Craft

After hearing pretty mediocre reviews of NY transplant Craft, I finally tried it for a work event last night. Located behind the massive CAA building in Century City I expected to see lots of agents schmoozing their b-list celeb clients, but alas, it was mostly just couples. The outdoor patio out front would be a great spot for a big happy hour get together on the spacious but intimate couches. Inside was very beige, dimly lit, and the tables were almost too big to really carry on a conversation with someone across the table from you. The idea of the menu is to share among everyone at the table (most orders seem to accommodate 4 persons). After getting a glass of wine at the bar we sat at our table - somewhat inconveniently placed next to a huge pole. We started off the meal with an order of the caramelized onion & goat cheese tart, the bigeye tuna and pineapple, and the short rib ravioli. The tart was purely divine, though I wasn't really all that impressed with the tuna or the ravioli. It was definitely good, but nothing to write home about really. For the main course I opted for the quail and wild blueberries with a side of braised green beans, all of which were superb. The quail was a little greasy, but it only added to the flavor. I tried a bit of the roasted corn, a French whitefish, and the roasted flowering squash. The fish was a little bland, but the corn and squash were all you could want in a vegetable dish. To finish it off we ordered a cornucopia of desserts. First up was the three ice cream sampler with maple bacon, cream cheese, and honey yogurt ice creams. There are about 20 flavors, but each of us chose the one we wanted to try. The maple bacon was definitely different, and for me, not in a good way. The bacon taste was far too prevalent in a sweet dessert. The honey yogurt was decent, but the cream cheese was the best of the three. For any Texans out there it tasted like some good ole fashioned Blue Bell (which is the best ice cream in the country). We did have a chance to try the basil ice cream as a small scoop was served with the peach tart tatin that finished the night. Turns out basil ice cream tastes just like basil. The peach tart was really flaky with warm fresh peaches atop it. One of my favorite bites of the night. I would have liked to try a few other things on the menu, but for one reason or another, it didn't work out. Case in point - the peach cobbler cocktail sounded so good, but the waiter advised against it since the pastry chef was using all of the fresh peaches and the bar was forced to resort to a less satisfying peach puree. The wagyu beef (at $25 an oz) would have been wonderful to try as well, but there was already so much food that I didn't want to push my limits. I wasn't paying for the meal, but I can't imagine it was less than $100 per person, though I think that could go up or down, depending on your appetite. I'd have to say that this would not be in my top recommendations by any means, see prior posts for some of those!

http://www.craftrestaurant.com/craft_losangeles_menu.html

Panini

I totally <3 paninis so I have wanted to try local chain Panini (clever huh?) for some time. I've only gone to the one in Marina del Rey, but I know there is at least one other location in West Hollywood. Breakfast is served all day, but I of course go for the lunch paninis. My first try was a turkey and brie sandwich with cranberry spread. So good! I loved the gazpacho even more - it tasted just like the one I make without the huge mess in my kitchen. Second attempt was equally as fulfilling with a prosciutto, goat cheese, and red pepper panini that was simply divine! Here's the only weird thing about this place - if you want your sandwich pressed, you have to ask for it. But isn't a panini by definition a hot sandwich? Maybe I'm wrong on this one though.... The Marina del Rey location has a nice little patio they share with the surrounding restaurants as well as a decent interior (think slightly above Panera). Panini is also a bakery with an entire counter full of baked goodies if you make it to dessert. I also should mention that next door is Marble Slab - a Texas treat! All organic ice cream gets mixed with toppings of your choice before being stuffed into a freshly baked waffle cone. YUM!

http://losangeles.citysearch.com/profile/151348/marina_del_rey_ca/panini_coffee_cafe.html

Boneyard Bistro

I was vegetarian once. It didn't last and boy am I glad because I would never of had the greatness that is Boneyard Bistro. This fancy BBQ spot sits on Ventura along a string of other food establishments in Sherman Oaks. Mr. Cecil's California Ribs is only a couple of doors down but the food is so different at each that they can coexist peacefully. Boneyard is pretty modern and manly on the inside with lots of wood, brick, and steel from what I can recall. The two times I've been here the chef makes the rounds to ensure everyone is having a great experience. It's been awhile sice I was here and their online menu seems to have changed quite a bit, but the short ribs and the brisket are what I remember most. Both were really tender and juicy, even after the ribs are slow cooked for hours. Sweet potato fries are always a favorite as well. Even if you aren't eating meat, they've got your standard selection of BBQ fish (i.e. blackened catfish and ancho grilled shrimp). Prices are decent for the quality of food and won't set you back more than about $25-$30 a plate. Self-parking in the area is doable, but if you don't want to exert the effort, Boneyard has a reasonably priced valet service. After eating so much meat though (portions are huge) you may want to walk it off a little before heading to your destination.

http://www.boneyardbistro.com/

Frida

I joined my whole family for dinner at Frida in the new Americana at Brand mall in Glendale recently and let's just say I definitely perfer my Frida in the form of paintings. The margaritas were decent, but at $12 a pop it costs a small fortune to get a buzz. We all wanted to try the different ceviches they have, but unfortunately there's not much good to report. Every ceviche I've ever had comes with a variety of fish in it, but at Frida you choose if you want shrimp or tuna, and I think they're really missing out by only allowing either/or. My sister ordered the ceviche especial, which is the only ceviche that has both shrimp and tuna, but it also has a creamy sauce. It sounded a little weird to have creamy ceviche and once it came out, it tasted weird. It was like dipping fish in mayo. I ordered the ceviche acapulco, which wasn't entirely disappointing, but was still probably the worst ceviche I've ever had (next to the ceviche especial). The shrimp didn't taste fresh at all and the flavors really didn't mesh well, despite that it's the same ingredients in every ceviche. For my entree I had the enchiladas suizas, one of my all time favorite Mexican dishes, and while the enchiladas were way better than the ceviche, they still weren't that great. Not one of the 6 of us was really that happy with the food and I don't think anyone would go back. Most dishes were $15-$20 and for that you can get so much better Mexican food.

http://www.fridarestaurant.com/glendale/menu.html

M Cafe de Chaya

Ever tried Macrobiotics? Didn't think so. If you're willing to give the Yin-Yang diet a shot, M Cafe de Chaya is a good place to start. As a rule, macrobiotic foods are not highly processed, so everything here is very earthy and mostly vegan, with the exception of a few fish dishes. I've tried it twice and think it's pretty good, but the lifestyle is a little expensive to keep up with. The first time I had the sushi, which was decent, though I wouldn't suggest making a trip specifically for the sushi since there is definitely better sushi to be had. The last time I ate here I went to the Culver City location which in my opinion is way easier than the Melrose location. I had the half sandwich soup combo with the panino provancale with the corn soup. The panino came chalk full of grilled veggies, arugula, balsamic, aioli pesto, and creamy tofu cheese (all cheeses are non-dairy). The corn soup was really creamy and delicious as well. Both were perfectly proportioned and I didn't feel too full afterwards. I was tempted to have a baked good because they looked so yummy, but this time around I had to pass. Even if you're not in to super healthy cuisine, this place is worth trying.

http://www.mcafedechaya.com/menu.html

Gyenari

With all of the new restaurants popping up in Culver City, it's a little hard to keep track, but Gyenari is definitely one to look for. This Korean BBQ spot opened its doors last month next to other newcomer, Rush Street. After eating both, go for the BBQ! Though no one, not even the Koreans I work with, know how to correctly pronounce the name of this restaurant, the food and the service is still top notch. The interiors are modern and beautiful with a small fountain and a wine bar to greet you. Once you stop for a drink at the bar (I highly the raspberry acai cocktail - so good!), move on to the dining area. The tables are quite large with a little pit to grill your dinner on right in front of you. The backdrop is a gorgeous lit panel showcasing natural elements and surrounded by dark wood walls. Since we were a big group we sat in the semi-private dining area which was essentially a long, skinny room with a couple of tables big enough to seat 10. The wallpaper in the room was beautiful, but it was really distracting to have flat screen TVs at either end playing ESPN. In my personal opinion, they should have left the TV's at the bar. The website says there is a partition to separate the tables if separate parties are occupying the room at once, but there was definitely another big group in the room and no partition to speak of. Having never had Korean BBQ, I left the ordering (and grilling) up to the experts. I certainly didn't mind ordering my own drinks though! Since we were there the Monday after they opened the bar was out of almost every beer, so I gave Hite, a Korean beer, a try and was pleasantly surprised. The table got a round of sparkling sake too, which was far better than normal sake to me. The term champagne of sake would truly apply here. As for the food, I can remember having bulgogi, wagyu beef, pork belly, and filet mignon. Everything was absolutely delicious! If you aren't into grilling your own meal, I think there are alternative options (black cod, salmon, or short ribs) though you'd really be missing out on the appeal of the place to just order one of these. Since I wasn't paying and I wasn't ordering, I've really no clue what the prices are like here, though I'm pretty sure it's worth it for the great food and all-around great experience I had here.

http://gyenari.com/

Campanile

I'm not sure why, but I always thought Campanile (pronounced Camp-a-nee-lay) on La Brea was an Italian restaurant. Once I got there it turned out I was wrong, but we decided to give the place a shot anyway. Let's start with interiors on this one. The architecture of this building, once owned by Charlie Chaplin, is awe-inspiring. As you enter the front half of the restaurant is largely stone with huge windows to the second floor at the top on either side. When you pass a little hallway with staircases on the left and right you move into a second room with stucco white walls and Spanish style windows. The interiors definitely reminded me of the Spanish castle in Granada, one of my favorite spots in the world. I wish I could say that the food was as lovely as the space, but unfortunately for me, it just wasn't. We weren't starving but went for dinner on a weekend. Three cheeses from their selection started off the evening, though I can't recall exactly the three we got. All were recommendations from the waiter and we only finished one since we just weren't that into it. We followed that up with some oysters on the halfshell. I like oysters, I really do, but these were covered with something resembling a chutney that just didn't work for me. For the entree we went with the special, a lasagna that I could only describe as limp and soggy. I think part of the bad experience food wise could just be that we ordered the wrong things, but by definition when you go to a great restaurant you should be able to eat anything off the menu and be pleased. I have heard that their brunch is decent, so perhaps I just need to go at a different time. Thursday night they do a grilled cheese night that ranges from a classic grilled cheese to a sheep's milk ricotta grilled cheese with roasted tomatoes, olives, and garlic, all of which are around $16-18. The normal dinner menu is more in the range of $20-35 a plate, and for me, just not worth it. Zagat calls Campanile one of the top 50 restaurants in LA, but I'm just not sure it makes my version of that list.

http://www.campanilerestaurant.com/

Chulada Grill

I love Tex-Mex. In fact, I love Tex-Mex so much, I could probably eat it every day for the rest of my life and die happy. It's probably one of the things I miss most about Texas, and it's quite a challenge to find anything comparable in LA. Hole-in-the-wall Chulada Grill almost measures up, at least in the breakfast department. There's nothing to cure a hangover like a couple of breakfast tacos, and Chulada's breakfast burrito is top notch. I had one just this morning (and yes, a hangover was involved) with potatoes, cheese, black beans, and bacon. Together, it's like a good symphony, but when you dissect the pieces, there is a little room for improvement I suppose. The potatoes were fairly flavorless and I hardly noticed them in the burrito except as filler. I couldn't decide if I liked the bacon or not. It was really thickly cut and in small pieces that were few and far between. It also seemed really fatty, which while that's usually a good thing for the flavor, it was a bit of a turnoff for me today. The best part for me were the refried black beans with cheese perfectly melted into it and wrapped up in a soft tortilla. Chulada does seem a little pricey for what it is, about $7-8 per entree. It's such a hole-in-the-wall you would expect it to be super cheap, but I guess they've got to pay the bills. And if you live in the area, they deliver!

http://www.chuladagrill.com/breakfast.htm

The Creperie by Jack n Jills

Who doesn't already love Jack n Jill's? The owners of the Beverly Hills/Santa Monica favorite have a new, more upscale endeavor in Beverly Hills. The Creperie doesn't feel all that fancy, and really the prices are reasonable too (about $10-12 a plate), but the quality of the food is exponentially higher than that of even Jack n Jill's cafe. I came for brunch (personally my favorite time for crepes) with a couple of friends, and I think everyone really enjoyed it. Even though I'm not that much of an egg enthusiast I ordered the Big Easy (ham & mozzarella with scrambled eggs in a wheat crepe under a blanket of sherry cream sauce). The eggs weren't even a problem for me. The cheese was melted just right and the sherry cream sauce was a little sweet and just really gave the dish some umph. A friend had the Healthy and Happy which was a sweet crepe filled with nonfat yogurt, fresh berries & banana, walnuts and a little honey. From the bite I had, I thought it was really good and she liked it as well, but she thought it felt a little like eating dessert. Our other friend had been recently for dinner and had such a great experience she was ready to go back within a week. I can't quite recall what she had, but I know it was something other than a crepe. At any rate, I can at least remember that she liked hers as well! Parking on Sunday wasn't a problem with ample free street parking on Beverly. It was such a cute, fun, delicious little place - I highly recommend it if you are looking for a place to brunch!

http://www.creperiebyjacknjills.com/menu.html

Wilson

You wouldn't guess it, but Wilson on Washington Blvd. in Culver City is an epicurean dream with a retro flare. I've had my eye on this place (and their menu) for several months - certainly predating eatingoutla, and had a date here with Chase last night. He had browsed an online menu somewhere and was really looking forward to a sausage dish he had seen, but it wasn't on the menu when we arrived. We started with a glass of wine (I wasn't crazy about either the pinot grigio or the saviognon blanc Chase had) and paired it with a sea bass carpaccio. The sea bass was a little tougher than I would have liked, but perhaps that's just the nature of the fish. For our entrees we shared the fig & potato tortelli with brown-butter sage sauce and the Dungeness crab mac & cheese with four or five cheeses (I was a little tipsy when I ordered and this dish is not listed on the online menu). I really only wanted one tortelli because I was so in love with the mac & cheese. Chef Wilson's choice of noodle was a penne so it really didn't feel like eating mac & cheese at all. We finished off the evening with a lemon cake topped by merengue and a Wilson cocktail. The cake was a little dry for me, but the cocktail was just right! It was a mixture of tequila, blackberry lemonade, triple sec, and pineapple juice in a sugar-rimmed martini glass. The restaurant seems really small from the front with their small front patio and interior, but there are several more tables in the back. The space maintains the theme of the neighboring architecture museum and is overall a really laid back atmosphere with a great menu.

http://www.wilsonfoodandwine.com/menus.html

The Chicken Lady

The Chicken Lady is kind of a random little spot tucked into a crowded shopping center behind the Beverly Center, but this place had rave reviews on Yelp. I hate to start on a downside, but they're only open for lunch, and I'm not clear if they're open on Saturday or just Monday to Friday. I got the chicken tenders with mac & cheese. The tenders alone weren't anything spectacular, but it's the sweet BBQ dipping sauce that really makes them so delicious. The mac & cheese was good, but nothing too memorable about it. The rest of the menu is chicken dishes from around the world (i.e. chicken tacos, chicken thai sticks, mesquite lime cilantro tenders). The prices are decent with each dish coming in around $7 or $8. The people here are super nice too, which made it all the better. Parking can be a bit of an issue. There is a parking lot with a parking service, but there were cars stacked bumper to bumper. The better bet is to find street parking on San Vicente. I'm hoping to go back whenever I have a day off work, but it's a little inconvenient with the hours.

http://losangeles.citysearch.com/profile/44408531/los_angeles_ca/the_chicken_lady.html#

King's Road Cafe

So maybe August isn't back with as much of a vengeance as I thought, but hopefully there'll be plenty more to come because I have lots of new places to tell you about! Let's begin with King's Road Cafe down the street from the Beverly Center. Parking is a bit of a hassle and you're likely to see several hobo's hanging around, but for the breakfast at least, it's worth it. When Chase and I tried this place, we didn't have to wait long for a table, but once we sat down, service wasn't great. They normally have an hibiscus tea, but unfortunately they were out the day we were there. Chase was trying to order a coffee drink we'd seen go by several times, but the waiter wasn't much help in figuring out what it was, and Chase had to go in and ask the barista what it was and get a new drink. As for the food, I opted for the whole wheat blueberry granola pancakes. I can't tell you how good these pancakes are. If you like pancakes, you've got to try them! I didn't use a drop of syrup and they were truly phenomenal. Chase ordered the chicken cilantro sausage, fontina cheese, avocado, and sour cream omelet. I took a bite and it was really good, but I decided I'd rather eat my entire plate of pancakes. Really, SO GOOD! Atmosphere is average for a cafe, and price is pretty standard as well. Try it folks!

http://www.kingsroadcafe.com/menu.htm

Nobu

There are few restaurant chains that span the globe, but Nobu has managed to do so at 5-star caliber. I had been to the Dallas location several years ago, but recently patronized the newest location on La Cienega. The interior space is pretty ultra-modern with red accents behind a wall of tiny wooden circles. The lighting looked like little peanuts hanging overhead. The waiter offered that we try all the dishes in omakase style, where chef Nobu, who was presiding over the kitchen in the flesh that night, would determine what the table would be eating for dinner. First up, the yellowtail sashimi with jalepeno in a yuzu soy sauce. This happens to be the only dish I remember ordering at Nobu Dallas, and it was as fresh, sweet, and spicy as I remembered. Our second course was a spread of three varieties of fish, all with a miso spice rub. Of the 3, I only tried the trout and the snapper (there wasn't enough for everyone at the table to try one of each). Both maintained the level of freshness set by the yellowtail. One of my co-workers thought the miso rub was a little overwhelming for the fish as it was piled on pretty high, but I found it to be pretty delectable. Now the order of the remaining dishes gets a little fuzzy, but I do recall having the toro tartare with caviar. It comes in an inner bowl surrounded by crushed ice in an outer bowl. I'm not sure that I'd ever had caviar before, and this was definitely the way to start. The toro was rich yet still subtle enough to finish the entire portion of about 2 oz. Hot rocks were served in traditional style with superb Wagyu beef. The dish that stuff with me the most was a serving of brussel sprouts cooked in truffle butter with tempura eel and shaved black truffle on top. Talk about rich, but I would never have a problem finishing my brussel sprouts if they were served like that. We wrapped up the sushi portion of the meal with a small spread of nigiri and an asparagus tuna roll. The roll was pretty underwhelming and I was glad chef Nobu had sent all of the other dishes out first. A couple of bottles of sake later, we pretty much forced ourselves to eat dessert, and peanut butter, chocolate, and jelly were in no short order. Beignets filled with what tasted like nutella and peanut butter were accompanied by peanut butter ice cream with plum jelly on top. Further down the dish were little dark and white chocolate eggrolls with a chocolate dipping sauce. Overall, the dinner was completely satisfying, and apparently the celebrities think so too. I don't see stars that often, but Ryan Seacrest and Brody Jenner sat around our table, not that really is any testament to the quality of the food, just an interesting tidbit.

http://www.noburestaurants.com/losangeles/index.html#501-625-943

Rush Street

So July was a bit of a hiatus for EatingOutLA, but August is back with a vengeance! Let's start with Rush Street, one of Culver City's newest pubs. I had heard good buzz from opening weekend, but didn't really know what to expect when I went with a group of friends. I was counting on more beers on tap, but instead the bar serves a pretty wide variety of 750 mL bottles. Being lovers of Hefeweisen, we were drinking the Pinkus Organic Hefeweisen, which was by far the best hef I've ever had. One 500 mL bottle fills about 2 glasses for $13. As for food, the boys both got burgers, I got the parmesan calamari and the baked mac & cheese, and my friend got the white pizza. I tried a bit of everything, but thought the only thing I'd get again would be the burger. Topped with bacon, cheddar, confire sauce and, natch, fried onions, the burger was just crispy and sweet enough. The shoestring fries that came with it were pretty delectable as well. The calamari batter was too delicate and kept falling off so we were just eating rubbery fish. The lemon aioli and marinara were both pretty bland and leant little support to the appetizer. The waitress claimed to swear by the baked mac & cheese, but I was unimpressed. The cheeses weren't entirely complementary of each other and it could have been much creamier. Lastly, the white pizza & truffle oil came with spinach on top, something that wasn't called out in the menu. The spinach wasn't good and overall the pizza was really tasteless, which was surprising for something with truffle oil. That's pretty hard to mess up. I'd prefer Johnnie's white pizza. When the time came, no one really cared for dessert, so I can't speak to that. Before we left, we spent a little time looking around the rest of the space since our table was right up front. Probably the best seats in the house are those on the front patio, but the majority of tables are next to the downstairs bar. The back area is reserved for big parties, and with bottle service you can reserve the upstairs bar area. The sofas make the upstairs bar space really inviting, but while we were there the outdoor patio only had one light for the whole area. Additionally, there's usually free parking lots in downtown Culver City, but they were all full when we were there and we had to valet. All-in-all, Rush Street is pretty overpriced for what it is: a bar with an underwhelmingly exaggerated bar menu. For $15 drinks and $15-20 entrees, it's just not worth it.

http://www.rushstreetculvercity.com/

Valley Girl - New Posts on Studio City!

With family on that side of the hill, it's not that unusual for me to eat dinner in Studio City. Here's some of my family's favorites that I've had recently:

Suzanne's Country Deli:

My mom is so proud that she found this place on a visit out here once, and with good reason. It's a great little lunch spot with loads of salads and sandwiches, not to mention their popular chicken torta. The portions are huge, so we 4 of us shared the chopped salad, the turkey cranberry artichoke sandwich, and the chicken torta. Everything was good, but the panini was by far the best for me. It's so much more than Thanksgiving on a French roll with cranberry mayo and one of my all-time favorite ingredients, artichokes. I was almost sad I had to share this one because it was so good. The salad was good as far as chopped salads go, but I wouldn't say it stood out among others. The chicken torta was good, but different than what I expected. I always picture tortas as being kind of like a taco salad on a big crispy chip, but this wasn't crispy at all, and rather on a French roll. Otherwise it was pretty similar to a taco salad with chicken, tomato, onions, lettuce, salsa, avocado, and Jack cheese. Still, I'd probably prefer a crispy taco salad any day. 

http://www.suzannescountrydeli.com

Cedar House:

I've never been that into Mediterranean food, but this shiz was great! We had a couple of sampler platters to split between 6 or so people and we still had food left. The complete feast comes complete with hummus, babaghannouj, grape leaves, tabouli, falafel, beef kabob, chicken kabob, kafta, and kibbeh. The tabouli and falafel were phenomenal. And all this time I didn't think I liked falafel. What a shame! the meats were really tender and the whole meal was an overall great experience. I will definitely be going back next time I'm in the valley.

http://losangeles.citysearch.com/profile/41357060/north_hollywood_ca/cedar_house_cafe.html#

Papoo's Hot Dog Show:

The corner of Riverside and Rose Ave. in Toluca Lake seems like it mustn't have changed much since 1949 when Papoo's Hot Dog Show opened. With a Bob's Big Boy drive-in across the street that often hosts classic car shows, it's really like taking a step back in time. Regardless, this corner is cholesterol mecca. I read the less than stellar reviews of Papoo's before going with my niece and nephew, but once you get past the initial heart attack, it's really not that bad. It's especially great for kids as there are a few arcade games that are only $0.25 a pop. The hot selection will remind you of the world-famous Pink's (Papoo's 10-year senior). I decided to go all out and have the bacon avocado dog that comes smothered in partially melted cheese. There was way too much avocado, almost like they just cut up one entire avocado and put it on top. The cheese could have been more melted too, but the bacon saved the day. Who doesn't love bacon? Thick cut fries are always nice too!

http://www.yelp.com/biz/papoos-hot-dog-show-burbank

Father's Office

Ever since I moved here people have been talking about restaurant and pub Father's Office. With a second location now open in Culver City (original location in Santa Monica), we finally gave it a try with a couple of our friends. While there were a lot of great things about Father's Office (i.e. ample free parking, tons of beers, I'll get to the rest later), the biggest inconvenience is the way you get in/get a table. Only a certain number of people are let in at a time, even though the place never seemed that crowded to me, and when they are at capacity, you have to wait in line outside to get in. Once inside, there is still no hostess, but rather community seating and you have to hover over people until they leave. Even if your friends have already gone inside and save a seat at a table for you, you still can't hop to the front of the line, but rather have to wait your turn with everyone else. And when you do get a table, be sure not to leave it unguarded because there are no waiters either, everything is ordered at the bar. The beer menu far outweighs the food menu here, but the food is pretty great for gourmet bar food. We all had the Office burger with the carmalized onion, applewood bacon compote, gruyere, blue cheese, and arugula, and of course, a side of sweet potato fries. Normally I feel like blue cheese overpowers whatever it's paired with, but apparently at FO it's mixed into the meat before they cook it, so it's pretty mild. Overall, the burger was fabulous and definitely worth the $12 or so that it costs (eat your heart out Carls Jr.). The bar has about 20 beers on tap and that's only the beginning. There is an entire selection of rare beers that come at rare prices (up to $75 for 750mL!). The strange thing is that a good portion of these pricey beers are described as "grassy." Yeah, not sure about that, and certainly not willing to spend $75 to find out. My advice for this place is to come early and don't come in a big group unless you intend to rent out the private space, otherwise, you'll never all be able to sit together.

http://fathersoffice.com/
http://losangeles.citysearch.com/profile/11416036#
(menu is only available on Citysearch)

Quality Food & Beverage

Quality Food & Beverage had quietly been on my radar of places in my area to try, but I believe they close pretty early, so Chase and I recently went for breakfast and it was a bit of a mixed review. I had the German pancake, which is pretty much a gigantic baked pancake with lemon juice and powered sugar, and Chase had the breakfast burrito. I was really happy with both, and I ate off of his while we waited for mine (it takes about 20 minutes to make). I'm not sure what he didn't like about the breakfast burrito, but I thought the salsa verde on top was just the way I like it, a little sweet and a little tart. I'd also never had a German pancake before and he had a German guy live with him for a while that used to make them for all of their roommates. Chase didn't seem to think there was much of a comparison, but I really liked it. There was a high crust kind of thing around the outside, which was the best part. The interior got a little soggy and I have a weird thing about soggy bread. Nevertheless, the interior had the most lemon taste to it, with was the other sparkling feature. Other than our entrees, we really didn't try much else. They do have a pretty big menu though, and I think it was certainly worth going back. It wasn't terribly expensive either, about $15 a person with a drink (the homemade lemonade was great). We were lucky that we didn't have to wait more than about 10 minutes, but I can see how this place would get as crowded as Doughboys or Toast and with equally as mediocre parking.

http://losangeles.citysearch.com/profile/81678/

Hatfields

Hatfields is another one of the restaurants in LA that I've been trying to get to for over a year now and last night Chase and I finally went. The setting is very serene with creamy white walls and tables and cabin-looking wood accents surrounding. Once at our table, we were delivered a little treat from the chef consisting of deviled quail eggs and a cold corn soup. Deviled eggs are not usually something I like, but the deviled quail eggs were superb. The corn soup was served in a shot glass and while it was good, I really couldn't of handled more than the 3 or 4 sips that we were given as it tasted so strongly of corn. Beyond that we tried another corn dish, the house made corn agnolloti with Dungeness crab, sherry beurre fondue and shaved summer truflle. The pasta was extremely rich (even without the truffle) but the crab was still really mild and overall a well balanced dish served in a really interesting plate with a bowl cut out of the middle. For entrees, I had the buttermilk steamed organic chicken breast on top of brown buttered sunchokes with julianned squash and zucchini basil coulis. I can't say that I've had steamed chicken too often in my life, but I'm not sure I prefer it that way. The chicken was so tender, but it didn't have any overwhelming taste. Maybe baking the chicken would be give it a little more flavor? The sunchokes were great and the zucchini basil sauce was interesting and an unexpected flavor. Chase was really excited about the date and mint crusted lamb with potato chive puree, and a mixed vegetable sautee. I tried a bite of his and the lamb, cooked pink in the center, was really great. The crust of date and mint on the outside was probably the best part. The potato chive puree was another unexpected flavor that worked really well, though you definitely don't feel like you are eating potatoes since they are so light and fluffy. Mid-way through the meal we decided we needed to try the rhubarb bellini, which was better than most bellinis I've ever had. After finishing all of that off, we took the waiter's desert suggestion and went for the beignets and chocolate fondue with a shotglass of vanilla milkshake. Probably the best milkshake I've ever had and we would have loved to have more than 2 sips each. The chocolate with the beignets was just right and this dish reminded me of what churros con chocolate is really supposed to taste like. Que bueno! Take heed though, this is a very fancy place, with high prices and small portions. They are really going for quality over quantity. At the end of the night, our meal for two was $120 and Chase was making jokes that he needed to grab some fast food on the way home. While it was really delicious, I don't think I'll find myself craving anything we had or wanting to come back anytime soon. Especially not with so many other places on my to try list.

http://www.hatfieldsrestaurant.com/menus.html

Kokomo Cafe

We first discovered Kokomo when it was located at the Farmer's Market in The Grove. It used to live in a cozy little area facing 3rd St., but since it has moved not to far to a location on Beverly & Martel. I believe the move had to do with the growing popularity of the restaurant, and their menu seems to have grown since the move too. I've only tried Kokomo for breakfast, but it's really great comfort food among the likes of The Griddle Cafe and Doughboys. My favorite dish to get here is the waffle with warm fruit compote. The compote is comprised of banana, berries, and rum. I would personally think it would be improved with no bananas and a milder portion of the rum. Still, really delicious. Also delicious are the pumpkin pancakes, served year-round. The breakfast burrito is also really tasty and hearty, though nothing that makes it stand out over other breakfast burritos. Chase likes the croissantwich. One of the things I've always really wanted to try here is the chicken and waffle. I've never tried this soul food combo, but I think at Kokomo would be one of the best places to do it. The lunch and dinner menu is chalk full of salads and some interesting looking sandwiches. The two that sound particularly creative and delicious to me are the ahi tuna with sesame-ginger sauce and the crab cake sandwich. Almost everything on the menu is under $10, with the exception of the salads, that range from about $10-$15. I know before the move Kokomo used to have $3 beers, which is hard to find in LA, but I'm not positive that this steal traveled to the new location. But it's worth going back for dinner to find out!

http://www.kokomocafe.com

Cube

Cube, a cheese specialty Italian space on La Brea is somewhere I've wanted to go for some time now. Finally last night we made it over there, and boy I wish I had done it sooner. We tried making a reservation the day of, but they only had room for us at the cheese bar. When we got there we were able to sweet talk the hostess into letting us take an outside table as long as we promised to finish up by 9:00 (which I felt was kind of unprofessional, but worth it). They don't have a wine menu, but there is a small or no corkage fee. When you sit, you are brought a small serving of the daily cheese on a graphite cheese block with the name written in chalk. Beyond that we ordered a couple of cheeses recommended by our waitress. One was a fabulously rich goat cheese from France, the other was a hard cheese also from France. The goat cheese was so good that the second cheese didn't have a chance. As an appetizer we got crispy calamari with lemon and salsa verde. The calamari was probably the smallest I've ever seen, but it was oh so delicious! The salsa verde was a flavorful alternative to the usual tartar sauce as it was a little bit sweet as verde sauce tends to be. Second up was the gazpacho. I'm still on the search for the gazpacho that takes me back to Spain, but unfortunately we still didn't get there, though this one was good. It was really chunky, however, which made it taste a little bit like eating salsa. Following the gazpacho was the best mac & cheese ever. It was a four cheese man & cheese with truffle oil baked in a skillet with bread crumbs on top. So rich and creamy! For the entree we indulged in a seared tuna loin with pesto on top of creamy risotto and heirloom tomatoes. The waitress was really pleased that we picked this dish and was right saying that all of the flavors really play well with each other. The pesto was a little strong at times I think, but overall, outstanding. To finish it off, we grabbed a risotto cheese cake with red currant to go. The red currant wasn't quite sweet enough for me, but the cake was really light and fluffy. We really had such a hard time deciding what to get because everything looked so great, which means we'll definitely have to come back.  At the end of the meal, we were out $85, which is kind of high when you consider that we brought our own alcohol, but I still feel the meal was well worth it. The food was so good and the night was so pleasant that you almost forgot you were sitting on one of the biggest streets in LA. And they do have a $5 valet, but we were able to find street parking not too far away. Can't wait to go back!

http://losangeles.menupages.com/restaurantdetails.asp?restaurantid=31082

Royal/T

I have driven by Royal/T on Washington about everyday for probably a year before I finally knew what it was, courtesy of MetroMix LA. This unique tea house also doubles as a Japanese art gallery and shop. A large portion of the menu is stuff I've never heard of but sound fabulous. I was here for breakfast with some coworkers and we tried a few of the teas and some items off of the breakfast menu. To cleanse our palates we started with a cup of the Moroccan Mint tea. From there, I had a chocolate croissant, which was terrific and unlike many other chocolate croissants, was drizzled with chocolate on top as well. Our waitress recommended that we all try the baked eggs, and for the most part, we all indulged. Baked eggs are definitely different than most egg dishes. They pretty much crack an egg in an oven-safe dish and the egg whites fluff while the yolk remains pretty runny, similar to sunny side up, except that they are prepared with extra ingredients. I wanted to try the tomato and creme fraiche, but they also have a prosciotto and mushroom and salmon and asparagus. For me, I think the lunch would be even better. The best looking item on the menu is the spicy tuna tar tar with avocado on sourdough toast. They also have some curry bowls, salads, and some additional sandwiches. As for the tea, the mint was only the first for us. We also sipped on the Royal/T Milk Tea, the house signature tea and the Ruby Red Rooibos. The Ruby Red was a fruity herbal tea that was right up my ally. I don't typically care too much for milk teas, but this one was alright. The most fun about the whole place is the atmosphere. There is so much fun art (like the port-a-party in the back), and the waitresses are all dressed up like French maids - so there is always a conversation starter. There's plenty of metered parking in the area, which is another bonus. Nothing on the menu is very expensive either, I would say you're safe with $10 a person. I will definitely be back here for lunch soon!

http://www.royal-t.org/cafe

Le Marmiton

Not to be confused with Le Marmiton in Santa Monica or the one in the valley, though they are all French, Le Marmiton in Marina del Rey is a nice little patio cafe in the shopping center on Fiji and Admiralty Way. I believe there is a bakery portion indoors, but this place is best for a nice leisurely lunch with several options to choose from. The first time coming here I had one of my favorites of French fare, the croque monsieur (pretty much a fried ham and cheese, often served open faced). I was back again today and tried something that didn't seem at all French - a tilapia mango salsa salad, which was really good. At first I wasn't sure how much I was going to like having fish in my salad, but all and all, I didn't mind it too much. The group of us started with an order of truffle fries, something normally reserved for the dinner menu. They were served with ketchup and spiced mayonnaise that was all really addicting. My boss had the pasta bolognese for the second time in a row, so she must have enjoyed it last time. We've had to rush off today and I don't recall having dessert the first go round, but if it's anything like the rest of the food, it will be carefully prepared and presented in a clean, simple manner. A few downsides: even though it's nice to feel the breeze off the water, there's no great view here. You are pretty much looking at some shops (which isn't too bad), or the really big parking lot that accommodates customers for all of the shops, a bank, a post office, and a Ralphs. Bad news #2 - it's pretty expensive, ranging from $15-$20 for lunch. Still, a nice little relaxing treat for yourself if you have some time to spend - after all, with the hot weather you might find yourself drawn to the Pinkberry in the shopping center anyway.

http://losangeles.citysearch.com/profile/41921810/marina_del_rey_ca/le_marmiton.html

Joan's on Third

For a little cafe/caterer on 3rd St., Joan's on Third sure has a fancy website! It's funny that I started this post, proceeded with another post, and then the next day, we had Joan's on Third delivered to my office. Chase and I had been here for dinner once before and we really liked it, but they close really early. My sister had told me that the meatloaf and cupcakes were the stars of the menu, but I didn't try either. but we did try the field greens salad with field greens, spiced pecans, and vinaigrette. Chase tried the meatloaf sandwich and seemed pretty happy with it from what I can recall. Yesterday I had some of the breakfast pastries from there and I have to say that the cinnamon sugar doughnut muffin was really good, but so dense that I couldn't finish it. Everyone always has such glowing reviews of Joan's that I really need to go back and try a few other things here, like the apricot glazed ham and brie sandwich and the cupcakes.  

http://www.joansonthird.com/marketplace_menu.php?id=1

Calling for Blog Entries!

We're in a recession and it's hard for me to keep the blog going based off new places that I've been. I've still got a few tricks left in my bag, but I thought it would be fun to have some guest blogs on your favorite restaurants in town. If you want to remain anonymous in your post, that's okay by me, just try to hit the following points:

Interior design

Cuisine

Price

Parking

Link to menu or if none available, link to Yelp or Citysearch page. 

Now don't be shy! Email me reviews at eatingoutla@gmail.com. I look forward to reading your reviews!

Sushi Ozekii

In the little strip of San Vicente Blvd. between Beverly Hill's Restaurant Row and the Beverly Center is a small sushi joint called Sushi Ozekki. When we moved back over to this side of the hill, Chase and I wanted to find some additional backup sushi restaurants and this was one we came across with top marks on Citysearch. Now with Citysearch you have to be careful because you never know what's legit comments from consumers vs. what the restaurant owner/competitor has placed on there trying to come off as a consumer. We've been to Ozekki twice now and neither time had to wait for a table (even at 8:00 on Saturday once). For the purposes of this review, we'll take that as a good thing. There's really only about 45 seats in the house, so it is pretty small. So far we've tried the tropical salsa (tuna skewers with pineapple and tomatoes) and the ceviche hamachi appetizers. Both were good, but by no means would rank up in my favorites. Ozekii does have a large selection of rolls, most of which I've never seen anywhere else. We've tried the Red Blossom, which is spicy tuna on top of a spicy yellowtail roll (if memory serves correctly), and the albacore delight. Again, pretty good but not in my top 20, the specialty rolls are big though and worth the value of less than $12. The best thing here in my opinion are the hand rolls. Simple, but the freshness of the fish speaks for itself. I prefer the yellowtail hand roll, while Chase's favorite is the lobster. Both are around $6 I believe. I think I'd go back just for that. Two hand rolls and I full for less than $15. So while not my favorite sushi restaurant, I'd still have to recommend this place if you are looking for something different than your normal sushi spot offers. 

http://www.sporq.com/losangeles/sushiozekii/480ssanvicenteblvd

Cobras & Matadors

One of Chase & my favorite spots when we first moved to LA was Flora Kitchen, connected to Rita Flora Florists on La Brea. Sadly, Flora Kitchen closed last year and reopened to be Happi Songs, a Korean restaurant and sake bar. About 3 weeks later, Happi Songs turned into Goat, a restaurant focusing largely on the meat, cheese, and milk of that animal. Chase and I wanted to try Goat and joked that we should hurry before it turned into something else. Last night we finally made it over there, and apparently we were too late. From the front you won't notice much change except the writing on the door, and we walked in from the parking lot in the back, so it wasn't until we were there and really started looking around while we waited for a table that we even noticed the change to Cobras & Matadors. I asked the waiter how long it'd been since Goat closed and they opened and he said about 2 weeks, but this was their first really busy night. And busy it was, but luckily we didn't have to wait long until a seat at the bar opened up. The interior was really cool with brass buckled to some of the walls and dark wood with interesting and varying textures on others. Over the kitchen is a big multi-colored glass window and several old signs hung up throughout. Our waiter was really great in recommending wines and we were both happy with what we were given, though the glasses are really small, probably around 3-4 ounces. His food recommendations were on par as well. Above all he suggested the skirt steak with peppers. Both the steak and the peppers were a little bit sweet, almost like Korean bbq, and served medium rare it was definitely the best dish of the night. Since it came first, it made the event a little anti-climatic. After that came the warmed drunken goat cheese, not a dish that the waiter recommended but one of our own choosing. It was basically a huge block of warmed up goat cheese with crumbs and sherry soaked cherries on top. It was incredibly rich, even for someone who loves goat cheese, and could be balanced out a little better if eaten on a piece of toasted bread. Next up was the gazpacho verde with corn. This was something I really wanted to try, but I was disappointed when we got it, not to mention getting full. We also tried the tortilla espanola with truffle oil and if you've had the real thing in Spain, it was another disappointment. The salted cod cakes with fried capers were our last tapa and one that the waiter had recommended. They were really great and I don't normally care for capers. I guess when you fry anything it's only going to make it better. For whatever reason, this dish had been delayed so the waiter was nice enough to give us a glass of wine on the house. After the cod cakes, we were both full, but churros con chocolate is not only one of my favorite Spanish dishes, but enjoying it in Madrid with friends is one of my favorite memories and I really wanted to share that now with Chase. That being said, I suppose the churros con chocolate had a lot to live up to, and frankly it just didn't deliver. The churros were really doughy, when they should be pretty fried solid, and the chocolate should be more liquidy than it was, along the consistency of chocolate fondue, not like a paste. I think having tasted the real thing in Spain may have jaded a good portion of the meal for me. I wanted to have it just as I remember it, but nothing lived up to my expectations. I think if you've never been to Spain, you'll most likely really enjoy the food here. At the end of the meal we owed the place $75, which I feel was a little high, but the service was really good and we enjoyed ourselves while we were there. Will we go back? That I'm not too sure of.

http://losangeles.citysearch.com/profile/11525802#

Note: There are at least 3 locations now, and I am not sure how much the menu varies by location. I do know that the menu last night somewhat resembled the one on Citysearch.

The Penthouse @ The Huntley Hotel

Prior to last week, I had never even heard of The Huntley Hotel in Santa Monica, but I'm not sure how that happened. The interior of the hotel is what I'd call regal-beachy hip. There's lots of white and wood and the Penthouse restaurant on the top floor isn't that different (except that it's pretty much all white). You step off the elevator to be greeted by the hostess. I think the idea of the solid white atomsphere is to give the appearance that you've taken a lift to heaven. There's a round glass-top bar centrally located and booths and tables throughout most of the restaurant. Since it was a Tuesday afternoon when we were there, the place was pretty dead and we were able to take one of the giant booth/cabanas overlooking Santa Monica beach. It turns out that Citysearch rates The Penthouse as the top bar in LA to find a sugar daddy over 40, but I digress. As an opener, we tried the calamari. It was a heaping portion and served in an elegant white dish with a dollop of Jalapeno aioli. It was really great, but I have to say not as good as the calamari from the Greek festival we went to a few weeks ago. For the main course, I shared 2 dishes with a friend. One was the petite filet served with green beans and mac & cheese, the second was a parpadelle pasta with short rib. The filet wasn't that great and was kind of dry for a medium steak, but the mac & cheese and the pasta was really great. The mac & cheese was really thick and rich and baked to brown on top. The pasta was really filling, but delicious and the short rib was really tender. A lot of things on the menu looked really great, particularly from the appetizer portion of the menu. Crab cakes and oysters especially caught my eye. There are probably about 6 or 7 salads and the potato and artichoke soup sounds great but really heavy. There are a few breakfast dishes that they serve at least through lunch as well (mostly egg entrees). A few flatbread pizzas and burgers are also spotted on the menu. Unfortunately we were so full from the calamari and entrees that we didn't have any dessert. A tip is to go into the last bathroom for the best view of the beach in the entire restaurant.

http://www.thehuntleyhotel.com/pdf/menu.pdf

Lemonade

Friday I went with my sisters to try Beverly Hill's newest lunch eatery, Lemonade. While they do have four or five kinds of lemonade and some lemon desserts, I was a little disappointed with the lack of lemon flavorings in the main course options. The interior space is reminiscent of your elementary school days with colorful plastic cups arranged as an art installment on the ceiling and lunch trays of the same color scheme hung on the back wall. Grab a tray of your own to walk through the lunch line. Several cold sides that change daily appeal to your senses as you make your way down the row. I chose the cous cous with cherry tomatoes and feta to go along with some seared ahi tuna with ponzu dressing. Both were really good, but I got kind of sick of eating the cous cous after a while. If you want something warm, there are several pots at the far end of the line with hot dishes from macaroni & cheese to a couple of duck dishes. Also available are a few sandwiches and salads. The best thing I had was the blueberry mint lemonade. It was quite minty, but still superior to the original and the peach ginger flavors we also tried. Unless you really like the taste of ginger, I wouldn't get that one, it was pretty overwhelming. I think the only flavor we didn't try was the kiwi lemonade. Sadly, we didn't try any of the delicious looking desserts. They had some lemon squares and cookies among others. If you are really thirsty for some lemonade, they sell all flavors by the half gallon as well. Give it a try!

http://www.lemonadela.com/

Mao's Kitchen

What other way is there to eat Chinese food if not in a communist fashion? Mao's Kitchen boldly declares their red roots serving up Chinese comfort food in Hollywood and Venice Beach. So far, I've only been to the location on Melrose and it's very stark with white walls, sparse Chinese art, and a video installation playing near the front door. There is also a side patio, but I'm yet to come here in good enough weather to sit outside. It is, however, a great place to come with friends and you'll often find groups of friends enjoying some drink and conversation over large plates of food. The food is definitely different than what you'll find at most other Chinese places, with things like peasant's onion pancake, sesame & yam beef, and model citizen soup. Another thing that sets this place apart from your run-of-the-mill fast food Chinese is the prices. Most dishes are $9+, unless of course you opt for the $1 salad (house salad). I've tried the hot & sour soup, which I have to say I didn't really enjoy that much since it had tomatoes in it, something I'm not used to in this variety of soup. I've also tried the sweet & sour pork and the chicken chow mein, which I have to admit was pretty good. Every time I come I am always curious to try the peasant onion pancake and the curry rice-stick, but I am yet to try either. Something to know before you go would be that Mao's is BYOB, but I don't believe there is any corkage fee. Due to location, the clientele can at times be interesting. The last time we were here there was some really weird guy that had a sex toy on the floor in the bathroom when Chase went in there. Truly bizarre. On the bright side, they do have their own parking lot and it's usually pretty easy to get a spot in there.

http://www.maoskitchen.com/

Pasquale's Cafe & Shoe Repair

So yeah, it's a strange combination, but both Pasquale's Cafe and Pasquale's Shoe Repair could stand on their own merit. The location is in a crappy strip with a 7-Eleven, a laundromat, and a Baskin Robbins, but the physical space is entirely charming. It feels like stepping into a family owned business in a small town in the South of France. A small tree-covered terrace with small wicker tables stands between the shoe repair shop and the cafe. On the left, the shoe repair, which is actually quite good and friendly. On the right, the cafe. It's wood about everywhere you look inside, with several wooden shelves housing gourmet groceries for sale across from the cash register. The shop is open breakfast through dinner (9:00-6:00), but so far we've only tried the breakfast. When I first read about the place online, I kept reading that they had Montreal bagels, which I really have no idea what that means. Wikipedia tells me that Montreal bagels smaller, sweeter, and denser than their New York counterparts and are always baked in a wood oven. I have to say that I didn't really taste a difference between the bagels that I am used to, but some people swear it's different. Their breakfast menu also boasts several different specialty coffees (hot, blended, or iced), smoothies, and freshly squeezed juices. If you are looking for something of more substance, there are gourmet omlettes with your choice of smoked salmon, smoked ham, eggplant, or turkey served as sandwich on a croissant. You also have French toast, poached eggs, granola parfaits, a breakfast sandwich on an English muffin, or of course a bagel (you can even get a bagel with nutella!). Outside of breakfast, Italian salads, pasta and paninis. We are yet to try it though, it's rare that we make it home by 6:00. I think the lesson here is if you need a pair of shoes fixed or polished, stop in at least for a coffee. Plus, there's free street parking all around.

Sorry no online menu this time.
http://www.aboutcitysearch.com/review/42543112

Jack N Jill's

In honor of their new restaurant opening, I wanted to pay homage to Jack N Jill's. With one location in Beverly Hills and one in Santa Monica, there are certainly rich families filling the seats, but it's not due to high prices. It's all about the great food, great location, and great atmosphere. Chase and I have come here a couple of times and really enjoyed it both times. For one of the first times since the creation of this blog, I am having a hard time remembering what I ate here. I do recall once having the California pear salad (pears, peppers, feta, raspberries, walnuts in a citrus vinaigrette), which I remember being good. Looking over the menu again, everything sounds great, especially the breakfast goodies. I believe the second time we were here is was for breakfast, and I tried the Savannah Strawberry Oatmeal Pancakes. Yum! Good reason to believe that their new restaurant, The Creperie, on Robertson will have superb breakfast! Other intriguing dishes on the Jack N Jill's menu include the Malted Belgian waffles, country fried steak sandwich, chicken ponzu wrap, and last but not least, the Louisiana Banana Pudding. The atmosphere is very relaxed and family friendly; don't expect anything fancy here. Free 2 hour parking is available up the street and you can do a little shopping on the way back to the car.

http://www.eatatjacknjills.com/home/bh_menu.html

Electric Karma

We tried this place on a friend's recommendation, but were terribly disappointed. We love Indian food and always get chicken tandoori, cheese naan, aloo mataar, and samosas, but the food here was unlike any other Indian food we've ever had, and not in a good way. Most frustrating was that we ordered to go without looking at the menu and despite that there are 3 specials containing the items we got for a much more decent price, we were charged full price for all items and the waiter didn't even suggest the specials on the menu. The tandoori chicken was flat out burned and even the rice wasn't right. I can see how people would like the atmosphere, but it doesn't even come close to making up for the poor cuisine. We'll be sticking to our other local options. Please note that I don't work for either of these restaurants, but we much prefer Bollywood in Studio City, and Star of India on Melrose is pretty good on that side of the hill. If you're looking for good Indian food I would definitely recommend one of those over Electric Karma.

http://www.electrickarma.com/client/electrickarma/index.html

Jackson's Village Bistro

I suppose it's not entirely fair for me to review Jackson's as I know the owners, but it's too good not to tell others about it. I first came here with the owner, and I have to say, I enjoyed it more as a free meal, but who wouldn't? We were treated to a few appetizers, some salads, an entree each, and a few desserts to share between us. First up was the Mediterranean crostini with mint pesto spread, pine nuts, and topped with a delicate piece of shrimp. While it is slightly oily, it's really delicious and doesn't sit too heavy on your palate before the rest of the meal. For salads we shared the field greens with candied walnuts, gorgonzola, and caramelized pears as well as the ahi tuna salad with wasabi vinaigrette. Both are suburb, but the Asian-style ahi salad doesn't seem to fit in with the rest of the French/Italian inspired cuisine. The main course is by far the most memorable dish from Jackson's and certainly the chef's specialty. The creamy risotto with chiati-truffle au jus and filet mignon is something I definitely crave (but unfortunately Jackson's is in Hermosa and a bit far to frequent). I've also tried the ribeye topped with crispy garlic, which was truly a savory experience. If I remember correctly, we ended the night with one of every dessert, but the best had to be the upside down blackberry pie, served with a small pie-like shell turned upside down with a gooey blackberry cobbler innards, then drizzled with blackberry sauce and paired with vanilla ice cream. If you like blackberries, you will really enjoy this dish and even if you don't normally care for the tart treat, you still might like this sugary cousin. My first experience was so great that I had to bring Chase here. The food was equally tasty, but this time we were on our own for the bill. Between a salad, 2 entrees, dessert, and wine, we were up to $100, which seemed pricey at the time, but I guess you could technically consider this a steak house since there are several cuts available on the menu, so in retrospect, $100 isn't that bad. The atmosphere is really pleasant with a homey interior that looks out into Pier Ave. in Hermosa beach. The beach smells and feels definitely enhance the experience as well. No need to be too dressy as a result, but it's definitely a great date spot if you're in the mood to put on a dress or a button-up shirt. The owner tells me that they have a lot of people come in for anniversary dinners and have even had a few people propose here. One of the customers enjoyed it so much that they painted a small representation of the restaurant to present to the owners of this family-run joint. And if you ask "who's Jackson?" you're sure to be told it's the owners' 10-year-old son.

http://www.jacksonsvillagebistro.com/

Ramenya

Today I drove down a stretch of Sawtelle in west LA that I'd never been down before. It was almost like driving down Little Tokyo. Numerous Asian restaurants (and sushi restaurants in particular) pop up along Sawtelle between Santa Monica and Olympic. I went with my coworkers to Ramenya on Olympic for lunch. My mostly Asian associates have tried to get me to try real ramen before at Mitsuwa, but I was skeptical. Today I let my fear go and ordered a giant bowl of ramen. Most at the table got a spicy ramen with noodles and seasoned ground pork in a spicy egg drop soup. I opted for a lighter, meat free ramen that was full of tofu, noodles, and onions. Despite that there was no meat, it strangely tasted like chicken and dumplings (which to me is a good thing!). All of the ramen was huge and most was $7.50. No one was able to finish the whole thing and I don't think I even got half-way through. It'd probably be best to share, but I'm not 100% sure the restaurant would allow you to do so. Ramenya also has a few dumpling appetizers and several fried rice dishes. When you sit down at the table, you are brought a really strange tea instead of water. The group of us determined that the tea tasted like the drinking an ashtry, so no one drank too much. The space is really small, being able to only accommodate 30 people. Decor is nothing special, but I guess you get what you pay for in that arena. One con of the Asian spot is that it is cash only with no ATM on the premises. If you find yourself here with no cash, not to fear, there is a Cal-North Bank across the street. Second con is the parking. If you are feeling adventurous try parking in the lot next door. It's really for the surrounding frame store and copy center, but it's at the risk of being towed. We all tried it today, and when we came out one car had a pink sign that said "TOW" stuck to the back windshield. I suppose we were lucky to get there before being towed. I think Ramenya has another restaurant too called Asianya, but I'm not too clear on the deets of that location.

http://www.ramenya-usa.com/ramenenglish.htm

Jer-ne

At the Ritz Carlton in Marina del Rey is Jer-ne. I've been here a few times and frankly, it's overrated. The breakfast is pretty bland with your run-of-the-mill breakfast menu with lots of eggs and French toast and a Continental breakfast bar. As for lunch, the menu is still pretty small, and nothing's really all that original or exciting. I was there with work today and wasn't really that impressed. For starters we had a truffle & mushroom pizza, which started strong, but then I had a beef salad for lunch. The salad came with carpaccioed beef, shaved parmesan, and truffle salad dressing. The beef was good, but the salad dressing was really acidic and strong, which made it hard to eat much of it. The two guys got sandwiches that looked the best out of the items ordered (there's really only apps, pizzas, salads, and sandwiches, yet nothing is less than $15). Certainly the best part of the meal was the dessert. We tried the berry crumble and the cafe smores. Upon first read, the smores dish didn't sound too reminescent of an actual smore as it's described as espresso & chocolate ice creams in a martini glass on top of chocolate and marshmallow layers. Sitting on the edge of the glass is a graham cracker crustini with melted mallow drops on top. When you work your way through that, there are 3 cinnamon sugar donut holes waiting for you on the plate below. Probably the best reason to come here is for the lovely patio that overlooks the boats on the marina, that is, if you aren't there to look for celebrities. If it's basketball season, and you come when the Lakers are at home, you're pretty much guaranteed to see members of the opposing team hanging around the hotel as it's the official hotel of the NBA. Don't plan on parking anywhere but the $8 valet either. Just saying....

http://www.ritzcarlton.com/en/Properties/MarinadelRey/Dining/Jer-NeRestaurantBar/Default.htm

Amalfi

I've had several Italian eateries in my neighborhood on my to-try list for awhile, but when Chase and I tried to visit one on Sunday Ca'Brea, Campanille, and Cube on La Brea were all closed. Italian was really sounding good though, so we gambled on Amalfi. Luckily for us, it was a big win. Judging from the outside, the place seems really small, but there's a front patio, a full bar inside, a dining room, and then a back private room. We were seated in a lovely booth next to a stone fireplace. I would argue that the tables are too tall for the booths. I had to sit on a pillow in order not to struggle to reach my food. We ordered some wine and started off sharing a caprese. I always love caprese, but the one at Amalfi is particularly delectable due to the incorporation of yellow tomatoes ($11). Our second dish was a sausage and rapini pizza, which was surprisingly bland ($16). The real star of the night was a pumpkin ravioli with braised short rib ($18). The pumpkin wasn't overwhelming at all and the short rib was so tender that we didn't even need a knife to cut into it, it just simply fell apart with a poke of the fork. A bit of creme fraiche on top really made the dish. Though the ravioli was pretty sweet in and of itself, we wanted to try the creme brulee flambay for dessert ($7). The presentation was really fun as it comes out to the table aflame, but unfortunately it didn't do much for the creme brulee. Chase even said he thought it tasted like butane. There were a few additional dishes I would have liked to try such as the carrot and ginger soup. A lot of the menu seemed to be cuisine typically found in the fall, but made available year-round at Amalfi. Overall, it was a great experience, and if you were to ever go to the Acme Theater next door, it'd be a great place to grab dinner or a quick drink and app before the show.

http://www.amalfiristorante.com/

Artisan Cheese Gallery

I'm not particularly a sandwich person, but the paninis at Artisan Cheese Gallery in Studio City are not to be missed. Despite the many, many cheeses and dry goods they have for sale here (including flavored peanut butters and honeys), the sandwiches are truly the shining star. My favorite is the turkey panini with brie and granny smith apple slices. The ham, cheddar, and bacon is another great one, as well as the Mr. Fred (ham, gouda, spicy brown mustard). You can also find a roast beef and several vegetarian sandwiches on the menu (i.e. tuna, veggie melt, portobello, mozzarella, and grilled cheese). There are daily specials as well to try. Each sandwich comes with sweet & spicy pickle slices, which are good if you like that kind of thing. Pretty much you can find about any gourmet ingredient here. Especially intriguing is the vast array of soda. While the food is always good and the service always nice and genuine, one thing that can't be said about Artisan is that it's particularly cheap. Most of the sandwiches are $9.50 as well are the salads, despite their lack of portions on the salad. The daily specials usually run a dollar or so more. I usually end up coming here on a Sunday afternoon, which is in fact probably the worst time to come because people tend to wonder over from the farmers market directly behind the store. But if you are lucky you will still be able to grab a parking spot in the lot out back. If there was ever a cheese you wanted to try, here's the place to do it.

http://www.artisancheesegallery.com/index_files/Page508.htm

Ford's Filling Station

Normally places named Filling Station are either a gas station or a burger joint. Ford's is neither and is owned by Ben Ford, the son of Indiana Jones himself. Ford's cuisine is not as adventurous as Indiana Jones, but you know that the Italian inspired cuisine will always be done right. I've only been to Ford's once, but I enjoyed it. I had what's probably the most popular at the restaurant, one of the flatbread pizzas. I went with the pretty generic 4 cheese, but it was still really good. They are pretty large, but not really big enough to share as an entree. Instead, I would recommend sharing a flatbread as an appetizer. Looking at their online menu it seems that they have added several new items since my last visit, perhaps in an attempt to spice up the menu. Some of the most intriguing dishes I saw were the meatloaf sandwich, the buttermilk fried chicken, and polenta cake with pearl onions, mixed mushrooms, tomatoes, and truffled marscapone (yum!). The atmosphere is really nice here with some cozy outdoor seating and a dark bar-like interior. Ben Ford himself is often there chatting with the customers, or at least he was there when I went. That may not so much be the case now that the restaurant is quite a bit older. The guy I had lunch with here had chatted with him so much that Mr. Ford sent out a free creme brulee. Clearly, I need to go back to try out some more stuff on the menu!

http://www.fordsfillingstation.net/newDesign.htm

26 Beach

After going there today and remembering how much I love it, I can't believe that I haven't blogged about 26 Beach yet. Located not far from Venice Beach on Washington, this shabby chic little eatery serves brunch, lunch, and dinner and is incredibly delicious. One of my first impressions of 26 Beach was the large number of items on the menu with goat cheese. They serves a pan fried goat cheese salad in an appetizer or a full salad portion that is dressed with strawberry vinaigrette. You can add your choice of meat, be it chicken or rock shrimp for an extra few dollars as well. The burger with goat cheese is another spectacular dish here, but really it doesn't seem that you can go wrong, which may come as a relief after you sit down and wade through a four-page menu. The bulk of those pages consists of about 20 different salads (roughly $13 each), various entrees and pastas ($15-20), pizzas ($13), sandwiches ($12), and gourmet burgers as they call them ($12). I came here for a third time today and third time was definitely a charm. Despite that the parking lot is small and narrow, the indoor patio is spacious and cozy with shabby chic furniture covering the space. It feels quite like sitting on your aunt's patio, if your aunt is a rich homemaker in the south. When it came time to order, we started with a chicken quesadilla served on a whole wheat tortilla. While it was good, there's really not that much you can do with a quesadilla (with the exception of Doughboy's breakfast quesadilla). For my entree I ordered the ceviche tostada, which was essentially a blend of a Mexican taco salad and ceviche. The ceviche and salad parts were balanced well and it kept me full for several hours after the meal, something that is usually pretty hard for me with salads. The ceviche was particularly good and while I was worried that the lettuce might taint the ceviche, it really didn't. I'm not sure I would argue that it made it better, just that it made it heartier, and it certainly didn't make it worse. Two of the other three girls also got salads, but the real prize winner was the fourth diner who ordered the Polar Bear, which in layman's terms would be croissant French toast served with vanilla ice cream and berries. We teased her for having ice cream for lunch, but it really was superb. I took a couple of bites as dessert, but it wasn't incredibly sweet, so I could definitely see having it as brunch. It was really huge (for only $12) so the rest of us tried to help her finish it. I've heard the rest of the brunch menu is great, and you'll definitely see me back there for that!

http://www.26beach.com/food.htm

Astro Burger

I know it's a little out of the ordinary for me to review a fast food restaurant, but I thought there are probably several people that have never been to Astro Burger. Let's start with the bad and work our way up to the good. Astro Burger is cash only, though they do have an ATM so as not to inconvenience you too much, but you're still going to be charged an ATM fee and depending on where you bank, your bank may charge you for using their ATM too. Second bad thing: while the miniature jukeboxes at each table are cute, they don't work so please don't waste your precious quarters in them, but save them for parking or laundry. Depending on what time you come, it can be difficult to find parking or a seat once you are inside. If you don't feel like getting out of your car, there is unfortunately no drive-thru. On the bright side, the food is delicious and fairly priced. I most recently tried the turkey burger trying to go for the healthy alternative, but it really looked and tasted more like a chicken sandwich. On the same trip Chase got the bacon avocado burger which was probably about 100 times better than mine. We shared an order of fries and I have to say that their fries could use some improvement through one of the following: add salt, add seasoned salt, make smaller, crispier fries, combination of the above. If you don't eat meat or just aren't in the mood for it Astro Burger serves Garden Burgers and really good grilled cheese sandwiches. I don't live close enough to do this, but I have heard that Astro Burger really hits the spot after a night of drinking and they stay open late on the weekends to accommodate this crowd. Astro Burger also serves breakfast, but again, I've never tried it. There is a second location on Melrose at Gower, which I think has additional items within Mexican and Greek cuisines.

http://www.astroburger.com/

Anarkali

While I was having my car serviced the other day Chase and I lunched at Anarkali on Melrose for a quick bite. We went in purely due to convenience, so I really knew nothing about the place, except that they have great lunch specials, starting at $6.95 a person. Chase and I got the Chicken Tikka Masala Lunch Special for two which came with a full plate of chicken tandoori, chicken tikka masala, vegetable curry, rice, and naan. We had the tandoori prepared medium spicy, but it was still pretty spicy and left our fingers stained yellow. It was really good and lemony nonetheless. The chicken tikka masala was probably the best I've ever had. The sauce was really sweet and tasted almost like tomato basil soup. I would have preferred to switch the veggie curry out for aloo mataar, but the restaurant won't let you substitute anything. All of this was more than enough food for two (I think the only think we finished was the masala). We had enough to pack a to go box and walked out with a $22 check, which we thought was pretty delicious. I was a little concerned about the B rating in the window, but once the food came out my worries were relieved. The interior was pretty over the top with several booths lined along each wall, shadowed by Indian fabric that extends across the ceiling. I didn't check the dinner prices, but I'm sure they are just as reasonable. I'd say it's definitely worth a shot, and the lunch specials are available on Saturday too.

http://www.anarkali-la.com/

Kumo & Sweet Lady Jane

That's right ladies and gents, today is my 50th blog and Chase and I really went out in style last night in celebration. We first went to see Craig Robinson (Darrell from the office) at the Hollywood Improv (which was incredibly entertaining, I highly recommend going sometime), then we walked down Melrose, in the cold and rain mind you, to new-ish sushi restaurant Kumo. I'd read online about Kumo, not really any reviews, just about the restaurant itself. Kumo means cloud in Japanese, so the whole interior is white. I had read the menu online, which looked good, but mostly we went here out of convenience. Once we got there, a few of the things we had seen on the online menu weren't listed (i.e. tuna steak with caramelized miso glaze), so that was pretty disappointing. Chase was really wanting something cooked, but I was more interested in the sushi. We both tried ordering some of the things that we wanted, and everything I ordered was pretty tasty, but the things he ordered were not very good. We started with spicy tuna tacos, which I thought was the best dish of the night. It tasted somewhat similar to the crispy sesame tuna dish at Katsu-ya. Large hunks of spicy tuna were stuffed into a taco shell-shaped wonton with a thin slice of avocado, eel sauce, and creme fraiche on top. Next we had the lobster, blue crab, and black pepper roll. It was alright, but with most lobster dishes, it was a little fishy. Pepper on a sushi roll was a little different, but overall the roll was much better when dipped in soy sauce. Next we had the lobster miso soup, which Chase really didn't care for. I didn't much like it either. There wasn't actually any lobster meat in the soup, so I suppose the broth was just cooked with lobster and then it was removed? Or perhaps lobster stock, though I'm not sure there is such a thing? Following that, Chase also ordered a soft-shell crab tempura, which neither of us really liked. For a grand finale we had the Yellowtail Love Affair roll, which was thinly sliced yellowtail with tri-colored peppers. It was really fresh and delicious. For the way it tasted, everything was a was overpriced. The lobster roll was $25, the yellowtail roll was $20. The only thing that I really felt like we got what we paid for was the tuna tacos, at $14, though I believe there is a similar item on the menu at El Toro on Wilshire for much cheaper. We didn't really want to stay for dessert, so we grabbed a piece of boysenberry pie from Sweet Lady Jane next door. We've had a couple of things from Sweet Lady Jane that were really good before (the three-berry cake is amazing), but the pie from last night just wasn't really that good, primarily because it tasted like brandy. Still, SLJ's reputation precedes it and you should still go get a slice or something delectable, just steer clear of the boysenberry pie.

http://www.kumo-la.com/menus.html

http://www.sweetladyjane.com/

Sky's Tacos

I had noticed Sky's Tacos on Pico back when Chase and I were walking down to that area for weekend brunch, but had never been until last night. I guess it's not fair to say that I've been, only that I have eaten the food since Chase picked it up for dinner last night. I had read on Yelp that the lobster tacos were really great so I just asked for that and whatever else Chase thought sounded good. He came home with a smorgasbord of Mexican options. For me, there was a shrimp taco and a lobster taco. He got a beef torta and a steak taco (the special of the night) then a cheese quesadilla to share. All of the tacos came in corn tortillas, which for the fish was good, but we both felt that the steak taco would have been better in flour. The torta was kind of more like a Caribbean burger and neither of us were too keen on it. By far the star of the night was the lobster taco. The lobster meat absorbed all of the flavors really nicely and I couldn't really even tell it was lobster. Since I didn't pick up the food so I don't know how expensive each item was, but the total bill was around $40, so roughly $8 a piece, which in actuality is really steep for a taco. I think the only thing I would consider going back for would be the lobster, though they don't have an online menu, so I am curious what other options they serve. Also, Chase did get a lemonade that tasted like sugar water, so we had to add some water from home. I've heard that they have a really nice patio for outdoor dining but there aren't many seats, so it's more of a take-out place, FYI.

No website, but here's the link to the Yelp page:
http://www.yelp.com/biz/skys-gourmet-tacos-los-angeles

East India Grill

After complaining that there wasn't much good Indian food around our area, Chase and I were delighted to stumble upon East India Grill on La Brea. This place is all Bollywood, all the time. It's tucked away in the cute little eatery section of La Brea with Sante La Brea and a couple of others. We came for dinner on a week night and the place was pretty empty. The servers were attentive, albeit pretty unfriendly. We got our usual: samosas, tandoori chicken, and aloo mataar and it was all really great. Everything tasted the way we prefer our Indian food to be: grilled and a little charred on the outside, but with a tender center, though I do have to admit that I thought the chicken was really dry. Still, definitely worth trying!

http://www.eastindiagrillla.com/
Warning! Very ethnic website!

Meltdown, etc.

Located in the heart of downtown Culver City is the lovely and delicious Meltdown, otherwise known as the grilled cheese place. But oh! do they have so much more. While you may expect to visit here and get a fistful of cheesiness, you should really just expect to get a great sandwich in which the type of cheese plays an integral part. The menu is short and accents both the sweet and the savory sides of cheese. Highlights on the savory side include the classic three cheese grilled cheese with the option to add tomato or bacon, the turkey melt, which features a brie and turkey sandwich with cranberry horseradish mustard on walnut bread, and last but not least the cheddar, ham & apple sandwich. All sandwiches are served as paninis with a fresh homemade dill pickle on the side. The sandwiches are pretty filling, so you may want to share a savory sandwich and then share a dessert sandwich. On the sweet menu is the PB&J or the PBH&J (peanut butter and strawberry preserves on egg bread, add honey for the second variation), the brie and apricot on walnut bread, the fig goat cheese, and honey on walnut bread, and the ever important banana nut (bananas and nutella on egg bread). The drink selection is varied yet specific, serving Calypso teas, Coke in a bottle (made with sugar not corn syrup), mint water, and the like. Come early because they're only open for lunch and seating is limited to about 25 chairs on the outdoor patio, which is completely full by about 12:30 when all of the Culver City workers are released for lunch. One of the sweetest parts about Meltdown, beside the dessert sandwiches and the sweet price of everything being under $9, is the sweet old man who delivers the food and helps you find a table. He's guaranteed to bring a smile to your face any time you visit, if the free parking doesn't do it first!

http://www.meltdownetc.com/

Tour De Austin

As I mentioned, I am on the plane, headed to Austin for my little brother’s graduation. I figured I would take this chance to cover some of my favorite places in A-town since I know many of us are from there/visit often.

Uchi – had to be top of the list. Not only one of my favorite restaurants in Austin, but one of my favorites of all time. Number one dish here for me has to be a toss up between the avo bake (baked avocado with creamy shredded crab and topped with a grilled shrimp) and the Uchiviche, their Japanese take on a traditionally Mexican dish, which means more tender fish and more delicate flavors. They used to have a chai tea crème brulee which was crème de la crème, but sadly, they discontinued it.

http://www.uchiaustin.com/

Eddie V’s – probably the most popular steakhouse in town. While the steaks are savory, the real reason to get here for me is the potato gruyere fritters, something I have never tried to make, but definitely should.

http://www.eddiev.com/

Las Manitas – Known for its Tex-Mex, Austin has so many options in this arena. Las Manitas is my favorite for a couple of reasons. Build your own breakfast tacos are always a great way to start your day, but the enchiladas verdes for lunch is hard to beat. Plus, how can you hate a place that supports local Mexican artists and is connected to one of the weirdest stores I have ever been in. If you need a Mexican wrestling mask, go here.

http://austin.citysearch.com/profile/10202499/

Fonda San Miguel – on the opposite side of the Mexican spectrum from Las Manitas is Fonda San Miguel. Offering more interior Mexican cuisine, their brunch is scrumptious and really has about every Mexican dish you could imagine. It ain’t cheap though, brunch runs at about $35 a person (I believe this includes unlimited alcoholic beverages, but I could be wrong on that one).

http://www.fondasanmiguel.com/

Chez Zee – Like an old timey neighborhood café, Chez Zee has the feel of a piano bar gone daytime. They also serve up a fun breakfast, but can be really hard to get into on the weekends. Luckily for you, that’s why they have board games like connect 4 in the outside waiting area.

http://www.chez-zee.com/

Kerby Lane – No matter how many times you’ve had it, you can still never get over the Kerby Queso. The best location by far is the one actually on Kerby Lane, but that one can also be the most crowded and difficult to get a table at. Breakfast all day and 24 hour service is always a good thing, right?

http://www.kerbeylanecafe.com/

With only a few days here and being in town during graduation and prom weekend, it will probably be pretty hard to get to any of these, but two things are for certain: I will be eating a breakfast taco (how I miss thee!) and I will be having some of the delicious fast food available, be it Whataburger, Taco Cabana, Fran’s, or Sandy’s. Any of them will be welcome in my belly.

Sapori

Out on the crystal blue waters of Marina Del Rey sits Sapori. While I realize that this place sounds Japanese, it’s actually Italian. Judging from the outside you would never be able to guess that Sapori had so much charm. If it’s a pleasant day it’s far better to sit on the outdoor patio, but with the view from the inside you’ll still catch a glimpse of the yachts to dream of owning out in the marina. On the menu you’ll find true Italian fare, for example, shrimp served with the head on. For appetizers, the crab cakes are quite tasty, or if you’d prefer more of a sampler, there is an antipasta dish that comes with olives, proscuitto, and a few veggies. While there are several really delicious dishes on the menu, one of the best things about Sapori is that they’ll customize any entrée you wish. They serve a risotto special every day, but they’ve always allowed me to throw together my own (porcini mushrooms with truffle oil is wonderful!). The risotto is so good that it’s usually what I get when I come here, but I’ve had a few other things on the menu too. The spaghetti is actually quite good as are all of the pastas. During lunch they also serve paninis and some additional entrees, majority being fish. The portions are large (big enough to share or take 1/2 home), but if you can make it to dessert, it could certainly be worth it. I’ve only gotten that far once, and we had the lemon sorbet served inside a hollowed out lemon. It’s crisp and refreshing, like having a iced lemonade at a baseball game. I believe they also serve tiramisu and I’m sure have a few other desserts. You’ll have to forgive me that I don’t have it committed to memory, but I am writing this on the plane!

http://www.sapori-mdr.com/

Mani's Bakery & Cafe

One of Fairfax District's gems is Mani's Bakery & Cafe. Chase and I have been here a couple of times between breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Mani's is a little bit hippie, a little bit hip, and all really good. For breakfast, I've had the breakfast wrap with Yukon gold potatoes, salsa, and turkey bacon and I've also tried the multigrain pancakes. Both were really good, but I always remember thinking that the lunch menu sounded a little bit better. My favorite thing on the menu is chicken mango salad. It's a really full salad with grilled marinated chicken, avocado, mango, tomato, and red onion with a really yummy lime cilantro dressing. It's one of the best salads I've ever had and Chase and I can get full pretty much just off of the salad. Their burgers are also really great and I've always wanted to try their turkey chili. One of the most unique things about Mani's is the 400 calorie menu featuring a couple of egg white breakfasts, a turkey/basil/artichoke wrap, another wrap that is almost like a variation of the chicken mango salad, and last but not least, a veggie burger on pita. To wash down your hippie burger you can enjoy one of the teas (hot or iced) or juices, then to finish it off, grab a pastry from the bakery. I haven't tried much out of the bakery, but what I have had is really good! Eating inside Mani's is nothing special and the tables can fill up pretty quickly on weekend mornings and afternoons, so you might prefer to do take out, though if you don't get a dessert, you may find yourself wishing later that you had. Mani's is definitely a must try spot for people in the area, as it's a viable option for any meal.

http://www.manisbakery.com/

Chaya Venice

Chaya has it's own small empire here in Los Angeles, with Chaya Venice, Chaya in Beverly Hills, and M de Chaya in Hollywood. I've tried two out of the three and it's unclear to me what the buzz about. If you observe a macrobiotic diet, I can understand the lure of M de Chaya, as I'm sure eating this way is pretty taxing to cook on your own or to find at many restaurants. The sushi here is pretty good, but there isn't much of a selection. Another problem here is parking. Located on the same corner of Melrose as Pink's and Pinkberry. Once you've found parking, actually eating here is a breeze. It's cafe style, so you can just go up and order and sit down and eat on your own time. Across town is somewhat uninspired Chaya Venice. I came here for a work dinner and the group of us started off with some run of the mill sushi (i.e. California roll, spicy tuna roll, shrimp tempura roll). All of it was sort of blah. I opted to forego an entree and get the goat cheese salad and the ceviche appetizer. The goat cheese salad was amazing. The fried goat cheese balls were perfectly warm and tender and blended well with the mixed greens and balsamic dressing. The ceviche was good, but different. It was pretty heavy on the red onion and had corn in it. The corn didn't really mesh very well with the citrus of the dish either and it could have been better if the corn was replaced by tomatoes, an ingredient normally found in ceviche. Everyone else in the group seemed to feel pretty unenthusiastic about their dinners. When the dessert menu came around, we ordered about one of everything: a butterscotch creme brulee, sorbet, chocolate croissant bread pudding, apple tatin, and the banana tart with banana ice cream topped with a chocolate covered banana (too much banana if you ask me!). I tried a little of each and have to say only a couple were pretty impressive. I don't care much for soggy bread, so usually bread pudding is out of the picture, but I guess since it was made with a crispy croissant it was exceptional. The butterscoth creme brulee was good, but not really that memorable. Everything else was fairly mediocre. I've also tried Chaya Venice for lunch and been more pleased with their bento box. If you have a hankering for a seafood or sushi dinner, though, I'd recommend finding another restaurant that would either be more affordable (entrees at Chaya are between $25-30) or at least if you are going to pay that much for a dinner, you are getting more bang for your buck.

http://www.thechaya.com/vindex.htm