Roundup #13

If this is the first time you've been to this blog don't be thrown off by this entry. We still have over a hundred reviews of Mexican restaurants in Orange County but every once in a while I do a "roundup" entry where I mention things that don't fit neatly into an official restaurant review.

Mexican restaurants I've reviewed before and have visited since the last roundup entry for non-review purposes include: Azteca's, Fiesta Grill, El Pollo Loco, Taco Rosa, Taleo, Taco Bell, Las Barcas, Baja Fish Tacos (where I went for lunch on an incredibly impromptu blind date), Del Taco, Kantina (who seemed to have recently swapped their eclectic menu out for a more traditional one), Las Fajitas, Molcajete Grill, and La Salsa (who have a new "Chipotle Citrus Salsa" added to their salsa bar and have also recently brought back their Chipotle Shrimp Salad).


Molcajete Grill Chile Relleno & Tamale Platter


Molcajete Grill Carnitas Tacos
I also visited Wahoo's once for non-review purposes and then the long lasting Wahoo's Non-review Curse was finally broken with this review . . . and then I went back again for another non-review visit.

Also, the Salad Wars entry has been updated with reviews of at least two more fast food Mexican-inspired salads.

Met up several nights with Cynthia Furey of The Orange County Register, new guest reviewer Johnny (we have a fourth review of his coming soon) and his wife, and new reader Shelly (who found out about this blog from the Register article), at Taco Rosa in Irvine where we enjoyed some great food as well as conversation that never slowed down. I believe Cynthia will be mentioning this visit on her blog. For now, here are a few pictures from our meetup:

Taco Rosa's Camarones Rancheros

Taco Rosa's Dessert Platter

Non-Mexican restaurants I've visited since the last roundup entry include, but are not limited to: Kabuki, Funashin, Aloha Mixed Plate, Royal Ocean Terrace, Ferraro's at the Four Seasons Maui, Longhi's, The Wok Experience, Tropical Smoothie Cafe, Market Broiler, King's Hawaiian (both locations), Ebisu, Gong's Chinese, La Brea Bakery, Claim Jumper, TK Burger, Daphne's Greek Cafe, Johnny Rockets, Kabuki (again - and they had some new menu items this time - and free edamame for every table now), Jackson Barne Classic Grill, Mandarin Restaurant, and Pat & Oscar's (gotta love those breadsticks).

And here's a reminder of the coupon we're offering (yes, it's legitimate) good for a free appetizer or dessert item at Taleo Mexican Grill:

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Before heading to Taleo be sure to check out our complete coverage of them giving an extensive rundown of their menu and environment.

Chevys - Review #1

Date of Visit: August 11, 2007

Chevys Fresh Mex 8200 E Santa Ana Canyon Rd Anaheim, CA 92808 (714) 974-6703 Listing on Yahoo! Local Listing on Ask.com's Citysearch Official Site

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Appetizer: Chips and Salsa
Entree: Tequila-Lime Shrimp Fajitas
Drink: Watermelon Lemonade
Dessert: Chiquita Sundae

UPDATE: Chevy's has closed down as of late 2011.

Time for a Chevys review, the restaurant that I thought went out of existence when its Fountain Valley location shut down a few years back. I'd made many visits to the FV location where they always pointed out "El Machino," the tortilla-making machine in the front that mass-manufactured tortillas that seemed like they were made by hand. The last time I remember going there for sure was probably 2001/2002 and it's now a Stonefire Grill restaurant. When it shut down I mistakenly assumed the whole chain had gone out of business.

The saggy sign didn't stop customers from coming

Recently though I realized there was one in Anaheim so I went last week with Anaheim friends James and Lori to get reacquainted with Chevys. If you've never experienced Chevys before just think El Torito with a little more color and a slight Tex-Mex spin and you'll have a pretty accurate idea of what Chevys is like. They were promoting some special summer dishes, much of which seemed to be focused on watermelon. I started out with a watermelon lemonade which was extra refreshing and much less acidic than normal lemonade. Could I possibly convince Chevys to add this as a regular item?

Each of us ordered a different fajita dish with Lori ordering the mixed grill ("Baby back ribs, tender grilled chicken breast, marinated skirt steak, fuego-seasoned shrimp and sauteed San Antonio veggies."), James ordering the chicken fajitas (" A skinless, fresh chicken breast marinated in our own Agua Negra served with sautéed San Antonio veggies."), and me ordering their special Tequila-Lime Shrimp Fajitas.

If I could convince Chevys to also add the Tequila-Lime Shrimp Fajitas to their regular menu I'd do that too. The sauce was so flavorful and robust that I was trying to scoop up as much of it as I could with my shrimp before stuffing them into the tortillas from El Machino and making three sublime shrimp tacos.

For dessert I ordered their Chiquita Sundae - "Rich vanilla ice cream afloat a sweet cinnamon 'boat' topped with our freshly–made cajeta and homemade chocolate sauces and whipped cream." When James and Lori saw what I got they ordered one too.

Chevys earns a four Speedy Gonzales rating:

Fast Food Maven Blog Goes Live

Readers of this blog got a sneak peek about a week ago at Nancy Luna's blog (Fast Food Maven) but today it officially became part of the Register's website. If you get a chance catch Nancy talking about her blog on "The Real Orange" on KOCE at 11pm tonight where she gives an overview of her blog's coverage and happens to mention a "local foodie who loves Mexican food."

Carnitas Los Reyes - Review #1

Carnitas Los Reyes 273 S Tustin St Orange, CA 92866 (714) 744-9337 Listing on Yahoo! Local Listing on Ask.com's Citysearch No known official website.

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Here's Johnny, our roving reporter on the streets of San Francisco, ehr, I mean the streets of Orange, checking in with his third guest review, this time of Carnitas Los Reyes:

I arrived at Carnitas Los Reyes around 12:45pm and the place was jumping. The first thing that struck me was the ridiculously low prices for the food. Tacos are $1, Tortas and burritos are $3.50. I stood and took in the menu for a few minutes and took in the whole scene. The fillings are all right there in front of you behind the glass partition. So is one of the 5 or 6 people working in the kitchen which is also right out there in front of you. One of the assembly stations is right up front and you can see everything being put together.

After deciding to try an assortment of tacos I went to the side counter where you order. I ordered 4 tacos - one each of carnitas, al pastor, lengua and chorizo. They ask if you want them with everything on them, which I did. You can also get carne asada, pollo and buche for fillings. As I mentioned it was very busy so I had several orders in front of me. I made my order to go. So I just stood near the front counter and watched as orders were put together. The burritos are huge and filled with meat. They look like a great deal. Same goes for the tortas which have the same fillings available. The entire time I waited I was the only "guero" in the place.

I watched them make my order and as I expected "everything" meant a little onions and cilantro and salsa on the tacos. Soon I was handed a bag that seemed too big for just the tacos. Sure enough it had a bag of chips, salsa and some escabeche (pickled carrots and jalapeños). All of this came to $4.31 with tax. You can see from the photo that it is a lot of food. Normally I wouldn't order 4 tacos but I wanted to try an assortment. Next time I think I'll get one burrito or torta. Anyway, it's a tough job but somebody had to do it.

Looking at and smelling all the food while waiting gave me a hint of what a treat I was in for. All four types were just excellent. The flavors of each filling were so flavorful. The lengua (beef tongue) was obviously slowly cooked bringing out the rich beef flavor. If you haven't had lengua give it a try. When prepared right, it is like the best pot roast you ever had but lots juicier than a pot roast. They make it right here. The pork al pastor was rich and heady with a strong spicy barbeque flavor. The chorizo was spicy and meaty and less greasy than most. It seemed to have a touch of the spice mace or some similar spice. Really good and intriguing. I'm still tasting it. Finally the namesake carnitas were just great. Once again, deep flavors that were obviously the result of long, slow cooking with some nice crispy edges. The salsa was a nice light, fresh spicy concoction that went well with the chips. The carrots in the escabeche were a little soft for my taste but this is a minor quibble.

For beverages they carry the usual sodas along with fresh Jamaica (fruit punch) and Horchata along with Tamarindo (but I didn't see that fresh).

This has to be one of the greatest $4 meals I have ever had. Truly, truly great version of down home taqueria cooking. I cannot imagine anyplace that could make it better. For anyone who loves this style of Mexican food let me add my name to the chorus of voices praising this place. Leaving room for fancier takes on Mexican I rate this 4 and 1/4 Speedy Gonzales if only to give Taco Mesa a quarter point more for their great lobster bisque and nicer atmosphere.

Rasta Taco Tasting

No More "Waiting In Vain"

Received word from Rasta Taco that they are holding a free taste test party tomorrow night:

Come on down to Dana Point Harbor this Wednesday, August 8th, for a free Rasta Taco Tasting. We'll be cooking up Jamaican-style Chicken, Caribbean Carne Asada and other favorites just like we do at our Rasta Taco parties. It's BYOB and we'll have the reggae music on tap.

We'll be at the north area of Dana Island, over by the Richard Henry Dan statue. Our Sales Manager, Lovalee, will be there to book your next party. Grillin' and jammin' at 7:00PM.

I'm not sure if I'll be able to make it or not but if anybody goes please try to report on it.

Lazy Dog Cafe

The Lazy Dog Cafe 16310 Beach Blvd Westminster, CA 92683 (714) 848-4300 Listing on Yahoo! Local Listing on Google Maps Official Site

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Here's my first review in a long time of a place that is not a Mexican restaurant but still has some Mexican items on their menu. The Lazy Dog Cafe is a new chain serving American comfort food in a rustic yet contemporary setting. It has a handful of locations in Orange County with more on the way. The location I have visited twice now is in Westminster, but it's a chunk of Westminster that used to be part of Huntington Beach.

On my first visit I tried the Tex-Mex Salad, made up of, "Romaine lettuce, chicken breast, avocado, corn, tomato, cornbread croutons, BBQ sauce, ranch, cheddar and jack cheese served on a black bean tostada." I ordered the small size and it still filled me up. All the ingredients were very fresh. Perfect lunch for a summer afternoon.

On my second visit I tried the "Inside-Out" Quesadilla, which is basically a regular quesadilla that not only has cheese inside but outside as well. The cheese on the outside is fried to a crisp (I have heard that this cooks all the fat away) while the cheese inside is the typical melted, gooey, stick-to-your-ribs phenomenon. Served with guacamole, sour cream, and fresh salsa and you can add chicken or beef for $2.75 or blackened shrimp for $3.95.

Service was excellent during each visit and I had the Pomegranate Punch each time. I think The Lazy Dog Cafe is going to get a lot of repeat business based on their hospitality alone and double that based on the quality of their food. As I go back and try the couple other Mexican-based menu items I'll add the photos to this entry.

Cafe El Cholo - Review #1

Date of Visit: July 31, 2007

Cafe El Cholo 840 E Whittier Blvd La Habra, CA 90631 (562) 691-4618 Listing on Yahoo! Local Listing on Ask.com's Citysearch Official Site

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This may have been one of the longest excursions I have taken just to review a Mexican restaurant for this blog. Went out to La Habra the other day, the far north corner of the county (so far north in fact that it's telephone number is in the 562 area code), and met up with Nancy Luna and Cynthia Furey of The Orange County Register for lunch at Cafe El Cholo, part of the El Cholo chain that began in Los Angeles in the 1920s and currently has two locations in Orange County. This particular location has been around since 1962 which easily makes it one of the oldest Mexican restaurants in the county.

We all went for some type of enchilada platter. Cynthia ordered a chicken enchilada platter from the lunch specials menu:

Nancy ordered the Blue Corn Enchiladas: "Marinated Breast of Chicken Enchiladas wrapped with Blue Corn Tortillas, Tomatillo Sauce, Sour Cream, and Avocado Garnish. Served with Black Beans and Rice."

And I ordered the Annie's Early California Enchilada: "Garden Fresh Vegetables, Spinach, Sauteed Mushrooms, and Jack Cheese, Corn and Tomato Salsa." These were excellent vegetarian enchiladas that made me forget I was eating vegetarian food.

An interesting feature about Cafe El Cholo's website is that their online menu tells you when each item was introduced.

For dessert Cynthia and Nancy shared a pecan praline sundae (the photo doesn't do it justice):

While I ordered the deep-fried ice cream, which was good and filled the dessert role just right but wasn't so heavy that it made me feel guilty of gluttony:

As with the Irvine location each member of the party gets a pecan praline cookie when the check comes:

I think you might actually be able to bags of these cookies before you leave. The El Cholo chain is getting ready to open a third restaurant in Orange County, a venture into the fast casual realm. Read an advance report on it at Nancy's blog, and you can bet it will be covered in full here when it opens. For now, Cafe El Cholo earns a four Speedy Gonzales rating:



Here's some extra photos:

Click on the 'el cholo' label to read our complete coverage of the El Cholo chain in Orange County (we have a separate review for each of their locations):

Two Quick Items

Register reporter Nancy Luna is about to launch a fast food-oriented blog on the Register's website but we can get a sneak peek of it now right here. Her most recent post (as of this writing) is on some new items at El Pollo Loco. One of the next reviews to be posted at this blog will tell of a lunch I enjoyed yesterday with Nancy and the other Register food blogger, Cynthia Furey, so keep your eyes peeled.

Also, the table of all the restaurants we have reviewed so far that is in the Where Have We Been? entry is now sortable. So, if you want to find all the Mexican restaurants covered so far in a particular city then just click on the word "City" in the table's header and the list will be sorted by city. Or sort by restaurant name if you wish.