Tom’s Southern California Dining
One thing that COVID has taken from so many of us is the pleasure of the dining-out experience. One of the most satisfying aspects of life is going out with friends to restaurants scattered throughout Southern California. In the past two decades, the So. Cal. dining scene, especially in Los Angeles and surrounding towns, has exploded with numerous incredible eateries. Sadly, some of these great restaurants have been forced to close, but here are our favorites that are still hanging in there and that we hope to visit again soon.
July 15, 2020
A Patio Oasis Alcove Café & Bakery – Los Feliz (Los Angeles) Last Visit: June 2020 Breakfast When outdoor dining was finally allowed again here in California (seems to change by the hour), we decided to meet our friends (and traveling partners) Kim and Mary, along with their daughter Macaire, […]
June 22, 2020
Historic West Hollywood Hangout Formosa Cafe – West Hollywood, CA Last Visited: June 2020 Asian Fusion I’m confident there’s not another restaurant in the world where John Wayne cooked eggs one morning in its kitchen after passing out the night before, Ava Gardner danced in the aisles, Elvis sipped a […]
March 10, 2020
It Had To Be You! When Mai Tai Tom Met Tracy: A Night at L’Opera – Long Beach, CA Visited: May 1990 & February 2020 As I recall, it was a beautiful spring evening in May 1990. I had been researching police documents and perusing personal interviews for an article […]
January 31, 2020
Great Dining … Plus A Rooftop Bar! Granville – Pasadena, CA Modern Casual Last visited: January 2020 When Granville opened in the spring of 2019, boasting the only rooftop bar in Pasadena, we knew this was a place we had to visit! Granville is a small Southern California chain of […]
December 19, 2019
Mai Tai Tom’s 2019 Restaurant Of The Year! Hippo – Highland Park, CA Cuisine: Cal-Med Visited: February, March & October 2019 The votes have been tabulated, and Mai Tai Tom’s 2019 Restaurant of the Year is now ready to be unveiled. In the closest vote in history, Highland Park’s Hippo […]
October 8, 2019
Neighborhood Gem Bacchus’ Kitchen – Pasadena, CA Last Visited: August 2019 Although we walk the corgis past this restaurant nearly every weekend and always stop to check the menu, in late 2018 it had been several months … maybe even a year … since we had dined at Bacchus’ Kitchen. […]
September 30, 2019
Middle East Feast! Bavel – Los Angeles, CA Visited: September 2019 One great feature of living in Los Angeles these days is the influx of restaurants offering innovative cuisine from all parts of the world. Tracy and I had heard great reports from friends about Bavel, which features food highlighting […]
September 9, 2019
Hooray For Hollywood! Musso & Frank Grill – Hollywood, CA Last Visited: August & September 2019 There aren’t many restaurants around these days that I can say I visited as a kid, but the famed Musso & Frank Grill in Hollywood, which turns 100 this year (I sense a theme […]
August 13, 2019
Let’s Thai One On! President Thai – Pasadena, CA Last Visited: August 2019 (Thai) I don’t have a clue why I don’t eat Thai food more often. Although I love it, it seems we always find other types of restaurants to try. In the last year, however, we “discovered” President […]
July 31, 2019
Celebrating Our Silver Anniversary French Style Entre Nous – Pasadena, CA Visited: December 2018 & July 2019 (French) Realizing that Tracy has had to put up with me for 25 years of marriage, I thought it would be nice to celebrate our Silver Wedding Anniversary at a restaurant that has […]
July 13, 2019
Hobbit Forming The Hobbit – Orange, CA Visited: May 2019 (Fine Dining) It was time for a splurge, and in Southern California there’s no place like The Hobbit in Orange to plunk down some extra bucks for a unique (and delicious) dining experience. We’d eaten here about 20 years ago […]
June 24, 2019
Iconic & Nostalgic Burger! Bob’s Big Boy – Burbank (Toluca Lake), CA When I was growing up, the favorite words I heard from my dad on a Sunday afternoon were, “Let’s go to Bob’s Big Boy.” From the scrumptious double-decker burgers to the carhops to my Big Boy comics, there […]
April 12, 2019
Breakfast & Lunch With Frankie & Remi Spoke Bicycle Cafe – Los Angeles (Frogtown), CA Breakfast/Lunch Last Visit: April 2019 Being a native Angeleno I thought I knew just about every nook and cranny of the city, but while walking the dogs, a neighbor told us about having a great […]
March 21, 2019
Spicy Or Mild, Mint Leaf Delivers Mint Leaf – Pasadena/Altadena, CA Visited: Numerous Times • Last Visited March 2019 (UPDATED) Restaurant Type: Indian * (Latest Update Below Story) To paraphrase the late Mr. Rogers…”It’s another great day in the neighborhood.” That’s because we now have another great restaurant within walking […]
February 19, 2019
California Fresh! The Arbour – Pasadena, CA California Cuisine Visited: 12/8/18, 2/2/19, 2/12/19 South Lake Avenue in Pasadena has become a sort of restaurant mecca in recent years with newer restaurants such as Nick’s South Lake Avenue, Magnolia House, Paul Martin’s American Grill, Del Frisco’s and Mendocino Farms joining old […]
December 10, 2018
Latin Loving Dama – Los Angeles, CA Cuisine: Latin/Caribbean Last Visit: November 2018 (twice) It took us almost 11 months to find one, but we have our winner for Mai Tai Tom’s 2018 Restaurant of the Year. From its impressive space in the Fashion District of Los Angeles to its […]