Restaurant:
On The Hook
1367 W Whittier Blvd
La Habra, CA 90631
Hello and Welcome to another episode of Restaurant Reviews!
Today, we're taking a look at a restaurant that’s looking to establish its name in the crazy popular world of Cajun/Creole Seafood.
ABOUT THE RESTAURANT
On the Hook is a Cajun/Creole restaurant serving fresh seafood cooked and served in a way that was originally made popular in the Southern states of America. The seafood is boiled in a bag with various Cajun spices and is often served with the shells on as it is encouraged for customers to peel and eat the seafood with their hands as part of the dining experience.
This genre of Cajun/Creole food was a relatively unknown concept outside of the South, including Southern California, and it wasn’t until a little over a decade ago when a Vietnamese couple-owned restaurant, by the name of Boiling Crab, popped up in the heart of Little Saigon that Cajun/Creole seafood really started to take off in popularity. After the amazing success seen by Boiling Crab and their unique and novel eating experience, multiple establishments with similar business models began popping up all around the Los Angeles and Orange County area before branching out to states like Nevada, Texas, and Hawaii.
On the Hook is one of these restaurants joining in on this Vietnamese-Louisiana style of cuisine, but it'll be interesting to see if this restaurant can capitalize on this Asian Cajun craze.
THE DRINKS
1. AHU (All Hooked Up) Lemonade ($6.50)
Description:
Berry Mint Lemonade with Bits of Strawberries and Blueberries topped with a Mint Slush.
Review:
I honestly wasn't expecting anything special from their lemonade but the presentation of it actually really peaked my interest.
The size of this drink was pretty large and all three elements of this lemonade (the strawberries, blueberries, and mint) were separately layered with an eye popping green mint slush poured over the top.
Their lemonade had the perfect amount of sweetness and you can individually taste the fresh fruity taste of the strawberries and blueberries integrated into the drink. The mint slush on top was blended extremely smooth and, when mixed in with the rest of the lemonade, gave the drink a refreshing mojito-like taste that was pretty outstanding.
Result:
Surprising that a Cajun restaurant would serve one of the best lemonades I've ever had. 10/10.
STARTERS
1. Garlic Parmesan Fries ($5.49)
Description:
Thin Cut Fries with Chopped Garlic, Shaved Parmesan Cheese, and Parsley.
Review:
There are a few things on this earth that I can't seem to resist and one of those things are french fries.
The garlic parmesan fries here aren't going to turn any heads but they are a solid side that's just as you would expect.
The fries were nicely thin and crispy and there was a decent amount of minced garlic to flavor the fries. I appreciated the fact that they used thin parmesan shavings rather than regular powder as this gave the fries that salty cheesy flavor but with a bit more textural bite.
Result:
Overall, pretty solid fries. 8/10.
2. Garlic Butter Noodles with Andouille Sausages ($12.49)
Description:
Thick Egg Noodles mixed with a Garlic Butter Sauce and topped with Parsley, Green Onions, and Andouille Sausages.
Review:
You can order their noodles with any combination of the three following options: Garlic, Butter, or AHU (All Hooked Up with garlic, butter, and cajun spices).
We decided to go with the Garlic Butter Noodles since we were planning on choosing the AHU variant for the seafood.
The noodles came out piping hot and were thick with a great bouncy texture that was cooked perfectly al dente. Unfortunately however, the garlic flavor in the noodles was a bit weak for my taste and it made the entire dish feel like it was missing a certain punch in overall flavor. The same went for the andouille sausages which were decent, but seemed to be nothing more than standard in taste.
However, there was a saving grace to this whole dish and it was the AHU sauce used in the main course (more on that in a bit). Dipping the noodles in the sauce gave it more of the salty, spicy garlic flavor I was looking for and made an absolute world of a difference in the overall taste. This is also where the thickness of the noodles really shined through as it soaked up so much of that rich seafood-y, garlicky flavor in the sauce which really brought out that umami goodness in the noodles. Since you are able to order the noodles with the AHU sauce, I'd probably recommend ordering that variant.
Result:
The garlic noodles themselves were a bit disappointing in flavor but were a lot better with the AHU sauce. 7/10.
THE MAIN EVENT
1. Fresh ‘Boiled-in-Bag’ Cajun Seafood (~$14/lb)
Description:
1 lb of Head on Shrimp, 1 lb of Peeled Shrimp, 1 lb of Mussels, Red Potatoes, and Corn cooked and boiled in a bag with Garlic, Butter, Lemon Pepper, and Cajun Spices.
Review:
This was the main event, and I was really curious to see how it would stack up against other Cajun/Creole restaurants serving this style of seafood.
We decided to separate our order into two separate bags, one being mild and one being medium because we weren't sure what the spice levels were going to be like here. In all honesty, I couldn't really tell the difference between the two, but both had just the right amount of spice that I personally prefer. The sauce was rich, buttery, and garlicky and compared pretty well to other sauces I've tried at other restaurants. It's hard to say if it was better than say, Boiling Crab, but it didn't have me longing for anything more which was a great sign.
The Head On Shrimps were fresh, plump, and easy to peel. They soaked up a good amount of flavor from the sauce and the shell kept the meat pretty juicy inside.
I'm normally against ordering peeled shrimp at these types of restaurants (since part of eating here is the 'hands-on' experience) but I actually really liked it here. Even though we only ordered a pound of these, there were tons of shrimp in the bag and they were all pretty large and fresh. They soaked up the flavors really well and still were nice and juicy despite having been cooked without the shell.
Nobody I know ever orders mussels at these restaurants, but if you're one of these people, I highly suggest you start doing so because I think these take on the flavor of the sauce the best. They use green lip mussels here so they're very large, and have a meaty texture that soak up all the garlicky, lemony, buttery flavor from the sauce. They're also really easy to eat so that's also a bonus (unless you enjoy working for your food like my girlfriend does...)
We also added some corn and red potatoes to our seafood bags to add some variety. The corn was juicy and sweet, and the potatoes were nicely cooked until soft.
Here's the graveyard of shrimp heads my girlfriend made...
Result:
The seafood was fresh and the sauce was flavorful with just the right amount of spice. 9/10.
THE DESSERT
1. Fresh Beignets with French Vanilla Ice Cream ($8.99)
Description:
Freshly Baked Beignets topped with Cinnamon, Honey, and Powdered Sugar served with a side of French Vanilla Ice Cream and a sprig of mint.
Review:
You just can't go wrong with a fresh hot pastry and cold ice cream and fortunately, this place does theirs phenomenally.
The beignets came out nice and warm and it was obvious that these pastries were fresh out of the fryer. They were extremely fluffy and airy and the powdered sugar, cinnamon, and honey on top all added a pleasant bit of sweetness that was super satisfying to eat. The vanilla ice cream was just the icing on the cake and provided that hot cold contrast that I love so much.
Result:
Really some of the best beignets I've ever had. 9.5/10.
OVERALL RATING
Although they're not the first ones to implement this style of food, On the Hook does their seafood pretty well and they have enough good things going for them to compete with restaurants like Boiling Crab, the original Asian Cajun juggernaut. They also have some items that other restaurants don't have like fantastic craft drinks and amazing desserts. They even have this cool way for you to wash your hands after your meal using water, lemons, hand soap, and dry ice!
Overall, unless you're a Boiling Crab purist and insist on waiting hours in line to eat at the original cajun franchise, I think this is a place that very well deserves some consideration when you're in the mood for some 'hands-on' seafood.
Food: 8.5/10
Service: 9.5/10
Value: 8.5/10
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