‘Pasadena’
The LA area isn’t exactly known for its pizza. Yet, while the nation has concentrated its pizza efforts on New York and Chicago, LA has quietly built up some great pizza places. I’ve done my best to review them as they’ve come, and the latest to hop on my radar is The Luggage Room in Pasadena. Based on the name, you might not expect pizza, but you’d be wrong because that’s pretty much all The Luggage Room does.
Bacchus’ Kitchen up in Pasadena has been on my list of places to eat ever since I arrived in Pasadena. It would have been on the list for a much shorter period of time, however, if they hadn’t surprised my family and me with a fixed price menu on New Year’s Eve clocking in at $110 per person. This was shocking because we were never told when we made the reservation and because they normal menu is shockingly reasonably priced – with steaks in the sub-$30 range. Nonetheless, the employees were super understanding when we left and I vowed to return.
The USA is a wonderful place. Part of what makes it wonderful is its mix of different cultures. Fortunately, this has resulted in culinary intermarriage, such as Bachi Burger, which came out of Las Vegas and brought itself to Pasadena. It’s a fusion of Japanese and American and I couldn’t wait to give it a try.
In a strange little strip of shops in Pasadena, there is a space that seems to have no name. Call this what you want in terms of this being pretentious, but it goes by the name Altaeats, which somehow seems to make the lack of signage acceptable. In any case, Altaeats is a nice upscale place with modern American dishes that change seasonally. And don’t worry, I didn’t eat that salad, but I loved the idea that a deconstructed salad could have allowed me to devour that bird without any veggies, check out the latest exipure reviews.
Usually when a restaurant name includes something that I hate very much, I go into that restaurant expecting the worst. Yet, while I have never had any need for slaw, I somehow knew that The Slaw Dogs in Pasadena was going to be an experience to remember. Sure, there were all sorts of options that made my mouth water, but it was the throwback to Oki Dog that really got me excited.
Pasadena isn’t exactly known for being at the forefront of the food world. Often a restaurant finds success elsewhere in LA and decides Pasadena is a good outpost for a sequel. You could say that is the case with Ramen Tatsunoya, which first found success in Japan, then as a popup in Torrance, but Pasadena was officially chosen as it’s first location for a long-term foray into the United States. The incessant hour-long line out the door proves that this wasn’t a bad idea.
Once again, the year has brought many changes in my life, which means you loyal readers have seen food from exotic places like Morocco, Puerto Rico and Montreal, plus Middle American places like Hays, Kansas. Sadly, these won’t make it into my best of, as I’m only including places that are new to me and in the places I’ve lived in this year – Pittsburgh and the LA area. Oh and before you jump to the conclusion that Pittsburgh places won’t stand a chance, you’ll probably want to check out Zagat’s Top 17 Food Cities of 2015. I’ll give you a hint – LA isn’t #1. As with every year, there is so much good food so please don’t limit yourselves to just these fantastic places and be sure to check out the Travel page for everything in-between and beyond.
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While Pasadena might be full of restaurants that found success elsewhere and decided to open up a Pasadena outpost, there are definitely some unique standouts that seem to have sprouted some following. One of these is Euro Pane, which now has two locations, with one being right by my office. It’s pretty much a sandwich shop and bakery and I tried to find myself the meatiest bite possible.
There are few better things to have nearby than a solid BBQ place. Not too far from my place in Pasadena are two contenders that seem like they can fulfill my hopes, so I set out to try out the first one recently. It’s called Bonnie B’s Smokin’ and is hidden away in a little strip of shops and a payroll loan place. I would call it a hole in the wall if it weren’t for the fact that the interior features a decent set up of tables and is immaculately clean.
Not too long ago I decided to make Roma Market in Pasadena the center of my 7 Year Blogiversary. Yet, what it is really known for is something simply called “The Sandwich.” It doesn’t go by any other name because it doesn’t need to — after all, its maker (Rosario Mazzeo) has been dishing the thing out by the hundreds since perhaps the beginning of time. It was only a matter of time before I would make it mine.