I take NBC CALIFORNIA LIVE on an exclusive LA food tour to 3 of my favorite comfort food spots! I hit up Flatpoint Barbecue out of chef Danny Gordon’s backyard for some of the best BBQ in the world, Howlin’ Rays for my favorite sandwich in LA, and Angel’s Tijuana Tacos for an authentic Mexican street food experience!
Last week I ventured out to the Broad Museum in Downtown Los Angeles. I love and appreciate art but I have major ADD and museums usually don’t hold my attention for very long, but the Broad Museum was an exception. The art was super dope and quirky, and I enjoyed reading about the inspirations and powerful meanings behind some of the pieces. If you decide to go, make sure to go into the Infinity Mirrored Room by Yayoi Kusama. That was my highlight. After the museum I went to the Grand Central Market just a few minutes away for lunch. I highly recommend it- it has a wide variety of different vendors with amazing food. It was a day well spent in LA.
Located in an industrial warehouse in LA’s downtown Art District, I was intrigued pulling up to Bestia for the first time. It was not quite what I expected. But once I entered the restaurant, everything came to life and it all made sense. Packed and buzzing with fast-paced servers and cooks in an open faced kitchen, the restaurant felt alive in a way that most Los Angeles restaurants do not anymore. With brick walls, unfinished ceilings, and rustic decor, Bestia has a raw, urban aesthetic that is unlike any other restaurants in the city. Whether you choose to sit at the bar, in the middle of the restaurant (where you can watch dishes fly out of the kitchen), or in front of the wood-burning ovens at the pizza counter, you’re in for an exciting dining experience. I’ve been to Bestia a few times now and it never disappoints. Ori Menashe and his wife, Genevieve Gergis, are the duo behind the restaurant. Menashe is the owner and executive chef, offering rustic Italian dining with an eccentric …
I’ve been dying to try this place for so long! I had seen mouth watering pictures on Instagram of these amazing looking breakfast burgers for awhile and finally made it there last week. It’s located inside the Grand Central Market in Downtown LA. The line looked long, but it only took about 15-20 minutes. My favorite food is a good burger or sandwich, and the sloppier and saucier the better. So seeing pictures of the Eggslut sandwiches on Instagram was love at first sight. I ordered the “Fairfax” and added bacon and avocado. It was delicious, and I will be back for more.
I finally had the chance to eat at Bestia in Downtown LA. I’ve heard so much about this place from other foodies and seen a lot of write ups about it online, so I was really excited to finally have dinner there the other night. Everything was good, but one thing we ordered was exceptional. If you go to Bestia, you must try the Roasted Bone Marrow. It is served on top of Spinach gnocchetti, crispy breadcrumbs with aged balsamic. You scoop the marrow off the bone and mix it into the Spinach gnocchetti and it’s just off the charts…the flavor and texture together make the perfect dish . The flavor in each dish really takes this place to the next level. You could really distinguish all the different ingredients and spices everything we ordered. The menu is very unique and the presentations are innovative and creative as well. I have to head back to try their different pizzas, I heard they’re amazing. Other things we ordered: Burrata Salad, Mussels & Clams (spicy!), Cavatelli alla Norcina, Spaghetti Rustichella & the coffee & donuts for dessert.
MY DAY IN DOWNTOWN LA This past weekend I wondered around Downtown LA to some amazing locations and took some pictures just for fun! There are so many beautiful, artsy locations down there you would never think to travel to. Later in the day, I had dinner at the well known restaurant, Drago Centro in the heart of downtown. It was really great Italian food. We loved it. Check out my food pictures from Drago and I also wanted to share a couple pictures I took that day 🙂 l’insalata di cesare romaine, caesar dressing, shaved parmesan, garlic crostini This was a great ceaser salad to start out the meal. la mozzarella buffalo mozzarella, balsamic, tomato, basil, crostini The mozzarella was so creamy and delicious. It almost tasted and had the same texture as burrata cheese which I love. This is also the perfect appetizer. gli spaghetti con il pesto alla trapanese basil spaghetti, sicilian almond-tomato and basil pesto The basil noodles were flavored with a pesto sauce as well as tomato sauce. It was …
I have been curious about The Gorbals for quite some time. Located in Downtown LA in The Alexandria Hotel, this foodie hotspot has been on my radar for awhile. It’s continually brought up in conversations by other foodies and when I went to the Downtown LA ArtWalk recently, I finally decided to give it a shot. The menu is unconventional, daring & unique.Chef Ilan Hall, half Israeli and Scottish, definitely took a risk in challenging the limits of his patrons’ palates, which is why I think foodies appreciate and really like this place. I don’t think the menu is for everyone though. The food is different, and if you are a simple eater, there may be a little too much going on for you. See my reviews below… COCKTAILS It’s Bourbon Honey: 4 roses Bourbon, saffron-honey, lemon-grapefruit fizz Jalapeno Margarita: Jalapeno, Thyme, Contreau, Tequila, Lime, Agave Could have done with out. I never seem to like fancy cocktails like this. SWEET POTATO WITH SAGE BUTTER I liked this dish. I love sweet potato-they …
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 …
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! …