Eat-Well. Eat often.

Eat-Well is another staple of the Los Angeles breakfast scene. With two locations (formerly three) in two very disparate parts of the city, it can serve as a readily available morning and lunch spot for just about anyone. I've passed by the West Hollywood location but have never stopped in. (See the Silver Spoons review for reasons why.) I've had plans to go to the one in Glendale ever since moving nearby, but I had not made it there until last Saturday.

My friend Dan, who--let me plug it one more time--wrote the fascinating book, Banana: The Fate of the Fruit that Changed the World, is a big booster of Eat-Well. He says he comes at least once a week because he loves it so much. Dan knows a great deal about the history of the restaurants, like why the Silver Lake location closed a few years ago (technically a franchise that was mismanaged) and how the Brite Spot kiped a lot of its dishes from the original Eat-Well menu.

We went early, sneaking in the back door a little past ten o'clock. By eleven the place really fills up and hungry customers spill out onto the street. We waited a little bit while the staff cleared tables and rung patrons up at the cash register.

While we were seated, I took in the atmosphere at Eat-Well. The large east facing picture window at the front allows the sun to spill into the dining area. That coupled with the high ceilings gives it a very airy and comfortable feeling.

One of the homey perks of Eat-Well is that kindly old Ida, the owner, who is known for her delicious coffee cake, is often found dishing it up for you herself.

No Ida this morning though (probably at the West Hollywood location), but we still got two pieces of coffee cake. I rarely have coffee cake so I can't gauge how good it is in the context of other coffee cakes, but I really liked this. It was nice and spongy.



Dan of course liked his eggs and french toast. He did admit it was a little off that day, and is usually knock your socks off good.



My eggs benedict was very good. My only critique is that it could have used more paprika to give it a 'kick'. Otherwise, the hollandaise was very creamy and not at all oily or fatty tasting. The eggs had a strong flavor and the yolks were nicely runny without seeming completely raw.

The fruit bowl that accompanied my entre was 50/50 . The bananas and pineapple were very good, but the melons were bland and mushy.

Now came dessert. The menu boasted both cake and pie in the dessert section. I asked the waiter what pies they had. He looked at me oddly and said "We don't have pie." I was agape; I was aghast. Could things have turned around so fast? Where was the pie promised in the menu? I brought this to the attention of the waiter. He replied, "I'm kind of new. Let me check." He checked and returned. No pie.

No pie. Ever.

Eat-Well was good, all things considered (pie fiasco and all). I don't think I'd make a weekly habit out of it--I'll let Dan keep this one--though I can recommend it as a safe bet for decent eats.

Food-Good.

Service-Decent.
Price- Decent. Average $7-$9 for most dishes.

Pie-No pie. Menu is a liar!

Eat-Well

(818) 243-5928
1013 S. Brand Blvd

Glendale, CA 91204

Harry's Family Restaurant- No clever title

It’s Valley week in Dinerwood. I will finally review Harry’s Family Restaurant in Burbank. This review should have been written a long time ago closer to the date I actually went. I just found my notes again and the pictures have been sitting on my hard drive at work for weeks now. Now is the time.

This is a place I had seen dozens of times since I moved to LA. I would always think "I need to go there" but I just never did. Maybe something shiny distracted me. Maybe it was the lure of the Asian Seafood Buffett just down the street. Maybe it was having just had or just about to have to manuever through the scores of people wandering out of IKEA, which is just down the street. No one wants to eat after experiencing that throng.



This review will focus on my second time coming to Harry’s. My first time, I came in on a lazy Sunday afternoon. The place was quiet, coming off a lunch rush. I ordered the chicken salad sandwich. I was going through a chicken salad phase, don’t ask me why. Harry’s chicken salad was okay. The chicken wasn’t very flavorful but it wasn’t bad. I was thrown by the large piece of iceberg lettuce on the sandwich. I LIKE iceberg lettuce. It’s crunchy! I had just never had a chicken salad sandwich crunch before. I couldn't help but imagine crunching chicken bones with each bite. Sorry no pictures.

A few weeks later, I went in the morning for breakfast with my friend Shannon. At 10am the place was hopping. We apparently got the last booth as parties began to bunch up at the front after us. Harry’s is a lovely throw back the 70s in a seeming more authentic way than the 101 Coffeeshop; rock walls and gorgeous groovy turquoise covers on the booths. Where the 101 seems more like a conscious decision, Harry's seems more like a "Why would we change it?"


The menu is extensive since it’s going for more than just ‘diner’ and braches off into full restaurant. Really though, who orders the salmon at a place like this? The wide variety means that prices can range from as little as 5 dollars all the way up to 20. I ordered the Waffle and Two Egg breakfast. Shannon ordered the French Toast breakfast. I got the coffee and she got the hot chocolate.





The coffee was a little weak but our waitress was always there for a quick refill. The hot chocolate came with a mountain of whipped cream. Our food came out quickly, which was unexpected since, like I said, the place was packed. I had ordered my eggs over-easy, one yolk was runny and the other cooked solid. The sausage was a tad greasy but better than average. The waffle was very disappointing. It was like a giant Eggo waffle, soggy and not at all what I was hoping for. The chunk of orange was good. It peeled nicely and was juicy. I reviewed an orange! The French toast was “better than home” and the eggs were fine, according to Shannon. I do not recall what she thought of her orange.



The one thing I will gush about at Harry’s were the potatoes. I loved these potatoes. Similar to what I just got at Sitton’s, these were fried just a bit longer to give them some real crunch (as you will remember, I like crunchy) on the tops and the bottoms. They were perfectly buttered and salted.

I did order the pie… but sadly….I forgot to note what kind of pie and have since lost the picture to the internet ether. In my notes I just wrote “Pie- supermarket.” Not a ringing endorsement. The day I ordered the chicken salad sandwich, I also got the peach pie, and that I remember liking. It wasn’t spectacular but it was good.

Price: $5-$20
Food: Middling
Service: Good
Pie: Yes.

920 N San Fernando Blvd
Burbank, CA
91504-4325
Phone: (818) 842-8755