Tudor House
1403 Second Street, Santa Monica, CA 90401
310-451-4107
http://www.thetudorhouse.com/
Bakery, breakfast, lunch, and tea room. Not open for dinner.
Plenty of surface and structure parking nearby for 3rd Street Promenade.
Visited: February 2010
This review is of the numerous pies that you can buy either in the Bakery or have served in the restaurant for Lunch. They're quite the value when purchased in the Bakery - prices range between $2.95 -$3.95. In the restaurant, they're $8.50 and served with Tudor House Salad. They're easy to reheat in the oven or toaster oven, 350*F for about 10 minutes.
All of the pies have a very rich crust, and are quite filling.
Cornish Pastie - ground beef and veggies in a nice gravy. This was one of our favorites with a great flavor.
Beef and Onion - a very fine ground meat and onion filling; almost felt like mushroom duxelles. This was a little salty, and you definitely need the crust to help cut the saltiness. Overall, though, this was one of our favorites.
Beef and Potato - a nice mix of meat and potatoes. This also was a good choice.
Steak and Kidney - chunks of steak and kidney. Rather bland.
Lamb Vindaloo - it was definitely a lamb curry of some sort, but did not taste like vindaloo.
Lamb and Mint - well, I wanted to try this one, but it confirmed that I don't like mint with my lamb. I ended up picking out the meat chunks - those were tender and tasty.
Vegetable Curry - A nice mix of potatoes and veggies. A different texture than some of the pies in that you could feel chunks instead of the feeling being smooth. Nice spice flavor.
Chicken Curry - a soft mix of chicken and veggies. It has a nice little spicy kick.
Chicken and Mushroom - a nice blend of chicken and mushrooms in a creamy sauce. But like all of the other pies, there's just enough sauce to hold it together; no need to worry about any gravy spilling out.
Spinach and Cheese - very very cheesey (a bright orange kinda cheese). Too salty and rich.
Spinach Artichoke - also very cheesey. I ended up picking out the artichokes.
Pork Pie - plain, and the chunks of pork were rather firm.
Scotch Pie - a mixture of ground beef and spices. This was also a very tasty pie.
I'm glad we took the opportunity to try all of the pies. It was interesting that some were so tasty, others bland. Some I would definitely get again, others definitely not. Overall, I would choose to purchase them in the bakery to take home instead of being served in the restaurant.
Showing posts with label curry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label curry. Show all posts
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Friday, January 8, 2010
Rascals Teriyaki Grill, Torrance, CA
Rascals Teriyaki Grill
5111 Torrance Blvd, Torrance, CA 90503
310-542-0022
http://www.rascalsteriyaki.com/
Free parking in lot, however can be very crowded during meal times.
Additional locations in Gardena and Long Beach.
Closed Sundays.
Casual/fast foodish. Order and pick up at the counter.
Visited: Numerous times; Usually take-out
Most recently: June 2010
Rascals is a teri grill with a decidedy Hawaiian bent. They do a brisk business, and everything is super fresh.
Our favorites are the Chinese Chicken Salads ($5.15, $6.75) with shredded chicken breast, cucumbers, green onion, and the cruchies are rice noodles and almond slivers. The dressing is tangy with a hint of sesame. Party trays of this salad are very popular for parties, but we think you actually get more 'stuff' if you order the individual salads.
And the Teri Burgers ($3.95) on a soft bun with lettuce, tomatoes, soft onions, pickles, and mayo. The burger also comes with extra teri sauce, which we find we need.
Also very good is the Teri Beef (Bowl $5.75, Plate $6.95, Deluxe With Salad $8.10). The Teri Chicken isn't bad, but we prefer the Beef.
The Curry Bowl (Chix $5.35, Beef $5.75, Veg $5.15) is also pretty tasty as is the Chili and Rice ($3.95).
Because they're usually so crowded during meal times, we often call ahead and Rascals has a separate pick up line for called in orders.
5111 Torrance Blvd, Torrance, CA 90503
310-542-0022
http://www.rascalsteriyaki.com/
Free parking in lot, however can be very crowded during meal times.
Additional locations in Gardena and Long Beach.
Closed Sundays.
Casual/fast foodish. Order and pick up at the counter.
Visited: Numerous times; Usually take-out
Most recently: June 2010
Rascals is a teri grill with a decidedy Hawaiian bent. They do a brisk business, and everything is super fresh.
Our favorites are the Chinese Chicken Salads ($5.15, $6.75) with shredded chicken breast, cucumbers, green onion, and the cruchies are rice noodles and almond slivers. The dressing is tangy with a hint of sesame. Party trays of this salad are very popular for parties, but we think you actually get more 'stuff' if you order the individual salads.
And the Teri Burgers ($3.95) on a soft bun with lettuce, tomatoes, soft onions, pickles, and mayo. The burger also comes with extra teri sauce, which we find we need.
Also very good is the Teri Beef (Bowl $5.75, Plate $6.95, Deluxe With Salad $8.10). The Teri Chicken isn't bad, but we prefer the Beef.
The Curry Bowl (Chix $5.35, Beef $5.75, Veg $5.15) is also pretty tasty as is the Chili and Rice ($3.95).
Because they're usually so crowded during meal times, we often call ahead and Rascals has a separate pick up line for called in orders.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Soho Thai, Lomita, CA
Soho Thai Fusion Bar & Grill
2104 Pacific Coast Highway, Suite #3, Lomita, CA 90717
310-530-SOHO (7646)
At the corner of PCH and Oak. Turn on Oak to enter the free parking lot behind the restaurant. The entrance is from the parking lot, not PCH.
Casual. Limited bar.
Visited: A few times; Lunch, Delivery, Dine-in and Take-Out
Most recently: February 2010
This is such a unique restaurant. While many of the menu items are Thai, it really is a whirlwind tour of noodle dishes from around the world. In addition to Little Bangkok and other Thai favorites, they also have dishes from Little Hong Kong, Little Saigon, Little Tokyo, and Little Italy. They also have Fried Rices, items From the Wok, Hot Stuff and Vegan Options. There are so many items to try, that we've barely made our way through them.
Overall, however, I would say that the portions seem small for the price, and our favorite dishes are in fact, the Thai dishes.
The daily Lunch Specials are also a great option - served with green salad, and choie of Thai Jasmine Rice, Brown Rice, or Fried Rice. The Thai BBQ Chicken ($9.00) was a generous serving of marinated bone-in chicken served with plum sauce.
The Tom Kha soup with Chicken (Cup $6.00, Pot $9.00) is a lovely and fragrant coconut soup with button mushrooms and galangal. The soup is midly spicy, and very satisfying on a cool rainy day. The Pot serving is a great size for an entree.
While the Pad See Ew (Chicken, Beef, Pork or Tofu $9.00; Shrimp $12.00; Seafood $15.00) - wide flat rice noodles stir fried with meat and broccoli in a soy sauce - is quite tasty, the broccoli wasn't quite cooked enough. While pretty and green, the broccoli was still very crunchy. When reheating leftover Pad See Ew, the broccoli finished cooking and was perfect. We had it with beef, and it was very tender and tasty.
One of usual favorites, Angel Wings ($7.00) were a bit a disappointing. These stuffed fried wings were tasty, but the filling had an odd chewy texture.
The Thai Toast ($7.00) was very flavorful. The toasts are small baguette slices topped with a minced pork filling then deep fried. If you've ever had shrimp toast before, this is the same concept. We enjoyed the toasts, but for the price, we felt we should have gotten more than 6 small pieces.
We had high hopes for Crying Tiger ($14.00) - thin slices of charbroiled marinated ribeye. The meat had a nice mild flavor, however the portion size was abysmal compared to the price, and the accompanying sticky rice was oddly wrapped in foil and a bit hard.
The Pad Thai ($10.00) is very tasty and we enjoyed it very much, however, again, the price is off-putting particularly when compared to other Thai restaurants. We have so many Thai places in the South Bay that make a good pad thai, why would we want to pay $10 when we can easily get a larger portion for less elsewhere.
We were excited to Chinese Lo Mein on the menu and ordered the Roasted Duck Lo Mein ($11.00). Yeah, not so much. Lo Mein are typically a thick eggy round noodles, instead, these were skinny chow mein noodles. While the duck itself wasn't bad, there wasn't much else - very little sauce and a few pieces of undercooked onions and baby bok choy.
From The Wok, we got the Asparagus Spears with Tofu ($9.00) which was a lovely stir fry of asparagus, tofu, and a little garlic. The menu advertised shiitakes as well, but I didn't see any.
And finally, the Panang Curry with chicken ($9.00) was delicious (chicken, peas, green bell peppers). The best panang curry that I've had. It had a great smooth texture, and a slightly sweet flavor. Very nice, very well done.
2104 Pacific Coast Highway, Suite #3, Lomita, CA 90717
310-530-SOHO (7646)
At the corner of PCH and Oak. Turn on Oak to enter the free parking lot behind the restaurant. The entrance is from the parking lot, not PCH.
Casual. Limited bar.
Visited: A few times; Lunch, Delivery, Dine-in and Take-Out
Most recently: February 2010
This is such a unique restaurant. While many of the menu items are Thai, it really is a whirlwind tour of noodle dishes from around the world. In addition to Little Bangkok and other Thai favorites, they also have dishes from Little Hong Kong, Little Saigon, Little Tokyo, and Little Italy. They also have Fried Rices, items From the Wok, Hot Stuff and Vegan Options. There are so many items to try, that we've barely made our way through them.
Overall, however, I would say that the portions seem small for the price, and our favorite dishes are in fact, the Thai dishes.
The daily Lunch Specials are also a great option - served with green salad, and choie of Thai Jasmine Rice, Brown Rice, or Fried Rice. The Thai BBQ Chicken ($9.00) was a generous serving of marinated bone-in chicken served with plum sauce.
The Tom Kha soup with Chicken (Cup $6.00, Pot $9.00) is a lovely and fragrant coconut soup with button mushrooms and galangal. The soup is midly spicy, and very satisfying on a cool rainy day. The Pot serving is a great size for an entree.
While the Pad See Ew (Chicken, Beef, Pork or Tofu $9.00; Shrimp $12.00; Seafood $15.00) - wide flat rice noodles stir fried with meat and broccoli in a soy sauce - is quite tasty, the broccoli wasn't quite cooked enough. While pretty and green, the broccoli was still very crunchy. When reheating leftover Pad See Ew, the broccoli finished cooking and was perfect. We had it with beef, and it was very tender and tasty.
One of usual favorites, Angel Wings ($7.00) were a bit a disappointing. These stuffed fried wings were tasty, but the filling had an odd chewy texture.
The Thai Toast ($7.00) was very flavorful. The toasts are small baguette slices topped with a minced pork filling then deep fried. If you've ever had shrimp toast before, this is the same concept. We enjoyed the toasts, but for the price, we felt we should have gotten more than 6 small pieces.
We had high hopes for Crying Tiger ($14.00) - thin slices of charbroiled marinated ribeye. The meat had a nice mild flavor, however the portion size was abysmal compared to the price, and the accompanying sticky rice was oddly wrapped in foil and a bit hard.
The Pad Thai ($10.00) is very tasty and we enjoyed it very much, however, again, the price is off-putting particularly when compared to other Thai restaurants. We have so many Thai places in the South Bay that make a good pad thai, why would we want to pay $10 when we can easily get a larger portion for less elsewhere.
We were excited to Chinese Lo Mein on the menu and ordered the Roasted Duck Lo Mein ($11.00). Yeah, not so much. Lo Mein are typically a thick eggy round noodles, instead, these were skinny chow mein noodles. While the duck itself wasn't bad, there wasn't much else - very little sauce and a few pieces of undercooked onions and baby bok choy.
From The Wok, we got the Asparagus Spears with Tofu ($9.00) which was a lovely stir fry of asparagus, tofu, and a little garlic. The menu advertised shiitakes as well, but I didn't see any.
And finally, the Panang Curry with chicken ($9.00) was delicious (chicken, peas, green bell peppers). The best panang curry that I've had. It had a great smooth texture, and a slightly sweet flavor. Very nice, very well done.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Angara Indian Restaurant, Torrance, CA
Angara Indian Restaurant
2170 Torrance Blvd, Torrance, CA 90501
310-320-9090
http://www.angara.us/
Near Old Torrance. Usually plenty of street parking, and they have a small lot behind the building. Do not park in the tiny lot that is next door.
Casual. Large dining room that fills quickly at lunch. Beer and wine.
Visited: Numerous times, Lunch Buffet, Dinner, Dine-In or Dinner Take Out
Most recently: August 2010
This is our favorite Indian restaurant. The food is always fresh and great tasting. We've been winding our way through the menu and have tried many items.
Chicken Tikka Masala, mild or medium ($10.95): yes, the ubiquitous chicken tikka masala. Man, do they do it right. The curry is creamy and sweet with its own great texture (quite a food unto itself). The chicken tikka is cooked well, and makes for a seamless dish. If you get this dish 'mild' it will have a sweeter taste than the 'medium' - both are tasty.
Lamb Tikka Masala, medium, ($11.95): one of the great things about Angara is that all of the curries come with your choice of meat, tofu, veg, or paneer. We tried this lamb tikka masala for the first time, and also tried the tikka masala medium for the first time. This was a spot-on dish. The 'medium' spiciness was perfect heat that didn't linger so that everything afterwards would taste hot. The lamb was tender and very mild. A+.
The Lamb Biryani, medium ($12.95) is rich and full of flavor. The lamb and rice are tender. You can have this as your entree and be fully satisfied, with enough to share.
Bengan Bharta ($8.95): well, I love eggplant, and while this dish was very tasty, all I could see and feel were onions. I didn't dislike the dish, but I wouldn't order it again if I were craving eggplant.
We also order the Plain Basmati Rice ($4.00) and Plain Naan ($1.95). Both are cooked very well. The rice is tender and each grain is distinct. The naan is fluffy and chewy, and is a very good tool for eating with.
They also have a fabulous lunch buffet ($7.95) that is busy and the food is always hot and fresh. Usual staples of the buffet include Onion Bhaji, Naan, Daal, Saag, a Vegetarian Curry, Ground Lamb Curry, Chicken Tikka Masala, and Chicken Tandoori. One or two other items rotate through. There are also some salad and pickle items, and a dessert, usually rice pudding. A soft drink comes with.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Thai Rama Restaurant, Torrance, CA
Thai Rama Restaurant
4473 Torrance Blvd, Torrance, CA 90503
310-542-9242
http://www.thai-rama.com/
Casual. Large dining room. Beer and wine.
Visited: Numerous times, Dinner, Take-out
Most recent visit: September 2010
This has long been one of our favorite restaurants almost exclusively for take-out. There was a lull in there when the food wasn't as great, but I have a feeling the restaurant changed hands a few times during that period. We tried all of our favorites, and everything was delish.
#5: Chicken Wings Royal ($6.95)- tasty filling and crunchy coating. It also comes with a little container of spicy pickled cucumbers and red onions. Very nice.
#8: Thai BBQ Pork Spare Ribs ($6.95) -very tender and tasty.
#31: Pad Thai ($7.95) - plenty of noodles, plenty of goodies.
#33: Pad See You with Beef ($6.25) - very flavorful, and the broccoli was cooked well.
#38: Panang Curry with Chicken ($6.95) - has little green peas and carrots mixed with the chicken. It comes with a very nice natural spiciness.
#47: Chili Beef ($6.95) - beef stir fried with sliced green chiles and onions. It was tasty, but not sure if we would order it again. It has a spiciness that is very mellow and creeps up on you.
#48: Mongolian Beef ($7.75) - very flavorful and tender.
They also have lunch specials which are highly recommended.
4473 Torrance Blvd, Torrance, CA 90503
310-542-9242
http://www.thai-rama.com/
Casual. Large dining room. Beer and wine.
Visited: Numerous times, Dinner, Take-out
Most recent visit: September 2010
This has long been one of our favorite restaurants almost exclusively for take-out. There was a lull in there when the food wasn't as great, but I have a feeling the restaurant changed hands a few times during that period. We tried all of our favorites, and everything was delish.
#5: Chicken Wings Royal ($6.95)- tasty filling and crunchy coating. It also comes with a little container of spicy pickled cucumbers and red onions. Very nice.
#8: Thai BBQ Pork Spare Ribs ($6.95) -very tender and tasty.
#31: Pad Thai ($7.95) - plenty of noodles, plenty of goodies.
#33: Pad See You with Beef ($6.25) - very flavorful, and the broccoli was cooked well.
#38: Panang Curry with Chicken ($6.95) - has little green peas and carrots mixed with the chicken. It comes with a very nice natural spiciness.
#47: Chili Beef ($6.95) - beef stir fried with sliced green chiles and onions. It was tasty, but not sure if we would order it again. It has a spiciness that is very mellow and creeps up on you.
#48: Mongolian Beef ($7.75) - very flavorful and tender.
They also have lunch specials which are highly recommended.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
