Well, I read the Naomi Wise review of this place in the Reader and
decided to try it today on my return visit to Escondido.

Here's a clip from the capsul that triggererd me ordering said dsih:

"The chicken-fried steak is exemplary, with a crackly batter-crust and a
smooth, peppery cream gravy."

In short, a crock of the proverbial brown stuff. It is a slice of
commercial mystery beef in a crust, deep-fried (and that does not come
close by any measure of being chicken fried steak) served with a bland
white (not pan) gravy with chunks of insipid sausage. It is the same as
you would get on biscuits and gravy. I had to add Tabasco to make it
palatable, let alone peppery.

If Wise thinks it even comes close to the real stuff, she is snorting
something and it ain't snuff. Exemplary? Not in a thousand years. I
should invite Wise for dinner at my mother's and introduce her to the
real stuff. BUt then, she couldn't handle it if she thinks CCC serves
exemplary chicken fried steak.

They do serve four-egg omelettes and my mom's Denver was termed, "good."

I'm not faulting the Cafe, it serves a decent product for
non-discriminating tastes and serves as a local center. Most of the
people there seemed to know one another and it reminds me of some cafes
I have been in in smaller towns acrosss the US.

Next to us a family was discussing family problems, the wait staff are
fun and friendly. Everybody "hello'd" nearly everyone else. Jeans and
flannel shirts were everywhere. There are steaks on the menu (as Wise
indicates) but were not tried. It is coffeee-shop ambiance, like early
Denny's variety, or was it Sambo's with the angled roofing... The coffee
is bland. My mother said it is a long way for them to improve to get to
a Denny's and termed the coffee "flavored hot water" and she drinks
fairly mild coffee.

If you're pasisng by and want something ubiquitous, to fill an empty
spot, then this is the place.

jim

From:	Brian Saunders
Subject:	Naomi Wise reviews
Date:	19 Dec 2004 11:51:40 -0800

Jim Lane wrote:

> Well, I read the Naomi Wise review of this place in the Reader and
> decided to try it today on my return visit to Escondido.
> ...

I've given up on Naomi Wise, and pretty much use her "reviews" to get
inforomation on a place only - they aren't of much more use to me than
the "reviews" of Wolfgang Vershillik. She does a good job of
mentioning shortcomings of the high-priced sacred cows, but then she
gives the place 15 stars or something after doing that.

Eleanor Widmer's reviews had their shortcomings, but compared to those
of Naomi Wise, they were generally more useful.

From:	Doug McClure
Subject:	Re: Naomi Wise reviews
Date:	Mon, 20 Dec 2004 04:56:31 GMT

I agree completely. As I read along I notice how many critical
negative remarks she makes, followed by a few praises, and whammo, the
restaurant gets 4 stars!

I recall that someone wrote a Letter to the Editor of the Reader and
NW responded with some ridiculous excuse.

Unfortunately I've noticed that the Tin Fork seems to not really
critique restaurants either, or not as much as in the past. He repeats
descriptions that are on the menu, but I'm not sure when he's saying a
dish is really good. But since these are generally bargain
restaurants, I can excuse this unwillingness to commit.

DKM

On 19 Dec 2004 11:51:40 -0800, "Brian Saunders"
wrote:

>Jim Lane wrote:
>
>> Well, I read the Naomi Wise review of this place in the Reader and
>> decided to try it today on my return visit to Escondido.
>> ...
>
>I've given up on Naomi Wise, and pretty much use her "reviews" to get
>inforomation on a place only - they aren't of much more use to me than
>the "reviews" of Wolfgang Vershillik. She does a good job of
>mentioning shortcomings of the high-priced sacred cows, but then she
>gives the place 15 stars or something after doing that.
>
>Eleanor Widmer's reviews had their shortcomings, but compared to those
>of Naomi Wise, they were generally more useful.

To contact me directly, send EMAIL to (single letters all)
DEE_KAY_EMM AT EarthLink.net. [For example X_X_X@EarthLink.net.]

From:	BFSON
Subject:	Re: Naomi Wise reviews
Date:	20 Dec 2004 06:27:10 GMT

I find Wise to be a wine snob. I wrote a letter to the editor about it, they
ran the complaint, and she replied basicly claiming that she wasn't but the but
in the same reply again included her put down of other diner's choices in
matching food and wine. I now ignore her column.

Bob Foster

From:	Paul Broadway
Subject:	Re: Naomi Wise reviews
Date:	Mon, 20 Dec 2004 18:39:34 GMT

"BFSON" wrote in message
news:20041220012710.12288.00002365@mb-m28.aol.com...
> I find Wise to be a wine snob. I wrote a letter to the editor about it,
they
> ran the complaint, and she replied basicly claiming that she wasn't but
the but
> in the same reply again included her put down of other diner's choices in
> matching food and wine. I now ignore her column.
>
> Bob Foster

It is funny that you guys still read the Reader! I dropped that rag a
couple of years ago, it was buying its reviews and stories from its
advertisers. I read the City Beat now, although I miss the Tin Fork
section, there is nothing else of value in the Reader. The Reader will not
run any story mentioning any food/beverage business that they don't have an
advertising account with, that should give you an indication of how unbiased
that they are.

--
Paul Broadway
www.broadwaypub.com
San Diego,Ca.

From:	Jim Lane
Subject:	Re: Naomi Wise reviews
Date:	Mon, 20 Dec 2004 11:19:32 -0800

Paul Broadway wrote:
> "BFSON" wrote in message
> news:20041220012710.12288.00002365@mb-m28.aol.com...
>
>>I find Wise to be a wine snob. I wrote a letter to the editor about it,
>
> they
>
>>ran the complaint, and she replied basicly claiming that she wasn't but
>
> the but
>
>>in the same reply again included her put down of other diner's choices in
>>matching food and wine. I now ignore her column.
>>
>>Bob Foster
>
>
> It is funny that you guys still read the Reader! I dropped that rag a
> couple of years ago, it was buying its reviews and stories from its
> advertisers. I read the City Beat now, although I miss the Tin Fork
> section, there is nothing else of value in the Reader. The Reader will not
> run any story mentioning any food/beverage business that they don't have an
> advertising account with, that should give you an indication of how unbiased
> that they are.

Okay, Paul,

Point me to the ads from all the Mexican (Baja California) places that
have been reviewed for starters, then we'll work on the rest, starting
with all the Tin Fork place ads and then the main reviews.

While what you say is true for the UT guy, I do not believe you can
substantiate your comment, vis-a-vis the SDReader.

jim

From:	Paul Broadway
Subject:	Re: Naomi Wise reviews
Date:	Mon, 20 Dec 2004 23:03:26 GMT

"Jim Lane" wrote in message
news:1103570372.787254@news-1.nethere.net...
>
>
> Okay, Paul,
>
> Point me to the ads from all the Mexican (Baja California) places that
> have been reviewed for starters, then we'll work on the rest, starting
> with all the Tin Fork place ads and then the main reviews.
>
> While what you say is true for the UT guy, I do not believe you can
> substantiate your comment, vis-a-vis the SDReader.
>
>
> jim

Jim, with the exception of the occaisional review of a restaurant in Mexico
and the Tin Fork, everthing else is advertised in the reader, that includes
Ms. Wise's reviews. I might have been a little too zealous in my statement.
I have never agreed with any of Ms. Wises reviews. I have enjoyed and used
the Tin Fork to find new places in the past, but picking up a newspaper that
only has one thing that I will read, is not worth my time. The movie
reviews suck, the music reviews suck, and I would rather read the City Beat.
In the last few years, I have seen the Reader get too big for their
britches, so to say. Most of the articles that they choose to publish are
so poorly written, they are unreadable. And if you are looking for plastic
surgery, well they can help you out with that. It is as if the San Diego
Plastic Surgeons own the damn paper. O.K., I feel better, rant over.
--
Paul Broadway
www.broadwaypub.com
San Diego,Ca.

From:	Jim Lane
Subject:	Re: Naomi Wise reviews
Date:	Sun, 19 Dec 2004 12:27:30 -0800

Brian Saunders wrote:
> Jim Lane wrote:
>
>
>>Well, I read the Naomi Wise review of this place in the Reader and
>>decided to try it today on my return visit to Escondido.
>>...
>
>
> I've given up on Naomi Wise, and pretty much use her "reviews" to get
> inforomation on a place only - they aren't of much more use to me than
> the "reviews" of Wolfgang Vershillik. She does a good job of
> mentioning shortcomings of the high-priced sacred cows, but then she
> gives the place 15 stars or something after doing that.
>
> Eleanor Widmer's reviews had their shortcomings, but compared to those
> of Naomi Wise, they were generally more useful.
>

Wolf's apure shill for UT advertisers. NW is a cut above that.

Where have I found the best reviews? Here.

jim

From:	The Ranger
Subject:	Re: Center City Cafe, Escondido
Date:	Sat, 18 Dec 2004 07:03:13 -0800

On Fri, 17 Dec 2004 22:52:02 -0800, Jim Lane
wrote:
[snip]
> They do serve four-egg omelettes
[snip]

Kee-rist! _FOUR_? Are they [the omelets] served on a platter?

From your review, it sounds like a solid miss rather than an "if
you're there, go in." Ambiance is only a third of the problem.

Out of curiosity, how much did the meal set you back?

The Ranger

From:	Jim Lane
Subject:	Re: Center City Cafe, Escondido
Date:	Sat, 18 Dec 2004 12:03:02 -0800

The Ranger wrote:
> On Fri, 17 Dec 2004 22:52:02 -0800, Jim Lane
> wrote:
> [snip]
>
>>They do serve four-egg omelettes
>
> [snip]
>
> Kee-rist! _FOUR_? Are they [the omelets] served on a platter?
>
> From your review, it sounds like a solid miss rather than an "if
> you're there, go in." Ambiance is only a third of the problem.
>
> Out of curiosity, how much did the meal set you back?
>
> The Ranger

About $17 + tip.

The omelettes are big and are served on a large oblong plate. It is a
miss, unless you have an _empty_ spot to fill.

The country ambiance was not a problem. Sometimes it is sort of
refreshing. Another version of this is The Flynn Springs Cafe and that
is worth making the drive for. Seems like a lot of that crowd has been
going in and out for years - call the cook by name and so on.

jim

From:	The Ranger
Subject:	Re: Center City Cafe, Escondido
Date:	Sat, 18 Dec 2004 12:26:44 -0800

On Sat, 18 Dec 2004 12:03:02 -0800, Jim Lane
wrote:
> The Ranger wrote:
> > On Fri, 17 Dec 2004 22:52:02 -0800, Jim Lane wrote:
> > [snip]
> > > They do serve four-egg omelettes
> >
> > [snip]
> >
> > Kee-rist! _FOUR_? Are they [the omelets] served
> > on a platter?
> >
> > From your review, it sounds like a solid miss rather
> > than an "if you're there, go in." Ambiance is only
> > a third of the problem.
> >
> > Out of curiosity, how much did the meal set you back?
> >
> About $17 + tip.

Hmmm. That's about standard for a breakfast.

> The omelettes are big and are served on a large
> oblong plate.

As comparison, I was thinking the Original Pancake House has 3-egg
omelets and those are monstrous, also served on oblong plates.

> It is a miss, unless you have an _empty_ spot to fill.
>
> The country ambiance was not a problem. Sometimes
> it is sort of refreshing. Another version of this is The
> Flynn Springs Cafe and that is worth making the
> drive for. Seems like a lot of that crowd has been
> going in and out for years - call the cook by name
> and so on.

The regular customers' home-away-from-home... I can certainly see
the draw; I know of two restaurants that have this appeal.

Thanks for the review.

The Ranger