Salt's Cure - Los Angeles, California

Address: 7494 Santa Monica Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90046

Items Ordered:

• Pretzel dog with housemade ground mustard
• The Bookworm sandwich - grilled ham sandwich with braised kale & swiss cheese

Sometimes living in L.A., I get jealous that I'm not a hipster, or a Real Housewife, or a valley girl, or Selena Gomez. So I try to at least eat at places that will make me feel like I belong. Thus, in true hipster fashion I visited Salt's Cure to try their locally sourced, homemade dishes. The Bookworm definitely tasted fresh, but was a little too mild in flavor, while the housemade ground mustard overpowered the tastiness of the sausage. I liked Salt's Cure just fine, but it didn't really blow me away. Since the hipster persona is not working out for me, I will let y'all know in next week's post how my bourgeoisie personality is coming along :).

--y

Breadbar - Century City, California

Address: 10250 Santa Monica Blvd, Century City, CA 90067

Items Ordered:

• Chicken noodle soup
• French onion soup with emmenthal cheese
• Wild halibut pico de gallo, carrots, spinach
• Catch of the day (bass?) with capers, brussels sprouts, and potatoes
• Happy hour: pepperoni pizza, burger and fries
• Bread pudding

Would I go back to Breadbar? Yes! In fact I've already revisited for the amazingly warm and toothsome bread pudding more than once. It's not overly sweet, and is probably the best version I've tried to date. I'm glad that "Breadbar" can live up to its name with the fantastic bread pudding. I'm also a sucker for cheese, especially when it's warm and melty like in French onion soup. If you're a fan, try this dish as well; I couldn't stop drinking it. If that wasn't enough to convince you to give Breadbar a try, both fish entrees we ordered were flaky and well-seasoned. They were also relatively light enough to leave stomach space for dessert. I would recommend visiting during regular hours as the happy hour dishes are just mediocre and probably not the restaurant's best showing. If you visit, let me know if you agree with me about the delicious bread pudding!

--y

Philly Eats - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Locations: 

• Pat's King of Steaks
• Reading Terminal Market (Tommy DiNic's, Miller's Twist, Famous 4th St Cookie Co)
• Franklin Fountain

Items Ordered:

• Cheesesteak wit wiz (Pat's)
• Roast pork w/ provolone and broccoli rabe (DiNic's)
• Chocolate chip w/ walnuts, chocolate peanut butter, oatmeal cookie (4th St Cookie Co)
• Soft pretzel (Miller's Twist)
• Hydrox cookies 'n cream, mint chip (Franklin Fountain)

   
I love visiting the East Coast. Everything is so much more historical than in LA (I still love you LA!). This was my second trip to Philly, but I loved it way more since I got to try so many delicious foods. The steak in Pat's cheesesteak was flavorful and the bread was crusty. I dunno 'bout Geno's, but they really do have some competition! No matter, the winner of Best Sandwich in America at Tommy DiNic's was the clear sandwich champion. The pork was juicy and plentiful, and the garlicky broccoli rabe was an excellent addition. Don't forget to try the soft pretzel from Miller's Twist...those Pennsylvania Dutch can make a mean pretzel! Oh, and there's also amazing cookies and ice cream. Go visit Philly! And bring me something back please! Thanks :).

--y

Langer's Deli -Downtown Los Angeles, California

Address: 704 S Alvarado St, Los Angeles, CA 90057

Items Ordered:

• #19: Pastrami, swiss cheese, and cole slaw with Russian style dressing
• Chicken breast sandwich with cheese
• Home fries

The menu at Langer's is huge, but the only sandwich that anyone ever raves about is the #19 pastrami sandwich. While the sandwich was full of meaty pastrami, and the rye bread delicious, I thought the Russian dressing was a little overwhelming. I can't help but think that Langer's is a little overrated. I still prefer the options at Bay Cities and Apple Pan on the Westside. The chicken sandwich and fries were pretty standard as well. I liked Langer's, but wouldn't really go out of my way to visit again. Let me know what you think.

--y

Bäco Mercat - Los Angeles, California

Address: 408 S Main St, Los Angeles, CA 90013

Items Ordered:

• Warm potato salad with pickled vegetables
• Original bäco sandwich - pork belly, beef carnitas, salbitxada
• El Pesco bäco sandwich - crispy shrimp, sriracha, chive

There are some places that have been on my radar for so long that when I finally visit, I just want to order everything on the menu. Fortunately, I have smarter friends than myself, and we were able to narrow down our selections to just 3 options at Bäco Mercat. I have to say, the restaurant really lived up to the hype. The flatbread of the sandwich was somehow crispy yet soft at the same time, and the pork belly and shrimp were both seasoned well. The sauces weren't overwhelming, and one sandwich is definitely substantial enough for lunch or dinner. The warm potato salad was amazing! Crispy potatoes that were well-dressed, absolutely delicious! I would definitely order this again and probably a few more appetizers as well. Highly recommend this restaurant, and props to the chef. Try it for yourself!

--y

ink.sack - West Hollywood, California

Address: 8360 Melrose Ave #107, Los Angeles, CA 90069

Items Ordered:

• Cold Fried Chicken House-Made Ranch Cheese, Gindo’s Spice of Life
• The Jose Andrés (aka The Spanish Godfather) Serrano, Chorizo, Lomo, Manchego
• “Reuben” Corned Beef Tongue, Appenzeller Cheeze, Kraut, Russian Dressing 
• Pineapple Chile y Limon

I <3 sandwiches. Just imagine me as Joey from Friends but as a girl who will eat almost any concoction slapped between 2 slices of bread. That's probably why I arrived outside of ink.sack 30 minutes before they even opened one Saturday morning--but surprisingly, I wasn't the only one! The ratio of meat, cheese, veggies, & sauce to carbohydrates was extremely well proportioned in all 3 sandwiches. Each bite allowed the delicious flavors to meld together. The cold fried chicken really lived up to the hype as the chicken was still crispy, and the ingredients matched perfectly. The Reuben was my favorite! I had no idea that beef tongue could be made so tender and flavorful, and the Russian dressing was not overpowering or too saucy. Really, one of the best sandwiches I've ever had. The Jose Andrés was tasty enough, but was overshadowed by the other 2 sandwiches. Don't forget the chili pineapple or watermelon either, it's a really refreshing treat for the summer. I can't wait for my next visit to ink.sack to try everything else on the menu. Two thumbs up for Top Chef Michael Voltaggio!!

--y

Tartine Bakery - San Francisco, California

Address: 600 Guerrero St, San Francisco, CA 94110

Items Ordered:

• Spicy sopressata, fontina, broccoli rabe pesto sandwich
• Niman Ranch pastrami sandwich w/ horseradish & gruyere
• Croque Monsieur w/ bechamel, gruyere, thyme, & Niman Ranch ham
• Coconut passionfruit bavarian cake
• Chocolate eclair

You might think that if you visit Tartine Bakery on a random Tuesday at 11am or 2pm you wouldn't have to wait in line for savory sandwiches or moist delicious pastries. Well you'd be WRONG. There is always a line out the door at Tartine b/c their sandwiches are packed with flavor and perfectly melted ooey gooey cheese. The bread can be quite crunchy so it might not be the best place to bring Grandma :(. The mouthwatering pastries on display are hard to choose from, but you can't go wrong with anything you pick. Try not to eat too much here though b/c just a little walk away you can also visit Pizzeria Delfina and Bi-Rite Creamery--2 delicious San Francisco institutions. I'm experiencing some San Francisco withdrawal as I write this post so it might be time to plan a trip soon! Hopefully, I can snatch a morning bun at Tartine before they run out :O.

--y

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

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