There arent really anything about the OC so i figured i will contribute a bit:

Sushi: Ikko in Costa Mesa. Got the omakase there a while back. still the most memorable meal ive ever had

Italian: Mama D's in Newport Beach. The ambiance is perfect and food is splendid. Not a fan of Ravioli but a lot others have ordered and liked it. I like the lasagna the best. You can walk away very happy for $20/person (no alcohol)

Cheap seafood: Walk across the street from Mama D's and you'll find Bear Flag.
Order fresh seafood and they'll cook it in front of you. Yum

Late night snack: Albatross in Lake Forest. Best Mexican food around the area and open 24/7

Cougar / MILF hunting spot: Javier's @ Newport Beach on PCH. Not even close. it's known as the cougar den around here

Shopping: South Coast Plaza

Things to do:
Rent cruiser bikes at Old Newport Beach.
Hike @ Crystal Cove
Rogers Garden

And going to Pizzeria Mozza tomorrow what does everyone get there?

Has anyone mentioned my favorite thing about LA being Zankou Chicken? While my ex didn't see the appeal when she went (likely due to the fact that I'd built it up for so long), it remains the one spot I visit every time I head down that way. Get the Chicken plate. It's godly.

+1

Haven't been there, but from what I hear, Osteria Mozza is the better option. The Albatross recommendation is frighteningly correct on the local South OC tip.

+2. there are a ton of imitators and they dont come close to it

also, apparently there is a different taco truck parked next to ucla anderson everyday now for anyone that lives on the westside

also highly recommend MILK for desserts. Aloy had a thread on ice cream in OOT and a couple in LA were mentioned but i just wanted to mention this one

sprinkles is so overrated

apple pan makes a really good hickory burger for late night snack (open until 1 am on the wknds).

korean bbq:
cham sut gol in garden grove
road to seoul in KTown (others may say soot bull jeep)

Japanese:
sushi gen (little tokyo) has a GREAT lunch special for sashimi. their eel over rice is delicious as well
shabu shabu (both little tokyo): Kagaya but the wait is a bit crazy. Kushi Shabu has an all you can eat menu but you better not drink the soup because it will fill you up but it is oh-so-delicious
Fukada in irvine has great japanese style dishes and it is not overly flavorful and doesnt overwhelm flavors like many other places. highly recommended

vietnamese: brodard in westminster has great pho and vietnamese dishes such as shrimp/pork spring rolls.

boba:
tastea in westminster

now what i really wanna know is where people go after lakers or clippers games on a week night to eat? i dont like korean tofu bowls that much so BCD in KTown is out of the question

The Pantry, if it's not too crowded.

My friend and I have been exploring hole in the wall lunch spots on the east side and downtown lately. Thought I'd share the (work in progress) list:

The East Side Deli

Awesome, old school Italian Deli. Sandwiches are pretty huge and really good.

Langer's

Been called the best pastrami in LA. The #19 is amazing (pastrami, cole slaw and swiss on rye).

Tarasco's

Taco stand with nice outdoor seating. Free chips and flight of salsa's with order.

Yuca's

Well known taco stand on Hillhurst. Tacos are amazing, lack of seating is a drawback.

Nick's Cafe

Old school truck stop diner downtown. Only counter seating.

El 7 Mares

Probably the best fish tacos I've had outside of Baja. Also, the Taco Dorado (shrimp in a fried shell) is amazing and only 99c on Wed.

Cole's

I'm sure this one's been mentioned. The original French Dip. Was renovated a year or so ago and looks great inside. Much, much better than Phillip's imo.

Daikokuya

Really good Japanese ramen. You will probably have to wait though.

There are a bunch more places on the list we haven't been yet, so I'll update the list once we hit them. Would love to hear any recommendations you guys got.

edit: I'm grunching so apologies for redundancy.

Yeah gotta do Langers. I like straight pastrami sandwich, or the nippy cheese sandwich.

Empress Pavillion

Best Dim Sum in LA. Authentic and delicious. You can gorge yourself for around $10/person.

heres a few more downtown area:
traxx bar in union station (free parking), good apps. from traxx restaurant, beers on tap.
wurstkuche. great fries/houblan chouffe on tap.
cork bar. great ca. wine selection and my fav. mac and cheese
spring st. smokehouse. good tap selection, good happy hour brisket sandwich
carnitas michoacan. big tasty late night burritos
taylors prime lunch prime rib is best steak deal in L.A.
donor kabab great falafel, decent taps, fried pita and hummus
barbaras at the brewery nearly impossible to find but worth it. incredible tap selection. decent burgers and fish tacos.

i love downtown l.a. it between my house and commerce!

Smokehouse is already on my list. Haven't been yet. Love Wurstkuche, thanks for reminding me of that. My gf has told me that she really wants to check out Cork Bar also. I added the rest to my list, thanks! I'll go anywhere that has the word "Carnitas" in the name.

Have you had Ricky's Fish Tacos? Same 'hood. If not you should def check it out.

http://twitter.com/rickysfishtacos

-Al

If you like electronic music ( house, trance, underground techno ) there will be some good DJ's spinning at Tremors tonight in LA. It's a bar so 21+ They'll have visuals etc...

Went a couple of weeks ago and the music was very good. I'll be there tonight ;o]

http://tremorsla.com/

No, is that just a cart? It's literally around the corner from where I used to live. How have I never heard of it? I will go there this week and report. Thx for the tip!

Couple random recommendations for food...

- Crow Bar in corona del mar, get flatbread of the day, ahi tuna burger, and good beer from their large selection.

Looking back on the thread over a couple years, looks like Sona was the recommendation for top quality high end food, I've been there in the last year and was underwhelmed. On the other hand Providence was the second best meal of my life (behind Fat Duck), just fantastic.

Have you been to AOC? My fave. All of Suzanne Goin's restaurants are awesome - the other two are Lucques and Tavern.

Sure we go to AOC or Lucques very often when up at Commerce because the corkage price is super cheap and the food is decent. I prefer Lucques out of the two because I think the tapas style is super expensive without really being a good amount of food. I wouldn't say either is even in the same category as a place like Sona, Providence, or Melisse (haven't been here yet though I hope to next month).

Did Sona re-open? I heard they closed last year and were going to move, a la Hatfield's.

for high end id really have to go w/ saam at the bazaar or ursawa.

sona is solid but when i went to prividence (years ago) almost every dish had foam which annoys the hell out of me. i should probably try it again.

limon - definitely go back to Providence - to echo what DD said an amazing meal, and probably the best fine dining experience I've had in Los Angeles (ranks above Sona, Comme Ca, Melisse, Tavern by a decent margin, and slightly better than Bazaar and Hatfield's IMO - to compare from meals I've had within the past year or so).

-Al

http://www.yelp.com/biz/rickys-fish-tacos-hollywood

As you can see from the yelp page it is much beloved.

I used to go to AOC alot couple years ago but havent been in a while. I preferred sitting at the cheese bar - overall I think it's solid but not awesome. Probably should go back it's been a while.

-Al

Quick question: Is Philippe's worth going out of my way for? Sounds tasty, although I'd be driving from Commerce area.

I've been there twice and enjoyed it. OTOH, I just skimmed the front couple pages of the Yelp reviews, both good/great and meh/bad and sort of agree with all of them!

If you enjoy "the experience" of a very unique type place and serving style (and like the idea of telling friends you only paid only nine cents for a cup of coffee in 2011) then go. If you work around traffic it's only about twenty minutes from Commerce so it's pretty low risk.

~ Rick

Any recs for a nice restaurant on or near the water (w/view) in the Santa Monica area?

Yeah: One Pico, at the Shutters on the Beach hotel.

http://www.shuttersonthebeach.com/re...ne_dining.html

EDIT: And next door there's a seafood place called Catch at the Casa Del Mar.