Midtown Lunch

Yesterday I took my very first trip to the Grand Central Market downtown- and let me be the first (although probably not) to say: if you work in walking distance from Hill and 3rd, I am extremely jealous of you!  Sure, some complain that a number of the stalls are crappy, and there is not enough variety.  You know what I say?  Who needs more than roast pig parts and cheap Chinese food!?  Not me.

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Back in June, Squid Ink called the Cold Soy Bean Noodles at Ma Dang Gook Soo (869 Western, in Koreatown) one of the Top 10 Asian Noodle Bowls under $7 in Los Angeles, and now that we’re knee deep in summer “The Guru” reaffirmed his love of the same dish in a response to a reader question. The nutty, thick broth (if you can even call the sludge a broth) is unlike anything I’ve ever eaten before… and completely worth the trip.  The flavor is pretty subtle (borderline bland) and takes a while to completely comprehend.  But eat a whole bowl of the stuff?  I don’t know.  Even on the hottest day, I couldn’t imagine finishing the enormous circular troth you get for $8.25 (I guess they raised the price, because it’s not under $7 anymore.)

It’s far better to grab a few friends, and order a bunch of dishes…(isn’t it always?)

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As is customary on Midtown Lunch, every Tuesday we’ll profile a random reader to get their recommendations for the best spots to lunch near their work. This week it’s Harriet, the Producer of Good Food w/ Evan Kleiman on KCRW (Saturdays at 11am.) So if you’ve ever wondered where your favorite KCRW employees (or Santa Monica College co-eds) eat lunch, this should give you a good idea…

Name: Harriet

Age: 34

Occupation: Radio Producer

Where in L.A. do you Work?: KCRW in Santa Monica, on the campus of Santa Monica college.

Favorite Kind of Food: Mexican Food

Least Favorite Kind of Food: Processed lunch meats

Favorite Place(s) to Eat Lunch: Cafe Bolivar, this Venezuelan cafe that serves really yummy arepas (1741 Ocean Park Blvd), Mrs. Winston’s Green Grocery (2450 Colorado Ave) for their incredible salad bar, and Thyme (1630 Ocean Park Blvd) for their prepared salads (new, but a little expensive).

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This isn’t really about lunch, but we had to mention it for those of you who don’t work near Ricky’s Fish Tacos… Inspired by last month’s fundraiser for Breed Street vendor (and Vendy Award Winner) Nina’s Food, Chef Evan Kleiman, with the help of Bill Esparza from Street Gourmet L.A., have launched a new Monday night street food pop up series at Angeli Caffe (7274 Melrose). It kicks off tonight with an appearance by Ricky’s Fish Tacos, the famous fish taco vendor who used to only sell on the weekends at Sunset Junction, but now has a tent Wednesday through Sunday at 1400 Virgil (just south of Hollywood Blvd.)

So if you work in Mid-City or the west side, and haven’t been able to make it over to Los Feliz for a delicious fish taco lunch, tonight is your best shot at Ricky’s Fish Taco goodness (voted best fish taco in L.A. by the Taco Task Force!) Owner Ricky Pina will be selling $3 tacos from 6-10pm, while Angeli Cafe will selling beer and desserts.

After an aborted trip to the inaugural LA Street Food Festival Downtown back in February, I decided to give Profiled Lunchers Shawna and Sonja another chance on Saturday- and hit up Pasadena for their massive tasting event, featuring food trucks and street food inspired restaurants all handing out food on the field of the Rose Bowl. The lines weren’t much shorter this time around, but they moved a lot quicker (that happens when you don’t have to take money for each dish) and *most* (but not all) of the vendors seemed a bit more prepared for the crush. Plus, getting to hang on the field at the Rose Bowl while drinking beer and tequila makes waiting 30 minutes for a taco much more palatable.

Truthfully, for a guy like me even the best run tasting event is stressful. My strategy is always to get there as early as I can (buying the VIP tickets is definitely the way to go), and run from booth to booth eating as much as I can as quickly as I can before the lines get to be too long (which happens pretty quick when an event like this is sold out and thousands of people are waiting at the gate to get in at the very beginning.) Not fun, right? And it’s tough to really taste or enjoy the food. And yet something about these events keeps me going back again and again- excited for the prospect of being able to try so many places, from all over the city, in one spot, even though it’s not always a good representation of what you’d get if you went to actual truck or restaurant. After all, sometimes a great restaurant will serve up something that is not nearly as good as the food made fresh at their actual location, and bad places can easily pull it together to serve up one good bite.

And yet- despite my running, and face stuffing, one dish did manage to stand out above the rest. Not just to me, but to “The Guru” as well. And that place is now at the top of my list of must try spots…

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Now that makes me want to try the Ahn-Joo Truck! Photo by My Last Bite

• MOBILE Jitlada’s Mayor shares her faves from recent food truck visits [My Last Bite]
• DOWNTOWN “The Guru” stumbles into Izakaya Fu-Ga [LAW]
• HOLLYWOOD Remember Fortune Cookies? Here’s Cathy’s review [Gastronomy]
• HOLLYWOOD Hello delicious looking torta truck! [Squid Ink]
• KOREATOWN For cold noodles “The Guru” recommends Ma Dang Gook Su [LAW]
• MELROSE Paddy Rice has their veggies delivered fresh daily [Table Conversation]
• MID CITY You can get liege waffles at the newly open Shaky Alibi [Eater]
• MID WILSHIRE The Counter is coming to Miracle Mile [Grub Street]
• SANTA MONICA A new omusubi shop has opened on Main [Grub Street]
• VENICE Chicago’s Mr. Beef has opened on Muscle Beach [Squid Ink]
• WESTWOOD Junior’s Deli serves some nice pastrami and corned beef [Savory Hunter]
• MOBILE The girl who runs the NomNom Truck is also a model [Lo Down via Racked]