I used to watch Food Network almost non-stop. I loved all of the cooking shows – Rachael Ray, Paula Deen, Giada De Laurentiis. I picked up so many great hints and tips just by watching their shows on a Saturday morning. While I don’t really watch those shows too much anymore, I still enjoy some of the other, newer shows. One of them is Restaurant Impossible with Robert Irvine, sort of knock off on Kitchen Nightmares. I’ve gotten Jake to watch it a few times and he’s actually into the show now. When I told him that they had done an episode at a restaurant here in town, he was totally game for going and checking it out.

The restaurant in question is The Trails Neighborhood Eatery in La Mesa. I had never heard of the place before I saw it on the show. It’s in a pretty nondescript part of town, within an old strip mall in San Carlos/La Mesa. Driving by the strip mall, it really doesn’t look like much. There’s a CVS and a Keils food store which looks like one of the oldest stores ever.

Once you step inside though, you immediately see the homey, updated version of the restaurant. It has a really cozy feel with lovely colors and the images of the family throughout the restaurant give it a very welcoming feel.

We just happened to go the first time on a Sunday morning. When we watched in, they had the Food Network channel on which just happened to be playing their episode! We mused if it was a recording that the restaurant played, but the owner, Stacey, pipped up. “No, it just happens to be on right now,” she explained, with an embarrassed grin.

We ended up waiting over an hour for a table, no doubt because of that recent airing of the episode. I was determined to try it though even though maybe I hadn’t picked the best day/time to go.

[Cinnamon Roll Pancakes – Swirls of cinnamon roll filling and topped with cream cheese frosting – $6.99 / with bacon & eggs – $8.99]

On our first visit, Jake and T. shared an order of the Cinnamon Roll Pancakes. It’s covered in a rich cream cheese frosting which doesn’t require anything else to go on it – it’s quite sweet enough with that frosting!

The impressive cinnamon swirl is done right into the pancakes, giving it the classic cinnamon roll look and all of that cinnamon taste right in the pancake. The few bites I snagged from Jake were quite delicious. The pancakes were light and fluffy with a nice bit of cinnamon goo in them. This would have to be something to share in my opinion since it is rich and sweet – but very good.

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