Went with family, can't beat their pastrami on rye, chili fries, fries with gravy, and their onion rings are the best very crispy outside soft onion inside yum! I opted for their Tuna salad sandwich because of diet issues. This was one of the best tuna sandwiches I've had bar none, it was delicious! Did not feel cheated not ordering their famous pastrami! The rest of the family (6) had the pastrami and said they loved it! read more

I don't know how, don't know why. This is the best damn pastrami sandwich west of the Mississippi. Add extra pickles mustard and cheese and your face will thank you. One order of onion rings or fries will feed a family of six. Simple fast delicious! Family secret: with 5 of us we would order two of the dips. And a loaf of rye and Swiss at a nearby grocery store. You see there's enough meat in two of these sandwiches to make at least four -five more! That with a single order of rings and we are stuffed! I can honestly say we did this a dozen times over the years when we lived nearby. So without having to share one as in today, it's a feast. Three burly dudes couldn't each eat our own sandwiches and finish one order of rings! My arteries are not happy but man is my stomach smiling! read more

Omg, theeee best pastrami sandwich i ever had! Line moves quick and plenty of parking. Super nice staff. read more

The Hat - Sign outside to look for when driving - American Near Me - Lake Forest, California

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My favorite place to come when I am extremely hungry and want something savory. I've been coming to The Hat for about a decade now, and it never fails to change (which is good). I always come with my friends or family, so I always order the Pastrami sandwich and chili cheese fries with pastrami. Ordering is very quick as you just walk up to the counter to order, sit, and wait. The prices are very good for the amount of food you get (less than $10 per person with this setup as it fed the three of us). The food itself is kind of a joke as how large the portion sizes are, especially for the fries. The fries are basically put in a large recyclable container that is bigger than the ones you use to carry out four drinks. At the very bottom of the pile is a small tray that normal fast food places use to portion their fries, which is the size of an In-n-Out fries container. This is literally 10x that amount. I am always satisfied coming to The Hat for its sizes and worth. read more

The Hat - Chili Cheese Fries with Pastrami meat on top - American Near Me - Lake Forest, California

Fine fine all-American burgers, tasty and accompanied by fine fries. Ambiance is clean and not the dreary fast food place. Service is up to you. Best Orange County chow so far, cheaper than the big'n'bland $$$ corporate dreck. Damn fine, agrees the Mrs.; damn fine. read more

Best pastrami sammi's in the GAME! Hit this place up regularly. Orange bang on tap.

Convenient drive-through. Fast service. Food is always hot. A great place to get a French dip or pastrami dip or try the loaded fries. Great for national Pastrami Day! read more

Great sandwiches and Monster fries. Need to bring a friend, so much food. Will visit again soon.

We've been coming here for decades and have never been diappointed. We always get the pastrami, because that's what they're famous for, and for good reason. The pastrami is never dry and has the perfect fat to meat ratio! :) The hubby loves gravy on fries. I'm born and raised in So Cal and have never heard of the combo until I met him...he's a New Englander...GO PATRIOTS! The restaurant is always quite busy, but we have always found a table to sit at. The food comes out quick as well. The usual wait time we've experienced is around 5 minutes. This isn't your typical fast food restaurant. A meal for 2 will easily set you back at least $30 but it's totally worth it! read more

The Hat - American Near Me - Lake Forest, California

Always great! We have been enjoying the hat for over 20 years! Always the same great recipe and Taste. Which is so important! Employee are always friendly and courteous. Chili cheese fries are humongous! Definitely sharable as well as there pastrami. We will continue to support this establishment read more

Immediate service. Terrific pastrami. Clean restaurant, reasonable prices and most importantly... Orange Bang. I don't think there's one other place in all of Orange County but even offers orange bag of these days. read more

Great pastrami sandwiches , but the prices have become somewhat outrageous ( like everywhere else).

Good place to eat. The pastrami is awesome, gravy is good, recommend the chili fries (if you like chili) and portions are hefty. Staff is friendly. A laid back place to eat. Will most definitely come back and recommend to at least try this place. read more

Let's get PHAT together!!! Get me some pastrami's and some hot deli mustards! The chili cheese fries are not healthy either lol!

Best pastrami spot in town! Huge portions and quick service. We love the chili fries with pastrami added.

Pastrami was good (not GREAT), but I had regrets after eating it. I read some reviews of it being greasy and decided to give it a try. But it was indeed great beyond my liking. read more

This is legit my favorite place right now. If you love pastrami THE BEST from the west read more

The Hat - This is the fricken best i love it - American Near Me - Lake Forest, California

Don't go here if your doctor tells you to watch your diet!! Onion rings are some of the best I've ever had! Pastrami is good, of course, hot dogs are good... it's all good!! Go get your heart attack on and know the portions are huge! Enjoy! read more

I Heard about this world-famous pastrami spot and wanted to stop by. Ordered their chilli cheese fries at the drive-thru Food: large portion with tasty chilli, cheese and fries Price: A little on the high side at $11 Service: Friendly and Fast Worth trying out for the flavor... read more

The Hat - American Near Me - Lake Forest, California

Good dips and pastrami get the chili cheese fries but enough for at least a dozen people and they have orange bang so hello helllllllo

The first sign we had gone off the rails was that the coke was flat. The second through N signs were that every food item was atrocious. The pastrami meat was awful, and the bread was soggy. The chili was disgusting paste. The fries were overly mushy and without salt. The onion rings were the best item I tried - they were only bad as opposed to disgusting. The hot dog was undercooked. What a disgusting place. The worst part is it is as nearly expensive as a decent sit down restaurant. Avoid at all costs. read more

Hands-down the best pastrami sandwich that you'll have in Southern California, and arguable, anywhere. Been coming here for over 10 years and the quality of their sandwiches has remained consistently excellent. The bread is a wonderful soft roll and they stack on the pastrami so by the time you're finished with your sandwich you'll still have a plate full of meat to eat! The pro move for this place is to also order onion rings which come thoroughly breaded and perfectly fried, with a side of gravy. Dip the onion rings in the gravy and thank me later for letting you in on this secret combination of menu items. If you don't stop by here, you're missing out! read more

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Fast, drive thru, pastrami, what more could I want. Affordable too. And open late night!

Always a perfect HUGE meal. Real men come here to eat!. Although I actually see the whole family enjoys it. LOL. I love the pastrami here, the burgers and the chili dogs. Great fries, super great onion rings. Come hungry. read more

I had to downgrade one star. Being that I thought it was national pastrami day the day before my mouth was watering for the hats hot pastrami sandwich. Hi disappointed when it seemed to me that the sandwich wasn't as full as it was last time I was there. If they are going to lower the amount of meat in the sandwich I would rather rather they raise the price a little bit and keep the sandwich full. read more

The Hat - My usual: pastrami, "small" (huge) fries and an orange bang. Taste: 10+. Price: almost $19.00. Just a little expensive. But top quality. - American Near Me - Lake Forest, California

Food is not worth what you pay! Nothing was hot or juicy! I got a steak sandwich it was dryer than the desert. The pieces of steak were about the size of a half-dollar at best, it was dry and rubbery and there was one piece on each half of the sandwich, there was shredded lettuce and lots of huge chunks of onions (bigger and thicker than the steak) The potato salad is NOT homemade deli potato salad, it is the crap you buy in tubs at the grocery store. Their "World Famous Pastrami Sandwich" is garbage the meat was shredded/ chopped pieces (looked like ends and bits) we were charged extra for au jus the sandwich was dry and generally nasty. There was not a single pickle to be seen and the little bit of mustard on the bread looked more Like a oopsie scrape that off. The fresh brewed ice tea tastes like it was brewed and burned last week DONT GET ME STARTED ON COVID PROTOCOL but here is just a snipid NO dividers between tables Nothing being wiped down IN CLOSING JUST STAY AWAY FROM THIS NASTY PLACE There is Mr. Pickle right across the street or hey even Starbucks sandwiches are a better value for your money. read more

Finally tried The Hat! Of course had to order something pastrami. Lol! Tried the Pastrami burger and the Chili cheese fries. Huge portion for both so everything is good for sharing. The burger and the fries are just awesome! They are sooo good. They have huge portion of pastrami in their burger. Self service for the drinks and the condiments. I like the lemonade but the pina colada and orange where too sweet for me. We got there before line started so we got good seats. read more

The Hat - American Near Me - Lake Forest, California

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Organized, friendly and good food. Definitely a great lunch spot. Fast service. Even the customers are friendly and kind. Good attracts good. read more

Drive through guy wasn't very friendly. I wasn't informed that their system was down and waited and he took my card around. He ask for cash that I didn't have. I got a too bad and to be on my way. What the heck. read more

Tons and tons of food at a great price. I love the bag of fries and the large meaty sandwiches. A must-go place.

The food is the bomb You need to stop by you won't regret it to bad there isn't one in San Diego read more

Absolutely love this franchise, each location is clean, well maintained, and their menu is great! Consistently good food, at fair prices. Great Service,,,, Highly recommend. read more

Always love the Hat. I get the pastrami sandwich.. that's it. Generally fast service, plenty of tables available.

I love The Hat! From my first visit to the stand-up outside counter at the Alhambra location many years ago to today's lunchtime trip to the Lake Forest site, The Hat serves up great comfort food in clean, well-maintained restaurants. Known especially for their great pastrami, everything on the menu is very tasty and satisfying. The Hat makes a great cheeseburger for $5.89 and their house-made onion rings are some of the best I have had. One item needing improvement is the very thin paper cups used for soft drinks. After holding your liquid beverage for a few minutes, the cup begins to lose its shape and feels as though it will fall apart at any moment. The Hat would do well to invest in a better quality paper cup. The service is pretty fast from placing your order to the pickup. One small annoyance is that The Hat has removed the self-serve condiment center where now you have to get the attention of someone behind the counter to obtain your ketchup, mayo or mustard. The staff is very good at keeping tables clean and wiping down after guests leave. Four solid stars for The Hat rather than five for the aforementioned deficiencies. I'll be back. read more

Great greasy spoon for good pastrami sandwiches, wet fries or chili cheese fries. Need to visit at least 1x/month

Seems that prices have risen, smaller portions & incorrect orders......it's not the same huge portions or service that it used to be.

Keep ur fingers crossed if ordering at drive through. Double check ur order for sure. One star read more

We were driving in Laguna hills and got lost. We ended up at the hat and came in for dinner Unlike another place, there pastrami has no grizzle and is so good. I didn't get the au jus version, but when went up, they gave us one anyways. Remember when they would fill a bag with fries all the way to the top? Well they don't that anymore but it was still a good amount, and they were good too. The bread that they use is awesome! I usually get a few thousand island packets, but with the au jus, I didn't need to read more

One of those places that I have to hit any time were going by. Best tasting sandwich, with huge portion sizes. Only wish they had one in San Diego County! read more

Horrible location. Kitchen cross contamination of food. Really bad food quality and standard. The kitchen cook doesn't care. You are as strong as your weakest employee and that's the cook. This location is a complete ripoff compared to the other locations and the crew beside the cashier are horrible. They all act like it's a privilege to pay for an over priced sandwich and fries. And the cook can't even make crispy fries and he does cross contaminate I sat there and watch him do so. How cheap can you act. Like it's not your food and you don't give out the food quality and standard of which The Hat says it is. Or maybe the company is just horrible now and should be out of business read more