Reviewed by Jeff Walker and Danny Walker

My Casual Dining Standard – Truxton’s American Bistro (Westchester)

Visited: Thursday night (3/20/08)
Locations: 185 Culver Blvd., Playa Del Rey, CA 90293-7659 (between Culver Place and Esplanade St.)(map)(link)

Solid, but unspectacular burgers cannot overcome a beach vibe that is too laid-back and results in long waits to get your food.

Deeper Insights:

The Shack isn’t as small and rundown as its name implies, but by no means is it a place for gourmet food or a trendy crowd. On the menu are a number of burgers and chicken sandwiches that come with a variety of tasty toppings. At a reasonable price, they are decent for a casual lunch or dinner with friends, but not ideal for your next hot date.

In fact, unless you’re going there for a few drinks (there is a full bar), karaoke or just have a lot of time to kill, you would best go when there is no crowd at all or simply stay away. On a Thursday night with an average-sized crowd, it took almost 30 minutes for diners to get their food. One pair of guys even waited that long for their potato skins.

Once finally getting the burger, it was filling and satisfying (albeit surprisingly lukewarm temperature-wise), but not worth such a long wait. The tiny kitchen could use an expansion, while the employees could use a bit of urgency. The relaxed beach atmosphere seeps its way through every bit of The Shack leaving it as a decent place after a day at the beach, but definitely not a destination spot.

Breakdown:

Attitude: Hang loose, chill out, watch some sports highlights and think about the size of the next day’s waves.

Bathroom: Tiny bathrooms in the back that can be reached by both the restaurant area and the patio. Men’s urinal is practically in the corner of the men’s room, meaning you may get hit by the door. Stall was serviceable, but there was no lock on the door – there is one on the main bathroom door if you want to try that for some privacy.

Condiments: Ketchup, mustard and Tabasco sauce on the tables.

Crowd: Laid-back locals ranging from twenty to fifty, with the occasional college kids.

Décor: Beach vibe – hanging surfboards, wood tables, and promotional posters that adorn the walls. In some ways, it represents its name well as far as feeling smaller and more cramped than it is and not having the sleekest environment.

Dress: Come as you are.

Drinks: Soda and water from dispenser (free refills). Beer and hard alcohol available from the bar. $12 for a pitcher of Newcastle that served a little under 4 pint glasses.

Hours: 11:30 a.m – 1:30 a.m.

Line: At 8:15 p.m. on a Thursday night, there were only two to three people ahead in line, but the wait for food was quite long given the lack of line.

Music: Sports broadcast played softly over the speakers.

Order to Service: 30 minutes to receive food. Sit at a table and wait for name to be called.

Parking: Limited street parking. Parking available in nearby strip mall lot and a hidden lot next to the strip mall.

Payment Options: All major credit cards accepted.

People Watching: Unique crowd of locals that doesn’t provide a great pick-up opportunity unless you’re drunk, older or find a night when more co-eds show up.

Reservations: None.

Seating: A half dozen or so tables in the front seating area with another half dozen (including booths) further back. Seating also available at the bar and along a counter against the wall.

Service: Cashier was friendly, but was also forced to help in the kitchen when they got very behind on the orders. It took the busboy 10 minutes to clear off our table. The staff was unflappable under the face of pressure, but seemed to take much longer cooking the burgers than they should have. A larger kitchen would probably help solve this.

Smoking: Patio on the left upon first entering.

Take-out: Yes.

TVs: About a dozen TVs visible from the bar and the tables.

Water: Free in dispenser.

What We Ate:

Kelsey Burger (1/4 burger, Swiss cheese, bacon, avocado, BBQ sauce served with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, and mayo on a sesame seed bun): The burger was supposed to be medium, but came out medium-well and not as warm as desired. Despite the extra crispness, the meat still had a nice flavor to it. The bacon was not as fatty and limp as a lot of places serve it, while the avocado was fresh and decently portioned. The combination of ingredients made for a good burger, but definitely an unmemorable one. $7.25

The Shack Burger (1/4 burger, Louisiana Hot Link on top, served with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, and mayo on a sesame seed bun): The signature burger provides a decent meal, but overall uninspired. The hot links are moderately spicey but nothing that most people wouldn’t be able to handle. $6.00

Added French Fries: $1.25 with Burger

Tip: Get $1 off burgers on Tuesday nights.

Reviewed by Steven Frith

My Comedy Movie Standard – Old School

Viewed on: 2/25 and again on 2/29

Sticking to the formula of “Will Ferrell as ________,” this comedy about the final season of the ABA, while not a classic, is still a comedy that will make you laugh.

Starring: Will Ferrell, Woody Harrelson, Andre Benjamin (aka Andre 3000 from Outkast), Andy Richter and Maura Tierney

Rating/Length: R / 1 hour 30 minutes

Directed By: Kent Alterman (no major previous direction that I could find)

Written By: Scot Armstrong (Old School, Road Trip, The Heartbreak Kid)

Synopsis: Former one hit wonder musician, Jackie Moon, is the owner, coach, and player of the soon-to-be defunct American Basketball Association’s Flint (Michigan) Tropics. In order to survive as a team and make the move to the NBA, the Tropics find out midseason that they must escape from last place and finish in the top 4 of the league. Madness and antics (as only a Will Ferrell movie can do) ensue.

Review:

Honest Opinion: Semi-Pro was exactly what I expected - Will Ferrell bringing his offbeat, random comedy back to the 70’s as in Anchorman. But unlike Anchorman (as well as Old School), Semi-Pro fails to live up to the comedy expectations that many now expect of Ferrell. However, I do have to say that this was much better then both Blades of Glory and Kicking and Screaming.

The biggest difference between Anchorman or Old School and Semi-Pro may have been the main supporting cast. Woody Harrelson and Andre 3000 are just not the first guys I would think of to have in a comedy. I’m not saying either did a bad job, but they just didn’t bring the laughs as much as you would like for a movie like this. Other Will Ferrell regulars make appearances throughout the movie, but none have what you would consider a significant part. All that being said, I did laugh my ass off during most of the movie and there are plenty of one-liners for you and your drunk friends to recite.

On a side note, making this movie R-rated probably hurt it in the box-office more than anything. They obviously threw some cussing in there because they could, but (even though I know it can) it didn’t really help the movie this time. The movie would have still been just as funny had they made the movie fit in the PG-13 rating. That way, all the 15 year-old-boys (who Ferrell’s comedy seems to appeal to the most) would be able to see it in theatres without parental permission.

Directing: Directing a comedy shouldn’t be that hard, I (without any experience I will admit) would think that in a movie like this, it is a matter of not screwing it up more than doing a good job. By not screwing up, Alterman did a good enough job to let Will Ferrell do his thing and kept what story there was moving.

Writing: I’ve always wondered how much of Will Ferrell movies are written and how much of it is improvised. There were obviously scenes that were written and Armstrong can make you laugh by himself as well. As far as the story goes, there wasn’t much of one, but it at least kept you interested enough to see what would happen next. No major plot turns to speak of, and nothing overly creative (although I did like what Jackie dreamt for in the final game).

Acting: I thought the acting was fine. I feel like some of the characters (such as Woody Harrelson and most of the basketball team) were miscast. While Harrelson was fantastic as a comedic actor in Kingpin, he just didn’t have “it” in this movie. I don’t know if it was because he’s older, just doesn’t fit in this type of comedy, or what – but he just seemed awkward. Andre 3000 was just okay, but I think he actually would have fit better had someone else been there to play Harrelson’s character. I needed more comedy from one of those two characters. Maybe the casting director was just trying to find guys that could actually play basketball as Woody and Andre 3000 are known to be able to do.

Music: I actually really enjoyed the soundtrack. There were a lot of fun 70’s songs if you like the Earth Wind and Fire, War, and Ohio Player hits. I also really liked and actually downloaded Will Ferrell’s (or should I say Jackie Moon’s) song from the movie. It had a surprisingly catchy beat and is pretty funny, check it out on iTunes.

To Quote the Movie: “In the anals of history, people are going to be talking about three things: the discovery of fire, invention of the submarine, and the Flint, Michigan Mega Bowl.” – Jackie Moon

Verdict: DEPENDS – If you like Will Ferrell movies, it is worth the $10 price of admission. If you didn’t really like any of his old ones, this movie isn’t going to convert you, so go ahead and wait for DVD.