MARY FURR -- Dining Out

Like Santa in his sleigh, the spirit of Christmas has made a stop at

Sunny’s Family Restaurant on Edinger Avenue in Huntington Beach.

Owners Andy and Cindy Zervos have turned the restaurant into a “must

stop” for families with children.

At the entrance is a lovely snow-covered village. The main dining room

has a sleigh full of teddy bears that flies across the room whenever

anyone enters the restaurant.

There are six highchairs just waiting for little diners to order from the

children’s menu, where spaghetti and meatballs with cheese bread has a

permanent spot.

Kids won’t overlook chicken strips with French fries and milk, hot dogs,

hamburgers, waffles, scrambled eggs and bacon.

All are priced at $3.85 and include a “kid card” that entitles all good

little girls and boys under 10 years old to choose a gift at the

entrance.

Grown-ups will enjoy a wide selection of seafood, steaks, pasta,

sandwiches and salads. Top sirloin with shrimp ($12.95), one of the

generous choices, has a thick, grill-marked steak, firm but tender, and

three large butterflied shrimp with tails in a crackly coat ready to dip

into the chunky cocktail sauce.

There’s so much on the plate, a small cup of baked beans in a dark,

long-cooked molasses, old-fashioned cream corn, seasoned rice pilaf or

potatoes or yams.

A dish that appealed to me is ham steak ($7.25), two thick bone-in slices

topped with a pineapple slice and cup of thin, mildly sweet sauce. This

dish also had the rice, creamed corn and (after 3 p.m.) a baked potato.

The ham was rimmed with just enough fat to make you forget the doctor’s

caution.

The menu is so varied you’ll find your favorite dish from among the meat

loaf, pork chops with country gravy, or liver and onions, lots of retro

favorites you haven’t tried since mom retired from the kitchen and gave

up the stove for a computer.

A dessert to bring back memories is a hot fudge sundae ($3.25), a big

schooner of vanilla ice cream dripping in hot fudge with nuts and whipped

cream. There are also freshly baked pies and cakes, or a hot fudge

fantasy ($3.45) -- chocolate cake, ice cream covered with hot fudge. This

is great after a movie with ice cappuccino ($2.55).

So, for the child in you or the child with you, enjoy a preview of

Christmas at one of the Sunny’s. A new one just opened on Beach Boulevard

and Adams Avenue.

MARY FURR is the Independent restaurant critic. If you have comments or

suggestions for her, call (562) 493-5062.

FYI BOX:

SUNNY’S FAMILY RESTAURANT

WHERE: 7148 Edinger Ave., Huntington Beach

CALL: (714) 841-9934

HOURS: 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, except Christmas Day.