Day in Laguna Beach

Meeting friends at Laguna Beach was like taking a vacation for a day. Even though I now live less than 10 miles from the ocean, the last time I went to the beach was when out of town guests came in from overseas. Maybe because beach visits are related to vacations, it seems I only make to the beach when it's either my vacation or someone else's vacation :)

My friends chose Larsen at the Hotel Laguna for its panoramic views and Californian food. Making a reservation in advance will help guarantee one of the window seats, so plan ahead. The easy onsite valet parking (validation at the restaurant makes it reasonably priced for beachfront hotel parking). 

We all enjoyed the shared calamari appetizer for $24

One meat eater chose the caesar salad ($18) with added steak ($16) which was enjoyed even cooked at medium instead of rare doneness.

I chose the $28 octopus which tasted much better than the presentation looks.

This is half of the $26 shaved steak sandwich which was the least enjoyed of all our entrées.

After a stroll through Forest Avenue and a seat people watching at the beach, we decided to go for coffee before driving back. My local friends suggested Zéytoon with a quiet upper patio featuring a view of the water.

They also serve wine and savory bites ranging from hummus and grape leaves to paninis and kebabs if you want something more substantial than the sweet pastries we chose.

Their cappuccino was the perfect amount of caffeinated fuel to safely make the drive home.

Konbi Culver City

I've been waiting for Konbi to open in Culver City ever since I saw them put up the signs next to GGET. I'm so happy to finally taste their famous katsu sandwich, and I was thrilled to find that they do a marvelous salad medley with nectarines, sungold tomatoes, cucumbers, soy glazed hazelnuts, and greens, served with a miso dressing. It was around $15 and very a hearty vegetarian meal for one.

I asked James at the counter which sandwich he liked besides the katsu which I had ordered and he said the tuna, so that's what I ordered and it was a comforting rendition served on their fabulous milk bread (now made in house) with sliced cucumbers and nori mayo.

The pork katsu sandwich lived up to the hype, with the quality of the Peads and Barnetts pork loin, cabbage and bulldog sauce, I would order this is you are a meat eater and only have room for one thing from their menu.

They are now serving ICE CREAM! so I tried their chocolate caramel in a cup and the vegan pistachio on a waffle cone. Both were rich wonderful, and served at the perfect temperature to eat, not too hard nor soft. 

The quality of ingredients makes everything a bit pricey, from about $15 per sandwich/salad to around $8 for the ice cream on a cone, but if you want to budget this in once in a awhile, it is a worthwhile place for a midday treat.

Bianca and The Rose

I've enjoyed all my meals at Bianca, and brunch last week was no exception. Their seafood salad was one of the best I've ever eaten, with tender squid, shrimp, clams, and mussels, all perfectly seasoned and lightly cooked so that the pure flavors sparkled when hit with a squeeze of lemon for $26

The skirt steak sandwich was on special that day and a filling rendition with a nice balance of meat, vegetables, and bread, served alongside a small salad.

Eggplant parmigiana for $20 was exquisitely comforting in a vegetarian way ;) Service is always impeccable, and if you just keep your sights on the patio, you can image being in Italy instead of Culver City.

Since Bianca is not open everyday for breakfast or lunch, I went with a friend to The Rose in Venice. I think the first time I ate at the Rose was several decades ago, so the fact that this place is still open and still thriving is remarkable in terms of any business, but especially in the restaurant business, and even more so after the pandemic changed everyone's sense of what was necessary and what was valuable in life. 

Their side salad is a nice way to add some fresh greens when you order something that comes with chips or fries...

like their shrimp burger with a side of homemade chips! The shrimp burger had a nice shrimp shui mai texture, and the bun was good enough to eat on its own. I liked that they used a slice of heirloom tomato and a lively leaf of lettuce in the sandwich.

If you are coming from the gym around the corner, or simply want a power breakfast, they have a Gold's Special with egg whites, poultry sausage, great mushrooms, spinach, sweet potatoes, and half a ripe avocado!

Service was great from the wait staff and bus person, but terrible from the hostess made me give her my phone number to "waitlist me" and then seated us immediately since there was no one else  waiting for a table! It was a nonsensical move that added on to my displeasure of her ignoring us until we stood at the host stand for 5 minutes. On the plus side, they took care of a safety hazard at the front door that we mentioned upon arrival in the time it took us to eat!

Bianca for Brunch and Dinner

Getting a table at a great place to eat brunch on the week-ends is a quest that sometimes leaves me feeling like Don Quixote fighting for an elusive seat at prime spots between 11am-1pm on week-ends. Thankfully Bianca is not only a beautiful place with easy garage parking, attentive service, and delicious food options, but it is also EASY to get a seat on the gorgeous patio by simply walking up at 11am on a week-end! 

Their cappuccino was a harbinger of the beautiful food to come, with perfect crema. 

One morning I chose their simple scrambled eggs for $14 and was enthralled by the creamy texture, perfect salinity, and beautiful toast with home made jam that came as an accompaniment. The plate is deceptively filling, and I was sad to leave a few bites on my plate as I was too full to finish everything.

The eggs Benedict for $19 was very rich and the dish to order for anyone who whose doctor gives a green light to this decadent rendition with gorgeous prosciutto cotto and an unctuous hollandaise.

The salmon toast for $21 is equally rich with scrambled eggs, so pick your vice and use your cheat day.

Their house salad for $18 is a medley of fresh textures that helped lighten up all the rich albeit delicious options. I would order this salad as a stand alone if you want something refreshing, light, and delicious.

The meatballs for $18 are a light and superb rendition that sits atop a marina that I could eat by the spoonful.

The branzino for $36 was presented before deboning and I found the vegetables delectable, but the fish a bit over cooked.

The moules (mussels) for $30 cooked with pastis and plenty of fennel were not only delicious, but a full pound made this a filling meal with the piece of bread at the bottom soaking up the delectable broth.

The grilled prawns for $40 were spectacular on the plate and the larger ones were cooked perfectly, but the smaller ones were a bit over done. The vegetables were marvelous and the quality of the prawns shone through. 

The service on every occasion was on point, friendly, and professional, and the atmosphere is gorgeous on the patio whether you go in the day or at night, so go while you can still walk in for a Sunday brunch and while you can still easily get a dinner reservation.

GGET Go Get Em Tiger

I love living so close to so many excellent coffee purveyors! GGET or (Go Get 'Em Tiger) has 8 locations around town, so pick the one closest to you :) The staff is very personable and professional and their menu is delicious. I usually get the oat milk cappuccino, but one day they were out of oat milk! In the spirit of community, Tyler suggested two nearby coffee places that would satisfy my preference and I appreciated that very much. Daniela also offered a gift one day after seeing me come in several days a week (thank you)!

Their blueberry corn muffin is the only sweet I have tried and I liked both the texture and the restraint of sugar use in the muffin.

When I can't really eat much, I order the granola with oat milk and I am always happy with the lighter coconut granola and gigantic golden raisins in it! 

A slightly more substantial breakfast is their scrambled eggs and biscuit with a side of avocado for $11 with a fermented hot sauce that is addictive!

Their protein breakfast for $13 includes the perfect scrambled eggs, brilliant bacon, side salad and avocado. An ideal meal for those who love this combo :)

Their breakfast sandwich is what I grab on the go, made with their homemade English muffin, sausage, egg, roasted tomatoes and spicy aioli for $9 this is a perfect choice when you are not too hungry but need to sustain yourself until lunch. 

Lunch can be the chicken avocado sandwich for $12 on beautiful Bub and Grandma's focaccia with frisée.

Their burger for $12 is 5 ounces of old fashioned nostalgia, with Cooper's American cheese, caper aioli, grilled onions, and butter pickles. Get smashed potatoes on the side for $4 and then call your cardiologist :)

For hunger pangs, their burrito for $12 with bacon, avocado, eggs is the way to go.

The only salad at the Culver City location is the chicken kale caesar for $15 

It's easy to get to GGET, but the quality ingredients, deft use of them, and the wonderfully personable staff are the main reasons I keep going back.

Cafe Vida

It's wonderful to have a place with delicious and bountiful breakfast and lunch options only a few blocks away in downtown Culver City (they also have a location in Pacific Palisades). Cafe Vida's only drawback is the wait on week-ends, but an easy way to save your place before you get there, is to put sign onto the waitlist on Yelp. Most of the seating is outdoors with plenty of dogs enjoying the company of their parents as they eat :)

Whether you want a light salad or a filling burrito, they offer it here as well as mimosas and smoothies to imbibe as you eat. When I go for breakfast, I usually get the breakfast sandwich with a side salad which is like a BLAT (Bacon, Lettuce, Avocado, Tomato) with egg and red onion on multigrain or sourdough that has been grilled with cheese for $16.50

My favorite salad is the rosemary turkey burger salad for $17.50 which will satisfy all of you who want less carbs than a burger but still crave burger flavors.

For a purely breakfast plate, I liked the Yucatan egg white scramble with onions, peppers, spinach, mushrooms, cheddar, and chicken sausage, served with tomatillo sauce and guacamole for $16.50 

You can add a side to any salad, like tuna to the caesar for $17.50 for a customized plate.

Enjoying a meal on the patio with the efficient and friendly staff, basking in the Southern Californian sun, while people watching is a local treat any day of the week.

Millcross Coffee Bar and Kitchen

Moving about 2 miles away from my previous residence, I know that I always have the option of going back to my old standby places, but finding new places has become a fun research project, and Millcross has become my go to coffee bar and a regular stop for breakfast and lunch. I've become such a regular that I know several of them by name and visa versa (Baevin, Diego, Beatrice). If they stayed open later and served wine, I would probably move in :)

My first taste of their oat milk flat white was so robustly smooth, perfectly proportioned, precisely foamed, and beautifully decorated, that I sighed with relief and delight in having found such a great coffee bar only a mile away from home :)

As much as I love a flat white, I also love shakshuka, so when I saw it on the menu, it was an obvious choice. I am happy to report it was one of the best I've ever eaten, with moderately spiced tomato sauce and medium cooked poached eggs, served with fantastic bread and a generous serving of arugula that wilted gently into the hot tomato sauce.

Their salmon toast had a slight kick to it and was so big I only ate half and took the other half home!

I chose the cheesy egg sandwich once I realized my appetite was smaller than their portions, and I found this to be the perfect portion on days I'm not feeling ravenous.

Another day an onion bagel with chive cream cheese was enough to fill me up for breakfast.

Their chicken salad had lots of chicken and avocado, making this a meal if you want something light but filling.

Their Lil Skipper tuna salad with lemon vinaigrette is one of my favorite tuna salads with a perfect balance of tartness, crunch, and flavor to sustain me all afternoon.

On a morning when I was too hungry to think straight, I ordered La Bomba, with 2 eggs, chicken, avocado, bacon, and a beautiful brioche bun that I barely finished!

Their tuna melt is one of my go to favorites for either breakfast or lunch. I also tried their Tuna salad to go, but I ate it before I remembered to take a pic :(

If you want something unique and delicious, go for the chicken mole burrito (it also comes as tacos and they also have a chicken verde burrito if you prefer). 

They have a selection of sweet treats after your meal like nutella or plain canelés so they should hold you until you get back for another visit:)