Dolce Cafe & Bakery

This as another one of Allan Borgen's favorites, for very good reason. We've eaten here twice (both times as almost the only diners in the place, alas), with great results both times.

Our first meal was the best. I order a wonderful spaghetti bolognese and Rocio chose a delicious flank steak dish, albeit we had to exchange plates when Rocio discovered the dreaded pink center in the meat. Both dishes were great.

Our second meal was a little less appealing, Rocio with a strawberry salad which she deemed too sweet and I had a reasonably tasty but mundane (albeit quite inexpensive...making it a good deal) chicken parmesan.

But, the best parts are the desserts. Dolce specialized in chiffon based cakes, which are light and wonderful.

Dolce Cafe and Bakery is on Central Ave, a bit north of the Montclair mall. It should be much busier that it appears to be.

4.5 tarts.

Kiro Cafe

The Kiro Cafe is small breakfast/lunch place buried in an office complex on Inland Empire Boulevard, between Haven and Archibald (look for the red table umbrellas). They got a good review in the Sun, and have outside tables at which Borreguito can sit. What more can you want?

Well, a better smoothie for one. Rocio ordered what she later described as the worst smoothie she's ever had. I stuck with a can of Diet Pepsi.

On the other hand, Rocio highly endorsed her ham and cheese sandwich, on wheat. My chicken parmesan (on a garlic roll) was just OK, but we are both looking forward to popping over to the Kiro Cafe for lunch again.

Three and a half tarts.

Sprinkles!

After you've had a cupcake from Sprinkles, you really don't want to try any other.  

Five tarts.  

Sprinkles

Last saturday we went on a journey because we wanted to try those famous cupcakes of a Beverly Hills bakery; it was a perfect evening (windy but nice, in the seventies) and we left after four pm. We did not expect to find so much traffic on the I-10 but we did; still, we kept going.
It got dark quickly and it seemed forever to get to that place; Scott was using the nav system and that was very helpful. It took a long time but finally we made it, only to discover that there was a very long line outside the place we were going.
I was surprised to see the long line especially because there seemed to be only college students in it but still we endured; finally we made it to the very small store and began looking at what were our options. There were still several flavors left; banana, pumpkin, strawberry, dark chocolate, white chocolate, coconut and maybe something else. We went for banana, pumpkin, strawberry and dark chocolate; ah, and a carrot one for doggies (because we had Borreguito in the car).
It was not possible for us to eat the cupcakes immediately because we had to drive back home but when we had the opportunity we were very surprised by the freshness and delicacy of the flavors. Scott had the pumpkin one and I chose the dark chocolate; both were exquisite.
The next morning we had the strawberry one, thinking it might be not good but it was still quite good and finally we tried the last one: banana ; I can say that this one was by far my favorite.
I agree with those who praise the Sprinkles Bakery, it deserves it!

The best meal I've ever had!

Well, I can't think of any better dinner than our recent J&M Cafe "Saturday special" experience.  Every other Saturday J&M provides a special, fine dining, meal for up to 24 guests.  Be there at 6:00 sharp!

Rocio, ran away from J&M's signature wasabi mashed potatoes that undergirded the tilapia, by  choosing the flank steak entree.  That left me to either look like a copy-cat or opt for the fish.  Option number 2 turned out to be a good choice.  

There was barely the slightest hint of wasabi in the delicious mashed potatoes (not that Rocio would risk even the slightest taste to discover that), and the fish, topped by perfectly chosen and cook veggies, was spectacular.  

Of course, the soup, salad, and desserts were of equal quality.  

Finally, a good Mexican Restaurant!

We saw it on tv, they were in a competition to see who made the most delicious chile relleno between the owners of this restaurant and Bobby Flay.
Well, from a distance the chile relleno looked appealing and actually they won the throwdown so we decided to try it...it was just a matter of finding the place.
Scott found it and we went yesterday. The name? Mi Casita Mexicana.
Located in Bell California.
Of course, it was kind of funny because Scott was wearing his hat and camera. I was just dressed like a normal person :)
And then came the menu. We found what we thought we would like to try but I instead of having the chile relleno with nopales and mushrooms went for the cecina de res. Scott, on the other hand, was wise enough to try the chile en nogada.
The only problem we noticed was that the waiter was not really very informed of what was in the menu that day (at least, the day's specials or the drinks for that matter, as we found out later).
The first thing we got (as part of the dinner) was a rice cream. Yes, it sounds different and it is but it was tasty. I -as a mexican- had never tasted it. We liked it. Sort of. It was a little salty. But very decent flavor, nothing overwhelming.
Then came the cecina for me and the chile for Scott.
I have had excellent chiles rellenos in my life and the "chile en nogada" occuppies a special place in my taste because -well made- can be a delicacy. And this one was up to the circumstances. I actually tried a little bit and it was good! (the secret is in the sauce! or actually Nogada, a creamy sauce made with three types of nuts). Scott was happy with his choice.
I, on the other hand, was disappointed. The cecina was tasteless, a little hard and didn't have anything special on it. The cactus salad (ensalada de nopal) was good and the beans were also good. The good news is that they did not serve it all together (as many places around here like to do). They serve each thing in a separate place. That, I like.
The tortillas looked orange (a strange color to me) but they were warm and seemed fresh. I don't know if they make their own tortillas but I doubt it.
A different waiter came after we tasted everything and asked me how I liked the food and Iwas honest about my food. He deeply apologized for not having suggested me the "cecina al chipotle". HE says that one is much better,
And of course Scott took several pictures of the place. Right when we were crossing the door to leave the waiter asked us if we were reporters. I smiled and explained that we just wanted to taste their food, we were very curious about it. He apologized again and he said next time he will make a suggestion for me.
And right when we were out of the restaurant we could read the specials; there were several things that I would have liked to try. Maybe the next time!

Did I mention the Montclair Cafe?

It is good, it is absolutely good! You have to try it.
They serve a variety of dishes like in any other restaurant but they definitely have a good chef; I had the special of the night (shrimp with some sauce) and they were absolutely fabulous. Creamy but not overwhelming, tasty, firm but fresh at the same time.
The dessert was carrot cake and even though it wasn't brilliant we enjoyed it.
Today it is windy in Rancho Cucamonga, very windy. Last night I had a hard time sleeping because the wind was blowing and it was howling. These winds usually bring problems along with them and in the property where we live there are two trees that have been harmed and no longer stand up.
Let's hope tomorrow's weather is a little more benign.

Cafe Calato redux

It's on Center St, off of 4th Street, and gets 4 tarts.  

Cafe Calato

Almost by accident we discovered this little eatery close to the corner of Haven Ave and 4th St. It is italian and the first time we went to eat there it was a little difficult to find the entrance. It is not meant to be seen from the main road and the door is not facing the parking lot. However, once we overcame the difficulties we went from surprise to surprise.
First, the place looked warm and inviting from the inside; next, the waitress was very friendly and kept us laughing and having a good time. The food was our next surprise and it was quite good and then of course, the price was also very reasonable. We promised to go back and we did it tonight.
I ordered a half order of meat ravioli with a small salad and Scott had chicken parmesan. I think neither of us was disappointed with the flavors, the amount of food and the service. I'm not a big fan of Italian food however I enjoyed the ravioli and the garlic bread that came with our food was exquisite, I must say so. It was tasty, crunchy enough to enjoy the bite but not hard enough to hurt the mouth.
The whole experience was pleasant and left us invited to go back once more. It feels so nice to go to these little places! they are not part of a big restaurant chain and therefore have a personality of their own!!!

BC Cafe

Surprisingly, BC Cafe is a bit disappointing.  The Claremont location always seems to sport a line outside, and, while that's not true of the Rancho location, they do seem to be identical places.  

BC Cafe is OK, with good, if a little corporate, breakfast skillets and a wonderful orange/strawberry juice drink, but my meatloaf (not a typical for me) was mediocre, and Rocio has never been satisfied with it's food or service.  For me our last trip featured pancakes (another unusual order for me) the size of Connecticut served by a waitress positively hostile about Rocio's attempt to remake a breakfast item more to her liking (more fruit, less bacon, IIRC).  Ultimately, she was unhappy with all of the flavors.  

We actually do like BC's, and will almost assuredly return.  We just expected better.  3 tarts.  

SaturdayMonday Dogblogging

The worst restaurant in Rancho Cucamonga?

We probably haven't been there, but for the record our number one contender is Zendejas Mexican food on Vineyard and Foothill.  My breakfast buffet was at best mediocre (albeit the conchas were tasty) and the service indifferent.  

Rocio had huevos rancheros which used the wrong salsa for the dish.  

It's no surprise that Zendejas was essentially empty all three times we looked at the place.  

1.5 tarts.  

SaturdaySunday Dogblogging

Notes from The Rancho La Jolla

I've been away from the Rancho a week, visiting The Data Warehousing Institute conference in San Diego.  So, Friday's new restaurant came from that direction...La Jolla to be precise.  La Jolla appears to be the East Hampton of the West Coast.  

Our fare was from a restaurant/tavern type place called "The Spot" which moved to SoCal from Illinois some thirty years ago.  We were lured by funky "Monte Cristo Churros," hoping to erase the of the inedibly bad churro we threw away in Oldtown San Diego the previous night.  

The Monte Cristo Churros sounded similar to the Monte Cristo sandwiches offered at The Studio Diner, a San Diego diner featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, but looked more like a churro than a sandwich.  On net, they were an interesting try, but an indescript, somewhat greasy failure.  

Rocio's Mac and Cheese was quite tasty and they had an ample selection of burger toppings for my delight.  Plus a delicious salad which Rocio will describe.  

On net, 3.5 tarts.  

Deli V Bakery

The Deli V Bakery is the hard-to-find cafe in Upland (it's on the non-street facing side of an all but abandoned street mall off of 2nd) that Rocio mentioned last week.  As she said, the food was uniformly wonderful, and chatting with chef/own Visa Lam revealed a person who cares deeply about taste and quality.

The cafe is all but impossible to find from the street, but is close enough to the Metrolink station to serve as a quick breakfast stop for commuters.  But Visa et al take too much care in preparation to effectively serve that market.  

Nonetheless, I think Visa said that they've been in business for 6 years, so it must have become a local institution by now.  

Rocio was mistaken below.  They were only out of pies last week.  We had a quite tasty lemon bar for dessert.  

Thursday we were in Upland for the farmer's market/street fair, and chose a piece of apple pie that Visa assured us was "to die for."  She was right.  Five tarts.  

Saturday dogblogging

Cuban Food

That's what the obviously new sign said.  As do the posters on trees from here to Upland.  We suspect it's in the former location of a Mexican place called Mi Casita which we never did get around to visiting.  IAE, its in a strip mall on Archibald and 6th.  

It was delicious.  My carne con papas (described as "Cuban stew") was wonderful, and Rocio was so taken by the flavorful rice and platanos that come with every lunch and dinner plate that her chicken dish is still mostly in the refrigerator.  Judging by the rapidly filling dining area, after jsut two weeks of operations, we can say that it's a success.  

BTW, it has an actual name:  Flamingo Palms.  4.5 tarts.  

filipino week

It seems these days we will be celebrating -at home, anyway- filipino week. It all started with a US - Philippines Expo to which Scott and I went at the Fairplex in Pomona. We were hoping to find stands that showed us more from the Philippines but we only saw local businesses showing their products.


It was disappointing to see the lack of abundance of filipino culture in these stands where basically there were vendors offering tv channels, handbags, beauty treatments and furniture. I refuse to believe the filipino culture is made of that only.
Also, we were hoping to find food stands because we know filipinos like to have good food at their table and were surprised to learn there were only three or four food stands at the Expo. As we approached them we were hoping for the best but ...I must say it, the caldereta and the sausage we tried were both cold, greasy and not as tasty as the food I've tried at our friends homes back in Clifton Park, NY.
So, in order to make up for the lack of enthusiasm in this Expo I decided I would prepare some filipino food myself.
And tonight we had the first batch. It is called "tocino".
Spite of the warm and humid weather outside I decided to give it a try today; after having a light lunch I cooked some brown rice and began preparing the "tocino" which literally means bacon but indeed is pork meat, cut in small pieces and sauteed in this sweet sauce that gives it a flavor that goes between thai bbq pork and chinese bbq pork. But it stays in the middle. With its own distinctive flavor.
Scott enjoyed it and I thought I wouldn't but indeed I was wrong. It was quite good, taking into account that I cooked using this mix I got from my friend Mia back in NY.
We ate it and later we went out with Borreguito (our dog) to have a long walk after the fulfilling dinner and it was a nice surprise to come back home, open the door to our house and discover that there was still, lingering in the air, the typical aroma to filipino food. It was a nice reminder of delicious past dinners.
Anyway, tomorrow it is siningang day. I'll tell you how it goes!
Salamat!

The Best Restaurant in Rancho Cucamonga

Nancy's Cafe.  Five tarts.  It is my favorite eatery in RC, and I think it might be Rocio's, too.  A cute little breakfast and lunch place (6:00am-2:00pm, every day) on Arrow Route and Archibald, with a homey 50's nostolgia decor (which looks heartfelt, anyway) and inevitably good diner food. 

I usually get the "tuna melt" regardless of time of day.  We easterners would call it a "grilled cheese and tuna" sandwich...true tuna melts are open faced and heated in a broiler, but properly done, both are great.  And Nancy's are great.  Rocio, of course, is a breakfast person and hasn't found a single breakfast dish to object to.  Today I joined the breakfast crowd with a sausage, egg, and cheese sandwich, which, as usual, was as tasty as any I've had.  

I've never regretted a trip to Nancy's.  

A pleasant surprise

Tonight we went to try a new restaurant / cafe that we found on the Internet. This time the requirements were lower, knowing what we are dealing with in Rancho and I found this cafe listed on the Inland Empire website. I did not know whether it was good or bad or what but it was the chosen one and we went there to have an early dinner.
Well, it was located in this empty mall that looked like no customers were to be drawn to but once we found the cafe we saw a few people chatting in the seats outside and I was not sure this was the best choice. Still, Scott seemed interested once he saw the menu.
The person at the counter insisted that I had soup but or salad and I decided to go for the fruit medley for a salad as well as half a panini.
They were out of desserts (which was a disappointment) but we were able to enjoy the dinner that was served promptly and much to our surprise, tasty. Scott's turkey chilli was good and my salad was fresh; I was amazed at how Visa (the owener and chef) exerted an effort to give the best of service.
It was really a nice surprise to learn about this new place, Deli V Bakery, in Upland. I wish there were more cafes like this one. It is a true gem!

Thai Diamond BBQ

Our ultimate restaurant that night was the Thai Diamond BBQ on Foothill in the vicinity of Archibald (after rejecting Casa Sanchez in Ontario as already having been tried, discovering that Fiesta Taco next door is no longer in existence, that the Zendajas in Ontario is closed, that the Taco Hut is too crowded and noisy, and Rubens Tacos closed as we tried to get in).  

The service was indifferent, although hampered by being confused by Rocio rejecting the chicken special because it was too much food, and the food palatable but not great.  Rocio got mixed vegetables and I tried something approximating Kung Pao chicken.  

Both were OK, not great.  Two stars.  

"Mexican Slop"

Let me clarify what I meant by "mexican slop."  The term came from a Tyler Cowen post in which he describes most American Mexican food as the same slop mixed into different forms, and plopped onto the same plate so that everything mixes together.  Neither he nor I would describe true Mexican food as slop.  But "slop" is a pretty accurate term for most of the Americanized Mexican food that is found in most "Mexican" restaurants (outside of the Southwest, at least).  

But I like that food anyway, and that's what I felt like that night.  

Foliage of Rancho Cucamonga

The Rancho is full of crape myrtles, which, I am told, don't grow nearly as successfully in the wet environs of Rio Blanco, MX.  Probably because they call them "astronomicas" down there.  

in search of the perfect restaurant

It was a perfect evening. We even fed the dog early!. The sun was setting, the peace of the night was starting to invade us and then Scott suggested to go out for dinner.
What???
Ok, he wanted out so we decided to try a new restaurant in Upland. Or so we thought. We were about to start a little oddyssey.
We had a name, "Casa Sanchez". We saw a raving review on the Internet and decided that yes, we wanted to try it and see how truthful that review was.
But it turned out to be in Ontario, not Upland, according to the useful 411 service.
So, off we went thinking this was going to be a nice dinner.
Well, when we began to see where we were headed, the thing began to not sound so appealing.
After leaving the familiar avenues and taking the route 60 the exit towards Mountain seemed too familiar to us.
Yes, that's right. It was a disappointment. We already knew that restaurant!
We had been there previously and although the service was good the food was nothing especial, just ok. So, we wanted to try a second option that showed up on the nav system: Fiesta Taco. We drove towards that and nothing, it didn't exist anymore.
So, we wanted to find another place because Scott wanted some mexican slope. Well, the next restaurant in line, Zendejas, was closed.
That's when I said "Let's go to Taco Hut!". I had seen recommendations for this place too and I knew more or less where to find it.
Little did I know what this place was about.
I was expecting a peaceful place but it turned out to be burstling with activity, people and noise. After the long drive we ended up in a place that wasn't what we wanted for the moment. So, we decided to drive a few feet from there and go to another "mexican" place called "Ruben Tacos".
And, as soon as we parked the car in front of the place, I said..."Hmmm... this place looks very empty!" but Scott insisted "It is open!" and just when he said that, they turned off the lights and closed the place.
What a luck!
That's when we decided to take whatever came on our way and ended up in a Thai restaurant that didn't have small portions and the service was not at its best. The food was ok but it was not what we were dreaming of tonight.
At least, I got to see part of Ontario, Upland and Rancho Cucamonga!
Next time, I promise to do my homework...research, research, research!