The Lime Truck -- healthy decadence on wheels

I know what you're thinking -- not ANOTHER food truck! Well, yeah, as a matter of fact, it IS. I'd been just as curious about the Lime Truck after hearing various friends rave about it, but from previous experiences with food trucks, I decided not to go chasing them down, but rather, wait until they are in my neighborhood and then pay them a visit. As luck would have it I've now visited them twice! I've been following them on Twitter and with some friends eagerly in tow, it was an excellent way to get some grub and share.

The bright green truck stops outside the parking lot of Blackmarket Bakery's on Thursdays and that was my first encounter with them. Second encounter was the :Food Truck Extravaganza" which happened with just 24-hour notice at a parking lot in Irvine near the John Wayne Airport. Amazingly, tons of people showed up to sample food from five trucks and it wasn't surprising that The Lime Truck had the most people hovered around it.

The menu had a good mix of items, and I was told that it changes daily. Salads, sandwiches, tacos, Asian fusion, the ingredients are as fresh as can be and utilizes whatever is in season. For instance, the agua fresca of the day may utilize Thai basil, from chef Jason Quinn's parents' garden! Or the lime, mint and jalapeno agua fresca I had the pleasure of trying on a hot sunny day -- refreshing with just a little kick, or so I was told since I didn't get the kick at all due to my high tolerance for heat.

Some of my favorite items were the beet salad which had diced beets, orange wedges, mint, walnuts, goat cheese, although at first, I wasn't able to detect by sight the goat cheese, but it was in there -- I could taste it, subtly, but couldn't see much. It was refreshing and very reflective of what healthy, light Californian cuisine is made of.

The carnitas is a 10-hour process of slow roasted pork, and Jason uses this on the carnitas fries (pictured right) as well as the Ultimate tacos. Fries topped with a heaping portion of the carnitas, sour cream, homemade guacamole, cotija cheese and a chipotle honey drizzle was just sinfully good, and if you probe deeper you will find some sweet corn kernels hidden underneath.

The carnitas in the Ultimate taco was also very generous and topped with cabbage slaw, cotija cheese and the same chipotle honey drizzle! The taco wasn't at all greasy and the best part was, you get all the flavors of the carnitas minus the heaviness. However, if you've got a few friends to share, I highly recommend going with the fries instead of the taco.

Those vegetarians or those wanting a healthier option, Organic tofu taco is good for vegetarians since it only consisted of kimchi slaw and organic tofu, or the wild rice salad (pictured left) with nuts is another delicious choice.

Carnivores, if you see filet mignon taco on the menu, GET IT! It is well worth the price! Chunks of tender filet mignon, perfectly cooked and so flavorful was nestled alongside homemade guacamole, cotija cheese, cabbage slaw and chipotle honey. Personally, I would've been happy with just the meat, cheese and a sprinkling of onions and cilantro, but hey, it's healthy remember, so you get the cabbage slaw --- eat your veggies!!

Cuban sandwich is also great if you love Cubanos! But The Most Interesting Sandwich in the World (pictured right) is what you want if you're into decadence and have absolutely not concern for your weight! This grilled cheese sandwich is stuffed with mac n cheese and just the most narcissistic thing you could do in terms of food. Holly tells me that The Lime Truck's is far better than the Grilled Cheese Truck's version -- I believe her!

The Lime Truck guys, Jason and Daniel are very personable and if they have time, are happy to talk about their concept and food with you. First time customers always get a warm welcome and repeat customers, well you know who you are and you know how you are greeted! I'm already looking forward to my next visit!


The Lime Truck, in and around Orange County. Follow them on Twitter or Facebook. Contact: Jason Quinn 949-292-6282 or Daniel Shemtob 310-710-6413

Pretzel Crisps -- rethink your pretzel!!!

I got a tweet recently from Pretzel Crisps who had found me on twitter and wanted to know if I'd like a sample of their pretzels as a late night snack and to let them know where I was and they'll drop off some for me. At first I thought it was a joke, a hoax even, maybe it was a scam, so I simply replied I was in south Irvine and waited. Very soon after I got another response and they asked me for my address. I rolled my eyes and replied "I'm not posting my address for all to see on twitter". Evetutally we sorted things out and as it turned out, Pretzel Crisps is a company first started in New Jersey and they are now trying to promote it on the West Coast.

I met Stacy from Pretzel Crisps with her friend Aaron, who, true to their word delivered bags of pretzel to my door. There are currently 10 varieties of pretzel crisps, its thin size is perfect for dipping or snacking alone. My son hogged a bag the minute they were dropped off and wouldn't let go of it so I know they're pretty darn tasty, because they were! There's hardly any fat, 0g saturated fats, 0mg cholesterol, 0g of Trans Fats and only 110 calories per serving. Available at Whole Food Market and Ralph's.

For more information, go to Pretzel Crisps or find them on Facebook and Twitter

Haven Gastropub -- introduces happy hour menu

Orange County isn't exactly the mecca of great food, nor is it boasting a host of super trendy eateries worth going to time after time again. In terms of gastropubs there are only a few, and Haven is one of the few which stands out. I've been here several times before and the food had always been a hit and miss, but on a recent trip, my friend and I came to try their newly installed happy hour which runs between 3pm and 6pm Monday through Thursdays and features selections from their regular menu at discounted prices.

The happy hour menu features some favorites from their regular menu including one of my favorites, mac and cheese (pictured above left)! The portion is exactly the same as the one you'll get at lunch or dinner, but during happy hour it will only set you back $6. This sinfully cheesy and totally delicious bubbly plate of yumminess is probably too fattening to have regularly, but once in a while I like to spoil myself and order a plate to share with a friend, it's definitely not something you'll want on your own because there are so many other things to sample and one portion of this will fill you up immensely.

Chile relleno ($6 on the happy hour menu) is another item worth trying and is a variation of what a traditional chile relleno (pictured right) encompasses. Haven's version isn't stuffed with only cheese, dipped in egg batter and fried, but instead is stuffed with chorizo, rice, pepper jack cheese, and roasted. A pecan crema is drizzled over the top and around the plate and is served with a sprinkling of their roasted corn salad. While I found it interesting in taste I wasn't so sure I liked the pecan crema all that much, it really didn't do much for me in terms of enhancing the flavors any.

Another dish we ordered was the grilled octopus cabernet pasta (pictured below left), not from the happy hour menu, but can be found on the blackboard against the back wall was $16. I was impressed by the presentation of this dish and its overall execution. Grilled octopus were served whole and cooked to perfection! They weren't chewy or tough in any way whatsoever and the cabernet pasta was also exquisitely al dente with subtle hints of cabernet throughout. I especially liked the diced tomatoes and olives tossed in alongside with the latter presenting a significantly saltier difference to the freshness of the tomatoes. My friend and I were in unison when we say we absolutely loved this dish and would come back especially for it in the future!

Being a pub of sorts, on top of the good fare, there are also many beers to choose from and you can take your pick, from drafts to bottled, there is one to suit every palate -- you can even pair a different beer to accompany each dish if you so choose. For me, I stuck with Guinness Stout on tap because, well, I've always been a Guinness gal and I like my beers dark and strong. I did however ask for a sample of several beers -- ask if you're interested, they're really good about it -- just out of curiosity but neither of them really piqued my interest to order a goblet's worth.

We were also enticed by a house-made 'twinkies' dessert which sounded interesting, but alas, the $8 two twinkie plate failed to impress. I don't eat twinkies to begin with due to its unhealthy factor, but I'd have to say these in comparison were drier and weren't as tasty as the real twinkies although I'm sure they were a hell of a lot healthier. My twinkie didn't even have cream filling and our server took it back to the kitchen and later was kind enough to take it off our bill.

Service here is good, perhaps a little too conscientious when it comes to clearing your table of dirty dishes, but I didn't mind. In my book, over-zealousness trumps nonchalence anyday!

**Happy Hour prices at present is limited to food only**


Haven Gastropub, 190 S Glassell Street, Orange, CA 92866. Tel: 714-221-0680

One more item to add to my belt

I'm now the Examiner's Orange County's Asian Restaurant Reviewer, and this means, most of my Asian restaurants reviews will be posted there. The format is different, a little more formal and I think sometimes, I'll post the same restaurant here just so I can give it more of a personal touch. If you're interested in following my Asian restaurant finds, you can click on to my page at the Examiner, and remember, more clicks mean more exposure for me, so thanks in advance!


Anita

Rae's -- old school at its finest

On the topic of diners, here's one of my favorites -- Rae's in Santa Monica. I first came here with a friend who has been dining here for years -- decades maybe -- and he swears by the breakfast here. The first time he brought me here he was a little afraid that I wasn't into this type of establishment, but I had to set him straight! I absolutely LOVED these old school places, the mom and pop style restaurants which have been around for god knows how long and is still churning out food like they did when they first opened. Rae's is such a place.

At Rae's the most popular breakfast item is the 2+2+2 which basically gives you two pancakes, two eggs and two meats of your choice. For about $5.50 that's the best deal around! That is always my friend's choice, not mine. To be quite honest, I don't like pancakes, never have. I'm more a toast kind of gal but I'm not opposed to trying these pancakes my friend's been raving about. The first time I took a small piece of pancake just for tasting purposes, but was so delightfully surprised at how bouncy its texture and how light and fluffy they were I had to take a second bite. After the first visit, I'd been thinking about these pancakes, yet on the second and third visits, I still couldn't bring myself to order these pancakes and instead, took a few bites of my friend's portion. As much as I love these pancakes, I just can't eat two huge pancakes on my own.

For me, Rae's has other delectable things to offer, namely the chorizo and eggs breakfast (pictured right). This plate comes with frijoles con arroz (refried beans and rice), corn or flour tortillas (or toast if you so wish) and potatoes. Also, don't forget to ask for salsa, it goes really nicely with everything! Portions are large and you will definitely feel more than satisfied when you leave. If you're a fan of orange juice, do not leave here without having some freshly squeezed OJ with your meal. YES people, it's freshly squeezed! None of that orange concentrate stuff here and it's so refreshing -- if I wasn't diabetic, I would totally have a glass of my own!

The older staff here have been with Rae's for 20+ years -- as my friend tells me -- and you get the feeling that this is a family owned and run restaurant. They have a lunch menu as well but I've never had anything off of that so I couldn't tell you what's what, but breakfast is what I come here for! My only gripe is every time I leave this place, I smell like breakfast for the rest of the day but then again, there are worse things I could smell like!

Rae's Restaurant, 2901 Pico Boulevard, Santa Monica, CA 90405. Tel: 310-828-7937. Find Rae's on Facebook

Royal Khyber -- a feast fit for kings

Growing up in Malaysia, Indian food was a regular staple for me, but little did I know that what I ate as a child was south Indian food and there was a host of Indian regional food that I was unfamiliar with, until that is, I was a teenager and had a good friend from Gujurati. Later on, I met other Indians while working in Hong Kong who were from northern India and hence began my foray into the vastness of what Indian cuisine had to offer.

On a recent visit to an Indian feast hosted by Royal Khyber restaurant in Santa Ana, my blogger friends and I, along with my 10 year old son, were presented with a meal like no other I'd ever had in a restaurant before. This was the type of food I had only experienced in the homes of my Indian friends, food that was lovingly prepared using the best ingredients and not in the least bit greasy and heavy like that I'd found while dining at Indian restaurants in America.

We began our meal with a series of appetizers including smoked lamb cakes, spicy calamari, paneer couscous cakes (pictured left) and olive naan. I always know when something tastes exceptional because my son, who has a very adult palate, will ask for a second helping -- which he did with all the appetizers. Lamb cakes were well seasoned patties of ground lamb served with a tamarind, ginger, basil honey sauce -- these were wonderful because you can really taste the gameyness of the lamb, but it didn't overpower the whole dish due to the blend of spices used to season them.

Spicy calamari (pictured right) at Royal Khyber is an Indian take on calamari fritto in that the calamari is dipped into a chickpea batter and fried, similar to the vegetable pakoras, giving it an exotic and luxurious element than its Italian counterpart. Paneer couscous cakes tasted neither like couscous nor paneer, (an Indian "cheese", but more like a solid milk cube and does not utilize rennet in its solidifying process) but rather a very healthy rissole. Serrano chiles give them a nice little kick.

Dal (lentil) soup (pictured left) was absolutely fantastic! I've always been a fan of dal and to have it in a soup that is completely vegetarian and tasted so rich and complex was incredible. This is something I would definitely order again!

Curried seafood (pictured right) wasn't very strong, in fact, the broth was so subtle it never overpowered the seafood in any way. Like a bouillabaise or cioppino , this beautifully presented stew if you will, consisted of shrimp, salmon, mussels, calamari, scallops and lobster tail swimming in a light broth of Chardonnay, dessicated coconut and a touch of Karahi sauce -- traditionally containing onions, garlic, ginger, and tomatoes. And if you thought Indian food wasn't healthy before, you'll change your mind when you hear that olive oil is used in this dish. This is Arun Puri's -- owner and innovator of this creative menu -- vision, to bringing healthier Indian cuisine to southern California.

Our entrees soon arrived and the spread seemed never-ending. One of the house specialties is the Kyber nectar (pictured left) a slow braised lamb shank which combines a stash of secret spices -- and no, they won't tell you what they are -- and the intricacies of this dish includes a 14+ hour slow cook to achieve the lamb shank's fall-off-the-bone texture. The sauce is richly decadent and you will fall in love with it at first bite!

The use of brown mustard seeds and Sarson Ka Tel (mustard oil) is prevalent in Bengali cooking and it is no wonder that the Bengali mustard fish (pictured right) consists of both these elements. Catfish, usually not one of my favorites due to its muddy after taste was perfect in this dish as the strong sauce, which included turmeric and red chiles, would have overshadowed a milder fish. This was one of my favorites.

Kashmiri Dum Aloo is a potato dish generally cooked with 'pressure' -- dum means pressure in Hindi and aloo is potato -- is a Kashmiri delicacy and the dum method of cooking is said to have been brought by the Mughals from Central Asia. At Royal Khyber, the dum aloo is given a crowning glory by topping them with silver paper.

Methi Punjabi chicken (pictured left) is a mild curry-like dish prepared using fenugreek (methi), but here, it is spiced up some with Serrano chiles, perfect for my obsession with spicy foods! For those who aren't as savvy with the heat as I am, you can omit the chiles and still enjoy the chicken immensely.

I'm not a big fan of sweets due to my diabetes, but Mr Puri sold me on how he's been experimenting on lowering the sugar content of his Indian desserts to suit customers just like me who have to watch their sugar intake, but still, wish to enjoy traditional Indian sweets after their meal. I've never liked Indian desserts purely because they've always been way too sweet for my palate, but I was open to sample these new-age desserts.  
 
Gulab jamun has always been something I've shunned from because to me, they'd always been balls of dough soaked in a sweet syrup and nothing else. I was surprised that these gulab jamun weren't sickly sweet, nor were they super heavy in texture. These were gulab jamun I could eat on occasion. There was also a rice pudding as well as rasmalai (pictured right) a dessert using ricotta or cottage cheese as its basis -- I believe paneer is used here -- and soaked in sweetened condensed milk. I tried them, but honestly, I could just take it or leave it. The meal on its own was more than enough to satisfy this gluttonous blogger and the best part was, I didn't slip into a food coma like I usually do after an Indian meal!


Royal Khyber, 1621 W Sunflower Ave, Santa Ana, CA 92704.  Tel: 714-436-1010

Taiko -- good value homestyle Japanese

I am not the type of person to wait for a table, because when I'm hungry, I need to eat right now. This is precisely the reason why I don't go to Taiko often. When have you ever seen people camped out outside a restaurant waiting for it to open? If you've ever driven past Taiko around 4.30pm on any given weeknight, you will see people standing in line awaiting its doors to open. Sometimes, people bring their lawn chairs to camp outside -- bizarre, yes, but that's what people do. It is not because Taiko serves up excellent or highly authentic fare, but it is because the portions are big and it is definitely bang for your buck for decent Japanese food, but high end Japanese cuisine it is not.

The menu is confusing, consisting of a mish mesh of Japanese food. There is sushi, tempura and combination dinners featuring sesame chicken or teriyaki of some sort. The combo dinners are huge and is enough to feed two of me. On this occasion, I ordered the tempura, sesame chicken and grilled calamari combo. Tempura is heavy on the batter and the dipping sauce doesn't come with grated radish -- definitely not authentic -- but it serves its purpose in the clientele it caters to. Sesame chicken is just some chunks of chicken deep fried, no trace of sesame whatsoever, but it is tasty enough and appeals to a wide audience, especially children. My favorite is the grilled calamari but only when they've done it perfectly and not overcooked it so it becomes rubbery.

Agedashi tofu and soft shelled crab are also very good, probably two of the best items we ordered. Sukiyaki arrived in a large pot, a heaping portion, again, with chicken, napa cabbage, onions and enough to feed two, but the broth was too sweet for me so I didn't enjoy it very much.

In terms of sushi, the fish is very fresh and more often than not, of very good quality, however, there is too much rice which takes away from good sushi eating. They are certainly not skimpy on the fish since it is a hunking piece, but half the amount of rice would suffice and make it a far better piece of sushi. My favorites were uni, hotate (scallops), amaebi (sweet shrimp) and mirugai (giant clam).

The wait can sometimes be very frustrating. We were lucky that on this occasion it was 30 mins, unlike the usual 45min to an hour's wait on weekends. Honestly, I don't believe the food here warrants such a long wait in terms of quality, but in terms of a great bargain, Taiko has everything you're looking for and more.

Taiko, 14775 Jeffrey Rd, Irvine, CA 92618. Tel: 949-559-719

Ruby's Diner -- new fashion nostalgia

In a cookie cutter city like Irvine, it is impossible to find an old school diner like those I love so much in LA, so, the only options are these chain diners like Ruby's. Don't get me wrong, I like Ruby's, but there is no charm or character to it. Ruby's is an excellent quick fix whether it be for breakfast, lunch or dinner, and the portions are ample enough that you leave feeling pretty satisfied.

We tend to come mainly for breakfast and my favorite item is the "really big breakfast" which I share with my son, who isn't a fan of kids' menus. This ample plate consists of 3 eggs, 2 sausages, 3 strips of bacon and ham, potatoes and toast and is really the perfect amount for the two of us. Lunch and dinner offers a bunch of diner-style foods such as burgers and sandwiches, but they also have a section of lower caloried items for those who might be watching their waistline. For me, going to a diner is really all about eating greasy spoon style, not diet style, so in general, I'm not going for those options. Ruby's salads are pretty good too and they are HUGE! I've never been able to finish one portion of salad on my own. Their chili (pictured above) is pretty good too, they use shredded beef instead of ground beef and there are no beans in it -- perfect for me! I don't like beans in my chili.

If you're a burger person, their Kobe beef burgers are pretty damn good. My son loves the "Greek" burger (pictured left) which comes with feta cheese. Naturally he's not able to finish the entire thing so we have them cut the burger in half so we can share. The other burger which is pretty awesome is the guacamole burger. If you don't want beef patties, you can opt for turkey, they're pretty flexible here.

All burgers come with your option of fries, fruit, sliced tomatoes or cottage cheese. If you go for the fries, note that these are bottomless fries and these include garlic fries, chili fries as well as sweet potato fries. Both the garlic fries and sweet potato fries are seriously tasty! I like to dip my fries into their chipotle mayo (ask them for some) instead of ketchup.

Milkshakes are also done well at Ruby's and there is a different flavor featured each month. Around the holidays, they have holiday-appropriate flavors to go with them -- my favorite is pumpkin around Thanksgiving time. Ruby's has always and will remain one of our 'to-go-to" places when we are feeling like something comforting and consistent.

Although there are several Ruby's Diners close to my home, my favorite location in the area is the one at Laguna Hills Mall.


Ruby's Diner, 24155 Laguna Hills Mall Rd, Laguna Hills, CA 92653. Tel: 949-588-7829

Calbi Fusion Tacos and Burritos -- average to the core

The myriad of food trucks vying for a spot these days is getting hard to follow, but since I'm on a food truck roll I might as well talk about Calbi, another Korean taco truck roaming the streets of Los Angeles. I caught it parked across the street from the Dim Sum Truck after we'd eaten our dim sum and ran across the street after we've eaten dim sum to see what they had to offer. I wanted to try the everything but didn't have a lot of room left to stuff them down so I got one kalbi (marinated short ribs) and one taegi bulgogi (spicy pork) tacos. It took a few minutes and my tacos were ready, all wrapped up on a tray with plastic wrap. I ran back across the street and shared these with my friend.

Both tacos were topped with lettuce and shredded cheese, the kalbi tasted okay to me but I definitely enjoyed the taegi bulgogi far better. My friend even said the kalbi taco was far better than the Peking duck taco from the Dim Sum Truck. I thought they were both just okay, nothing spectacular, and definitely not something I would go on a wild goose chase for. In fact, I'm not even sure I would choose them over other gourmet trucks because it was very average tasting fare. In LA, you can be sure there are other better choices for food -- and perhaps, that's why I didn't see anyone in line at the Calbi truck.


Calbi Fusion Tacos and Burritos, or you can follow them on twitter: http://twitter.com/CalbiBBQ  Tel: 323-235-6659

Dim Sum Truck -- bringing tidbits to the masses

I've been following the Dim Sum truck on twitter for a while now and because I am hardly up in LA, it's been a bit of a drag trying to sample some of these LA food truck offerings.

One morning, when I was headed up LA way, I noticed that the Dim Sum truck was going to be parked near where my friend and I were going and so I insisted on chasing it down foregoing our previous plans for lunch.

This friend of mine is not a foodie and is never too excited with my obvious obsession with food, but is highly compliant when it comes to appeasing me with my various food whims so it was no surprise that there was no objection to driving while I tried to give directions. I say "try" because the first attempt took us to an address in Venice which was non-existent, and after three drive bys, my friend, in a very gentle and patient voice asked me if there was a number I could call to check the the truck's whereabouts. I decided to double check on my twitter page and realized that we should've been in Santa Monica instead of Venice. I looked at my friend apologetically and murmured that I had made a mistake and my sweet dear friend, without chastising me, drove towards Santa Monica not once making me feel bad about my obvious challenges with giving directions.

When we found it, I was happy to see that there wasn't a line, but what was even more surprising was that there were two other food trucks parked within steps of each other (but that's another review). We found a spot right behind the Dim Sum truck and I stood in line -- behind only one person -- and decided on the Peking duck taco, har gow (shrimp dumplings), siu mai (pork and shrimp dumplings) and ham sui gok (dried shrimp fried mochi dumplings).

The order probably took about 5-7 minutes, not long at all, and when I opened the box, my eyes honed in directly onto the Peking duck taco (pictured right). Of course, I wouldn't allow my friend to touch the food until I've taken a few shots with my camera -- which anyone who is friends with me is, or soon enough will become, accustomed to. After I got the shots needed, I immediately grabbed the taco and took a bite out of it. I actually really liked this! The duck was strong and gamey, the hoisin sauce was enough to give it flavor but not overly powerful as to mask the duck. The julienned cucumbers were a great accompaniment as well.

I'm ordinarily not a siu mai (pictured below left) kinda gal, but I must say, these were some of the better ones I've had. Unfortunately, I couldn't say the same for the har gow which were encased in a very thick wrapper -- at least they used a decent amount of shrimp in it. The accompaying dipping sauce was a simple soy and sesame oil, nothing too exciting. What were even worse than the har gow were the ham sui gok as these aren't meant to be fried and then reheated and eaten later. These have to be eaten fresh! They were super greasy and when I bit into one, the oil just seeped out and ran down the side of my mouth. This was an awfully disgusting experience! Note to self: if a fried item isn't fried to order, stay away!

I ended up getting an extra order of Peking duck taco so my friend could taste it -- since I had wolfed down the first one without a fleeting thought that my poor friend hadn't even gotten a taste yet -- but the second taco was laying in a pool of grease and was highly uninspiring when compared to the first. My friend unfortunately didn't care for it at all.

At the end of the day, the Dim Sum truck is an excellent concept of bringing dim sum to the masses, but standing on the roadside eating dim sum out of a styrofoam box somehow completely takes away from the whole dim sum experience. If I saw the truck somewhere and I was craving dim sum, I would definitely stop and grab a couple of things, but to chase it down especially when I live in Orange County? Thanks but no thanks. It wasn't THAT good.

Dim Sum Truck, greater Los Angeles area. Tel: 310-889-4187. You can follow them on twitter at: http://twitter.com/dimsumtruck

The Serving Spoon -- food with lotsa soul

I'd been wanting to check this place out for a while now and it took a lot of convincing, coaxing and manipulating before I was able to get my way to eat here. The Serving Spoon is famous for its chicken and waffles and on a 4th of July, Sunday morning, it was packed! I was starving and I knew there would be a wait, but the gal at the podium was very sweet and informed me that it would be about 20 minutes. I decided to look through the menu so I'd be ready as soon as we were seated. Even with that many people, the wait wasn't too bad and soon, it was our turn.

We quickly ordered with the help from our server. I couldn't really see a combo that I liked (of course I wasn't looking hard enough) and decided to order a la carte. Our really pretty server suggested that I get the combo which included what I wanted plus eggs.... which turned out to be slightly cheaper had I ordered the two items I wanted -- grits and chicken wings (plus eggs which weren't what I was craving but I had anyway) -- a la carte.

While we waited, we people watched and at first, a lady (I presume the owner's wife) walked through the restaurant making sure everyone was happy with their meals and that everyone had everything they needed. A little later, the owner himself -- who we found out later was named JC -- took his turn on the floor, stopping at every single table, talking to his customers and when he got to our table, he paused and smiled and chatted a little before moving on again. I have a special fondness for this sort of hospitality when I'm at a restaurant. It gives me the warm sense that a lot of love and pride has been put into it which is reflected back to the customers.

Our food arrived and boy was there a lot of food. I should've counted how many wings were on my plate but after I took photos like I usually did, I wasted no time in gnawing into my first wing and then my second and then my third..... and after I finished them I wish I had a couple more. These were some gooooooood wings! I am a huge fan of grits too and the ones here come with a huge dollop of butter melting in the pile of gooey goodness. I thought about my cholesterol briefly before mixing the butter into my grits, but only for a split second because the thought of the rich grits hitting my mouth was too much to bear -- I'll do an extra 15 minutes on the elipical this week and eat salads for the next two weeks if I have to because I'm not going to compromise these buttery grits for anything. I'm glad I didn't because it was well worth those extra calories! I'm too lazy to make real grits at home and sometimes, I resort to the instant kind which is an abomination -- yes I know -- but it takes a good 20-30 minutes to make good grits from scratch and I don't have the patience to do that for myself.

We also got pancakes which were very good. I thought the sweetness of the syrup together with the saltiness of the butter melded well together and the texture of the pancakes were also very palatable to me. I generally do not like pancakes and these tasted good to me. The ham was very salty and perhaps we should've gotten the turkey sausage like our server suggested, but for me, I was craving salt so the ham was welcoming even though, ham is not usually a breakfast meat I ordinarily choose.

I loved my breakfast. I know I should've ordered the waffles but I'm not a sweet breakfast fan and what I really wanted were the wings and grits so I was very happy. On our way out, the owner JC stopped us and chatted for a while asking us if we liked the food. Again I felt so welcomed knowing that he cared about his customers' opinions and he genuinely wanted to know that his customers are happy when they leave his place. I highly recommend The Serving Spoon! They not only serve breakfast, there are other specials such as fried catfish, chittlins on weekends and a whole host of other things. I know I certainly enjoyed it and hope to return again in the very near future!

The Serving Spoon, 1403 Centinela Ave, Inglewood, CA 90302. Tel: 310-412-3927 

Sahuayo Primo -- muy caliente

Santa Ana, home to literally hundreds if not thousands of Mexican restaurants I know I will never be able to fully explore nor appreciate just due to sheer logistics. Once in a while, I will chance upon one which is notable, but most of the time, it's due to word of mouth or from Yelp. One such place is Sahuayo Primo, a little hole-in-the-wall which a friend of mine brought me to. The place is not easy to find. There is no real signage except for a few words on its window. The store front boasts a red awning, but that's about it. The only way to describe it is that it's on Main between St Andrews Place and Gertrude but much closer to Gertrude, almost at the corner.. Street parking is available if you're lucky but there isn't parking right in front of the store if that's what you're looking for.

There is chicharron in the window and only five small tables dot the narrow space inside allowing only about 15 people maximum seating, although I didn't see that many chairs in there to accommodate. The menu hangs above the counter and it is simple: tortas, plates or tacos. Tacos are $1.89 each while the plates were $7.50. The meat choices are good: carne asada, al pastor, carnitas (pictured top), lengua, cabeza, birria and a few others I can't remember now. Both my friend and I opted for three tacos each and we found a table to sit down at. There is a salsa bar consisting of pickled carrots, pickled onions, three types of salsas, onions, cilantro, limes, everything you need to top your tacos with.

The tacos come au naturel -- tortillas and meat, nothing else. You are responsible for dressing your own tacos and that's the way I like. I started with the lengua but found it very bland and tasteless. The pickled onions are marinated with habaneros so they take on a spicier quality about them which added a lot to the lengua, but I took two bites and quickly moved on to the al pastor. Now, this is a taco! the al pastor was extremely flavorful and it wasn't too greasy -- my friend said the last time he was here, the al pastor was super greasy. I topped it with everything and especially loved the smokiness of the chipotle salsa, but when I returned to the bar to get more pickled onions, the man asked me if I liked spicy, if I wanted some chile. I said sure! He went into his walk in refrigerator and brought out a green salsa with the consistency of the green guacamole sauce they serve at El Pollo Loco, but this one had a serious bite to it. It was absolutely fantastic! Even my friend started adding this to his tacos.

By the time I got to my carnitas taco I was a pro at dressing my taco -- a little of this, a little of that, but definitely a lot of the pickled onions and the spicy green salsa. These tacos weren't your average street taco-sized tacos. These were decent-sized and the guy packed the meat on! I was stuffed after two tacos. I tried my friend's cabeza, but wasn't impressed by that since it was similarly underseasoned like the lengua.

I've already decided that if and when I do return, I'm sticking to the al pastor and carnitas. These two were definitely fabulous and honestly, I'm already stuffed with just the two! Cash only!


Sahuayo Primo, 2056 S Main St, Santa Ana, CA 92707. Tel:  714-957-8821