In the first episode of âOff Menu,â host Lucas Kwan Peterson and Jazz Singsanong, longtime proprietor of the Thai Town restaurant Jitlada, head to LAX-C, a vast, warehouse-like grocery store thatâs sometimes known by its informal nickname, Thai Costco.
The two of them go shopping, Jazz educating Lucas on selecting produce and how to pick a high-quality fish to bring home. They then return to the Jitlada kitchen where Jazz shows Lucas how to make a few dishes that arenât on the regular menu.
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Just a few months after opening, Tacos 1986 quickly ascended to become one of L.A.âs most popular taco spots. Run by Victor Delgado and charismatic taquero Jorge Alvarez-Tostado, Tacos 1986 became known for its Tijuana-style tacos de adobada â juicy marinated pork sliced from a rotating trompo and served with a dollop of smooth guacamole.
Lucas follows Victor and Joy to their hometown, Tijuana, to go on a tour of the childhood friendsâ favorite taco spots and learn about the different styles of tacos and tortas just south of the border.
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Lucas visits Orange County chef Shawn Pham, formerly of the restaurants Simbal and Fiona, for some of the best Vietnamese food in the country. Shawn, who grew up in Orange County, takes Lucas to Bien Hen in Westminster for some classic Vietnamese drinking food â razor clams, spotted escargot and an enormous grilled catfish. They also go to Banh Cuon Luu Luyen in Garden Grove, where Delena Ta runs a small family-owned operation that specializes in banh cuon, or Vietnamese rice sheets.
The guys chat about eating and drinking culture in Vietnam, growing up Asian American and appropriation in food, and eventually end up in Seal Beach with Shawnâs family.
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Sushi chef Mori Onodera takes Lucas on an early morning trip to Luxe Seafood in downtown L.A. to show him the ins and outs of selecting a tuna. After that, they head to a pottery studio where Mori shows a different side of his artistic temperament â by making the plates that are used in his restaurant, Inn Ann. Finally, they head to Moriâs restaurant, in the heart of Hollywood, where Mori shows Lucas how to break down a tuna in the way only a master sushi chef can.
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Arjun and Nakul Mahendro and their father, Pawan, tell Lucas the story of Badmaash, their modern Indian restaurant with two locations in L.A. They head to Artesia, a small city on the border of Los Angeles and Orange counties, which has some of the best Indian restaurants in Southern California. They chow down on beloved Indian foods like dosai and idli, as well as slightly more unconventional fare, like chicken tikka pizza.
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For a small restaurant, Mini Kabob packs a powerful punch. The meat specialist has been serving grilled beef and chicken skewers for 33 years from a tiny three-table space just off Central Avenue in Glendale, home to one of the largest Armenian communities in the United States.
Lucas visits the Martirosyan family â Ovakim, Alvard and son Armen â and gets to know one of the most beloved restaurants in the city.
Skid row in the center of downtown has long been emblematic of the serious homelessness crisis in Los Angeles. Lucas explores the foodways of skid row, including two organizations that are attempting to provide healthy food choices, vocational training and a sense of community in one of L.A.'s most neglected communities.
The Los Angeles Community Action Network, operates a rooftop garden and hosts a Thursday marketplace, where local residents can buy produce, get free haircuts and participate in an open mike. Skid Row Coffee, which operates out of the main branch of the Los Angeles Public Library, provides nutritious, affordable food, vocational training and a dignified work environment for those who have struggled with poverty.
Koreatown is more than just another neighborhood â itâs one of the most uniquely urban parts of the city. And for many visitors and Ktownâs 120,000-plus residents, most of whom are Latino or of Korean ancestry, itâs an exciting, frenetically busy slice of Seoul dropped into the middle of L.A., packed with shops, hotels, bars and restaurants serving almost any kind of Korean food you could think to ask for.
In this episode, Lucas welcomes two special guests: Margaret Cho and Matthew Kang. Cho is a celebrated actor and comedian who starred in âAll-American Girl,â the first prime-time sitcom featuring an Asian American family. Kang was the host of âK-Town,â an online series focused on Korean food in L.A.; it ran on Eater Los Angeles, where he has been editor since 2014.
Lucas heads east of Los Angeles to the San Gabriel Valley, a 20-mile-wide swath that is the biggest and best Chinatown on the continent. Whether itâs hot pot or Taiwanese breakfast or northern Chinese dumplings, itâs possible to find almost every kind of regional Chinese cooking in the SGV.
Lucas heads to the restaurant Hui Tou Xiang to chat with David Chan, an amateur historian and Chinese food enthusiast who has eaten at more than 7,500 different Chinese restaurants in his life. Afterward he meets up with some friends and colleagues at Huge Tree Pastry, a Monterey Park staple known for its excellent Taiwanese breakfast. Genevieve Ko, The Timesâ cooking editor, Frank Shyong, a columnist for The Times, and Danny Chau, formerly of the Ringer, sit down and talk about growing up Asian American and how it has shaped their relationship to food.
Finally, Lucas heads to West L.A. to visit Jon Yao at Kato, a modern Taiwanese fine dining restaurant that was recently named the top restaurant on The Timesâ 101 Best Restaurants list. Yao reflects on his childhood growing in Walnut, a small city in the SGV, and how it affected the development of Kato, as well as what lies in store for the future of Chinese cuisine.
Some things immediately come to mind when you think about food in Los Angeles: tacos, sushi and grain bowls, to name a few. But chicken sausage, long a staple in L.A.'s black community, doesnât always receive proper recognition. This piece from Garrett Snyder explores how chicken sausage found its way onto so many L.A. menus, and why it flourished.
During this weekâs episode of âOff Menu,â Food columnist Lucas Kwan Peterson goes to South L.A. to visit two black-owned businesses that focus on chicken sausage, Mamaâs Chicken on Slauson Avenue and Best Buy Meat on Crenshaw Boulevard. At Mamaâs, Lucas talks with Karen Whitman, longtime proprietor who has worked at Mamaâs for 50 years. At Best Buy Meat, owned by father-and-son duo Walter Hart Sr. and Walter Hart Jr., Lucas learns more about the history of their business and how chicken sausage became such a beloved food in the community.
In this special bonus episode of âOff Menu,â Lucas heads to Mexico City to sample some of the cityâs best food. Heâs guided by three food writers and editors: Alonso Ruvalcaba, Claudio Castro and Renata Lira. They lead Lucas on a tour through different neighborhoods in the vibrant capital city, highlighting different dishes along the way.
