Eureka! opens 12th location in Huntington Beach, CA

In March 2014, Orange County foodies discovered American Craft food and drinks when Eureka! opened its doors at the Bella Terra in sunny Huntington Beach, CA. Eureka! opened its first location in Redlands, CA in 2009 and has expanded to a dozen restaurants in 5 years. Their motto is EATertainment with focus on elevated, all-American comfort food. The one special thing about the Huntington Beach location is the selection of craft beer on tap and small-batch whiskey, the largest selection among the 12 locations. The interior reminds me of a wharf or cannery row restaurant, lots of wood from the walls to the tables. With Huntington Beach being so close to the ocean, you almost feel as if a seagull or two will be walking around to beg for food. Since Eureka! is built into the residence buildings inside the Bella Terra, residents can also pick up food to-go along with provisions from wine to beer to whiskey. I also found that one of my favorite whiskeys, Breaker Bourbon from Ascendant Spirits, is also featured at the bar.  

Eureka! Truffle Fries are a “generous portion of signature hand-cut fries, tossed in creamy havarti truffle sauce and garnished with fresh green onions.” There is a nice truffle flavor, not too light and not too strong. The skin-on fries are crispy. The harvarti is creamy and melty. It actually reminds me of poutine. Thumbs up, way up!

To read more and see slideshow, please visit: http://www.examiner.com/review/eureka-opens-12th-location-huntington-beach-ca

Road Trip: High Desert Music Festival & BBQ Showdown in Victorville, CA

On Saturday, June 28, 2014, we took a leisurely drive from somewhat cooler Orange County and started the drive familiar to most when heading out to Las Vegas. Victorville is located north of the Cajon Pass in San Bernardino County. It is High Desert Country as it is in the Southwestern edge of the Mojave Desert, with high temperatures to boast.

As we pulled into the parking lot of the Victorville Fairgrounds, temperatures soared to a close 100 degrees Fahrenheit. We decided to wait in the air-conditioned car until the gates opened and the line of music and BBQ fans died down in the high noon sunshine. Once, we opened the car doors, the aroma of smoked, barbeque meat permeated the air. As we entered the BBQ Village, you could see all of the BBQ Teams working their magic as the Kansas City BBQ Society sanctioned competition began. Teams had certain times to turn in their chicken, pulled pork, brisket, and ribs. Unfortunately, nothing would be served to the public until after 2pm so that the teams could concentrate on their entries. There were a few outside vendors that were selling food.

Heavenly Delights with their tagline “What all cobblers want to be when they grow up” gave our samples of their pipin’ hot cobblers. We sampled the Peach Delight with Pecans. It was pipin’ hot, right out of the oven. The peaches were baked perfectly where it was not too mushy and held a peach texture where you knew what kind of fruit was being used. It had just the right amount of sweetness. The pecans added a crunchy texture to the mix. I can imagine that it tasted good with a scoop vanilla ice cream on top.

Pig on a Twig amped up our appetite with fresh smoked turkey legs. The barbeque competitors smoking & grilling made us crave meat and a turkey leg was the closest we could get to it. The skin was smoky and crispy. The meat was tender and had the right amount of smoky flavor. The turkey had a great amount of flavor, so I assume it was marinated or brined before smoking and cooking. I hit the spot for lunch!

Lemonade Shakers also helped with the heat of the day with flavored lemonade and ice teas. They had a great deal that if you kept your cup, you would save $2 for refills. It was well worth it as we drank 6 between the two of us. The lemonade was fresh lemon juice squeezed, shaken with the lemon peels, sugar, ice, and your choice of flavor: cherry, mango, or strawberry. They were fantastic! It would have been great to have a sugar-free option of Splenda or stevia as an alternative.

After feeding our appetite, we walked over to the Car & Bike Show presented by All N All Car Club (SoCal Chapter). Atomic Orange Metallic Corvette, 1938 Chevrolet Master 4-Door Touring Sedan, and tricked out kitted roadster (straight out of a ZZ Top video) were among the cars on display. I thought to myself, “My Camaro would have made addition to this display.”

Uncle Tim’s Best West Barbecue Sauce gave out samples of their line of barbecue sauce. Depending on your spicy level, there is Mild, Medium, and Habanero. The Habanero was not that spicy, but you did feel the heat at the back of your throat after eating. It was not uncomfortable so you can taste the flavor of the habanero pepper which goes really nice with the barbecue sauce itself. We got to meet Uncle Tim and he’s great guy who loves BBQ. What a better place to be than at a BBQ Showdown!

At 2pm, we started our sampling of BBQ that some of the competitors were giving out. All samples were given out with tickets purchased at the gate at $2 a ticket.

The Kids Zone has plenty of activities to keep the kids entertained like Magic Shows, Story Telling, Drum circle, Balloon animals, Glitz and Glitter tattoos, Face painting, Games, Prizes, Food demonstrations and more.

The scent of BBQ will allure you from miles around!

For more information:

High Desert Music Festival and BBQ Showdown

14800 Seventh St

Victorville, CA 92395

31st Annual California Strawberry Festival in Oxnard, CA was “berry” sweet

On May 17, 2014, the California Strawberry Festival opened the gates to strawberry fans from across the land. As you enter, you are welcomed by the sweet aroma of strawberries freshly picked from the local farms in Oxnard. The beautiful red berries glistened as the sun rose high above Strawberry Meadows of College Park.

In the opening hours of the festival is the best time to stroll around and plan what to eat, what to buy, and what to see. Rose Avenue was lined with vendors offering everything from clothing to décor to artwork to food products. Local community groups and food vendors were advertising their strawberry spirit with concoctions like strawberry wine, strawberry beer, strawberry pizza, strawberry nachos, strawberry shortcake, and our favorite, strawberry smoothies. Not too sweet, not too tart, and ice cold to challenge the beginning of a very hot day. 

 To read more and see slideshow, please visit: http://www.examiner.com/article/31st-annual-california-strawberry-festival-oxnard-ca-was-berry-sweet

Best Western Plus Irvine Spectrum welcomes business travelers and family vacationers

On January 22, 2014, the Best Western Plus Irvine Spectrum held a ribbon cutting ceremony in Lake Forest, CA. They welcomed community members and state representatives to an opening reception catered by Los Taco Ricos in Lake Forest and desserts provided by Claim Jumper in Mission Viejo. The reception was held in their lobby which had a lot of natural light from the floor to ceiling glass windows. Furnishings are very comfy with wide screen television, fireplace, and glass-encased business center.

 Suites are very spacious with lots of amenities:

• Desk for office/computer work
• Living room area with sofa bed and large LCD screen with lots of channels to choose from (when I recently stayed there, the World Cup was pretty much on every channel in one form or another)
• Kitchenette counter with sink, microwave, and small refrigerator
• Separate bedroom with spa tub and comfortable king bed
• Bathroom with standing shower and upgraded marble counters with decorative sink

To read more and see slideshow, please visit: http://www.examiner.com/review/best-western-plus-irvine-spectrum-for-business-travelers-and-family-vacationers

Döner G serves up Turkish and Mediterranean cuisine with second location in Irvine, CA

Yalcin Aslan came to California from his homeland of Turkey to get his Master’s degree. After achieving this goal, California became his permanent home but he still missed comfort food called döner kebab, which means “turning or rotating roast”. In Turkey, döner kebab stalls are on every corner and considered Turkish fast food. You may have also heard of “shawarma” in Arabic or “gyros” in Greek. It’s the same concept with different meats and spices from their respective countries. All meats are Halal – Zabihah. Yacin’s family has been running Döner G’s in Turkey for over 25 years and decided to bring the concept to Orange County. His first location opened in 2008 in Anaheim, CA. Yacin also saw an opportunity to share this wonderful cuisine to the adventurous Irvine, CA crowd and opened his second location in November 2013. When you drive into the Crossroads shopping center, an aroma hits you. It could be mistaken for Greek, but it’s a little different. Your nose will lead you a mouth-watering aroma of “meat roasting over fire” and appeals to your primitive, carnivorous being.

Let’s take a look at some of the menu items:

Baba Ghanoush is described as “fire-roasted eggplant, delicately mixed with garlic, lemon juice, and tahini sauce and sprinkled with sourberry (sumac) and drizzled with extra virgin olive oil.” The light texture of the eggplant is good and a little on the chunky side. The EVOO brings out the sweetness of the eggplant. Use the pita bread to scoop and munch away. Thumbs up!

To read more and see slideshow, please visit: http://www.examiner.com/review/d-ner-g-serves-up-turkish-and-mediterranean-cuisine-with-second-location