62885 Wed Sep 08 12:51:48 -0700 2004 16 2 Los Angeles Area 0 336309 Hello All, I will be staying in Santa Monica in a few weeks and am in need of some help. We are looking for good food that isn't too expensive. Unfortunately we do not have a car, but we do not mind taking public transportation as it looks like we will have to already for some of our excursions. Here is some types of food that interest us but are definitely not limited to: Barbeque (Toronto does not have any good barbeque) Soul Food (see above) Seafood any must try's any early bird/ specials on certain days Again we are not sure what Santa Monica and surrounding areas have to offer, and since we will only be there for a few days we are trying to get are chow on. Thank you in advance to all that reply. Wed Sep 08 12:51:48 -0700 2004 0 veeinto 1 336311 The Santa Monica bus system (the Big Blue Bus) does a great job of getting people from Santa Monica into West LA, Westwood and Brentwood. So, you can search the boards for picks in these areas. Off the top of my head, a good bet for not so expensive, but very interesting food would be to take the number 5 bus to Olympic and Sawtelle and walk down Sawtelle's row of Japanese places. There is inexpensive sushi at Hide, great Japanese homestyle food at Sawtelle Kitchen (no corkage and many raves about the curry meatloaf at lunch), cheap curry lunches at Hurry Curry of Tokyo and interesting fusion-y food at Blue Marlin (curries OK, but the spaghetti with uni is more interesting). Also, there is a Japanese crepe place in the same minimall as the last two places that is quite good. The crepe nazi (as he likes to call himself) spends most of his time at his new store on Melrose, which means it is easier to enjoy the Japanese crepe experience - more mellow and easier on you if you don't order in exactly the right way. Wed Sep 08 13:10:00 -0700 2004 336309 0 igj 2 336488 Where's the crepe place you mentioned on Melrose and what is it called? TIA! Thu Sep 09 13:16:01 -0700 2004 336311 0 vidia 1 336316 If you want to explore, you can take the Big Blue Bus, #10, and get to Union Station, downtown LA. Link: http://www.bigbluebus.com/busroutes/map/index.asp?routeid=10 From there, you can take the Metrorail to other areas. From my site below (lots of cheap stuff), I would suggest the following easy to reach places: Langer's (MacArthur Park), Philippe's & Olvera Street (Union Station), or maybe Thaitown (Hollywood/Western). I also have some recs highlighted on my "Hollywierd Bus Map" link. Link: http://home.pacbell.net/dagravy/html Wed Sep 08 13:34:45 -0700 2004 336309 0 Curt 1 336334 Try Popa Jakes. There are a few of them as the owner is trying to expand. He is actually from Philly and also flies his stuff in from there. The is one on Rosecrans in the Southbay but the original (and best) is the one on Little Santa Monica at the corner of Rodeo in Bevery Hills. Great bread, great peppers, onions always done perfectly. The skimp on the amount of meat sometimes and they are a little expensive but a great sandwich. They also offer wiz. Wed Sep 08 14:44:07 -0700 2004 336309 0 sultan malik 2 336353 Bev. Hills one doesn't offer Whiz, unless that's a recent change. I found the bread better than average, but it's not Amoroso's. Wed Sep 08 15:45:49 -0700 2004 336334 0 Jack Flash 1 336356 4 Js BBQ on Lincoln, just south of Rose (Venice) Pulled Pork & Smoked Chicken Wings get the sauce 1/2 &!/2 The Lobster for drinks & Apps and The VIEW in Santa Monica by the Pier La Playita on Lincoln north of Rose in Venice (?) for mexican, seafood and fresh oysters 26 Beach Restaurant on Washington west of Lincoln 1 block in Venice Great Burgers, Salads and French Toasts for Breakfast/Brunch I Cugini in Santa Monica on Ocean (?) Great Italian Seafood, AMAZING Chez Jay on Ocean for Drinks and Halibut in Santa Monica old interesting place Lares on Pico in Santa Monica, I Think, Great Mexican & margaritas Wed Sep 08 15:49:41 -0700 2004 336309 0 Burger Boy 1 336387 There are some good Jewish delis you can reach reasonably on transit from Santa Monica. Junior's at Pico & Westwood, across the street from Westwood Pavilion, is accessible via Big Blue Bus #7, the Pico Blvd. line. Nate 'N Al's on Beverly Drive in Beverly Hills can be reached via the Red Wilshire Rapid bus (MTA line 720). This is a fast limited stop bus, so you'll have to find the stop closest to where you're staying. The Wilshire Rapid can also connect you to the subway further east at Wilshire & Western, which is in Koreatown. Cultivate patience and you'll be fine. Wed Sep 08 17:59:43 -0700 2004 336309 0 Nathan Landau 1 336388 Hi and welcome to So Cal - One of my trips would definitely be a walk over to Fritto Misto at 601 Colorado Avenue in Santa Monica (310) 458-2829. This is really good Italian food and at a bargain price. Also try taking a short bus ride into Venice to Uncle Darrow's at 2560 Lincoln Boulevard # 102, Venice, CA 90291 (310) 306-4862. This is a creole place that does great fried shrimp and/or oyster po boys. I hated their beignets but everything else was tasty and at a good price. Also in Santa Monica, I'd stop for happy hour at Toppers in the RADISSON HUNTLEY HOTEL 1111 Second Street, Santa Monica, CA 90403 (310) 394-5454. I haven't eaten there yet, but I went for drinks last night. The view is astonishing! And, they have happy hour specials on drinks and appetizers. Let me know if you want more. Wed Sep 08 18:02:44 -0700 2004 336309 0 Erica 2 336405 Get the Zeke's Catfish, oysters & potato salad in a po' boy Wed Sep 08 19:36:09 -0700 2004 336388 0 Burger Boy 1 336408 I will stay out of the food arena but... go to experiencela.com for public transport info to Los Angeles. It has a great finder that lets you get directions to landmarks. General public travel info is on mta.net and Santa Monica bus info is on bigbluebus.com Only a NYer would have this info!!! Wed Sep 08 20:02:38 -0700 2004 336309 0 carfreeinla 1 336420 I'm not sure if replying to my own post is the best way to say thank you. Many thanks to all for the wonderful rec's. I have more places to try then i do days in Santa Monica. Thank you again for all suggestions. I will post once I get back. P.S. - A co worker told me about a place called Aunt Kizzy's that has really good soul food. Someone has also told me that Roscoe's might be the place to be. i have checked out the board and I'm not even sure if I am close to either restaurant (Roscoe's having three locations. I think I am becoming a sad example of a tourist, please bare with me. Wed Sep 08 21:18:52 -0700 2004 336309 0 veeinto 2 336449 Replying to your own post is the proper way to respond! I can't speak to quality, but I see Roscoe's branches in Hollywood and at 5006 Pico Blvd. near La Brea. Hollywood would be long, it would require two buses or a bus and the subway from Santa Monica, though there's plenty to see over there. You could reach the Pico Blvd. site on Big Blue #7 bus, but it would be a long ride and I'm not sure I'd want to try it at night. Aunt Kizzy's is in Marina Del Rey (where street crime isn't usually an issue) and looks fairly close to Big Blue's Lincoln Blvd. bus, but I haven't taken the bus over there so I don't know what it's like. Thu Sep 09 01:17:22 -0700 2004 336420 0 Nathan Landau 2 336502 Thank you Nathan, I appreciate your help. There is a post on August 26th or so about Taco trucks. I would love to have shrimp tacos like I had when I went to Mexico. Are these taco trucls parked on the side of the road, and do they move, or are they always in the same place every day? Thu Sep 09 14:21:52 -0700 2004 336420 0 veeinto 2 336720 In my opinion, you can skip Aunt Kizzy's. The food is just not up to par anymore. Uncle Darrow's is the closest thing to soul food on the west side, but it's creole (to us, there's a difference - smile). Roscoe's is does excellent fried chicken but does not have a full soul food menu. The nearest Roscoe's to the westside is the one on Pico and LaBrea - about a 15 minute drive east on the 10 to LaBrea then go north to Pico. But if you really want soul food and don't want to go too far, you might try the M&M's on Centinela between Sepulveda & La Cienega. Fri Sep 10 19:07:37 -0700 2004 336420 0 Erica 2 336835 My favorite BBQ is Mr Cecil's on Pico just east of the 10 freeway. I was born in the south and have searched all of the LA area for good ribs and so far this is the best place I have found. Try the babybacks with hushpuppies and beans - to die for. It is also relatively close, maybe a 10 min ride on the Santa Monica Blue bus. Beware of traveling to Beverly Hills or beyond, with LA traffic it could turn into an hour bus ride. Also, skip Roscoe's. It's great, but quite far and when you get there you will most likely be waiting for up to 2 hours to be served. Locations are also not the safest at night. Sat Sep 11 17:03:04 -0700 2004 336420 0 West 2 336836 My favorite BBQ is Mr Cecil's on Pico just east of the 10 freeway. I was born in the south and have searched all of the LA area for good ribs and so far this is the best place I have found. Try the babybacks with hushpuppies and beans - to die for. It is also relatively close, maybe a 10 min ride on the Santa Monica Blue bus. Beware of traveling to Beverly Hills or beyond, with LA traffic it could turn into an hour bus ride. Also, skip Roscoe's. It's great, but quite far and when you get there you will most likely be waiting for up to 2 hours to be served. Locations are also not the safest at night. Sat Sep 11 17:03:49 -0700 2004 336420 0 West