nlk's Profile
Larkins?
I'd actually be interested in hearing others chime in on this before we write larkin's off. I never liked mac and cheeza, they had problems with their lease and it just wasn't a good location, nor the right concept, imho.
But I've always liked larkin's, fried chicken, the mac and cheese, a few of the sides. All we have as evidence so far on this thread is a bad experience two weeks ago, someone chiming in who has never been there and some speculations on the la eater blog about liquor license problems from almost a year ago. I'd be interested in hearing from others who have been there recently...
Fried chicken in LA?
can you be more specific about what happened to larkin's? I haven't been in a while since i don't live in that part of town...
Lamb Dishes at Beijing Restaurant
i went on saturday, and I am needing to go back again as soon as possible. that fried with meat--lamb sandwich is addictive. the fried pork dumplings were awesome and the green beans/string beans were charred and garlicky and gingery and...i gotta get back there,...and soon.
thanks again for the recommendation.
Where should I become acquainted with cheese and charcuterie?
everyone's suggestions sound great. Thanks so much. I'll try and report back, although i may need to save up a bit of money before heading out to some of these spots...
Where should I become acquainted with cheese and charcuterie?
This sounds fantastic, westsidegal. Am i correct that both of these places are on the pricey side? I'll try them, no doubt, but do you have other suggestions as well?
Where should I become acquainted with cheese and charcuterie?
I will try both of these. thanks for the rec.
Where should I become acquainted with cheese and charcuterie?
Where should I become acquainted with cheese and charcuterie?
Never really ordered cheese and charcuterie. Where should I do it for the first time?
Sure, you can tell me about fancy versions, but less expensive, good quality recs would also be appreciated. And if you have specific cheeses and charcuterie I should order at those spots, that would be appreciated too…
Lamb Dishes at Beijing Restaurant
cool. thanks for the clarification. I'll try it next time i head out that way.
Lamb Dishes at Beijing Restaurant
sku, thanks for the write up. I stopped by last night, after a great meal at mei long village. I picked up a paper menu. I don't see "fried with meat" on the menu.
I see the other dishes you reference, but the only thing i see that comes close to "fried with meat" is:
meat pie
fried meet ball
fried beef
was it one of these?
or was it a special on a written on a wall somewhere?
Eager to try it but wanna make sure i know what to point to on the menu.
Where can i buy Chicha Morada by the quart or gallon and will it taste as good as balcones del peru and mo-chica?
Great advice, Servorg. I'll look into this. I guess i was also wondering if there is like a place to just buy it in a market, but perhaps you are right--the best way might be either to buy the real thing from mo-chica or make it myself.
Where can i buy Chicha Morada by the quart or gallon and will it taste as good as balcones del peru and mo-chica?
Are there stores/markets where i can buy Chicha Morada? I wouldn't expect it to be restaurant quality--don't need bits of pineapple in it (although that wouldn't hurt). But i wouldn't want some fake, overly sweet version...thoughts? thanks, in advance.
Koo's Sweet Rice Pancake Ho-tteok Cart – Delicious Ho Dduk (Korean Sweet Pancake) in Koreatown
you had asked me if i had them at koo's. I had it a few times at the old location, but not since they moved. I do plan to try it out, although making them at home was so much fun and tasted even better, although it may not have been the least sticky/messy thing in the world...
Koo's Sweet Rice Pancake Ho-tteok Cart – Delicious Ho Dduk (Korean Sweet Pancake) in Koreatown
I haven't tried them there. I'll try to make it over there at some point. Thanks for your write up.
Koo's Sweet Rice Pancake Ho-tteok Cart – Delicious Ho Dduk (Korean Sweet Pancake) in Koreatown
I have few fonder (is that a word) memories than visiting korea during a bitter cold December and looking on every corner for a cart or stand that sold those. I didn't have to look far in Seoul. In la, on the other hand, they r fairly hard to come by. But alas, u can buy a box of the mix in most k town markets. Some of the boxes even have directions in english. They r actually quite easy and a he m of a lot of fun to make, and even this idiot-in-a-kitchen was able to make them taste better than the ones u can buy here on the street.
Did Golden Bird Fried Chicken go out of business?
The Golden Bird on Crenshaw and 29th clearly has a relationship with the Golden Bird Company, but also functions quite independently. They serve off menu items all the time, including bbq'ing chicken and sausage links in the parking lot in front of the restaurant. I have no insight into whether the Golden Bird company is or is not in business. But, whether the Crenshaw one remains open might not tell us much about the centralized functioning or otherwise of the company as a whole...
Angeli Caffe closing!
I'm so sad that Angeli Caffe is closing. Their Gnochhi is incredible, of course. But last summer i had a dish of burrata, pesto, and a peach. It was outrageously lickable.
Don’t know much about cocktails, and know almost nothing about the cocktail scene. and probably would be turned off by it. But I have found that I love cocktails that are spicy…
That drink sounds great. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. And I've been wanting to try lukshon for a while anyway
Don’t know much about cocktails, and know almost nothing about the cocktail scene. and probably would be turned off by it. But I have found that I love cocktails that are spicy…
Don’t know much about cocktails, and know almost nothing about the cocktail scene. and probably would be turned off by it. But I have found that I love cocktails that are spicy…
The Dry Harbor at Sunny Spot at some kind of habanero in it.
Had something similar at A Frame
And the bartender at Harold and Belles made me something that had a kick to it a few months back.
Are spicy drinks gimmicky, and real cocktail drinkers wouldn’t put a high quality liquor in such a drink?
Are there particular spots that do a drink or two like this really well?
Is there a way to get such a cocktail without having to endure an over the top bartender or cocktail scene…meaning is there a cocktail that fits the bill that I can order at an every day type of non sophisticated bar?
Haven't seen too much written on Roy Choi's new restaurant, Sunny Spot yet. A quick reflection...
The Cuban sandwich was great. The meats used it in made it different than others I’ve tried without being too gimmicky on the “nose to tail” front. I would have liked it spicier than it was, to bring out some of the flavors more, but it was still quite tasty. And I’ll definitely order it again.
I was underwhelmed by the “greatest of all time” goat. I know it’s been talked up a lot, but the sauce lacks complexity, and it was hard to even tell it was goat (some ppl might consider this a good thing, I guess) but I like my goat where I’m battling bones, and where it’s obvious to everyone it’s not beef or pork. I’ll take Tigeorges goat over this.
That said, I’ll eat Roy Choi’s pickled mangoes 7 days a week. Maybe I’m a sucker for pickled produce, as I dig his pickled pears and carrots at A Frame—those mangoes that come with the goat were rockin.
The Squid and coconut dish was fantastic—could have used a lot more heat. For some reason, this, along with the sandwich held back on the spice. They were still great, but this could have been something that would bring me back again and again if the spiciness were allowed to play off that coconut sauce. (I’ll order it again and just ask them to not be shy about the spiciness).
I’m trying to think about how to describe the plantains—I guess they were like candied plantains, slightly hard, not in a stale way, but reminding me a bit of candied ginger—not the taste but the feel. I like a more traditional plantain far better than this. Straight ahead versions at a typical Cuban, Haitian or Salvadoran spot work better, imho.
The server brought us an order of the cole slaw, as he said it went great with the goat. It was solid—super fresh with almost a hint of fruit in it, but not overly fruity, just fresh, I’d almost call it refreshing—which is, of course, the opposite of what I usually think of for coleslaw.
Sweet Potato with cookie and ice cream, and salted caramel squares for dessert were solid, if not the most memorable desserts in the world.
I’ll be back to try more. Would love to hear others’ thoughts…
Don't be shy. No hype about short order. Start posting about the food
I haven't been yet, and won't get an opportunity to make it up there for a little while. So, start writing, my friends. break down the various items...
I was sad to see Chameau close,...is the current state of Tagine worth trying?
Yeah, i got the BBE thing, but I was wondering if folks have been there recently and have recommendations...
I was sad to see Chameau close,...is the current state of Tagine worth trying?
I didn't go to Chameau to be among interesting people (it was empty the last few times i went).
Nor did i go looking for belly dancing.
I went for the food which i thought was fantastic.
Now that it's been shuttered for a while, some folks have pointed me toward Tagine.
Who's been recently? Does it measure up?
And, no, i'm not asking if i Ryan Gosling will be there. While i believe his performance in Half Nelson, Lars, Drive and Blue Valentine were impeccable, I don't pick my restaurants based on which famous actor co-owns a restaurant.
We can save famous actors running restaurants for another stream...
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Chameau Restaurant
339 N Fairfax Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036
Tagine
132 N Robertson Blvd, Beverly Hills, CA 90211
I really like A Frame, but I have 2 complaints…
I respect that analysis, bulavinaka. Thanks for sharing it.
However, I'd think it's a bit of a stretch to say that the "white guy" waiters professing the virtues of the burger are more than likely anything but your garden variety restaurant hipsters. More likely, as i said, I think the tagline or whatever it's called, they are using is a way to sell/promote the burger, and (at least some of) the folks conveying the message in fact probably haven't experienced these types of burgers in South LA. But, i could be wrong.
i think of it a bit like much of the wait staff at Street, on Highland. They talk about how authentic their food is to the street food of Thailand or India. Most of them haven't been there, which is fine--no one expects them to have been there. it's understood that they are selling something that most of us will never have a chance to eat, and they are glorifying it up.
But the difference, in this case, of course, is that South LA is a few miles to the west of Culver City. These waiters could easily go to the spots i mentioned in my original post, but most likely, most have not and will not. Yet they are using this as street cred to sell their burger, again, without, mostly likely ever being there.
I guess there's only one way to find out. Next time one of the waiters references the burger in the way i reported, let's ask them where they have eaten at...
By the way, have you tried the burger?
I really like A Frame, but I have 2 complaints…
I like most of the staff at Roy Choi's spots too. And as i said, i really dig the food (although some of A frame's food is over-salted).
I was speaking more to the way they seemed to be promoting the burger in some kind of race based, characterized way. It would be different, of course, if Dr. Dre is well known to like greasy, spicy burgers. Or if he came to A frame and told folks there that this burger reminds him of his favorite spots. And frankly if Roy Choi had spots in South LA in mind when he designed this burger, that's great. I'm just saying it was off putting to see these waiters promote the burger they way they did. Why not say "try this spicy, greasy burger made with this high quality beef. It's certainly different than Father's office, but i'm damn sure you are gonna like it." And leave the racialized references out of it...
Brunch at Lazy Ox Canteen? Talk to me...
So i went to lazy ox for brunch over the weekend. We showed up without a reservation which was a mistake--they were packed because a lot of people had the blackboard eats coupon. the hostess told us they couldn't seat us for 45 minutes. So, we walked around little tokyo. got back in 30 minutes and were told that they had passed us up and we might have to wait longer now. Annoying.
They finally sat us. The burger was great. The pig ears were interesting, but i wouldn't get them again. Everything else was unremarkable--i think we had the barley salad, the cauliflower, the fava beans and the ricotta pancakes.
I've been here three times now, twice for dinner and once for brunch. I've never been impressed and always came away with a hole in my wallet. Other places are much better for equal or less money.
And the host/hostess seemed to be proud of their snottiness, or snotty about their pride...
Brunch at Lazy Ox Canteen? Talk to me...
Who's had it? What's good?
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Lazy Ox Canteen
241 S San Pedro St, Los Angeles, CA 90012
I really like A Frame, but I have 2 complaints…
I really like A Frame. Much of the food is super tasty. It’s a place you can just hang at for a few hours, have a few drinks, order some food to start and then order some more later. And the ice cream sandwich of a cinnamon cookie with cherry ice cream is awesome—I dream about it more than I dream about it’s its, which is a pretty big deal.
But I have two complaints about A Frame.
First, some of the dishes are overly salty: the ribs have a nice kick to them, but they are too salty. The chicken salad with corn bread is addictive but again too salty. The clam chowder with all those flavors and herbs is great but same thing. There are 1 or 2 other dishes that are also flavorful but…well you understand. I’m not some anti salt guy. I’ve never complained publicly about other restaurants being too salty but I guess I want these dishes to each be great, instead of too many too saltified…
Okay, complaint number 2: The burger on their new spring menu is really good. I really like it. But as someone who lives and works in South LA/South Central, I was bothered by the way the waiter described the burger. The waiter was a white guy and he kept describing the burger in the following way: “It’s like a Dr. Dre South Central Burger.” My guess is this guy has never been here to have a burger from any of the real spots—master burger, best burger, A1 burger, etc. He came across as some hipster trying to capture what he thinks the hood’s burgers probably taste like. The problem was it wasn’t just this one waiter. I heard another say the same thing. Two of them doing this convinced me that this is how the restaurant is trying to sell/promote their new burger. If the waiter was black or latino, or if Roy Choi himself (who clearly has studied food across the world and across different LA neighborhoods—did you read his quotes in the recent la times article? Pretty heavy) were to describe the burger that way, I’m cool with that, but I hope A Frame will instruct their white, hipster waiters to refrain from those kind of coded race based references. Tell people it’s not your father’s office or umami burger—it’s a greasy, spicy, tasty thing that soaks through the bun in a way that some people will be annoyed by and while others will slurp up. But don’t let your hipster waiters make it sound like they’ve kicked it in Dr. Dre’s favorite burger joint. It makes it more of a caricature than a genuine reference to a food’s roots.
Just to reiterate, I really dig the food—the burger, the chicken, the lamb chops, all the appetizer type things—including the snack mix with beef jerky which I hope makes it back on to the menu at some point. Tasty. Just these two complaints.
Agony and Ecstasy - Life Beyond The Tender, Juicy, Heavenly Pastrami at Langer's Delicatessen - [Review] w/ Pics!
Thanks for the great review.
I happen to really like their blintzes. It's a little tacky how they are served with smuckers serving size jam, but i can dig into them anyway. Perhaps there are better versions elsewhere (would love to hear recs, for i haven't really explored other options) besides my grandma's homemade version 30 years ago...but blintzes with langer's pastrami are a glorious, if not completely kosher meal.
oh, and their kashe varnishkes, a little greasy, but super tasty.
Ciudad is usually out of my price range, but I'm going for first time on Saturday. What should i order?
thanks for these suggestions. I have the 30% off thing from black board eats. any suggestions on items to absolutely order???
Ciudad is usually out of my price range, but I'm going for first time on Saturday. What should i order?
Ciudad is usually out of my price range, but I'm going for first time on Saturday. What should i order?
