I had no idea they had closed! Such a sad story to read.
Truth be told, I was never as fond of the new place as the old one. If the owner is reading this, maybe he can open something closer to the original along Santa Monica Blvd. in West LA. There’s a great dining scene the area (IMHO)…
I always feel obligated to point out that Joe’s does a super crispy, crunchy crust. Pizza ranges from chewy to crunchy, true NY pizza is somewhere in the middle, displaying both crunch and chew. Joe’s is in one extreme end. Not surprising some love it while others dont. It’s just ok for me. I don’t know anybody out there callin Joe’s the best.
I thought Joe’s SM by Ocean was the first Joe’s outpost in LA and they were all related. guess not?
Uhhh… Yum! If you find it let me know.
The taco place before the bbq place before Soto’s, lol, closed and moved to a bigger place in SM. I thought that was them but I might be mistaken. I liked the offerings at SM Tacos Punta Cabras too. Bummer.
Maybe it was the crust (not enough droop) but I thought the cheese was boring too.
their sauce and cheese was always super average. for our area i always opted for vito’s. now i very rarely go out for pizza.
it’s so shocking to me that someone doesn’t just do it right. .it’s not very complicated… i need a second me to sit at the day job.
Haha… don’t we all. When’s the Nemroz homemade pizza party?
There is nothing wrong with your perspective.
During my visit in September, I noted that the sushi rice was a bit too firm for my tastes and some grains tasted almost under cooked. Despite the use of akazu (sake lees vinegar) which gives the shari its darker red tone, there was not enough salt (my preference) to bring forth more aromas. However this might not be representative of the norm and I would actually love to return next time to see what they are doing (or perhaps check S Night if the opportunity comes if they approach it differently).
With that said, certain profiles work great overall despite the rice, and some not as much. At that point you’re more focused on the flavors, textures, rather than the nuances of the nigiri itself as a whole. Either you like the rice, or you do not. However with that said, despite the nature of the rice for that evening’s visit, some items like anago were superb, ikura is always fun, and the jumbo botan ebi konbu jime.
However if you have the right beverage to pair, the enjoyment level could be far more exciting. Not Shunji, but I’ve had fairly decent neta at another place where the fish actually overpowered the rice despite the nature of the cuts and the chef’s style which I disagreed with, and a very enjoyable pairing with a Riesling, and that didn’t dampen the mood.
Personally I love the cooked dishes at Shunji, ever since my first visit back in 2015, which is really where Shunji san shines and the cooked food/apps ability to pair nicely with white wines and sake.
so true
Thanks for the nuance. Definitely Sushi School 301 level.
I really miss the scallop ceviche tostada at TPC
That cauliflower tostada was also magical.
They should make a cookbook
Happy CakeDay, cookie
Ahhh yes Happy Birthday @TheCookie! Hope you have a great sake with that cake!
Ohhh… Sake with Cake. 
“Umelicious” maybe? Or something nice & warm like Shusen “Three Dots” Junmai?
Most of the cakes from Porto’s are not very good. It’s pretty much the default choice for office birthday celebrations at places I’ve worked. But every cake I’ve had from there, the frosting is too sweet and the cake part is too dry or dense. I do like the vegetarian potato balls though.
We’ve only had their 3 leches and it’s great. Been a few times now
I would agree with this with the caveat that Porto’s competes against supermarket sheet cakes and between the two Porto’s is a no brainer.
For sure, if I had to choose between a supermarket sheet cake and Porto’s, I’d rather have a cake from Porto’s.
Aside from the wait in line. 
On a somewhat related note, Costco does pretty damn good b-day cakes.
I’m an old-school Jew, brought up with Crisco or heavy buttercream with gritty sugar frosting. Portos is way too classy and fancy.
I need something like Bea’s bakery.