Any LA Pelicans wanna grab some beer Sunday?

[Rick Lee]

I'm coming to LA. I have some meetings on Monday and it looks like I'm gonna make a weekend out of it so my wife can visit one of her Chinese friends there (Nostatic, she's a single MILF). I'm leaning toward staying in Santa Monica or West LA. Nostatic says he's in. Anyone else wanna grab some beers Sunday late afternoon or evening?

[Porsche-O-Phile]

C'mon down for the Grand Prix.

[nostatic]

I'm in and will gladly talk to all single milfs. It'll be soda instead of beer for though as I'll be on the bike.

The forecast for the weekend looks chilly (low 60's - brrrr! - today was in the 80's) so the outdoor patio scene might not be the hot ticket.

[Rick Lee]

What, when and where is the GP? Todd, if you want to join us for dim sum, we're doing it Sunday late morning. The MILF is a Guangzhou'er, so I trust she knows the serious dim sum places. Looks like we'll be coming in Sat. night now.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

http://www.gplb.com/



Check out the Porsche RS Spyders racing. Cooler'n hell.

About 2 blocks from my front door.

[speeder]

Post the time and place here and I'll try to make it. Sundays are usually pretty easy, always fun to meet Pelicans.

[KaptKaos]

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

What, when and where is the GP? Todd, if you want to join us for dim sum, we're doing it Sunday late morning. The MILF is a Guangzhou'er, so I trust she knows the serious dim sum places. Looks like we'll be coming in Sat. night now.

Monterrey Park for dim sum. Stay away from the chicken feet.

[Rick Lee]

Actually, my wife's friend lives in Monterrey Park. I won't touch chicken feet, but the Chicoms eat them like candy. Now, where the hell to stay? Is Monterrey Park ok for hotels with minimal random gunfire?

[speeder]

Monterey Park is OK and perfectly safe, it is ~100% Asian which is kind of interesting. L.A. is such a vast melting pot, with HUGE communities of each and every immigrant group in America. Monterey Park is mostly Chinese, but we also have a huge Koreatown, (where I live), OC has little Saigon+ big Cambodian community, great Tai-town in Hollywood, etc...

And that is just the Asian communities. We have a medium-sized city worth of Russians, the most Armenians in the U.S., Brits everywhere, and on and on... We have a few Mexicans as well. It's what I love about the place, besides the weather and all of the great trim walking around everywhere. That and the comedy clubs. And the great driving and MC riding. Almost forgot the beach. And the desert. Camping in all imaginable conditions. Did I mention the climate? Yeah, it rocks...

The one thing to consider is that you want to stay near where you are going to be hanging-out in L.A. The distances can be considerable and you don't want long unnecessary drives.

[nostatic]

don't expect the Ritz (that's in Pasadena). There are motels and whatnot but Monterey Park is kind of a faceless "town" within LA (although it has probably the largest Chinese population concentration in the city. If you're going to do the San Gabriel Valley, I'd look at Pasadena. Fairly short trip to downtown (although traffic isn't great in the morning commute) and you can also get to Sherman Oaks via a straight shot on freeways (but it'll likely be slow and go depending on the time). It is a ways to LAX though...in that case better to fly into Burbank, and your friend coming from SD will have to come up the 5 instead of 405.

[911pcars]

Rick,
The options for good Chinese food in Pasadena are relatively slim compared to Monterey Park and Alhambra. However, Old Town (Pasadena) is a good place to hang out, shop, eat (lots of franchise fooderies) and watch people.

There are some newly built hotels in MP (Hilton?); maybe one near the giant mall on Valley near New Ave. She probably has more info about that than I.

I'd join all you guys (12 so far?) and the gf, but I have other commitments on Sunday. However, I'll be at the LB Gran Prix tomorrow (Friday). Look for me.

Sherwood

[speeder]

I have a question for Sherwood, (or anyone else who wants to comment), best restaurant in Chinatown? Second best?

[look 171]

There isn't any parking in China Town and the meter maid work extra hard around the area. Why China Town if you want Chinese food? When we are hard up for Chinese, we get out to the Alhambra or Monterey Pk. 15-20 minutes between MK and CT. Not that parking is anything to write home about, but far better then China town.

Rick, I stay up in Pasadena. Near old town. More to do up there. Plus, its only 15 minutes to Monterey park. I make that commute at least once a week.

Jeff

[911pcars]

Originally Posted by speeder

I have a question for Sherwood, (or anyone else who wants to comment), best restaurant in Chinatown? Second best?

Denis,
I favor the smaller mom and pop restaurants in CT more than the cavernous ones that hold 400. I frequent these the most: Hop Li on Alpine and Yale St. and Zen Mei across the street. Good food, reasonable prices. Check out the newly constructed temple around the corner and the contemporary art galleries on Chung King Rd.; 1.5 blocks away. www.chinatownla.com

Parking is not unlike places with lots of restaurants, but there are plenty of commercial lots to park your ride. Hop Li has their own across the street. Restaurant parking in MP and Alhambra can be crazy, but there are 100's of restaurants to choose from. Rick's friend from MP will have her favorites.

More upscale in CT would be Ocean Star (in the Far East Plaza) and Empress Pavilion on the north end by the Hill St. frwy offramp (Bamboo Plaza); many more I haven't tried recently. EP has a new owner so I can't personally vouch for the current cuisine. However, for dimsum, EP has a waiting line starting at 10am. That might tell you something. Same with NBC (or is it CBS?) Restaurant on Spring and Ord St.; 1 block from the Gold Line station.

As they say in CT, bon appetit,
Sherwood

[nostatic]

EP is fairly classic for dim sum but there are better places in MP. We used to go to NBC Seafood. There is an authentic Sichuan place that I've been to a couple of time (I think on San Gabriel Bl) and an amazing Vietnamese place that specializes in fried whole fish. One of the best meals I've ever had. I'll try and get some recommendations.

[jriera]

Rick, check this hotel --> http://www1.hilton.com/en_US/hi/hotel/LAXSGHF-Hilton-Los-Angeles-San-Gabriel-California/index.do

don't ask me how do I know about it ....

[Rick Lee]

Thanks Jordi. We got a dive in Pasadena though. BTW, I'll definitely be in Vegas a few times a year, so will let you know. Ok, LA Pelicans, who wants to drink, when and where? We're leaving Phoenix around midday tomorrow and headed to LA. Sat. and/or Sun. nights are fine, or dim sum Sunday late morning. Monday is all business.

[Noah930]

Originally Posted by speeder

I have a question for Sherwood, (or anyone else who wants to comment), best restaurant in Chinatown? Second best?

Chinatown has certainly changed since I was a kid and spent almost every weekend there (it seemed). Now, the only place I really frequent is Empress. All the other restaurants I grew up with are gone, or have changed ownership so many times, they're not the same.

For the westside (Hollywood?), I'd have to give a vote for Fu's Palace, by Robertson and Olympic (or is it Pico?).

[speeder]

Thanks for the restaurant info, guys. So what's the latest on a Pelican gathering?

[Rick Lee]

Denis, I talked with Nostatic last night. Plan is for me to call him again this afternoon and make a plan. He mentioned you, so you guys might want to connect. I'm staying in Pasadena, but can drive anywhere and have a GPS. I'll have limited access to Internet after I head out in a few. So either call Todd or my cell, (703) 298-1628 or text my Blackberry at (202) 340-8626. The more the merrier.