sometimes bigger IS better

I went to two restaurants this weekend - one that was really good and cheap, and the other which was pretty pricey for what you get.

The first restaurant is a small, hole in the wall, Mexican restaurant called El Tepeyac in East LA. And when I say small, I mean small. Our party of four had to wait outside because there was no room in there to stand, and the line at this place is usually around the block, but the food was sooo good! Their burritos were ginormous! At about five dollars a person (drinks included), one Manuel special burrito fed all four of us with leftovers to bring home (and they make even bigger burritos than that)! I would totally go there again! It received a 9.4 on Citysearch and was ranked number two for the best Mexican restaurant in LA in 2003. Here's the citysearch link just in case you're in the East LA area and in the mood for some really good Mexican food or a big honkin' burrito!

http://losangeles.citysearch.com/profile/59599

The second restaurant is a small, somewhat shi shi, tapas restaurant in Costa Mesa called Aire Global. We went for a friend's birthday. The ambiance and the presentation of the food was nice, which is what I think you mostly pay for bacause you definitely get really little for your money. And when I say little, I mean little. I've been to a few really nice, expensive restaurants before, and the food at those places were really good, but here, it was just okay. I've also been to a couple tapas restaurants before, but this one was again, just okay. I ordered the Albondigas, a Mexican meatball soup that I've always wanted to try, and when it arrived at the table, I was disappointed to see how little we got. The bowl was pretty big, but it was only filled less than a quarter of it's height with only three sad looking meatballs inside. And it wasn't really soup - it was more like sauce. The waitress asked how many bowls we wanted so we can all share, but we decided we didn't really need any other bowls, considering there wasn't really all that much to to go around for about 12 people. Other items served there include mini tacos, which were actually pretty good, and tater tots (that look like the kind out of the frozen aisle) for six dollars. Truthfully, this place is a good first date place, but if you both have large appetites, you might leave there still hungry, just like all of us did. I couldn't find any reviews on Citysearch, but here's their website which doesn't list prices on the dinner menu, which made me go hmmmm...

http://www.aireglobal.com/