As a lover of all things Southern, I was more than a little intrigued when I heard that a new Southern restaurant recently opened in Orange County. Southern food and GOOD southern food even more so, is a rarity in our lovely county but with the opening of Gram's Kitchen in La Palma this culinary injustice may soon be rectified!
Upon entering you'll be greeted with a warm ambiance, lots of unique stuff to inspect including the owner's grandfather's old record collection framed on the walls. if you come on a Saturday, you might also notice the live jazz playing in the corner - which was the case when I visited. Apparently, it happens quite often on Saturday evenings and really makes for a nice dinner.
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| Ritz and Grits |
The menu got me excited with traditional dishes like crawfish cakes, fried okra and spicy jambalaya. Staples at any southern restaurant but even so, I was intrigued by Gram's concept of California Creole so I opted for the Ritz and Grits dish described as sauteed Cajun shrimp, hot link sausage, and crispy bacon over cheesy grits. Now, grits can either make or a break a dish as cooked poorly they can be either mushy or grainy. It's a bit of an art form to get grits to just the right consistency where they're creamy and fluffy. I'm more than happy to report that Gram's is getting it right! A mound of the most perfectly cooked creamy cheesy grits come topped with a decadent roux sauce loaded with jumbo shrimp, plump sausage slices and large slivers of crispy bacon.
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| The Southern Bowl |
My friend ordered the Southern Bowl - which reminded me of a pan roast as it's really a melange of proteins in a delicious Cajun gravy. The plate comes filled with crawish meat, shrimp, hot links corn and topped with crispy onions and a generous scoop of jasmine rice. Definitely a feast and something to order when you're feeling extra hungry! What I loved about this dish is that it really has a little bit of everything so if you're having a hard time deciding what to order this is a great option!
We also both really LOVED the cajun chicken wings - cooked up perfectly and served with a homemade ranch and buffalo sauce. Be prepared cuz these come as a generous portion even though they're soooo good you may not want to share! ;)
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| Cajun Wings |
They also serve brunch/lunch with different menu items from dinner, and look pretty amazing. Also, be sure to say hello to Jordan, one of the owners/Chef, who's as sweet as can be and will quickly make you feel like family! He also told me the food is all based on his Grandma's recipes - hence the name. When he shared that with me, it all made sense as you can feel the love in every bite!
Grams Kitchen is located at 12 Centerpointe Drive #106 in La Palma.
Current hours: Monday - Friday, 8am to 9pm
For more info, follow then on instagram or Facebook as @gramskitchenlapalma
Admittedly, finding Gram's takes a bit of luck as it's located in the large Centerpointe complex, adjacent to the Kaiser office and my GPS didn't serve me well to direct me in exactly which part of the complex Gram's was located. However, you only be lost one time cuz once you've visited you'll remember that it actually faces Valley View even though the GPS may direct you to turn at La Palma.
Don't forget to tell them OCFOODIEGIRL sent you! ;)
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