Restaurant Review #55: Messob, Fairfax, Little Ethiopia

Vegetarian sampler for two, as always

To be honest, too much time passes between my visits to different Ethiopian restaurants for me to be able to compare them very well. However, Messob is not one of my favorites for several reasons.

Of the five different dishes that come in the vegetarian sampler, one was a salad of just lettuce and tomato. I can make that at home, and it doesn't taste very

Restaurant Review #54: Versailles Cuban Restaurant, Encino

Fried yuca

I ordered the fried yuca because they were out of croquettes (I was really excited about those, too, as they were one of my favorite dishes in Spain). Yuca is a plant that grows in the desert which I did not realize had edible parts. It's very starchy, but stickier and sweeter than a potato. I didn't think it tasted like much--they would have benefitted from a dipping sauce, or from

Restaurant Review #53: Melisse, Santa Monica

Some meals are just too good to photograph, and this was one of them. When you're eating food that's so good you occasionally start tearing up, you don't want to interrupt the mood by sneaking out the camera and telling your friend they can't touch their food until you photograph it six times. Besides, the lighting was too dim for any decent shots.

So, French food. Eh. What's the big deal? It's

Restaurant Review #52: Hurry Curry of Tokyo, Sawtelle, West LA

I thought this place was supposed to be really good. And it smelled good. Unfortunately, I was underwhelmed.

I went on a Saturday evening around 6:00 and only about a fourth of the tables were occupied. It's a casual place, with a nice black tile floor and light wood tables and chairs, but not nice enough to take a date.

Loungey deep house grooves emanated from the stereo, which turned

Restaurant Review #51: Anastasia's Asylum, Santa Monica (now closed)

Poached pear, candied walnut and gorgonzola cheese with dried cranberries

Disclaimer: In the summer of 2006, Anastasia's Asylum became Living Room. Living Room then closed. The original review remains below.

Anastasia's is my other favorite coffee shop (in addition to Literati--they have very distinct personalities). It's date-worthy and very cozy, almost to the point of being cramped (but

Restaurant Review #50: 18th Street Coffee House, Santa Monica

This casual, spacious coffee house has both indoor and outdoor seating. It is neither corporately friendly nor independently hostile. The floors are cement, and the wrought-iron tables have mosaic tops. There are also booths and a fountain. I haven't properly experienced this place yet: I ordered an iced decaf (boring) and went on a Wednesday at 6pm (not a time likely to have many patrons). It

Restaurant Review #49: Osteria Latini, Brentwood

The Dining Room

I loved the friendly hostess who didn't scold us for not making reservations or give my mom a look like "what are you doing in Brentwood?" The dining room was very inviting, full of natural light, and yes, this is the whole dining room.


Oyster mushroom and yellow lentil puree amuse bouche

Mmmm, mushrooms. Give me a sauteed mushroom and I'm a happy girl. The yellow lentil

Future Dining Experiences

Sometimes I have a really hard time remembering the 100 or so restaurants I want to try when it comes time to actually pick a place. Maybe you do, too. My reviews should help you with that. And for me, there's this ever-evolving list of the untried, which not only serves as a reminder, but fulfills my compulsive need to organize everything. This list is not exhaustive, of course, and

Restaurant Review #48: Sham, Santa Monica

A Poem (sort of)

The muhummura was
Unsatisfying
Too many walnuts
Not enough sweet sweet red pepper
And pomegranate molasses
They
Wouldn't bring me extra pickled turnips
The service is
s
l
o
w
Like a dead leaf drifting from a tree
And like that same dreary November day when that leaf fell
There is no atmosphere.


I'll have to find a different Lebanese place.

One with a better name. It's not as

Restaurant Review #47: Kiriko, Sawtelle, West LA

Tuna and tamago

I've been to Kiriko about ten times, and not once have they let me down. It's one of those rare restaurants where the service is always good, the tables aren't crammed together (except sometimes on a busy Saturday night), you can usually get a same-day reservation, and no matter what you order, it will be fresh and well-prepared.


Seared Wagyu beef sushi - $20 for 2 pieces (but

Restaurant Review #46: Place Yuu, Sawtelle, West LA

Last night, since I did not realize that Hide Sushi closes at 9:00, I had to pick a different sushi restaurant. There are five sushi restaurants on Sawtelle, and through process of elimination (bar only, closed, closed, already tried it) I opted for the place with no name. I was certain I'd never read about this place, but it was on Sawtelle, so it couldn't be that bad, right? It would probably

Restaurant Review #45: Asakuma, West LA

At first, I thought deliverable sushi was a great idea. Then, I was skeptical of this place for being willing to deliver sushi, as non-fresh sushi makes me want to throw up. I decided to have a friend get some for take-out one night. I ordered a yellowtail scallion roll, a spicy tuna roll, and a pickle roll. I got a spicy yellowtail roll, a spicy tuna roll, and a pickle roll. They were all

Restaurant Review #44: The Talking Stick, Santa Monica

The Talking Stick is an independent coffee shop on Ocean Park that hosts a different event every night of the week. I hate that about most of the coffee shops around here. What if I want to talk, or read, in relative quiet after work? I'm SOL. Literati Cafe is blissfully event-free, but it's not usually quiet and it's too big and shiny to have that authentic coffee shop feel. Cacao is also

Restaurant Review #43: Tia Juana's, West LA (now closed)

Salsa

And I know that maybe someday's come...

It's been a long, long time since I've had authentic Mexican food. Since whenever the last time was that I went to La Tapatia in Houston. Though I speak Spanish and have lived nearish the Mexican border most of my life, and have even spent some time in Mexico, I have never been a huge fan of Mexican food. But my mom and brother were in town, and my

Restaurant Review #42: The Slice, Santa Monica

Mmm, canned mushroomsI have problems knowing when I am hungry. Often, my stomach does not growl. I just find myself in an extremely foul mood for no apparent reason except that, say, Bed Bath and Beyond is a nightmarish place to shop. So I went to The Slice for lunch the other day in an attempt to thwart low blood sugar before it could attack my generally good nature.There is nothing exciting

Restaurant Review #41: Marrakesh, Studio City

Dining room

I went to Marrakesh on a word-of-mouth recommendation and because I was in the Valley. I had no idea what to expect, and was pleasantly surprised over and over again throughout my meal.

When we arrived around 6:00 on a Sunday, the restaurant was pretty empty, and it wasn't until about 8:00 when we left that a respectable number of tables were filled. I couldn't see the whole