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Subject: Food and Cooking
Recipe of the Week: Mojito Chicken
Warning: This recipe is from Guy Fieri. That sentence alone may lose half of you. But this dish sounds so good I'm going to try it tonight. After all, as the recent return to hot weather confirms, it is still summer. The white pants are staying on for now!The ingredients should be easy to get hold of; the only tricky part is removing the bird's backbone. Where's Julie Powell when you need her?The recipe serves up to six people, depending on how hungry you are.
August 26, 2009Arizona's True Food Kitchen Coming To OC?
I heard a rumor that the fledgling chain, which debuted in Phoenix last year, was planning on opening a second restaurant in Orange County. I checked with Debbie Porter, VP of Marketing for Fox Restaurant Concepts (FRC), who confirms that they are indeed looking at OC locations right now, although "nothing is final."A partnership between FRC (founded by restaurateur Sam Fox) and author and skincare guru Dr Andrew Weil, True Food Kitchen serves "globally inspired cuisine that nourishes the min
August 26, 2009Dueling Dishes: Thai Green Shrimp Curry
For this week's challenge I picked two local Thai joints, both of which have two locations. The first contender: Urban Thai, in Aliso Viejo's Town Center mall (the other branch is in Corona). The menu has all the usual suspects, but it's the beer selection that intrigued me, as it included two types I'd never seen before on any drinks list, anywhere: James Boag from Tasmania and Hinano from Tahiti. As for the green shrimp curry, it arrived, still bubbling, in a deep white dish. The sauce
August 27, 2009SusieCakes' Apple Festival Starts Tomorrow, With Freebie for the Teachers' Pets
Throughout September, as well as featuring goodies such as apple pie with a crumble topping and caramel apple cheesecake, the cupcakery (with a branch in Newport Beach) is offering a complimentary applesauce cupcake with cream cheese frosting for any students in pre-school through 6th grade who bring in an A-graded assignment. They can also enter a competition to win cupcakes for the whole class, which is bound to make them really popular, even with the snobs and bullies.Now if that's not an
August 31, 2009Haven Gastropub in Orange Opening This Friday, September 4
We've been following the progress of this new venture, and can confirm that it's set to open to the public this Friday. Edwin tipped me off about the launch date, so he gets credit for that, as do his foodie friends who tipped him off, DanGarion and Jay Ruiz.Located in Old Towne Orange, Haven will be "a modern kitchen that prides itself on producing farm-to-table-fresh European old world fare that far transcends typical pub grub." Good, because typical pub grub in England was until recently q
August 31, 2009Mouthwatering Demos at South Coast Plaza For OC Restaurant Week
A dozen of the county's top chefs, all from restaurants participating in Orange County Restaurant Week, will be showcasing their skills at Bloomingdale's Home Store from September 5 to 19. Sadly, due to health codes, no sampling is allowed (boo, hiss!), but you can at least get to see the culinary wizards in action, and there'll be book signings and gift card giveaways. The full rundown after the jump.
September 1, 2009Japonaise Bakery Closed; It's Back To Cream Pan and Cream Pan Alone
Edwin GoeiFellow OC food bloggers Julian Hsu and Melissa clued me in to a recent development in Old Town Tustin. Japonaise Bakery & Cafe, which was what beloved hole-in-the-wall bakery Cream Pan expanded and grew up into February of last year, has now folded, ceding its space to a planned noodle shop (which is actually good news, in my opinion).
September 4, 2009The Which Wich-ing Hour Has Arrived in OC for Those Other Sandwich Chains
September 3, 2009K'Ya Anaheim Redoes Its Menu. Now Called K'Ya Street Fare.
Jonathan HoNot more than a few weeks ago, after a co-worker asked about restaurants in the Disneyland area, I recommended K'Ya, highlighting their Bistro menu, which featured items such as a hanger steak with mashed potato and sauteed veggies for around $10. I checked their website to confirm that it was still in effect and it was.
September 9, 2009Reminder: OC Restaurant Week Starts Sunday, Plus Demos at Bloomie's On Now!
Oh, yes, it's time to take advantage of the county's best restaurants. In a good way, of course. From September 13 to 19 inclusive, more than 100 of them, from Ambrosia to Zov's, are participating in OC Restaurant Week by offering bargain lunch and/or dinner prix fixes, from as little as $10.Some deal are more generous than others, natch, but full details are on the official website, so you can plan ahead (advance bookings are recommended).
September 10, 2009Free Wine Tastings at Resort at Pelican Hill From Tonight!
It's not often that you'll see "free" and "Pelican Hill" in the same sentence, so grab the chance while you can. From this evening, OC residents can enjoy Vertical Ladder Wine Tastings plus hors d'oeuvres in the resort's Great Room. What on earth is a Vertical Ladder Wine Tasting, you ask? Weeell, it's when different vintages from the same winery are poured (as opposed to horizontal wine tastings, which feature wines from the same vintage but different wineries).On tonight's menu: Planeta Win
September 10, 2009Laguna Beach's French 75 Rises Above Its Confusing Corporate Past
September 10, 2009Thank You Little F****er: How Not to Treat Your Customers
As we all know, we should never lose our cool with wait staff, lest they wee in our soup. But that's not all we have to worry about now.In a wonderful example of British hospitality, waiters at Cactus Joe's, a newly opened Mexican restaurant in Halifax, Yorkshire (gee, that sounds authentic), showed what they thought of a two-year-old diner, who had apparently dared to whine about slow service and poor food (a budding Stick a Fork In It blogger, if ever there were one!)The parents of little M
September 16, 2009Full Moon Sushi to Open in Tustin at Old Haru Izakaya Spot
Edwin GoeiI can't say I'm surprised. The spot previously occupied by Haru Izakaya -- the Korean izakaya I reviewed for OC Weekly and chronicled when it folded -- is being reworked into a sushi joint.
September 17, 2009[Hole in the Wall] Cochinita Pibil and Beyond at Anepalco's Cafe in Orange
September 17, 2009Newport Beach Restaurant Weeks Coming!
No, that's not a typo--there's not one but two Newport Beach Restaurant Weeks to look forward to. The first runs from October 16 to 22, the second one will be in January. As much as I hate planning that far ahead, I'm prepared to make an exception when it comes to food!Expect mainly three-course lunch and dinner deals from as little as $10, and although the website doesn't yet name names, it does say there will be around 100 venues participating. Woo-hoo! We'll update this post with more info
September 19, 2009Meet Winemakers of Bodegas M.
September 24, 2009[Hole In the Wall] Do the Jerky at Celestino's Meats
September 24, 2009Vietnamese Cajun Crawfish With Funnel Cake for Dessert: Thank You, Q Restaurant
September 24, 2009An Encyclopedic Beer Selection, Killer Burger Redeem the Uneven Debut of Haven Gastropub
October 1, 2009Notes From A Grubfest At South Coast Plaza
Mall restaurants aren't everyone's first choice when dining out, but South Coast Plaza is surely an exception? Not the fast-food joints and run-of-the-mill chains, of course, but the higher-end spaces. Name one other shopping center in the US that's home to a trifecta of the caliber of Hamamori, Charlie Palmer and Marché Moderne?On Friday and Saturday I took part in a two-day event that gathered a group of local (OC and LA) food bloggers and led us around the crème de la crème of SCP's eateri
October 5, 2009The Secret Menu at May Garden Opens Up a Whole New World of Taiwanese Tastes
October 8, 2009[BEST OF OC] El Mesero (the Waiter): Rick Jones
October 8, 2009[BEST OF OC] El Francés (the Frenchman): Pascal Olhats
October 8, 2009I've Revealed A Secret; Now It's Your Turn
Edwin GoeiIf you've picked up the latest edition of The Weekly -- which is, by the way, our annual, and might I say, awesome Best of OC Issue (okay, I'm done with the shameless plug) -- you might have noticed my review of May Garden's secret menu in the usual Food section. During a chat with head honcho Ted Kissell, he asked me, "Don't many/most Chinese restaurants have two menus, the Americanized one and the Chinese one?" I told him that, actually, I'm not sure. But for the most part,
October 9, 2009Is There ANYTHING Salvageable from the Weekly's Best of OC Reader's Poll Food Winners?
Fair is fair, folks. A couple of weeks ago, I blasted the Orange County Register's "Best of Orange County" for the horrible selections readers picked as the best representation of a culinary category (Peppino's as best Italian! Subway as best Sandwich! Daphne's as best Greek!). Our Best of OC issue is out this week, with Edwin and I taking responsibility for virtually all the picks. But one part that we completely wipe our hands of is our Reader's Poll, and I'll repeat the same point I made w
October 9, 2009Recipe of the Week: Chicken Cacciatore
Stick a Fork In It always runs its recipes on a Wednesday, and sometimes that coincides with a yummy national food day. Today, however, is an exception: October 14 is National Chocolate-Covered Insects Day. Yikes!But instead of sharing my favorite recipe for cucarachas con chocolate, I'm bringing you Rachael Ray's easy-peasy, soothe-your-chillblains Chicken Cacciatore a day early. Yes, folks, tomorrow is National Chicken Cacciatore Day. Hurrah for normal food, and, it goes without saying, evo
October 14, 2009Commonwealth Lounge: Now Serving Live Music on Wednesdays
When you think of the small bar scene clustered in the corner of Fullerton's "SoCo District" (south of Commonwealth) most can agree that it's the only section of downtown where live music truly exists. You've heard plenty about the stages at the Continental Room, Slidebar, Steamers, Stubriks and Santa Fe Cafe. But until now, Commonwealth Lounge hasn't fully committed to opening itself up to the idea of hosting local bands--even though they do host a kick ass jazz ensemble that few people real
October 14, 2009Newport Beach Restaurant Week
October 15, 2009Fora is a Hidden Gem on Naples' Restaurant Row
October 15, 2009Take Note, Budding Moviemakers: Kimera Is Running An Ad-Making Contest
The Irvine restaurant is already offering a movie-related tie-in (each diner purchasing a $20 two-course or $30 three-course Movie Night Menu gets a free film ticket, but you must book--and mention the deal--in advance).But this is different--something that will actually get people thinking. Although the challenge is tough--applicants have to come up with a "15-second, family friendly commercial that illustrates why Kimera is an Orange County landmark"--the prize is worth it for aspiring, er,
September 29, 2009Recipe of the Week: Zimzala's Farro Salad With Garden Vegetables and Red Wine Vinaigrette
Courtesy of Vincent Muraco and Joyce Goldstein at Huntington Beach's Zimzala restaurant (within the Shorebreak Hotel), this is a gorgeous, easy-to-assemble salad that you can get away with for another month or so, while the weather's still warm enough. Apparently also known as emmer wheat (although I'd never heard that term), farro makes a toothsome change from deathly-dull pasta or potato salad.And, as an extra bonus, it looks mighty pretty in the bowl.
September 30, 2009Dueling Dishes--A Brace of Quick Curries
Suffering through a horrid cold, I thought I'd sample two healthy-ish frozen, microwaveable curries, to try to clear out the sinuses.First up: Trader Joe's Chicken Vindaloo.Now, as much as I love TJ's, I've had pre-packaged frozen entrées from them before, and, suffice to say, they were not a success. One, a disgusting concoction of chicken and blue cheese, was so vile it went from oven to trash almost without touching the plate. Yeuch!At least the ingredients are all natural, and, with 2
September 24, 2009Is There ANYTHING Salvageable from the Reg's Best of Orange County Food Winners?
I usually don't care for lolcats, but this one...For 16 years, the Orange County Register's annual Best of Orange County has mystified county eaters with this simple question: are the paper's readers really that stupid and tasteless to continue calling the Olive Garden the best place in Orange County for Italian food?The answer this year: they're getting better, because the Olive Garden merely ranked number two. The somewhat edible Peppino's chain, according to the Reg, is the best Italian re
September 23, 2009Drink of the Week: The Algerian Boulevard at Andrei's
The drink: The Algerian Boulevard at Andrei's Conscious Cuisine and Cocktails. $7 normally, $5 at happy hour (3 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday) Edwin's already pretty thoroughly examined the "cuisine" part of newly opened Andrei's Conscious Cuisine and Cocktails in Irvine, but methinks the "cocktails" needs some talking about. I asked bar manager/lead bartender Kurt Van Dyke for a taste of the joint's signature drink. He delivered a pink concoction on the rocks, floating lemons and flecked w
September 4, 2009Five Great Egg Dishes
Mmm...underdeveloped duck embryo...Ate a simple scramble this morning at Monkey Business Cafe, which is getting ready to do something wonderful with persimmons. At $4.95 for four pieces of toast, a melon slice, and eggs mixed with cheddar cheese and green onions, quite the treat. Eating it, however, made me think of other wonderful local dishes derived from eggs. Such as:*Hollandaise sauce at Memphis at the Santora: I can only eat a little bit, so rich and yolk-y the sauce is. My chica, thoug
October 19, 2009Osteria Drago Slated To Open In Fashion Island Spring 2010
Picture Courtesy of Drago CentroMore details are coming in about the planned Osteria Drago, an Italian eatery with a Naples-style wood burning pizza oven and family-style dining, by Celestino Drago who brought you Drago Centro in L.A. The target date is vague, sometime around spring, but it will be will be located adjacent to Nordstrom, which apparently is debuting at the same time. One thing is certain, Osteria Drago will be moderately big, occupying more than 3,700 square feet, not incl
October 21, 2009New Inspection Placards Appearing in OC
Orange County Health Care AgencyAfter the OC Register's exposé of the sanitation in OC's restaurants in 2008, the County Board of Supervisors empaneled a grand jury to examine how to improve food safety in OC eateries.The grand jury did its research and decided that the best way to avoid these "dining dangers" (ninjas at table 3!) was for OC to adopt the A-B-C letter grade system used in all of our surrounding counties.The Board of Supervisors decided in December not to move to a letter grad
October 21, 2009At the Farmer's Market: Grass-Fed Beef
Hannes_2 @ wikimedia.org CC-BY-SAOne of my beefs (sorry) with the Irvine farmer's market is that while you can get amazing produce, baked goods, fish, even olive oil, there's not much in the way of meat available. So when I took a Friday off to go have breakfast at Break of Dawn and go to the Laguna Hills market, I was stunned to find a big sign saying "GRASS-FED BEEF AVAILABLE HERE TODAY," with a big guy in a Stetson sitting next to it.It turns out the guy in the Stetson is named Frank Fitzp
October 22, 2009Dessert of the Week: Chocolate Croissant Bread Pudding at Opah Restaurant & Bar
The chocolate croissant bread pudding at Opah Restaurant & Bar in Irvine earns the honor of being our first Dessert of the Week pick. This delicious creation is served with a bourbon creme anglaise sauce that will blow your mind. Top it off with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream, fresh fruit and a dusting of powdered sugar. Every bite of this dessert fills your mouth with warm, melting milk chocolate. The temperature contrast with the ice cream adds dimension, and there's even a bit
October 22, 2009[Hole in the Wall] Throw Pho Quang Trung's Chicken Pho Before Swine (Flu)
October 22, 2009Kula Offers Sushi Not As Art, But As a (Still Tasty) Commodity
October 22, 2009Another Restaurant Goes Global Tapas
Flight BistroSusan Feniger, what hast thou wrought?After one-half of the Too Hot Tamales, of Border Grill fame, opened the nearly un-Googleable Street in Hollywood as a restaurant specializing in street foods from around the world, it seems like everyone has started jumping on the bandwagon.Edwin reported six weeks ago that K'Ya in Anaheim had changed from a normal restaurant to a global street-food place, with a lot of small plates arranged by country.Now Flight Bistro in Huntington Beach, u
October 23, 2009On the Line: Mark Cleveland of Avanti Cafe
Cleveland: Ex-cellent!I'm still mad at Avanti Cafe for stopping their International Tuesdays, so that just means I now try to visit once a week instead of every other day. I usually visit in the evening, when Mark Cleveland relieves his co-owner Tanya Fuqua in a transition as seamless as a Jamaican 4x100 relay baton passing. They've made Avanti the place for innovative vegan cooking in Orange County since 2005, and the two concoct the best drinks this side of Memphis at the Santora. We nabbed
October 27, 2009Recipe of the Week: Crème Brûlée in Apples
Dave LiebermanQuick, what's better than crème brûlée?How about crème brûlée in an edible bowl?The Catalans, those famously free-thinking denizens of northeastern Spain, Andorra and the adjacent part of France, claim to have pioneered crème brûlée. In a burst of national pride, they call it crema catalana, and some culinary savant in Catalunya decided to put the resulting custard in baked apples and then burn some sugar on top.In-geeeeeee-nious! And so this week, just past the jump, w
October 28, 2009At the Farmer's Market: Apples and Stuff Made From Them
Dave LiebermanIt's fall, which means it's apple season here in Southern California.Tilden Farms from Riverside has Sekai Ichi apples, which are thought to be a cross between Red Delicious and Golden Delicious. They're great for eating out of hand, with a lot of juice and none of the mealiness that tends to plague Red Delicious.Many vendors have Pink Lady apples this year, which are a cross between Golden Delicious and Lady Williams that originated in Australia. These are chameleon apples: You
October 29, 2009Myung Dong Kal Guksu in Anaheim Is a Temple of Korean Hand-Cut Noodles
October 29, 2009Dessert of the Week: Strawberry Shortcake at Cafe Zoolu
When first entering Café Zoolu, don't be scared off by the neon pink sign or the cheetah-print chairs lining the bar, for you will soon come to appreciate these quirks. Although this restaurant may look like a cross between a Hawaiian tiki hut and an African jungle safari on acid, the place is packed and the food will keep you coming back.Tucked away in Laguna Beach, off of Pacific Coast Highway and across from an unsightly Circle K, Café Zoolu is best known for its seafood dishes, a
October 29, 2009Five Great Things To Do With That Jack O' Lantern On Nov. 1
ingernet @ flickr.com CC BY-NC-ND 2.0Truly a woman after my own heart.You bought the pumpkin, you carved it, the doorbell rang a hundred million times, and you gave out enough candy to fund an army of dentists for the next year.Now it's the day after Halloween and the jack o' lantern is headed for the trash--or is it?While it's true that most pumpkins of a size suitable for jack o' lanterns (jacks o' lantern?) are not bred for their flavor, all pumpkins are edible. Roasting the pumpkin usuall
October 30, 2009At the Farmer's Market: The Sweetest Sweet Potatoes Ever
The whole point of a farmer's market is to bring fresh, local food to people with as few intermediate steps as possible. While it's always fresh, sometimes the bounds of "local" get stretched. (Don't get me wrong--I am not about to give up my San Joaquin Delta asparagus--but calling that local to Irvine is stretching the bounds of reason.)And then there's Rui, the smiling, gracious woman behind the table of R Farms, near the center of the Irvine market, across from the giant hummus booth.Dave Li
November 4, 2009
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