Sancho’s Tacos

Hello again, my fellow Americans et al! I have been MIA for a while now, while I constantly am swamped by work and such. I have come back for a hot minute to briefly introduce some very impressive Mexican food once again!

After hitting up the whole Tacos El Gordo shack down in Chula Vista, not much can top that in terms of authenticity, and unfortunately, Sancho’s Tacos is no exception. That being said, the food that they do have to offer definitely sates the appetite. It’s a small little restaurant that’s located on the corner of the street, and it’s kind of connected to another restaurant kind of like a Siamese twin or whatever, but that’s not the point. It has the atmosphere and decor of a perfectly chill beach dining spot.

I just went with a combo this time, and went with their three meats: One carnitas, one chicken, and one steak. Each came with salsa verde, onions, crema, and cilantro. Right off the bat, the salsa/heat balance was fantastic. It’s got enough of a kick to make it noticable, but not enough to have you running for the water fountain. A big part of that was the Mexican creme that acted as a buffer between the spice and cooling factor. Getting into the meats themselves, I’ll start with the chicken. Although a tad dry, the charred flavor and just pure quality of the meat made up for it. It had the perfect amount of seasoning and it felt synergistic with the other toppings. The steak taco, I thought, was a bit mundane, like just your generic taco, which, it did a great job at being, but nothing super fancy. The real winner was the carnitas, which did a great job of staying moist and being packed full of flavor. Every time I try and cook pork shoulder/pork butt at home, it ends up being, for the most part, moist, but just dry enough to be frustrating. That was not the case here. Juices were running rampant in the taco, and I think the next time I come here, that’s all I’m going to get (though I might opt for the seafood next time).

If you’re ever on the pier of Huntington Beach and you find yourself itchin for some eats, go ahead and check this place out. It’s perfect for a nice beach day, and it definitely won’t kill your wallet.

7/10

Though it’s not rated as highly as other places, that rating comes from food mostly, and the atmosphere doesn’t add in. It’s honestly really good as far as by-the-sea eateries go, and I’d definitely stop here the next time I’m feeling hungry in HB.

Sancho’s Tacos

Price: ~$7-8 for 3 tacos

Address: 602 Pacific Coast Hwy Huntington Beach, CA 92648

(I’m gonna stop giving the phone numbers, because it’s really useless. In fact, I might even do away with this last section besides price. Y’all are smart enough to Yelp things.)

 

 

Pokinometry (and a welcome back :P)

Hey guys, sorry for the lack of activity on the site recently. I just got through exam week, so the two weeks prior were a bit jam-packed with academic excitement and probably some sort of sorrow. Anyways, I’m back for now, until another round of exams kicks me in the behind. Enjoy!

Okay, to bring it back to a new start, we hittin’ it up with that Poke again! This time, I think it’s my favorite poke place to date, right in front of The Low-Key Poke Joint! I’ll be taking you to Pokinometry in Anaheim, a beautifully presented and cleverly named spot right next to the skating rink. Walking in, immediately you’re probably going to be greeted by quite the line, considering how this place is popular af. It’s got seating available for probably 40-50 people, but half the place is the ordering counter, which is of standard design.

I was feeling particularly hungry this day, so I thought I’d go for a large bowl, which comes with 5 choices of fish instead of 3. So here goes the list. You got your Ahi, Salmon, Yellowtail, Albacore, and Scallop. That was all loaded on top of half rice and half salad. Of course it was layered with your standard poke fixin’s like masago, sesame seeds, ginger, wasabi, etc. I don’t know what it is about Pokinometry, but the combination of flavors and freshness really seal the deal for me. Here’s also the only spot to get the sushi rice right besides actual sushi restaurants. I think they win in that category for sure. On top of that, this time I got the salad, which came with a sort of ginger garlic dressing. I absolutely loved it. It wasn’t overpowering at all, and I thought it complemented the fish excellently. It was like a marriage of greens and fish. You could almost liken it to a Hawaiian style ceviche. It just gave me the fresh kick that I needed to be very happy 🙂 Onto the sauce. It was not complicated at all. In fact, it really is only soy sauce and sesame oil with some sort of spicy 3rd ingredient they add depending on how spicy you want your food. Imagine a yin-yang circle, but with 3 segments instead of two…a Yin-Yang-Yum if you will (oh my god, kill me for that pun). They’ve got their wonderfully delicious raw fish, the correct consistency sushi rice, and a basic-yet-effective sesame-shoyu based sauce. It’s all the things you look for in a poke bowl, and I couldn’t ask for more. Nothing disappointed me here. I could go on for ages, but I really don’t do it justice. Just take a look at the pictures and have a go.

If you’re looking for an honest, unassuming great basic (in the “stuck to its roots” kind of sense) poke place, this one is it. It doesn’t try to pull you in with some sort of fancy innovation. It’s just honest to itself. The food doesn’t need any more than it already has. No razzle dazzle. Just poke. And that, my friends, is what makes Pokinometry score a…

9/10

I’ve got to say that you guys must experience this place at least once, to taste how poke should be made. It was here that I had my awakening that not all poke places are the same, and ultimately, it was here that I decided to start my food blog. (This was my 3rd time here btw). So please, if you ever get the chance, give them some more business! 😀

Pokinometry

Price: ~$10

Address: 184 S Harbor Blvd, Anaheim, CA 92805

Phone: (657) 208-3488

(I’ll hopefully be back on Thursday! Thanks for bearing with me, guys!)

Cream Pan

Hey y’all! This one’s gonna be a quick one today. I don’t have much time, so here we go! Who doesn’t love bread? Bakeries are all over the place, and in OC, there are a ton of Asian ones. The most notable is probably 85 degrees, but that’s not the place today.

I went to Cream Pan the other day, and this Japanese place was pretty neat! Walking into it, you’re greeted with the glass showcases of different baked goods from croissants to cakes. The atmosphere was lively, and the crowds bustling. I couldn’t wait to get myself some sweet treats!

Now, coming here, I really didn’t expect too much. I knew it would be at the very least decent, from the reviews, but nothing beyond that. I ordered their chocolate cream pan and the strawberry croissant. For the croissant first: this croissant differed from the usual ones that I enjoy. It’s flakier and more dry. I thought that was an excellent design choice because it’s filled with 2 slices of strawberry and some sort of choux pastry filling. It was dense and delectable. The added dusting of confectioner’s sugar was a pretty touch. The food itself looked fantastic. The chocolate cream pan was very dense as well, but this time, a bit dry. (It’s important to note that I didn’t go to the store in the morning, when they have fresh bread.) That didn’t affect me too much though. I thought that the filling, a chocolate custard, definitely compensated it. The outer chocolate shell was a great addition as well. In terms of looks, I think Japan’s cuisine is the master of aesthetic.

Sorry for the short one again, but that’s all I got for today! Next time I…well, I’ll probably end up doing more poke. Go figure. Anyways, I’ll rate Cream Pan a…

7/10

As far as bakeries go, this one is pretty high on the list compared to all of the ones I’ve experienced, but that could all change with time. Nevertheless, come over to Cream Pan Preferably in the morning)!

Cream Pan

Price: <$5 (if you’re just getting some pastries)

Address: 602 El Camino Real, Tustin, CA 92780

Phone: (714) 665-8239

Bear Flag Fish Co

As a preface, a majority of Mexican food will be inferior to Tacos El Gordo and the rest of San Diego’s beautiful Hispanic food scene. That being said, perhaps the quality of ingredients are better around Orange County. Since this is seafood, I thought it probably would be.

This tiny little establishment was bustling with people, so much so that the servers were constantly weaving in and out to try and hurry the food out to customers. It is very cozy, though. The atmosphere was perfect at Bear Flag Fish Co (I’ll refer to it later as Bear Flag). They’ve got a small seating area indoors, and another one outside. Everything seems upbeat and happy (probably because it’s next to the beach). The weather was fair, and the mood was upbeat. As far as ambiance goes, I dig it.

My entire family went on this adventure, so I got to try a whole bunch of things. First and foremost was the appetizer, some chips, salsa, guacamole, and…you guessed it. Poke. Now, the first word I would use to describe it is fresh. You definitely get that crisp taste from the salsa, and the rich cream from the guac. Unfortunately, there really wasn’t much flavor in the guacamole, and I felt it was under seasoned. Thank the lord for innovation though, as I used their tangy house-made hot sauce to mix in as well, and that made it worlds better. The salsa was a normal salsa you would find at a fish taco place. A pico de gallo heavy on the acid and cilantro. No complaints there! Onward to the poke. I’m not gonna lie, just looking at it was mesmerizing. I had never seen ahi so beautiful. It was a dark ruby red that I could not believe. I mean, take a look for yourself. Biting into it, however, I found that it lacked a punch in flavor. Traditional poke is marinated for a while in soy sauce/sesame oil, but I didn’t detect that here. This poke must have been made in the morning. Don’t get me wrong, it was by no means bad. In fact, it definitely made my mouth water and I could taste the freshness of the ahi. I felt maybe it might have been a stylistic choice, to not include too much soy sauce (in order for you to taste the fish better), but I would have liked a bit more either marination time or soy sauce. The next thing I tried was the Bear Flag Burrito. That beast came with white fish, rice, beans, avocado, lettuce, and some red cabbage. The balance of ingredients was stunning. Despite it being the size of a large Chipotle burrito, the ratios were still perfect. Nothing overpowered anything, and eaten with the hot sauce, all flavor points are hit. Sweet and salty fish, sour/tangy hot sauce, a bit of bitterness from the cabbage. It’s a flavorful and textural masterpiece. The last thing I tasted were their tacos. Now, I ended up ordering too much, so we had to take the tacos home and eat em for dinner, but I’ll do my best to review them as well. I can’t say much about it, because my taste is skewed because they were in the fridge. Still though, I could taste the quality of fish, the freshness. The texture of the taco itself was balanced, much like the burrito, but of course, it’s best served hot off the grill.

After eating here, it dawned on me the importance of the quality of food. I could really taste how fresh everything was (sorry for the abuse of “fresh”). Even though at times it was lacking in flavor, the food made up for in quality. For that, I’ll give Bear Flag a…

7.5/10

This is a one stop shop for really fresh fish/poke, and quality ingredients. I highly recommend it for all you seafood lovers. Service is fast, and you really get what you pay for!

Bear Flag Fish Co

Price: ~$8-$15 (but they have $2 taco tuesdays :D)

Address: 7972 East Pacific Coast Highway Newport Coast, CA 92657

Phone: (949) 715-8899

 

 

Seoulmate

Back again with another one! This time I thought I might go to get some Korean food, so I was looking around for a place, and when I saw it, I had to go. I mean, who doesn’t love a good “Seoul/Soul” pun?

Walking into it, you might not expect much. This place is a pretty small shack-lookin’ thing right on the side of the street. It’s pink and gray. I know what you’re thinking, that it’s tacky and gross, but walking into it, it’s quite pretty. They’ve got a nice small seating area that can hold around 40 people. Cozy, and very homely.

The real meat begins. Foodstuffs. Seoulmate brings a great joy to the Mexican-Korean food sub-cuisine. This food style has been very popularly sweeping all over Orange County, with the beginning of the Kogi Truck. It’s a great fusion that works very well with the fact that many Korean restaurants serve a variety of meats, and many Mexican restaurants have multiple mediums of food. This particular place serves the fusion dishes, but also some standards like hot tofu soup or bibimbap. I ordered the taco combo, which comes with 3 tacos, fries, and a drink, all for less than 10 dollars! The tacos I got were 2 bulgogi (sweet marinated beef) and 1 spicy pork. They came topped with a cabbage slaw, sriracha, and sour cream. They were pleasantly surprising. I’ve been to many places with Korean tacos/burritos, but these were very nice. Usually Korean marinated meat is very tender and soft, so the crunch of the slaw was very refreshing. As for the meat, you really can’t mess up bulgogi and spicy pork, so no disappointment there. The fries were fried very well! I really couldn’t say anything bad about it. The really cool thing was that they were sprinkled with some sort of furikake (Japanese sesame/seaweed seasoning) spice. My friend got the “Old Boy” a bulgogi burrito with optional egg and avocado, and I can safely say, I think I chose the better option :P. It does happen to be the most popular item though. After biting into it, I thought it was very standard, but again, the sour cream/slaw made it very refreshing and not heavy. The combination of all these things was really hearty and satisfying. I would highly recommend this joint to lots.

I haven’t been to a load of these fusion restaurants, but I love them. I love how two cultures can combine into one natural flow under food. This particular location is, in my opinion, pretty exemplary of a fast food fusion joint. Again, I couldn’t tell you of many others, but this one for sure :). For that reason, Seoulmate gets an…

8/10

It was a great place to eat, big portions, and the way the atmosphere was held was fantastic. And it’s kinda outdoors, so you get that local vibe 😀 Come here, it’ll do you good!

Seoulmate

Price: ~$10

Address: 4712 E 7th St, Long Beach, CA 90804

Phone: (562) 433-1158

 

 

Tacos El Gordo

First things first, ignore these half-assed photos of the food. I so desperately wanted to eat in that moment. I had also forgotten my phone, so the quality might look different as well (Thanks to Michael for letting me use his :D). I went all the way down to San Diego for this one, about a 2 hour drive for me. Was it worth it? Lemme work it. Put my thing down flip it and reverse it. Drop everything you know about Mexican tacos, because this place is glorious.

This little establishment, Tacos El Gordo, is located just 8 miles away from the California-Baja border, and the flavor shows! Ugh, I had gone here about 2 weeks prior to coming back again the other week. It is truly one of the most authentic ways to enjoy Mexican food. Walking into this big pink restaurant, you’ll find a third of the store’s floor plan pretty empty. You might be thinking, “shouldn’t there be seats or tables?” No. Absolutely not. There’s almost always a huge line on the way to ordering their food. They’ve even got 3 separate lines for different tacos, and those lines STILL extend  to the door and sometimes out. You cannot find seats at peak hour, so we had to wait around 15-20 minutes just to get situated. I can tell you that is definitely is well worth it.

Now, about the tacos themselves, there are 3 lines, as I mentioned before. The most popular, and my personal favorite as well, is the adobada tacos. These are marinated pork tacos that the “taco dude” assembles from this gigantic revolving pork mass on a vertical spit roast. It is quite impressive to look at how fast he works, but that’s besides the point. The taco itself is one of the greatest culinary treats that I have ever been introduced to. The pork is sweet, spicy, and topped with pineapple, onions, cilantro, etc. It creates a, pardon my usage, “umami” taste that is incomparable to other Mexican restaurants I’ve been to. If you’re gonna come here and get nothing else, get the adobada tacos. The next line was the carne asada/chorizo line. I didn’t feel like eating any of those, since I like to be very adventurous with my cuisine, but rest assured, I believe anything is good here. The last line was the fun stuff. I’m talking…like…the weird stuff :P. So you have your head meat (cabeza), tripe (tripa), tongue (lengua), and others, but those were the ones I got. Oh my word were they absolutely delicious. I think I held a smile for about 3 full minutes when I first bit into the lengua and cabeza. They pair so well with  the sauces they come with. It’s so rustic and rugged, but the simplicity of it is not to be underestimated. The way the meat melts in your mouth like butter, is of no parallel. All I can say is that you, wherever you are, should come and try this beautiful food. No Mexican food will ever taste the same to you ever again.

Oof here comes the hard part. Rating it. I really think this deserves a great rating, and even more attention then it already has (which is, I think approaching 3000 reviews on yelp). For the greatest Mexican food experience of my life (so far), I will give Tacos El Gordo a solid…

10/10 would come again.

You’ve never truly had Mexican food unless it’s off the streets in Mexico, but from what people tell me, this is the closest you can get in America, and the great thing is, it’s super accessible with 4 locations: two in SoCal, and 2 in Vegas. I can’t wait for the next time I’m in Chula Vista.

Tacos El Gordo

Price: ~$2 per taco

Address: 689 H St Chula Vista, CA 91910

Phone: (619) 691-8848

PFC (Playground Fried Chicken)

Coo coo kachoo, I’m back after a bit of a busy week, and this time, with some delicious chicken. Until I went to this place, I really had no standard for fried chicken. My mom always brought home Popeye’s, or we would get KFC togo. It really wasn’t great. All of the sudden, I went to Playground. No, not PFC, Playground itself. I ordered
“Uncle Lou’s Fried Chicken,” and immediately fell in love. It wasn’t until nearly a year later that I discovered this place, and boy oh boy, it might even be better.

Now if you haven’t been to the 4th Street Market yet, it’s this place in Santa Ana that I liken to the Anaheim Packing House, but much cheaper and smaller. The locale has little stalls that you’d see at a mall food court, and similarly, they’re rented out to different vendors that sell a whole bunch of different things. These range from your burgers, to tacos, to loaded fries, and even ice creams/popsicles. The main thing I’m going to be talking about though, is a certain place here.

PFC is part of a 3-stall extension of Playground. The other two stalls serve noodles and burgers. Anyways, I went up and got myself a two piece combo. Oh boy, was it glorious (again, pics are bad. I was in a rush, sorry). The item comes with 2 enormous pieces of chicken, a wing and a drum, 2 glorious corners of cornbread, mashed yams, and a cold mustard pasta salad. Of all of the fried chicken I have ever had, Playground/PFC’s chicken is the absolute most beautifully cooked, innovatively seasoned, and texturally satisfactory of any fried chicken I’ve ever had. They’ve got this gorgeous thin batter that’s seasoned with a blend of spices that I’m really not sure of. The result ends up being a light batter that flakes off the wing and into your mouth 😛 . Moist, juicy, wet, whatever you want to call it, the meat itself is done so well. It kind of gives the feel of a confit without all the fat. But….But the icing on the cake, for sure, is the dipping sauce. It’s some kind of sweet and sour vinegar/honey/cilantro sauce that works horrifyingly well with the meat. It has the perfect amount of tang to keep your appetite from being all greased over from the endless fat you’re consuming. Oh man, is it the bomb….dot…com. Onto the cornbread. This is some tasty stuff. They cook it in little pans so you get 2 cute quarters of one pan with every order, and you get this whipped honey butter with it as well, which, lets face it, is amazing even by itself. Regardless, the main staples of this meal are the chicken and the cornbread. The yams and pasta aren’t very special. They add a little variety to your food, but other than that, I don’t really see them being a main focus.

This place is so good, that I think I’ve been here once a month for 5 months or so. It’s a bit on the pricey side of fried chicken, but it is so worth it. They even sell “Uncle Lou’s” here, so if you aren’t feeling that Playground restaurant, haul yo ass over to PFC.

9.5/10

I mean come on, what did you think it was gonna be? For the price that you pay, the taste that you get is so damn fantastic, I could eat it for every single meal for probably a week. It’s that good. There really isn’t a large menu, so it’s really easy to order, and, you could end up trying one of the other 2 stalls as well. Wait for me, PFC, I’ll be back.

PFC

Price: ~$10

UPDATE: I’ve recently discovered that PFC has closed down 😦 They want to focus completely on their restaurants D: I’m so devastated. In that case, I’ll go ahead and recommend Playground instead. It is quite expensive compared to the stall, but well worth your money. Well, I’ll be expecting good things from them in the future!

Pho 79

Hello, wonderful people! This time, I ventured out to my ol’ stomping grounds. I’ve spent at least 1/4th of my life in Little Saigon in the Garden Grove/Fountain Valley/Costa Mesa/Westminster area, and I always love coming here to eat food, whether it’s my parents taking me to the next “greatest” rice or pho joint, or just to go to dinner at my grandparents’ house. Anyway, here’s my first time at this spot.

Walking into Pho 79, my eyes followed the red dragons which they had put up for Chinese New Years, and then the multiple accolades they had achieved on the wall behind the register. Then there was the very boldly yellow wall, and black ceiling/floor. This being a Vietnamese restaurant, I knew it would be a little bit tacky. That’s just how they all look, the good old ones, at least. The place itself was pretty clean, and the guy who took our order used an ipad for it! That was something I’d never seen at a standard joint like this before. How progressive!

I ordered a Pho Dac Biet (Special Pho), and, besides the broth, noodles, and garnishes, that comes with rare beef steak, beef flank steak, tripe, and tendon. I could never get enough of any of these items by themselves, so I always tend to go for the special. Now I know I’m gonna get some heat for this next part, but I do in fact enjoy putting sriracha and hoisin sauce directly into my broth. I feel that it can enhance the broth, rather than overpower it. I do make it a point, however, to sample the broth first, before putting anything in. Now, on the side, a pho restaurant always gives you your traditional greens/veggies. I like to put em all in: bean sprouts, basil, mint, lime, you name it. It really adds a freshness to the dish. Onto the food now, the pho really packed a punch for me. I loved the aroma of the broth. It was strong, bold, and it supported the noodles very well. I’m one of those people who ends up drinking a majority of the broth after I’m finished with the bowl. Each of the types of meats were of textural excellence as well. When it comes to a lot of Asian food, texture is key, and you can’t go wrong with tripe and tendon. Vietnamese food tends to take you on a journey in this way, and this bowl of pho was no different. The quality of the beef slices was lovely. I thought the overall taste was quite similar to what my grandmother would concoct up in her kitchen about, oh I don’t know, 2 or 3 miles away :).

Though tasty and flavorful, I probably won’t come back here for a while, just because there are SO MANY different Vietnamese hole-in-the-wall restaurants that I’d love to try all over Little Saigon. This is a kind of place you take your friends to when they say they want to eat pho. Hearty and warm, Pho 79 gets a…

7.5/10

It does feel low on the scale looking at it now, but when you’ve eaten pho at least twice a month for 18-19 years, the clear winners just stand out. Maybe I’ll take a look at those guys another day, but this experience was, without a doubt, satisfying. I hope this place keeps getting awards, because it certainly bears a standard!

Pho 79

Price: ~$8

Address: 9941 Hazard Ave, Garden Grove, CA 92844

Phone:(714) 531-2490

 

Zero Degrees

Alright alright alright alright alright alright. Onto the next venture, now. (Btw these pictures are terrible. Once again, I apologize. The Galaxy S6’s camera does not function too well in low light. Also my angles, as some of you so  kindly pointed out before, are trash.) It’s rare that I voluntarily go to a dessert joint, but this place was quite different and…rated highly on yelp, so I decided, sure, why the hell not?

Strolling into the place, you’re greeted with a standard ice cream layout. On the left is the ordering counter with a windowed  cooler to see all of their ice creams, and on the right are tables and chairs. It’s clean, and the decor/paint is neutral or pastel, to make it look even more modern (I gotta stop using that word. I’ll use a thesaurus later.).

I tasted three things here, two of which are pictured above. The Chamango, and the Potted Plant. The offscreen delight was a strawberry mojito. Now if you want a kick in your taste buds, a chamango will do it. Generally, a chamango is a spicy chamoy sauce layered among mango cubes all covered with freezing mango puree. It’ll make your face pucker. At Zero Degrees, instead of your mango cubes and puree, it’s all in a sorbet. and they top it off with a lil lime slice and some tamarind paste. Now, this particular version kicks real hard in flavor. You’re not greeted, so much as roughly punched in the tongue when tasting the damn thing. It was a bit too overpowering for my taste. On the other hand, the Potted Plant, was quite the opposite. Just a simple cookies and cream really, there was vanilla ice cream and crumbled oreo cookies in this concoction. There would have also been a gummy worm on top, but my sister had conveniently dropped it on the floor. I mean, I suppose it would have looked like a potted plant with the whole shebang, but she really went ahead and messed it up.

Like I said before, the chamango really overpowered my taste sense, and, don’t get me wrong, I love sweet, sour, and spicy as much as the next southeast Asian, but this was ridiculous. I was in a state of constant pucker, and it wasn’t the good kind. I think the only thing that made the item tolerable was the tamarind paste on top. Opposite of that, the potted plant was desolate of flavor. It was so very simple that I thought it might have some sort of special pizzazz. Nope. Just your regular ol’ cookies and cream flavored cup of ice cream. Before I mentioned a mojito, though, and that was pretty good. I thought that the mojito was fairly good. The elements of it were quite well put together. It was quite surprising I suppose, alongside the rest of the items I ordered. Strawberries,  mint and chia seeds make a great combination. It was a refreshingly tangy and sweet drink. I love citrus, and this particular drink had a balanced blend of it. Nothing was too sweet or sour, and all the elements worked together, instead of separately, like the other two.

I wish I could say more about the things I had at Zero Degrees, but truthfully, I didn’t find anything too special about it. Sure, if you had to go somewhere to hang out after school, it might be here, but I don’t think it would come into anyone’s mind as a first choice. I give it a…

5/10

There really wasn’t much separating this place from your average joe ice cream joint besides the mojito, and if the mojito wasn’t there, then I’m not sure I’d even give it a five. Maybe if I come back, I’ll stick to the drinks.

Zero Degrees

Price: ~$5

Address: 9822 Bolsa Ave, Westminster, CA 92683

Phone: (714) 839-8664

 

 

The Low-key Poke Joint

More! More poke! I dunno if I told you this yet, but poke is my current obsession. Yeah I definitely mentioned it before, but this one was different.

For starters, this place was located smack dab in the middle of Little Saigon in Garden Grove, filled with my kinsmen and folk, the bustling crowd that are the Vietnamese. That doesn’t take away the eatery’s cleanliness, though. The Low-key Poke Joint was a beautifully simple little room with an ordering counter and a back-room for poke bowl prep. It felt very intimate and satisfying, even just when we were sitting down.

Now they’re doing some interesting stuff with this particular bowl. They have all your normal fixin’s like seaweed, cucumbers, and soy sauce, but, in the true nature of all things American, they got some innovative toppings. I had a lot of reservations when they included “hot cheetos” on the menu, but I decided to get em anyway. The next thing that surprised me was the fried garlic, which I’ve seen before, but for some reason, I was really craving it. Content with my choices, I decided to go with that.

Who am I kidding, I’m a slut for topping options, and hot cheetos and fried garlic are no different. They worked out much better than I could have imagined though. Both added a crunch to the meal that I thought maybe poke bowls were missing before. Usually, you’d get that kind of crunch in a minimalist form with the refined taste and texture of the pickled ginger, but it’s much more defined with these two items. As for the rest of the bowl, I thought that the amount of fish was quite satisfactory, and the rice was cooked well. All the ingredients besides that have really more or less the same quality as other restaurants. The 3 things I think define the quality of the poke bowl are the fish, sauce, and rice. In this case, the fish and rice had been very good. I enjoyed both of them with a sriracha mayo, and what can I say, it was delectable. There was a sense of balance among the flavors. The garlic didn’t overpower the freshness of the fish, and everything else came together nicely.

Overall, I think so far this place is my 2nd favorite poke joint in Southern California. I just really enjoyed the new additions that I didn’t encounter usually. It made a huge difference to me. I give The Low-key Poke Joint an…

8.5/10

You completely surprised me. I thought Little Saigon was for nothing but Cafe Sua Da (Vietnamese Coffee) and Vietnamese eats. Pleasantly happy with this place. I’ll be back soon!

The Low-key Poke Joint

Price: ~$10

Address: 9904 Westminster Ave, Garden Grove, CA 92844

Phone: (657) 200-6502