The LA Restaurant Scene Hot And Getting Hotter

For anyone visiting Los Angeles this  summer, the emphasis won;t be on the tourist sites but on the restaurant scene. The city is stealing the thunder from the New York restaurant scene with some funky and new eateries in up and coming neighborhoods. They reflect what's best about the Southern California dining scene.

Adam Nagourney wrote about the LA restaurant scene in yesterday's New York Times Food section, the Los Angeles bureau chief for the New York Times. He writes about several diverse ones that reflect the ever churning and  changing scene.  A surprising fact about the city is that none of the restuarants  are Michlin rated. It doesn't and never had the white tablecloth , good crystal vibe of Manhattan's four star gems.It's like  the people themselves - laid back.Jeans and sweat shirts are more prevalent at expensive restaurants than suits and dresses.According to Patric Kuh, the longtime restaurant critic of Los Angeles magazine claims there are few rules for dining in the city. The unlikely becomes real and great. There's a uniqueness that in restaurants that New York doesn't have. This has attracted New York restauranteurs such as Daniel Humm of Eleven Madison Park and the famed Spotted Pig owners, April Bloomfield and Ken Friedman who are already building a place near Gwen on Sunset Boulevard.

The trendier restaurants are not in the heart of the city like other cities. Here's Looking At You is right in the heart of Koreatown.It features trendy dishes such as frog legs and straticella cheese , a change of pace from the usual LA fare. Larchmont, a quiet suburban area has the new restaurant ,Kali, It showcases local ingredients such as avocados and Fiscalini, a Parmesan cheese produced in California. Many restauranteurs and chefs look for low rent places  simply because it's too expensive to own or rent space. Owners of the New York eatery , Glasserie, Sara Kramer and Sarah Hymanson first opened a falafel restaurant in a rejuvenated old food court in the old Grand Central Market in downtown Los Angeles. Their next venture is Kismet, that ' housed in a former pizzeria in the suburb of Loz Feliz. It's on the famed Hollywood Boulevard but in the quiet section.Another plus of a SoCal restaurant is the clemency of the weather. There's farmer's markets galore bursting with tomatoes and mushrooms. Some chefs even grow their veggies and herbs in their own backyards , all year round, something that can't be done in Manhattan,

Will LA ever eclipse NY with good restaurants? No, they'll be on the same par. LA will have the laid back creativity that the city won't have. Is that good? That's up to the diners .

Vegas Dining

Most people will visit Las Vegas this summer - not for the gambling but for the .dining. It seems Sin |City is not known just for The Strip but for its' strips of fine beef along with top quality restaurants and chefs. The question is is Las Vegas dining as good as eating in LA, Chicago or even New York?

This was the question in two articles in todays New York Times Dining section. The respective pieces were written by the great Julian Moskin and newcomer Adam Nagourney. Ms. Moskin covers the new food book that features Vegas restaurants. The eateries form casino hot spots to trendy food trucks are rated by the unholy yet trendy trio of Al Mancini, John Curtis and Max Jacobson, They , especially Mancini have tasted and tried most of the hottest and newest foods trending in Sin City these days. The book is entitled "Eating Las Vegas:The 50 Essential restaurant" It's a must have for anyone who will be visiting the city  this summer.

Mr . Nagourney's article concerns itself with one particular neighborhood restaurant,Blue Ribbon Sushi, that branched itself out to the Strip, He laments that it went a little too Vegas. What used to be a great sushi place wirh reasonable prices went monster once it hit Casino Row, He finds that restauranteurs change their menus as soon as  they go Vegas to attract the high rollers. The food has to be cooked flamboyantly and offer a lot . This is done in order to grab in people who would rather spend their money on roulette wheels or cheesy entertainment venues,A restaurant has to outdo itself in order to survive. However , like anything else that hits Sin City it loses its' soul and integrity.

Las Vegas Dining is a big deal. People visiting there this summer should have at least one great restaurant experience. Howe4ver be warned for those vising branches of their favorite eateries , there's going to be a change  .They'll be big and showy  - much like the city itself.