In our never-ending quest to discover Cheap Fast Eats across Los Angeles, this time we find ourselves on the west side — Culver City, to be specific.
Its movie studio heritage is evident in the city’s center, with the historic flat-iron-shaped Culver Hotel and the splendid art deco Kirk Douglas Theater. Nearby, Sony Pictures sits on the former site of MGM Studios, complete with a giant rainbow peeking over the gates.
More recently, it has seen its share of mixed-use developments, with outdoor shopping experiences such as Platform, housing the likes of New York transplants Roberta’s pizza and Van Leeuwen Ice cream, and the nearby Culver City steps.
However, there are also various under-the-radar food offerings that you won’t find elsewhere. From rustic South American dishes to tasty South East Asian bowls to jerk chicken that awakens your senses, come with an open mind and empty stomach, and you’ll discover a distinct Los Angeles neighborhood with a diverse appeal.
Jasmine Market & Deli
On a section of Sepulveda Boulevard heading south, where the road starts to curve, a small storefront peers out behind a sizable outdoor patio, with round stone tables bearing its name in black and white mosaic.
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Jasmine Market specializes in Burmese halal cuisine and doubles as a small grocery store. When you enter the small market and deli space, you find yourself greeted by the sweet smell of spices that waft through the air.
The walls are lined with brightly colored snacks and candies, next to rows of cans of fish soups, pineapple jams and natural palm sugars.
Nestle up to the tiny counter and gaze at the menu to decide what to order. While your eyes might drift to various curries such as Paya J’s, which features a Burmese bone broth made with cows' feet, advertised as a great source of collagen, you may also want to try the Burmese-style biryani, loaded with fenugreek seed and served with a delightful cucumber-yogurt sauce, or the crunchy, herbaceous tea leaf salad.
And while those dishes will no doubt meet your flavorful expectations, we are here to try the Mohinga, a fish soup considered the national dish of Myanmar (formerly Burma). Created from stock made from whole fish stewed down to its essence, then added to a broth of other aromatics such as lemongrass, chili, and garlic, it also contains an irresistible combination of whole cooked shallots, a banana stem (said to be good for digestion) and a hard-boiled egg, garnished with a yellow lentil cracker for an added crunch factor. When delivered to your mouth, you will be greeted with rich flavors and a textured-filled bite, sending all your neurotransmitters a-flutter.
4135 Sepulveda Blvd, Culver City, CA 90230
Open Tuesday-Sunday, 11 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Sexy Beans
In an attempt to answer the eternal question — can beans be sexy? — the answer is undoubtedly yes. The brainchild of Simoni Siqueira, from Rio de Janeiro, and her husband, Greg Johnson, Sexy Beans is an approachable way to showcase Brazilian food, currently running out of a ghost kitchen near a 405 overpass.
Even though Sexy Beans' kitchen space is small, the menu is grand in scale, focusing on simple and flavorful dishes. Simoni wanted to distinguish between the style of beans of her homeland and those more commonly eaten in L.A, with a Mexican flair.
She uses her family recipes as inspiration. When she came home from school as a child, there was always rice and beans available, so she learned how to make feijoada, stewed black beans, Brazil's national dish.
Traditionally, the stew contains fresh cuts of beef and pork. However, growing up in a low-income home, meat was a luxury, so her family made do with whatever vegetables they had. As a result, Simoni's vegan option on her menu is more or less the same as the one she grew up with, along with the traditional meat version.
While the beans are a draw, it’s only part of the wonderful experience Simoni has crafted. There's also rotisserie chicken with crispy skin and juicy meat. (Truth be told, if there’s rotisserie chicken on the menu, there’s a good chance you’ll find us there.)
At Sexy Beans, the dish features a quarter piece of chicken, rice and beans, a side of bitter greens, and a side of farofa, toasted cassava/yuca flour containing bits of pork, that has a salty flavor and a crunchy texture. It can also be made vegan. Simoni mentions it can be eaten either as a side or sprinkled onto the meal's contents and mixed. It’s a choose-your-own-adventure with delicious results.
5660 Selmaraine Dr, Culver City, CA 90230
Open daily, 11 a.m. - 10 p.m.
Empanada’s Place
Empanadas are a dime a dozen in this town. There’s a good chance there's a juice bar or cafe within walking distance from where you're reading this that has some dough-filled creations that will be sufficient in a pinch.
However, there’s a good chance that wherever you end up, they won’t be as heavenly as those at Empanada’s Place. It's been in business for nearly 40 years, maintaining a modest yet charming storefront on Sawtelle bordering the Palms neighborhood, and the cafe makes some of the best empanadas we’ve had in recent memory.
The outside of the empanada is soft and doughy, giving it its rustic appeal. You can almost see the marking of the hands where the dough was folded. Each empanada has a different fold design based on its contents. Take the arabe, for example, which is made with ground beef, seasoned with lemon and herbs, and shaped like an oblong triangle.
The more traditional design is the criollo, a long rounded shape with braided edges containing a fantastic combination of ground beef, hard-boiled egg, and raisins, a flavor combination often found in Argentina. It will make you question why you don’t eat more raisins in your everyday diet.
If meat isn’t your thing, try any of their vegetable offerings. You can’t go wrong with either the berenjena (eggplant), or the picante made with poblano peppers and cheese.
While it's easy to grab your empanadas to go, if you have a bit more time, take a seat in the charming dining area. Adorned with tango posters from the 1970s and 80s, soccer pennants, and a menu painted on the wall, it feels like you’re sitting in someone’s private dining room. It reminds you why taking a moment to absorb your surroundings is so important.
3811 Sawtelle Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90066
Tuesday-Sunday, 11 a.m. - 7 p.m.
Rutts Hawaiian Cafe
Last year, during a trip to the island of Oahu, I found myself under the spell of Hawaiian culture. From the enchanting sounds of Gabby Pahinui’s slack-key guitar sounds to wandering the quaint neighborhood streets of Kaimuki, there is, of course, the food, with a myriad of influences from Portuguese to Japanese. In many ways, it is almost as if it’s O.G. fusion cuisine, which isn’t a term I typically employ, but it might be accurate for Hawaiian food.
Once back home on the mainland, I searched for anything that would bring me back to my time on the island. So you can imagine my happiness when I stumbled across Rutt’s Hawaiian cafe. Walking up to its yellow-painted building with large window-size decals and sidewalk tables filled with families, couples, and single diners feels welcoming.
Sitting down, though, a quick scan of the menu is slightly overwhelming. From its sizable breakfast and lunch options, there's lots to choose from, from the french toast made with King’s Hawaiian rolls to the various mixed plates made with katsu pork and kalbi short ribs, served with scoops of white rice and macaroni, two sides of carb-y goodness, plus salad, allowing you to leave full and happy with leftovers to take home.
For those looking for take out, there are a few good options to choose from. Start with Rutt’s teriyaki burger, which replaces a standard ground beef burger patty with a grilled stack of sweetly-season teriyaki beef, spilling out onto the plate like molten lava. The teriyaki gives the burger experience a unique texture that’s ultra-satisfying with each bite, served with a helping of kettle-cooked potato chips for that added crunch factor.
Another option to consider is samin soup, made with soft wheat noodles. Its name means thin noodle in Chinese and dates back to the 1800s when laborers of various ethnicities came to work on the sugar plantations. The chewy and slurpable noodles are slightly salty with a hint of umami, mixed with slices of a thin omelet, fish cake, and green onions. There's something for everyone, with various protein options, like spam and Portuguese sausage, and vegetarian options.
However, if you want to get real about — and like — porky goodness, the char sui is the best value option. The regular bowl for $10.95 arrives at your table with two generous cuts of pink-red hued pork, which, when enjoyed with the noodles, can make you feel as if you’ve just achieved culinary God-tier status — and for an excellent price to boot.
11707 Washington Pl, Los Angeles, CA 90066
Open daily, 7:30 a.m. - 9 p.m.
The Jerk Spot Jamaican Restaurant
What is it about a good take-out spot that always seems to capture our attention? The no-nonsense appeal of walking up to a counter and placing an order feels partly nostalgic for those takeaway pizza parlors that I would skateboard to after school on minimum days, free from the middle school confines.
The Jerk Spot offers a similar experience for my adult self. It’s situated in an older strip mall near the Culver City Metro stop and the 405, next to Tom’s No. 5 Chili Burgers and US Donut. The small restaurant space features a large, detailed map of Jamaica and reggae music.
The Jerk Spot menu features various Jamaican cuisine offerings, from oxtails to fish, prepared in multiple ways. But we are here to do the jerk. Jerk flavoring can arrive in a sauce or dry rub made with a combination of allspice and scotch bonnet peppers.
At the Jerk Spot, you choose chicken (white or dark meat) or fish. I go for jerk chicken with dark meat, which comes with an order of reggae bread, made with cornmeal flour and sugar with a hint of vanilla. It’s perfectly balanced with the heavy spice flavor, the chopped-up chicken bits, and its caramelized edges. Douse it with some of the extra jerk sauce they give you and a couple of sips of lemonade or pineapple juice, and you’re pretty close to flavorful heaven.
9006 Venice Blvd., Culver City, CA 90232
Monday-Saturday, 11 a.m. - 9 p.m.
