The Unvegan

Expiring at Patrick’s Roadhouse

January 9th, 2012 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

Quick, before the lettuce attacks!

Through an act of charity (seriously), my lady friend and I found ourselves in possession of a gift certificate to Patrick’s Roadhouse in Santa Monica. The only catch was that this thing expired at the end of December. Being the go-getters we are, we finally made our way there on December 21st to get some brunch. When we arrived, we quickly learned that the whole menu wasn’t being served due to it being the manager’s last day. I’m not sure why that prompted a special menu, but it still looked great and we didn’t ask any questions. Continue Reading»

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Bacon, Brunch, Burritos, Los Angeles, Patrick's Roadhouse, Santa Monica

Beer Belly for My Fearless Belly

January 6th, 2012 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

There are peas in my cheese!

Two of the things I love most in this world are beer and my belly. No, I don’t have a beer belly…much, but when a gastropub in Koreatown called Beer Belly opened up, I figured I had to try it out. I was meeting a group of people, and arrived to find the place packed. And this was not a big place. Like about 8 tables and a few bar stools big, and all of them were loaded. Plus, it was first come, first served, so we got to hang around the tables like vultures surrounded a wounded gazelle. It was the tail end of happy hour, though, so I ordered a beer and hoped a table would clear out soon. Fast forward thirty minutes and we’re still waiting when a woman working the place asks if we’re waiting for a table. Uh, no, lady, we’re just standing here awkwardly for the hell of it. She then proceeded to ask us if we wanted to be on the list. This “list” was new to us, and apparently also new to her, as she told us she had just started it. Well, at least we wouldn’t have to stand awkwardly any longer. Continue Reading»

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Bar Food, Beer, Beer Belly, duck, gastropubs, grilled cheese, Koreatown, Los Angeles, mac and cheese, meat

Waffling at Bru’s Wiffle

January 3rd, 2012 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

Chicken and wiffles?

While “the bun” has undergone many iterations (pretzel, brioche, etc…) and sandwich bread is known for its varieties, there is one bread-like breakfast conduit that still hasn’t really seen much glory as far as being put to alternate uses. It is the waffle, but Bru’s Wiffle in Santa Monica is out to change that. You see, Bru’s thinks that waffles need more of the limelight and they are willing to give it. At Bru’s, you can get a pizza waffle, taco waffles and even “sliders” with waffle buns. Of course, Bru’s offers waffles in their sweet breakfast form, but the savory offerings were really what drew me to Bru’s. Continue Reading»

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Bru's Wiffle, Brunch, Chicken and Waffle, fried chicken, Los Angeles, restaurants, Santa Monica, waffles

Heading South with Mayura

December 23rd, 2011 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

Like a flat donut.

When Jonathan Gold’s latest rendition of the 99 best restaurants in LA came out, I was amazed to find an Indian place basically in my backyard. No, I don’t have an actual backyard because I live in LA, but you get my drift. Fortunately, my body had been craving Indian and I easily convinced my girlfriend that we had to order some carryout from there. While the menu appeared to have typical Indian fare, Mayura actually specialized in South Indian food. With that in mind, I was excited to get down with something new. Continue Reading»

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Culver City, Curry, Delivery, Indian, Los Angeles, mayura, restaurants, south indian

Eating with Ray at San Gennaro

December 15th, 2011 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

More like San get out of here!

I could read all the food blogs in the world and go to all the restaurants they claim to be great, but nothing really ever beats a personal recommendation. Usually it comes from someone you know and they know your taste better any anonymous or famous food critics. So when my buddy and his lady friend suggested we hit up an Italian place called San Gennaro in Brentwood, I was ready for business.

When we arrived, one look at the menu told me this was not going to be an easy choice. Instantly my eyes met with gnocchi, Italian fried chicken and Ray’s Special pizza. Instead of making the tough decision myself, I asked the waiter to decide for me and he picked the pizza. Continue Reading»

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Brentwood, Italian, Los Angeles, Pizza, restaurants, san gennaro, sausage

Feeding on Curry at Fat Spoon

December 12th, 2011 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

Just keep swimming...

Apparently some place called The Lazy Ox downtown is a big deal or something. I wouldn’t know because I haven’t been, but supposedly the guy behind it, Michael Cardenas, is also a big deal. Such a big deal, in fact, that he took it upon himself to open another restaurant, called Fat Spoon. The new place is down in Little Tokyo and is conceptually a Japanese curry house. As a man with a fair amount of Japanese curry experience, I definitely wanted to check the place out, and it didn’t hurt that I had one of those Blackboard Eats 30% off printouts either. Continue Reading»

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Beef, Curry, Downtown LA, fat spoon, Japanese, little tokyo, Los Angeles, restaurants

Artsy Noodles at Tsujita LA

December 8th, 2011 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

Artisan or artesian?

Have you ever looked upon a meal and thought it was just too pretty to eat? It happens to the best of us, and to be perfectly frank, a pretty-looking meal is often disguising a lack of flavor or creativity. So when my buddy and I decided to head to Tsujita LA in West LA for lunch, I was a little concerned that their claim of “Artisan Noodles” would make for a pretty meal, but little else. But when we showed up and found an obscenely long line of people waiting to get a taste of the noodles, I thought again. Continue Reading»

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Japanese, Los Angeles, ramen, restaurants, soup, tsujita la, West LA

A Pad of Krua Thai

December 7th, 2011 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

Crudite?!

Did you know there was a big Thai contingent in the valley? And I’m not talking about a string of Thai restaurants, I’m talking about a spot in the north end of North Hollywood where signs for auto repair shops and dry cleaners are both in Thai as well as English. Here, on a stretch of Sherman Way is a restaurant called Krua Thai, which Jonathan Gold once claimed to have the best Pad Thai in LA. Continue Reading»

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Los Angeles, north hollywood, pad thai, restaurants, Seafood, Thai

Mantee, not Manatee

December 5th, 2011 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

Yes, I would like meat in my hummos.

When my buddy recommended heading to a place called Mantee in Studio City, I was really excited to eat a sea cow and hoped the manatees were farm-raised (because we all know they are endangered in the wild). But he quickly corrected me, saying that the restaurant was lacking that all-important second “a” and was actually Mediterranean. And one look at the menu showed this was not your typical Mediterranean. There were no schwarma wraps to be seen here and instead items like that were replaced by unique Lebanese, Turkish and Armenian delights. Continue Reading»

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Armenian, lebanese, Los Angeles, mantee cafe, Mediterranean, Middle-Eastern, restaurants, studio city, Turkish

Growing Up at Bottle Rock

November 23rd, 2011 Tweet Facebook Digg Stumble Reddit

Bottle Rock my socks off.

Right around when I first moved to LA, essentially broke, I made a trip to Bottle Rock. Having little to no disposable income, I wrote the place off as overpriced and didn’t return until this past weekend. What I found was a restaurant and wine bar that was not only well-priced, but also delicious. Was I wrong the first time I went? Have I become jaded by the prices of LA? Did Bottle Rock simply change things up? These answers may never be known, but what is known is my experience there. Let’s start from the beginning. Continue Reading»

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Bottle Rock, Culver City, grilled cheese, Los Angeles, prosciutto, restaurants, Sandwiches, wine bars

Rants and Raves

Vegans are Killing Bolivia

April 25th, 2011

Stop stealing food from these children.

As if Bolivia wasn’t troubled enough as one of South America’s only two landlocked countries, now it has a whole new problem with the onset of veganism. If you know a vegan or vegetarian, the odds are that you have heard of a strange little plant called quinoa.

Beer Me Some Breckenridge Agave Wheat

The taste of skiing?

Colorado is definitely a beer state, and not just because Coors comes from the Rocky Mountain State. No, it is also home to New Belgium (of Fat Tire fame) and seemingly countless other micro and craft breweries. While in Breckenridge for a ski weekend, I decided I had to at least try one of these, and because it turned out to be the only one available at dinner, my choice happened to come from the creatively named Breckenridge Brewery. The brewery, by the way, is actually no longer in Breckenridge, having expanded and moved to Denver in 1992.

‘Los Angeles’

Expiring at Patrick’s Roadhouse

Beer Belly for My Fearless Belly

Waffling at Bru’s Wiffle

Heading South with Mayura

Eating with Ray at San Gennaro

Feeding on Curry at Fat Spoon

Artsy Noodles at Tsujita LA

A Pad of Krua Thai

Mantee, not Manatee

Growing Up at Bottle Rock

Rants and Raves

Vegans are Killing Bolivia

Beer Me Some Breckenridge Agave Wheat

What is this?»

Unvegan Friends