Consume Part I: Food

 

   BEST TEA-TIME FOR CIVILIZED GRANNIES AND TRANNIES La-Tea-Da. Remember going into your grandma’s attic or basement and dressing up in her wacky hats and scarves? Then, you would sit Chatty Cathy and your stuffed animals at a table and have a tea party, pretending that you were grownups talking about very grown-up things. Since grandmas these days tend to run around from yoga class to spiritual-awakening seminar, one might believe that the days of fancy dress-up tea parties are but a dim memory. Not so. La-Tea-Da offers a chance to dress up and have a tea party (and you can still pretend that you are a grownup talking about really grown-up things). First, you select a hat — most are from the ’40s and ’50s, with a pillbox and a floppy or two thrown in. Don’t forget to grab a boa — there’s a fine selection of colors and textures. You find your table among the doily-laden bureaus and antique stoves. The menu is a mite more sophisticated than the pecan sandies and Kool-Aid that you may remember from childhood tea parties. There are incredible finger sandwiches, soups and salads, and more than 70 teas. The perfect finish to a wonderful lunch is the homemade shortbread with chocolate drizzled on top. Reservations recommended. 21 E. Huntington Dr., Arcadia; (818) 446-9988. (Kim Jones)

 

 

 

BEST CHEAP FAST NOODLINGS Mishima.If the movie Tampopo turned you on to finding the perfect Japanese noodle soup, look no further than this affordable, high-quality noodle and rice-bowl shop. The limited menu allows Mishima — owned and operated by a seasoning and noodle company based in Japan — to serve its food cheap and fast. You can choose from hot or cold udon (thick wheat noodles) and soba (thin buckwheat noodles), tempura and an array of combination plates. If you’re in need of a sushi fix, try the chirashi, which has all the makings for do-it-yourself vegetarian sushi (no raw fish available). But remember, while you’re relishing your hot bowl of udon, it’s not polite to slurp it. 8474 W. Third St., (213) 782-0181. 11301 Olympic Blvd., (310) 473-5297. And 21605 S. Western Ave., Suite G, Torrance, (310) 320-2089.(Willy Banta)

 

 

 

NICE THAI Sha Sha Cafe. At the top of Barham Boulevard between the 101 and Forest Lawn Drive, this small, converted house of a restaurant is like an outpost between city and Valley. But it’s more than just your last chance to get Thai food before venturing back into the Middle American (Burbank) or urban (Hollywood) jungles; it’s your chance to get the best Thai food in town. Trust me, I’ve done all the other, more trendy Thai restaurants, like the overpriced chain with the skimpily dressed waitress babes, or the one resting in the shadow of Capitol Records, its menus in the shape of LPs. While Sha Sha is neither skimpily clad nor shadowy, it does offer a curbside view to the parade of Range Rover–driving, cell phone–talking film-biz hipsters as they venture off to make the world a more entertained place (or so they presume). More importantly, Sha Sha’s curry chicken (red, none of that muddy brown stuff) is a furious feast. And its spicy garlic and pepper with (insert your favorite animal flesh here) is an absolute party in your mouth. 3353 Barham Blvd.; (213) 851-5494. (Neal Weiss)

 

   BEST MARINATED EGGPLANT Sunnin Restaurant.At this Lebanese lunch counter with white tiling and Arab soap operas playing on the TV in the corner, you can easily imagine you are in the former Paris of the Middle East, without the internecine warfare. Sunnin is also home to some excellent food and a menu that goes far beyond your run-of-the-mill falafel ’n’ tabouleh joint. Which brings me to the eggplant — or rather, mini-eggplant — pickled with enough garlic to make your hair stand on end . . . or wilt. (It’s addictive.) The Lebanese sausages in lemon glaze are a piquant complement. And there is a cool and sweet dessert called ashta, made of cream studded with bananas and pistachios, to finish off your Levantine feast. 1779 Westwood Blvd., Westwood; (310) 477-2358. (Jedd Birkner)

 

 

 

BEST PLUMP BABIES Las Fuentes. On a busy street in what some consider to be the armpit of the San Fernando Valley is this always-bustling Mexican fast-food restaurant, home to the champion of sweet tamales. Tamales are all about texture, and these plump babies boast moist and slightly chewy corn masa, ample with raisins, sweet pineapple bits and just the right amount of cinnamon. Two tamales and a small side dish make for a perfect-size meal. 18415 Vanowen St., Reseda; (818) 708-3344. (Wendy Weisberg)

 

 

 

BEST HOT WHEELS Salvador Vizcarra’s Taco Truck.Call it hot, call it estilo Jalisco — this taco truck is on fire. Devotees have been flocking to Salvador Vizcarra’s truck on Olympic for 10 years. If you’re looking for a good burn, Vizcarra has the tortas of your dreams. Called tortas ahogadas, they’re thick rolls filled with your choice of meat and chopped onions, topped with diced cabbage and grated cheese, then drenched in a pool of burning red chile. As the sauce runs down your arm, your mouth is ignited. My other favorite dish is tacos pappas, chile-drenched tacos with mashed potatoes stuffed inside, again topped with cabbage and cheese. Who knew heaven was so damn hot? Parked on Olympic Blvd., just east of Soto St.; (213) 721-0740. (Part of Gony’s Catering)(Paul Saucido)