Nibbles of Tidbits, a Food Blog

Where’s your favorite place to get Chili Cheese Fries?  We’ve been trying a few around town and would love to know whose Chili Cheese Fries you like BEST.  Some are extra good and some are just okay.  We describe a few, but want you to be the judge too.  Each photograph will have a brief description and related restaurant link directly below it.  And we’ll be adding more Chili Cheese Fries photos and observations, so keep checking back.

The Hat’s Chili Cheese Fries with Pickles & Tomatoes – You get a lot of them.  It’s heavy.

Tommy Pastrami’s Chili Cheese Fries – It’s got nice Steak Fries, but the Chili is a bit Tomato-Paste tasting.  It has big chunks of Beef in it, which is ok, but generally not preferred in a CCF.

Carl’s Junior’s Chili Cheese Fries – They’re not bad.

Fatburger’s Chili Cheese Fries – For some reason I expected more, but they were good.  Fatburger offers a choice of Skinny Fries or Fat Fries.  Pictured here are the Skinny Fries.

SONIC Drive-In’s Chili Cheese Fries – I haven’t tried these yet, but others like them.

Orange County Fair’s Chili Cheese Fries – You can only get them during the OC Fair.

Wienerschnitzel’s Chili Cheese Fries – Unfortunately they’re not one of my top picks.  I’d have to go with Carl’s Jr.’s Chili Cheese Fries before these (above).

Pink’s Chili Cheese Fries – Very good.  Second favorite to Original Tommy’s Chili Cheese Fries.

Del Taco’s Chili Cheese Fries – I’d pick them over Carl’s Jr. ones, since the Fries are better.

EZ Take Out Burger’s Chili Cheese Fries – I liked them, especially the French Fries.  Their Hamburgers are similar to In-N-Out’s Burgers, but dare I say I like EZ Take Out’s Fries better.  And Chili Cheese Fries don’t appear to be an option at In-N-Out Burger.

Johnny Rocket’s Chili Cheese Fries – They’re acceptable.  Nothing to rave about, nor rag on.  On a separate note, their Hamburgers are very good.

Original Tommy’s Chili Cheese Fries – They still stand as my favorite over all those pictured.

Wendy’s Chili Cheese Fries — It’s made with Chili that should be served in a bowl with a side of Buttered Crackers, but instead it’s dumped over French Fries and topped with Cheese.  I don’t think so.  They’re not recommended.

Jack in the Box Loaded Chili Cheese Wedges — Good with the Onions picked out.

Portillo’s Chili Cheese Fries — Portillo’s Chili has a really good flavor that goes well with their crinkled-cut French Fries and a little melted Cheese.  We’d have them again.

Santa Fe Cafe Chili Cheese Fries — They’re best had on their outdoor patio with a Pitcher of Beer.

MORE TO COME.

I usually don’t advertise advertisements, especially for fast food, but the new Jack in the Box commercial makes me laugh.  It’s the one with the two grown men in a twins baby stroller crying — It’s TOO funny!  Since it was on TiVo we played it several times.  Anyway, now I’m brain washed to try their new product – HA.  Good one J in the B. 

It’s usually not my preferred fast food joint — I might get a Taco from there every five years or so.  The commercial is for their Pita Sandwiches with Chipotle Sauce (aka Pita Snacks).  I tried their Fish Pita Sandwich.  Chipotle anything gets me every time. 

Overall, the Sauce flavor was good, but the Sandwich wasn’t.  It’s basically a Fish Stick hosted in a Pita that’s too chewy and thick for its contents, but I did get it out of my system (no mas) and I can still laugh at the commercial.

While requesting the Pita Sandwich, I saw something unique on the menu, Fried Cheesy Macaroni Bites, which reminded me of something at the Fair.  I had to try them too.  And I have to admit that I kind of liked them.  I couldn’t eat more than 3, since they’re greasy, but good.  And they do have Macaroni and Cheese inside.  I was glad I tried them, since they made up for the other.

Sandwich Proposals:  Serve on Flat Bread, use two pieces of Fish or a larger portion, add more fresh Lettuce and Chipotle Sauce.  Good luck.

Related Links:

http://www.yumsugar.com/1824741

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/544035

http://www.griffineatsoc.com/2008/07/jack-in-box-is-so-cheesy.html

http://www.foodfacts.info/blog/2008/07/jack-cheesy-macaroni-bites.html

It’s Taco Bell’s Volcano Taco with Lava Sauce — The red Taco shell is kind of fun and different, but tastes exactly like their other hard Taco shell.  The Lava Sauce is pretty spicy and its flavor isn’t bad.  This particular Taco was a bit wimpy and the shell could have been more crisp, but it’s less than a buck.

Related Links:

http://fastfood.freedomblogging.com/2008/09/02/taco-bell-expands-its-cheap-eats-menu/

http://twobites.wordpress.com/2008/09/03/taco-bells-volcano-taco/

http://ocmexfood.blogspot.com/2008/08/taco-bell-melts-and-more.html

It’s a new cool convenience to fresh Herbs if you don’t have them on hand.  They’re pretty good and especially great for Soups and Stews.  I’ve seen them in Basil too at Trader Joe’s, but the manufacturer sells a larger variety.  Both links are below.

Related Links:

http://www.dorot.co.il/eng/

http://www.traderjoes.com/

Claim Jumper’s Blackberry Pie from the freezer section of the grocery store.  It was good, not great, but good.  I added a fair amount of Cinnamon and Sugar to the top crust, as I do with most Pies. 

The instructions note to line your cookie sheet with foil before placing the Pie in the oven.  Be sure to do that, since mine made a bit of a mess.  I’m not sure if that happens each time, but it’s best for cleanup if it does.  I was glad I wasn’t serving it to company, since it didn’t look as pretty as those that haven’t bubbled over.  

I did like the ease of preparation and the smell of it baking in the oven, so I’m not going to completely rule it out as a future dessert of the week.

Contact the Claim Jumper directly here.

Since several Cupcake Bakeries have popped up around town, I decided to conduct a taste comparison of the 3 closest to me — Dolcissiomo, Suzie Cakes and Mrs. Beasley.  I tried a small variety from each. 

(1)  Dolcissiomo Cupcakes were my overall favorite.  I’ve tried almost all the Cupcakes there.  They offer a lot of great flavors and look aesthetically best. http://www.dolcissimobakeshop.com/

Lemon Blueberry

Orange Dreamsicle & Coconut Snowball

Tiramisu & Lemonade

(2)  Suzie Cakes Cupcakes were very moist and appeared to have a filling, at least the two I tried did.  You can see it in the pictures.  http://www.susiecakesla.com/

Lemon and Vanilla

(3)  Mrs. Beasley’s Cupcakes have the most frosting by far, so if you’re into that, they’re definitely the Cupcakes for you. http://www.mrsbeasleys.com/Cupcakes.cfm

Orange and Mini Blueberry

The Grand Prize flavor winner was Dolcissiomo’s Orange Dreamsicle.  It may be the best Orange flavored Cake I’ve ever had.  I’m trying to confirm that opinion, but it’s only sold on Tuesdays.  I’ll report about more locations as I try them.

(POST UPDATE 08/20/08: It appears that Dolcissimo Cupcakes just moved or closed. This post will be further updated when that information is known)

Here’s a Cupcake Challenge on Food Frenzy:

http://foodfrenzy.freedomblogging.com/2008/05/28/oc-cupcake-challenge-the-results/#more-1140

Cupcake Blogs:

http://cupcakestakethecake.blogspot.com/2008/03/five-sweets-bakery-costa-mesa.html

http://ooolala-cupcakes.blogspot.com/

My Cupcake Pics – The Story Told Later:

http://www.ineedtext.com/FoodBlog/?p=12

It’s really hard to tell the difference between this one, Thai Joe’s Lemongrass Chicken Stix and Thai Joe’s Coconut Curry Chicken Stix.  I like to call them Cigar Springrolls.  Both are equally good and taste similar.  It’s fun to do a taste comparison with friends — I did, and guesses were right and wrong regarding both.

Unlike the picture on the box, they don’t come with Sauce, so I’ve posted the recipe for my favorite Springroll Dipping Sauce.  It’s enough for two boxes of these Springrolls.  Double the recipe if making more.  Each box holds 10 Chicken Stix.

I cook them at 450° for 20 minutes, which is longer than the posted time.  I find that (almost) all frozen food needs to be cooked longer than its recommended time.  Do you find the same?  I wonder if it’s done purposefully to make one think they’ll be eating faster than they actually will.

Soy Sesame Dipping Sauce Recipe: 

3 Tablespoons of Soy Sauce

1/8 Cup of Rice Vinegar

1 Teaspoon of Sesame Oil

1 Teaspoon of Sugar

Mix all together until Sugar is dissolved.  Serve with any crunchy Asian dish.  It’s quick, easy and tasty.

Related Pictures and Links:

Trader Joes – http://www.traderjoes.com/

Extra – http://www.answers.com/topic/tv-dinner

It’s just okay.  Since I LOVE California Pizza Kitchen’s Salads and Pizzas in their Restaurants, and this was on sale, I gave it a try.  I added Capers before baking, because I often feel the need to add something to jazz up frozen Pizzas. 

The package picture doesn’t capture it well, but the Pizza has a fair amount of Pesto Sauce on it — As some Margherita Pizza’s do.

Related Links:

http://www.cpk.com/

Since I love everything Orange Flavored, I had to try it.  Here’s the naked Bundt Cake before a quick messy coat of Whipped Cream.  It was super moist, but I must admit that I added a 1/2 box of vanilla pudding mix to the mix.  I had an opened box and wanted to use it.  I’m not sure if it made a big difference or not, but the Cake was good.

BTW, I previously tried the Pineapple Supreme Cake Mix and found it to be too sweet.  The Pineapple flavor was a bit imitation tasting.  I hope they rework that recipe.

Duncan Hines – http://www.duncanhines.com/