Ritchie Valens would be proud . . .

On the corner of Glenoaks and Lamer in Burbank, CA, there is a place that few know about, and few are worthy of.  I risk ruining the secret for those who know, but dangit, La Bamba Island Cuisine deserves to be tasted by the world!

Like the Little Train That Could, La Bamba has been chugging along since as long as I can remember (and I would know since I live within walking distance of the place).  I remember my childhood when we could come for chicken tacos after school.  I remember during high school we would sip on the fruitiest shakes this side of the Caribbean (banana! mango! pineapple!).  I remember college when their menu expanded.  And now I remember these current days, when finally, after coming here for most of my life, they now serve a wide variety of beer and wine for $4.50!

La Bamba has a little bit of everything Latin.  Looking for a slice of Cuba?  Check out their Cuban sandwich: Cuban bread, pork, swiss cheese, pickles, mustard, and awesomeness.

You want fish tacos?  They’ve got it and more!  Check out the menu for the best shrimp tacos you’ve ever had, the juiciest lobster tacos you’ve always wanted, and the freshest Mahi Mahi tacos you ever tasted.

Want something bigger?  Then order the most popular item on their menu: The St. Thomas Burrito.  A giant mixed frenzy of shredded pork, guacamole, jack and cheddar cheese, sour cream, and beans.  It’s a challenge but totally worth passing.  Don’t forget to order it “wet”: smothered in ranchero sauce and covered in cheese, if you can handle it.

Each meal is served with a side of yummy Caribbean rice and beans or decadent garlic fries.  For a little place with only a very inviting patio to eat your meals, La Bamba’s menu and heart is really big.  Fajitas, tacos, burritos, lobster and crab salads, Cuban sandwiches, quesadillas, tostadas.  If you come to La Bamba, you’ve already made it to paradise.

Oh, did I mention they now serve beer and wine?

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La Bamba Island Cuisine

2600 Glenoaks Blvd.

Burbank, CA 91504

818-846-3358

www.labambarestaurant.us

where food soulmates meet

Before having a religious experience at the Air concert at the Walt Disney Concert Hall two Sundays ago, I was blessed by the patron saints of food at The Lazy Ox Canteen in the Little Tokyo district of Downtown Los Angeles.

Greeted by a cozy and urban atmosphere and illuminated by architecturally giant-size lightbulbs, The Lazy Ox is for foodies looking for something different and downright existential.

It’s hard to describe the food because it was just the most interesting and experimental combinations I’ve encountered in a really long time.  And this is coming from the guy who once ate Fried Bat in San Francisco (it really tastes like chicken!).

In order to just gauge how awesome this place is, I’m just going to tell you what I had.  There were four of us, but we ate a feast fit for eight.

Dashi Marinated Yellowtail with Avocado, Hash Browns, and Creme Fraiche:

—We started off the night with this delectable dish.  Hands down, the best yellowtail I’ve ever had (sorry, Noshi but still check out my review in the Hungry? City Guide: Los Angeles Handbook!).

Pig Ears with Pickles, Lime, and Horseradish Sauce

—I think my friend’s remark explains it all: “The pig ears were like decadent strips of bacon, I swear!”  Pickles, lime, and horseradish sauce?  How the hell do these people even think of putting these things together?!

Pig Ears with Pickles and Lime and Horseradish Sauce

Khlili (Moroccan-Style Beef Jerky) Served Over a Fried Egg on Toast, Topped with Red Pepper Sauce

—Holy $#!& this was good.  The Khlili is sprinkled on top of the fried egg, and it’ all doused in a sultry sauce.  It is true: the best breakfasts are for dinner.

Khlili over fried egg

Lengua Ravioli

—To be honest, I wasn’t really a fan of this.  The texture was weird, and I didn’t think the combination worked.  However, I still appreciated the risk of it.

Lengua Ravioli

Lamb Cheek

—Lamb anything is good.  Lamb cheek at Lazy Ox is perfection.  Soft, tender, and jam packed with flavor.

Pork Shoulder

—An excellent companion to the lamb cheek.  Who knew meat anatomy was so delectable?  It came with an insane barbeque sauce.

Pork Shoulder

Butter Biscuit with Strawberries and a Scoop of Vanilla Ice Cream

—I really don’t know how we managed to make room for dessert, but it was just too delicious to pass up.  The strawberries were sandwiched between two warm and insatiable butter biscuits.  After you take a bite of that, you have some vanilla ice cream, and your mouth just screams in delight.  It was a pure Ratatouille moment.  You know, in the movie when Remy The Rat pairs two foods together and sees hallucinogenic colors.  It’s exactly like that.

Strawberry & Butter Biscuit

Tapioca Brulee with Pineapple Sauce

—After all we ate, how could we only order one dessert?  A very sweet but very awesome tapioca with a sugar-crispy outer shell that felt so good to bite into, it was all a happy surprise.  Complemented with a bottomless pineapple sauce, you have to wonder why these two items have never met before on any other menu.

Tapioca Brulee

Combined with an eclectic mix of imported and domestic beers (St. Bernardus and Flying Dog “Raging Bitch” IPA are big winners here) and rich, flavorful wines, our meal reached near perfection.   The cool thing about this place is that like Downtown, the menu is constantly changing every week with innovation and casual elegance.  After our meal, ”Captain” Vincent Cummings came over to ask us how the meal was.  He then gave us a 10% discount for being downtown natives!

Love is in the air at The Lazy Ox because not only do they pair foods really well together, they find their soul mates.

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The Lazy Ox Canteen

241 S. San Pedro St.

Los Angeles, CA 90012

213-626-5299

www.lazyoxcanteen.com

***all photos courtesy of fellow Yelpers (www.yelp.com)

Courtesy of www.fraicherestaurantla.com

This past weekend, one of my closest friends from college moved back to L.A. after being away for a year in the East Coast.  Naturally, we had to get the old crew together and welcome him back with delicious food and strong drinks.  Since we had been in a fraternity (don’t judge me), I imagined the night would consist of the typical burgers-and-beer formula that had worked so well in the past.  With a vast arsenal of new wave burgers and gourmet beer popping up in the City of Angels, I looked forward to biting into that sweet combo of tomatoes, cheese, and meat and washing it down with a crispy lager.

When I found out we were going to some French-Italian restaurant named Fraiche in Culver City, the disappointment showed in my face and echoed in my voice.  Since when had we become boring adults?  We’re young twenty-somethings, not some old married couple.

I think that’s what made Fraiche even more tantalizing and delicious for me, that it vastly exceeded my expectations.  It showed me the potential of an up-and-coming city and the up-and-coming years of adulthood.  It was a pretty metaphorical evening.

The decor and ambiance struck me first simply because it was not what I imagined: it was actually cool and happening. With low lighting, farmhouse stone textures, an open kitchen, and a seductive tanned bar upon entrance, it’s the most unpretentiously hip scene I’ve seen in a while.  An impressive wine rack adorns the wall to show that Fraiche isn’t kidding around.  They really mean business.  After all, chef Jason Travi earned his merits at Spago and Le Terza.

I started out with a Paulaner Original Munich beer that perked me up good, for it was cold and crisp and clean.  I matched it with a goat cheese and bruschetta appetizer that had me salivating.  The two were so rich in flavor and complemented each other perfectly: one was gooey and somewhat sweet, the other tender and salty.  I felt like I ate a lot but was not full.  I even held back on the bread and sublime olive tapenade.  I had to save room for the main course.

"Olive Tapenade," courtesy of Eileen T. from www.yelp.com

They had me at duck.  The Duck Agnolotti is one of the best pastas on the west side.  Small raviolis filled with savory duck and basked in a clamshell sauce, topped with baby mushrooms, and doused in truffle butter!  I get hungry just writing about it.  But I could not limit myself to just one meal.  My friends were generous enough to offer me tastes of their meals, and it was the best of all worlds.  The monkfish was creamy and buttery and awesome, especially when it topped a smooth potato puree.  The steak frites was like having a taste of my two favorite foods: Steak and French Fries (simple enough right?).  The steak was tender and juicy and so soft you could cut it with a butter knife.  The fries were acceptable.  I’ve had better (thank you, Wurstkuche!).

Courtesy of Jenni C. from www.yelp.com

"Steak Frites"

"Monkfish," Courtesy of Eileen T. from www.yelp.com

When all was eaten and done, I couldn’t believe how much I had enjoyed the meal.  It then dawned on me that we had all grown up a lot since graduation nine months ago.  Suddenly, burgers and beers just didn’t cut it anymore.  With us, our food tastes and lifestyles had matured, and all for the better. Everything has to move on to a higher level, must continually progress, and that’s something to look forward to.

Like college and with Fraiche, I’m a little sad it’s over, but I’m so happy I did it.

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Fraiche Restaurant

9411 Culver Blvd.

Culver City, CA 90232

310.839.6800

www.fraicherestaurantla.com

You’ll swear you’ve died and gone to meat heaven when your eyes feast upon twenty-one different types of sausages ranging from the classics such as Bratwurst and the Hot Italian to the gourmet such as the delicate Mango & Jalapeno or Chicken Apple & Spices.  However, the true gem here is the exotic sausage selection which offers thousand-flavor-an-hour Duck & Bacon with Jalapeno Peppers and the absolutely essential Rattlesnake & Rabbit (buttery but mildly spicy!).  Wherever your taste buds lead you, you’re sure to be heading in the right direction.

The race isn’t over yet as their Belgium fries perfectly complement the jam-packed main course.  These truly are some of the best french fries in all of Los Angeles (yeah, that’s right, I said it!).  And what’s a fry without its sauce?  Ten different dipping sauces like Chipotle Ketchup, Thai Peanut, Pesto Mayo, a delectably chunky Bleu Cheese with Walnut & Bacon (my personal favorite), and the option of glazing the fries in white truffle oil make it seem too good to be true.

Choose from over twenty-one imported beers from Germany and Belgium like the Franziskaner Hefeweizen or Spaten Optimator, and you’ve created the perfect meal.  If you save enough room for dessert, make sure to head to the back bar and subject yourself to the awesomeness that is the Toasted Apple Pie Ice Cream Sandwich.

Reasonably priced (yes, they accept KCRW Fringe Benefits), loaded with hipsters, and soundtracked by an in-house DJ, Wurstkuche leaves you stuffed and satisfied, and then wanting more.

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Wurstkuche Restaurant

800 East Third Street

Los Angeles, CA 90013

(213) 687 – 4444

www.wurstkucherestaurant.com

Already starting to win me over with its complimentary valet parking on a Saturday night, Messob (on the intersection of Fairfax and Olympic) screams authenticity from the hand-woven basket tables to its traditional selection of Ethiopian honey wine, beer, and world-renown coffee (their website claims, “Coffee is our bread!”).   My girlfriend ordered the honey wine while I got the Ethiopian beer in order to taste the best of both worlds.  Neither disappointed as the beer was smooth and colorful while the wine was a great balance of sweet honey that wasn’t overwhelming and what I think was a hint of lemon, but hey, I’m no Ratatouille.

The Messob menu is incredibly extensive, and the details just made everything sound appetizing.  From Doro Wot to to Fit Fit to Alitcha to Tibs, we wanted it all!  And so we got it all by ordering the Super Messob Exclusive, which gave us large samples of everything that included Siga Wot (strips of beef braised in red pepper and other spices), Kittfo (finely chopped, lean beef with spiced butter and chiles), and the Yebeg Siga Alitcha (mild lamb stew spiced with garlic and ginger).  Of course, they gave us a hefty quantity of Injera, the excellent soft bread that acts as the perfect complement to the decadent meat and juices.

When you get there, don’t forget to eat it Gursha, the technique of hand feeding your dinner partner by placing chunks of food in their mouth.  Usually exchanged by close friends, married couples, and the adventurous, it is a traditional Ethiopian sign of affection.

If only I could have somehow hand fed the restaurant to show how much I loved the food . . .

Store Details:

Messob Ethiopian Restaurant

1041 South Fairfax Avenue

Los Angeles, CA 90019

(323) 938-8827          www.messob.com