Mama Katsu

From Legoland, we made our way to Disneyland and that is where our dining out stopped.  We spent most of our time eating at the park and also grabbed some fast food from Raising Canes and In-N-Out.  But I was able to squeeze a few meals in from Mama Katsu, which was on our way back to our hotel.  It was across the street on Harbor Drive and we walked by the place a few times a day. 

The first time we stopped by to pick up some food, we got the Original Kimbap.  Not only did I get it the first time, I got it again on the second visit!  Well first off, it was quite good where there was more filling than rice.  Definitely fulfilling and great for taking it into Disneyland.  Acts as a great snack or even a meal.  I thought the components were well-prepared (textures how they should be) and there was enough flavor to eat without any condiments.

So of course I got the Pork Katsu and it was a large portion of 2 cutlets, 2 fried gyoza, rice, slaw and katsu sauce.  Fried until uniformly crispy, the pork katsu was also tender and not dry.  Naturally, it paired well with the tangy and sweet katsu sauce.  I only wished there was more of it.  Dumplings were pretty typical, but did feature a thin wrapper and a fairly juicy filling.

Picked up a second dish for good measure in the Chicken Yakitori.  This came with rice, tempura prawns, gyoza and slaw.  Since they used chicken thigh meat, it turned out to be jucy and quite flavorful.  There was a light char on them which added some smokiness.  There was enough sauce to flavor each skewer, but probably not enough for all the rice.  I suggest you ask for a bit more.  Prawn tempura were only okay since the batter was a bit thick.

On another visit, I went for the Fish Katsu and it was also a pretty large portion.  Each piece was crunchy while featuring flaky and moist fish.  This came with tartar sauce, slaw, rice, fried gyoza and ebi tempura.  As a whole, this was quite a bit of food and definitely was enough for me.  I found this one to be considerably more greasy than the pork katsu.

For good measure, I decided I needed to get some Spam Musubi as well. This would serve me well in the moment and also be a great snack for later.  This was solid as the layer of chewy rice was actually modest in size.  Therefore, the seared Spam had much more effect.  Overall, the food at Mama Katsu was solid and served in large portions.  Great for a quick meal to take back to your hotel after a day at Disneyland.

The Good:

- Big portions

- Solid eats

- Well-priced

The Bad:

- There maybe a wait at times

- Can be greasy

Le Kitchen Pho & Rice

Needing to grab some lunch after a morning at California Adventure, we weren't planning on going very far.  Hence we looked for something on W Katella Ave.  To narrow down the search some more, we decided on something much lighter than what we had for dinner the night before.  So off we went to Le Kitchen Pho & Rice located in what appeared to be a former location of Pizza Hut.  We thought it was great since the dining space was large and spacious.

Absolutely loved the owner-lady as she was welcoming and super nice.  That alone was worth the price of admission.  However, I'm here to talk about the food, so we started with the Salad Rolls which was modernly plated.  Portion size was not as big as some spots, but the rolls were prepared well.  The lettuce was fresh and crisp, vermicelli noodles were soft with a chew while the shrimp were meaty.

We also had the Spring Rolls and to our delight, they were prepared with legit rice wrappers.  Some places are lazy and use wheat wrappers which totally changes the texture.  By using rice wrappers, the crunch from the exterior was more firm and it didn't shatter like wheat wrappers.  Rather, it had a slight chew (just how we like it).  The pork filling was moist and well-seasoned.  Loved how they served it with herbs and lettuce, so we could wrap the spring rolls.

For Viv she had the Pho with rare steak and meatballs.  Broth was clean and fairly light with only the mild meatiness and hints of daikon and anise.  This was good though as it wasn't overloaded with salt or MSG.  Furthermore, they skimmed the oil enough so the broth wasn't overly fatty either.  Noodles were decently portioned and still al dente.  There was enough meat which was tender.

For my daughter, she went for her usual in the Pho Ga.  Naturally, the flavor profile of the soup was remarkably different than the beef.  It was sweeter and lighter as well as having a noticeable chicken essence.  Again, it wasn't overly salty.  Once again, the noodles were not overdone nor clumpy.  The ample slices of chicken were relatively tender given that it was white meat.

For my son, he also stuck with his favorite being the Lemongrass Chicken with rice and fried egg.  Nicely charred, the bone-in chicken thighs were marinated well.  As a result, the meat was juicy and well-seasoned.  Lots of aromatics and smokiness that went well with the white rice and perfectly fried egg.  Since it was bone in, it was a bit more difficult to eat, but well worth it for the extra meaty flavor.

For myself, I had the Banh Mi Chao (Bo Ne) featuring cubed filet mignon, fried eggs, pate sauce, cheese wedge, meatball, and sausage with French baguette and salad.  I've had this before and I can say this was pretty good with a creamy and meaty sauce that I soaked up with the crusty baguette.  Beef was medium-rare and super tender.  Well-priced for $12.00.  In fact, this was an inexpensive meal that was tasty and well-portioned.  A good escape from the heavy stuff at Disneyland and surrounding restaurants.

The Good:

- Super nice people

- Good eats

- Well-priced

The Bad:

- Not much ambiance, but you aren't paying for that

Craft by Smoke & Fire

After our first day at Dinseyland, we were somewhat tired and sunburnt, but okay otherwise.  It helped that we arrived for rope drop, but left just before lunch.  That meant we avoided the most busiest time in the part as well as the hottest temperatures.  Before we made it back to the park for the evening, we made the short drive out to Craft by Smoke & Fire at the Center Street Promenade.  Place was hopping and super busy, but luckily, I had made a rez.

Even with that, it took a bit to be seated and even longer to put in our order.  Now I'm not placing the blame on our server because she was super sweet and was truly doing her best.  Seeing that everything was taking so long, she treated us to the Prime Short Rib Quesadilla.  Oh this was money as the smoked short rib was super tender, fatty and flavorful.  The whole thing was loaded with meat, Oaxacan cheese, comeback sauce, cilantro and onions.  This is best shared or eaten as a main for one person.  Even at that, it ate heavy with all that rich meat and cheese.  Still freakin' delicious though.

Our meal didn't get any lighter as the Brisket Queso Fundido hit the table next.  This was a considerable amount of melted cheese and chopped smoked brisket with blue corn tortilla chips.  Not sure why they only supplied only a smattering of chips, so we asked for more.  Extremely cheesy with a nice crust on the edges, this was aromatic and meaty.  Good smoked essence as well as the natural saltiness of the cheese.  Chips were crunchy and held up to the cheese.

If you thought the 2 dishes we had so far were large, try the Brisket Tacos on for size.  They didn't skimp on the smoked brisket which was fatty and moist.  Possibly a bit too fatty, but I just pulled those pieces out.  It was nicely sauced which kept things from drying out and offered up some sweet smokiness.  A good amount of curtido slaw made for some tangy crunch to go with the splash of creamy comeback sauce.  As for a side, I went for the Street Corn Named Desire with a good amount of fried onions on top.  The corn underneath was creamy and sweet with a hint of spice.

For Viv, she also had brisket in the form of The Madison featuring prime smoked pastrami brisket, bread & butter pickles, curtido slaw, comeback sauce and American cheese on Texas toast.  We found this sammie to be decent with enough pastrami so that it was meaty and filling.  The slaw was crunchy and tangy while the pickles added even more crunch.  The toast was a touch dense, but nicely seared on the flattop.  She selected the Red Skin Potato Salad which was passable but the potatoes were a bit underdone.  Furthermore, the mayo was not seasoned enough.

My daughter had probably the less interesting item in the Brisket Grilled Cheese.  Once again, the brisket was tender and fatty, but not as abundant as the other dishes.  Since they melted the cheese with the brisket right on the flattop, it was pretty crispy.  However, there was a disconnect between the toast and the ingredients.  They were literally not connected.  Hence, it didn't eat as cohesive as a grilled cheese should be.  Her side of Garlic & Herb Mashed Potatoes was pretty thick and dense.  Flavor was good, but could've been lighter.  Overall, we found the food at Craft to be decent and well-priced.  Service was super-friendly, but the kitchen was slow.  It could've been due to the full house and also the challenges of staffing by businesses these days.

The Good:

- Inexpensive

- Large portions

- Some good dishes

The Bad:

- Some dishes were clunky

- Food was slow coming out