Church & State
Hey, look, it's an update. From me. On this website. Isn't that amazing? You want to hear something even more amazing? I'm posting about a restaurant I went to over half a year ago. If you think I remember... | More →
Tim Ho Wan
Tim Ho Wan is a tiny dim sum restaurant in Hong Kong and holds the distinction of being the world's cheapest Michelin starred restaurant. And it is cheap. Dishes range from $12-24 HKD (about $1.50-3.00 USD) and they're worth... | More →
Jumbo Seafood at Dempsey
Besides kaya toast, another one of Singapore's signature dishes is their chilli crab. I don't know why it's popular or where it comes from, but I'll take any excuse to eat crab. My friend's a local and she recommended... | More →
Madam Kwan's
Madam Kwan's is a popular Malaysian chain restaurant, with the flagship located in the Suria KLCC under the Petronas Twin Towers. When I first tried to eat here I got distracted and ended up at Miss Kwan's next door.... | More →
Bottega Louie
Have a hot date but have absolutely no interest in hearing what they have to say? Then Bottega Louie is the place for you. I'm not sure I've ever been to a louder restaurant. Renowned in Downtown Los Angeles... | More →
Ramen Yamadaya
If you weren't aware, there are a lot of ramen places in Southern California. The king is probably still Daikokuya in Los Angeles's Little Tokyo, while Santouka probably holds the title of most convenient. So where does that leave... | More →
The Playground
The Playground is located across from the Yost Theater in downtown Santa Ana and was started by chef/owner Jason Quinn, the same guy behind the hugely successful gourmet food truck The Lime Truck. With a weekly changing menu built... | More →
Cafe Brasil
First thing I'll say is that Cafe Brasil has got the look down. The colors, the decor, just everything about it sort of feels like Brazil. And I should know: I'm racist. Also, I've been to Brazil so take... | More →
Annapoorna
Annapoorna is a little Indian restaurant tucked away in an Irvine shopping center next to a dry cleaner. They specialize in tandoori food, which means food cooked in a tandoor (basically a clay oven). When I think Indian food... | More →
Ramen Parlor
I might not have the most sophisticated palate ever, but I know what I like. And I like ramen. Most really good ramen places are pretty similar, but what sets Ramen Parlor apart is they infuse their broth with... | More →
Tana Ethiopian Restaurant
When some people eat Ethioipian food they view it as an excuse to eat with their hands. Well I stopped maturing after the second grade, so I view every dining experience as an excuse to eat with my hands.... | More →
Green Zone
The first thing you notice about Green Zone is that it advertises organic Chinese food. I know what you're thinking. Organic Chinese food? What kind of crazy madness is this? When I eat Chinese food I expect heaping servings... | More →
The Purple Pig
The Purple Pig is a Michigan Avenue wine bar that specializes in eating parts of pigs. And any place that specializes in eating parts of pigs is okay in my book. I'm not a huge fan of the communal... | More →
Meli Cafe & Juice Bar
Located in Chicago's Greektown, Meli Cafe & Juice Bar is a, well, cafe and juice bar. This is going to be another one of those reviews where I don't remember what any of the things that were ordered are,... | More →
The Bongo Room
The Bongo Room is located in Chicago's Wicker Park, surrounded by hipster record stores and hipster shoe stores and, well, a bunch of hipsters. My friend put our name down and we went to a nearby coffee shop to... | More →
Longman & Eagle
Located in Chicago's Logan Square, Longman & Eagle is a restaurant/lounge that attracts all sorts of hipsters and other cool cats. Judging from the casual decor and bar-like atmosphere of this place, you wouldn't think that they would have... | More →
Roxolana Restaurant & Wine Bar
I was actually in Pasadena to check out the (626) Night Market, which advertised itself as "The Only Asian Night Market in Southern California," but what they forgot to mention was that it was also the largest cluster of... | More →
Eat Chow
Eat Chow has kind of a weird location. It's situated in The Closet fashion boutique on Newport Blvd, and depending on where you enter from you're either in a restaurant or a store that sells baby clothes. The place... | More →
Gjelina
Gjelina, named after the mother of one of the two owners, is a fairly popular and trendy place located on Abbot Kinney Boulevard in Venice. It's a pretty decent place to people watch and, according to the waiter, they... | More →
Father's Office
Many people consider Father's Office to be the original Los Angeles gastropub. It's a bit of an unusual place though. Owner Sang Yoon doesn't allow ketchup into his establishment. He also doesn't allow children, and they have a bouncer... | More →
Mantee Cafe
Mantee is a cozy (almost too cozy) little Middle Eastern place located in Studio City. It's run by Jonathan Darakjian, whose family apparently owns one of the best-known Armenian restaurants in Beirut. That doesn't really mean anything to me,... | More →
R+D Kitchen
I wasn't sure whether to list this place as R+D Kitchen or R&D Kitchen. They use a plus sign, but clearly it means 'R and D', right? So an '&' would be appropriate? Or maybe they're actually adding 'R'... | More →
Babita Mexicuisine
I really wasn't sure what to expect from Babita. It's another of Jonathan Gold's 99 Essential L.A. Restaurants, but from the outside, the place looks like it would house $0.99 tacos and possibly a meth addict or two. Open... | More →
Nem Nuong Ninh Hoa
When I get Vietnamese food I usually stick to what I know. And that means pho, pho, or sometimes pho. But apparently there's more to Vietnamese food than pho. Nem Nuong Ninh Hoa seems to be one of the... | More →
Memphis Café
I'm a little torn about this place. The very first time I went I had the best Eggs Benedict I've ever had in my life. Unfortunately, every subsequent visit has been a serious disappointment. Not bad, mind you, just... | More →
Old Vine Café
Located in The Camp right next to East Borough and Taco Asylum, Old Vine Cafe is one of those places I want to like more than I actually do. It's a cool place to people watch (if you're into... | More →
Break of Dawn
There's a bit of back story when it comes to Break of Dawn, which almost everybody who eats here is familiar with. Long story short, the chef and owner, Dee Nguyen, used to be the Executive Sous Chef at... | More →
Ski Inn
Where do you go to eat when you're in the middle of nowhere; a once promising tourist trap and boom town that is now an essentially abandoned ghost town? The only place that's open, of course. Located in the... | More →
Asian Tapas
The OC Register named Asian Tapas their pick for the best Chinese restaurant in Orange County back in 2010, so it's been on my list of places to try for awhile. Orange County isn't exactly lacking in the Chinese... | More →
Ye Olde Kings Head
British food gets a bad rep, but that's usually because people are referring to everything else they make that isn't fish and chips. Well Ye Olde Kings Head is an authentic English pub in Santa Monica that specializes in... | More →
Animal
Animal is probably the hottest restaurant in Los Angeles at the moment. You know it's hip because the outside is completely black and there's no sign. Literally. At all. If they hadn't put their name on the menu it's... | More →
Gaja Okonomiyaki Japanese Restaurant
Gaja Japanese Restaurant is a little place in Lomita that specializes in do-it-yourself okonomiyaki. If you're not familiar with okonomiyaki it's essentially a savory Japanese pancake filled with a variety of different ingredients. Normally I hate it when you... | More →
Bill's Café
I was craving some brunch in the San Jose area and Bill's Cafe appeared to be the most popular place nearby. When I showed up I found a little cafe which looked to be decorated by a grandmother living... | More →
Orenchi Ramen
What is it with ramen places and super long waits? We showed up to Orenchi Ramen at 1pm hoping to miss the lunch crowd, but we still ended up waiting a solid hour before being seated. There were 37... | More →
Hidden Dinner
Pop-up restaurants have become fairly trendy lately, as they provide a way for chefs to make a name for themselves without the sizable investment needed to open an actual restaurant. They find a space that doesn't normally serve food... | More →
The Hungry Cat
Located walking distance from the Hollywood ArcLight and one of Jonathan Gold's 99 Essential L.A. Restaurants, The Hungry Cat is Suzanne Goin and David Lentz's seafood restaurant located on the ground floor of a condo building. Every review seems... | More →
Lola Gaspar
Located in downtown Santa Ana just down the street from Chapter One: the Modern Local, Lola Gaspar is one of those place I'd have absolute confidence recommending to a friend. I've never had anything I don't like from here,... | More →
Boiling Point
I believe the original Boiling Point is located in San Gabriel Valley, but this is their first Orange County location. If you're lazy like me, you can appreciate Boiling Point's take on hot pot, where they already have everything... | More →
Gabbi's Mexican Kitchen
It's been my experience that the cheaper and dirtier the Mexican restaurant, the better the food. Which isn't really applicable here since Gabbi's Mexican Kitchen definitely doesn't fall into the cheap or dirty category. The food was fairly decent... | More →
K'ya Bistro Bar
Located in the historic La Casa del Camino boutique hotel, K'ya Bistro Bar is a charming restaurant in Laguna Beach serving up a tapas-style dinner menu at reasonable price points. And if you know anything about me, you know... | More →
The Crosby
Cool hipster lounge by night, delicious restaurant by, uh, earlier in the night, The Crosby is a little nondescript place in downtown Santa Ana right next to a Starbucks. There's not really a sign so the only real way... | More →
Koko's Cafe
Considering the abundance of Asian restaurants in Orange County, it's strange to think that there aren't any Hong Kong cafes. There used to be O'Shine, which then turned into Red Onion, which then disappeared completely and was replaced by... | More →
Curry House CoCo Ichibanya
If you've had Japanese curry in the States before, you know they're not exactly similar to their Indian and Thai counterparts in the spice department. Even the spiciest levels at places like Curry House register somewhere between milk and...a... | More →
Pizzeria Mozza
Located in Newport Beach right next to a Ferrari dealership, this is the second Pizzeria Mozza (the original is in Los Angeles) opened by celebrity chefs Mario Batali and Nancy Silverton of Campanile. The place is relatively unpretentious and... | More →
AnQi Gourmet Bistro
Located inside South Coast Plaza right next to Bloomingdale's, AnQi Gourmet Bistro by Crustacean (yes that's the full name), from the House of An restaurant group, features Euro-Vietnamese fusion cuisine along with a bit of molecular gastronomy. On Tuesdays,... | More →
Class 302
Class 302 is a Taiwanese restaurant in Rowland Heights and if you're a fan of shaved ice and have never been, just stop reading right now and go. Unless it's, like, 3am or something. Or you don't live in... | More →
Siem Reap Asian Cuisine
Amok Trey (coconut fish) - At first I thought there were pieces of really strange slimy fish in this, but then I realized I was an idiot and it was slivers of fresh coconut. Makes sense, considering the thing... | More →
Daikokuya
Daikokuya in Los Angeles' Little Tokyo is pretty much the definitive ramen place in Southern California. They only have one soup base, and they essentially serve it until they run out for the day. If you're gonna eat here,... | More →
Rooster PM
Rooster PM is a tapas/small plates place in Costa Mesa that apparently has joint custody of a space with Rooster Cafe. The owners are different, and at night they cover up the signs and menus for Rooster Cafe and... | More →
Carousel Restaurant
Beef Shawarma (Marinated Top Sirloin steak, flame-broiled; thinly sliced and served with onion mix, tomatoes, tahini sauce and Hammos dip) Carousel Restaurant is a Lebanese restaurant in Glendale. Apparently they have belly dancing on weekends, but I'm an idiot... | More →
Umami Burger
Unami Burger $11 (shiitake mushroom, caramelized onions, roasted tomato, parmesan crisp, umami ketchup) If you've never heard of Umami Burger, it's a hipster burger joint in Los Angeles that emphasizes the taste of umami in their burgers. If you're... | More →
Home Restaurant
Really Good French Toast $7.95 (Four halves of thick brioche bread, dipped in their own batter, then grilled to a golden brown and sprinkled with powdered sugar. Served with warm syrup, bananas, strawberries, and blueberries.) Home Restaurant is located... | More →
Thai Gulf
Red Curry with Beef If you're looking for value, Thai Gulf has you covered. Every order comes with soup, a salad, an egg roll, two fried wontons, and unlimited Thai iced tea. Which is strange, because they also list... | More →
La Creperie Café
Al Mare $13.95 (Jumbo shrimp, sundried & plum tomatoes, wild mushrooms, red onions, & mozzarella cheese in a lobster basil cream sauce) I'm not gonna lie, these are probably the best crepes I've ever had. I haven't actually been to... | More →
Mama D's Italian Kitchen
Cisco's Cioppino with Linguine (shrimp, clams and calamari with spicy sausage and pink sauce) - Mama D's pink sauce is magical and delicious. Mama D's Italian Kitchen probably has the friendliest waitstaff of any waitstaff that ever waited staffs.... | More →
Roscoe's House of Chicken & Waffles
Fried chicken prepared southern style with gravy on the side I went to Roscoe's at a different location years ago but I don't remember it being this good. Maybe I was too young and afraid of being shot at... | More →
Chong Qing Mei Wei Szechuan Restaurant
Spicy lamb - Tastes like a hybrid of Szechuan cuisine and Mongolian lamb skewers. And it's every bit as delicious as that sounds. If you've never had Szechuan food, you might not be familiar with the numbing, cooling sensation... | More →
Liang's Kitchen
Beef Noodle Soup Liang's Kitchen is another Taiwanese small eats restaurant in Orange County. Now I consider myself a bit of a beef noodle soup connoisseur, so when I say this is one of my favorite beef noodle soup... | More →
A & J Restaurant
Thousand year old egg with tofu - This is the good stuff, baby. Mmm... I normally come to this place to binge on the beef noodle soup, but I decided to go the Taiwanese breakfast route this time. Irvine... | More →
Chapter One: the Modern Local
Beef Culotte (bacon-wrapped, coffee & chocolate crusted, dijon smashed potatoes) I don't know what's up with the name Chapter One: the Modern Local, but I don't really care. I love good gastropubs and this is a good gastropub. The... | More →
Mission Coffee Cup
The Omar Special (Egg whites scrambled with cheese, green onions and tomatoes. Topped with grilled chicken & mushrooms and served with brown rice & a drizzle of pesto and avocado sauce.) Mission Coffee Cup is a cozy little place... | More →
Little Sheep Mongolian Hot Pot
If you don't like spicy food, you can go ahead and just skip this whole thing, because what makes this Mongolian hot pot so delicious is their spicy soup base. It's similar to the Schezuan style of spice, in... | More →
Chef Hung Taiwanese Beef Noodle
Award-Winning Beef Shank, Tendon & Tripe with Noodle in Soup $9.95 - I'd recommend checking the box to add extra chili because otherwise it's not spicy at all. I don't mean the spice level is mild, I mean there's... | More →
Eatosaurus Rex is a food blog written by a guy who knows absolutely nothing about food. I put things in my mouth, I either smile or I frown, and then I write about it.
If you want to say hello or give me free food or do anything else that involves sending me words through the Internet, you can get in touch with me at: editor@eatosaurusrex.com
- Church & State
- Tim Ho Wan
- Coconut Jelly
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- Wong Ah Wah
- Jumbo Seafood at Dempsey
- Hoe Kee Chicken Rice
- Ya Kun Kaya Toast
- Madam Kwan's
- Lack of Updates
- Bottega Louie
- Alta Coffee
- Ramen Yamadaya
- Ham 'n Scram
- The Playground
- Cafe Brasil
- Sexy Burger
- Caffe Luxxe
- Annapoorna
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