Thanks to the people that read our blog and follow us on Twitter we are excited to expand how we share our food adventures. This week we kicked off the Saturday Night Foodies fan page.
Now it will be easier for us to share some of our food and drink adventures. Kim and I have been to about forty-five Diners, Drive-ins and Dives across California, Arizona and Nevada. We have lots of pictures that we want to share.
One thing we do not want to be is in too many places. This is where Facebook comes in. We will be able to share pictures, start discussions on what is good where, and whatever else everyone can think up. We are hoping to start a list of places across the US and around the world that all can look forward to visiting.
Finally we made it to Paul’s Coffee Shop in Fountain Valley, CA. Paul’s will be a joint on an upcoming episode of Diners, Drive-ins and Dives (DDD). The coolest part for me is finding places like this that have not yet aired. For some reason they are extra special. The only other DDD we have been to prior to it being aired was Dottie’s in San Francisco. Hey, now that I think of it that was a breakfast joint as well.
We got to Paul’s on a Sunday morning and the place was already busy with what looked to be regulars. That was a very good sign. The other thing we noticed when we entered was the large board with their specials. There were many tantalizing offers posted.
From what I can tell Paul’s is known for their fresh ingredients and the fact that they do not skimp on anything. Talking with our very friendly waitress Mary Anna, we learned that Phil, the guy who owns the joint is very proud of the product that he serves.
It took a little while to decide. Between the specials and their regular menu there was quite a bit to choose from. Kim ordered the chicken fried chicken with eggs, hash browns and a biscuit. Think chicken fried steak but with a pounded out chicken breast. It was huge and took up a plate almost by itself. It was cooked perfectly with a great texture and flavor from the crispy salt and pepper batter. The kicker was the chicken gravy, super silky and full of flavor. It was like liquid gold. Amazing!
Chicken Fried Chicken with Gravy
Scrambled Eggs and Hash Browns
I ordered a Loco Moco, which is a couple scopes of rice topped with a hamburger patty topped with eggs and finally smothered in a brown gravy. I used to get this all of the time when I lived in Hawaii. Very popular there with the locals. It is hard to find something that compares here on the mainland but this was a grand exception. The Loco Moco was exactly how I remembered it. The rice and eggs were cooked perfectly. And this gravy was just as good as the other one. As Guy would say Paul’s is off the hook!
Loco Moco
I have a feeling this will become one of our regular weekend breakfast adventures! You have to check this place out.
Kim and I had a very hard time figuring out what this weekends food adventure would be. We narrowed it down to two choices, to check out two food trucks at the Santiago Art Walk in Santa Ana, CA or head over to Paul’s Coffee Shop, a new Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives (DDD) joint in Fountain Valley, CA. The DDD has not aired yet so that was extra appealing. On the other hand it sounded super appealing to be able to check out two food trucks in one stop.
We decided to head over to Paul’s Coffee Shop. However when we got there we found that they were closed. Not out of business closed but closed for the day. They are only open until 2 pm Monday - Sunday. Yep, I should have guessed that when the name has “coffee shop” in it but I was just too excited.
Thanks to my trustee iPhone, not all was lost. We looked up the information about the Santiago Art Walk on Twitter and shot straight over. We first stopped at @piaggioonwheels. As you would expect it was a very clean truck and the people were really nice. I believe they are known for their empanadas but that was not all that they had. We went a little crazy and ordered about five different items. Heck, we need to make sure the food is good before we send you there!
We ordered three different empanadas (Chicken, Caprese, and Spinach with Feta). One of them (Spinach with Feta) was not even on the menu for the night. The empanadas were fried perfectly and they came with chimichurri sauce, which added a good flavor. The spinach with feta was my favorite but the chicken was a close second.
Chicken Empanada
Spinach with Feta Cheese Empanada
Caprese Empanada (Tomato, Fresh Mozzarella, and Basil)
We also ordered their Portabello mushroom quesadilla and pork sliders. The quesadilla was super good. It had a well-balanced flavor, a meaty texture and came with a tasty sauce a chipotle mayonnaise that added a smoky depth to the quesadilla. Finally, the pork sliders which were on King’s Hawaiian rolls with a little chimichurri sauce. The pork had great flavor. Overall, we were very impressed. We will track these guys down again.
Portabello Mushroom Quesadilla
Pulled Pork Sliders
While we were waiting for the Argentinean food to cook I ran over to the @Brooklyn_Boys truck. Once again, a very clean truck and as soon as you see it you know what they do. Meat! It took me forever to figure out which of the sandwiches I was going to get because their menu is so extensive, there was too much to choose from. I believe their Rueben is their most popular one. We ordered one of their specials, Mom’s Brisket Dip. This is their regular Mom’s Sunday Brisket but dipped halfway into Au Jus.
While I was contemplating my order, Kim tried the Matzo Ball soup. This was the first time that Kim or I have had Matzo Ball soup. We were both pleasantly surprised at how good it was. It had an earthy flavor, the Matzo Balls were tender and there were good-sized chunks of chicken. I think we will have to try that at more places.
Matzo Ball Soup
Now back to the star of this show, the brisket dip. I was a little worried about trying this. For years I have heard people talk about how tender brisket is and how much they love it. But I will tell you the times I have tried it I have always been disappointed. I have never experienced brisket the way people talk about it, until now. This brisket was INCREDIBLE! Super tender and it melts in your mouth. This was by far the best brisket I have ever had. I mean it was truly unreal! The bread it was on was good too. The sandwich came with potato salad, cole slaw and a pickle. The pickle was good; the other sides did not do much for me. It was very clear that the meat was their specialty. To tell you the truth that is fine by me!
Mom's Brisket Dip
I will absolutely visit these guys again. Very nice job @Brooklyn_Boys!
You know I love my Diners, Drive-ins and Dives (DDD), but I am really starting to get the gourmet food truck bug. I think it has to do with my need for a mission or maybe it is the fact that there are more and more gourmet trucks making their way down from LA into Orange County. Gourmet food trucks are not new but I think they are finally starting to get the credit they deserve. As you may or may not know, it is very hard to turn a profit in a traditional brick and mortar establishment. This is especially the case in Southern California where chain restaurants are prevalent.
Social media has made it possible for food trucks to get the word out without having to break the bank on advertising. If you do a quick search around Twitter you will find a very large number of trucks in Los Angeles, New York, Portland, Miami, Las Vegas and many other cites.
Last night we were in one of those moods to try something new. I was playing on Twitter and ran into @crepesbonaparte. I checked out their website and was hooked. I saw they were going to be in Downtown Fullerton at 10PM and the plan was set. Kim and I took the quick drive from Irvine to Fullerton and found @crepesbonaparte right away. It then took us about 15 minutes to find a place to park. I had no clue that downtown Fullerton was such a “happening” place.
Crepes Bonaparte Truck
We were lucky as there was no line at the truck. My first impression was how clean and bright the truck was. All white with stainless steal and two crepe makers right at the window. Kim ordered their HazelBerryAna on wheat, which was filled with Strawberries, Bananas, Nutella, and dusted with powdered sugar. I ordered a traditional Ham and Mozzarella crepe on white. I do love savory crepes.
It took about 5 minutes to get our order. It was fun to watch them make the crepes fresh. It reminded us of being at the bottom of the Eiffel Tower in Paris. The person we ordered from was super friendly, which added to the positive experience.
The crepes were very good. Mine was exactly like I expected it to be. Lots of melted cheese and the crepe itself was tender and delicious. If we were actually at the Eiffel Tower it would have been perfect. Kim’s was good as well. The wheat crepe (which neither of us have had before) was a little dryer. I am not sure that was the way it is supposed to be or just a touch over cooked. We will have to try it again to be sure! However it had the right amount of Nutella and good-sized portion of bananas and strawberries.
HazelBerryAna on Wheat
Inside the HazelBerryAna on Wheat
Traditional Ham and Mozzarella crepe
Overall we were very impressed. This will become a regular stop for us when we are up late and in the mood for a short adventure.
I am really starting to like this food truck craze. We have now visited two trucks the @kogibbq and the @crepesbonaparte. Both were excellent. Who would have thought? If you are interested in checking out information on gourmet food trucks, I would recommend these two sites:
It has been a week or so since my last post. I wanted to get this one out so I do not fall too far behind. I am spending a couple of days in Denver this week. I was lucky enough to get away for a dinner and check out a local favorite Sam’s No.3.
A buddy of mine by the name of Nathan joined me for this. This is one of the few places that he wanted me to check out in Denver. One thing that you may find a little weird is there are ZERO Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives in Colorado. What is up with that? You cannot tell me there are no funky joints around. That is just not possible!
Nathan and I headed out to Sam's No.3, which is in Downtown Denver. It is in a very nice part of town on the corner of 15th and Curtis. This is one of three of their restaurants in the Denver area.
Sam's No.3 Downtown Denver
Sam’s is a diner that looks to be mostly known for their breakfast. They have a full bar, good number of tables and some counter seats. They call themselves a Mexi Grill and Bar. The bar had a good selection. I had a Patron Silver Margarita, which was pretty good. Food wise they have a good-sized menu, breakfast was about half of it. They had an impressive breakfast burrito selection. I would guess there were 15 to 20 available. In addition to breakfast they had entrees, sandwiches and a number of Mexican dishes. They are proud of their hot turkey sandwich, their two-pound burrito and their green chili.
Both Nathan and I got burritos (not the two pounder) that were covered in pork green chili. The chili was very good. It is a tomatillo based with pork chili. It reminded me to of a traditional Chili Verde. Not spicy but with tons of favor.
Chicken Fajita Burrito with Pork Green Chili
Overall everything was good. In the future I am planning to check them out for breakfast. I have a feeling that will be incredible. However if you are in the Denver area check them out. Breakfast is key but I am told there will be a wait. Dinner was not very busy for us but it was worth stopping by.
As you have figured out by now Kim and I both watch Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. However that is not the only food related show we watch. Throwdown with Bobby Flay has it’s own season pass on my TiVo. This is another show that looks for the best. I have watched this show from day one and enjoy it very much.
A month or so ago we watched an episode featuring the Vermont Brownie Company. This one was a lot of fun because it focused on Brownies. It turned out to be a very fun episode. Bobby Flay did a great job showcasing the people and their brownies. If you have a chance to see it I would recommend it.
This is the first sampling we have been able to do from the show. We ordered a sampler pack so we could try a few of their creations. Ordering online was easy, as you would expect this day and age. They seemed a little pricey ~$4.25 each. Don’t forget about shipping. One of the things that was obvious per their website is they have been getting a lot of orders after their episode aired. We ordered the brownies on Saturday and received them on Tuesday. The packaging was well done and they were in perfect condition.
Here are the ones that were included in the sampler:
Signature Sampler
Dark Chocolate Chevre (One from the show)
Espresso Dulce de Leche
Mint Pattie
Signature Brownie (Incredible)
Peanut Butter
Maple Toffee Crunch
When all is said and done we very much enjoyed them. They are rich and you can tell they use quality ingredients. I really liked the touch of salt on a couple of them. The Cherve was very good and I liked the texture from the big chocolate chunks. Not surprising they won the Throwdown. If you are in the mood for some delicious brownies and can wait a few days to get them I strongly recommend you check these guys out. I think it will be worth the wait.
This is scary, first experience ordering treats on the web and it was a huge success. With our addictive personalities this is going to be tasty!
