Midtown Lunch

If you’re in K-Town and craving a Korean burger chances are you’re going to hit up Kalbi Burger. Need a Korean burrito fix? Hop on twitter and see where Kogi is. Both would be perfect choices if you’re looking for well made, interesting and in many ways refined Korean food, masquerading as a fast food staple. But what if you want something a bit dirtier. A bit greasier. A place that reminds you what burgers and burritos were before they were elevated to something “better”. For a return to burger as diner food grease-bomb land (with a slight Asian twist), you have to check out Olympic Hamburger.

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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 Mika, a foodie fashionista.

Name: Mika

Age: 30-something

Occupation: Enterpreneur/writer/blogger

Where in L.A. do you Work?: Home office in the Hollywood Hills. FashionBliss (e-commerce boutique) and Food Fashionista (blog/website)

Favorite Kind of Food: Spicy food, fresh seafood, Japanese, Korean, French, Italian, Mexican, Middle Eastern, Sweets

Least Favorite Kind of Food: Highly-processed foods, mystery meat

Favorite Place(s) to Eat Lunch: Since nothing is really walking distance from where I work, I’ll usually jump in the car and head over to the original Katsu-ya on Ventura Blvd (in Studio City). Their bento lunch box is an unbeatable deal ($12) and includes miso soup, steamed rice, green salad, miso black cod, sashimi, and assorted tempura. Marouch (4905 Santa Monica Blvd) in Hollywood is also a favorite. They have a wonderful Fattouch salad and a hearty, homemade lentil soup you’ll want to dip your pita bread into. Save room for the Knafeh (warm white cheese with rose water and honey) for dessert. When I’m craving burrata cheese, I’ll head over to Ca del Sole in Toluca Lake. For years, they’ve been serving a caprese with a generous portion of fresh burrata and organic heirloom tomatoes.

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My quest to uncover and defeat every all you can eat buffet in the Greater L.A. area is going surprisingly well.  During my first stint in Los Angeles 7 years ago I was surprised at how few all you can eat buffets there were here, especially compared to Boston the city I moved here from.  But this second go around has been far more successful.  Indian lunch buffets are never tough to find, but there’s also been the Ethiopian buffet on Fairfax, the Thai buffet (also on Fairfax), the Vegas’ish Korean buffet on Olympic, the Brazilian pizza buffet, and the brand new Chinese super buffet I demolished a few weeks ago in Hollywood. And let’s not even talk about the all you eat Korean BBQ places (have you been to Don Day for lunch yet!?)

Japanese, however, has proved to be a bit more elusive.  I’m still waiting for the West L.A. branch of Hokkaido to open up, but in the meantime I was pretty excited when Profiled Luncher Cari recommended Oiwake’s $8.50 tempura and teriyaki buffet in Downtown L.A. last month.

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The bao ssam from Moko in Culver City. Photo courtesy of Grub Street

• CULVER CITY Get a beer and a bao for $10 at Moko during lunch [Grub Street]
• DTLA Aladdin Coffee Shop has a great Salvadorean buffet [The Minty]
• KTOWN More people are making it onto the jokbal train [Squid Ink]
• KTOWN The Guru professes his love once again for Mandarin House [Squid Ink]
• KTOWN Word is getting out about our favorite ayce KBBQ place [Gastronomy]
• MID CITY Who eats a salad at The Golden State!? [Amateur Gourmet]
• WEST LA Check out this great little hot dog cart behind Best Buy [Squid Ink]
• SANDWICHES 5 Questions with Mendocino Farms [Unemployed Eater]

When Grub Street reported back in September that a place called Thai Market had opened on Venice and Sepulveda, I got pretty pumped.  Not only was the place going to be an actual Thai market, where dry and fresh Thai ingredients could be purchased, but it was also going to feature a “selection of very low-cost traditional dishes made in the kitchen and left heated at a counter up front”.  Because as much as I love Thai Town, how could I not be excited by the possibility of having decent (read: authentic) Thai food on the westside.  (Sorry Natalee Thai… you just don’t cut it.)

Sadly the Department of Health made it over there before I did, and they were forced to close down and renovate the space before they could serve hot food.  (I’m guessing hoping it was just a permit issue?)  Anyway, after months of waiting it appears as if they finally have the hot food bar back up and running and-brace yourself- it’s 3 items for just $5.

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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 Steven, a writer who works in the lunch wasteland of Miracle Mile.

Name: Steven Armstrong

Age: 28

Occupation: Writer/Journalist

Where in L.A. do you Work?: Freelance for Los Angeles Times, LA Weekly, MadeMan.com, Mutineer Magazine, among others. I work from home, in the Miracle Mile.

Favorite Kind of Food: Raw oysters; Pork; All things spicy, particularly Mexican, Indian, and Korean cuisines

Least Favorite Kind of Food: Peas (unless they’re stewed in curry)

Favorite Place(s) to Eat Lunch: The food trucks on Wilshire. I usually stop by Bool for bibimbap or Phamish for pork banh mi. Miracle Mile’s tough because it mostly caters to non-foodie office workers who don’t know any better. So, as I’m sure you’ve noticed, there are a lot of chains (Baja Fresh, Chipotle, etc). But one of the better chains is The Counter (5779 Wilshire Boulevard). It’s not the best burger in L.A. Not by a long shot. But it’s pretty decent. They also have some tasty sides. The chili cheese fries are surprisingly delicious. And the fried pickles are delicious. The craft beer selection is also fairly decent — if you’re in the mood for a wet lunch.

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