Good to the last drop
Otafuku, Nakazawa in a box, SGV’s best Chinese, Beverly Grove, Michael Mina, GTA, best coffee shop in the world, MORE
RESTAURANTS • FOUND Table
Transportive noodles
Seasoned Angeleno eaters know: For the most compelling, diverse food the city’s got on offer, you get in your car and you drive to the outskirts. This adventurous approach can reward one with everything from dynamite ceviche to mind-blowing kibbeh, and more often than not, some escapism, too. In my own pursuits, I’ve recently been drawn to the southern parts of Los Angeles county — specifically, the Japanese-American enclave of Gardena.
This part of the South Bay is home to the second-largest Japanese community in the United States after Honolulu. Consequently, it’s where you’ll find some of the best Japanese food in the greater LA area. A peaceful feeling pervades Gardena’s minimalist, Japanese-style storefronts, businesses in operation for well over 50 years. Mochi shop Sakura-ya looks and feels like 1960 (when it was built), while Sakae has been selling beautifully packaged boxes of Osaka-style sushi since 1962.
My favorite destination, soba and udon shop Otafuku, is a (relative) newcomer, having opened in 1997. It’s also a little harder to find. As is the case with most restaurants in Japan, the entrance to Otafuku is essentially unmarked, its curtains drawn. Once inside, it’s as if you’ve entered a serene, members-only club. A subtle, nutty aroma and a buoyant, sophisticated energy permeate the wood-paneled, two-room space.
There are standouts in the non-noodle section of the menu: thick slices of bluefin tuna sashimi, deep-fried slabs of Berkshire pork, Jidori chicken yakitori in various forms, delectable tempura, grilled miso cod.
But you’re here for the noodles, which are freshly cut and springy. As is traditional, both the soba and udon can be ordered cold, in soup, or (as is my preference) with a concentrated dipping broth. Once they’ve disappeared, resist the temptation to immediately knock back the remainder of your salty liquid. Soon enough, a server will bring you a pot of buckwheat water. Dilute as you like, then slurp up every last drop. –Emily Wilson
→ Otafuku (Gardena) • 16525 S Western Ave • Wed-Sat 1130a-2p, 530-930p, Sun 5-9p • Call (310) 532-9348 to reserve.
LA RESTAURANT LINKS: Manhattan Beach’s Brewco is back with new look, menu, name • Gjelina Take Away shuttering June 2 • How Café Tropical’s new owners brought it back, and plan to move it forward.
WORK • Tuesday Routine
Multi-coastal
MICHAEL MINA • chef & founder • MINA Group
Neighborhood you work in: Various
It’s Tuesday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
On any given Tuesday, I could be anywhere in the world these days. This week, I’m in New York City working on our new restaurant, Bourbon Steak (at the JW Marriott Essex House). I meet with my culinary and operations leaders each morning to review business across all our restaurants. It’s important that we have a regular cadence of connecting as we can be spread across the country — or globe — at times, so this ensures we’re always connected. When I’m not on the road, I start my morning working from home in Las Vegas.
What’s on the agenda for today?
Today, it’s all about working with our team at Bourbon Steak. After weeks of training and practice meals, we’re finally ready to welcome guests. This is our first Mina Group restaurant in New York, and since I went to culinary school here and started my professional career here, this is a huge moment. I love the energy of openings, and that, mixed with the pace of New York, is exhilarating. It’s also been great to connect with chefs and other friends in the city. New York has always been a playground for me, and now I get to invite people in to dine at my restaurant — what a special moment!
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
The list of restaurants I plan to visit when I’m in NYC is long. There’s always something new, and yet, I also like to visit friends and some of my favorite spots. Coming up this weekend, I’m planning to go to Le Bernardin, Le Pavillon, Cote, and Marea.
When I’m in Los Angeles, I’m partial to:
Parks Korean BBQ: Jenee, the owner, is an amazingly talented chef, and this place is known for the high-quality beef they use, as well as their delicious kimchi. I love the stone pot rice here — it really satisfies the soul.
Republique: Make sure to get the French toast with Vermont maple syrup — it's the best in LA. They make it using house-made brioche that's crispy, buttery, and custardy.
KazuNori: I come here for the warm blue crab handrolls — the textures and temperature contrast are truly outstanding. I could eat a dozen.
How about a little leisure or culture?
I’m a big sports fan — specifically, San Francisco teams — but since I’ve been spending so much time this spring in New York, I’ve enjoyed going to Yankee Stadium. I was even able to celebrate my son’s birthday with him at a game earlier this month. My two sons are now out of college, so any time I can spend with them is cherished.
Any weekend getaways?
Living in Las Vegas, my favorite weekend getaway is riding my dirt bike to Red Rock Canyon.
What was your last great vacation?
Any chance I get to take a vacation, it’s always to Hawaii with my family. I’ve been traveling to Hawaii for years, and even if it’s for work (at my two restaurants in Hawaii, Mina’s Fish House, and StripSteak), I feel immediately relaxed the moment I step on the island. My favorite thing to do while I’m there is go fishing, and my spot is a sandbar in Kaneohe on Oahu.
REAL ESTATE • Sold
Get him to the Grove
Tucked between West Hollywood to the north, Beverly Hills to the west, Melrose-Fairfax to the east, and Carthay to the South, Beverly Grove emerged as its own distinct neighborhood earlier this century. Single-family properties here now sell for a median price of $1.98M, a 4% increase over last year’s price, per Redfin. Like everywhere else in LA, inventory’s tight, and properties that do come to market are moving.
Here, in the bracket above that median sales price, three Beverly Grove sales from this calendar year, two of which went quickly from listing to deal, and another that traded after almost three months on the market:
→ 6401 Drexel Ave (Beverly Grove, above) • 3BR/3.1BA, 2131 SF • updated 1920s Spanish house • Listed: 1/24/24 for $2.85M, sold: 2/15/24 • Sold price: $3.2M • Agents: Kaitlyn Gagnon & Shelton Wilder, Christie’s AKG.
→ 642 N Kilkea Dr (Beverly Grove) • 5BR/5BA, 3577 SF • built 2020 with saltwater pool and detached guest house • Listed: 4/25/24 for $3.99M, sold: 5/2/24 • Sold price: $3.988M • Agent: David Akhtarzad.
→ 8274 W 4th St (Beverly Grove) • 6BR/5.1BA, 5468 SF • newly built open floor plan house • Listed: 2/7/24 for $4.595M, sold: 5/2/24 • Sold price: $4.4M • Agents: Eden Amar & Jenny Gurevich, Keller Williams.
LA WORK AND PLAY LINKS: Active LA real estate listings down 1.5% as prices continue to climb • Related: is the LA housing market overvalued? • Understanding this year’s jacarandas lag.
GOODS & SERVICES • Delivery
Move over, Sugarfish
Nineteen months after high-end east coast counter Sushi Nakazawa announced its forthcoming arrival in LA, the restaurant has yet to materialize. In the meantime, the wait for Nakazawa’s sushi — at least, in a box — is over. Hi.Dozo, a delivery-only service from the sushi group, launched this week with meticulously crafted, neatly packaged, delivery-only sushi boxes.
On Tuesday, I sampled the Chef’s Choice: salty edamame, tuna sashimi, eight pieces of nigiri including a pleasantly bouncy shrimp and a scallop with yuzu kosho, and four pieces of tuna-toro futomaki. I also tried The DIY hand roll box — fun, and of fantastic quality. Chef Nakazawa — a former apprentice of famed Tokyo sushi chef Jiro Ono, with starred restaurants in NY and DC — knows exactly what he’s doing when it comes to fresh fish over warm rice. If the quality of his delivery work is any indication, Angelenos should await with bated breath the full shingle’s debut. –Emily Wilson
→ Shop: Hi.Dozo (Doordash) • Delivery to North Hollywood, Toluca Lake, Burbank, Sherman Oaks and Hollywood Hills • Mon-Sat, 11a-10p, Sun 12-9p • $45 for Chef’s Choice.
CULTURE & LEISURE • 30 for 30
Moby Pod Live, The Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever (Complex), today @ 730p, GA, $156 per
Sarah McLachlan, Fumbling Towards Ecstasy 30th Anniversary Tour, Hollywood Bowl (Hollywood), garden 6, Fri @ 730p, $191 per
Natalie Merchant, Walt Disney Concert Hall (Downtown), Sat @ 8p, front orchestra, $262 per
GETAWAYS • Highway 1
A version of this post first appeared in A Continuous Lean, Michael Williams’s excellent men’s style (and lifestyle) newsletter, which adheres to the edict, “Buy less, buy better.” Subscribe at acl.news.
Take the long way
“It’s the best coffee shop in the world,” my new friend Tim told me about Cafe Aquatica in Jenner, California.
I was highly skeptical. How could someone even say that? We had spent part of the week doing a photoshoot under the towering redwoods at Northwood Golf Club in Northern California. The night before I am meant to leave town via SFO my friend Alex asks me about my plan. I was just going to go to the airport early and send emails until my flight leaves. He felt strongly about me taking the coastal road to see everything. “You should really go the long way and take Highway 1,” he said confidently. It made me think about this story Kurt Vonnegut told Inc. magazine in the ’90s.
I work at home, and if I wanted to, I could have a computer right by my bed, and I’d never have to leave it. But I use a typewriter, and afterwards I mark up the pages with a pencil. Then I call up this woman named Carol out in Woodstock and say, ‘Are you still doing typing?’ Sure she is… and I say, ‘OK, I’ll send you the pages.’
Then I’m going down the steps, and my wife calls up, ‘Where are you going?’ I say, ‘Well, I’m going to go buy an envelope.’ And she says, ‘You’re not a poor man. Why don’t you buy a thousand envelopes? They’ll deliver them, and you can put them in a closet.’ And I say, ‘Hush.’ So I go down the steps here, and I go out to this newsstand across the street where they sell magazines and lottery tickets and stationery… The woman behind the counter has a jewel between her eyes, and when it’s my turn, I ask her if there have been any big winners lately. I get my envelope and seal it up and go to the postal convenience center down the block at the corner of 47th Street and 2nd Avenue, where I’m secretly in love with the woman behind the counter. I keep absolutely poker-faced; I never let her know how I feel about her. One time I had my pocket picked in there and got to meet a cop and tell him about it. Anyway, I address the envelope to Carol in Woodstock. I stamp the envelope and mail it in a mailbox in front of the post office, and I go home. And I’ve had a hell of a good time. And I tell you, we are here on Earth to fart around, and don’t let anybody tell you any different.
Needless to say I took Alex, Tim, and Kurt’s advice. I meandered and took the coastal route. The first stop was Jenner and Cafe Aquatica. When I walked outside to wait for my order I understood exactly what Tim meant. This place is the best. The coffee is good, the view incredible, and the feeling there was just right. It was the best way to spend a morning. Turns out Tim, Alex, and Kurt were right. –Michael Williams, A Continuous Lean
→ Cafe Aquatica (Jenner, CA) • 10439 Hwy 1 • Daily 8a-4p.
GETAWAYS LINKS: Dog-centric airline BarkAir debuts with first NYC-LA flight • Major dining upgrades coming to SNA next year • San Francisco’s hottest new tourist attraction: driverless cars • Why NYC hotel rooms are so expensive right now.
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RESTAURANTS • The Nines
Chinese, San Gabriel Valley
Bistro Na’s (Temple City, above), imperial cuisine inside imperial dining room, order the crispy shrimp