The Last (LA) Meal

I like that idea! Sounds like a good last-weekend-in-town thing.
Oh, and since I'm pregnant, all this talk of sushi is wasted on me anyway. I'm sure they have sushi in San Francisco, so I'm not too worried. Besides, I don't think that, with a move to an expensive area in my future, I should blow the wad on one sushi dinner, even if it is really that good. BTW, I was never a huge fan of Asanebo, but I used to go there like 10 years ago, maybe it's better now. R23 was always my secret favorite, in the pre-preggo days...

Stasigrace in Los Angeles Area

The Last (LA) Meal

p.s. I am likely moving to the Bay Area, so I won't be leaving great food behind. I think it's more important to focus on Latin cuisines, since I imagine I can get great Asian and European food up there too.

Is Urasawa better than Nozawa? Because I pretty much thought that was the pinnacle of sushi.

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The Last (LA) Meal

So if you were moving away from Los Angeles (like I am in a few months), where would you be sure to eat before leaving? I've got my favorites that I'll surely hit, but I'm curious about the "must-try's" I may have missed (especially newer foodie joints). Thanks.

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organic/free range/grassfed meat - where do you buy?

Michael Pollan takes Rosie chickens to task in Omnivore's Dilemma - they are raised in a confined environment and allowed extremely minimal access to outside. Their organic feed does not include all the natural parts of a chicken's diet, what they'd get if they were truly free range. Just to note: from his description, Rosie sounds as miserable as any chicken raised in a giant thousand-bird barn.

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Unsung hero of Tex-Mex food (a recommendation)

I just joined Chowhound and noticed one of my all-time favorite places hasn't been mentioned much on these boards, so I wanted to give a shout-out to Nick's Taste of Texas in Covina. Yes, it's a hike, but I have driven there from every place I've lived in this area (which includes 562, 626, 213, 310, 818, and 323). We were introduced to it because a friend had his wedding shower at the old location, and we've been loyal ever since. They built a cavern in the last couple years that feels like a roadhouse and is often full of groups of firemen and policemen celebrating various occasions. I think they regularly have live entertainment.

Their best dish is fajitas, which is the only thing we ever got until recently we tried the chicken fried steak and it was also Texas-worthy. It isn't fancy: you get a pound of meat, grilled onions and piping fresh tortillas, and that's really all you need (although the salsa will rip you a new one if you add it). You can add sides, but why not just order more meat?

My aunt and uncle came from Houston and declared the fajitas some of the best they'd ever had. My husband actually weeps when they come out because he's so excited. Another friend actually LICKED the cast-iron skillet after we'd finished one night. This place is worth a drive. It always makes our tummies really happy. Thanks for letting me share.

http://nickstasteoftexas.com/
545 N. Citrus, Covina, CA 91723
(626) 331-2824

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Paseo Cantina, Pasadena (a review)

Hey, Wild Swede - I loved your post about the cheese curds. Unfortunately I had about the opposite reaction to Paseo Cantina, and I thought I should chime in since our varied experiences may assist others (btw, I'm not a fan of Mijares or La Fiesta Grande either, so my tastes seem to fluctuate from other chowhounds on here). I'll post a shortened version of my review. Full text is here: http://feminary.blogspot.com/2008/02/pasadena-restaurant-review.html
The place felt cavernous - my husband called it a "Vegas arrangement," meaning cram as many people as possible in and who cares if there's flow or it feels at all pleasant. It was empty, but then we eat very early. Still, it was depressing. I felt bad for the waitstaff, forced to wear those ridiculous costumes you see at Chi-Chi's in the Midwest.
I appreciated the few stray pieces of quesadilla hiding in the chips. I started off with a virgin margarita (I'm pregnant). I didn't like the "house" version so I ordered peach, basically peach juice and 7-up I think. But I can't judge them for that. Margaritas aren't meant to be sans tequila.
Next the waiter wanted to entice us to buy soup, so he brought out a sample of their vegetable soup. It was cold. Not very enticing. And it was also fairly sad, just some potatoes and celery floating in greenish broth. We both tried one sip and didn't bother with more. I mean, why bring someone a sample of cold soup? (Oh, and it wasn't purposely cold, I'm pretty sure - it was kind of tepid)
I ordered the cactus salad but whenever I've gotten cactus in the past it's been fresh - kind of tangy and crunchy, a lot like jicama. Warning: this cactus is pickled. I just wasn't expecting that, I didn't care for it. And it was mixed up with pickled jalepeno and carrots (kind of like what they put on nachos at the movie theater). It was more like a condiment than a salad, but the fresh tortillas helped with eating it.
My husband's shrimp enchiladas, he said, were similar to the quality he'd expect from a Baja Fresh or a Rubio's (but at $18.95, very different price point). I had chicken enchiladas with green/sour cream sauce, usually a favorite. However, the chicken was kind of sweet, and didn't go well with the sauce. I ate two bites. We both got a scoop of rice (yes, in the shape of a scoop - classy), and I had beans which, kid you not, were worse than Rosarita brand from the grocery store (no flavor at all and a sickly color). Noticing I ate only a couple bites, the waiter asked about it, and I said I didn't care for it. He asked if I wanted to try something else. Well at that point I was done experimenting, so I said no. Then he asked if I wanted a box to take it home! Ha ha! I said no, I really didn't like it and didn't want to try it at home. He charged me $14.50 for my two bites. I didn't really expect to get it for free, it just would have been a bit of extra consideration.
We got the check - $65 with tip - which was so painful that I just couldn't think about it. It's probably the most expensive meal we'll eat this month, and I mostly filled up on chips and hated the food.
Overall, eating there made me miss Border Grill terribly. And you know, I heard the reason BG closed was that they wouldn't let them have a door on the side of the restaurant facing the elevators/escalators, so people had to walk all the way around it to find the entrance. Well the Cantina got the door right off the escalator. How nice for them. I want my Mary Sue and Susan. :(

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Mexican in Pasadena?

Don't expect greatness from Cabrera's, but it's comforting, and there's a waitress who's the friendliest ever. Avoid the buffet (well usually "avoid buffets" goes without saying).

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Mexican in Pasadena?

Aw, ouch! OK, the chimis are actually what my husband likes. I hate them (but some people love that fried stuff). There, can I have cred again please? The enchilada was a basic green sauce-and-sour-cream chicken which is usually tangy, not sugary. I know what mole is, duh. The sauce wasn't sweet, the chicken itself was. That's what was weird.

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Mexican in Pasadena?

Guests from NYC won't be as discriminating about Mexican as we LA folk, so don't be discouraged. My parents from the Midwest (who are CA natives) always love El Cholo. The trick there is to get the right food: the off-menu Santa Barbara enchiladas, the guac, the chimichangas, the green corn tamales. Avoid the mainstream stuff that will be better at a small family-run place (a smaller family than the El Cholo fam, I mean). And really the margaritas are great.

I have to disagree with the posts about the Paseo Cantina - I actually joined Chowhound today just to complain about the awful dinner we had there last night. The place was empty and sad and made me so long for the Border Grill to be back. Besides the chips, nothing they gave us was edible (they even gave us soup to sample, and it was cold. Not the smartest move). I ate one bite of my enchiladas, which were some kind of sweetened chicken - the waiter noticed my lack of enthusiasm but still charged me $14.50 for uneaten food. I thought that was tacky. The place is overpriced and everything we tried was simply awful. Maybe we ordered the wrong thing or they were having an off night, but I don't predict it will last long (especially with these pasadena chowhounds!).

If your friend is a cheapo, it's kind of embarrassing, but my go-to happy hour place is Cabrera's on Lake (around the corner from Tonny's, where I've always found the food too salty, sadly - I've tried!). Cabrera's has $2 margaritas and $1 tacos at happy hour. The rest of the food is plate-of-cheese kind of stuff, but I like that now & then. And some people think that IS mexican and would be disappointed with authentico. Just a few other thoughts.

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