Munchies Vegan Diner-Moved

Munchies Vegan Diner
515 N Main St
Santa Ana, CA 92701
657-699-3076

Yes, another Vegan Big Mac review!  I heard about Munchies Vegan Diner on Instagram.  I decided to give them a try during the Labor Day Weekend, after reading parking is hard to find at times.

It's located in McFadden's Public Market, along with four other food stands, and an arcade/bar upstairs.  Parking wasn't bad, paid street parking, but on a regular weekend, it would be tough to find.

Big Much, $17 with fries.

Munchies Vegan Diner calls their Big Mac the Big Munch.  They use the Beyond Burger patties.  This was a huge burger, good flavor, the pickles stood out the most, but their sauce was kind of bland.  Fries were ok.

Service is good.

I gotta say that the Vegan Big Mac at Doomies is still my favorite vegan Big Mac, with Plant Power being second! Munchies Vegan Diner is only the second place I've tried the Vegan Big Mac, where they use a plant based burger-either the Beyond or Impossible, Veggietize Me- Impossible, is the other. 

Uncle John’s Cafe-Moved

Uncle John’s Cafe
834 S Grand Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90017
213-623-3555

I found out about Uncle John's Cafe on You Tube!  Uncle John's, located inside the Stillwell Hotell,  is part diner and part Chinese restaurant.  You can get both menus from open to close, which is 3pm.  At 5pm, they became Downtown LA's answer to Boiling Crab, it becomes a Cajun seafood place.  I knew this would be Americanized Chinese food.

The restaurant is a small galley-like setup- with tables in the front, a counter at the back, and the kitchen in the far back.  It's got an updated decor.

Spicy Shrimp lunch special- $13.50. This was terrible.  I originally order kung pao shrimp, but got this spicy shrimp instead.  I wasn't going to wait and said it's fine.  This is just an orange chicken sauce with shrimp.  The sauce was bland with little flavor.  The shrimp was deep fried and I'm betting it was frozen.  The rice was the best part of this dish. 

Shrimp fried rice- $10. As you can see, they put a ton of soy sauce into the rice.  There are green onions, and eggs in this.  A bit salty, but overall average.  I've had better, I've had worse.

Shrimp chow mein-$11.  Large pieces of onion, some cabbage, and about six medium sized shrimp were in this dish.  It was too greasy for me. I would rate this average, again.

Service was good.

I wouldn't go back to Uncle John's Cafe, for the Chinese food.  I am going to go back for their seafood. 

Update August 31, 2019

Butterfly fried shrimp, with lemon pepper fries, $12. This was frozen butterflied shrimp.  Some pieces looked as though they stuck together while frying.  Nothing special, but there were about 8-10 pieces of shrimp.  The fries were bland and flavorless! 

Shrimp with mild house sauce- mixture of Cajun, lemon pepper, and garlic butter sauces- $15/lb. The shrimp were fine, the sauce was pretty good, the garlic butter stood out the most. 

Service is good.

I was surprised when I walked in, there was nobody in the restaurant.  A group of three people came in about a minute after me.  Then two people came in about 10 minutes later.  Maybe people haven't gotten the word that Uncle John's Cafe has a seafood boil at night.  Or, since this was Labor Day weekend, everybody was going out of town!  I would go back for the seafood boil.  I thought the shrimp was fine.  I wouldn't touch the fried shrimp again.

Hail Mary Pizza

Hail Mary Pizza
3219 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90039
323-284-8879

After going to PoeWow Pizza , after seeing it on LA Eater's list of the 22 Essential Pizza in LA, I decided to go to another pizza restaurant on the list- Hail Mary Pizza, this is number 12 on the list.  Pizza of Venice, Triple Beam, Grimaldi's, Prime Pizza, DeSano Pizza Bakery, Settebello Pizzeria, Vito's, Pizzeria Mozza,  Casa Bianca, and my favorite pizza in LA- Village Pizzeria!  Only ten more places to go!!

Margherita pizza $12- This was a 13in pizza. If some of this pizza wasn't burnt, this would have been a very good pizza.  But, the burnt pieces and a little too much olive oil ruined it for me.  Fresh ingredients, good crust- the parts that weren't brunt.  But, if you're going to be on the 22 Essential list, you can't make this mistake.  I would much rather go to Elios Wood Fire Pizza!

Service is good.

Like I said, if they didn't burn some of the crust, this was be a good pizza.  But, they got only one chance, and I won't return.

Update August 31, 2019

Ok, I know I said I won't return.  But, Hail Mary has $2 slices of their square pizza from open to 2:30pm.  So, I got two slices, and since I was in the area, I gave them a try.  No, no, and NO!

Again, that same burnt crust, and a weird tangy taste that just ruined this pizza.  You can get a better and bigger slice of pizza at Costco!!

I will not be going back to Hail Mary Pizza again!

Superior Wok

Superior Wok
165 S Hacienda Blvd
City of Industry, CA 91745
626-435-3097

I was going to Kim Tar, but then I noticed that the Teddy's Tacos building has been torn down.  As I walked over I noticed Superior Wok, which is near Superior Grocery store.  So, I decided to give them a try. The interesting thing is that Kim Tar and Superior Wok both have City of Industry addresses, but Teddy's Tacos has a Hacienda Heights address-all three are within a 25 yard radius of each other!

Anyways, Superior Wok is your regular steam table Chinese restaurant.  They have more seafood choices than other steam table Chinese restaurants.  The steam table is in the back, with tables in the front part of the restaurant.  

One item combo ($5.39) with chow mein and fried rice with shrimp and vegetables ($1.75 up charge) The chow mein was good, with cabbage and soy sauce.  The fried rice was clumpy, they need to use day old fried rice. 

The veggies were good, with a nice crunch and good sauce.  The shrimp, you get six medium sized shrimp, was ok.  Not as fresh, and they were mushy. 

Service is good.

I wouldn't go back to Superior Wok.  If I'm going to pay an upcharge, the seafood better be damn good.  This came up short.

IKEA

IKEA Food Court
848 S Barranca Ave
Covina, CA 91723
626-732-4532

While I was looking at You Tube videos that reviewed the Impossible Whopper at Burger King, I noticed a video review of the IKEA food court!  So, I decided to give them a visit. Before I continue, I can't believe there are 15-20 minute reviews of the Impossible Whopper on You Tube.  Some people just love to hear themselves talk!  About 90% of those videos are BS and really have nothing to do with the Impossible Whopper.

Anyways, I went to the IKEA food court, where they have hot dogs, soda, pizza, and some other treats.  IKEA also has a dining room where they serve salmon, meatballs- both vegan and with meat, and other items.  I didn't go there. 

Veggie hot dogs- 75 cents each. They come with mustard and some cabbage, but I asked for mustard only.  This was shocking good!  Good flavor and texture on the veggie dogs.  I'm not sure if they are vegan, but man a good veggie hot dog.

Cheese pizza slice, $1.75.  Ok I actually saw the worker take a whole pizza out of the freezer, take off the wrapping and put it into the oven!  The one in the oven already, he actually forgot to take off the cardboard, so he had to put the pizza back into the oven!  Anyways, I waited maybe five minutes for the pizza.  It was fine.  Look, I'm not expecting a great pizza.  It was certainly better than that chain papa john's, owned by that racist idiot.  But, IKEA's pizza isn't as good as Costco pizza.

Service is good.

I would go back to IKEA for the hot dogs, and will try their dining room items. But, I'll pass on the pizza.

PowWow Pizza-Closed

PowWow Pizza
4085 Atlantic Ave Ste B
Long Beach, CA 90807
562-283-0152

After going to Pizza of Venice, after seeing it on LA Eater's list of the 22 Essential Pizza in LA, I decided to go to another pizza restaurant on the list- PowWow Pizza, in Long Beach.  PowWow makes 11 of the 22 place on that list, that I have gone to!

Apparently the own of PowWow is from Cambodia, and some of the pizza has Cambodian influences.  There is also a Korean, Indian, and a Filipino influenced pizzas on the menu.

PowWow is in corner unit, with a semi circular front counter-where you place your order.  There are regular and high top tables inside, and four tables outside.  They have a pizza oven that is blasting like crazy!  It's a few blocks north of the still open, and apparently thriving Bake and Broil!

One topping medium pizza-$10, with mushrooms.  This was a great pizza!  Plenty of gooey cheese, nice rich flavorful sauce, and a decent amount of mushrooms.  The crust with dense, chewy, and had good flavor.  It held up to all the toppings like a champ!

Service was good. I could see they were busy, not only with customers in the restaurant, but online and phone orders!  The pizza oven was firing the entire time I was there.  The two people working were going non stop filling the orders.  While the guy who took my order didn't give me a time when my pizza was going to be ready- he did apologize for the wait when he brought my pizza to my table.

I would go back to PowWow Pizza any time!

Pizza Of Venice

Pizza Of Venice
2545 N Fair Oaks Ave
Altadena, CA 91001
626-765-9636

LA Eater had a list of the 22 Essential Pizza in LA.  I have been to nine of the places listed.  Triple Beam, Grimaldi's, Prime Pizza, DeSano Pizza Bakery, Settebello Pizzeria, Vito's, Pizzeria Mozza,  Casa Bianca, and my favorite pizza in LA- Village Pizzeria!  So, I decided to make it an even ten and go to Pizza of Venice! 

Located in a small strip mall with a liquor store and a beauty salon.  It's a small place, and I'm betting it was a bar before.  The kitchen is in the back room, and there is a counter in front of the kitchen.  There is counter seating throughout the front dining area.

Cheese pizza- $6.  The pizza comes in a 10in size.

As the LA Eater story mentioned, the pizza aren't a perfect square.  But, they are damn good!  Nice thin crust.  The sauce is flavorful and they use a good quality cheese.  A very good pizza and I'm shocked I never heard of Pizza of Venice until now.  They have been open since at least 2013!

Service is good!

I would go back to Pizza of Venice anytime!

The Tackle Box Southern Seafood & More-Closed

The Tackle Box Southern Seafood & More
17620 Bellflower Blvd
Unit B108
Bellflower, CA 90706
562-804-0736

I found out about The Tackle Box Southern Seafood & More when LA Eater published a story about them opening a store, after having a food truck for many years! It's a small galley style restaurant with the counter and the kitchen on the left and the dining room on the right side of the building.  It's dark with the only lights, the daylight from the windows.

Fish and Shrimp tackle box-$15 plus $10 for lobster, with mac and cheese.  You have your choice of fried or grilled seafood. I got the grilled lobster and the fried shrimp.  The shrimp was very good! Good flavor, and huge pieces of shrimp! The batter was very good, not as hard as other cornmeal batter.  This could have been great if this was made to order.  The shrimp was maybe warm, not hot.  But, fresh out of the fryer, this would be great!!

The lobster was good.  A bit on the small side, but tender and flavorful.  It was grilled with lemon butter.

Service is ok.  The lady taking the order is just going through the motions.  She isn't mean or unfriendly, but you know she doesn't want to be there!  They also charge extra, I think 45 cents if you use debit or credit cards!

I would go back for the shrimp and to try the fish, but I won't rush back.