GOURMET CAFE AND PIE COMPANY

PICTURED (top to bottom): Restaurant Sign, Ham and Cheese Omelet, French Toast, Bacon and Eggs, "Jimmy's Sandwich", Link Sausage Side.

Gourmet Cafe and Pie Company

5350 Katella Avenue

Los Alamitos, CA 90720

(714) 995-8930

We hadn't been to the Gourmet Cafe in quite some time, and felt it was time to return. The food has always been very good here, the portions large and the prices reasonable. Also, we were craving their fantastic French Toast!

Sweetie Pie ordered her usual Ham and Cheese Omelet, and her mother had her Bacon and Eggs (over hard). Both had Cottage Cheese on the side, and they split an order of that great French Toast we came for. I ordered "Jimmy's Sandwich", which is bacon, eggs, cheese, avocado and potatoes on grilled sourdough. For me, this is the perfect breakfast sandwich ( I order the potatoes on the side; makes it much easier to pick up and eat). I also had a side of Link Sausage (major YUM- big and hot).

The service was excellent today, the food just as good as it's always been ( and the French Toast divine!)

Today's Gourmet Cafe breakfast gets three thumbs up from the 3 Tubby Tummys.

FIVE CROWNS

PICTURED (top to bottom): Restaurant, Ravioli, Crab Cakes, Prime Rib, Roasted Goose, Potato Crusted Salmon.

Five Crowns

3801 E Pacific Coast Highway

Corona Del Mar, CA 92625

(949) 760-0331

www.lawrysonline.com/fivecrowns

We were looking for someplace nice to have dinner on New Year's Day, and decided on the Five Crowns in Corona Del Mar. The food is consistently good here, as is the service and ambiance.

We started off with appetizers. Sweetie Pie decided on the Ravioli, her favorite appetizer, and it did not disappoint. Her mother ordered the Crab Cakes, her favorite. Five Crowns has the best Crab Cakes in town. I had the Shrimp Cocktail- big, fresh and delicious.

For her entree, Sweetie chose the Five Crowns Cut Prime Rib, their signature dish. It was lean, tender and cooked perfectly. Her mother had the Potato Crusted Salmon, perfectly prepared and delicious, as usual. I decided on the Traditional Holiday Roasted Goose. Although it was good, to be perfectly honest it was not as good as their Maple Leaf Farms Roasted Duckling ( one of my favorite dishes). The Goose was a little tough, and hard to get off the bone.

Tonight's Five Crowns dinner gets three thumbs up from the 3 Tubby Tummys.

PDC-II

PICTURED (top to bottom): Restaurant Sign, Ham and Cheese Omelet, Eggs Benedict, California Omelet, Sausage Patty Side.

Pacific Dining Car

13190 West 6th Street

Los Angeles, CA 90017

(2130 483-6000

www.pacificdiningcar.com

What better way to start off the new year than at our favorite breakfast dining spot, the Pacific Dining Car. It was a beautiful morning, and traffic driving into Los Angeles was "holiday light". We got there early and felt like we were opening the place up (although they are open 24/7). As usual, the service was excellent and the food fantastic.

We started off with the Buttermilk Biscuits (freshly baked) and Rye Toast (with blueberry jam). Sweetie Pie ordered her usual Ham and Cheddar Cheese Omelet,  very big and perfectly prepared. Her mother had her favorite dish, Eggs Benedict (with no English Muffin), beautiful and also perfectly prepared. Oh, and they both had Cottage Cheese on the side (good for them). I ordered the California Omelet, which is Bacon, Avocado, Swiss and Cheddar Cheese (but no Tomatoes in mine), with Lyonnaise Potatoes and a giant Sausage Patty on the side. They make their own Sausage, and it is my all-time favorite.

Our first meal of the New Year was simply delightful, and the PDC gets three thumbs up from the 3 Tubby Tummys!

DENNY'S

PICTURED (top to bottom): Restaurant, Double Cheeseburger, Double Cheeseburger, Swiss Mushroom Burger.

Denny's

7490 Edinger Avenue

Huntington Beach, CA 92647

(714) 847-4736

www.dennys.com

We can hardly believe it ourselves, but we actually visited a Denny's this week. We were out and about and craving a quick burger fix, and somehow wound up at Denny's in Huntington Beach. We hadn't been to a Denny's in about twenty years, but figured we'd give them a shot.

The service was mediocre at best. It was a slow evening, but our server was busy chit-chatting with co-workers while our orders sat ready, waiting to be served. The ambiance was less than enticing. But the food was actually pretty good.

The ladies both ordered the Double Cheeseburger. It was HUGE, made with two large hand-formed patties of tender flavorful meat. I ordered the Swiss Mushroom Burger, not quite as big, but very tasty. We all had the "seasoned fries" (59 cent up-charge), which were very good.

Tonight's "burger experience" gets one and a half thumbs up from the 3 Tubby Tummys.

LIGHTS AND LUCCI'S

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PICTURED (top to bottom): Lucci's Deli Menu, Garlic Bread, Lasagna, Chicken Parmesan, Paradise Pasta, Meat Balls, Cookies, Christmas Lights.

Lucci's Deli

8911 Adams Avenue

Huntington Beach, CA 92646

(714) 962-7998

www.luccisdeli.com

We were planning on spending the evening exploring for pretty Christmas lights in our "extended neighborhood", so we decided to order take out from Lucci's Deli in Huntington Beach. We had never been there, but their ads looked good, the prices were reasonable and they are close by. So, we figured we'd give them a try.

The Garlic Bread looked good, but could have used a little more garlic and butter. The Lasagna was just excellent. It was rolled, rather than layered; and just brimming with meat and cheese, and had a great tasting sauce. The Chicken Parmesan was pretty good, but not memorable (a little thin on the chicken breast). The Paradise Pasta ( with chicken, broccoli, basil, olive oil, garlic and Romano Cheese) was just ok. It really needed more chicken and Romano Cheese. The Meat Balls were magnificent- tender, flavorful meat and a great marinara sauce. The cookies were prettier than they were delicious.

Today's Lucci's Deli Take Out dinner gets two thumbs up from the 3 Tubby Tummys!

We found some beautifully decorated houses on our self-guided tour, and have included pictures of some of our favorites.