aylowe's Profile
favorite waffles?
The chicken & waffles at Wood and Vine (at the corner of H'wood and Vine). Amazing, amazing, amazing.
Jury Duty lunch?!?!?
Probably depends on how much time they give you - an hour?
If you walk north on Hill, then turn left on Temple, you can eat outside at the Cathedral's cafe. They have pizzas, soups, etc. Not great food, but it can be nice to sit outside there.
If you walk west on 1st (up the hill) to Grand, then turn left, you have lots of options in and around California/Wells Fargo Plazas: Mendocino Farms (pretty good sandwiches), Casa (overpriced Mexican), CPK, Skew's, etc. etc. Some days (Wed. and Fri?) one of those Korean taco truck imitators parks on Grand @ 3rd.
If you walk east on 1st, you can head over to Little Tokyo. Tons of options there, of course: Daikokuya (ramen), Sushi Komasa (on 2nd), etc.
But maybe the best option for you is to head a few blocks south on Hill. Go to the Grand Central Market, where there are tons of vendors crowded into a big space: Mexican, Chinese, Lebanese - whatever you want. All pretty good, cheap, and quick.
Ovomaltine Crunchy Cream
Does anyone know where one can buy a jar in Los Angeles? If not, has anyone tried this stuff and could you speak to the question whether it's worth paying upwards of 23 euros to have a few jars shipped here from Austria?
I HEAR that it's way better than NUTELLA. I don't see how that's possible, but I'd really like to find out.
South India Trip Report - Tamil Nadu and Kerala
Your year-old posts are a great help to us as we travel South India. We're about to choose our own houseboat to do the same trip that you did. Do you happen to remember the company that your chef worked for? And would you recommend a trip of one or two nights? Thanks so much!
Brunch w/ Alcohol?
Where is a good brunch spot that also serves nice mimosas/bloody marys etc.?
Good brunch and good alcohol. Is that too much to ask for in this town?
breakfast burrito?
Found one -- in downtown. Not of much use to you, unless you work near there or are stuck on jury duty.
Little place called JOSIE'S on Los Angeles St., right across the st. from the police dept., and right in front of City Hall East. It's situated in sort of an odd asian fotomat hut.
But this is a great breakfast burrito. (potatoes, avocado, sour cream, chorizo, cheese, homemade salsa, pretty much whatever else you want). Excellent tortilla, holds together real well . . .
Anyway, the guy who runs the place is very cool - will let you start a tab if you work in the area. And Super Cheap.
Great deal.
breakfast burrito?
Wondering where they make a good one.
Preferably involving guac, cheese, and potatoes.
DOMINICAN RESTAURANT
It's really a shame. There doesn't seem to be a single Dominican place. I'm craving mangu.
I can't find the new "YUMMY CUPCAKES"..help!!
Hm. Maybe it's a store down from Sur La Table. But I promise it's right around there. That's definitely the right block.
I can't find the new "YUMMY CUPCAKES"..help!!
It's really hard to see from the street. They're on the north side of Wilshire, I think between 3rd and 4th, next to the Sur La Table store. I don't think they have a sign.
Underappreciated Bagels
I don't know why no one talks about BLESSED KING BAGELS on Fairfax, directly across from the CBS entrance. (only one or two people have posted on this place here). Just went there this morning, and they're really good. I'm sure for many bagel snobs it's heresy to say this, but the bagel I had there today was about as good as any I found in NYC. (including H & H, which is totally overrated in my opinion).
Of course in NY you pay a little over 2 bucks for a bagel and cream cheese, whereas the same thing at BKB knocks you back around $4. But if you're really desperate for a good bagel, I'd say it's worth it. Fresh (I went in the morning, though), nice and chewy, excellent flavor. Hopefully you won't be put off by the kind of strange, almost-ranting sayings and messages the proprietor has posted all over the place inside the store. I find them charming.
On citysearch someone mentioned that the guy behind the counter is a veritable Bagel Nazi, on one occassion supposedly bringing a tourist customer almost to "tears". But I found him to be perfectly nice. And even if I caught him on a good day, I figure the presence of a grumpy, semi-psychotic bagel-mongerer may possibly lend some authenticity to the place. LA should have a bagel nazi.
Yes, it's overpriced. Yes, the guy is ripping off the tourists waiting across the street trying to get into the Price is Right by renting them chairs at exorbitant prices. But the bagels are good and the overall experience is kind of hilarious. Maybe it's just me, but I think they deserve more of our business.
Pasadena is weak!
I live in Santa Monica and am far from a morning person. Nevertheless I have gotten up early on more than one weekend to drive all the way out to Pasadena to make it in time for the breakfast at Julienne (which lasts, I think, until 11:30 or so). The potato Cakes are amazing. As is the creme brulee french toast.
good mexican and fun - westside?
Monte Alban on Santa Monica is great Oaxacan, and a great deal. I also like Border Grill a lot, but it's more pricey - and you make sure you make a reservation there. Haven't been yet, but I hear that Don Antonio's on Pico is pretty good too - and certainly an interesting atmosphere.
It's not "fun", unless you're 50+ maybe, but my favorite Mexican on the westside is Tlapazola Grill on Gateway.
fried plantain list:
El Criollo in Van Nuys, at the corner of Victory and Fulton, by the 7 Eleven.
I looked pretty hard for some good tostones and this was the best I found. Also run by a great old couple. Don't be afraid of the Valley!
Los Angeles: Best General Tsos Chicken?
I lived in NYC for a long time before coming back to LA and, like you, I was eager to find some General Tso's. As several people have already noted, Orange Chicken is very similar.
Can't say I've found terribly great orange chicken though. Hop Li (on the West Side) has a great Tangerine BEEF, but their orange chicken is a bit too sweet for my taste.
Now, there's a place on Ventura called Bamboo Garden which has something called Sweet and Pungent Chicken, which might be the closest thing I've found to Gen'l Tso's out here. I think it passes fairly well - they fry up the chicken so it's slightly sweet and crisp (not too doughy), the way it should be. Then there's Hu's on National, which does a pretty good quasi-Gen'l Tso's chicken. I forget what they call theirs, but it's not too hard to figure out if you check out their menu.
Anyway, I'm curious to see what other people post on this.
Who has the best al pastor tacos in 07?
I've looked around a bit on the West Side, w/out too much luck. But I'll go anywhere.
Zankou... ???
You ordered the wrong thing. Get the chicken tarna wrap. My God. I get mine with hummus and tahini. I can attest that the West L.A. tarna is as good or better than the Van Nuys location.
Frozen dumplings in bulk from Dumpling House in Temple City
How are the pork dumplings there? I'm looking for some nice, meaty ones, and have found them surprisingly hard to find. I checked the huge Asian food grocery in Van Nuys with no luck.
