kubey town

99 Things to Eat in LA Before You Die

Thanks to erinhill for posting Jonathan Gold’s 99 Things To Eat in LA Before You Die, list.  I’ve been eating my way around LA for a while and I still haven’t made my way to a lot of this stuff.  We seriously need to start a food club and eat this town up.

Here’s the list, with the things I’ve tried in bold.

101 Noodle Express’ Beef RollGold
Akasha’s Quinoa With Edamame
Ancient Ginger Soup at Noodle Island
Angeli’s Gnocchi
Animal’s Foie Gras & Biscuits and Gravy
Anisette’s Pain au Chocolat
Apple Pan’s Hickoryburger
A-Won’s Al Bap
Banh Mi from Mr. Baguette
Bay Cities’ Godmother
Beverly Soon Tofu
Bigmista’s Pig Candy
Bludso’s Brisket
Bob’s Plain Doughnut
Border Grill’s Green Corn Tamales
Brandt Beef
Brooklyn’s Hearth-Baked Bagel
Bulgarini’s Goat’s Milk Gelato
Campanile’s Grilled Prime Rib
Canary’s Lamb-Tongue Sandwich
Capital’s Hot Almond Milk in Pastry
Casa Bianca’s Sausage-and-Eggplant Pizza
Chantilly’s Sesame Cream Puffs
Chicharrones de Queso
Chichen Itza’s Panuchos
Chili John’s Chili
Chinois’ Sizzling Catfish
Chung King’s Chongqing Fried Chicken
Ciro’s Flautas
Cole’s French Dip
Comme Ca’s Cheeseburger
Cut’s Bone-Marrow Flan
Din Tai Fung’s Soup Dumplings
Donut Man’s Strawberry Doughnut
El Atacor #11’s Potato Tacos
El Parian’s Birria
Euro Pane’s Egg Salad Sandwich
Eva Solo-Brewed Coffee
Eva’s Lechon
Fab L.A.’s Street Dog
Golden Deli’s Vietnamese Spring Rolls
Good Girl Dinette’s Chicken PotPie
Harry’s Seascape Strawberries
Hollenbeck Burrito
Hot Dog on a Stick
Huarache de Cabeza
Huckleberry’s Maple-Bacon Biscuits
Hungry Cat’s Lobster Roll
Ivy’s Corn Chowder
Jitlada’s Fish Kidneys
Kiriko’s Salmon Sashimi
Kiyokawa’s Sashimi
Kogi’s Kalbi Taco
Krakatoa-Blend Coffee
Krua Thai’s Pad Thai
L.A. Galbi
La Brea Bakery’s Country White Bread
Langer’s Hot Pastrami
Lawry’s Prime Rib
Let’s Be Frank’s Hot Dog
Little Dom’s Oyster Po’ Boy
Little Flower’s Sea-Salt Caramels
Ludo’s Fried Chicken
Luna Oysters
Lupe’s #2 Burrito
Mandarin House’s cha chiang mein
Maple Bacon Donut
Matsuhisa’s New-Style Sashimi
MCGrath’s Rainbow Chard
Meals by Genet’s Doro Wot
Michael Cimarusti’s Squid With Piquillo Peppers and Pig’s Ear
Mo-Chica’s Seviche
Mozza Pizza
Musso & Frank’s Welsh Rarebit
Natraliart’s Sprats
Newport Seafood’s Spicy Lobster
Oki Dog
Palate’s Vegetables en Papillote
Paleron With Kumquats and Cream of Wheat
Peruvian Roast Chicken
Philippe’s French Dip
Pho Minh’s Pho Bac
Rajdhani’s Thali
Rivera’s Tortillas
Romanesco
Saffron Silk Ice Cream
San Nak Ji
Sapp Coffee Shop’s Boat Noodles
Shanghai Xiao Chi’s Pork Pump
Shanxi Knife-Cut Noodles
Sherry Yard’s Kaiserschmarrn
Street-Vendor Cheese Enchiladas
The Gorbals’ Dill Fries
THE Grill on the Alley’s Corned Beef Hash
Tito’s Old-School Tacos
Urasawa’s Fugu
Wa Sushi’s Apple Pie and Eel
Whatever Lou Tells You to Drink
Yellow Fish Fried With Hair Seaweed

Also- anyone interested in food in LA should pick up this month’s Saveur magazine.  It’s totally dedicated to Los Angeles food.

feburary 20, 2010

wake up at 8:17am

mims is not in bed with me.  at 7am the had cat jumped on the bed and walked all over us meowing.  i assume mims got up then.  i blow my nose.  still feeling congested. 

i say good morning to mims in the kitchen and come sit on the couch to check my email.  mims comes and sits next to me and starts reading my blog on his computer.  he smiles at me and says,

“your life is so luxurious, but boring and sad.”

“i’m just trying to write everyday,” i say.

i tell him about an online article i read about how depression and unemployment are linked and the helpful steps it recites in the article.  the steps are things like: clean your house,  run errands, and do household chores you’ve been putting off.  underneath there were comments from people that said things like, “how can i clean my house when i can’t get out of bed in the morning?” and “i want to kill myself, not run errands.”   we talk about how that’s pretty intense.

mims tries to get me to do the neti pot, but the water comes out my mouth and i choke.  after a few chokes, i feel like i’m drowning and start crying.  i’m a wuss.



mims makes me eggs while listening to def leopard. 

after breakfast i check some blogs.  read some recipes.  blow my nose.  leah im’s me and invites me out.

we go downtown to a prop house that is having a big closing sale.  we talk about leah’s “social life” as we peruse old jars, toys, clocks and other crap.  the best thing i see there is this directors chair: 



I would’ve bought it but it was $125. 

we have lunch at Mr. Ramen.  not great, but they have veggie options for leah.  during lunch, my friend, Jim, calls me.  i pick it up because i think maybe he is visiting and nearby.  turns out jim was at home in DC, watching Burn Notice.  he wanted to call to give me a pep talk because he read my blog about my not getting the job.  it was nice to hear from him.

when i get home, mims is still out.  i feel tired and worn out.  michelle calls to invite me out for a hike or walk, but i feel sick and take a rain check.  i blow my nose a bunch and rest.

later mims calls and says he’s on his way home.  i go out onto the porch to greet him.  he tells me his work meeting was the best meeting he’s ever had.  afterwards he went to visit the Ryznars. he shows me a picture of JD, baby Gary and fancy ray.

we sit on the couch and i read the new LA magazine and mims works.  there is an unexpected knock and the door and that can only mean one thing: our landlord. 

our landlord has set-up a, in his own words, “party for a friend who is getting married,” in the vacant apartment next door.  he wants to know if mims can help him fix the stereo.   mims goes over there and comes back reporting that there is a strobe light and decorations and a shelf in the vacant apartment.  and on that lone shelf, lined up like in a store, are boxes of condoms and lube.  some party.

mims forgets to eat.  it’s 9pm and we start talking about dinner.  we decide to get out of the house and go get some pizza down the street.  we walk down the steps.

do you smell burning?

we see they have set up a fire pit on the porch of the apartment, which is a wooden deck overhang, with bamboo shades pulled down around and a corrugated roof.  there is smoke billowing out of the cracks. smelly black smoke. 

we pray they don’t burn down our house, and leave for the restaurant.

the guys sitting next to us at the restaurant are drinking beers and trying to get psyched up to drive.  they are the worst people ever.  i hate them.  they distract me.

the waitress keeps adjusting her thong.  she brings our pizza to our table and asks if it’s ours.  we look around.  there are 2 other tables and they are both finished.  it’s a small place.

when we send our pasta puttenesca back because it’s disgusting, the owner explains that they make it the way they make it in the old country and it’s name mean’s “whore’s pasta” and so that’s why we didn’t like it.

we get home and the party seems to be underway.  a dude hears us come up the steps and excitedly pokes his head out at us. 

“hey, how’s it goin’?” he enthusiastically greets us, and then seems disappointed when we continue on to our house. 



mims and i discuss call girls, strippers and prostitutes and what exactly those dudes are expecting. 



we watch some lost, snuggle and go to bed.