This is a great restaurant to go to for fine dining. You can treat yourself to authentic Brazilian food and they have a buffet for people like me who have a hard time making up their minds what they want to eat. They’re tech savvy as well. You can make a reservation online and even view a video of their restaurant and get a snake peek at the food cooking in the kitchen.

Porto Alegre Churrascaria is a Brazilian steakhouse, but they also have a fantastic salad bar. Beef, steak, chicken, pork, quail, turkey, lamb, and duck are just some of the meats on offer. Prices are a bit steep, but the quality more than makes up for it. If you’re on a budget, go online and look at their exclusive offers. Never hurts to save money. They have a great ambience going that will make you reluctant to leave. You’ll fall in love with the décor the moment you step in the door.

The salad bar deserves a rave of its own. Gotta try the salmon. It’ll melt in your mouth. There are heaps of choices and with four rows full of salad goodies, you’ll definitely find something you like. The asparagus is sweet, there are clams, calamari and other seafood, as well as the unexpected, such as fried bananas. It’s $35 a person, but money well spent.

Porto Alegre Churrascaria
www.portoalegre-churrascaria.com
(626) 744-055
260 E Colorado Blvd
Pasadena, CA 91101
Mon-Fri 11.30am to 2.30pm
Mon-Thu 5 to 10pm
Fri-Sat 5 to 11pm

This is probably one of the best shabu shabu restaurants you’ll eat in. It’s a very popular Japanese restaurant, but unfortunately they don’t take reservations, so be prepared to wait an hour or two during peak times. It’s very small and easily gets crowded, however, the food is absolutely terrific. It’s a nice place to go when it’s cold outside and you need something to warm you up.

The meat comes very thinly sliced and the veggies are delicious. Many of the orders come with some veggies, udon, rice, as well as dipping sauce. Be sure to order the large, because although 15 slices of meat can seem like a lot, they are very, very thinly sliced.

It’s a bit pricey, but it’s definitely an experience to be had. Bottom line is that it’s a great place to go, but the fact that it’s small and the wait is long means that you’ll have to be super patient. On the upside, the owner is friendly and the wait staff does their best to try to get people in and out as fast as possible.

Shabu Shabu House Restaurant
(213) 680-3890
127 Japanese Village Plz Mall
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Tue-Sun 11.30am to 2pm
Tue-Sun 5.30 to 9.30pm

Family owned and run, you’ll be sure to get hearty meals and great service here at Polka Polish Restaurant. Their dishes certainly do justice to Polish food. All meals come with soup and salad, in addition to potatoes and veggies and the large portions mean that you can probably get away with ordering less meals than there are people or taking food home at the end.

Though their menu is limited to only 15 dishes, as they say at Polka’s, “Take it or leave it”. If you want to sample all their dishes, you can try the All You Can Eat Party, which at $20 a person is pretty much a bargain for what you get. Even vegetarians will enjoy eating here as Number 10 is a Vegetarian Plate. With 10 items to choose from, their tea menu is almost as big as their meal menu. From Golden Seal to Black Tea or Green Tea, you’ll have plenty to choose from.

If you’ve got kids, they’re more than welcome here. All their meals can be made to be kids’ meals, they simply halve the price and the portion. As far as desserts go, they don’t have much to offer other than pudding and ice cream or coffee, but that’s only one downside to Polka Polish Restaurant. If you’re looking for authentic Polish food and a homey atmosphere, then Polka Polish Restaurant is the place to go.

Polka Polish Restaurant
www.polkacatering.com
4221 Verdugo Rd
Los Angeles, CA 90065
(323) 255-7887
Wed-Sun 11am to 9pm

The pizza and salads here are pretty good, but it’s not the food that makes Nagila’s stand out, it’s the service. They have a separate meat and dairy section of the restaurant, so there’s no chance of mixing the foods. As if that isn’t enough, in the middle of the restaurant, you can request separate tables for the food.

The falafels are constantly a popular choice around customers. The cheese pizza is traditional, but delicious. Their crusts are crisp and you can order pizza by the slice if you don’t think you can finish a while one.

Featured in LA Magazine’s 101 Cheap Eats, you know it’s a good place that has to be tried. Even if you don’t keep kosher, you’ll still enjoy the food. The servers are polite, nice, and knowledgeable, and you can’t beat the restaurant atmosphere, with the separation of meat and dairy.

Nagila Kosher Pizza & Salad
(310) 788-0111
9411 W Pico Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90035