Who? Don, Aly, Vanessa, Rajiv, Zvi, Jason, Andrew, Nate
Where? 8th and Catalina
Great tasting Korean BBQ cooked not with gas but with charcoal. As a result, the heat is crazy (especially on a 100°F day) and the clothes that you wear will smell of smoke pretty much forever. The beef, chicken and shrimp are very tasty and of great quality. I definitely believe BBQ tastes better through the use of coals. For some reason, the watery Hite beer washes everything down perfectly. Side platters are decent. The place is a bit too dark and a bit too cramped for my liking. Parking in a lot next to the restaurant, else fight for street parking.
Monday, July 24, 2006
Monday, July 17, 2006
Raffi's Place + + + + $$
Who? IFG (Nate, Svi, Rajiv, Don, Aly, Andrew)
Where? Broadway and Brand, Glendale
Nestled in the heart of Glendale, this Armenian restaurant is a real middle-eastern gem. Dining is possible outside in the beautiful courtyard or inside the plain-walled restaurant. The portions are very large and extremely good. I love the plain style of the food, the lightly spiced ground beef, and the juicy kebab pieces. The vegetables are blackened on the outside but tasty. Tabouli is good. Park on adjoining streets. Decent service. Beautiful area to take a post-dinner stroll. Thumbs up.
Where? Broadway and Brand, Glendale
Nestled in the heart of Glendale, this Armenian restaurant is a real middle-eastern gem. Dining is possible outside in the beautiful courtyard or inside the plain-walled restaurant. The portions are very large and extremely good. I love the plain style of the food, the lightly spiced ground beef, and the juicy kebab pieces. The vegetables are blackened on the outside but tasty. Tabouli is good. Park on adjoining streets. Decent service. Beautiful area to take a post-dinner stroll. Thumbs up.
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Shau May + + + $
Who? Krystal and Andrew
Where? Garfield just north of Garvey
Hands down the cheapeast boba place I've ever been to. For $10, you can get two gigantic boba milk teas, a hot tapioca milk pudding (needs 4 people to finish) and a gigantic shaved ice with condensed milk and four "items". The taro is excellent and just the right sweetness. The white looking stuff that looked like coconut was actually almond. Longan was OK. Place is pretty busy and filled with a non-homogenous crowd. Again, feels very traditional (Taiwanese). Watch out for crazy old men who don't get their order and then push you out of the way to start a big argument with the servers.
Where? Garfield just north of Garvey
Hands down the cheapeast boba place I've ever been to. For $10, you can get two gigantic boba milk teas, a hot tapioca milk pudding (needs 4 people to finish) and a gigantic shaved ice with condensed milk and four "items". The taro is excellent and just the right sweetness. The white looking stuff that looked like coconut was actually almond. Longan was OK. Place is pretty busy and filled with a non-homogenous crowd. Again, feels very traditional (Taiwanese). Watch out for crazy old men who don't get their order and then push you out of the way to start a big argument with the servers.
Dragon Mark + + + $
Who? Krystal and Andrew
Where? Valley, between New and Del Mar
Lots and lots of food for very cheap. "Five fragrances Beef" is a nice snack side dish. Beef Stew noodle is decent but for some reason left a strange aftertaste. Dumplings, pan fried and steamed, are very filling and tasty. When mixing your dipping sauce, be careful to differentiate the dark vinegar from the soy sauce. The best part was easily the vegetables (bor choi) - very fresh and prepared in light garlic sauce. Be prepared to speak lots of mandarin or go hungry. Dining enviroment reminds me of a true Chinese dumpling house.
Where? Valley, between New and Del Mar
Lots and lots of food for very cheap. "Five fragrances Beef" is a nice snack side dish. Beef Stew noodle is decent but for some reason left a strange aftertaste. Dumplings, pan fried and steamed, are very filling and tasty. When mixing your dipping sauce, be careful to differentiate the dark vinegar from the soy sauce. The best part was easily the vegetables (bor choi) - very fresh and prepared in light garlic sauce. Be prepared to speak lots of mandarin or go hungry. Dining enviroment reminds me of a true Chinese dumpling house.
Monday, July 10, 2006
Bistango + + $
Who? Steve and Andrew
Where? Vermont and 29th
Cheap, good Italian food. Bread is decent, average portions. Cozy dining environment complete with a 42" plasma for sports. Penne Pollo is quite driedtomatoey and filling. A welcome changeup from Pasta Roma.
Where? Vermont and 29th
Cheap, good Italian food. Bread is decent, average portions. Cozy dining environment complete with a 42" plasma for sports. Penne Pollo is quite driedtomatoey and filling. A welcome changeup from Pasta Roma.
Sunday, July 09, 2006
Manas + + + + $
Who? Howie, Andrew
Where? Vermont and 29th
This is now my favourite place that's closeby USC for a cheap tasty meal. I had to admit to being a bit skeptical of an Indian restaurant serving only a vegetarian menu. But I was not disappointed. The side sauces are excellent - mint, pickled and sweet. The "fried spinach and onion" starter was decent but nothing special. The "paper thin potato" was the biggest thing I've ever seen served at a restuarant - it was seriously two feet long - but tasted very good. The "cottage cheese in cashew/tomato sauce" I had was very fragrant and wonderful on rice. Sweet lassi is thick and youghurty. If anyone knows the Indian words for these dishes, please offer them up. The dining environment is comfortable and simple. And the service is pleasant but sometimes confused.
Where? Vermont and 29th
This is now my favourite place that's closeby USC for a cheap tasty meal. I had to admit to being a bit skeptical of an Indian restaurant serving only a vegetarian menu. But I was not disappointed. The side sauces are excellent - mint, pickled and sweet. The "fried spinach and onion" starter was decent but nothing special. The "paper thin potato" was the biggest thing I've ever seen served at a restuarant - it was seriously two feet long - but tasted very good. The "cottage cheese in cashew/tomato sauce" I had was very fragrant and wonderful on rice. Sweet lassi is thick and youghurty. If anyone knows the Indian words for these dishes, please offer them up. The dining environment is comfortable and simple. And the service is pleasant but sometimes confused.
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Opus Bar and Grill + + + + $$$
Who? Debbie, Jenn Jenn, Howie, VDam and a lot of Debbie's friends
Where? Vermont and Willshire
I didn't eat at this place but heard that the rack of lamb is very good. This evaluation is for the restaurant ambience and the bar - which is extremely upscale. Dimmed lights provide romantic setting and there are even some tables with gigantic plush chairs for couples. The bar is expensive ($9 mixed), as is the food. The restaurant was sparsely populated. Street parking is hard to find, valet available.
Where? Vermont and Willshire
I didn't eat at this place but heard that the rack of lamb is very good. This evaluation is for the restaurant ambience and the bar - which is extremely upscale. Dimmed lights provide romantic setting and there are even some tables with gigantic plush chairs for couples. The bar is expensive ($9 mixed), as is the food. The restaurant was sparsely populated. Street parking is hard to find, valet available.
Monday, July 03, 2006
California Chicken Cafe + + + $
Who? Howie, Jared, Andrew (Jenn Jenn, VDam and Debbie - whoops!)
Where? Multiple, 1)Westwood Blvd between Olympic and Santa Monica
A nice place to grab some fast rotisserie Chicken that reminds me a lot of Swiss Chalet. I enjoyed the steamed butternut squash and the spinach and feta cheese pasta salad very much. The chicken was tasty but a touch dry. All in all, everything was pretty healthy and left me quite pleased. Simple, "food court" dining ambience. Located very close to the movie theater in Century City.
Where? Multiple, 1)Westwood Blvd between Olympic and Santa Monica
A nice place to grab some fast rotisserie Chicken that reminds me a lot of Swiss Chalet. I enjoyed the steamed butternut squash and the spinach and feta cheese pasta salad very much. The chicken was tasty but a touch dry. All in all, everything was pretty healthy and left me quite pleased. Simple, "food court" dining ambience. Located very close to the movie theater in Century City.
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