Review - Restaurant - Hofbrau

I can't believe this restaurant was not already on my list!! Probably because I always go here and it wasn't a new restaurant for me. Every time my family comes to town we have to go there, it is easily our most favorite restaurant!! Their specialty is a roast beef dipped sandwich, but I tried their turkey sandwich today and was bummed that they use regular deli turkey. Their big thing is to slice off the roast beef for your sandwich while you watch, I guess I was hoping that they had a big turkey in the back room for my sandwich!! I had a cold turkey sandwich and a salad, I won't have the turkey sandwich again because their bread is best with the "au jus" dipping sauce. It was too dry without the dip.

I usually get their chicken strips with a salad (it comes with fries, but you can substitute a salad for $1.25) and a soda. I like that they have free refills on sodas, and that you can choose two items to go on your salad (I get carrots and beets). Their blue cheese dressing is good, not too vinegary, but I miss the sunflower seeds they used to offer at the condiment area.

The chicken strips used to be large and pretty meaty, with a yummy breading, but yesterday I had some and they were small and not as good. They offer two sizes, I get the small (which has 2 strips). I tried the french fries that came with my friend's fish and chips and they are crispy and tasty, no need for ketchup.

There are table and benches inside and some outside seating on a little deck overlooking the Rock, sometimes they have a heater going outside. There are also some public outside tables if those are full. I will definitely return to this amazing staple of Morro Bay, every time my family visits we have to eat there.

The Sunset Drive-In

After living here in SLO County for almost 2 years, I finally decided to go to the local Drive-In!! What fun, memories from my past came flooding back. I went the night that Toy Story 3 opened, so I assumed that the line would be long. I arrived at about 7:00 (the movie was set to start at 8:30) and the cars were lined up in two lanes almost back to Elks Lane. I turned off my car and worked on my computer while I waited for the gates to open. I wished that they had wifi for those of us who were waiting in line. People were playing with a ball up at the front of the line, and folks were walking around. I read somewhere that you can get pizza delivered to you in line while you wait (I assume that was from an outside vendor, though).


The gates opened around 7:15 and we moved slowly around the bend up to the gate. I laughed at the sign that read "Sneak-Ins $8.00 No Exceptions". Now that they have raised the price from $6.00 to $7.00 they should also raise the "sneak-in" rate!! I pulled in and saw rolling paved hills flecked with the vintage speaker poles. The white lines are painted and are used by the Swap Meet people on Sundays. I pulled into a spot, but had to move over because they put two cars between the poles. No problem, there was plenty of room for two SUVs between the poles, as long as the kids are careful when opening the doors.

As soon as I parked, I headed over the to the projection building. I liked the window that shows us how the film projector works. This building also houses the restrooms and the snack bar.

Of course I had to try the popcorn, it was great. The only negative was that they only offered the tiny salt that gets into the cracks of my lips and burns. But, the popcorn didn't really need any salt, I got a large with a free refill. The medium and large sodas can be refilled for $1.00. I also tried their hotdogs. Yummy. In fact when I returned to the snack bar between movies for my popcorn refill I got another hotdog!!

Before the movie started they ran some previews and some typical informational screens, including being considerate of others, not smoking, and to tune their radios to the proper radio channel to hear the movie. This sound feature worked great, they played a local radio channel first, and the screen allayed my concerns about running down my battery. I enjoyed watching the kids play around in their PJs, and people watching before the movie started. There were all sorts of people here, kids, adults on a date, teenagers, etc. I was surprised how many fathers were there with their kids, without the mothers!! One thing missing was a kids playground, that is something that I fondly remember from my youth. The kids prevailed, however, by creating their own play zone under the screen!!

I loved that it was a double-feature, and that you could bring in your own food if you wished. I also loved the vintage trailers that showed during intermission, but I couldn't watch them because I was in a crazy long line at the ladies room. After waiting for a LONG time, I decided to check out the outhouses by the gate, but only one of them was open and there were no lights. Luckily I had my lantern in my car and so I was able to use the outhouse!! I missed the beginning of the second movie because in addition to the restroom I had to get more popcorn!! I really enjoyed the rising moon beside the screen as I watched the second movie, too!!

I will definitely come back to the Drive-In again, and will probably go to the Swap Meet one of these Sundays soon. I may even try to sell at the Swap Meet.

Review - Guadalupe Restaurants

Far Western Tavern (899 Guadalupe St. - Hwy 1)

This is a fantastic restaurant in historic Guadalupe. I have been there twice and was happy about the food and service both times. The decor is amazing, cowhide and mounted animal heads everywhere!! Yesterday, the mayor was dining, as were the "two richest ranchers in the area"!! We were greeted by friendly staff and service was wonderful. I had a slight substitution on the salad and it was perfectly handled, the last time I was there they had some trouble with this. The steak was not as medium-rare as I had hoped, but it didn't give me the hic-cups!! I wasn't sure what to do with the salsa, beans, and butter that was on the table, as there were no chips or bread served separately from the meals. I tried the pinquito beans, since they are a local specialty only grown in the Santa Maria area. I tried the home-made chips dipped in the salsa. One of these days I want to return for dinner and try the filet on polenta!!

Review - Atascadero Restaurants

Nuevo Mexico
(7109 El Camino Real)

This restaurant offers a wonderful lunch deal, if you order two meals and two drinks you get one of the meals for free. I should have taken part in this deal, but instead I ordered the fajitas, which I usually order if they are on the menu to test out the restaurant. The fajitas were good, although they were way too expensive for the amount of chicken I got. The tortillas were large, and I probably could (should?) have only made one fajita "burrito". They came with salad, so that was good, and they had free refills on the soda. I would normally have eaten all the chips and taken the beans and rice to-go, but I was dining with some friends and that would have been weird!! I might come here again and order one of the lunch specials. My friends got the enchiladas and they looked good.

Der Weinerschniztel / Tastee Freez (8950 Montecito Ave.)

This place is great!! They support the community and have good food. Their ice cream is nice and solid, for a soft-serve, and whenever I am in the area I stop by. I like their hotdogs, too. They offer some of the alternative sizes and styles, but I like the plain old hotdog with ketchup. I recently discovered their crispy chicken sandwich, which I order with just lettuce and mayo. The prices are a bit high, but their food is unique. One weird thing happened at the drive-thru, they didn't tell the person in front to park while their big order was being prepared. Instead, she brought out my food, and the food for the guy behind me, and we had to wait while the first car's food was being prepared. Unusual, but I just started eating, luckily I wasn't in a hurry. I like that they offer good coupons in the Sunday paper every once in a while, too.

Review - Grover Beach Restaurants

A.J. Spurs (1760 El Camino Real)

I have seen this restaurant off 101 many times, but finally decided to eat there while I was on the frontage road. The decor is decidedly Western, with stuffed heads lining the walls. The service is friendly (at least for me) and they serve meals with a pot of their beef vegetable soup. They offered beans and salsa, which they say you should mix all together with the soup for a taste sensation. I declined the beans and salsa, but the soup was fantastic. I should have ordered some of the beef, but the chicken Alfredo sounded perfect for that day. They allowed me to substitute tortellini for the fettuccine, which I was thankful for. They offer free refills on the sodas and their salad was good. There was so much pasta that I took half of it to-go. They even offer a dessert option (root beer float, scoop of ice cream, or a liqueur). I opted for ice cream, even though I was stuffed full.

The only negative thing I noticed was that the waitress seemed to treat the couple at the next table in a more "neutral" fashion. It was interesting because usually waitresses treat men on dates better because they know they will get a good tip. This time I fear it was due to the fact that the woman was Asian and the gentleman was Black. This is one of the problems I have found in this area, and coming from the diverse Bay Area I find it offensive. Despite this, I will definitely return here in the future. However, if I see this same treatment again I will not return and will certainly say something, perhaps on Yelp.com.

Follow-up: I just checked my receipt and found that they print the amount of possible tip amounts (15%, 18%, 20%) at the bottom. That would be great, if only they used the amount BEFORE tax!! They calculated the tip amounts based on the total bill, including the tax!!

Review - Buellton Restaurants

Pea Soup Andersen's (376 Avenue of the Flags)

This is a landmark restaurant, more than 80 years old!! It is near the Danish village of Solvang, and was founded by some Danish settlers. They are famous worldwide for their split pea soup, so I had to stop for dinner. I got a bowl of the pea soup, which came with some bread. I loved the soup, and would have been happy with just the bread and soup.

Their pumpernickel bread was much better than their cheese onion bread. In fact, I could only eat the middle of the cheese onion bread. I wish they had given me more than just one little slice of pumpernickel!!
I wanted something with a Danish flair, so I ordered the Danish meat loaf. I asked the waitress what made it Danish and she said they use both beef and pork. Big whoop, isn't most meat loaf with both beef and pork? But, since nothing else sounded good on the menu, I ordered it anyway. I won't order it again, it wasn't bad, but not really my taste. I should have ordered pasta or a pot pie. Their salad was good, though.

I will definitely return here to this restaurant again when I pass through Buellton.

Review - Restaurant - Rose's

I had been in Rose's with some people visiting, but I forgot to write up a review. So, I returned there with reviewing in mind. I arrived early for lunch, but they let me sit there while they got ready to open. They don't open until 11:00 on Sundays because the breakfast is served upstairs at Belle Ambiance. I ordered a Caesar salad with blue cheese dressing instead of Caesar dressing. I also ordered a cheeseburger. They didn't bring out the salad until right before the cheeseburger, which caused a problem for me because I wasn't done with the salad when the hot meal came out. I think they did this because it was not a side salad, but obviously I wasn't eating it as a meal. Anyway, I was surprised by the shredded cheese on the burger. I don't think I have ever seen this before. The fries were good, and there were free refills with the soda. In fact, the bar tender was really good refilling my glass when it was low. I appreciated this, as I get the hiccups when I eat with no liquid. The salad was good, and quite large. I will return here again, especially because they have coupon deals every so often.