Andy Gavin's Blog, page 4
September 5, 2025
Gamers at Chi Spacca
Restaurant: chi SPACCA [1, 2, 3, 4]
Location: 6610 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038. (323) 297-1130
Date: April 29, 2025
Cuisine: Italian steakhouse
Rating: Fat is Flavor!
_The little Mozza empire on Melrose now includes the Pizzeria, the Osteria, Chi Spacca, and Mozza 2 go. They do a great job with all their restaurants but their annoying corkage policy (2 bottles per table!) has limited my ability to attend. I only go to this sort of place with my wine groups (my wife being a near vegetar...
September 3, 2025
World Seafood Again
Restaurant: Seafood World Restaurant [1, 2, 3, 4]
Location: 15351 Brookhurst St, Westminster, CA 92683. (714) 775-8828
Date: April 27, 2025
Cuisine: Cantonese seafood and dim sum (large banquet hall)
Rating: Great
_Back here about 2-3 weeks later!
World Seafood Restaurant opened its doors in 2014, taking over a cavernous former banquet space on South Garfield Avenue and quickly asserting itself as one of the San Gabriel Valley’s grand Cantonese dining rooms. The owners—veteran Hong Kong restaur...
August 31, 2025
Acker Marinos
Restaurant: Marino Ristorante [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9]
Location: 6001 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038. (323) 466-8812
Date: April 24, 2025
Cuisine: Italian
Rating: Always awesome.
_Marino Ristorante is one of Los Angeles’s quiet legends, a family-run Italian dining room whose story stretches back to 1952, when Neapolitan émigré Ciro Marino opened his first trattoria for studio executives and movie stars hungry for a taste of home. After two earlier locations, the Marinos commissioned a l...
August 29, 2025
Tasty Spot Cafe
Restaurant: Tasty Spot Cafe
Location: 1108 S Baldwin Ave, Arcadia, CA 91007.
Date: April 20, 2025
Cuisine: Hong Kong Cafe
Rating: Surprisingly good
_This is the latest Derek Spot — and yeah, there have been a lot :-).
The menu at Tasty Pot features a diverse selection of house entrees and rice and noodle dishes, emphasizing flavorful proteins like shrimp, pork, and beef, often prepared with vibrant vegetables and aromatic sauces. Diners can enjoy options ranging from spicy stir-fries to sav...
August 27, 2025
Banquet for Lunch
Restaurant: NBC Seafood Restaurant
Location: 404 S Atlantic Blvd, Monterey Park, CA 91754. (626) 282-2323
Date: April 19, 2025
Cuisine: Cantonese
Rating: Great lunch
_My friend Trenton invited me to this celebratory banquet lunch with his family — which was awesome — but I didn’t require too much arm twisting to drive out to the SGV.
It’s been a while since I was at NBC. Huge private room too.
The menu at NBC Seafood Restaurant showcases a variety of Chinese dishes, highlighting fresh seafo...
August 25, 2025
Do Chicken Out
Restaurant: Gokigen Tori
Location: 4410 Sepulveda Blvd, Culver City, CA 90230.
Date: April 18, 2025
Cuisine: Yakitori
Rating: Fresh and excellent
_Erick had met one of the owners of this new Culver City artisanal Yakitori place.
So we went for the soft opening.
Medium sized room and a generous bar.
These make me think of Ramen Roll.
The Gosset Champagne Grand Réserve is a stellar expression from the renowned Champagne region of France, characterized by its elegant blend of Pinot Noir and C...
August 23, 2025
Marcus at Pasjoli
Restaurant: Pasjoli
Location: 2732 Main St, Santa Monica, CA 90405. (424) 330-0020
Date: April 17, 2025
Cuisine: French
Chef: Dave Beran / Marcus Jernmark
Rating: One of the best here yet
_Dave first encountered Marcus Jernmark’s culinary genius during visits to Aquavit in NY and 3 Michelin star Frantzén in Sweden. Though they didn’t meet then, Dave was captivated by the meals. Years later, Marcus visited Dialogue, Dave’s first LA restaurant, and the two chefs connected over their shared journe...
August 21, 2025
Dirty Dozen West
Restaurant: BOA Steakhouse Santa Monica
Location: 101 Santa Monica Blvd #180, Santa Monica, CA 90401. (310) 899-4466
Date: April 16, 2025
Cuisine: Steakhouse
Rating: Food is just fine
_It’s been years since we were back at Boa SM. It’s about the same as Sunset Boa, but closer to work and has a nicer atmosphere. Really just a pretty cheap, only fair steak house. This visit was for a Dirty Dozen blind tasting on the Red Burgundy theme — why red burgundy at steakhouses — no idea.
BOA Steakhouse Sa...
August 18, 2025
Takeda Two
Restaurant: Takeda Sushi [1, 2]
Location: 123 Astronaut Ellison S Onizuka St #307, Los Angeles, CA 90012. (213) 613-0083
Date: April 11, 2025
Cuisine: Japanese Sushi
Rating: Could be the best sushi I’ve had in LA
_Since opening its quietly elegant doors in 2021 at 118 Judge John Aiso Street in Little Tokyo, Sushi Takeda has become an insider favorite among Los Angeles omakase counters. The restaurant is owned and helmed by chef-proprietor Hideyuki “Hideo” Takeda, a Tokyo native who spent decade...
August 16, 2025
Delightful Danbi
Restaurant: Danbi
Location: 3465 W 6th St Suite 90-100, Los Angeles, CA 90020
Date: April 10, 2025
Cuisine: Korean Fusion
Rating: Really delicious, although slightly sweet (and spicy).
_This sort of Korean modern Izakaya is in that popular mall with the Quarters and many other places.
They say of themselves: We wanted to bring our love for modern Korean food and drinking culture to Koreatown, Los Angeles, the epicenter of Korean food in America. Crafted through the lens of first generation Asia...
