#glendale lunch

Look at that beautiful vegetable. Fresh from the oven. Thank you Congress for classifying pizza as a vegetable. And thank you Supreme Court for first classifying tomatoes as a vegetable. Now when a certain friend of mine tells me I need to eat more vegetables, I can just eat more pizza.

Anyways, the pizza pictured above was from Mario's. The toppings were prosciutto, sausage and black olives. They sure like to pile the topping on at Mario's. Under the heaping helping of prosciutto was about a ton of black olives. Compared to the rest of the toppings, they were pretty skimpy on the sausage.

The toppings were great. The prosciutto had a perfect saltiness, the sausage had a nice peppery yet sweet taste and the black olives were black olives, they pretty much taste the same universally, so you either like them or you don't. As for the mozzarella, it had just the right amount of salt with the right amount tang. I was actually surprised by the sauce. It's the same sauce they use for their meatball sandwiches. It was sweet with a good combination of herbs and spices. I thought they would use a different sauce, but I don't know why I thought that.

What failed was the crust, which turned out to be somewhere between New York and Chicago on the thickness scale, I prefer Chicago. It was pretty flavorless and way too doughy, it wasn't cooked all the way through. The crust destroyed the delicious work of all the other ingredients and is the main reason I can't recommend Mario's pizza. Stick with their subs, they are what Mario's does best. But if you are going to get a pizza, especially one with prosciutto, the prosciutto isn't a dollar add on item, it is sold by the pound. So, be careful of the price.

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Bún is Vietnamese rice vermicelli. What I got today from Pho Hut is Bún thịt nướng bò tôm. So, vermicelli noodles with fresh herbs, charbroiled shrimp, charbroiled pork, egg rolls, carrots, cucumbers, sprouts, spring onions, lettuce, and some kind of awesome sauce. 

The crunch from the egg rolls, with the shrimp, fresh greens, light noodles, and sweet sauce was wonderful. The egg rolls were cooked right, crispy and flaky on the outside while the insides were tender and flavorful. The shrimp was a bit bland but with the sauce you would never notice. Also, if the veggies came alone with that sauce, it would be an excellent salad. The only complaint I have, the charbroiled flavor from the pork was a bit strong. It was good, but it kind of overpowered everything. 

This may be my new favorite noodle dish. And for a little more than eight bucks, there is enough in there for two meals. I am curious to try it at other places to see how this one compares. If you have never tried bún, go find a Vietnamese place near you or if you are In Glendale stop by Pho Hut and get this deliciousness. 

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I ordered two al pastor tacos, one carne asada, and one carnitas taco. Pictured above, are two al pastor tacos and one carne asada. Can you tell me what's missing and where it is? I honestly don't know. It wasn't in the bag when I got back to the office.

My coworker and I decided to try Tres Hermanas today. It gets a pretty good rating on Yelp, besides the people who complain about the customer service. They say the staff mocks the non-Spanish speakers who come in. I didn't notice that at all. The staff was very friendly. 

The al pastor tacos were the better tacos. A little smoky, a little spicy, and good cuts of pork. It's not the best al pastor in LA but it would do in a pinch. The carne asada was alright, a bit dry, but the onions and the addition of hot sauce really helped it along. The carnitas... oh yeah, they didn't give me my carnitas taco. Luckily, my coworker had an extra al pastor so I didn't go hungry. 

I am a little torn over this place. Should I let one sort of bad experience tarnish my view of them? Should I go back? I don't know. There are other taco places to try here in Glendale. Maybe after I try the others I will get back to Tres Hermanas. 

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It's ham versus ham in today's Porto's Challenge. On the left is the ham & cheese croissant. On the right is the baked ham & cheese croissant.

The baked hot ham & cheese croissant is exactly what it sounds like, ham and swiss cheese baked in a croissant. The croissant was flaky, buttery and warm. The swiss cheese was gooey and sharp. The ham, salty and a touch sweet. Of course it was good, don't you people like grilled ham and cheese sandwiches? It's almost the same, just frenchy-er. And while you get more for your money with the baked ham & cheese croissant...

I actually thought the ham & cheese croissant sandwich was better. The ham & cheese croissant is ham, swiss cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, and mayonaise on a croissant. While the room-temp croissant wasn't as flaky as the baked one, it was still buttery goodness. The cold ham with the cheese and fresh vegetables and mayo was a better combination than just hot ham and cheese. Yesterday, I said I wasn't sure if Porto's used different tomatoes on their feta sandwich as opposed to all their sandwiches. Well, the tomatoes on the ham & cheese croissant were just as ripe and just as sweet. I think there is a conspiracy going on with their whole "vine ripened" tomatoes on the feta. 

If you find yourself at Porto's craving ham and cheese and you just want a snack, go with the baked. If you are looking for something to fill you up and is a little more refreshing, go with the sandwich. 

Meat Pie

Chicken Empanada

Chicken Croquette

Potato Ball

Ham Croquette

Rellenito

Chorizo Pie

Tamales

Baked Ham & Cheese Croissant

Mariquitas

Cubano

Medianoche

Medianoche Preparada

Papa Preperada

Pan Con Lechon

Ropa Vieja

Hot Pastrami

Feta

Ham & Cheese Croissant

Tuna Croissant

Turkey Croissant

Tuna Melt

Turkey Melt

Italian Sub

Porto's Veggie

Pan Con Bistec

Grilled Chicken Sandwich

Torta De Pollo

Steak Torta

Fajita 

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I went with three things today, the medianoche preparada, chicken empanada, and the ham croquette.

I got the ham croquette because they put them in the medianoche preparada and I figured I better try one by itself before I have one in a sandwich. It's seasoned ground ham, breaded, then deep fried. The ham filling wasn't anything special, it had the taste of a typical baked ham. And like the chicken croquette, the ham croquette filling had the same consistency as baby food. The fried breading on the outside was nicely seasoned and had a good crunch. I would recommend getting this croquette for breakfast, with maple syrup as a dipping sauce.

The chicken empanada had a shell unlike any empanada I have ever had. It kind of crumbled into little crumbs as I bit into it. It was also kind of dry and bland. The chicken on the inside was completely opposite. Full of flavor, a hint of spice, and a little juicy. If I could just get the filling I would be happy.

The medianoche preparada is like a regular medianoche, but with a ham croquette stuffed inside. And you know what? The medianoche doesn't need that. The croquette masks the flavor of the slow roasted pork. It's kind of a tragedy really. Hiding the flavor of the slow roasted pork is like telling Kate Upton you can't talk to her because you're meeting your mom. Well, maybe not that bad. This sandwich would have been good if it was just the ham croquettes, pickles, and mustard/mayo on the sweet bread. Oh well, lesson learned.  

Meat Pie

Chicken Empanada

Chicken Croquette

Potato Ball

Ham Croquette

Rellenito

Chorizo Pie

Tamales

Baked Ham & Cheese Croissant

Mariquitas

Cubano

Medianoche

Medianoche Preparada

Papa Preperada

Pan Con Lechon

Ropa Vieja

Hot Pastrami

Feta

Ham & Cheese Croissant

Tuna Croissant

Turkey Croissant

Tuna Melt

Turkey Melt

Italian Sub

Porto's Veggie

Pan Con Bistec

Grilled Chicken Sandwich

Torta De Pollo

Steak Torta

Fajita 

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If you work, live, or breath in Glendale you should have taken the time to go to Billy's at some point. Because after eating at Billy's Deli & Cafe today, I felt like this...

My coworker and I did a sandwich swap, since it was our first Billy's experience. We got their sky high sandwich and their Billy's rueben. 

The sky high sandwich was hot pastrami, cole slaw, and dressing on rye bread. I had them put cheese on it to make it like Langer's number 19. I know some one is going to put out a hit on me for this... Billy's pastrami is better than Canters. I said it. I mean it. And you need to believe it. It was juicy, sliced thin, had the right amount of fat, and was a little smoky. We all know where the best pastrami in the world comes from, and now Billy's may be my second favorite place to get pastrami in LA. The cole slaw was a little sweet, which I love. Growing up in The Great State, I remember loving cole slaw as a kid, it was sweet and crunchy. Then, I moved to Virginia and I learned to hate cole slaw, bland and soggy. But their cole slaw reminded me of what I ate when I was close to my youngest and it went great with the pastrami. I am not one hundred percent if I tasted the dressing, it might have just blended so well with the other flavors I didn't notice it. The cheese wasn't really necessary, but I do love my cheese and their swiss was mild but it still fit well into the sandwich. The rye bread did an excellent job of holding the sandwich together, it didn't get soggy, and it was one of the better tasting rye breads I have had in LA. 

Billy's rueben was corned beef, swiss cheese, and sauerkraut on rye bread. The corned beef was salty, moist, and melted in my mouth. The kraut was a little sweet, a little sour, and just good sauerkraut. The cheese blended nicely with the kraut and the beef and brought the flavors together. The sandwich was obviously placed on a grill, the bread was brown and buttered and was an excellent compliment to the sandwich as a whole.

I might not have praised the rueben as much as the sky high, but I would have a hard time deciding between them if I had to order just one. If you've never been to Billy's you really, really should go, especially if you live or work in Glendale. It might be a bit expensive, but it's worth it.

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