Monday, November 12, 2007

The rest of the Michelin Guide is out...


Michelin released the first Los Angeles restaurant guide at a Les Deux reception Monday night, although talk of the coveted stars had already made the rounds of local eaterati. Alain Giraud, Michael Cimarusti and Noe's Glen Ishii were among chefs making the scene. The guide helpfully (or hopefully?) includes a subway map, and a quick essay on the history of L.A. eating explains the invention of the California roll and Wolfgang Puck's contribution.
Here's the rather quirky list of where to eat for less than $25: Alcove, Banzai Sushi, Baran, Boss Sushi, Chabuya, Cholada, The Clay Pit, Danube, Empress Pavilion, Hide Sushi, Il Capriccio on Vermont, Ita-Cho (barely!), Javan, Kaizuka, Kiriko, Lares, La Serenata de Garibaldi, La Serenata Gourmet, M Cafe de Chaya, Monte Alban, Nanbankan, Native Foods, Nizam of India, Nyala Ethiopian, Park's Barbecue, Real Food Daily, Saladang Song, Shaherzad, Sushi & Kushi Imai, Sushi House Unico, Sushi Sushi, Taiko, Vivoli Cafe, Yang Chow and Yujean Kang's.
And fear not -- they may not have rated a star, but all the favorites like Blair's, Pizzeria Mozza Lucques and Hatfield's are included in the guide.
Non-Western food isn't the guide's strong suit -- only four Chinese restaurants are included -- Empress Pavilion, Mr Chow, Yang Chow and Yujean Kang's, and the only Thai restaurants are Cholada, Saladang Song and Talesai. But then, we knew that's not what the guide was for -- it's basically an introductory primer to the city for tourists.

1 comment:

rednikki said...

The Clay Pit? Really? I mean, it's decent Indian food, but it's not genius. I can think of five or six Indian restaurants in L.A. that are a little cheaper with food as good or better. Great India Cafe in Studio City has great food and service that is not quite as borderline-abusive as Clay Pit, and Radhika's in Pasadena has even better food and better ambiance, and service that approaches decent.

(On a side note, is there one Indian restaurant in LA that has good service? The quality of the food seems inversely proportional to the quality of the service, most times.)