WSGV updates

Americas - USA West Los Angeles
41

PASADENA:

i’m pretty sure i mentioned this elsewhere, but i’ve revisited mi alma (which replced javier’s which replaced alberto’s) on colorado blvd. across from PCC.

the carne asada is still legit even though the new proprietors happen to be… korean. i went with the extra meat burrito, which upset the overall balance of meat to carbs IMO>

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their fish tacos are also pretty good, though some might consider them pricey at $2.99 each. they offer a 3 fish taco plate for $7.50

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the interior of the place are pretty much as how i remember it from alberto’s days, except for three additional items on the menu on the wall behind the counter, as befitting the ethnic heritage of new ownership:

bulgogi bowl
bulgogi tacos
bulgogi burrito

i ordered a fish taco and bulgogi taco (actually, you are required to order 2 bulgogi tacos minimum; my lunch companion took the other one). the meat in the bulgogi taco was closer to a mince/ground beef in terms of texture, but it tasted like bulgogi.

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i’m kinda hoping they expand the korean side a bit.

ROSEMEAD

The supermarket in “the square” mall at the SW corner of san gabriel blvd & garvey has been replaced by GW supermarket, which soft opened on 05/23. it’s another asian supermarket.

more interestingly, the food table that’s open fri-sun in front of the supermarket has upgraded. they are now the people you pay for any of the food that comes from the food prep area to the right as you enter the supermarket. that table used to sell kimbap for only $2. they’ve expanded and now an entire half of the table has become: “how about rolls” and instead of the just the single version of kimbap (the “original” pictured below now marked up to $2.99 PLUS tax),

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vs. the new version which is more snazzily wrapped and pre-cut.

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and they now offer a plethora of fillings, including things like beef and spicy tuna, each variant running about $3.99. i’m curious to see how long that will last.

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42

@JThur01 's newest la eater SGV article came out this week

alas my attempt to use bitly seems to have generated the same result:

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43

Curses! Ju Fu Lai gone already? Where will I get my smashed fish soup now?

44

I know! That looked interesting. I managed to stop by and pick up a menu from Ju Fu Lai. It looked to be a mom & pop with daughter place. They were very sad and forlorn looking when I went in, which never bodes well.

45

This one really hurts.

On several levels.

46

five months, - i googled the name and got only three hits - and two of them were la eater artilcles announcing their opening and closing. the third was for a building construction permit.

clearly no one knew that they existed.

47

Toiling in obscurity… Where was our love?

48

apparently we have only so much love to go around.

49

Family? Friends? Client?

It was sad, but I’ve been in several places that had the “last legs” feel. The saddest thing I’ve seen was when I walked past an almost empty place during peak dinner hour on a Saturday night and saw a sorrowful looking wait staff. As I walked back by about 20 minutes later, I saw one of the waitresses burst into tears. It was closed in the next day or two :cry:

50

That corner seems invisible, like so many not viewable from the street. Since Giang Nan closed there have been several places in that space. Despite the quality, I wonder how long Giang Nan would’ve lasted without the JGold effect.

Yelp is really letting us down. It used to be someone would post a review on Yelp within hours of a place opening in the SGV. Between that and folks like David, TonyC, ipse and myself, we got a line on places early. Over the last couple of years, places have come and gone without a single Yelp review.

51

And I just walked by and that Hot Star Chicken is gone.

52

Just getting updated on this thread (after several mos). That’s one of the saddest things I’ve read here. :cry:

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53

i think they shuttered in september. they were offering discounts trying to get business near the end.

54

And you don’t even know half the story.

55

Their fried chicken patty was truly a wretched product. Like a Tyson’s conveyer belt reject.

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56

The one on Garvey? Pasadena is gone already. The first, on Nogales in RH, seemed to still but running today.

Yeah, even though I wrote about its arrival, it was somewhat disappointing. It was just ok. Folks I know who have been to Hot-Star locations in Asia were extremely disappointed with the Rosemead (Garvey) branch. I’m told the one in Rowland Heights (on Nogales) is the better of the two.

57

They didnt get paid? Actually, it was heartbreakingly sad to see, I don’t think I want to hear the rest of it.

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58

i tried them once at the rosemead location. i didn’t think that they were that bad. but i didn’t see much demand at that portion size & price point, especially in pasadena. i understand the rosemead location is still open, but i have no idea if they’re doing decent business or not.

59

They might be surviving off the people who can’t get into Longo Seafood.

60

Wait, are you saying that Hot Star is an alternative to Longo? Either you hold Hot Star in high regard, or Longo in even lower regard than my family does.

As an aside, down the street on Garvey, next to Beijing Pie House, the new Meet with Chengdu is worth a visit.

At that plaza, I could do a pretty gnarly BANG (fried corn and scallion noodles at Cui Hua Lou) - BANG - (squash and lamb fried dumplings at Beijing Pie House) - BANG (mao cai and fried corn at Meet with Chengdu). Bam!

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