bluepupae "little, yellow"

sushi, dim sum, tapas—there’s something to be said for the small. though they have regular-sized burgers, go for the minis! variety is the spice of life after all. besides, they are unbelievably cute, and served on these delicious handmade sesame poppy seed speckled rolls.

the trio of burgers i had included the turkey shiitake mushroom, ahi tuna & avocado and jumbo lump crab cake sandwich. my favorite is the lump crab, which actually accurately describes the sandwich. large chunks of crab that tasted fresh, like it was pulled from a live crab that had been cooked that day—not imitation or freezer stored. the tangy, salty lemon caper aioli is a perfect complement to the crab. the ground turkey was amazingly moist and flavorful with hints of cracked black pepper, something rare in a turkey burger. the ahi tuna, which was made from ground meat, was not as flavorful as the other two burgers, but fine. my boyfriend loved the veggie burger, whose flavor was enhanced by a mesquite bbq sauce. a-plus for vegetarian and health-conscious eaters.

parmesan garlic fries. do i really need to say anything? definitely ask for the mix of regular and sweet potato fries. even their desserts are a must have. i, of course, had to have the coconut milkshake. they make their ice cream sandwiches to order, literally a big scoop of ice cream between two fresh baked cookies, with flavors changing out on a daily basis. the night we were there, they had hazelnut ice cream with peanut butter cookies. and if that isn’t enough, the chef may just have finished icing some cupcakes made with real french butter cream.

this is not your regular burger joint. the difference really is in the details. from the fresh shiitake mushrooms to the hip atmosphere created by the clean, contemporary furniture and downtempo electronica.

restaurant week is a great time to get a taste of restaurants that you might not get to due to the many choices for good food and a limited budget. i came here with a group to find out if patina would be worth a return visit for one of their dinner tasting menus.

our lunch started with delicately chopped salmon with a vinegar-y, mini floret of cauliflower and a sliver of cucumber. light and refreshing, the amuse bouche had a nice balance of tartness from the little bit of cauliflower with the creaminess of the fresh salmon.

overall, we enjoyed our meal except for a few things. i am still interested in trying their tasting menu, although the cost may be prohibitive for some time. the restaurant is a lovely, bright space, and our waitstaff were attentive. even though most things were done well and beautifully arranged on the plate, i’m only giving them three stars because i expect more flavor in an entree from a restaurant that normally charges as much as they do for food.

i grew up in texas, and every now and again am overcome with a strong desire for bbq, but i have yet to find anything comparable in california. i thought about trying dave’s, but was at the same time feeling lazy and not wanting to get out of my comfy sweatpants. having driven by this little shanty on the corner of 10th & redondo a number of times, i decided to give it a try. it’s not big, but it’s bigger than i thought it would be. you order at the window, and there are some patio seats off to the side where you can eat. it’s a busy corner, and since i live so close, i took mine home. definitely call your order in beforehand. there seems to always be a small queue and people waiting.

as i said, i haven’t found great bbq in these parts. when i eat bbq, i like to try the meat with and without sauce. when the bbq is good, the flavor of the meat comes through and is accentuated by the sauce. their sauce is good, and more sweet than tangy or salty. you can actually see little flecks of spices in it. i had the two meat combo, which included bbq beef brisket and hot links that came with some buttered toast, greens & potato salad. both meats were dry. the sausage hardly had any flavor to it, and the dull color was a little off-putting. the brisket was a little better but definitely not melt in your mouth stuff. neither really had the smoky flavor i was looking for. in lockhart, tx, you can smell the smoke blocks away.

the collard greens, however, was among the best i’ve had. stewed in a nice broth with pieces of pork and fat and spices, it was tasty. the potato salad was standard yellow, pickley potato salad, which i enjoyed.

i would stay away from the sausage. not sure if i will try any of the other bbq meats. my feeling is that if i’m going to risk heart disease, it better be good. the fried chicken smelled really good, so i might come back for that. it was nice to see them dipping pieces of chicken in batter, putting them in the fryers and serving them hot. the bbq meats are more 2.5 stars, but i give them an extra half for fresh frying and tasty greens.

a friend recommended this place to me a while back. it was funny to discover that it is in the same little strip of then empty retail spaces that i looked at years ago when searching for a studio workspace. the restaurant, like the area, is very cute and new. it doesn’t strike me as particularly traditional italian, but more californified, which isn’t a bad thing. the food was fresh and delicious, and neither of the pastas we had were too heavy.

accompanying the entrees are slices of garlic bread sprinkled with freshly grated parmesan and slices of tomatoes. the bread was nicely toasted, crunchy around the edges and soft in the middle with plenty of garlic and butter.

the service was fine. our waitress seemed a bit inexperienced, but was attentive enough. on our way out, one of the cooks acknowledged and wished us a good night, which was nice. we went on a sunday night, and though the place had a lot of people, we didn’t have to wait. i noticed several vegetarian options that sounded delicious, including an eggplant parmesan special, so we’ll be back to try some of their other items.

dare i say it and risk the wrath of foodies and gelato lovers LA-wide? i love gelato, but i think this ice cream beats some of the best gelato i’ve had in LA. i really wasn’t expecting to be wowed even though i heard so much about it. i’ve had mango sorbet, but not ice cream, and it works so well as ice cream here, more creamy and not tart. sometimes you just want the fatty goodness! even my bf who does not like mango would like it. the dutch chocolate is rich and so good, but my favorite is the pineapple coconut, which you can still taste the hints of vanilla accenting the creamy coconut.

the reason this ice cream is delicious is that it is not too sweet, and you can still taste the essence of ice creaminess. some of the gelatos i’ve had are good, but often the sweetness can overpower some of the other flavors or other flavors overpower the creaminess. this ice cream is very creamy! you can tell they didn’t add a lot of water as filler as most ice cream places do. good, old-fashioned ice cream.

oh, and i seriously thought they made a mistake and gave me two scoops instead of one, but i wasn’t about to complain that i was getting two for the price of one. they sell half-gallons of ice cream that are far fresher for a little more than what you pay for fancy pints of ice cream at whole foods.

they also have an assortment of tasty salt-water taffy.

tucked away in a strip mall on vine, with little more signage than a reversed out white on black marquis squeezed among the other businesses in the same mall, lou teases us to find her. even though there’s only an address on the door, you can’t miss the dynamic, black and white on one side, and red dominating black and white on the other side graphic curtains that shield its diners from the rest of the city.

i have to first comment on the fun and fabulous decor because no dining experience is complete without the feeling generated by the environment or the ability it has to transform you to another place. when you enter, the left wall is papered with a vintage-looking edward goreyesqe illustration of trees; while the right wall has the menu hand-written complete with drawings of sheep on a blackboard, an indication of the changing menu that follows what’s fresh & in-season locally. though there’s plenty of pattern, it all works well together, and along with candle and soft overhead lighting sets a warm mood.

a small, intimate space where you may find yourself bumping elbows with fellow diners at a keith haring-esque patterened communal table, it’s still as yet largely undiscovered as we went on a saturday night without reservations and only waited 15min. i fear though, that won’t last for long, but they do take reservations.

the attention to the details is as everpresent in the food as in the space.

this ranks highly in my book among dim sum places. not your average dim sum banquet, king hua offered us a bounty of delicious and atypical as well as usual small plates of goodness beautifully constructed, which didn’t stop us from stuffing our faces.

there were a few things ordered that i wasn’t partial to, but most of the food was consistently flavorful and well done. the aesthetics of the dim sum adds to the impression that the chefs aren’t just cranking these out. standouts for me were the sweet & flavorful steamed bbq pork buns, juicy xiao long bao, shrimp dumpling with snow pea shoots.

the place looks a lot like sea harbour on the inside, with fancy carpeting, damask table cloths and fabric covered chairs. we were a part of a large group, and though the restaurant was packed, the food came quick and the service was good. with so many people, they had a hard time keeping our waters & tea full, but they were always eager to do it. they all thanked us as we left. like i said, not your average dim sum place.

small plates eating, my personal favorite way of eating, is like designing your own tasting menu, which can be an adventure. at AOC comfort food is taken to flights of gourmet fancy without pretension. there’s nothing extreme or experimental, but everything is flavorful, and in the end, i leave with a deep sense of pleasure and satisfaction. it feels like my heart is in my stomach.

right away, you feel the warmth from simple and earthy interiors, the plump black olives at first smooth, then salty bitterness, and the smoky chili paste you spread on thick slices of crusty bread. there’s a moment of tension when i had to whittle down to the 5 or so courses for 2 people, but that was soothed by wine and brief pause before our first plate arrived, glistening in olive oil.

this is one of my favorite places to eat in LA.

though not mind-blowing, chang’s garden was a good and authentic introduction to specifically shanghainese food. i came here with a large group, and we sampled 11 dishes, some better than others.

they start you out with some boiled peanuts: this is a nice little snack while you wait. it tasted faintly of allspice.

the service started out a little rocky. they brought out the wrong pork dish—mu shu pork—and it took about five minutes of chaotic “arguing” with the waitress that it was neither what we ordered nor what we wanted. her english was a little rough, and she kept insisting it was good, which was beside the point. this was righted, and the rest of the evening was fine, with the food being brought out quickly and us getting attentive enough service at our large table.

a casual, french-inspired resto in the trendy belmont shore strip of 2nd street, la creperie cafe offers vegetarian-friendly food made from good quality ingredients—mixed greens versus iceberg lettuce. not all crepes are created equal, but most are pretty tasty. because of its popularity, there may be a wait, depending on when you go. i’ve never had to wait too long (over 30 min) though.

they could be a little more understated with the french bistro decor, but it’s nice that they have live jazz. conversation can be challenging, if you’re seated close to the band.

garden salad: mixed greens with cucumbers, a big slice of tomato, onions, green bell peppers, balsamic vinaigrette. the dressing balanced the right amount of sweetness with a touch of salt & vinegar.

we went recently and noticed they updated their menu since we last went. they seem to be venturing beyond the european-style fillings. i haven’t tried the texan or the curry crepe, and am curious. it’s great that there is good, interesting food that’s not overly expensive. service varies depending who you get. i haven’t had any bad experiences.