Southern California is home to a variety of cuisine options and innovative fusion flavors. Here are some of the stand out meals, treats and snacks that our team tried this month.
Banana Split from Baskin-Robbins. (Fielding Buck, SCNG)
Banana Split – Baskin-Robbins
During the long heat wave, I had the urge to get a good old-fashioned banana split. You know, chocolate, strawberry and vanilla ice cream. Hot fudge, strawberry and marshmallow toppings. Whipped cream. Maraschino cherries. Baskin-Robbins did the trick. It costs about $9.99.
– Fielding Buck, Restaurant Reporter
Upland’s Kuma Sushi serves a $19 “Carpaccio Roll.” (Emily St. Martin, SCNG)
Carpaccio Roll – Kuma Sushi
Upland‘s Kuma Sushi serves a $19 “Carpaccio Roll” with crab, avocado and cucumber inside and carpaccio-style salmon on top. The feature that made this sushi roll the best thing I ate in August, though, was the garnish. Tucked under the green onion, garlic chili crisp and jalapeno is a thinly sliced lemon, rind and all. The composition made the roll vibrant and bright, spicy and fresh. Oishii!
– Emily St. Martin, Digital Features Editor
Gnocchi Mac & Cheese from TomTom in West Hollywood. (Carolyn Burt, SCNG)
Gnocchi Mac & Cheese – TomTom
Last summer I binge-watched “Vanderpump Rules,” which captures the lives of “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star Lisa Vanderpump’s servers and bartenders at her West Hollywood establishments: SUR, TomTom and PUMP. Those familiar with the show won’t be surprised that I had to get the Stassi-approved Goat Cheese Balls as well as the James Kennedy famed Pumptini. What I wasn’t expecting to be blown away by was the Gnocchi Mac & Cheese. Do I like Gnocchi? Absolutely. Do I like Mac & Cheese? Clearly. So yes, while combining the two is a simple enough concept, I have been raving about it to anyone who will listen. I’m already planning my return just to get the $22 dish again.
– Carolyn Burt, Audience Engagement Producer
Mortadella-topped pie at Truly Pizza in Dana Point.(Brock Keeling, SCNG)
Off the menu pizza – Truly Pizza
Truly Pizza has, in part, helped transform Dana Point into a food destination. One reason is chef/co-owner Chris Decker, who came out with this off-menu pizza during a recent trip. The pie featured bundled mounds of mortadella, the rosy-hued Italian sausage studded with chunks of pork fat, and I can’t stop thinking about it.
– Brock Keeling, Restaurant Reporter
Related: This cheese pizza in Dana Point won top honors at an international pizza competition
Knafeh in a ceramic dish from Filo Dessert Co. in Orange. (Brock Keeling, SCNG)
Knafeh – Filo Dessert Co.
While the main draw of the newly opened Filo Dessert Co. in Old Towne Orange is the stretchy mastic-based ice cream, its personal-size knafeh, featuring layers of crisp phyllo dough, cheese and simple syrup, combined two of my favorite things: fun-size versions of foods (knafeh is typically made the size of a large pizza) and ceramics. While I normally don’t give a fig about dishware when it comes to good eating, the small matte ceramic dish nestling the knafeh deserves a shout-out.
– Brock Keeling, Restaurant Reporter
Related: Filo Dessert Co. brings Middle Eastern ice cream and knafeh to Old Towne Orange
Pastelillo de carne and pastelillo de pollo, from Puerto Rican eatery Tainos in Canoga Park (Brock Keeling, SCNG)
Pastelillo de carne and Pastelillo de Pollo – Tainos LA
Found in a commissary kitchen in San Fernando Valley’s Canoga Park, Tainos LA’s rich and flakey pastelillo de carne and pastelillo de pollo are just two reasons why I hope to see even more Puerto Rican food pop up in Orange County in 2025.
– Brock Keeling, Restaurant Reporter