Wow! How long were you there? As for the choice of football teams to support in OC, well, there's no accounting for taste. Black and Gold are the only two colors that should ever be allowed within a five state radius. :) Go Steelers!!
PGHDAVE'S 2008 DINING REPORT
Mon, 08/11/2008 - 18:27
#1
Mon, 08/11/2008 - 18:52
#2
We stretched our stay out to 11 nights this year. Last year we had to cut short so this year we brought the average back! ;-)
I realized how deeply I was on vacation when I got home and realized that I had missed the Stihlers game. There I was just a block or two from Buxy's and I was oblivious. Oh well, it was only exhibition!
Go Stihlers! Go Irish!
Tue, 08/12/2008 - 11:08
#3
Dave:
Thanks for taking to time to share you dining report.
BJ's and the seafood skins now you are talking!
I have eaten at Coins for years for lunch and dinner decent food the crabcakes were always good and as you say the bar crowd is a little varied.
Bayside Skillet my favorite place for breakfast.
Crabcake Factory the crabcake was good but the place was small and for me not worth driving out of my way difference over Coins or say the Captain's Galley.
Sounds like you had some good meals thanks again for sharing your thoughts always helpful and makes me hungry.
Enjoy the rest of your Summer.
Tue, 08/12/2008 - 11:26
#4
I am glad that you enjoyed Coins. It was always one of my favorite places. The last few visits the food has not been the same as the past. Last year the prime rib was of lower quality beef with excess fat and gristle. The crab cakes seemed to have more filler and more shell fragments. I understand that shell fragments are always possible.
I do like that they have such great happy hour and early bird deals. The happy hour food specials are also available in the dining area. I am glad to hear that it was good for you. Maybe we had bad luck a few times. Perhaps we may hit it for happy hour appetizers.
Crabcake factory has great breakfasts. A new tradition for us is to have the crab Benedict on the way home.
You mentioned so many places I have on my to do list. We are heading down in 3 days. I would love to go for 11 days but with work 8 is as far as I can do. We have our usual places plus a few new mixed in every year.
brianpa
Thu, 08/14/2008 - 22:50
#5
(Best pronounced ANT-onies) is a little sub place around 18th street; it's a little greasy spoon sort of place, but when I'm willing to ignore nutrition and calories, their cheesesteak subs and fried onion rings are wonderful. Cheap eats, makes me smile and remember going there 30 years or so ago.
Fri, 08/15/2008 - 15:20
#6
pghDave;25901 wrote:
Crabcake Factory made the list this year. And after the dust has settled I will rate their crabcakes a little above Coins, but really only a little. Both are so good that drawing a distinction between them seems silly. Having tried the Factory I’ll probably stay with Coins in the future as it’s easier to get to, easier to park and I found the Factory’s choice in Pro Football teams a bit annoying! ;-)
I hear that Paul Revere is the big Steeler fan hang out in OC........:eek::D:D:D:p
Fri, 08/15/2008 - 18:32
#7
That's funny, I heard Paul Revere's is where the Raven's scouts hang out to in hopes of recruiting a offensive line that can block. And besides, four years ago the Ravens that were in the Raven Roost parade ate dinner at Paul Revere's..........something to think about.
Ha Ha
Fri, 08/15/2008 - 20:35
#8
This all brings to mind the episode of Coach from many years ago where the team traveled to Buffalo for a big game. The night before the game Luther took the team out and they got all the wings they could eat for FREE from the Buffalo tavernkeeper. No need to tell you where Coach's team spent all of the next day! ;-)
Judging by the Stihler performance last night that same tavernkeeper must have had a franchise in Toronto serving the Stihlers. But, hey, it's all preseason. And, anyway, Go Irish!
And back to the crabcake factory ... what's with the no cell phones during the games? How's a guy supposed to reach his bookie????
Sat, 08/16/2008 - 18:41
#9
Britt4duke;25937 wrote:
That's funny, I heard Paul Revere's is where the Raven's scouts hang out to in hopes of recruiting a offensive line that can block. And besides, four years ago the Ravens that were in the Raven Roost parade ate dinner at Paul Revere's..........something to think about.Ha Ha
They just entered Paul Revere to harrass the Steeler fans inside....:D
And what better place for our scouts to find large bodies to block for our QB? An all you can eat restaurant is as good as any!!!!!:p
Thank god its football season!!!!!!
PGHDave, thats pretty funny about the cell phone rule. I never heard of that before.:)
OK, we've just returned from our 2008 visit and had great weather and a great time. We left a good bit of money behind so I hope the OC economy is a little better for our visit! ;-)
As always, here's pghDave's view of dining in OC. And yes, it's a little long! And, I'm no restaurant critic nor even a fine diner, I just know what I like.
BJ’s, as their ad says, “still the same†which is a good thing. Had two dinners (first and last nights) and a lunch too. Service as BJ’s is always good and the servers are very friendly. Food is good too and the seafood skins remain a favorite. If OC had only two restaurants I’d want BJ’s to be one of them.
Harborside continues to be a favorite. If OC had only two restaurants I’d want the Harborside to be one of them. We used to go there for the atmosphere (oh yeah, and the Orange Crushes) and we started to realize that we were also having some of our better dinners there. This year I had a Cajun Scallops dish that was excellent. They still make one of my favorite crab dips.
Smitty McGees is our bar food stop each year. We like the atmosphere and their crab dip is pretty close to our favorite. Crowded, noisy and nothing especially “beachy†about the place but we go back every year. Did I mention Guinness pints?
Coins still serves up a great crabcake. Someone has mention that Coins has gone downhill a bit since their sale but I didn’t see it in their crabcakes. I will admit that the Coins bar crowd can sometimes get a little odd but we still like this place a lot. Didn’t get back for a second night so no Seafood Alfredo this year.
Crabcake Factory made the list this year. And after the dust has settled I will rate their crabcakes a little above Coins, but really only a little. Both are so good that drawing a distinction between them seems silly. Having tried the Factory I’ll probably stay with Coins in the future as it’s easier to get to, easier to park and I found the Factory’s choice in Pro Football teams a bit annoying! ;-)
Sunset Grille has such great outside seating that they could serve anything and we’d go back. But they also happen to serve some really good food so what more can you want. We were there during White Marlin Open week and I think the staff was getting run ragged as the service was a little off for what I expect at the Sunset but still quite acceptable. Food was excellent.
Harpoon Hannah’s is another traditional spot and I think the most “touristy†of all our spots. Still good food and nice atmosphere. Probably our longest wait for a table (about an hour) but a good Tiki bar passed the time. Service can be spotty at HH’s and this year it wasn’t great. If Fenwick could only have two restaurants …
Duffy’s was a new stop this year and we were happy with our Irish at the beach boxy’s. Good Guinness pints and a nice crowd. Tequila Mockingbird is in the same strip mall and they had a ton of people waiting for tables and Duffy’s was walk in and get served. If you find yourself waiting at the Mockingbird and you have some Irish adventure in you give Duffy’s a shot. Nice looking bar and some good TV’s. I would have thought our ND Gear would have got us a free pint but no such luck. Go Irish!
Smokers BBQ isn’t as exciting for me as it used to be. I think their stuff is still good but given the proliferation of good pulled pork sandwiches at many places they’ve lost some of their draw for me. Then again, the cobbler desserts could keep us coming back. I think this is the ONLY place in OC where we order dessert.
DoughRollers on the Board is another traditional spot just for the heck of it. Had Pizza this year which was fine. I notice the boardwalk location now accepts credit cards and I think it used to be cash only. That’s an improvement.
Bayside Skillet deserves yet again praise for a breakfast spot. There motto could also be “still the same†and that’d also be good. Of note, I think the Bayside’s serves has improved dramatically in recent years to the place where it matches the omelets and crepes.
Tommy’s at 29th Street makes a dandy cheesesteak and served us a few lunches! They also put together a nice soft-serve sundae. Think of it as a one-stop nutrition break from the beach! ;-)
Fractured Prunes are still a great way to start the day and we started a couple days with their custom donuts. Not sure if the 28th street store may have changed hands but I found the atmosphere (if a donut shop can have atmosphere) off a bit and the help mostly under-supervised kids. But hey they’re donuts, how can you go wrong!?!