No pix, but I did a lil Torrance bang bang fur lunch…
First, stopped in KOSHIJI and had the six skewer lunch (chef’s choice - chicken wings / eggplant / beef / chicken balls / chicken & green onions / bacon-wrapped asparagus). I am, admittedly, a yakitori noob, so I don’t have much context/expertise to offer, but I liked everything I had. The beef had an especially great flavor. The chicken wings were tender and sweet. I thought the miso soup that came with it was great, as well. I bet it’d be a fun place to be for dinner when the place is packed.
22807 Hawthorne Blvd
Torrance, CA 90505
On my way back up Hawthorne, stopped into I-NABA for some zaru soba / tempura. Their soba is always great (I’d call it a tie with Otafuku - still haven’t had the original Ichimiann, though). Out of the tempura, the shishito tempura was fan-freaking-tastic. Really surprisingly great.
20920 Hawthorne Blvd
Torrance, CA 90503
Not a bad way to start the weekend (in a food coma).
I did a Destroyer / Gjusta BangBang today. Quite fun! At Destroyer we had the tartare, peas and Confit. Thought the peas were really great with texture and a nice variety of flavors and textures. Iiked the tartare but thought it was good, not great just wish the meat itself had a stronger flavor it kind of got lost with everything else going on in that dish. The confit - IDK? it was like a deconstructed chicken shepherd’s pie but dry and needed salt despite having a mound of parm on top. All in all I would go back and I enjoyed the visual creativity and great quality of ingredients.
Gusta, Porchetta melt, Fish platter: Pastrami cured Salmon, Hot smoked mackerel (OMG) and Pickled Herring, Miso date cookie, Cortado, Coffee. No review necessary. Gjusta Goods was fun to walk through btw love the trump ash tray -hah.
Those noodles are perfect and retain its chew and texture quite well. Good slurping here. Nice broth, slightly milky with no trace of oil. Generous pieces of chicken breasts. This is a KTown Classic.
Crispy skin and juicy chicken. That’s not undercooked chicken, that is the smoke ring, and flavor.
Chicken comes in quarters, half, or whole with 2 sides (salad, rice, beans, or fries). Get a squeeze bottle of the aji sauce. Always a line here. Very nice Japanese-Peruvian lady runs the place.
tuna tostada, uni, white miso, furikake, avocado, cashew chile del valle
Blue Bottle Coffee
liege waffle
E.A.K. Ramen
Oh So Hot - Pork and chicken broth, pork chashu, seasoned egg, nori, bean sprouts, cabbage, spinach, sesameoil, spicy miso with ground chicken
Thanks to @Chowseeker1999 for the tip, this is legit ramen in the middle of melrose.
Wontons in chili oil never had these before at Chef Hung and wow, this things were like crack. The chili sauce is addicting as fuck and the wontons had a nice flavor. Must order. Two orders next time.
Cruffin This is by far the best offering I have had at Mr Holmes, every other item I have tasted was within the bell curve. Nice for the area, bang^nth is getting stronger.
Great and friendly service. Tasty and delicious grub. Loved the Bone Marrow. Sat at the bar and chatted up a lovely Mother/Daughter from New Orleans. We ended up sharing some food. Had a great time!
Everson Royce Bar!
Walked in and A Tribe Called Quest’s “Award Tour” was bumping. I like them already! Cool and friendly workers here. On Mondays, free Fries with a burger
Reminds me of Petit Trois burger in a way, but Petit Trois is way too heavy, same great beefiness without feeling like a tub of crap. At $10 for this quality I can fuks with that.
I like - not love - oysters, (and rarely enjoy any as much as those I have in Louisiana) so forgive me if this is a dumb question, but is the shell thickness relevant to judging oysters?
Refreshing, flavorful and balanced
