Posts tagged American
Posts tagged American
Restaurant Review : Tiara Cafe (American) $$ *7 out of 10*
It’s Dine LA so take advantage of it and eat out as often as you can!
Located within the hustle and bustle of the Fashion District in DTLA, Tiara Café opens its doors to a nice, open space with high exposed ceilings, pink girly walls counter-balanced by huge concrete columns.
For $16 here at Tiara Café, you get yourself a nice 3 course meal that’s quite enjoyable.
Here’s what I had…
-A fried chickpea appetizer on the house. It was GBD (Gold Brown & Delicious)! The small fried sticks whetted my appetite and got me all fired up for the next course.
-As my official DineLA appetizer I had the “Hamachi Fresh’wich”. This is like a spring roll with yellowtail, lettuce, and pickled daikon wrapped in rice paper served with a mayo-ey tarako dipping sauce. The Hamachi wasn’t the best of quality and the dipping sauce was a bit rich, but I definitely found myself enjoying this appetizer.
-Next I had the Grilled Prawn and Grilled Vegetable Salad. The salad was delish but the four little prawns were too salty and kind of shriveled up and dry from overcooking.
-My friend had the Smoked Rib Eye. I was kind of confused as to what they were trying to do here. I felt like it was too over-cooked to be like strips of steak but way too undercooked for it to be smoky and tender.
-For dessert we shared the Crumble Top Berry Cobbler and Meyer Lemon Crème Friache Sabayon. I really liked my cobbler but the Sabayon was too sour, too sweet, too sticky, and too whipped for me.
Parking is a royal pain, so if you’re local like me, walk. If not, you’ll probably still have to walk after finding parking.
Tiara Café
127 E 9th St
Los Angeles, CA 90015
Neighborhood: Downtown
(213) 623-3663
www.tiara-cafe-la.com
Restaurant Review : Catalina Kitchen in the Terranea Resort (American, buffet, seafood) $$$ *6.5 out of 10*
Catalina Kitchen is located on the beautiful grounds of the Terranea Resort in Palos Verdes. You can dine outdoors lulled by the sounds of the ocean and caressed by the gentle touch of the air. This place is beautiful and peaceful.
My friend was throwing a lavish weekend wedding extravaganza on the grounds so we came to have their Friday Seafood Dinner Buffet for the wedding rehearsal dinner. This buffet is $55 per person and stacked full of crab legs, clams, mussels, oysters, soups, salads, breads, some sushi, a cheese tower with its accompaniments, and desserts.
It was a feast for my eyes. I wanted to try everything; and this I did…
What can I say? The food fell very short of my expectations. It was not well prepared, tasteless, and wasn’t at its freshest. What started off so well visually, ended with failure after failure in my mouth. Even the desserts came up short.
Our limited consolations came from the cheese selection, the fresh fruit, and champagne along with the friendly attentive service.
Although a wonderful time seemed to be had by all, it certainly was had by me; I am disappointed in the quality of the food and would expect much more from an establishment such as this.
Catalina Kitchen
100 Terranea Resort
Rancho Palos Verdes, CA 90275
(310) 265-2800
www.catalinakitchen.com
Restaurant Review : Mike & Anne’s Restaurant (American) $$ *7 out of 10*
I love having my brunch/lunch at Mike & Anne’s out on their outdoor patio, enjoying my lazy Sunday while sipping on some nice hot coffee. This is my South Pasadena spot. It’s cozy and casual with a clean updated décor. The food is better than average and the service is usually decent.
They have good, old-time favorites like the tuna melt as well as some new breakfast concoctions such as their Red Flannel which is a hash of red & sweet potatoes, beets, onions and bacon as well as their lemon ricotta pancakes.
Their portions are a bit small but that’s fine by me.
You have to find street parking but I never had any troubles. Besides, a little walk can be a good thing.
Mike & Anne’s Restaurant
1040 Mission St
South Pasadena, CA 91030
(626) 799-7199
http://www.mikeandannes.com/
Restaurant Review : Pete’s Cafe & Bar (American) DTLA *8 out of 10*
Pete’s is the most consistent restaurant I’ve found in DTLA so far. The food is technically sound, textbook-American great. I must say, it never fails to satisfy.
Everything is pretty darn tasty but you must try the BACON CHEDDAR FRIES. I can’t see how it can get much better than this. My husband and I tell ourselves that we’re not going to order them but we can never resist. Arghhh…no will-power! They’re gooey, flavorful and definitely addicting.
Pete’s is always busy and is abuzz with urban energy that is DTLA. The ambiance is good, their portions are filling and their prices are reasonable. This place has definitely become a downtown staple.
