Togos-West Covina

While we had originally decided that we would mostly blog about actual dine-in experiences, we had to break the rules this time around because of the economy.
Not having a lot of money equals not enjoying the luxury of eating out as often.

We stopped at Togo's for a late lunch today, and sat outside on their tables designated for guests and enjoyed the quite pleasant and relaxing "plaza music". Mikey called it "Weather Channel Music".

Togo's has yet to disappoint me when it comes to freshness, presentation, and variety. I can never decide what my taste buds are after because everything looks so appealing. They offer combos (chips and drink), and half-sandwich, half-soup or salad options, catering, and delicious cookies. The staff is usually pretty pleasant; young, but not totally incompetent.
One thing I do wish is that I could see them building my sandwich. The counter is up to my chest and I can't see what they're doing with their hands. So I'm not sure what to think about that.
Overall, a tasty, peaceful, enjoyable lunch on sunday.

BJs-West Covina-Ortega Family Fund

Mikey and I attended one of the charities that has been taking place this month to raise money for the Ortega Family Trust fund(family that was affected by the killings on Christmas Eve 08).
Bjs donated 15% of your meal cost to the fund.
This was a great opportunity to give and enjoy great food at the same time. Service was wonderful, presentation was great and the ambiance was pleasant as well.

I really enjoyed the Balsalmic Chicken--the mashed potatoes were to die for! It was a delightful mixing of flavors and textures!
Cantaloupe martini was very sweet (like drinking a mixed flavored juice) but gave me a buzz, so I guess it worked!

AppleBees-West Covina-Sat. nite- 10:30pm

Last night, while Defreitas and I had our first dinner together since Thanksgiving break, I FINALLY decided to start this blog after months of "we shoulds". It was a busy friday night, we waited between 10 and 15 minutes for our table, but were pleasantly surprised with our friendly service. First, we feared getting a tiny one-per-bench booth or table with chairs on such a busy night...But we were taken to a full booth where we could sit side-by-side in comfort.

Our waitress, to our contentment, was a very nice, pleasant individual who was attentive to our needs.
She even suggested a special going on that fit our needs and saved us some money.
Our food, drinks, appetizer, and margaritas came out in time, and in order, with room to enjoy and space for her to check in occasionally if it came out right. She even got Mikey his diet refill before he had time to notice he might need one.
I also liked how she asked me if I wanted a refill because I hate it when I get one automatically and then I don't touch it -such a waste.
Here's Mikey's burger...click on the photo for more pics.

Our server Ebony took a bit of time to doodle on our receipt. She went home with 9 bucks in her pocket.