sara "i'm a sucker for anything cooked in coconut milk" l.'s Profile

What an adorable dive bar this is.  Paul and I wandered in after a disappointing bacon-wrapped matzo ball experience at the Gorbals, and we were quite thrilled with the place.  Every time I go downtown I wonder how and why these fools pay through the nose to live in downtown lofts.  Now I know!  It's this great bar!  But seriously, it's cheap, there's plenty on the walls to look at, and the bartender was cool.

Had the wifey pick up a "Godfather" for me and was very impressed.  Definitely a good sandwich.  DIDn't understand the shop title until I ate it, and what was cool was that it was nice and fluffy on the inside, crunchy on the outside.  Good!

Although I've never been into the restaurant physically, I order in from them all the time.  And I LOVE it!  Years ago I'd ordered a soup from them that I didn't like, so I didn't try it again for years.  But about 6 months ago when I noticed I could order from them on http://eat24hours.com, I tried them again, and I've been ordering from them regularly since.  If you make sure to specify that you don't want too much palm sugar in your food your order will come out perfect.  While it's certainly not the best Thai food in town, it's in my neighborhood and I can order from there without having the drive to my favorite spots in Hollywood.

Here's what's good:

Charcoal Sirloin appetizer - This dish is yam nuah, called something different so Angelinos will know what it is.  Delicious ordered medium.

Larb - I just love larb, could eat it every day.  Order it medium without very much palm sugar.

Chicken Wings - My wife likes these--sauce is a little sweet for me.

Chicken Satay - Again, my wifey likes it.  Nice and coconut-y, but a little on the sweet side for me.

Thai beef jerky - This is a dish I've had many times in LA but have never actually eaten in Thailand.  Go figure, it's delish if you like fried meat.

Their pad see ew - Delish!  Go with the spicy basil version for the best.

Glass noodle salad - This is yum woon sen and it's good.

Green Papaya salad - I actually really love their sam tom, because they put fresh grilled shrimp on in instead of salty crab or dried shrimp.  Get it easy on the palm sugar with medium spice and you'll be in healthy tasty heaven.

Crying Tiger beef - Mmm.

Fried rice - Their regular train or the spicy are both delish.

For full disclosure, I have known Diana as a personal friend for about 5-6 years.  Rather than unfairly biasing this review, however, I think that fact helps it.  There were a few things that happened a few years ago that really made me realize that she is the real deal, and an amazing PT.

The first thing that tipped me off was when I once was supremely tense and needed a massage.  When I mentioned that while were were hanging out socially, Diana worked on my back for about 15 minutes and it was like heaven.  The great kind.  Normally massage therapists can't massage me hard enough, but Diana was not only deep, but rather than just feeling good I felt great afterwards.  But for the most part, that's neither ehre nor there.

About a year later, my ex threw out her back.  We couldn't figure out what she'd done wrong or how to fix it.  We waited, hoping a few days' time would make her feel better and be able to stand and walk upright without being in pain.  Didn't happen.  So reluctantly we called Diana (we don't generally love to impose on friends, but...).  I honestly have no idea what Diana did (I was in the other room), but her work on my ex brought relief she hadn't felt in days.

Fast forward to another social hangout.  We were watching someone on television--I can't remember who, and talking about the way she held herself.  Diana told us that there was a reason she held herself that way and started in with some doctor-y scientific mumbo jumbo I couldn't understand.  However, this incident stands out in my mind as an example of someone who clearly knows exactly what she's doing.  Beautiful.  And while I hope I never have to see her professionally, I know that if I ever need physical therapy, I'm lucky enough to know the best in the biz!

I have kept to a self-imposed policy of never mixing my business (music) with my pleasure (food) when it comes to http://Yelp.com.  Until now.  I just couldn't hold back, and given Yelp my elite status, I had to let the world know.  Please understand my bias--I've been coming here probably once a week or so since it opened, either to hear their music or to play music there.  However, there's a reason that we jazz musicians love the BW so much, and that is that it is the ONLY jazz club and bar that has shown the most sincere dedication to the music and musicians on every level--management, booking, drinks, food.  The place has it all.

From a musician's standpoint:

I love performing here.  The staff makes us feel very welcome, parking is free, the environment is beautiful, but best of all, Joon books excellent, creative, wonderful musicians.  The piano is stunningly gorgeous and always in tune.  Mitch and the gang at the bar always make good drinks, and always have a great attitude.

From a jazz-lover's listening standpoint:

I love listening to music here.  The seats are moveable and lend to a really relaxed vibe.  The strict no talking policy lets guests really focus on the music, and those who want to chat can sit at the bar in back.  There are chairs with backs for anyone who needs one, the parking is free, and the cover is rarely more than $10, almost all of which goes directly to the musicians, which of course makes me happy and confident that they are making a living.

WONDERFUL.

I wasn't expecting much when I came to lunch here.  1) I was being taken here by my grandmother-in-law and 2) it's owned by Il Fornaio.  I was extremely happily surprised, however, when the food came!  Pizza was good, but not stunning.  But the gnocci were light and the bolognese was delicious!  My pasta and sauce was ridiculously good, as was everyone else's.  What a lovely surprise!  The OC brought it this time...

Los Angeles needs another gourmet burger restaurant like I need a hole in my head.  In fact, it's getting rather offensive.  Here's what I mean:  

The finishes of the place are nice wood and metal. The food is super pricey and uses high quality ingredients.  Why, then, am I greeted with ball jars and pails of fries?  It doesn't make sense.  Once again, I'm disappointed that for $10-$12 I can't get a damned burger and fries.  Golden State, you still rule the roost for QPR.  Nonetheless, food was delicious.

We ordered two burgers to share and split.  Nancy's Backyard Burger was stupendous.  Perfectly cooked, tasty as hell, the avocado, bacon, and comte were high quality and added a lot of flavor.  The regular short order burger was blech, we didn't even eat it, really.  We took it home and gave it to the dog (sorry, Nancy, I love you), as the mustard part of the mayo was so overpowering the whole thing just tasted like mustard and mushrooms.  It was a weekend, so we had the tator tots, which were delicious and rosemary-ey.

Overall, I would just like to see a fancy place with fancy food present themselves that way.  Your "backyard" theme doesn't fool me when your prices are high.  Just say so, and we'll be all good.

I don't really understand why this place is rated so highly.  It's a very ordinary strip mall sushi joint.  We came here yesterday with my wife's grandmother, who loves the place (go figure).  The rolls were typical, and most things were either fried or covered in mayonnaise.  Ew.

Finally!  That's all I have to say...but how NYC and Napa and everyone but here has wonderful artisan markets and we don't is beyond me.  Now bring one close to mid-wilshire and all will be well.

Everyone who knows me knows that I just LOVE places that do one thing, and one thing well.  Aurelie is just lovely, and her chocolate chip cookies and variations therein are just stupendous.  All of the ingredients are organic, and they manage to be both chewy on the inside and crunchy on the outside at the same time.  This is a big deal, because my wife likes chewy and I like crispetty crunchy.  We both adored the cookies, an we were really glad to meet Aurelie, who was warm and lovely...just like her cookies!

Best chocolate chip cookie in LA?  Absolutely.  And the $3 price tag?  Whatever.  This bougie can't complain when I'm just as easily ready to fork out $5 for coffee or Pinkberry...