Is there NO good Chinese Food in Hollywood?
street_muzik
3,919 Posts
I've been eating Thai food for days but man, has all the Chinese food I've had around here been bland as fuck. Help me out, man. I'm dying here. 
Comments
It's Hollywood. If you really need good Chinese food, suffer the drive from 101 S to 10 E and hit up Valley Blvd.
Where I live (Westside), we don't even bother to look for Chinese food. We just count our lucky stars that Japanese food out here is spot on.
There you go. Take O's advice: GO ELSEWHERE!!!
and if you get desperate and are considering balling - don't let anyone talk you into Mr Chow. That place is a load of shit.
That place is literally two blocks from my crib but I've always been scared of it. I image mid nineties, out of style hip-sters listening to folk music and eating faux Chinese fare.
But if you say so, I'll give anything a chance. Haven't heard either way so why the fuck not?
if you like tai, pink pepper can be pretty good.
I think you always crave whatever food you cant get in your area. When i was in boston all i wanted was a buritto, now that im in l.a. id kill for some east coast pizza.
Mulberry got that though! I think they fly in their water if I'm not mistaken.....
Vito's on La Cienga
Patsy's @ the Farmer's Market
I've heard that too. Which is explains how they get the NY-style crust so thin. Mulberry is hands down the best pizza in L.A., close second place is Damiano's - the garlic bread there is insane.
have you tried their crispy beef?
In my experience....Mr Chow seems to be the #1 overrated "nice" restaraunt in LA - and I say this because I constantly hear people saying the same thing. it's really popular with rappers too. rappers don't eat good food. (can't wait to see the shitstorm that comment causes)
now....cool that you like Genghis and all - but you're backing it all up by saying Mulberry is up there with DAMIANO? Yo....that's the place people go at 3 AM because they have to - there's no where else open. and even then - heads don't want to go there. that place is fucking nasty inside, the staff is all retarted and can't get one thing right - and I've seen cockroaches with top hats walking around on the counters. c'mon....that's where you go if you lose a bet.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/LwFbl3kGojqH_Fn_YZSNeQ?rpp=40&sort_by=relevance_desc&start=40
reviews there seem to go either way....but the negative ones all seem to say the same thing...
Haven't been to Damiano's in about 2 years. Aside from the place being sketchy, it's still some of the best pizza I've had in los angeles. Does it compare to mulberry's - not a chance.
what's wrong with tap-dancing cockroaches?
but for LA heads not knowing - all you need is this really
you need it in your life. J Gold's a beast....I think I've disagreed with dude once out of 30 or so places...
I've seen hardcore talkin' motherfuckers go cream-puff soft in the face of sushi.
I'm not talking "still alive on the plate, Old Boy style" sushi. I'm talking like...a piece of tuna nigiri.
I'm more wary of Gold's recommendations. I think he's a good writer (he better be with a Pulitzer + $200K salary!) and I enjoy reading his recommendations but I've been to a few of his spots, places he's really highlighted, and most of them have underperformed to the point where I'm mindblown he'd put them on his "Best 99" list. Those include:
Nook in Santa Monica: overpriced diner food that looks pretty but tastes just so-so
That fried dumpling spot in Arcadia: it's not "real" fried xiao long bao (which you can find other places) and was too doughy to boot
Fraiche in Culver City: some of plates there were very good, others were surprisingly poor. A little inconsistency is ok but Gold and LA Magazine made this place seem like it was one of the best new restaurants in Los Angeles.
if you live near fairfax and melrose, this is your best bet for somewhere close.
its on beverly and orlando
right next to the hole in the wall spot for best juice in town
and across the street from cheap and good mini-mall sushi at hirozen
genghis cohen used to be the family spot for special occasions back in the day. it's good but...
i know all chinese food uses msg but if you have reactions to msg DO NOT EAT AT GENGHIS COHEN, they must pour the stuff by the bucket loads there.
that's why i generally stay away from chinese food, except when i'm in hong kong or china.
i get migraines and jittery muscles when i have too much msg. and can't sleep for four days after i eat big chinese meals.
are you talking about dumpling house on las tunas? with the half fried half steamed garlic bread bao? i'll make the drive out there just for that. not to mention ive found some decent records right there too...
as far as chinese in hollywood, u should be thankful there is great thai food right there. i still think the sf valley has better thai food but e. hollywood aint bad. mind you, stay away from VIM and ocha thai bbq as those spots cater to the mexican palatte. its like what taco bell is to mexicans.
ps
jonathan gold is dope. and i hate reading!
Wow you've been to some of the outta town spots - impressive! I've yet to go too far away for a lot of his recs.
I just love dude because he seems to be the only person as passionate about
as I am. I'm a once-a-weeker there - would be more if I lived closer. He also put me up on Chilli John's which I'm ever grateful for.
For a $6 burger, it does not live up to the hype. It's marginally superior to an In N Out burger at 2-3x the cost.
It's good for atmosphere but I've been there once and haven't had the compulsion to go back even though I could easily walk to it.
That said, I've yet to be blown away by any of his big recommendations (in my budget). Another place: Oinkster in Eagle Rock. Been there twice (first time, after reading his rec) and the hot pastrami was just "ok" though the pulled pork was excellent. Worth the drive though? Not really. I'd rather go to Langer's again for the distance (or just stay in town and hit up Johnnie's).
Obviously, taste is very subjective but so far, the only place I think he really digs that I had a solid meal at was AOC (and even then, their desserts were weaksauce).
And there you go. Not only did you mistook what I said about him being the "only" person who hypes it (I said AS PASSIONATE AS I AM) - but you compared the Pan to Father's Office and In and Out in the same sentence. And Canter's is the ideal real deal delicatessen - right? Please excuse yourself from this conversation, you officially blow dogs for quarters.
gold was part of what me and my hammie bentro like to call the golden age of the la times food section. early 90s when the editor of the food section was really changing things up. bentro actually collects early 90s la times so that he can have the food articles. they were really really good. anyways, gold rules.
today's la times is all about dan neill.
Bwahhaha - saying dude, Apple Pan's burgers didn't impress me, especially not at what they charge.
And whether Canter's is the real deal deli is besides the point: who has the best pastrami in L.A.? Even Gold says it's Langer's and based on my experience there, I'm not going to argue with that opinion.
Yeah - this is what I like about his writing. He covers a lot more ground than just the food yet never loses focus on what it's all about. And I also appreciate that he's all about the hole-in-the-wall spots which is much more to my sensibility (and wallet). Alas, he doesn't write much about budget spots in my neck of the woods but he's got the eastern parts of L.A. on lock.
damn, i should probably get up on that book. Im sick of almost every place out here.
Damianos is fucking nasty by the way. that is not the east coast pizza that i miss.
as far as pizza inna eastcoast stylee, i like roccos on wilshire. but ive only gotten it delivered. spaceghost swears by joe peeps and ive also heard other folks recommend spots out in the sf valley.