Kalaveras Is Muy Bueno

Kalaveras

122 E. Commonwealth, Fullerton

5 Scoops of Bosco

Reviewed By Allen Bacon, Bosco Fullerton

I have to admit, when I first passed the Mexican restaurant Kalaveras, I was a little intimidated by the El Dia De Muerto imagery.  

As a wanna be Graphic Artist, I was intrigued, but a little scared at the same time.  I think it is because when I was growing up, when you saw an image of a skull on anything, that was usually not a good thing.

That slight fear quickly went away the minute I stepped into Kalaveras.  This is because you are suddenly immersed in the festive vibrant colors, music, sights and sounds of celebration of the traditional El Dia De Muerto. 

That is all well and good, but would it pass the taste test?  

My wife and I have a very simple test when we eat at a Mexican Restaurant for the first time. We order a Molcajete and for dessert we order a flan with a coffee.

Don't let the fact that the folks at Kalaveras call their Molcajete a Parrillada and serve it on a flat cast iron skillet as opposed to a cast iron bowl throw you off.

Their take on the Parrillada (Molcajete) is a wonderful mix of marinated steak, chicken breast, shrimp, chorizo, quesso fresco, and Toreado Pepper seasoned to near perfection.

The flan we had for dessert was also very well done.  Great texture with caramel and strawberries, garnished with mint.  The coffee? Folgers Classic.

We can't wait to go back and try the rest of the food on the Kalaveras menu.

FUHS SOFTBALL WINS STATE CHAMPIONSHIP

Story by Allen Bacon, BOSCO Fullerton

Photo Cred: Dan Albano, OC Varsity

Fullerton High Softball upset Number One Seeded Otay Ranch High School 7-0 on Saturday afternoon to claim the school's first CIF Southern California Region State Division III Championship.  

Fullerton High School's last CIF Softball Championship was in the Southern Section in 1994. FUHS also won a Southern Section Championship in 1984.

The game was played in San Diego County at the home field of Otay Ranch.

Freshman pitcher Malaya Marjam-Finch (21-5) pitched a two hit complete game shutout and struck out five Otay Ranch hitters in the victory. 

It was Marjam-Finch's fifth shutout of the postseason. 

The Tribe scored two in the fourth, four in the fifth and added a run in the seventh for their seven runs.  

The offensive explosion was led by Freshman Melia Vera and Junior Ava Paquin who both went 3 for 4 and had 3 RBI each on the afternoon. Junior Zoey Bautista went 2 for 4 on the afternoon to round out the Fullerton offense.

The Indians finished the regular season third in an extremely competitive Freeway League but swept through the first four rounds of the CIF Southern Section Division 4-A Tournament on the strength of Marjam-Finch's pitching, stellar team defense and an explosive team offense that was in peak form during the Southern Section Tournament. 

In the Postseason The Tribe outscored their opponents  by a combined score of 34-10 with shutout wins in five of the 8 games.

This season the CIF previously decided that the Southern California Champion will not be playing against the Northern California Champion for a Statewide championship.

FUHS Softball Plays for State Championship

Story By Allen Bacon, BOSCO Fullerton

Photo Cred: Tom Connolly, OC Sports Zone

Fullerton High School Softball exploded for six runs in the first inning and then held off a rally by Mater Dei Catholic of Chula Vista to win 6-4 in a CIF State Semi-Final.  The game was played Thursday June 1 at Fullerton High Softball Park.

With the win, the Tribe will play for a CIF State Championship for the first time in school history on Saturday June 3.  

FUHS won a CIF Southern Section Championship in 1984.

Freshman Mayala Marjam-Finch (20-5) was the winning pitcher.

The Indians finished third in an extremely competitive Freeway League but swept through the first four rounds of the CIF Southern Section Division 4-A Tournament on the strength of Marjam-Finch's pitching, stellar team defense and an explosive team offense that was in peak form during the Southern Section Tournament. 

In the Postseason The Tribe have outscored their opponents  by a combined score of 27-10 with shutout wins in four games.

The State Championship game will be played at the home of number one seed Otay Ranch.  First Pitch is 2 PM.  The game will be streamed on the NFHS Network.  Link is in our sidebar in the Fullerton TV/Radio/Podcast section 

The Tribe have an overall mark of 25-7 going into the State Championship game

The Keto-Friendly Confines of the Alt Kafe

The Keto Alternative

Fullerton, California

5 Scoops of Bosco

Editors Note:  The Alt Cafe closed on August 1.  However, Cody Round's Food Prep Service Club Keto and The Keto Alternative, is alive and well.  Ordering online is available and Cody will be rolling out a new Vending Machine option soon.

Reviewed by Allen Bacon, BOSCO Fullerton

One of the challenges of adopting the Low Carb/low sugar/Keto lifestyle is finding good places to eat that support the lifestyle.  

I personally have adopted the mind-set that I can go in to any restaurant or diner and modify a menu to fit my low carb, low sugar lifestyle.  Over the years, I have gotten pretty darn good at it.  I am kind of proud of myself.

Except bakeries.  It's extremely hard to do Low Carb, low sugar or Keto in a bakery.  And I have always loved bakeries.

When I go to a bakery. I usually end up getting coffee. Black.  All the while taking in the wonderful bakery aroma.

All this menu modification can be mentally exhausting.  I really don't want to work that hard at it.  I have other important things to do.  Like eating.

So, I was thrilled to discover a few weeks back as I was on my walk of a section of the historic and iconic El Camino Real (AKA Harbor Blvd.)  through my hometown of Fullerton a quaint new diner, The Alt Kafe, The Keto Alternative. 

The Alt Kafe is actually a half block west from the El Camino Real (Harbor Blvd) on Chapman Avenue in Fullerton but totally worth the diversion from the walk.  I was already walking anyway.  So an extra half a block wasn't going to kill me.  But I digress.

The first time I went to the Alt Kafe, I was fortunate enough to run into Cody Rounds, the owner and chef.  Cody is originally from South Carolina so he has this infectious Southern Hospitality vibe which spreads to his entire staff.  So I fell instantly in like with Cody and his team.

The food is absolutely delicious.  All the items I have eaten so far are winners.  Cody has been involved with the keto lifestyle for a while and has been doing food prep and catering (and continues to have a thriving food prep service called the Keto Alternative) his Keto-Friendly fare before he opened up the Kafe as a brick and mortar.  He has crafted a wonderful menu to choose from.  He has been tweaking the menu at the Kafe ever since he opened in February so the original menu is evolving weekly.  Check online to see the latest offerings. The website is www.theketoalternative.com/alt-cafe but they are also on all the social media platforms as well.

So far I have tried and enjoyed the following: 

The Ollie Burger. A beef burger with pimento cheese, bacon and pickles usually on a low carb bun although I had this as a lettuce wrap. 

The Western Burger,  which is a beef burger with pepper jack pimento cheese, grilled jalapenos, bacon, spicy comeback sauce on a keto bun. 

Alt Kafe's take on the Nashville Hot Chicken sandwich is my favorite so far.  It is a  chicken breast  breaded in pork rinds and parmesan cheese with Nashville hot sauce topped with slaw and pickles.  Spoiler alert on the Nashville hot sauce.  It is very hot.  I wisely took it on the side.

Other items on the current menu include the Sammy (A crispy seared 6 ounce filet of salmon served over a veggie risotto made from mushrooms, cauliflower and spinach). My server on the return trip told me this along with the Thai Chicken Salad, Nashville Nuggies and Nashville-Cali Mac are the most popular items right now.

I mentioned earlier my love of bakeries and the challenge of eating low carb, low sugar bakery and dessert items in a diner or restaurant.   Alt Kafe comes to the rescue with a wide array of delicious Keto-friendly, low carb dessert and bakery options. My favorite so far are all of the scones, a Red Velvet Cheese cake as well as a German Chocolate cake.

Breakfast is served every Saturday morning and the breakfast menu includes a Western Omelette,  Biscuits and Sausage Gravy, and Bacon, Egg and Cheese Sandwich.

Enjoy.