were a tad overcooked. I like a softer garlic knot. The marinara at TJ's is very good, and I found myself using it more than the ranch, which is rare for me. Katie still holds the garlic knots from Oggi's as number one, but these are closer to our house, so we will definitely come back for them.

Pizza time. Whatever style of pizza you crave, TJ's has a pizza for you. They offer Neapolitan, Cracker Thin Pizza, Deep Dish, and this New York Style Large Pepperoni Pizza ($18.25). This pizza had plenty of cheese and pepperoni topping it, and I found myself eating the crust, which is something that I very rarely do, which is a testament to how good it is. I was not in love with the bottom crust, as it was covered with cornmeal, which I think detracted from the pizza. This pie was not as greasy as I was expecting, which was a plus.

Katie is all about Neapolitan pizzas, so it was no shock that she went with this Gianelli ($18.50) for her meal here. This one comes with plenty of crumbled Italian sausage, a garlic oil base, burrata, fennel pollen, truffle oil, and basil. Both Katie and I really enjoyed the combination of toppings on this pizza. They interacted together wonderfully. The sausage was of pretty high quality and added a nice saltiness, while the slightly melted burrata added a creaminess to this pizza. The truffle oil was applied in just the right amount, as it did not overpower, but you could tell it was there. A very delicate balancing act to achieve. Katie was not in love with the crust here, as she liked the crust on my pizza better. A very solid version of a Neapolitan pizza

So is TJ's the best pizza that we have had in OC? I'd have to say no, but that doesn't mean it's not worth a visit. Right now I'd have to say my top three are Tony's Little Italy, Angelina's, and Angelo and Vinci's. Of course, these rankings are subject to change based on my next visit to any of these places, or until I try something better. Back to TJ's though. It's easy to see why they get so much love from everyone. I really enjoyed it, even though I thought it was a tad too expensive, but I get that you're paying for quality stuff here. My pizza was solid, but it did not make my taste buds sing. I actually liked Katie's pizza better, and I'm not really a big Neapolitan kind of guy. So now that you've read this review, commence firing, and let me know that I don't know anything about pizza, or even better, let me know where you like to get pizza from.

Out of five policemen, (because when I think of TJ, I automatically think back to watching the 80's TV show TJ Hooker starring Willaim Shatner as a police officer), five being best to zero being worst, TJ's Woodfired Pizza gets 3 policemen.

For more information about TJ"s Woodfired Pizza, head to their website here: http://www.tjwoodfirepizza.com/

Ready for Dinner at R + D Kitchen

R + D Kitchen

555 Newport Center Dr. 

Newport Beach, CA 92660

I'm not sure if I had mentioned this on the blog or not, but Katie got a new job near the end of last year. It has been a little more challenging, some late nights, and a little more driving for her. After the craziness of the holidays, I realized that I had not been to her new place of employment yet, so I had to remedy that by planning a visit, and of course choosing a restaurant to try nearby. I also brought my parents along to check out her new digs.

She works just across the street from Fashion Island, and I have to admit her new place seems pretty darn impressive. Very professional looking, and we also got to meet a few of her very nice coworkers, who also happened to be staying late on a recent Friday night. After a long grueling day at work, I wanted to take her somewhere special, that wasn't going to break the bank. I had another place in mind, but a quick Yelp search turned up the promising R + D Kitchen, which was within walking distance. We made our way across the street and through the parking lot in that direction.

I did not know it at the time, but R + D Kitchen is part of the Hillstone Restaurant Group, which includes some pretty stellar restaurants; Bandera, Gulfstream, Houston's, and others. This is one of four locations of this particular brand, which also has spots operating in Santa Monica, Yountville, and Dallas. This particular R + D Kitchen is located between Canaletto and the Neiman Marcus, right across from the new parking structure, in the northeast area of Fashion Island.

We got here at about 6 pm, without a reservation, and were met with about a 45-minute wait. Not in any rush, we walked around the mall and settled down in the food court catching up with each other. There's never any shortage of conversation when my mom is involved. After about a half hour of waiting, they texted Katie's phone that our table was ready.

We were seated just opposite the bustling bar at a table which was a tad too small for our party of four, but we decided to try to make it work. The inside of this restaurant was almost pitch black, with the only light being directly over the table. With the boisterous crowd, it was a little difficult hearing what my parents had to say, but that might have been a plus. Kidding of course.

The menu at R + D is not going to overwhelm you with choices. Their dinner offerings include eight starters, four sandwiches, four entree salads, and seven entrees. They also must rotate a bunch of stuff, because there were some pictures of a great looking Rueben online, but it was not listed on the menu and was not mentioned by our server as a special. Even with the limited number of items here, I still had some trouble choosing my meal. Let's see what we all came up with on this evening.

I should have known this was a Hillstone restaurant when I saw that they had this Dip Duo ($10) on their menu. It seems to be a trademark of their restaurants to have a dip offering on each of their menus. I remember we had a really good smoked trout dip at Gulfstream a long while back, which was awesome. The dip duo at R + D was made up of a very fresh guacamole and a cheese dip, which was served cold and made up of some coarsely grated cheese. Very unique and addictive. The guacamole was good, but nothing really made it stand out. This came with some very solid tortilla chips, which were a great vessel for these dips.

Entrees made their way out in a timely manner, and we'll start with Katie's first, the Ding's Crispy Chicken Sandwich ($16). This sandwich started with a crispy buttermilk fried chicken patty and was topped with a spicy slaw and swiss cheese. Katie thought this sandwich was good. She liked the textural component of the slaw, but it was not really spicy. The chicken was a little on the thin side but had a good breading around it. She thought the bread was top notch, and she would not hesitate to get this sandwich again.

Kind of an odd choice for dinner, but my dad was pretty excited by this Spinach and Cheese Omelet ($15). With this omelet, you get to pick between swiss, white cheddar, or goat cheese, my dad went with the swiss. The omelet was made well, and I thought it kind of resembled an unwrapped tamale in appearance. It came with a Campari tomato which was topped with a small mixed green salad. My dad kind of gave this salad the cold shoulder, as he focused more on the omelet and the toast. He was pleased with his pick at R + D.

I thought my dad was going to pick this French Dip Au Jus ($20) as his meal, so I was relieved when he went with the omelet and left this one for me. For the meat on this one, they slice prime rib real thin and sandwich it between two pieces of sturdy bread with a little mayo added and au jus of course for dipping. This was a good version of an upscale dip, although it could have used some onions or maybe a little more mayo to make it stand out. The meat was tender, and cooked to a perfect medium, while the bread was spongy, but still did a good job of keeping the contents of the sandwich together. I wouldn't hesitate to get this again.

I did think it was a little odd that my twenty dollar sandwich did not come with fries, so I ordered these Hand-Cut Fries ($5) off of their starters portion of the menu. I thought these were fine, but I was not blown away by them. They were obviously not out of a freezer, but other than that, they were pretty average.

When I had heard that the Carrot Cake ($12) at R + D Kitchen gets all kinds of praise, it was a definite must order for me. I'm probably in the minority here, but this is one of my favorite kinds of cakes. I love the spices, the little shards of carrot, and even though I'm not really a cream cheese frosting fan, it works with this kind of cake. This version at R + D was one of the lightest I have ever had. The cake was light and airy, while the frosting also seemed lighter than air. It was good, but I was hoping for a little more spice to come through here. If you enjoy light cakes, this might be the version for you. For me, I like a little more heft to my carrot cake.

Even though R + D Kitchen was not our original dining destination on this evening, it was a very solid spot to start our weekend off and celebrate our first trip to see Katie's new place of employment. I liked everything here but was not blown away with anything, with the exception of the cheese dip and my french dip. I'd like to try more of their menu on future visits. The mushroom meatloaf and the pan fried fish have piqued my interest and will be on my list to try soon. Service was very good on this evening. Our server Jared was one of the most personable waiters we have encountered in some time. He was friendly and anticipated our every need during our visit. Since this restaurant is so close to Katie's new job, I can definitely see us coming back here again pretty regularly.

Out of five beetles, (because the top research and development spender every year is traditionally Volkswagon, maker of the beloved Beetle), five being best to zero being worst, R + D Kitchen gets 3 beetles.

For more information about R + D Kitchen, head to their website here: http://rd-kitchen.com/

A Night out at Jimmy's - CLOSED

Jimmy's Famous American Tavern

3325 E. Imperial Highway

Brea, CA 92823

There are a few restaurants that I feel a special kinship with. After doing this restaurant blog for nearly eight years, we've grown up with some of these restaurants. One such restaurant I feel this companionship with is Jimmy's Famous American Tavern. We remember when JFAT only had one location in San Diego in 2010, and they burst on the scene in OC three years later, adding some much-needed life to the Dana Point Harbor dining scene.

It's great watching this mini-chain expand to other areas of Southern California. They now have five locations and a little bird told us that there are more on the way, but they would not let the cat out of the bag about where the next few spots will be. Next month will mark the first anniversary of this Brea location, which is right near where I grew up, Yorba Linda. This is definitely the type of restaurant that North OC desperately needs. A restaurant that is not a mega-chain, one that serves good, honest food in a comfortable and relaxing atmosphere while still providing a sophisticated environment.

The success of JFAT should not surprise anyone, especially when you find out David Wilhelm is a Co-Founder here. He's an OC restaurant icon who brought El Torito Grille, French 75, Sorrento Grille, Kachina, and others to the hungry masses of Orange County. Not one to rest on its past reputation alone, JFAT has continuously been praised by local media outlets for its food, intriguing beverage program, and two-star rating by the Green Restaurant Association, which ranks them in the upper echelon of restaurants doing their part of implementing programs which are better for the environment.

With all of this good stuff going on at JFAT, I jumped at the chance to eat here when we were recently invited to experience this Brea location for the first time. For this visit, I asked my buddy, Erven, to accompany me and try JFAT for the first time. This JFAT is located at the corner of Valencia and Imperial Highway in the newly constructed Village at La Floresta. It is difficult to find this restaurant, as they are hidden in the corner of the shopping center. Just locate the Whole Foods supermarket, walk to your left, and you'll run right into the entrance.

Once inside, if you've ever been to another JFAT location, you will definitely be reintroduced to the JFAT vibe, which is sleek and hip without a hint of pretentiousness. The dining room is bathed in plenty of dark woods, muted lighting, trademark American flags used as decor, and very comfy booths filled with people enjoying their meals and cocktails. The restaurant's center is dominated by a lively and well-stocked bar, which allows for great views of the TVs, which were turned to hockey this evening. Score. There's also a rather large patio, which I imagine gets plenty of use when the weather turns a little warmer. After a lengthy conversation catching up, Erven and I made our selections off the menu, which features many enticing comfort food favorites. Let's see what we decided on.

Our first round of cocktails was similar. Erven selected the Classic Mojito ($13) as his maiden beverage of the evening. This trendy drink is muddled to order with fresh mint and also includes some refreshing lime juice, rum, and maybe a splash of soda water. I liked that this mojito had a touch of sweetness but was not overpowered by sugar, and you still knew you were consuming an adult beverage. I've been all about mules lately, and I like that restaurants are getting creative by branching out of the Moscow mule mold. This Gin Gin Mule ($13) included the same lime juice and mint that Erven had in his mojito but also some ginger beer and Nolet's Gin. I liked the inclusion of gin, which adds more of a bite than the usual vodka in the Moscow version. A very refreshing drink.

Since we already had our drinks, some appetizers were definitely in order. We each picked one, and Erven chose the Buffalo Style Meatballs ($13). These meatballs came five to an order and were drenched in a spicy wing sauce and served with a side of honey-garlic ranch dressing for dipping. We liked these but thought they were a tad overcooked. I had wished they would be more tender, but the delicious buffalo sauce and the ranch helped these out a bit. My pick was the Spicy Ahi Poke ($14). Poke is everywhere these days, and this version at JFAT was very fresh. It included avocado, yuzu, serranos, scallions, papaya, and sesame. The cubed ahi was still the star. The crispy wontons were an excellent vessel for this; if I worked back in the kitchen here, I could see myself eating a ton of these wontons.

Erven was sucking down the drinks this evening, probably so he could tolerate listening to my horrible stories. His second cocktail was this photogenic Blackberry Bourbon Lemonade ($13). This combined Buffalo Trace Bourbon, Southern Comfort, Marion Blackberries, simple syrup, and a splash of lemonade. I really enjoyed the sip I had of this. It was sweet, but the bourbon hung around the background and evened this drink out. Very balanced, and this will be my go-to drink on future visits to Jimmy's Famous American Tavern.

Even though we had entrees coming, we were talked into trying the Grilled Santa Fe Caesar Salad ($12) and a Bowl of New England Clam Chowder ($9). Manager Todd Cords really talked up this different take on a Caesar salad, and after my first bite, I realized he had every right to do so. It was delicious. The romaine is grilled, so it picks up the flavors of the grill and is then topped with corn, salsa fresca, avocado, and one of the better salad dressings I've had recently a green chile caesar dressing. I'm usually not too enthused about having to cut up my salad, but I did not mind with this one. The chowder really grew on Erven as he ate it. It had plenty of potatoes and clams and was very creamy. It could have been a tad more peppery, but still a solid version of this classic comfort soup.

Entree time, and Erven and I decided to split two entrees, the first of which was this French Dip ($19). This dip sandwich starts with some thinly sliced, tender prime rib and then is topped with Swiss cheese, crispy onion strings, a creamy horseradish sauce, and, of course, au jus. I liked this sandwich, although I wished the horseradish had packed more punch. The ciabatta bread was good here, as it did an admirable job soaking up the au jus and keeping the contents of the sandwich together. This sandwich came with sea salt fries on the side, which were pretty solid.

I wanted to get a burger here, but I've been on too much of a burger kick lately, so I got the JFAT Blonde Ale Fish and Chips ($18) instead. It was a good choice. This large plate came with three good-sized pieces of fried fish, which were crunchy on the outside and flaky and buttery soft on the inside. I was shocked at how these lacked the usual greasiness that goes hand in hand with fish and chips. This plate was rounded out with a nicely done coleslaw and some salt and pepper potato chips. A very comforting meal.

We did not need dessert at this point, but we could not resist trying this pumpkin and pecan streusel cake ($7). Our server, Zoey, called this an underrated dessert because it gets overshadowed by their larger and more flashy sundaes. She nailed this description. I'm not a big pumpkin fan, but it was understated here, lurking in the background while the pecan and ice cream played a more prominent role. It was a very good end to our meal at Jimmy's Famous American Tavern.

I'm happy to report that this JFAT location was just as good as the one we have visited numerous times in Dana Point. Sometimes, when a restaurant expands, there are growing pains, but that does not seem to be the case with Jimmy's Famous American Tavern. Even though Brea is 33 miles north of Dana Point, they definitely nailed the same vibe for both restaurants. The food was also consistent in both spots, and we look forward to coming back here and exploring more of their menu when we are up this way, maybe visiting my parents.

As for this visit, we thank everyone at JFAT for their warm and generous hospitality. Our server, Zoey, was excellent and very knowledgeable about the menu here, and she was spot on with coming up with suggestions to make our dining experience even better than it would have been. We would also like to thank Manager Todd Cords, who came over and checked on us regularly and answered all of our questions about this restaurant. You could sense how everyone who works here is very proud of this establishment and enjoys showing it off. Lastly, I would like to thank my dining companion this evening, my friend Erven, whom I've known for 30 years and counting. I had a great time catching up with you, and we need to do this more often. Thanks, buddy.

If you would like to experience Jimmy's Famous American Tavern for yourself, find your nearest location and online menus at their website here: http://j-fat.com/

Hitting up the Morrison Before Leaving Town

The Morrison

3179 Los Feliz Blvd. 

Los Angeles, CA 90039

When we are up this way, we try to see as many people that we know on these ways too short weekends. It gives us a chance to catch up, and also experience a new restaurant that we've wanted to try. After seeing some of Katie's friends and family on Saturday night, it was my turn to see my buddy Ed on Sunday afternoon, right before heading home down the 5 Freeway. It was also the perfect opportunity to try a restaurant I'd heard so much about, The Morrison.

The praise for The Morrison is pretty extensive. They were ranked by Yelp as the number seven best restaurant in the US last year, have won praise as being the most dog-friendly restaurant in LA, and they are very proud to tout their bread pudding, which they say is the best you will find anywhere. More on that later. With all of these mentions in the press, I was very excited to give this place a try. I hurriedly made reservations after our check-out time and waited not so patiently for our friend Ed to join us so I could get some much-needed nourishment into my body.

We got to the Morrison at noon on a recent Sunday. I was relieved to find that they have a parking lot, which is kind of rare to find these days in LA. The NFL playoffs were going on, but there were plenty of tables available, but the tables filled up rather quickly in advance of the upcoming Packer's playoff game. By the time we left, this restaurant was filled with plenty of cheeseheads.

Not only is this a Packer's bar, but they also draw big crowds for soccer games and other sporting events. There's plenty of bar seating here, which seems to be the prime real estate, as it provides the best view of the TVs. There are also plenty of tables, some of which are far too close to each other, and the back wall is lined with some comfy-looking booths. The interior of this gastropub is bathed in a dark wood, a pleasing shade of green, and plenty of natural light coming in through the windows of the french doors facing the busy traffic on Los Feliz.

The menu at the Morrison is very burger heavy, with ten burgers offered, along with some salads, a couple of entrees, sides, and even daily specials, which are available after 5 pm. We were of course here at peak brunch time, so we also had the option of ordering off of the brunch menu. As if that was not enough, they also feature a dog-friendly menu for your four-legged friends. After perusing the menus, this is what we settled on.

Both Ed and Katie opted to try something off of the brunch menu at the Morrison. Pictured above, along with Ed's childish antics is the Loaded Burrito ($11). This burrito was stuffed with bacon, sausage, eggs, avocado, and chipotle, all neatly wrapped in a large flour tortilla. Ed was a little indifferent about this breakfast burrito, calling it "a basic version, but nothing really made it stand out." Very hard to please is this guy that I've known since kindergarten. He made no mention of the potatoes here, and I found it refreshing that the potatoes were not included inside the burrito, which can sometimes overpower the other items.

One of the most photogenic food items we've seen in a long time was this Stackedwich ($11). Placed between two slices of toasted rye bread was a multitude of breakfast goodness. Plenty of cheddar cheese, bacon, avocado, and a glorious fried egg with a good amount of runny yolk made this sandwich really pop. Katie for some reason was not expecting too much with this sandwich, probably because she did not see the same pictures I saw on Yelp before coming here, but she was pretty impressed with this sandwich. She loved the guts of the sandwich, with the creaminess of the avocado, the saltiness of the bacon, and the yolk that tied everything together. She was very excited that they used rye on this, as it gave the sandwich more stability and added an earthy flavor to the meal. She'd definitely get this again.

I was not in the mood for breakfast, so I ordered off of the regular menu, starting with these Cheese Fries with Bacon Jam ($8). This nod towards In-N-Out's animal-style fries was far superior to anything you can get at that overrated hamburger chain. These crisp fries were topped with a house-made thousand island dressing, cheddar cheese, and an addictive bacon and onion jam. My intention was to share these with Ed and Katie, but I found myself hoarding these, as I could not stop eating them. Some of the best fries I have had in a while. I was excited that they stayed crunchy even with the stuff topping them. A must-get when eating at the Morrison.

Not just content with fries, I, of course, needed to pick a burger to go along with them. Out of the ones on the menu, this Morrison Filet Burger ($15) really popped out at me. This one used their signature beef patty blend and then was topped with a seared filet mignon, marrow butter, port Salut cheese, some celery, and a sauce that was not mentioned on the menu, all placed between an English muffin. Quite simply, I did not want this burger to end, and I savored it until my last bite. This is the burger to beat for me in 2017. The patty was meaty, with great juiciness to it, the marrow butter added richness, and I never would have expected to like celery on a burger, but it gave it some great texture, and whatever that sauce was, went well here. I would have liked a different cheese on this, as the port salut was very mild, and slipped off of my burger rather easily. The filet was cooked to a wonderful medium rare and was easy to eat on top of this burger. A few weeks later, I still think of this burger fondly.

If I think back on that burger fondly, you might as well say that I am obsessed with this Butterscotch Bread Pudding ($11). It's easy to see why this has been voted best bread pudding in LA, as it's definitely the best I have had. It starts with the right texture balance for me. Not too soggy, but not too dry. Just like the porridge that Goldilocks ate, this pudding got it just right. I was also a fan of the caramel whiskey sauce that came on the side of this dessert, and I definitely suggest paying the extra two dollars and getting this with the very generous scoop of ice cream. Make sure to save room for this dessert when coming to the Morrison, or better yet, eat this before your dinner, it's really that good.

After the bread pudding, the dessert floodgates opened, courtesy of Owner Marc Kreiner. He brought us out another four desserts to try, none of which were on the dessert menu. The best of the bunch for me was the Chocolate Chip Cookies with a mound of ice cream perched on top. The cookies were served warm and softened the ice cream which aided in the ease of eating this. Ed enjoyed the Fruit Tart, which utilized some fresh fruit on top and a creamy, but not too sweet filling on the bottom. After all of these desserts, I was more ready for a nap than an hour and a half drive down the 5 Freeway.

Even with the onslaught of sugar that we consumed in the last twenty minutes of our visit to the Morrison, I still realized through the sugary haze that we had just experienced a very good restaurant. I loved my burger and fries, and the bread pudding was out of this world. Both Katie and Ed enjoyed their breakfast, and it will be hard passing this exit on the freeway, and not wanting to stop here to try something else off of their menu. The service we experienced from our, new to this restaurant waiter, Roberto, to the food runners, bussers, and the owner, Marc Kreiner, will be hard to beat. We thank all of you for your generous hospitality. You all made it a real pleasure to dine here. It's no wonder why this restaurant scores some big numbers on Yelp. It was just okay catching up with our friend Ed but much better eating at The Morrison.

Out of five horses, (because the Atwater Village section of LA, where this restaurant is located, was once home to some pretty prestigious horse riding clubs in the '20s and '30s), five being best to zero being worst, the Morrison gets 4 horses.

For more information about the Morrison, head to their website here:https://www.morrisonrestaurant.com/