Thanks for the heads up. Since I work in the South Bay, I'm always interested in SB developments for lunch and dinner. Went there Thursday and was pleasantly surprised how good the dumplings were. I greatly enjoyed their Lamb and Green Onion, Pork and Crab. The Pork Pan Fried was good too.

I took much of it home and they steamed up very well.

They actually have quite an extensive menu beside the dumplings, including hot pots, noodles and seafood.

The best dumplings I've had in the South Bay is Peter's Place, but this place is certainly superior.

Interested in what our resident Chinese restaurant experts think.

The 405 freeway has a carpool lane all the way from SM to NPB. Traffic shouldn't be a problem. That said, there aren't a whole lot of options besides the already-mentioned Enriques and Michaels in Long Beach.

Torrance has great options for Japanese, and Westminster/Garden Grove for Vietnamese and Korean.

Still trying to get to Burger Lounge and Stout Burger. Can't keep up with all the burger joints in Santa Monica. it's now on my list, though. Thanks, as always, Servorg.

My thoughts exactly. You can't exactly compare these to other donuts.

Looks like a Zagat list to me. Maybe you need to come up with a list.

Two choices:

Dean Sin World. Those dumplings and the wonderful ladies in back who don't speak any English.

Won Kok: House Special Chow Fun and take home cream buns and baked bao. Free parking in Chinatown a plus.

Not a soba expert, but I love Inaba's version. I found Sojibo very good but rather expensive compared to Inaba. Push comes to shove, I would opt for Inaba/Ichimian.

FISH TACOS

It's Chinese food. Something about the tea.

Ironically they might try Michaels in Naples, Long Beach.

Don't know if EricDC is refering to Sanuki Sandou at Mitsuwa, but that same Mitsuwa food court has Hannosuke. It's not a Oyakodon place, but it serves a fantastic tendon with various tempura options.

For Katsu-kare, I like Tamatebako in Torrance.

It's just a name change. It's the same company, similar menu if not exactly the same.

Thanks for the information, but this is not WLA. It is the Westside, but more West Hollywood.

Wow, that spot used to be the second location of Shibucho years ago. I hadn't been impressed with Sushi Go 55 and would prefer Sushi Gen if in Little Tokyo.

My experience is that no pizza truly survives delivery on cardboard. No matter the pizza, I heat up my pizza stone on high in the oven. A minute or two for a Neapolitan, little more for thicker slices. I will take Settebello baked on a stone at home any time.

I guess, if I'm making the trek to Sawtelle, I would try other places, like Tsujita, Plan Check, Seoul Sausage, even the Vietnamese place. Plus Bachi Burger is opening up sometime this Spring. With your recommendation, maybe I'll try it sometime.

For me to try a new pizza place, it would have to be comparable to Milo & Olive, Mozza, Vitos or Settebello in Pasadena. Also Grimaldi's is coming to El Segundo. 800 degrees did not fit the bill for me plus their gelato sucked.

If I may help you get started:

For Dim Sum (menu, not cart):
Sea Harbor or Elite
For Shanghai Dumplings:
Dean Sin World

Many posts here, much more comprehensive than I could ever offer for all the Chinese food in the SGV.

If you make it to Settebello, wear your UCLA Bruin gear. The owner is a former Trojan football star (j/k)

Thanks for reporting back. Hopefully next time you will have more time to enjoy the places we have in that area, especially Sawtelle Blvd.

You do realize Joan's on Third is a good hour-and-a-half to two hours drive from Doheny. One day in south Orange County could have you spending half the day on the road. You could find good Chinese in the Irvine area, plus Japanese in Costa Mesa. Northern OC has great Vietnamese and good Korean.

THe best Chinese food would be found in the San Gabriel Valley and Korean would be nearish LA's Downtown. Both areas are also a good 1 1/2 hour drive from where you are staying.

This is all just to help you plan out your trip and figure out where you want to go that day.

My knowledge of Orange County food is rather limited.

Nobu's would be the best choice, but Geoffrey's is right on the water and not horrible. While you're out there, you might try Grom for gelato.

My favorite place in Pasadena near Caltech would be Settebello for some of the best Neapolitan pizza. Pie N Burger is also an option. Also Daisy Mint for pan-Asian.

Near the Griffith Park observatory is Thai Town, for Jitlada, Sapp Coffee Shop, Hoy Ka or Sanamluang.

Farther south along Western is Korea Town for great Korean BBQ at Park's.

Most meter parking in Downtown uses credit cards nowadays

Pasadena has gotten pretty decent in recent years:

Sushi Ichi, sushi
Kimagure, omakase
Settebello, great Neapolitan pizza
Carmela, ice cream
Mother Moo, ice cream

Also:

Slaw Dogs for novelty hot dogs
Bulgarini, gelato

Also, Ipsedixit has just posted the definitive list of what's great in Pasadena and the surrounding area.

We really enjoyed breakfast here. I had their stuffed french toast which was topped with strawberries and homemade whipped cream. Just delicious. My wife and our friend split their "loaded hashed browns", which was eggs, bacon, sausage on hashed browns, and the banana pancakes. Everything was delicious. This was no greasy spoon; Everything was made with quality ingredients and with great care.

The place is tiny, a converted fast food joint, and there was a wait, maybe 20 minutes, but the service is efficient and friendly, though they did forget our toast.

They also offer burgers, pizzas and other sandwiches for lunch. We will be back to try their lunch menu.

The Pan
16601 S. Western Ave.
Gardena, CA 90247
310-329-7266

The Perfect Blend in Santa Monica sells froyo from the freezer for half off, roughly less than $4 for much more than a large portion. The only caviat is that you have to take what they have available. If you get peach, fruit punch or mango, they're really delicious, as is the chocolate.

I seem to recall Yogurtland on Sawtelle cheaper than $.39/oz as well.

Glad you posted, WSG. I was going to recommend it as well. I find the place spacious and quiet, and the food good.

The original location did not serve fries, only chips, because they were geared for speed, and fries would take too long. It would take mere minutes from the time you gave your order to the moment you got your burger. It was incredible how fast they processed your order, and that included grilling the burger. Lines were long, but you got served very quickly.

When they began branching out, the outer locations were not nearly as busy and served fries. I guess the original location got less busy as well.

I know I didn't answer your question, but it was a nice trip down memory lane.

Perhaps people more in the know could further enlighten us.

FYI, jidori by definition is free range in Japanese, literally "chicken of the earth". Plan Check also makes a nice jidori fried chicken.

I really like Dave's, but only if you're in the Bixby Knolls area of Long Beach. I wouldn't travel far for it.

Zengo happy hour at the Santa Monica Place:

$6 cocktails and $5 small plates. Love their empanadas.