The Spot

The Spot

110 2nd St
Hermosa Beach, CA 90254
310-376-2355

Now for those of you who know me at all, you’re probably wondering why I was even at The Spot. More likely, who dragged me here and threatened to harm my wife and made me eat healthy food???? No one.

For those of you who know me, I love a great burger. A nice ½ pound (or larger) patty perfectly seasoned and topped the best produce is my idea of a heavenly burger. The Spot was featured on a show telling about all the great burgers in the country. Their burgers were considered one of the best veggie burgers in the country. Veggie burger? Well…. I figured I had to see what the rave was all about. So that’s what led me here.

The Spot is a natural food restaurant; most everything is non-dairy, no meat, and whole grains. The menu had quite a variety of items such as burritos, burgers, sandwiches, salads, pasta and chili. Even a carnivore like me found some of the menu items intriguing. I knew I came for a burger, but while perusing the menu I vowed if I came back here I’d try their enchiladas. Some things didn’t look as appealing such as the items with tofu.

I knew why I came, so I settled in for the best veggie burger around and ordered the guacamole burger ($10.95) and a glass of lemonade while my wife ordered the homemade chili ($7.95), which included homemade cornbread.

The restaurant only had one other couple in there at two in the afternoon, so we practically had the small place to ourselves. I was surprised at how non-interested the servers were with being good hosts. We were shown our table and then the order taken, but other than that there was no other polite conversation. Actually, it felt like we didn’t belong there. After all, two obviously overweight people coming into a health food restaurant, which serves nothing unhealthy, they were probably wondering what our motives were. Maybe they thought we had planned to sneak some beef or pork inside.

Ok – after reading all this so far you’re wondering how the food was. The organic lemonade that was poured from a bottle purchased at Whole Foods tasted weird. Not bitter, not sweet.. Neither my wife or I couldn’t place the taste, but it certainly wasn’t what we’re accustomed to. The chili was decent, and I wouldn’t complain about it. It was a classic vegetarian chili with the typical seasoning. I only had a couple bites of it, as my conquest was the burger.  The cornbread said it was homemade, but it was a little bit softer than a rock. 

The burger came open-faced served on a wheat bun with some almond rice on the side. At first glance, it looked pretty good. To say they were generous with the guacamole is an understatement as the guacamole glob was almost the same size as the burger. My first bite was interesting to say the least. I wasn’t expecting the taste of beef but maybe my mouth was. I’m glad the guacamole was on there so that I had something good to taste. I had a few bites and each bite became harder and harder to eat. Could the food actually be getting worse? Maybe not, maybe that was the sign my taste buds had had enough. This was absolutely the worst burger I’d ever eaten and I would never order one again. Being that I have never eaten a veggie burger before and this was considered the best veggie burger around, I don’t…. I won’t try any others. It was just gross and nasty and it took everything in me to concentrate and finish it. (didn’t want to waste my $10.95)

First Impression – 6/10

Service – 4/10

Menu – 6/10

Food – 2/10

Overall – 4.5/10
Would I return? No way. The service didn’t warrant any special return and the food certainly did not impress.  Maybe a true vegiarian or heath food eater would be better at reviewing this place, but a true carnivore doesn't belong here!

Alexander's Restaurant

Alexander's Restaurant

Four Points by Sheraton
1050 Schooner Drive
Ventura, CA  93001

(805) 658-1212

First Impression - 6/10

Alexander’s is located inside the Four Points by Sheraton Hotel at the Ventura Harbor. The restaurant is self-proclaimed a steak and seafood restaurant and they did have steak, seafood, burgers and entrée salads on the menu.  I understand Alexander’s used to be at another location in the harbor; The atmosphere of the restaurant still felt like a hotel though. It may have been the openness of the dining room (felt like a hotel banquet room due to the size of the room,) the high and undecorated ceilings or it could have been that our food was served with those standard metal covers that almost every hotel uses. Regardless, the fireplace was a nice touch but there really isn’t a coziness about the restaurant.

Service - 9/10

The service was great. We always had full beverages and we were offered a refill on the bread and butter that was brought to the table while we waiting for our meal.  They were friendly, helpful about the menu and just overall willing to make your experince a good one.

Menu - 8/10

The restaurant is self-proclaimed a steak and seafood restaurant and they did have steak, seafood, burgers and entrée salads on the menu.   Nothing on the menu seemed unique or special to this area, but all the items were tastfully described.

Food - 9/10

For lunch, I ordered the Chipotle Chicken Wrap ($10.95) and my wife ordered the Cobb Salad ($12.95.) The wrap was served cut in half and with french fries; it was very appetizing to the eye. My first bite into it revealed an abundant amount of chicken, lettuce and cheddar cheese with some added flavor of a chipotle ranch dressing. The dressing wasn’t too overpowering, adding just the right amount of chipotle flavor which made the wrap spiced a touch above mild, but certainly not spicy. I was impressed that every bite of the wrap all the way to the bottom had chicken in it. Some wraps I’ve had before have most of the meat in the middle but not steadily throughout. The french fries were criss-cut fries and perfectly done, not fried to a crisp but not soft either. My wife’s Cobb Salad looked wonderful (and she said it was wonderful!)

Overall - 8/10

Would I return? Yes. I wouldn’t call this my favorite restaurant in town, but the food we had was quite good. Walking into a hotel lobby to eat just felt a little unusal, but never the less – I’d recommend anyone looking for standard fare at average prices to come here.