Blue Plate Oysterette- Lobster Rolls to Die For

A taste of the Hamptons in Santa Monica? That sums up this charming restaurant overlooking the Pacific Ocean, right on Ocean Ave.


I've been wanting to try this place for a while now and finally had the opportunity a couple weeks ago. Seeing how there always seems to be a wait around peak meal times, we arrived exactly when they opened at 11:30 am.


Yay! First ones in the door! We sat at a corner booth right next to the front door. OMG, it was freezing because they had the door open, but thank goodness the waitress offered to close it.


We perused the menu and both decided to get the lobster roll ($22) on a brioche bun. I got mine with fries and he got his with sweet potato chips. I also ordered 2 oysters for myself.


The waitress recommended the Hogg Island and Luna Bay and both were tasty! At $3 a piece, they better be.

oysters

The lobster roll came out shortly and OMFG, they sure didn't skimp on portions. The lobster meat was overflowing on the buttery brioche bun. It was delicious. Totally worth the $22. The fries were decent, chips were just okay.

lobster roll with fries

Service was decent, although I found it a bit weird that the waitress wore dark sunglasses while talking to us. We were indoors and it was overcast that day. 

I'm totally coming back for more lobster rolls and to try the famous lobster mac n cheese.


Blue Plate Oysterette
1355 Ocean Ave
Santa Monica, CA 90401

Bud Namu KBBQ- All You Can Eat for 10 Bucks

Looking for $9.99 AYCE KBBQ? Get yo' butt down to this new restaurant. Located on the corner of 8th and Ardmore next to Jon's market, Bud Namu is a large 2-story building with valet parking for $2. If you're going during dinner, you'll most likely have to use the valet as the street parking there is non-existent. However, during lunch, breeze on over to the parking lot across the street and park for free.

On my first visit, we sat downstairs in a booth. We opted for the $9.99 menu which consisted of brisket, pork belly, bulgogi, chicken bulgogi, beef belly and intestines. I really only wanted the brisket and bulgogi and so did my dining companions, so that's all we ordered. The brisket was pretty fatty and not the best quality, but what do you expect for $10? We preferred the bulgogi.

My second visit was for dinner the other night with a few other friends. We sat upstairs by the window and behind a wall. We were more adventurous and ordered everything on the menu except for the intestines and chicken. My favorite was still the bulgogi, with brisket being a close second. The pork belly was insanely huge and scary. It was 90% fat and definitely not for the faint of heart. I thought the beef belly was okay and kept confusing it with the brisket since they looked so similar. We had to change the grill a few times to get rid of all the charred meat. 

Service was off and on. We had to flag them down since they couldn't see us behind the damn wall. Since we were upstairs, we took advantage of the self-serve "banchan bar" and got our own salad, cucumbers, bean sprouts and kimchi. Too bad the good banchan was not self-serve. I would have gotten potato salad wasted.

Steamed egg and rice paper are also available, but you have to ask for them specifically. What is it with steamed egg and keeping it to a minimum of 2 per table? If it were up to me, I'd say give each person their own bowl!

Our final bill was $13 per person. Cheap dinners are yours to be had here!

P.S. You will smell like a cow's behind when you leave the restaurant. Make sure you wash all your clothing and air out other personal belongings.


4****


Bud Namu KBBQ
809 S. Ardmore Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90005
213-385-9292

Spaghetti House by Orris

Spaghetti House by Orris should not be confused with the original Orris. This restaurant now serves pasta and it's not even really Japanese.

I was pretty excited to dine here since Orris served such good food. However, the pasta was unoriginal and pretty plain.

We came here during lunch on a week day and it was pretty dead. The waitress was friendly and prompt, which I liked. Service is important to me.

I ordered the spaghetti with mushrooms and takana mustard greens and my dining companion had the spaghetti with bolognese. Both came with a side salad which was pretty bland.

Spaghetti with mushrooms & takana mustard greens

Our pastas were done within 7 minutes and looked like something i could whip up at home. I liked my mustard greens and mushroom pasta just fine, but there was nothing special about it. My DC said his bolognese was good, and it definitely looked like something you could get an Italian chain restaurant.

Spaghetti bolognese

Why did Orris have to close and replace itself with this pasta house? I don't get it, but oh wells. I doubt I'll be back for something that's pretty mediocre.

3***

Spaghetti House by Orris
2006 Sawtelle Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90025