HOUSTON'S

PICTURED (top to bottom): Restaurant, Firehouse Chili, Crispy Chicken Club Salad, Cheeseburger, Hickory Burger.

HOUSTON'S WE HAVE A PROBLEM

As we walked in to our local Houston's Restaurant in Irvine at about 5pm, we asked to be seated at our favorite booth but were informed that all the large booths were reserved for partys of five or more coming in at 5 and 6 PM. We were seated at a comfortable smaller booth and began to peruse our menus. We noticed the "reserved" booths filling up with groups of 4 to 5 people. But then they seated a couple (i.e., 2 people) in the large booth right next to us. It's one thing to tell us a fib, but quite another to rub it in our faces.

We all ordered the Saturday Night Firehouse Chili to start. We are used to having it served piping hot with steam rising from the bowl, but tonight's dishes arrived lukewarm at best. My sweetie pie ordered the Crispy Chicken Club Salad with Buttermilk Garlic Dressing. The dressing was Divine, but the fried chicken was too much coating and not enough chicken. Her mother ordered the Cheeseburger and I had The Hickory Burger-with Canadian Bacon, Cheddar Cheese and Hickory Sauce. Both burgers were excellent and came with our favorite skinny seasoned french fries.

The 3 Tubby Tummys give tonight's Houston's dinner experience one and a half thumbs up.

CANTER'S DELI-CHAPTER TWO

PICTURED (top to bottom): Restaurant Sign, Deli Sampler Trio, Corned Beef and Chopped Liver Sandwiches.


We were making our second trip to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), this time for the Renoir Exhibit. So we decided to stop back at Canter's Deli for lunch to try some of the great sandwiches we had seen on our last trip.
My sweetie pie ordered the Deli Sampler- with Corned Beef, Pastrami and Chopped Liver. Her mother stayed with her favorite, the Corned Beef and Cabbage Dinner. I ordered a Pastrami Sandwich and half a Chopped Liver Sandwich, both on egg bread. Instead of Pastrami, I got a Corned Beef Sandwich. When I brought it to our server's attention, she replaced the remaining half sandwich with Pastrami. Hey, mistakes happen. The Corned beef was good, but the Pastrami was better (and the replacement sandwich was huge).
We split a piece of their delicious Cream Cheese Cake three ways for dessert.

The 3 Tubby Tummys give today's Canter's Deli lunch two and a half thumbs up.
(BTW-the Renoir exhibit and the American Stories exhibit at LACMA are both amazing).

CLAIM JUMPER ( DINE IN )

PICTURED (top to bottom): Restaurant Sign, Baby Back Ribs and Chicken (all white) with Baked Sweet Potato, Baby Back Ribs and Chicken with Baked Potato.


All three of us were feeling like BBQ Chicken and Baby Back Ribs, so we headed over to our favorite Claim Jumper Restaurant in the South Coast Plaza Mall. The ladies ordered theirs with all white meat chicken and a Baked Sweet Potato with butter. I had the regular half chicken and a Baked Potato loaded with butter, sour cream, chives, bacon bits and cheese sauce.

The food was good, the portions large and the service excellent. Everything was nicely prepared and came to the table nice and hot.

The 3 Tubby Tummys give tonight's Claim Jumper dinner three thumbs up!!!

CHEESECAKE FACTORY

PICTURED (top to bottom): Restaurant, Chicken Madeira, Salmon, Monterey Cheeseburger


It's a very busy Friday for us. We have a lot planned today, so we needed somewhere close by for lunch. We decided on our local Cheesecake Factory in Huntington Beach (www.thecheesecakefactory.com/). We love the extensive list of menu items; there always seems to be something for any mood.

The service at this location has been spotty in the past, but that was not the case today. The service was excellent and our sever a pure delight. My sweetie pie loves the Chicken Marsala here, but decided to try the Chicken Madeira today. Well, she was not disappointed- it was a great change of pace and even the mashed potatoes were delicious. Her mother stayed with her favorite- The Salmon with carrots and asparagus on the side- a beautiful plate and as good as it looks. I decided to try the Monterey Cheeseburger off the new Glamburger menu. Excellent burger and I would definitely have it again.

The 3 Tubby Tummys give today's Cheesecake Factory lunch three thumbs up!!!

BEACH PIT BBQ- TUSTIN GARAGE

PICTURED ( top to bottom ): Restaurant Sign, Baby Back Ribs and BBQ Chicken with Macaroni and Cheese, Baby Back Ribs BBQ Chicken and Tri-Tip with Sweet Potato Fries, Baby Back Ribs BBQ Chicken and Smoked Sausage.


It was a warm, sunny day and we were feeling like BBQ. Still feeling adventuresome, we decided to try another new place- Beach Pit BBQ in the Tustin Garage in Old Town Tustin ( www.beachpitbbq.com/ ). We had read some good reviews on this place, but after we were inside the restaurant we saw a family come in with two children carrying their Happy Meal bags. We couldn't help but think that maybe they know something we don't.

We found out later that everything is overpriced and the portions inconsistent. The Half Racks of Baby Back Ribs were tasty, but small with wizzened and bony pieces hiding beneath. The BBQ Chicken pieces were smallish and lacking in flavor. The Tri-Tip was very dry. However, I felt the Smoked Sausage was delicious. Both the mild and spicy BBQ sauces were good, but served on the side. None of the meat was cooked with the BBQ Sauce. What's up with that? The sides were very inexpensive, but also very small. The Macaroni and Cheese and the Sweet Potato Fries were both very bland.

The 3 Tubby Tummys give Today's Beach Pit BBQ dinner one thumb up.

ORIGINAL PANTRY CAFE

PICTURED (top to bottom): Restaurant Sign, Restaurant Line, Ham Steak and Eggs, Bacon and Eggs, Sausage and Cheese Omelet, Sourdough French Toast.


We decided to take a field trip today and have breakfast at a Los Angeles Historical Landmark, The Original Pantry Cafe ( www.pantrycafe.com/ ). There is always a line of people waiting to get in, so we felt we should see for ourselves why this place is so popular.
My sweetie pie ordered the Ham Steak and Eggs and her mother had the Bacon and Eggs. I had the Sausage and Cheese Omelet and we split an order of Sourdough French Toast 3 ways. Potatoes, Toast and Coffee or Tea are all included with each order. The prices are reasonable, but a LOT HIGHER than what currently shows in the on line menu. The portions are large, but overall we found the quality disappointing. The restaurant is very entertaining, and the service good. Our waiter was personable and seemingly attentive; although he did neglect to refill our hot tea. Most disconcerting though was sweetie pie's ham steak, which was marbled with fat and gristle to the point of being inedible.

The 3 Tubby Tummys give today's Original Pantry Cafe breakfast one and a half thumbs up. Still, we feel that everyone sould try it at least once. Come early though, and be prepared to stand in line.

KING'S FISH HOUSE

PICTURED (TOP TO BOTTOM): Restaurant, Buffalo Chicken Wings, Large Shrimp Cocktail, Sauteed BBQ Shrimp, Fried Shrimp, King's Combo Platter.

We were craving Fried Shrimp, so we decided to head over to our local King's Fish House in Huntington Beach ( www.kingsfishhouse.com ) because the 3 Tubby Tummys feel that they have the best Fried Shrimp around.

We were hungry, so we decided to start off with our favorite appetizers. My sweetie pie had the Buffalo Chicken Wings, while her mother had her favorite-the Large Shrimp Cocktail. I had the Sauteed BBQ Shrimp (nice and spicy). The ladies both had the Fried Shrimp entree, while I had the King's Combo Platter-Fried Shrimp, Fish and Scallops. Everything was well prepared and up to our expectations. We decided to split a dessert 3 ways, and at our server's suggestion, we tried the Fruit Crisp with Vanilla Ice Cream. Delicious!!!

On the down side, our server never refilled our Iced Teas.

Could'a been a three, but tonight's King's Fish House dinner gets two and a half thumbs up from the 3 Tubby Tummys.