Im based in LA but sometimes post my meals from trips here 
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New Golden City in Rowland Heights
House special chicken and green onion pancakes are the same as Earthen. Brought the kids for the first time and they agreed.
Jjamppong was not spicy enough for me but still a good bowl of noodles for a cold day.
Very good green beans
Good flavor but skins are too thick.
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My normal spot before a show at Largo is Sushi Fumi. A true Beverly Grove stalwart. But it’s Sunday so Fumi is closed. It’s also raining, so I didn’t want to venture very far. I opened Google Maps and tapped Restaurants. Perhaps there was something nearby worth a visit. Norms, not in the mood. Torisoba Tonsho, decent spot but I had ramen twice this week.
Up pops KOCHI, a Japanese spot just a few storefronts north of Largo. Good online reviews, a menu highlighting udon but with enough non-soup options to pique my interest.
It feels like as close to a traditional izakaya as you’re going to find in the immediate area. Simple but elegant decor, including a lovely cherry blossom painting on one of the main walls.
The menu tries to please. There are the
basic LA appetizers at standard LA prices - $15 for spicy tuna crispy rice or $20 for albacore sashimi or yellow jalapeño. But move beyond that, and there’s better value to be found. $12 for a chicken or beef rice bowl. $14+ for a variety of udon options. $5 for open faced handrolls. And a typical selection of sushi and sashimi.
My server recommended the chicken katsu rice bowl, which was fantastic. Great breading, and tender, flavorful chicken, with a small smattering of greens, over fluffy white rice. Much better than the average katsu in LA, and near the top of katsu options this far west. An open face yellowtail hand tasted fresh, though the ponzu was milder than I would have liked. A draft Sapporo came out perfectly chilled in a thick Sapporo glass - fantastic. $29 after tax and tip, and I’m perfectly sated.
There’s a Japanese restaurant in Brentwood that I begrudgingly visit from time to time called Taiko. The menu here reads similar - a meld of basic LA dishes and more traditional dishes. But everything at KOCHI, from the decor to the service to most importantly, the food, is vastly superior.
Is KOCHI destination worthy? Probably not. But it’s a fantastic neighborhood spot (especially for this cuisine in this neighborhood), and I would happily dine here next time I’m in the area for 1/2 the price and none of the wait of Sushi Fumi.
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Celebrated Orthodox Christmas at the Oybar last night. As always the food was great. Tried several new things:
Started with Jeff’s pickle Bento Box and the Jewish artichoke. I didn’t get pictures of those.
My wife’s friend ordered the matzo ball ramen,
The lovely wife got the New G/OG burger,
Our daughter picked Hokkaido scallops, a new item,
I make pretty good seared scallops, but these were off the chart. Great caramelization while not even close to being overcooked. The sauce was so good ebeth kept dipping crispy potatoes in it,
I chose the Oy-Tahni dog, a tribute to the greatest ballplayer since Babe Ruth,
A wonderful evening! Highly recommend the Oybar to everyone. Creativity and quality are unsurpassed in the Valley. However it has been discovered. We got there at 5 and walked right in. By 6:30 there was a line, despite it being a blustery, chilly Wednesday night.
Edited to add they are now grilling their steak offering over Binchotan. Will get that next time.
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A couple meals at საქართველო Saqartvelo Georgian Cuisine in Van Nuys. Los Angeles is now past its Georgian from a pan-Soviet lens era and thoroughly into its Georgian by and for Georgians era here in Van Nuys thanks to this year old restaurant. DELICIOUS!
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We ordered deliver from Saqartvelo once on UberEats, and it was good. If you haven’t been to Havlabar in Glendale you should try it too. Georgian food is unique, largely due to its heavy use of walnuts as the base for many dishes.
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Been to Havlabar and file that in what I called the pan-Soviet lens.
Saqartvelo has the baker right behind the counter, really urge you to eat in the shop and have everything fresh.
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Quick stop at Mitsuwa for beef udon. It’s just beyond the laziness-radius of my apartment, or I’d be eating here all the time. Food always tastes good and comes out quickly. I think it was just under $15. I like this udon noodle more than the Marugame on Sawtelle, but I think the Marugame beef is better.
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A great Theophany celebration!
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That’s exciting. So many “Georgian” places turn out to be Russian and don’t have the right flavor. Thanks for the tip.
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I managed to get to Saqartvelo last Spring, having caught my eye in an earlier drive past, months before I saw/heard/read anyone else’s mention of it. It is legitimate. Love it!
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Lunch at Paul’s Kitchen on San Pedro. The Lasorda Special for two:
wonton soup, egg roll, chasu pork, spare ribs, asparagus with beef, kung pao chicken, and house special fried rice. The KPC was a little sweet. The fried rice had some lovely wok hei. The wonton soup is not my favorite. Overall the meal was very fun! It was 2/3 full of folks when we grabbed lunch a little after noon. I want to get back soon to try the chow fun.
There’s tons of off-street parking. 60 bucks after tip, and it was more food than two adults could finish.
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Yes but they do have a Georgian menu with classic Georgian dishes.
The Havlabar neighborhood is the Little Armenia of Tiblisi.
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Very interesting! They have an Armenian menu too. I’d love to know more. Actually, I’d love to visit Georgia. We watched a travel documentary about Georgia and it was awesome.
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And their food is enjoyable, I agree. But it’s from a different angle. I wrote about it when I wrote about Havlabar, for a little more context if you want…
As the subtitle states, at the time it was the most wide variety of Georgian foods. But as I wrote in the article, it is cooked by Armenians for Armenians, and this leads to different results.
It is perfectly fine to enjoy Havlabar more than Saqartvelo. I prefer not to rank foods in general. My point is only that Saqartvelo is more like the food in Georgia, and Havlabar is what Georgian food is like in Armenia. There are simple but significant differences.
Saw your later comment about desiring a visit to Georgia, and cannot recommend it enough. Beautiful country and people and food. Armenia too!
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I went to Uptown Provisions in Whittier for my first visit and I got a curry chicken sandwich and a Cake Monkey Summer Camp cookie. $18 after tax, before tip.
Really good bread and very good sandwich. I’ll go back and try more. Only small pang was the wait for the 25 minute wait for my food. I got there at 11:35AM and while there were people eating and waiting for their orders, there was no one waiting to place their order. So, I ordered mine and sat outside until it was ready. It was a lovely day but that seemed like a long wait for a sandwich place.
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I tend to order online at Uptown Provisions. It works great.
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I rarely order online for anything. I have a wild hope for some kind of chalkboard only special.
All the specials hit the online menu at Uptown Provisions.
The wait you incurred was likely due to online orders hitting the queue before you.
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