PS it's a Sunday night.

Hi
My mother and I have one night in London on our way to India in mid January.
We are staying at King's Cross, we won't get to our hotel until 5 pm and leave the next morning at 8. (sorry London, back for longer next time!)
We want a nice dinner- she's pretty much a vegan with the occasional exception, I'm an adventurous foodie who likes anything delicious.
Dinner needs to have comfortable and pleasant ambiance, complex and delicious flavors, and vegetarian or at least fish only options.
This could be anything from a brewpub to Thai to French- it just has to be relatively easy to get to (we won't have many warm clothes) and memorable and wonderful!
Your help is greatly appreciated!
-Alaskan Foodie

Coming to west LA from Alaska over my birthday weekend, looking forward to one sensational meal out. Looking for outstanding, innovative, interesting food with an emphasis on the fresh or seasonal, and top notch service. Atmosphere is a distant but still important third. Oh yeah and there's the wine. After reviewing menus until crosseyed, I'm leaning toward either Joe's or Josie. What's your vote? Any place you'd recommend more highly than either in the MDR/SM/Venice area?

Thanks again everyone. After reviewing numerous menus, I'm leaning toward either Joe's or Josie's for the birthday dinner. We are looking for outstanding, innovative, interesting food with an emphasis on the fresh or seasonal, and top notch service. Atmosphere is a distant but still important third. Oh yeah and there's the wine. I'll post this as a separate query also. Thoughts?

Thanks so much to all of you!
Keep the ideas coming- right before we leave I'll print this off and take it with- what a fantastic resource!

If you are into beer the breweries in Juneau, Haines, and Homer are not to be missed. In Juneau there's no pub but it's worth a visit for the bar in the gift shop with the free samples. The tips go to charity and it's on the way to the glacier. Haven't been to the other two but a big fan of their beer and I hear the Homer brewpub is fantastic.

Just posted to several similar threads

Thane Oar House! Good salmon and fish and Chips, great alaskana-covered walls

Just repiled to another thread about this, see that also. I am sorry in advance- if you can get a colleague to cook you fresh seafood at home that is by far the best meal in town. Try a Pacific Rim burger at Doc Water's for lunch. The Hangar has great views and decent Alaskan fare- I always enjoy my cheaper, pub menu selections much more there than the pricier entrees (plus they have a great beer selection). Baranof is hit or miss but usually good service. Breakfast at Costa's or the Sandpiper. Overpriced chinese food but nice mellow surroundings and beautiful plating can be found at Zen. For a drink the best atmosphere is the Alaskan Bar (funky) or the Bubble Room at the Baranof (fancy). Good luck and know we are eating great food, we're just cooking it at home!

I just wrote a long answer to a similar question on one of the other Juneau threads. Also, There's a place called the Thane Oar House that seems touristy at first but they have the best Halibut and chips in town and it's actually a fun place, horseshoes out back, great for groups. It's out of town a couple miles but pile in a van cab- it's worth it!

Important: Whatever you do, don't eat at the top of the tram. The horror stories abound, and have gotten worse every year. Have a beer on their deck but don't order food even if you are starving- the Twisted Fish, right by the bottom of the tram is inconsistent but you may get a very good meal there so risk that or anything else before eating up there. And no I didn't get fired from there or anything I just had an incredibly bad, slow, pricy, gross, cold meal there once and everyone else with zero exceptions who has eaten there and told me about it says the same thing or worse.

Important: Whatever you do, don't eat at the top of the tram. The horror stories abound, and have gotten worse every year. Have a beer on their deck but don't order food even if you are starving- the Twisted Fish, right by the bottom of the tram is inconsistent but you may get a very good meal there so risk that or anything else before eating up there. And no I didn't get fired from there or anything I just had an incredibly bad, slow, pricy, gross, cold meal there once and everyone else with zero exceptions who has eaten there and told me about it says the same thing or worse.

Hello, I was browsing for my hometown of Juneau and saw that noone's updated a thread in 3 years. The Armadillo was fantastic but has closed. El Sombrero on Franklin street has decent Mexican and you can get halibut substituted into most entrees for a terrific local twist. Closed Sundays. Di Sopra and The Fiddlehead have both closed. Costa's is still in the merchant's wharf and has fantastic breakfasts and sandwiches until 2 pm, closed on Tuesdays. In the same space with Costa's is Pie in the Sky, another one-woman operation boasting the best coffee/chocolate drinks in town and amazing pastries, quiches. Paradise Lunch (formerly Buzz's) on Marine Park also has a great baker/barristas. Sandpiper Cafe (where the Fiddlehead was) has good consistent breakfast and lunches, i.e. omelettes and Reubens, nothing fancy but laid back and great service. Rainbow Foods is a health food store at 4th and Franklin with a fantastic lunch buffet on weekdays and also for Thurs night dinners. The Imperial Bar on Front Street has great carne asada tacos for 2 bucks each, their beans are amazing too. For real fine dining there are NO choices right now except the Baranof Hotel which has been VERY inconsistent over the years but that's all we have right now. Zephyr on Seward street has terrific ambiance and a nice jazz trio on the weekends but the food is spotty- I only order the lamb, and only rare, and I'm getting sick of it but I keep going back for the atmosphere and the decent (for Juneau) wine list. Wild Spice, across from Zephyr, might be worth a try- haven't been in ages. Now you know why whenever we travel we use Chowhounds to find the best food we can while we're away- we NEED it!

My husband and I are visiting my ma in MDR in August. She just moved there from the east coast and knows zip. We live in Alaska and when we travel we always seek out the local, the weird, the wonderful- foodies through and through. She is usually vegan but will eat fish. There are a slew of restaurants in MDR, any of them any good? In particular, looking for:

1: Nice place for Friday night dinner (my birthday): this can be Santa Monica, Venice, anywhere near MDR. Hubby and I love tasting menus and good wine lists, we all love an emphasis on fresh local ingredients.
2: Any hippie breakfast joints in MDR? We love the big hearty inexpensive b'fasts with vegetarian options, like Snow City Cafe in Anchorage- fru fru breakfasts always disappoint.
3: Cheap eats: we are always in search of the perfect fish taco, the best Thai, the Indian lunch buffet- what's the best bang for one's buck?
4: Any good bars with Belgians on tap?

Thanks in advance, LA foodies!