Bigg Chill Frozen Yogurt

Bigg Chill Frozen Yogurt
10850 W Olympic Blvd
Los Angeles
310-475-1070

After having a great burger at Hole in the Wall Burger Joint, my friends said we should get dessert at a great frozen yogurt place. I figured why not, and so we went to Bigg Chill Frozen Yogurt.

I got a small Irish Mint and cookie covered chocolate, $3.50. Unlike those damn chains that serve run of the mill frozen yogurt, this was awesome. A nice thick texture and wonderful flavor. The Irish Mint was fantastic!! Great mint flavor!! The cookie cover chocolate was almost like eating See's Candies chocolate in a frozen yogurt form.

Service is very good. They allow you to sample their flavors, and they serve up the yogurt quickly. Before I left, I wanted to get a business card, so they gave me a frequent shopper's card, and the guy asked how many yogurts I purchased! I told him, only one and he punched the card. Most places wouldn't have punched the card or asked how many items I bought.

It's a cash only operation, too. What's the matter with West LA? The people are plastic but the stores don't accept plastic?? While I still don't like going to the pretentious West LA, if I'm in the area, I will go back to Bigg Chill Frozen Yogurt.

Hole in the Wall Burger Joint-Closed

Hole in the Wall Burger Joint
11058 Santa Monica Blvd
Los Angeles
310-312-7013

Competition is what drives the restaurant business. Foodies are the winners in the these restaurant competitions. While I'm not sure if The Counter, was the first of it's type to open in the LA area, it has competition with Hole in the Wall Burger Joint!! Hole in the Wall Burger Joint is more casual than The Counter, where it's more of a sit down restaurant. But, hell when you have the name, Hole in the Wall Burger Joint, are you really expecting a sit down restaurant? It's a bit hard to find, the store front is actually on Missouri, though the street address is listed as Santa Monica. Look for the shopping center with Winchell Donuts and Hole in the Wall Burger Joint, is behind that Winchell's.

Like The Counter, you fill out your burger order on a sheet of paper. All protein are 8oz portions, and include beef, turkey, spicy chicken and veggie. I got a turkey burger on a whole wheat bun, with onion mayo, cheddar cheese, red leaf lettuce, tomatoes, and mustard pickle relish, $8.95. They offer a pretzel bun and a burger in a bowl, but I passed on those.

I really liked this burger. A turkey burger is usually going to be a bit drier than a beef burger, because of the low fat content in turkey. But, this burger was juicy, full of flavor and just wonderful. The turkey was cooked perfectly and was well seasoned, very important. The toppings were fresh, though I took off the mustard relish after the first couple bites, I just wasn't a fan. For a great topping, on their condiment bar, is their version of ranch dressing and it's great. Next time I go, I'm getting my burger dry and just add their ranch dressing.

Service is good and the burgers came out quickly, hot and fresh!! But, it's a cash only operation, so be prepared. They have an ATM on site, but of course, we'll get dinged by your bank for not using their ATM's!!

I would go back to Hole in the Wall Burger Joint, any time.

Crossroads BBQ-Closed

Crossroads BBQ
2927 S Sepulveda Blvd
Los Angeles
424-832-7300

I haven't had BBQ in a long time, so I figured I would give Crossroads a try. Crossroads BBQ is owned by the same people who own Dinah's Family Restaurant. I first saw Crossroads mentioned on Chowhounds, when a jerk named servorg, mentioned he saw a sign announcing the imminent opening of Crossroads BBQ. After 4-5 months, they finally opened. I guess the new Webster's, now has a different definition of imminent? Anyways, servorg is an idiot and I don't pay attention to his reviews. But, I always pay attention to the opening of new BBQ restaurants. So I called a friend and we met at Crossroad BBQ. Finding good real BBQ in West LA is limited because the snotty jerk people of West LA, have no clue about good real BBQ.

Crossroad BBQ is a shared restaurant, next door is a Mexican restaurant and you can order from both menus are either location. Interesting business model and the night we were there, the BBQ side was packed.




I got the half rack of spare ribs, dry rub, with mac and cheese and mixed vegetables, $17.

These ribs remind me of Lucille's, meaning they were almost burnt, badly smoked, flavorless, and just plain bad. They are St. Louis spare ribs, so they look nice but there isn't much meat, and the what little meat this is, just tastes terrible.

The mac and cheese was bland and the cheese sauce barely covered the macaroni. The mixed veggies were pretty good, with string beans, carrots, broccoli, and squash, though I didn't touch the squash, that were lightly sauteed, well seasoned and cooked perfectly.

This is so overpriced for such mediocre food.

Service throughout dinner was pretty good. But, when we first came in, there was nobody at the hostess area and it took the hostess about five minutes to appear. Not sure what was happening, but that's a good way to lose customers.

I would not go back to Crossroads BBQ again. I wasn't expecting great things from Crossroads BBQ and sadly, I was proven correct.

Livonia Glatt Market

Livonia Glatt Market
8922 W Pico Boulevard
Los Angeles
(310) 271-4343

I have not been to Jeff's Gourmet Sausage Factory in a very long time. Since I was in the area, I decided to pick up some sausage to grill up for dinner this week. When I parked in the back of Jeff's, I saw Livonia Glatt Market. They were cooking up some kebobs, which they do only on Sunday. So, I decided that the kebobs will be my dinner tonight.

While the cooking area is outside, you go inside the store to place and pay for your order. They have beef, chicken and the ground beef and chicken kebobs.



I got the barg kebob, which is marinated beef, $9. The other kebob in the picture is the cornish hen, also $9. I thought they would make each order separate but they combined both orders. The orders come with a flat bread, which is like a tortilla, grilled tomatoes and basil and onions.

I'm guessing the barg kebob was a sirloin cut, because the beef was very tender and flavorful. I liked the large portion. This was well seasoned, I'm guessing they marinated this with some yogurt, and robust flavor came through.

Service disorganized. The cooks need to tell customers the process. You have to pay inside and then bring your receipt back to the grill area. It took a big long to get the food, considering they had a lot of cooks and grills. It took awhile for my order to get onto the grill. The young lady at the cash register was average, they went through the motions, like a robot. Not much help at all.

I did like the kebobs and would go back, but I can see where first timers maybe turned off by the ordering process and not go back. I hope they fix the ordering process because the kebobs are very good.

Junior's Restaurant/Deli-Closed

Junior's Restaurant/Deli
2379 Westwood Blvd
Los Angeles
310-475-5771

I heard about Junior's Restaurant/Deli a few months back and decided to give them a try. My favorite deli in LA, is Canter's, so Junior's had a lot to live up to.




I ordered the David Deli Platter, $13.95, corned beef, pastrami, swiss cheese, and rye bread on a platter, because I didn't see a corned beef and pastrami combo sandwich. But I figured they were using the same corned beef and pastrami, as they do on their sandwich, so I couldn't lose. I did like both the corned beef and pastrami. Both were tender, flavorful and didn't have much fat!! Junior's trims the fat, where other deli's serve you a fat filled sandwich.

The rye bread was a bit bland, I want to taste the fennel seed. The swiss cheese was very good, light, nutty flavor.

Service was great. I sat at the counter and the server was annoying and wonderful. I didn't lack for anything and she refilled my drink without asking. She was great. She could dish it out and take it. She was getting on me when I asked for a box, saying I should clean my plate. So I got on her, when put my leftovers in the box, and she took the plate; I told her I wasn't done yet. Then I smiled. She smiled. She asked how everything. I said the food was great but, just as I was going to say, service needs improvement, she said service was annoying!!! It was great. The server's name is Anne and she is just awesome.

I would go back to Junior's anytime. I love this place. Has it replaced Canter's, as my favorite? Let's just say, Junior's is 1B.

Pann's Restaurant

Pann's Restaurant
6710 La Tijera Blvd
Los Angeles
310-670-1441

A few miles from Dinah's Family Restaurant is Pann's Restaurant. A diner style restaurant that opened the same year that the drunk, bastard mick, stole the Brooklyn Dodgers from their rightful home, 1958.

I have heard that Pann's has some of the best fried chicken in LA and I decided to give it a try.




Pann's had a $6 special, two pieces of chicken; your choice of white or dark meat, choice of sides, I got the mashed potatoes, and a biscuit. A great deal, that is offered Monday to Friday only.

The skin had a light batter and was crispy. But I thought the skin lacked seasoning, pretty bland. They need to seasoning to their fried chicken. Inside of the chicken was moist and tender. I did like this better than Dinah's but I don't consider Pann's the best fried chicken in LA.

The mashed potatoes were great!! Creamy with bits of potatoes, so that you knew this was made from scratch, not some damn box. I didn't care for the brown gravy which was made from a mix and pretty bland. I also did't like the fact they gave me a whole portion of mashed potatoes but a small portion of gravy.

Pann's regular fried chicken is half a chicken for $11.95. I don't think the thigh and leg piece is worth the extra $6.

Service was good. The host was very nice. I walked in and he was busy at the register and there were 2-3 other people waiting. Once he was done at the register, he came over and asked "Who was here first?" Great customer service. Some places just go to the first person they see.

I sat at the counter and it did take awhile for a server to come by. But a busboy got me some water and he kept refilling the water, the entire time I was there. Awesome.

My server was nice, friendly and hard working. She had a lot of tables and was attentive as she could be, and anybody reasonable person could expect.

I wouldn't mind going back to Pann's but I wouldn't rush over there. I do think Pann's serves a better fried chicken than Dinah's, but Pann's is a bit expensive, if you order off the regular menu.

Dinah's Family Restaurant

Dinah's Family Restaurant
6521 S Sepulveda Blvd
Los Angeles
310-645-0456

An old school diner that has been in LA for 50 years, why wouldn't I go to Dinah's Family Restaurant? Since they server fried chicken I thought this was the original location of the Dinah's Fried Chicken near Glendale, that I reviewed a few years ago. But I get conflicting answers, some people have told me they are owned by the same people and others have told me they just share a name.

I went to Dinah's Family Restaurant because every Monday and Thursday, they offer an all you can eat fried chicken dinner for $10.95. The dinner includes two sides, I got corn and fries and gravy. They allow you to choose white or dark meat, I got white meat and two wings and one breast piece came out quickly. The skin wasn't crispy or crunchy but had nice pepper seasoning. The breast piece was a bit dry, like they were sitting in the warmer too long. The meat was a bit dry and while it was a good sized piece, I would have prefered it to be more moist. I got two more orders and I could tell those pieces had been fried recently and not sitting in a warmer. But they were dry too.

The wings were a bit better. The drummette piece had a huge piece of breast meat, which was good. The wing part was nice and meaty and moist. If the breast piece was as moist as the wings, this would have been a good meal.

The fries were standard fries but the corn was nice and firm in a buttery sauce. The gravy though was out of this world. A chicken gravy that had pieces of chicken mixed in, great flavor and helped add some moisture to the dry chicken.

Service was very good. The server was attentive and always asked if I wanted more chicken.

I wasn't happy with my last visit to the Dinah's near Glendale as the chicken here wasn't as salty and the service here was much better.

I love old school diner-like places. I would go back to Dinah's Family Restaurant, but I wouldn't go for the fried chicken. They have other all you can eat specials, I would like to try their stroganoff and spaghetti nights.

Nathan's-Closed

Nathan's
9216 W Pico Blvd
LA
310-273-0303

Nathan's is the legendary hot dog stand in New York City. I heard they opened up two locations in LA. One near the Kodak Theatre on Hollywood and Highland and this location on Pico in LA. The Hollywood and Highland location with in the Kenny Rogers Roasters restaurant but closed down in early 2005.

So I decide to give the Nathan's on Pico a try. This is back in December of 2005 and I didn't realize that the best hot dog in LA was just a few blocks east at Jeff's Gourmet Sausage Factory!! But I tried Nathan's and not good at all. The hot dog was lukewarm at best, even though I saw them grill it. The toppings, onions, relish, and mustard are fresh. But the hot dog it's wasn't great. It lacked any kind of flavor and snap. I would have been better off going to a supermarket and buying the Nathan's brand hot dogs and making it myself.

The service was terrible. Some punk kid, son of the owner who thinks he's god because his daddy owns a store.

Nathan's has a big menu that includes ribs, fried chicken, sandwiches, and burgers. Instead of having such a big variety on the menu, they should worry about doing a couple things right. Since it is called Nathan's they should make the hot dogs live up to the Nathan's name. This Nathan's doesn't even come close.

Jeff's Gourmet Sausage Factory

Jeff's Gourmet Sausage Factory
8930 W. Pico
LA
310-858-8590

The search for the best hot dog is over. The best hot dog in LA is at Jeff's Gourmet Sausage Factory. The regular all beef hot dog is so flavorful with the perfect blend of spices nothing in LA comes close. The hot dog doesn't have any natural casing but that doesn't take anything away from the taste. The hot dog is the third picture down and costs $2.50. I had deli mustard and raw onions on there and it was great. The bun isn't toasted or anything but the hot dog is so good it doesn't matter. They offer a jumbo dog for $4.50 which I will try again very soon.

I also ordered a polish sausage sandwich with a plain bun instead of an onion roll, that is stated on the menu, for $4.50. The polish sausage is not spicy but has a very good flavor. The menu says a garlicy flavor but I didn't taste any garlic. I didn't care for the sauerkraut they put on there. But otherwise a good polish sandwich. But I'm more impressed with the hot dog.

When ordering the two guys taking your orders are very nice and helpful. But for whatever reason my hot dog and polish sausage took forever. I sat down at a table and waited for about five minutes. I went up after seeing somebody behind me get his burger. The other guy, who didn't take my order, said it would be another five minutes.

Now the hot dog was very good and hot. So I'm not really complaining. But it did seem a little too long to wait for a hot dog and sausage. The cooks forgot to put the mustard and onions on my hot dog but quickly got the order correct.

If that fat idiot from the Hot Dog Spot reviewed this place he would make stupid, racist comments about the large amount of Jewish people eating there. But I don't care who is eating where I'm eating. Unless it's a good looking women and I saw four very beautiful women at Jeff's Gourmet when I was there.

I would certainly go back for the hot dog and may try a burger or a pastrami or corned beef sandiwch. A nice discovery!!!

Apple Pan

Apple Pan
10801 W Pico Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90064-2105
(310) 475-3585

I've heard so many good things about the Apple Pan burger, I decide to go try it. The Apple Pan has about 20 counter spaces. There are no tables and many people get their burgers to go. It's pretty spartan with paper plates for the fried and the burgers are wrapped in paper and served to hungry customers.

I ordered the steakburger with no pickles for $6.70. I wait a few minutes and finally I get to see the burger that has people singing it's praises. Well I was very underwhelmed. The burger had the meat, lettuce, their "special sauce" and a toasted bun. Their special sauce is basically a more tangy sauce that Bob's Big Boy; puts on it's double deck burgers. The meat was cooked about medium, which is fine. But this burger isn't anything special and it's certainly isn't worth almost $7. I think the Burger Depot's burgers are about as good and they are about $6 less, after 2pm. The Double-Double at In n Out Burger is way better and includes cheese, and you can order two double-doubles for the price of one steakburger at Apple Pan.

The burger is good but nothing special. Again Apple Pan has been around forever so I can see why people want to go there. But many other places have a burger that is just as good if not better and most other places won't charge $7 for the burger.

Mr Cecil’s: West LA-Closed

Mr Cecil’s
12244 Pico Blvd
LA, CA
310-441-1550

I wanted to try the original Mr. Cecil's and see if it's better than the Sherman Oaks location.  Interesting that the Mr. Cecil's on Pico is near an adult book store. The Pico location isn't as upscale as the Sherman Oaks location. But the food maybe worse.

I order the 1/3 rack of St. Louis spare ribs to go. The waitress forgot to give me napkins, so I went back and got some. The ribs were small and there wasn't any type of smoke flavor. The ribs were $9.69. The sauce I was given was so sweet and terrible, was is the use?

I will not return to any Mr. Cecil's location again. The ribs are not good and the service at the Pico location can improve.