Now that the flood gates to Cuba have started to open, it was only time that I began a culinary Cuban adventure before I book my future trip. And what better place to start then at Habana at The Lab for my best buds birthday dinner.
A face lift and some good shabu shabu.
No I am not actually talking about my face, I am talking about my new blog. While it is still under construction, I thought why not give everyone a sneak peak. So here it is. The new “The Local List.” I even bought a domain name and everything. Please let me know what you think!!!
Eureka: How UCI got cool.
Okay, I don’t know if it will make UC Irvine cool, but this new chain called Eureka is exactly what the campus needed. Although the pub has been voted best bar in Orange County by OC Weekly, Eureka caters to the community not just students. As much as I love the pub, it does make me feel like I am trying to relive my glory days. Eureka doesn’t judge me.
Gyu-Kaku: the gift that keeps on giving.
I first attended this glorious restaurant in LA. It was new and all the rage when I was in high school. Unfortunately, that was quite a long time ago. Anyway, this place is still a fun spot – especially during happy hour. So when I was trying to think of a place to grab dinner at 8:00 on a Friday, I thought why the heck don’t I try this place out again?
An odd place for a happy hour.
Good Morning Gents and Ladies. It’s my favorite day of the week – Thursday. Why you ask? Well once upon a time it meant the start of the weekend: toga parties, bar crawls, etc. Now it is one more day to the weekend, but I can see the light; I am finally happy that the weekend is so close; and I am not exhausted from an entire week of work. Plus Friday is really just a short work day anyway right? (Sorry work, I am absolutely kidding about that…)
Things to do This Weekend
Sorry I have been MIA again, a packed schedule at work plus a long weekend in San Francisco (post to come soon) means I have zero time for an outside life…and then I got sick. However, this weekend is too packed with good stuff not to let you in on it.
1. The Copper Door (one of my favorite bars in the OC) is FINALLY serving food. If you love craft beer, this bar is a must. Although dingy, dark and probably dirty, the vibe is a fun underground club with lots and lots and lots of beers on tap. Their new menu is American- cuisine and currently all items are priced under $10. Can you believe there is such a place?? Anyway, I am dying to go check it out.
2. The new Irvine Improv opens with Umami Burger. Irvine Improv has always been a little low brow, especially when you have to spend money on 2 items of either a horrible cocktail or really bad food. However, fret no more. Umami Burger will be served at all shows, beers are actually fairly decent, and if you fancy girl, they have bottle service (I mean really?). The Improv also has opened up in a new location at the Spectrum, so hopefully it is bigger and better. I am checking it out this weekend so I will let you know!
3. Costa Mesa Restaurant Week! Although restaurant week is not always my favorite, it is a great way to try places you normally cannot afford. And Costa Mesa has some of the best restaurants in the OC. Check out the selection here: http://www.travelcostamesa.com/costa-mesa-restaurant-week/. It starts today and only lasts a week, so plan your meals accordingly!
4. Orange County is hosting its own music festival this weekend. The Pacific Festival is being held at the Dunes this Saturday. If you didn’t catch Holy Ghost at Outside Lands this past weekend, they will be finishing up the night. Tickets are $75.
Hope the weather is great this weekend, because we have a lot of things to do!
A hidden treasure.
I have been trying to follow as many blogs, websites, people, newspapers, etc. as I can lately to learn about the new restaurant openings, closings, and OC events so that I can 1) attend obviously, and 2) try to let you know about it! So when Stick a Fork In It mentioned a new spot called Fireside Tavern I was so excited to try it.
So the weird thing is, this spot is in the Crowne Plaza Hotel on Bristol. If you had convinced me to stop in without me seeing photos first I would never be caught dead. However, I am so glad that I saw the cute photos of the place because it was the perfect spot to meet a couple girl friends for a well deserved happy hour.
The best part about this place is that happy hour is everyday until 7PM. That’s a long time, even for people like me that get off work at 6:30. I can get my butt out the door and still have a glass of wine (or two) before I get cut off. My girlfriends and I had a lot of catching up to do so we ended up staying for several hours and eventually trying some dinner menus. The happy hour menu is great – they even have a burger on the menu! I recommend the charcuterie board (its huge), as well as the loaded tater tots. We tried the fish and chips (which I recommend sharing) and it was tasty but REALLY fried and greasy (to the point where all of our stomachs were hurting afterwards.) My biggest complaint was that there were fruit flies EVERYWHERE. I would recommend sitting in the cute patio outside to get rid of these annoying buggers. So annoying and pretty gross to be honest…
If you are in the Costa Mesa/Newport/Santa Ana area, or need a break from shopping all day at South Coast, I would recommend happy hour here. It’s not crowded, its friendly service (most of the time), and the price is just right.
3.8/5 because who has gnats in a restaurant?! But check out the food and drinks, they are worth it.