Arthur's Restaurant

Arthur's Restaurant
240 N Tustin St
Orange
714-997-1850

Arthur's Restaurant is an old school coffee shop.  But, I found out they served broasted chicken, so I stopped in.  Arthur's is located on very busy Tustin St., which has more thrift shops per mile than almost any street in California.    The unique exterior, 3 different colors and styles, welcomes visitors inside a large dining area.

2 pieces chicken with waffles, $13.15.  The regular price is $10.69 with a $1.49 extra for two breasts. The first piece I bit into was a bit dry and the skin was bland and flavorless.  The skin wasn't crispy or crunchy either.  I'm not sure if it was really broasted chicken, where they use a special broaster.  But, the second piece of chicken was everything the first piece wasn't.  Moist, juicy, crispy skin and full of flavor.

The waffle was very good.  Lightly dusted with powdered sugar, there waffle was sweet and tasty.  Thicker than I'm used to, but still good.  

Service is very good.  The hostess greeted me when I walked in.  The server who took my order was nice and friendly.  I walked outside and came back in and another hostess or server asked if I had been helped.   There are times when I go to a restaurant and not be greeted but I'm greeted twice in the 10-15 minutes I'm there. 

I learned that you can order chicken ala carte, so the next time I'm just ordering the broasted chicken.

House of Pies Restaurant & Bakery

House of Pies Restaurant & Bakery
1869 N Vermont Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90027
(323) 666-9961

I recently read a story about the Top 10 pies in LA. Two restaurants that I have reviewed were included in the Top 10, but I did order pie at Pie N Burger or Philippe The Original.

While House of Pies wasn't in their Top 10, the writer did mention them as a place they tried while doing research for the story. I have passed by House of Pies often, but never stopped in. But, I looked at their menu, which has a wide variety of items, and decided to stop in.






Broasted chicken, three pieces including breast, thigh and leg, with steamed vegetables, and two sides- salad, clam chowder, $12.95.

The two side options were potatoes or bread and I didn't want either them. So I was glad to hear they offered a salad and soup as the two sides. The salad was standard issue salad with iceberg lettuce, crutons, tomatoes. Fresh, chilled, nothing great or bad about it.

But, the clam chowder!! WOW, was it great!! The chowder was full of flavor, a rich hearty broth and filled with lots of clams, finely cut pieces of potatoes and just wonderful. I would order this again and I would put this clam chowder up against other seafood restaurant's clam chowder!!

I was excited to see that there was broasted chicken on the menu and I knew that's what I was going to order. But, this wasn't a good example of broasted chicken. The main thing was the chicken was very salty. They must put in a ton of salt. I couldn't get over the saltiness. The other thing I couldn't get over was the greasiness. This was very greasy, the skin was dripping in grease. The skin was fairly crispy but the more bites I took, I kept thinking I was eating Banquet frozen fried chicken. This chicken tasted exactly like it!! The breast portion was fairly juicy. I would not order this again!!

The steamed vegetables had been sitting on the steam table too long. They were dry and mushy and just bad.

The only thing I loved about my broasted chicken dinner was the clam chowder and the salad was fine. Otherwise, I would not order this broasted chicken again.



Since I was at House of Pies, I figured I would see how their pies are. I got the Dutch Apple Pie, $3.95. This wasn't good at all and I see why they didn't make the Top 10. The crust was too doughy and mushy, not flaky. The topping was too bland, not sweetness like other Dutch apple pies I've had. The apples were fine and there was a good amount of nut meg and sweetness in the filling. But, the doughy crust and lack of sweetness of the topping just ruined this pie for me.

Service was below average. The lady was all business, not friendly or warm. I felt like a number. I didn't really lack for anything, but I also didn't feel like she wanted to be there.

I was disappointed with House of Pies. The broasted chicken and pie were bad. If not for the great clam chowder, I would never go back to House of Pies. But, the clams chowder is great and I'll return soon.

Pepz Pizza and Eatery

Pepz Pizza and Eatery
726 S State College Blvd
714-991-9900

I have known about Pepz Pizza and Eatery for a few years but never made an effort to give them a try, mostly because they are behind the Orange Curtain. But, I was in the mood for some broasted chicken and decided to give Pepz a try.

If the building for Pepz Pizza and Eatery looks familiar, it should, it used to be Zito's Pizza, which I reviewed in 2006.

Pepz Pizza and Eatery was started by two brothers and the name, Pepz, is a combination of pepperoni, pep, and pizza. There are six location, all behind the Orange Curtain. They have a pretty extensive menu, including pizza, pasta, sandwiches, salads, and broasted chicken.

A friend had a coupon for eight pieces of chicken, 3/4 lb of potatoes, and a medium one topping pizza for $26.12 with tax. Not a bad deal. So we got a half pepperoni and half sausage pizza.



The menu price of a one topping pizza is $12.49 + $1.25 per topping. The This was one of the best sausage pizzas I've had in a long time. Full of flavor, with good quality meats and spices the sausage was the highlight of this pizza. The crust was pretty good, a medium thickness, crust that held up to the large amount of cheese and toppings on the pizza.

The cheese was piled high and was gooey, a bit greasy, but overall pretty good.

The pepperoni was standard pepperoni. Nothing outstanding or bad about it.




Regular price for broasted chicken with 3/4 lb. of potatoes is $14.49. The chicken, I only had the breast piece, was dry on the inside. But, the skin was much different than skin from broasted chicken I've had before. It tasted more like regular deep fried chicken. I was looking forward to broasted chicken but I got either a bad example or regular fried chicken.

Service is good. The people there are nice and friendly.

I would go back to Pepz Pizza and Eatery for the sausage pizza, but I wouldn't order broasted chicken again.