The Izaka-ya by Katsu-ya

Farts and I took Pinks out again for lunch to Izaka-ya by Katsu-ya, Pinks is moving to SF on Saturday. Izaka-ya by Katsu-ya is the less expensive version of Katsu-ya. We went there for their lunch deals. Farts and I misheard the lunch deal and thought it was $12 for salad, five sushi pieces and a roll and figured that wouldn’t be enough so we ordered additional rolls…it turned out the lunch deal came with ten sushi pieces….

We had a…
Crispy rice w/ Spicy Tuna. Farts love this roll but it’s overrated. The rice needed to be crispier.

Tuna and crab roll—I forgot the name of the roll since I’m allergic to crab…

Eel and avocado roll. I’ve had better. The rice was mushy.

As mentioned, the sushi lunch deal came with a salad lightly dressed in a non-Japanese sweet dressing.

I was annoyed that I couldn’t substitute the sushi/roll items that I was allergic to (the California roll, hokki clam, shrimp and salmon roe) with other fish. Well I could but I had to pay extra. It was an additional $6 to change those items. This is what their lunch sushi deal looks like….



and this is what mine looked like…



This was my second time at the restaurant, and I still don’t get why Farts love Izaka-ya. Their sushi is dull , overrated, and overpriced. The lunch deal is not a bad price for those who can eat all the items. I should have doused the sushi with the wasabi and soy sauce. Come here if you’re a Katsu-ya fan but not if you want good sushi.

Address: 8420 W 3rd St, LA, CA 90048
Phone#: (323) 782-9536
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Tara's Himalayan Cuisine

I’ve always wanted to try one of the ethnic restaurants on Venice Blvd. so I was happy to see Tara’s Himalayan Cuisine on my foodie group’s monthly outing. Parking was a bit of a nightmare. They have a small parking lot but it was full. Our group was pretty big and some daredevils parked at Ralphs! There’s nothing fancy about Tara’s restaurant but their food. This restaurant was hopping on a Wednesday night. There was a wait for a table around 8.

G & M organized an amazing ten-eleven course dinner for $25 including drinks, tax and tip! Killer deal! I just wished they told us what dish they brought out…I believe we started with Paratha. It’s the only “crisp” bread I see on the menu. Oddly this was the spiciest item on the list…

I ordered a strawberry Lassi. I am told that mango Lassi is the traditional one but I prefer strawberries over mangos. It was good, not too sweet.

The Pakoras (“lightly battered delicately spiced and deep fried veg oil”) tasted like Samosas.

Next came out the chicken Momos and vegetable Momos with fresh tomato achaar.
Momo = dumplings. They were tasty.

The green beans with himalayan spices were delicious. It was definitely one of my favorite dishes of the night.

The garlic tofu (vegetarian) was good. It could use more garlic though.

The Khotey momo panfried chicken served with fresh tomato achaar was my favorite dish. I could eat this again!

I believe this is a picture of the chicken curry….the lamb curry looks the same thing. I didn’t try the lamb curry but the chicken curry was ai-ght. It wasn’t spicy and went well with the rice.

The Aloo bodi tama (“bamboo shoots, potato and black eyed peas with himalayan spices “) was an interesting dish...it's a vegetarian dish.

The Yak chilli was ok. The yak meat was chewy and slightly dry. It tasted like beef…jerky. I was glad that it wasn't spicy.

The Gulab jamun (“sweet custard balls made with milk and cream, dipped in sugar water”) tasted like baklava. I ate half a ball and it was enough for me.


Overall, I had a great time at Tara's Himalayan Cuisine, and Tara is a sweetheart! I'll definitely be back!

Address: 10855 Venice Blvd, LA, CA 90034
Phone#: (310) 836-9696
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Mama's Kitchen

The stars were aligned on Monday. As I drove to Alhambra Bowling Center for my fellow church goer’s once a month bowling event, I saw Mama’s Kitchen nearby! Mama’s Kitchen was on Minty’s Beef Roll Crawl list but we had an old address. It’s supposed to have the best beef rolls in town.

This is what Mama looks like..

Mama did not disappoint me. Her beef rolls were damn good. The rolls were not greasy, overly stuffed with scallions with fatty meat.

Unlike the other beef rolls on the previous crawl, hers had eggs in them. I don’t know if that’s what makes her rolls special..

I’ll have to come back next month for the dumplings. She has over twenty different versions, from pumpkin and mushroom to pork with fennel miller. By the way, my bowling team won too!

Address: 1308 Valley Blvd., Alhambra, CA 91803
Phone#: (626) 289-8984
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Minty's Silverlake Fish Taco Crawl

It didn’t take long for me to decide to go on the Minty’s Silverlake Fish Crawl last Sunday since I live nearby, and she only had five taco stands on her list…now if she had seven taco stands…To ensure that I could finish the crawl, I biked it. Most of the taco stands were not more than a mile a part.

The Best Fish Taco in Ensenada was our first stop. I go here when I’m indecisive since they only offer fish or shrimp taco. I am allergic to shrimp. The kitchen is right in front of you with two deep fryers.

Their drinks list is a short list as well. The horchata too sweet for me, and they use brown rice. I prefer their jimica –sweet but it’s not like drinking a sugar cane. Here’s a picture of their toppings bar.

There’s indoor seating but when it’s warm the patio is the place to be. If they just serve margarita it would be like you’re in Ensenada, Mexico.

I am told traditional fish tacos from Ensenada are deep-fried topped with cabbage and salsa on a corn tortilla. Their fish taco is ok. I can’t really complain since it’s only a buck. Shrimp tacos are two bucks.

Ricky’s Fish Tacos was our next spot. Ricky’s is located at Sunset Junction in the “cactus” garden. My first time at Ricky’s was a nightmare. I vouched not to go again…but then since it was on Minty’s list…WOW, what an improvement! Orders are processed much faster since they give you a number when you ordered now; it also helped that he had two helpers. They had two propanes this time so there was no mixing of the shrimp with the fish. The only thing that was missing was the lime. Oh you have to follow Ricky on Twitter to know his hours.

The drink stand is a new thing too. They offered two aqua frescas..

One was some kind of passion fruit…

The other was some kind of orange fresca…

I went with the Passion fruit and it beat the jimaca.

The fish taco tasted much better this time around. It’s amazing how your mood affects the taste of the food...their fish taco was the most expensive - $2.50 but so worth it!

Tacos Delta was our 3rd stop.

There’s an outdoor patio in the back.

There fish taco came with lettuce instead of cabbage. It cost $2.25.

It was too battered for me –like a Van de Kamp’s fish stick.

Our fourth stop was El 7 Mares.



Out of the five stops, this was the only one that has a parking lot.

Their fish taco was the lightest one out of the fried ones. I was surprised that it costs $2.29. I used to live across the street in '98, and I think it used to cost a buck? But then again, the studio cost $400 at the time and it now costs $900/month?

Las Glorias Del Buen Corner was the finale. Their fish tacos are grilled instead of fried like the others. The wait was the longest –yeah, longer than Ricky’s. Fish taco costs $2.25.





I had ordered a fish taco…but instead they gave me a shrimp taco. I took a bite on the verge of swallowing it until I saw the shrimp! Ah!!!!! I just started spitting everything out of my mouth and made a mad dash to outside where I would I rinse my mouth. I don’t know why I didn’t noticed the shrimp earlier…I took several pictures of it too…I guess the orange onxy through me off …

I felt terrible for the poor fella who sat in front of me and had to witness my meal coming out…hmm…yum. Needless to say I didn’t like their fish taco... What a way to end the fish crawl!

So here’s my vote of the best fish taco stands in order:

1) Ricky’s Fish Tacos
4006 Santa Monica Blvdl, LA, CA 90029
Stalk here

2)Best Fish Tacos in Ensenada
Hillhurst Ave, LA, CA 90027
(323) 466-5552

3) El 7 Mares
3131 W Sunset Blvd, LA, CA 90026
(323) 665-0865

4) Tacos Delta
3806 W Sunset Blvd, LA, CA 90026
(323) 664-2848

5) Las Glorias Del Buen Corner
620 Silver Lake Blvd, LA, CA 90026
(213) 484-9090

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