Buster's: Hometown Cravings

For the past month, I've been craving to go to this local coffee shop in my hometown, South Pasadena, called Buster's. While it's selection of sandwiches, salads, and baked goods may not be enough to tempt the out-of-town visitor who only stop by once, the entire environment and atmosphere is what I always long to go back to (not to mention they have a nice selection of frozen yogurts and Fosselman's ice cream perfect for the summer sun).

Speaking of its environment, I love that as soon as I walk into the door, I am opening my eyes to walls, floors, and ceilings of bright colors in reds, yellows, greens, and blues. It's also located at a prime location on Mission street, next to the metro station, with interesting stores and boutiques surrounding it. But really, if anything, making a trip to Buster's is essentially taking part of a tour of the city of South Pasadena. Having been around for over two decades, it is most definitely one of the most popular places that locals flock to.

Ever since I was young, I've been frequenting this place, and I remember how every time I came with my friends after school ended, going up the stairs to their second floor seating was an absolute must. And if you're a first time customer, you'll be amazed at what you see when you arrive on the second floor. It's much more spacious than the first floor, with a brick wall framing multiple windows that look out to the street of shops and people. I mean, this is really the type of aura a coffee shop should be giving, right?

Anyway, there's my blurb about Buster's. Be sure to check it out!


Buster's Coffee
1006 Mission St
South Pasadena, CA 91030
(626) 441-0744

A Trip Down to Irvine to Old Vine Cafe

On a random weekend, I went with my sister and her friends to Irvine for a shopping spree. While we were there, we also had lunch at the Old Vine Cafe. It was pretty packed when we got there, and had to wait about half an hour to get seated. But upon entering, I was almost immediately captivated by the atmosphere. As pictured above, their menus are stapled onto canvas paintings. How interesting! In fact, looking around, I noticed that each canvas menu had a different painting.

I took a little longer than usual deciding what to order, because there were just so many options. I wasn't sure if I wanted to go the delectably sweet route, or something more heavy and savory. But finally, I reached a decision and ordered the Southern Brunch-- it offered both savory and sweet on the same plate!

Southern Brunch at the Old Vine Cafe.

The dish I ordered consisted of two eggs, a fried green tomato (bottom right), house made scrapple (top right), and a biscuit with apple butter. Yum! When the plate first arrived, I had forgotten what I had ordered, and I thought that the portion pictured on the top left in the image above was actually mashed potatoes... But no, it was just a very satisfying biscuit. Although I thought that the dish wasn't going to be very filling by the looks of it, I was already stuffed by the time I ate through half of it. The scrapple was very interesting to me, as I've never had it before, but I liked it's flavorful mushy yet crunchy consistency. The fried green tomato also caught my attention. Although it tasted fresh and juicy on the inside, it was fried and crunchy on the outside.

I also tried some of my sister's dish, which was the Omelet España, recommended by our server.

Omelet España at the Old Vine Cafe.

The omelet consisted of Prosciutto, artichoke, bell peppers, Shiitake mushrooms, and cheese. Similar to their fried tomato, I loved that they came up with original combinations of ingredients for their dishes. The outcome was delicious too.

I'm surprised I haven't discovered this gem of a restaurant throughout my two years in school in Irvine, but I'm glad that I finally did. I can't wait to take my friends here and try out their other options from their menu. Some things I will keep in mind however, is to not come when I'm completely starving (because it might take a long time to get seated), and to always bring extra cash because it's located within The Camp-- a plaza that also houses many other cool boutique stores.

Old Vine Cafe

2937 Bristol St, Ste A102
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
(714) 545-1411

Lunch Eats at Eat Chow

After figuring out housing woes for the next school term, I organized a lunch time get-together with two of my future roommates Lindsey and Esme. This was the first time I got to meet Esme, and knowing that she's actually an international student from China, I thought that it would be nice to eat lunch at an American-style restaurant. Upon Yelp-ing a bit (a new favorite past-time of mine), I saw great reviews for Eat Chow in Costa Mesa and knew that we had to come here for lunch.

The restaurant design is also noteworthy. The interior looks super chic, with a few tables complemented by fancy (extremely heavy) chairs and a bar table with stools against the windows. Moreover, Eat Chow is connected to the clothing store, The Closet, next door. Rather than plastered walls, there is a window as well as a doorway leading into the restaurant. I thought that that was very unique. In addition, I noticed on the door of Eat Chow's that dining in there gave a discount for shopping at The Closet. Very neat.

Anyway, to start off the meal, I ordered their popular Truffle Parmesan fries. The moment I bit into one of the fries, I realized what all the hype was about. Fried in truffle oil, these fries tasted perfectly seasoned, and simply irresistible. Each fry itself was also finely cut into super thin sticks, which kept me from feeling guilty eating them.

Truffle Parmesan Fries from Eat Chow

For my main entree, I ordered the French Dip sandwich. I did not expect to be wow'd or anything, as it's a pretty basic dish, but actually... Eat Chow's French Dip is definitely something to boast about. The roast beef was very juicy and tender, and the sauce was freshly hot. The portion size was also very appropriate and nothing that made the dish feel too heavy. At first, I had my reservations about ordering it because I knew that it would not come with a necessary serving of vegetables, but it worked out because my sandwich was actually accompanied with a side of greens.

French Dip Sandwich from Eat Chow.

Lindsey ordered the Teri Burger, while Esme ordered the Salmon sandwich. While I did not try either of their dishes, they both nodded in agreement when I asked whether they liked what they ordered. Furthermore, by the end of our meal, all three of our plates were completely cleared! Esme also added that the Salmon sandwich she ordered was The Best Sandwich that she's ever ate (note the caps). After her dish arrived and her raving reviews of it, I half-regretted not ordering it because it was my second choice! But whatever, I had an amazing sandwich as well :)

Teri Burger from Eat Chow

Salmon Sandwich from Eat Chow

Overall, this lunch was solid. I love how their dishes seem like traditional American dishes with a little edge. I don't know what this place would be like during lunch and dinner times on weekends, since the restaurant is quite small and cozy, but when we went at around 2pm on a weekday, there weren't a lot of people and therefore service was pretty attentive. Take my word, I will come back and order that salmon sandwich! Now who wants to join me?


Eat Chow
1802 Newport Blvd
Costa Mesa, CA 92627
(949) 650-2469