We make bad decisions that come out of not knowing enough of a situation, or we make poor use of the information that we do have.  Such decisions are made nearly every day in life.  Some of them are fixable, such as returning that shirt that has [...]]]> Face it, we all make mistakes in life.  It happens.

We make bad decisions that come out of not knowing enough of a situation, or we make poor use of the information that we do have.  Such decisions are made nearly every day in life.  Some of them are fixable, such as returning that shirt that has a missing button.  Some are no big deal, like buying a carton of milk when you already had one in the fridge.  And then there are some irreversible ones that can make a big difference in your lives.  Somewhere in the magnitude of “I passed on Cornell and NYU because my high school sweetheart only got into schools on the west coast and I wanted us to stay together.”  My advice on those would be to try to just laugh it off if you can.

I don’t like making mistakes with my food.  I mean, what can you do?  You ordered it (and most likely already ate half of it) before the disappointment sinks in.  Most won’t ask for a refund unless it’s for a better reason than ‘I just didn’t like it.’  So you just endure the last half, pay up, and get on with the rest of your life.

It’s an imperfect transaction.  You don’t know what your dish will taste like until after you’ve ordered it and made a promise to pay for the service.

In reality, ordering the wrong dish isn’t a big deal.  You got the sustenance your body needed and, in less than a day, it’ll run its course through your body anyway.  The disappointment will not last long (unless it gives you food poisoning).

I may feel like I made the wrong decisions that night, but luckily I went with eight other friends to Campanile for their DineLA dinner and they made some very good ones.  It should be worth noting that I went against the waiter’s recommendations on every dish, which may be of some useful information in the future.  So, I’ll do something different and talk about what they had instead.

Here is the waiter’s recommended starter: Poached Egg with Porcini Mushroom Cream and White Truffle Oil.  I think it just looks glorious, and they pile on the thinly sliced truffles too, which gives it that incredible flavor in every tiny bite.  Alas, I went with another dish because I didn’t want to spring for the cash upgrade (too broke from Grace and XIV… those tiny upgrades have a knack for adding up).  However, if I were to go back again soon, this would be the first dish I’d be ordering.

I liked my neighbor’s pork loin dish better than my own, although it needed the creme fraiche to compensate for some dryness in my opinion.  Still, I liked the value and sides more than my mussels dish.  I went seafood just cause I hadn’t seen too much shellfish entrees on all the DineLA spots that I’ve encountered this month.

Regrettably unfocused pic of the Bread Pudding.  All but two people at the table went with the waiter’s recommended dessert dish, which was definitely pretty good.  Maybe not the best bread pudding I’ve had, but very close.  I just wanted to strike a different chord than the rest of the group and went with ice cream.  Mango and vanilla iced cream with biscotti, no less.  But not much more than ice cream you can have just about anyday.

Here’s the trio of dishes I ordered.  I think my camera also was disappointed and didn’t figure to focus correctly.  The soup was a bit too creamy and I think I could only down about half of it, but it made for a really good dip with all the free La Brea Bakery bread that was coming to us.  The mussels were just okay to me, and again, made for a nice dip for the free bread.

Still, it was a fantastic place to get dinner with a good group of friends.  Chef and owner Mark Peel really did a fantastic job with the venue.  When you step in, you’ll spot a fountain and very tall skylit ceilings inside the converted indoor foyer.  There’s also very spacious rooms in the back for hosting larger parties.  Service was also fantastic as well.  We happily spent two hours having a fun-filled dinner.  Thank goodness for friends and sharing.

Edit: I looked up campanile in the dictionary, and it means “Bell Tower” in Italian.  Makes sense now, because when I hear the word Campanile, I immediately think of Berkeley’s Sather Tower (aka “The Campanile”) that towers over the campus.

Campanile

624 S La Brea Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90036

Traveling or living in LA, there’s almost no doubt that you’ve heard about Pink’s Hot Dog stand on La Brea and Melrose.  It’s famous for two things: its ridiculous hour long waits and their delicious hot dogs.

This is the typical scene on a Saturday night just past midnight.  Don’t be fooled by the photo, the line [...]]]>

Traveling or living in LA, there’s almost no doubt that you’ve heard about Pink’s Hot Dog stand on La Brea and Melrose.  It’s famous for two things: its ridiculous hour long waits and their delicious hot dogs.

This is the typical scene on a Saturday night just past midnight.  Don’t be fooled by the photo, the line is wrapped and it goes around the store.  Unfortunately they only take one order at a time, so it moves pretty slowly, giving everyone plenty of time to figure out what they want from their pink folded menus.  The line is much longer during the day on a weekend, as it’s filled with tourists.  If you’re looking to avoid the line completely, in my experience the only time you can go is a ten in the morn when they are just opening their stores.  What are you waiting for exactly?  Well….

BAM!  These are no ordinary hot dogs on their menu.  Most on the menu are either spicy, topped with chili, cheese, bacon, or guacamole.  Sometimes it’s all of the above and more.  Pictured here is a jalapeno stretch dog topped with taco fixings, PASTRAMI, and BACON!  My fave happens to be the Ozzy spicy polish dog, topped with guacamole, nacho cheese, and onions.  There are over 40 different variations of hot dogs and many more possible combinations on their menu.

Pinks has been a Hollywood legend since 1939.  Since then it has served many adoring celebrities fans whose photos line the walls on the inside of the restaurant.  Here’s a link to find many of the celeb customers Pinks has had over the years.  I wonder if they had to stand in line to get some??

When it comes to the LA experience, this is a must have.  Although it’s good, there’s no way I would try to eat this more often than I have to when showing out-of-town friends around.  I don’t think my heart could take it, ha.

Pink’s Hot Dog
709 N La Brea Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90038

My foodie friend from NY came down a month ago and had read all about this place (even across the country), so we decided to come down on a Friday and grab lunch.

Down the 10 and [...]]]> This fancy burger joint has been hotter than Megan Fox on the Yelp charts for the last two months.

My foodie friend from NY came down a month ago and had read all about this place (even across the country), so we decided to come down on a Friday and grab lunch.

Down the 10 and off on La Brea and.. there it is! Just past the giant stuffed tiger shop on the right. I turn into their parking lot and there’s just absolutely nowhere to go, so this helpful Korean lady from the copy shop comes out to help us double park behind another car. Thanks! I hope you know we’re not here to come to your store.

Already I’m a little peeved because of the traffic and hard parking. I’m thinking to myself, why would I come back here? This place isn’t even big enough for all the hype. And then, after a wait, comes the food…

UMAMI! It is a Japanese word used to describe taste. While it has no direct English translation, it’s reserved for things tasty and great. The Japanese also have another word “umai”, which means delicious. They’re so close, that both would be acceptable to use in this restaurant.

We split three burgers in two: Socal Burger, Umami Burger, and the Blue Cheese.

I had the Socal burger, and at first bite, i thought it tastes very similar to an In-N-Out cheeseburger. It has all the ingredients–3/4 pound patty, lettuce, cheese, a thousand island dressing based sauce, and all sandwiched by fresh buns. Each ingredient is a major upgrade from In-N-Out. Their cheese is all made in-house. Their burger patties are incredibly savory and tasty. Their buns toasted slightly crispy on the edges but soft and spongy throughout. In fact, my friend could not stop raving about their buns.

The Umami burger was probably my favorite. Grilled mushrooms and tomatoes lend some sweetness to complement the savory meat. And the two contrasting tastes are divided by a crispy cheese chip. It’s like a ref holding two boxers back in the ring known as your mouth as they battle each other for taste supremacy.

Blue cheese can be overpowering, so unless you’re a huuuge fan of blue cheese and are eating with someone that doesn’t mind the smell of it, I would try a different burger.

For sides, the onion rings were fantastic. We skipped the fries from all the reviews saying they just don’t give you enough.

Unfortunately they were out of the pork burger that day (which seems to happen alot), so I made a separate trip to get one to go later on. It is just as marvelous as their beef burgers. Also recommended is the truffle burger. Oh, that makes another note… given that their parking sucks and the store is small, I highly recommend just getting your burger to go and eat it at the beach, park, or even your cubicle. I brought it back to my office in Hollywood and EVERYONE hated me.

This is the best burger I have had in my short time in LA, and probably deserves a spot in the perpetual debate of burger supremacy. Everyone should come here and try it at least once.

Umami Burger
850 S La Brea Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90036

*All food photos taken by Alex. He wishes he took the one of Megan Fox.

Listen guys, as awesome as it would be to land a girlfriend as hot as Tamara (aka the chick in the blue dress in the Carl’s Jr. commercial), there’s just no realistic chance that they’ll be impressed with you taking them to Carl’s for a steak dinner.  In fact, this commercial bothers me because she’s just [...]]]>

Listen guys, as awesome as it would be to land a girlfriend as hot as Tamara (aka the chick in the blue dress in the Carl’s Jr. commercial), there’s just no realistic chance that they’ll be impressed with you taking them to Carl’s for a steak dinner.  In fact, this commercial bothers me because she’s just too smokin’ hot in that blue dress to be with a guy who tries to pull that.  It’s just false advertising!

So it’s time to do the right thing.  Take your girlfriend or date out to somewhere nice.

Need a place?  Check out The Little Door.  It’s a French restaurant situated on Third street in the stretch between La Cienega and Fairfax.  Oooh-la-la, “French” is probably already enough to get your girl all excited.  Oh it gets more romantic beyond that, though.

Step through the little door (literally) and you’re transported into a hidden oasis in LA.  Part of the mystique of the restaurant lies in the hidden secret ambiance that they have created.  Without the valet stand outside, you’ll likely have driven past the nondescript wooden door a thousand times without noticing the restaurant behind it.

If you look on its Yelp! page, just about everyone who has walked through the little door has praised its ambiance and romantic touch.  My friend even noted that “if a guy brought me here on the first date, then yeah, I might just give it up the first night. *giggle*”

There are a couple of different rooms and settings at The Little Door, which they give better visuals of on their website.  Reservations should definitely be made at a place like this, and I would highly recommend sitting out in the patio area.  It’s the most romantic of the four dining rooms.  With candles overhead, ivy on the walls, and an outdoor feel, it is sure to help win your date over.

If you like steak, then you’re in luck.  Of all the dishes that I’ve sampled, I have to say that their rib-eye was the tastiest.  The lamb chops are a close second, and their fish and chicken dishes weren’t worth the money.  Desserts were amazing, even though they are the typical french restaurant fare.  Highly recommend the duck foie gras as a starter as well.

Also cute for chicks is the Little Next Door, a wine bar and cafe located next door.  It’s more casual and cheaper than T.L.D. and serves up a great selection of imported wines, snacks, and desserts.  It also doubles as a quiet place to get a drink while you wait for your reservation.  I had the most amazing red wine from Italy here, which is unfortunate because I can’t recall the name.

Parking is pretty difficult to find in this area, so expect to valet ($7.50).  If you bring your girl out to a place like this, you’ll probably be expected to shell out at least $60 per person with wine.  She’ll feel good when she’s spoiled so well by you though. Be sure to compliment her when you see her too (at least the guy in the commercial did that much right).

Oh Tamara, why don’t you put on that blue dress and join me Saturday night?

The Little Door
8164 W 3rd St
Los Angeles, CA 90048