Hey Mano!  We were talking about you at the store today.  Our customers are disappointed to hear that you won't be serving your awesome grub at our 4th Anniversary Birthday Bash Fundraiser on April 5th.  Your food was the hit of the party last year.  If your plans should change, please don't hesitate to give us a call.  Our new location on Tehachapi Blvd will give us about twice the space for the outdoor event, so we're hoping for an even better turnout this year.  :-)  Susie 822-0307

That italian restaurant should be Olive Garden!!!

Sorry to burst your bubble. It is not Olive Garden (I said an "Italian" restaurant. Not another "Commercial Impostor" restaurant). I know that many of you like Olive Garden and that my comment is going to tick you off. But; If I wanted frozen, out of season, reconstituted, under/over prepared, emotionless, sometimes tasteless, uninspired and just plain boring food................I guess I would walk through their door. When I want pasta and some gravy, I want fresh pasta and gravy that you can taste the depth and body of. I am not a food snob. I just know what I like and what I will use my hard earned money for. Why should I, or you, pay for food that you can basically get in the frozen food isle at your local market or for an even closer product, go to Costco or Smart and Final. I wish I could take a few of you "non-believers" and go on a trip to the market and then to home, where I could show you that "YOU" can prepare food that is simple, seasonal and alive with flavor. Well, now I have to go prepare breakfast and start cooking for our Super Bowl get together. Let's see..........where did I put that can of chili and that tray of frozen mac and cheese?!

Hey Susie! I am so sorry that I can't make it. I have a relative who is turning 90 on that weekend out of state. I have driven by your new place and it is much bigger then your previous spot. I am very happy for you. I finally took your advice, I joined the Chamber and I am submitting my application to actually be "IN" the park for Mountain Festival. Thanks for the advice and the kind words. I am sure I will stop by when I return.

Matokanji is right on all counts about Olive Garden. He left out one word...expensive. I don't mean to insult anyone but the people who like the food there just never tasted the real deal! I like to cook and can make several delicious dinners at home for what I would pay for an insipid dinner or lunch at Olive Garden. If you can't make a real Italian meal at home, try Little Italy in Bakersfield right near Trader Joe's. The Meat Lasagna, Cheese Ravioli's and Eggplant Parmigiana are to die for.

We sure don't need any more so-called Mexican restaurants here and I hope matokanji finds a good spot for his own restaurant. Downtown would be the best place. Location, Location, Location. Primo's is thriving, and is a good example.  I will be glad to wait in line to be matokanji's first customer! Yummm.

Jim Richards

I agree wholeheartedely  with Matokanji and jimr about Olive Garden.  They get way too much praise.  I'm Italian and its annoying that when talking about Italian food, the first thing people think of is Olive Garden.  What did they do to deserve such recognition? No offense to anyone who likes Olive Garden, but the food is pure garbage, an embarassment.  Any of my dishes put Olive Garden to shame.

I hope Don Juans doesn't sell, I really enjoy their food.

 Congrats and best of luck to Matokanji on opening a restaraunt!

Mano, it's not every day you can attend a 90th birthday party... we certainly understand.  Just wanted you to know that you'd be missed.  That's great that you decided to join the Chamber.  I hope that being in the park for Mountain Festival helps kick your business to the next level so you can start a restaurant.  We really need a few more quality dining options in Tehachapi.  Are you planning to participate in Farmer's Market in Railroad Park this summer?  I'll have to put in a request to have my booth near yours so I get to eat before you sell out of food!  :-)

If everybody had the same tastes, we'd be stuck with one type restaurant, no? I have Italian friends who love OG, I have Italian friends who hate OG. I personally can't get enough of their soup - Zuppa Toscani - made with kale, potatos and spicy sausage. I don't think of them as true Italian really, more like an Americanized Italian.

Burger Spot used to be my favorite place for pastrami here in town. We ate there last night, major disappointment. Served on a long skinny tasteless role; dry, over-salted meat. Why the change? $$? The fried zuccini was awful. So, I'm switching to Primo...

As you all know, you do not have to be Italian to know good Italian food (this goes for every type of food). The food industry is a strange place. I trained to be a Japanese chef. I am not Japanese. I graduated 2nd in my class (behind a chef from Italy!). When it was time to find a job, all the Japanese students were sucked up leaving only two from my class unemployed; me and the Italian guy. When people go out to eat at a "ethnic" restaurant, they want their server to be of that race, they want the manager to be of that race, and you can sure as bet that they want the chefs to be of that race! It was very hard for me to find a job, but I did. I was hired in one of the best restaurants around. It did not serve non-Japanese, I even had to enter from the back because I was not allowed in the dinning areas! I was the only non-Japanese person there. I like to sit and hear people talk about food. Especially Japanese food. I am the last person that they would ever think was a trained Japanese chef. I hear many people talking right out of their butt! Most of the time it is a Japanese/American doing the talking!!!!!!!!! There was my rant. I agree with you Joty, Burger Spot stinks. I do not like Primo any better though. I really hate frozen food.

Matokanji hey where is the chili and rub cook off going to be. do you have info on the cook off?

I find it so peculiar that discrimination raises its ugly head in the most odd places. I guess I am naive, but it never occured to me that a highly trained chef would go through that experience. Give me talent anytime, don't care if you're a blue man from Oregon (LOL). I'm from the south and can't fry a decent chicken to save my soul. My cornbread doesn't come close to my mama's, and she took the secret of her pecan pie to the grave, dang it.

I guess I've never really had Japanese food. I've eaten at Benihana's, but something tells me you put that in the same category as Olive Garden?

Oh, question. I heard the owner of Guido and the Blonde's opened a new Italian bistro where Rigby's used to be; is Guido's still in business?

next time your at the great wall poke your head into the kitchen and you will see Mexicans cooking the Chinese food. The real Chinese are the servers.

Benihana's is okay for what it is. So is Olive Garden in that aspect. I do not eat at either of them but, I will say this about both, they are hugely successful! I wish I would have thought of either! I have found that I enjoy simple comfort food best. That is why I love Japanese food. It is so very simple. It relies mostly on the ingredients. I can prepare a few different styles of food. I follow the same principle that I learned in culinary school. Simple, seasonal and subtle (the subtle does not work for all types of food). Get the best ingredients that you can find (must be in season locally). Do not over think its preparation, remember good ingredients are already very tasty, all you have to do is accent them. Joty, I love good southern soul food. I make a good amount of it at home. Cooking is like anything else, it takes a lot of practice to be skilled at it. We live in a time where fast and convenient is a way of life. Slow down and appreciate the day over a well prepared meal.

Gube, the event takes place on Fathers day weekend on Green st. It is being put on by Main Street Tehachapi. The Chili cook off is a sanctioned chili cook off. The rib cook off (I was told) is an open competition. I was told that any kind of ribs can be entered. For more info contact Michelle Vance over at Main Street Tehachapi.

Yes, the owner of Guidos has moved to the Rigby's location. The old Guidos location will be an extension of the credit union next to it. I was at the Great Wall last night. The only reason we go is because my wife can talk to some of the workers and the owners in Chinese and my children like the buffet. I have been in that kitchen, there are both Chinese and Mexican cooks. Fact is that most restaurants are loaded with Mexican cooks. Many of which are illegal. I have first hand knowledge of this. It is a dirty little secret of the food service industry and I think it stinks.