22nd Annual Wild & Crazy Taco Night

UPDATE: Here is the slideshow of the event:

Click here if the slideshow above does not appear.

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It’s time for the 22^nd Annual Wild & Crazy Taco Night, April 16^th at Share Our Selves in Costa Mesa. Twenty-six of Orange County’s most prominent restaurants will join an expected 650 supporters of SOS for a casual evening of beer, margaritas, and exotic tacos. 

In the spirit of good-natured competition and to support a great cause, these generous chefs will be whipping up delicious and unique tacos. The chefs’ creativity is endless and the food leaves guests talking for the rest of the year! Tickets include all you can eat tacos, and beverages including Tres Sietes Tequila margaritas and beer.

Back by popular demand is the pre-event VIP Party!  Participating guests will enjoy early admission and have the opportunity to meet all of the chefs and sample their tacos before the general event begins. The VIP Party has sold out each year.

Proceeds from the event benefit the SOS Food Pantry which collects retrievable food from restaurants, grocery stores, bakeries, and caterers to distribute to low income Orange County residents. Six mornings a week, volunteer and staff drivers collect food from throughout the county and deliver it to SOS. Five days a week, SOS distributes approximately 215 bags of groceries a day to individuals and families in need.

WHEN:             Thursday, April 16, 2015

5:30pm – 7:30pm  

VIP Pre-Party 4:30pm – 5:30pm

WHERE:           Share Our Selves – 1550 Superior Avenue, Costa Mesa, CA 92627

COST:              Early Bird General Admission (purchased now through March 31^st) - $70

General Admission (purchased on or after April 1^st) - $80

VIP Admission $150

ADVANCE SALE ONLY

CONTACT:        To purchase tickets, visit www.shareourselves.org/events or call SOS at 949.270.2134

ORANGE COUNTY’S PREMIERE PARTICIPATING CHEFS

Arti Anand
The Dessert Lab
Alan Greeley
The Golden Truffle
Cory Rapp
The Catch
Carlos Anthony
taco asylum
Andrew Gruel
SLAPFISH
Jose Rodriguez & Manfred Lassahn
Pete’s Sunset Grille at Hyatt Regency HB
Franco Barone
il Barone Ristorante
Carlito Jocson & Adam Feirman
Yard House
Deborah Schneider & Alfonso de Zuniga
Sol Cocina
Noah Blöm
ARC
Louie Jocson
Zov’s
Deborah Schneider & Jesus Silva
solita tacos & margaritas
Paul Buchanan
Primal Alchemy
Linda Johnsen
Filomena’s Italian Kitchen
Paul Squicciarini
Culinary Craft
Greg Daniels
Haven Gastropub & Provisions Market
Rachel Klemek
Blackmarket Bakery
Lou Tista
Rasta Taco
Mark Gagnon
Newport Beach Plaza
Steve Kling
Five Crowns
Marco Zapien
Melissa’s Produce
Manny Gonzalez
TAPS Fish House & Brewery
David Man
Island Hotel
Dustin White
Orange Hill
Salvatore Gonzales
Newport Rib Company
Alessandro Pirozzi
Alessá Laguna, Mare Culinary Lounge & Pirozzi Corona del Mar

Share Our Selves (SOS) is a nationally recognized health center providing high quality, comprehensive safety net services to the Orange County Community. Services include: medical and dental care, behavioral health services, case management, food, clothing, financial assistance, legal aid, and seasonal holiday programs.

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www.shareourselves.org

La Casa Brito

La Casa Brito 6618 Westminster Blvd Westminster, CA 92683 (714) 891-7513 Listing at Cortera Business Directory Listing at What's Good Here? Official Site(?)

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Our written review for La Casa Brito comes from Steve T.:

If you’re looking for a great, low-key Mexican restaurant in North OC (Westminster), check out La Casa Brito, an unpretentious little sit-down in a strip mall; tile floor, wooden tables and booths; never too crowded, but never dead either.

I’ve eaten their hard shell tacos (deliciously crispy), Baja Fish (soft shell), Enchiladas, Machaca and Eggs (one of my personal favorites), Huevos Rancheros, Chile Verde, Chile Relleno, Wet Burritos, Camarones and Carne Asada plates and have never been disappointed. The Combo plates are all great and come with the traditional chips and salsa, rice, beans, and corn tortillas. As an additional bonus, unless you’re a huge eater, you’ll probably end up taking some home for later.

La Casa Brito offers a traditional Cal-Mex menu… you won’t find Cuervo Gold margaritas but you can order your choice of cerveza, wine, and/or wine margaritas. What you will find though is good portions of tasty, old-fashioned family-style Mexican food at an affordable price with enough depth in their menu to keep you coming back again and again.

La Casa Brito is kind of like an old standby; I give it a solid Four Star Rating.

Steve T.

Click here for the full flickr photo album (21 photos so far).

State of the Blog

If I judge my calendar correctly and my memory serves me well then it was 9 years ago today that I first posted to this blog. A lot has happened since then. I've had many great meals at many places, and maybe a few so-so meals. I've been graciously invited to many events and have got to know my way around the county better and have gotten to know a lot of people. And I've taken thousands of photos. Oh, and because of this blog I have started an effort to bring back the Naugles chain.

There isn't the same attention given to personal food blogs now as there used to be. Most of that attention has shifted to the Yelp juggernaut. But that doesn't change the fact that I am still on a mission to try all the Mexican food in the county that I can. That will still be happening and I'll still be taking photos, tweeting a lot of them, posting most to flickr, mentioning some on the Facebook page, and posting to the blog from time to time. The posts now will have more of an emphasis on photos and less of a focus on writing, which will make this blog what it was originally intended to be: a photo record of my quest. I still offer and pay $10 for each published guest review, so if you want to write up a place let me know. Amazingly, nine years into this there are still so many places I want to try and so many places I want to get back to. It's like the horizon keeps stretching out ahead of me, and that's a good thing. Thanks for joining me on this journey.

Here's a photo of the carnitas platter I got from George's Mexican Food in Huntington Beach at lunchtime today:

La Poblana/El Fogon

La Poblana 1228 E Edinger Ave Santa Ana, CA 92707 (657) 622-3020 Official Site (May Change)

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El Fogon was one of the Mexican places I ate at right before starting this blog. And then it took me almost 9 years to go back. Nothing against it; there's just a lot of places to go. So I go a couple months ago and it's still El Fogon; then I go two days and it's become La Poblana. But it uses the same menus as before, except that now the menus have blue tape over the name and over some of the prior menu items. It may be run by the same people as before, because at least one employee seemed to have been there on my prior visit. If anyone knows, please leave a comment.

Click here for the full flickr photo album (22 photos so far).

Taco de Ojo

Taco de Ojo Sports Cantina 7811 Edinger Ave #110 Huntington Beach, CA 92647 (714) 892-3852 Listing at Super Pages Listing at Urbanspoon Official Site

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(This is an "only-photos-first" post, done quickly to get photos up and a new entry on the blog, with the expectation that text may be added later. Guest reviews can also be added to this entry and each published one will be paid $10.)

Click here for the full flickr photo album (13 photos so far).

Old Phonebook Listings

Went to Huntington Beach Central Library recently and looked through old yellow pages from the 70's and 80's and it was interesting to see listings for Mexican restaurants that were around back then (some are still around). Leave a comment if you remember any of the now-defunct ones:

Don Jose's

Sancho's Restaurant

La Fiesta Grande

Acapulco

Senior Diego's

Tijuana Willie's

Lechuga's

The Hacienda

Sombrero Street

Casa Maria

Mañana

Burrito Hut

Tacos Mexico

Tacos Mexico 2102 S Bristol St Santa Ana, CA 92704 (714) 754-4064 Listing at Superpages Listing at MapQuest Official Site

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(This is an "only-photos-first" post, done quickly to get photos up and a new entry on the blog, with the expectation that text may be added later. Guest reviews can also be added to this entry and each published one will be paid $10.)

Click here for the full flickr photo album (7 photos so far).

Del Real Foods Giveaway #2

Winner Announcement

October 16, 2014: We have a winner! The drawing was held today (basically me putting all the entrants names on little slips of paper and one of my roommates pulling one blindly out of a bag) and Lauren L. of Tustin was the lucky winner. Congratulations to Lauren; your prize package from Del Real Foods is on its way.

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It's time for another contest. Del Real Foods recently sent me a package of some of their stuff to try and they have agreed to send a gift package to the lucky winner of this contest. To enter, simply e-mail reviews@ocmexfood.com with the subject line "Del Real Foods Giveaway #2". You have until October 15th to enter. On October 16th I will draw the lucky winner and notify them by e-mail. If you are the winner you can then give me your mailing address which I will have Del Real send the prize package to.

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Here's a couple videos posted earlier today to their YouTube channel:

And my Del Real Foods slideshow (click here if it doesn't show up in your browser):

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About Del Real Foods:

Founded in 2003 and headquartered in California, Del Real Foods is a family business committed to preserving the rich gastronomy and traditions of Central Mexico. Designed to satisfy all palates and promote healthy eating, Del Real Foods refrigerated products offer authentic taste, using the freshest, locally sourced ingredients and cooked with traditional methods for an enhanced dining experience among family and friends.

Del Real Foods refrigerated products include carnitas, barbacoa, tamales, seasoned shredded beef, shredded chicken and more.

Del Real Foods products are based on the following pillars:

• Authenticity: the family strives to create deliciously simple products based on traditional recipes infused with Mexican culture and bold colors. Prepared in an industrial, home kitchen, the products will provide comfort and familiarity.
• Healthy People: cooked with a safe open-kettle method, the products are made with the freshest, ingredients, most of which are locally sourced. Once prepared, they are ready to enjoy. The products are also gluten free and do not contain any trans fats.
• Healthy planet and better communities: the company has adopted sustainable initiatives including wastewater management and recycling to help the environment. Del Real Foods has also sponsored local sporting events and made donations to local communities to contribute to their improvement.

For more information, visit: delrealfoods.com

La Choza

La Choza 7402 Edinger Ave. Huntington Beach, CA 92647 Phone: (714) 842-7888 Listing at BeachCalifornia Listing at Gogobot Official Site

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(This is an "only-photos-first" post, done quickly to get photos up and a new entry on the blog, with the expectation that text may be added later. Guest reviews can also be added to this entry and each published one will be paid $10.)

Click here for the full flickr photo album (20 photos so far).

Taco Bell Testing New Breakfast Options

From an e-mail from Taco Bell:

Taco Bell’s new Biscuit Taco is a warm, flakey, golden brown biscuit that happens to be shaped in the form of a taco, served with your choice of classic breakfast favorites (Sausage, Egg and Cheese; or Bacon, Egg and Cheese) or traditional flavors of the South (Crispy Chicken with Country Gravy; or Crispy Chicken with Honey). The Biscuit Taco pays homage to the traditional Southern biscuit – made with real butter and real buttermilk. And for that Taco Bell twist consumers have come to expect, the NEW signature jalapeno honey sauce (served with the Crispy Chicken and Honey Biscuit Taco) delivers just the right amount of heat.

Originally tested in the heart of the biscuit-loving communities of San Antonio, TX and Atlanta, GA, the biscuit taco quickly met the Southern folks’ craveability and the nostalgic homage the taste could provide. The biscuit taco is currently testing in select restaurants within the Orange County / Los Angeles area.

The unsung hero of the current national Taco Bell breakfast menu, the original A.M. Crunchwrap flavors of Steak, Bacon, and Sausage, will now be joined by the A.M. California Crunchwrap and A.M. Country Crunchwrap. Both bring flavor depth and variety to the already-popular platform, taking sit-down breakfast favorites like the California omelet and Country Skillet with Gravy and Sausage and making them portable.

o The A.M. California Crunchwrap is filled with bacon, hashbrown, eggs, guacamole, cheddar cheese and pico de gallo.

o The A.M. Country Crunchwrap is filled with sausage, hashbrown, eggs, classic gravy and cheddar cheese.

South of Nick's

South of Nick's 110 N El Camino Real San Clemente, CA 92672 Tel: (949) 481-4545 Listing on CitySearch Listing at Friends Eat Official Site

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Here's a guest review by a former co-worker of mine, Mike Firman. Mike and I met for lunch one day and took a bunch of pictures and then later on he went back with his girlfriend.

My girlfriend and I finally made it to South of Nicks' today for breakfast/lunch at 12 noon. We made reservations since it was very busy as expected. We sat next to the bar just as you walk into the same dining are you and I did a few months back.

We ordered iced teas and along chips and salsa, chips hot and salsa fresh.

I had the #11 breakfast combo of Huevos Ahogados, served hot, great fresh flavor, colorado was thick and tasty, eggs were perfect and the avocado & black beans very tasty.

Laurie: Three item combo

1. Chili Relleno, the pepper was excellent with very good flavor and the egg batter was not fried which is a big plus, the refried beans were creamy with a little kick (spice) to them
2. Pork was tamale had generous meat and moist and the maza was fresh
3. Lastly the chicken taco was filled with lots of white meat and fresh tomatoes

Overall, we gave the dining experience a "10" and look forward to visiting again soon.

Thanks, Mike.

Click here for the full flickr photo album (46 photos so far).