Spitz for Lunch Fits!

Beef-Lamb Wrap at Spitz, Los Feliz, Los Angeles

There can be some pretty pretentious places in this neighborhood. Sometimes you just want to grab some good grub and a beer without overpaying for food to sit with a bunch of hipsters. Spitz is "home of the döner kebab" and it's also affordable and delicious. The term döner kebab is way over used on their menu and to save you confusion, it basically means "rotating meat". This refers to the cooking method which is very similar to al pastor. 

They offer beef, lamb, chicken for your döner kebab and have vegetarian options as well - like falafel. You can grab a decent wrap, sandwich, salad or their crazy street fries and get some great beer on draft to help wash it all down. I'm also a big fan of Crispy Garbanzos with Fried Olives (though sometimes they can be over salted).

My only complaint is the decor. I cringe everytime I go there. I'm an artist and I also used to run a street art blog. So their attempt to simulate street art as decor is terrible at best and definitely offensive to my eyes. Thank god the food is good.

Go to Spitz, but eat with your eyes closed! They also have curbside pick up and delivery at some of their locations - Little Tokyo, Studio City, Eagle Rock, Los Feliz.

SPITZ
Neighborhood: Los Feliz
1725 Hillhurst Ave,
Los Angeles, CA 90027

(323) 522-3309

11am - 10pm, Sun, Mon, Tues
11am - 11pm, Wed & Thurs
11am - Midnight, Fri & Sat

Yuca's Burrito Love

Mexican food is at the top of my list and Yuca's is at the top of my Mexican food. I was fortunate enough to be near the original Yuca's yesterday on Hillhurst in Los Feliz while doing a little baby gift shopping. So how could I pass up a carne asada burrito, torta or carne asada anything from Yuca's? I almost always automatically go for the Torta there because it is pretty amazing. This time I went for a carne asada burrito. I am never disappointed. The burritos here are so simple, yet so satisfying. Burritos here, unlike Northern California burritos are made with a combination of four simple ingredients, well five if you include love. Each burrito consists of stewed pinto beans, your choice of meat (ASADA!) and their pico de gallo salsa (to give it a little kick) carefully folded into a flour tortilla. When you unwrap your burrito, there is it is - a perfectly wrapped pack of delicious. Don't forget to ask for a roasted jalapeño if you like spicy heat!

Check out Yuca's if you are in the Los Feliz, Silver Lake or East Hollywood neighborhoods. They have two locations:

Yuca's
Los Feliz

2056 Hillhurst Ave

Los Angeles, CA 90027

(323) 662-1214
The original Yuca's is a tiny taco hut on Hillhurst Ave across from the Albertson's Market. Order at the little window and go next door to the liquor store to pick up a beverage and come back just in time for your name to be called. There is a small outdoor patio for seating.


Yuca's on Hollywood
East Hollywood

4666 Hollywood Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90027
(323) 661-0523
The second Yuca's in located on Hollywood Blvd near Vermont across from Umami Burger. They have more food options on the menu and also have indoor seating as well as a patio.

Yuca's on Hollywood is also a MOGL Partner, so if you pay with a credit card linked to MOGL, you will receive 10% cash back on your order. It totally works, I've already gave it a try! Sign up for MOGL and see participating restaurants here.

Deal of the Day - 50% Off Yuca's

Yuca's is a LA favorite for Mexican food. They have delicious asada and their tortas rock. There is the smaller Yuca's stand on Hillhurst where you will find the owner sitting outside the kitchen taking your order on a paper plate or paper bag. Your order will be served on or in your order tag. There is also the larger Yuca's on Hollywood across from Umami Bruger. It has indoor seating and a patio area.

They both serve great food and you can save today with Groupon. Today's deal is $20 worth of food for ONLY $10 from Yuca's.

Get the deal here on Groupon

Come to Papa's

** UPDATE** JULY 2011 - Papa's Place has had a lot of changes on their menu recently and may becoming something called Community Burger. The food has changed, the people have changes and I no longer recommend Papa's Place as one of my favorite places to eat.

Kilbasa with Fries

One of my favorite places to eat in the Silverlake / Los Feliz neighborhood is Papa's Place. You can get a wonderfully fulfilling meal for under $10. Though it's called Papa's Place, their tag line is "Mom's Cooking" and when you eat there you can see why. The staff is always friendly as they serve up delicious food that is German-Mediterranean inspired. The food takes a little time as it always prepared fresh and made with much love.

Bratwurst with Fries

Burger with Fries

Tasty Skinny Fries

 They offer a wide selection of sausages, burgers, sandwiches, salads and side dishes. Vegetarians shouldn't be intimidated by the enormous wieners, they have plenty of vegetarian offerings.

One of my favorites, the PaPeRa bowl

A taste of Spicy Shrimp Ceviche

The sausages are always good. I tend to go for the spicy ones. One of my favorite dishes there is a PaPeRa. It's a bowl of bread cubes topped with braised beef, yogurt, browned butter and fresh herbs. It's wonderful. 

Orange-Walnut Puff Pastry

Cookies

Leave room for some treats too. Last night we were treated to an Orange-Walnut Puff Pastry, which left me wanting more of it's zesty tang all night.

The kind staff collects can tabs for medical patients.

See more photos of food from Papa's Place on Foodspotting.

Check out Papa's Place on Twitter to find out about daily specials. 

Kids and Cocktails at Casita del Campo!

If you have kids and wanna get them tipsy bring them to Casita del Campo in Silverlake. This kitschy pink mexican restaurant recently ran this ad in the local neighborhood paper the "Los Feliz Ledger". I am very surprised the designer of this ad, nor the editor of the paper picked up on this hilarious read.

Funny ad for Casita del Campo

The ad reads:

Kid's Menu
Happy Hour Special 3pm-7pm Everyday
$2.00 Off Cocktails
$1.00 Off Beer & Wine
$2.00 Off Appetizers

Oh, to be a kid again...

Mas Malo - New Location in Downtown LA

Now my hair stylist won't have to come to Silver Lake for taco night, I can join him downtown. The hip local Silver Lake neighborhood hot spot, Malo, opens their second restaurant downtown this Friday, Mas Malo.

I can't wait to check out this new location. I like their current location with the indoor patio, bar and dining area. The outside of the building is really great with this bold, graphic, black and white zig zag design. They have quite a good logo too. A cute flying goat.

Ground beef pickle taco

Malo is a mexican-inspired "taqueria". It's well know for it's Monday Night $1 Taco Nights which we love to go to for a good local deal. I love that Potato-Chipotle-Cheddar Taco. Oh and the ground beef pickle taco. It's like a cheeseburger and taco at once. They have some tasty side dishes too. The elote (mexican style corn on the cob) and mushrooms are a good bet. Make sure to try the burnt habanero crema salsa - it's a taste sensation.

Mexican style corn

Be warned if you go on taco night (and many other nights) at the Silver Lake location, you will have terrible service. It happens every time. It starts with a bad attitude from the "hostess" - I use this term loosely. It continues with the server. Last time we had the experience of ordering a second round of drinks half-way thru our meal. This round consisted of three bottled Corona's. Literally 20 minutes past. After we were finally able to wave down our waitress, we asked her about our drinks because we were almost done with our meal. She replied "They're still making them". Making bottled Corona's? Wow, that's fresh! I understand they are busy, but the management should compensate and have extra staff to accommodate their clientele.

Malo Restaurant (Silver Lake)

4326 W Sunset Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90029

Opening Friday:

Mas Malo Restaurant (Downtown)

515 W. 7th Street - 1st Floor

Los Angeles, CA 90014

LA Food Truck: Gastrobus

The Gastrobus is one of my favorite food trucks in LA. Anytime I spot the yellow mystery machine, I always check it out. You never know what they are going to be serving that day, but you can always count on it to be fresh and locally sourced from a farmer's market or local food shop like McCall's butcher in Los Feliz where they get their meat.

Today I had the Pumpkin and Green Bean Tempura. It was drizzled with Plum Mustard and served with Ponzu dipping sauce on the side. It was one of the best treats I've had in awhile. I also tried their comforting Spiced Apple Cider.

You can regularly find them Sunday morning's at the Los Feliz Farmer's Market where they have a tapas style brunch menu for "Organic Sundays". Check them out this Wednesday night at McCall's and follow them on Twitter @thegastrobus.

See more from Gastrobus on Foodspotting.