LITTLE OSAKA
Story Kanara Ty
Illustration Inki Cho
Issue Spring 2013
From a cultural sanctuary for just-released internees, to a local college stomping ground, one street in Los Angeles, Sawtelle Boulevard, has transformed into one of the chicest and hippest Asian culinary neighborhoods.
What I love about L.A. Weekly’s 99 Essential Restaurants list is that it’s a good mix of places that has something for everyone – especially in a city with some of the world’s most eccentric characters. I’ll admit there were some surprises, but I was pleasantly pleased with the numerous Asian entries on the list.
This year’s list is a little different – not just because of the new entries on the list – but because this is the first time other contributors have also worked on this list besides famous food writer Jonathan Gold (Tien Nguyen and Christine Chiao were enlisted). With a place as big and diverse as L.A., it’s important to have a mix of different voices to offer their opinions (and you know, share with us their hidden gems).
Did some of your favorites make the list? Click on to see!
Continue Reading »
With America is still stuck in one of the biggest recessions since The Great Depression, days and nights of eating out have been hard to come by. We get it, so we pulled out some of the hottest restaurants and bars out of our little black book that has some of the happiest of happy hours around. Whether the hotspot is a chill bar to hang out with your friends or it’s an upscale restaurant to lure in a love interest, we got your back!
As a woman with a serious raw seafood fetish, I dream about oyster bars.
It’s pretty much my idea of heaven.
So when I heard that the hip hip hooray bar that is Delphine at the W Hotel in Hollywood, CA had a fresh Raw Bar Monday, which consisted of plenty of seafood going at only a mere buck and two for each, my ears perked and my mouth started salivating. Heaven, here I come! Continue Reading »
Project by Project, a national 100% volunteer-run org. with chapters in LA, NY and SF, selected a beautiful summer Saturday evening to hold its 9th annual Plate by Plate Tasting Benefit.
Imagine the biggest potluck by some of the best chefs you’ll ever come across with plenty of ladies and gents dressed to the nines, a fun photo booth, an expensive entrance fee and you get Plate by Plate.
When you think Thai food, certain dishes come to mind like Pad See Ew or Pad Thai. At Rama, the newest addition to the L.A. food scene, you get that and much, much more.
As you approach the restaurant located on the popular Third Street Restaurant Row district, you’ll hear the soothing sounds of trickling water coming from a small waterfall wall. As you are about to enter, the host greets you before you have a chance to step foot into the restaurant. In all corners of the dining room are Buddha statues. Off to the right is what appears to be an ordinary shelf of candles, but it is actually a secret entrance to the lounge.
Rama, the latest Thai cuisine offering on Third Street's Restaurant Row, Los Angeles.
The entrance to Rama's secret lounge.
The Zen-like lounge is a part of Rama’s goal to offer authentic Thai food in an intimate, upscale atmosphere. The lounge and bar is expected to open soon, as well as a conference room with a flat screen TV, making it the perfect venue for a business meeting over lunch. It’s all the vision of Alex Thao, managing partner and director of operations for all three of Rama’s locations, which include San Diego and Cabo San Lucas. At just 29, Thao was named in “40 Under 40″ by the San Diego, Chicago and New York Business Journals. Rama is included in Zagat’s top 100 restaurants in the U.S.
Alex Thao of Rama.
But of course, as with any restaurant, it’s all about the food. Chef Pannuwat Soukjai utilizes French preparation techniques to offer both traditional and modern Thai dishes. For Rama’s lunch menu, every entrée comes with an appetizer, soup, or salad. If you enjoy a tartness in your food, definitely try their Papaya Salad. Rama uses the green papaya, not the orange one, which has more of a crisp cucumber texture, served with a tart dressing.
For appetizers, two words: Kratong Tong. The dish comes with pastry cups made out of rice paper that adds a nice crunch and subtle flavor to go along with the curry. The curry consists of chicken, potatoes, carrots and green peas. Kratong Tong stands out because it has a more subtle, light taste with no extra sweetness (especially if coconut isn’t your cup of tea).
One of Rama’s most popular dishes is the Garlic and Pepper (Crusted) offered with chicken, beef, pork, vegetables or tofu. If none of those suit your palate, the dish is also offered with shrimp, sea bass, seafood or roast duck. Rama clearly has all your meats, veggies and seafood covered. In fact, everything at Rama can be prepared gluten-free or vegetarian.
From dining to lounge, tart to sweet, Rama offers enough to appeal to everyone.
DETAILS
RAMA
7910 W 3rd St
Los Angeles, CA 90048
(on the corner of 3rd and Fairfax)
(323) 592-3035
What do you get when you cross a lawyer unhappy with her career with a penchant for artistic expression?
Sure, it’s a pretty common story. It’s my story. I know plenty of lawyers-turned-writers, lawyers-turned-restauranteurs, even lawyers-turned-actors. But despite no shortage of dissatisfied legal professionals out there, you’ll be hard pressed to find any lawyers-turned-Goth mistresses.
La Carmina.
Unless you know La Carmina. Author, blogger, fashion entrepreneur, Harajuku mistress — and, yes, former lawyer — La Carmina runs the 2 million-hits a month fashion and lifestyle blog, LaCarmina.com/blog.
