Toca Madera - Los Angeles

 

Santa Monica Pier

Views from Griffith Observatory

 

A very hip and happening atmosphere at Toca (Migos was at another table and I think we saw Lebron James)

Nachos - some of the thinnest chips I've ever had.

Guacamole!

Make your own tacos (5 tacos - chicken and carne molida) $15

Tacos were wrapped in foil 

Website: https://www.tocamadera.com/

Osteria Mozza - Los Angeles

 

Amuse Bouche

Amazing! The soft cheese, flavourful tomato sauce and meatball on a crostini - it was just perfect.

Burrata Pugliese and Duck Rilletes Crostini

 

Both were really yummy - I really liked the duck rilletes

Tagliatelle with oxtail ragu

The fresh pasta stands out and the oxtail ragu was delicious

Linguine with clams and pancetta

Orecchiette with sausage and swiss chard

Yummy!

Rosemary Olive Oil cake and olive oil gelato

I would have never have thought that these two combinations would work since rosemary is a strong herb and olive oil is usually a subtle flavour - but these were FANTASTIC together. The cakes were really good with a nice crispy outer shell and paired with the cold and melty gelato - it was just phenomenal.

Overall: Some of the best Italian food I've ever had! I would highly recommend this restaurant (we made reservations way in advance and it's so worth it). 

Website: https://la.osteriamozza.com/

Pampas Grill - Los Angeles

As we were wandering The Grove, we found the Farmer's Market and went to explore our lunch options

Pampas Grill seemed promising since there was always a lineup here. 

The food is sold by pound which means you can have as little or as much as you want of each item.

Top sirloin, meatball and assorted salads (pasta, potato, vegetables)

Food was pretty good! 

Website: http://www.pampas-grill.com/takeout/

Laduree - Los Angeles

The Grove

Marie Antoinette and pistachio macaron

 

Both were good - the colours were a little different than the ones I had in Canada. 

Website: https://www.laduree.fr/en/laduree-la-the-grove.html

Gen Korean BBQ - Los Angeles

Someone suggested we go for All-You-Can-Eat Korean Barbecue in Los Angeles, so we found Gen Korean BBQ through Yelp.  

Side dishes from top: oisobagi (cucumber kimchi), baechu kimchi (napa cabbage kimchi), pickled bamboo, chonggak kimchi (daikon kimchi) and mashed potatoes. 

The side dishes were good - especially the mashed potatoes. 

Fried Dumplings (gyoza) and Korean Fried Chicken

The Korean Fried Chicken was good - definitely worth ordering again even if there wasn't a lot of white meat. The gyoza were okay. 

Beef and pork on the grill

Yummy!

Veggies, squid and more beef! 

Tofu soup

The tofu was a little old and you could tell based on the texture which was grainy and not very smooth. 

Overall: A very filling meal on our way to LA - a pretty good KBBQ experience, but I've had better. The fans really helped the air circulation and we didn't smell like BBQ when we left. 

Website: http://genkoreanbbq.com/