Hozy's Grill

Gary:       Good Morning. Ok, so we took a week off; shoot us. We both had issues to take care of and since we both have real jobs during the week, there isn't much time left during the week to take care of stuff. So we were back at it this weekend and even had our friend, Rob, join us.  I was looking forward to this day of riding and eating and got up real early to wipe down my bike from Friday's light drizzle and wait for Rob to meet me at my house. After Friday’s weather, I did something that amused Hope; I called her and asked her what the weather was like in Fillmore because if it was going to be the same on Saturday we would have to rethink our plans for the day. Now I know I have given her shit about the 'weather report' in the past but I have to eat some humble pie here and tell you that the weather on Friday in Fillmore (which was sunny) was totally different than in Northridge (June gloom). But on Saturday 'June gloom' had reached Fillmore. It figures.

Hope:    Once again, Mother Nature seems to playing tricks with the weather, as its nice and warm during the week but come the weekend, June gloom sets in and you can’t tell whether the clouds are going to give way to rain or sunshine. Despite the predicted 58% humidity, we decided to try a new place and see what the day offered. Today, we decided (well, I decided) to try Hozy’s Grill in Santa Paula. Mind you, it’s only a quick 10-mile ride from Fillmore, so we decided to make our way to Ventura afterward to enjoy some of the beautiful agricultural sights and smells along the way.

 Gary:  Well, you have to remember when Hope says that 'she's decided' on where to go I am at a bit of a disadvantage. We keep riding in an area she is totally familiar with because she lives there. I live in 'the Valley' and since we have tried the 'experiment' of going to 'civilization' for one ride (and that ain't happening again), I do rely on her for this part. Plus my job is picking up the check, so it is the least she can do. LOL…

Since our quest for quality food is something we both desire, I trust her to find that 'right spot' for all of us. I do have a few places in mind for us to venture out to but so far, the weather has not been on our side.

Hope:    If I’m not mistaken, the plan was for Gary to be at my house at 10:00, but we all know how much he enjoys being late, so at 10:30, he arrived and we started our day. I’m sure he’ll blame his tardiness on our friend Rob, but don’t believe him. Despite the fact that Gary wakes up early has nothing to do with his arrival time. He just moves slow; I guess that’s just what happens when you get old…lol…

Gary:       Listen, getting old is something I never expected to happen, especially the way I lived my life for the first 42 years, so Hope can make fun of me all she wants, I am just grateful for waking up, never mind moving fast. Rob and I arrived @ 10:10 AM (her clock is a bit fast) and I will not 'blame' Rob but he was certainly in on it.

Hope:    So, we pull out of Fillmore and in the blink of an eye, we arrived in the parking lot of Hozy’s. When I told Gary to make a left-hand turn into Hallock, he looked at me with that, “are you crazy” kind of look, and for good reason; Hozy’s is nestled in the middle of a non-descript industrial complex with no other signs of life. Hozy’s is the kind of place that no one knows about unless you’re a local or someone goes out of their way to tell you about it and so far, it seems to be a pretty well-kept secret and quite a surprise. Upon walking in, you are met with bright and colorful walls of yellow and orange decorated with an abundance of car and truck-related racing pictures and posters. The interior is very contemporary and fresh flowers are also a highlight and offer a beautiful touch to an already pretty interior.

Gary:       Hope is right, I thought, where the hell are we going? To have breakfast at a roach coach? This place is a well hidden secret and a very pleasant surprise. I loved the colors of this place with it being orange and yellow. Orange is the color of my club patch so I felt immediately at home. This place is also spotless. Of all the places we have been to, this place has to be the cleanest. Even the restrooms were totally sanitized. There must be someone coming in right after you’re done to clean up because when I went in, it looked as if no one had used it. The only thing missing was an attendant. The parking here is also very good so if you bring along your biker friends parking will not be an issue.

With it being in an industrial area and off the beaten path, there was nice crowd of people in the cafe. I would imagine it was all repeat customers because all the businesses close by appeared closed for the weekend. That gave me a hint of how the food was going to be. If people are willing to come here on a Saturday, out of their way, into nowhere land, then there must be something here that gets them back.

 Hope:    Despite our history of saddling up to the counter, we had a friend join us today, so we opted for a large corner booth and started with tea (for me) and coffee (for the boys). By 11:00 am, we were given a choice of breakfast or lunch and had a hard time deciding between the two but hey—this is Breakfast for Bikers, not Lunch for Bikers, so you know which menu grabbed our attention! I ordered Canadian bacon and eggs, my eggs scrambled with jack cheese and onions. I also had homefries (thick-sliced potatoes cooked with onions), and an English muffin. The Canadian bacon was sliced thick and very, very tasty. Hozy’s also offers fresh seasonal preserves, today’s being cinnamon peach. Rob ordered French toast that looked mighty scrumptious, scrambled eggs and bacon. Breakfast was served in no time at all and was absolutely delicious. I asked Rob how he enjoyed his breakfast and then noticed that he polished off every morsel of food on his plates; I take that as a sign that he enjoyed it all. I think it’s safe to say that Hozy’s Grill just earned an “Off the Charts” review.

Gary:       I did miss sitting at the counter because that is where you see all the action in the kitchen and watch the servers coming and going. We have had our most memorable meals at counters and for me it was like something was out of place, but the food made up for it. I had my usual of corned beef hash and eggs with sourdough toast and country potatoes. I really liked the potatoes because they were sliced like fat potato chips with fresh onions and cooked to perfection. The hash was not the best I have ever eaten but very good and the eggs were right on, cooked over easy and very fresh. Added with the toast are fresh peach preserves in a little cup which was excellent. The coffee is very good and they kept it coming. So, I am in agreement with Hope on this place. It gets an "Off the Charts" rating.

Hope:    Hozy’s uses fresh ingredients, much of which is locally grown. Their organic tomatoes are some of the tastiest tomatoes I’ve ever eaten in my life, as are their homemade fruit preserves. Hozy’s is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner and offers a few breakfast specials that are only served on weekends only (Eggs Benedict).

Since it wasn't much of a ride to get to breakfast, we opted to visit downtown Ventura afterward, taking Cummings and Foothill through the avocado, orange, lemon, and strawberry fields. When we arrived at Palermo’s, we treated ourselves to some yummy sorbetto and enjoyed the people watching and sights. The ride home on Telegraph and Harvard, offered a picture-perfect view of the mountains and lots of flowers where ever the eye could see. What a great day! You’re in for a big surprise if you visit Hozy’s…

On a side note, Gary and I have previous engagements that will keep us from checking out new places to eat and ride for all of you, but rest assured, we’ll be back the weekend of July 9^th. If you live in the Southern California area, Fillmore is one of the only places where you can purchase legal fireworks and booths will soon pop up all over the 126 (It is illegal to take them out of the city limits). On the 4^th, Fillmore events include our annual antique car show and chili cook-off as well as fireworks display. However you chose to celebrate, make sure it’s a safe one…

Hozy’s Grill, 1760 E. Lemonwood Drive, Santa Paula, CA 93060                                         805.525.1068         or             http://www.hozysgrill.com/                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

 

 

Cajun Kitchen Cafe

Gary:     Good Morning everyone. Well, this weekend was a whirlwind of activity and it flew by. Hope and I were busy from Friday night right up until Sunday afternoon when we both decided we had had enough and needed to get some well-earned rest for the week ahead. But we did ride on Sunday and again, in spite of this insane weather we are having in Southern California. After a long Friday which included working a Hollywood Trade Show called Cinegear at Paramount Studios and a business dinner that Hope and I attended until the wee hours of the night, I was back at the trade show on Saturday until 6 p.m. When I got home, I took a shower and immediately went into a coma on the couch. I woke up long enough to drag myself to bed.  When I came to on Sunday it was very early (for me, mind you), so I just made some coffee, got ready, got on my bike and left for Fillmore.

Guess who I surprised? Yep, Hope said to me upon arriving,” I knew you were going to do this to me” as she was still in her PJ’s. LOL. Since I am never in a rush it was not a big deal, plus I got to have some of her fresh off-the-tree orange juice, which is just so damn tasty and it’s a good way for her to shut me up while she gets ready.

Hope:    After a long and exhausting Friday and Saturday (not to mention Monday through Thursday), I wasn’t sure if I was going to have enough energy to make it to Sunday, but here we are..and I’m hungry. It was already about 8:10 am and I hadn’t yet heard from Gary, so I sent him a text and then left a voice mail message and figured he was either stuck in the bathroom or already on his way up to Fillmore without calling me first. A few minutes later, I heard his bike pull into the driveway, so I sent the dogs out to greet him and then followed, despite the fact that I was still in my jammies!!!

Gary:     We had some stuff to go over this Sunday morning so we wanted a place that would afford us some quiet and nice scenery. Hope had remembered this place called Eric Ericssons on the beach in Ventura so we decided on that. She didn’t remember if they served breakfast or not so I got on the internet (from a phone; I am still not used to that) and I checked. Their website claimed that they just started serving breakfast and it’s from 8:30 am to 11:00 am. Ok cool, we are set and Hope gets ready in about 10 minutes, (she is the fastest chick I have ever been with getting ready) and off on our bikes we go. This is where the tale gets interesting. Since my patience was very thin (being around too many people does this to both of us) I will let her tell you about the next part of this in fear of getting myself all pissed off again at stupid rules that make no fucking sense.

Hope:    While Gary entertained my four pooches and enjoyed some fresh orange juice from my own orange trees, I threw myself together and was out warming up my bike in under 10 minutes! Gary had this great idea to visit a restaurant at the beach, so I gave him the name of the only one I know of in Ventura and he did his magic on his i-phone and informed me that Eric Ericcson’s now serves breakfast. I expressed my surprise (and trepidation), but we fired up the bikes and headed to the beach. We exited the 101 at Sanjon and made our way to the beach parking lot where we were informed it would cost $10 EACH to park the bikes. Trying to reason with the mindless twit at the booth by telling him we would share one parking space was a waste of time, effort, and energy, and we were met with the same asinine stupidity that sometimes precedes “postal” behavior. We pulled away and headed to a nearby parking structure where we were informed we could park for $2.00 with validation from the restaurant. So, we park, walk to the pier, and are met with a sign on the front door of Eric Ericcson’s, “We are closed.” What the fuck??? The prices of their food are reason enough to sometimes avoid this place, but now add nightmare parking, and they’re not even open? Why advertise on your website that breakfast hours are 8:30-11:00 if you aren’t open at that hour. I think it may be a frosty day in hell before I try to give them anymore of my business.

So, then the big question of the morning becomes, “Where do we eat?” We’re close to Pete’s, Allison’s, Busy Bee, Vagabond, and the Cajun Kitchen Café, the latter being the only restaurant we haven’t yet tried. Mind you, one of the reasons we were hesitant to visit the Cajun Kitchen Café is because it is a chain; with 5 or 6 other locations, but this place does not seem anything like a ‘chain’. So, a quick right onto California Street and left onto Main Street, and we parked the bikes. There was already a small crowd in front of the restaurant, so we give our names and opt for a table (the counter is first-come, first-served). We grabbed a menu and joined the other patrons outside. Their breakfast menu covers several pages with a few specials on the board.  There are the regular breakfast items-pancakes, eggs, omelets, and quite a few vegetarian offerings, but what really got my attention was the blackened catfish, redfish (snapper), salmon, and chicken as well as boneless pork chops Benedict, jambalaya, gumbo, 5 different types of sausage, and etouffe. And then I knew I was in trouble!

I have such fond memories of Cajun food from my motorcycle trip around the country where I had the wonderful experience of stopping in Iowa, Louisiana in a serious rain storm where I decided to strip down to my boxers and a wifebeater to do laundry. The restaurant next door offered ’The Crawfish Special” which consisted or crawfish boulette, boiled crawfish, crawfish jambalaya, crawfish rice, and crawfish etouffee. I literally overdosed on every offering of crawfish and I still love the meaty little mud bugs! This morning, I opted for a fillet of blackened catfish (I thought crawfish etouffee would be a bit too heavy for breakfast), scrambled, eggs, grits, and cornbread.

Gary:     When we finally arrived at the Cajun Cafe I was finally calmed down enough to just enjoy the day with Hope. This place was a pleasant surprise to me. It really doesn’t look like much from the street but when you walk in, it all changes. We had to wait about 10 minutes for a booth so we just hung out and read the menu. Even after reading it beforehand, we still couldn’t make up our minds when we sat down because the waitress kept bringing food to other tables that all looked so good. After much deliberation I decided on the ‘breakfast’ Jambalaya with over easy eggs on top. After taking about three bites, Hope reminded me that this has shrimp in it. What the hell was I thinking, I forgot this has shrimp and I am extremely allergic to shrimp. Damn it. I was about to give it a try anyway, but realized how stupid that would be. My face turns the color red with big bumps on it. If you have ever seen the movie ‘Hitched’ and remember what Will Smith looked like, that is me. LOL.

Hope:    After they served Gary his jambalaya, I tried a bit and then asked him if he was still allergic to shrimp, since the bowl was filled with them. “Ooops,” was his answer…so we pushed the bowl of jambalaya to my side of the table and he ordered the etouffee. I don’t understand why he can eat crawfish but not shrimp, but well, there are a lot of things I don’t understand about Gary so this is just one more for the list…lol…

I decided to dive into my breakfast, but had to first poke around the bowl of jambalaya and found it to be thick like a stew and filled with rice, chicken, sausage and LOTS of yummy shrimp. Its spicy, so if you're whimpy, sensitive, or afraid of living on the edge, this is NOT the menu item for you. It will make your nose run and beads of sweat form on your brow... and you will love every bite of it!!

Gary:     Ok, so there was this guy at another table that ordered the Crayfish Etouffee that looked just outstanding so that is what I wound up with and to go with it, I also ordered some Louisiana hotlinks and cornbread. What a f’in meal. I was so stuffed that I couldn’t finish it and not because I didn’t want to. It was a huge portion of food that makes your taste buds ignore your stomach. The result is, you can’t breathe properly. LOL. The coffee was great, the service was outstanding with smiling people everywhere. You can either sit inside at a booth, counter or table. They have a back room with beautiful art work on it, or you can enjoy a beautiful day on the patio out back. This place has it all and like I said, unless you look, you wouldn’t know it. This place for me was ‘Off the Charts’ good.

Hope:    My breakfast was fabulous! The fish was fresh and flavorful, the (huge helping of) grits were covered with melted butter and the cornbread was right out of the oven. And I enjoyed my eggs covered with the jambalaya Gary couldn’t eat!  After we couldn’t eat anymore, I packed up the rest of my fish with the jambalaya and a healthy portion of grits, vowing to have another wonderful breakfast tomorrow!

The Cajun Kitchen Café offers an abundance of menu items and the accommodating staff is flexible in serving you anything on their menu, even if it’s a dinner item for breakfast! They have the front dining area (about 8 or 9 booths, a dozen tables, and a small counter), a small rear dining area, and an outdoor patio area in back. The décor is simple and tasteful, staff is friendly and accommodating, and it’s a great neighborhood find. Truth be told, I’m glad they have more than one location, so I can add it to my travel list when I find myself north of the Ventura area. The Cajun Kitchen Café was indeed OFF THE CHARTS… My only regret was that I didn’t have room for dessert…lol…

Cajun Kitchen Cafe                                                                                             301 East Main Street                                                                                          Ventura, CA 93001                                                                           805.643.7701

 

Ojai Cafe Emporium

Gary:   Good Morning everyone. We didn’t get to ride on Saturday because we both had to catch up on the domestic shit that sits there while we toil out there in the real world during the week. So Sunday, I woke up hungry, rested and ready to go. I walked outside at 7 am to get the paper and noticed that the pavement was wet. What? Not again, not more rain but when I looked up at the sky the clouds were moving away and revealing a clear blue sky and I smiled and said to myself, ‘Not today mother nature, not today’. As I was just getting my shoes on the phone text beep is going off. Guess who? You’re right, my lovely riding partner informing me that we are changing the venue for the day to brighten up the adventure. We are going to add a bit of culture to our day of eating and riding. For a crusty old biker like me, a little culture could mean many things, but I will keep it clean. LOL

Hope:   Despite the no-so-great weather forecast, we decided to once again brave the anticipated elements, get on our scoots, and venture to Ojai (pronounced O-Hi)  for some good food and culture. Being that it was Memorial Day weekend, we weren’t sure if the roads and restaurants would be deserted or insanely crowded, but that only added to the adventure. We were originally thinking of visiting a Mexican restaurant in Oxnard, but since there was an art show in Ojai, we opted for the latter... I thought it would be an added bonus to enjoy the local event(s) in whatever town we visit.

Gary:   As I was riding up to Fillmore the weather was getting better and better. The sun was shining, the air was crisp and cool which seems to make everything so much ‘clearer’. I love riding in this type of weather. You breathe deep and it just makes you feel alive. I was very content this morning because I was doing what I love to do and I was doing it with my favorite woman on the planet. Even riding the 5 freeway was an Ok putt because the traffic was very light so I was able to move along at a brisk 85mph. Also, no matter how many times I ride the 126, I totally enjoy it. With all the rain that Southern California has received this year, all the hillsides are green, green and more green. You throw in some native flowers along the roadside and you have an award winning picture right in front of your eyes. As I arrive at Hope’s, she is warming up her bike and is ready to go. She must be hungry.

Hope:   The ride to Ojai was a fast and furious one, taking the 126 to the 101 to the 33, and then winding through the sleepy little town of Oak View and into Ojai. The Ojai Cafe Emporium is planted on a non-descript street lined with local artists’ galleries and offers plenty of street parking as well as their own parking lot. Upon giving our names at the entrance on the patio, we were greeted with the warm smile of the hostess and an abundance of colorful flowers in bloom. In past visits, I’ve encountered up to a 25 minute wait, but this morning was a mere 2 minutes before choosing a table on their large outdoor patio. The Ojai Cafe Emporium also offers two indoor seating rooms, both offering beautiful paintings from local artisans (displayed artwork changes every 3 months). Their outdoor patio also has an abundance of heaters and an electric awning that covers sections of the patio, if needed.

We were promptly greeted by a server offering drinks, mentioning that the restaurant offers three types of coffee; house blend, dark blend, or vanilla. You know that put an immediate smile on Gary’s face! As we began to look at the menu, we realized we were in for some serious problems as both of us identified several things that we wanted to order. I opted for a bacon, onion, and Ortega chili omelet with guacamole, rose potatoes (their amazing version of home fries), and an English muffin. While waiting for our food, we rubbernecked every time a server walked by displaying the amazing selection they offer. There were huge waffles slathered in whipped cream and strawberries, egg-white omelets topped with avocado and tomato, plates of bacon and sausage, big fluffy pancakes, and a variety of muffins and scones.

Gary:   I was totally overwhelmed at first by the smiling face of the hostess who seated us promptly, and secondly, by the smiling face of the waiter wanting to know what blend of coffee I wanted. We have been to many cafes in the past few months and this was the first time I was offered a choice of coffee. What a great way to start. I chose the ‘dark blend’ because I enjoy coffee that is strong and very rich in flavor. I was not disappointed because this coffee was excellent. We both joked that I would be shaking for the rest of the day from an OD of caffeine but who cares, it would be worth it. As it turns out, I didn’t shake for the rest of the day but it definitely helped in the walking department. Since we wanted to try a variety of their breakfast food, we each picked an omelet. Hope helped me decide (wink, wink) on the portabella omelet with Swiss cheese and I also wanted the rose potatoes with my usual sourdough toast.

Hope:   The first to arrive was our warmed blueberry muffin (that came with the spinach and provolone cheese quiche). I’m a big fan of blueberry muffins, but I already knew from past experiences that they make theirs with oats and while they are tasty and display a good amount of juicy berries, they’re a bit too dense for me. No worries... Gary promptly inhaled it like it was the only morsel of food we would be receiving!

Gary:   I was very happy with Hope’s decision not to have any of this very tasty muffin (although she did taste it, in case it changed from her last visit) because I had no problem eating this myself with some fresh butter spread on it. It was real butter too, not that fake stuff. If breakfast ended there, I would have been totally happy because with this great coffee and yummy muffin, who cares what happens next...but it gets better.

Hope:   Shortly thereafter, the rest of our smorgasbord arrived and it took every bit of self-control to take pictures before diving in. First, we tried the quiche...a wonderful blend of spinach and tasty provolone cheese served with a bowl of fresh fruit (golden pineapple, honeydew, cantaloupe and strawberries). Truth be told, if I didn’t have my own plate of food in front of my now salivating mouth, I would have inhaled the quiche in its entirety. My omelet was filled with yummy ingredients and melted in my mouth. The potatoes were seasoned to perfection with red onions and peppers (and were so tasty that I decided to forego the ketchup) and my only regret was that I could only fit so much into my stomach!

Gary:   My omelet was absolutely wonderful. It was cooked perfect with the eggs being fluffy and filled with plenty of mushrooms and cheese. The potatoes, as Hope has said, didn’t need any help in the flavor department and the sourdough toast was like it was homemade bread (although I don’t think it is) and it was not overly buttered. The quiche, which is something that I would not normally order (real men don’t eat quiche is bullshit) was a meal in itself. It was really good and we both had no problem consuming its entirety. There was not a crumb left for even the birds to find and the fruit that came with it, especially the pineapple, was chilled, juicy and just great.

Hope:   The service was great; Kelly was a wonderful waitress and didn’t make fun of us for ordering three breakfasts. She checked on us regularly and made sure everything was perfect. From the outdoor patio, we sat along-side a beautiful purple flowering plant that only added to the experience. The restrooms are immaculate and have lots of personality. And, there is an adjacent coffee shop and bakery. After we gorged ourselves (something like that really should be illegal), the check arrived and much to our shock, it was the same price as most of the other places we’ve visited where we ordered only two entrees! Cool! The Ojai Emporium is a MUST!

We saddled up and rode a whopping three blocks and then spent the next 45 minutes viewing the local artwork displayed at Libby Park. We then headed to the Farmer’s Market and then to a new frozen yogurt shop for dessert.

Gary:   The art show was a really nice way to walk off that exceptional breakfast and get us ready for dessert. I could have spent the entire day looking at all of the local artist work. There were a vast variety of paintings, photos, and sculpture, with handmade jewelry and pottery. The Farmer’s Market is Ojai is a pretty large venue with all sorts of vegetables, fruits (dried and fresh) and nuts (raw or roasted), including organic varieties. There were musicians playing their guitars for some donations (some very good, some not so good) and it seemed everyone was having a great time. We bought some roasted almonds, dried fruit, a special blend of olive oil and hand made soap all from local farmers and vendors. How great is that? Then we went to the yogurt shop for some kiwi-strawberry and chocolate frozen yogurts. What a great day of riding and eating.

Hope:   Then we had the pleasure of winding our way through the mountains above Ojai Valley heading back toward Fillmore. The weather, while crisp, offered an abundance of sunshine and a lack of the usual weekend traffic. A great eating and riding adventure! The Ojai Cafe Emporium gets and “Off the Charts” rating, as it offers quality food and service, is large (two indoor dining areas as well as a full-sized outdoor patio, has gorgeous outdoor gardens, and beautiful artwork adorning the walls. This place is/was a well-kept secret...until now...We will definitely be looking forward to a return visit!!!!!!!

Ojai Cafe Emporium

108 S. Montgomery Street

Ojai, CA 93023

(805) 646-2723