morinoya

los angeles, ca

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i had no idea that this japanese restaurant was hidden away on the 2nd floor of the olympic collection at the corner of sawtelle and olympic until m directed me there for dinner after work. their specialty is inaniwa udon - i'm not quite sure what it's made of, but it looks like thinly sliced udon. the broth was flavorful and warm. it's a lot lighter than the ramen that you get elsewhere on sawtelle. but my favorite part of the meal was the warm plum wine drink that m ordered - extremely comforting after a long day.

b sweet

los angeles, ca

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this is my latest dessert addiction. bread pudding in all different flavors. pictured is my absolute favorite flavor - the bread pudding made from chocolate chip banana bread topped with gooey caramel. lightly sweet banana flavor pairs perfectly with rich bittersweet chocolate and super sweet caramel. derek's favorite flavor is glazed donut. yes, you read that correctly, they make bread pudding out of DONUTS. genius. derek gets it with a scoop of ice cream on top. it's such an intense dessert that i can usually only finish half in one sitting. but it freezes nicely and after a minute in the microwave, it tastes just as moist and amazing as a fresh serving.

bachi burger

los angeles, ca

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new burger spot on sawtelle in west LA. of course we're usually eating ramen when we're on sawtelle, but this time we decided to try a burger. bachi burger is one of those fancy burger places that put a lot of interesting toppings on the burger. i can't remember which toppings i got, but i do remember that the meat itself did not have a lot of flavor. not a fan - i'd much rather go to plan check down the street. or eat ramen. i know others love this place, but it's just not my cup of tea.

yabu

los angeles, ca

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one of our go-to lunch spots, a quick drive from the office. solid and dependable japanese cuisine - great lunch specials. i usually get the chirashi with a side of hot udon, although pictured is their tempura lunch special. there are some days when the fish is spectacular - a fresh shipment must have just come in. on other days, the sushi is still very good. one tip that i learned from mohan - you can ask for your noodles to be topped with crunchy tempura flakes for free! why not.

sushi tsujita

los angeles, ca

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being a huge fan of their noodle shops - tsujita la and tsujita annex, i was very excited to try the new tsujita sushi restaurant. unfortunately, it didn't live up to my high expectations. some early dishes were very good - the starter pictured had amazing flavor - each ingredient was delicious. but the later sushi courses were underwhelming - while good, i think you could get sushi just as good for half the price down the street.

tsujita la

los angeles, ca

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more ramen! before tsujita annex, there was the original tsujita la. it's rare to see this restaurant without a crazy line outside. it serves a different type of tsukemen (dipping ramen). the noodles are similar to the annex, but the broth is completely different. the broth comes in a small bowl with small pieces of pork. there is a bit more oil in this broth, which can throw some people off. but i just mix it all together and it puts a nice coat of porky goodness on the noodles when you dip. there's also a slight sour flavor which pairs nicely with the noodles and a hefty squeeze of lime. both tsukemen are amazing yet completely different. try both and see which one is your favorite!

shin-sen-gumi

los angeles, ca

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you would think that there would be a limit to the amount of ramen that i can eat and the number of ramen restaurants that i will try. but you would be wrong. this is shin-sen-gumi, which is one of many ramen shops on sawtelle. this place gets crowded, but not as crowded as tsujita annex. my new ramen buddy w and i decided to try shin-sen-gumi for lunch one day. broth was tasty, noodles a bit too thin. i liked that i could customize my ramen - choose whether you want your noodles al dente, choose how much pork fat you want floating in your soup, choose your toppings (corn!), etc. but since tsujita annex makes it perfect every time, why mess with perfection?

tsujita annex

los angeles, ca

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long time no blog. but i'm back now with my favorite restaurant in los angeles - tsujita annex - which was recently featured in an eater article about its noodle supplier, sun noodle. the noodles here are indeed fantastic. i always order the tsukemen (dipping ramen). springy chewy yellow noodles, served room temp in one bowl. in another bowl, thick fatty flavorful pork broth, served hot. pull one or two noodles from one bowl and dip them in the other bowl until they're coated with broth. then slurp! red spice and garlic are available on the table to add even more flavor. i order my tsukemen without any spice and then add two spoonfuls from the table (otherwise, it's way too spicy, trust me). i also add extra vegetables because the bean sprouts soak up the broth and add a satisfying crunch to each bite. you won't be able to finish all of the broth - take it to go and add instant ramen at home for an incredibly rich and indulgent meal.

curry house

los angeles, ca

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curry house is a chain - there's even one in cupertino. i go to the one on sawtelle whenever i'm craving curry. delicious salad. good curry sauce - you can choose your spiciness level. and the katsu is appropriately crispy. i either get the menchi katsu (basically a deep fried hamburger patty) or the tofu katsu. yup, that's curry house.

blockhead's shavery

los angeles, ca

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i love shaved ice. my sister, brother, and i used to make shaved ice with our snoopy sno cone machine when we were kids. even better is the taiwanese-style shaved ice covered with condensed milk, red beans, lychees, and other assorted fruits and jellies that you can get at oasis tea zone or even din tai fung in seattle. but the taiwanese-style shaved ice at blockheads is the absolute creme de la creme. literally. they refer to it as "snow cream" - its a blend of ice cream and shaved ice - feels like fluffy ice when it first hits your tongue, but then it melts into a smooth cream. amazing.

it comes in various flavors - original, green tea, strawberry, and sesame. you can also get non-traditional toppings like chocolate and nuts. if i lived in LA, i would definitely come here often enough to try every possible combination. but since i only make it to LA every now and then, i prefer to stick with tradition. pictured is cindy c's recipe - original, condensed milk, rice cakes, strawberries, and lychee. so good. this is an absolute must-visit whenever i'm in LA.