CITY Night Border Grill 445 S Figueroa St Los Angeles, CA 90071 Dining date: 2/8/12 Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger opened City Cafe in 1981, at the time a relatively nouveau restaurant serving food with accents around the globe. The success of that restaurant led to a much larger CITY restaurant and eventually Border Grill. As…
Picca 9575 West Pico Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90035 Dining date: 12/14/11 and 2/1/12 Generally regarded as one of the top restaurant openings in 2011, Picca has truly been a hotspot since opening in June. It seems that every time I’ve visited, the restaurant’s been packed – boisterous and full of energy. It’s easy to…
Mexicali Taco & Co. 702 N. Figueroa St. Los Angeles, CA 90012 Dining date: 2/7/12 I first heard about Mexicali in the early part of last year, when LA Taco was hosting a popular vote for best taco in Los Angeles. They ended up winning that competition, and I made my first visit to the…
Lucques 8474 Melrose Ave Los Angeles, CA 90069 Dining date: 1/31/12 Lucques is Suzanne Goin’s first restaurant (opened in 1998), located in West Hollywood. The menu is seasonal and market-driven; every restaurant claims to be doing that nowadays but Goin was doing it before it become so cool. It’s probably attributable to her background at…
Wolvesmouth Underground Dining Various locations Dining date: 1/14/12 I first dined at Wolvesmouth about a year ago and it was one of the more memorable dining experiences of the year. I almost never get to see this caliber of cooking up close, and I found the process to be as intriguing as the food itself….
Mario Batali at the Beach Coast Restaurant Shutters on the Beach 1 Pico Blvd Santa Monica, CA 90405 Dining date: 1/28/12 Mario Batali needs no introduction. As one of the most famous chefs in the country, I’m sure he draws crowds whenever he’s doing a food event. When I heard he would be hosting a…
Tsujita LA 2057 Sawtelle Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90025 Ramen Yamadaya 11172 Washington Blvd Culver City, CA 90230 Dining date: 1/16/12 I first tried Tsujita over the Veteran’s Day holiday. Trying to fit two lunch spots into one larger meal, Tsujita happened to fall into the second slot where a humongous line awaited us. Sadly,…
Lexington Social House 1718 Vine St Los Angeles, CA 90028 Dining date: 1/8/12 I first took notice of Lexington Social House during last year’s Taste of the Nation, where their fried chicken was one of my favorites of the afternoon. My second encounter with the restaurant was at The Taste where, again, the fried chicken…