Posted November 25th, 2008 by Meg
A few weeks ago (I am that behind in posts), my boyfriend and I were shopping at Ikea. I was on a decorating high and was able to ignore the hundreds of rugrats (and their preoccupied parents), stupid cart pushers, and just overall mayhem that is what makes Ikea one of the least fun weekend trips. (Seriously, the weekend crowd at Ikea makes Target’s on Sunday look deserted in comparison). My boyfriend was very reluctant to be there. In fact, he felt tricked into it because I had not mentioned the idea of Ikea until we were already in Burbank. It wasn’t just the environment that frustrated him, but it was more of me. I had no clue what exactly I was looking for - I could come up with no name nor were my descriptions elaborate. At one point, my boyfriend told me “I don’t think they make what you want….anywhere.” I did not give up though and found something resembling my drawer concept. More on that later….
One of the reasons I got my boyfriend to turn into the Ikea parking lot was with one sentence: “If we go to Ikea I will buy you lunch… at Ikea.” It worked. My boyfriend’s food tastes are not similar to mine in anyway. Only he would be persuaded by the idea of ordering food cafeteria style. This is no surprise to me though considering Koo Koo Roo is always a dinner option he pushes (and always an option I veto). So we fought our way through the high traffic showrooms to the cafe. First thought: Kind of gross. Second thought: At least it’s cheap. We got our plastic trays and stood in line. Although the pre-made food was in neat Ikea compartments, the shrink wrapped food was not enticing enough for me to touch or really look at for very long. We moved on towards the “lunch ladies” to order our meatballs. My boyfriend opted against ordering the gravy, and I applaud him on that decision because the gravy looked nasty. In the end, this is what we were given. I think the flag is a cute touch, albeit very wasteful.
Perfectly bite sized. A wonderful combination of savory bread and meat. Although I was only allowed to have 2 meatballs from his plate, I found them delicious. The potatoes were not so bad either. So, if you’re hungry at Ikea or have a grumpy boyfriend at Ikea, check out the meatballs. I don’t know about the frozen ones though. I kind of think you should keep the Ikea meatballs at Ikea.
(Sadly, I didn’t get the $1 frozen yogurt cone on the way out because the line was ridiculous.)
Ikea
600 N. San Fernando Blvd.
Burbank, CA 91502
(818) 842-4532
Posted October 21st, 2008 by Meg
I love Mexican food. I don’t have it as often as I like, but that makes it quite the treat when I do get my taco fix. A few weeks ago my roommate and I were both in the mood for Mexican in close proximity to the home. Usually, we just go to El Cholo, Border Grill, or La Cabana. Not this time. We wanted to try a different place. We drove down Pico with our hungry eyes wide open looking on both sides of the street. We pulled over when we saw two signs side by side: The Talpa Restaurant and Don Antonio’s Cantina. Was it the same restaurant? Or was it two separate restaurants next to one another? We both checked our phones to see what was up with this situation until we realized we were how silly it was to be parked right in front of both restaurants looking at our phones for information about the restaurant(s). So we did what any rational person would do: flipped a coin. It landed on the Talpa Restaurant. We walked in but immediately recognized it was not where we wanted to eat for dinner. It reminded me of a pizza place where you order at the register and then sit down at a booth and watch the tv that is hanging on the wall. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but we just wanted a more restaurant-y atmosphere. We awkwardly turned ourselves around explaining to the hostess that we “forgot to lock the car.”
We traipsed over to Don’s where we quickly realized we had made the right decision. It was a little busy, so we put our name down and sat at the bar. But, before we could even order a margarita, our table was ready for us. We sat down while within a few short blinks of the eye a server had brought over water and chips and salsa. I would rate the chips and salsa very high because the chips were warm and the salsa was spicy.
I ordered a margarita to drink (on the rocks with salt) and to eat I decided on the basics: cheese quesadilla, carne asada taco, and a chile relleno.
I wish I could say that this was the best Mexican food I have ever had. But, sadly it is not. I am a taco truck girl and spent my college years eating the best: Leo’s Taco Truck in Eagle Rock. The fact that I spent 8 dollars on a cheese quesadilla is beyond ridiculous. Although it came with guacamole and sour cream, this q-dilla was just too plain and boring for me to ever order again at that price. The taco is the same story. I am used to flavorful carne asada, but this was bland and a little too dry for my palate. The worst was the chile relleno. It was no bueno; soggy and bland.
I don’t like writing bad reviews, but I would return to Don’s. Why would I give them a second chance you ask? Am I crazy? Yes! But, the margarita was great! They cost around six dollars a pop; an amazing price for a non-Happy hour satisfying margarita. Worst comes to worst, they have no good food in which case I would still come back to drink the cheap yummy margaritas and eat the deliciously free chips.
Don Antonio’s
11755 W Pico Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90064
(310) 312-2090
