Subject: Spanish Food and Cooking

• Burrito History

  November 29, 2001

• Kalesa Grill Now Pinoy Fiesta

  A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about Kalesa Grill in Anaheim, misspelling the Filipino restaurant's name as Kasela but not misrepresenting its great take on the archipelago's turo-turo buffet tradition. I visited again last weekend, only to find the dive is now named Pinoy Fiesta. Everything remains the same--layout, menu, television featuring strange Filipino shows--except the colors are now garishly pastel. Maybe to attract the Mexicans in Anaheim? If that's the case, the owners should heavily

  October 17, 2008

• The Omelet Files

  May 27, 2004

• The Best Taco in Orange County is..

  *Moved up, 'cause the conversation is raging--and where the hell are you, Cheeser???I love all of you, o readers and commentators (especially the commentators), and one of the most loyal is Cesar Madrid. He's always bilingually witty and profane, whether talking about Gunkist historians, the Catholic Church sex-abuse scandal, or food. But I pissed off ol' Cheeser last month when I declared Taquería Tapatía the best taquería in Orange County. The guy knows my stuff, because he reminded me I on

  December 8, 2008

• Lizarrán Tapas Worth Every Small Bite

  I had a book signing a couple of weeks ago at Hibbleton Gallery, a great little art space in downtown Fullerton, but there was a problem--I arrived at 6:30, thinking my reading was scheduled for 7 p.m., when in fact it was an hour later. Famished, I asked one of the gallery guys, Jesse La Tour, about a nearby pizza place on my Hole-in-the-Wall Life list. His scrunched face was as necessary a food review as I needed. "What about Lizarrán?", milady inquired, and the three of us began walking. Th

  December 16, 2008

• Letters From OC Weekly Readers

  July 24, 2008

• Barcelona Comes to Fullerton Via Lizarran Tapas

  July 10, 2008

• Trio Gabacho

  Mexican food for the John Wayne crowd

  January 10, 2008

• Spinnin' & Singin' Pretty

  DJ Colette Vox the House

  October 25, 2007

• This Hole-in-the-Wall Life

  October 18, 2007

• Castile Storms Back

  Picante heats up the not-so-spicy Spanish-restaurant scene in OC

  July 12, 2007

• You, Me, 50 Cent, and Everyone We Know

  January 26, 2006

• This Hole-in-the-Wall Life

  March 8, 2007

• The Dudes Abide

  March 31, 2005

• Checklist, Please!

  July 17, 2003

• Warning: Charlie Palmer's New Small Plates May Be Bad For Your Health (But Not In The Way You Think)

  Last night, the bar at Charlie Palmer, South Coast Plaza, launched its small plates menu--available from 4pm until close--with a media shindig.I have to confess that I only tried one dish, but I do have a legitimate excuse: I'd just chowed down on the five-course tasting extravaganza at Marché Moderne and could only face something small and sweet by this point.So my eyes were drawn to the bottom of the menu--churros with smoked chocolate sauce. I've always loved churros, ever since I was a kid,

  April 30, 2009

• A So-So Gabbi's Mexican Kitchen Dinner--But, Oh, Those Churros...

  Owner Gabbi Patrick--cool dame!It seemed a couple of days ago that my chica and I would experience another disappointing meal at Gabbi's Mexican Kitchen in Orange, a place I have long championed but has recently acted like another Old Towne Orange battle horse, Felix's Continental Cuisine: a super-busy restaurant past its prime. We enjoyed the lobster quesadilla, but my chica remembered that lobster was a special two days earlier. My queso de panela enchiladas featured an acrid red sauce (althou

  May 1, 2009

• Boqueria's Tasty Tapas Hatches at Rooster Cafe

  May 28, 2009

• Easy, Breezy Recipe: Amar Santana's Gazpacho

  Here's a signature from Amar Santana, Executive Chef at Charlie Palmer, South Coast Plaza. Light, healthy and a cinch to make, it's perfect for summer (once the weather perks up, that is). On the other hand, if you're feeling fancy, you can jazz it up by garnishing it with marinated baby shrimp and avocado, as Santana does.We couldn't get a photo of the dish itself, but, let's face it: we all know what gazpacho looks like. But not everyone knows what Santana looks like--so here's a cheery pic of

  June 12, 2009

• Did Matador Cantina Owner Take Gustavo's Advice?

  I have so many restaurants waiting for SAFII reviews  that sometimes I lag and get beat. That's what happened this Thursday, when the Orange County Register gave a thumb's-up to Matador Cantina in Fullerton. I visited about a month and a half ago, and don't necessarily disagree with writer Lori Basheda's review (although her use of mock Spanish in writing that "the queso was gone-o" was weak and no doubt red meat to the Reg's Know Nothing readers). Indeed, it seems that, judging by her desc

  June 13, 2009

• Two Upcoming Food/Wine/Art Events at the Shorebreak/Zimzala, Huntington Beach

  ​First, this Sunday (from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.) is the inaugural 2nd Sunday bash at the hotel, featuring "fine wine, tasty nibbles, live music and stimulating art." Specifically, the booze is from Coppola Diamond Collection, the grub is from the hotel's own Zimzala restaurant, and the paintings are from the imaginatively named The Gallery. Artists include Dean Torrence of Jan & Dean fame, who paints exclusively for the gallery, and former Warner Bros animator Tina Schmidt. The entry fee of $10

  September 9, 2009

• Meet Winemakers of Bodegas M.

  September 24, 2009

• Another Restaurant Goes Global Tapas

  Flight Bistro​Susan 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, 2009

• [Hole in the Wall] Argentinian Delights at Puerto Madero Market in Santa Ana

  October 29, 2009

• Tap Water at Haven Gastropub--EWWWWW

  ​I'm with Edwin: Haven Gastropub in Old Towne Orange is uneven. I love their chorizo flatbread, a perfectly toasted plate with oily, spicy chorizo, red peppers out of the Windy City, a tomato sauce that tastes like it came from organic veggies, a reason to justify this overplayed restaurant trend. But the mac-'n'-cheese was just a bit more flavored than mashed potatoes, an order of olives should include a cheese or some bread slices, and what's with getting two dishes at a lukewarm temperature

  November 12, 2009

• The Northern Chinese Fare at Asian Tapas Isn't Really Tapas, But It Is Delectable

  November 19, 2009