A BUNCH OF MINI DINING REVIEWS: LAVO, TRATTORIA DEL SOLE, ANTONIO’S, TWIN DRAGON, PANINI GRILL’S PACKAGES, GRANVILLE, BLACK ANGUS, EDGEMAR

It’s been pointed-out to me that I don’t do restaurant reviews as often as my readers and followers would like. That’s because, with forty or more categories in this e-zine, so many other events and topics take precedence these days. But I began my journalism career as a restaurant critic, so sometimes I do feel the need to get back to my roots.

Lately, I’ve been eating out a bit again, and something else has been happening in the food arena for us. And that is—delivery! Where Mr. X and I live, we can’t even get pizza delivered here anymore! And I don’t trust any of the general delivery services, (meaning not from the eatery itself,) because of all the horror stories I see about them on the news and in writing. However, we recently found-out that, as Amazon Prime members, we get free delivery from some places, along with an occasional deal, so, for Mr. X’s sake, who mainly eschews going-out while also desiring good food, I decided to try it from time-to-time.

So now I figure that it’s time to weigh-in on some of my recent dining experiences. I’ll give you just the highlights, (or in more cases than not, lowlights,) on each.

By the way, there’s a newish wrinkle in the world of eateries, even to just pick-up. One old-ish wrinkle is the new-ish practice of forcing us to tip, when we order, no less, which is crazy because we have no idea how good or bad the service is going to be!!! But since we’re getting food, which we can’t see being cooked or packed, most of us feel that we have to tip. And the bigger the tip, the safer our food will be! What a shame.

But the new charge is even more infuriating. It’s a smaller percent for something none of us understands. As one place I frequent puts it, “We have added a 3% Happy and Healthy Surcharge to your bill. This charge is not a gratuity, but rather supports our ability to provide sustainable earnings and benefits for our team. This charge is optional so please let us know if you’d like it removed from your bill.” I encourage everyone to request that it be removed, so maybe we can make it go away. It will make you look like a cheapskate, but that fear is what the owners are counting on.

Okay, here are some dining experiences I’ve had lately, starting with the best, followed by the worst, and then everything in-between.

BEST: LAVO

My friend Marc took me to a beauty business dinner at this very hip and happening place, (which turns into a dance club later on in the evening,) which is located at the intersection of Beverly Hills and West Hollywood. There were about forty of us divided among four tables in a private room, and let me tell you—the service could not have been better!!! There were about eight servers, and to a man, (or woman,) they could not have been more accommodating. I wanted to get a big house and live with them all!

Most of the very expensive food was just okay, but the Verde salad, consisting of cucumber, avocado, marcona almond, and honey-rosemary dressing, was out of this world! I’d go back just for that dish, and to try the very inviting pizza, which was not a part of the extensive event menu that night. As long as the same personnel, (my future roommates,) are working on my return visit.

WORST: TRATTORIA DEL SOLE

I had been to this basic “neighborhood” bistro, (in Sherman Oaks in the Valley,) once before, and remember thinking it was less than meh. But, it was on the Prime list, so, on Mr. X’s birthday a couple of weeks ago, when he was craving pasta but didn’t want to go out to celebrate, I figured I’d give it another chance, thinking that perhaps I had been misremembering their fare.

But no—this time it was even worse! Both of my dishes were so awful that I couldn’t have more than a few bites, and even then, only because I was hungry. My pappardelle bolognese was creepy. The meat sauce was passable, but the thick noodles were just mush. Ugh. And I couldn’t even choke down the Verde salad! It was described as “Organic baby mixed greens, caramelized pecans, goat cheese and balsamic dressing on the side,” but it was basically wilted greens with not even a sprinkling of feta and two—count them, two—pecans! (When even Mr. X mentions that number, you know I’m not exaggerating!) And they charge $15. for it!!!

Mr. X said his penne arrabbiata was “just meh.” And his Caesar salad was “all right,” which is definitely not all right when you’re paying the big bucks for it!!!

SECOND WORST: ANTONIO’S

I actually feel bad about their food being so awful—we really wanted to like it. It was so bad, in fact, that we had to throw the pizza out!!! That’s a first for both of us. We really tried, trust me, but we couldn’t choke it down.

The place has been in Sherman Oaks for sixty-eight years! We’ve often passed their iconic “green boot of Italy” sign when we’re in the Valley, but had never ever had even an iota of a thought to try it. And then it was the first place we ordered from on Prime because the descriptions of the fare were so good. And when I called with questions, the woman on the phone could not have been nicer. She even said that she hopes we love the food that’s delivered, so that we’ll join them to dine-in the next time. I was hoping so, as well. But it will never come to pass.

I couldn’t even eat more than the first bite of the two pastas we ordered, both with different meat sauces. I don’t know who “Monica” is, but she must have weird taste because her eponymous pasta was brutally bad. I’m nauseated just thinking of it!

THIRD WORST: TWIN DRAGON

A friend was taking me out for Chinese food before a show recently, and left it to me to choose the place. We needed somewhere between WLA and DTLA, so outside of Chinatown, we didn’t have many choices. (Yes, I know that I should have chosen someplace in that authentic area, but neither of us was familiar with it, and we had a curtain to make, so we thought better of it. Our bad.)

I should have realized that Twin Dragon wasn’t a good choice by the fact that they don’t know that the word “twin” means that “dragon” should be plural!

This place, in the Pico-Robertson area, has been open since 1962, and let me tell you, it looks like it! We both thought that we had been there once before, many years ago, each with a much older friend, which makes sense.

Some of the food looked downright nauseating, (my friend’s tofu, for instance,) and all of it had very little taste, to boot. It’s actually just about the worst Chinese food I’ve ever had. At least the restaurant is historic.

HONORABLE MENTION, IN A GOOD WAY: PANINI KABOB GRILL’S PERFECT PACKAGING

Mr. X and I have always picked-up meals from the various locations in this chain since before the pandemic! So, clearly we’re fans of their food. Together, we recommend their kabob meals, (he does salmon, I do chicken,) and we both choose the bulgar as a different, more healthful side dish to rice. We also adore all of their salads, but these days, the Caesar is the winner.

However, the reason they’re on my list here is because of…their packaging! It’s beyond perfect! We had a recent delivery from them, (from the Prime deal, of course,) and not only are their trays the keepers of all time, (and recyclable when you accumulate too many,) but they actually sealed their shopping bags! Yes, sealed them! That is the best, so that the delivery drivers cannot be tempted to help themselves, as we see on TV, and read about on Next Door, way too often!

DINELA DEALS:

If you don’t know about it, DineLA is LA’s version of New York’s Restaurant Week, in which twice a year, for two weeks, many eateries offer specially-priced two-or-three-course menus. They’ve gotten less special over the years, but these are three I recommend when it comes around again in January. (As of this latest DineLA, which is over now, this trio all feature three courses for just $25.!)

GRANVILLE

They have a handful of locations all over the city, (actually, the various cities!,) but we continually return to the Studio City branch.

Not only is their food delicious, but they proffer more choices than the norm. And they also include craft sodas, including vanilla cream! Yum.

Most importantly, their ever-changing personnel are always nice. Our latest server, Andrew, was especially pleasant.

BLACK ANGUS

To me, (and my most deal-conscious pal, Marc,) this one is the best value. In addition to the three delish courses, (which include a choice of a costly grilled shrimp or steak entree,) they give you tons of their famous incredible molasses bread. And their desserts, such as yummy cheesecake with a side of strawberry sauce, are full-size.

But be aware of sometimes slow service, which is of the same variety as their bread—molasses! It’s usually normal, but this time around, the waitress was awful. And, after paying us no attention at all the entire time, she charged us triple what the bill should have been! She gave us someone else’s check and then charged our credit card. So keep an eye on your serve there.

EDGEMAR

I had never even heard of this new-ish place in Santa Monica, at the former Edgemar Theatre complex, but there’s a lot to recommend it. Especially for DineLA—the exact meal any other time will be exactly double the price!

The fare is basically American-Japanese, with the only entrees being served in bento boxes! That was a fun new experience for us. (I once had an Afternoon Tea bento box at a special place in New York, but never a lunch or dinner one.)

The two major positives are a delicious chocolate pot de creme dessert, (which I’ve been craving ever since,) and it’s an attractive and interesting place.

But the biggest negative was the male server—he was actually semi-nasty. When even Mr. X says it, you know it’s not just me. The waitress that day was nice enough, but after she began on our table, his surly self took over and made the rest of the meal not fun. (For example, I had to ask multiple times for just some ice for our water, and a new napkin, even after he saw me use mine to clean the table!)

And that’s a wrap for this batch of mini-reviews. It may be a while until my next group because I think I might have to go on a water fast for a month after so much eating in just a few weeks! Whew.