Sushi Masu - Westwood, California

Address: 1911 Westwood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90025

Items Ordered:

• Spicy Tuna Roll
• Octopus Sushi
• Shrimp Tempura Roll
• Spicy Tuna over Crispy Rice
  

Yum, sushi! Everything tasted really fresh. My favorite is the spicy tuna over crispy rice!

--v

La Provence Patisserie & Cafe - Brentwood, California

Address: 11677 San Vicente Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049

Items Ordered:

• Smoked salmon omelette
  
• Egg whites, bacon, and cheddar sandwich
• Raspberry, rose, caramel fleur de sel, and chocolate macarons

I first visited the La Provence location in Beverly Hills, and after my first taste of a salted caramel macaron I instantly decided this was my new favorite macaron place. The macaron filling is sweet and has the perfect gooey consistency, while the cookie outside is not too sweet and tastes distinctly of the flavor advertised. I've tried every flavor here since then, and my favorites are raspberry, lemon, vanilla, and salted caramel, and my least favorites are rose and pistachio. At $1.95 for a large macaron compared to $1.60 for a small macaron at Paulette's, La Provence really beats out the competition in taste, location(s), and price. If you receive a box of La Provence macarons from me, then just know that I think you're really special! :)

Oh yea, their breakfast foods were average at best, but the fresh-baked baguette and raspberry jam on the side are really delicious. Give it a try.

--y

Animal - Los Angeles, California

Address: 435 N Fairfax Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90048

Items Ordered:

• Marrow bone, chimichurri, caramelized onions
• Pig ear, chili, lime, fried egg
• Quail fry, grits, chard, slab bacon, maple jus
• Flat iron steak, sunchoke hash, truffle parmesan fondue
• Foie gras loco moco, quail egg, spam, hamburger

Located in a nondescript venue on Fairfax, Animal's concept and interior is typical of a trendy L.A. restaurant. Although we were early for our 8:30p reservation, we were seated promptly at 8p and had plenty of time to peruse the menu as well as gawk at Zach Galfinakis' table in the middle of the restaurant.

My favorite dish of the night came early; the bone marrow was soft and succulent and tasted absolutely scrumptious spread on the accompanying toast. We even ordered more toast so we could slowly savor the dish. The pig ear appetizer received good reviews on Yelp, and while the sunny side up egg was cooked perfectly, the pig ears tasted overwhelmingly of lime. The consensus was that the next time we order pig ears, it would be at a Chinese restaurant.

The fried quail and mashed potatoes were great, but even though it tasted just like chicken, it was a much smaller dish than fried chicken would have been :( . The flat-iron-steak was nothing extraordinary and the parmesan fondue was a little overpowering. Last but not least, the bite of the foie gras loco moco I had was delightful, and the birthday girl thoroughly enjoyed her dish! Overall, Animal has some interesting dishes, but I'm not tempted to return anytime soon.

--y

Joe's Stone Crab - Miami Beach, Florida

Address: 11 Washington Avenue, Miami Beach, FL 33139

Items Ordered:

• Stone crab - jumbo
• Lobster macaroni & cheese
• Sauteed mushrooms
• Hashbrowns
• Sauteed fresh corn - roasted with cilantro, whole butter and lemon juice
• Key Lime Pie
  

After reading articles and all kinds of reviews for Joe's Stone Crab in Miami Beach, I just HAD to go there while on a recent visit to Miami! I mean...BOBBY FLAY said it was one of the best things he'd ever had on, you guessed it, the Food Network's "Best Thing I Ever Ate." Maybe I just love too much food, but goodness, it was delicious!! The crabs are serve chilled, but each person is given hot butter and a mustard sauce to drench it in. I usually don't like mustard, but the concoction they had was great. All of the side dishes are huge and meant to be shared. They all went with each other so well. My favorite was the Lobster Mac & Cheese...baked to perfection.

When we arrived there, we were expecting to wait 2 hours, but by some miracle, we got there with a party of 8 and they seated us right away while other small groups were given estimates of 2-2.5 hours. Not sure how that happened but I love them for it! Our server was so nice and she gave us all the background on the stone crabs as well as all the suggestions for how much to order. She was right, I did leave satisfied and full. These stone crabs are from Joe's very own farm. The crab claws were SO easy to peel and the meat came off so easily. YUM!!!

--v

Pink Taco - West Los Angeles, California

Address: 10250 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90067

Items Ordered:

• Guacamole
  
• Crispy chipotle chicken tacos
• Orange braised carnitas
  
• White sangria, strawberry margarita, passion fruit margarita

On a post-work weekday, after waiting 45 minutes for a table, I thought "This better be the best Mexican food EVER." Luckily, Pink Taco's food was decent. Starting off with the guacamole was a great idea, as the guacamole was well-seasoned, fresh tasting, and paired really well with the crispy tortilla chips. My favorite dish of the night was the chicken tacos, they were super crispy and filled with an ample amount of shredded chicken. The orange braised carnitas were tender and flavorful, although the orange taste didn't really shine through. The drinks we ordered were nothing special, which was surprising given that the bar menu is huge. I would definitely return to Pink Taco for the chicken tacos and guacamole, and hopefully order better drinks to pair with the meal next time.

--y

Half & Half Tea House - San Gabriel Valley, California

Address: 120 N San Gabriel Blvd, San Gabriel, CA 91778

Items Ordered:

• Shaved ice with boba, lychee jelly, pudding, and red bean
• Iced milk drinks with pudding and honey boba
  
• Green milk tea
• Almond brick toast

Half & Half Teahouse's honey boba has been described as the best tasting boba in the U.S. That probably explains the line out the door on a typical night here. I ordered a regular ice milk drink with honey boba, and while the drink itself tasted like the milk I buy from Ralphs, the honey boba was sweet, chewy, and delicious. I prefer the shaved ice to any of the drinks at Half & Half, and the portion is huge so it's perfect for sharing with friends. I've been back to this teahouse b/c it's a fun place to hang out, but Class 302 is still the ultimate shaved ice/dessert winner!!

--y

Brodard Restaurant - Garden Grove, California

Address: 9892 Westminster Ave, Garden Grove, CA 92844

Items Ordered:

• Nem Nuong Cuon: pork spring rolls
• Bun Bo Hue: tender beef shank with vermicelli in spicy soup
  
• Bun Cha Gio, Thit Nuong: bbq pork vermicelli with crispy eggrolls

Brodard is a super popular restaurant in the heart of Little Saigon. Pork spring rolls are a must order. A combination of sweet and savory pork with veggies and vermicelli, they are a delectable appetizer. I also got the bun bo hue, which was fine, but I wished it was spicier. Overall, , the meal really satisfied my craving for good Vietnamese food that day.

--y

Savoy Kitchen - Alhambra, California

Address: 138 E Valley Boulevard, Alhambra, CA 91801

Items Ordered:

• Hainan chicken rice (darkmeat) with sweet soy sauce, ginger sauce and chili sauce
• Baked escargot
  

Savoy Kitchen is delicious!! It's been a while since I've ordered Hainan chicken, but coming here, you just have to order it. That's what they're known for and it certainly did not disappoint. I prefer dark meat so I got that. The ginger sauce was my favorite - drenched each piece of chicken in it and had it with the rice. The rice isn't just regular rice - it has a slight flavoring to it. Overall, great combination of rice, chicken and sauces. The place is pretty small, but there was outside seating too. In addition, we got the escargot that came with bread. The bread, I could pass on, but the escargot was decent.

Go there for the Hainan chicken rice!!

--v

8 oz. Burger Bar - Los Angeles, California

Address: 7661 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90046

Items Ordered:

• Melrose: 6 oz. house blend, garlic roasted tomatoes, red onion marmalade with added fried mozzarella, roasted mushrooms and roasted garlic aioli sauce
• Truffled potato skins
• Kennebec fries
  

When I first looked at the menu, I decided I wanted a basic burger that I could do add ons with. It doesn't quite work like that - you have to choose one of their burgers (that already have add ons) and add on/remove from that. The options for add ons were full of all kinds of goodness from toppings to cheeses to sauces. Now how could I really resist fried mozzarella, mushrooms and garlic aioli?! Overall, the burger was delicious - especially because of all the creative add ons. The sides of fries and potato skins were good too. I especially liked the truffled potato skins - truffle oil basically just makes everything taste that much better! Didn't make it in time for happy hour this time, but I'd definitely want to go back -- I was eyeing the Kobe mini corn dogs and short rib grilled cheese sandwich for next time!

--v

Bay Cities Italian Deli & Bakery - Santa Monica, California

Address: 1517 Lincoln Blvd, Santa Monica, CA 90401

Items Ordered:

• The Godmother: genoa salami, mortadella, coppacola, ham, proscuiutto, and provolone with the works
• Bread pudding and macarons

Now that I'm a super famous food blogger extraordinaire, my friends recommend their favorite places for me to visit, and this location was definitely a hit! Victoria, Connie, and I heard that the line would be long so we placed our orders for 2 Godmother sandwiches online and went to pick up our order after about 45 mins to make it back in time for the UCLA vs. Texas game. The sandwich came with a great crunchy roll that didn't become soggy during travel, and the veggies and meats tasted fresh and delicious. Overall, this was a great sandwich that we started having random cravings for again and again over the next few weeks. The desserts we purchased from the refrigerated sections of the Italian grocery store were just okay, and I'd probably pass on them next time in exchange for a larger sandwich. Since UCLA beat Texas 34-12 in Austin that day, it's going to become a tradition that we visit Bay Cities Italian Deli whenever we play Texas again :P

--y