Recently in Fast food Category

By Eric Terrazas

I have made a recent addition to my list of most visited fast-food eateries.

Earlier this year I decided to sample the Flame Broiler, which had recently opened in my hometown of Whittier.

I ordered the rib plate, which featured two beef short ribs served over steamed rice. The meal also came with fresh green salad and orange slices. The tender ribs, topped by a helping of green onions, satisfied my taste buds. I also thought the salad, served with Oriental Sesame Supreme dressing, enhanced my meal.

After finishing off my ribs and salad, I wrapped up my dinner by eating my orange, which nicely completes the meal.

On a recent Saturday, I elected to spend my lunch at the Flame Broiler's location in Hacienda Heights. I once again went with my favorite selection, the Rib Plate, which costs $7.39. Granted it's a little on the pricey side, but overall it's still not a bad deal since you receive a healthy portion of food.  

Four other plates are available: chicken, beef, chicken and beef and The Works. All of those choices include the steamed rice, salad and the orange.

The chicken plate costs $6.99 while the beef, along with the chicken and beef, both cost $7.09. Those with more hearty appetites might be interested in ordering The Works plate, which carries a $7.39 price tag. The Works consists of chicken and beef that is served over steamed rice and steamed vegetables. It sounds like I might have to try The Works on my next visit.

If you happen to have a tighter budget, the Flame Broiler also offers several bowls, which are all served with steamed rice. At $4.99, the chicken bowl sounds especially good. The beef bowl costs $5.09. If you happen to be craving both beef and chicken, a half and half bowl is also offered for $5.09.

Vegetable lovers might want to try the chicken veggie or beef veggie bowl, which both cost $5.29. Both selections come with steamed rice and steamed vegetables. And if you want a meal without the meat, you can order the veggie bowl for $3.99. The Works bowl, which includes chicken, beef, rice and vegetables, costs $5.39.

The Flame Broiler has two locations in the San Gabriel Valley: 17110 Colima Road in Hacienda Heights, and 21750 Valley Blvd. in Industry. For information, call (626) 964-7041 for the Hacienda Heights location or (909) 598-5777 for the Industry location.

A few weeks ago, I was sent out to work out of one of our other sister papers' office in Torrance and while I was only there for a couple days, I thought I would venture out for lunch and see what the city had to offer.

The first day, on my way into the office I passed by a sushi place that caught my eye and I knew I had to try it for lunch - Sushi Boy.

From the outside it looked like a fast-food type of sushi bar and even though that didn't sound too appealing, I was intrigued.

As I walked in, it was just what I thought - fast food. They did add some cool Japanese art throughout the dining area to get a more authentic Japanese restaurant feel to it.

The menu featured a variety of sushi rolls, sashimi and sushi, as well as combo meals with salad noodles and bowls offered.

Wanting to try a little of everything I ordered the Takumi value meal for $6.80 which came with four pieces of california roll, one salmon and one shrimp sushi serving, three pieces of tekka maki and kappa maki each (tuna and cucumber, respectively) and a spicy tuna hand roll.

Each value meal comes with a serving of miso soup, or get a fountain drink instead for a few cents more.

My order came out pretty quick - ten minutes or less - and with the price, I was a little hesitant.

Everything looked surprisingly fresh for how quick it was served. The soup was okay but there wasn't much, if any, tofu which I'm used to having in my miso soup.

I dug into the Califoria rolls first - they were average, nothing special but pretty good for fast food. I don't know what type of wasabi they served but it didn't taste like wasabi I've had before and it wasn't necessarily good.

The cucumber and tuna tasted fresh but the seaweed was sometimes a bit too chewy. The salmon and shrimp tasted pretty fresh and not fishy. I wish I had better wasabi to serve it with.

The best item by far was the spicy tuna hand roll. Not only did the spicy tuna have the right amount of heat but there was plenty in there and it all fit perfectly with the cucumber and rice.   

When I first spotted Sushi Boy I never seen anything like it and I thought maybe I was trying something that could only be found in Torrance but as I perused the to-go menu I discovered there is a Sushi Boy in the San Gabriel Valley!

Or at least a version of what seems like a franchise. The company has 12 California locations in all including one in West Covina - Marukai West Covina at 1420 Azusa Ave. 

I will definitely have to try Marukai in West Covina one day but I may still call it Sushi Boy because it sounds cooler. For the other locations, visit www.sushiboy.net .

For the variety and price, I was happy with the quality of my lunch at Sushi Boy.

SECOND DAY

For lunch on my second day in Torrance I thought I would entrust my new Blackberry to help me find something I hoped would be different and unique.

Craving noodles, I was torn between a Thai restaurant and a curry one.

Since I don't have too much experience with curry I thought I would give the Curry House a try and it was only across the street from the office.

When I stepped in it was a nice sit-down restaurant. I was seated by a hostess and soon visited by my waitress. She sensed I was new there and gave me more time to look over the menu.

I don't know much about what exactly is normal for a curry restaurant menu but there I knew it didn't seem normal to have jambalaya on the menu.

The jambalaya entree was special to Curry House because it also included curry sauces. 

I really wanted to try something with a good curry sauce but the Jambalaya-style curry meal came with rice and I was still craving pasta or noodles so I went with something else.

The Seafood Tofu Shirataki Fettuccine ($10.05), featured shrimp, white fish, baby clams, squid, onion and bell pepper in a curry cream sauce - perfect! Pasta and curry all in one.

I ordered hot tea and water but there was a wide variety of beverage options with tropical iced tea, iced oolong and green teas, shirley temple, iced cafe au lait and more.

And if you have a reason to celebrate or feel like a little libation they also serve alcoholic beverages such as plum wine and Kirin Ichiban, a Japanese beer, on tap.

The table settings and the atmosphere of the restaurant was nice but it didn't seem too busy at the time but I was having a late lunch so I hope, for their sake, there was more customers there a little earlier.

Despite not having too many customers, my meal took a little while but that only made me believe it was freshly made to order by real cooks in the kitchen.

By the time I did get my plate, I was pretty hungry. It was hot but luckily for me not too hot (I can't stand extreme temperatures in my mouth).

I dug right into the squid and the fettucine, swirling it around in the curry sauce to get a nice taste of it.

The squid wasn't too chewy but it did have a bit of a fishy taste and after having some bites of the perfectly tender and flaky white fish I knew it wasn't that. Maybe it was the baby clams.

It was pretty easy to scoop them out of their little shells but they also had more of a fish taste than clam flavor. The fettucine was nicely cooked and the curry sauce was tasty but I was expecting it to be spicy and it wasn't.

Overall for a seafood dish it was tasty but I would skip the clams next time and maybe ask for some spicier sauce on the side or instead of.

Now, it being my second and last day in Torrance I thought I was having lunch at a restaurant that again, is exclusive to Torrance but once again I was mistaken.

Curry House is a small chain of restaurants with 11 California locations, (one being take-out only), including one near the Puente Hills mall in the City of Industry.

There is such a variety of food on their menu that it's a good thing there is one closer to me so I can try other offerings.

There is everything from salads to curry rice dishes to spaghetti dishes and even kid's meals.

Curry House in Puente Hills is at 17865 Colima Road in the City of Industry. For more information on other locations or menus, visit www.house-foods.com/CurryHouse.

So much for adventure dining in new cities.... At least I don't have to drive to Torrance to try these places again.

At only $3 a pop, I tried a few of the five varieties available of Quizno's Bullets, which are the same offerings for the $4 foot-long Torpedoes.

I'm not big on turkey but I thought I would give the Pesto Turkey Bullet a try first.

The sandwich with thin-sliced turkey, red wine vinaigrette, mozzarella cheese, lettuce and tomatoes, topped with basil pesto and toasted in a ciabatta bread was all snuggled in its own paper sleeve for on-the-go munching.

Perfect for when I eat at my desk while checking emails, messages, etc....

The warm and toasty 8 inches of sandwich was just enough to save room for chips and a drink or if you're feeling really ravenous, another sandwich.

Even though this is the first one I tried, I must say it is my favorite and all because of the pesto.

The fresh ingredients were great but the pesto really brought it all together. I usually like to add some peperoncinis or some of their Batch 81 sauce, which has a nice kick to it, to my sandwiches but the pesto sauce was so flavorful it didn't need anything else and I didn't want to ruin it.

The second variety I tried was the Italian with pepperoni, spicy capicola, ham, mozzarella cheese and red wine vinaigrette, and chopped lettuce and tomatoes.

I liked the spicy capicola and ham, but the vinaigrette didn't impress as much as the pesto did so this seemed like a basic Italian sub.

The next sandwich I tried was the Beef, Bacon and Cheddar with thin sliced roast beef, crispy pieces of bacon, mayonnaise and cheddar.

I liked that there wasn't much mayo in this sandwich because I hate when I have to wipe off excess mayo that's oozing out the side of a sandwich or burger. If anything I would prefer no mayo.

The roast beef and cheddar was nice but it was the crispy bacon, not greasy either, that made this one my next favorite.

There is still a Turkey Club and Big Kahuna Tuna that I will try next, but so far these little bullet-sized sandwiches are worth their $3 price tag.

For a few bucks more you can make it a combo with chips and a drink. 

NEXT TIME: SUBWAY'S $5 FOOTLONGS

I gave Kentucky Fried Chicken a shot first in my exploration of the $5 lunch wars.

First off I was mistaken, I thought the $5 Fill-Up Box came with two pieces of its grilled chicken, a side and biscuit and regular drink, but there are actually quite a few options.

Instead of just two pieces of chicken, you can also choose from five pieces of wings, chicken strips, or a twister wrap.

I went with the five pieces of their version of hot wings, you know the ones without the sauce. The wings themselves were good, not great, I still prefer sauce-drenched hot wings, but they were pretty filling.

I went with a side of potato wedges and barbecue sauce to dip into, but I had maybe a handful and I was full.

Maybe it was the heat but I couldn't eat much, so I would say I definitely got a good deal for my $5.

My growing teenage sister, who has a bigger appetite than me, finished her twister wrap box and said she was happily full, well at least for another hour.

I live right across from a KFC so if I was really hungry and didn't want to drive anywhere I would definitely scrounge up $5 to get myself a meal there, but I can't say I would go out of my way to eat there.

NEXT UP: QUIZNO'S BULLETS.

With the economic recession not looking to drastically improve any time soon, many people are keeping their wallets tight and looking to get more bang for their buck.

Many restaurants and fast-food chains are taking note and lowering their prices or offering more value-menu-style items to their customers.

Just like the grilled chicken wars, there is now the $5 lunch war. This war has three competitors though with Subway, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Quizno's competing for lunch time supremacy.

Subway took the first blow with its $5 footlongs (no, please don't sing the song).

Eight of their sandwich varieties in foot-long size for a simple low price - tuna, BLT, Meatball Marinara, Oven Roasted Chicken Breast, Spicy Italian, Black Forest Ham, Cold Cut Combo and Veggie Delite.

Then Quizno's hit back with Torpedoes at $4. The foot-long sandwiches come in five varieties - Italian, Big Kahuna Tuna, Pesto Turkey, Turkey Club and Beef, Bacon and Cheddar.

Most recently, KFC has introduced its $5 Fill-Up Box working to outdo the sandwich mavens by offering a complete meal. The box comes with two pieces of its new grilled chicken, one side and biscuit and a drink.

And now Quizno's has added a junior version of their Torpedoe sandwiches with Bullets - at just eight inches of toasty sandwich.

To be honest I haven't had a Subway sandwich in over a year. Not since I found Bionicos in Baldwin Park with their freshly made, toasted sandwiches, complete with all the fixins at less than $5 have I craved anything at Subway.

And as soon as I tried for Quizno's for the first time about five years ago, I prefer it over Subway, when I could afford it.

So now with its new value sandwiches I can definitely forego the brown bag lunch at least once a week and eat out.

Over this week going into next week, I will give these $5 lunches a try. I will even give Subway another try.

TELL ME WHICH LUNCH VALUES YOU "SPLURGE" ON.

After my sliders and mini sirloin burgers post yesterday, my boyfriend surprised me with an order of the mini buffalo ranch chicken sandwiches from Jack in the Box when I got home. And I didn't have to mention anything to him - ain't love grand?

He assumed I hadn't heard about the sandwiches, knew my penchant for anything with buffalo sauce and decided he would grab some for me when he picked up his drive-thru dinner before the Lakers game.

It was a great surprise from him but unfortunately a not so good surprise from the sandwiches. I love the buffalo sauce but there wasn't enough for me. The chicken patties were juicy, but they weren't as filling as the mini sirloin burgers.

Also I would have preferred them with the ranch on the side instead of inside. Since there is really not many snack size buffalo sandwiches to go out there, I may try them again and ask for the ranch on the side and some more buffalo sauce to dip them in.

Whether it's because of the current economic downturn or more people favoring smaller meals to super-sized ones, many fast-food chains are adding smaller, quick and less-pricier items to their menus.

MINI MANIA

To add to their mini-sirloin burger craze, Jack in the Box has now added mini buffalo ranch chicken sandwiches - mini Homestyle chicken fillets topped with Frank's® RedHot® sauce, ranch sauce and shredded lettuce on toasted mini buns.

I love buffalo sauce so these are on my list to try. I already love the mini-sirloin burgers, with a nice juicy thick mini sirloin patty, slice of cheese, grilled onions all sandwiched between two mini sweet buns.

These are definitely not super-sized, but these three fill me up just fine. These mini's start at $3.89 plus tax, for three burgers or sandwiches alone.

SLIDER SENSATIONS

Moving on from their not-so-difficult fight with KFC and their new grilled chicken, El Pollo Loco is adding more items to their tasty menu such as their new chicken sliders, chicken carnitas tacos, and bringing back barbecue chicken for a limited time.

I recently took a chance on their sliders which come in three ways - bbq, original and spicy all on a mini telera roll - and start at 99 cents each, plus tax.

The original and spicy come with lettuce and either a chipotle spicy sauce or a cool mayonaisse, and a breaded, crunchy, fried chicken patty.

The barbecue is shredded pieces of their flame-grilled chicken smothered in a slightly tangy barbecue sauce with coleslaw.

I only tried the spicy and the bbq and they were pretty tasty for how small they were, but they're not very fillin. Even after three I was still hungry. They should also still be a little careful when shredding the pieces of chicken for the barbecue - I bit into a small piece of bone in my slider.

Maybe they'll try mini shakes and wings next.

Now that we've touched a little on bringing lunch from home in 'Brown bagging it', let's talk about value menus.

With many people tightening their wallets, restaurants and fast food joints seem to be trying anything to get you to part with your money in increments of $1, $5 and $10 at some places, thinking that we'll believe it's a great deal if it's on the value menu or the special of the day.

I like the new Sizzler commercial about getting great values that include chicken, steak and fish dinners, and the salad bar, all starting at $9.99. That's the catch right there - starting at. I like Sizzler on occasion, if I'm in the mood to create my own monstorous salad my way, but I wouldn't say it's always a great value for what they have. Sometimes the meat or chicken can be a little plain and dry, and adding a drink or any sides brings your total lunch to about $15 or more.

Not necessarily value.

And I don't know what it is, but I got over Subway sandwiches about a year ago. Maybe it's the fact that I know I can get a better tasting, fresh sandwich at a small family-owned little shop for less than $5 - AND I get a drink and chips.

So when they try to tempt me with their $5 foot long specials, I am not enticed at all.

It seems that almost every fast-food place has a value menu now, even Pick Up Stix - go figure.

Here are my top 5 favorite value menus:

1. Wendy's - Can you say baked potato, chili cup, original frosty, jr. bacon cheeseburger - all for about $1 each?? Now that is value.   

2. Taco Bell - I can definitely fill up for $5 here with choices from soft and crunchy tacos, burritos, nachos and more. 

3. Jack In the Box - Make your own combo meal with choices of two regular tacos for $1, small fries, egg rolls, a good old classic Jumbo Jack and more.

4. Burger King - I must admit I'm not always tempted by new items the King has, but I like that their value menu has plenty of classic items like the Whopper and Whopper Jr., as well as new like the Spicy Chick'N Crisp sandwich, AND even breakfast items - score. 

5. Carl's Jr. - I love Carl's Six-Dollar burgers, as I have mentioned before, and the taco salad is pretty good too. But as far as a value menu, the only thing I enjoy there is the spicy chicken sandwich. It's delicious but a little plain - there are a few Carl's locations that will add tomato and/or lettuce for free, but others will charge an extra fee - ridiculous.

TELL ME WHAT YOUR TOP 5 ARE BELOW.

As much as I am trying to save money by eating out less, I can't help but want to satisfy a craving for a Carl's Jr. Six-Dollar Guacamole burger every once in a while. Oh, so good.

I don't have much else when I go to Carl's Jr. I once tried a Chicken Club sandwich - it was okay, if it wasn't for the coupon I had for it, I wouldn't have tried it.

But now I've found another option on their menu - the limited-time only crisp burritos. Essentially these "burritos" are chimichangas.

Carl's website description is "A crispy flour tortilla filled with seasoned ground beef, cheese and jalapenos - served with Carl's Jr. Taco Sauce," but basically they are burritos with seasoned ground beef - fried - which makes them chimichangas (I don't recall much cheese or any jalapenos).

But not all places can properly fry these little burritos to make the tortilla crispy on the outside and still soft and doughy on the inside and not burn it - Carl's somehow managed to do that though.

That was really what I liked about them. They were crispy, soft inside and the seasoned beef was good enough. Plus the side of "freshly-made" guacamole (available for an additional charge of 75 cents) is good compared to plenty of other fast food places that offer guacamole. I can't really say if it was freshly-made but it was tasty and a little chunky so it resembled fresh pretty well. 

The burritos come in 3 or 5 pieces, for $2.89 and $4.59 respectively. They're definitely a snack though, which is what they were intended for - to prevent men from being 'crabby' in between meals (I don't get it).

If Carl's decide not to make these "burritos" a staple on their item, they need to come up with more value menu items - because my wallet and health sure can't afford to be scarfing down Six-Dollar burgers all the time.

By Stacey Wang, Correspondent

I attempted a vegetarian diet once. 

I, equipped with an arsenal of fork and asparagus, battled against the meat-packed artillery of Chinese cuisine. 

The struggle lasted five months before I realized that meat and I had a special bond. I loved it too much to part ways. And yes, the pork steamed buns won.

Ever since, I have sought vegetarian dishes, looking for foods that could pry me from my meat dependence. 

That's when I came across Orean's Health Express, a vegetarian fast-food and drive-through, on 817 N. Lake Ave. in Pasadena.

Orean's is quaint, and almost buried by surrounding restaurants like Kentucky Fried Chicken, McDonald's, Burger King and Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles.

With only a few outside seating areas, it is a casual eatery where you can gather with a few friends.

The eatery prides itself on being a healthy fast-food establishment. Its menu has been approved by the American Heart Association with an extensive list of options.

Although some items such as the teriyaki chicken burrito have "meat" in the name, the entire menu is meat-free. 

My first hesitant visit resulted in staring at the menu for 15 minutes with occasional glances at the burger banner across the street at McDonald's.

I resisted my urge to run across and buy a Filet-O-Fish. Instead, I ordered an Orean Salad Burger, the menu's "ultimate veggie burger," and a cappuccino Super Shake.

The Salad Burger, at $4.29 plus tax, had a veggie-friendly patty, organic sprouts, tomatoes onions and a special sauce on a whole wheat bun. The slightly sweet sauce melded well with the patty, which was a mix of veggies, sunflower seeds and black beans.

Finishing my burger, I was a little proud that I picked such a tasty one. It hit all of the points a burger should and has sparked my quest to find veggie burgers up to par.

My shake, priced at $2.85 plus tax, was a thick and creamy cappuccino soymilk shake. It was as filling and scrumptious as a milk shake, but left me feeling guilt-free about finishing it.

Orean's may not seem like the ideal lunch for the average meat-loving, greasy burger-eater. But it does have satisfying menu items.

To complete a meal, Air Fries can be added for $2.79 plus tax or a Peach Cranberry Honey Granola Cobbler for the same price.

Every item on the menu is priced under $6, and portions keep the average person content for under $10.

However, not every item appeals to everyone. Depending on the individual, these veggie alternatives can be a gratifying hit or a taste bud-thrashing miss.

On a recent trip to a nearby Jack in the Box here in Irwindale, I was tempted by a new offering.

Originally there to order up a teriyaki bowl that I like (and had a coupon for), I saw a sign that read "Taco Nachos."

Being a fan of cheese, especially nacho cheese, I decided to give in to the temptation and give them a try.

According to Jack's website, "Taco Nachos feature the chain's famous crunchy tacos topped with cheddar cheese sauce, melted pepper jack cheese and jalapeno slices served with a side of fire-roasted salsa."

They are actually cut-up pieces of their tacos and all of this sits on a bed of shredded lettuce.

For $1.99 plus tax, these taco nachos were actually decent, the cheese wasn't the spicy nacho cheese I was expecting and love, but there was enough to cover most of the pieced tacos and topped with enough jalapenos.

I didn't touch the fire roasted salsa, because personally I prefer my nachos with just jalapenos.

Jack's tacos are always a favorite, so smothering pieces of them with cheese is brilliant.

I really hope they stick around for a while and they don't raise the price - I could get nachos with spicy nacho cheese for $1. I'm sure some of you know from where.