Bella’s Kitchen

Wasn’t open at 8:50 on a Friday. Had to pay for parking. Very frustrating and definitely won’t be wasting time here.

Well going to court is never easy when you’re helping family or friends, one nice thing about it is Bella’s restaurant, it is always a good place the managers Italian very nice, and the foods great, they have more new menu items. We took a pic of our pulled pork and potato salad BUT it was so good that we ate it before we snapped the shot !

Food is pretty good here. I recommend the breakfast menu the most. The breakfast sandwiches and breakfast plated are delicious and reasonably priced ($ 4.65) The Starbucks coffee bar and frozen yogurt are yummy. I’m not a big fan of the sandwiches but I haven’t tried the panini’s which I heard are great. Lots of tables to sit at and service is friendly. They do get busy during the court lunch recess but if you get in there before 12 PM, you will miss the crowd. You can also call ahead and your meal will be ready at the register when you arrive.

Bella’s Kitchen is somewhat of a hidden gem. I am giving 5-​stars strictly on one small part of this business that I believe everyone should try: the paninis.
They make their own bread and have this huge panini press. They make kaiser-​roll shaped bread that is just the right hardness on the outside while soft on the inside for these paninis.
My absolute favorite is the Argentinean. It’s full of fresh spinach and the slices of chicken breast with the melted cheese makes for a mouthful of flavor. I always ask them to add the sauteed mushroom mix to it. I think the sauteed mushrooms brings the whole sandwich together and compensates a little for some dryness you might find with the chicken breast. Get it on their cheese or tomato basil bread. Add a little siracha sauce each bite for an even better experience. I always wash it down with some Arizona Ice Tea or Grapeade.
The Panini size is huge for the 5 – 6 bucks you spend. You really will not find a better Panini in O.C. and you would not expect to find such a delicious panini– in the food court of a juvenile courthouse next to the UCI medical center.
I would steer clear from the Godfather unless you enjoy Italian combo style sandwiches. It is quite salty.

I had a wonderful experience here. I was looking for a place to get pizza at 730am for a pizza party I was throwing for my early morning work crew. Joseph totally went out of his way to have a pizza cook there for me and did an amazing job. The pizzas were amazing and he was so accommodating. I could not have asked for a better experience and truly appreciate how Bella’s went out of the way to make sure my early morning pizza party was a success. Great place, great manager, great food. An absolute must! I will do use Bella’s again for my pizza parties! THANK YOU Joseph!

CASH ONLY, I believe if they accepted debit and credit they’d get more business. Convent location next to courthouse. Get lunch ordered by 11 to avoid the rush, can have weekly menu emailed to you. You can also call ahead and place your order. Some specials sell out by 11:20. Food is just okay, but made to order sandwich bar is wonderful. Hard working staff. Generally always smokers in outdoor seating area

Really overpriced and Joe (the owner) is constantly raising his prices and only accepts cash. He is lucky there isn’t anything close by or else no one would go

Affordable lunch option! Good food at a fair price;-)

Nothing spectacular. I only go here out of convenience. The people are nice though, so going for lunch is always a pleasant experience.
Oh, and its cash only.

Prices here are ridiculous. I don’t eat here because I want to I eat at bellas every so often because «I forget my lunch sometimes!!» it’s convenient when you only have a 30min lunch. You pay almost 5bucks for a nasty rubber egg burrito with some fake bacon and potatoes 2bucks for some rotten milk. Pizza is okay ill give em that but 3.99 for just a personal pizza? and about 4bucks for a salad with flies on the side come on. Oh ya not to mention 2bucks for a bag of cheetos and can of Arizona ice tea that say 99cents right on them =/…THANK GOD FOR UCI’S CAFATERIA ITS HEALTHY IT HAS VERIETY ITS GOOD AND CHEAPE U CAN GET A HALF PERSONAL PIZZA DRINK AN SALAD FOR ONLY 3.99 =)
p. s. just becasue u see lots of ppl in this place doesnt mean its the place to be ITS ONLY BECAUSE ITS CONVENIENT for those who have court who are visiting and onl probation. and bellas only excepts cash beause the guy is smart he has an atm that charges u like 2bucks which means more of your money lol dont do it …

For quick and easy, this place was fine and the pizza was affordably priced. Not made for comfort or relaxation but clearly a place for the masses to eat in their short lunch hour.

I go here out of convenience, and most of the food is pretty good. I love their Asian chicken salad & the pizza is pretty good too. Around Valentines Day they will make a pizza in the shape of a heart if you order it in advance. CUTE!
The only thing that mildly annoys me is they do not accept cards, you have to go to this weird ATM machine in the corner of the café then take the receipt the machine gives out to the cashier to get money to pay.

I work at UCI Medical Center, and for those of you who know where we’re located, we’re located right across from the Block of Orange. If you have all the time in the world to go anywhere to get your lunch, you’d probably just go there. But if we get 30 minute lunches, not enough time to walk and get your food, come back and eat it (for most of us that work there, we have to take a shuttle from down the street, so driving isn’t an option). Depending on what side of the medical campus you work at, walking to the main hospital to get cafeteria food isn’t really an option either, especially if you want something from the grill. Since Bella’s is closer to me than the cafeteria, I tend to go there instead.
They are located at the courthouse, and it’s a pretty largely stocked kitchen. It has a large dining room, and is kept up pretty well. What’s nice about Bella’s is that they have a lot of options to choose from. Their pizza is always good, I’ve heard that their pasta is pretty good as well, but I love that they have a special of the day. You can sign up for their email and they’ll email you a menu for the next week to two weeks so you’ll always know what to get. And what’s best of all: every entrée is $ 4 (excluding tax). Their breakfast burritos are pretty good as well, and their entire breakfast menu is $ 3 (excluding tax as well). Their service is pretty good, and everyone is always friendly. I’ve always ordered and paid for my food in approximately 10 – 15 minutes, so I don’t understand why previous reviews are complaining that the service is slow. And I love that they have $ 1 ice cream scoops everyday from 3−4PM. Pretty generous and oh so good!
For the price that they charge you, and for what it is, I give it a 5-​star because when your time and options are limited, this place is pretty damn good. I have absolutely nothing to complain about. But if I wasn’t at work and had to compare this place to any other restaurant out there, then I’d have to re-​evaluate. But like I mentioned earlier, for the working person at UCI Medical Center or the courthouse, this place is pretty bomb.

Are you visiting an inmate at the Theo Lacy facility or have litigation at LJC? You will probably want to come here as well. The are well stocked on drinks and snacks to keep you going especially since this entire facility can be a mental drain.
Menu shifts daily but most of the time it’s pizzas, sandwiches, burgers, junk food, and desserts. Sometimes they have tacos, noodles, thai tea, and other surprises that end up being posted as specials of the day.
Then again you have the Block across the street for more dining choices if you are not excited about eating at a jail facility.
Parking can be confusing especially when there are two parking structures to choose from. One on the left is for the hospital and the one on the right is for the court. Either one is painful on the wallet as you can pay up to $ 10.00 to park.

S — -L — -O — W I mean super slow service and horrible food. I can make better food in my small kitchen with nothing but days old left overs. Come on at least hide the can that you are plopping down on the grill and straight serving onto a plate like it was freshly made. Ghetto! Never again will I eat here… even if its only $ 2.99 Breakfast or lunch its still the same. Pre made, microwave, straight from the can to plate type of food. Pretty sad.

Three stars because it’s so much better than the previous cafeteria that was there! Dear God, that original place was terrible!
Bella’s has to be reviewed not as a true restaurant, but more of an Italian cafeteria or fast-​food eatery.
If you were driving through the City of Orange, you would not eat here. If you were however stuck in court all day while your previous family life was being ripped apart by ravenous family law attorneys and you just didn’t feel like going somewhere nice, well, this is pretty much your only choice.
Bella’s is located on the first floor of the County of Orange Probation Dept. building, so there tends to be a higher percentage of riff-​raffy people drifting in and out.
One of the Unilocalers mentioned the attorney’s discussing cases in public, yeah, its’ true. Bleh! Nothing can ruin a lunch quite like hearing the details of a once happy family taking a burning nose-​dive straight into the ground.
Lots of personnel from UCI visit, so if doctors and nurses eat here, thats a welcoming sign.
OK, onto their food!
John’s Bomb is the sandwich of choice! Love it! Served hot is best, pressed panini style, with turkey, cheese, lettuce, balsalmic vinegrette, sour dough bread or their fresh artisan cheese bread (it’s actually baked on premises and is good!), this sandwich is really delish!
The pizza here isn’t too bad! They make their own dough, pretty much a standard pie, medium thickness, fair amount of cheese, surprisingly tasty. I know quite a few people are kinda slamming this place and probably for good reason, but some of their items are alright.
I’ve had their Stromboli, they’re normally pre-​made for customers, so while they may sit under a heat lamp, they turn over quickly and are thusly replaced. They’re not my favorite, but that’s because I prefer less crust and since these are like a giant turnover, there is a lot of crust. Just too many carbs. They’re super filling!
They’re daily specials are not anything overly wonderful, but if you don’t have much time, they’ll certainly fill you up.
If you know what to order here, you’ll have an enjoyable meal.
Now, as for organization, yeah, sometimes they have issues. Part of this is due to the structure of the location, everything is spread out in a very awkward fashion. Since this is a county building, they’re not really allowed to re-​model or tear out structurally significant walls or beams. So, they make do with what they have.
Sometimes the owner, Joe, is tough on his staff, hey, he’s from the East Coast, ‘Yo! Ya know what I’m sayin’ here?’ His mannerisms are just a bit course, but he’s an OK chap, just takes a while to get to know him.
Another Unilocaler mentioned that having mammary glands will get you faster service, that was hilarious! I guess boys will be boys!
There is room for improvement here, but it’s really not too bad.
Prices aren’t too terribly high, pretty much comparable to most local restaurant’s.
I will say though, the place can be a fun location to people watch. Man, lots of people arguing, tons of kids who are in court being tried for God only knows what, I love hearing «My lil’ Johnny wouldn’t spray paint a wall! He’s a good boy!» Of course, lil’ Johnny is sitting there covered with gang tats trying to score a lid of pot on his cell phone. Yeah, he’s a good kid!
Bella’s is convenient, prices are acceptable, quality is OK, I think most of the county employees appreciate the place for it’s good points which out number the bad. Let’s be honest, you’re not really going to Bella’s for the food, you’re going their for the convenience. With that in mind, enjoy your John’s Bomb, have a coke, and get back to court!

Super slow!!! Don’t waste your time!!! I’m standing in line as we speak and I’ve been at the front for 15 minutes. They are ignoring me!
(a day later…)
OK now that I’m back to a computer I will finish my iphone draft. The line took so long that I ended up giving up on it and moving to the philly cheesesteak sandwich/​Taco Bar line because it was going quicker. I waited… and waited while they looked at me and pretended I wasn’t there. Then, finally, they handed me a sandwich and said nothing to me. How did they know I wanted a Philly Cheesesteak sandwich? But OK, I’ll take it! Anything to get out of that line!!! Then, I go to grab some iced tea. Both Iced Tea containers were empty. I walked to the register and it was cash only with an ATM around the corner. I went to the ATM, came back and paid and the lady was completely rude. $ 7 for a Philly Cheesesteak I didn’t really want and a drink I didn’t care for either and it took me 20 minutes to get that.
I will NEVER go here again!!!

Busy Italian eatery that caters to the Courthouse lunch crowd. Tasty Stromboli and Meatball Calzones a welcome respite from the UC Irvine Medical Center cafeteria.
$

OK, I went through all of this «First to Review» crap just for one star? Yes. Why, you ask? Because this place blows and the only reason to come here besides the fact that your divorce/​custody/​probate hearing is adjourned for lunch is that you’re a curious UCI Medical Center employee looking to reinvigorate your faith in the Hospital Cafeteria.
First of all, it’s really crowded. Why? I have no idea. Oh wait, yeah I do. Where else can you get a cup of joe, a bland sandwich and an overpriced, underportioned salad while listening to disgruntled law clerks and county employees compete for decibels with shady lawyers loudly discussing confidential case details with their clients? Oh yeah, they also serve heat-​lamp warmed stromboli/​chicken wings/​pizza, a multitude of prepackaged snacks, and a decent selection of bottled beverages.
The internal medicine doctors at UCI have a nasty habit of conducting rounds here on the patio, which induced me to make a second trip to Bella’s, and the above held true. My friends swear by the paninis so I think I’ll try one more time, takeout of course.
You have no reason to come here, even if you work at the Courthouse. Go to the Block. Go to the UCIMC cafeteria if you’re in a hurry and short on cash. Wait, no, don’t. It’s crowded enough there :)