Mimi’s Cafe Reopening Celebration - Irvine

Press release for Mimi’s Cafe remodel launch that is starting in Orange County.  They are going to be installing full service bars and updating the decor.

MIMI’S CAFE BRINGS NEW LOOK TO IRVINE

Upscale Casual Restaurant Plans Reopening Celebration on 4030 Barranca Parkway

TUSTIN, Calif. (November 17, 2008) – Mimi’s Cafe, a collection of upscale casual dining restaurants, will celebrate the grand reopening of its Irvine restaurant with a series of community events.   City officials and community members will attend the ribbon cutting on Thursday, November 20, while more than $3,000 worth of free gift cards and coupons will be offered to guests.  Prior to the ribbon cutting, Wednesday, November 19 will be a day of delicious fundraising with a percentage of the day’s proceeds benefiting Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC).  During these events, guests can experience the redesigned restaurant and sample Mimi’s Cafe’s new “Just Enough” – favorite menu items now available in smaller portions – and “Comfort Classics” prepared fresh daily from scratch.

“Mimi’s Cafe has been part of the Irvine community for many years.  We are thrilled to share the enhanced Mimi’s Cafe dining experience with our loyal guests and new visitors.” said Tim Pulido, president of Mimi’s Cafe.

The Irvine location follows recent reopenings in San Bernardino and Laguna Niguel as the newly updated décor will eventually roll out to the 139 locations nationwide.   The new design also includes a full service bar with specialty drinks including the Mimitini and Fresh Squeezed Margaritas.

As part of the Irvine reopening, Mimi’s Cafe will be raising funds for CHOC.  “We are thankful for all of the years of support from Mimi’s Cafe.  It’s a great way to get the community involved in a fun way,” said Zachariah Moonitz, manager of special events.  Funds raised will benefit the Childlife’s program, which has aided hundreds of thousands of Orange County families.

To mark its official reopening, Mimi’s Cafe has the following community events taking place:

Wednesday, November 19

Food, Friends & Fun Day – Irvine guests can help give back to the community.  With the support of the Small Guild, Mimi’s Cafe is donating 15 percent of the day’s proceeds to CHOC for everyone that presents the special flyer.   To receive the flyer, please contact Jeanne Turner at jeannet@mimiscafe.com.

Thursday, November 20

Meet Me at Mimi’s – The first 75, 18-year-old plus guests at Mimi’s Cafe will receive free gift cards valued up to $100 beginning at 11 a.m.  Other valuable offers will be awarded totaling more than $3,000 in giveaways throughout the day.  Mimi’s Cafe West Coast director of operations, Steve Standlea; city officials, Nour Al-Hashimi and Amy Choo; and CHOC will participate in the official ribbon cutting at 10:30 a.m.

The Irvine Mimi’s Cafe is located at 4030 Barranca Parkway and restaurant hours are from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. For more information on Mimi’s Cafe, please visit www.mimiscafe.com.

About Mimi’s Cafe

Mimi’s Cafe is a collection of upscale casual dining restaurants with 139 locations in 22 states.  Mimi’s Cafe is a unit wholly owned by Bob Evans Farms, Inc. a publicly traded company (NASDAQ ticker symbol BOBE) is known and loved for its full breakfast, lunch and dinner menus with high-quality, eclectic cuisine, unparalleled service and tastefully appointed décor.

About CHOC

Children’s Hospital of Orange County’s (CHOC) mission is to nurture, advance and protect the health and well-being of children.

Veggie Grill Pre-Grand Opening - Irvine

We had the pleasure of being invited to the pre-grand opening of the newest Veggie Grill location in Irvine.  It was a reservation only meal provided to us free of charge!  Although both Veggie Grill and Native Foods have been on our list to review, we just had never got around to dining there.  I’m glad we finally made it, because the food was delicious and would have fooled most meat eaters.  Their grand opening will be on Friday, November 21st, In celebration of the grand opening, the Veggie Grill will be donating 20 percent of restaurant sales to the Irvine Public Schools Foundation from Nov. 21 through Nov. 23.

We were able to sample a starter and two entrées, along with drinks, and some dessert.  I’m going to do a little different then normal since this isn’t an official review due to the restaurant not being officially open yet.

Chill Out Wings ($6.25)
Bite sized chillin’ chickin’ with our tangy BBQ sauce.  These were great, they had near chicken consistency, just a little softer then real chicken.  The white sauce is the chipotle ranch.

Santa Fe Crispy Chickin’ ($8.95)
Crispy fried chillin’ chickin’, lettuce, tomato, red onion, avocado, southwestern spiced vegan mayo.  Mrs. DanGarion commented that she probably would order it without the mayo next time, but she liked it.  It had a lot of spiciness to it.  The chickin’ had a little firmer consistency then the wings.

Chipotle BBQ ($8.50)
Shredded veggie-steak, marinated in our tangy BBQ sauce, with chipotle ranch, caramelized onion, lettuce, tomato.  I liked this a lot the veggie-steak actually held together and fought me when I tried to bite it, like real steak would.  My one problem with this sandwich is that it had a sort of cigarette smokiness to it that some people could be put off by.

We didn’t get a picture of our dessert, which was carrot cake, but it was really good, the frosting had the perfect sweetness to it.

Rating:  

I realize it’s a pre-opening but the food was great, we are looking forward to coming back again!

the Veggie Grill
The Irvine Spectrum
71 Fortune Drive
Irvine, CA 92618
Phone (949)727-9900

Harbor House Cafe - Sunset Beach

Harbor House Cafe in Sunset Beach is what places like Dennys and Norms strive to be.  It’s the quintessential greasy spoon that made America what it is today.  Harbor House is located just North from Huntington Beach on Pacific Coast Highway, right before you reach Seal Beach, it’s right next to the Water Tower House.  There is another Harbor House Cafe located in Dana Point, but I’ve only ever been to the original in Sunset Beach that’s been around since 1939.  The first thing you will notice when you enter Harbor House are all the old movie posters that adorn not only the walls but also the ceiling.  Next you’ll think it’s a pretty small place, until you realize that hidden behind the front part of the restaurant is closed in patio that seats as many if not more then the front!

We’ve ate here a number of times, especially on some late night occasions after quenching our thirsts with numerous libations, and they have never failed to hit the spot.  On this visit it was Sunday at around 2:00 PM when we arrived and it wasn’t too busy which was nice because we got to sit in the front at a window seat.  They have a huge menu, with well over 100 items to choose from, so it should be able to appease all of those in your party.

Both myself and the Mrs. were starving but didn’t want anything too heavy since we were having a late lunch so we both decided on sandwiches.  Mrs. DanGarion ordered the

Avocado Sandwich ($9.95), which had a whole avocado on it that was perfectly fresh, along with 4 thick slices of bacon, lettuce, tomato, mayo, and 2 slices of cheese.  There was so much bacon the Mrs. took off half of it, which I happily ate for her!  I always have a difficult time choosing what to order when there are more then 10 items on a menu, especially since I like to order different things from time to time, so I can review more then what I always order on a menu.  I went with something I’d never had before at any restaurant; a

Hot Crab Meat Sandwich ($10.95), it came with 100% crab meat, that was topped with a whole avocado, along with a bunch of melted Monterey jack cheese, lettuce and tomato on grilled sourdough.  The crab meat was great, it had a very good steamed crab taste and you could tell it wasn’t from a can or fake, it was delicious real fresh crab.  Their was a little more cheese then it probably needed, so I took some of it off, but others might love the overflow of Monterey jack cheese.  Along with both the sandwiches we had our choice of fries, onion rings, or cole slaw.  We went with the onion rings, which were just the normal fare you get from a burger join, but they were huge and crunchy, plus they have a nice somewhat spicy BBQ sauce to drench dip them in.

Service was average, nothing out of the ordinary, nothing bad or exceptionally good.  On other occasions service has been average to good as well.  This is definitely a place to bring a big appetite, they have a huge menu that includes breakfast, lunch, dinner, and desserts.  Talking about desserts they have some killer malts and shakes ( Handmade Choice of Oreo Cookie Bits, Blueberry, Chocolate, Pineapple, Strawberry, Fresh Banana, French Vanilla, Butterscotch, Peanut Butter, and Orange Juice); peanut butter shakes are my favorite!  If you go in the morning on Saturdays or Sundays be prepared to wait if you get there after 8:00 AM, since they will be busy, but aren’t all the great places like that?

Visited on Sunday 09/28/08 @ 2:00 PM for lunch.

Rating:  

- This is an average rating of all visits

Harbor House Cafe
16341 Pacific Coast Highway
Sunset Beach, 9074

Mustard Cafe (Review #2) - Orange

Hands down, Mustard Cafe in Orange makes the best sandwiches I’ve ever had.  I’ve never been one to turn a sandwich down, since to me they are the quintessential meal to ever have been created.  Bread, veggies, sauce, and meat; how much better can things get?  It is because of places like Mustard Cafe that I started writing reviews.  Businesses that make exceptional food deserve to be recognized and praised from the top of the highest roofs in Orange County.  But there is one slight flaw with Mustard Cafe…  The price.  Granted Mustard Café makes premium sandwiches, and I expect to pay slightly more for them but spending $13 for a sandwich, bag of chips and a 20oz Diet Coke for lunch is usually outside of most people’s minds of reasonable.  I hadn’t been to Mustard Cafe for a quite some time and after walking by it a couple times last Sunday while at the International Street Fair I decided to revisit one of my all time favorite sandwich shops.

On the ducat for my eating pleasure was the absolutely greatest sandwich created by man, the Reuben!  I have traveled far and wide to locate the most salivating versions of my most coveted sandwiches and Mustard Cafe is tops on my list.  The Mustard Cafe Reuben ($8.75) isn’t just a sandwich, it is listed as one of their Mustard Signatures, and this is because they are aware of how amazing it is.  As explained on their menu as,”corned beef, on the griddle with fresh sauerkraut, swiss cheese and our house Reuben sauce, served on toasted rye”.

Everything meshes together like a perfect song from my favorite music group Jimmy Eat World.  The griddle cooked corned beef’s edges get a slight crunch to them, along with a slight toast to the edges of cheese.  The bread is toasted on the inside and left bare on the outside, with just the right crunch to the crust.  Oh and the Reuben sauce is delectable.  I can’t find enough adjectives to explain how much I love this sandwich, that’s why I include pictures!  Along with my sandwich I got a bag of Hawaiian Kettle Style BBQ chips ($1.45), which are sweet with just a slight spice to them, and a 20oz, drink ($1.85).  This brought my total bill to $12.05 before tax.  I guess I just wish they could make a meal like this for under $10.

In addition to the Reuben, Mustard Cafe has a wide assortment of other sandwiches for those that aren’t fond of corned beef, everything from build a sandwich, paninis, and an assortment of 20 signature creations.  They are open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  They even have some killer looking desserts!

Mustard Cafe is a fast casual restaurant, which means you order your sandwich at the register and they bring it out to you when it’s ready.  They have 5 locations throughout Orange County, one in San Jose, and are opening in San Diego soon.

Mustard Cafe is a 5 star establishment, but I’m going to knock them down ½ a star due to the price, it’s hard not to compare them to other sandwich shops when taking into consideration, food quality, taste, price, etc.

Rating:  

Mustard Cafe
714-288-1404
190 S Glassell Street, Suite B
Orange, CA 92866

Beach Pit BBQ - Tustin

Little did I know when we walked into Beach Pit BBQ that I was walking into an establishment created by Tim DeCinces, a former baseball player whose father I cheered on for the California Angels in the 80’s. I didn’t catch wind of this information till today when I researching some information for my review.

Our visit to Beach Pit BBQ was on Monday, May 12, 2008. As we walked up it appeared pretty busy, we quickly found out there was some type of benefit going on for the daughter of a local man that passed away recently. We were told later by one of the wait staff that it wasn’t normally that loud. It didn’t really matter to us we just wanted good food! So we walked up to the counter and ordered our food; that’s right this isn’t a place where you are seated and have the wait staff take your order, you place your order and then take your seat. I did have one question about this type of set up, since you are ordering and paying for your meal before you sit (just like a fast food place) does that mean you are not expected to tip? The only reason I ask this is because all the staff did was bring my order, we did everything else ourselves, including get and replenish our drinks. Either way, that being the case we placed our order. I ordered the BBQ Baby Back Ribs dinner with beans and macaroni and cheese, while Mrs. DanGarion ordered the BBQ Chicken with beans and potato salad.

We took our seat in a secondary area near what would normally be called the front of the building. This section was walled off from the primary seating area. There were a lot of families with children, and many of the children walking and running around. Don’t get me wrong I like kids but when I was a child my parents had strict rules that I had to sit at the table with my family when we went out to dinner. But I’m getting off track; it’s not the businesses fault that parents aren’t respectful of the other patrons.

So we took our seat in the area that no one else was sitting and watched the traffic pass by in the quiet Old Town area of Tustin. After about 15 minutes our food came out. Everything looked good and piping hot! My wife said the chicken was really good, it was moist and had a lot of flavor, she was afraid that it was a little pink, but I explained to her that smoking will cause that with chicken. She wasn’t a big fan of the potato salad; it was bland and had big chunks of potatoes. My ribs were great; they fell off the bone with a little bit of work and were very flavorful. The ribs were lightly covered with their mild BBQ sauce which actually still had a bit of spicy kick to it. I loved the taste of the sauce so I covered them with even more as I worked on finishing off half of my full rack. The macaroni and cheese was good, it had a faint taste of sour cream in the background, I wasn’t sure if it’s a baked Mac’n'cheese, which is normally my favorite because I like to have some of the crusty part that was on top from the baking, but it was good nonetheless. We both agreed that the BBQ beans seemed sort of like a sweet version of chili, and although we thought they were good, they just weren’t something we would recommend to most people. I sort of wish they had done a more traditional BBQ bean with just their BBQ sauce and some pieces of meat. Overall the meal was good, and we do plan on going back and trying other items on the menu. I think our new visit will be for lunch so we can try some of their BBQ sandwich items, a Tri-Tip sandwich is always a good item to try, especially with the temperatures getting hotter nothing is better than having some BBQ in summer.

The pricing of items is about normal for BBQ, my rib dinner was $24, the chicken was $16, along with drinks our bill was approx. $45.

Overall we were pleased with our visit to Beach Pit BBQ. Our visit was fun, our food was good, and it proved itself a worthy leftover as I took the other half of my ribs with me to work the following day.

Rating:  

Beach Pit BBQ
560 El Camino Real
Tustin, CA 92780
(714) 929-7427

Mustard Cafe - Orange

I’m in love with Mustard Cafe’s Pastrami Reuben. As I’ve mentioned in other reviews of sandwich shops, I am a sandwich machine, I could live on sandwiches alone. I usually rate my sandwich places on two types of sandwich, one; your basic turkey, cheese, and maybe something else (bacon/avocado), and two; their pastrami reuben.

When it comes to Pastrami Reubens, Mustard takes the sandwich! The toast the inside of the bread and then it’s a loaded with premium pastrami and just the right amount of swiss cheese and kraut to compliment it. They then put the most amazing tasting special “reuben sauce” that is some sort of addictive mustard which dances in my mount with every bite.

Other sandwiches I’ve encountered on my visits have been good as well.

My only knock is that the price is kind of high for just a sandwich. 9 bucks just for the sandwich makes me only go there when I’m really craving the ’strami. It really should be priced at around 7-7.50, but that’s just my opinion, and I’m only a sandwich connoisseur, it’s not like I own a sandwich shop or anything.

Rating:  

Mustard Cafe
190 S Glassell Street
Orange, CA 92866
(714) 288-1404

Tummy Stuffer - Orange

I love sandwiches. In fact if you asked my wife she would probably call me a sandwich connoisseur. I can’t have enough sandwiches, and when I used to eat out for lunch every day (before I got married, of course) I would haunt all the sandwich shops that circle the Orange Circle (and by circle I mean are within a 2-3 mile radius!).

I’ve been to three different Tummy Stuffers in the area, three Togo’s (one that no longer exists), Two’s Company, Mustards, Hollingshead, and others that I can’t remember the name of. But this Tummy Stuffer is just average. They don’t seem to have as good of taste as most the other places I would frequent. Plus they recently completely changed their menu and appeared to have upped their prices. Good luck finding seats during the lunch hour rush, since they tend to get packed, and it usually looks sort of dirty whenever I’ve visited.

I haven’t been impressed with the quality of the bread, meat, and produce.

If you need and sandwich, it’s worth the stop, but if you if you want something a little better, there are other places just around the corner that I’d suggest. Heck you are better off changing your mind and having mexican at Arriba Grill, they kick ass.

Rating:  

Tummy Stuffer
745 S Main St
Orange, CA 92868
(714) 541-8486

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