Mr. Music's rundown of Sushi restaurants in Southern California

He's back with a series of scratch off notes. If you're a sushi fan, and you're in SoCal, consider the following:

There are so many sushi restaurants in Southern California!! We've tried quite a few, but we have barely scratched the surface. So far our faves are below.  Each has top notch fresh sushi, excellent rolls and delicious hand rolls as well as other yummy items.  The yellow tail and big eye tuna sushi/sashimi at each of these places are indescribably fresh and smooth. 

Boss in Beverly Hills
Best shushito peppers! In a pool of garlicky, soy sauce based yumminess.

Kampai in Long Beach
Super great prices and even better happy hour menu. Best spicy, garlic edamame. Great outside seating area.

Sushi Kinoya in Long Beach
Best owners: Martin & Iris!
Incredible sizzling tuna. Thinly sliced yellow tail sushi laid on a sizzling platter of onions, jalapeno slices and sliced garlic. I'm not usually a fan of heated sushi dishes but this is special and the tuna really doesn't get cooked!

Izaka-ya by Katsu Ya in Manhattan Beach
Best staff! We are friendly with several of the servers like Gabriel, David, Kevin, Ketu, and Phil Lynott's (ed: That would be Thin Lizzy's guitarist...) doppelganger Dylan. We are also friendly with a few of the sushi chefs and managers. The freshly brewed iced tea is so rich and refreshing. We've had avocado rolls, no meat and were blown away by them. The blue crab rolls (cooked blue crab meat in a thin layer of rice tightly wrapped in seaweed.) are fantastic. We love the tuna collar (deal of the day; at $10 a huge portion of cooked tuna in bone. There are some big bones and smaller bones you have to work around, but the reward is lots of tender, tasty fish). We loved the Spanish Mackerel and Black Seabass sushi. Cozy yet lively spot. We've been to this wonderful restaurant 25 times or more in the past few years. On our most recent trip we had something different... Wagyu beef sliders. The meat is so tasty and tender in a luscious bun with optional cheese, lettuce, tomato and onion. We also had steamed cod in miso. it tasted like Chilean seabass. Yes, cod!!

If I had to pick a favorite, it would be Izaka-ya. It has SO MUCH. I think Ms. Music would probably agree but might opt for Sushi Kinoya out of loyalty since she has been friends with Martin & Iris for many years. It's a fantastic place!

All in all, you can't go wrong with any of these great sushi spots.

- Mr. Music review

Las Animas Grill ~ Trinidad, Colorado

First visit: Mar 2021

Mrs. RJG and I were looking for a quick day trip, that allowed for some thriftin', eatin', and drinkin'. What we call TEDing. All these years living in Colorado, plus going back and forth to Texas and New Mexico, our knowledge of Trinidad is pretty much limited to getting gas on the way to and fro. Trinidad is, in fact, the very first place in Colorado I visited. I literally moved to Colorado sight unseen, having taken a new job in Colorado Springs via the phone. This was the end of November, 1993. I stopped at a local Mexican restaurant, which is now long gone. I recall little of the dining experience, only that I caught Trinidad at dusk, and it was strikingly beautiful to my eyes. When I left, it was already dark. My two cats and I completed the journey to Colorado Springs that night - everything pitch black to me. When I woke up the next morning at my new apartment, I looked out my window - and there was Pikes Peak. Can you imagine? I was 29 at the time. The only other visit was back in 1998, when the newly minted Mrs. RJG and I were to meet my parents "half way" in Amarillo. We stopped for a late breakfast, at a place that is also long gone. Every time we journey over Raton Pass, I state that we really need to spend more time there. And so we finally did it. But where to eat? Based on various online reviews, Las Animas Grill lit up large.

Las Animas Grill sits in downtown, in one of the many restored buildings. I believe this one goes back to 1901 (or maybe the 1800s?). Tall ceilings and it's a fairly spacious place with bar seating. Though they advertise craft beers, I wouldn't suggest you go here for that reason. Their tap offerings are mainstream. They do offer a bit more variety with their can selection, but still nothing you can't get elsewhere in Colorado. So we settled on water. Then we proceeded to order. Mrs. RJG was craving a cheeseburger, and so was I. Needed to be cooked well-done dictates Mrs. RJG. It's amazing to us how few restaurants actually listen to that simple request. But Las Animas cooked it to perfection and it was delicious. I added green chiles to mine, which were mild, but flavorful. We had the hand cut fries, which were also excellent. Las Animas is definitely geared more toward the gastropub side of the aisle, and feels chef driven. That comes with a cost, but we felt it was worth it. A wonderful overall experience to start our Trinidad day.

3/27/21 (new entry)

Hadley Fruit Orchards ~ Cabazon, California

When I was a youngster growing up in Southern California, my Dad was the original foodie! He talked about food all day long just like we do! One thing he used to always have on his mind was a date shake from Hadley's! He took us to the desert for the date festival once and we finally got to try that elusive shake! I don't think I really appreciated the shake since I was only about 8 years old; of course what kid doesn't love a sweet milkshake but I don't think I realized the flavor of the dates. But my father left me with a wonderful memory. When we passed it on a recent trip, my eyes lit up! I had to have one!

I didn't order anything else but they serve burgers and sandwiches, fries, onion rings and stuff. Looked good! If you like dates, the date shake is to die for! Dense with bits and pieces of the sugary treat, the shake was rich, creamy and so delicious! I had a medium which was plenty but left me dreaming for more. Ms. Music loved it too!

- Mr. Music review

Kamal Palace ~ Long Beach, California

Kamal Palace has been open and in Long Beach for over 30 years. Highly recommended by my sweetheart and a close friend (Ms. Music), and what a find it is! The menu is fairly large and has most of the staple dishes one would expect to find at a North Indian restaurant. Even several seafood dishes. Everything we've had so far has been delightful. Aloo Gobi (potatoes & cauliflower), saag paneer (seasoned spinach with Indian cheese), mutton curry, tandoori chicken and mutton vindaloo. They serve momos (a Nepalese dumpling) and biryani too (a complex rice dish; usually mutton or chicken with layers of herbs and spices like star anise, curry & bay leaves, clove, cinnamon, chilies and a whole lot more); one of my all time favorite dishes!

The portions are healthy sized too! My favorite dishes here are chicken keema (ground chicken in a spicy masala) and the amazing chicken malai (cubes of chicken swimming in a thick curry masala made with coconut cream and yogurt)! I've never had either of these dishes anywhere before, although I have had mutton keema many times. The chicken is a little lighter with less ghee.

I love that the dishes can be requested with a high degree of spiciness and they are actually spicy; VERY spicy if one desires.. and I desire!!

The naan and garlic naan (complimentary) are very nice! Papadum (crispy, super thin cracker made with is some of the best I've had and also served with all orders with cilantro/mint chutney and lucious apricot chutney. The service is great; Anil and staff are all super friendly. Since my first visit over 3 years ago, Kamal Palace has become one of my favorite restaurants. I've been a dozen or so times. I'd go more if I lived in California!

- Mr. Music review

Mr. Music is Back!!!

Many of you will remember Mr. Music - his photo still graces these pages. Even though the RJG moved from NE Tarrant to Colorado in 2018, we have of course maintained our 33 year relationship. There have been changes in his life as well - primarily there's a new Ms. Music, who lives in the Long Beach area of California. Meanwhile Mr. Music still resides near Denton, Texas. So he commutes to both. His wonderful children are growing up fast, and they will continue to be featured when applicable. We can expect reviews from both areas, plus all points in between, as he often drives the route.

New reviews are coming in - so let's get them posted!