Author: Nicole Isaacs

LA SCALA, BEVERLY HILLS & BRENTWOOD

Published by Nicole Isaacs

JEAN LEON ORIGINAL CHOPPED SALAD LETTUCE, SALAMI, MOZZARELLA CHEESE, MARINATED GARBANZO BEANS, LEON DRESSING This post is specifically for La Scala’s famous chopped salad. When people talk about La Scala, you most likely will always hear about the chopped salad. It’s light, refreshing, flavorful and perfect. The dressing is light and has a lemon citrus flavor. All the ingredients just work together very nicely. I love that it’s light and crisp tasting but it still fills you up. La Scala is just an all around trendy Italian restaurant in LA- there is one in Beverly Hills and one in Brentwood. Another dish they are famous for is their Spaghetti Bolognese. We ordered the Ravioli Di Aragosta which is their lobster ravioli which was great too. RAVIOLI DI ARAGOSTA LOBSTER RAVIOLI IN A BROWN BUTTER SAUCE WITH SAGE It doesn’t look there was any sauce but there was. It was a clear brown butter sauce and it was so flavorful. The outer edges of the pasta had a crisp to them and the lobster inside was …

SUGARFISH BY SUSHI NOZAWA

Published by Nicole Isaacs

All you need to know when you go to Sugarfish is to order the “Trust Me”. I have been hearing about this place for so long from multiple people raving how good their sushi is. They just opened one in Studio City, and when I found that out, I made sure it was my next stop lol. They are known for their simple yet freshest quality of fish,- no fancy, fried or saucy rolls there. Everything literally melts in your mouth, and this place made me realize you don’t need fancy, saucy rolls to satisfy a sushi craving. As soon as the sushi is ready they bring it out and suggest you eat it right away. They don’t do requests for extra rice, sauces or substitutions and suggest you do not use soy sauce either because they want you to taste the quality of the fish. They do have light sauces that they put on the fish so everything had flavor though. It’s not your typical sushi place and that’s why I liked …

MAS MALO, DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES

Published by Nicole Isaacs

I went to Mas Malo for dinner recently in Downtown LA, which is the sequel to the well-known restaurant Malo in Silver Lake. Executive Chef Robert Luna decided to open this more sophisticated and upscale version of Malo with a slight menu variation. I got to personally meet Chef Robert Luna, and got the chance to watch him prepare and cook up his specialties in the Mas Malo kitchen. He cooked his famous Ensenada Bacon Wrapped Shrimp for me, and I then dined in the restaurant and tried all of the menu’s specialties. Mas Malo used to be a historic jewelry building in the 1920’s, and a lot of the decor has remained the same since then. The gothic dining hall with the high ceilings and crown moldings were really beautiful. The ambiance is sexy, but also pretty loud and busy with people. There is a mezzanine over looking the main dining hall, and also a private tequila tasting vault which I thought was pretty cool. See below what I tried at Mas Malo! …

MANHATTAN BEACH POST, MANHATTAN BEACH

Published by Nicole Isaacs

Recently I went to Manhattan Beach Post (M.B Post) for a girl dinner, located near downtown Manhattan Beach and right across from the ocean. This modern yet soulful looking restaurant was packed to the max on a Friday night. The menu is playful offering Contemporary-American dishes, with unique and fun presentations. I thought everything that we ordered was absolutely delicious. It was such a good dinner! I highly recommend this place. Not only is it a trendy and popular social scene in the Manhattan Beach area, the food and cocktails are so worth going for. MOJITO…My favorite cocktail- So good! BACON CHEDDAR BUTTERMILK BISCUITS WITH MAPLE BUTTER Um, can this combination be any more amazing? Bacon, cheese, freshly baked biscuits with a sweet butter!? HEAVEN! I could literally make a meal out of this and cocktails and be thoroughly satisfied lol. Must order! RED CURRY MARINATED BIG EYE TUNA TARTAR Coconut, cucumber, peanuts, puffed rice Unique twist on a tuna tartare. The tuna itself was fresh and delicious, but I’m a sucker for the …

LUNA PARK, LOS ANGELES

Published by Nicole Isaacs

E! GIRLS Luna Park with my E! co-workers! Luna park is literally a block away from the E! building where I work, so my work girlfriends went there to grab a bite to eat. I’ve heard about the place for awhile and have seen it on the DineLA list, so wanted to check out how the food was. It’s great to go for drinks, lunch, dinner or even for a weekend brunch! The ambiance is trendy/hipster/casual. GRILLED CHEESE & TOMATO SOUP! MAC N CHEESE WITH BROCCOLI The mac n cheese was okay. But I’m tough to please with mac n’ cheese, it’s hard to find really amazing ones. MARINATED HAWAIIAN TUNA POKE WITH WONTON CHIPS Love tuna poke…this one was so flavorful and fresh, but the portion was very small. WARM GOAT CHEESE FONDUE WITH GRILLED BREAD & APPLES This is so …

BOTTEGA LOUIE, DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES

Published by Nicole Isaacs

Girls night at Bottega Louie! Cutest place in downtown LA, and it totally feels like you are in New York City. The place was PACKED on a Saturday night, the line was out the door- there was almost a two hour wait. Luckily we didn’t have to wait that long, because I’m VIP and shit, lol kidding, but you can’t make reservations at this place you just got to know that you are going to wait. The food was great and the ambiance was super chic and cute. Loved! See below what we ordered… BREAD They bring you bread and set it right on the table with no plates! lol SALAD: MODENA Buttered lettuce, candied walnuts, crumbled goat cheese, shallots, garden herbs & creamy balsamic vinagrette PORTOBELLO FRIES I’ve never had anything like this! They are literally mushroom fries. It came with a delicious garlic aioli dip. I love mushrooms and french fries are my favorite food so it was a great combo for me lol. I recommend this if you are a …

BACKSTAGE, CULVER CITY

Published by Nicole Isaacs

It has been quoted that this may be the “Best dive bar in the world”. It has also been said that it is the best dive bar in Los Angeles. I absolutely love this place. I am not really the “dive bar” kinda gal, but if they have amazing AND cheap food, I will be there in a heartbeat lol. This bar is literally the definition of a “dive bar”- it’s a hole-in-the wall bar in the heart of Culver City- it is always busy, drinks are cheap and they have great food. They have happy hour too, so you can get certain things on the menu for half off. They have a great band that performs at 9:30pm every Wednesday night, and they have karaoke on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. It is definitely a fun and lively bar, and it gets crazy late at night. Highly recommend checking it out if you are around the area! MAC N CHEESE Known for their Mac n’ cheese, I recommend you try this at least once. …

GRIMALDI’S PIZZERIA- BROOKLYN, NEW YORK

Published by Nicole Isaacs

I’ve heard around that Grimaldi’s is the best pizza in New York. I’ve seen it on TV and have heard about the place through word of mouth, so I ventured out to the one under the Brooklyn Bridge (which is the most famous one), to try for myself. Grimaldi’s is one of the few pizzerias that still make their pizzas with a coal-fired oven which gives pizza a unique flavor (most pizzerias use wood or gas ovens). Grimaldi’s is on the Brooklyn side of the bridge, and my friend and I ran the bridge from the Manhattan side (which I highly recommend doing by the way, it’s so beautiful!). So I exercised only to stuff my fat face with pizza. Typical me… story of my life lol. RUNNING THE BROOKLYN BRIDGE A PIC I TOOK FROM STATEN ISLAND FERRY THAT DAY! MAKING PIZZAS AT GRIMALDI’S! LARGE PIZZA WITH GARLIC, BASIL, PEPPERONI & BLACK OLIVES The pizza was good. It reminded me of the pizza at the famous Lombardi’s pizzeria in …

THE SPOTTED PIG, NEW YORK CITY

Published by Nicole Isaacs

The Spotted Pig, co-owned by Jay Z, Bono & Mario Batali, is a restaurant hotspot in the heart of Meatpacking district in New York City. With waits that can be long as two to three hours for a table and a very unique menu, I assumed my experience there was going to be very positive. And if Jay- Z co-owns it, then DUH!, it has to be amazing right?! lol. The place is definitely super eclectic with “quirky” decor, and has a very cozy feeling, but the food was not out of this world by any means. The Spotted Pig is famous for their burger which I’ve heard so much about, but I actually did not like it. Read my reviews on what we ordered below: THE SPOTTED PIG DECOR DEVILED EGGS Not a huge deviled eggs fan myself, but these were the best I’ve ever had. Great flavor, and the filling was fluffy and light. I recommend this. CHICKEN LIVER TOAST I liked this too! Very rich flavor, and the liver was super creamy …