Two Brothers From Italy Pizza

Two Brothers From Italy Pizza
4760 Oceanside Blvd
Oceanside
760-758-3638

I was in Oceanside and while driving around found Two Brothers From Italy Pizza. I was hungry and I haven't had an Italian cold cut sandwich in awhile, so why not give Two Brothers a try? Looked in the corner of a strip mall, Two Brothers From Italy Pizza is a big location, with plenty of seating and is pretty popular judging by the number of people, either dining in or picking up orders.

I got the half, 8 inches, Paolo's Special, ham, salami, capicola, pepperoni, and provolone cheese, $7.49. I read the menu incorrectly, and this wasn't a cold sub, but an oven baked sub. Not what I'm used to but I liked this sub. The bread as well toasted and added a different texture to the sandwich. The meats were pretty good quality, that were piled on top of each other. The lettuce and tomatoes were fresh. This is a solid, good sandwich at a good price. It's nothing outstanding but much better than anything you're going to get at a chain sandwich shop.

Service was good. The cashier who took my order was nice and friendly. Like I said, I misread their menu and thought I was getting a cold sandwich. So, while waiting for the sandwich, the young girl who taking food to the tables, said I'll check on your sandwich. I guess she could see I was wondering what was taking so long!! But, that's my fault because the sandwich had to be toasted and that does take some time.

I wasn't in the mood for pizza, so I didn't get a slice of pizza, or maybe the pizza that was sitting in the warmer turned me off, it didn't look that appetizing.

Overall, I had a positive experience at Two Brothers From Italy Pizza. If I'm in the area again, I may come get a fresh baked pizza, but I'm not going to rush back.

Hambone's BBQ and Po'Boy Sandwiches

Hambone's BBQ and Po'Boy Sandwiches
9342 Alondra Blvd
Bellflower
562-920-1090

After watching the BBQ episode of Top Chef Texas, I wanted some BBQ. I recently found out about a new BBQ restaurant in Bellflower, called Hambone's, so I called a friend and we got ourselves some BBQ. Opened for about a year, Hambone's has been serving BBQ, po boy sandwiches and soul food. The restaurant has a small indoor dining area with a couple tables and counter space, and a good sized covered patio with about 6-8 tables.

I got the 3 baby back ribs with mac and cheese, $5.98, #18 on their menu. As readers of The New Diner know, I'm not a fan of baby back ribs. I got the baby backs because they do not offer spare ribs. Many place make the mistake of too much smoke on baby backs. Hambone's does a very good job of smoke their ribs. The baby backs were very good, with lots of meat and good smoke flavor. Baby back ribs are pretty tender to start with, so not much smoking is needed. I really like the quality of the ribs, good flavor, meaty. They use good quality ribs.

The mac and cheese was fantastic!! Perfectly cooked macaroni, covered with a gooey cheese sauce that was well seasoned and flavorful. They use a good roux that coats all the macaroni with that cheesey goodness.

Service was very good. They are friendly and helpful, which was good to see because they were a bit abrupt.

It's been awhile since I've had good BBQ and I'm glad I've tried Hambones. But, if I have one complaint it would be the high prices of their dinners and plates; half ($21.99) and full rack ($24.99) of baby backs with two sides. They did have a five baby back ribs for $11.50, which is a good price, but I'm not willing to spend a lot of money anymore for bad BBQ, so I got the 3 baby back ribs combo. Luckily Hambone's serves up very good BBQ. I will be back get that and try a po boy sandwich, $11.99.

Mogan's Cafe-Closed

Mogan's Cafe
548 Palisades Dr
Pacific Palisades
310-454-0040

Happy New Year, The New Diner readers. Glad to have you back for another year of restaurant reviews.

I'm rarely on the snotty, pretentious, asshole West Side, but I decided to make an late morning trip out there. Afterwards, I wasn't planning to go to Mogan's Cafe, but I was already in the area, so I decided to dropped in. Luckily I brought my camera, so I could do a review, my first in Pacific Palisades!

Mogan's Cafe is a few miles from the intersection of PCH and Sunset, no ocean view but a nice restaurant in a strip mall. While we were walking to our table, somebody at another table just got his breakfast quesadilla and it was huge!! So I was expecting huge portions. Good thing they delivered because I was starving.

I ordered the salad and sandwich combo, $10.99 on the menu, with the tuna salad sandwich and a mixed green salad.

The mixed green salad had green leaf lettuce, red tip leaf lettuce, spinach, and arugula with a vinaigrette dressing. This was a large portion. All the produce was fresh and tasty. The vinaigrette was slightly tangy but well mixed and worked well with all the veggies in the salad.

The tuna salad sandwich was huge! I would bet there was more tuna in this half sandwich, than a tuna salad sandwich from Subway. The tuna was moist but it wasn't drowned in mayo. I read that most restaurants use a different type of mayo, one that has low moisture, than the regular store bought mayo. I wonder where we "common" people can buy that mayo. This was a very filling and good sandwich. I don't think I could finish an entire sandwich.

Service was good. We sat on the patio and didn't lack for anything. The busboy refilled my water countless times, 82 degrees on January 2nd, makes me thristy. The salad and sandwich combo was priced at $10.99 on the menu, but when I got the bill, the salad and sandwich combo was $11.49. Ok, I'm not going to make a big deal about 50 cents, but come on update the prices on your menu.

I would go back to Mogan's Cafe. I like the quality of their food and their portion size!