young_chower's Profile
brolly hut in inglewood
I went to the Inglewood Brolly Hut about two months ago. Honestly, it was nothing special but wasn't horrific ether. The burger did have a a decent charbroiled taste but that was about it. Also tried a breakfast burrito which wasn't that special. I think there are better options, including some fast food places.
The other Brolly Hut is on Hawthorne Blvd in Lawndale, close to the intersection of Redondo Beach Blvd. The Inglewood B-Hut has better architecture than the Lawndale location.
I prefer Tomboy's in Manhattan Beach for my burger/chili fries/patty melt needs. I've also tried Rod's breakfast burrito and was very impressed although again prefer Tomboy's. Both are solid options.
Kanpai Sushi on Lincon?
Has anyone been to this place? I've heard it's pretty good for the price but want to hear what the hounds have to say.
Thoughts?
Top Wok in Redondo Beach: Anyone been? (American Chinese Food)
I came across a coupon for a place called Top Wok in Redondo, on Beryl right off Porspoect by the Vons.
Has anyone been? It seems like a worthy option in my quest for good Americanized Chinese food. I have fond memories of the Szechwan in Westchester in the mid 1990's that is now a home town buffet and have been lost ever since. I have been to Seaport Inn and Szechwan in Torrance and neither impressed me.
Top Wok
1252 Beryl St
Redondo Beach, CA 90277
Breakfast @ McDonalds: Where is it served earliest in LA?
Thanks for the replies everyone but I was really hoping for McDonald's, not other places. The quest continues!
Breakfast @ McDonalds: Where is it served earliest in LA?
Which McDonald's in LA/Westside/Hollywood/Southbay serves breakfast the earliest? I've called several in the South Bay and the earliest I found was 4am.
I was hoping to find a McDonald's that served as early as 2am to serve as a nice post-bar meal.
Anyone?
Donuts in the South Bay?
I'm a big fan of Best Doughnuts at the corner of Artesia and PCH/Sepulveda. They have a great blueberry and honeywheat that comes out around 10:30 to 11:30pm and it is divine fresh out of the fryer.
Where ever you go, be sure to eat the doughnuts fresh. A doughnut that is 10 minutes old from a mediocre shop tastes way better that a 5 hour old doughnut from a great doughnut store.
Sushi Bei in Gardnea?
I half-Japanese bartender told me about this place last night and I'm curious what's the CH consensus on it. Seems reasonably priced and has a balance between Japanese and "Americanized" sushi.
Thanks!
ISO "Lebenese/Middle Eastern Costco/Warehouse" in the OC?
I see they have a location close to downtown LA. Is it any better than the one in the OC?
ISO "Lebenese/Middle Eastern Costco/Warehouse" in the OC?
I remember hearing about a huge warehouse-like store somewhere in the bowels of Orange County that focused on Middle Eastern/Mediterranean ingredients? It's supposed to be huge, carry lots of stuff in bulk, and be very crowded?
Does anyone know the name of this phantom store? I've looked throughout the internet but can't find anything.
Thanks!
LA Hound Coming to LONDON for 2 Weeks... Critique My List!
were the flavors rich, intense, and spicy? I assume that would be the biggest indicator of authenticity. Also, did they have generic duds on there like tikka masala?
LA Hound Coming to LONDON for 2 Weeks... Critique My List!
I'm very intrigued. I saw Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations episode (US show) when he went to Istanbul and the food looked fantastic... way beyond just kebabs and rice. I'll check it out and report back.
LA Hound Coming to LONDON for 2 Weeks... Critique My List!
Thanks everyone for your amazing help! Some more questions:
1) I've never had Jamaican food before. Any suggestions?
2) There doesn't seem to be a definitive farmers market in London the way Santa Monica FM is in LA or the Ferry Building is in San Francisco. Thoughts?
3) As I walked through Bermondsey last night on Bermondsey St last night, the area seemed very uninteresting food wise (read: too many yuppies). Does anyone know of any chow worthy spots?
THANKS!
LA Hound Coming to LONDON for 2 Weeks... Critique My List!
The cocktails are low on the list, I've put it on there just in case I head out specifically seeking them.
LA Hound Coming to LONDON for 2 Weeks... Critique My List!
Thank you limster. I really love Szechuan food, and supposedly all the once worthy Szechuan restaurants in LA have changed chefs and are a shadow of their former selves. The nearest is 2 hours away in San Diego, where I luckily went to college and sampled the cuisine there.
I think I'll still hit up Min Jiang I think.
Also, what dishes do you and everyone else recommend at the Gastropubs?
LA Hound Coming to LONDON for 2 Weeks... Critique My List!
Thanks everyone for the feedback.
What about farmer's markets? I hear that the Marylebone Farmers’ Market is the best in London, can anyone comment?
LA Hound Coming to LONDON for 2 Weeks... Critique My List!
I am visiting London for 2 weeks in July. My main goals are to 1) Get a good taste of cuisines that strongly represented in London, 2) sample uniquely British foods (including sampling of good and unique local produce and dairy), and 3) spending as little money as possible.
Some background:
- I will be be staying in Bermondsey in Southwark, with the nearest tube stations being London Bridge (and Borough a close second).
- My personal tastes are geared towards strong, robust, intense flavors. Curries, garlic, etc
- I LOVE "ethnic" food and hole in the walls. Please do not recommend Mexican, South American, Korean, and Japanese food as I can get excellent tastes of these back in Los Angeles.
- I am willing to travel up to an hour each way on the tube if the food is worth it. Would rather not take a bus.
- I am on a budget. I know London is expensive but I'd like to try to spend up to £15 per meal, and ideally under £10. I could go up to £20 if the meal is stellar.
So, here's my list from my research:
Fish & Chips:
- The Golden Hide
- Master's Super Fish
- Fryer’s Delight
- Rock & Sole Plaice
Gastropub:
- Harwood Arms
- Bull & Last
- The Eagle (This is maybe... comments?)
Chinese
- Silk Road
- No. 10 (any other good Szechuan places... say some mixed reviews)
- Leong's Legends for soup dumplings (I've been to Ding Tai Fung... does this compare well?)
Indian (I know its a very diverse cuisine, but I'm lumping them all together):
- Thattukada
- Needoo's
- Tayyabs (say mixed reviews... but it seems popular?)
- Pani Poori stall outside of Thattukad
- Ananda Bhavan
Italian
- Franco Macna
- Bocca di Lupo (seems over my budget but the reviews look great)
Ice Cream/Pastries
- Scoops
- Maison Bertaux in Soho
Tea & Cakes:
- A Gold
-Spitalfields
Random:
Kappacasein for Cheese Sandwich
Markets and Shops:
- A Gold
- Borough Market (including the spanish sandwiches and english marmalades)
- Neal's Cheese Yard
- La Fromagerie for more cheese
- St. Johns (just stopping in and getting bread)
Cocktails:
- Milk & Honey
- 69 Colebrooke Row
Brewery Tours/Tastings:
- Sambrookes Brewery
Supermarkets:
-Waitrose
- Whole Foods (yes it's from the US but I want to see the British outpost)
- Tesco
- Sainsbury
*Also planning on taking a day trip to Middle Farm to pick vegetables and see an English farm.
1) I really want to try Sri Lankan food. Can anyone recommend a solid choice?
2) Where on earth do I eat when I'm doing all the touristy stuff like
- Oxford Street (and Regency St, etc)
- Portebello Road Antiques
- Royal National Gardens
- Hampstead Heath
- Parliament
- British Museum, Tate Modern, National Gallery, Whitechapel Gallery
- checking out neighborhoods like Notting Hill, Mayfair, Kensington, Camden Town, Chelsea, etc
Thanks! Any help would be greatly appreciated!
San Marzano Tomatoes - any deals in L.A. area?
I bought a HUGE, industrial size can of San Marzano tomatoes from the bi-monthly sale at Epicure Imports for around $5.50. It was DOP, but it doesn't say DOP because Carmelina doesn't want to pay the fees to certify it DOP (their website does a good job of explaining it:
http://www.carmelinabrands.com/pages/san_marzano.php
Nevertheless it was an infinitely better price than anything at Whole Foods, etc.
Live Sea Urchin source
In addition to QS in RB, I have heard that a place in Gardena called Moonfish also carries live Sea Urchin. It's been there for decades and is run by Japanese folks.
Moonfish
14809 Crenshaw Blvd
Gardena
Chantilly Patisserie v. Bonjour French Pastry?
My family's thanksgiving day guests brought over three cakes from Bonjour: a strawberry, a cheesecake, and a chocolate cake. The cheesecake blew me away. I hate cheesecake, but this one was absurdly light and airy and tastes spectacular. The chocolate and the strawberry were both very light, but the chocolate truly stood out as being very flavorful and tasty.
I was VERY impressed with the cakes, as was everyone who tried them. I haven't tried Chantilly so I can't say how it compares, but I can't see how any cake on earth can be that much better than the ones I tried from Bonjour.
ISO Edmond Fallot DIJON MUSTARD (Same Mustard from Bouchon)
To quote from the bottle: "The ingredients of real Dijon mustard are strictly regulated by more than 300 years of tradition: mustard seeds, white wine or white vinegar, water, and spices. Trader Joe's Dijon Mustard is made according to ancient methods, in traditional oak barrels, without preservatives, artificial colors or flavors." The bottle also says that its a product of Dijon, France.
I did notice that the TJ's dijon is more pungent than the Fallot, although I think my personal tastes go with Fallot. I need to do a blind taste test to settle the issue!
ISO Edmond Fallot DIJON MUSTARD (Same Mustard from Bouchon)
Very interesting. Thanks everyone for their responses!
As a side, does anyone prefer a particular dijon to Fallot? What about Trader Joes' Dijon?
ISO Edmond Fallot DIJON MUSTARD (Same Mustard from Bouchon)
Where I can find Edmond Fallot Dijon Mustard? I know Bouchon uses it as their house mustard, but I do not believe they sell it.
I know for a fact that Whole Foods and Surfas do not carry it. I have seen it at Bristol Farms for $4.69, which seems fairly steep to me for a little jar of mustard. Anyone have a good, cheap source? Also interested in their Dijon mustard with green peppercorns, if anyone has a source for that one too!
Best Farmers Markets!
I live in the South Bay and am a big fan of the Saturday Torrance Market, where most prices I think are more or less reasonable (as long as you stay away from Harry's Berries!)
The key to farmers markets is not which market you go to but rather which farmers' booths you visit at the market. Last summer, I bought some transcendental tomatoes from some Hmong farmers at the Torrance Farmers market for about $2/lb that were just as good as the ones I grew in my backyard. At the same market, I have bought stunningly mediocre tomatoes for the same price from a few different vendors. Yes, both were local, but both tasted radically different.
Also, don't buy too much into the branding of certain farmers. Again, I have bought yellow nectarines from Tenerrelli orchards, and they were good, but not great at ~$2.50/lb. On the flip side, I have also bought some ridiculously tasty yellow nectarines from a farmer without a big brand behind her. I don't even know the farms' name, but the main seller of the family is a lovely, bubbly lady named Tracy. David Karp has never written about Tracy and her yellow nectarines as far as I am aware, but they are much better than Tenerrelli's and cost about $1.75-$2/lb.
What I am trying to say is that you can't go to any old vendor and expect to get fantastic produce regardless of what market they visit. Rather, you have to scope the market, taste some here, taste some there, figure out which farmers have the best stuff at a decent price, and then ask those farmers what other markets they attend so you can follow them around. It is by no means an easy or quick process, but after about a little more than a year of going to the Torrance farmers market I am very pleased with the vendors I continually visit both in terms of price and taste.
ISO DRIED OKRA???
Anyone know where I can get some dried okra, preferably in the South Bay area?
I'm thinking maybe Maruki or Mitsuwa might have but am curious if anyone has a definitive source.
Ted
Burger - high end in South Bay area?
Wow this place looks great. I am definitely adding it to the list.
Sakae Sushi - great "comfort" sushi in Gardena
I'm also a huge fan of this place. Not only is their sushi fresh, delicious, and affordable; it's also such a charming store!
I took a big box of their sushi to my sister's birthday party and it was a huge success! My favorites are the CA roll (yes, its not real sushi, but it tastes good) and the nori maki.
Good Thai or Mexican in Lakewood, Bellflower, Long Beach area ?
I've heard good things about Cancoon Thai from other hounds, especially if you are looking for Issan style Thai:
Cancoon Thai Food
9887 Alondra Blvd, Bellflower, CA 90706
(562) 925-0993
ISO Japanese Mustard?
Where can I find the best Japanese mustard? Is there a particular brand that is the best quality?
I am talking about the deep yellow, earthy, somewhat spicy mustard that is very intense (maybe some horseradish?) and served in tiny amounts on the side of some dishes.
Any insight is much appreciated!
Decent Thai Food - South Bay (Near El Segundo)
I'm pretty sure that Bamboo is owned by the same family that owns the Thai Dishes in Manhattan Beach. There menu's are similar, right down to the font.
Eating along the Metro Gold Line to East LA
What are some of the must have dishes at these places? I plan to be there on opening day and am excited about the food!
