Cisco's, 3 Amigos and Los Agaves Top List of CVG Followers' Favorite Local Mexican Eateries

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A random, delicious looking burrito combo plate from an unnamed Mexican eatery (from the Conejo Valley Guide archives).

A random, delicious looking burrito combo plate from an unnamed Mexican eatery (from the Conejo Valley Guide archives).

In a recent drawing on the Conejo Valley Guide Facebook Page, followers commented on their favorite Mexican eatery in the Conejo Valley and nearby Ventura County areas. There were nearly 300 responses in less than a day.

We tabulated the responses and it was quite a horse race. But in the end, Cisco's, with restaurants on Westlake Boulevard in Westlake Village and Avenida de los Arboles (at the 23 freeway) in Thousand Oaks, was mentioned the most, a total of 32 times.

Close behind with 30 mentions was 3 Amigos, with locations on Avenida de los Arboles (at Moorpark Road) in Thousand Oaks and on Reino Road (at Borchard) in Newbury Park.

In third place was Los Agaves at The Shoppes at Westlake, with 29 mentions...oh so close to 3 Amigos. Coming in at #4 was The Alamo in Newbury Park, with 24 mentions. And, amazingly, but not surprisingly, Lupe's Restaurant, which closed its doors on August 29, 2016, garnered a 5th place sentimental vote with 20 mentions.

Here is a rundown of all of eateries mentioned by Facebook followers in order of number of mentions (when more than one eatery was listed, we tabulated only the eatery mentioned first).

  • Cisco's (33 votes)
  • 3 Amigos (30)
  • Los Agaves (29)
  • The Alamo (24)
  • Lupe's (20) (closed in August 2016)
  • Yolanda's (Camarillo/Simi Valley) (12)
  • Sabor (Westlake Village) (12)
  • Latigo Kid (Agoura) (11)
  • Los Dos Amigos (Thousand Oaks) (10)
  • Habanero Mexican Grill (Newbury Park) (8)
  • Bad Ass Tacos (Thousand Oaks) (8)
  • Don Cuco's (Simi Valley) (8)
  • El Sancho Loco (Newbury Park) (8)
  • Money Pancho (Camarillo) (6)
  • Sea Casa (Westlake Village) (6)
  • Plata Taqueria (Agoura) (5)
  • Margaritas Mexican Grill (Oak Park) (4)
  • Taqueria Jalisco (Moorpark/Simi Valley) (4)
  • Lalo's Mexican Food (Moorpark) (5)
  • Manny's Mexican Grill (Thousand Oaks) (4)
  • Patron Mexican Bar & Grill (Newbury Park) (4)
  • Snapper Jack's (Camarillo) (4)
  • Others mentioned 3 times: El Tecolote (Camarillo), Mariscos Cancun (Thousand Oaks)(closed in Feb 2018), Establos Meat Market (Thousand Oaks), El Tapatio (Moorpark) and Tacos de Mexico (Simi Valley)
  • Mentioned 2 times: Adobe Cantina (Agoura), Burger Express and Mexican Grill (Simi Valley) and Chipotle
  • Also mentioned: Somis Market, Antonio's Mexican Food (Port Hueneme), Taqueria Tlaquepaque (Santa Paula), Rosabella's (Ventura), Baja Fresh, Rubio's, El Pollo Loco, Cinqo, Ay Chihuahua (Fillmore), Tito's Mexican Food (Simi Valley), Mercado Guadalajara (Newbury Park), Campos Famous Burritos (Simi Valley), Luna Llena (Simi Valley), Los Toros (Chatsworth), Vallarta Restaurant (Fillmore), La Fiesta Mexican Grill (Moorpark), Sharky's and Los Arroyos (Camarillo)

Enjoy exploring this list of nearly 50 popular Mexican eateries in Thousand Oaks and neighboring cities.

El Tecolote opened its doors in 1948 and moved to its current Camarillo location in 1952.

El Tecolote opened its doors in 1948 and moved to its current Camarillo location in 1952.

Conejo Valley Guide Facebook Followers Share Their Favorite Desserts at Local Eateries

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As part of a one day ticket drawing on the Conejo Valley Guide Facebook Page, we asked folks to tell us their favorite desserts at any restaurant in the Conejo Valley and surrounding areas. Boy oh boy did we get the best compilation of great sounding desserts EVER! 

We are going to share these comments with you but be sure to keep in mind, eat desserts only after finishing your dinner. To quote a Pink Floyd lyric "If you don't eat your meat, you can't have any pudding! How can you have any pudding if you don't eat your meat?!" ("Another Brick in the Wall" 1979)

And here they are, in no particular order:

  • Pastries from Champagne Bakery
  • Strawberry Shortcake at Boccali's in Ojai
  • Butter cake at Mastro's Steakhouse Thousand Oaks (mentioned 27 times)
  • Pizookie at BJ's Restaurant in Thousand Oaks (mentioned 44 times)
  • Cinnamon Puffs from Pizza Nosh in Agoura Hills
  • Creme Brulee at Aroha Restaurant in Westlake Village
  • Richie's Magic Bar at Pearl District (mentioned 2 times)
  • Warm peach cobbler at Lazy Dog Restaurant
  • Cheesecake Factory (mentioned 42 times - banana, Oreo, strawberry, chocolate fudge, key lime, tiramisu, Limoncello, banana cream, red velvet, Snickers, peanut butter, White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle, Linda's Fudge Cake, Dulce de Leche Caramel, Godiva, Peanut Butter)
  • Apple fritters at Best Donuts
  • Chocolate cake at Bandits' BBQ
  • Banana cream pudding in Mason jar at Public School 805
  • Carrot cake at Boney Mountain Tavern (mentioned 2 times)
  • White chocolate pretzel cheesecake at Lazy Dog Restaurant
  • Creme brulee or cobbler at Blue Stove in The Oaks Mall (mentioned 2 times)
  • Donuts and cupcakes at Karma Baker (mentioned 3 times)
  • Carmelized almond bowl with white chocolate laced chantilly cream and fresh berries at Mediterraneo in Westlake Village
  • Creme brulee at Lazy Dog Restaurant (mentioned 2 times)
  • Cheesecake with blueberries at Stonefire Grill 
  • Creme brulee or pecan pie at Mastro's
  • Cannoli at Roma Deli in Newbury Park (mentioned 2 times)
  • Blackberry crumble at Lure Fish House
  • Salted chocolate chip cookie at Urbane Cafe
  • Banana cream pie at Paul Martin's (mentioned 3 times)
  • Sprinkles Cupcakes (mentioned 4 times)
  • Fudge brownie sundae at Bandits BBQ
  • Key lime pie at Mastro's
  • Green tea ice cream at Kabuki
  • The Wonderbar at Pearl District (mentioned 2 times)
  • Apple strudel at Jeanette's Edelweiss in Newbury Park (mentioned 2 times)
  • Mountain High Mud Pie at Red Robin
  • Chocolate fondue at The Melting Pot (mentioned 7 times)
  • Ice cream sundae at Stacked
  • S'Mores at Holdren's in Newbury Park
  • Menchies Frozen Yogurt
  • Kona Pie at Islands
  • Butter cake with vanilla ice cream at California Pizza Kitchen (mentioned 3 times)
  • Fried cheesecake at Sutter's Mill in Simi Valley
  • Tiramisu at Marcello Ristorante in Thousand Oaks
  • Brownie ice cream sundae at Pickles Deli in Newbury Park
  • Brownie at Stonefire Grill (mentioned 3 times)
  • Bread pudding at Twenty88 in Camarillo
  • Donuts at Dunkin' Donuts
  • Deep fried ice cream at Cisco's
  • Chocolate Dome at PF Chang's
  • Caramel apples from Newberry Candies in Thousand Oaks
  • The gooey center of a Cinnabon
  • Black and white cookie at Brent's Deli (mentioned 2 times)
  • Chocolatine French Cafe
  • Salted caramel cheesecake at Blue Stove
  • The Melting Pot - any dessert
  • Sweet quinoa cake from Grabbagreen in Thousand Oaks
  • Cinnamon chips at Snapper Jack's Taco Shack in Camarillo
  • Ice cream at Lure Fish House
  • Dessert sampler at Holdren's in Newbury Park
  • Chocolate cake at Brent's Deli (mentioned 2 times)
  • Apple pie at Stella's in Newbury Park
  • Banana spring rolls at PF Chang's
  • Baklava at Mama's Hummus
  • Spotted dick at Crown and Anchor in Thousand Oaks
  • Pavlova at Aroha Cuisine
  • Shave It (mentioned 4 times)
  • Gelato at Urban Pizza
  • Banana pudding bread at Cafe Firenze in Moorpark
  • Carrot cake at Stonefire Grill (mentioned 6 times)
  • Shakes at In-N-Out Burger
  • Apple fritters at Rolling Pin Donuts in Camarillo
  • Little Calf Creamery in Thousand Oaks (mentioned 26 times)
  • McDonald's strawberry and cream pies
  • Molten chocolate cake at Lure Fish House
  • Lava cake at Chili's in Newbury Park (mentioned 2 times)
  • Macaroons from Lemonade
  • Ice cream at Rite Aid (mentioned 2 times)
  • Creme Brulee at Tuscany in Westlake Village (mentioned 2 times)
  • Cotton candy at Zin Bistro in Westlake Village
  • Fried ice cream at Yolanda's in Camarillo (mentioned 2 times)
  • Molten Chocolate Cake at Marmalade Cafe in Westlake Village
  • Salted caramel pudding from California Pizza Kitchen
  • Fruit cobbler at Lazy Dog Cafe
  • Chocolate mousse cake at Blue Stove (mentioned 2 times)
  • Eclairs at Brent's Deli
  • Carrot cake at Old New York Deli in Newbury Park
  • Mud Pie at Holdren's
  • Ice cream sandwiches at Stacked
  • Raised chocolate donut at Foster's Donuts
  • Nutella and Biscotti Semifreddo at Cafe Firenze
  • Frozen yogurt at Tutti Frutti
  • Nutella cheesecake at Lemonade in Westlake Village
  • Chocolate chip brownie sundae at Lazy Dog Cafe (mentioned 2 times)
  • Chocolate cake at Paul Martin's
  • Chocolate souffle at Mastro's
  • Berry cobbler at Lure Fish House
  • Chocolate lasagna at Olive Garden
  • Brownie sundae from Sunset Terrace
  • Florentine art dessert at Mediterraneo
  • Churros (Nutella filled) at Sabor (mentioned 2 times)
  • Baskin Robbins (mentioned 10 times)
  • Cannoli at Italia Deli & Bakery
  • Baklava at Baba's Kitchen
  • Nothing Bundt Cakes (mentioned 14 times)
  • Black Forest Cake at Paul Martin's
  • Strawberry cake at Jeannette's Edelweiss
  • Sticky rice at Sawadee Thai in Camarillo
  • Neapolitan Shake from In N Out Burger
  • Pastries and tiramisu at Al Mulino Eataliano
  • Hot fudge sundae at McDonald's
  • Sticky coconut rice and mango at Bangkok Avenue
  • Strawberry shortcake at Country Harvest in Newbury Park
  • Pizza cookie at Topper's Pizza
  • Peruvian cookies at Mouthful Eatery
  • Baklava at Mediterranean Pita Grill
  • Flan at Don Cucos
  • Fruit tart at Viktor Benes
  • Butter cake at Lazy Dog Cafe
  • Ras Malai and Gulab Jamun at Anarbagh in Westlake Village
  • Cold Stone Creamery (mentioned 3 times)
  • Wild Cherry Yogurt
  • Carrera's Bakery (mentioned 15 times for items like triolgia, fritelle, gelato, cannoli)
  • Tifa Gelato (mentioned 6 times)
  • Sweet Arlene's (mentioned 6 times)

Bacon, Avocado and Grilled Onions Top List of Conejo Valley Guide Facebook Followers' Favorite Hamburger Toppings

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The burger from Bandits' Grill and Bar Thousand Oaks that inspired the drawing.

The burger from Bandits' Grill and Bar Thousand Oaks that inspired the drawing.

Yes, this is breaking news. Very important stuff. To celebrate reaching 12,000 followers on the Conejo Valley Guide Facebook Page, we teamed up with Bandits' Grill and Bar Thousand Oaks for a gift card drawing. To enter the six-hour drawing, we asked folks to name a favorite burger topping.

The drawing ended at 11PM and as always, when CVG Facebook followers are offered the chance to win free food, they do not hesitate to participate.

After selecting the winner, I decided to tabulate the responses to see if there was a clear-cut favorite topping.  It was not particularly surprising that bacon received 19% of total votes, making it the #1 choice.

But avocado gave bacon a clear run for its money, with 16% of the vote. As I was tabulating, midway through the count I thought avocado was actually going to pull out an upset win. But in the end, "bad fat" prevailed over "good fat," though not by much!

In a tie for third place were grilled onions and cheese, with 12% of the vote each. Rounding out the next four spots were blue cheese (this one surprised me a bit), mushrooms, onion strings/rings and BBQ sauce. Pickles, jalapenos, fresh tomato were noted several times.

Speaking of burgers and restaurants, visit THIS LINK for a rundown on local area eateries that are newly opened or soon to be opening.

Dorothy's Chuck Wagon Cafe Captured in Oil Painting by Local Artist, Linda Dark

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2022 Update: Dorothy’s Chuck Wagon Cafe closed in June. The building was sold.

Dorothy's Chuck Wagon Cafe is located in Old Town Camarillo at 2344 Ventura Boulevard, serving home-style breakfast and lunch Monday through Saturday. Their phone number is 805.987.2167.

Linda Dark is an artist has lived in Camarillo since 1978. She enjoys capturing local landmarks in oil on canvas, including her latest work piece above. Check out her work at www.camarillolandmarks.com.

The Chuck Wagon Cafe has been here for quite some time. According to the Pleasant Valley Historical Society, the building was built in 1944 and was owned by Larry Logue, who opened Larry's Malt Shop in 1946. It soon became Carmen's Snack Bar, owned by Ed and Carmen Quinn. Dorothy Johnson took over as new owner in 1983.

OldestRestaurants.com has a compilation of the oldest restaurants that are still in operation at the same location in California. Dorothy's Chuck Wagon Cafe is one of the oldest eateries in Ventura County, following the Golden Chicken Inn in Oxnard (the oldest still standing restaurant in Ventura County; founded in 1929) and Familia Diaz in Santa Paula (1936).

Also on that list as opening in 1946 are Casa Escobar (which closed its Westlake Village location last Fall) and El Tecolote in Camarillo.

A more recent view of Dorothy's Chuck Wagon Cafe.

A more recent view of Dorothy's Chuck Wagon Cafe.

July to December 2016 Restaurants New and Restaurants Adieu in Ventura County

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Here's the latest compilation of restaurants in the Conejo Valley and throughout Greater Ventura County that opened, announced plans to open or closed during the period July through December 2016. 

(Click here for previous January through June 2016 activity.) Let us know of any we missed!

Restaurants That Have Opened Since June 2016

Restaurants That Are Planning to Open Soon

Restaurants That Have Closed Since June 2016

New Thousand Oaks The Habit Burger Grill Continues This Burger Chain's Success Story

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The Habit Burger Grill originated on November 15, 1969 at 5735 Hollister Ave, Goleta - a location that is still in operation to this day. The Habit is a fast casual restaurant concept that specializes in preparing fresh, made-to-order char-grilled burgers and sandwiches featuring USDA choice tri-tip steak, grilled chicken and sushi-grade albacore tuna cooked over an open flame. 

The chain was purchased by a private equity firm in 2007 and subsequently The Habit Restaurants, Inc. went public with an initial stock offering on November 19, 2014, 45 years after its inception.

The new location coming soon to Thousand Oaks. Ever wonder why the "b" in Habit is slightly twisted? I asked. The Habit indicates it "makes it special and light hearted."

The new location coming soon to Thousand Oaks. Ever wonder why the "b" in Habit is slightly twisted? I asked. The Habit indicates it "makes it special and light hearted."

A new location is coming to Thousand Oaks at the former Famous Dave's BBQ location at 3980 Thousand Oaks Blvd. This will mark the 4th Conejo Valley Habit Burger location, including existing locations in Thousand Oaks, Newbury Park and Agoura Hills. Additional Ventura County locations in Simi Valley (2), Camarillo, Oxnard and Ventura (2).

The Habit trades under stock symbol HABT and currently is (as of December 20, 2016) at $17.30 per share, down 4% from its initial public offering price of $18 per share. That said, its price soared to close at nearly $40 per share that first day of trading, making it a bit of a terrible investment for those that bought after the IPO.

Stock price aside, The Habit has been quite a success story, growing to 160 restaurants in 10 states and opening new restaurants at the rate of over 30 per year. Total revenue for The Habit's fiscal year 2016 is anticipated to be in the $283 million range.

Photo courtesy of The Habit Burger. While my Habit Burger doesn't look quite this perfect, that's no big deal. It usually reaches my mouth before my eyes have much time to admire it.

Photo courtesy of The Habit Burger. While my Habit Burger doesn't look quite this perfect, that's no big deal. It usually reaches my mouth before my eyes have much time to admire it.

But back to stock price. For a growth stock like The Habit, timing can be critical. Let's look at an example. Over the last two years ending today, had you purchased $100 in McDonald's stock (MCD), the value of that investment today would be $131, and you would have received cash dividends of close to $8, for a total return of 39%. $100 invested in HABT would now be worth about $52. 

So while The Habit Burger may have been rated #1 burger in a 2014 Consumer Reports survey (and I for thoroughly enjoy the burgers and other menu items at The Habit), you don't necessarily always want to put your money where you mouth is. Or your mouth where your money is, for that matter.

To learn more about The Habit, visit www.habitburger.com.

A Visit to the New ALDI Store in Simi Valley

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We live in the Conejo Valley and like most folks, most of our grocery shopping is done at nearby stores...Albertsons, Trader Joe's, Costco, Ralphs, Sprouts, Smart & Final, and so on. But German grocery store ALDI opened in Simi Valley in June and we wanted to check it out.

ALDI is an abbreviation for Albrecht Diskont, or Albrecht Discount, named after founders Karl and Theo Albrecht in 1946. You may already know that ALDI is the parent company to both the Trader Joe's chain (purchased in 1979) and the ALDI store chain. That said, this ALDI store looks and feels nothing like a Trader Joe's store (to me at least). ALDI is one of the world's largest privately-owned companies.

The Simi Valley ALDI store is located at 425 Cochran Street in Simi at the Plaza, next to PetSmart and Party City and sandwiched between nearby Walmart and Home Depot.

The first thing you'll notice is that you'll need a quarter as a deposit to get a shopping cart. Place the quarter in the slot and the cart is yours; the quarter will be returned when you return the cart. If you don't have a quarter handy, not to worry; the folks working at the store were happy to lend a quarter for a cart when I was there.

I found the store to be on the "spartan" side, to some degree like the Fresh & Easy stores that are long gone, but lighter and brighter and the shelves were not as high. To keep costs low, the chain does not carry anywhere near the number of items that a typical grocery store carries. This does seem to pay off in that pricing is quite low.

This particular visit I was not planning to do my complete grocery shopping, including refrigerated items, etc. This visit was mainly to acquire snacks for the household. The first aisle as you walk into the store has quite a large selection of items, most of which are ALDI brands. We enjoyed exploring the snacks and piled our cart with reasonably priced items.

As you can see in the image to the right, ALDI brands like Millville look quite a bit like well known brands. "Fruit Rounds" at only $1.19/box looks good to me. And "Crispy Oats" looks a bit like, ahem, Cheerios.

The snack and wine aisle. My favorite aisle.

The snack and wine aisle. My favorite aisle.

As you can see above, the aisles are fairly wide and easy to navigate. We found a lot of great snacks and interesting items throughout the store, then went to pay.

ALDI does not provide paper or plastic bags, so do bring your own reusable bags or you can buy them at checkout. And when you check out, they do not bag your items for you. They scan the items off of the belt and place them back into your cart. From there, roll your cart a few feet away to the self-bagging area. 

To learn more, visit www.aldi.us. The Simi Valley location is the only ALDI in Ventura County at this time. The next closest store is in Inglewood at 3330. W. Century Blvd. (about 6 miles from LAX).

Bag your items here and you're on your way.

Bag your items here and you're on your way.