LA Restaurant Reviews: Hit & Miss

Gah!  I miss my kitchen!  I miss cooking!  I'll be back at it on Monday, but for now, here are two reviews of some restaurants I tried out for the first time on our Los Angeles trip...



I've been wanting to try out this place forever but it's always packed, and now I realize there is good reason for that.  It's wonderful.  Everything from their green tea version of an Arnold Palmer to their edamame dumplings to their bison burger, all of which I ate on my first visit to the restaurant.  I was going back and forth between the burger and the Miso Sea Bass but when the waitress said, "the Bison Burger, every time the Bison Burger" - how was I to ignore that?  (However, my friend got the fish and it was also delicious).  Bison is a relatively lean meat, but it was as juicy as any beef burger I've ever tasted.  The restaurant's motto is "honest food that tastes really good" and it's that simple.  Their dishes are wholesome, fresh (with a wide variety of vegan and gluten-free options) and it tastes REALLY GOOD.  Check out their locations and go to one of them, now!  



I went to Plan Check with some friends for my sister's birthday, and while I loved the space and atmosphere of the restaurant, I wasn't overly impressed with the menu.  We shared a bunch of things and I will say, the Plan Check burger was delicious.  But the crab dip appetizer was extremely fishy, the veggie chips with avocado dip appetizer came with a thimble of avocado dip, the sweet potato waffle fries lacked seasoning and needed a few more minutes of cooking and even the donut dessert was nothing spectacular.  The cocktail menu looked fantastic, which I obviously can't partake in at the moment (waaaaah) and as I mentioned, it was a fun, large space with huge open windows and lots of booths.  Perhaps we mis-ordered, but it wasn't my favorite LA restaurant.   

Have you tried out any wonderful restaurants lately?