North Italia

The last day for dineLA was last Friday, the last day to take advantage of it. I looked for something in the Torrance area, and I came across North Italia. I looked at the lunch menu, and it looked good, so I invited my neighbor, and he was game.  Gerd abstained from alcohol that evening. He was a cheap date. I ordered their new Italian Spritz, their take on Aperol.

Gerd chose Chicken Noodle Soup for his first course. I had the Caccio e Pepe Arancini, which I absolutely enjoyed. But before that, I ordered the Crispy Brussels Sprouts as an appetizer, which were delicious. 

For our entrée, Gerd had the Pesto Primavera with pine nuts, and I had the Crushed Meatball Ragu with crispy pancetta and blistered onions over Bucatini pasta. We both enjoyed our dishes. Our server, Chris, was delightful and very attentive. The serving of my pasta was so generous that I ended up eating only half, and I was excited to think I had more to eat the following day.

North Italia has several locations, but the one we dined at was the Del Amo location in Torrance, California.

Crispy House

 MaryAnn wanted us to go to Crispy House so we could have Crispy Pata. For those unfamiliar with this dish, it is a Philippine deep-fried pork leg dish. Think like a colossal pork rind that's super crispy outside and incredibly tender, pull-apart, juicy meat inside. Yes, get your statin ready! 

I visited this restaurant a year or so ago and remembered how wonderful it was, but I haven't returned since it is not close to my house. MaryAnn did not mind the distance and offered to drive, so how can I say no? The restaurant is small, no-nonsense, with little ambiance, but you are there for the food.

We, of course, ordered the star of the show, the Crispy Pata. We had to order something healthy, so I suggested the vegetables cooked in coconut milk, okay, almost healthy. And what is a meal without noodles, so MaryAnn ordered the Pancit Canton. Both dishes were very good. 

We had no problem finishing the pork. We had some pancit leftover and maybe a bit of the veggies. We were quite full. I was worried I wouldn't be able to enjoy my dinner at the Red Onion since my neighbor had invited me, but being the good sport I am, I managed.

Crispy House is located at 11869 Artesia Blvd., Artesia, California. When Sandi returns to California, we shall have lunch there. 

Sushi Roku

I've never been to Sushi Roku, and I noticed it was on the dineLA list. The menu looked good, so my friend MaryAnn and I went. We had a late lunch at 2 pm, since it would be our dinner. 

The menu was set. The first course was Brussels Sprouts Chips with Truffle oil and salt. These were incredible. At that point, the restaurant couldn't do wrong. It almost didn't matter if the Sushi Plate with tuna, yellowtail, salmon, shrimp, albacore, and a choice of baked crab or spicy tuna cut rolls was not good. But, lucky for us, we enjoyed them. 

The lunch came with a glass of wine or sake. Our server, Angel, suggested we try the milky (unfiltered) cold sake, which we did. That complemented our lunch perfectly. Angel, by the way was truly an angel, animated yet professional.

Since this was to be our dinner, I felt we needed something more, and it was nice that MaryAnn was game. We ordered the Tempura Popcorn Shrimp glazed with miso. We inhaled those!

The experience was so good that I could not wait to go back. So, when my friend Carrie wanted to have lunch while dineLA was still on, I asked if she would like to go to Sushi Roku. The answer was affirmative. We picked up her friend Marsha, and off we went. 

Our server this time was Brendan, who was just as delightful as Angel. We all settled on sake, and this time we started with the Miso-Glazed Popcorn Shrimp. It was a hit. Then came the wonderful Brussels Sprouts Chips in Truffle oil. These were addicting and luckily, the portions were generous. MaryAnn and I chose the Spicy Tuna the last time. Brendan suggested the Baked Crab, which did not disappoint. Both Marsha and Carrie gave this a thumbs up!

We were all pleasantly full. There was no need to go to a burger place. Our tummies were very happy!

Brendan informed us that they have a happy hour running from 4:30 pm to 6:00 pm. on weekdays. The rolls and the Brussels Sprouts are discounted. 

Sushi Roku have serveral locations. We went to the one in Manhattan Beach, California. 

Bistro by LeBlanc

My brother Dino introduced us to this rooftop restaurant, which specializes in and is famous for their Triple Chocolate Champorado (chocolate rice porridge). What makes this special is that it is covered with a semi-sweet chocolate dome, and evaporated milk is poured over it as it slowly collapses, revealing the rice porridge. It's quite a show! This is usually paired with something salty; in this case, I ordered the Crispy Danggit, a fish butterflied and filleted, dried till paper-thin, then deep fried. I ordered my favorite drink to go with it, Green Mango juice. 

My nephew's son, Sky, ordered Pancakes, and they came with a flair. When he lifted a round tin off the pancakes, the strawberry cream sauce drizzled slowly onto them. 

We had to try the Bacon Cheese fries, which looked incredible, and they were!

The rest of the gang ordered the typical Filipino breakfast: fish, pork, and more dried fish, all served with Garlic Fried Rice!

I tried everyone's food, which was delicious. I must say that the Champurado took the center stage, and rightfully so, as it was the best champurado I've ever had in my life.

Avra

When Sugar invited me and Zohreh once again to Avra, I got all excited. Zohreh could not join us this time, so it was just me and Sugar.

I would go more often if I didn't have to drive the 405 Freeway. Sugar doesn't mind driving, so it was a real treat to just sit back and relax. People who know me know I hardly get excited over fish. I would rather have a good steak, veal, or pasta.

I was surprised to learn that they still had their prix-fixe lunch for $38 from 11:30-4:00. Our server, Derek, talked us into ordering the Greek Tomatini cocktail. This was vodka, basil, honey, cherry tomato, white balsamic vinegar, and dry vermouth. I practically made him promise we would like it, and he said, "Definitely yes." The drink was so good. Sugar and I enjoyed this drink. I especially loved the strong basil taste.

Before our appetizer choice, they brought a plate of hummus with olives, pita, and something very crunchy, which went well with the pita.

For our first course, Sugar picked the Fish Souvlaki: 2 grilled skewers of Chilean sea bass (that had an extra charge). I opted for the Spanakopita; oven-baked filo, fresh spinach, feta, and leeks. I remember having this before and loving it. After eating the 2 generous portions of these flaky Spanakopita, I was almost full.

Our main entrée was a whole Dorado fish served with Horta (Greek term for edible wild greens usually dressed with olive oil and lemon juice. I ate my entire fish! Sugar took some of hers home. The fish was so delicate and fresh, truly delicious. 

We had several choices for dessert. We opted for the Baklava, but not before asking if they made it in-house. The answer was yes, so we both had it. They were flaky indeed. But I only had one, so I took the other home.

After our meal, the manager Sean came to introduce himself. We praised him for the excellent service we received. By the time we left, the restaurant was packed. I could see why... excellent food and service at a more-than-reasonable price.

Avra is located at 233 N. Beverly Dr. in Beverly Hills, California.

Bettolino Kitchen

I received an email from Bettolino Kitchen regarding a South Bay Restaurant Week, which I was unaware of. It was a prix fixe menu, but it didn't really give you a choice; what they picked looked pretty good to me. My friend Yvonne invited me for lunch. I showed her the menu, and it looked good to her as well. 

Our server brought out their freshly baked bread, served with olive oil and herbs. I always ask for freshly grated Parmesan cheese to top the olive oil. 

We both ordered the special. For $35, we started with the Primi, which was Finnochio: wild arugula, thinly sliced fennel, shaved Parmesan with lemon, extra virgin olive oil. That salad was refreshing. The dressing was delightful.

Secondi was Lasagna Carciofi: handmade lasagna sheets layered with shredded chicken, spinach, artichoke hearts, ricotta, mozzarella, and Parmesan sauce.  We both enjoyed this a lot. It was a generous portion we couldn't finish, which was nice because we could both look forward to more of this delicious dish. I'm hoping they put this on their menu.

Dolce was a Pasta Cake; delicate pasta dough folded with sweet mascarpone, citrus, and vanilla sauce. We were both stuffed, so we had one bite and took it home. 

For your information, this special is only available from November 7th to the 16th. I hope you take advantage of this special, which is such a great deal. 

Bettolino Kitchen is located at 211 Palos Verdes Blvd. in Redondo Beach, California.

Crème de la Crêpe

One thing about this restaurant is that you can always count on good food. This is why I chose it to take Sister Becky for her belated birthday celebration.

Joelle, the owner, was our server. We were all debating which appetizer to order. Sandi and I have never had the Cheese Fondue at this restaurant so we ordered it and it was a hit! Three kinds of cheeses served with pieces of their wonderful French bread and cut apples. This would be the best way for me to eat an apple a day!

Both Sr. Becky and Sr. Janelle asked what I recommended, and I told them they should try the Chicken Dijon, which is the best. Sandi and I love it. I have said in past blogs that I never order chicken at a restaurant because it is just chicken, usually boring. But not here. I was happy they took my recommendation. Sandi ordered the Chicken as well. 

I had a hard time not ordering the chicken. I also love their Beef Bourguignon. I have not had it in a long time, so Beef Bourgunon it was. The meat was tender and pretty satisfying —real comfort food. 

We were all pleasantly full.  The two Sisters loved their chicken and commented on how juicy and tender not to mention flavorful it was. We ordered the chocolate cake which I've heard from our friend, Sugar, was delicious and not sweet.  While we waited for our dessert, the lights in the restaurant went off and there was a siren/alarm that went off. I looked outside to see what was happening.  All of a sudden we heard a recording of the song "Happy Birthday to You"..... and out came Joelle with the birthday cake. We were all surprised and Sister Becky was happy indeed.  She was hesitant to blow the candle as she didn't want to spread germs. We coaxed her into just blowing it and before she could think about it again, Sr. Janelle just blew it off. I guess they both got to make a wish.

Thank you, Joelle for making Sr. Becky's birthday special. 

Crème de la Crêpe has multiple locations. We went to the one in Rolling Hills, California.