I like to think of myself as a simple man. My needs are simple and if you’ve noticed by my food blogging, I am often happier with a simple, well-executed meal that gourmet nonsense. Because of this, I was intrigued by Simplethings in Mid City despite the fact that they took a seemingly simplistic name and made it into one word. Simplethings bills itself as a sandwich and pie shop (restaurant), which both also seem simple, but not here.
Look at the picture to the left, ignore the title of this post and tell me what you see. If you are like me, you probably think that is a burrito. It has the signature Chipotle foil, a nice fold and the grill marks that usually come with a tortilla. But this is no burrito, this is a chicken schwarma wrap from Pita Kitchen in Sherman Oaks, a hole in the wall to be remembered.
Walking into Hook Burger in Burbank, I had the odd suspicion that I had walked into some grown-up version of Habit Burger. It wasn’t until I got home and looked up the place for this review that I realized just how right I was. Hook Burger is quite literally a grown-up Habit Burger, started by the same guys, but featuring more of a fast-casual concept that also includes booze. And the use of the word “hook” is a clear reference to hookers, which are totally a grown-up thing as well.
Down in Long Beach to visit my favorite baby named after Bella from Twilight, we found ourselves at Tequila Jack’s for lunch. Located in the touristy pier/wharf area, Tequila Jack’s had all the look and feel of touristy Mexican restaurant. Yet, for all that look and feel, it did have a few of those Mexican dishes you don’t find at your average tourist spot. One of these dishes was their Chicken Mole Enchiladas. So, like any unsuspecting fan of Mexican I ordered them.
With a friend in town for the summer and staying in Venice, we headed out to Centanni, an Italian joint in that part of town. The menu wasn’t too big, but had some basic sandwiches and pasta dishes. As per usual, my eyes drifted right to their gnocchi, which came with a pesto sauce. Soon enough, my meal was served and all looked well on the surface.
While LA has its fair share of Middle-Eastern restaurants, Kabab Grill in Palms boasts something I haven’t seen elsewhere: its own pita oven. Growing up with the Middle-Eastern restaurants of southeastern Michigan, I just kind of assumed every place had their own oven, but in LA I learned this was not the case. Yet, a pita oven alone does not make a place great, so I was eager to see how this Syrian-flavored place would taste and hoped it didn’t taste like the blood and tears of civil war (too soon?).
On a drunken evening in Osaka, I vaguely recall punching buttons on an old school lotto-style machine at a ramen restaurant. The result was some of the most delicious drunk food I have ever eaten. Fast forward to 2012 and Tsujita continues its stranglehold on the ramen scene of Little Little Tokyo in West LA. Yet, it is not alone in ramen. Tatsu sits just down the road and has taken that machine concept I encountered in Osaka into modernity.
A few years ago, I was introduced to The Beachcomber, a cafe in Crystal Cove, just south of Newport Beach. At the time, I had just eaten and couldn’t even imagine having more food, but I was certainly able to appreciate the setting and my cousins seemed to love the food. My now fiancee and I vowed to return one day and that day finally came over the weekend. While The Beachcomber appears to be a hidden secret, the hour-long wait to be seated begged to differ. Yet, while waiting for a restaurant can sometimes be obnoxious, The Beachcomber is quite literally on the beach and the beach is so nice that I would pay money to use it even if there wasn’t a restaurant.
One of the perks of staying at the St. Regis in Dana Point (or knowing people staying there) is to be able to eat at the Monarch Bay Club. This restaurant was once only available to people who live in the adjoining neighborhood of $10 million dollar homes and those willing to shell out $17,000 a year for membership. Now, though, this exclusive joint is available to anyone willing to stay at the St. Regis and their guests. Upon arrival, I expected high prices and subpar food that is typically endemic of hotel restaurants, but what I found was something a bit different.
The pool area of the St. Regis in Dana Point is like the gardens of Tivoli combined with an all-inclusive resort in Mexico. Well except for the all-inclusive part. Food here comes at a premium price, but for most people staying at a place like this and charging the food to the room, that price is pretty negligible. I am not one of those people, but I was fortunate enough to have my food being provided by my future in-laws. Plus, they picked the place, so I surely couldn’t be blamed for the fact that a basic burger with cheddar and a sweet potato bun ran $20.