Tiny Urban Kitchen

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Southern California Favorites

May 14, 2009 by Jennifer Che 2 Comments

A friend of mine is going to California for a wedding and asked me for food recommendations in Southern California. We go to California at least once a year since Bryan is a native Californian. However, most of our eating is centered in Orange County, since that is where his family lives.I don’t claim to be anywhere close to an expert on Southern California’s best eats. However, I would like to share with you some of our favorite places. I can attest that these places are excellent. Peking Restaurant
8566 Westminster Blvd
Westminster, CA
6794309178_503638c31d_z.jpg
Excellent Northern style Chinese food – I would definitely order the homemade noodles, the niu ro jia bing (beef slices rolled in a scallion pancake with hoisin sauce and cilantro – incredible! — see picture above), pan fried dumplings, and boiled dumplings. It’s cheap, delicious, and totally authentic. Be prepared to wait if you go on a weekend during lunch.Ding Tai Fung
1108 South Baldwin Avenue
Arcadia,California
91007
4229972504_aaa237af31_o.jpg
If you read this blog, you probably know that this is one of my all time favorite restaurants. Even though it’s a 45 minute drive from Bryan’s home, we drive there almost every time we are in California. My favorites are the vegetable pork dumplings and the soup dumplings. Be prepared to wait no matter when you go. The last time we went, they had expanded and had taken over another space within walking distance of the original restaurant. We went to this other space and didn’t have to wait.

Sushi Gen

422 E 2nd St (Little Tokyo)
Los Angeles, CA
I actually have not been to this restaurant in Little Tokyo, but it’s widely regarded as one of the best and freshest sushi places for a reasonable price. My mom told me that all the Taiwanese people know about this place. I definitely want to try it the next time I go to LA!

In & Out
All over Southern California
This hamburger place is classic – with everything made from scratch and to order. Order off the “sceret” menu by asking for a “two by two” burger (2 patties / 2 buns) and “animal style” (with grilled onions and special sauce). I really love the burgers here, and the prices are cheap too.

Tea Station

_1000788

11688 South St #101
Artesia, CA 90701

(562) 860-7089


This tea shop totally reminds me of Taiwan. Not only does it serve excellent tea (Ten Ren brand plus many others), it serves a host of Taiwanese late night eats, such as noodle soups, tea eggs, popcorn chicken, tofu, and Taiwanese sausages. The ambiance is relaxed, friendly, and nice. When we were in California, we came here almost every night to sip tea, enjoy snacks, and play board games.

Happy Nest (Formerly Little Bean)

18902 Norwalk Blvd
Artesia, CA 90701

(562) 860-8843

This is also another fun Taiwanese place that serves shaved ice, boba tea, and Taiwanese snacks, similar to Tea Station. The store is brightly lit with fluorescent lights. I have not been here too many times, so unfortunately I can’t comment as extensively on the menu. Everything I’ve had there has been good, and it appears to get excellent reviews on various food sites.

Above I’ve listed our favorite haunts. We’ve tried other restaurants only once, such as celebrity chef Tom Colicchio’s Craft or various other ethnic restaurants (e.g., Peruvian, Italian, Szechuan, and Japanese places). However, we are really not that familiar with the LA foodie scene. I would welcome other suggestions for great places to eat so I can try them the next time we are out there!

©2009-2014 Tiny Urban Kitchen
All Rights Reserved

Filed Under: California, Restaurant, US Travel Tagged With: burgers, drinks, dumplings

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Comments

  1. changed says

    May 15, 2009 at 6:41 pm

    What about the corn dogs and turkey legs at Disneyland?

    Log in to Reply
  2. Amy says

    October 19, 2011 at 9:45 pm

    sadly, ding tai fung is really not what it used to be… 🙁
    next time you’re in LA, i definitely recommend trying “JJ Noodle House” in rowland heights. my parents’ friend actually knows the owners and the couple actually use to work for one of the top hotels in shanghai. they make everything from scratch traditional style…it’s SOOO GOOD (much better than ding tai fung). 

    -native socal girl 🙂

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Welcome to Tiny Urban Kitchen!

JenChe

Hi, my name's Jen and welcome to my cooking, eating, and travel site! I am a Boston to Hong Kong transplant, born and raised in Ohio with parents from Taiwan. Feel free to head on over to the About page if you want to learn more about me, or just explore away, maybe starting with the Recipe Index or one of the travel pages! I hope you enjoy this site!
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