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 Adam, a TV writer who shares office space with me (at Scoops Westside.)

Name: Adam

Age: 29

Occupation: TV Writer / All-Too-Often TV Writer’s Assistant

Where in L.A. do you Work?: My couch in Marina Del Rey. Or Olympic & Bundy for my assistant gig at Parenthood (tune in Tuesdays at 10pm on NBC!)

Favorite Kind of Food: Offal. Or sushi. Or offal sushi.

Least Favorite Kind of Food: Coconut… Which is strange given that I’d say the Coconut Bavarois at Red Medicine is my favorite dessert in town.

Favorite Place(s) to Eat Lunch: Near Olympic & Bundy… It’s hard not to love the Nook Burger @ Nook (11628 Santa Monica Blvd).  Tsukemen @ Tsujita (2057 Sawtelle Blvd). Or if the food truck line-up lottery right outside is feeling generous… the truffle popcorn from the Vizzi Truck. Near the Marina… Poke Poke on the Venice boardwalk has amazing Hawaiian raw tuna. I probably eat there three times a week. Get the Aloha style, add siracha, kale, avocado, seaweed and masago, then sit on the sand and resist the urge to Instagram the whole experience. If you need a pick-me up, the blue bottle coffee from Schultzie’s right next door is great. Poke Poke… best lunch in Venice.

The “goto” lunch place you and your co-workers eat at too often? Too often? Bossa Nova (10982 W Pico Blvd) or Daily Grill (2501 Colorado Ave). But even once is too often for me at either… let alone once a week.

Places you’ve discovered thanks to Midtown Lunch: Well that Tsujita lunch was certainly inspired by you.

The farthest place you’ll drive for lunch on a normal day? On a slow day I’d go to Arcadia for Din Tai Fung dumplings, but more often it’s Lawndale for Al Noor’s Paneer Tika Masala. Also maybe Culver City for Zam Zam Market, if I’m feeling lucky on whether their doors will be open or not. Yamadaya Ramen (11172 Washington Blvd) is always a good fall back for that situation. And how can anyone resist a post-lunch ice cream from Scoops Westside? That’s worth the drive no matter where you are. That place is my true office away from the office. If my cell dies and you need me I recommend calling them to find me.

Dream job location (anywhere in the world), purely for lunch purposes, and why? San Sebastian on north coast of Spain. Every bite in San Sebastian is just about the best meal I’ve ever had. Just about.

Anything you’d like to ask the Midtown Lunch readers? Any Marina Del Rey or Venice recommendations?

Got a recommendation for Adam? 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.