Roscoe’s House of Chicken & Waffles

Roscoe’s House of Chicken & Waffles is an L.A. institution.  Stars dine there, politicians dine there (even President Obama), locals dine there, and yes… even the staff dines there.  I discovered Roscoe’s when my friend Mark and I took a trip up to Hollywood when I was up there to photograph the band Chickenfoot.  We were hungry and he recommended Roscoe’s and I quickly agreed. I’ve been so hooked that every time I go near L.A. I plan a meal there.

That’s exactly how I wound up there on my latest trip.  I was in Hollywood for a Fashion Photography workshop and posted on my Facebook page inviting my L.A. friends to join me for some food and photo hi-jinx.  Not surprisingly, a few accepted.

Roscoe’s House of Chicken & Waffles

Claudia was first to arrive, about 10 minutes before I did. We put our name on the list and were told the wait was around 20 minutes.  With about 25 people gathered outside, I wasn’t so sure but the list went quickly and in 20 minutes they called our name.  Unfortunately, Michael, being Michael, was late.  Also unfortunately, Roscoe’s has a policy that they won’t seat you until your entire party is present.  Since it was 90 degrees out, and the blazing summer sun was beating down on the front of the restaurant with no shade to speak of, we were quite thirsty by the time we got to the table.  When Michael arrived, he brought us a gift in the form of a new friend.  I love it when I meet someone and instantly feel like we’ve been friends for a long time, and such was the case with Yvonne.  The four of us went inside and proceeded to have an amazing experience.

We took our seats and our server Marlon came by to take our drink orders. Water for Yvonne, Coke for Claudia, iced tea for me and an Arnold Palmer (half tea, half lemonade) for Michael.  We immediately started chatting and forgot all about the menu, but Marlon was patient and waited until we were ready to come and take our order.  I was so engrossed in conversation that I failed to take note of what everyone ordered but me!  So, I just took note of what was on their plates as we ate.  It seemed like only about 10 minutes before Marlon brought our food out.  And as servers go, you couldn’t ask for a better one than Marlon.  Our meals came out exactly as ordered, he kept our drinks topped off without having to ask, his service was as prompt as you can get and with a smile on his face.  Very well done, man.

Yvonne ordered breakfast, two eggs, a waffle, and two chicken sausage patties.  A stark contrast to her usual healthy, mostly vegetarian diet, Yvonne actually enjoyed the sausage, and loved the waffles.

Yvonne’s breakfast

Michael ordered a plate that consisted of a leg and thigh of chicken, macaroni & cheese, greens, and cornbread.  It’s kind of hard to judge how Michael liked his food, as once it arrived he didn’t say another word until it was gone.  After that, the descriptions were just variations of the word “awesome”.   When I asked about his judicious use of the hot sauce he replied “I love hot sauce, what can I say?  I view chicken, or any meats for that matter, as just hot sauce delivery vehicles.”  As it became clear that Yvonne wasn’t going to finish everything on her plate, Michael eagerly jumped in to assist.

Michael’s dinner

Claudia ordered a chicken burger.  A all-white meat fried chicken patty with lettuce, tomato and onion, and potato salad on the side.  At first Claudia was wishing she had ordered something bigger, but by the time she finished she said it was just the right amount, and delicious.

Claudia’s chicken sandwich

When dining at restaurants that I know and love (as is the case here) I will usually “over order” with the intent of taking home yummy leftovers for the next day.  This time, however, since I was 2 hours from home and we had planned on taking to the streets of Hollywood after dinner to do some street photography I decided to take it easy and order the Carol C. Special.  One chicken breast, one waffle, and I tacked on a side of mac ‘n cheese and a slice of cornbread.  The chicken is some of the best in the state, lightly breaded and seasoned Southern style.  The waffles are hands down the best I’ve ever had.  Golden waffles, served with butter and syrup (which I didn’t seem to need), just melt in your mouth.  Seriously, you don’t even need teeth with these babies. The mac ‘n cheese is the best restaurant mac ‘n cheese I’ve had.  I was always a fan of Marie Calendar’s cornbread, but Roscoe’s is the new king of cornbread in my book.

The Carol C. Special, with macaroni & cheese and cornbread added.

If you ever find yourself in the Los Angeles area, head over to Roscoe’s House of Chicken & Waffles and see for yourself how good a waffle can be.  There are six locations, with a seventh opening in Anaheim soon.

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Venice Pizza House

Venice Pizza House has had a place in my heart since my mom started taking us there as kids in 1968.  Back then, Venice was in the building across the alley that now houses a nail salon, and dinner’s out (even pizza) were reserved for special occasions.  Venice’s history began in 1954 by Sam & Prudie LoMedico, and is still family owned, though I think current owners Joe and Mar have handed day-to-day operations over to their kids.  While in high school, my friends and I would regularly have “pizza nights” at Venice, and whenever I would start dating a new girl I would bring her there.  The idea was, if she didn’t love Venice, we probably wouldn’t get along that well!  As I grew older and had my own children, I made sure they got to know and love Venice as much as I did.   After moving to Carlsbad in 2005 though, I find it harder to get down as often as my taste buds would like.

After much complaining by my taste buds, I decided a proper trip to Venice was in order so I called my good friend Debra to see if she was up for an adventure.  She was, so off we went.  There is nothing fancy or pretentious about Venice Pizza House, no dress code, no Maître d’,  just good honest food like your Italian grandmother would make.  Damn, I wish I had an Italian grandmother!

Venice Pizza House
3333 El Cajon Blvd
San Diego, CA 92104

Venice Pizza House  is known for their pizza, after all, it’s in their name.  They wind up at, or near the top of every major local poll when “Best Pizza” is discussed.  Seeing as how Debra is more of a “veggies and greens” girl, and I’m more of a “meat and potatoes” guy, we settled on a cheese pizza 🙂  The pizza has the most delightful, flaky crust and Venice’s own special pizza sauce.  Just the right amount of garlic and tomato, perfectly proportioned and topped with an abundance of cheese.  And since I don’t get down this way much anymore I wanted to bring home some leftovers, so I ordered a couple of pasta dishes to go with it.

Venice’s cheese pizza

Yes, the pizza is world class, but my heart truly lies with their pasta dishes and Manicotti is my go-to dish.  Rather than stuff pre-formed noodles like most Italian restaurants, Venice uses fresh made crêpes for their 5-cheese stuffed manicotti.   Each order is prepared individually and served with your choice of marinara or meat sauce (their sauces date back to Sam LoMedico’s original 1954 recipes), then topped with mozzarella and baked to arrive just short of molten lava temperature!  Add a couple slices of their awesome garlic toast and a glass of iced tea and I’m in heaven.  Melt in your mouth, cheesy goodness.  And special kudos go to Crystal, our server.  She’s been serving my family since my kids were babies and she always greets us with a smile and knows what we like.  She keeps our iced tea and water glasses topped off without ever having to ask, knows when to come see if we need anything else, and is just one of the most pleasant servers ever.

Manicotti with Meat Sauce

I also ordered another one of my favorites, the ravioli with meat sauce.  Meat-stuffed pasta pillows stuffed  covered with their awesome sauce, served with garlic toast.  Simple in preparation, yet divine in taste.  The meat sauce is so delicious I always order extra just to sop up with the garlic bread.  Just enough tomato flavor, the right amount of garlic and basil, and their home made Italian sausage blend together perfectly for every pasta dish on the menu.  But you don’t have to have the meat sauce, they also have an incredible Marinara, Creamy Alfredo, Butter and Garlic, Olive Oil and Garlic (for the health conscious), Pesto, and both red and white Clam Sauce as well.

Ravioli with Meat Sauce

The overall value of Venice just can’t be beat.  If you can forgo the fancy atmosphere of trendy places, the food here is outstanding and the service is on point.  If you want a delicious home style Italian meal at very reasonable prices, Venice Pizza House is your place in the San Diego area.  Forget Little Italy.  Come to North Park, you will not be disappointed.

*Note*  Venice Pizza House is closed on Mondays and Holidays, so plan accordingly!

Joe’s Crab Shack (Oceanside)

My good friend Leslie and I go way back. Back to the early days of online poker, where we shared many late night chat  conversations not only about poker, but about food.  So when she moved from the Central Coast of California down to Oceanside in 2008 we decided to meet up and celebrate her son’s birthday.  Since she knows I don’t eat seafood, and she knew my son rarely gets to eat it she chose Joe’s Crab Shack on the harbor in Oceanside since 1) it was close and 2) they have non-seafood items on the menu in addition to a nice selection of seafood.  I remember having a pretty good time that night.

Fast forward to last week, when we decided to get the kids together again and this time I picked Joe’s for much the same reasons as before.  Our group consisted of Leslie, her son Mark, my son Andrew and his best friend Taylor, and myself.

Our server came, introduced herself  and took our drink orders, and asked if we had any questions.  When she returned with our drinks we did have a few questions, which she cheerfully answered.  We started with the Classic Sampler appetizer which included a crab dip, calamari, and Joe’s famous Great Balls of Fire (deep fried jalapeno, shrimp, and crab poppers).   The crab dip was well received, but the calamari and Great Balls of Fire were just mediocre.

Classic Sampler Appetizer

Taylor started out by ordering The Orleans Steampot (1 lb of crawfish, 12 shrimp, andouille sausage, fresh corn and boiled new potatoes).  Now Taylor is a Texas native and knows crawfish, so he was very disappointed in what he got.  He did say that since crawfish are out of season at the time, they had to import them.  The shrimp were decent, but not great, as was the andouille sausage.  The best part about the Steampot was the new potatoes.

The Orleans Steampot

Andrew ordered the Fisherman’s Platter (popcorn shrimp, fish fillet, great balls of fire, calamari,  fries and coleslaw).  “It was all deep fried” Andrew said, “so it was pretty much the same as what you would get anywhere else.  Nothing special really, but that’s what I wanted, what I ordered, and I knew what to expect.”  Now the reason the coleslaw and dip didn’t make it into the photo is our server accidentally dumped it all over Andrew as she went to place his dish on the table.  They did make it up to him by giving him a new t-shirt to replace his soiled one.

Fisherman’s Platter

Mark ordered the Whiskey Smoked Ribs, which came served with fries, coleslaw, and jalapeno hush puppies.   Mark said “Good smoke flavor and a really good sauce, but kind of dry really”.  We all tried the hush puppies, but only Andrew and Taylor enjoyed them as they really love jalapenos.

Whiskey Smoked Ribs

Leslie was in the mood for a steak, so she ordered the 12 oz. Ribeye. This came served with cheesy smashed potatoes and fresh seasonal vegetables (broccoli tonight).  The cheesy smashed potatoes looked so good that I ordered a side for myself, but mine weren’t nearly as “cheesy” as Leslie’s!  “It was fairly standard, you know” said Leslie, “Nothing really stood out.  It was “ok”, but not note-worthy”.  Pretty much summed up our whole experience for the evening.

12 oz. Ribeye with cheesy smashed potatoes and veggies

Finally, my seafood hating self ordered the Homestyle Chicken Tenders.  I would not call them “Homestyle” at all.  “Restaurant” style is what they are.  The same chicken strips you get at almost any restaurant but with less flavor.  Hey Joe, would it break you to throw on some salt and pepper?

Homestyle Chicken Strips

Without a doubt the most genius idea of the evening went to Mark, who suggested trying the S’mores Cake.  I’m not sure if that’s what it’s really called because once it came, all other thoughts escaped rapidly out of our brains.  By far the best dessert I have had at a restaurant in a long, long time!  Warm chocolate cake, sandwiched between graham crackers and smothered in warm chocolate sauce.  The kicker was the marshmallows.  Laid on top of a full Hershey’s chocolate bar and then blasted with a torch to toast them perfectly and melt the chocolate, then drizzled again with the warm chocolate sauce.  Pure genius and guaranteed to make you weak in the knees.  So rich that the four of us (Taylor doesn’t like chocolate!) were able to share it and be totally satisfied.

S’mores Cake Dessert

 

Situated right on Oceanside Harbor, the view at Joe’s can’t be beat. The food however, can.

A very colorful bar area….