Review of Rae's Restaurant

I gave Rae's Restaurant and overall score of 3.2, or 3 stars, based on the following 7 categories: number of visits 1 of 5, Once was enough. price range 5 of 5, Pocket change, less than $10. family friendly? 4 of 5, Wait staff entertains kids. % menu vegan 2 of 5, You can piece something together. quality of service 3 of 5, Didn't notice. quality of food 2 of 5, I guess grease has flavor. local mainstay? 5 of 5, Route 66 hangout. Comments: For quite a while now, this greasy spoon was on my to-do list thanks to recommendations from friends. When I pulled up this morning, there was a cop car outside. But it was a good sign because it wasn’t double parked with its lights flashing. The interior was everything that you would think a Route 66 diner would be. The griddle was behind the counter, and most of the rest of the tables were booths. The menu was a basic diner menu; nothing fancy but with specials that have been specials since 1977. I ordered my nominal early morning vegan special; oatmeal with raisins, toast and jam, and coffee. I wasn’t really impressed with the food or coffee, though my wife thought the non-vegan stuff tasted pretty good. I scanned the menu for vegan lunch options and it was pretty sparse, though there were a couple things like avocado, lettuce, and tomato sandwich. My biggest fear in this place would be cross contamination since they seemed to prepare everything in a common place. Especially don’t order anything off the griddle unless you want to take a chance on what they greased it up with that day, including all the hamburgers and bacon that came before you. Once the bill came, I realized why the cops were at the booth in the corner. This place is cheap for the quality of food that you get. …if you’re not vegan. If you are vegan, move along, nothing to see here.

Additional Info Address: 2901 Pico Blvd, 90405 Area: Pico Reviewed Meal: Breakfast Ethnicity: American Click for more info.

Review of Real Food Daily

I gave Real Food Daily and overall score of 4.6, or 5 stars, based on the following 7 categories: number of visits 4 of 5, I don't need a menu. price range 3 of 5, Let's splurge tonight; less than $35. family friendly? 4 of 5, Wait staff entertains kids. % menu vegan 5 of 5, No worries. quality of service 4 of 5, Attentive and friendly. quality of food 5 of 5, Sorry Mom, but this place knows how to cook. local mainstay? 3 of 5, Been here since I've been here. Comments:I used to call Real Food Daily my favorite restaurant and visited several times a month. That was before they increased their prices. They just acquired the place next door and expanded by adding a little bakery. And, as is required I think, increased their prices again. One positive from all this food inflation though is that it seems less crowded now. …and it wasn’t the expansion that’s to thank because the bakery brings in a different cast of characters. The menu is 100% vegan, 100% trans fat free, and 99% organic. On rare occasions, if they have a hard time finding produce to support the menu, they will use conventionally grown. I always order The Basic Three. You can choose three sides and a select a sauce. I usually get either the beans of the day or tempeh, greens of the day or kale, and the veggies of the day. And for your sauce, ask for the 5 spice carrot spread. It’s not on the list, and it is amazing. You can also order prepared plates off the menu like TV Dinner, but those often times are a little salty; though still incredibly good. And for your non-vegan friend, order her the veggie burrito. It has tempeh bacon in it, but she’ll never know.

Additional Info Address: 514 Santa Monica Blvd, 90401 Area: Mid City Reviewed Meal: Lunch, Dinner Ethnicity: American Click for more info.

Review of Zabie's

I gave Zabie's and overall score of 3.6, or 4 stars, based on the following 7 categories: number of visits 2 of 5, Every once in a while. price range 4 of 5, I only have a $20. family friendly? 3 of 5, No kids menu. % menu vegan 3 of 5, At least one good entrée. quality of service 4 of 5, Attentive and friendly. quality of food 4 of 5, Happy toung. local mainstay? 2 of 5, Fresh paint, but it's a good color. Comments: This place opens early for breakfast, which is a big plus in my book. I ordered the early morning vegan special; oatmeal with raisins, toast and jam, and coffee. They seemed to have a few options for lunch, but I exhausted the menu for breakfast. The food is your typical artesian diner; good quality, though not organic, and well presented. If I lived within walking distance, I could see myself popping in every other weekend or so. But I don’t, so I won’t. …may try lunch sometime though.

Additional Info Address: 3003 Ocean Park Blvd, 90405 Area: Sunset Park Reviewed Meal: Breakfast Ethnicity: American Click for more info.

My Method

So before I get started, I'll give you a little insight into to my method.  Instead of trying to pretend like I can creatively write about some categories, I separate them out and give them a rating from 1, worst, to 5, best. These categories are:

1. number of times I have been to the restaurant
2. price range
3. whether or not the restaurant is family friendly
4. % of menu that is vegan
5. service rating
6. food rating
7. whether or not the restaurant is a local mainstay

I then give the restaurant an overall rating based on a weighting that I gave to each category. And finally, I normalize the final number back to the 1 to 5 scale. So if a restaurant gets an overall rating of 5, it’s a must eat. And if they are closer to 1, try the next post.