Mendocino Farms Review : Getting a Dose of Culture

Since the Metro Red Line is walking distance from our apartment, we decided to hop on the Metro and venture into downtown to experience the SUPRASENSORIAL exhibit at the MOCA. Another reason for our DTLA adventure, was for a downtown sandwich shop which prides itself on original sandwiches made with some of the freshest ingredients.  Suffice to say, once we finally found Mendocino Farms nestled on the bottom floor of the California Plaza, we were ready to eat it up!

When we go to new places, it is almost expected that we will order one of two things, the chef's special or the place's signature dish. Need-less-say, I was extremely excited to try Mendecino Farms when I first walked up to the menu and saw "Duck Confit" written as Chef Judy's Pick, that got the hooks in me for sure. The sandwich has confit of duck leg with roasted fig spread, crispy chicharrones, breadcrumbs, spinich, herb aioli and chimichurri on ciabatta. The tender duck and crispy chicharrones makes for the best salty bites.


Karen's eyes lit up when she saw a few banh mi sandwiches on the menu but couldn't resist the sweet call of braised pork belly. Mendecino Farms' Kurobuta Pork Belly Banh Mi includes braised, caramelized pork belly, daikon and carrots pickled in-house, cilantro, cucumbers, jalapenos, chili aioli on panini grilled ciabatta. The sweetness from the salad and raw jalapeno peppers balanced well with the savory pork.

Pure cane sugar soda fountain provided by Boylan. Sweeeeet...

Mendocino Farms
300 South Grand Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90071

Kalbi Burger Review : As Seen On TV

We are a couple of good ol' Americans with red, white and blue (some purple and gold mixed in there too) running through our veins, so we are always on the look out for a good burger and fries. Imagine the buckets of drool when we came across Kalbi Burger near Koreatown. Their signature Kalbi Burger patty is made with half ground chuck and half Korean marinated short rib. Not to mention, all the burgers they cook are 100% Natural Angus Beef, which means cows raised with no hormones, or antibiotics. I may not be a vegetarian, but these cows are.

That is what chef/owner Hawk Lee spoke to us about during a taping of our friend’s upcoming public access food show “Eat LA”. He is proud of the product he has put out, as far as quality of ingredients and inspiration for his menu, and you can really taste the difference in these burgers. Did I mention you can customize your burger as well? One of our favorite burgers to get here is the Kalbi Burger but with a little kimchi added on. The pickled kimchi and marinated Kalbi patty just go together well. The Asian inspired burgers that Hawk has created are a refreshing twist on the American classic.

Karen's favorites are split between the Kalbi Burger with kimchi and the banh mi inspired Saigon Burger. The jalapeno and cucumber cut thin to give the burger a distinctive crunch like a banh mi sandwich. Hawk confessed he would drive all the way to San Gabriel for a good banh mi.

My vote is also split but between the Kalbi Burger and the LuLu Burger, which comes from da islands brah. The Lulu burger is topped with a grilled pineapple with bacon and a spread of Hawk's secret LuLu sauce.

Kalbi Burger topped with American cheese, standard salad (red onion, tomato, lettuce) with a Korean vinaigrette and Kalbi aioli sauce. Fries were tossed in two different types of sea salt and red wine vinegar.

Whether you are familiar with Korean/Asian flavors or just want to try a fresh, quality burger with a new taste, try a Kalbi Burger and eat it up!

Kalbi Burger
4001 Wilshire Blvd., Unit E
Los Angeles, CA 90010