A Few Thoughts

I have really enjoyed writing and keeping this blog. I want to thank all loyal readers. But even if nobody read this blog, I would still write and update the blog. It is so much fun.

A few things I want to comment on.

I rarely if ever get or care about the side dishes. Most of the times I don't even eat the side dish, a taste or two at most is all I eat. I go to restaurants for the main deal, BBQ ribs, fried chicken, whatever. Of course I will mention if the sides are good. But really if the sides were terrible and the ribs or chicken were great, I would go back to that restaurant and order just the ribs and chicken.

Another thing that has come to my attention. How do I handle bad service at a restaurant? Do I just sit there and take it and then write about it on my blog? Or do I call it to their attention. Basically it depends on the situation. I don't make a big deal, at the time, if a hostess doesn't greeet me. But then I will mention it on my blog. I've worked in retail before and the #1 rule was always greet the customers. Just a simple HI, I will be right with you, is more than enough.

But if the bad service is affecting my meal, then I will say something.

I have also made a point to mention to servers that it is rude to ask, "Do you need change?" I tell them the better phrase is "Thank you, I will be right back with your change." That way I'm reminded if I do need change and forget to tell the server.

My plans for 2009 include doing more reviews in the Inland Empire area. I don't get out to that area much but I need to make an effort to go to more restaurants in that area.

You can always email me any suggestions at thenewdiner@gmail.com

Honey's Kettle Fried Chicken- Compton

Honey's Kettle Fried Chicken
2600 E Alondra Blvd
Compton
310-638-7871

I have known about the Honey's Kettle Fried Chicken in Culver City for a long time. I just don't get to that area much. But when I heard that they have another location in Compton, off the 710 freeway, I made a special trip to finally try this fried chicken.

I ordered two breast pieces, $4.87. The chicken was cooked within the past ten minutes because the inside was still steaming hot. The skin was crispy. It reminded me of Golden Bird Now some people have compared this to Pioneer Chicken but I I think it is closer to Golden Bird, but this is much better than Golden Bird. The meat was juicy, tender and flavorful. A very good chicken.

Service was pretty good. They actually greet you but oh well. They were nice and friendly after I placed my order.

Ok, I know people are going to say, WOW, you went into Compton? Yes, I did and I didn't have any problems.

Paradise Pizza

Paradise Pizza
376 S Lemon Ave
Walnut
909-595-1556

Although a few of my recent reviews may say otherwise, I do hate the big, coporate chain restaurants, especially the pizza places. So I try and support the mom and pop pizza places. But the only trouble is you have to try out all the mom and pop pizza places before you know which one is good.

Well Paradise Pizza is no paradise. They were closed for four days, Christmas-Dec 28th. I was finally able to get somebody to answer the phone and when I asked, what time do they close, the guy said I don't know. Nice. I knew I wasn't dealing with a professionally run pizza place.

So I walk into Paradise and there are no menus on the wall or any kind of menus. Now I know ordering a pizza isn't rocket science but I like to see what options I have and the cost of the pizza. Oh well. I asked for a small pepperoni. The guy told me the smallest they had was a medium. I asked how big the medium was, he said about 12 inches. Ok, a little more than I wanted but who cares. I order a medium pepperoni and was shocked at the price, $5.40. They must really be hurting for business.

The pizza comes out quickly and is hot. The pizza has a large amount of cheese, which I like. The amount of cheese is equal to some other place's extra cheese. The pepperoni was a bit spicy and was OK. But there was almost no sauce, a very thin layer and some spots had no sauce at all. Not good. Also not good, was the amount of grease. A very greasy, pizza. The crust was soft and chewy a bit of thicker crust.

Service was OK. There is only one person there and he doesn't keep regular hours. He closes whenever he feels like. He wasn't the most friendly but he wasn't rude either.

Interesting story, a person walking by, while I was waiting for the pizza, told me they served the pizza at the middle school down the street. He knew because he graduated from that middle school and he believes they still serve Paradise pizza at the school. After trying the pizza, I can't believe a school would give such a greasy pizza to kids.

I wouldn't go back to Paradise Pizza again. The pizza is very greasy and while the price is good, it's just not worth it.

McDonald's Downey

McDonald's Downey
10207 Lakewood Blvd
Downey
562-622-9248

Ok, what the hell is a McDonald's review doing on The New Diner? Well this is the oldest operating McDonald's in the world. Opened in 1953, they were not part of McDonald's corporation until 1990. The restaurant was damaged by the 1994 Northridge earthquake but reopened two years later with a museum. The museum has all kinds of pictures and McDonald's cups, wrappers, and toys. The corporation sold it to the current owner/operator in 1998.

Ray Kroc, who would buy out the McDonald brothers, visited this location to prepare for opening his own McDonald's in Illinois.

I have been meaning to go back to this McDonald's but never made the trip. But I finally made it and I'm glad I did. One of the first things you notice is that the old McDonald's logo, Speedee, is still used, one everything from the trash cans to the signs.

I got the Big Mac meal, $3.99. Everybody knows what a Big Mac is. This isn't different than a Big Mac from anywhere else. Two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a seasame seed bun. The fries were McDonald's fries, salty, softy on the inside, pretty crisp on the outside. Nothing special about it.

I then got a cheeseburger, 99 cents. Again same as any other McDonald's cheeseburger.

Service is OK. They workers do not dress like they did back when it opened. Service at McDonald's has slipped overall but this location was pretty good for McDonald's. But there are some stupid drivers in Downey, well at least in this parking lot. I can't believe some stupid, fat woman drove her Mustang about 50 mph in the damn parking lot, blasting her radio for everybody to hear. Stupid.

But I loved the sense of history you get from going here. Opened in 1953, a full five years before a drunken mick, stole the Brooklyn Dodgers from their rightful home. Wrigley Field and Gilmore Field were both thriving ballparks in LA. What a treat for a kid, living in Downey, to go to McDonald's after going to Wrigley Field to see the LA Angels vs the Hollywood Stars.

This was a very cool experience. You feel as though you stepped back in time going here. I'm glad to see McDonald's has a sense of history and has kept this location open. I would hate to see this turned into one of newer McDonald's that are being built.

Pittsburgh Broasted Chicken- Pomona

Pittsburgh Broasted Chicken- Pomona
669 Indian Hill Blvd
Pomona
909-469-2702

After all this time driving down to Los Alamitos for Pittsburgh Broasted Chicken, they finally open a location about 15 minutes from me. YES!!!!

I ordered the 2 piece lunch special, $4.79, breast and wing with lemon pepper seasoning, broasted potatoes, roll and mac salad. This is as good as their other location. The chicken is so moist and juicy and tender and since it's cooked to order, expect a 10 minute wait, fresh and hot. This batch didn't have as much lemon pepper seasoning but it was there. The pieces are fairly big. The potatoes are firm on the outside and soft inside. The mac salad was creamy but tasted like it's from a container. But who cares, you go for the chicken.

Service is good. The owner is very nice and helpful. There are a few tables inside, unlike the Los Al location which is mainly a take out.

I would go back to Pittsburgh Broasted Chicken anytime. I'm glad they opened a location closer to me. This is better than Donahoo's and Louisiana Fried Chicken.


I found out that Pittsburgh opened from a blog titled Jerk in Pomona. Ok ok it was titled Student in Pomona and the jerk is a student at Cal Poly Pomona. Why is he a jerk? Because he's a punk kid who doesn't know the meaning of honor Vietnam Veterans. Jerk punk kid.

3 Bears

3 Bears
11916 S Figueroa St
Los Angeles
323-754-7664

I thought that 3 Bears was a BBQ place. WRONG. It is a burger place. The burgers are huge and look awesome. So I may come back here for a burger. But I came here for BBQ and so of course I had their BBQ ribs dinner, $13.06 with double order of onion rings. In keeping in the Christmas spirit, they gave all meals $1 off. Very nice.

I wish I could say the same for their ribs. The ribs are cooked in an oven, very dry, not flavor, lots of fat and just plain bad. Ok they tried but really they need to stop making oven cooked ribs and just stick to the burgers.

Service is very good. A very nice older man took my order. He was friendly and helpful. Parking, all street parking, can be tough to find as there are many houses and apartments nearby. The neighborhood isn't exactly the best area but I didn't have any problems.

As I said, I will not go back to 3 Bears for the BBQ. But I will be back for the burgers.

Tower Pizza

Tower Pizza
8351 Lincoln Blvd
Los Angeles
310-410-4680

Tower Pizza is located near LAX and the campus of LMU. It's been there forever because they have signed shoes of Lakers' Legends, James Worthy, Magic Johnson, Kareem, and Kurt Rambis. The Lakers used to practice at LMU and from the looks of things, they stopped into Tower Pizza after practice.

I ordered the small Super Tower pizza, $7, with pepperoni, sausage, Canadian Bacon, and mushrooms. I get the pizza and the first thing I notice is the grease and lots of it. Not a good start. Then I noticed the crust, very thin, almost cracker like. But because of the grease, the crust wasn't as crispy as a cracker. But the crust wasn't good either. There were a lot of toppings but the mushrooms were from a can, the sausage was bland, the pepperoni was OK and there were little Canadian Bacon.

Service was below average. When I walked in, there was nobody greeting people at the door and nobody behind the bar. Well the guy in charge was busy playing video golf. But he takes my order and then continues his video golf. I felt as though I was interrupting his video golf time. The guy was friendly and nice but not exactly attentive. Tower Pizza gives the vive of a dive bar that happens to serve pizza. I can't imagine families going in here and having a meal.

I would not go back to Tower Pizza. The pizza is below average and you really do get the feeling you're in a dive bar that serves pizza. I do realize the full name is Tower Pizza Bar and Grill.

If you're wondering why there is a KFC cup, I actually ordered the pizza to go and then ordered soda at a nearby KFC. I didn't feel like dining in at Tower Pizza.

Bob's Big Boy- Burbank

Bob's Big Boy- Burbank
4211 W Riverside Drive
Burbank
818-843-9334

Maybe it's because of the holidays but I get nostalgic and I thought about Bob's Big Boy. So I found out that Bob's Big Boy in Burbank has been opened and has basically kept the same design, since 1949. So I knew I had to go.

What a great treat to see a non cookie cutter restaurant. Such great detail and design. I took lots of pictures.

I was shocked to see the amount of people here. The way for a table was thirty minutes on a Saturday afternoon. I would find out later that the workers there consider that to be a SLOW day!!!!

So I decided to get an take out order, since there are some picnic tables by the car hop area. I ordered the Super Big Boy with fries, $7.39. This is cheaper than the Bob's in Diamond Bar, so I figure the Burbank location does so much more volume they can charge less. The Super Big Boy is awesome. The Burbank location puts more of that Bob's relish on the Big Boy than the Diamond Bar location. But otherwise they taste exactly the same, great. The fries were ok but I saw so full from the hot dog and Big Boy, I only ate a few fries.

Service was both good and TERRIBLE. When you walk into the front door, you are greeted by a nice host. I asked him how long is the wait for a table. I didn't like the thirty minute wait, so I decide to get take out. He directed me to the take out register. He was nice, helpful and pleasant.

But the bitch at the take out register was TERRIBLE. She never greeted me. She never smiled, she had the attitude, order quick, I'm busy. When my order came up, she didn't even say thank you. She wasn't pleasant. She was just a bitch with the attitude of Why am I here? Well I can tell her many other places to go. Not sure what the hell is in the water in Burbank but terrible service at both Bob's and Papoo's.

As I was eating the Super Big Boy, a cook was taking his break. So I got to talking to him. He said Fridays and Saturdays nights are so busy you can't even get a parking space. Fridays they have a classic car night and the parking lot is filled by 4pm. I couldn't believe he considered the crowd today slow. A thirty minute wait for a table on a Saturday and he thinks that is slow!!!!

Overall though I did enjoy my experience at the Bob's Big Boy in Burbank. I would come back here if I was in the area. This is open 24 hours so that's always a plus and they have a drive thru. Hopefully that bitch isn't working the next time I come.

Papoo's Hot Dog Show

Papoo's Hot Dog Show
4300 W Riverside Dr
Burbank
818-846-1511

Papoo's Hot Dog Show is across the street from Bob's Big Boy. Both have been in Burbank since 1949. Once I saw the hot dog I wanted to give them a try.

I ordered the Dressed Dog, $3.25, a Hoffy hot dog with natural casing, mustard, onions, and relish. I asked for no relish. The hot dog was very good. A good snap and flavor. But they said the hot dog is charbroiled. Well this hot dog was barely grilled. I saw some burnt marks but it wasn't close to being charbroiled. It doesn't really make a difference to me, whether or not it's charbroiled or steamed but if you say it's charbroiled, charbroil the damn thing.

Service was TERRIBLE. I walked in and the two worthless servers saw me but didn't greet me. Nice. I took a seat, again both servers walked by, saw me but didn't say anything. Finally one of them, asks what would I like. No, hi how are you? Or what would I like to drink. I order the hot dog, she walks away and then asks what did you say you wanted to drink? Hello, stupid, you didn't ask what I wanted to drink. I told her I just want water. When I get my bill, she slams the bill down on the counter. Nice.

I would not go back here again. TERRIBLE service and while the hot dogs were good, they are overpriced.

Kyala Sushi

Kyala Sushi
1178 S Diamond Bar Blvd
Diamond Bar
909-860-9162

I have passed Kyala Sushi all the time but I have never stopped in. So I decide to see what this is all about. They have been in Diamond Bar for a long time, replacing The Factory/Gia's, which was an Italian/pizza restaurant.

I wanted to get a taste of their sushi first, so I got the yellowtail sushi, $4.75 and the shrimp tempura roll, $5.50. The yellowtail was bigger than most sushi places. But not fresh, very mushy and lacked flavor. I wasn't impressed at all. The shrimp tempura roll was a little better. The shrimp tempura was big and crunchy, the imitation crab was fresh, the rice was good. This was a good roll but a bit overpriced.

I decided to order the lunch special, $11, with salmon skin salad, seafood dynamite, chicken teriyaki, shrimp and veggie tempura.

I was impressed with the salmon skin salad. There were lots of actual salmon on top of fresh greens. The salmon was flavorful and tasty. A good salad.

I didn't touch the seafood dynamite which was salmon mouse covering a giant clam.

The chicken teriyaki was very tough and rubbery. It tasted as though the chicken came from the frozen section of the market. The teriyaki sauce was very good.

The tempura came right out of the fryer and was great. The shrimp was huge, tender and crunchy. The sweet potato and zucchini were great too.

Service was pretty good. I think the server was the owner's daughter and the namesake of the restaurant.

I would not go back to Kyala again. I thought their prices were high and the food was overall average.

Chicken Day

Chicken Day
2841 Diamond Bar Blvd
Diamond Bar
909-598-9938

Chicken Day is a Korean fried chicken restaurant. It's an interesting concept. Three different types, regular chicken, spicy sauce, and teriyaki chicken. I got the half chicken, spicy sauce, $6.95. The half chicken gets you eight pieces of chicken. I placed my order at the counter and waited for the food to arrive.

The chicken comes and it looks as though they are boneless chicken. But I am careful biting into the chicken and good thing, since they are not boneless. The chicken has a very nice crunchy outside, the spicy sauce isn't spicy at all. More in line with orange chicken sauce. The inside of the chicken is very tender and juicy. A nice dish but something is missing. The pieces weren't that big and while it was less than $8, not worth it. I would say they would split one breast into four pieces and one thigh into three pieces, and the breast and thigh aren't the biggest to start with. They weren't much bigger than wings.

Service is OK. They lady who took my order, looked to be the owner and was nice and helpful. But the young guy there, maybe her son was worthless. She had to ask him to take my order, she had to ask him to ring up my order, he took a long time to figure out how much change I was due. It wasn't as though he was a jerk or unfriendly, just very slow.

I would not go back to Chicken Day again. The chicken is good but the pieces are so small, they are not worth the price.

Grand Chicken

Grand Chicken
150 S Grand Ave
Glendora
626-914-1977

I'm not sure why but I've been craving Mediterranean food all day. So I decided to go try Grand Chicken. I know, it's a chicken place so I try the beef dish. :)

I got the Beef Filet Shish Kabob, $7.99, with salad, rice, and grilled tomato. After placing the order, I see two skewers of ground beef kabob in the grill and I asked the guy I want the beef filet shish kabob. He assured me that I would get that. So I sat down and waited. Well the order came up and I got the ground beef kabob. I told the guy I asked for the beef filet. So I wait again and I finally get the beef filet kabob. The beef was very good, tender, juicy and flavorful. A decent portion with a good price. The rice was terrible. Tasted like two day old rice. Not good. I didn't touch anything else since the salad had a ton of onions.

I also got the chicken shish kabob, $7.99, and the half chicken plate, $7.99 to go. The chicken shish kabob was very dry. Terrible. Not much flavor and not worth the price.

The rotisserie chicken ithat I got was very good, tender, juicy, and flavorful. But my buddy had the chicken and it was so dry, he needed water to wash it down. Not sure why a place named Grand Chicken has such dry chicken. I would not order the chicken again, even though my was juicy because it shouldn't be that inconsitent. But the hummus is very good, not tangy at all.

Service was OK. They did mess up my order, even after I told him twice what I wanted. But it was fixed. They were nice about.

I think Grand Chicken is a great value and has good food. I would go back but I would not order their rotisserie chicken or the chicken shish kabob again.

Furious BBQ-Grand Inn

Furious BBQ-Grand Inn
4538 N Grand Ave
Covina
626-331-9852

What is a BBQ restaurant doing at a dive bar? Serving damn good BBQ ribs, that's what.

First one of the few times, Yelp actually was worth a damn and I found out that a dive bar, Grand Inn is home to Furious BBQ. Thank you Donna S for the Yelp Review.

I ordered the ribs dinner, $10 with double mac and cheese. A couple minutes later is in front of me is four well smoked ribs and a huge portion of gooey, good mac and cheese.

The ribs had a very nice smoke ring and bark. This means the ribs were smoked, which means it's REAL BBQ. Not ribs cooked on a grill or an oven. I took a bite and oh so good. Nice, smoke flavor and tender with little fat or grizzle. A wonderful example of pork spare ribs. This is a stronger smoke flavor than other BBQ, they use oak to smoke the rib. But still good.

The mac and cheese was among the best I've ever had. Tender macaroni and gooey, melted cheese that actually coats and covers the macaroni. Soooo good. When I go to a restaurant, I don't want to mac and cheese from a box. This is home made, damn good mac and cheese.

I walked into this bar, knowing it's a dive bar. I walked in and a guy with tats all over and a beard longer than Santa, greets me and says HI. Always a good sign. I ask where is the BBQ and he directs me to the pitmaster who was sitting down at a table. I place my order with the pitmaster. The pitmaster is a very nice man. He talked to me about the history of him serving his BBQ at the Grand Inn. He took my order and served me the food in the timely manner.

The Grand Inn allows smoking inside the bar, not good. When I come here next time, I will order my ribs to go. I can't stand being in a smoked filled room. This is one of the better BBQ places around. Not exactly where I expect a BBQ restaurant but who cares when the BBQ is so good.

Newport Seafood Santa Ana

Newport Seafood Santa Ana
4411 W 1st St
Santa Ana
714-531-5146

This Newport Seafood in Santa Ana is owned by a different owner than the Newport Seafood in Rowland Heights. But they both serve great seafood. I came here with seven people and we ate family style. We all left stuffed.

Hot and sour soup, $8.95. Great for a rainy night like the night I was there. Lots of tofu, green onions, and bamboo shoots. Not too hot or sour. Nice thick brooth. I would order this again.

Lobster, 5lbs at $14 per pound. This was served Newport Special style which is baked or fried, then green onions and spices are added. The lobster is sweet, tender, cooked just right and oh sooo good. This is nice presentation. If you come to Newport Seafood you must order the lobster.

Kung Pao Chicken, $7.95. This location is known for their Kung Pao Chicken. This is pretty good with lots of breaded chicken, which are tender and flavorful. Pretty mild in terms of spiciness but a pretty good dish.

Combination sizzling plate, $13.95. This was an interesting dish. Filled with squid, shrimp, chicken, beef, and liver with assorted veggies. It does come sizzling and fresh to your table. I passed on the liver but the shrimp, chicken and beef were very good. I didn't like the gravy too much. If I ordered this again, I think I would order just the shrimp or just chicken.

Scallop Peking style, $10.95. This was my second favorite dish, next to the lobster. Their Peking style is basically "orange chicken" The outside had a very nice orange flavor, not spicy but flavorful. The scallops were huge, fresh and wonderful. A great dish and I think a steal at $10.95.

The service is very good. There were about 4-5 other large groups but we were never lacking for anything. The servers kept changing our plates, a good thing since lots of lobster shells were piling up. Water was always refilled. And the food came out quickly.

I like both locations of Newport Seafood. I would go back to either location anytime.

Update Dec 27, 2008.






I went back to Newport Seafood and got the following:

House Special Fried Rice, $7.95. This wasn't any good. The first thing I noticed was the rice wasn't hot at all. The Chinese sausage was very dry, the calamari was rubbery, the shrimp was a bit tough. I would just stay with the steamed rice.

Beef Loc Lac, $11.95 This is a dish that I see everybody ordering so I wanted to see what this is all about. This is a very good dish, lots of black pepper and a gravy over tender pieces of beef. This is suppose to come with lime and the lime juice does add a nice tangy flavor to the beef. A good dish. Maybe a bit overpriced at $11.95 but still good.

House Special Fish, $24.95. This is a very good dish. My favorite. This is striped bass, fried, then you pour the sauce over it. The sauce is a bit spicey but nothing overwhelming. The fish is nice and flakey in the inside and crispy, even with the sauce, on the outside.

Service wasn't bad that time around. I went on a Friday night and it was packed with families of eight or more. Our party of two got seated quickly but the service was spotty at best. Water wasn't refilled, they took awhile to take our order, the first guy who took our order after two items, was replaced by another guy. Why? I asked for an itemized receipt and didn't get it.

But what pissed me off the most was that the table of eight to ten people next to us, was served their food, two dishes, before we were. Even though we put in our order and was seated first. What was really bad was the damn fried rice not being hot. The other dishes were hot but the fried rice was cold.

I still will go back but when it's not so crowded.

Cole's

Cole's
118 E 6th St
Los Angeles
213-622-4090

French dips, sandwich.

I know already reviewed Coles but they have been closed for about a year and recently opened under new management. So I decided to do a new review.

Coles invented the French Dip sandwich. That other copy cat place can make the claim but they are liars. Coles invented and has the best French Dip sandwich in LA.

I got the beef dip and pork dip, $8 each. Also on the menu is Au Jus for a $1. Now I had to get the Au jus but I think either the server thought I asked for extra au jus or he just didn't charge me for au jus.

The beef dip is the way to go here. Thick hand sliced beef, piled high on a crusty hard french bread. Perfect for dipping into the au jus. So wonder, so tender, so the very best French dip in LA.

The pork dip is awesome too. Nice tender pieces of pork, hand sliced, and piled high. Again the bread was hard, making it perfect for dipping.

Service was good though after I ordered the pork dip, the entire wait staff was called into the back by the manager. I saw the pork dip on the counter and I didn't want to wait anymore so I got up and asked the chef who made the sandwich if that was the pork dip. Just as he answered the server came and he took the plate to my table. He came around to refill drinks and was nice.

Coles beats the Copy Cat by a mile. The beef is a better quality meat, cut thicker, cut by hand, and the bread is harder which make it better to dip into the au jus. The Copy Cat's bread gets way too soggy even with a single dip.

OK the area around Coles isn't the best but I've never had a problem. I went at 6pm and it was dark but well lit and I had no problems.

I would go to Coles any time. I'm so glad they reopened and I got a chance to try their great French Dip, the French Dip they invented.

Alondra Hot Wings-Long Beach

Alondra Hot Wings-Long Beach
245 Pine Ave
#190
Long Beach
562-437-2103

Hot wings, buffalo wings, chicken wings, fried shrimp.

I went and really enjoyed Alondra Hot Wings in Montebello. They have two other locations, Paramount and Long Beach. I went to the Long Beach location and found the food to be just as good as the Montebello location.

I got the fried shrimp, $9.95, and the 16 piece wings, half hot and half honey bbq, $9.45. There must be a 50 cents charge to split flavors because the menu price was $8.95 for 16 wings.

The fried shrimp was so good. They came right out of the fryer and was awesome. The outside was crunchy and the shrimp was butterflied and huge. Great stuff. Though the sauce they gave me was basically ketchup. There was no hint of horseradish to make a cocktail sauce. Oh well, no big deal. The shrimp is so good it doesn't need any dipping sauce. I think the menu said six shrimp, but I got seven and I'm not complaining.

But anyplace called Hot Wings has to be judged by their wings. Well Alondra matches up with any other wings place. Ok they don't have girls in orange shorts serving up the wings but when the wings are this good, who cares. The wings are small, crispy and tasty. They do not cheat you out of sauce. They put a ton of sauce on the wings. The wings are so crispy and tasty. I love them.

Service was good considering there were a huge group of about 25 people. The servers are friendly and nice.

I would go back to any Alondra Hot Wings. So good and so tasty.

Joe's Pizza-Santa Monica

Joe's Pizza-Santa Monica
111 Broadway
Santa Monica
310-395-9222

As readers of The New Diner know, I love Village Pizzeria for NY style pizza. Nothing in LA comes close. But a fellow foodie told me about Joe's Pizza in Santa Monica so I decided to give it a try.

I got the plain slice, $2.75, and a pepperoni slice, $3.25. The plain slice was very crispy, almost too well done, and didn't have a lot of gooey cheese. It's ok but doesn't come close to Village Pizzeria. The pepperoni was the same, crust overcooked and not enough cheese. The pepperoni were ok, nothing special.

Service was good. Greeted as I walked in, order taken, and friendly people. Cash only is written on the register but they will take credit cards on order of $18 or more.

I read some people say the prices are a bit high but I found them to be fair. But I didn't think the pizza was anything great. I much prefer Village Pizzeria or Rocco's.

Five Guys Famous Burgers- Cerritos

Five Guys Famous Burgers- Cerritos
11461 South St
Cerritos
562-809-0055

I went to the Five Guys in Carson, and didn't really plan on going back to any location but I was by Cerritos and figured why not give Five Guys another try. So I went to the Cerritos location which has been open for about 3-4 months.

I got a bacon cheeseburger, with A-1 steak sauce, lettuce and tomatoes, $5.49. I get my bacon cheeseburger and there is no bacon. I opened up the foil to take a picture found no bacon hanging out, then opened up the burger and found no bacon. I went back to the cashier, told her there is no bacon. She asks if I got the bacon on the side. No problem, I say. She asks one of the cooks for a side of bacon. When the cook is about to hand me the bacon, she says make sure you give him kind of a lot of bacon. I got the cold, sittting out in the open for a long time bacon. The burger is nothing special. It's OK. It's certainly not better than In N Out. I also thought the burger was smaller than the Carson location.

From the last paragraph you can tell my review of the service. The cashier was very friendly and helpful when I placed my order. But she went way above good service when she told the cook to make sure I got extra bacon. So very good service.

Again, if I'm in the area I would go to Five Guys. But it's nothing great and is more expensive than In N Out.

Code

Code
4221 Dolphin Sriker Way
Newport Beach
949-660-0888

If the address of Code looks familiar, that's because this location has been home to about six restaurants in the past 10-12 years. I know this used to be Trophy's and Fury.

I went for a happy hour, got there at 5:30pm and it was empty. Nobody there. It got a bit more crowded by 6pm but it was still shockingly slow.

Their happy hour menu is half off most of their menu items. I got the king crab roll, $6. The roll was very small, pretty fresh, and even at half price not worth it. There were very small amounts of king crab. Even the rolls themselves were bite sized rolls. Everything was fresh but not worth even the $6 price.

Service at the bar was good. The bartender was nice and friendly. Even as it got crowded, the bartender would ask if I needed anything. Very nice young lady. Ok, ok, she is nice to look at but that didn't cloud my judgement of her service.

Code to me is typical of OC, especially south OC restaurants, overpriced, average food. I'll admit the interior looked nice and the bar area is huge but who cares if the food isn't good. No reason for me to go back to Code, unless I want to look at Lisa the bartender again.

Taza Fresh

Taza Fresh
1220 S Diamond Bar Blvd
Diamond Bar
909-861-3601

Diamond Bar lacks any Mediterranean restaurants. But about a year ago, Taza Fresh opened up, so Diamond Bar has a restaurant that serves kebobs. I should have gone much sooner but after read Mother May I, a really good food blog, I finally made it to Taza Fresh.

I ordered the chicken and ground beef kebob, $8.79, each and the top sirloin shawerma wrap, $4.49. The ground beef kebob was not good at all. Very dry, no flavor or seasoning and just bad. I wasn't happy, especially since they don't have regular beef kebobs.

But that quickly changed when I had the chicken kebob. The chicken was so fresh, so tender and so moist. A wonderful example of how kebobs should be. As the picture shows the kebobs are huge!!!! A great value, no a steal at the $8.79 price.

I thought the hummus was very good. Not sour/tangy like so many other places. But what I didn't like was the rice. There was no flavor and they use a cheaper long grain rice, instead of basmati rice.

Another steal is the top sirloin shawerma wrap, $4.49. I have never had shawerma because I thought it was ground meat. But much to my surprise this shawerma was wonderful. A ton of beef cut up into small pieces, with hummus, lettuce, tomatoes, and a garlic sauce. Just a wonderful combination of flavors. Better than a burrito.

Service was good. The lady was very nice and friendly, answering all my questions.

I would go back to Taza Fresh anytime. I went around 7pm on Thursday and there wasn't one person there. But there were a ton of people at the El Pollo Loco next door and a few people at the Round Table Pizza a few doors down. TERRIBLE. Wake up Diamond Bar, you have a great place that serves great food, at great prices. Why not support the local businesses and not the coporate chains.

Lou's Red Oak BBQ

Lou's Red Oak BBQ
21501 Brookhurst St
Ste D
Huntington Beach
714-965-5200

I do like Santa Maria style BBQ. But the last two experiences at Santa Maria style BBQ makes me want to stop going to any Santa Maria style BBQ places.

I have known about Lou's for over three to four years but I just haven't been down there.

But much to my regret, I did make it down there. I got the rib combo plate, $16.99 with tri tip, and Kraft mac and cheese and corn on the cob. I know Santa Maria BBQ is all about tri tip but this tri tip was terrible. They said cooked medium but what I got was tri tip cooked rare, the pictures do not lie. Now I'm not too picky, I just don't like well done. The tri tip was tough, not much flavor, and lots of fat. They do not season their tri tip well at all. It seemed as though they flashed cooked the tri tip because they were running out.

I love BBQ ribs and I always get BBQ ribs at BBQ places. I'm not expecting smoked ribs but damn the ribs were bad. First of all they say they are St. Louis style ribs, they aren't because the tips were on the ribs. St. Louis style means no tips. But they were grilled and lack flavor. They also had a lot of fat and grizzle. Not good at all

Now they say real Kraft mac and cheese is a side option. But damn, can't you can't make your own mac and cheese? The corn on the cob was cold and pretty flavorless.

Service was OK. We were greeted and seated quickly. But after that we didn't see the server for at least ten minutes. They were on their Iphones and texting everybody. But after coming back to take our orders the server was good, refilling drinks and was helpful.

I would not go back to Lou's again. I thought the prices were very high for the amount and quality of food you get. A Santa Maria style bbq place better make a damn good tri tip but Lou's falls way short. If I lived in Huntington Beach, I would make the drive to Culver City and get the best Santa Maria style BBQ at Santa Maria BBQ.

Chili's

Chili's
707 Grand Ave
Diamond Bar
909-396-1222

I hate Chili's!!! Ok I really don't hate them for the food. They serve good food, but what I do hate them for is their campaign about baby back ribs. They have everybody brain washed into thinking that baby back ribs are the way to go. They really aren't. Spare ribs are much better but you have to be a skilled pitmaster to cook them correctly.

I got the baby back ribs, $16.29, with regular bbq and honey bbq sauce. The ribs are cooked in an oven and while they are full of meat, they needed to BBQ sauce to make them taste good. The regular BBQ sauce was pretty mild, nothing great. The honey bbq sauce had a little bit more kick but again nothing great.

I ordered this to go. This location in Diamond Bar has been opened for about 5-6 months and the people who are there are nice and friendly. The bartender who took my order was nice and my order came up quickly.

People think Chili's is what BBQ ribs are about and the ribs aren't even BBQ'd. I would not order the ribs are Chili's. They do other items well but ribs aren't it.

Fab Hot Dogs

Fab Hot Dogs
6747 Tampa Ave
Reseda
818-344-4336

I found Fab Hot Dogs by a fellow blogger, Famished LA. I'm glad I found this because I found one of the best hot dog places in LA. Maybe a Yelper named Rachel B will want to come here?

I was shocked that there is FINALLY a deep fried hot dog in LA. Deep fried hot dogs are well known in New Jersey, maybe the best thing to come out of New Jersey. The hot dogs are made differently, so that they can handle the deep fryer.

I decide to get the The Ripper, $2.75, with mustard and onions. I didn't want to overload a hot dog with a bunch of stuff, I want to taste the hot dog. Oooh this hot dog was sooooooo good. First thing be aware, the hot dogs are cooked to order so it's very hot. Be careful when biting into it. But it's sooo good. A different texture since it's ripped, but a nice flavor and good spice. I talked to the owner and he told me that they order these hot dogs directly from New Jersey.

The Manhattan Dog, $3.45, NY red onion suace, kraut and mustard. This hot dog had an amazing snap and flavor. The hot dog is different that the ripper. This is just like what you expect a NY hot dog to be. Long and thin with a great snap, not sure if the hot dog is by Sabbrett but damn close. The kraut was fresh and the bun held everything together.

The best thing was having tater tots, $1.50. OK a childhood thing but you gotta admit, they are great. Again cooked to order, this was great. They fried them just right, crisp on the outside, nice and soft inside.

Service is OK. The owner and his wife are running the store. When I got to the front of the line to order, the wife just walked to the side and got some orders out. I wish people would at least greet me and say "I'll be right with you." Simple statement but it goes a long way. I don't mind the wait just as long as I'm not left standing there. The hot dogs are cooked to order, expect a little wait.

Red Oak BBQ

Red Oak BBQ
7051 Greenleaf Ave
Whittier
562-907-0008

What do you get when you serve up below average BBQ and terrible service? You get Red Oak BBQ in Whittier.

As the name suggests, Red Oak is Santa Maria style BBQ which means meats cooked over oak wood. Santa Maria BBQ is known for their tri tip but some restaurants will cook other meats to, shocking, make money!!!

I got the tri tip and spare ribs dinner, $17.95. The dinner comes with two sides, I got a green salad and onions rings. Both were OK, nothing special. The spare ribs were bad because they had a chemical smell, as if they used lighter fluid to start their BBQ's. The meat was a bit tough but that has to be expected since they aren't actually smoked. But they should smell like lighter fluid.

The tri tip was a little better but nothing great. It was a bit tough, something tri tip, which is a sirloin cut, shouldn't be. It was also pretty bland, I dipped the tri tip into the au jus and that gave it some flavor.

Service was terrible. I was greeted, seated, and got a drink quickly but it went downhill from there. After the drink I didn't see the server for at least five minutes to take my order. I also asked for a refill after placing my order and I had to ask another server for a refill. Then I made a call at 7:55pm and talked for about 10 minutes. I didn't see the server at all during that time. About five minutes later, he tells me I'll check on your food order. I wait for another five minutes and I still haven't gotten my food. I don't know if they went all the way up to Santa Maria but damn it shouldn't take that old to get the food. Finally my order comes. But the onion rings are cold. Nice. I had to wait another ten minutes to get my bill. The place was by no means crowded and they had three people serving. But it was so damn slow and terrible. I think he was just talking to people at the bar in the back and not paying attention to people having dinner. Idiot. The final straw came when I got my receipt for my credit card. Another server, not the server I had, dropped it off and said "Here you go." WTF? No Thank you. Have a nice night. Stupid idiot. Hope you liked my tip.

I would not go back to Red Oak BBQ again. Below average food and TERRIBLE service. Plus the night I went, there were a bunch of young kids running around, crying and screaming. Parents should know that other people are trying to enjoy a nice dinner, they don't need some screaming kid ruining their dinner. Hire a baby sitter or teach you kids some manners.

Rosie's BBQ & Grillery

Rosie's BBQ & Grillery
9012 Tampa Ave
Northridge
818-349-3055

Anytime I see BBQ and Grillery, I know that the ribs are not going to be smoked. A real pitmaster would never have a grill. But I decided to try Rosie's anyways, mostly because of a Yelper, Rachel B. spoke so highly of it, though she is weird and doesn't eat any meat with bones attached.

Wednesday night they have an endless slab of baby back ribs, $18.99 with one side, mashed potatoes. I knew right away the ribs were cooked in an oven and finish on a grill because the ribs were too hot to pickup with my hands. The slab pictured had a lot of tender meat but as I worked towards the ends there were tons of fat and grizzle. This happens because the ribs are cooked at an high temps thus the fat isn't allowed to burn off.

Service was bad. As I was being seated I passed by the server station and three servers were standing and talking, even though there were plenty of people at the tables. About five to seven minutes later the server arrives and ask if I'm ready to order. Not even taking drink orders. This is not acceptable. The server should have come by earlier and should have taken a drink order. I knew what I wanted to eat but servers should take drink orders first. I asked for gravy on the mashed potatoes but as you can see I got dry mashed potatoes. I didn't eat much of it because the ribs were so filling. After I was finished with the first slab I had to wait at least another five minutes before the server came around. I got a batch of six ribs, still with a lot of fat, but while I was eating them the two guys next to me were moved to a booth because the area I was sitting in was reserved in thirty minutes. How did I know? Because the host told a bus boy and another server. Now I didn't feel rushed and I would have taken my sweet old time but restaurant staff shouldn't talk shop around other customers. I ask for my check and I am waiting at least another five minutes before he comes and takes the money. Now the place was getting busy but not too busy, so there is no reason for the long wait. Just terrible service. The server was nice enough but just too damn slow.

What is the difference between Rosie's and Wood Ranch? For ribs they are about the same, though Wood Ranch ribs don't have that much fat. Service wise, Wood Ranch is much better.

I would not go back to Rosie's, at least for the ribs. The ribs are just OK and have too much fat on them. Of course service is bad.