American – Page 5 – The Unvegan

8/23/2011 Reviews Los Angeles

Blue on Blue at Coral Tree Cafe

The drive from North Hollywood to Encino on the 101 during a Friday lunch hour is quite possibly the worst 10 mile stretch of road in the nation. Yet, to meet my girlfriend for lunch, I made that drive without seeing nary a Brennan Frasier-shaped caveman. We met at Coral Tree Cafe and after such a terrible drive I was craving some comfort food to counter the traffic blues I was feeling. We walked up to the counter to order and my eyes quickly made contact with their Baked Macaroni and Cheese. It wasn’t what you would consider an ideal food for a 90+ degree day in the Valley, but looked like it would hit the spot.

American Coral Tree Cafe Encino Los Angeles Mac and Cheese Restaurants

7/22/2011 Reviews Culver City

Not Turning Japanese at Akasha

Perched on a corner in downtown Culver City, I have somehow managed to avoid Akasha. “Why?” you ask. Well the answer isn’t so simple. I have no excuse. With a Japanese-sounding name and the knowledge that Akasha wasn’t a sushi place, I should have flocked to Akasha much sooner, but it took a tour of Culver City with my mom to finally come face to face with the place. What I found was truly intriguing. Akasha wasn’t Japanese at all.

Akasha American Culver City Los Angeles Mac and Cheese Macaroni and Cheese Restaurants

6/14/2011 Reviews Los Angeles

Melting at Marmalade Cafe

Sure, brunch is a good “meal,” but sometimes even if the clock hasn’t struck noon you need a good hearty lunch. That’s just what happened to me when I headed to Marmalade Cafe at The Grove. I skipped right over the omelets and waffles and jumped to the sandwiches. I even skipped over the burgers since I had tackled one at Ford’s Filling Station the night before. Fortunately there was a meaty unvegan sandwich on the menu that was right up my alley.

American Los Angeles Marmalade Cafe Restaurants Sandwiches The Grove

6/3/2011 Reviews YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK

Down in the Valley at the Ahwahnee

Opened in 1927 at the center of the Yosemite Valley in Yosemite National Park, the Ahwahnee Hotel is a national park staple. The room prices are outrageous, but whether you are staying there or not, the place is certainly worth a visit for historical perspective of the park. Plus, for anyone in need of a good meal, the Ahwahnee has a bit of dining room. The lunch prices are a bit much, but nothing compared to the prices for dinner, so before setting out on an afternoon trek from the valley floor, we sat down to a meal at the Ahwahnee.

Ahwahnee American Burgers California Hamburgers Meat Restaurants Travel Yosemite

5/23/2011 Reviews Los Angeles

Snacking at Astro Burger

Countless times I have driven through West Hollywood and passed Astro Burger. In just about all of these situations, I have muttered to myself or to anyone in my car that I just need to try that place. Finally, after one of my rare drinking nights in West Hollywood, I had a golden opportunity to see what was inside Astro Burger.

American Astro Burger Bacon Burgers Fast Food Hamburgers Los Angeles Meat Restaurants West Hollywood

3/14/2011 Reviews Beverly Hills

A Little Cajun at The Cheesecake Factory

Everyone knows The Cheesecake Factory for their namesake. And those people are also probably aware that The Cheesecake Factory is a full-on restaurant with a restaurant about as massive its portions. Sadly, when I went to Cheesecake in Beverly Hills, my stomach wasn’t treating me as well as it usually does. So naturally, as an unvegan, I turned to fried chicken. Yeah, that’s right.

American Beverly Hills Cajun Chains Fried Chicken Los Angeles Meat National Chains Restaurants The Cheesecake Factory

2/28/2011 Reviews Burbank

A Quickie Dinner at Daily Grill

On our way out of town via the Bob Hope Airport in Burbank, we were in need of a convenient place for a bite to eat. Across the street from the airport, we found the Daily Grill, an mid-level restaurant chain for American food that can found throughout California and a little beyond. As we needed to catch a flight, there was little time to dilly dally and I quickly scanned the menu and found their Penne Pasta with Chicken.

American Burbank Chains Chicken Daily Grill Italian Los Angeles Pasta Restaurants

1/13/2011 Reviews Las Vegas

Getting Stuffed at Spice Market Buffet

In my continuing quest to find the greatest buffet in Las Vegas (and eventually the world!), I may have found one to stand toe to toe with Rio’s Carnival World Buffet. Situated in Planet Hollywood, the Spice Market Buffet doesn’t fit into the Hollywood theme, at least in name. It also doesn’t bear any resemblance to a Spice Market. Nonetheless, it does use spices and the walls are adorned with food-related movie posters like Attack of the Killer Tomatoes! and Breakfast at Tiffany’s (two very similar movies). The lunch buffet cost 25 bucks, but as soon as I looked around, I knew it was going to be well worth the price.

American Asian Beef Buffets Chicken Italian Las Vegas Meat Mexican Middle-Eastern Nevada Pizza Planet Hollywood Restaurants Seafood Spice Market Buffet Travel

1/3/2011 Reviews West Hollywood

Getting Back to Basix

Ordinarily, I am pretty bothered when a place takes a word as simple as “basics” and turns it into “basix.” This kind of goes against being called “basic” because it has overcomplicated a basic word. So, with these overcomplicated thoughts in my mind, I headed into Basix Cafe in West Hollywood, not knowing if should expect something basic or otherwise. What I found was a nice mid-sized cafe with a nice variety of menu items ranging from pizza and pasta to fried chicken and sandwiches. They also had unvegan unfriendly salads and other such dishes, but there were certainly enough vegetable-free dishes to make me like the menu.

American Basix Cafe Fried Chicken Los Angeles Restaurants West Hollywood

12/29/2010 Reviews Culver City

Rainy Day Chili at Tub’s

Having never spent a significant amount of time in Texas, Texas-style chili remains a mystery to me. However, if I were to imagine chili in Texas, it would pretty much look like Tub’s Fine Chili & Fancy Fixins, which I decided to head to on one of LA’s recent days of rain. For starters, the interior has a whole country-western sort of theme to it, with the workers wearing cowboy hats and cowboy-esque stools that resemble saddles. It’s a bit gimmicky for Southern California, but it kind of feels right for the place. Then there’s the chili, which is a far cry from the Midwestern-style chili I know and love from Chili John’s in Burbank and pretty much the entire state of Michigan. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing, because as they say, “variety is the spice of life.”

American Bacon Chili Culver City Los Angeles Meat Tub's Chili

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