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1700 S Catalina, Suite 203
Redondo Beach, CA 90277
(310) 561-4075

Sunshine Yoga  

Category: Yoga
Neighborhood: Redondo Beach

5.0 star rating
5/26/2011
I've been shopping around for a new yoga studio in the South Bay - and this is it!

The space is lovely, immaculate, and very welcoming.  This is no snooty LA yoga studio - I've taken classes with three teachers so far (Rachel, Chan, and Kamala), and all have been exceptionally sweet, friendly, mellow, helpful, and very knowledgable.  

Rachel even put lavendar-scented cold towels over our closed eyes during evening shavasana - heaven!!  

I can't think of a better place to improve my yoga practice.  I always leave feeling refreshed, nurtured, my mind at ease and my body a little bit stronger than it was before.  

Oh, and $15 for a 5-day pass (for newcomers) - great deal.

LOVE LOVE LOVE.  Would give it 10 stars if I could.

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226 S Sepulveda Blvd
Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
(310) 374-7810

Twist, Yarns of Intrigue  

Category: Knitting Supplies
Neighborhood: Manhattan Beach

5.0 star rating
1/12/2011
This is my favorite yarn store in the LA area.  The prices are really reasonable, yarns are gorgeous (Malabrigo!  lovely alpacas!), and the owner/employees are unfailingly cheerful and friendly.  Unlike other fancy local yarn stores, there's absolutely *no* snootiness here, which is such a breath of fresh air!

I spent some time talking with Cathy, the owner, and was impressed by her focus on stocking what she describes as "yarns with a conscience" (yarns from artisans who focus on investing back in their communities).

Can't wait to go back.

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3901 Pacific Coast Hwy
Torrance, CA 90510
(310) 465-1050

Chicken Maison  

Categories: Middle Eastern, Greek, Mediterranean
Neighborhood: Torrance

3.0 star rating
8/16/2010
This is a good Zankou equivalent for the South Bay.

I went for the first time today based on the special deal posted on Yelp.  Unfortunately, they refused to accept the Yelp offer ($5 for 1/4 chicken + 2 sides), so I had to pay full price for my 1/4 chicken + 2 sides.

The chicken, like Zankou's, is flavorful but greasy.  Nice selection of sides, including a mayo-less coleslaw (the "Greek" coleslaw), hummus, rice, and steamed veggies.

They also provide chili sauce and other condiments on the side.  

Pita is average.

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4502 Inglewood Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90066

Taqueria Sanchez  

Categories: Mexican, Fast Food

3.0 star rating
7/11/2010
The lengua here was FANTASTIC.  It was incredibly tender - probably the best lengua I've ever had.  The carne asada was just ok - it was a little dry for my taste, and had an unpleasantly steamed texture.  The al pastor was barely edible - it came covered in some sort of orange-colored sauce and the texture / flavor suggested dried and reconstituted meat.  Not good.  The carnitas were dry but flavorful.  

I would definitely come back, but only for those fantastic lengua tacos.

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1812 N Sepulveda Blvd
Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
(310) 545-7553

Manhattan Bread & Bagel  

Category: Bagels
Neighborhood: Manhattan Beach

4.0 star rating
7/11/2010
Nice neighborhood place.  Easy lot or street parking, decent (though not amazing) bagels and bread, free wifi, bread 1/2 price after 5 pm.

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2537 Pacific Coast Hwy
Torrance, CA 90505
(310) 784-0551

Ichimi-an  

Category: Japanese
Neighborhood: Torrance

4.0 star rating
7/11/2010
I ordered the cold soba with fried eggplant and radish - yum!  I haven't eaten much soba in my life, but this was pleasantly chewy, buckwheaty, and refreshing, the broth salty with soy sauce and fragrant with the additions of a couple chunks of eggplant, shredded raw radish, small squares of seaweed, and bonito flakes.  My noodles were served with some tangy pickles and a bowl of rice that was fragrant with a hint of soy sauce.  Good for a carb overload.  Service was friendly, even though they didn't speak very much English.  Dinner will run you about $15 including tax and tip.

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20916 Hawthorne Blvd
Torrance, CA 90503
(310) 370-5156

All Indian Sweets and Snacks  

Categories: Indian, Grocery
Neighborhood: Torrance

4.0 star rating
7/11/2010
They have great deals here on lunch and dinner specials.  Their lunch special consists of three veggie curries for $3.99, plus rice and chapati/puri.  The dinner special ($4.99) is the same as the lunch special, but they also include a samosa and gulab jamun.  You can also customize your own specials.  For instance, 2 veggie curries + 1 meat curry + rice + chapati = $4.99.  

The goat curry was very flavorful, if a bit tough.  

I also ordered a sunny saffron yellow yogurt/cardamom-flavored curry containing pieces of what looked to be pakora.  I found this to be mostly tangy, without much other flavor.

The daal was fine, though I've had more flavorful daal elsewhere.  

Take out containers are just regular styrofoam boxes, so they spill REALLY easily.

I took it to be a good sign when I saw lots of South Asian customers inside as well as outside.  I'm looking forward to returning and trying the other curries here.  I also saw a sign advertising homemade kulfi here, so I will definitely have to get a carton next time!

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1647 W Carson St
Torrance, CA 90501
(310) 328-4208

Taco Sinaloa  

Category: Mexican

3.0 star rating
7/11/2010
I grabbed a few late-night tacos here.  My assessments:

- Carne asada - good
- Lengua - ok
- Cabeza - tender, but too fatty
- Al pastor - ok  

Next time, I'll try the carne asada burrito and report back.  

Love the salsa bar!

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7306 Santa Monica Blvd
West Hollywood, CA 90046
(323) 874-3366

Bombay Grill - CLOSED  

Categories: Indian, Pakistani
Neighborhood: West Hollywood

2.0 star rating
7/11/2010
If you're looking for Indian food that tastes like mediocre takeout Chinese food, you've come to the right place!  

I have enjoyed Indian food at many random yet delicious hole-in-the-wall type places.  This was by far the most baffling Indian food experience I've ever had.

The chicken tikka masala, usually a safe and comfortable standby, tasted nothing like it normally does.  The normally spicy-creamy sauce was instead syrupy sweet, and, oddly, a bright red.  It didn't even taste like they used any of the standard spices.  It tasted more like the inside of Chinese bbq pork buns than chicken tikka masala.  In fact, if you had told me that this entree was from Panda Express, I would have believed you.

Instead of the standard fluffy basmati rice usually served in Indian restaurants, this place served overcooked lumps of regular rice - again, just what I would expect to see plopped into my styrofoam container at a takeout Chinese food place, but not from a highly yelp-rated Indian restaurant.

The naan, instead of being tender and crispy, was heavy and doughy, like an under-risen pizza crust.

I did like the mango lassi.  

All in all, I'm not sure why this place gets such high ratings.  Sure, it's homey, and the owners seem very nice, but the food is just bad.

Not recommended.

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1389 Westwood Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90024
(310) 479-3337

Sprazzo Cucina Italiana  

Category: Italian
Neighborhood: Westwood

1.0 star rating
Update - 2/19/2010
I'm baffled as to why, more than *two years* after I wrote my original review, someone allegedly connected to Sprazzo has contacted me, criticizing me for my review.  

I received a "compliment" from one "Savannah C.," who identifies herself as the owner of the daughter of Sprazzo.  The sweet note stated as follows:

"Well that's a little harsh and besides.... Italians would enjoy it alot better I would like to see you own your own Italian Restraunt and do it as awesome as my dad, the owner of Sprazzo does it ... But it doesn't matter cause we Are one Of the BEST restraunts in Los Angeles!!!!!!!!"

Thanks, Savannah.  It's been nearly three years since I wrote my review, and yet I still remember how gross those rotting salad greens were.  And, while you may disagree, I don't need to be Italian to give that assessment.

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1 Previous Review: Hide »

  • 1.0 star rating
    7/5/2007

    Ok.  This food was pretty terrible.  

    I order delivery Italian a lot.  And honestly, I know it's probably a bad idea to order delivery Italian, since al dente pasta quickly gets soggy, steaming away in its aluminum foil-cardbord wrapping in the back of a delivery van.

    But the crappiness of this food was inexcusable.  

    I ordered the Farfalle Matriciana, because the homey ingredients (bacon, onion, basil, red sauce) reminded me of Rome and made me smile.  But when I opened up the steaming box and dug in, shoveling a forkful of bowtie pasta and bacon into my mouth, I felt a gristly crunch that just shouldn't have been there.  The bacon was thick, impossible to chew, tough, and fatty - like the last gristly, gross piece of ham that gets cold on the Thanksgiving platter because no one wants it.  Also, the bowtie pasta was mushy.  :(

    On to the salad.  Thank goodness I had saved it to eat after my pasta, because my friend shoved his own sad, wilted salad in my face.  But not just wilted - in his words, he had opened up the salad container to the pungent scent of ROTTING greens.  When he poked the greens to confirm the rotting, yep, they were slimy.  And when he tilted the takeout box, he saw "rotting salad juice on the bottom."  "I've never been served such a gross salad," he said indignantly.

    And hopefully, we never will again.  I promptly tossed my salad in the trash can, and that's the end of my Sprazzo experience.

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"Unfortunately, my eyes are bigger than my stomach."

Review votes:
203 Useful, 133 Funny, and 153 Cool

Location

Los Angeles, CA

Yelping Since

February 2006

Things I Love

Relaxing in the South Bay, cocktails on the Westside, noodles in the SGV

Find Me In

ugly skirts

My Hometown

All around LA, CA

When I'm Not Yelping...

I regularly overindulge in crunchy, savory snacks.

Why You Should Read My Reviews

I'm uber-critical.  Also, I love umlauts.

My Second Favorite Website

http://thisiswhyyouref...

The Last Great Book I Read

Outlaw Cook, by John Thorne

My First Concert

Debbie Gibson - Electric Youth, feel the power, see the energy!!

My Favorite Movie

The Royal Tenenbaums

My Last Meal On Earth

Massive quantities of salmon sashimi + sushi rice

Don't Tell Anyone Else But...

I used to subscribe to a computer gaming magazine.  And a knitting magazine.

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The "hold" function on the LA Public Library website - it's changed my life!

Current Crush

G.O.B.