smonkey's Profile
What are the Best Craft Beer bars in the LA area
Golden State on Fairfax. They have great beers (check out the specials which frequently rotate), plus a near-perfect cheeseburger. And they have scoops gelato!
http://www.thegoldenstatecafe.com/index.html
EATZ cooking school
Has anyone taken a class at EATZ cooking school? I'm looking for a good class or classes for my bf for Christmas. I've read too many mixed reviews about other schools to trust them (the Culver City school seems very mixed, Hipcooks is probably too casual for him).
I'd love any recommendations. He cooks a lot, but I think would benefit from a class that focuses on technique (knife skills or various methods of cooking fish, meat, etc).
Thanks!
ISO to die for cakes in Los Angeles
I second Susina, but my favorite cake I've had in the last few years was from a new bakery on Sunset in Silver Lake - Lark. The strawberry shortcake was amazing. They have a lot of their cakes available to sample as cupcakes as well, and good coffee. Alcove on Hillhurst in Los Feliz has a very good selection - they get their cakes from all over town but they do get some from Susina (i know they have berry blossom and a few others for example - watch out they are more expensive than just going to Susina itself).
Glendale - pre-movie for drinks and fun food?
Thanks for the recs. We went with casa bianca and had amazing luck - immediate parking and only a ten minute wait! We had plenty of time after eating to sip the rest of our carafe of chianti, and the meal turned out to be $10 a piece!
Oysters in Hollywood/Silverlake
I had been planning a mini-celebration dinner for tonight, and was very much looking forward to cocktails and oysters at the Hungry Cat. Unfortunately they are closed for renovations, so now I have to figure out Plan B. We'd like to do something either central Hollywood or Silverlake, since we're planning on catching a late show after dinner (Arclight or Vista).
Any recommendations? The only other place I can come up with is Cafe des Artistes, which I've been to and am not crazy about. If we can't think of oyster spots we might go with something more low key like Malo in Silverlake, or Magnolia or Bowrey in Hollywood.
Thanks for your input!
Glendale - pre-movie for drinks and fun food?
Carousel looks fun - I think we're going to go with an old standby though and drive to Casa Bianca - never a good bet when trying to make a movie too!
Glendale - pre-movie for drinks and fun food?
Hello,
A few girlfriends are getting together for a movie in Glendale, and we're looking for someplace fun, good, and not too expensive nearby to eat and have drinks. Any ideas? It seems that most of the downtown Glendale places are chains...
Good (not trendy) Mexican tonite in Silverlake/Los Feliz
My favorite is Alegria on Sunset, where the daily specials are quite good and fresh. As mentioned - BYOB... There might be a 10 minute wait depending on what time you arrive, as the place is small.
I would recommend against Mexico City - I've had terrible food every time I've been, and the service hasn't been great either. El Conquistador is a fun vibe, and the fish is pretty good, but I would go there for the drinks, rather than the food.
help me find a real agua fresca in echo park!
Alegria on Sunset (more Silverlake than Echo Park)
Dinner Near Greek Theater -- Advice?
My two cents:
First - I love Chi Dynasty too... I alwasy get the Buddha's delight vegetarian dish, and it's fresh and plentiful. They also make a good vegetarian version of a hot and sour soup if you ask. I'm not vegetarian any more, but I still prefer this soup to the original...
Additionally, I like San Sui, which doesn't get a lof of love on this board, but has always made me happy (white tuna sashimi...)
Farfalle is decent and I like the wine bar, but haven't had any luck at the Brazillian place. Il Capriccio is good, but makes your walk a little farther than if you stay north of Franklin. And I would recommend walking - it adds to the experience!
Best Fish Taco in Ensenada in Los Feliz
I'm happy this place is in the neighborhood (Hillhurst south of Prospect). It's an easy snack or a light meal- I've stopped in and had the shrimp and the fish - they give you the fish on the tortilla and you dress it yourself. Condiment bar includes cabbage, creme, salsas, (I like the hot mango salsa), a thin quacamole maybe?, pickled radish and carrots... Quick, cheap, tasty. Bizarre atmosphere though.
Cafe Tropical on Sunset
There fresh squeezed juices are great - carrot orange and grapefruit - and they'll give you any combination you like. My favorite is the continental breakfast - A cafe con leche, a small fresh squeezed juice and a croissant for somewhere around $5. My bf is a big fan of their croissant egg & cheese sandwhiches. The muffins are good but big and dense, and their cookies are gigantic!
Cahuenga/Franklin (Hollywood)
Cafe de Solar Cahuenga or something... I've never been but my friends like it a lot - supposed to be a great atmosphere with free wireless - I think most of my friends use it as a cafe.
Organic Restaurant Suggestions?
People I know like Puran's on Hillhurst in Los Feliz... I've been there a few times but only had wine. The food looks good but their menu has never appealed to me too much - probably because it's very large. They offer a wide variety of food - but the menu page itself is enormous! Funny how a little thing can turn me off.
There's also Cafe Figaro on Vermont in Los Feliz, but this place gets marginal reviews and I've never had good service.
Opus Update - Review, Changes & New Tasting Menu policy.
My boyfriend and I ordered the tasting menu Saturday night - they were offering a 4-course menu for $40 rather than the 3-course for $30 (wine pairings an additional $35). The menu was a variation of what woojink had earlier this month -
Strawberry gazpacho (no mention of watermellon) with lovely spice. This might have been my favorite bite of the night.
Seared ahi sashimi on top of the lengua salad - my boyfriend's favorite.
Breakfast egg - I loved this! A warm creamy sweet sensation...
The same English Pea soup with oranges and sweetbreads - it was simple, elegant.
Quail with foie gras and market vegetables, wine reduction - really nice but I'm not a foie gras fan.
Cheesecake with fresh berries
I was a little disappointed in the amount of game/meats - absense of fish, but those are my personal taste preferences. It was a fun menu with a lot of things I haven't tried. All dishes were cooked to perfection. We felt the meal started strongest and tapered off by the end, and the quail was very small so a little unsatisfying, but as a taste it was just fine. Neither of us are cheesecake fans, but this dessert was amazing - very light and fresh - and I was thrilled there seemed to be a rhubarb sauce on the side... my recent favorite.
Overall we had a great time - loved the atmosphere, had great service (we would have appreciated better descriptions of some of the meals - we had a hard time understanding them at times). We didn't do wine pairings and opted to start with cocktails, but after a few courses decided to order wine and our server picked a nice Barbera to compliment the quail.
Best Bartenders in LA
I was at Opus Saturday night for dinner, and we had some really nice cocktails. An excellent Martini (Hendrix) and a great rhubarb infused Mojito. Other drinks on their menu looked very good as well. The atmosphere in the bar is really nice, and they have a covered patio for smoking with comfortable chairs. I'd like to go back for drinks.
best restaurant with view of downtown skyscrapes?
The ground level patio at Ciudad has a gorgeous view. Good drinks and food as well.
Birthday bar recs for Silverlake/Los Feliz/Eagle Rock
Johnnie's on Sunset has been closed now for a few months. A pity - I liked it too...
Rhubarb at farmer's markets?
I've been on a quest for rhubarb myself the last few weeks - haven't made it early to the markets so must be why I've missed it. I got some from the Gelsons on Hyperion to make pie, but I didn't feel right about it! $5 for limp grocery store rhubarb does not mix with my midwestern roots. That being said, as soon as I sliced it up it didn't matter where it came from - my pie was wonderful... I can't wait to go make another :-)
Bored With Hollywood...help!
I'd suggest Michaelangelo's on Silverlake blvd (near Spaceland) - fairly small family-owned Italian with outdoor seating, good food, nice atmosphere.
There's Cliff's Edge and Blair's but judging from your list you've likely frequented these spots as well...
I'm not crazy about Gingergrass - I've never been satisfied with my meals and have had really spotty service. Plus the wait never seems worth it.
Chi Dynasty on Hillhurst has funny old-fashioned atmosphere but good Chinese food.
If you want Thai but don't want to dive in to the super 'authentic' places, there is Rambutan on Sunset (at Silverlake Blvd) - fun drinks, nice atmosphere if a little loud - great brown rice - or Simply Thai on Hillhurst - fresh menu - I love their drunken noodles or Tom Yum with shrimp. I've also heard Yai Thai is good but have yet to make it there. Palms on Hollywood is a Thai standby but I don't like the atmosphere at the new location - so loud and neon!
I'm also a fan of Alegria on Sunset - it gets mixed reviews on this board.
Indian - I like Flavor of India on Santa Monica & Doheny.
I second Canele, Ethiopian, downtown (little Tokyo, Ciudad has a nice patio), 25 degrees for something casual and great beer, still can't wait to try Opus myself.
La Buca on Melrose or Cube on LaBrea for Italian - the former is probably better for pastas, and I love La Buca's pizzas - Cube has some interesting Ravioli and a large selection of cheeses...
There's that stretch of Franklin by Mayfair market as well - I can't stand Birds but La Poubelle has done me right for Moules Frites and drinks, and I have friends who like the Prizzi's Pizza next door. I've had bad service but decent pizza the two times I've been there. All the restaurants on this strip have outdoor seating and interesting people watching.
Patio Brunch for Baby Shower in/around Silver Lake
I wouldn't recommend Alcove for this type of event (I would only recommend alcove for their coffee and desserts actually) but their front patio is non-smoking. I believe they have a patio sectioned off on the side for smokers.
Atwater Eats?
I would not recommend Pazzaz for a night out - to me the sushi is a decent as a quick weeknight - no - time - to - cook option, but I wouldn't plan a dinner around it. I actually prefer Gelson's sushi to the fish at Pazzaz.
Casa Bianca (review+pics)
I wasn't crazy about the pizza the first time I visited Casa Bianca - probably due to ordering a mushroom pizza and getting canned mushrooms. I went back a few weeks ago and loved it though. We had one pepperoni pizza with the regular crust and on pizza with whole wheat crust (although this was the pizza I ordered and it was only 2 weeks ago I can't remember the topping!). I loved the whole wheat crust, the sauce, the cheese cooked to perfection on top... We arrived on a packed Saturday night (between 8:30-9pm) and decided rather than wait the hour to get the pies to go, and sip on a liter of wine in the meantime. A table opened up before the pizzas were ready, so we got to sit afterall (probably only a 10-15 minute wait). We had a great time, good food, and decent wine for the price. I can't wait to go back...
Best Moules frite?
I often order them at Bowrey, although last time I was there I wasn't crazy about the mussels. It seemed like a Thai-tomato broth, and I was more in the mood for the wine, garlic, etc. If you're feeling adventurous at Bowrey you can get sweet potato fries, or a combination.
I also vote for La Poubelle on Franklin and Figaro Cafe on Vermont (overall I think this place is overpriced for what it is though, and the staff are slow and snobby).
Best Greek in LA
wow i checked out the link - that looks fun... do you have to arrive by 6:30? i'd never be able to make it...
The L. A. Burger Hunt Map
Thanks! This is great - I'll bookmark it as a reference when I want to find a new burger place. My favorite off the list is Bowry's burger, but also only recently started eating burgers again, so I have quite a few more to try :-)
Mozza Prices
I'll second this, and add to those who say their pizza is more like toppings on naan bread - I love naan bread! I've only been once and had the burrata/squash blossom pizza - I loved every bite of it. I'll also second the idea that you're paying for the quality of ingredients. We sat at the pizza bar and watched our pizza lovingly prepared, cooked, garnished, then slid onto our plates and served. The experience and the care presented the pizzas I thought were well worth the price - and my preference would be to have this "naan-like" pizza bread over a floppy greasy original slice (although I do love one when the time is right). So I second - go to Mozza and relax and enjoy what they have to offer. A side note on price - I went later at night was wasn't too hungry - a split of wine, pizza, the butterscotch budino, and a glass of vin santo were plenty for my companion and I and the price was certainly affordable... I can't remember off the top of my head but I felt it was worth it.
Spring is here!
Where have you seen rhubarb? i miss rhubarb - such a big part of growing up in the midwest - strawberry rhubarb pie. I don't see much of it out here.
Red Velvet Cupcakes or Cake?
I've had the red velvet cupcakes from Alcove on Hillhurst in Los Feliz - they are decent but not exceptional. The red velvet cake from Doughboys is very moist - I enjoyed the moistness and flavor and loved their cream cheese frosting.
