Juicy Burger-Closed

Juicy Burger
6340 Hollywood Blvd
Los Angeles
323-465-8429

When I went to 25 Degrees, back in May, 2011, I walked east on Hollywood Blvd to see if Skooby's was still open, it is!! Anyways, walked past Juicy Burger, which has long been on my list of places to try, and decided I needed to go there soon. It's November, and while that isn't soon, at least least I made it to Juicy Burger.

I heard Juicy Burger was a gourmet burger restaurant. So I wanted to see how they compared to other gourmet burger places like 25 Degrees, Father's Office, Umami Burger in Hollywood, Umami Burger on La Brea, and 38 Degrees.

Located at the corner of Hollywood Blvd and Ivar, Juicy Burger, is much like The Counter, where you check off what you want on your burger. After placing my order, I found a seat, and this was among the dirtiest restaurants I've ever been in. The tables were dirty and in serious need of being wiped off. The floors were dirty and needed to be swept. No wonder everybody was eating at the counter and not the tables!!

Anyways, I ordered the 1/3lb beef burger, cooked medium, with cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, mustard ketchup, and 1000 island dressing, on a bun, $5.75. The first thing I noticed was the bun, which is very much like the buns at Umami Burger. A chewy soft texture with a golden brown dome. The burger was cooked to medium, was very juicy, maybe on the side of greasy, but good flavor and well seasoned. I asked for the toppings and the 1000 island dressing was very tangy, which I like. I bet they use Miracle Whip to make their 1000 island dressing. The other toppings were fresh and tasty. While the burger was good, there wasn't anything gourmet about them. It's a good diner style burger at a good price, nothing more and nothing less.

Service is good. The young lady is very nice and helpful. But, as I mentioned before, the place is just a mess. The workers should stop texting and clean the tables.

I had pretty high expectations of Juicy Burger and I came away pretty underwhelmed. I'm not saying the burger isn't good or it's not a good value, they are, it's just not gourmet-which I was led to believe, and there isn't anything really outstanding about it.

Kitchen 24-Closed

Kitchen 24
1608 N. Cahuenga Blvd.
Los Angeles
323-465-2424

Sometimes a good hearty breakfast hits the spot for dinner. So I was heard about Kitchen 24 and decided to have breakfast for dinner.



I'm not really a french toast, waffles, or pancakes kind of person. I like them, but I normally do not order them for breakfast. I usually get bacon and eggs and if they come with pancakes, I'll eat them but there are times I don't even touch the pancakes.

I got the Wakey Wakey Eggs and Bakey- Two Eggs over hard, with two Pancakes, bacon and hash browns, $7.95.

I hate running yolks, they are disgusting to see and look at, so I order over medium or over hard eggs. But, the problem is many restaurants can't cook over medium or over hard eggs, the yolk is too runny, they need to be more solid. But, if I order over hard, the yolk is solid but usually the whites are burnt or too well done, which I hate. But, more often than not, if I order over hard eggs, they usually are over medium. Honestly, the only place that almost always cooks eggs perfectly is Denny's.

The eggs I got were over salted a bit, but the eggs were fresh and perfectly cooked, medium, even if I asked for hard.

The bacon was wonderful. Thick cut of smokey, flavorful, chewy bacon.

The hash browns were also oversalted, but well cooked, nice and crispy brown on the outside, soft and well cooked inside.

The pancakes were nice and sweet on the outside. A bit small but pretty good.

Service was very good. I never lacked for water and the order came out quickly. It can get a bit loud inside, with the music playing and people at the bar shouting, but overall a nice atmosphere with a retro 70's decor.

While I wouldn't rush back to Kitchen 24, I wouldn't have any objections to going back.

Papaya King-Closed

Papaya King
1645 Wilcox Ave
Los Angeles
(323) 871-8799

With our worthless President, doing nothing about the bad economy, I was surprised to find that two hot dogs places have opened up near hot dogs places in Los Angeles, that The New Diner has reviewed. In North Hollywood, Otis Jackson's Soul Dog opened near Vicious Dogs.

And in Hollywood, Papaya King, a New York City institution has opened near Skooby's.



I got the original combo, $5.50, 2 hot dogs; one with New York onions and the other with New York onions and sauerkraut, and a papaya drink.

The hot dogs and buns are made by Sabrett, The hot dogs are ok, nothing great or memorable about them. The New York onions is a tomato based sauce mixed with onions. It's ok, nothing great. The sauerkraut was hot and had a nice tangy taste.

Service is terrible and slow. When I got the front of the line, the cashier, actually checked his text message, WTF? Who does this crap right in the middle of work? He was nice but checking your texts is just rude. I noticed that the menu price for my combo was $5.25 and I was charged $5.50, either the menu price is wrong or he charged me for a topping. It wasn't tax, because tax would have been about 50 cents.

Then I waited for my order, and even though there were at least six people working behind the counter, it took forever to get the orders out. I don't know why they are soodamn slow, but it's stupid. They need to train these employees much better and the employees need to work faster. I don't give a damn if this was their first week of business. They are sorely lack customer service!!

Skooby's beats this crappy place by a mile. There is no reason for me to return. To be honest, I would rather buy a $500 plane ticket to New York, and see the sites of New York than stop in at this sorry Papaya King in LA.

25 Degrees

May 1, 2011. At 7:46pm, I got a text message saying that bastard had been killed by U.S. Navy SEALS!!! I'm always proud to be an American, but some days, that pride shows more. I was overjoyed with happiness when I heard that American military forces killed that bastard!!!!!



The bullet that killed that bastard, was brought to him COURTESY of the RED, WHITE, and BLUE!!!!!!

After I heard the news last night, I drove around town and looked at all the banners honoring those who are serving in the military. I drove by the local fire station. I had Toby Keith's Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue playing. I am not ashamed to say I had tears running down my cheeks. There were times I thought I would never see this day. But, I'm so glad that justice has been done!!!



But really, it's a bitter sweet day. I think about all the families who lost a son or daughter in the wars after 9-11. I think about all the families who still have a son or daughter, fighting overseas and wish they come back home safe and soon!!! Of course, I think about all the families who lost a loved one, on 9-11. I hope now, with that bastard being killed, all the families affected by 9-11 can start healing.

So, today May 2, 2011, I wanted to go into Los Angeles. I wanted to see that skyline. I wanted to be around a large group of fellow Americans.

But, the first place I went was the Los Angeles Fire Department's training center, near Dodger Stadium. The center has a Memorial, a piece of steel from the South Tower of the World Trade Center, to honor the 343 New York City firefighters who lost their lives on 9-11.





Then I wanted to have a burger. There is nothing more American, than a burger. So I decided to finally go to 25 Degrees, which is in the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. Another entry in the gourmet burger battle of LA.


25 Degrees
Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
7000 Hollywood Blvd
Los Angeles
323-785-7244






Burger #1, caramelized onions, bacon, 1000, arugula, crescenza & prelilbato gorgonzola cheese, $12. This is a great, great burger. The first thing I noticed, was the two huge strips of bacon, pointing out of the burger, that's always a plus. And this bacon was awesome, thick cut, full of smokey flavor and just wonderful. The meat used for the burger is some good quality beef. Moist and full of flavor. The thing I loved about the meat was it was served hot, I could feel how hot the burger was. Nothing was prepared and sitting under heat lamps.

The bun was a bit too well done, the crust was like a French roll that crumbling, but the bun held up very well to the all the toppings.

Now, I'm not a huge fan of onions on my burgers, but these onions, along with the two cheeses, crescenza & prelilbato gorgonzola cheese, just made a wonderful combination. The crescenza had a sharp taste to it, when the prelilbato gorgonzola added a salty flavor to the burger. I thought they put a bit too much of the cheese, sometimes you can get too much of a good thing. But, the large amount a cheese, helped hide the taste of arugula, which I hate. But with with some of the minor flaws, this is a wonderful burger.

Now, the server asked what side I wanted, and I picked the onion rings, which are normally $4. The way the server asked about the side, it seemed as though a side came with the burger. But, I noticed other people did not get a side with their burger. Then I noticed, I wasn't charged for the side. So, it maybe a special on Monday or she just forgot. Anyways, the onion rings were lightly battered and fried to a golden brown, they were wonderful!!! This is well worth the $4 price tag and a steal at the $2 happy hour price.

Service was OK. The server came quickly to my table and was very nice and friendly. She answered all my questions, I didn't realize the Hollywood location is opened 24hours and she said try the sausage for breakfast. Hell, I love the bacon, so I may just have to have both the bacon and sausage for breakfast.

But, after she brought my drink, she stopped at a table with a guy waiting for his to go order, and stood there and talked to him for about ten minutes. That is very unprofessional. Yes, it didn't really affect me, my drink had just been delivered, my food when it arrived was served hot and I didn't have to wait any longer than normal for the food to arrive, but it may have affected other people in the restaurant.

I would go back to 25 Degrees for the burger, anytime. I may build my own burger, their other two burgers don't sound appealing to me; one has prosciutto and pesto-two things I hate, and the other has green chili. I will go back for breakfast.

Umami Burger-Hollywood-Closed

Umami Burger-Hollywood
4655 Hollywood Blvd
LA, CA
323-669-3922

Umami Burger is another restaurant in the gourmet burger catergory, that started with Father's Office. Umami is billed as the sixth sense.  Umami  opened a location on La Brea but I still haven't been there.  But, today I found out they opened a location in the Hollywood area with a $5 happy hour burger called the Smash burger.  So I braved the windy weather and made it their new location, which used to be a Cobras and Matadors. Before I review the food at Umami Burger, I wanted to tell readers of The New Diner about something I saw while walking to Umami Burger.

I saw two paparazzi scumbags, waiting outside a costume shop, about 2-3 stores from Umami. They had their camera ready and once that celebrity came out of the store, they were clicking away. What is really terrible was that this celebrity took a child shopping for a Halloween costume and these scumbag paparazzi are bothering them!!  Can't these scumbags leave the kid alone? Yeah, I get it that these celebrities are out in public but that doesn't mean they have to hound this celebrity.  I didn't know who this celebrity was, until I asked one of the scumbags.  I also didn't mention who he or she might be because I don't want to contribute to the paparazzi scumbags.

So I got the Smash burger, $5, that comes with pickles, charred onions and house-made American cheese. I was shocked at how juicy the burger was. There was no need for any other condiments. The American cheese was melted perfectly into each bite. The burger, which was cooked about medium, is a decent sized burger, for $5 is a a steal. But the Smash burger is a no deletion or addition burger. What is on there is what you get.

Since I was at Umami, I had to get the Umami burger, $9 and thin fries, $3.50. The Umami burger is a beef patty topped with Parmesan, roasted tomato (cooking veggies unlocks the glutamate), shiitake mushrooms and onion. But it was too rare for me. I felt sick after eating this. The burger was cooked charred, burnt on the outside and rare on the inside. The toppings was a weird combination of flavors that just didn't work well together.

The thin fries were hot, crispy but very salty. They put too much salt on the fries. Next time I order the fries, I will ask for no salt.

Service at the bar is good. The bartender was nice and helpful.

I would go back to Umami burger for the smash burger but I wouldn't go back for the burgers on their regular menu. If the Umami burger is the signature burger, they missed it. They smash burger is it!!

Jitlada Thai Cuisine

Jitlada Thai Cuisine
5233 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles
323-663-3104

I have heard so many things about Jitlada Thai and I haven't had the chance to go there. But I finally made it. Now Jitlada has a huge menu, that a person could go here every week and order 2-3 dishes and still not finish their entire menu in a year.

But instead of ordering my usual Thai dishes, I decided to try some new things. So I got the spicy Scallops, $9.95, deep fried, then sauteed with mint leaves, chili and garlic sauce. This had an overwhelming garlic flavor. I saw and chewed on the mint leaves, but there was no mint taste. The spice of the chili was there but the garlic just overwhelmed everything. But the scallops, which would have been very good just deep fried, because soggy with the sauce and became a mushy mess. It wasn't impressed with this dish.

Soft shell crab rolls, $12.95, deep fried, fresh vegetables, and glass noodles rolled in a rice paper. This didn't look like any soft shell crab I have ever seen. I think they must have confused with with deep fried shrimp or prawns. The veggies were fresh but the noodles added nothing to the dish. This wasn't worth the $12.95 price at all.

Service was good. But my friend didn't have any rice but they charged us for two rice dishes. He clearly told the server he didn't want any rice and they still charged us.

There were some dishes at other tables that looked very good. I think what happened to me is that I ordered the wrong dishes. Now Jitlada is very pricey, especially for Thai. So I may not rush back to Jitlada but I would go there and try some of their other dishes.

Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles-Hollywood

Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles
1514 N. Gower St.
Hollywood
323-466-7453

I have already been to the Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles in Pasadena and didn't have a good experience. But I had the chance to go to the original Roscoe's in Hollywood. So I decided why not?

I got the breast and waffle, $8.50. The first thing I noticed was that the breast was just out of fryer, always a plus. The chicken was very good. The skin had nice seasonings, mostly pepper, and crunch. The inside was moist and tender. A good example of what fried chicken should be.

The waffles were also just out of the waffle maker. Light, fluffy, and crispy at the end. I really liked it.

Service was good. The server was attentive and nice.

I'm glad I went to the original Roscoe's because it was a much better experience than the Pasadena location. I wouldn't rush back but if I was in the area, I would have no problem going back.

Huston's Pit BBQ-Closed

Huston's Pit BBQ
1620 N Cahuenga Blvd
Los Angeles
323-464-3972

Huston's Pit BBQ is another example of a fake BBQ place. This is not real BBQ. They do not smoke their meats, there is no smoke ring on the ribs. They must braise the meat before cooking over hard wood. But this isn't real BBQ.

I got the quarter rack of spare ribs, $7.50. The ribs were very tender, almost falling off the bone. But there was no smoke flavor, was drowned in a sauce that tasted exactly like KC Masterpice, and the ribs had a lot of fat on them. So they need more braising time or better yet, they need to be really smoked!!!!!!

Service is good.

Ok, I am a BBQ snob. I do not like going to places and wasting money on oven cooked or grilled ribs. I can do that myself at home. Why the hell do I need to go out and pay somebody to do that for me???? I want somebody who will smoke their ribs, using hardwoods for six or more hours. I won't sit in front of a smoker for that long, so I have no problems paying somebody, if they do it right.

Don't bother going to Huston's Pit BBQ unless your idea of BBQ is Tony Roma's or Chili's.

Grecos New York Pizzeria

Grecos Pizza Pizzeria
6400 Hollywood Blvd
Los Angeles
323-464-8212

I stopped by Greco's about a year ago. I remember at the time that the pizza sauce was very tangy and had lots of oregano and the crust was very hard, almost like a cracker. Greco's is a New York style pizza place. I judge every New York style pizza in LA to Village Pizzeria. Greco's couldn't hold Village Pizzeria's (Do a search for their review on The New Diner. I'm too lazy to create a link right now.) rolling pin.

Well I stopped by tonight and nothing has changed. I ordered a slice of pepperoni, $4.55. Now the slice is huge, almost as big as the slices at Village Pizzeria. But again the pizza sauce was very tangy and while they decreased the oregano, it wasn't tasty. The crust was exactly like a cracker, hard and crunchy. There wasn't enough cheese and the pepperoni was pretty bland. Not good for a New York style pizza. This is the type of pizza that kids are served during lunch at school.

Service was OK. The guy working behind the counter was in a hurry to kiss and hug his girlfriend, he didn't bother being behind the counter. When he finally got behind the counter, he was OK, nothing outstanding but nothing bad.

I would not go back to Greco's again. I can't believe it's still in business the pizza is so bad.

Grub-Closed

Grub 911 Seward St Los Angeles, CA 90038 323-461-3663 On one side of the side are movie studios and sound stages. The other side of the street are houses with the corner house a restaurant!!! A popular restaurant too. On Sundays they open at 9am. We got that about 8:50 am and within five minutes there were 10-12 people in line with us. The first time we came, we got there at 11am and they told us the wait would be 90 minutes long!!!! We did not stay. We saw this on the Food Network. I think Rachel Ray. Now she's a great cook. Her 30 minute meals are great. But as for her choice of restaurants, they leave a lot to be desired. I ordered the Mamacita Breakfast Burrito. $8.95, scrambled eggs, chorizo, cheddar cheese, and potatoes wrapped in a flour tortilla. Our order took a bit longer than I thought it would. There were at least 20 people in the restaurant but I thought they could have been faster with our order. When it finally arrived, I was tricked into believing that burrito was huge. It is huge but only because of the way they cut the potatoes, very large pieces. There isn't that much chorizo or eggs. What little egg and chorizo was very good. The chorizo had a nice spicy flavor. The scrambled eggs were fully cooked and fluffy. Service was good, except for the longer than expected wait for our food to be cooked. The server was friendly and attentive to our needs. I would not go back to Grub. I think the food is good but nothing great. But most of all I think it's on the pricey side. They have a three egg breakfast for $7.95 but what about bacon or sausage? That would put you back $4.95. $12.90 for a three eggs and bacon breakfast? Not worth it.

Pink's

Pink's
709 La Brea
LA
323-931-4223

Pink's is known for it's hot dogs and the stars who come to Pink's. I think Pink's is very overrated.

I got there and the line was down the sidewalk and around the corner. I decided what the hell and waited in line. The wait took about 40 minutes on a Saturday night. I got the 10 in stretch chili dog and the Chicago Polish.

The 10 in stretch had chili, mustard, and onions. The hot dog was pretty good. Decent snap but the chili isn't anything to write home about. I would much prefer heating up some canned chili and putting it on top. The stretch chili dog is $3.10. I think Cupid's is a much better deal.

The Chicago Polish had mustard, relish, onions, tomatoes and lettuce for $3.55. The polish was mild but WAY overcooked. It was very tough eating the polish. The toppings were fresh but the Chicago polish is something I would stay away from.

If you never been to Pink's, you must go just to experience the place. But the hot dogs themselves aren't anything special. If you are at Pink's catch the northbound Metro bus on La Brea to the Hollywood and Vine station. Take the red line to Hollywood and Highland. Then walk to Skooby's. A much better hot dog without the long line.

The Pig-Closed

The Pig
612 N. La Brea
LA CA 90036
323-935-1116

The Pig bills itself as Memphis style BBQ. It maybe Memphis style but it doesn't compare to Jay Bees BBQ for the best Memphis style ribs in LA. I ordered the 5 bones of the St. Louis style spare ribs for $10.28.

The ribs lacked a true smoke flavor. I thought I was eating Tony Roma ribs. They were a little too tender. Again falling off the bone is too tender for my tastes.

I like the Smokin Spicy BBQ sauce. Maybe the best BBQ sauce in LA. The Pig's regular sauce is way too sweet. But the ribs overall are just OK though the portions are big.

I went on a Saturday and there was a gorgeous woman eating there alone. Not sure what's wrong with her but somebody that gorgeous shouldn't be eating alone at any time.

Parking can be a problem on La Brea. The Pig is on La Brea about half a block south of Melrose. The Pig used to have a location at City Walk but that has closed.

Skooby's-Closed

Skooby's
6654 Hollywood Blvd.
Hollywood, CA 90028
323- HOT-DOGS

WOW what a great surprise. After the disaster that was Taste Chicago, I go to Skooby's. But since it's a Friday night on Hollywood Blvd, parking can be and was a pain in the butt. It was terrible. Next time I go and I will go back soon it will take the Red Line Metrorail to the Kodak Theatre and then either walk or take a bus to Skooby's.

I first ordered the Skooby's Original Dog for $2.50 with onions and relish, I had to put on the regular yellow mustard as they only have brown mustard. Boy was I surprised!!! A great hot dog. Very nice snap and the bun was toasted on the grill and is the best hot dog buns anywhere!!! I'm so impressed I order the Bacon Cheedar Dog for $4. Again great snap with the hot dog. The mixture of spices in Skooby's Hot Dogs make it one of the best hot dogs I've ever had. Lots of bacon and cheedar cheese and yellow mustard. What great stuff.

I'm sooo damn impressed with Skooby's. I would go back again very soon.

July 1, 2009




Ok, very soon became almost two and half years but I finally made it back to Skooby's. The Original Dog was on special for $2.00 and I got it. This was served plain and I put on yellow mustard and raw onions, as you can see on the bottom picture.

It is great to know that the quality of the hot dog has not changed at all. A great hot dog with a wonderful snap, nice texture and seasoning, just wonderful.

A major plus was being able to wash this down with Coke made with real cane sugar, none of the HFCS junk.

Service is good.

To me this is the best hot dog place in LA, especially now that Weiner Factory has closed down.