Macaroni Grill - Irvine, CA : Margherita Pizza

Pizza at Macaroni Grill....hmmm. Yes I love pizza so much that I'm willing to try it almost anywhere. They're better than delivery pizza (like a Domino's or Pizza Hut).

Small Salad

Starting off with some greens...to balance the non-fiber fillled cheese and bread.

Margherita Pizza

The pizza wasn't bad. The crust was nice and thin just like I like. Don't remember anything outstanding about it though. It was just fine. (That doesn't sound that good huh?)

Location this was eaten at:

13652 Jamboree Rd

Irvine, CA 92602

714-508-7990

http://www.macaronigrill.com/

Corner Bakery - Irvine, CA : Tomato Mozzarella Sandwich

Corner Bakery is cool because you can easily customize your sandwiches. They're pretty cool about it. Some places are not so cool about it. I mean, they'll do it, but they really don't mind here. Generally speaking, the staff here has been pretty good. =) Yay good staff. (I do frequent this place.)

Tomato Mozzarella Sandwich

This sandwich is usually Tomato Mozzarella on Ciabatta Ficelle. I think it probably tastes better on the ciabatta, but to make it a bit more "healthy" I decided on their whole wheat bread (harvest toast) instead. It comes with mozzarella, tomatoes, arugula, peppers, and basil with some balsamic vinaigrette. I think in this one, I left out the peppers. I usually don't like those too much. Tasted pretty good. I also substituted the side of chips with some salad. Simple and filling meal.


Corner Bakery
http://www.cornerbakerycafe.com/home.aspx

What To Do With Stale Bread - Homemade Croutons

I usually keep my bread in the fridge so that it lasts longer. But after some time, it becomes stale. So what's the best thing to do with stale bread? Croutons! They're easy to make...just takes a little time.

Croutons

You basically just cut the bread into cubes...any size you want...just be as uniform as possible. Well, I didn't do a great job, but it still came out ok. Smaller ones crunch up faster though. There are basically two ways to do this, heat it up in the oven or in a pan. I've tried both, and while you can walk away from the oven, I prefer to make it in a pan. I use a cast iron pan on pretty low heat so that it doesn't burn too easily. I put a thin layer of oil on the bottom of the pan and toss the bread. You continually toss, or flip one by one if you're patient enough to get brown on all sides. If you don't feel there's enough oil, you can also spritz some oil on top. I use Misto so you can put whatever type of oil you want. The oil will make the bread nice and brown instead of burnt. My lazy way of seasoning is with herb salt. This way, I don't need a bunch of different items. There are lots of flavors/spices you can put on your bread to make croutons, so experiment! It's done when it's at a brown/crunch level you desire. Just taste one!

Capital Seafood Restaurant 金都 - Irvine, CA : Vegetarian Hong Kong Style Chow Mein

Although there is no vegetarian noodles on the menu, you can always ask them for the non-meat version at a Chinese restaurant. Chinese restaurants usually have tofu as a substitute. One such example is here at Capital Seafood.

Hong Kong Style Chow Mein

Sometimes I indulge in the Hong Kong style crispy fried noodles. They're usually seafood/meat, but I just ask for the vegetarian version...no meat please. They have always been able to make the dish that way. Although I have not asked to substitute with tofu, so I'm not sure how those would turn out. The veggies you get however, may be a little different each time. Like in this version, I got a bunch of vegetable stems instead of leaves. Phooey! In any case, just mix the veggies on top with the fried noodles below...and yum crunchy chewiness at the same time. =)

Capital Seafood Restaurant
http://www.capital-seafood.com/irvine/
Location this was eaten at:
Diamond Jamboree
2700 Alton Parkway #127
Irvine, CA 92606
(949)252-8188
Hours:
M-F 10:30AM - 10:00PM
Sat-Sun 9:00AM - 10:00PM