Laurel Tavern

Why is lunch on Ventura Boulevard always cause for so much shouting? "It's up on the right. No, further down...wait...wait...you passed it!" Laurel Tavern, which only started serving lunch last month, is helpfully painted black to stand out from the neighboring businesses. It is your standard gastropub, perhaps one of our best imports from England since the Beatles ...well, maybe Radiohead. The ceiling is high, and large windows that open out to the less-than-bucolic street still give the room an open feel that makes you feel less guilty about sitting in a bar drinking beer at noon.

The menu is a mix of small plates for the people who came to drink and more substantial offerings for those who came to eat. You have to discuss portion sizes with the bartender since descriptions on the large chalkboard menu don't offer hints. Some salads are big, some salads are small, and some salads are just right. Like Father's Office, you order at the bar and the food is brought to the table. Unlike Father's Office, you are greeted with a smile and an explanation of protocol at the door.

Unfortunately the lunch menu is limited, so there are no roast marrow bones or pork belly skewers. Fortunately, what is on the menu is still pretty good. The goat cheese salad is comprised of fresh mixed greens topped with a baked pear and a bright vinagrette.

The giant Laurel burger is topped with gouda and served in a cake pan so you can bake your own dessert if you really need one. The french fries do stay hot and crisp in the unusual pan.

The mussels even passed our East coast transplant's strict seafood test. The artichoke is charred black. A well of intense lemon vinagrette rests in each half. But be prepared for black fingers from the artichoke's char (and if you park on Ventura, don't forget to feed the meter).

Oinkster

You can find the Oinkster on Colorado in Eagle Rock by keeping an eye out for the giant red A. That's A for umm, Angster? Bravo to them for keeping the same landmark building and sign as the previous occupant, Jim's.

Everyone seems to love Oinkster. They slow-roast their pork and cure their own pastrami. The french bread is tightly stuffed with massive amounts of meat until it is as round as a burrito. The giant sandwiches must be eaten with caution, as they are ready to burst at any moment. Not first date food. For the pulled pork, we highly recommend their killer barbecue sauce It comes on the side and sometimes you have to ask for it.
The hamburgers are also gigantic, with thick, meaty patties. The onion is sharp, the tomato is Farmer's market fresh, and the housemade ketchup has a bite. Best of all, the burger is topped with a rich Gruyere.

In the crazy fries department, the Oinkster fries come topped with grilled onions, cheddar cheese and their own Thousand Island dressing. It is just as interesting, but not as horrible as it sounds. Our only suggestion is that the cheese should be sprinkled on the bottom instead of the top so that they melt into the hot fries.

If you have a sweet tooth, Oinkster's serves up hand scooped shakes made with Fosselman's ice cream and specialty cupcakes, especially their famous peanut butter and jelly cupcakes.

Service is above and beyond friendly. Employees are downright chatty -- they make everyone feel like a regular. No matter how hip this place is, there is no nasty hipster vibe. Sometimes the line is kind of long, but as in any establishment with food this good and a positive staff, the patrons are happy to wait. The customers are happy, the servers are happy, I'm happy. I suspect you'll be happy too.

Keep an eye open, according to Squid Ink, Andre Guerrero may be opening "a second Oinkster, possibly in Culver City or downtown."

Tonys Darts away

When friends come to visit my Magnolia Park neighborhood, they sometimes ask where my "local" is. I'm left blank, because we don't have a local here like we did in Los Feliz. Other than Tinhorn Flats and the standing bar at a few restaurants, this hood has been devoid of a comfortable watering hole.

That is, until Tony Yanow came to town and renovated a little hole-in-the-wall to create the first draft-only "bottle-less bar" in Burbank. All of the bartenders at Tony's Darts Away are experts and can help you choose from the 30-plus rotating beers on tap.

The bar serves only the best locally sourced craft beers available. In keeping with his green philosophy, Tony's goal is to narrow the geographical gap between the brewer and the customer. By keeping the "beer miles" low, it decreases the carbon footprint. The menu is heavy on IPAs because IPAs are a true California innovation.

Beers are served by the glass, "honest pint" or in some cases, in a tulip glass. The best way to get a feel for the beers is by buying a "flight" or sampler of four. Ask the knowledgeable barkeep for your preference, be it sweeter beers, IPAs, a combination, or even something "hoppy" and they will come through for you. You can also pick and choose your own flight from the menu.

In addition to craft beers, Tony's brought in sommelier Andy Lynch to select wines from California red and white varietals, all served on tap (as well as a few sodas for the teetotalers).

Another interesting difference is Tony's bar food. Whereas a token vegan dog is usually hidden down near the bottom of the menu, Tony's displays them front and center. Four kinds of vegan sausages join the other locally sourced artisanal sausages.

So far our favorite has been the bratwurst. There are a number of vegan toppings, including a vegan cheese and a garlic aioli. For the carnivores, we recommend straight-up mustard and peppers as being the best match for the sausages.

Surprisingly for bar fare, the salads are actually at the top of our list. The beet salad is a definite winner.

The hand-cut chips and curly onion strings don't hold a candle to the sweet potato fries. They come covered in a sweet glaze, but if you ask real nice they might make you a special batch of naked sweet potato fries to dip in that garlic aioli.

The one wrench in the works is the size of the game area. It is so small that the pool table, dart board and satellite jukebox are all crammed up against each other. It is virtually impossible for people to play both darts and pool at the same time. And if you want to put another dime in the jukebox, baby, be careful you don't get a dart in the forehead.

Update:
We just returned again tonight and they had moved the jukebox to avoid dart accidents. It was perfect for our crowd of college-aged visitors.

The service and vibe are friendly with just a touch of dive still hanging in the air. A marijuana leaf sticker and the occasional broken glass keep the place from being too hip for its own good. So pull up a barstool, because we finally have a place to call our "local". Oh, and don't play pool with George. You can't beat him.

The Popcycle Rolls In

 LA's newest traveling food recently made its debut near the Silverlake Farmers Market. With flavor combos like Salty Cucumber Lime, Lemon Mint Blueberry and Cantaloupe with Anise, these are not your standard frozen fruit bars. And at $3 a pop they are an affordable splurge.

The custom-made bike and freezer box created by owner John Cassidy are based on a Dutch design to ride on two wheels instead of the standard three-wheeled bike. There is no truck or a hitch, so sales are limited by leg work. They can only go as far as John can pedal.

Paletas were one of the inspirations for the frozen treats. Michelle Sallah, a professional chef, was excited to discover the paleterias when she moved to LA and eventually married her love for playing with flavors and partner John Cassidy's love for bikes to create Popcycle treats. Michelle comes from a diner family, and has worked at the Spotted Pig in New York and Bar Marmount in LA. She knows from experience that owning a restaurant is a 24-7 job. She and John wanted to work together, but in a project that would still allow them freedom. They worked and developed their idea throughout the last year.

Michelle is playing with mixes of savory herbs and juices as well as other innovative recipes. For example, the "Arnold Palmer" is Raspberry Iced Tea and Lemon. The produce is purchased at the local farmer's market and they use organic ingredients. Michelle is careful to use only as much sugar as the treat needs. The flavors are intense, but not so strong or unusual that children won't enjoy them too. The bike only had 2 treats left when we arrived. They had saved them for me after I tweeted, begging them to wait while I zoomed over. So we only tested out the Lemon Mint Blueberry, which was an explosion of flavors, like a frozen lemon bomb.

The bike can hold up to 200 frozen treats at a time, but will usually roll with around 100. Michelle wants it to be non-stressful for them, and a special experience for customers. There is a modern-day treasure hunt element to chasing food trucks and bikes, and she hopes there will be an exciting element to rotating flavors. Keep it small, keep it local, and you can maintain a personal vibe with customers as well as quality.

Pasadena Burgers: Slaw Dogs

That's right, Slaw Dogs, not Slaw burgers. True, they are a newcomer to the Pasadena scene, and yes, they specifically focus on hot dogs, but this little spot serves up some of the fattest, juiciest, and most creative burgers in town. In fact, owner Ray Byrne was originally considering opening a burger joint before he opted for dogs.

Their burger is the all-American classic, an Angus ground chuck burger with American cheese, piled high with lettuce, pickles and thick onions so intense you can still taste them hours later. This thing is a monster. But it is only the beginning.

It seems like Ray has to constantly be creating, and every time I just say, "Give me a burger" he comes up with something new and innovative. One day it was "The Less is More Cheeseburger (aka anti-brioche burg)", with American cheese, Dijon-chipotle mayo, double caramelized onion and a Parmesan crisp. On another day the juicy patty was topped with thick slices of pork belly and deep-fried shiitake along with a mystery sauce. I highly recommend just putting yourself in his hands and letting the master do his work.

Slaw dogs is all about spectacular toppings and sauces, but it wouldn't work if it wasn't centered on quality beef and sausages. The Angus ground chuck is perfectly cooked to a medium right through to the middle in spite of the size. We have already drooled over their side dishes like sweet potato fries and truffle-parmesan fries in the original Slaw Dogs post, but this time we tried out the onion rings, and they were big, greasy, crunchy and thick.

The burgers are so enormous, the last few bites can be a messy game of burger Jenga. Of course, that may not happen if you don't spend 10 minutes letting the sauce soak into the bun while you take pictures. Ray is also working on customized buns, so he may engineer a hardy bun that will be able to take everything he can heap on it.

Where to watch the World Cup Finals?

In case you have been living in a cave, a monastary, under a rock, or some other stereotype, Spain and the Netherlands will be duking it out tomorrow. Watch the glory and the tears with your fellow Angelenos...

Join Susan at the STREET this Sunday morning (starting at 11am) to watch the World Cup Finals!
In addition to the regular menu, check out

Tortilla Espanola with Spanish chorizo and potatoes,

as well as Eggs Hollandaise with roasted asparagus.

AND they have a full bar!

742 N. Highland Los Angeles, CA 90038

Phone: 323.203.0500

You can't get closer to South Africa than Springbok Bar and Grill in Van Nuys. The pub was founded by native South African friends to "not only create a fantastic, comfortable and friendly environment to watch Rugby, Cricket, Soccer and American Football and Baseball, but also to create a great menu showcasing the cultural diversity of Southern Hemisphere foods." They will be offering South African specialties like curried beef samosas. 

16153 Victory Blvd

Van Nuys, CA 91406

Phone :818 988 9786

The traditional futball pub, The Cat and Fiddle has 3 TV monitors, a 32" and 50" at the bar and 46'' in the Casablanca Room. They also have a spacious patio for when you need to get a breather from the sweaty, shouting fans. They serve a traditional English breakfast, crepes, and Bass on tap. Who could ask for more?

6530 Sunset Blvd

Los Angeles, CA 90028
323-468-3800

Lucky Baldwin's is a cozy pub in Pasadena serves a traditional English breakfast and Belgian beers on draft. They have a little shop where you can buy English candy too.

17 South Raymond Ave.

Old Towne Pasadena, CA 91105

(626) 795-0652

You can also go to any pub in the entire city of Santa Monica.

LA Weekend's Hot Dog Panel

LA Weekend started out with Jonathan Gold moderating a panel about hot dogs with people "who have forgotten more about hot dogs than most of us will ever learn." Joe Fabrocini from Fab's in the valley, Sue Moore from Let's Be Frank, who started making her own dogs 5 years ago in San Francisco, and Duane Earle from Earlez, south of the 10 Freeway.

Duane Earle from Earlez, Joe Fabrocini from Fab's, Jonathan Gold and Sue Moore of Let's be Frank

Gold started off talking about his family's quest for the ultimate Chicago Dog and the hot dog spots gone by. Earl, who was a charmer and raconteur, grew up working a hot dog cart in New York. They discussed the importance of the dog itself versus the toppings. Fabrocini said everyone's favorite dog is the dog they grew up with. He emphasized that you cannot fry any dog and call it a ripper -- a ripper is a specially made hot dog for deep-frying.