Kogi BBQ...the myth, the legend..the experience!

If you live in LA, and not under a rock...you have heard of the "Nuevo Food Truck" Movement. At the forefront of this mobile-culinary takeover, is Kogi BBQ. The only food truck I've ever waited nearly an hour for food.

I first heard about Kogi by word of mouth ("have you heard about the Kogi Truck?"), followed up with this video...

Needless to say I was intrigued....what is this Kogi stuff all about???

Well...to put it bluntly...THIS...

one of the best damn taco's I've had in a while. 

The Kogi BBQ phenomenon started with a little truck, that served Korean-BBQ tacos..It was a typical foot truck, but little did they know they were on the verge of a food revolution.

To spare you the history lesson, I'll link you here to a writeup in the LA times

ONTO THE FOOD THE EXPERIENCE!

To be fair...we tried to hit up the Kogi truck unsuccessfully TWICE!...

First time...

we show up about 20 min after the "tweeted" time to be there, only to find a line of at LEAST 40 people...We weren't down...

Second Time....

We show up to the area it's supposed to be in..and simply..couldn't find it!! Perhaps it wasn't there yet..or we were blind

Third time..proved to be a charm for us 

Mari and I got the word on kogi's Twitter that they were showing up to the "Brig" in Venice around 10pm..so we show up @ 9:45..to find 5-10 people already there waiting. Over the next 20 min (and a follow up twit that they were running late) we formed into 20-30 people waiting for the Kogi Truck to roll. up..and when it did...it was a spectacle. 

Luckily, where I was standing.. apparently the line formed behind me! 

Being the generous person I am, I let the people who were indeed there before us go ahead of me, which they were very polite and thankful for. (you can see Mari and Belle holding our place as I snapped the picture)

It took them about 15-20 min to setup and block off the area needed to serve the hungry masses (they setup in the parking lot of a popular bar in Venice..making it quite a spectacle)

Then...on come the orders!

For our first time, we went with some recommended nibbles-

Mari started off with the Kimchee Quesadillas... excellent mixture of Kimchee and Cheese all with a very tasty sauce...highly recommended!

I tried the Kogi Burrito

while the photo isn't the most artistic angle of the food...it was heavenly!!!!

and as I showed you at the beginning of this blog-

Korean Short Rib Tacos....(Kogi's Signature dish)

I don't know how else to describe this other then..a taste explosion..all the elements are there for the perfect amount of taste sensation..(cheesy sounding???..go try one!!..I dare you to come up with something better!)

And that concluded our Kogi Adventure...

the entire time passed...1 hour 10 minutes

Money spent..$14

People still behind us when we left were about 30-40 people deep....so I didn't feel too bad!

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PROS: Seriously some of the best Truck Food and Taco's we've EVER had, A few of the trucks accept Credit Cards!

CONS: Sometimes the wait is murder (1 hour +), Some of the Trucks don't accept Credit Cards

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We've revisited the Kogi Adventure a few times since, never to be let down. They have a brick and mortar location housed inside the bar "Alibi Room", which serves Kogi in a bar setting, with not as much of a line or "hunt" for the truck.

I won't go into details and let the photo's do the talking..but here's our "haul" from the Alibi room

(left) 3 Veggie Tofu Wraps

(right) 3 Tacos (chicken, short rib, spicy pork)

happy eating!

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KOGI BBQ

(Roving LA- Trucks and inside Alibi Room)

http://kogibbq.com/

The Alibi Room‎ - more info »

12236 W Washington Blvd, Los Angeles, CA‎ - (310) 390-9300‎

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Canters Deli- Los Angeles, CA

One evening at about quarter to 1am

We're out on the town, and decided it's time to eat. 

Being on the west side, one word came to my mind..CANTERS!. Any Los Angeles local knows about this hidden gem open 24 hours. Aside from being a former hangout of Guns and Roses, this place is the ULTIMATE deli. Gigantic servings, beautiful classic design/decor and most importantly..excellent food. Driving up to the restaurant, you're bombarded with billboards and signs directing you to this little spot on North Fairfax Avenue. Then you pull up, and there it is, in all it's glory..CANTERS "a Los Angeles landmark for over 50 years."

Upon walking in, you're greeted with a fully functioning Deli, with huge cuts of meat and cheese, tantalizing the taste buds already. The dining room is a classic decor with plenty of seating. 

the walls are lined with memorabelia from all over, Baseball, rock and roll and alot of pictures from the old days of Canters history. 

But I'd have to say the biggest visual treat in the restaurant is the amazing ceiling piece, it's breathtaking

However..onto the food....

You're started off with some of the most delicious pickles ever, crisp with one heck of a little bite!

By suggestion of the waiter, we got the Matza Ball soup...EXCELLENT. The matza was firm and tasty and the broth was simple and equally tasty. 

Tonight Mari had an omelette  with the potato pancakes (latkas I believe) with a side of Applesauce and Sour Cream, and she raved about it. As you can see from the picture below, the portion was generous and the omelette  was scrumptious.

Our good buddy paul was in town and he has the classic Corned Beef and Cabbage, which forfils the legend...it was AWESOME (and huge). A 1/2 of head of cabbage cooked just right, a huge pile of Corned beef cut into strips and potatoes and carrots on the side. He took home about 1/2 of it..but it made some awesome lunch the next day. 

As for me, I had the Rueben Sandwich...I couldn't resist! It was huge, fresh and just the right amount of thousand island and cabbage. Pretty messy, perhaps a tab thicker rye bread could be used to tame that monster of a sandwich..but it was worth it. All with a side of fat cut french fries.

All in all the meal was awesome. It's a tad pricey, but worth every penny, especially being nearly 1am and you brought your hunger. Make sure and check out the Menu from the 60's posted up in the front, where our same meal would of run 15 bucks total (as opposed to $50ish for 3 people).

We finally had someone else at the table with us this time, so we can post a pic of us, pre-meal!

Canter's Fairfax Restaurant Delicatessen Bakery

www.cantersdeli.com

419 North Fairfax Avenue

Los Angeles, CA 90036

(323) 651-2030

Get directions

 82 reviews - Write a review

"I love Canter's because they have kept it original for the most part."

@Marked5 Japanese Food truck...revisted

Well, we're back again w/ another report from the @Marked 5 truck that will stop in our hood every once in a while.

Well, if you remember our last review, the feedback was....mixed. The shortage of food, not really their fault, and the product was yummy. The wait for food from a truck...did leave something to be desired.

but I digress..I promised I'd try it again to be fair..and we did...twice!

Here's our followup w/ the Marked 5 Truck.

(mind you...we speak the truth and try to relay our experience)

So...we'll revisit....

visit #2

So, again, lunch time rolls around and the buzz about the office was that Marked 5 and those 'yummy Japanese rice patty burgers' are down the street again. I hop out for lunch, Mari is waiting for me, so we truck it to the Marked 5 turck (based on our last experience..thought we should get the order in asap).

Well..readers...let me say this..

Marked 5, indeed redeemed themselves in our eyes...

1 person in front of us, friendly staff, got our food after only few minutes wait, all while having a great conversation.

We started off w/ the Crispy Shrimp Chips...Excellent!

(this coming from someone not a big fan of shrimp)

...our apologies..no pic of this food...we ate it too quick..lol

Next up ,

The Torakku Beef Burger

...AWESOME...

Finally...I get what I want when I look @ the menu..lol...

It's a nice cut of beef with a very tasty sauce inside a fun/tasty rice patty bun..

If you go..and you eat beef...this is my recommendation.

Mari went with the Tofu Burger, which is very close to the beef (sans meat, add tofu).

again...AWESOME... I can't find a pic of that at the moment, but we'll try to track it down :-)

So this visit..definitely FTW. Big ups Marked 5...

well...now it's on to

Visit #3

Let me say this...the quality of the food did NOT change...the food was still EXCELLENT!!!

Another day where the buzz about the office is Marked 5 is coming, I confirm w/ Mari she wants the tofu again, and I make a run to the truck to bring home to Mari..after the excellence of the last visit..why screw with a winning formula?

so I order the exact same...(Tofu for Mari, Beef for me and Shrimp Chips. Not a long wait at all, this time it would seem that some regular customers were there (or perhaps friends) and I didn't get as much as a friendly chit chat, but that's no biggie..I talked w/ a co-worker during the wait.

However...small problem..

I GOT THE WRONG ORDER :-(....

Tofu...check

Shrimp Chips..Check

Beef...hmm...

It would seem I received a pork sandwich instead..and I noticed this while driving home already w/ food in hand..

so....was this a super bad thing?...NO.....it happens..and at least my errored sandwich was equally tasty, but it's definitely something I feel Marked 5 should watch out for...some people..don't dig on swine..and might freak out on something like that.

So...3 trips down..

1st Visit...meh.. shit happens

2nd Visit- Excellent...couldn't ask for a better experience..kudos

3rd Visit Excellent food...wrong order though.

My final advice on the topic..Marked 5 is DEFINITELY worth checking out if it's near you.

Get there early, check your food upon receiving and bring your appetites!

Click here for the menu

Marked 5

http://www.marked5.com/

follow them @twitter - http://twitter.com/Marked5

Merles - Littleton, CO

Hey again,

This time we checked out a great spot in Littleton, CO called "Merle's" for some Brunch.

Was a great restraunt, located right on the "main street" area of Littleton.

The dining room was very modern and had a good feel to it.

The menu definately took some time to mull over with as you can see below ALOT of choices...

By recommendation of my mom and the waiter...we decided to give the "Fried Pickle Chips" a try...Interesting I must say..but nevertheless very tasty w/ some Ranch dip.

Also for an appitizer I got a cup of green chili...because I dunno why, you just can't get proper Green Chili in California (at least I haven't had it yet)

Now...onto the grub!

My lovely mother opt'd for a "Chicken Salad-Salad", but by accident didn't understand it was actually "Chicken-salad" which contains mayo..which she's not a fan of..However, aside from that it was yummy...I suppose next time she'll read the description a bit more :-)

Mari tried the Veggie Burger..which she loved..I'll let her fill in the blanks later :-)

As for myself..I went with a Club Sandwich..nothing too extravagant since the Green Chili and Pickle Chips were definately pretty filling

All in all was a very tasty experience. Which we would be happy to go back for..

Perhaps if/when we move out that way...this place might find us to be a regular

Merle's‎ - more info »

2609 W Main St, Littleton, CO‎ -(303) 797-6008‎

9 reviews - Write a review

"Atmosphere is great! Sat in the 'garage' with the doors wide open and watched ..."

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Yorkshire Fish and Chips- Denver, CO

Another place we hit up while in Denver, that is definately worth a recommendation..

Yorkshire Fish and Chips...

DAYUM!...this place was tasty!

By recommendation of Paul G and my mother...this place is DEFINATELY got the "fish and chips" thing DOWN..

Nothing fancy..nothing extravagant..

simply a great lil restraunt with killy Fish and Chips...check out the pics below..

I have to say..I love the "fried bits" that they give you along with your order..lol

Huge portions of Fish

A pile of the yummy crispy batter

The finished product...YUM!

Even google reviews say it's the best in Denver!

Yorkshire Fish & Chips‎ - more info »

7275 Pecos St, Denver, CO‎ - (303) 428-4644‎

6 reviews - Write a review

"This place has the best fish and chips in denver for it being a land locked ..."

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Fresh Crepes a' la' Paul G

This last trip to Denver, we stayed @ one of my best friends house..DJ Paul Garcia..

little known to his fans..when he's not rocking out a packed club...

he's a gourmet chef on the side!!!

We told him about our foodblog, and he felt "up to the challenge" to be reviewed by the best...

so here's his creation...

Starts off with some Egg/Milk mixture

Some secret concotion for the filling...(fizzy mix + juice!!)

click here for a short video of the mixing process!

For a fantasic and tasty ending...Crepes a' la Paul G!

The Crepes were light and fluffy..and the filling was tasty/fizzy and seriously a delicious creation..

KUDOS PAUL!

You can find more about Paul Garcia here-

http://www.myspace.com/djpaulgarcia

Rocky Mountain Hot Dogs/Sausages!

While vacationing in Denver, Mari and I stopped by the 16th Street mall to walk around and pick up some goodies.

While waiting for the free shuttle, we noticed one of many Food Venders on the street, and if you're a fan of this blog, you know how we love a good Sausage..

so we split one :-)

2.50...you can't go wrong...nothing major..but was pretty yummy.. :-)

If you're in the area....and you need a quick meal...hit it up

Happy Eating...

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Pinks Hot Dogs- A Hollywood Legend - Part 2

Heh,

going through a bunch of old pics...and right after creating the last post, I found a few more Pinks photos :-)

Lord of the "RINGS" Dog
10" Stretch Dog, Yummy BBQ sauce
toppped with onion rings

MILD OR SPICY POLISH DOG
mustard, chili & onions

Happy Eating!

Pinks Hot Dogs- A Hollywood Legend

Hey all,

Revisiting some old pictures brought up a visit to the famous "Pinks Hot Dogs" Located on La Brea and Melrose in Hollywood, CA

Pinks has been around forever and is kind of a staple tourist(and local) thing to do when you're in LA. While it's definately not the most healthy option..damn they they make a mean hot dog.

I stopped in with my sister and her friend from Tennessee.

We were greeted with your typical line for Pinks, which is pretty standard no matter what time you go. Mind you, around 2am after the club rush..it's PACKED.

Here's a few of their signature hot dogs, in line you definitely have enough time to decide from the endless options for your hot dog.

A small pic of the menu

That there..is alot of bacon..

Some action shots of this "Superteam a la Sausage"

Wiener anyone?

This is what it feels like after a 30 min wait..

Thats Chealsea's hot dog

And now...the Moment you've been waiting for!

Pinks does not Fail to Impress...yes...artery clogging and maybe once every 1-2 months tops..but YUM are they some tasty dogs!

Please click on the pics for higher res versions, and I highly suggest checking it out!

Please visit their website

http://www.pinkshollywood.com/

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The Sandwich

The Sandwich is flexible and easy. Maybe that's why I love it so much. Call it a Grinder, Blimpie, Poor Boy, Torpedo or Hoagie--it's still a sandwich! Turns out, the birth of the "submarine" sandwich is disputed and not easily traceable. One theory suggests that the sandwich is an American invention born in the early 1900's by workers (many Italian) that bought bread from street vendors, then stuffed the bread with cheese, meat, veggies and oil, vinegar and spices. Another theory claims Italian immigrants brought the submarine sandwich from Italy in 1895. My verdict on the dispute is: who cares?! It's delicious and that's all we care about!

The last sandwich I ate was an Italian sandwich purchased from a Cuban restaurant. The Havana Sandwich Company is right down the street in El Segundo and it was Tak and I's 2nd or third time at this establishment. There's plenty of indoor and outdoor seating (for the dog in your life) and is great for lunch time. I ordered mine with a side of black beans, white rice and friend plaintains. All of it was tasty, especially the fried plaintains! Tak ordered the Roast Pork Cuban sandwich with a side of Cuban fries. I had a bit of the Roast Pork and the flavors were mild yet left me wanting some more. I am looking forward to trying their Cuban coffee in the morning.

Tak teased me for liking this place so much...but he pointed out that they now deliver for free making me like this place even more.

If you're in the mood for some delicious Cuban sandwiches, visit the Havana Sandwich Company. You won't be disappointed.

Happy Eating!

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