Burgerlords-Closed

Burgerlords
110 N Ave 56
Los Angeles, CA 90042

I went to Burgerlords in Chinatown, and while I wasn't really impressed with the vegan burger.  But, I went to their brand new location in Highland Park to try the pastrami tofu, as written by LA Eater.  But the pastrami tofu wasn't ready to be served to customers.  They said it's still being refined so they can sell it to the public.  So I decided to order the vegan tofu nuggets.

This location used to be the Good Girl Dinette, and Burgerlords opened on Saturday, March 16, 2019. 

 

Vegan tofu nuggets, $4.95.  This was great.  Very well seasoned tofu in a very crunchy batter, fried to a crunchy golden brown.  This was so good.  

Service is good.

I wasn't happy that the tofu pastrami wasn't on the menu, but the vegan tofu nuggets were great!!  I would go back to Burger Lords just for these nuggets!

Mariscos El Faro

Mariscos El Faro
6113-6139 N Figueroa St
Los Angeles, CA 90042
323-359-3814

I found Mariscos El Faro on LA Eater's list of 14 Essential Restaurants in Highland.  Mariscos El Faro not far from Via-Mar Seafood Restaurant.

Known for their fresh seafood ceviche, the truck is on Figueroa Tues-Sunday until about 6pm.  They have some tables set up for you to eat there.

Shrimp Ceviche Tostada-$4.40

Many ceviches I have tried are a bit too tangy for me.  But, this had the perfect balance-not too tangy,  but great flavor, with cucumbers, tomatoes, avocados, cilantro and cut up pieces of shrimp.  A very good example of a shrimp tostada.

Shrimp Taco-$2.75.  This was an interesting version of a shrimp taco.  Much like the shrimp taco from Maricos Jalico, but this example the taco shell was too soggy, they need to fry it for longer.  This was basically the shrimp tostada with a soggy tostada and some cabbage on top.

Service is good.

I would go back to Mariscos El Faro for the ceviche any time!  The two women at the table next to me, ordered the crab ceviche, and not only is it real crab, but there was tons of crab!  That's what I'm getting the next time I go!

Hinterhof-Closed

Hinterhof
4939 York Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90042

Hinterhof  is a vegan German restaurant that opened in January 2019.  They were so popular, that they ran out of food on one of their first days.  Luckily, they have worked out the kinks, and they had food on a raining Thursday night.  I've been to Red Lion Tavern, a German restaurant in Silver Lake.

Hinterhof, which is about half a block from The York, has seating outside in the front and a huge dining room. 

Soft pretzel-$5.  No  salt on the pretzel, but a good chewy texture, decent size.
I would ask for salt next time.

Jaegarschnitzel-$19- housemade schnitzel, creamy mushroom sauce, spatzle and red cabbage!  This was outstanding!!  the schnitzel was made with seitan, and was coated with a perfectly fried batter.  The mushroom sauce was very creamy and balanced.  Spatzle-potato dumplings were covered with the mushroom sauce, but was pretty good.  I didn't touch much of the red cabbage, too vinegary for me.

Service was good.  There were only four people in the restaurant when we got there.  Within 30 minutes, most of the tables were filled.  But, we got good service.  We didn't lack for anything.

I would go back to Hinterhof anytime!

Avocadamama-Closed

Avocadamama
Highland Park Vegan Night

When I had Cena Vegan, I wanted to try Avocadamama too.  But, they weren't set up that night, or at least I didn't see them. 

Avocadamama is vegan pasta, with some great sauces.

Og Mac-$8, original cheese over rigatoni pasta topped with bread crumbs. The rigatoni is a bit thicker and larger than the rigatoni I've eaten before.  But, the sauce is outstanding.  Good flavor and very smooth.  But, the bread crumbs were too much.  The crumbs were very hard and tough to chew.

I would get this next time, without the bread crumbs.

Service is good.

I would go back to Avocadamama to try some of their other vegan pasta dishes.

Cena Vegan

Cena Vegan
Highland Park Vegan Night

Every Tuesday and Friday Nights on York Blvd, between Ave 50 and Ave 51, there are pop up vegan food stands along York.  The line at Cena Vegan is always long, unless you get there early.  The food looked good and I decided to give them a try.

They are set up on the south west corner of York and Ave 51, diagonally across from Town Pizza-which also has a vegan pizza.  The line moves pretty fast, but there is always a line.

3 taco combo- Al pastor, carne adsada, and pollo, $8.  Not sure which was which.  But, one-I think it was the pollo, was very chewy and rubbery.  But, the other two were amazing!  Both full of flavor, great texture, and you don't miss the meat!  The tortilla is freshly made, and held up to the ingredients nicely.

Service is good.  But, in order to speed up the line, they had another worker take orders on their Ipad.  He should tell people, if you're ordering with him, it will be plastic (cards) only.  I was paying cash, ordered from him and he told me he can only take plastic.  He should tell everybody that in the first place.  You can pay cash or plastic at the register/counter. 

I would go back to Cena Vegan anytime. 

Triple Beam Pizza

Triple Beam Pizza
5918 N Figueroa St
Los Angeles, CA 90042
323-545-3534

Triple Beam Pizza is part of the Nancy Silverton restaurant empire.  Silverton started Mozza. It's on the ever changing Figueroa in Highland Park. Triple Beam is a east of Folliero Pizza & Italian Food and south of Maximiliano and Town Pizza, the other contenders for good pizza in Highland Park.

Triple Beam is part of a wine store and a yet to be opened restaurant.  It's very casual, all take out.  The more interesting thing is that pizza is sold by the ounce!  A typical slice of New York pizza is about 4 oz.  You also have the option of getting your pizza Roman style-just straight from the counter or American-the pizza is heated up.

Vegan pizza $7-no cheese, mushrooms,

This was a great pizza, even without any type of cheese.  The mushrooms are piled high and gives a good earthy flavor.  They use good quality mushrooms.  The crush was great, good texture, not soggy or too crispy.  The sauce was flavorful, but not overpowering.

The vegan pizza was worth the $7 price, I'm guessing it's right around the 6 oz with all the mushrooms on top. 

Wild Nettles-fontina cheese, wild nettles. $1.30 per oz.  The crust for this was a bit burnt, but I like the cheese and flavor.  The nettles had a nice flavor and texture.  Maybe a bit like kale, but hard to really describe. 

Service was good.  I got there after they closed, but the door was still open.  The manager gave me the slice of wild nettles on the house.  When I asked if there was any meat on the nettles, he asked if I was vegan or vegetarian, and said he had a vegan slice in the oven.  He sold me the vegan slice.

I would go back to try some other pizzas.  Triple Beam Pizza is a good addition to the pizza scene in Los Angeles!

Fusion Burgers-Closed

Fusion Burgers
5933 York Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90042
323-257-8705

Fusion Burgers is a small burger restaurant across the street from Maximiliano, which is still open.  There are about 10-12 tables and you get a view of the very busy York Blvd. 

Ahi Delight, $12.40.  Tuna patty, avocado spread, tartar sauce, ginger, carrot, pickles, and daikon sprouts.

This was a good burger, but the ginger doesn't work well with this burger.  The ahi was cooked to medium-rare and it was good, fresh tasting.  The avocado spread was nice and creamy.  The veggies were fresh.  But, the ginger just gave it a weird taste.  I would get this again, but without the ginger.

Service was good but off.  Our server was nice and friendly and we got our food quickly.  But, when we arrived there was nobody at the hostess stand and almost every table still had not been cleaned!  What was they doing?  It's a small enough restaurant that they couldn't be understaffed.  I went into the kitchen and a lady said she would be right there.  While we waited for somebody to help us, about 2-3 minutes, a lady having dinner with her kids told us, the service was very slow.  We didn't experience the slow service, but it didn't leave a good first impression when all the empty tables still hadn't been cleared and nobody was there to greet us.

I'm indifferent about going back to Fusion Burger.  The burgers are good, fairly priced, and we got good service.  But, we were the only ones in the restaurant.  If I went back during a busy time, service may not be as good. 

Fidel’s Pizza

Fidel’s Pizza
307 N Ave 50
Los Angeles, CA 90042
323-256-1996

Fidel's Pizza has been serving pizza in Highland Park since 1977.  So, they must be doing something right or there isn't much competition in the area.  Much like Italiano's Pizza, Fidel's is a restaurant built into a house.  There are a few tables in front, but mostly a take out restaurant.

Medium mushrooms and jalapeno pizza, $14.  The crust was good, slightly thicker than thin crust, but held up well to the toppings.  But, the toppings were a disappointment.  The mushrooms are canned!  Big no, no!  The jalapenos were fresh, but they were very stingy with the amount of jalapenos and canned mushrooms.  Jalapenos are relatively cheap, maybe $1/lb, and they maybe put one medium sized jalapeno on the pizza?  The sauce is heavy on the oregano and is about average.  Not impressed with the pizza, because you don't use canned mushrooms!

Service was good. 

I won't go back to Fidel's Pizza, again.  There are too many other options in Highland Park, like Town Pizza, even Italiano's Pizza is better!

Italiano's Pizza

Italiano’s Pizza
6500 N Figueroa St
Los Angeles
323-255-0016

When I reviewed Town Pizza a few weeks ago, I was reminded that I have not reviewed Italiano's Pizza.  Town Pizza took over the old Italiano's location on York Blvd. in Highland Park.  But, their location on Figueroa is still open. 

 Italiano's is basically built onto a house.  The kitchen is the back part of a house and the dining area is the patio, where there are about 8 tables!  The dining area needs a good cleaning!   Not an appealing place to walk into.

But, the kitchen area is clean.

Medium mushrooms and jalapenos, $12.53.  The crust is nice and firm, holding the topping very well.  It maybe a bit dry, but I like the firmness, nothing worse than your toppings falling off the pizza because the crust fell apart.  The sauce is a very mild sauce and there is plenty of it.  The cheese is also plentiful.  The jalapenos were plentiful, but the mushrooms were a bit lacking.  But, both were fresh.  They also have a 28in pizza that is just huge!  Once, I saw the delivery driver put four of the 28in pizza in his car! 

Service is good.  The lady taking my order was nice and helpful.

Despite the dirty dining area, I like Italiano's Pizza.  Is it the best pizza in Highland Park?  No.  But, it is a good value and will satisfy your pizza craving. 

Town Pizza-Closed

Town Pizza
5101 York Blvd
Los Angeles
323-344-8696

Town Pizza is a very popular pizza restaurant in Highland Park, that has been open for about a year now.  It's mainly a take-out location, though there are a few tables outside and a counter inside.  Soon, they will open their dining area.  When they first opened they only served slices.  Recently, they added whole pies, medium and large sizes, to their menu.  They do not have air conditioning, so during the summer it is hot in there!

As you can see from the above photo, it used to be Italiano's Pizza, a long time Highland Park pizza restaurant, they still have their other restaurant on Figueroa.  Town took over and painted the building red, but left the Italiano sign!  Maybe when the dining area opens, they will change the sign?

I ordered two cheese slices, $2.75 each.  The crust is usually very good, light and flaky, but anytime you order slices, you're at the mercy of how they the pie has been sitting on the counter.  The slices pictured above, I can tell that pie had been there for a long time.  The crust was too crispy.  But, the sauce is very good-light and balanced; no flavor overpowers one another, and there is a good amount of cheese.  Now, I've only had cheese slices here, but I noticed they used canned tomatoes and corn.  You can see their stockroom and they have their cans stored on a special rack.  That may bother some people.  Overall, these two slices weren't as good as other slices I've had before.  But, I like Town Pizza and now that they serve whole pies, I'll order a fresh baked pie and give an updated review.

Service is good.  I was greeted when I walked in, they were nice and friendly, and I got my slices quickly.

I'm a Town Pizza fan and I think it's much better than Maximiliano and Folliero Pizza & Italian Food, the other two Highland Park pizza restaurants I've reviewed.

Update July 11, 2016

Large fresh jalapeno and fresh mushroom, $17 plus $2 per topping.

So finally, Town Pizza has started serving whole pies!  They also opened their dining area.  I was looking forward to getting a whole pie, so on a very hot and humid summer night, I went back to Town Pizza.

If you noticed I put fresh jalapeno and fresh mushrooms.  Town Pizza has pickled jalapeno and a garlic sauteed mushroom.  The pizza is very good- good crust, good cheese, fresh topping-though they could put a bit more on the pizza.  But, something was missing.  It wasn't as great as their slices.  Maybe I've had such good pizza in the past few months because of the five places I tried on  LA Eater's 16 places to get a killer slice of pizza in Los Angele, Pie Life Pizza in Pasadena, Pizzanista, Pellicola, Joe's Pizza and Prime Pizza, that I'm judging pizza differently.

 Service was good.

I will give Town Pizza another chance. But, I was disappointed with their pizza, the first time I ordered a whole pie.  

Via-Mar Seafood Restaurant

Via-Mar Seafood Restaurant
5111 N Figueroa St
Los Angeles
323-255-4929

So, Valentina Silva's blog, Eastside Food Bites, is a new found resource for restaurants I want to try, especially in areas like Highland Park, Silver Lake, Los Feliz, and Echo Park!  She reviewed three fish tacos restaurants; two of which I have already tried; Tacos Baja Ensenada and Ricky's Fish Taco, which is a stand, not a restaurant, but Via-Mar Seafood I haven't tried, yet. Valentina actually did another review of Via-Mar Seafood, for their other seafood items.

Via-Mar Seafood Restaurant is a small restaurant, with only outdoor seating.  It's on the very busy Figueroa St., and you maybe asked to buy candy or give spare change by some of the people walking along the street.

Every Monday is 2 for 1 shrimp tacos in a fried shell.  Tuesday, it's 2 for 1 shrimp tacos, regular price is $3.38.  Every Wednesday is 2 for 1 fried fish tacos, $2.25.  They have grilled taco, but I'm not interested in ordering that.

Shrimp taco, $3.38, deep fried shrimp with cabbage, tomatoes, crema and sauce.  Since I went on Tues., I got the 2 for 1 deal.  These shrimp tacos were huge!!  The batter is very light and crispy.  But, the shrimp was tough and chewy.  Leads me to believe the shrimp was either frozen or it wasn't very fresh.  There is too much cabbage for my tastes, but the tomatoes were fresh.  The sauce was kinda of just there, didn't add much flavor.

Fish taco, $2.47.  Deep fried basa fish with cabbage, tomatoes, crema and sauce.  The batter for the fish was the same as the shrimp.  But, the fish was much fresher and tastier.  This is a big portion of fish.  Again too much cabbage and the same bland sauce.   There is the perfect amount of crema.

The first time I went was for the Tuesday special, then went back on Thursday.  Both times the service was friendly and quick.

I liked the fish taco better than the shrimp tacos here.  But,  I wouldn't rush back here.

Monte 52-Closed

Monte 52
5200 Monte Vista St
Los Angeles
818-626-0822

There are many sources I use to find out about restaurants.  I was reading a story in the Eastsider LA and noticed another story about a hidden gem sandwich place in Highland Park called Monte 52,  which is located inside La Tropicana Market. 

Cuban, $6, roasted pork, cucumbers, cheese, mayo, mustard.

I thought this sandwich was a bit dry and needed more mustard and mayo.  But, the roasted pork was well cooked and seasoned.  The thing about a Cuban sandwich is the variety of flavors, from the pork to the tangy pickles, and the mustard.  This sandwich had most of it, but needed more mustard.

Italian, $6, ham, capicola and provolone, lettuce, tomato, with spicy giardiniera and chimichurri sauce.  WOW, what a great sandwich. I usually get mayo on my Italian sandwiches, because I hate the vinegar and oil most places put on the sandwiches.  But, I figured I would try the giardinierra and chimichurri and wow,  they were great.  They added a bold and spicy flavor to this sandwich!  The veggies were fresh.   The meats were piled high and the bread was toasted perfectly. 

Service is good.  The guy, who I believe is the owner, was nice and friendly.  Though, he should have suggested a side item, when ordered with a sandwich $1, or ala carte $3.  The pasta and potato salad looked pretty good in the display case.

I would go back to Monte 52 anytime for the Italian sandwich, what a great sandwich!

Huarache Azteca Restaurante

Huarache Azteca Restaurante
5225 York Blvd
Los Angeles
(323) 478-9572 

Huarache Azteca Restaurante is between two restaurant that I already reviewed,  west of Maximiliano  and east of The York.  Even though I've passed by  Huarache Azteca, I never noticed it.

A good sized restaurant with seating in the front and back, Huarache Azteca,  specializes in the huarache, a fried masa dough, topped with red sauce, cilantro, queso fresco cheese and any meat.  This was the first time I've had huarache and I was really looking forward to it.

Grande huarache, $4.99 with chicken.  Wow was this good!!  The huarache was nicely fried and crisphy.  But, most important, it held up to all the toppings.  The red sauce was flavorful but not spicy at all.  The chicken was grilled perfect with lots of flavor.  The queso fresco cheese really added a cool taste to the dish.  There was too much cilantro for my tastes, but overall what a great dish.

Service is friendly but below average.   When I walked in, there was a line, so I figured out that's where I had to order.  But, there were menus on the tables, so people maybe confused on their system.  But, remember to order at the cashier.  We then sat down, but my order took forever!  Not sure why.  People at our table who ordered after me, got their food much quicker than I did.  After eating, you go back to the cashier and pay.  They need to fix this weird and confusing system.  If I didn't see the line, I would have sat down at an open table.

I was very impressed with the huarache at Huarache Azteca Restaurante and would love to go back again.  But, the service leaves a lot to be desired, so I won't rush back.

The York

The York
5018 York Blvd
Los Angeles
323-255-9675

Just a few blocks west of Maximiliano, is The York a gastropub on, suprise, York Blvd.  There is no signage on the back of the sign in the picture above.  So, if you're heading east on York Blvd, you won't see the sign for The York. 

The York is a large and wide bar.  It was pretty full the night we went and it was only about 7pm.  The only menus are written on chalk board and hanging on the east and west walls of the building.  Interesting!  The other interesting thing is that all orders are taken at the bar!!  There are no servers, just a young woman you brings your food to your table.  If you didn't know about this policy, you would be sitting at a table for a long time.  When you place your order you are given a number and when I saw the numbers, I kinda of figured out we needed to order at the bar.

Beer battered fish and chips; $15.  I was told this fish used is cod, but tasted more like tilapia.  The batter was light and crispy as every beer batter should be.  The fish was fresh and flavor, but I don't think it was cod.  But, the fish was luke warm at best and very greasy.  It had clearly been sitting under heat lamps for too long.  I knew something was up when about five minutes after placing my order, the fish and chips arrived.

The chips or fries were pretty good but again lukewarm and not cooked to order. Not worth the $15 price at all.

Sriracha and honey wings, $10.  I would be the ratio fo sriracha to honey is 40% to 60% because this was just too sweet.  There was no heat from the srircha.  The wings themselves were huge and had a lot of meat.  But, like the fish and chips, the wings were lukewarm.  Doesn't The York believe in cooking items to order?

Service is good.  But, you need to know their system.  The bartender was nice and helpful. 

The York maybe a nice place to hang out with your friends, but the execution of the food is lacking.  Come on cook the items to order, so they are hot.  I won't be coming back to The York for the food, anytime soon.

Maximiliano-Closed

Maximiliano
5930 York Blvd
Los Angeles
323-739-6125

Maximiliano has been on my list of places to try for about a year now.  Maximiliano is owned by the same owner of The Oinkster, which I went to back in 2009.  Located in Highland Park, on the very busy York Blvd, Maximiliano is in a triangular building.  The dining room has a good size bar, along the walls are tables, that are for reservations, and in the middle of the room is a community table.  We didn't make reservations so we sat at the community table.  Luckily the community table wasn't too crowded.

Caesar salad, $7, grated reggiano.  Ok, really?  I know Maximiliano is catering to the hipsters and all, but $7 for a caesar salad that was average quality?  The lettuce was very fresh, the small amount of croutons were good, and caesar dressing was home made, but so what?  A complete rip off at $7.

Deluxe pizza, $15, tomato sauce, fennel sausage, pepperoni, peppers, crimini mushrooms, red onions and mozzarella.  The quality of the toppings is very good.  The fennel sausage and pepperoni were really good., not your run of the mill meats.  The sauce, which there was plenty of, was sweet and balanced.  But the crust was terrible.  I mean a soda cracker like crust?  This isn't what I expected for a 9 in pizza that cost $15.  The crust ruin this pizza for me.

Service was good.  Our server was nice, friendly, and helpful.  But, the noise level is unbearable here.  It was hard to talk to the person across the table from me!

I'm glad I waited so long to try Maximiliano, and now that I've tried it, I wonder why it even got on my list.  I've been underwhelmed with the pizza choices in Highland Park, after eating at Maximiliano and Folliero's Pizza & Italian Food.  Hell, at least at Folliero's the price for the pizza is reasonable.  I would not go back to either restaurant.

Folliero's Pizza & Italian Food

Folliero Pizza & Italian Food
5566 N Figueroa St
Los Angeles
323-254-0505

Highland Park is an area of Los Angeles that I usually don't explore much. I don't have any friends who live in the area and it's a bit of a pain to get to. But, I did find out about Folliero's Pizza & Italian Food and decided to finally do a review of a restaurant in Highland Park.

Highland Park has undergone a huge gentrification in recent years. Some idiot racist people are put off because Highland Park is now mostly Latino and you see many Latino restaurants and markets opening in the area. But, I wanted pizza and Folliero's seemed like a good place to try.

Folliero's is on Figueroa, so parking is a bit tough, and it's tough to see their signage. But, it's a dimly lit, galley like restaurant, that was very busy the night I went.


I ordered 10 in. sausage pizza, $6.79. The pizza was huge for a 10 in, but the amount of sausage was limited. The sausage was good, with a strong pepper flavor. It was fresh, not frozen, premade sausage. But, the thing that concerned me was how the fresh raw sausage was stored. It was on a counter with no refrigeration. How did I know? From the front window you can see the cooks preparing the pizza. The table had the veggies and the sausage in separate containers on the top of the counter, but they weren't in any type of refrigerated space or on top of ice. It was just sitting on the counter. Luckily nothing happened, but I'm not willing to take chances of getting food poisoning.

The crust on the pizza was pretty good, a nice crisp on the outside, and chewy on the inside texture. The cheese was pretty good but a bit greasy. Overall the pizza was very good.

What wasn't good was the service. I wasn't greeted when I got to the cashier, he wasn't helpful, he wasn't welcoming. They really need to teach their workers customer service at Folliero's! Greet the customer, be friendly, be helpful.

One other thing, I'm starting to hate the fact that many restaurants are CASH ONLY. Look, I know it was only about $7 for my pizza and I had the cash. But, sometimes you just don't carry cash and have to use plastic. There is a bank across Figueroa and down a few doors from Folliero's, so at least you don't have to go far to get cash.

There are better pizza places in LA, and hell even the chain pizza restaurants provide better service. So, there is no reason for me to come back to Folliero's.