Capriotti's Sandwich Shop

20140101:
On 20140828, I noted eating here once before and that I ordered The Bobbie. As of 20150124, I found in my possession the proper photo record, but I could not find any notes. Several other entries occurring in January are also missing their notes.

The Bobbie (20140101)

Menu Description:
The Bobbie® The nationally acclaimed best-seller! Homemade Turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing, and mayo.

[20150124]

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Capastrami (20140828)

20140828:
Of the two (roast beef and Capastrami), I really like the Capastrami. The roast beef sandwich had provolone, was overall dry, and I thought it tasted just okay. 8:09PM PT

Menu Description:
Capastrami® Hot pastrami, Swiss cheese, Russian Dressing, and cole slaw.

Roast Beef (20140828)

Menu Description:
Homemade Roast Beef Our secret pulled roast beef recipe, slow roasted to perfection.

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Capriotti's Sandwich Shop

Relevant Links:
Capriotti's Sandwich Shop Website

Stacked: Food Well Built

20140826:
Today was my first time at a Stacked restaurant and the second time I went to a restaurant that used a tablet. However, unlike the first tablet experience (which was primarily for ordering drinks, ordering extra items, or paying the bill, this restaurant encourages its patrons to use the tablet for the entire ordering experience.

While this allows for a great degree of customization, I feel it makes the ordering experience longer, mainly because there is only one tablet to go around.

For food I ordered the Chipotle Stacked Mac without the parmesian breadcrumb and to drink I got the Mad River Jamaica Red Ale. Michael's Cool Dude (White Russian Shake) was tasty.

The macaroni and cheese is nice and spicy. I find the use of big noodles strange and the cheese was a bit grainy in texture. I like whatever is causing crunchiness. The sausage is awesome. 7:52PM PT

Oh, the crunchiness comes from the red onion.

Menu Description:
Chipotle Stacked Mac We start with our STACKED Mac and kick it up with the spicy, smokey flavor of Chipotle. Then we add Pork Andouille, Jalapeno [sic] Bacon, Roma Tomatoes and Red Onion.

Michael's pizza was tasty (yum, ranch). 8:16PM PT

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Stacked: Food Well Built

Relevant Links:
Stacked: Food Well Built Website
STACKED Food Well Built - Cerritos, CA (Yelp.com)

Taco Grill

20140826:
Pictured at top-left is blackened fish, at top-right is chicken, at bottom-left is carne asada, and at bottom-right is carnitas (it's possible I have the carne asada and carnitas reversed).

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Thoughts:
1) The fish was good; I ate it with lime.
2) The bottom left was alright.
3) The chicken was juicy, but sometimes tasted plain. I found the taste of the tortilla dominated the taste of the chicken.
4) Since I was so full at this point, I just finished the meat on last one (bottom right).

Overall, I disliked the tortilla which was a bit thick. I did, however, like the fish taco. 2:20PM PT

Note that while I liked the fish, I don't think this place impressed me enough for me to come back.

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Taco Grill

Relevant Links:
Taco Grill - Westminster, CA (Yelp.com)

Culver's

20140824:
We stopped by a Culver's on our way to the airport, ordered by drive-through, and ate our food in the car.

I got a crispy chicken burger and it was tasty. It seemed freshly fried. In particular, some bites were still quite hot. 10:15AM PT

[20150120 Edit]

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Culver's

Relevant Links:
Culver's Website
Culver's (Wikipedia.org)

IHOP

20140815:
Apparently I haven't made any posts for IHOP. It does, however, make sense that I haven't gone since starting this blog: for nearby late night food, my friends and I usually go to Denny's, if not a more unique location like Harbor House Cafe or The Cafe Westminster.

Sirloin Tip & Eggs (20140815)

In any case, today my friends asked if I wanted to join them at Denny's after the end of their Friday night. I was down, but the Denny's we go usually go to was closed and so we headed for the next closest one over in Costa Mesa. However, since an IHOP was right next door and we typically have the option to go to Denny's, we decided to go to IHOP.

At IHOP, I got the sirloin tip plate and substituted a side of fruit for the hash browns and a side of fruit for the pancakes (I got scrambled eggs).

Fruit and Fruit (20140815)

Menu Description:
Sirloin Tips & Eggs* USDA Select sirloin tips cooked with grilled onions & mushrooms. Served with 2 eggs, hash browns & 2 buttermilk pancakes. 13.29
*Puntos de Bistec Sirloin y Huevos

Overall, the fruit was a healthy choice and the sirloin tip had a good flavor.

My friends shared an appetizer sampler in addition to their entrees.

Appetizer Sampler (20140815)

Website Description:
Appetizer Sampler Mouthwatering Monster Mozza Sticks, crunchy Onion Rings and Crispy Chicken Strips are served with honey mustard and marinara sauces for dipping.

[20141001]

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20140930:
Having had a bit to drink today, my primary concern was to use the restroom. Unfortunately, one of the employees was giving me a hard time with it, stating that the restroom was for customers only. Truthfully, I told him/her that I had intended to sit down and order after I use the restroom. True to my word, and to the surprise of the employee, I had sat down and ordered after using the restroom.

Fruit (20140930)

In any case, I ordered a Chorizo Fiesta Omelette and when it arrived I thought it smelt awesome; I mostly picked up on the tomato, onion, and pepper smell.

On a different note, I don't remember the last time I had cheese. While I've been avoiding it, it would have felt a bit silly to order an omelette without cheese. Fortunately, the cook only put a small amount of cheese in the omelette. Of course, even though I felt silly about ordering an omelette without cheese, I actually didn't find the cheese to be a critical component of the taste. In particular, the dominant flavors were the beef and the egg.

Chorizo Fiesta Omellete (20140930)

In comparison to the cheese, the sour cream did have an impact on the taste. 9:00PM PT

Website Description:
Chorizo Fiesta Omelette Take a trip south of the border one bite at a time! Loaded with spicy chorizo sausage, roasted peppers, onions & pepper jack cheese, then topped with a citrus chili sauce & sour cream and served with a fresh grilled serrano pepper - this omelette will have you saying "excelente!"

Feeling adventurous, I bit into the chili pepper that came with the plate. Unfortunately, it was flaming hot. Fortunately, I only ate about a third of it. 9:09PM PT

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20150320:
Before heading off to work, I dropped by IHOP for some breakfast. After looking through the menu, I decided to order the Sirloin Tips & Eggs (apparently I've ordered it before). As before, I substituted a side of fruit for the pancakes, but this time I stuck with the order of hash browns. In addition, instead of getting my eggs scrambled, I had them prepared over medium.

Sirloin Tips & Eggs (20150320)

Overall, the dish had a a good tasting, caramelized onion flavor. Unfortunately, the steak itself had a strange texture - as if too much water had softened it. 10:40AM PT

[20150515 Edit]

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IHOP (International House of Pancakes)

Chorizo Fiesta Omelette (20140930)

Relevant Links:
IHOP Website
IHOP (Wikipedia.org)
IHOP - Costa Mesa, CA (Yelp.com)

Huong Vy Restaurant

20140813:
So my dad and I were looking to get lunch. With bún bò huế in mind, we thought about going to a place called Ngu Binh. While even though its the middle of the week (Wednesday) and the middle of the day (1:58 PM PT), this place still had a line built up outside its doors.

As such, instead of facing the wait, my dad drives to a place that's the opposite of crowded: we're the only ones there (aside from the waiter).

As such, I decided not to get bún bò Huế and instead got bánh khoái dặc biệt Huong Vy (house special pancake w/pork, shrimp & vegetable served with a sweet special sauce). While I checked to make sure the sauce didn't use any peanuts, I began to feel uneasy upon trying it. The discomfort remained for about an hour or so. 3:15PM PT

About a week later (20140818), I learned above the "nocebo effect": a harmless substance creates a harmful effect. Thinking back on various situations in my life, I believe the "nocebo effect" has definitely played a part in my aversion to legumes.

In particular, within the last year or so, I noted that the longer its been since an incident (with peanuts or sesame oil) has occurred, the less aversion I have to related items (legumes and sesame seeds, respectively).

Overall, it's not fair to judge the restaurant for my food allergies. Next time, I would come and try the Bánh bèo.

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Huong Vy Restaurant

Relevant Links:
Huong Vy Restaurant - Westminster, CA (Yelp.com)

Orange County Fair 20140810

The fried bacon pickle was delicious!

20140810:
Almost missing the fair this year, I ultimately made plans to go on the last day.

The Australian battered potatoes (cheese and ranch) were okay.

While spending a shorter time at the fair than previous years, I also feel like I had the most junk food during this outing than any other (individual) outing in the past.

The funnel cake was alright.

Speaking of shorter outings, I still got to go through the visual arts exhibition.

Parts of the turkey leg along the bone were good. I would highly recommend discarding the exterior.

Unfortunately, I only quickly went through the crafts exhibition, glanced at the various vendors, and completely skipped the plants and collections area (near the Millenium Barn).

The fried Twinkie was good.

Fried Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough

The fried chocolate chip cookie dough was rich and warm. Unfortunately, this meant it didn't taste like cookie dough anymore. It would have been amazing with ice cream. 12:29PM PT

Refreshing and expensive lemonade.

Southwestern Nachos

The Southwestern Nachos from Mucho Crazy Nachos (carne asada meat) were pretty good. We got them with an order of esquites and Sierra Mist (Crazy Nacho Combo). 4:39PM PT

Mucho Crazy Nachos

[20140917]

Harbor House Café

20140809:
I'm not sure, but this might have been my first visit to Harbor House Café.

After a night hanging around and being social, it was time to get food.

In any case, I got a teriyaki burger with no cheese. It also came with coleslaw.

Ultimately, all I have to say is that it was pretty good. 11:28AM PT

[20140913]

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Harbor House Café

Relevant Links:
Harbor House Café Website
Harbor House Cafe - Sunset Beach, CA (Yelp.com)

Sabroso! Mexican Grill

20140807:
Today my friend and I headed over to Garden Grove to try out a Mexican restaurant named Sabroso! Mexican Grill.

pork tamale without cheese and sour cream

I got a wet carne asada burrito, with green sauce on one half and red sauce on the other. I asked for the burrito without cheese and sour cream.

I also ordered a pork tamale without cheese and sour cream. 8:22PM PT

The burrito is solid, with me liking the green sauce better than the red sauce.

slow-cooked beef

The pork tamale, given it was unaccompanied by sauce, was better tasting.

Josh's slow cooked beef in red chile had a funky taste.

He also ordered a shrimp taco, Ensenada-style.

shrimp taco, Ensenada-style

[20140913]

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20180813:
Today I came here to eat with my wife. We ordered the Chamorro plate and the enchilada plate with a chicken enchilada and a beef enchilada.

Chamorro plate

The tortilla chips were delicious. They're shaped as if they were made from real tortillas. 4:53 PM PT

The meat in the Chamorro plate was soft and easy to break apart. The sauce tasted great. Ada liked it better with rice. It was delicious.

chicken enchilada (right) and beef enchilada (left)

The green side of the enchilada was good, but the steak was chewy. I didn't mind the chewiness, but some people might. 5:07 PM PT

[20190113 Edit]

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Sabroso! Mexican Grill

wet carne asada burrito (half green sauce and half red sauce)

Relevant Links:
Sabroso! Mexican Grill Website
Sabroso! Mexican Grill - Garden Grove, CA (Yelp.com)

Sushi Plus

20140108:
As of 20140921, I'm unsure if this was my first visit to Sushi Plus. Furthermore, I can't seem to find my notes for this and other events taking place during 201401. I do, however, have some pictures to share.

Bob Marley (20140108)

Menu Description:
Bob Marley in: shrimp, jalapeno, crabmeat, unagi; out: spicy tuna, unagi, avocado

Yellow Rose (20140108)

Menu Description:
Yellow Rose in: avocado, cucumber, gobo; out: yellowtail

Volcano (20140108)

Menu Description:
Volcano in: crabmeat, avocado, jalapeno; out: fresh salmon w/spicy tuna

[20140921][20150819 Edit]

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20140801:

Seaweed Salad (20140801)

Menu Description:
Seaweed Salad

The mussels are a bit chewy, but light on the mayonnaise.

Baked Mussels (20140801)

Menu Description:
Baked Mussels 6pc

The Salmon Skin Roll is nice and crunchy. I like it, but my dad doesn't. The taste of dried fish is delicious; it reminds me of this fish jerky I ate a lot when I was a kid.

Salmon Skin Roll (20140801)

Menu Description:
Salmon Skin Roll in: fried salmon skin, avocado, cucumber, gobo; out: spicy mayo sauce

Double Dragon has a soft texture and is slightly spicy, probably due to the spicy tuna.

Double Dragon (20140801)

Menu Description:
Double Dragon in: unagi, avocado, spicy tuna; out: unagi

The Bob Marley is not as good as I remember. Some pieces have more avocado and others have more eel.

Bob Marley (20140801)

Menu Description:
Bob Marley in: shrimp, jalapeno, crabmeat, unagi; out: spicy tuna, unagi, avocado

The tempura fish in the Green Giant tastes like chicken. 8:35PM PT

Green Giant (20140801)

Menu Description:
Green Giant in: tempura fish, spicy crabmeat, cucumber; out: lots of avocado

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20140828:
Today my sister bought some sushi to go.

The Super Lobster Roll is definitely good.

Super Lobster Roll (20140828)

Menu Description:
Super Lobster in: shrimp, jalapeno, crabmeat, avocado; out: baked crawfish and shrimp

The Five Star is simple, but better.

Five Star (20140828)

Menu Description:
Five Star in: crabstick, tuna, salmon, yellowtail, avocado, masago, green onion

The Calamari Lover is tasty, but I might as well just eat tempura.

Calamari Lover (20140828)

Menu Description:
Calamari Lover in: tempura calamari, crab meat; out: tempura calamari

??? (20140828)

I skipped out on the spicy tuna one. My sister said it usually has crab meat in the center, but she substitutes it with spicy tuna instead. 11:59AM PT

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20150719:
Although I just had sushi yesterday at Gesshin, I was more than happy to go eat sushi again today!

And since Sushi Plus is my sister's go-to sushi place in the area, my dad, sister, and I decided to go there.

The first roll/dish which arrived, and in the end my favorite, was the salmon scallop roll.

Salmon Scallop Roll (20150719)

Menu Description:
Salmon Scallop Roll in: fresh scallop with sauce; out: fresh atlantic salmon 8.95

I would say I enjoyed the blend of texture between the the thick salmon and the similarly textured scallop.

After the salmon scallop roll arrived, several other rolls/dishes came and I decided to start with the Spider Roll.

Spider Roll (20150719)

Menu Description:
Spider Roll in: soft shell crab, crabmeat, avocado, cucumber; out: masago w/ eel sauce 8.95

While it was crunchy, it did not taste as good as I was hoping it would taste.

In any case, as I was trying out the Spider Roll, my sister suggested I next eat a piece of the Crazy Roll while it was still crunchy.

Crazy Roll (20150719)

Menu Description:
Crazy Roll in: tempura california roll; out: spicy salmon 8.95

I subsequently took one of the four Crazy Roll pieces and found myself thoroughly enjoying its texture. In particular, I considered its texture superior to that of the Spider Roll, because of the crabmeat.

This was my sister's favorite roll among the one's we ordered today.

Then next up was the Super Rainbow.

Spicy Rainbow (20150719)

Menu Description:
Spicy Rainbow in: temp. shrimp, spicy tuna, avocado; out: sealed yellowtail, tuna, salmon, albacore 11.95

Overall, it was tasty and thankfully the spicy tuna didn't seem to affect me much (no allergic reaction).

Actually, the Spicy Rainbow was my dad's favorite roll this visit and he said he would order it again! 7:50PM PT

Finally last, and possibly least enjoyed, was the Monster - a Dragon Roll with shrimp inside instead of crabmeat.

Monster (20150719)

Menu Description:
Monster in: shrimp, crabmeat, avocado, cucumber; out: unagi, avocado, eel sauce 10.95

While I didn't make any instant comments on the Monster, my sister said she didn't like the amount of sesame seeds that were on it.

Furthermore, even without any comments, I vaguely remember that the Monster was consumed at a slower rate compared to the other rolls.

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Baja Fresh (20180711)

20180711:
Today I came here with Ada. To eat, Ada specifically ordered a chicken bowl, while I ordered the Lobster Roll and the Baja Fresh (roll). To drink I ordered a glass of Sapporo (on tap). 7:11 PM PT

First up was the Baja Fresh roll. I liked the smell of the salsa. My first bite was of the tuna. Ada didn't like the messy presentation of either roll. The roll fell apart, but I enjoyed the taste.

Menu Description:
Baja Fresh In: crabmeat, avocado, cucumber | Out: tuna, salmon, pico de gallo 11.95

Chicken Bowl (20180711)

Ada said the chicken bowl was too sweet. I later had a taste and I agreed that it was sweet, but it was not too sweet.

Menu Description:
Chicken bowl 7.95

Next, the Lobster Roll. Some of the lobster pieces were dry. The roll was sweet, but I liked the sweetness. Unfortunately, the lobster roll was too soft and it broke apart much more than I expected. 7:49 PM PT

Lobster Roll (20180711)

Menu Description:
Lobster Roll In: crabmeat, avocado, cucumber | Out: baked crawfish w/ eel sauce 10.50

[20181223]

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Sushi Plus

Relevant Links:
Sushi Plus Orange County Website
Sushi Plus - Fountain Valley, CA (Yelp.com)

Tuna Nigiri (20140108)