Author: Nicole Isaacs

YAMASHIRO, HOLLYWOOD

Published by Nicole Isaacs

Yamashiro in Hollywood is perched up in the Hollywood Hills and has the best view of the entire city of Los Angeles. This Japanese restaurant looks like a palace straight out of Japan. It’s breathtaking. This week I went to dinner there with some friends, but I’ve been to Yamashiro a couple times and not only is it beautiful but the food is great too. YAMASHIRO COURTYARD W/ KOI PONDS Photo credit: Yamashiro BELOW ARE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT I’VE ORDERED FROM YAMASHIRO: ASIAN BBQ BABY BACK RIBS Mashed Yams, house made spicy BBQ sauce SPICY SEAFOOD HOT POT Shrimp, scallop, New Zealand mussel, shitake mushrooms, snow peas, glass noodles Spicy! It was good and soothing-I love spicy hot soup, but I wouldn’t order again. TRUFFLE HAMACHI White truffle infused ponzu, teardrop tomatogarlic confit, micro arugula I loved this. I love anything with truffle and the raw fish tasted fresh and tender. Such a light and flavorful dish. I recommend! LOCH DUART SALMON Roasted asparagus, preserved-lemon smashed potatoes, fried capers, miso cream This honestly …

P.J. CLARKE’S, LAS VEGAS

Published by Nicole Isaacs

In Vegas, I stumbled across P.J. Clarke’s in the Ceasers Palace Hotel. Hungover and craving good substance and a burger, I decided to stop there. I’ve actually read about P.J. Clarke’s online. It’s a classic bar/restaurant established in 1884, and has original locations in New York City and along the Hudson River, but has also opened in Washington DC, Vegas and Brazil. This place is an old-time classic restaurant known for good pub food and especially famous for it’s burger, so I tried it. “THE CADILLAC” Smoked Country Bacon & American Cheese I really enjoyed the burger. I don’t know if I was just desperately hungry and anything could have tasted good in my state lol, but it was pretty good to me. Definitely not anywhere near the best, but it was solid- I had no complaints. I ordered the “Cadillac Burger” for $13.75, which is their special and most popular burger. It comes with American cheese and bacon. It’s a simple burger, nothing special on it besides bacon, but the meat was cooked perfectly. …

QUALITY, LOS ANGELES

Published by Nicole Isaacs

Quality is on 3rd Street in Los Angeles. Located right down the street from TOAST on 3rd, and a lot of other LA brunch “hotspots”, Quality is more low-key and a guarantee quick wait, if any. The food is comparable to places such as Toast (which I’ve blogged about), but it’s less of a scene, and a much less of a wait for a table. It’s a hole in the wall, but I enjoyed the food. If you want to skip the hassle going to a packed brunch/breakfast on the weekends with a wait in LA, Quality is a good option. AVOCADO BENEDICT- ADDED BACON Buttermilk biscuits topped with avocado, poached eggs with hollandaise sauce Shared this with one of my girlfriends and it was delicious. I loved how it wasn’t on an english muffin, but a fresh baked biscuit. It added a buttery flavor which I loved, and a more flakey/crispy texture, and obviously adding bacon makes everything better 🙂 They’re known for their biscuits, so I recommend getting a dish there that serves one. CHALLAH …

FIG & OLIVE, LOS ANGELES

Published by Nicole Isaacs

Fig & Olive was my DineLA pick for this season! I get so excited when DineLA comes- it’s a great excuse to dine out at a restaurant you’ve always wanted to go to, for a more reasonable deal and price. (If you don’t know what DineLA is, look at my previous post for info). I’ve been wanting to go to Fig & Olive, especially because President Barack Obama dined there when he was in LA, so if it was worthy for him, I thought it was worth going to lol. Their DineLA fixed dinner menu costs $44. We had a 8:45pm reservation on a Thursday night, and the place was jam packed. The atmosphere is amazing there. It’s trendy & chic and had a great vibe. The food was good too. Not exceptional by any means, but good. MY DINING VIEW FROM OUR TABLE UPSTAIRS APPETIZERS BREAD W/ THREE FLAVORS OF HOUSE-MADE OLIVE OIL THREE CROSTINI COMBO MANCHEGO, FIG, MARCONA ALMOND MUSHROOM, TRUFFLE ARTICHOKE, PARMESAN SHRIMP, AVOCADO, CILANTRO, TOMATO This was my …

WINTER 2012 DINELA WEEK!

Published by Nicole Isaacs

Two more days of Dine LA week! Don’t forget to check out the list of restaurants and menus, and take advantage of getting more for your money at your favorite LA restaurant! Can’t wait to blog about my restaurant pick! Coming soon! http://discoverlosangeles.com/restaurantweekv2/

LA CAVA, SHERMAN OAKS

Published by Nicole Isaacs

La Cava is what I like to call a secret gem–an Italian gem in the valley. Those kinds of restaurants are my absolute favorite. Not a lot of people know about it, yet the food is really spectacular. La Cava is about the size of my bedroom. It’s very small for a restaurant, but it’s cozy and it serves authentic Italian Tuscan food at its finest. La Cava is on the busy street of Venutra Blvd. in Sherman Oaks, but it can be easily missed if you’ve never heard of it. I heard about it through word of mouth and went there for my good friends birthday dinner. I was very impressed with the food and service so I took my family there for dinner on another occasion. The waiters are straight off the boat from Italy; they all have thick Italian accents. Everything at La Cava is made from scratch- the pasta noodles, the sauces, cheeses, etc. I would recommend a pasta dish because the noodles literally melt in your mouth. See all the dishes that were …

CASA LAGUNA INN & SPA, LAGUNA BEACH

Published by Nicole Isaacs

I stayed at Casa Laguna Inn & Spa in Laguna Beach this Christmas Eve, and not to sound corny or anything lol, but it was truly magical. The weather was clear and sunny, in the 70’s. Gotta love California in December. We really lucked out with the weather because we got to see the most beautiful sunset. But regardless of the weather, Casa Laguna is truly heaven. Staying there takes you to another world. It’s quaint, and it has the charm and coziness of a Spanish style mission, lots of greenery and fountains, but it also has a beachy feel with spectacular ocean views. Casa Laguna is definitely on the pricey side, but I think it’s worth to splurge on the good things in life occasionally. I did the Sea and Spa package. It came with a Deluxe Ocean view room and a soak and massage for two. The 45 minute champagne sunset soak is in a secluded private tub elevated on a bluff to see the ocean. We had it perfectly in time …

PIZZA LOUNGE, LAGUNA BEACH

Published by Nicole Isaacs

I went on an incredible quick little getaway this Christmas to Laguna Beach. 75 degrees, sunny and crystal clear, it was a beautiful Christmas Eve day on the beach. A friend of mine recommended I go to this amazing pizza place in downtown Laguna on the main road (South Coast Highway) which lies right along the ocean. It’s called the Pizza Lounge. She specifically told me to try this “special peach pizza” that is not on the menu- you have to ask for it. So she being a Laguna veteran, I took her word for it. TOOK A WALK ON THE BOARDWALK IN DOWNTOWN LAGUNA ON CHRISTMAS EVE DAY BEFORE HEADING TO THE PIZZA LOUNGE FOR LUNCH- GOTTA LOVE SO-CAL! Right upon arrival, we were quickly greeted by the friendly owner of the Pizza Lounge, who asked to take our order. You can order by the slice out of the options of pizzas already made on the trays shown in the glass window below, or you can custom order different size pizzas or choose from their specialty pizzas on the …

LITTLE NEXT DOOR, LOS ANGELES

Published by Nicole Isaacs

For my work holiday lunch, my E! Fashion Police team went to Little Next Door in Los Angeles. The Little Door, located right next to the Little Next Door, is the fancier restaurant and is one of LA’s best gemspots- it’s French, very cozy, has a lot of charm, and serves great food. It’s on the expensive side-but they have Little NEXT Door which is the extension of the Little Door restaurant and it’s a more casual/cafe version of the Little Door. Is is not only a cute place to have lunch, but it’s also a bakery and wine shop. I just love the charm of both the Little Door, and Little Next Door. You feel like you’re at a cafe or cozy restaurant in France 🙂 This is what was ordered: MEDITERREAN SPREAD Baby artichoke dip, romesco, hummus, tzatziki, roasted garlic mushroom tapenade and pita bread FRENCH ONION SOUP So good! Highly recommended. Very cheesy and flavorful. ESCARGOTS DE BOURGOGNE Half dozen in garlic parsley butter I love Escargot! It was buttery and garlicy, melts in your mouth. SKIRT STEAK …