We live in Southern CA and want to get some opinions on?

Question

...The Best possible food experiences we can.

My in-laws are coming to visit from the east coast and I'm tired of them bragging how everything out there has the west coast beat (food especially). They will be staying with us for one week and I plan to take them out to dinner 6 times. I have a couple places in mind but I'd like to hear from you in SoCal who can hook me up w/some place I

may not be aware of. Thank you.

Answer 1

Where exactly from East Coast are they, and how much are you willing to spend?

Outdoor dining is one thing LA definitely beats east coast in, but the top restaurants right now are (might not have outdoor dining):

French: Providence, Sona, Melisse, Ortolan (probably in that order, but pretty comparable. Expensive)

More casual/ brasserie style: Comme Ca

Italian: Angelini Osteria, Spago (yes still up there, and nice outdoor area too), Osteria Mozza

Sushi: Urasawa ($275 pp, you're been warned), Sushi Mori, Sushi Zo. Maybe Nishimura? They may not beat NY's top top sushi spots tho.

Asian/Fusion: Orris (relatively inexpensive)

"American" : Grace

Also you should look at LA's other strong points, like Korean. If you have to go with 'upscale' try Jian BBQ, but otherwise there are lot of great lil joints in K town. Or Chinese in San Gabriel area.

OK ... I can't think anymore :P Good luck!

Answer 2

Check out the sherman oaks galleria

topanga mall

Answer 3

So Cal food?

I know a good place for sushi and some sake bomb. It's called Sushi Planet and it's located in Moorpark (www.sushiplanet.net) But you can't really skip Mexican food, I guess. I always go to Los Tacos on Santa Monica rd nearby melrose ave. It's a little place but they open up till late hours. Or just take them to Roscoe's House of chicken and waffles (http://www.roscoeschickenandwaffles.com/... maybe they'll like it. If you're looking for some kind of romantic by the beach (at least, it's pretty close). Try the Warehouse in Marina del Rey (http://www.usmenuguide.com/thewarehouse.... It's a seafood place and it's not like olive garden or red lobster.  

Answer 4

I like Miceli's for Italian food and a fun experience.

El Coyote (not popular with everyone though) or Casa Vega for Mexican food and tasty margaritas.

Spago's is ritzy and the food and atmosphere are both great, the last time I went there I met Barbra Streisand and her husband.

Jerry's Deli or Canter's are both good for a casual sandwich and matzo ball soup.

If you're going to the beach, try Neptune's Net for casual seafood or Paradise Cove Beach Cafe for an awesome view and really good seafood.  But that place can have a serious wait so I'd make reservations in advance.

Oh and you should stop at a Pinkberry too.  I take all my east coast friends there when they visit and they love it!

I wouldn't do chain restaurants like Cheesecake Factory or CPK...you can get those practically anywhere in the states.  Hope this helps.

Answer 5

I too am from the Pasadena area, so mine are going to be from there, but that's the way it goes.

Chain restaurants: no, no, and no again

Steak: Smitty's* on Lake

Northern Italian: Mi Piace* on Colorado

Modern Californian: Parkway Grille* on Arroyo Parkway

BBQ: Big Mama's on North Lake or even Gus's on South Fair Oaks in South Pas

English-y, kinda sorta: Beckham Place on West Walnut

Thai: Saladang or Saladang Song on Fair Oaks, or City Thai on East Colorado

Sushi: Mt. Fuji (I know, I know, it's also Korean, but it is goooooood!) on East Colorado

Pizza: Tarantino's without fail, East Green

Italian: Gale's, South Fair Oaks

Lebanese: Sahara on East Colorado, or Lebanese Kitchen on East Washington

Fish: no place on the West Coast has really great fish, IMHO, but in Pasadena, the best place in town is Cameron's on East Colorado

Comfy Home-y, special celebration my favorite for my birthday: The Raymond*, on South Fair Oaks

Mexican: hmmm, El Portal on Colorado for civilized, or La Estrella on North Fair Oaks for the real deal, greasy and on the street

Chinese (Szechuan): Fu Shing on Colorado

Indian: New Delhi, East Colorado

Vietnamese: I forget the name, but it is right by the New Delhi, sharing the same stair landing.

I put asterisks on the more costly ones, and there are many others around town that are good, but these are all pretty safe places for taking guests.  All are clean and appropriate, though some are not fancy at all.  A few are too noisy for me, so we don't go often.  And I will not wait in a long line for a place that refuses to make reservations for civilized people.  There are trendy places all over Old Town Pasadena, such as tapas bars and the like.  They come and go, and you can find martinis in all sorts of strange colors and flavors, but I consider that just trendiness.  I don't know -- perhaps that is what they want.  Pick up a copy of the Pasadena Weekly, out on Thursdays, for a big list of restaurants, too.

You can go into Eagle Rock and try Camilo's and maybe see Mayor Villaraigosa.  Would that impress them?  That is an up and coming artsy area now and has little coffee houses and another nice restaurant or two.

And take them anywhere but Starbucks!

By the way, we are in-law age and from the East, although here for a long time.  Show your in-laws that they have been wrong.  We have recently bought a place in my hometown in the east, and I am scared to death of the food drought we will be facing.

Answer 6

elephant bar restraunt

Eastside Mario Restraunt( italian food) lakewood,ca

Yard House restraunt ( brand new one built at Tyler mall in Riverside,ca)

Benni hannas (ontario, Ca)

Answer 7

Woot woot! I'm from So Cal too! Ohh this is a great question. My fav restaurants are

CheeseCake Factory

Buca De Beppo

One World Vegetarian Cuisine (not very popular but its sooooo good!)

Thai restaurants like Top Thai and Coconut Bay

Oh theres so much more!

You should take them to Little Tokyo or something.

Well, theres tons of good stuff here and I bet you they wont be braggin about their food anymore! ha! =]

Answer 8

Paradise Cove Beach Cafe in Malibu. The food is awesome, it's super casual, they have amazing mojitos (they press real sugar cane), and the view is obviously amazing too. You have to get validation for parking but when you eat there you can go out and sit on the beach there afterwards. Don't go on the weekend if you can help it because it'll be swamped.

Answer 9

If you live near Old Town Pasadena, there's a restaurant called The Melting Pot. It's a really good fondue place. Look at their website for more details. It's a little expensive, though.

If you want something more family orientated, California Pizza Kitchen is good.

If you want to go bold and exotic, there's a thai place called Saladang in Pasadena. There are actually two parts to the restaurant and you'll want to go to the right side because they have a more contemporary style rather than your pure traditional thai.

Cheesecake Factory is another good restuarant that you can find in Old Town Pasadena.

Spago in Beverly Hills is a god fine dining experiance. It's actually the restaurant of Wolfgang Puck. More on the classy and expensive side.

If you want good sushi, Crane's Sushi is the best. I think it's located in Alhambra.

If you want really good Italian, I suggest Divina Cucina located in Montrose. It has a cozy atmosphere with amazing Italian food.

Anyway, those are some of my favorites. I hope they're in your area because they're really good restaurants. hoped i helped!