Midtown Lunch

I have a confession to make.  When I first moved back to L.A. in February, my sandwich outlook was kind of grim.  Sure, I was excited for Philippe’s, Langer’s, and Bay Cities is a good Westside option (provided you order online!)  But mostly I was expecting one avocado topped grilled white meat chicken sandwich after another.  And, granted, there have been plenty of those to be found at generic sit down business lunch spots around the city. But there are also some amazing sandwich specialists, and even though they are pushing the boundaries of what amount is acceptable to charge for a fast casual sandwich shop there is no denying that some of them put out some lunches that are worth the splurge.

The Los Angeles Magazine sandwiches guide from June has been a great help (hello chicken salad from Gram and Papa’s and capastrami from Capriotti’s!) but there’s also that pork banh mi from Mencodino Farms, the lambwich from Venice Beach Wines, and the great new sandwich menu at Wally’s Cheese Box (in Westwood).  And now it’s time to add another to that list.  Thanks to a recommendation from Lunch’er “Harriet” I hit up Curious Palate on the other day, on Venice in Mar Vista, and had a sandwich that could go toe to toe with any of the above.

Check it out after the jump…

Read more »

Just a quick look at the Midtown Lunch map and you can tell that Westwood is one of the main areas of Midtown Lunch’ing in L.A.- and not just because my wife works there. (Ok, maybe it is because my wife works there.)  I still haven’t been to Sak’s Terikayi (so sad!), but Hammer Cafe is a decent deal, the completely under the radar French cafe Ratata is adorable, I’m admittedly a Pitfire fan, and of course there’s all the great Middle Eastern food on Westwood Blvd btw. Wilshire and Santa Monica (Alcazar Express, Attari, Sunin).  So, when I read on Squid Ink and Tasting Table that Wally’s Wine had recently spun off their cheese selection into its own adjacent store, Wally’s Cheese Box, I was pretty excited to check it out.

I was even more excited to find out they had sandwiches! Making it a new Westwood lunch destination…

Read more »

If you work, or ever eat lunch, in Venice or Santa Monica you have to check out tuesday’s Profiled Lunch’er, “Jeff”. His recommendations have given me at least a week’s worth of west side lunches… including the meatloaf sandwich at Bay Cities (who knew?) and an entry for my Cheap Chinese Food Challenge.  But the one rec that stood out the most was the “Lambwich” from Venice Beach Wines (on Rose btw Lincoln and Pacific).

Last month Los Angeles Magazine and Grub Street both released lists of the “Best Sandwiches in Los Angeles” and the lambwich wasn’t mentioned in either.  After trying it yesterday, I think we might have an addition to the canon.

Read more »

I remember my very first experience with Lemonade… not the drink, obviously, but the popular picnic themed (?) lunch spot with four locations around Los Angeles (Venice, WeHo, & 2 locations Downtown). I was walking on Abbott Kinney with a buddy, who pointed out their Venice location to me and suggested we poke our heads in. At least I thought he was a buddy. What’s with the salads, friend-o? You know I’m not into the whole “I live in L.A. and love to eat quinoa” bullsh- wait a second. What’s that to the left of the salads? Are those dutch ovens? Filled with various meats that have been tendered up slowly so that the fat actually remains in the dish? And not just one, but 6 different stews?! Alright trendy salad and lemonade place. You have got my attention.

Read more »

I’m embarrassed to admit it, but before last week I had never been to Langer’s.  As a Miami jew (lower case, because I’m a bad jew who loves pork way too much), whose parents were born in New York, who spent his his childhood eating at Wolfie’s (and the lesser known, kind of terrible, Pumpernickel’s), and the past 4 1/2 years living in NYC, you’d think I would have gone sooner.  Like maybe the first week I moved here.  Like, maybe right from the airport.  Despite the pedigree, I’m no deli expert.  But I am a fat man, and as such have nothing but love for pastrami and corned beef and tongue, on good rye bread, with a bit of mustard.  How could I not?

Sadly, none of those things are under $10 at Langer’s.  In fact, getting out of that place for $10 is practically impossible, especially if you Dr. Brown’s a requirement (it is.)  But that didn’t stop me from trying.

Read more »

Like many folks in Los Angeles, the first time I ever heard of Gram & Papa’s was when Chef Ludo Lefebvre announced he would be bringing his pop up restaurant sensation there this past April.  But for people who work in the Fashion District, and don’t mind spending $10 on a sandwich, Gram & Papa’s is a decent (albeit pricey) lunchtime standby. Their chicken salad sandwich was named one of the best in the city by Los Angeles magazine last month, but Ludo was clearly the biggest thing to ever happen to this place- and even though Ludobites 4.0 dinner service ended a few weeks ago, his spirit lives on in the form of “Ludo’s Parisian”- a lunchtime special now being served at the Downtown sandwich shop.

Read more »

Everybody I’ve met who works in Beverly Hills has pretty much told me the same thing… it is a wasteland of overpriced power lunches. You want cheap, interesting food- you’re going to have to go out of your way.  Cheap and decent ethnic food?! Good luck.  But I haven’t given up just yet, and when Los Angeles Magazine put Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop on their list of the best sandwiches in L.A. I couldn’t help but get a little bit excited.

See, I like sandwiches.  But not just any sandwich.  “The best” roast beef sandwich doesn’t nothing for me.  Dip that same sandwich in gravy, or cover it in horseradish and then we’re talking. “The best” turkey sandwich? Snore.  Top that turkey with stuffing and cranberry sauce, and serve it in a month other than November… now we’re getting somewhere.  Oh, and cole slaw and russian dressing automatically makes any sandwich better.  Which brings us to Capriotti’s Sandwich Shop (on Wilshire).  They’ve got both.

Read more »