My insanely anthropomorphic mushroom and spinach curry from CoCo Ichibanya in Torrance. Was it the most delicious Japanese curry? No, but it was okay in a pinch. I particularly liked the shimeji mushrooms, and the fujin zuke (pickled vegetables) was a good sweet/sour foil to the curry. The veggie croquettes were most definitely of the frozen variety, and the garlic naan was was curiously margarine infused and slathered with garlic powder instead of real chopped garlic.
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I left my iPad in a rental car, so no photos, thus my weekend is kind of a blur. I went back to Hog Island Oyster Co. and had more clam chowder. Also Cippocinni on the Wharf, donât laugh, they make great spaghetti and meatballs and we had hungry teenagers to feed.
Tonight, I FINALLY stopped by Hatchet Hall. I like it! Very pretty inside, and not crowded at all, probably because it was Sunday night. I sat at the bar and ordered the sliced tomatoes because @TheCookie liked them so much. And yes, they are that delicious, a lot of tomatoes with stuff strewn all over them. Really good. I didnât even mind the garlic very much.
I also had some okra, because I believe in trying everything once. Although I did have a bite of okra stew once, but I donât think that counts because it was disgusting. This okra was charbroiled and crisp and had some tart little things mixed in. I couldnât stop eating it, very unusual dish, in a good way.
The benne roll was good, but I donât get all the raving about it. Itâs just a well-made roll and I thought the butter was greasy.
The portions are a pretty good size, I took most of my food home. Service was component and friendly, without being intrusive. Hatchet Hall may very well become my local drop-in spot for when I want a quick bite in a nice place.
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Wasnât me. I havenât been to Hatchett Hall yet. Hmmm⊠I wonder who it was 
.
super beefy, but surprisingly i didnât taste any funk.
HANJIP
Culver City - Downtown
Braved the CC apocalypse for lunch. I agree with previous reports that youâll find equal/better elsewhere in the city, but for those on the westside, itâs a pretty dang good option if the prospect of getting over to k-town is too much. They have a weekend lunch special that is $19 / $25 (different meat options) All You Can Eat. Didnât do this mâself, but some day perhaps.
Only picture is of the free chicharrĂłnes we received because of their insane special - âCatch a Pokemon in Hanjip and receive a free order of chicharrĂłnes.â $10 value for a Sandshrew!
Van Leeuwen
Culver City - Platform
After lunch, popped over to the Platform for a cup of coffee at Blue Bottle but somehow found ourselves at Van Leeuwen instead. Oops.
Boysenberry Shortcake (vegan)
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Iâd DL pokemon go for that.
GRAND PARK ~ AUGUST 20, 2016 ~ NOON TO 8PM
Did anyone go to this? Not me⊠I was having peeps over that evening. But didnât even know about it. Doesnât seem like the vendors were as good as Tacolandia.
#Hatchet hall
bentonâs country ham, so hammy it makes nicolas cage look serious
benne yeast rolls, honey butter
chicken liver, onion jam, grilled bread, pickles, apple vinegar
octopus, cranberry beans, treviso, fried shallot, lemon aioli, salsa verde
game hen, pan drippings, grilled bread, lemon, soft herbs. Highlight of the night
peach melba canelé cake. This was a miss, dense and flavorless.
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Chubby Rice: drove! From SaMo to Chubby, mid afternoon Friday. Donât try this unless you really have a serious jones for old school Chinese takeout. Net, net, mildly disappointing, but everything needed reheating by the time we got home, soâŠOrdered General Tsoâs chicken. Very fresh tasting; clearly chicken not rat or cat, but didnât crisp up enough, even after reheat in actual oven. Mongolian beef, good not great; noodles with it, same. Pork egg foo yung, flatter than the usual pancake and very light on the gravy. Salt and pepper Calimari, split decision, I liked wife didnât, not salty or peppery. Sausage fried rice very good. Egg roll wrappers toughish. Crab Rangoon perfect and addictive. The highlight. If youâre within 15 minutes, well worth it. Weâre not.
The general consensus seems to be the Crab Rangoon is the best dish at CR. Thanks for the report.
Doya Doya on Artesia in Torrance has been satisfying my okonomiyaki cravings for a few years now. We went last night and ordered shishito peppers, shrimp and calamari sauteed in garlic butter, yakisoba, omu-soba (like omu-rice but yakisoba instead), and three okonomiyaki; pork special, shrimp and my favorite - pork with cheese, extra green onion. Sorry for only one photo:
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Nice @bulavinaka. I have to try this place soon. 
You like it more than Gottsui (which I felt was so-so)?
Actually I just realized, is Doya Doya the last remaining Okonomiyaki specialist in LA now? 
Gottsui got an âAâ for enthusiasm but a âCâ for okonomiyaki from me. The staff was always very welcoming and friendly but I found the execution and taste to be average.
Doya Doya is as close to a specialist in okonomiyaki that Iâve found - oko is what you go there for. Gaja in Lomita has the gear in place - the hot plates set in the tables - but most of us mortals donât have the skills or patience to make our own with competence. Gaja will make what ever you order and it will come out reasonably well, but IMHO not at the level of Doya Doya.
Doya Doyaâs oko has a presence to it. One gets the feeling that the chef has focused on creating the dish as it was meant to be. Doya Doyaâs finished okonomiyaki is served on a cast iron serving plate that is seriously preheated - just like many of the places in Japan. The upgrade from this would be the giant hot plate with a counter built around it where one eats directly off the hot plate.But thatâs a huge investment into a specialized food that may or may not fly. What ever the case, although Iâm partial to Hiroshima okonomiyaki, the Kansai version at Doya Doya is a good representation of what one would get in Japan.
Everything else being equal, I think what elevates most food things in Japan is sourcing. This applies to the humble oko too. In Hiroshima, we ate at an oko specialist called, Okonomiyaki Lopez. The owner is from Guatemala by way of Oahu and LA. His wife is originally from Hiroshima. Her parents sorely missed her so the couple moved there. Señor Lopez worked in many restaurants including oko specialists in Hiroshima.
Señor Lopez was amazed at the efforts these places would make to get the specific ingredients that they wanted. He noticed that the eggs used at what he considered to be the best oko joints had double yolks - all of the eggs. He learned that double-yolk eggs were preferred because of the added richness from the extra yolk. Why not use two eggs? Too much egg white in the ratio, what to do with all the extra egg whites if separating from the yolks, and marketing.
Some of the local egg farmers actually inspect their eggs for double yolks due to the demand by certain oko joints. So when Señor Lopez opened his own place, he did the same - ordered double-yolk eggs from those specific egg producers so to elevate his okonomiyaki.
I donât know how much specific sourcing Doya Doya does - itâs a humble place and this kind of specific relationship probably doesnât exist between producers and the tiny handful of oko joints. But everything we ate there has been enjoyable. The owner makes his own tofu (that is used in a couple of small plate dishes) so he obviously is particular about his ingredients. And the care that goes I to each dish is so obvious.
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Was in Long Beach and decided to stop by Playa Amor for some Puerto Nuevo lobster. They specialize in the lobster you get at lobster village in Baja. No pictures, unfortunately. The lobster was pretty well cookedâsolid portion of lobster, decent but unspectacular handmade flour tortillas, a very well made batch of rice and beans, and then two ramekins with hot clarified butter and a chipotle salsa. You basically make lobster tacos with lobster, beans, butter, and the salsa. Unsurprisingly itâs pretty darn good, but small things could make it better (a hotter salsa, better tortillas, etc), In the end this is a pretty expensive luxuryâthree well filled lobster tacos with the accompanying items cost $38.
I wouldnât rush out here for this. But if youâre in the area and craving lobster you could do worse.
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Hi @bulavinaka,
Nice info, thanks! Also, heads up that Gaja closed down already. So I think Doya Doya is the only one left.
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Bummer - I guess okonomiyaki is on the down slide.
I love their okonomiyaki. Eatinâ like a champ!
Very excellent everything bagel with lox schmear from Belleâs Bagels. They may be the contender for the best bagels in the city, though admittedly a smidge salty.
Belleâs Bagels
5043 York Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90042
(323) 208-9408
Please forgive this slightly NSFW photo. The mushroom beorek from Sipan Bakery was a bit bland.
The spinach beorek was perfectly tart.
Sipan Bakery
1250 W Glenoaks Blvd., Ste. C
Glendale, CA 91201
(818) 240-0699
https://sipanbakery.ordersnapp.com/home
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