Manuel’s Original El Tepeyac Cafe

Manuel’s Original El Tepeyac Cafe is a small iconic restaurant located in the East. L. A/ Boyle Heights area. Known for their giant burritos, the restaurant gained national attention in 2009 and that has only helped to showcase the authentic Mexican dishes.

Some of the restaurant’s accolades are it was featured on Travel Channel’s  Man vs. Food, named to Travel Channel’s 101 Best Chow downs in America, and was the last stop of native, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, on his campaign for reelection.

A big reason for the restaurants success is its focus on its customers and the community.

My first visit to the restaurant was in college when I visited in the early morning with friends. Manuel, the owner, came over to the table, joked, laughed, and gave us tequila shots(not on the menu). It’s this same attitude that has made the restaurant such a favorite for locals in the area.

During its peak hours the line outside is 10-20 people with a wait of 15-20 minutes to sit inside. Luckily, if you don’t mind sitting outside, there is also a takeout window with ample outdoor seating.  

The Original Hollenbeck burrito is one of the more popular dishes and is huge. It comes with pork, rice, beans & guacamole and topped with chile verde sauce. The chile verde sauce is fried pork chunks in a tomato based sauce with onions and spices. Although it can get messy, the burrito is delicious and the pork is very tasty.

The other standout from this restaurant is their “Manuel’s Special”- A five pound burrito! It can easily feed 4-5 people and comes with a choice of original pork, chicken, shredded beef, veggie, and beef. All burritos come with rice beans & guacamole topped with cheddar cheese or jack cheese & sauce. If you finish the burrito by yourself you get a t-shirt that states, “ I Ate The Whole Thing!”

The food here is authentic and the restaurant has a very casual laid back feel to it.

No alcohol served. Good horchata. 

Service here is generally friendly but rushed because it can get busy at times.  

Must try: Hollenbeck burrito

The bad: during peak hours you must wait outside to get an indoor table. Greasy tortilla chips.

The good: Hollenbeck burrito, horchata, guacamole, takeout window, ample outdoor seating, parking lot

Food: $$1/2

Price:$1/2

Service: $$$

Ambiance:$1/2

Drinks: $$

<a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/5/65270/restaurant/East-Los-Angeles/El-Tepeyac-Cafe-LA"><img alt="El Tepeyac Café on Urbanspoon" src="http://www.urbanspoon.com/b/logo/65270/biglogo.gif" style="border:none;width:104px;height:34px" /></a>

Hole in the Wall Burger Joint Review

An artisan bun on an Angus beef burger can be made many ways. Hole in the Wall burger shows that one of the best ways is done with a medium rare cooked patty and fresh locally grown ingredients. Via their website: Angus beef is never frozen, has no antibiotics or added hormones, use artisan rolls by local bakeries, use locally grown produce, and make all spreads, pickles, ketchup and french fries in house.  

Located in Santa Monica, CA, chef-owner Bill Dertouzos, finds the perfect combination between gourmet and fast food burger.

All patties are cooked medium rare and both the patties and buns are buttered. The restaurant lacks variety of free ingredients but makes up for it with the freshness of the available ones.

 The options for burger patties are; beef, turkey, veggie, and ground chicken. Bread options include: pretzel, whole wheat, old fashioned plain, brioche and burger in a bowl. Extras include ($1 each); apple wood smoked bacon, avocado, fried egg, sautéed mushrooms and sautéed onions.

Sides ($2.99) for the burgers are french fries and sweet potato fries. There is homemade ketchup that is vinegar and spices based. The homemade ranch is made from mayonnaise, buttermilk, dill, parsley, Dijon, onion, lemon juice, sour cream, salt and pepper.

The wait for a burger is 10 minutes and pre order via phone is available. Casual atmosphere, order at the counter with friendly service.

Average atmosphere and drinks

This restaurant’s “build your own burger” philosophy and economically priced burgers ($8.95) make this a must try for anyone on a mission to find the best burger in the city.

Must try: Pretzel bun

The good: Low carb options, juicy burgers, homemade spreads, friendly service, ample seating, generous burger size

The bad: cash only but has onsite ATM, price can creep up fast when adding extras to burger

Food: $$$

Price: $$

Drinks: $$

Service: $$$

Atmosphere: $$

www.holeinthewallburgerjoint.com

2200 Colorado Ave, Santa Monica, CA 90404
(310) 449-0147
<a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/5/1349195/restaurant/LA/Hole-in-the-Wall-Burger-Joint-Santa-Monica"><img alt="Hole in the Wall Burger Joint on Urbanspoon" src="http://www.urbanspoon.com/b/logo/1349195/biglogo.gif" style="border:none;width:104px;height:34px" /></a>

Fernando's Peruvian Bistro

Blink and you might miss the Peruvian bistro that sits in a nondescript shopping center with great food and an amazing green salsa. The small restaurant is located in Downey, CA and you would never know by its appearance of the food that waits inside.

The restaurant sits close to 70 people and there is ample seating on weekends. There are lots of Peruvian paintings along the colored walls along with other forms of Peruvian art. There is live music on weekends that plays mostly old romantic Spanish love songs. Price for dinner ranges from $8-$14 per plate.

Instead of chips and salsa they serve french bread and green salsa. The bread is good and the salsa is excellent. What makes the salsa so great is that it’s not too spicy and has a great taste which makes it perfect for even the abstemious salsa eater.

The menu offers a variety of chicken, steak and seafood dishes.

The chicken empanadas ($3.95) come is sets of two and are very good with the accompanying salsa. The Calamari ($7.95) is excellent and is served with lime and tartar sauce.

The lomo saltado($9.95) is also excellent. Lomo saltado is stir fried strips of sirloin steak covered in a soy/vinegar sauce, with red onions, tomatoes, french fries, serves with a side of white rice. The steak is cooked medium well.  

Bistec a lo Pobre(11.95) is a fried egg served on top of a steak (cooked medium well) with sides of french fries, salad and white rice. The meal is generous in size and also very good.

The drinks are limited to beer and wine. There is one Peruvian beer sold, Cusqueña($3.95).

It’s definitely a diamond in the rough and the best Peruvian food in the city of Downey, CA.

I’ve visited this restaurant twice and my only complaint is that the second time I felt my service could have been much better.

The good: no or short wait to be seated, excellent food, romantic setting, good ambiance, live music on weekends, ample parking

The bad: average service, limited drink selection, located in a shopping mall

Price: $$
Food: $$$ 1/2
Drinks: $$
Ambiance: $$ 1/2
Service: $$

<a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/5/1456280/restaurant/LA/Fernandos-Restaurant-Downey"><img 

Social media and a Generation of underachievers

'I fear the day technology will surpass our human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots.' –Albert Einstein

Social media leads to underachieving in all facets of life. It's ubiquitous influence is found everywhere. 

Do you remember what life was life before social media? Can you remember what life was like before smart phones? These two things, especially when combined, have dramatically impacted our personal social interaction.

We are all susceptible to something that is addicting and we are all creatures of habit (I’m thinking of flappy bird right now). Think about your normal routine and which things distract you. My largest distraction is checking my phone and social media constantly. Not only is it inauspicious but its distracting.(Specifically twitter and instragram tabs open open on my computer at work) There are thousands, maybe even millions, just like me as social media has created a generation of underachievers who are not paying attention to what their supposed to. For the fear that I might grow into some version of a man-child, I am fighting the urge in order to stop the habit.  

How does this impact my life away from social media? I find myself constantly drifting away from normal conversations. Not looking at people in the eyes when talking to them and drifting my attention toward something else (I’m apologizing to my girlfriend right now is she’s reading this).

I think about my day and my life and wonder what I could accomplish if I did actually pay attention to the things I’m supposed to. How much work what I have done at my job? How much more advanced would I be in my education? Would I be a better father? A better son?

I guess these are all what ifs, and you can’t live your life that way (you made your bed now you lie in it). I can only try to change myself and help others do the same. “Be the change you want to see in the world”-Gandhi. If it’s difficult to stop checking your social media try setting time apart to only do that.

It’s not multitasking no matter how many times you utter it to yourself. 

Bud Namu House restaurant review

Bud Namu House is a Korean BBQ restaurant that sits on the corner of 8^th Street and Ardmore Avenue in Koreatown. The two-story restaurant, that seats 150 to 200 people, is one of the better lower priced AYCE Korean BBQ restaurants around. The prices for the AYCE specials are $10.99, $16.99 and $24.99. The meals include a free salad bar, choice of steamed egg or browned rice, and several meat options.What sets this place apart from other economically priced Korean BBQ restaurants is the quality of meat and clean establishment.

On Fridays and Saturdays, it gets busy around 7pm, so prepare to wait 20-30 minutes if you arrive after. Parking is tough to find during peak hours but luckily they have a $2 valet.

The place is modeled in a trendy fashion and the only link to Korea you see is in the waiting area (e.g. small fountain with vegetation, Korean masks along the stairwell, Korean trunk). The first floor seats roughly 70-80 people and is very well ventilated. Upstairs, the more lively room has more TVs and dining space. The self-serve salad bar is only on the second floor and has the same items found at other Korean BBQ restaurants (e.g. kimchi, cooked bean sprouts, Korean salad…etc).

The $10.99 AYCE menu choices are: Beef brisket, prime pork belly, beef belly, skirt mean, beef bulgogi, chicken bulgogi, abomasum, large intestine and pork skin. The two items that stood out the most were the beef brisket and beef bulgogi. Beef brisket is very thin and taste great. The beef bulgogi is stringy meat that is marinated with a mixture of soy sauce, sesame oil and pepper. The prime pork belly was the next best item on the menu and comes in big long juicy strips. The chicken bulgogi was my least favorite item on the , but it was still good. I washed down my meal with hot sake ($11.99) and a Korean beer ($5.99). The drink selection is limited to beer and wine.

My first visit I received a bad seat and a bad server, which nearly ruined my experience. The server seemed to disappear after setting down the initial plates. I found myself waving my hands a few times or having to wait an extended period of time just to get some more water. I have returned several times since and found that my poor service was limited to that one bad server. I was also seated at the table closest to the exit door on the second floor, which made the smoke from the grill fly into my face.

The Good: Good food and below average prices. $2 valet service. Clean establishment. Trendy ambiance. Well ventilated first floor.

The Bad: 30 minute wait during peak hours. Closes at 11pm and last call for food is at 10pm. The self-serve salad bar is only located on the second floor.

Price: $ 1/2
Food: $$ 1/2
Drinks: $$
Ambiance: $$ 1/2
Service: $$

www.budnamubbqla.com

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Family and Baseball

"As long as you live keep smiling because it brightens everybody's day." - Vin Scully

With my arm around my girlfriend we looked at each other while my son, sitting on her lap, stared at the field. I took a picture of my girlfriend as she picked up our son making him laugh and I just thought about how beautiful they were. To this day I cannot imagine a more beautiful moment than that one. We were at a baseball game and the memory is rich in my brain.  

My baseball off season consists of keeping up with the team’s off-season moves and discussing with other fans what the team’s strategy should be for the upcoming year(as if that would help the team). I count the days for spring training so my family and I can catch a glimpse of our team. Baseball season foments an excitement within all of us and I am grateful for what it has given me.

I was probably 5 years old the time the first time my father took me to a baseball game. Although there is much I don’t remember, I do remember getting lost and my parents picking me up from the security desk.  Attending games subsequent years, I always imagined bringing my own kids one day. I would speak of my favorite players and why the team meant so much to the city. Meanwhile we would scarf down hot dogs and I would have a beer(or two). That is why taking my son to his first game was a big deal for me.

My son was not even a year old but I knew he was cheering on the team with his mother and me. We ate hot dogs, peanuts, had beer (not the baby) and really bonded. Family and baseball has always gone hand in hand with me.  

The following season we took our first family road trip to spring training. I drove all night and we finally arrived as the sun was rising up in the distance. It was a beautiful sight and one that I will never forget. The following day we explored the city by doing some sightseeing and enjoying some local eateries. Arriving about an hour before game time, we finally experienced what we had been missing for so long. I still remember the smell of the grass, the bright sun that hovered over us, beautiful weather and a smile on my son’s face like I had never seen. I don’t remember if we won that day, shoot I don’t even remember who we played, but I do remember how I felt.  

I snapped the picture of my son and girlfriend feeling like I had captured the sentiment of the weekend, grace and happiness. Over the next season we would attend several games and have many memorable moments, but for me none more memorable than that one. 

Procrastination

Blog #3 procrastination

I am keen, astute, and keen witted (at times). I have strength within myself that the average person would kill for. I have accomplished so much in my life and yet there is one thing that has always triumphed over me. Procrastination (you little minx) has crossed my path countless times. Even as I write this my heart starts to thump and my hands start to shake at think of the pain that procrastination has caused. The feeling is similar to being chewed up and spit out like old gum.  

Over the past several years it always seems to be the same with me and procrastination. Whether it is writing a college paper, preparing for an interview, or sending an application I find myself busy with procrastination until the last day or two. As far back as I can remember procrastination’s pulchritude has had me in its grips on me and I held out my hand out for a taste of whenever I could.

I met procrastination in high school one day when I decided to spend the day with friends instead of attending classes. After hitting if off there were countless days spent together not going to class and doing other things. We lost touch but found each other again in community college.

I spent 4 years in community college fighting with procrastination mostly because I didn't know what I wanted to do with my life. Finally I had enough; I told procrastination to get the hell out of my life and pointed to the door.  My life was great then.  

I met someone and fell in love. I had a baby and started a family, but when I least suspected it the overtaking Jezebel comes knocking on my door again. Enveloped and overwhelmed by the initial gaze I couldn't help to be taken back to years prior. Looking at the good times and the bad I wanted to slam the door but I couldn't. Stepping into my household procrastination entered my life again.

I laid back and stared at the ceiling one day thinking of procrastination.  Taking the ease off of my problems procrastination made me feel good, but then came the moment that I had feared. A strong feeling of anxiety raced down my spine. Inundated by my thoughts I wondered where the last 6 months had gone. I knew procrastination was bad and I knew I had to get it out of my system. Like a drug, procrastination went into went into my blood one last time.

I awoke the following morning after only a few hours of sleep. Blood shot eyes and a nebulousness to my eye-sight like I had just awoken from a coma. As I stepped outside in the early hours of the morning I went for a walk and saw the sun rise in the distance. I thought to myself this is a moment that I will remember when I am wrinkled and hoary. This was a new day with new opportunities for a new life.