Free Dinah's Fried Chicken and a Trim - Restaurant Review

Dinah's Fried Chicken is free for local residents though August! Just show your California drivers' license or local I.D. for a free 2-piece dinner, and be sure to say you are a "new customer." Family owned and operated since 1967, this Chef ranks their bird among the best.

You get this deal one time only. If you are near San Fernando Boulevard in Glendale swing by and get one. You have a choice of a side with a dinner roll. Mashed potatoes, macaroni salad, mac and cheese, and pineapple coleslaw are some side selections. You can't go wrong with the coleslaw. Pineapple adds a sweetness to typical sour mayonnaise slaw. The dinner role is standard store-bought fare. But it is all about the chicken at Dinah's.

Dinah's fried chicken has a subtle citrus flavored crust like orange marinated El Pollo Loco grilled chicken, a crispy dark brown fried batter that is less greasy than Kentucky Fried Chicken, and its white meat is as moist as roasted Zankou Chicken. The 99 Cent Chef lived near Dinah's Fried Chicken in Glendale, Ca. for many years. I cannot count the number of times I've had the pleasure of their poultry. I don't know why, but I like to order a two-piece dinner to go and sit in my car in the parking lot and eat. Am I too cheap to dine in and tip the waiter? Or is Public Radio playing a program on my car stereo too involving to walk away from?

Actually, they do not sell beer but the market across from the parking lot does, and a perfect accompaniment to fried chicken is iced tea or beer. You can probably figure out which I prefer.

I no longer live near Dinah's but my Armenian barber does. I have been going to him for over a decade now. When you find one you like, as with a woman or a car mechanic, you stay with them forever. Garoon Barber Shop is in a mini-mall like Dinah's. There are two barbers, Garoon and Kachik. Both are excellent and speak very little English. I walk in, grab a magazine -- Garoon asks "short or medium," I shake my head yes and let him decide.





Guys do not need to converse with their hairdessers; just give me a couple of barber shop men's magazines and I am happy (I am more of a Gourmet Magazine and The New Yorker subscriber, so reading GQ is a nice change of pace). And the price of a haircut is $10 including tip! They are quick and efficient, and local Armenian cable programs on the overhead TV give you an exotic ambiance. Women's hair is done next door at Kristine's Beauty Salon. They are open 7 days a week 9 AM - 7PM, and I always drop by Dinah's for fried chicken after my haircut.

Hey guys, how many cooking blogs recommend dining and a haircut! You only have through this weekend for free chicken, but you have plenty of time to visit my friends Garoon and Kachik for a cheap shave and a trim.

Dinah's Fried Chicken - Free through August for local new customers: two-piece dinner or substitutions of equal value. Dine-in or take-out.
Address: 4106 San Fernando Rd. Glendale, Ca. 91204 phone: 818) 244-4188
Hours: 11am - 9pm (dining room until 8:30pm).

Dinah's - original location: 6521 Sepulveda Blvd. L.A., Ca. phone: 310) 645-0456
Hours: 6am - 10pm

Garoon Barber Shop - 1015 1/2 E. Chevy Chase Dr. Glendale, Ca. 91205
phone: 818) 247-7210. Haircuts are $8 for adults, $7 for children.

99 Thanks to Paul and Danit at L.A. Decostified for the free chicken meal heads-up!

Pita Pizza -- With Clams & Artichoke Hearts

Pita Pizzas are soon to be a 99 Cent Chef budget classic. Having lived in or around various Armenian/Russian/Middle Eastern enclaves around town, frequenting East Hollywood's Little Armenia mom and pop delis and the neighborhood shish kabob shops of Glendale, this Chef has grown to love the versatile pocket pita.

They stuff nicely with your favorite tuna, chicken or egg salad; they are indispensable when tearing apart a roasted bird from Zankou Chicken; and are now the platform for the Chef's new culinary creation -- Pita Pizza.


Use pita bread rounds topped with tomato sauce, cheese, clams and artichoke hearts for fast and delicious mini-pizzas. If you like thin crust pizzas, high-heat baked pita bread makes a lightweight crunchy cracker-tasting crust for pizza toppings.

The 99 Cent Chef likes to mix it up with his toppings, adding anything from marinated jars of sun-dried tomatoes, black olives, artichoke hearts, roasted/sauteed zucchini, and eggplant, to Genoa salami, Italian sausage, cheese, a fried egg - and even chopped clams.

The Chef's first seafood-topped pizza was from a small side-street restaurant during a Rome, Italy vacation. Some may blanch when served calamari, clams and shrimp on a pizza, but how can you resist when it's paired with melted mozzarella and artichoke hearts?

The Chef simplifies things by using a 99.99 cent can of chopped clams. One can is enough for three small individual pita pizzas; all other ingredients are often found in local 99c only Stores, including pita bread (although regular local markets often have sales on canned minced clams and shredded mozzarella.

And pita bread is reasonably priced), you get eight pitas per package - talk about a great deal! These pita pizzas are delish with or without clams - make it your own by adding any favorite topping.

These budget pizzas are easy to make and are perfect for a party, or as a late-night cramming snack for all you overextended, financially strapped college students. All you need is a dorm buddy with a toaster oven!

Ingredients (for 3 pita pizzas)

• 3 pita bread rounds
• 1 can minced or chopped clams (6.5 oz.)
• 1 package shredded mozzarella (4 oz.)
• 3 tbsp. dried parmesan cheese (optional)
• 1 small 8 oz. can of tomato sauce or your favorite pasta sauce.
• 1 small jar of marinated artichoke hearts (6oz.) in oil or water
• 3 tbsp. of 99.99 cent olive oil blend
• 1 tsp. dried herbs including - parsley, oregano and sage (a pinch per pita)

 
Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Layout 3 pita rounds and top each with 3 tbsp. of tomato sauce and a small pinch of dried herbs, then cover with a layer of mozzarella cheese. 

Drain artichoke heart and minced clams; evenly distribute over pita pizzas and add a sprinkle of dried parmesan cheese. Finish with a drizzle (about a tbsp.) of olive oil. 

Bake about 10 minutes -- cheese will melt, while the pita edge becomes crisp and just starts to brown.

And don't forget to mix it up with different toppings for a party. Just set out a plate of salami, cheese, cooked sausage, tomato sauce, olives, and any other favorites.

Armenian Salad

The Chef picked up Feta Cheese at this 99c only Store the other day. As with most low/reduced fat cheese, some flavor is sacrificed and the cheese is a little dry;
but it's fine on a cracker or sprinkled on an Armenian salad.

Since moving out of Hollywood/Los Feliz, the Chef has noticed a dearth of Armenian mom and pop markets here in Baldwin Hills; I miss them. Most of all I liked their deli case selection of cured meats, briney olives and 3 kinds of Feta cheese -- including Helena Feta. An Armenian salad includes many Armenian market staples: Kalamata olives, bell peppers, lemons, Feta cheese and cucumbers.

The Chef has not seen Kalamata Olives in the 99c only Stores so sundried tomatoes in oil make a decent substitute; however if you have an Armenian market nearby, by all means pick up 99 cents worth of Kalamata olives (about a dozen

) and a 99 cent hunk of Helena feta for a real Armenian salad. By the way, another Armenian market Chef's favorite: a deli plate appetizer -- just get a selection of deli meats, olives and cheese for an evening snack.
All ingredients from the 99c only Store.

Ingredients
1/2 heart of romaine lettuce
1/4 cup or so of crumbled Feta
2 tablespoons of slivered sun-dried tomatoes
1 /2 tomato sliced
1/4 bell pepper sliced (any color)
1/4 cucumber sliced or diced
oil & lemon dressing: whisk together 2 tablespoons olive oil and juice of one lemon

Directions

Heat sun-dried tomatoes in microwave for 15-20 seconds to soften.
Assemble salad ingredients.

The grocery store in the photo is the Royal and located at: 1710 Garfield Place in Hollywood (between Franklin & Hollywood Blvd., one block west of Western.)
phone: 323) 463-7576.