Why are there pickles on this plate?
My continued quest for amazing burgers took me to a place called Salt’s Cure in West Hollywood. At this particular intersection, only one of the corners lacks burgers, as the other two are populated by Fatburger and Astro Burger. And while Salt’s Cure isn’t strictly a burger place, a quick look at the high priced menu on the wall when I walked in all but guaranteed I would be eating their burger. Continue Reading»
So classic-looking.
Just across from Yang’s new location in the new mall on Wujiang Street is another place that serves up xiaolongbao (soup dumplings). It’s called Nan Xiang Steamed Bun Restaurant and cooks them up in the original steamed way. Nan Xiang is actually the part of Shanghai where xiaolongbao originated and you can still find the original in its location near the Yu Garden, but the line is always crazy-long, so when I saw the Nan Xiang restaurant right next to Yang’s, I figured I would give them a taste. Continue Reading»
Always a line. Always pink.
Once upon a time, there was a street called Wujiang in Shanghai just outside the Nanjing West Subway Station. At all hours of the day, the street was lined with food vendors and inside the old buildings were delicious, old-school Chinese restaurants. On that street was a hole in the wall called Yang’s Fried-Dumpling, which served a delicious xiaolongbao (pronounced shiao-long-bow) with the special twist that it was fried (as opposed to the traditional steaming method). Xiaolongbao is one of Shanghai’s signature dishes, a dumpling stuffed with pork that creates a soup inside when cooked. The dumpling is sealed air-tight so the soup stays inside until it is eaten. Even though Yang’s went against tradition by frying their dumplings, there was always a line outside their door.
They just know how to work that meat, and dough.
A lot has changed in Shanghai in the past couple years, especially on that street that literally does not exist anymore. All of the old restaurants, including Yang’s and a place that had my favorite kung pao chicken, were knocked down to likely build some sort of shopping center. Fortunately, at least Yang’s has been reborn in a little mall on the other end of Wujiang Street. Yang’s looks out of place in the white-tiled, sterile mall, but they still have a line of people out the door at all hours. The dumplings come in sets of four for five rmb and have to be paid for at the cash register in advance. After grabbing a receipt, you can get in line and watch the dumpling-makers work away. Continue Reading»
This is a calling card to unvegans the world over.
Ever since beginning my meat blog, Fogo de Chao in Beverly Hills has been in my sights. I’ve eaten Brazilian food before, but I have been told over and over again that Fogo is the king of meatiness. But it’s expensive. Like a fixed price of $56.50 expensive. But when Restaurant Week comes to town, that ridicu-price drops down to a more reasonable $44 bucks, including dessert. So for my first Fogo experience, I made sure to go during Restaurant Week and was amazed with what that price bought me. Continue Reading»
Korean latkes.
I think we can all agree that there are not enough places in the world that offer unlimited food. And the places that do are usually pretty bogged down by endless salad bars and other assorted vegetables. Manna Korean BBQ in Culver City is not one of those places. Instead of concentrating on veggies, they have decided to concentrate on meats. For only 16.99, you get all you can eat meats. And these aren’t just generic grade D meats, these are a collection of short rib, brisket, pork belly, pork, chicken, spicy chicken and beef. Continue Reading»
What's the deal with this lettuce?
Well I needed something in walking distance and I wanted something good. Not knowing what I would find, I took a walk down Magnolia Boulevard and stopped at the first Mexican place I found. It was called Casita Taco al Carbon and had the look of something awesome. I took a while deciding what to order, as I often do when visiting a Mexican place for the first time. I never know what’s going to be the best, whether it be a burrito, taco or something more interesting. Since the name of the place had “taco” in it, I figured that would be a good place to start. Continue Reading»
Get some with pork.
Apparently in South America, there is no need for Viagra. According to Argentinian President Cristina Fernandez, all it takes is some porking…err…pork. The Cleveland Reader reports that, “…she spent a satisfying weekend with her husband after eating barbecued pork.” Continue Reading»
Why isn't this cow happy?
Meat eaters of the world have many enemies. They can come in the form of PETA or a hamburger that someone has decided to ruin with lettuce. One of the newest enemies, however, can’t be easily remedied by making fun of vegans or by sending food back to the kitchen. This enemy is global warming. Continue Reading»
This obligate carnivore has no trouble sleeping.
Do you have trouble sleeping? If so, it may be time to re-evaluate your diet. A study published in Medical News Online revealed that carnivores sleep more than omnivores and herbivores. This doesn’t exactly surprise an unvegan who still regularly sleeps for 12 hours on the weekends, but may come as a surprise to someone who struggles with sleeping.
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Fries of the world.
A couple of weeks ago, The Backyard Bite invited me to The Burger Culture Clash, sponsored by Stussy (which apparently still exists) and Plan Check. Plan Check, by the way, is a sort of new (since February) restaurant in West LA with Chef Ernesto Uchimura of Umami Burger fame. As my love of burgers, especially those of the umami variety, I jumped at the opportunity.
Although I arrived alone, I was not the only lone eater. Just next to where I was seated, I met e*star LA and we decided to share a meal called loneliness, because it’s better than eating alone. We made quick friends over our respective blogs and Midwestern roots, then got to work at dissecting the special menu, which Plan Check will be featuring for the next month if anything tickles your fancy.
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