Edwin Goei

There are lot of chicken dishes out there and I have only ten slots on this list. So I picked out my faves using my own unscientific criteria of what constitutes a chicken dish, ruling out others because chicken wasn't the star. What remains are dishes where I felt America's favorite poultry got top billing. I did mix in different kinds of prep. There are a few pan-seared birds, a few rotisserie ones, and a whole mess of deep-fried chickens, because, let's face it, some of the best chickens are deep-fried. More >>

Edwin Goei

For this list of ten great Thai restaurants, not only have I included those from Long Beach (a non-OC city that's always been under this paper's jurisdiction), but also some Thai-Cambodian, some Thai-Laotian, and even a Thai-sushi hybrid, because if variety is the spice of life, then why not even more spice from even more cultures known for their fiery foods. More >>

Flickr user sohum

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Edwin Goei

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Flickr user mckaysavage

What a shame the county line lies where it does; the best Indian restaurants in SoCal lie just five minutes from Buena Park, La Palma and Cypress, yet they're in Artesia, squarely in Squid Ink territory. Damn. Still, we have some good contenders, from Afghan to Southern Indian; it's just a tragedy that OC's Sri Lankan restaurant is no longer open to cap the list.

As always, if you don't like the contents or order of the list, let us have it in the comments!
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JC Vera

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For this list of Japanese restaurants, we intentionally left out the sushi bars because, well, we already did that list. We also shut out the ramen joints, teppanyakis, and yakinikus because, well, we still want to do those lists. But you can certainly have ramen and sushi, even a California Roll, at some of the restaurants we feature in our list of 10--a lineup thrown together in no particular order. More >>

Meranda Carter

Il Garage

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When we initially began compiling our list, it appeared relatively easy. But when we got to talking to others about their love of all things pizza, pasta and marinara, there were so many more places to consider. We're certain your place for that perfect slice is missing from our ranks, so make it known. Start a thin crust debate!

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Flickr user lightmatter

​Orange County doesn't have the San Gabriel Valley, lined end-to-end with great Chinese restaurants. We do, however, have Irvine, which is where most of these recommendations are, and where you can eat well from just about any region of China.

As with all these sorts of lists, there will be the inevitable bruised egos and hurt feelings, so when you discover your favorite didn't make the list, add it to the comments for posterity!
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Flickr user ktylerconk

The dirty water hot dog: New York's second-best contribution to street food after halal chicken and rice.

​In New York and its suburbs, where I grew up, there is only one way to eat a hot dog: in a potato roll with brown mustard, sauerkraut, and the option of onions in a sweet red sauce akin to ketchup.

Sure, there were heretics who added ketchup, relish, and raw chopped onions, and the occasional splash of disgusting, muddy chili, but they were few and far between. In New Jersey, we had Italian (or Newark-style) hot dogs dressed up like sausages at the Festa di San Gennaro. It was a real shock, though, to discover that in Chicago, they put a perfectly good (okay, not that good) pickle on their hot dog. And hot peppers and celery salt! I was pretty sure that was banned in the Bible or at least the Constitution.

Well, now I live in Southern California, where it's a hot dog if it contains a tube steak of some description; it could be wrapped up in a tortilla or stuffed into a bolillo. It could have bacon, or pastrami, or much-improved-from-my-childhood chili atop it. It could have mayonnaise--mayonnaise!--on it. My appreciation of all things hot dog has grown along with my waistline, and so here are ten of the top hot dogs in Orange County right now.

Don't agree? Did we miss yours? Are you some kind of hot dog heretic? Well, that's what the comments section is for.
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Harbor House Cafe

Hey, it's a (almost) compliment!

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If our team of Forkers aren't out eating, we're probably burning the midnight oil writing about it. When all that talk makes us hungry again, what's still open? This week's list will answer that inquiry. From 24-hour spots to meat eater destinations, boiling tofu stews and a hookah lounge, we've got the county covered. Our selections are open until at least 1 a.m. on any given day (unless they actually take a day off). So without further ado *yawn*, let's get started in no particular order  a sort of north-to-south county order-- because we felt like it.More >>