Breakfast At Tart

For a couple of weeks Cam and I have wanted breakfast. Good breakfast. Not IHOP. Last week we ended up getting Thai food and I had chicken and waffles and did the same thing again but this time at Tart over on Fairfax. After finding parking right out front which is a miracle we headed inside...round the back. It was weird. We each got a form of coffee and then our meals arrived. I got this really good chicken and waffle dish that has candied pecans, Tabasco butter, and bourbon maple syrup. The chicken was some of the best I have ever tasted and I would love to try it in a dinner or lunch. The skin was crispy and flavored perfectly and the chicken itself was super juicy. The waffle was also good. I did not finish. I took the rest home. Cam got a big ass sandwich and she had the Danish bacon removed (travesty!) and got chicken sausage on the side. The sandwich had lettuce, heirloom tomato, avocado, onion confit, fried eggs, and mustard aioli on griddled country bread. I did not try it but she loved it. I'll be heading back here again for sure.

Spare Tire On Wilshire

So after the nightmare of eating Hiatus and buying plants we parked and I asked Cam where that other food place she mentioned was. She pointed across the street to Spare Tire and I said “Let's go!” So we went there with no reservations because we G's like that. Immediately seated new the brick pizza oven. 

Order an Allagash white because that drink is the shit while Cam got some weird coconut beer thing. She liked it. I ordered the chicken and waffles plate which you can see looks crazy but tasted great. It had basel butter on top and the chicken was awesome. She got a prawn meal but didn't like them that much but enjoyed everything else on her plate. This place definitely picked up our moods after the last place. There are quite a few other things on their menu that look good that I'll have to try out. The waiter was cool and not pushy at all. The food was good. The music was cool. I liked this place a lot. For anyone wondering how we could eat two meals in less than an hour, fifteen minutes after eating the first place it was like we had nothing.

All About That Lala's

This past weekend after a bunch of shopping and running around mixed with an ever growing hatred of the city of Glendale Cam and I headed over to Lala's on Melrose. I love this place. They have remodeled since we last went and it looks much better and has more room than before. We hadn't been in a long while so we took our asses there and had some really good food. Of course we started off with the bread and that delicious oil and herbs they serve.

Lemon Pepper Chicken & Garlic Fries

I told myself that starting this year I was gonna start cooking at home more often. I like to make simple yet good meals that don’t require a lot of preparation or ingredients. If you live near a Trader Joe’s there’s no reason for you not to make your own meals. If you have $20 you have dinner for a week. I bought the bag of chicken breasts for $6.99. I season it with lemon pepper that cost $1.99 and a little garlic salt that you can buy anywhere for cheap. I put it in the oven for forty minutes, turning and seasoning it once. Afterwards I slice it to make it look pretty. I’ve been working on Hell’s Kitchen for too long…

The garlic fries cost around four bucks. You are supposed to season and bake these but that takes way too long and I tend to wait until I am very hungry and incredibly impatient. There’s a pack of garlic sauce that comes in the bag. I suggest you thaw it in a cup of warm water while you cook. I ended up frying the fries which cuts the cooking time but a fourth of the time. I put it in a large plastic container and shook it like it owed me money. In less than an hour I had a delicious dinner that makes about four meals for around ten dollars.

Buddha Belly Is Amazing

Last weekend me and Cam went to Buddha's Belly again. This place is just fantastic. Located near The Grove it is pretty easy to miss. I've mentioned before that I had passed it dozens of times and never noticed it. The way its set up is nice, the staff is awesome, and the food is great. We usually start off with chicken potstickers and we continued this trend. I almost forgot to take a picture since we dived into them as soon as they arrived.

In my attempt to continue trying new things at places I've been to a few times I thought that we should try the crab thingies. I forget what the name of these were but they were good. You have to be careful here since everything is big so you can get full easily.

Barbecue Pizza From Trader Joe's

Last week I grabbed a Trader Joe’s pizza. They have a lot of them there and I wanted to try out the barbecue chicken one. Damn, this thing is good! I had half of it and then realized that it was silly to try and save it till later. So I ate the rest of it. It’s a thin crust pizza which I normally do not enjoy but there’s so much chicken on it that I don’t mind. Its only about $4.99 which is pretty damn cheap for such a good little pizza.

Röckenwagner Bakery In Santa Monica

Miss E. and I went to Santa Monica a couple days ago. We didn’t hit up our usual spots on Beverly or in Larchmont but decided to check out the beach. I hadn’t been over to Santa Monica in a long ass time and the mall over there was still under construction which had been going on for years. I was shocked to see how much it had changed. There was this entire food court that was the complete opposite of the food court that used to be there that had such mall staples Sbarro and Panda Express. Maybe there was even a Hotdog On A Stick aka Perv Paradise. Miss. E had been here before so I left it up to her to lead me around especially since I’m no expert in fresh food and we ended up at Röckenwagner.

Roscoe's: Good Food Bad Service

Went to Roscoe’s Chicken & Waffles with Miss H. once again last week. If you read the old post I did about this place you will notice that it is damn near the opposite experience in terms of service. Roscoe’s is one of those places that I heard about for years before I ever actually went there. “Who in the hop scotching hell would want to eat chicken and waffles at the same time?!” I mean, I like pancakes more and the idea of eating chicken with a dish that had syrup sounds terrible. But Roscoe’s tastes awesome. If you’re ever in Los Angeles and you don’t give this a try you fail as a human being. But…lets see how you feel after reading this latest review.

Zankou Chicken on Sunset

Yesterday me and South Paw went to Zankou Chicken on Sunset a little past Western. This is one of those places that I have heard of but swore I never saw and would never think about when anyone said “Where do you wanna eat?” I am so glad I finally tried this place and will definitely be heading there again. I have no idea what the other locations are like so I have only this one to base my experience off of. South Paw kept saying that the chicken was amazing so even though they had a bunch of other stuff I was getting the chicken. She also warned me about the garlic sauce (paste?) that they serve with their food. After assuring her that I wouldn’t be kissing anyone anytime soon and that it didn’t matter how strong it was, we ordered our food.

After proclaiming that I wanted some stick meat (that’s what she said…) I got the chicken shish kabobs and a large drink. It also came with what Zankou’s website describes as “garlic and tahini blended together and topped with olive oil and paprika.” It was very good but I was so focused on the garlic sauce I kept forgetting to eat it. That colorful stuff is some pickled beets so you know I didn’t eat that. South Paw got a half chicken that was an actual half chicken. Some places say they are serving you the same and I know its not. This really was.

Lala's On Melrose

Went to Lala’s for dinner with Cam. It was so good! I usually get the half polla ala something or other picante, an empanada, and Sprite. This time I decided on a chicken picante sandwich with fries and a lemonade. Damn, it was good! I told Cam that I didn’t feel like dealing with my normal meal (“I don’t feel like fighting with my food…”). It was super good and I was glad I decided to try something new for once.

Cam got this rice deal thing. I cant even pretend to remember what it was called or what all was in it.

Before the meal we waited until we got this bread and stuff. Its so good but you have to be careful you not to get full off of it. I love Lala’s and a while back their quality dropped (after the Deadly Tomato Scare a few years back) but they are back in business!

Le Pain Quotidien

So today on a hot summer day here in Los Angeles I went to this place in Larchmont called Le Pain Quotidien. “What’s this about Pain?!” I cried. Miss E. assured me that it meant “pan” in French. This is a very cool and nice place with a great staff. I got this amazing sandwich that had chicken, avocado, tomatoes, and a piece of cantaloupe. I hadn’t had a taste of cantaloupe in forever so it was weird to taste one again. It was served on this flat plate that looked cool and I washed it down with a few glasses of real lemonade.

We also got this muffin thing for dessert. I forget what it had in it but apparently there were Chia Pet seeds all over it.So the next time anyone sees me and plants are coming out my ass you’ll know why. The thing about this place that amazed me was that it was all organic and health. If you’ve read more than two of these blogs you know that I fight healthy. But Le Pain Quotidien was really good.

Roscoe's Chicken & Waffles

Yesterday I went to Roscoe’s Chicken & Waffles with Miss H. It was so damned fun! This is the third time I have been here. This was the Hollywood location, which was twice, and I went to the Pico one once and that wasn’t all that fun. I got the chicken (of course) and waffles with a side of potato salad, and an Arnold Palmer to drink. We sat there for like an hour and just got to talk and enjoy some great food. We went in the middle of the day and it was easy to get a seat. No wait and the waitress was really fast and nice.

Love That Chicken From Popeye's

Popeye’s Chicken is the shit! I mean that in a good way. Its probably what I will miss most about not working in Burbank. Yeah, there’s one on Hollywood but its freaking swimming with hobos and people asking for change or trying to sell you drugs. Or if you’re me, Dante, trying to buy drugs from you. They have this awesome ass deal with all these delicious shrimp and fries with a drink. I get the sweet tea which somehow tastes better once the ice melts and its warm. The only chicken I ever get from here is the po’boy sandwich because it has two huge pieces of chicken and the spicy version rules all kinds of ass.

Red’s Barbecue & Grillery

Went to my friends Tanya and John’s and they ordered from this pace called Red’s Barbecue & Grillery. I had never heard of it but damn this place was good! Apparently there is only one location which sucks because I would order from here weekly if it were nearby.

I continue to be shocked when I eat barbecue that isn’t from someone’s house and I enjoy it. I think its happened to me four times now. The ribs were good and not from starving animals. There were also these garlic bread deals that melted in your mouth. And the macaroni was also super cheesy and good.

Cam had the chicken and some corn on the cob as well. I love corn on the cob but didn’t get any because I was being polite and let a late guest have it. I’m stupid. I should’ve ate that damned corn on the cob with my fat hungry ass.

Wood Ranch Bar & Grill

After seeing an awesome film (which you can check out reviews for at dnashow.blogspot.com) me and Cam headed to this place called Wood Ranch Bar & Grill. This spot is over at The Grove and I have passed it an assload of times and never went inside. I would smell it and be like “Wow, that smells good…” but never ventured inside. Tonight we did and I’m so glad. We started off with this macaroni which tasted good. Nothing to write mama about but better than average. They also had these rolls that were super good but needed to be eaten immediately lest they get hard.

I was this close to eating a burger (my staple at most places I try for the first time) but decided to get a chicken sandwich. This place has ribs and stuff but I hate eating barbecue like that in public. You who have eaten with me know I use napkins and act all polite but when I eat at home alone I’m a fucking animal. Why lie? I eat like a beast when I’m by myself. Anyhoot, the sandwich was very good and had a surprising mixture on it. A hot mustard sauce, bell peppers, and grilled onion on a whole wheat bun. Very tasty. The prices are about average for a spot like this and you will have something to take home. Unless you’re Cam and order a salad with old lettuce and mystery avocados. I also ordered fries with the meal and some very good strawberry lemonade. I got three or four refills and the waiter was on that shit. It was awesome. Check this place out next time you’re at The Grove.

New Year's Feast

So last night I attended Camille’s wonderful New Year’s dinner and this is the aftermath. Let me preface this by saying that the night before I had drank a bottle  of wine, two shots of liquor, and at a friends house had about four beers. So the next day I was all kinds of hungry but didn’t wanna spoil my appetite so I ate lightly during the day because I knew Cam was cooking some awesome ass food.

Besides the tipsy rum cake I mentioned in a previous blog she made black eyed peas, chicken, some hot stuff for some friend yucca (tasted like fries to me), and some really good yellow rice she makes that I love eating. There was also pie and cheesecake. I love this annual event because I know I’ll be eating good food and hanging out with some cool people that day. As soon as I get home I’m thinking about the next one a year from now. I have already started planning with friends gatherings so we can all eat and have fun.

Trader Joe's Chicken Breasts and Garlic Fries

So I got some chicken breasts and garlic fries from Trader Joe’s. Oh, its good! Julia N. made me the chicken breasts with seasoning and it was so damned good. The fries are regular fries but after they are done you put them in a container and pour the garlic packet on them. The packet is huge and you’d never need all of it. Maybe like 15% of the pack unless you don’t plan on kissing anyone for a few days. Between the chicken and the fries the total is about $10 and will make about five meals. You cant beat that deal!

Domino's Pizza

A few weeks ago I ordered some pizza from Domino’s. It was good. Hey have changed the taste of this and Pizza Hut so many times over the years that if I ate some from the early 90’s I probably wouldn’t even recognize it. I got the regular ass pepperoni and black olives. I don’t like messing around with my pizza too much. Keep it simple. Don’t use pineapples. Ever.

The chicken nuggets which they refer to as Chicken Kickers. They were good but nothing to like call your friends and scream over. Good but not great. It was close to $17 for this meal which lasted a few meals so its an okay deal for the price. Just stick with DiGiorno.

Trader Joe's Chicken Fried Rice

I have made this chicken fried rice from Trader Joe’s about three times from one bag. It could have been four but I am a greedy bastard which you’d probably guess from the fact that I have a food blog. This bag was less than $4 and makes about four meals. That’ a dollar a meal! Awesome. It takes a couple minutes to make and tastes good. Actually the rice tastes better than most food places. Try it.

Chicken & Chayote

For dinner yesterday Julia C.’s mom made a really good chicken salad. There was also this flatbread that I had never had before as well as this vegetable called chayote. Sounds like coyote.



I had never had this strange vegetable let alone even heard of it. It looked like a pear and felt like a pear on my tongue but to me it had no flavor. Julia put a little lime on it but still it tasted like lime and nothing. So bizarre. I have been over Julia’s twice and each time I have some new food and loved it.