2 years ago
I probably say how lucky I am to have amazing friends at least a dozen times on a given week, but to have an amazing friend who also cuts your hair amazingly? Well, that’s one of the closest ways I may come to winning the lottery for now. This is how I feel about my longtime friend, Aviva. What makes knowing her even more of a joy to is when we get to indulge in our foodie sides, especially when I get to experience her phenomenal skills in the kitchen. She recently took on vegetarianism and vegan methods of cooking and eating when she started having local organic vegetables delivered straight to her door via Farm Fresh To You. She also took advantage of sites like Fresh 365 and has whipped out recipes like the Mango-Avocado Salad with Black Beans and Lime Vinaigrette, which we noshed on during my haircut Tuesday, that give you reason to stop and get blown away by how some dishes don’t need meat to stand out. They just do when key ingredients are combined to create impacting flavors.
To give Aviva’s hands a break and a treat from cutting and cooking, we had a Downtown LA romp this past Tuesday where I took her to some of my favorite spots for wining and dining:
This is one of my favorite places for happy hour on any given day of the week (sans Sunday). While they call it “Rush Hour,” their happy hour goes from Monday through Saturday, 4:30 PM to 7 PM. We’re talking $4 beer and wines from $4-$6 here and not shabby stuff either. Even more impressive is the bar food selection: short rib sliders, al pastor tacos or a chartcuterie for $5. I am hard pressed to find another place in Los Angeles who can give you a decent bowl of steamed mussels for that much (and I’ve been here for about 27 years, mind you) and it tickles my fancy every time I think of it and have the chance to go and indulge in them.
Sashimi is one thing, but omakase sashimi is another. And at Sushi Gen, this is a serious, brace yourself prime grade fish affair. Why I like omakase is twofold: 1) it’s at the chef’s discretion at picking the freshest fish available and 2) this is the ultimate chance to try new dishes you otherwise may not think of or choose to venture towards. This was entirely the case for us with dishes like baby squid, which were surprisingly bold yet soft and pleasing to our palate. My tried and trues—Spanish mackerel, toro and monkfish liver—did not disappoint, and they never do at Sushi Gen. But what came to me as a shock was how I was more taken away by the amberjack and Aviva’s favorite, the Japanese scallop, than my usual suspects.
I laugh wrapping this up knowing at the tail end of this post is my previous post on how a good portion of my meals this week were going to be about LUNA bars and turkey jerky. Right, Ritzel. Riiiight.
