Try jiayuan dumpling, seems like shanghainese with some pan Chinese dishes. I’ve only had dumplings, mapo tofu and hot and sour soup there but everything was really good.
Also there’s a dtf at del amo that should definitely be able to scratch your Taiwanese/beef noodle soup itch.
I’ve heard that barrans 2239 has the best breakfast burritos in the South Bay. Haven’t been able to try them myself, only available on weekends.
Lucky Number 1 in Lomita: Traditional Taiwanese staples like bamboo tube rice, oyster omelette.
Nice Cafe in Torrance: Cantonese Char Sui, roast duck and soy sauce chicken. They usually come out around noon or 5 PM, and can get sold out on quickly on weekends. This place in enigmatic. The chef/owner is fully capable of doing some good cooking. Good enough regulars go there for off-menu banquets, but day to day quality can be inconsistent.
Call ahead for availability if you are looking for specific dishes.
Btw, Rex Cafe in San Pedro is good for breakfast.
@hungryhungryhippos haven’t been to jiayuan yet but hear good things. and dtf is so pricey… finding that i do enjoy the Northern Cafe version of beef noodle soup tho.
@liq I did try Lucky Number 1. Only got their fried pork chop and didn’t love it. Had some weird taste that my wife and I found offputting. But may have to try it again given lack of option!
And will defintely try Nice Cafe… Gets terrible Yelp reviews so have stayed away, but will take your rec.
Carl
Spoon House in Torrance is still very good and very comforting.
Spaghetti with tarako, squid, and shimeji mushrooms in butter sauce:
Omelette spaghetti with bacon:
Nice and crispy fish tacos from Ensenada Surf & Turf (until they change their name again for the hundredth time) in Lawndale:
The spicy lemon garlic chicken at Chicken Maison (original location on PCH & Ocean in Torrance) is still my favorite chicken dish in the South Bay:
Umenoya in Torrance may not be the best ramen place around, but I still love it. I especially love the chopped raw onions in the ramen, and their fried rice is really good.
Spicy miso ramen (level 5):
Fried rice:
Hot, fresh, and delicious mochi donuts from Modo Hawaii inside Mitsuwa Torrance.
Honey glaze, strawberry glaze, milk tea sugar, and churro:
I’m thankful @thechez5 is back on FTC! Sorry for the interruption, carry on.
Aww shucks. Thank you, @RedDevil. 
I know it’s stupid to get annoyed over these lists, but Sugarfish? Lol.
What the heck is Royal fried rice plate at Gardena Bowl?
Something really good when you’ve had a long night of bowling and beers. Basically like an unmixed fried rice with eggs and teriyaki sauce over white rice.
If you want to go real hardcore get the royale and then get a loco moco and put the loco moco on top of the royale
Oh, got it. I haven’t been to Gardena Bowl since just after ownership change so I thought it was a new fried rice dish or something. My jam was always the Portuguese sausage mix there but I always go to TnT now.
The kimchi loco moco at TnT in insanely good. Cannot even kill the entire plate, so I can imagine adding a Hawaiian Royale to it.
I’ll have to check the kimchi loco moco out!
Me too.
Aunties Cafe in Gardena (not to be confused with Aunty Maile’s) is apparently owned by the original owners of Gardena Bowl and is supposed to be pretty good. I haven’t tried it yet though.
Aunties is decent however I would choose TnT every time.
Aunty Maile’s gets great reviews but what stands out there? I got the saimin which was horrendous. The kids had loco moco which was decent but we like the Big Island Eats version better.
What’s TnT?
I’m a big fan of their chicken katsu. Think it’s exceptionally well done, fried well, crispy, not greasy and very juicy. The fried rice with chasu is also very good. I also like their mac salad.
A lot of people like their furikake chicken. I’m not a big fan but that’s more of a personal thing I think in regards to furikake chicken in general.
The korean chicken and the dipping sauce with it is also really good. I’ve had their poke a few times and thought it was good, not great. FWIW, I’ve never seen anyone order their saimin or loco moco when we used to go to their original Gardena location frequently.
All the people around us would have the plates and seemed like most of the to go was also the same.
Curious, have you tried the loco moco at Happa? I know some people who like it but I’m not a loco moco connoisseur by any means and don’t have enough of a framwork for judging it.
@thechez5 Have you been to Happa restaurant lately? With pandemic changes, it seems like they’ve changed their menu too. Less homestyle hawaiian diner and more izakaya style. We enjoyed our last meal there trying some of the newer dishes such as the pork belly with garlic sprouts and grilled pork cheek.
All the grandma servers quit due to Covid fears, which is a bummer as they were always so nice. Servers are now much younger.
@Jase I have not been to Happa in a few years but that’s really sad to hear about the grandmas! I just checked out the new menu and it looks pretty appealing to me. Thanks for the tip!
Ah, good to know.
I mostly go for their plates. I like the kalbi and furikake shrimp combo. Nothing mind blowing, but very tasty. I’m not the biggest fan of saimin so I haven’t tried theirs, and for loco moco I go to TnT.
