Fine Dining - Is Islands the Best Casual Burger Chain?

Episode Date: December 10, 2025

🍔🏄‍♂️🍟 Islands Fine Burgers & Drinks: The Best Casual Burger Chain? 🍟🏄‍♂️🍔 This week, VyVy Nguyen (@cest_la_vyvy) returns for another round of Eat Deets as we surf the waves of flavor offered by Islands Fine Burgers & Drinks. From their golden fries and proprietary fry salt to surf videos looping endlessly on the walls, Islands is a California chain that perfectly captures chill beach energy. We explore its expansion beyond the West Coast, the founder's wild journey from selling to buying the company back, and why seasoning > sauce every single time. 🍔 Burgers So Good 🧅 Island Reds (Crispy Onion Strings) Make Burger So Better 🍟 The Legendary Fry Salt That Outshines Any Sauce 🌊 Surf Videos and Tropical Vibes at Every Location 🗺️ From California to Hawaii and Back Again ⚓ The Founder Sold, Bought It Back, and Righted the Ship (Literally, He's a Navy Vet) 🪨 Yelp Reviewer Claims She Found Rocks in Her Food 💬 COMMENT BELOW: What's the best beachside burger you've ever had? 📢 SUPPORT THE SHOW & JOIN THE COMMUNITY: 🎉 Patreon (Bonus episodes, full Yelp segments & more): patreon.com/finediningpodcast 💬 Discord (Food talk, memes, cursed Yelp): discord.gg/6a2YqrtWV4 🎥 Watch full episodes: youtube.com/@finediningpodcast 🔗 All links: linktree.com/finediningpodcast 🎤 Guest: VyVy Nguyen | IG: @cest_la_vyvy Patreon Producers: Sue Ornelas & Joyce Van Patreon Subscribers: David Ornelas, Kellie Baldwin, Jeremy Horwitz, Herbert Amaya, Simone Davalos, Scott Bennett, Amy Reinhart, Josef Castaneda-Liles, & Travis Langley Free Patreon Followers: Joe Warszalek, Lauren Cummings, Grace Krainak, Keri Estes, Robert Duran, Patrick Elliott, Michelle Elmer, Dave Plummer, Nicholas Volney, Michael Gerard, Tracy Molino, Phuong Duong, Tyler Robinson, Brandon Gully, Mason Cruz, Michael Milito, Mez, Aaron Hubbard, & Steff 👉 NEXT WEEK: VyVy returns for a Yelp from Strangers special covering some hilarious Yelp reviews I discovered when looking at the restaurants I reviewed during season 1!

Is Islands fine burgers and drinks the best casual dining burger chain? A surf-themed California institution, Islands has expanded out of and retracted back into the Golden State throughout the years. With their island reds, crispy onion strings, as one of my all-time favorite burger toppings, Island's true secret weapon comes in a shaker. Their proprietary fry salt seasons their French fries to actual perfection. And despite all that sodium, the main damage Islands did to my heart, happened when they discontinued their bottomless fries.

Now they're just fries, and I'm the one that's bottomless because in a restaurant corner booth, no one can even see if you're wearing pants. Today on the podcast, I'll duck dive my surfboard of knowledge directly into your choppy waters of curiosity before turning to the people of Yelp to hear what they have to say about the islands I reviewed back in 2022. Stay tuned. This is the fine dining podcast. Your table's ready.

Take your seat. The flavor of the day is mediatic to try. You're bottomless, huh? You know, they don't check. Like, completely bottomless? I'll never tell. I like to be comfortable. But I feel like there's a different.

Booster sticky. Booster sticky. Yeah, I think you want some boxers. I would want boxes. Yeah, yeah. Not full. We need the pooing it. Hello, and welcome to the fine dining podcast,

the quest to compare all restaurants to Chili's. I'm your host, Michael Ornellis, and we are still in the bridge season. Bridging the gap between the end of season three and the premiere of season four, this is season three and a half. I also did, in fact, get a bridge season theme song, and I want to hear it right now. Okay. Today, we're going to chat about the history of a chain that I truly love, one of the best burger joints out there, islands. And joining me for it is a podcast guest who's also one of the best out there.

She's been on this podcast so many times I feel like I'm supposed to pay for her health insurance. She's an actor, a delight of a human, and I've woken up in a cold sweat worried that she's actually imaginary. It's Vivi Nguyen. I am imaginary. No. I'm not actually here, Michael. I'm sweaty in my sleep. Wake up.

Wake up. Wait, you're sweaty, but it's cold? I woke up in a cold sweat, fearful that you're not real. Okay. Well, we're doing a fight club. We're doing a fight club. Wouldn't that be crazy? We're the same guy.

I would love that. That'd be a weird life. Anyways, welcome. Hi. Thanks for coming back. I'm back. Sorry. Don't apologize.

No, no, no, no. It's all good. I don't know. You guys are sick of me now. No, no one's sick of you. Do you have a history with islands? Yes, I love islands too. Yeah, it's so good.

I love their Kilauea burger because it's kind of spicy. I love spice. It's like a pepper-crusted patty. That was the burger. that went up against Outback in the finals of the first September or tournament and Outback won by 0.05 points. That's crazy. Yeah. Yeah. It was literally like an 8.02 to an 8.015. Like that's how close the scores was. Let's check those numbers. Recount.

I'm, I'm, I'm, oh. It was just averaging two scores. It wasn't hard. Fine. Yeah. But like, it's up there with like putting bloom and onion petals and bacon on a burger. Like it's, it's, yeah, the hand in hand. Those island reds in the burger. The island reds are the best topping for a burger. Fantastic. They're so good. They're just crispy onion strings.

Not onion rings. Onion rings are too thick on burgers, I think. So like the dispersion of the onion strings and the crispiness of the island reds. Yeah, they do it right. So good. I think we just really like fried onion. Loomin onion. No one has the balls to put it on burgers.

But the ones that do, they soar. Yeah. And islands, I moved to L.A. in 2012. And I probably discovered islands in maybe 2014 or so. Okay. And since then, so 11, 12 years almost, I've been going there pretty regularly. I will never be mad if someone's like, hey, you feeling islands tonight? Yeah. I'm mad. I'm feeling islands tonight. If you're inviting me to islands, I'm angry. It would be a crazy take. Hulk smash. It'd be weird. Yeah, I guess so. It'd be like a Snickers commercial, like you're hungry, you're not yourself. Yeah. Yeah.

Well, that's our histories with Islands. Do you want to hear the history of islands? Okay. Let's do it. We're going to jump into this week's eat deets. Sultry sounds. Eat do, do, do, do, do, do, do. We should just put in our point.

Eatery details. Nice. Eatty. Eatery Details. Islands Fine Burgers and Drinks was founded in May 1982 by Tony de Grazier, who opened the first restaurant at Pico and Veteran in West Los Angeles. A former Navy man inspired by surfing in Oahu, Hawaii, DeGrazier set out to create a laid-back island-themed burger joint serving fresh, made-to-order food in a casual Aloha spirit atmosphere. This beachy open-air concept was a novelty at the time. The gourmet burger scene in L.A. barely existed, and locals were soon driving across town for a taste.

I can imagine this place kind of being a big deal, like in the early 80s. Yeah. And then bringing in that Hawaii vibe is... Which is always nice. Yeah, yeah. When are you ever, like, anti-Hawaii Vi? Like tropical theming, done right? I love. And Islands does it right. Like even inside just feels relaxing and like little parrot decor. Like you'll get like little like prop parrots. Oh really? Oh. And not you yourself. No. Okay. I was like they give you prop parents. Yeah. It's pirate cosplay. I would love that. I grew up having parrots because my parents were very much like we don't want to deal with a dog. So we had cockatiels. So but it was all. That feels like a loud household.

It wasn't that bad. I think of birds as noisy. They chirp, they sing, but they're not, the ones we had weren't really screechy. But whenever I mentioned, like, I'm a parrot person, everyone's like, what? Yeah. It is a little weird. But they're super smart. Oh, yeah.

And they can live to, what, like 100 or something? Well, the bigger ones can't. Like the cockatoos and the, like, African grays. They're super, like, the intelligence of, like, a three-year-old. But, yeah, cockatiel is less so. But super. Mine was like a little dog, honestly. We'd have the cage open in the morning.

he would crawl down the cage, go down the hallway, go into my bedroom, crawl up the bed, and just wait for me to wake up. He would like cuddle on my shoulder and just be like, okay, we're napping now. That's cute. Yeah, he was my buddy. That feels like such an experience that I would love to have that I haven't. Oh. I get that with your dogs now. Yeah.

Kona, I'm not kidding. So I will be asleep and she'll be on the floor. and she knows when I'm like ready to get up versus when I am just like I happen to wake up to like I will always around like nineish wake up to use the restroom and then I go back to sleep and she knows he's not ready yet. Oh. And then I'll like open my eyes at like 10 maybe or something. And I don't do anything.

I don't move. I'm just like I'm probably going to lay in bed for 15 minutes or whatever. You know, take my time waking up. I don't get to because she will stand next to exactly where my head is on the floor and she'll start wagging her butt into the bed to like shake me awake. And then I look over and her face is right there and she just throws her head up because she likes being pet underneath the like on the bottom of her neck. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And it's just like, it's so cute and endearing. She's very cute.

And I feel so like, she loves me. It's such a nice feeling. And so that's what your parrot story is like, but to like have that with a different animal just feels like, oh, that's unique. Like I've not had that or thought of birds as affectionate. Yeah. And I imagine they would be, but. I guess it depends. Like a canary isn't really, I think, the same as a.

They're just a signal that a coal mine is collapsing. Yes. We just kill them off as they check if there's oxygen. Yeah. Eek. Islands differentiated itself with its tropical vibe and quality menu. Early signature items like the Hawaiian burger, a half pound patty topped with terriaki sauce and grilled pineapple, and the chili smothered pipeline burger, have been on the menu since the beginning and put the restaurant on the map, drawing rave reviews.

The hand-cut French fries quickly became a fan favorite, and the bar served up playful teaky cocktails and cheap margaritas, making islands a fun escape compared to typical fast food burger stops. It's also not fast food. It's fast-cual, but, well, it's not even, no, it's not even fast casual. It's casual. Yeah, it's not very fast experience. Yeah, fast casual is like Chipotle.

Get in, get out. Fast food is, they have a drive-through, and you know what fast food is. We know. I think you're listeners, no. My listeners know the difference between fast food, fast cash and cash. Where do you stand on pineapple in burgers slash pizza? Two different things. Oh, okay, okay, okay.

Pizza, I'm not a fan. Burgers, I don't mind it. I don't love hot pineapple. Yeah, I think that's my issue as well. I think the place where it most belongs is like with pulled pork or like pork shoulder or something like that. like a luau vibe. It's not, I've had the one that is at islands, the one with the tariaki. And honestly, the terriaki is more off putting them the pineapple.

Oh. It just doesn't, it's unique. Sure. Put them on the map. It's not bad, but it's not what I want. Okay. I guess. Totally.

Yeah. So, I don't know. What about you? I'm not a fan of pineapple and savory things for the most part. But I love pineapple in dessert. On its own. Yeah, in a drink. Through the 1980s and early 90s, islands grew steadily around Southern California.

New locations sprouted up. The chain's first expansion included spots like Marina Del Rey and Pasadena, as customers embraced the relaxed surf shack ambiance. The brand fostered a devoted following. Some regulars literally made it a weekly tradition. For example, one family in Manhattan Beach has dined at islands every Friday since 1992, drawn to its consistently good food, friendly service, and family. friendly atmosphere.

I imagine that change during the pandemic when you couldn't dine in. Maybe they were allowed in. Just for you guys because you're family.

I love that though. Like to have like a family like for me, it wasn't every Friday. It wasn't like a set in stone thing. But at least through my middle school in high school years, it was I finished school on Friday

and we would go to Blockbuster and we'd get a Domino's pizza. Oh, pick out a movie. Yeah. And so it was just like, especially because it's like three-day rental. So it's like, great. I'm having the pizza tonight, movies, maybe tonight,

maybe tomorrow. Who knows, but I'll get to it, you know. It was a really fun time. Like, honestly, the idea of going to a video store is so much more deliberate than just like browsing Netflix to where like, I liked the separation of the process. And by that, I mean, nowadays you'll sit on your couch for an hour deciding what you want to watch and then you'll feel like you wasted your time walking the aisles at blockbuster might also take you 30 minutes to an hour but once you had it now your couch is your sacred place and you get home and you're like cool I already know what I'm doing I have it I've picked it out already and I like that separation it's it's kind of like if you work from a home and you work in your room and you're like I want a separation between spaces that's what it feels. feels like to me. I understand that. So, but there's just something about like tradition, especially growing up, I think is, is very, uh, fun. And so to be a family that goes to islands every Friday or whatever, I would love that kind of thing. I wonder though if there's like one kid who maybe just did it like islands. Why are we here every week? Yeah. I mean, and I'm sure like as they're like young

kids, they love it. And then I'm sure they get jaded at some point like, oh, I'd rather be out with friends or whatever. And then you come back. Yeah. Around. But yeah. I mean, that is literally how nostalgia is built. It's something that was a habit of yours for a while and then you lose it for a bit.

And then you remember it and it brings back those memories. So I think nostalgia is underrated as a value. Okay. Like I think people don't like respect the good feeling that nostalgia brings enough. What makes you say that? I have heard that like Gen Z like pushes back very much against nostalgic things. And like short. They're too young to have nostalgia.

Of course. Of course. But like by that I mean. And I push back on this a little bit too where it's like, okay, everything needs a remake. No, it doesn't. Yes. I agree. And that's an element of nostalgia where it's like that isn't nostalgia.

That is you are being marketed to with nostalgia. Yeah. Which is very different than the experience. of nostalgia. Totally. I love the experience of nostalgia and the things that I have chosen for my life to feel those warm feelings about. Not that like a studio told me like,

hey, aren't you excited for the fourth reboot of the Batman franchise since your childhood? And it's just like at some point, no. Yeah, I've been rewatching the Jurassic Park movies. Yeah. Like, I've been watching the first couple are so fun. Yeah. And then the Chris Pratt one was the first one was okay.

And then after that... The second one is the worst thing. Well, I'm in the middle of the third one and it's not... There's hardly any dinosaur action. It's just... The second one felt like a haunted house movie with dinosaurs. Yeah, but so far in the third one, it's just people and their relationships and now we've got locusts. And I was like, I'm not here for locusts.

I'm here for dinosaurs. I never saw the... Oh. I never saw Jurassic World after the second one. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm trying to get through them all. I never quit franchises. So.

Yeah. I'm giving it a shot because I haven't seen it either. But I had to stop because I was just like, what am I wanted? I'm going to finish it. Slowly. I mean. Take my time. I'm watching installments.

In 1993, DeGrozier sold Island to Chart House Enterprises, a company known for upscale seafood restaurants, bringing the first big shift in the chain's history. Under Chart House, Islands headquarters moved to Carlsbad in San Diego. County, and the chain attempted to go more upscale. They even swapped out plastic baskets for real glassware in an effort to class up the experience. Backed by its new parent, islands also expanded more aggressively outside its home base, opening restaurants not just in San Diego, but in Arizona, and even Florida for the first time. This push introduced the island's concept to new markets, albeit with some growing pains as the brand balanced its casual roots with corporate expansion.

They have actually been in the last. They have actually been in the United States. like five or six different states. So they did expand a decent amount. Now they're just in two here in Arizona. Wow. I really do think this place could catch on. Totally. With an earnest push to make it. The food's really good. The food's really good. But I guess they just. And the vibe's great. Yeah. I wonder what their issue is. Yeah. Who's messing this up. But this was the upscale version. Oh, that's true with the glass. That's crazy to me. Yeah. To think of them serving things Like to me, that almost feels like, not that it is a brewhouse, but like a Gordon Beershe level, uh, fanciness or whatever, kind of like that tier, maybe like a step above a BJs or something. Yeah, which I don't associate it with.

Right. After only a few years, Tony de Grosier decided to come out of retirement and regain control of islands. He bought the company back from Chart House in the mid-1990s. Upon returning, de Grosier refocused the business on what had made it successful in the first place. The experimental Florida locations, which had struggled outside the chain's southwestern fan base, were promptly closed, and the brand simplified again, returning to its core formula of unpretentious food and fun. DeGrasier's practical hands-on leadership, steadied islands for the next era, reinforcing its original laid-back philosophy and keeping the menu and operations straightforward. So it sounds like he just straight up undid the changes. He's like, I see you ruining my baby.

I'm going to give you your money back. I'm coming out of retirement. And we're just going to control Z this whole thing. Yeah. Sounds like, I mean, that family started eating in the 90s. Maybe that's all related. They weathered that storm. Yeah.

I kind of love that. Yeah. The idea of I sold a company. I'm proud of it. I want to be hands on again. Would you all sell it back to me? It's not working out for you. you let me take the burden.

I think I can write the ship. Yeah, he totally could have just taken the money and left it at that. Yeah. He decided to go and restore it to what he envisioned it as. Yeah. Respect it. And as far as I know, that is the islands that I have always known because I wasn't here during that initial. You were not in existence.

When did you first have island? Because you're from Southern California. I actually, I don't think I had it until mid-20s. I lived and worked in downtown Burbank. And so there's one there. Yeah. And there's also one on the west side that I used to frequent as well, but they've since shut down, which is sad. Yeah.

Yeah. I said this after Outback episode, but let's go to Ireland. I know. And then you sent me a text message with the Blumen Onion. And you didn't respond. That was an invitation. It didn't feel. It felt like you were bragging.

Like, hi, I have a bloomin onion. Do you think I won't go back to Outback immediately after already having been at Outback? Because that's a miscalculation on your part. Okay. All right. All right. Under de Grosier's renewed leadership, islands hit a stride in the late 1990s and 2000s, expanding to its peak size. By the late 2000s, the chain grew to over 50 locations across the southwestern U.S. While California remained the stronghold, islands ventured further,

establishing a presence in Nevada and even opening a restaurant in Hawaii to bring the concept full circle. However, some of these far-flung outposts proved short-lived. The Las Vegas and Honolulu locations eventually closed. The Hawaiian restaurant lasted 15 years before closing in 2020, as the company retrenched to focus on its core Western markets. The original West L.A. restaurant also shuttered in 2018 after 36 years due to rising rent costs. At its height, Islands was a familiar fixture up and down California and beyond, but the late 2010s and the pandemic years brought a pullback from those peak numbers.

It does sound like the pandemic is what caused the Hawaii one to close, not the fact that it wasn't working. Yeah. Islands on the island. Having been to Cheeseburger in Paradise, thematically, it does seem very similar, like from a decor standpoint. Similar vibes. I could see a place like islands opening in Hawaii tomorrow and doing great with tourists because it's what they want. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's the same. Let's do the five.

Yeah. Just like outback in Australia. It exists. Yeah, it does. Australians don't love it. But it's not out of business. It's not out of business. It's still there.

Still serving prawns, not shrimp on the Barbie. Prawns. Over the decades, Islands has adapted its menu to changing tastes while keeping its best known items. In the 90s, facing more competition in the gourmet burger scene, islands broadened its offerings, adding entree salads, soft tacos, chicken sandwiches, and later even low-carb lettuce wraps and rice bowls to appeal to health-conscious diners. Yet, the kitchen's penchant for creativity led to some quirky cult favorites as well. Notably, the endless tortilla soup became a surprise hit in the 1990s.

It started as a way to use up rotisserie chicken for a soup of the day, but it got so popular they were cooking rotisserie chickens just to make enough tortilla soup for the day. through it all, the core menu has remained anchored by burgers, crispy island fries, and cold drinks. As it should. It's such a winning combo, especially for them. I don't think we've leaned enough into it, but their fries are some of my favorite. They're tasty fries. And the fry salt, like, they're seasoning. It's just a blend of seasonings, but it is so good.

And like the fries are the right amount of crispy. I feel like when you bring something different, the fry game, it's always exciting. Yeah. And by the way, 10 out of 10 times I want a seasoning over a sauce. Definitely. Like a dipping sauce, great. I'm not mad at it. I am. But like I'm not finding your fries unique off of your dipping sauce.

Yeah, yeah. You're relying on the sauce. Yeah. But if your fries are solid by themselves. And they have a seasoning that really pops. Mm-hmm. Love it. Yeah. I'm such a fry guy. Oh, I love fries. I love potatoes. Who has your favorite fry?

I think for me it is Islands. Ooh, that's pretty, that's a great question. Oh, Red Robin, I do like their fries too, the seasoned fries. I don't love, like, the wedge. Wedge. It's too much potato, not enough. Like, I like the crispy part of the fry. I like more skin.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Per fry. I'm with you. I think if you went with kind of a thinner fry with their seasoning, that might make it like a perfect fry for me. And the wedges, I always like burn. my mouth. Because like the potato is so hot inside. You're not learning your lessons. When is it safe, you know? You just wait a little bit. I don't want to. He's a hungry boy. I'm hungry. Islands has always leaned into its tropical branding, not just in food, but in look

and feel. By the 1990s, the restaurants were decked out with surfboard shaped tabletops, tiki totems, palm-themed murals, and even blowfish lanterns hanging over the bar, evoking a festive beach bar vibe. One enduring quirk, since the early days, the TVs and Islands have played continuous surfing videos, reinforcing the surf culture atmosphere. In later years, they mixed in snowboarding clips and muted sports games, careful not to turn the eatery into a loud sports bar. The company has also cultivated its fan community with playful marketing.

For example, to celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2022, Islands brought back a vintage spicy heat wave burger from its 1982 menu and sold it for just $4.40 to the first 100 customers on the anniversary day. The milestone celebration also featured throwback uniforms, special edition drinks like a 40th anniversary beer and a watermelon margarita in collectible glassware, and social media giveaways, all highlighting island's long history and keeping the brand's vacation in paradise spirit alive for a new generation of guests. those surfing videos They're fun

But they're distracting I find myself Just sitting there Just not being present With who you're eating with I'm just like whoa that guy wiped out Or oh wow What an amazing thing they did

With that wave Yeah yeah yeah Then you're just like oh wait I have yeah I'm not It's very fun It almost feels like You know the like Red Bull Like

Lug tug no Or just like They're sports is the wrong word But like they're They're like athletic feet videos where it's like, you know, the guy who, was it like skydived from space or something? Oh, that was a Red Bull thing?

That was a Red Bull thing. Oh, man. I might be making up what actually happened. But like, yeah, they do so much stuff. Or like, you'll see, you know, the people who have like wing suits and they like jump off of cliffs and they like. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. That's a very Red Bull thing. So it like, it's not Red Bull related for islands, but it feels similar.

It feels like it's in that vein of like extreme sport done by professionals in very cool ways. Yeah, yeah. It's impressive. And then I'm not eating my burger because I'm like, whoa. Yeah. Yeah. It's it's a unique atmosphere. And I always love unique. Definitely. I will always go back to a place that has an identity about it that you cannot get anywhere else. You're not going into a Chili's and seeing the same things you're seeing at Islands. No. And they're having an identity crisis right now too. Yeah. What was that baby back ribs just in big words on the wall?

Oh, yeah. What is that? Yeah. Why are you just putting a menu item? Pick a font. At least do a fun font. Yeah. Not impact.

It was ugly. It looked like impact. Yeah. I agree with you. I know my font. Comic Sans. After more than 40 years, Island remains a privately held company and a California institution at heart.

As of 2025, it operates roughly 40 locations, primarily in California from San Diego to the Bay Area, with a handful in Arizona, down from its early 2000s peak, but still a sizable footprint for a regional chain. Founder Tony deGrozier retired and sold the business to private investors in 2020, but Islands has continued under new leadership

without losing its identity. That is when I got rid of the bottomless fries, though. Uh-oh, DeGrasier, save us. I know. Long time. employees note that the company is still holding true to its concept of creating a getaway, a relaxed disconnect experience for the guest, preserving the same welcoming island escape vibe that define the very first location in 1982.

You retired again. I mean, at some point you've earned it. Yeah, I agree. I hope he doesn't have to come back out of retirement. Just to do the bottomless fries again. Just do one and done. Buy it back. Bottomless fries, sell it again.

Do you know why they got rid of it? Probably money. But it's fries. Yeah. How many? Are people eating you out of house and home? It was 2020. It was like the pandemic.

Oh, all right. You know, all the costs are going up and supply lines are being disrupted. It's like, we're giving you endless potatoes. No more. You know, no one's eating so many. It's going to like hurt your bottom line. That's how I feel. But collectively everyone probably is at least impacting it.

But not everything needs to be about the profit. Let it be about the profit. the experience. And I feel like it's psychologically more positive if you have endless fries on the menu. Yeah. And this is another one where I saw a Yelp review where a manager responded to like defend something. And it was like, oh, well, we took apart the fries from the burgers because the burgers don't come with fries anymore. Oh, okay. They're like, well, we separated them so that you now have options for what sides you want. And so they were using that to defend. No more bottomless fries because we're giving you.

more options. No. I don't want options. We don't need options. You have the thing. Yeah. Just give us the fries. So that'll do it for this week's Eat Deeps. And that's the history of islands. And while I've already reviewed it, I think it's only fair that we hear how others review it in this week's Yelp from Strangers. So get a little yelp A little yelp A little yelp A little yelp. It's why you literally white

All right This is Yelp from strangers Our segment where we turn to Yelp And read out our favorite One, two, three Four, five, two, five star Yelp reviews Why do you do this?

Why do you do this? Because you hate it. I love structure. I'm like a toddler. This is structure. No. That I'm always doing. Chaos Gremlin. You're a chaos gremlin and you need to accept it.

Five Star Review. This is a five star review from Mason B from Los Angeles, California, March 16th, 2017. Whenever my girlfriend wants to go on vacation, I take her to Island's restaurant, y'all. I ain't kidding. She loves it here. The food, the staff, the atmosphere, it's like an island getaway and you only have to drive to Burbank to get there. Every time he says two, it's spelled T.A. Oh, wow. So there really is a twin. in this. Very folksy. What really sells the island feel is the surf network, which is a television channel I do not get, probably because I am too far away from the ocean to pick it up.

Y'all get to eat, drink, and have fun all while watching six surf montages. I usually get a burger, and my gal usually gets the fish tacos. But when the food comes, I'm always like, why didn't I get the fish tacos? So I guess what I am saying is just get the fish tacos. That's not the right take. Get the burgers, get the fries. Yeah, I agree. Drinks is fun here too.

It like the only place my gal can get lit at whatever that means. And if I remember, right, the happy hour menu makes it all even more worth it. Honestly, who don't want to get lit on an island? Mason Brooks, Yelp Elite. Oh, wow. He also includes a picture of the island's fry salt and captioned it. Now, y'all, I don't know the truth. but it looks like the special seasoning is sand.

It does kind of look sandy. Yeah, but it doesn't taste sandy. It doesn't taste it. I think it's just a cutesy observation. Anyways, I loved how folksy that review was. Yeah, definitely. I don't know what get. Who doesn't want to get lit on an island?

Whatever that is. Mason B. Yelp elite. I really love that review. Yeah. It's so fun. It's so. I enjoyed your performance as well.

The seasoning is sand. It's sand. There's a fish in the percolator. That's a Twin Peaks quote. I had a feeling. Two-star review. This is a two-star review from Jessica K., L.A. June 30, 2008.

After our rock and appetizer cheese fries, I became extremely pissed off. What a way to start. When I said rock and cheese fries, I literally mean it. There I am eating these good fries, and I bite on something so hard I think I chip my teeth. Oh, right. rock in. There's a rock in my cheese fries. Literally. Okay. I pull it out of my mouth and bam, two small rocks. So that's not actually what they're called. They're not rocking cheese fries. I don't think so. Oh, so she's making her own worst. She's trying to be clever. I didn't get that until

yes. Yeah. Now, I hate to call the place out like that, but after all my dining experiences, I do have to say I never thought I would find rocks in my food. Valid. Yeah. Yeah. That is a valid thing to expect to never find. Yeah. To me, that is just really unacceptable. The manager explains that they make their own fries. And maybe these rocks just didn't get washed out before the potatoes were peeled and fried. Honestly, so much funnier than defending in like a that's not true. Just being like, oh, here's why it might be true. They didn't get washed out.

What kind of potatoes are you getting? Then I'm eating my chicken sandwich. That is really good. And I feel something hard in my mouth again. So I pull a small chicken bone out. At this point, I'm like, okay, I'm not even going to say anything. Just eat and get the F out of here. And I hate to be that person that is just bitchy and freaking out over a couple of mistakes.

But really, when we decided to go to islands, I didn't think I would end up having an experience where I felt like I was really stranded on an island eating rocks and bones. Okay. Of all the ways you could critique the place, I like that. I didn't realize islands was literal. Like I'm going to an island. I'm cast away. Gilligan's Island. Yeah. Yeah. They offered us free dessert and comp the fries to try and make up for the rocks and my fries. whoopty freaking do. Always a funny phrase.

And she added it in parentheses. We got the Kona Pie and OMG, it was the only thing that was not ruined. Besides the great service, this Kona Pie is the only other reason for two stars. I would come back just for dessert

just as long as next time our meal is minus rocks and bones. Reasonable. I have to say I'm mad at this place, though, for ruining my afternoon. Yeah, you know, you find rocks and bones in your food. You're kind of,

You're allowed to be upset. Although I think it's funny that there's so there's people, other people marked it helpful and love this. The oh no rating, no one gave it an oh no. I feel like that's very oh no worthy. This is prime oh no. Yeah, rocks and bones. Well, break. No, they won't break my bones.

Unless, what's the animal that like eats rocks to like help break up stuff in its stomach? Oh, shoot. I don't even know. Is that chickens? Oh, yeah. Like birds do, they eat grit. Yeah. Yeah.

So. We're big chickens. We're big chickens. I heard you like Yelp reviews. Well, you can get three more over at my Patreon. That's patreon.com slash fine dining podcast. You can get the full Yelp from Stranger's segment instead of just those two. You can also get an exclusive full episode of the Fine Dining podcast that's only available there.

Nowhere else. This month, I will be doing the Popeye's Thanksgiving dinner, specifically a full turkey. frozen that you can get from Popeyes and take home. They season it for you. All you have to do is cook it. I did that last year and I'm excited to finally release the episode about it. I'll also be doing tastings of exclusive limited time offers at restaurants similar to the How to Train Your Dragon Meal at Burger King or the Wednesday Adams meal at Wendy's stuff like that. So if there's anything exclusive that you want me to try, well, go try it out. I'll review it there and put it there. This show is supported by listeners like you.

So if you've got a little bit to support, I'd always appreciate you going to Patreon and checking that out. And whether or not you do, I love and cherish you regardless. I hope you have a wonderful holiday season. Thanks so much. Back to the episode. And that's it for this Eat Dietz episode. We got to cover islands, which one of my favorite places.

I'm just happy to have. Highly recommend. I have another episode on Islands. I asked it at the beginning, but are they the best casual burger chain? I do think so. I think they're better than Red Robin, which is kind of the other major contender for like that tier. Because like even Outback whose burgers I love isn't a burger chain. No, it's a bloomin onion chain.

It's a steakhouse, allegedly. I'm very rarely ordering steak there. Do you want to tell people where they can follow you on socials? Nah. Great. I don't have an Instagram. You do have an Instagram. I was going to say an interesting Instagram.

Oh. No one needs to see that. But if you do, it is Say La V-V-B-E-B-E-S-T-U-A-U-A-U-Y-V-Y. Honestly, I just love the username so much. Thanks. That's such a fun name. But I do occasionally get someone who's just like, what is this? Kest?

Kest-L-V-V-E-B? And, you know, it's not for them. I guess not. It's not for them. That's fine. And you can follow the podcast on Instagram and TikTok at Fine Dining Podcast. You can watch full episodes on YouTube. You can come join the discussion in my Discord.

Come say hi. Come pine over the fact that you don't have an island's near you. And I wish you did. I want you to experience this. You get a gold belly it. Yeah. And I have a Patreon if you want to support the show. You get an exclusive episode every single month.

This month I'll be doing an episode on Taco Cabana that will drop on New Year's Eve. And I most recently covered the Popeye's Thanksgiving. turkey for my November episode. So go check that out. It's just five bucks a month and you get your first seven days free and it it helps me. It supports the show. That is another one

in the books. But season four is coming up. Oh yeah. In just a few weeks. I'm out of restaurants to do eat deeds for. I'm now covered. We've done history on every restaurant in this show's history. But

for the next two weeks we're going to do some Yelp from strangers specials we're going to cover Yelp reviews from the first 10 restaurants after islands so I guess episodes 5 through 14 of the podcast

that'll be Denny's Olive Garden Pizza Hut Bubba Gump Gukaku Bob's Big Boy Rainforest Cafe Chewy's Papa Doe and Waffle House

So we're going to do, that was not in the correct order, but whatever. That's okay. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Take the win. But I've found some very fun Yelp reviews. You will be joining me once again to do those. I'm back. I'm back again.

I assume. Maybe. If you say no, you'll be my enemy. No. Dun, done, done. All right. Well, that is another one in the books. I will see you all next week.

In the meantime. Have a fine day. Or not a fine day because I'm your enemy now. BV! Well, there's another one in the folks. We judge the service up to the cooks. And while we may have gotten a couple of dirty loves, though the journey can never stop.

Now, from the bottom down to the top, we got a many things on lock. And that's because chillies to love. We got the next week. and next week, baby. A fine day.