Winston Pies

My brother brought two 5-inch mini pies (one serves 2) last week.  According to him, he has had various flavors, and the Carolina Classic Cherry is the best. We had it for dessert, and indeed it was yummy. The cherries were big and plump with just a bit of tartness. The pie was not sweet, and the crust was delicious. 

I just think the pie is overpriced. The regular 11-inch pie cost $48.00, and the 5-inch that serves two cost $10.00. Though the pie was delectable, it was not outstanding. I believe in quality, but I have to say that if my friend Sandi tries to replicate this cherry pie, the taste will come very close to Winston, if not better! 

Winston Pies have two locations; one in Brentwood and the other in West Hollywood.

Randy's Donuts

 I've had them before but couldn't remember if I truly liked them. They opened a Randy's Donuts in Torrance, and I've seen people lined up, so I was in no hurry to go. Last week on my way home from the airport at 6:30 a.m., my car just suddenly made a left turn towards Randy's Donuts. It was early enough, and I was not sure if they were open since I saw no one inside. Lucky for me, they were open.

I got a few selections; an apple fritter, chocolate iced cruller, bacon maple long john, and a jelly donut.

In short, they were all way too sweet. The apple fritter is the only one I would buy again, but even that is a bit too sweet. You can't go wrong on Krispy Kreme glazed donuts, and the best one of all is the mochi donuts from Modo Donuts at Mitsuwa Market. 

Randy's Donuts is located at 23330Hawthorne Blvd., Unit A in Torrance, California.

Poké Rainbow

I was craving for poke and started to check out restaurants on Doordash. I came across this restaurant and read the good reviews. I ordered their small bowl, but this was packed with a ton of stuff. You could choose 2 proteins, so I chose yellowtail and shrimp. For sides, I chose crab salad, seaweed, cilantro. There were so many other sides to choose from for the sauce, and I decided on the spicy mayo. It was fun to pick the toppings. I had crispy onion, crispy garlic, furikake, and green onions. White rice was underneath all the deliciousness. 

The end result was pure delight. I ate everything and was quite full. There was satisfaction in thinking this was a very healthy dinner. The German beer Hofbräu Dunkel (dark) was the perfect partner for the Hawaiian poké.

Poké Rainbow is located at 1811A S. Catalina Ave. in Redondo Beach, California.

Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers

I've never heard of this chicken establishment, but when you talk to anyone from New Orleans, they will tell you something about it! I didn't think I would be trying it this soon because the cars lined up on Hawthorne Blvd. almost at any time are long! Sandi was told by a mutual friend not to go through the drive-thru but park instead. This is what we did. We were excited because we could eat inside with our masks, of course. 

We ordered the chicken fingers. It came with their special sauce and French fries. The chicken was very moist and tender. It was crisp. Delicious indeed, especially with the sauce. It came with a slice of bread which was o.k. The fries were nothing special. In fact, it needed salt and had to be dipped in the special sauce. This was their downfall, particularly if you compare it to Popeye's Cajun Fries, which are unbelievably good. 

I will have to try their Chicken Sandwich to really compare it with Popeye's. So far, I am still Popeye's loyal follower.

Mrs. Darlington's Lemon & Lime Curd

A month ago, I was at World Market with my son picking up a few items. While my son was checking out the jams and jellies, an elderly lady started talking to him. I asked him if he knew her, and he said no, but she told him how she just loved their lemon curd. It was not expensive, so we both thought, what the heck, let's try it. There it sat in my refrigerator till last week when Sandi made some biscuits, and I thought it would be good to heat them up for breakfast and add some lemon-lime curd. 

After heating 2 biscuits at 400 degrees for 4 minutes, I sliced them up and added some butter before slathering the lemon-lime curd. That, along with strong coffee and whipping cream, made the perfect breakfast. The lemon-lime curd was very creamy with just the right amount of tang. I also had some Queso de Bola (aged Edam cheese) from Holland which is a salty cheese, to accompany my biscuits. 

The only problem now is I ran out of biscuits!!!

Sweet Jill's Bakery

Last Sunday, they featured Sweet Jill's Bakery on Channel 5 on the news as "Hometown Pride" in Long Beach. The cinnamon rolls looked so good. I got all excited because I remembered that my son was in Long Beach for the day, so I immediately sent him a text to see if he could swing by there on the way home. Since he had borrowed my car, I think he felt he had no choice but to happily oblige.

I had him buy 6 pieces; 3 with and 3 without the nuts, plus one piece of upside-down cake. As soon as he arrived that afternoon, he went directly to the bathroom scale to weigh the bag. The bag was apparently so heavy that he couldn't wait to find out how much it weighed. The box weighed 6 lbs 2 ounces! I had no idea how humongous the pieces were. Half was plenty for one serving. 

We had to microwave the bun for the icing to melt a bit. These cinnamon buns are heavy and dense. It went well with coffee the following day. I had half with nuts and half without. I liked the one with nuts better, even if I normally don't like nuts. I had a hard time finishing what was on my plate, which is unusual. I found it to be too sweet. The gooey cinnamon inside the bun was delectable. I think the icing could have been a lot less sweet, maybe even by adding some alcohol? The upside-down cake was moist and delicious which we had for dessert. 

Anyway, if you like cinnamon buns, it's worth trying these. It's a matter of taste, so I'm sure people like them, and that's why they have been around for a long time. 

Burger Bitch

Don't kill the messenger....that is really the name of the burger place. My son raved about this burger and immediately thought I might like it. He had it while he was in Long Beach, and upon investigation, I found out they had a location in Redondo Beach. They deliver via Doordash, so we had it the following day.

We both ordered the Caprese Burger; 6 oz signature burger patty, organic heirloom tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, avocado, basil leaves, balsamic reduction, olive oil on a brioche bun. Of course, when it got to our house, it was not as hot as we would have liked it, so my son stuck it in the microwave for a few about 35 seconds, which made the mozzarella melt a bit.

The big surprise is that the burger was so full of flavor, and it was unlike any other burger I have had. This is definitely one of my favorites. The balsamic reduction added a wonderful zing to the burger, and the texture of the green tomato contributed to the whole umami experience. I didn't need to add any ketchup or anything else to the burger. I was surprised with the reviews; some saying it was just o.k. To me, In and Out Burger is just o.k.; not much flavor and is so generic. I have not had any of their other burgers and can only speak for the Caprese. My son was able to try the Buffalo Chicken Sandwich; country-fried chicken, buffalo sauce, slaw with lemon herb mayonnaise. He said it was terrific as well. 

Next time, I would like to try their Pulled BBQ Jackfruit, which sounds intriguing. It has jalapeno, vegan slaw on a toasted vegan brioche vegan bun. The Dirty Mac also sounded good with mac n cheese, jalapeno, and bacon on the brioche bun. 

Burger Bitch has several locations. The easiest way is to just google them to see if there's one near you.