You know that saying? “The more things change, the more they stay the same” So true. Especially when it comes to restaurant concepts that replace other restaurant concepts.
First we have Bomburger which just recently took over the space left behind by Jimmy's Burger Joint (yes, it was actually called that) in Costa Mesa. The new place serves pretty much the same menu as the old place: burgers, of course, but slathered in chili and also bacon. Bomburger has another location in Huntington Beach.
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Then we have Aioli which took up the space in a food court that was previously the home of Chicago's Best in Irvine. Aioli, despite the fancy title, also serves Italian beef sandwiches with the giardiniera that Chicago's Best also plied. They even preserved the Chicago-style dogs with the day-glo green relish that its predecessor offered.
I think it bears repeating: The more things change, the more they stay the same.
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Before becoming an award-winning restaurant critic for OC Weekly in 2007, Edwin Goei went by the alias “elmomonster” on his blog Monster Munching, in which he once wrote a whole review in haiku.