Stopped by the new Playa Vista location for one of their “soft opening” dinners. There was a good sized crowd (lots-o-families), and luckily they paced the seating so that once you sat, your food came in short order. I’ve only been to the Sawtelle location once before, but everything we had on this trip was solid. I don’t think anyone will be wow’d by the food at ROC, but for the Westside, I think it’s a tasty option. The staff was very friendly and attentive, which hopefully continues when they’re fully open.
Crab & Pork Dumplings / Pickled Szechuan Cucumbers / Scallion Pancake / Three Cup Chicken / String Beans / Veggie Fried Rice (this was my highlight) / Spicy Chicken Dumplings / Black Sesame Sweet Buns (treat status)
Are you supposed to put the soy sauce/wasabi on top, do you dip individually, or do you eat it all plain?
Poking around on the WWW (World Wide Web), it seems like it may vary based on preference, but is there a “right” way to do it?
Also, I was curious about the difference between Kaisendon and Chirashi and found this definition:
“The difference between them lies on the rice. Kaisendon uses normal rice whereas Chirashi Sushi uses sushi rice or vinegared rice.”
But is there a practical difference?, i.e., do you eat one rice with the fish and not the other? Or is it just preference? One random source I found said the following, but I’m still not super clear why chirashi would be more casual than kaisendon… Is it the fish quality?
"When you’re on the run or don’t want to be bothered with sitting down in a crowded kaitenzushi place, then chirashizushi is really great. When eating chirashizushi, you don’t need to treat it like other sushi. No need to dip the slices of fish in soy sauce/wasabi – just put your condiments directly into the chirashizushi if you want to, and shovel it into your mouth like a donburi (rice bowl) dish with a spork or chopsticks. But usually, it’s usually already prepared with no real need for extra flavoring."
I’m no expert (just an expert at transporting food from my plate to my mouth) but i don’t think there is a “right” way. My preference is to take a piece of fish, put some wasabi on it, dip it in soy sauce, put it back on the rice and eat it with the rice. This gives me more control over how much wasabi/soy sauce I get with each bite and won’t get the rice too soaked with soy sauce.
At sushi tsujita not only is the rice different between the kaisendon and chirashi but the cuts of fish in the chirashi are also cut into smaller more bite sized pieces. You can eat the whole chirashi bowl with the spoon that they provide.
Dang, that is some good looking pizza. I’ll probably remember this next time I’m tipsy and need pizza, and will end up booking tickets to Phoenix. Southwest is having a sale, you know.
This place is funny because when they first opened, they were adamant about being a “New York-style only” pizza place, and now they have spinach and cherry tomato pizza. California doing its magic.
For @TheCookie:
LaRocco’s, 3819 Main Street, Culver City, 90232
Ginger shots at Press Bros at the GCM are really nice if you are into that kind of thing. I don’t recall this place being there before, but walked over there post-Howlin’ Rays. The shot was spot on, but the beet/strawberry back for it was awesome, and the presentation was lovely. Awesome spot to grab a ginger shot in DTLA. This is also a great finisher for a Howlin’ Rays meal btw, consider it a “Pro Tip”.
Had an UberEats coupon and saw the place @ipsedixit mentioned in that thread about Whittier / banh mi’z. In a flash, I remembered that I’d tried the pork belly iteration close to when they first opened, and it had been fine enough, but I hadn’t since returned. And so, armed with my discount code, tonight was the night of new beginnings.
The Go Fish Mi was full of flavor and spice. The dill came through really nicely. Even after its voyage in a uber, the bread was soft but held a crunch. I would definitely eat this again. Really solid.
GO FISH MÌ ling cod braised with turmeric and dill, yogurt, spring onion, garlic / topped with bean sprouts, drizzled with lemon juice / house-made chili mayo
Also tried a bite or two of the Moo Mi, and it was a doll. Same great punch of flavor and spice. Spring rolls and rice pudding were probably items I would pass on next time.
Is a bang bang at the same restaurant just ordering more food? Or leaving then coming back to get another table? I could imagine the staff legit thinking you were a schizophrenic or something if you did the later lol
… Sweet. Seriously, just a city or neighborhood is good. I think posters want to know these things.
