Toni "Food Pornographer" L.'s Profile

Nearly as good as the original. Glad this place is spreading across LA so that everyone can taste the happiness.

Food: If you've been to the original Scoops on Heliotrope you know what you're getting yourself into. I think the only difference is that they have less flavors at the counter. They have non-traditional flavors of ice cream suggested by patrons with ingredients like sea salt, honey, lavender, brown bread, and other foodstuffs ripped straight from a hipster's kitchen. I went for the sea salt cookie dough and the lavender honey (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). The lavender flavor took some getting used to, but in the end I was left craving a whole tub of it. Ordering the small will get you two generous scoops. You'd expect tiny portions for something that tastes so good, but I think this is very reasonably priced.  

Atmosphere: Just like the Heliotrope location, there is a giant scoop mobile in the middle of the store. You can suggest your own flavors on a small blackboard in the back. When I went there they had very few tables, but it looks like they might have changed that.

Service: To make sure you like what you're getting, they'll let you have sample after sample after sample. I think I ate more ice cream in samples than in my actual cup.

Synopsis: Yum. Wish I were closer to one of these locations.

Their burritos will knock you up, but they might not knock your socks off.

Food: It seems like the major draw to El Nopal is the pregnant burrito (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). This thing looks like a heart attack on a plate, but I must say it's quite tasty if you are into the whole tender meat, cheese, beans, and tortilla thing. I opted for a hard shelled chicken taco and a carnitas soft taco (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). Both were decent, but on the small side. More importantly, after consuming most of the food on my plate, I was horrified to find a pube sitting squarely on one of my avocados. Ick. If I were to go again I'd probably get the chile verde (http://www.yelp.com/bi...) which is not only spicy but comes with some pretty tasty beans and rice. On the plus side, El Nopal has homemade thin, crispy, and salty chips that are some of the best I've had in a restaurant.

Atmosphere: The place is pretty cramped and faces a busy street. They have a lot of plants inside, but about 50% of them are fake. Try to guess which ones. When we went on a Saturday it was pretty dead, but it seems like they have a lot of regulars.

Service: Pretty good. Not much to say here.

Synopsis: Still sort of traumatized by the pube and the food wasn't really good enough for me to ignore that.

This place has such an alluring name and view of Lake Arrowhead. Now, if only they could tweak their food to match my expectations...

Food: The menu will really get the saliva flowing. I had a hard time choosing between the sweet and savory items, but ended up ordering the benedict belgian with a side of fruit (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). First of all, why are there olives on this? Maybe they ran out of chives and pepper? I mean I like olives, but I'm pretty sure these were canned and they overpowered the hollandaise. The waffle and sauce combo was pretty good. It sort of reminded me of the chicken gravy and waffle flavor you get at Roscoe's. Finally, the fruit was disappointing. They probably have a hard time getting decent fruit since they reside in the mountains, but it was still really mediocre. I think I could have made this better myself. The peach melba belgian is enormous (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). Once again, I think they tend to prefer canned fruits over fresh.

Atmosphere: No negative comments here. The views of the lake will take your breath away and every inch is decorated to complement the view.

Service: Pretty good.

Synopsis: The waffles are not knock-your-socks-off good, but so far this is the best restaurant I've visited at Lake Arrowhead. It's worth a try.

Old Town Pasadena disappoints again.

Food: So, the food here actually isn't that bad, although it's hard to make an assessment when the portions were microscopic and each dish cost a kidney or two on the black market. We started off with edamame (http://www.yelp.com/bi...) which was not even free ($4!!!). For some reason it didn't taste as fresh and you'd expect it would. Some of the beans were bruised so severely that I had to throw them away. I ordered a seaweed salad appetizer (http://www.yelp.com/bi...) which cost a whopping $7 for a clump that I ate in two bites. Someone wanted to try some, but I refused out of fear of starvation. Ok, I think this is the 8 piece sushi assortment (http://www.yelp.com/bi...) which was $36... the fish was fresh, but come on. It was definitely not worth that much money. I was starving after this meal.

Atmosphere: Maybe this is what you're paying for? We had a large party so they seated us at this table surrounded by giant stones. I have to say, it was a most impressive spot in which to dine. The lights are low and the colors dark.

Service: Really slow with waitresses who seem to not give a crap about whether or not you get fed. The guy at the front was pretty nice though.

Synopsis: I didn't even have to pay for this meal and it still ticks me off.

Diversity never tasted better.

Food: Ok, so the first thing you're probably wondering is what the heck is Chinese Islamic food? It's pretty much Chinese food minus all the pork, plus a lot of lamb, knife cut noodles, and sesame bread. Sounds good right? It is. I've been to the Chinese Islamic restaurant in San Gabriel and this place blows the other location out of the water. If you go, make sure you get the beef soup with knife cut noodles (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). The chunks of beef in the soup are so tender and flavorful. The meat falls right off of the bone as soon as you poke it. If you don't like beef, they have plenty of other dishes with the knife cut noodles, like chow fun (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). If you're a carb lover like me, you'll appreciate these big irregular chunks of dough cooked to tenderness. Since it's an Islamic restaurant, you'll find plenty of items on the menu featuring lamb. I tried a dish that featured sauteed lamb and chinese broccoli (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). It was pretty good, but the meal probably could have done without it. The other indispensable dish on the menu is the sesame bread (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). This stuff has red bean paste on the inside and the portions couldn't be bigger. It's sort of like dim sum, except flat and never ending. Of course, they have dishes you could find at any Chinese restaurant like sweet and sour shrimp (http://www.yelp.com/bi...) or spicy beef with bean curd (http://www.yelp.com/bi...).

Atmosphere: While the San Gabriel restaurant looks like your typical Chinese eatery, this place puts great emphasis on the Islamic part. The entry way has an enormous fountain and brass chandelier (http://www.yelp.com/bi...) that looks like something out of a movie. There are decorative gates all around the interior with the star and crescent symbol of Islam. Most of the patrons here aren't East Asian unlike the patrons at the San Gabriel location. It could be a little cleaner inside, but it's definitely a unique experience if you've never been.  

Service: I think most of the people working here are either Chinese or Mexican. Expect service similar to any other Chinese restaurant.

Synopsis: Fun and delicious experience.

This is the In-N-Out of Korean Food. Arteries, prepare to be clogged.

Food: This place reminds me of Spitz, a Mediterranean restaurant that takes a cultural food, douses it with calories and french fries, and suddenly makes it American. Not complaining, but this is pretty much what is going on. Take for example the Chubby Pork Belly bowl (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). Not only is this thing full of delicious meat chunks, sauce-doused rice, a big intact fried egg, and sprigs of veggies, it has plenty of gochujang (sweet and spicy pepper paste) to give you a nice pleasant burn. Sooo good. Then there's the Buttered Kimchi Chow (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). This is similar to bibimbap, but obviously not as healthy. Just look at the gobs of sauce on the thing! This was also intensely flavorful and spicy, but I think I liked the taste of the pork bowl better. If you come here, you need to try the ooey gooey fries (http://www.yelp.com/bi...)  at least once. Not only is this thing covered in a sauce reminiscent of In-N-Out's animal style, but it also has whole cloves of roasted, seasoned garlic in the mix. It doesn't get much better than that. I think almost anything you get here is going to be a win. My friend who just moved to Chicago had someone bring this to him on a plane. Now, that's what I call addiction.

Atmosphere/service: So I actually had this thing brought to me like a princess, so I don't know what it looks like inside or what the service is like, but who cares? It's amazing. Go get it. Now.

Synopsis: Yum, but as I am concerned for your health, you probably want to go here sparingly.

My friend has been urging me to visit this place for quite some time. Should've taken his advice ages ago.

Food: I'd categorize Spitz as California Mediterranean. You can find falafel, hummus, and kabobs coexisting peacefully with salad, gelato, and sweet potato fries. If you've never been here, you'll probably want to try this: http://www.yelp.com/bi.... It's the chicken Doner wrap with sweet potato fries in street cart style. I'm usually an excruciatingly slow eater, but this thing ramped up my appetite like no other. I pretty much wolfed it down. The sauce in the wrap was to die for and the fries were perfectly seasoned, crunchy, and hot. According to my friend, you should pay an extra $2 for the street cart fries. This is similar to getting animal style fries at In-N-Out. They basically pour gobs of sauce with various veggies and cheeses on top, elevating the caloric content to epic proportions. I sampled some of it and have to admit it's good. Very good. What I ordered was good enough for me, though.

Atmosphere: This place is certainly decorated to attract the hipster type with ample patio seating and sculptures all over the place. The indoor seating is pretty sparse and cramped. It's located in Eagle Rock off of Colorado. They have a parking lot, but it's pretty small.

Service: Order at the counter. These guys weren't terribly friendly, but it was fine.

Synopsis: It's pretty difficult to categorize this place as it taps into the food traditions of many places, but apparently diversity is delicious. This is a must try.

First off, kudos on the name. It's now something I involuntarily yell when I injure myself. Secondly, nice job on the baked goods and tea. I think this place could be big.

Food: They have a huge list of drinks and a nice display of Asian (i.e. not afraid to put hot dog in just about everything) baked goods. I tried the almond milk green tea with boba and had a sip of the Thai tea (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). The nice thing about their teas is that they are truly teas. You can definitely taste that strong tea flavor. The baked goods are pretty good as well. We tried a savory bun filled with pieces of pork and veggies, namely celery and corn. It was good, but it would have been great fresh out of the oven. We came near closing time, so I'm assuming everything was at least a couple hours old. The nice thing about this place is that it stays open really late, whereas a lot of these newer Asian bakeries close early. You can get your bread fix at 10 PM if it so suits you.

Atmosphere: I love the look of this place. It's in a great location at the intersection of Valley and San Gabriel so you've probably seen it once or twice if you live in the area. Every inch is immaculate and tastefully decorated. If you can read Chinese they also have tons of newspapers and magazines you can flip through while snacking. It was pretty empty when we went, not sure if it's because this place is somewhat new.

Service: The owners are beyond nice. If you can't decide what to get they'll let you sample some of their teas.

Synopsis: A good place to stop if you want some late night milk tea or bready foods.

No need to go to Korea. You can get some downright authentic mandu right here.

Food: As the name suggests, Myung In specializes in dumplings. You'll find them in all shapes and sizes, from the steamed meaty kind to the more bready, dim sum-like variety. My boo and I sampled the fried pork dumplings which were juicy on the inside and just the right amount of crunchy on the outside (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). We also ordered one of their spicy soups which was chock full of delicious veggies (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). The soup wasn't as good as it looked... I found it to be a little bland, but enjoyable nonetheless. And since this is a Korean place, you'll get the obligatory sides of a cabbage salad, pickled daikon, and kimchi (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). All of them were scrumptious.

Atmosphere: Illiterate? No problem. They have the entire menu in picture form at the front of the restaurant. This also serves the dual purpose of making you want to order everything they have. Too bad I'm not rich. The restaurant is in a strip mall with a large but congested parking lot. It seems like a lot of customers phone in orders and come just to pick up the goods. Not too many in-house diners. We ate here before a trip to the Wiltern, so it's a great spot to hit up if you're looking for something to scarf before seeing a concert.

Service: Order, eat, pay at the counter when you're done, just like in Korea. Even though this place looks just like a lot of restaurants in Korea, I think the owners are Chinese (they at least speak Mandarin). Not sure what that does to the authenticity.

Synopsis: Yummers. This is an especially good place to go if you're vegetarian and love Korean dishes. That said, it's a good place to go if you're a carnivore.

This is not for the faint of tongue.

Food: One word: SPICY. This is Sichuan food at its best. They lull you into a false sense of security with some nonspicy seasoned peanuts (http://www.yelp.com/bi...), but after that, the party in your mouth begins. My boo and I ordered the pork dry pot, a giant bowl of chopped meat, veggies like celery and potatoes, tofu, and tons of chili oil set on an individual burner right at the table (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). We also decided to get some mild dishes like noodles with cucumber (http://www.yelp.com/bi...) to balance the spiciness. Now, when you start eating, don't think that you are immune to the spiciness just because you don't feel much of a burn. It'll kick it a little later and make you wish you could drink a gallon of milk on the spot. The food here is quite yummy, but if I were to do it again, I'd bring more people and order more non-spicy items so that my tongue doesn't atrophy.

Atmosphere: No matter when I drive by this place it's always packed. We decided to go on a super cold night and there was still a 30 minute wait with several people running around on the sidewalk to keep warm (there isn't much of a waiting area inside). The restaurant is fairly small, but there are some larger tables in the middle for groups of 5+. They have a giant flatscreen TV by the entrance if you find your company boring.

Service: Helps to know some Mandarin to read certain parts of the menu, but it should be pretty obvious what each dish and the prices are. Otherwise, the service was pretty standard.

Synopsis: If you've never had dry pot, this should be your next stop.