Q: positive

A: I'm not really a fan of fancy French pastries. They look pretty but they don't taste all that great. Luckily Amelie's has other offerings that keep me interested and coming back for more! One favorite is the breakfast sandwich. I order mine with spinach, egg whites, and mozzarella on a baguette. It is lightly toasted and the cheese is melted perfectly. It is $4.89 and 75 cents extra to sub egg whites for the whole egg. It's so good I don't care and sometimes I am guilty of ordering two! After I'm done eating probably a day's worth of calories on 2 breakfast sandwiches, sometimes I feel like eating something "healthy." Lynn's salad is tiny and pricey but it's amazing! It's made up of mixed greens, mandarin oranges, strawberries, feta, and candied almonds but the thick, gooey, brown crap that it comes with makes it crave-worthy! It is called celery seed vinaigrette but it doesn't look much like a vinaigrette. It's sweet and tangy and I always have to get extra because one little cup just isn't enough! If I happen to have any leftover then I just eat the rest of it by the spoonful and if it wasn't looked down on then I would just lick that cup clean.. Ah who am I kidding I've already done that! Listen to the majority and get the salted caramel brownie! Dense, rich brownie on the bottom and a layer of toffee flavored caramel on top.. Mmmm. Also the lemon raspberry tart is delish! Minus one star because it's expensive for the tiny portions but man oh man.. The flavors are on point!

Q: positive

A: Greg and the group behind Haulin' Balls are great! I have hit them up a few times either at Khoury's or one of the food truck meetups around town. I like that they have different flavors for everyone and are always working on new things. I've had the Godfather (italian style, beef meatball), Zorba (greek, lamb), and All Thai'd Up (thai, turkey), and the Porky (BBQ, pulled pork). The leaner meats are a bit drier than the beef and pulled pork, but the garnishes and sauces really punch the flavors to match the themes. The ingredients always look, smell and taste fresh (a happy five senses makes a happier meal, eh?). Make sure you get plenty of basil, it always seems to be so pungent (in the best way) and set off the rest of the food. I order them all protein style, so no bread for me, and the additional lettuce adds an extra freshness/crispness that really makes it for me. Meatball sandwiches aren't the lightest fare, but this is an easy and delicious way to alleviate some of the heaviness (especially in the summer!). The sweet potato tots are tasty and their mac n' cheese is really a treat. I might like it with a little more crunch on top but, even as it is, you get a creamy, cheesy, and very flavorful incarnation of an all time favorite. As the Haulin' Balls people will tell you... you need some balls in your mouth!

Q: negative

A: The food is not bad considering the reviews. Overall, I would have rated the food as a 4 unfortunately the wait about killed the rating. We literally waited over an hour to receive our third course. The wait staff is attentive during delivery of food; other than that it's typical. The sushi chef did offer us food while we waited in all fairness. DON'T come here if you're hungry or in a hurry. There're better yakitori type restaurants in LA or OC sans the ridiculous wait.

Q: positive

A:
My adventure bug hit one slow afternoon at work, and I was determined to try something completely new for dinner. So I perused my trusty friend, Yelp, for some ideas and that's when I came across The Great Bao. They offered a veg-friendly bao, was located right near where I worked, AND it was in a beauty salon! I just had to go! So at 5 o'clock I hopped in the car with the husband and was off to an adventure. "It's in a salon," I said. "What do you mean *in* a salon?" asked the husband. I responded, "I mean, you go inside a salon and it's supposedly somewhere in there." "That doesn't make sense." No it really doesn't make sense, but you have to trust me- there is a large beauty salon with a small nail salon right next to it. Do not peek your head in the nail salon like I did; this is not correct. Go through the beauty salon, walk past the nail polish, and find the literal hole in the wall. We were greeted by Jenny and Chef Sheridan who were both very friendly and happy to answer my questions. We ended up ordering a bao combo (all tofu) with the mango passionfruit iced tea. We also ordered the sesame noodles. The tea was refreshing and not too sweet and went really well with the tofu bao. The sesame noodles were flavorful and topped with little slices of raw tofu, cilantro, and green onion. The dish had a nice little spicy bite to it without being overpowering. My husband and I both really enjoyed it. But to the star of the show: the great bao! Now I used to be lame in my younger days and wasn't too adventurous with my eats. I never had Chinese buns before let alone a bao, so this was my first go at anything like it. Holy crap it was amazing! I loved the taste and texture of the bao and it worked so well with the tofu and mushrooms. There were a variety of mushrooms, including some adorable tiny ones, and they were very fresh. The sauce was fantastic. I went to bed that night with dreams of bao in my head and wound up stopping back a couple days later. I wanted to dine in, but didn't have a lot of time. So I called before we left and they graciously made the order ahead for me. I got to The Great Bao a few minutes later and everything was ready to go and just as delicious as the first time! If I could make any suggestions it would be to maybe marinate the tofu to give it a little more flavor (yes, yes I know...it's tofu...please no smart comments). Also, more veggie bao options for me to devour, please! Give yourself a little adventure and hit up The Great Bao -that way you can say you ate at a restaurant inside of a beauty salon. And do it soon because I have a feeling they'll be getting a bigger place any day now!