Midtown Lunch

As is customary on Midtown Lunch, every Tuesday we profile a random reader to get their recommendations for the best spots to lunch near their work. This week it’s Farley, a taco lover who’s looking for pupusas in West Hollywood.

Name: Farley

Age: 27

Occupation: Freelance Writer

Where in L.A. do you Work?: I write taco reviews for Serious Eats and do all sorts of things for LAist. More specifically, I work from an iMac in West Hollywood.

Favorite Kind of Food: I love anything cooked simply where the star of the show is meat. Tacos, burgers, gyros, fried chicken sandwiches. GET IN MY MOUTH.

Least Favorite Kind of Food: Anything fussy, really. If it’s too gelatinous or chewy, I’m out.

Favorite Place(s) to Eat Lunch: I’m not afraid to take a lunchtime drive, which really opens up the possibilities. I’ll always love the gryos at Papa Cristo’s on Pico Blvd. or the simple deli sandwiches from Mike’s Deli on Slauson. I can count on Capitol Burger on Pico to deliver a great So Cal-style double cheeseburger and a mound of greasy, delicious fries; served out of a cut up beer box, of course.

The “goto” lunch place you and your co-workers eat at too often? If I’m not careful, I can find myself ordering from The Chicken Lady on La Cienega way too often. Her corn bread is buttery and delicious, and those Chicken Thai Sticks are sent from heaven. As she says, “the lady knows”. AND the lady delivers.

Places you’ve discovered thanks to Midtown Lunch: Once I moved to the eastern edge of West Hollywood, Midtown Lunch really helped me hone in on All About the Bread on Melrose. It’s a perfect walk that offers a great excuse to load up with a meatball sandwich once I’m there. Also, Midtown Lunch helped me appreciate the hatred I have for places that are closed on Mondays.

The farthest place you’ll drive for lunch on a normal day? I suppose I’d be hard-pressed to make it downtown or to Santa Monica just for lunch. Then again, scouring the internet for food and fun in LA tends to make you hungry and adventurous, so maybe I should consider actually making that trip to Guisado’s sometime soon.

Dream job location (anywhere in the world), purely for lunch purposes, and why? If I could work anywhere just for the lunches, it would probably involve writing a food piece on the Central Market in Mexico City. I’d eat my way from stall to stall, recording my weight gain in the process.

Anything you’d like to ask the Midtown Lunch readers? Where can I get pupusas in and around West Hollywood? I’m fairly desperate.

Got a recommendation for Farley? Put it in the comments. And, as always, if you want to be next week’s Profiled: L.A. Lunch’er (or know somebody you’d want to nominate), email me- zach@midtownlunch.com.