TLT lunch today (extremely short review)

[westsidegal]

had three items:

Edamame Hummus
Edamame, Olive Oil, Sea Salt, Fresh Chips.

Cauliflower
Red Chili Flakes, Cheese Sauce, Garlic.
(the cauliflower was roasted or sauteed, but was NOT greasy)

and
Blistered Bok Choy
Toasted Peanuts, Ponzu, Sesame.

all three were better than solid.
the price: quality: quantity ratios were phenomenal

TLT is to small plates what 800 degrees is to pizza.
sometimes you want good small plates WITHOUT paying $50/pp.
the total damage for the three items was $15 INCLUDING a tip and tax.
an absolutely unbelievable deal for this level of cooking.

i'm sold.
it's going on my regular rotation.

[New Trial]

The March 8th L.A. Weekly (p.25) has a 30% off TLT coupon for food (not beverages) good through March 13, 2013.

[kevin]

Is this order at the counter-style ? And then they bring the food to your table ?

[westsidegal]

it's order at the counter, they give you a beeper, and supposedly you go to pick up your food when they beep.
(but truly, at the hours that i usually go, it's empty enough that when they see my beeper go off they will often just walk the food to where i'm sitting)

the "boats" that hold up the wax paper upon which the food sits, are disposable cardboard. also, the wax paper they use is thicker/stronger than the norm. very hygienic. i much prefer this.

the place is kept very clean. the tables are always clean. at TLT, i've NEVER been faced with the greasy/sticky tables that i've experienced at chego and wurstkuche

all the tables are communal.

[kevin]

Chego was very greasy and sticky and pretty all around filthy but I guess that is sort of par for the course for that joint.

[kevin]

That's an interesting concept where you can in fact get a few small plates that are high quality for way under a $20 spot.

Maybe they are onto something.

Ok, I'm sold on giving it a try.

[ilysla]

Hmmm.... Good to know that the food rises above the rather, er, interesting decor. My partner will be happy to hear that there's actually a tapas-style place that's a good value (and we *loved* 800 Degrees)!

[westsidegal]

i think the decor is supposed to have an industrial/edgy feel.
all in all, i like the decor, and i like the cleanliness even more.

[Mattapoisett in LA]

Went for lunch today and I very much agree with Westsidegal. I had the Wild Rice Salad with seared ahi. Note If you order the salad alone it is mostly white rice so it needs either the seared fish of the day or a veggie dish to become balanced. I had the Mr Potato Head taco. My first thought was Acerbic with lime juice, but in finishing it I thought it was good. To drink was a Blood Orange Lime-ade which I could drink a gallon of. Price for this was just under $20 +Tip

[wienermobile]

Sounds good. Thanks for being the first to try it for us.
How busy was it? Did anything else look good?

[westsidegal]

there was a very short line when i entered at 1pm.
took about 6 minutes to give my order after entering the door.
about 70% of the seats were taken so there was still plenty of seating available.

everything looked good.