A Jim Dandy Barbeque-Closed

Jim Dandy Barbeque
10900 Los Alamitos Blvd
Los Alamitos
562-598-2211

Housed in what used to be Papa Western BBQ, which burned down about two years ago, A Jim Dandy Barbeque, is one of the most expensive and one of the worst BBQ places I've been to. I had planned to go to Papa Western BBQ but never made it.

I ordered the three meat combo, St. Louis spare ribs, tri tip, and buffalo brisket, yes buffalo brisket, $25.95, with three sides, mac and cheese, red onion rings, and cole slaw.

The St. Louis spare ribs were among the smallest ribs I've ever had. These ribs must have come from pigs at a diet farm. There was little smoke flavor and just not much meat at all.

The tri tip, was overcooked, flavorless and bland. Do they know how to season their meats?

The buffalo brisket was a bit tough but was OK. Nothing great.

The two sides that should have been hot, were warm at best. The cole slaw was pretty good.

Service was pretty good. But we got done with dinner around 8pm. They are suppose to close at 9pm. But they were starting to clean up and close, while we were done with dinner. I can understand why this place is empty most nights. Bad BBQ and high prices do not make a good combination.

There is no reason for me to go to A Jim Dandy BBQ again.

Katella Deli

Katella Deli
4470 Katella Ave
Los Alamitos
562-594-8611

I thought I found an actual deli without having to make the long drive to Canter's Deli. But Katella Deli is a very average deli located near the Los Alamitos race track.

I got their Bronx Delight, hot corned beef, hot pastrami, salami, swiss cheese and Russian Dressing on rye bread, $10.50. I hate salami and ordered turkey instead, maybe not the best combination but that's what I wanted.

The sandwich arrived quickly. But the hot meats, corned beef and pastrami were not hot, more like luke warm. Both the corned beef and pastrami were pretty bland and they seemed like low quality meats. No boarshead meats served here.

The turkey was cold and dry. I wish they put the Russiona dressing on the turkey part of the sandwich.

I was impressed with the amount of meat on the sandwich but no the quality.

Service was good. But I sat at the counter and most of the servers speak with a heavy Spanish accent. One older white lady, was a real bitch to the other servers and cooks. One time she asked for something from the cooks and in a very nasty way, repeated the request, in a tone that could only be taken as, Learn to speak English.
But my server was fine, even though she had to ask the manager if I could get turkey instead of salami.

I would not go back to Katella Deli again for the deli sandwiches. Since I was sitting at the counter, I saw the fried chicken dinner and burger that looked very good. So I will try those items if I go back to Katella Deli.

Patsy Kitchen

Patsy Kitchen
3641 Katella
Los Alamitos, CA
562-431-9747

A couple stores down from Pittsburgh Chicken and Taters, is Patsy Kitchen. A wonderful place for a meat filled pasty. I ordered one small hot beef and one small hot chicken pasty. Both are filled with lots of potatoes but not much beef or chicken. The two patsys were about $4.75. You can also order them frozen and heat them up at home. The crust was nice and flaky and the pastys were nice and hot. I though the pastsys were good. But not a good valve. $2 for potatoes with some beef or chicken isn't worth it.

Friendly service and people. But be careful going in when it's over 90 degrees. They have no air conditionings and the ovens are turned on all the time, so combined that with the over 90 degree heat outside, you get a very hot and uncomfortable room.

Mustard's Chicago Hot Dogs- Los Alamitos

Mustard's
3630 Katella Ave
Los Alamitos CA 90720
562-598-1662

While driving to Pittsburgh Chicken and Taters, I found Mustard's second location in Los Alamitos. Having already been to the Mustards in Long Beach, I decided to drop in to compare the two locations, and to honor the Chicago White Sox winning the 2005 AL Central Division.

I ordered the charbroiled Chicago dog which is a skinless hot dog with the usual Chicago hot dog toppings. Very good stuff but I do like the snap of the natural casing. Though I would order a charbroiled Chicago Dog again. The Chicago Dog was $2.90. The Chicago dog is the second picture.

Then I ordered the Comiskey Park Pole. A polish hot dog with relish, grilled onions, tomatoes, and mustard. Great stuff again. $3.01 was the cost for the Comiskey Park Pole.

There is no difference in the food between Mustard's in Long Beach and Los Alamitos.

I would go back again.

Pittsburgh Chicken and Taters

Pittsburgh Chicken and Taters
3671 Katella Ave.,
Los Alamitos, CA
(562) 594-0140

While doing a search for Mustard's Hot Dogs, I found a review for Pittsburgh Chicken and Taters in Los Alamitos. I decided to try the Pittsburgh broasted chicken and see how it compared to the Chicken Box.

I was very surprised. Two other buddies came along and we ordered the 12 piece family pack with broasted potatoes and potatoe salad for about $18.00. The 12 piece included 3 breast, 3 wings, 3 thighs, and 3 legs. The surprising thing was we could select the seasoning. We selected the Original, Cajun, and Lemon Pepper. In the picture of the chicken going from left to right you see the orginal, Cajun and Lemon Pepper.

We each took a piece from the three seasonings. The chicken had a very nice crunch and was very moist and tender inside. After the first few bites, I knew this was better than Chicken Box. The Cajun seasoning lack any real spice. The original was very good but my favorite was the Lemon Pepper.

The broasted potatoes were pretty good. A nice texture outside, though not crunchy and thick slices of potatoes inside. The potatoe salad was decent. Nothing great.

I really enjoyed my trip to Pittsburgh Chicken and Taters. I will go back when I'm in the area.