Hole in the Wall Burger Joint Review

An artisan bun on an Angus beef burger can be made many ways. Hole in the Wall burger shows that one of the best ways is done with a medium rare cooked patty and fresh locally grown ingredients. Via their website: Angus beef is never frozen, has no antibiotics or added hormones, use artisan rolls by local bakeries, use locally grown produce, and make all spreads, pickles, ketchup and french fries in house.  

Located in Santa Monica, CA, chef-owner Bill Dertouzos, finds the perfect combination between gourmet and fast food burger.

All patties are cooked medium rare and both the patties and buns are buttered. The restaurant lacks variety of free ingredients but makes up for it with the freshness of the available ones.

 The options for burger patties are; beef, turkey, veggie, and ground chicken. Bread options include: pretzel, whole wheat, old fashioned plain, brioche and burger in a bowl. Extras include ($1 each); apple wood smoked bacon, avocado, fried egg, sautéed mushrooms and sautéed onions.

Sides ($2.99) for the burgers are french fries and sweet potato fries. There is homemade ketchup that is vinegar and spices based. The homemade ranch is made from mayonnaise, buttermilk, dill, parsley, Dijon, onion, lemon juice, sour cream, salt and pepper.

The wait for a burger is 10 minutes and pre order via phone is available. Casual atmosphere, order at the counter with friendly service.

Average atmosphere and drinks

This restaurant’s “build your own burger” philosophy and economically priced burgers ($8.95) make this a must try for anyone on a mission to find the best burger in the city.

Must try: Pretzel bun

The good: Low carb options, juicy burgers, homemade spreads, friendly service, ample seating, generous burger size

The bad: cash only but has onsite ATM, price can creep up fast when adding extras to burger

Food: $$$

Price: $$

Drinks: $$

Service: $$$

Atmosphere: $$

www.holeinthewallburgerjoint.com

2200 Colorado Ave, Santa Monica, CA 90404
(310) 449-0147
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Fernando's Peruvian Bistro

Blink and you might miss the Peruvian bistro that sits in a nondescript shopping center with great food and an amazing green salsa. The small restaurant is located in Downey, CA and you would never know by its appearance of the food that waits inside.

The restaurant sits close to 70 people and there is ample seating on weekends. There are lots of Peruvian paintings along the colored walls along with other forms of Peruvian art. There is live music on weekends that plays mostly old romantic Spanish love songs. Price for dinner ranges from $8-$14 per plate.

Instead of chips and salsa they serve french bread and green salsa. The bread is good and the salsa is excellent. What makes the salsa so great is that it’s not too spicy and has a great taste which makes it perfect for even the abstemious salsa eater.

The menu offers a variety of chicken, steak and seafood dishes.

The chicken empanadas ($3.95) come is sets of two and are very good with the accompanying salsa. The Calamari ($7.95) is excellent and is served with lime and tartar sauce.

The lomo saltado($9.95) is also excellent. Lomo saltado is stir fried strips of sirloin steak covered in a soy/vinegar sauce, with red onions, tomatoes, french fries, serves with a side of white rice. The steak is cooked medium well.  

Bistec a lo Pobre(11.95) is a fried egg served on top of a steak (cooked medium well) with sides of french fries, salad and white rice. The meal is generous in size and also very good.

The drinks are limited to beer and wine. There is one Peruvian beer sold, Cusqueña($3.95).

It’s definitely a diamond in the rough and the best Peruvian food in the city of Downey, CA.

I’ve visited this restaurant twice and my only complaint is that the second time I felt my service could have been much better.

The good: no or short wait to be seated, excellent food, romantic setting, good ambiance, live music on weekends, ample parking

The bad: average service, limited drink selection, located in a shopping mall

Price: $$
Food: $$$ 1/2
Drinks: $$
Ambiance: $$ 1/2
Service: $$

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Social media and a Generation of underachievers

'I fear the day technology will surpass our human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots.' –Albert Einstein

Social media leads to underachieving in all facets of life. It's ubiquitous influence is found everywhere. 

Do you remember what life was life before social media? Can you remember what life was like before smart phones? These two things, especially when combined, have dramatically impacted our personal social interaction.

We are all susceptible to something that is addicting and we are all creatures of habit (I’m thinking of flappy bird right now). Think about your normal routine and which things distract you. My largest distraction is checking my phone and social media constantly. Not only is it inauspicious but its distracting.(Specifically twitter and instragram tabs open open on my computer at work) There are thousands, maybe even millions, just like me as social media has created a generation of underachievers who are not paying attention to what their supposed to. For the fear that I might grow into some version of a man-child, I am fighting the urge in order to stop the habit.  

How does this impact my life away from social media? I find myself constantly drifting away from normal conversations. Not looking at people in the eyes when talking to them and drifting my attention toward something else (I’m apologizing to my girlfriend right now is she’s reading this).

I think about my day and my life and wonder what I could accomplish if I did actually pay attention to the things I’m supposed to. How much work what I have done at my job? How much more advanced would I be in my education? Would I be a better father? A better son?

I guess these are all what ifs, and you can’t live your life that way (you made your bed now you lie in it). I can only try to change myself and help others do the same. “Be the change you want to see in the world”-Gandhi. If it’s difficult to stop checking your social media try setting time apart to only do that.

It’s not multitasking no matter how many times you utter it to yourself.