wanugee "Beam me up, Mr. Scott!" N.'s Profile

This Radisson is right off the I-405 about 3 miles north of LAX in Culver City, even though it has Los Angeles in its name. The Four Points Sheraton and the Courtyard by Marriotts on the other side of the 405 (I have stayed at both) are also called "Los Angeles Westside", but are in Culver City.

The location is pretty convenient. Near LAX, plus you can walk to 2 shopping centers, the Howard Hughes and the newly remodelled Westfield Culver City (formerly Fox Hills Mall).

The hotel is old, but it has been remodelled not too long ago, so it looks newer that it is, but you can tell around the edges of everything.
The lobby is probably the nicest part of this place. The rooms are decent sized, and have a sort of modern Art Deco decor to them, but they still have CRT TVs, not flat panels. The desk is small, the chair like a secretary's, but adjusts well. The 405 traffic noise is constant.
Self parking is $14.

The best thing about this hotel?

1. Free WiFi.
2. The Culver Club, which has live Jazz entertaiment most nights of the the week.

Of the 3 hotels clustered near the 405 here in Culver City off Centinella, La Cienaga and near Sepulveda Blvds, the Four Points Sheraton, Courtyard by Marriotts, and this Radisson, I would recommend the Courtyard. It is the newest of the 3, cleanest, but usually costs $20 more a night than the other two.

I lost count, but I think this is my 99th DIFFERENT hotel I have stayed in since June 2007.

Right in the heart of the up and coming Art Colony that is developing in the old downtown section of Pomona, is this restaurant, Pho Vi.

It has been here for 2 years, is pretty good size, with very high ceilings, a lot of tables, an outdoor patio seating area, and a plethora of menu choices. By plethora, I mean a lot of menu listings. over 200 to be more exact! That includes 28 different Pho, with sides and add ons not included, so there are a lot of Pho combinations!  Almost as many Com Tam dishes (broken rice dishes). They also have Banh Hoi (tiny vermicelli) and Mon Chay (vegetarian dishes) and Che (tapioca desserts) in addition to the usual Bun, Com Dia, and appetizers you find in most Viet restaurants like this.

Since I just had Pho Tai Nam for lunch, I tried their Hu Tieu Hai Vi. (Similar to Pho, with the same rice noodles, but with a seafood broth and in this case, shrimp, artificial crab, squid, and fish balls, chopped green onions, and a leaf of lettuce.)

It was decent. Nothing special, just tasty and hitting the spot. The regular bowl was pretty good size, and only cost $6.00. The Pho soups are mostly $5.95 for a regular and $6.25 for large.

Service was friendly, at least to me.

Vi is the family name of the owners, ergo Pho Vi.

This is a good place to grub up before or after Pomona's Art Colony's bi-weekly Art Walk, First and Third Saturdays, from 6 - 10pm, where you can browse all the galleries and see a variety of art styles.

Pho Vi is open 7 days a week, 9 am till 10 pm.

Well, out here in the 'burbs, 25 miles from Little Saigon, in a strip mall off the Imperial HIghway just before the Inland Empire, you wouldn't expect to find good Vietnamese Pho. Chain restaurants, yes. Fast food, ditto.  

And if an Asian restaurant has "Bistro" in its name, you are prepared to get ripped off with non-authentic food at high prices to support the fancy decor for non-Asians to rave about.

But Olivia's Bistro surprises on the key issue, the food.

It turns out Olivia Hoang's grandmother had a Pho restaurant in Vietnam. So her family learned something about serving Pho to Vietnamese. And this shows in the Pho at Olivia's Bistro. The broth is very good, simmered properly with no shortcuts to get the flavor. They use the finest meats, too. The Pho Tai is thinly sliced Filet Mignon, so it is super tender and tasty. The Nam was also very tender and tasty.

The restaurant is more upscale than your average Pho place, and the price is higher, $7.95 a bowl, but the quality makes it worthwhile.

The service is friendly, too. This restaurant has been opened about a year, and they haven't comprised their quality ingredients, even in this difficult economy, and being located out where there aren't that many Viets to appreciate it.

They don't have a big menu, mostly Pho, some Com, Bun, Salads, and Khai Vi. But what they do make, is good.

They maybe opening another restaurant near CSU Fullerton, so if you are out that way, look for a new Pho place this spring.

No, Ssing Ssing is not a prison back east in the United States.

It is a little dive restaurant on the Vermont street corridor on the edge of Korea Town in Los Angeles.

It only has 6 tables and a small counter, and has been under present ownership for the past 5 years.

The full name is Ssing Ssing Korean/Japanese Restaurant.
For Japanese food, they offer Korean style Japanese dishes, like Fish Egg Bowl, Sashimi Bowl, Eel Bowl, and Fish Egg Stew, Udon, and Sushi and Rolls. For Korean, there is Soybean Stew, Kimchee Stew, Pollack Soup, Korean BBQ, Spicy Squid, etc. There are also "snack" foods, like Spicy Rice Pasta, Spicy Noodle, Ramyun Rice Pasta and Jang Tue Noodle. Most dishes are under $10 for lunch.

I tried the Soybean Stew ($7.99), or Den Jang Jigae. This is like Miso Soup meets Soon Dubu, with Tofu cubes, onions, cabbage, zucchini and green chili peppers. I got 6 good size banchan, too, with a big bowl of rice. The Jigae was tasty and so, too, the banchan. Service was good, friendly and attentive by the owners.

Ssing Ssing has a small, non-descript exterior in a small strip mall in Los Angeles, with mostly Korean on all its signs. Great value and tasty cheap eats!

To call myself a Road Warrior is an understatement.

In the past 2.5 years, I have stayed at 97 DIFFERENT hotel properties.
That's not just NIGHTS, or just STAYS, it is PROPERTIES. It doesn't count mutiple nights per visit, or repeat visits.

And that is just since I have been Yelping.

I have a GOLD frequent guest card from Starwood, Hilton, Marriott, and Hyatt. (well, Hyatt calls there's platinum, then diamond.) I also have cards from Carlson (Radison) Six Continents Priority Club (Intercontinental, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn), Wyndham, Trip Rewards (Ramada, Days Inn, Travelodge), Accor (Novotel, Motel 6)Best Western Golden Crown Club, Prince (Japan), and Choice Privileges ("I've Been Everywhere Man"). Basically, about every place you could stay.

Near LAX, I have stayed at several hotels.

4 Points Sheraton - older, small rooms, but clean, slow elevators, but $89 - 125 rooms. You can hear the planes. Great beer selection at the restaurant and bar, however. (100 different)

Marriott - $125 - $195 rooms or so, Fedex and Starbucks, other restaurants/bars, full service, large meeting rooms, nice staff, older Marriott.

Westin - $150 - $250 Closest to the I-405, remodelled, nice lobby, poor  bar service, good beds, but not one of the better Westins

Embassy Suites North - $125 - $225 Free breakfast and happy hour, great atrium, parking around the building, 2 room suite.

So here is my 98th hotel property review:

Sheraton Gateway - I really like Sheraton's Sweet Sleeper beds (actually, most of Starwood chain's beds). Firm, soft, and nice sheets.
But for $125 - $200, this Sheraton is really underwhelming.

Valet parking is $24. Self Parking? $13.25, but its in the back, across the street, in the LAX private parking service lot for Fliers!. It's a hike with luggage, especially when you walk a block to get to the front.

Its been remodeled, but still old. Hot water in the shower is iffy, and my HVAC in the room was freezing me, I had to call engineering. The door to the bathroom almost hits the toilet. There is a 40 inch flat-screen, but I had no remote control for the TV anywhere in the room!

Service in the restaurants and room service is polite, but somewhat slow. Hamburger/fries/coke room service? $27!

The night desk for late check in was brusk. I was tired and that didn't help, especially after lugging my luggage a block. I got the 12 floor, but no complimentary water (usually for gold members), intead, the $4.50 bottle, and $10.95 Wi-Fi daily charge.

Couldn't hear the plane noices from the airport, but I could hear guests coughing next door pretty easily.

The only saving grace for the money is Starwood often does points earning promos for this place to get you to stay. So look for those.

If you need to stay near LAX, then please stay here.

I am staying at Embassy Suites.

There has been an influx/increase in the Latin population in Colorado, like in many states over the past decades. You get the feeling some people resent this, feel threatened by potential cheap labor, change in neighborhoods, cultural transformation, different language,  etc.

It seems some of these people complain about it, want to build walls, deport illegals, make new English only laws, at least that is what you'd think if you watched Fox News broadcasting in the bars here at DEN airport.

IF all that happened, what would this place be called?

"What's good"?

Somehow it doesn't ring the same.

Plus, I don't hear anyone complaining about burritos, tacos, enchiladas, or tostadas on Fox News!

(Well, maybe off camera after Sean let something foul come out of his lower hole instead of his foaming upper hole?)

Nor Lou Dobbs!  (Maybe Lou left CNN looking for a good burrito?)

Que Bueno is small and cramped, and very popular. Big Burritos. Frozen Margaritas or cold Cervezas.

Get a large burrito before your UAL connection, and spend the rest of that flight squirming in your seat trying to let out the gas, undetected.
Open up the air nozzle full blast and share those Latin smells with the rest of the cabin.

Well, now people are complaining again!

Nature's Table Cafe is a chain of fresh ingredient salad/sandwich/smoothies food that started in Orlando in 1977 and has now expanded to over 65 locations, mostly in the southeast.

This one is at the Orlando International Airport (MCO) in the B Terminal, near the gateway to gates 1 - 59, alongside Wendy's, Pancho's and Qdoba.

Why this locations's name says Nature's Table Bistro versus Cafe is a mystery, since it is counter service grab and go only.

They had hot choices, namely lasagna or chicken. Sweet and sour chicken, teriyaki chicken, Mexican chicken, and mystery chicken.  These exotic offerings taste like.....uh, well, chicken.

You are better off with one of their salads, soups or sandwiches.

I had the Sandwich and Salad combo, which was with my choices, actually a half a wrap of chicken salad sandwich/wrap and a greek salad for $7.99, and a bottled diet coke for $2.49. Supposedly all of Nature's Table offerings are made fresh every day. My choices seemed fresh and were good, for what they were.

Not nearly a "Bistro", though.

On this section of International Avenue, it is choked full of little chain eateries for the budget family Disney tourists, bright lighted signs and neon, motels and lower brand hotels, and for some reason, a lot of Indian and Brazilian restaurants.

We went looking for Nelore Churrascaria, the popular Brazilian all-you-can-eat steakhouse with the roving skewers of endless meat carved on your plate. We passed 3 other Currascarias trying to find Nelore, and must have missed it, but ended up at another large chain of Churrascarias, Texas de Brazil. My buddy and I had eaten at the one in downtown Chicago this summer

http://www.yelp.com/bi...

so we decided to go with a known quantity and eat at this one.

Not as ornate as the two-story Chi-town location, but most of the basic elements were the same.

- Large oval "Salad bar" where we got Italian caprese like tomato/mozzarella, smoked salmon, prosciutto, garlic olives, etc.
- Caipirinhas, the national cocktail of Brazil, a sugar cane rum concoction full of limes and sugar, sort of mojito-ish or sweet gin tonic, in plain, mango, and other flavors
-  young male waiters in gouchos carrying metal skewered meats of all sorts, sliced at your table until you cry uncle (or turn your little disk to red)
- included sides of garlic mashed potatoes and plantains
- pretty good key lime pie for dessert
- all you can eat for $44.99/each (dessert and drinks extra)

If you like meat, Churrascaria is something you should try. It is becoming more and more popular across the US, and is a mainstay dining out experience in Brazil, especially in the southern plains and Sao Paolo, where I tried it there and Rio de Janeiro many years ago.

Landry's Seafood House started out in a residential house in Lafayette, Louisianna back in 1947. Now it has 23 locations, mostly in the south, and is part of a larger group with over 300 properties, including Chart House, Pesce, Cadillac Bar, Brenner's Steakhouse, Rainforest Cafe, La Griglia, and 30 other brands. The group also owns the Golden Nugget hotel and casino, in Las Vegas and Laughlin, Nevada.

Most children do not like Seafood. However, to give the parents some time to enjoy their food here near Walt Disney World, there is a balloon puppet maker who makes the rounds making balloon animals to keep the kiddies happy.

For the adults, good seafood will make them happy. Landry's has a decent selection, with cold and hot seafood appetizers of the usual kind, about a dozen fresh fish choices, about 15 shrimp and shellfish choices, platters, pasta,  and a few beef and fowl options. Most entrees are in the $20 - $25 range, and most are served with a house salad and bread.

For appetizers, I had a half dozen oysters ($7.99), my partner had an American Caprese like salad ($6.99). Both were decent. My entree was Angel Hair with seafood ($17.99, with scallops, shrimps, mussels) and my buddy ate lighter with a Landry's Seafood Salad ($19.50 with salmon, shrimp, lump crabmeat). The food was solid and edible, but not memorable. A couple of glasses of Placido Pinot Grigio ($7.50) wetted the whistles.

Landry's reminds me a lot and is similar to another southern seafood chain, Papadeaux's. Strong similarities in food, atmosphere, and service, but less blackened Cajun offerings.

United Airlines now offers in-flight food for purchase.

It used to be only a choice of 4 different snack boxes with all sorts of uninviting snacks for $5.

But now, they are offering a little more variety and quality. Like Thai Chicken Wrap, or Turkey Sandwich on whole wheat, both served with crispy, kettle styled chips. They even have an organic veggie selection.

They only take credit cards/debit cards, like Southwest, for any food or liquor purchases.

Oh, and didn't alcohol used to cost $4 a drink? Then they raised it to $5? Well now, it is $6, at least it was for my Tanqueray and tonic.

The Thai Chicken Wrap was pretty good. Nice chunks of chicken breast, with veggies and an aioli mayonaise. Much better than simply those snack boxes, or far superior to simply pretzels and peanuts.

But then again, that Chicken Wrap and Chips was $9.

United. It's time to fly.