The Counter - Customized Burgers in the Valley

First thing I noticed when we walked into The Counter was how friendly everyone was. Even amid the chaos, we were still greeted and shown to a table within 2 minutes. Kudos to the staff for that.


The Counter's drawing point is customized burgers which is great for picky eaters like me. We were hungry so we ordered a ton of food.


Crispy onion strings: thinly cut onion fried to a golden crisp. It came in a huge, heaping portion. I think we should have got the half order. Very tasty!

Parmesan french fries: fries topped off with melted Parmesan cheese and mixed with parsley, rosemary and garlic aioli. Not bad, but way too heavy for me. I had a few bites and was done. 

Sweet potato fries: Pretty tasty, good choice for the health conscious.

All the sides came with different dipping sauces. My favorite was the roasted garlic aioli.

Now on to the burgers. I had the beef burger with mushrooms, avocado, red onion, mixed lettuce and roasted garlic aioli on a multigrain bun. It was delicious! Very juicy and great flavors. 

One of my dining companions had the buffalo burger with mushrooms and gruyere cheese on an English muffin. He liked it a lot and said the buffalo was cooked well and very tasty. 

My other DC had the beef burger with grilled onions, Swiss cheese, lettuce and tomato on a regular hamburger bun. She liked it as well.

I ordered a glass of Riesling to drink since I don't drink beer. The manager actually carded me. Oh yesss.. thanks for making my day! They do have a wide selection of wine and beer for you alkies.

Overall, a great dining experience. I would definitely come back when the burger craving hits again. 

4/5****

The Counter

12117 Ventura Blvd
Studio City, CA 91604
(818) 980-0004

Cham Sut Gol - AYCE KBBQ

We were so excited for AYCE KBBQ at $16.99 per person. After reading some stellar reviews on Yelp, we couldn't wait to try the bomb ass chadol and sirloin and enjoy the awesome service.

Hmm.. did that happen? Well, 1 out of 3 delivered so you be the judge.

Our group of 5 sat at a table by the back, next to the serving stations. You would think that would help our chances of getting great service, but nope! We had to constantly ask for food and drinks. At one point, we were sitting there meatless, banchan-less and with no drinks whatsoever. WTF?

All of us were pretty annoyed by this fact and we had to ask for steamed egg a few times. They tried to tell us we already got it, but we weren't that dumb. One of the waitresses was cool and hooked us up with 3 steamed eggs (that's the limit per table). However, I did see that the table behind us got stellar service and tons of steamed egg. Hmm..

On to the food. We ordered pretty much everything off the $16.99 menu, except for the intestines (barf) and the pork belly.

Chadol: Weird. Not like typical chadol, too thick and progressively got more funky. We had about 4 plates of chadol. At one point, even the waiter couldn't tell if it was chadol or beef tongue!

Sirloin: OMFG. Winner of the night! This thick and juicy steak was delicious! There is a limit of 1 steak per 2 people. We had 5, but still got 3 steaks. Yay for some sweet talking from MC in our group. Definitely get the sirloin, you won't be disappointed. 

Sirloin

Kalbi: Pretty good, albeit kinda chewy. I've had better elsewhere.

Baby octopus: Really salty, but tender. Could have done without the intense salty marinade.

sirloin, baby octopus, spicy pork belly

Beef tongue: Not bad, but then again, I'm not a fan of tongue. Don't want my food tasting me back.

Spicy pork belly: I didn't like this at all. Very hard to chew and really salty. Skip this.

Salad was okay and very salty as well! I was so thirsty the entire dinner and for hours after. 

Salad + banchan

Banchan was lacking and small in portion size. Nothing out of the ordinary here. We had potato salad, daikon, fish cake, tofu, kimchee, rice wrappers, bean sprouts and pickled cucumbers. My favorites were the rice wrappers, potato salad and bean sprouts.

Overall, the food was about a 3.5 and service was a 2.

Would I come back? Probably not. But, you can't beat a $20 dinner and feeling like a stuffed cow. 

3/5***

Cham Sut Gol
3700 W Olympic Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90019
(323) 734-9292

The Waffle - Worth the Wait?

We saw this place featured on "Best Thing I Ever Ate" thanks to Susan Feniger praising the red velvet waffles. So, we came here last Sunday to see what the fuss was all about.

First off, be prepared to wait a good 30-40 minutes for a table. We got there around 1 and didn't get a table till about 1:35 pm. Then, be prepared to wait for your food. Our food took another 30 minutes to arrive. F that. We were starving! I seriously can't stand waiting that long to eat. But, I took one for the team.

The red velvet waffles come with cream cheese butter and truly taste like red velvet cupcakes. At $10.50 for 2 pieces, it will pretty expensive. But, I guess you pay for novelty.

I ordered a tuna salad sandwich as did my DC at $8.25 each. The sandwich came with waffle fries which made them worth the price. Actually, the sandwich was pretty good.

I opted for the bottomless cocktails option which is only available on weekends. You get your choice of mimosas, bloody marys or margaritas for $12. I started with a mimosa which was just okay. Then I progressed to a bloody mary which was very watered down and weird. I would skip the cocktails and just drink water.

Bloody Mary

Someone was still hungry after her waffles so she ordered the dip and chips. What a waste of $7. A pile of stale chips and some artichoke chip = fail. Don't get this dish at all.

Our total bill was $57 before tip! Wowza. That's way too expensive for the food we got, especially after waiting an hour to eat.  

3/5***

The Waffle
6255 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90028
(323) 465-6901

Wurstkuche- Exotic Sausages in DTLA

Finally got to try this place last weekend and it was definitely worth the trip to downtown. We parked on the street for free right next to the restaurant. As we walked up we saw a long ass line and were I felt kinda annoyed since waiting for food has never been my thing. However, I took one for team and sucked it up. Waited about 25 minutes to order and another 20 minutes for the food to be done.

menu

in line to order

Here's what we got:

Rattlesnake and rabbit sausage: AMAZING and sooo juicy. I loved it. For those of you wondering what the heck that tastes like.. well, chicken. Doesn't everything taste like chicken in some way? I got sauerkraut and spicy peppers for my toppings and they really balanced out the sausage. Yummy.

Duck and bacon sausage: This one was a bit dry which was kinda disappointing since it sounded so juicy. It had a smoky flavor to it as well. Not sure I'd recommend this.


L- R: truffle fries, kielbasa, rabbit + rattlesnake, duck + bacon, rabbit + veal

Kielbasa: Yum, very tasty and one of the "normal" sausages. This one is good for those faint of heart and less adventurous.

Rabbit and veal sausage: Tender and juicy as well. Tasted very similar to the rattlesnake and rabbit one. But, the RR one still ranks #1 in my book!


Rabbit + rattlesnake with sauerkraut + spicy peppers

mmm mmm good

Fries with truffle oil glaze: OMG. I'm not a fan of bigger cut fries, but these suckers were delish! I could totally taste the truffle oil too ($2 extra), but it's so worth it. We also got 4 dipping sauces to go with it. 2 chipotle aioli, 1 pesto mayo and 1 buttermilk ranch. The chipotle aioli was our favorite, good flavor with a kick.

There is also a mustard stand where you can serve yourself. My favorite was the sweet mustard. So tasty with fries too!

As far as drinks go, they have plenty of beer and sodas. I got a Pellegrino for myself and my dining companions got a vanilla cream soda (yum) and an orange soda (decent). 

In terms of price, not cheap! Our lunch was $56. The dipping sauces should be free instead of $0.75 each. 


view from our table

Good food, decent seating and alright pricing. Just remember to get the rattlesnake and rabbit!


4****


Wurstkuche
800 E 3rd St
Los Angeles, CA 90013
(213) 687-444

'Lette Macarons

I'm in love. With macarons. And, I'm not even a sweets fan.

We came here the other day because my friend had been raving about these sweet concoctions and I just HAD to try them.

The store is located on the corner of Beverly and Charleville. It's very clean and bright inside with a minimalistic vibe.

Service was quick and friendly and she even threw in a free macaron. I got 13 for the price of 12 ($19).

OMFG. If you have to pick 3 flavors, definitely get the Sweet Almond, Caramel and Pistachio. Those 3 blew my mind! I couldn't stop saying mmmmm.. mmmmmm. omg. mmmmm.

The filling is incredible and the macarons are totally worth it at $1.60 a pop.

I have yet to try the other remaining flavors, but that's cause I'm saving it for another day. They are just too pretty to eat!

If you do go, make sure to get 2 of each ,so you don't have to share half with someone.

Parking is available in the lot or snag street parking.

Enjoy the orgasmic overload of macaron goodness!  

5****

'Lette Macarons
9466 Charleville Blvd
Beverly Hills, CA 90212
(310) 275-0023

Koraku Ramen- Sherman Oaks

Located in a strip mall off Ventura Blvd, Koraku is pretty easy to miss. The only reason I came upon this place was because we were craving ramen and this was the only restaurant close by.

We rolled up around 2 pm on a weekend and the place was pretty empty except for another party sitting at the bar. We chose a booth and started ordering right away. Everything looked good, but then again, everything looks good when you are starving.

The waitress was efficient and semi-helpful only because her English wasn't that good. I changed my order and she didn't seem to mind so definite plus.

Rice balls: One came with bonito and the other had salmon in it. Nice presentation, but I didn't eat any. My companions did and said they were okay. Too much rice, not enough filling.

Mapo tofu ramen: I love mapo tofu. It's one of my favorite Chinese dishes. So, when I saw this epic combo, I was super stoked to try it. Unfortunately, it wasn't as good as it sounded. The broth lacked flavor which is surprising considering all the ground pork and tofu it came with. I couldn't finish the bowl, just wasn't good to me.

Popeye ramen: Cool name and sure lived up to it. Packed with tons of spinach and slices of pork, this ramen was tastier than mine. It's in a soy based broth so that could be the reason.

Croquette: Pretty tasty! Potato croquette with ground pork served with some julienned cabbage and some dipping sauce. Wish it came with more than just one per order.

Pork fried rice: My favorite! The portion was a bit small for sharing, especially with how tasty it was. I liked the small bits of egg, carrots and green onion mixed in there. Yum.

Overall, the food and service were good. I would come back and give their ramen a second chance.

3***

Koraku Ramen
14425 Ventura Blvd
Sherman Oaks, CA 91423(818) 906-0045

Pho 88- NYC

After a night of endless drinks, we were hankering for some pho.

I looked on Yelp and found Pho 88 within walking distance of our hotel. On the trek there, we came across a few other pho restaurants that were closer, but kept going because I read that the pho here had less sodium than other places.

The restaurant is relatively new and pretty clean.

We sat down at a small table for two and ordered 2 orders of pho tai, 1 order of banh beo and 1 order of summer rolls.

I liked the summer rolls a lot and found them very fresh and tasty. The shrimp, noodles and veggies inside were all good. Some places give you some questionable rolls, but 88 did well.

Banh beo was okay, but not what I'm used to. It came with some potato salad like topping which I'm not sure I was down with.



Pho tai was good, but the broth was lacking in flavor! I had to add a ton of hot sauce and jalapenos to give it some depth.



But, at around $6 a bowl, can you really complain?

Service was good for an Asian place.

Cash only.

3.5***

Pho 88
51 Bayard St
(between Bowery & Elizabeth St)
Manhattan, NY 10013
Neighborhood: Chinatown