coolhaus

culver city, ca

website

jenny in LA! when jenny and i get together, there's a lot of good eating. this time we went to lukshon, a fancy asian restaurant from sang yoon - the father's office guy. (forgot to take a picture!)

when cindy c heard that we would be in culver city, she told us to go to coolhaus. and jenny and i generally do everything that cindy c tells us to do. so we walked down the street from lukshon, past a gelato shop, past a lot of closed shops, and eventually found the brightly lit coolhaus. very interesting flavors. with jenny, i got a scoop of the fried chicken and waffle ice cream. weird, but a nice salty sweet mix with flecks of fried chicken skin and chunks of maple waffles. when i brought derek, we split an ice cream sandwich made with a double chocolate chip cookie, a smores cookie, and coffee and donut ice cream. everything is very sweet, so half of an ice cream sandwich was the perfect size. yum.

lares

santa monica, ca

website

there is so much good food in los angeles and its usually found in really random spots, sometimes on stretches that are otherwise unremarkable. w brought me to pico - a street i've driven on many times and i had no idea i was driving past a great mexican restaurant each time. lares is very unassuming - even though it was my destination, i nearly walked right by it. ordered the chicken mole enchiladas (as i always do). solid. the mole could be a little spicier, but still very good. lovely spot for a workday lunch.

shophouse kitchen

santa monica, ca

website

from the brilliant minds at chipotle ... a southeast asian version of "slow food, fast." one recently opened up on the 3rd street promenade and they cleverly sent coupons for free bowls to nearby residents. you can't beat free. no tortillas here (although i think tortillas would be great with these ingredients). instead, you get a huge bowl and can choose 5 main ingredients and then some toppings. my bowl: half brown rice and half lettuce, a couple of pork/chicken meatballs, charred corn, green curry sauce, pickled vegetables, and crispy garlic on top. everything was surprisingly flavorful and even a little spicy. the meatballs were a little too salty - next time i'll get more brown rice to balance that out. good food, super fast, reasonably priced - i'm definitely a fan.

fritto misto

santa monica, ca

website

i absolutely love this place. it helps that it's around the corner from my apartment. great for takeout, particularly since the restaurant itself gets packed at dinner time every night. but eating there with a friend is even better because then we can share a plate of fritto misto as a first course - a heaping plate of fried veggies, shrimp, and calamari. well seasoned and served with a tangy mayo dipping sauce. i then usually share a plate of their homemade pasta with cream sauce. every pasta on their menu seems to be served with cream sauce. sure, you could ask for them to make it "light" but their cream sauce is so good. pictured is my favorite - mushroom ravioli in marsala cream. not light. but delicious!

jae boo do

los angeles, ca

link to yelp

i have to thank angie for introducing me to korean cheese corn! it's cheesy buttery spicy korean corn served on a hot pan. love. she also introduced me to korean bbq with a twist - seafood instead of meat. it was strange, but delicious. and a little dangerous. clams and mussels had a tendency to pop and explode if they were left on the grill too long. so you have to watch the grill carefully and grab the hot shells with your gloved hand before disaster strikes. it's an interactive eating experience - lots of fun, lots of yum. and there's korean cheese corn! what else do you need to know?

barney greengrass at barney's

beverly hills, ca

closed

there's a restaurant on the top floor of barney's in beverly hills. unfortunately barney greengrass is closing, but a new restaurant will take its place. it is an ideal spot for Ladies who Lunch (and shop at barney's), which is what i aspire to become. but i go on weekends and sit out on the balcony to have a nice quiet lunch outdoors, away from the throngs of tourists on rodeo drive. i'll let y'all know how the new restaurant is once it opens.

the refinery

santa monica, ca

website

the coffee is truly excellent - you can tell that the barista puts a lot of time and attention to making sure that you get the perfect cup of coffee. it takes about 5+ minutes to brew. they have coffee beans from all different regions, each with different tasting notes. i couldn't taste any of the notes in my coffee (tobacco?), but i could tell it was tasty. it was also very expensive - a cup of drip coffee costs over $5. my chocolate chip muffin was very good, but the shop didn't have any forks for me to eat it with. there is limited seating, but i never see this shop crowded. it seems like a great idea with the wrong location - it needs a more upscale neighborhood. on santa monica boulevard, it's just up the street from hooters and the 3rd street promenade. not really the $5-cup-of-coffee kind of crowd.

ken's artisan bakery

portland, or

website

met up with monica at a cute bakery in portland, near the 23rd street shopping district. we ordered an array of baked goods - a quiche, a croissant (with apricot preserves) and a fruity tart thing. perfect for breakfast with a mug of coffee. it's pretty popular so seating can be difficult, but monica and i managed to get there early enough to snag a table.

kogi truck

los angeles, ca

website

one of the kogi trucks parks outside of my office building EVERY WEDNESDAY. so dangerous. the food is extremely heavy, but so delicious. i've tried the kogi dog - hot dog topped with kimchi and mayo; the blackjack quesadilla - grilled tortillas with spicy pork, onions, and cheese; the short rib tacos; and the short rib burrito. all of them are amazing. all of them are super greasy. it looks like there are a lot of vegetables in the picture, but that's only a crunchy topping to what is greasy meat, mayonnaise, and cheese underneath. southern california's healthy vibe might be rubbing off on me because i haven't been back to the kogi truck in a while - it's just too much for lunch. try it, but don't make it a habit.

curry house

los angeles, ca

website

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.