my hojicha addiction continues to fuel me as I got the hojicha milk soft serve and a Sakura mochi…read more The soft serve is the Hokkaido milk flavor and they have a really strong concentrate of hojicha syrup put on top! I find the syrup rly good, a little nutty chocolatey, but some may find it too strong and bitter, possible burnt taste. I find it good, but bc it's a concentrated flavor I can see others not being a big fan. The sakura mochi is rly good! Very floral flavor and I liked it a lot, but the texture of the mochi was a bit off. I think it's bc I went around 8pm (an hour before they close) so the mochi was probably not as fresh as it could be, but that's on me. The location is shared with a boba tea place (yi fang) so if you wanted ice cream and boba as a late night treat, perfect opportunity!! That's why my sibling and I like to come here for a sweet treat variety and they have some nice seating around. It's also the arts district so it's nice to just walk around the area as well to chat with whoever ur with. I usually get street parking, but allegedly you can park in the the apt structure and get parking validation for 2 hrs (?)

Been wanting to try their soft serve for a while. When a friend came to visit on January 7th, we…read moredecided to finally give Mochi Ya Ren a try after an early dinner. Well...the experience turned out to be a big disappointment. I won't be returning. - The girl who served us, didn't make us feel welcome. She made us feel like we were more of a nuisance or bother rather than a valued customer. - The Matcha and Hokkaido Milk soft serves were mediocre at best. Go to Tea Masters for Matcha soft serve. Their Matcha soft serve is extremely better. The Hokkaido Milk soft serve had an artificial after taste. - Beware, their soft serve is a complete rip off. It's hollow on the inside.

Authentic Chicago experience - never thought we would have our favorite pizza in Southern…read moreCalifornia! Easy to order, cheese pull was amazing. Beats Lou Malnati's by a mile!

I can't believe how good this pizza is! We met Desi in his garage-turned-kitchen and saw how the…read moresausage was made. Once he took our pizza out of the oven, he ladled it with extra sauce. No wonder the food was packed with flavor. The dough was soft and supported all the cheese and meat so well. It was the pillowiest, cheesiest bite that went on forever like a great party in my mouth. We were so happy we forgot to take photos of the pie before we dug in! And don't get me started on the tiramisu. It was so good it snapped me out of my bad mood. I ate it the day after, to let the ice thaw out of it (but it's good to eat on the day you order it - this was just my preference). It's probably as good, if not better than the tiramisu at Uovo. That's high praise! We are coming back but we need to spread the gospel first. Desi is the master of the Chicago style pizza. Not Malnati's. Try his pizza and you'll see why.

What an amazing experience. Truly makes dinning a multi-sensory journey with fantastic food,…read moreartful beautiful presentation by an efficient and charming staff whose enthusiasm for excellence is infectious. This is a "life experience" you'll enjoy and remember as one of the best things you have ever done in your life!!

It's located inside a home - converted to look like a restaurant kinda. The concept is a supper…read moreclub - the Chef - Craig Thornton , an Assitant cook, and a lady who greets us at the entrance. The kitchen is a home kitchen with a house keeper washing the dishes by hand. It is a help yourself type of situation. BYOB and pour it yourself. There is a total of 16 seats per night. 6 of us in our reservation. They dim the place for the ambience. Food wise - Total of 7 courses - last 2 was the dessert. There is no printed menu, so you'll just have to ask what it is that you're eating and why the main course -steak- was served first. We were asked to keep the utensils through out the course as they do not change your silverware for every course. Cringe. I had such a high expectation with the food prior to dinner. It felt flat - Everything. The only thing that we like was the corn bread. The steak was tough - some us got super rare and some got overly done tough. Some flavor combination just didn't pair well. Something with a fish dish but sour like hell. Another dish was blue and it just did not look a dish coming out of a fine dining restaurant. Funny the people that were there was talking about Somni, Providence, Melisse.... It just did not even come close. It's like going to a friend's house who's practicing to be a fine dining chef. Pics of the food is posted in this review. None of them was impressive. It just did not go well together. When it came to the 7th course - it was a shaved ice. The Asian assitant cook brought them over and said it's Mandarin ice. So we asked, can you give us a little bit more description... his response was so rude that he said "it's ice with mandarin orange flavor". Oh ok - now you say mandarin oranges. But his condescending attitude is not appreciated. The night is ending and the Chef has not once come to the table to say Hi or introduced himself. People started to leave and he decided to speak to some remaining guests. Then he gets stuck with that particular guest for a long time until everyone is leaving. We probably just had like a Hi and Hello thank you for the food. He seems nice though. Then we all left. We clearly didn't even care anymore at that point. Bad food and bad experience. No parking. Good luck finding a parking on the streets on fountain and Vermont with all the homeless around. It's a hype. It's mysterious because it's really not listed as a restaurant. Not for everyone.

Brisket and Mac and cheese are fire The spicy bbq sauce was…read morem favorite Order ahead of time and eat inside or on the patio.

...I'm at a loss for words by how horrible this was. I don't normally write reviews but I had to…read moremake an exception for this place. I'll try to be concise. This review is for the Paramount location. I got a few items: Dino rib, pork ribs, brisket, sausage, mac and cheese and corn bread. I'll start with the positives. The mac and cheese and corn bread were decent. Also they took 15 minutes to give me all the varied food I ordered which should have been my red flag to run, but I decided to live dangerously and was punished severely for it. Now on to the travesty, the meat. The theme for today was dry, old and shameless. The pork was somehow undercooked and dry. Which if you can endure the cruelty, is actually kind of impressive. The brisket resembled beef jerky. I'm including pictures of the brisket since those speak much more eloquently than I can. I love to cook and I infamously over season my dishes. But all these meats were at a whole another level. Not salty but aggressively peppery and just ham handed. The rub was flavorful but it blew out my palette instantly. Please take this to heart: less is more. In terms of meat quality? Cheap. My Dad is a butcher, I can tell. Everything being reheated did the meat quality no favors either. The seasoning was further exacerbated because the ribs, both dino and pork, were almost entirely bone. So you have a ton of seasoning on a lick of meat. It was a recipe for disaster. And price? Expensive, especially for what I received. Insulting for what I received. I'll end it here. I don't want to waste your time like this place wasted mine.

Update review: East Los Musubi continues to cook up great local island grindz! They have been…read morecooking up unique musubis- ube rice spam musubis, breakfast musubis with Porteugese sausage, hot Cheeto musubis. They have been serving up island dishes like chicken long rice and kalua pulled pork on special days. Alongside with East Los Musubi, they are also part of Yaki Boyz, serving up yakitori. Follow their IG page if you are in the El Sereno/East LA/ Los Angeles areas. You can get in touch of their pop-up events. You can contact them to vend or serve food at your event!

Couldn't resist their Super Bowl Snack Box package filled with goodies! I absolutely had to add the…read more4-pack of heavenly guava cream twinkies!!! I wanted the 12-pack, but trying to be good. When I got home my wife said with a sad gleam in her eyes, "Oh why didn't you get the 12-pack!!" We love the dual heritage Hot Cheeto Musubi! (The best of both worlds!) Loving this dynamic duo pair with their fresh take on all of the tasty dishes they have to offer! The sliders were perfect bite sized teriyaki burgers with all the yummy ingredients. Did I mention the Karage chicken with 3 sauces?! You can't deny the perfectly fried chicken bits! It hit the spot! Even the macaroni salad with crunchy bits of carrot and surprise black olives! Everything is so delicious! We will keep coming back for more!

What an incredible place! They do popups of different franchises and so far they've had a…read moreSquare-Enix one 3 times in just the last two years! We visit every time they come back and they also had a SEGA one recently. This is located on the ground floor by Anime Jungle. Hard to miss especially since they advertise the hell out of it everywhere and there's a huge banner for it. If you're a fan of Final Fantasy, Nier, Kingdom Hearts, or even Dragon Quest, this popup is a must visit! Some of the items are released early compared to what you see online so this would be the place to get some exclusive merch! Love this place and always a fun visit. IG: @ammysalamii

Great pop up shop/event space for Little Tokyo! Make sure to follow their Instagram page as that is…read morewhere they announce their events and pop up shop collaborations. They've done some high-end, prize-figure, and kawaii collectible pop up shops with some nice collectible bags and other goods, as well as always having cute displays and photo opportunities. They've hosted pop-up maid cafe's with real food being served such as the Oinky Doink Maid cafe themed and collaborated with the Akiba Maid War anime, as well as with local maid cafes, such as Dreamland Maid cafe. The venue is also used for live events, giving a fun and underground feel if you're into indie idols and the such (or if you've seen it in anime or manga). They've hosted live events for local idols/groups and even V-tubers, along with meet and greets or buppan (when you can purchase merchandise and cheki) afterwards! During these events sometimes there's a costume/cosplay contest and open karaoke too. Great small event to have fun at. The workers here are always super friendly too. Perfect event space for weeb-related activities when there isn't a con going on!

Store brought onigiri is okay (and also cheaper, so I understand), but once you try a well-done…read morefresh onigiri, it's hard to go backwards. So, if you want to have your brain chemistry changed, try an onigiri from here. I'm fixated on unagi so that's my flavor of choice and this place offers a tasty, delicious savory (yet slightly sweet due to the eel sauce) option. They also have tuna, salmon, spicy and regular, etc etc options. It's fast casual style, mostly to-go orders but they do have tables to eat at. It's hand-held food so dine-in or take-out works fine for this type of food. Located in the fabulous Little Tokyo Los Angeles area. Support small business.

Came here for a quick snack! The lines can get a bit long. We ordered 3 onigiris: soboro beef,…read morechashu pork, stamina yakiniku. All were pretty good and the portions were decent with the amount of rice. Pretty filling and great for a fast snack without breaking your wallet.

In a city built on tacos and guisados mexicanos, Wepa Pa'l Mundo brings the flavors of Puerto Rico…read moreto LA and they make a big statement. The Pernil: roasted pork is Puerto Rico's love letter to the Mexican Carnitas. Everything ordered was delicious. The hospitality and enthusiasm of the staff was an added bonus, there's great pride and joy behind the menu. I'm looking forward to their next pop up event, the food is really good! Muchas gracias mis Boricuas!

WEPA Pa'l Mundo is a new Puerto Rican pop-up restaurant by a sous chef from the lauded Magna Kusina…read morein Portland, Oregon. I visited the inaugural pop-up event at Seoul Sausage in Downtown LA which was recommended to me by my cousin in PDX. You'll choose from a short menu of appetizers to main dishes such as the pernil asado (slow roasted pork) and the arroz con gandules (yellow rice with pigeon peas) to dessert. There is only one Puerto Rican restaurant in LA and a take out operation all in the San Fernando Valley. For those in the city who would like a taste of Puerto Rican food, follow this chef for his next pop up. Check out chef Roberto Almdovar's Instagram for the next pop up and menu. @wepapalmundo

Fortunately my fiancee and I were in town for the weekend and could catch Kape Lasita. They have a…read morenice compact menu with not too much going on. Since we were trying to eat at as many places without feeling food coma'ed out, we ordered 1 Corn Beef Silog. Calamansi Tonic Espresso and Black Mamba. The Corn Beef Silog was really solid, it was also deep fried in a Panko Crusted outer layer which is their take on a Croquette. We particularly like the crunch it adds to the dish. But yeah it was the corn beef has we were looking for mixed with the good 'ol garlic rice and sunny side up egg. The vinegar they used was a lot stronger than I thought and I think they could do without it. The tonic espresso grew on me, upon first sip, I could taste the tonic and I haven't had tonic before so I wasn't feeling it. Until I mixed it and it got a lot better. What was really cute too, is they have pop up vendors and it was a bread and dessert vendor that are right across the counter. What caught my eye was this apron that was a collaboration between Garden and Seeds x Lasita. It had so many pockets and it went from a short apron to a long one with just a zipper. I bought this for the sole purpose of wearing it as an accessory as Tan/Brown pairs well with black and white clothing. Staff was so nice and helpful when ordering and even inquiring about the apron since there was no price on it. Hopefully we'll be back and can catch them during their dinner service!

My fiance and I went for their breakfast on a weekend morning and their silogs were amazing!…read more we got the corn beef silog and I love that it has a crispy exterior to it for that crunch. the garlic rice and egg was also solid. drinks: we got the calamansi espresso tonic and black mamba. the black mamba was on the sweeter side. everything came out pretty quickly and we were able to get a booth with no problem. parking: on Sunday the meter is free! but there is also a parking lot next door that is paid.

I can't rave enough about this place. I don't want to overhype but Sal's is one of my favorite…read morerestaurants in LA (and it's only here 6 months a year). The staff is incredible, and would be enough reason to return. But the food is also amazing. The orecchiette and tiramisu are memory makers. Cash only, but worth a quick trip to the ATM.

Sal's Place is a genuinely special restaurant, a warm, vibrant place with top notch service and…read morefantastic Italian food. My girlfriends took me for my 40th birthday, and we had a wonderful dinner, an idyllic live laugh love moms' night out with lots of pasta and red wine. Parking was a pain in the ass, as there was no valet and street parking in the neighborhood was heavily restricted. We all found metered parking that we had to duck out and refresh after two hours because the meters ran until midnight. Highly recommend not driving here, for parking and also for drinking reasons. The restaurant is cool and idiosyncratic enough that it got a write-up in the New York Times, with the headline "A Scrappy Pop-Up Restaurant Shuttles From Coast to Coast." It apparently started in Provincetown, Massachussetts, and wandered over to West Hollywood in 2023, opening for six months out of the year when Cape Cod slows down for the winter. Reservations are exclusively made by telephone, and payment is cash only. These quirks are minimally annoying and 100% in keeping with the intimate, small business vibe of the restaurant. The atmosphere was enchanting, cozy and welcoming, with a bit of underground supper club energy. I kind of like that you can't find this place on Resy. Service was excellent. I didn't get our waiter's name, but it really felt like he was hosting us. It helped that he gave us meatballs on the house and topped off our wine when we were running low, full pours that he left off our bill. The wine was lovely, a Chianti that went well with everything. The food was delicious, starting with the complimentary focaccia, served with seasoned olive oil for dipping. The bread proved useful with our appetizers, both the shrimp scampi and our free meatballs. The shrimp scampi was snappy and flavorful, swimming in a rich sauce with garlic, lemon, and capers, an extra slice of bread on the side. The meatballs were just right, savory and tender, made with veal, pork, and beef in a pomodoro sauce. We ordered two of the three salads on the menu and I'd highly recommend them both. The endive citrus was bright and zesty, with mixed greens, pistachio, fennel, feta, and orange. Sal's caesar was bold and satisfying, with romaine, shaved cauliflower, panko, and pecorino. We passed on the entrees in favor of getting three pastas, each of them essential to our dinner. The lobster alla vodka was an ideal seafood pasta, al dente linguine with lobster, peas, and basil in a great vodka sauce. I felt similarly about the shrimp puttanesca, linguine with plump shrimp, roasted red peppers, anchovy, and olive. The winner, though, was the pappardelle with oxtail ragu, which was one of the night's specials. A transcendent meat sauce pasta, with supple pappardelle, a mouthwatering ragu, and plenty of thin-shaved salty cheese on top. If this is available, order it. Heck, order two, just to be safe. We shared tiramisu for dessert, and it came with a candle for my birthday. It was a stellar tiramisu, and felt like the right way to end a bountiful Italian meal. I know my husband would enjoy Sal's Place and am already scheming to go back. I want to get another dinner in before it heads east for the summer.