Wood Spoon - Los Angeles, California

Address: 107 W 9th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90015

Items Ordered:

• Mix Plate - Coxinha (Brazil’s most popular street food (made with chicken)), Potato Croquette, Portuguese Croquette (potato salted Cod), Pastel Portuguese (dumpling stuffed with shrimp, coconut sauce) & Kibe (bulgur wheat, mint & ground beef)
• Brazilian Chicken Pot Pie – hearts of palm, olives & roasted corn

If you try to google this address, I think it's a little off. We walked up and down the street a little before we finally found this small place, serving Brazilian cuisine. I was starting to think it didn't exist - I'm sure glad that it does! It was a really cozy (pillows on the seat!) little restaurant on a street in the heart of downtown LA. We started off with an appetizer plate of fried goodness - my favorite was the Pastel Portuguese. Next up was the Pot Pie that I had read about so many times in the reviews! This was certainly not your Budget-brand Pot Pie, or even close to the "frozen gourmet" Marie Callender Pot Pies. What am I even thinking trying to compare it to frozen meals! This was the real thing - tender chicken with corn, simmering under a just-perfect crispy crust. It was rather large so I took home leftovers - what a delicious lunch the next day!


--v

KyoChon Chicken - Los Angeles, California & Seoul, Korea

Address: 3833 W 6th St, Los Angeles, CA 90020

Items Ordered:

• Garlic soy sauce chicken
  
• Spicy hot chicken
  
• Pickled radishes

The smaller chicken pictures are of KyoChon Chicken in Los Angeles, and the larger pictures are from Seoul, Korea. Even with an abundance of Korean food and fried chicken locales in South Korea, I still managed to eat at KyoChon Chicken at least 8 times in 6 weeks. That is because KyoChon is the BEST Korean style fried chicken I've ever tasted. The breading is crispy and the garlic soy seasoning is the perfect balance of sweet and salty. The meat inside is extremely flavorful as well. Caution to the non-spice eaters, the spicy hot chicken is really hot! Luckily the locations in L.A. do taste pretty similar as the chain in Korea. So bring a group of friends and get to eating; you won't regret it!

--y

Gloria's Cafe - Culver City, California

Address: 10227 Venice Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90034

Items Ordered:

• Pork & Cheese Pupusas (2)
• Cheese & Herb Pupusas (2) with a side of rice
• Enchiladas - Carnitas (1) and Steak (1)
• Chips & Salsa

Gloria's Cafe is one of our favorite restaurants. Immediately after sitting down and perusing the menu we were brought a bowl of warm chips and spicy salsa - these are ADDICTING and can fill you up even before your entrée comes out. No wonder we're always so full when we leave here. A mixture of Mexican and Salvadoran cuisine, the food was as good as any other time we've gone there. There was a bit of a mix-up with our order, but it was quickly fixed, and we were given our correct pupusas. Those, along with the enchiladas made for an excellent meal of Salvadoran and Mexican cuisine. On a side note, did you know that this place was recently featured on Food Network's Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives?

--v & y

Ike's Place - San Francisco, California

Address: 3506 16th St, San Francisco, CA 94114

Items Ordered:

• Spiffy Tiffy: chicken breast, pesto, avocado, mushrooms, pepper jack & provolone
  
• We're JUST Friends: chicken breast, orange glaze, avocado, & pepper jack
  

Maybe it was our own fault. Our hopes were too high? We ordered the wrong sandwiches? We waited too long to eat them? Whatever the reason, Ike's Place was kind of a disappointment. While the sandwiches were huge, they were extremely greasy. After about 4 bites of half the Spiffy Tiffy, I just could not go on. The pesto was extremely oily, soaked through the paper and bag, and I can definitely make less oily, more tasty pesto at home. The We're JUST Friends tasted much like the Spiffy Tiffy except with a hint of sweetness. Would I consider going back? Maybe on a nice sunny SF day when the line at Ike's is not too long--but we all know how rare those days are.

--y

The Salt Lick - Driftwood, Texas

Address: 18300 FM 1826, Driftwood, TX 78619

Items Ordered:

• Family style BBQ: unlimited sausage, brisket and pork ribs complete with bread, pickles/onions, potato salad, coleslaw, and beans

After a fun-filled day at Lake Travis, our group decided to drive to the boonies of Driftwood, TX to try this famous BBQ joint. After waiting in line for 1 hour and 40 mins, Victoria and I decided this had better be the best BBQ we've ever tasted. Almost everyone ordered the family style all you can eat meal, and we popped open beers from our cooler in anticipation of the BBQ feast. The spread that arrived looked amazing and the pork ribs took the prize. Fall off the bone tender and tasty, it was definitely worth the wait. Honorable mention goes to the sausage and sides as well. However, the brisket was lacking in that it was a little tough and needed BBQ sauce for improvement. Overall, we asked for 6 plates of meat for approximately 10 hungry people and left stuffed with BBQ and happy about it.

--v & y

Ivan Kane's Cafe Was - Los Angeles, California

Address: 1521 Vine Street, Los Angeles, CA 90028

Items Ordered:

• Onion Soup
• Bouillabaisse
• Beignet

Cafe Was is a French bistro inspired restaurant. I LOVED the ambiance here. We were seated in the Piano Room, where there was a performance by an artist that sang while playing the piano. Not only that, but the piano and the circular floor piece that it was on rotated slowly as we enjoyed our meal in the dimly lit room. We went for LA Restaurant Week and the set menu was delicious.

--v

Umami Burger - Santa Monica, California

Address: 500 Broadway, Santa Monica, CA 90401

Items Ordered:

• Umami Burger: beef patty with roasted red peppers, grilled onions, portabella mushroom and a parmesan crisp

Located next to Fred Segal in Santa Monica, this Umami Burger location was quaint with plentiful parking. Aside from sweet, salty, sour, and bitter, "umami" is meant to describe the 5th taste sensation. When the burger arrived, I didn't know what to expect but the first bite was exquisite, and maybe "umami" really describes delicious. The beef patty was well seasoned and the bun was soft and fluffy. Mushrooms on the burger really made it exceptional, and I cannot wait to return to try another Umami Burger creation.

--y

Feast from the East - Westwood, California

Address: 1949 Westwood Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90025

Items Ordered:

• Sesame Chicken Wings
• Spicy Tofu with Shrimp
• Chicken Potstickers

I've heard about their Sesame Chicken Wings for so long and they did indeed live up to expectations. They were just the perfect level of crispiness and flavor. It was an Asian fusion type place - the entree I ordered was the spicy tofu with shrimp. That was decent. The place is pretty spacious and there was plenty of seating when we went for dinner. You order at the cashier and they bring the food to your table.

--v

Thai Boom - Culver City, California

Address: 10863 Venice Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90034

Items Ordered:

• Pad See Ew with Chicken
• Green Curry with Bamboo Shoots, Basil, and Shrimp
• Royal Fried Rice with Shrimp Paste and Thai Sausage
• Egg Rolls
• Iced Thai Tea

On this diverse strip of restaurants on Venice Boulevard, Thai Boom stands out as a solid contender for best Thai food on the street. It's a hole in the wall type of restaurant, with an expansive menu, all with photos hanging on the wall. We opted for something we haven't really had at a Thai Restaurant - the Royal Fried Rice. The other dishes were Thai staples that I've tried many times before. Most everything had just the right amount of flavor and we left feeling satisfied.

--v

Smashburger - Houston, Texas

Address: 5220 Buffalo Speedway, Houston, TX 77005

Items Ordered:

• Create your own Smashburger: 1/3 lb beef patty, sharp cheddar, grilled onions, pickles, lettuce, tomato, ketchup, and mustard on a multi-grain bun
  
• Chicago dog with side salad
• Smashfries: rosemary, garlic, and olive oil seasoned fries
  

After hearing from my Houston friends about Smashburger this and Smashburger that, I had to try it for myself. Also, I love creating my own burgers so I went with that option. After my first bite, I knew that Smashburger was going to be one of my favorite places to visit in Houston. The beef patty was well-seasoned and just tasted of beefy goodness. The cheese complimented the burger well, and the bun held up to the beefy juices as I devoured the entire burger. The burger was not TOO greasy, and didn't make me feel like falling into a food coma after eating. The Smashfries were interesting, but rosemary is not my favorite herb so I could do without ordering it again. On a different occasion I tried the Chicago dog, but decided it was much too tangy for my taste. If you're going to someplace called SmashBURGER, I recommend you order the burger (and maybe fries).

--y

Daikokuya - Los Angeles, California

Address: 327 E 1st St, Los Angeles, CA 90012

Items Ordered:

• Daikoku Ramen: noodles in pork bone broth with boiled egg, bamboo, & bean sprouts

Finally got to try Daikokuya's ramen, and it definitely lives up to the hype. Quite possibly the BEST ramen we've had in L.A. yet. The broth was rich and savory, the noodles were cooked perfectly, and the pork was melt in your mouth tender. Large enough of a bowl to keep us stuffed throughout the night. We arrived at 5pm on a Sunday and waited only 5 minutes for 3 seats at the bar. This place is a must visit!

--v & y

Royal/T - Culver City, California, USA

Address: 8910 Washington Boulevard, Culver City, CA 90232

Items Ordered:

• Three Egg Omelette with Bacon, Sausage, Mushrooms
• Free Range Turkey Burger with Fries
• Crispy Spicy Tuna
  
• Small pot of milk tea
  

Visited Royal/T Cafe for a nice pre-concert brunch. The food was adequate, but the decor was amazing! With pictures of Harajuku girls lining the walls, a museum to visit, and Hello Kitty toys (!) the experience reminded us of being in Japan. Also, don't forget to order the tea, it is what they're named for after all, and our milk tea did not disappoint.

--v & y