Nogales Burgers - West Covina

Nogales Burger
19036 La Puente Rd
West Covina, CA91792
(626) 965-4460
Type: Burger joint
Map





I've been going to Nogales Burgers since I was in Junior High. After school, I'd walk here with my friends and get either a) $1 fries, b) 2 for 1 hamburgers (if it was Monday or Tuesday), or 3) chili cheese fries. The hamburgers were about $2 back in the day. I don't know how much they are now. Once high school and a driver's license came along, I kind of stopped going there. We would go to far away places to eat (3 miles or so) just cuz we could.

I've been to a few burger joints just like Nogales Burgers and I think they're all pretty much the same. Yeah, they have a few unique dishes and things the locals always order, but for the most part, it's hard to tell them apart. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, because I'll still go to Nogales Burgers now and then. Plus, if you've been going there for a while, you might run into old friends and catch up. It's a good, cheap place to eat. I'm sure everybody pretty much has a Nogales Burgers kind of joint near them.

Anyways, I went here for breakfast. I got the huevos rancheros as always, and my girlfriend got the breakfast burrito. I liked my meal and so did my girlfriend. We spent about $10 for a nice, big, greasy meal-- and I'll do it again.

Huevos Rancheros


Breakfast Burrito

Fusion Sushi, Long Beach

Fusion Sushi
6415 E. Spring Street
Long Beach, CA 90808
Phone: 562.489.8818
Type: Japanese food / sushi
Website
Map





I'm guessing this place is pretty new because I had a hard time finding the info for this place on the internet. I found out about Fusion Sushi in Long Beach's local magazine "District." I love that magazine cuz it's free and they always have coupons for the local restaurants. Anyways, they had a small ad in there that said something like "L.A. Times voted it best sushi in the city." They had a coupon for a free appetizer if you order $30 or more. When my girlfriend and I get sushi, we always end up spending more than $30 for sure, so we had to utilize that coupon.

Let's see now.... I'm trying to remember what was good and what was okay. I know the miso soup was good. I liked the salad. Oh yeah, one main thing I remember is that their baked lobster rolls are real good and the price for it was one of the cheapest I've seen. I'll go back just for those! Their dynamite appetizer was "ehh." It's full of vegetables and it just wasn't what I was expecting. I wouldn't order it again.

"Ehh" Dynamite... at least it was free


We also got the rainbow roll and I forgot what that one other roll was. I think it was expensive and it wasn't that great. The rainbow was okay.

Rainbow roll and some expensive roll I wouldn't get again


good salad and good miso soup


I forgot that we ordered some actual sushi. I liked it, but my girlfriend told me later that it didn't seem fresh. I don't know nothin about that.

Baked lobster roll and sushi


Even though it wasn't the best-- or even top 5 sushi/roll meals I've had, I'd definitely go back to Fusion Sushi. They have so many other things to try. If you can't decide what to get, just get an order or two of the baked lobster rolls.

Let's Eat OC - Website

Website

Let's Eat OC
"Orange County's Most Comprehensive Online Restaurant and Bar Directory"

"We list over 5000 Orange County, California eating and drinking establishments, categorized by city and by cuisine. You will also find over 600 extended "info pages" which list restaurant: hours, dress code, prices, and more. Plus links to restaurant websites with complete menus. Remember to surf before you dine and visit us often. New information is always being added."

George's Thai Bistro, Santa Ana

George's Thai Bistro
3732 S Bristol St
Santa Ana, CA 92704
Phone: (714) 979-8366
Type: Thai food
Map



I came upon George's Thai Bistro after a long day of snowboard shopping. Just from driving around, my girlfriend and I couldn't find any other place around the area that was open. It wasn't that late though. This place is located down the street from the South Coast Plaza hidden in some shopping plaza with a grocery store (maybe Vons) and an ice cream shop.

To be brief, the food was okay, the prices were kinda high, and the portions pretty much sucked. I mean $10 for a scoop of crab fried rice that wasn't even "to die for!" If I can recall, we ordered steamed rice cuz there was so little of it. I think the pompano was pretty good cuz it was crispy, but look how small that was. I forgot how much that cost, but it cost more than the rice.

Pompano


crab fried rice mole hill


This place received a mix bag of reviews at the AOL Citysearch website-- from shitty as hell, to "Best authentic Thai food in town!." Two reviewers say the owner (George) argues with the customers. I don't remember the service being horrible, just the price to quantity to quality ratio was. So it all comes down to would I go here again? If you read the whole review, you know the answer. It's a definite "NO." Portions and price are the deciding factors for this bad review. Plus, I don't even live around here. The only time I'll eat here again is if they'll give the meal on the house to redeem themselves, and I have to be in the area for some other reason. Hit me up Georgie boy.

Tani, Pasadena

Tani
58 E Colorado Blvd
Pasadena, CA 91105
(626) 578-9493
Type: Japanese food / Sushi
www.tanirestaurant.com
Map



I went to Tani to celebrate my anniversary with my girlfriend. We were about to go to Wokcano, but we read their menu and just weren't feeling it. They didn't seem to have enough of the special rolls that I like. So we walked down Colorado and saw some little Japanese restaurant with a sample of one of their appetizers in front. It looked really good. We looked at the menu and got kind of excited. Although the prices were pretty high, the selection of appetizers and special rolls were just to my taste.

I don't remember much of the names of the things we got, but I can tell you that every single one of them were good. I think we ordered a regular shrimp tempura or crunchy roll-- and that was still good. I think the Crab Dynamite or something was really good. That was what arrived at the table first, and that was what we saved for the last few bites. I always have to have a great bite for my last bite.

Crab Dynamite?


Crunch or shrimp tempura roll


Some more bombness


I think the Pasadena roll (2 different rolls in 1 order)


The service was good here and the food was really good. I'd say it's for surely in the top 3 places that I've tried. I still think Sushi of Naples edges it out just a little because of the price and they have the Mardi Gras roll! We spent about $80 with tip included at Tani so we can't come here too often. Maybe every few months-- although I'd love to come back whenever I want.

House of Louie, West Covina

House of Louie
124 N Grand Ave
West Covina, CA 91791
(626) 339-7374
Type: Chinese food / dim sum
Get directions

When I was a kid, the fried shrimp balls at House of Louie were my favorite in the whole wide world. They're a little crispy/crunchy on the outside, and light and tasty on the inside. They used to cost about $4.25 for 4 individual pieces, but I think the price went up a little since then. Now that I'm older, and had my share of them, I've grown pretty tired of it. It still tastes good, but I'd rather have a dozen other appetizers instead of the shrimp balls.

My former love...


I don't really go to much dim sum places so I can't say if House of Louie is good or not. I read a few reviews about this place on the internet, and supposedly it's just an average place. I think if you're into Chinese food, you wouldn't be too disappointed here. This place has been around for a good while, so there should be a reason why. Some guy said not to come here for dinner, but come for the dim sum, which is served around lunch time.

sum dim sum dishes


Would I go here again? Since I would only eat seafood, I wouldn't really want to go back just for the dim sum. I still have yet to try their regular menu items. So I'll come back here, but I have to be really fiending for some Chinese-- cuz I'm not much into Chinese food that much.

Maxim Cafe, Rowland Heights

Maxim Cafe
18904 Gale Ave
Rowland Heights, CA 91748
(626) 913-7777
Type: Chinese food
Map



Maxim Cafe's been around for a bit. It's located across the street from the 99 Ranch Market near the 60 freeway and Nogales. It's in the same plaza as Burger King.

I went here because I was fiending for some porridge. I remember that Maxim had some and it was late at night, so that was one of the places I know was open. I ordered their fish porridge was great in three ways: 1) it tastes good with soy sauce, 2) they give you a big portion, and 3) it's cheap! What more can you ask for?! The fish porridge was about $5 I think. Most of their meals are cheap.

look how much porridge you get for 5 bucks!


My girlfriend used to go here too, so she said to order the calamari. I was down with it, and I'm glad she told me to get it. The calamari tastes like their's MSG in it, but I don't care at all. That's what makes it taste great! They also gave a good amount for this dish.

MSG(?) calamari


The other dish my girl got was this Hong Kong noodle or something. It has like a curry taste to it. Wasn't feelin it. Although they gave a lot, it was just too dry for me. I for surely wouldn't get that dish again.

chow fun Singapore style noodles


I will definitely come back to Maxim. They're open pretty late-- between 1am - 2am. They got good food, good portions, and good prices! That adds up to a great place to eat in my blog.

Joe's Sushi, Lakewood

Joe's Sushi
5607 South St
Lakewood, CA 90713
(562) 804-2091
Type: Japanese food / Sushi
joesushi.com/
Map

I've heard of Joe's Sushi before from my girlfriend. She said she ate there before. When we tried looking for it online, we were having trouble. Their website only mentions their Riverside location-- not the Lakewood one. Luckily her friends knew where it was and we went for one of their birthdays.

I believe this place is known for their all-you-can-eat sushi/rolls deal during dinner time. It cost about $25 or less for each person. This includes a healthy amount of sushi, special rolls, and appetizers. I loved the baked mussels and their dynamite. I don't remember what rolls we ordered because there was so many, but I know I liked pretty much every single one. The manager was really nice to us and so were the sushi chefs.

looks like rainbow rolls on the right


Maybe calamari roll?


Bomb dynamite


Lobster roll?


I would definitely come back here soon. I would recommend getting the all-you-can-eat deal to get your money's worth. I would also suggest you come with a few friends so you can try different things. Damn, I wanna go back here again!

Chronic Tacos, Long Beach

Chronic Tacos
5525 E Stearns St
Long Beach, CA 90815
(562) 493-2211
Mexican food
Website
Map





Chronic Tacos is a fairly new company, with many locations around So Cal. Their original one is in Newport Beach. The one we went to in Long Beach is on Bellflower and Stearns in the same plaza as Rite Aid, Trader Joe's, and Target.

The place has a fun and casual atmosphere with extreme sports videos playing on the tv. It's a pretty popular place and it was fairly busy when we went there at night. Ordering your food is kind of like the Subway style where you watch them prepare it in front of your face and they ask what ingredients you want on your meal.

I ordered the shrimp burrito (beer battered). That cost about $7. I really liked it. I just wish it was bigger... of course. Everything in it was tasty and I didn't want it to end.

wish-it-was-bigger shrimp burrito


My girlfriend ordered the breaded fish tacos. I think that was good too. I forgot how it compared to Senor Baja's fish tacos though. I think it was up there. The fish tacos were a little pricey as well at about $3.50.

up-there fish taco


I wouldn't mind going to Chronic Tacos again even though it's a little expensive. My girlfriend and I noticed when we compared this place to the Hole Mole on PCH, this place has superior ingredients. I'm not totally dissing Hole Mole cuz I love that place for its great prices, but Chronic Tacos just seems fresher and a bit better tasting.

Club N' Grub - late night blog

Club N' Grub

While posting all these other websites/blogs, I forgot that I haven't posted about my new blog. It's another restaurant blog, but for the late night crowd. Peep it out when you can't find a good midnight snack at home.

Monster Munching & The New Diner Blogs

Monster Munching

The New Diner

I've been reading these two blogs ever since I started my own food blogs. They're my favorite because they reviewed a lot of places, they go to similar places as I do, and their layouts are really simple with not a lot of clutter. Be sure to check out these guys when you want more restaurant inspirations.

www.Sporq.com website

www.sporq.com

I ran into this website recently looking for some restaurants in Long Beach. The great thing about it is that 1) It includes many cities in Southern California as well as in Northern Cali, and 2) they allow you to view the restaurants' actual menus. Thank you very much Sporq.com

Honduras Kitchen, Long Beach

Honduras Kitchen
1909 E 4th St
Long Beach, CA 90802
(562) 624-8849
Honduran food
www.honduraskitchen.com
Menu
Map





Honduras Kitchen is located near Cherry Ave. on 4th St. in Long Beach. They have another location in Huntington Park. I don't remember seeing any parking lot for them, so you have to park on the street somewhere. The small street right next to them seems ghetto, so just be careful there. Actually, the whole area that surrounds the restaurant seems ghetto. If you are interested in coming here, make sure to bring cash because they don't take cards and I don't know if you want to walk to the nearby liquor store to get cash from their ATM.

Honduran food seems pretty similar to Mexican and Salvadoran food. I'm sure they have their differences, but I didn't see much. The prices here were I guess average or a little above average. We usually order the seafood dishes, so those are one of the most expensive. I believe the seafood dishes averaged about $10-$12 in price.

When we got there, the place was empty because the lady forgot to unlock the door and we had to call her to unlock it! We were the only ones eating there in that big place for a while. They hold night clubs there on some nights, so I think we were eating where the dance floor was supposed to be.

In the beginning after ordering our food, we got some chips with some cheese and red sauce on top. I really liked it. The sauce had a subtle taste and the cheese was tasty. I should have asked for more sauce but there were almost no chips left anyway.

Chips w/ cheese and some kinda red sauce


So we finally get our orders. My girlfriend ordered the fish with garlic sauce I think. She got it with the green plantains. Note: Don't order the green plantains unless you like banana chips with your meals. I prefer the yellow plantains-- which they also have-- which is what most caribbean places serve. The fish was bland so I wouldn't order that for myself. The sides were very good, but if you look at the pictures, they don't give you a lot of rice. I'm not on the Atkins Diet man!

Bland fish w/ garlic sauce and green plantains... no thanks


I ordered the fried shrimp which is cooked with batter. I really liked the shrimp, but as you can see, they didn't hook it up at all. How the hell am I supposed to be satisfied with 5 or 6 bites of shrimp? They really need to do something about some of their portions. But all that aside, I loved my dish because I got the yellow plantains and I finished the sides too. The salad and that purple stuff compliments the shrimp, rice, and plantains very nicely. It adds some juice to it. The only reason why I wouldn't order this is cuz of the weak portions.

skimped on the shrimp... but bom-b-z!


Would I go here again? Hmmm... I've thought about that for a little. Maybe. I need cash for sure. I need to bring my shitty van so I can park in the ghetto. I need to be fiending for plantains. I can't be too hungry. I need to bring my own rice (I wish). It's possible I might come here again. I mean it's possible for me to win the lotto.... well no, it wasn't that bad.

Delhi Palace, La Puente

Delhi Palace
581 S Azusa Way
La Puente, CA 91744
(626) 964-0343
Type: Indian food
www.mdelhipalace.com
Map





When I'm in Long Beach, I'll eat at Natraj. When I'm in Wesco, I eat at Delhi Palace. Delhi Palace is located near Jax Market (if it's still around) by Azusa and Hurley St. They just remodeled the place and they did a really nice job inside. Everything looks classier and it would be a good place to take a date if she doesn't care about how the outside looks. You also may smell like Indian food after.



Like Natraj, I usually eat at Delhi Palace during their lunch buffet. I think it's from 11am til about 2pm. The cost is less than $10 per person. I think they generally serve the same stuff everyday, but I don't eat it everyday so it's all good. My favorite is the spinach and the garlic naan.

Basmati rice, spinach, potatoes, and some good stew-ish thing


Garlic naan son


My girlfriend gets the chicken dishes, but she also loves the vegetarian entrees...



Whenever I get the craving for Indian food and I'm in the West Covina area, you know where I'll be at for an hour or so.

Paradise Sushi, Hermosa Beach

Paradise Sushi
53 Pier Ave
Hermosa Beach, CA 90254
(310) 379-1558
Type: Sushi / Japanese food
Map





I went here after getting a $45 surfboard off some guy. Thanks Craigslist! Anyways, this place is at the end of Pier Ave where all the shops are at. It's kind of hidden next to some hip-hop or something clothing store. It's really small inside and it's dark with lots of black light glowing decorations. There was mostly people just drinking with their friends.

When I looked at the menu, one of the first things I noticed was that the prices were pretty decent. Some of the rolls were like $3-4. Nothing was over $10 I think. Bad thing is I don't remember them having that many special/baked rolls. Always a turn-off for me. When the food came, I realized why the rolls were so cheap. They only gave like 4 for most of them. Wack. Not only that, but they weren't that great either.

We also ordered the dynamite which wasn't great. The fried oysters weren't great either.

The un-great fried oysters and dynamite


We ordered a good number of things like this one dish below which I don't remember. I don't know if I liked it or not. It was probably okay since it doesn't stick out in my mind.

something we ordered


Paradise Sushi is a cheap place to eat. I think the total bill came to like $35 or something without tip. I don't know if their drinks are cheap, but this is a good place to drink with friends and order some rolls or something just to munch on. As for having an actual meal, I wouldn't count on it satisfying the taste buds. There's another sushi place around there that you might want to try instead.

Mimi Thai Cuisine, Long Beach

Mimi Thai Cuisine
2264 Pacific Ave.
Long Beach, CA
Phone (562) 490-0011 or (562) 490-0053
Hours: Sun-Mon 11am - 9:30pm
Type: Thai food
Map






The only reason why we went to this place is because my girlfriend has the same name as the lady the place is named after. Mimi Thai Cuisine is located on Pacific Ave., but it used to be on Atlantic, so don't get lost.

The place wasn't packed when we got there, but I think it was a little later at night. We ordered the crab fried rice as usual and some fish with some sweet and sour sauce if I can recall. So the crab fried rice came and I took my first few bites. It seemed a little hard. I took more bites and I still thought something wasn't right. I finally brought it up to my girlfriend and she took her test bites and she also came up with the same results. After some quick consulting, we came to the conclusion that the rice was under-cooked. I don't know about you, but when the rice isn't right, it could make the whole meal bad. We told the lady that we thought the rice seemed under-cooked, and she said it's supposed to be like that. We think she just didn't really understand us. I'm Filipino, so I think I have some authority on rice quality, and I say that shit was under-cooked dammit.

The partly cooked crab fried rice.


The fish was whatevers to me. It wasn't as fried as I would have liked. My girlfriend liked it. The prices were about average for most Thai places I've been to. I'm estimating the total came to $22 something with tip included. I'm sure their rice isn't always like that, but my experience here won't bring me back. Sorry Mimi.

Some fried fish with sauce and veggies-- maybe pompano?