Seasons Cafe-Closed

Seasons Cafe
23415 Golden Springs Dr
Diamond Bar, CA 91765
909-860-8646

Seasons Cafe opened up where Thai Diamond Bar BQ used to be.   I believe at least two other restaurants opened in this space before Seasons Cafe came in.

It's a small restaurant with booths on the left side and tables seating on the right.  They also serve sushi, which is half priced and if you bought two, you got one free!

It wasn't that crowded when I got there around 1pm.  Maybe I missed the lunch rush?

Shrimp chow mein- $7.35.  Maybe six pieces of shrimp throughout this dish.  Good flavor, the noodles were cooked perfectly. 

Shrimp fried rice- $6.99.  Made with shrimp, carrots, and peas this was good, if a bit under seasoned dish.  Just a touch more salt would have been perfect.  Again a small number of shrimp, only 6, but everything was well cooked.

Service is good.

Seasons Cafe is pretty good.  I may try their sushi, but with all the specials, I have a feeling the sushi isn't selling well.  But, the Chinese food is good!

Hunan Restaurant

Hunan Restaurant
17383 Hesperian Blvd
San Lorenzo, CA 94580
510-317-9618

I was up in the San Francisco bay area and wanted some Chinese food.  I found Hunan Restaurant and stopped in.  It's a small restaurant with about 10 tables.  I got a to-go order.

Shrimp chow mein- $9.95.  This was outstanding.  Very well cooked, and seasoned.  A generous amount of medium sized shrimp with green onions and onions.

 Shrimp fried rice- $9.95.  The rice seemed like three day old rice.  Most restaurants will use day old rice, but this rice should have been thrown out.  There were eggs, peas, and carrots in this, along with lots of soy sauce.

I would get the chow mein again.  Not sure about the fried rice!  But, overall a good restaurant.  There were about four other tables and the food they ordered looked great!

Kaya Asian Cuisine

Kaya Asian Cuisine
1640 W Mission Blvd
Pomona, CA 91766
909-622-2689

Kaya Asian Cuisine is basically a sushi restaurant that also serves some Chinese dishes.  Located in the same shopping center as a LA County office and a huge warehouse lumber store, Kaya is a medium sized restaurant.  There is the sushi bar on the right as you enter, and tables spread throughout the store.

Decorated with some title on the wall and a chair rail, it's gives off a warm welcoming feel.

Tuna, $4.50 and shrimp, $4.25,  sushi.  Both are good portions, were pretty fresh.  But, the sushi rice is bland and didn't stick together.  If you dipped it into soy sauce, it would fall apart.

Crunchy roll- $9.50, shrimp tempura, with crabmeat.  There was too much sauce on this roll.  As with the sushi, the rice didn't stick together and would fall apart when dipped into soy sauce.  Next time I order this, I'll ask for no sauce.

Red Dragon roll,$9.95, shrimp tempura and crab meat inside, and tuna outside.  A very good, balance, well executed roll.  I really liked this roll.

Service was good.  There was only one server for the entire restaurant, but I wasn't lacking for anything.  They do a great delivery business, because they had two delivery persons, coming in and making deliveries throughout the entire time I was there.

While Pomona isn't known as a city with a lot of good sushi options, Kaya is pretty good. 

I would go back to Kaya.

Dragon 99-Closed

Dragon 99
9335 Monte Vista Ave
Montclair, CA 91763
909-621-1699

Dragon 99 is located on the western part of the Montclair Plaza.  The stupid owners of Montclair Plaza have changed the name of the mall to Montclair Place, but the sign that is visible from the 10 freeway still has Montclair Plaza.

I'm pretty sure this building used to be Tony Roma's. A quick search shows there are still three Tony Roma's are still open in the LA area!! Szechuwan Garden is the other Chinese restaurant I've tried in Montclair.

They have lunch special, which includes soup-choice of wonton, hot and sour, and egg drop, salad rice and a choice of entree for $7.75.

The hot and sour soup was warm, but had good flavor, but not much spice.

The standard green salad with red cabbage, carrots and iceberg lettuce with a sesame dressing.  The white rice was cooked perfectly!

Sauteed string beans- a good dish.  The string beans were cooked well, maybe a tad too much.  But, overall still crispy.  They put a good amount of onions in the dish.  Regular menu price is $8.95.

Shrimp with snow peas.  Surprisingly, this isn't on their regular menu.  But, most of their shrimp dishes are priced at $13.50.  There were about half a dozen medium sized shrimp in this dish  They were cooked perfectly.  The veggies were fresh with carrots, and water crest in addition to the snow peas.  A good dish and well worth the lunch special price.

Service was OK.  They are friendly. But, they took forever to take my order.  They took forever to bring water.  While the restaurant was busy, it wasn't like they were understaffed or overwhelmed.  The food came out quickly and was hot.  So, that wasn't the issue.  Just making me wait forever to take my order and get water!

Dragon 99 is a good value for lunch.  But, you maybe late getting back to work with their slow service.  Now that China Gate in Upland has closed, this maybe the best Chinese place in the area.

Badminton Cross Court Cafe

Badminton Cross Court Cafe
San Gabriel Valley Badminton Club II
3410 Pomona Blvd
Pomona, CA 91768
909-839-1939

Yes, I'm trying another restaurant that David Allen reviewed!   On Yelp, it's listed as Badminton Cross Court Cafe, but David just lists it as Cross Court Cafe.  Either way, it's located in the San Gabriel Valley Badminton Club, which is across the street from Jinza, which is still open and thriving, having taken over the space that used to be Fresh, a sandwich shop.

Stir fried noodles with shrimp- egg noodles, cabbage, tomatoes, green onion with fried egg.  $6 regular menu price.  $7.73 with shrimp.  There were about six medium sized shrimp.  Good flavor overall.  Maybe a bit underseasoned.  I didn't eat the fried egg, which I think is too over the top.  Portion size could be a bit bigger, but overall a good dish.  One that I enjoyed.

Service is good.  The couple who runs this cafe are very nice.  But limited English makes it tough to order.

This wouldn't be my first choice of places to go to, but I was impressed and would return.

Full Moon House

Full Moon House
960 North Hill St
Los Angeles, CA 90012
213-537-0792

Full Moon House used to be Golden City, and is across the street from Fullhouse Seafood Restaurant, and the now closed Master Chef!  I believe Full Moon House opened in March or April of 2017.  I find it very interesting that Chinatown has three non Chinese restaurants that opened up and seem to be doing really well; Howlin' Ray's, Burger Lords, and Little Jewel of New Orleans, but Chinese restaurants are closing like Golden City and Master Chef!

Anyways, I was recently in Chinatown and I was going to eat at Master Chef.  But, when I walked to their restaurant, it was closed!  Then I noticed Full Moon House and decided to give them a try.  Full Moon House is bright, well lit, big dining space.  From what I remember the decor is basically the same as Golden City.

Starting at 9:30pm they have a late night menu, where certain dishes are discounted a couple dollars.

Sauteed shrimp- $10.95 late night special.  Regular price-$13.95- celery, carrots, and snow peas.  This was good, if a bit greasy.  There were about 8 large sized shrimp that were well cooked.  The veggies were crispy and fresh.  I just think they just too much oil, everything was double covered with oil.

Shrimp chow mein $8.95 late night special. Regular price-$10.95-Pan fried mixed with skinny soft noodles with with onions and bean sprouts.  Other chow mein choices are crispy skinny noodles with gravy, and pan fried mixed with spaghetti lo mein.

The skinny soft noodles aren't my thing.  I much the spaghetti lo mein noodles more.  This dish was ok,  Many of the onions were raw which made for a weird taste.  Some of the noodles were burnt, and some were well cooked.  Weird!  The shrimp, smaller than the sauteed shrimp, weren't that plentiful.  I would order the spaghetti lo mein the next time.

Service is good.  The restaurant was busy when I was there.  But, the servers were nice, and the food came out quickly.

I would go back to Full Moon House to try some of the other dishes.  But, I still miss Master Chef!

Secret of Kitchen-Closed

 Secret of Kitchen
1247 N Grand Ave
Walnut, CA 91789
909-978-5080

 Secret of Kitchen is suppose to be about eight months old.  You can see this space used to be QQ Teabar, since their sign is still up and  Secret of Kitchen, just has vinyl signs.

A small restaurant with a few tables inside, I guess they must do a good take business or students from Mt. Sac, which is across the way.

Shrimp fried rice, $7.99, shrimp, carrots, eggs, green onions. A very small portion and only about six small sized shrimp.  Rice was well cooked, but this needs more flavor.  Simply more seasoning would be great! 

Service was good. 

I wouldn't go back to Secret of Kitchen.  I don't think the food is that good. 

China a Go Go

China a Go Go
505 E Windmill Ln Ste D
Las Vegas, NV 89123
702-733-8887

Across the street from Fish King Grill is China a Go Go, in the Vons shopping center. A medium sized restaurant with tables and booths as you walk in, and the counter and kitchen in the back of the room.  It was surprisingly busy at 4pm on a Saturday afternoon.

Shrimp chow mein-$8.17. snow peas, carrots, and broccoli.  This was a good dish, but I hate ginger and they put too much for my tastes.  I bit into piece after piece of ginger!  But, the noodles were cooked perfectly, the shrimp-small sized shrimp were well cooked and the small amount of veggies added some color to the dish.

Service is good. 

China a Go Go is a good option for Chinese food if you're in the area.

P.F. Chang’s

P.F. Chang’s
3445 Grand Ave
Chino Hills, CA 91709
909-590-8250

Hard to believe I never did a review of P.F. Chang’s, mostly because I don't like to review chains.  But, hell I did review Pei Wei, why not do P.F. Chang’s!  If you're looking for authentic Chinese food, you won't find it at PF Chang's!  But, they are what they are, Americanized Chinese food.  I've actually only been to Pasadena and this Chino Hills location.

The Chino Hills location is a huge stand alone restaurant.  There are booths along the left side the restaurant, benches and chair seating on the right side, and tables in the middle. It wasn't that busy the night we went.

Salt and pepper prawns-crispy pawns, chili peppers, aromatics, $19.99.  This was good, but too salty.  The prawns were well cooked, but too salty. This is overpriced for the quality of the food.  The shrimp chow mein at Chin Chin was less expensive, and was much better!  I would also bet, if you weighed the shrimp from both places, there were more shrimp by weight at Chin Chin, than here at P. F. Chang's!

Buddha feast-$9.99-broccoli, carrots, shiitake mushrooms, savory sauce. Well cooked, but again too salty.  All the veggies were well cooked, and the sauce would be good, if they put 25% less salt!

Service was good.  Our server was nice and friendly.  But, we got no silverware or the cloth napkins.  Not a big deal since they had chopsticks, and there were paper napkins.  But, P. F. Chang's isn't the type of place I expect to use paper napkins.

P.F. Chang's is fine for what it is.  But, I won't go back.

Szechuwan Garden

Szechuwan Garden
8851 Central Ave Ste A
Montclair, CA 91763
909-625-1878

David Allen reviewed, Szechuwan Garden, and told readers about the history of this space in a strip mall that is still stuck in the 1980's!  The first restaurant to occupy this space was Royal China in 1987.  Then Golden Buddha. Golden China opened in 1998 and closed in 2014.  This is David's review of Golden China, the last restaurant that occupied this space. 

The strip mall is interesting in that there are four restaurants total, and a Jenny Craig diet center.  The older exterior, though well maintained, could use a renovation.

The restaurant has a small waiting area, then a huge size room in the middle and another good sized room in the back.  It wasn't that busy during my visit.  Maybe six tables of people, including a big group of maybe 8-10 people, during my visit.

Vegetable fried rice, $7.95 with bean sprouts, green onions, carrots, mushrooms, cabbage, and broccoli.  This was very flavorful and well cooked.  Portion size was great and well worth the price.

Shrimp with mix vegetables $13.95-broccoli, mushrooms, water crest, snow peas, and bok choy.  While the veggies were mostly broccoli, they were all well cooked and the sauce was outstanding.  The shrimp was medium to large sized shrimp was also well cooked.

Vegan chicken and broccoli, $12.29.  Surprised to see vegan items at a non vegan Chinese restaurant.  The broccoli was well cooked, but the lack of sauce made this a dry dish.  Now, the vegan chicken was just some soy protein sliced.  It lacked flavor and seasoning.  Not worth the price and I wouldn't order this again.

Service was good.  There were two people working the front of the house, maybe the owner and his wife?  Anyways, they were friendly and helpful.  But, there was nobody at the front waiting area and I just stood there for a few minutes before the man noticed me.  Maybe somebody called in sick and they were short handed?  Not that big of a deal, but being greeted by somebody as you walk into their restaurant sets a good tone for the meal!

The food, expect for the vegan chicken, was good but I found this place to be on the pricey side.  Portion size was good, quality of cooking was good. But, this is Montclair, not Beverly Hills.  I would go back, but won't rush.

Nori Sushi Wraps-Closed

Nori Sushi Wraps
711 Fair Oaks Ave Ste K
South Pasadena, CA 91030
626-529-2841

Nori Sushi Wraps is an interesting take on sushi.  They put everything you find in a sushi roll, into a sushi burrito!  Located in a strip mall on busy Fair Oaks Ave., Nori is a small place.  There are tables and high top tables as you walk in.  Then the counter is along the back wall, where you order and they prepare your food.

Spicy Tuna Fries, $8.00-Shoe string potato fries, cilantro, onion, and spicy tuna. Sauces are spicy mayo and eel sauce.  A friend who told me about Nori, said she really liked the spicy tuna fries.  After I got the order, I remembered she also told me the portion size is huge!  It was!!

The fries are standard frozen fries, but pretty good.  The spicy tuna is very good and they pile it on!  They give you a huge portion of the spicy tuna!   I wasn't sure about ordering this, fries topped with sushi, but it works!  Next time I will ask for the fries to be well done!

Shrimp Tempura wrap, $9.50-Tempura shrimp, cucumber, avocado, crab meat, spicy tuna, and kale lettuce slaw. Inside sauces are Spicy mayo and Eel sauce.  This was good, but a bit dry.  Ok, maybe I should have put some soy sauce or more spicy maco, but it was dry.  But, all the ingredients were good.  I'm betting the shrimp tempura was frozen, but everything else is fresh.  It's a huge portion and well worth the price.

Service is good.  The guy who took my order was new, because somebody was helping him take orders.  But, they were friendly and the guy did a good job.  The only thing that doesn't make sense is, after ordering they give you a number on a metal stand that you take to your table.  So, I figure they will bring my food to my table.  Instead they call out your number and you bring the number to them and they give you your food.  What a waste! Just say give customers their number on their receipt.

I enjoyed Nori and would go back anytime!!

Chin Chin

Chin Chin
11740 San Vicente Blvd
Brentwood, CA 90049
310-826-2525

I went to Chin Chin about three years ago and really I don't recall how the food was, I just remember one hell of a boring date!  Anyways, I was in the snotty, Brentwood section of Los Angeles, and decided to give Chin Chin another try.

Chin Chin started in 1983 at this Brentwood location, and tried to franchise.  Not sure how many Chin Chin locations are franchised now, but they have locations in Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, Studio City, and Las Vegas.  I think Chin Chin is very much like PF Chang's- an upscale Americanized Chinese restaurant.  The Brentwood location is tastefully decorated in Chinese motif! Located on the second floor, it's an L shaped restaurant.  There are tables and booths on your left as your walk in.  Then a right turn leads to more tables.

The most interesting thing you notice about Chin Chin, is that there are no Chinese people working there!  The hostess was Latino.  My server was white.  Another server was African-American.  Yet another server was Latino!  I didn't go to the kitchen, but I'm betting the cooks are Latino!

Vegetable chow mein, $13.95, with shrimp +$2, carrots, peas, and, celery. I was surprised at the high price for just vegetable chow mein, but I know it's snotty Brentwood and rent isn't cheap.  Chicken or beef can be added apparently for no charge.  I figured I might as well add shrimp.  That was the best $2 I've spent in a long time.  The noodles were cooked perfectly. There really weren't that many vegetables in this dish, but they were well cooked and seasoned.  But, without a doubt was the huge shrimp!  I couldn't seven and I know I ate at least three before I started counting.  So, for that $2, it was a damn steal!  The shrimp was also cooked perfectly and well seasoned.  I was impressed with this dish.  The high price tag was easier to take with the large amount of shrimp!  I would order this again!

Service was good.

I don't get to snotty Brentwood often, but I would go back to Chin Chin.  I may even try some of their other locations too!

Kwon’s Restaurant

Kwon’s Restaurant
1625 W Holt Ave
Pomona, CA 91768
909-629-6888

I was driving on Holt Ave when I finally noticed the Kwon's Restaurant sign that is so infamous.  David Allen reviewed Kwon's back in 2009.  I decided to give them a try.

Located in a shopping center that is in great need of a facelift, Kwon's sign says it was established in 1983.  The people working the register are Latino, whether they are the owners or not, I'm not 100% sure.

There are about ten tables and booths in the small restaurant.  Many people came in to pick up their orders. 

 Shrimp chow mein, $8.25. Shrimp, broccoli, baby corn, carrots.  The first thing you'll notice is the massive amount of food!!  The amount of food is well worth the price.  As for quality, it's lacking!  While the noodles and veggies (which were cut into huge pieces) were well cooked, and there were about a dozen well cooked small sized shrimp.  This had to be one of the blandest dishes I've ever had!  Now Kwon's fans will say you got to put the hot sauce on the dish.  No, they have to season the damn dish so it will taste good without the hot sauce. 

Vegetable fried rice, $7.30 green onions, carrots, broccoli, cabbage, bean sprouts, and baby corn.  This was terrible.  Hard overcooked rice, way too much green onions, I took out about 70% of the green onions you see in that picture.  And the most bland Chinese food you'll ever have!

Service was good.  They are nice friendly people.

I will not go back to Kwon's.  The food is just not good!

Night + Market Song

Night + Market Song
3322 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026
323-665-5899

 Night + Market Song is a very popular Thai restaurant in the heart of hipster-land, Silver Lake.  Located a few doors down from the great, but now closed, Knuckle & Claw, it's a small restaurant but there is usually a long wait.  The evening I went, either the air conditioning was out or they don't have air conditioning!  So, it was hot inside the restaurant even though LA was going through a cooling trend after a week of record high temps!.  The restaurant was about 60% filled, so I can only imagine how hot it will be with a packed restaurant.

Shrimp fried rice, $14.  There was some green onions, eggs and four medium sized shrimp. This was a pretty bland dish.  They need to add seasonings in addition to the small amount of soy sauce.  Another small thing was the portion size!  I was starving when I came and the amount barely put a dent into my hunger!  This is one of the most overpriced dishes I have ever had at any restaurant! 

Service, except for the host, was very good.  They seem to have a community service, one person took my order, another refilled my drink, yet another delivered my food.  All were nice and friendly.  I even had another server ask me if I had already been helped!  So, I have no complaints about them.  But, the host was terrible.  I came alone and decided to sit at the bar, where there was only one other person, that has about eight seats.  There isn't much space between the bar and the tables, so I sat down and the host said if we get busy I'll have you move down.  I said I'm not going to move.  Let those people wait.  He then poured my a cup of water, but at the other tables he gave them a carafe of ice water.  The entire time I was there, maybe 45 minutes not one person came to sit at the bar and maybe four people came into the restaurant.  Of course, nobody can predict how many people are going to come into a restaurant at any given time.  But, the bar had only one customer and I sat where I was comfortable.  I sure as hell wasn't going to move for that douchebag host.

I wouldn't go to  Night + Market Song again.  I don't know why they have long wait for below average food at high prices.  Thai Town isn't that far away and you'll get much better food at prices that are about 40% less!  I'll leave  Night + Market Song to all the douchebags hipsters of Silver Lake.

Sun’s New Kitchen-Closed

Sun’s New Kitchen
316 N Azusa Ave
Covina, CA 91722
626-331-8881

I found Sun's New Kitchen when I was driving along Azusa Ave.  I thought it would be like Panda Express- a steam table filled with Chinese food and you pick what you want.  While there is a steam table, it's really just for decoration!  They cook to order your meal,including the 1-3 item combo meals!  They have a limited menu for the combo meals, about eight items.  

There are about ten tables inside this restaurant.  It's very nice and clean.  I'm shocked there weren't that many people here!

Shrimp and broccoli, $9.99. This was a very good dish, with lots of medium sized shrimp that were deveined.  A light sauce, with crispy broccoli and carrots.  Well worth the price and a much better deal than many other Chinese restaurants!

Vegetable chow mein, $6.99, with celery, carrots, broccoli, zucchini and cabbage.  The veggies and noodles were cooked perfectly.  I would prefer the veggies to be cut into smaller pieces, but otherwise an outstanding dish!  A huge portion too!

Service is good.  The lady, who I believe is the owner was very nice and friendly. 

I would go back to Sun's New Kitchen anytime!  Very good food, big portions and great prices!

China Tasty & BBQ-Closed

China Tasty & BBQ
2040 S Brea Canyon Rd Ste 130-150
Diamond Bar, CA 91765
909-895-7453

China Tasty & BBQ is a new restaurant that replaced Misora, a now closed sushi restaurant.  It's actually going back to it's roots, this location used to be Shanghai Palace, a very popular Chinese restaurant.  I went on Monday after seeing their menu.  But, there were closed, even though their signs says they are open on Monday!

It's a big restaurant with about 20 tables, all of them empty the day I went.  Maybe people haven't heard about China Tasty & BBQ?  They have a large menu with BBQ items and your standard Chinese items.  

Shrimp chow mein, $9.99, peas, carrots, mushrooms, fungus, cabbage.  This was very good expect the noodles were a bit undercooked and the peas and carrots were clearly from the freezer.  But, otherwise this was a well balanced tasty dish.

Service was good.

A few things that China Tasty has to correct.  On their door the days and hours are listed as Mon-Sat., 11am- and unlisted time.  On their business card it says they are open 7 days.  The reality is they are open Tues.-Sun.  They are closed on Monday.  I'm guessing the hours listed on the door was the hours for Misora and China Tasty never bothered to take it down!  They need to list their correct hours to prevent people from wasting a trip!

King of Thai Cuisine

King of Thai Cuisine
6171 Mission Gorge Rd Ste 115
San Diego, CA 92120
619-640-9688

In the same strip mall as Kawaii Sushi, is King of Thai Cuisine.  It's a small restaurant with about 10 tables.  It was pretty empty when I went on a Saturday, about 5pm.  

Tofu fried rice, $8.95 onions, carrots peas, and cucumbers.  The tofu was well cooked outside and soft on the inside.  The rice and veggies were all well cooked.  But, this lack seasoning and flavor.  It was pretty bland.

Service was ok. 

I wouldn't go back to King of Thai Cuisine.  I'm sure there are much better Thai places in San Diego!

Mr. Spicy

Mr. Spicy
6618 Mission Gorge Rd
San Diego, CA 92120
619-546-6686

I was in San Diego over the weekend and found Mr. Spicy.  It's a small restaurant in a small strip mall.  There was no customers in the restaurant on a Saturday during the peak lunch time!  That's usually a good sign the food isn't that good.  I decided to give them a try and see if that theory holds.

Shrimp chow mein, $7.99.  There weren't that many shrimp in the chow mein, maybe 6 small sized shrimp.  You can only see one small piece of shrimp in the picture.  The noodles were cook perfectly.  The veggies, broccoli and carrots were well cooked.  I really liked the fact the broccoli was cut into small bite sized pieces.  But, this wasn't seasoned very well.  Simply more salt or soy sauce would have made this dish very good.  It was just ok.  A good amount of food for the price too.

Service is good.  Interesting at the host stand there is a sign-This restaurant has only one waitress.  Her English is not very good. Thanks for your understanding.  Apparently that waitress was off because the lady who took my order was nice and while her English was fine.

If I'm back in San Diego, I would give Mr. Spicy another try and I would order something spicy.  Hopefully that dish is well seasoned!