Nick’s Cafe: New to me, but not Los Angeles.
August 30, 2011
This past weekend I wanted to find a new breakfast place in Downtown LA. There’s a gazillion yummy restaurants, but I wanted to find a new dive-perhaps a place I could go every weekend. I was craving The Pantry, but I was little under-the-weather and didn’t want to stand in line. And then….I found Nick’s!
Right past Chinatown, on the way to St. Vincent’s, there’s it was. I must have driven by it a hundred times, and never really noticed it.
Well, It’s been there since 1942. And, according to our lovely waitress, people who frequented the place back then still come in now.
Parking was a breeze. There’s a parking lot. And, on our way in, I noticed two becca pieces, so I knew the place was cool.
Here’s one of the Beccas:
When I got inside, I realized Nick’s would be a perfect location for a movie involving a diner. Just take down the tons of amazing Los Angeles ephemera hanging on the walls, and the diner could be anywhere.
I imagined Bukowski frequenting Nick’s. It seems like his sort of place. The staff seemed to know everyone. The waitresses were super friendly and down-to-earth. They were not actresses. They were professionals. There were so many scrumptious items on the menu that we requested their help picking our breakfast.
This is what we got:
My friend got eggs and corned beef hash with a side of bacon (which was amazing). I got the Scrambled SoCal.
Everything was delicious, fresh and homemade. The only downside–my scrambled egg portion seemed a bit small.
I’ll definitely be returning. I want the wait staff to know my name.
Los Angeles, Portrait of a City #DTLA
January 8, 2010
The other night I came across THIS amazing book at Arclight Hollywood. I always spend a few minutes browsing the gift shop before or after a movie. That little shop has some pretty fun things. When I opened LOS ANGELES, PORTRAIT OF A CITY, I spent half an hour studying the pages. Published by Taschen, ” the multilayered metropolis of Los Angelews is revealed via more than 500 archival and contemporary images in the most comprehensive photographic study of the city to date.“*
A Few Photos From the Book:
These photos don’t really do the book justice. The earliest photos in the book show LA before it was developed. There are some really early photos of Downtown–which are my favorite photos in the book. If you click here, you can leaf through the entire book and see images like this one:
A pictorial history of the City of Angels
“From the first known photograph taken in Los Angeles to its most recent sweeping vistas, this photographic tribute to the City of Angels provides a fascinating journey through the city’s cultural, political, industrial, and sociological history. It traces the city’s development from the 1880s’ real estate boom, through the early days of Hollywood and the urban sprawl of the late 20th century, right up to the present day. With over 500 images, L.A. is shown emerging from a desert wasteland to become a vast palm-studded urban metropolis.” *
Although the book contains tons of old photos of LA, it was just published late last year. This $70 book(slightly less on ebay or Amazon) is a must have coffee table book for the Los Angeles lover.
Grand Star Jazz Club
August 3, 2009
Britney Spears made all the tabloid headlines last night after she showed up at a Jazz Club in Chinatown last night. I love Chinatown. I’ve spent a lot of time there. When I’m in the mood for Chinese food, I usually head to Yang Chow. I’ve been to The Mountain Bar (which was once very cool), and I’ve received really good massages and acupuncture at this herb place right next to the Pet store. One of my favorite parties ever was in Chinatown. For Stuff magazine’s first anniversary, they rented out a huge square in Chinatown. There were people dressed in dragon costumes, women with dim sum carts walking around, an open bar with all kinds of sake and Chinese beer and tons of Chinese decoration. I will never forget that party.
I’ve never been to Grand Star Jazz Club. I want to go, and not because Britney Spears made an appearance last night. I love live Jazz.
From the Grand Star Jazz Club Website:
“The Grand Star Jazz Club Has been in the forefront of serving Los Angeles from the beautiful Chinatown area. Although we pride ourselves with some of the greatest Jazz Los Angeles has to offer . We also embrace Hip Hop, R&B, Rap and Blues we believe all forms of music are great and we offer this trendy and comfortable venue to share all music with you.”
I really love old, authentic jazz. There was this amazing older woman who used to sing at the Spot (my favorite speakeasy that is no more). Maybe she performs at Grand Star now?
From LA Weekly:
“Firecracker, yeah yeah – Frank and Wally and the dearly missed “Mommy” and Yasuko, when she makes it, are the real reasons to go. It was my regular weekend haunt for years…the ghost of Blue Lagoon Bibi attempting to remember all the lyrics to “La vie en rose” still walks the floor to this day…”
You can also read the reviews on YELP.
