@PorkyBelly beat me to it, but I would add that you can also call to check to see if there are any additional items. The yuzu shio ramen and tai ramen I ordered were not on Caviar, so I did a phone order. No guarantees given the skeleton crew right now, but just fyi.
Where is the aburiya raku menu? Their website seems to be down I loathe using the delivery services.
When I spoke to Jeff at Iki 2 weeks ago, he said that they’re only offering ramen and bentos.
Lamonica’s extra large pepperoni pizza. Called and paid ahead of time. Sign on the door stating they will not serve you if you do not have a mask on. Excellent social distancing - they had clear signs and roped off the areas where you could stand. All staff has mask and gloves on.
Clearly I could not resist eating a hot slice in the car, after a good hand sanitizing! Leftovers vacuum packed and frozen.
How is the iki ramen to go? As much as I love ramen and as a ramenya purist, i’m a big proponent of slurping in the restaurant
Prime pizza Sicilian
Toppings, ramen, and broth are stored in separate containers.
La Española Meats is OPEN for business! There are strict safety controls in place. Only 6 customers are allowed in the store at any given time. Mandatory masks and disposable gloves are to be worn in the store also - there is a very nice retired police officer they hired just outside the store, handing out gloves to customers.
The bocadillo sandwiches are still available for order on the spot from the deli counter (we ate them right up in the parking lot), and they are always excellent. We ordered a tortilla de patata (with pimiento), a filete de caballa (mackerel in olive oil), and jamon importado (for the kiddo, who gobbled it up with gusto before I could snap any shots of it - I guess it must have been wonderful). The deliciousness and authenticity of the Spanish food on this days made it all the more bittersweet, as originally we were supposed to have been in Spain during this time on vacation.
… and of course, we DID call in a few orders of their outstanding house paella “to go” (make sure you call them on FRIDAY for the Saturday pickup!). Regulars on this board know that I go on and on in extolling the virtues of their paella on the board, but this stuff is just so, so righteous. Mind you, La Española’s housemade paella mixta is NOT fancy (paella is peasant food anyways), but it is incredibly tasty, reheats extremely well, and just chock full of goodies. In fact, the flavors in this beautiful paella would not at all be out of place in any casual eatery throughout Spain.
King’s Hawaiian Bakery & Restaurant in Torrance is offering a generous 50% off on most items for COVID-19 front line workers.
Huli huli chicken, and fried rice with teriyaki chicken… Chicken was a bit dry, but the starches were surprisingly satisfying! The potato salad was lovely, and the fried rice was comforting, full of island flavor.
Paradise cake… Always a colorful treat, and a hit with kids.
Pineapple cheesecake… It’s been years since I’ve had this. And after eating it, I am beating myself up for waiting so long.
Pineapple tres leches cake… Wow. Gorgeous slice - A moist, satisfying cake all-around!
Who could leave the King’s Hawaiian Bakery without buying a loaf of their awesome Rainbow Bread?!
I’m a big fan of La Española for their Spanish products, but I’ve never seen more than say 2 customers inside their tiny store at any given point, so I don’t think limiting it to 6 customers is going to be a challenge. Maybe it’s busier on weekends?
Don’t forget to mention the delicious olives that come with the bocadillos.
Regarding the paella, while good and more than passable for what we can get here in the greater LA area, I wouldn’t say it’s excellent. It’s also not very traditional and not a version you would find in Valencia. Still tasty though.
Obligatory: don’t expect hot paella.
we love King’s Hawaiian! Paradise cake and the chocolate dobash are our favorites.
San Mateo’s Taishoken has a four pack cook yourself at home tsukemen, including their famous dip sauce packet that is cold to the touch when you buy it. $26 plus tax (and plus tip if you want to help out the staff). DIY proteins not included so you can be as creative as you want. They call this their omiyage kit. It will last 5 days in refrigeration.
Kemuri Japanese Baru’s binchotan smoked and grilled beef tongue rice bowl, and their kibinago (blue sprat) tempura with a side (not pictured) of yuzu kosho aioli sauce. Even operating under limited circumstances, they are still working extra hard to deliver the goods.
Sushi Yoshizumi twice in a week!
The delectable tekka don consisting of aged bluefin zuke sourced from Ine, Japan (off the coast where Kyoto is). It’s astounding how much improvement has gone in since the first iteration of this (and other takeout bowls)
The nigiri set is so delightful this time. Marinated scallop, anago, super smokey sawara, sakura masu, Saba, kanpachi zuke, kinmedai, toro, dashi tamagoyaki, and two pieces futomaki
Dessert Republic’s off menu cold double skin steamed milk custard with red beans is excellent even in a takeout format.
Ramen Sayro Hachi is offering some limited bento sets that are proving to be quite the powerhouse. Pictured below is their Japanese unagi bento, where the eels are sourced from the Shimanto River in Kochi prefecture, said to be one of the last of clean streams. The eels are supposedly fed a feed of natto, aonori, and wakame… bit on the lean side but still very aromatic.
The eels here rest on a bed of shredded tamago with some rice underneath that has a wonderful glutinous texture. In the back, ebi shumai, a fantastic ramen egg even though it’s lightly chilled, purple yams, some takuan, and a mixed vegetable gomadare that has spinach, broccoli leaves, kale. Quite a lot of work and care put into it. The owner is super talented and I think has washoku and kappo kaiseki background but chooses to do ramen. It also helps that her husband is none other than the kaiseki chef of Hashiri (one star in San Francisco).
Wow that NorCal Japanese game is strong AF
Thanks, @ebethsdad. I should have looked a little harder.
These are what I am looking for:
And what a coincidence! You get a free pack of them with orders over $50. Not gonna be ordering that much, unfortunately…
Just a warning it’s not really like the txistorra you find in the Basque country which is a semi-dry sausage and wouldn’t keep for shipping