Ramayani

This place is the epitome of an Indonesian Mom and Pops. You walk in and one medium size room constitutes as the dining room. The right wall exhibits for sale Indonesian imports and the kitchen encroaches on the dining room’s back wall. The owners, a wizened Indonesian couple, are the servers and probably, at times, the cooks. We settled on this place for a triple date after yelping all the restaurants near Century City’s AMC Theater (by the way - Iron Man II rocked!). The place was pretty quiet for a Friday night, but for the six of us, it fit the bill perfectly.

After some painstake and the patient help of Tyler (they have a very small kitchen for so many menu options) I chose the Tumis Kangkung, Hawaiian Watercress (not to be mistaken for water chestnuts) sautéed with onions, spicy shrimp paste, chili, and tomatoes ($9.50). I ordered the dish mostly because it looked good in the menu photo and there was a chili pepper by it’s description – thus when the waiter/owner asked if I wanted it spicy, I gave the thumbs up.

Tyler ordered the evening’s special, Nasi Goreng, Indonesian style fried rice with egg and chicken satay ($8.95). Too much fried goodness for me, but from the beginning I was really only interested in his beverage choice. To drink he ordered, Tiger, an Indonesian lager, that I liked okay despite my preference for stronger flavored beers and aversion to light, mass-market beers. For the beer connoisseurs this is a good review of the stuff: Link to Tiger Beer Review.

When our food came, I was happy with my pick and after peering at everyone else’s order, I got the sense that I had done well for myself as nothing else particularly appealed to me. Visuals aside, the taste was a little too bland for me – though I did enjoy the subtle Indonesian base blend of spices (see Indonesia "Spice Island"), I would have also preferred each bite to have been a little spicier on impact. Yet, with the extra order of rice and a little added house hot sauce (also available for sale at the wall market), I was happy as a clam and very much enjoyed the warmth of the restaurant and my company.

Pizzicotto

My sister, Alexis, Tyler and I went to Pizzicotto on a Sunday night for a 7:30PM reservation. The place was packed with an Italian birthday party. On the one hand, we were stoked to have found such an authentic spot. On the other hand, we had to wait outside until past 8PM to be seated.

If you go to Pizzicotto at a non-peak hour and have your choice of where to sit, go for the upstairs. The loft is definitely the coveted dining area. However, the whole little restaurant is very cozy and charming; cured Italian meats hang from the ceiling and racks of wine line the vaulted ceiling. Our waitress/hostess was this lovely little Italian woman who wore giant black-rimmed glasses and delivered the complicated specials like she had made them herself.

Prior to bringing out our meals, she served us house bread with a dipping sauce that contained olive oil, pesto and red chili flakes. So good! Our meals definitely took some time to come out (30 minutes or so), but we all agreed they were well worth the wait. I ordered the Salmon Balsalmico, grilled filet of salmon, served on a bed of steamed spinach, with aged balsalmic vinegar sauce ($14.95). The result was phenomenal: the fish melted in my mouth and the balsalmic sauce had a rich flavor that I only wish my Trader Joes balsalmic could deliver.

Also, noteworthy was my sister’s Tortelloni di Zucca, tortelloni stuffed with pumpkin in a creamy tomato, pesto and Parmigiano sauce ($13.95). An entrée as rich as this doesn’t generally appeal to me; however, I had the pleasure of finishing off her leftovers the next day and possibly preferred her dish over my salmon. It’s a toss up though - both are highly recommended!

FOR NEXT TIME: I probably would not go on a Saturday or Sunday night, but I would like to go back because it is such a kitch little restaurant! Also, I want to try the Fregola con Arselle, pan-roasted manila clams with toasted pasta grains, lemon, spices, tomato-white wine sauce; served with garlic bread ($12.95), appetizer. I bet their hazelnut gelato is good too!

Fork Rating for Pizzicotto:

Accessibility: 1 Fork (parking was tricky on top of the wait)

Ambiance: 4 Forks (it was a bit loud)

Authenticity: 4.5 Forks

Service: 3.5 Forks (mostly just because of the wait – I loved our server)

Taste Factor: 4.5 Forks

All India Cafe

The All India Café (from here on out to be referred to as: AIC) is extremely unassuming. Wedged into a strip mall on Santa Monica Blvd., the place is just a fail at impressiveness. Tyler and I agreed to go inside with a pact to check out the menu before being seated. Yet, once inside I was surprised to find that it was indeed a bona fide restaurant and not just a takeout front.

We had our pick of seating as there was only one other couple there. Usually this would bother me, but the lack of hullabaloo after a long Monday was actually quite soothing. Our waiter was super pleasant and the décor was warm and simple.

The best part of my meal was the Nimbu Pani, an Indian-style lemonade with ginger and lime juice ($3.00). It wasn’t too sweet and had a nice twang. I slurped it down and still have plans for recreation with the recipe in the link above.

I LOVE eggplant everything so I ordered the Baingan Bharta, a puree of Tandoor baked eggplant sautéed with onions, fresh tomatoes, ginger, green chiles and herbs ($7.95). When it arrived I was quite skeptical because it looked more like a sadly colored soup than anything else. It didn’t come with any rice so once I ordered the rice (Basmati side $2.50), I was a much happier camper. The puree had a nice spicyness to it and thus I finished happy and full.

I am a texture person and so next time I will try the Eggplant Salad, sautéed Japanese eggplant topped with seasoned tomoato sauce and ginger yogurt ($6.95).

The low down on AIC? Good, but not great. Tyler and I agreed to come back as it is so convenient and simply pleasant; a great weekday spot. I would advocate for their lunch buffet, but honestly if you want an incredible lunch buffet-like experience, go for the Daily Special at the Samosa House ($7.99). And make sure to include the spicy jackfruit; it is orgasmic!

Fork Rating for All India Cafe:

Accessibility: 5 Forks (we walked and didn't have to wait for a table!)

Ambiance: 3 Forks (once inside the place was nice)

Authenticity: 3 Forks

Service: 3.5 Forks

Taste Factor: 3 Forks

Lala's Argentine Grill

Entraña al Ajo

To set the stage for the awesomeness of this place, before pulling up, I admit to being past borderline hangry. A problem easily solved at a restaurant (and possibly a contribution to higher final reviews), but an absolute roadblock to a good first impression. Yet, the moment we walked in, I stopped pouting and began to enjoy myself – a feat only previously achieved by some sort of foodstuff. This place just radiated a good time! I imagined celebrating something there without even tasting Lala’s food.

Though the outdoor seating encapsulates optimum ambiance (flush with heat lamps), to avoid the said 30-minute wait, Tyler and I were happy to sit near the action of the open face kitchen (Lala's does not offer reservations). However, even if your not extremely hungry, I would still recommend valet as parking spots are tricky to come by and the cost is only $5 with hostess validation.

Okay now to the meat of the review (a pun possibly not appreciated by those less fond of meat, but there it is), the hustle and bustle of this place just added the restaurant’s atmosphere. Our cheery, hipster waiter (a surprisingly pleasant combination) appeared a little over his head with shear tasks, but always seemed to offer perfect advice and make sure we had everything we needed, just as we didn’t. And even better, within 10 minutes of being seated we were enjoying a pitcher of Lala’s signature Clerico, assorted fruits soaked in white wine $18.95, and fresh bread with Chimichuri dipping sauce.

The Chimichurri was such spicy-deliciousness that I went to the farmers market the next day for means of recreation. The chimichurri link above is a good recipe, but I recommend dicing the fresh cayenne peppers instead of using pepper flakes. Lala’s chimichurri is a little oily, but how bad can olive oil be? I am an absolute lightweight and the Clerico went down maybe a little too easy. Upon further research, I learned it was not that chimichurri enhanced my drinking powers, it was that Lala’s almost certainly cut the wine with something like club soda. No matter, it was a great hangover/driving saver and proved super fun to share.

The food also came without much waiting. When ordering, I followed Tyler’s lead (I think to his surprise, as our pallets are generally quite polar), as I am not too schooled in steak eating. We ordered the Entraña al Ajo, grilled Angus Beef skirt steak piled high with sautéed parsley and garlic. The meal also comes with a choice of greens, french fries, rice or mashed potatoes. And to my surprise, we both opted for the greens – which was a good decision on both fronts as portion sizes are hearty. I ordered my steak medium and was thoroughly happy with the result. The only complaint I can think of was that like the chimichurri, the meat was a bit oily.

Overall, this place rocked, I have never seen Tyler so excited about food and admittedly it was damn good (even if I had not started out hangry). The only down side was that we had so much fun and ate so much that, once home, all we could do was take a nap on the floor.

Fork Rating for Lala’s Argentine Grill:

Accessibility: 1 Fork

Ambiance: 4 Forks

Authenticity: 3.5 Forks

Service: 4 Forks

Taste Factor: 3.5 Forks

Why eat at Ethnic Restaurants through Los Angeles?

My boyfriend Tyler and I want to travel and experience more than our jobs/budgets currently allow. Thus, we have haphazardly constructed an odyssey to ethnauthentically eat our way through Los Angeles.

In an effort to "hash" each experience over in an organized fashion, we have also designed a rating method which I like to call, The Fork System. Under this system there are 5 categories that we have deemed - all important - to our overall "worldy" experience. And finally for a sense of accomplishment, we have also nailed a map to my wall with pins telling us which countries have been successfully eaten from.

The Fork Rating System:

1 to 5 forks will be given in the following areas: Accessibility (an important one here in LA), Ambiance, Authenticity, Service, and the all Important Taste Factor. I realize that two judges from Portland, OR and San Luis Obispo, CA have no business rating the "authenticity" of our experiences with food and ambiance of proceeding ethnic restaurants. However, the best we can do is acknowledge our limitations/self righteousness as judges and explain our scores within reviews.

Fork Scale:

1 Fork = Bad Experience

2 Forks = Moderately Unpleasant

3 Forks = Run of the Mill

4 Forks = Pretty Excellent

5 Forks = Euphorically Awesome