Andy Gavin's Blog, page 7
July 6, 2025
Kinjiro Rules
Location: 424 E 2nd St, Los Angeles, CA 90012. (213) 229-8200
Date: November 15, 2024
Cuisine: Japanese
Rating: Great modern Japanese comfort food
_I last went here about a decade ago with the Babykillers — and before that to BOS in this same spot. BOS was good, but kinda extreme, being an offal restaurant. The owners then rebooted the space as Kinjiro, a modern Izakaya (bar with food), which has proved very popular.
It looks pretty much the same as it did before,...
July 4, 2025
July 1, 2025
Good Night at Good Alley
Restaurant: Good Alley
Location: 8450 E Valley Blvd #108, Rosemead, CA 91770. (626) 280-2800
Date: October 20, 2024
Cuisine: Dumplings and small plates
Rating: Great, but needs LL
_Good Alley just opened from the same people as JiRong.
It’s right next door, but is much more casual and modern.
A line, even two weeks in.
Very crowded, despite having just opened.
The menu.
Cucumber with XO Sauce. Solid cucumber. Nice crunch, a tiny bit sweet and spicy. The vibrant green hue of the cucumber c...
June 29, 2025
Final Miyagi
Restaurant: Sushi Miyagi [ 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 ]
Location: 150 S Barrington Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (323) 382-5635
Date: October 17, 2024
Cuisine: Japanese Sushi
Rating: Top Shelf Omakase Sushi
_It is with great sadness that we visited Miyagi for the last time. Real estate issues have tragically led to their closure :-(.
So of course we had to bring some great white burgs, Raveneau in particular.
The 1995 Chablis Grand Cru from Domaine François Raveneau showcases the epitome of elegance and comp...
June 27, 2025
Dirty Dozen at BLVD Steak
Restaurant: Blvd Steak
Location: 13817 Ventura Blvd, Sherman Oaks, CA 91423
Date: October 16, 2024
Cuisine: Steak House
Rating: Solid
_A Dirty Dozen blind Rhone tasting brings us to Blvd Steak.
Located on Restaurant Row on Ventura Boulevard in Sherman Oaks, BLVD Steak sits at the intersection of classic steakhouse and contemporary fine dining.
Rich tones of emerald, black and gold create a uniquely intimate, beautiful and vibrant setting that includes indoor seating, outdoor patios and private ...
June 24, 2025
Sunday Chinese – Hong Kong VIP
Restaurant: Hong Kong VIP Kitchen
Location: 140 W Valley Blvd Ste B, Alhambra, CA 91801. (626) 293-7889
Date: October 13, 2024
Cuisine: Cantonese
Chef: Tony Lau
_Hong Kong VIP Kitchen slipped into the endlessly bustling restaurant row of West Valley Boulevard in 2015, opened by husband-and-wife team Tony and Grace Lau, longtime Kowloon cooks who brought thirty years of cha chaan teng know-how with them when they emigrated to the San Gabriel Valley. They chose the name as both a promise and a wi...
June 22, 2025
Westside Family Style
Restaurant: Jin Cook
Location: 3001 Wilshire Blvd Ste C Santa Monica, CA 90403
Date: October 11, 2024
Cuisine: Family Style Korean
Rating: Great to have in Santa Monica
_I haven’t made many AFF recently due to work, but when one came up just a mile away at this new Korean spot I had to jump.
Jincook on Wilshire Boulevard offers an authentic Korean soul food experience with a clean and inviting atmosphere, serving up hearty and flavorful dishes like the tender Braised Beef Short Rib and the popu...
June 20, 2025
Il Corso Palm Desert
Restaurant: Il Corso
Location: 73100 El Paseo Suite 103, Palm Desert, CA 92260. (760) 341-6700
Date: September 26, 2024
Cuisine: Italian
Chef: Mario Marfia
Rating: Rock it like 1999
_Il Corso opened its doors on El Paseo in 2013, the vision of Sicilian-born chef-owner Mario Marfia, whose résumé ranges from neighborhood trattorie in Venice to high-profile resort kitchens in the Coachella Valley. True to its name—“the promenade” in Italian—the restaurant was conceived as a gathering place where l...
June 18, 2025
Workshopping Palm Springs
Restaurant: Workshop Kitchen + Bar
Location: 800 N Palm Canyon Dr, Palm Springs, CA 92262. (760) 459-3451
Date: September 25, 2024
Cuisine: New American
Chef: Michael Beckman
Rating: Tasty
_Workshop Kitchen + Bar opened in 2012 inside the historic 1926 El Paseo building in Palm Springs’ Uptown Design District, instantly recasting the desert city’s image from mid-century nostalgia to forward-looking cool. Chef Michael Beckman—an Institute Paul Bocuse–trained Californian who cooked in Lyon, Berli...
June 16, 2025
Desert Magic
Restaurant: Private Chef Justin Snyder
Location: Palm Desert
Date: September 24, 2024
Cuisine: American
Chef: Justin Snyder
Rating: Really creative
_
For a Corporate Retreat dinner we brought on private chef Justin Snyder.
Snyder’s cooking leans toward what he calls “desert terroir cuisine”—a style that marries classical French rigor with the bold, sun-struck flavors of the Southwest. Cholla-blossom honey, smoke-kissed Medjool dates, and citrus from century-old groves anchor menus that change ...
