Pacific Dining Car

**disclaimer** I don't eat fish. Please keep this in mind when reading this review. Thanks!



Restaurant: Pacific Dining Car
Location: 1310 West 6th Street (City West)
Type of restaurant: Steakhouse

We stipulated: When Mike and Maria of Franklin Avenue announced they were hosting a lunch for bloggers and fans at Pacific Dining Car in honor of their 200th Rate-A-Restaurant review, I of course RSVP'd at the opportunity to try the place. I've never eaten here, and had heard some good things about the place but that it was a little upscale, so it wasn't on the top of my list of places to run & check out. This would make the trek worthwhile.



They stipulated: That we order from the set menu and hopefully write a review in the style of Mike's Rate-A-Restaurant blog. Since the restaurant was located in City West,we decided to drive over and find parking. Parking was hard to come by, so we opted for the Valet. As it turns out we got little "half off" stickers which brought the $5.50 parking price down.


What we ordered: The one-time $40 Rate-A-Restaurant prix fixe included:

Appetizer
Grilled Jumbo Shrimp with Spring Mix Salad & Mango Beet Dressing;
Entree
Petit Filet Mignon and Monkfish with Lobster Sauce with Vegetable Medley;
Dessert
Strawberry and Vanilla Vacherin / Compote of Seasonal Berries.

High Point The high point was the company. I was fortunate to finally get to "officially" meet Mr. Atwater Village Newbie (despite having gone on the Great LA Walk with him on the Pico & Santa Monica walks).. so meeting him & Mrs AVN was very nice.. and downtown neighbors Jim & Celia, and Scott Lowe of "Tropico Station" was very good company (I knew Scott from the previous Great LA Walks as well).

Having lunch at Pacific Dining Car was a great opportunity that I'm not sure when I would have had.

Regarding the food: I knew that since there was to be a prix fixe menu, there was a good chance I would be served fish of some kind. The service and the food presentation (plating) was lovely.

The salad: I 'donated' my jumbo shrimp to SeanYoda and so the salad was excellent without the shrimp. It was a fresh sweet summery salad, that does not lose anything from not having the shrimp.




The entree: You can see pix of the entree elsewhere. I completely forgot to take a photo as when the servers were going around the room, they initially seemed to think that it was a fish or filet mignon option... so when the plate came and had both. I was a little disappointed, but again, I was well aware this might be the case.

Getting over it, I gently moved my piece of monkfish over to SeanYoda's plate, and he in turn passed me his filet mignon. The blue cheese & herb butter was excellent and the steak was served medium rare, so I was able to eat all of it but the very center. Again, SeanYoda had no problem helping me make that disappear. =)

The vegetables had a considerable amoount of lobster sauce drizzled on it and so I ate a little around the edges but left most of my veggies.. I love veggies, so this was probably the saddest part.

Dessert: the Strawberry and Vanilla Vacherin was served with a compote of berries: blackberries and blueberries, etc.. was most excellent. I would gladly order this again given the opportunity.




The Low Point: I'd have to say the low point was the jacked up (and sub-par IMHO) Bloody Marys. SeanYoda seemed to have started a trend with the bloody marys. He ordered one, and I ordered one thinking "hey yeah.. when will I have the opportunity to try this anytime soon??" and a few other folks ordered one as well. I'm not sure if they liked theirs, but at $9 a pop, Sean made a point of pondering aloud to me, "wondering what sort of vodka they are using?" I can't say I'm a Bloody Mary aficionado but I have had much better. I guess the plus of this is that I doubt I'll be going back anytime soon to make the mistake again.

Overall Impression: The waitstaff was amazingly good! Highly efficient and attentive. The atmosphere of the place is high end but not pretentious. I didn't feel like I was at Arnaud's (which I've eaten at along with other New Orleans old line restaurants) and had to worry about which fork to use, or worry about how I was dressed. Putting people at ease is a big part of the dining experience for me, and so having a meal that I couldn't necessarily enjoy 100% was made a lesser issue.

Chance I'll go Back: Honestly, it's very doubtful we'd make it back other than on a rare occasion due to the pricepoint of the place. It seems like it's a special place for special times, which this indeed qualified. Perhaps one day (maybe for a birthday or special anniversary event) I'd like to go and try something off the menu for dinner like the Grilled half chicken.. It's more likely I'd want to try breakfast as I hear they do an excellent breakfast. Better yet, afternoon tea would be more my style.


**Big Thanks** to Mike & Maria for all your great reviews, your time and effort in putting the event together and to the staff & management of the Pacific Dining Car. I do hope I'll get to come & enjoy breakfast there one day.. someday.

POZ Art Beautiful!

My friend Keith will be premiering his art documentary "Bloodwork" at the "Enzian Film Slam" at the Enzian Theatre in Maitland,FL.

Keith is an HIV Positive artist that uses his poz blood in many of his pieces to create beautiful works of art. Originally from Louisiana, he & my friend Rob make their home in Orlando, Florida. The show is on Sunday Janurary 11th. I wish I could be there! Check out the film promo:


Bloodwork Promo from David Bermejo on Vimeo.


If you'd like to see more of his actual work, I keep a link to it on my blog here under "meeko's favorites", but for those who aren't in the mood to scroll check out:

Keith Theriot ARTworks

One of these days I'm hoping to make it to one of his shows.. or maybe one day he'll make it out to LA (one can wish!) for a WestCoast show. ;)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!


Rose Parade

after all the celebrating, don't forget the Rose Parade! If you're not one of those people to spend your night on a cold sidewalk waiting for the January 1st "Tournament of Roses" parade, you of course can watch it on your TV (and nurse your hangover) first thing tomorrow morning.. 8am.

Don't forget the New Year's cabbage and blackeyed peas..

However you do it, celebrate safe!!!

a most auspicious day! 8-8-08

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my buddy Joe Cornish! (Eureka Poz) and happy birthday to me (yes I'm the freak that's 40) and happy birthday to my sister in law who, it turns out is also celebrating today! Eights are supposedly very lucky numbers (among others) in some cultures.. today is a "triple eight" day so it might be very good indeed, not just for those celebrating their birthday though!

(See? it's not all about me..)

I've heard that Weiland Brewery is having a birthday of sorts this evening..(if you believe the downtown news) so we'll see. I was hoping for green corn tamales & Batman today but a red velvet cupcake from Lot 44 and a beer later on from Weiland will work too. ;P

We'll see what happens!


For the rest of you looking for something to do tonight how about heading over to 3rd & Traction to check out "At Traction" which opened up last night in the arts district.

It's put on by Cornerstone Theatre and is a very well done play and stars some of your Arts District Neighbors and friends, as well some very talented theatre interns from all over. "At Traction" is a story about the Arts District and is full of humor and history of the area. I enjoyed it very much opening night.. Tickets are a suggested donation of $20.


Also tonight is the opening reception for Dale Youngman's "Digital Visions" at the Continental Gallery. This is her first show at the Continental I am thinking, and will be running only for the next couple weeks. The show features work by David A Knudsen and guest artists Rex Bruce & Franklin Londin. I went by there last night and it's looking to be a really cool & big opening. Lots of stuff to see!

Where you go, friend Joe?

heading out of town...

no more afternoon coffee & tea..

"not for me... not here for now.. I'm heading up the road."

I got my boxes packed!

and loaded on the truck!


what about Ruby?

"are we ready yet??"


almost..

but first the earth shakes... a 5.8 in complaint


but still the packing goes on, with help from some friends...

"All done!" says Henry.


Come on Ruby!

"Say goodbye to the nice ladies in the office.."


Maybe Ruby is having second thoughts?

Nope! All comfy now, maybe she's ready to hit the open road!



with a few tries backing up, Joe finally smiles and says.. "Let's try it another way."

So straight out the other end of the gate they go.

Right onto Winston.. one last drive by Crewest.


Right onto Main...



and except for obeying traffic signals..

No stoppping til we get to our destination..


Looking forward to hearing more adventures in the little city from Big City and Ruby.


*for Joe of course.. when's that internet get turned on today???

stepped away for a couple days...

definitely NOT on Main.. =)

catching up..

After spending a full day in Disneyland yesterday for their 53rd birthday celebration, I go and catch sick!


So I'm a little behind on things but want to be sure and remind folks about the Pet Summit that is being held on the South Lawn of City Hall this Sunday the 20th from 10 -4pm.. It's being sponsored by CD9's own Jan Perry.. and you can find out more from Don Garza, LA's own town crier.



photos above ©ps rouse (kiki my girl & alexander my boy kitty that likes to teeth on my shoes).

what's new, neighbor?

I'm really looking forward to my buddy Big City Poz & Ruby getting back to the Old Bank District and hearing about their adventures in Eureka!

To keep busy.. I've done the following this week:


wash and fold my laundry (with not a lot of help from Alexander)





took a walk with Isis & Eric (and the Downtown Dog Walking group)


gone out to dinner a few too many times (including a couple meals at Pitfire (above), Rocket, Warung and (drool)Weeneez (I can't help that last one).

I also ended up at Art Walk, and plan to eat at Weeneez a couple more times in the near future, as they are having their first Sunday brunch on the 13th. Lime is re-opening (after a 3wk hiatus) on Disneyland's birthday (that's July 17th for the non-Disneyphiles) Lime has nothing to do with Disney, btw, it's just easy for me personally to remember that way. ;P

Speaking of Disney I have several friends from out of town making their yearly trek to Disneyland for the NFFC Convention and the Disneyland birthday. We'll have to see yet if this downtown dweller gets on the bus or not.


woke up yesterday after a late night to this view out my window..

and Alexander had his own issues..

Alexander vs. the Pigeon

Not much else going on at the moment; however, I have a hint for future postings:
*garlic*

Welcome back Joe & Ruby! =) Let the planning begin yet again!

Ruby in Profile

some of my best friends are dogs..

I HATE SPAM!

I don't mind the edible SPAM (although it's a bit salty) but the junk mail kind is just EVIL!

To everyone who received one of those annoying "reunion.com" requests, I humbly beg your forgiveness! I got a request late last night from someone (Don Garza!!) and rather than sleeping on it, actually responded to it while I was thinking about it.

Unfortunately, I wasn't thinking enough.. had I been thinking, I would not have used my email as a search tool, which is, I gather what I inadvertently did. Thus sending unwarranted, unwanted, and just plain annoying spam to a couple hundred people at the least from my yahoo.

Not to mention since joining, I'm not a fan of the reunion.com interface. I'm rather embarrassed. I wish it was over.

Again, spam mail is evil. I apologize!

Downtown neighbors.. Memorial Day closures

While out trying to find my copy of Downtown Poet Laureate nominee Richard McDowell's book 30 Days on Spring at Metropolis (I was late! They were closed!) I noted they have a sign saying they are closed for the weekend from the 24th and will resume their hours on Tuesday..

Also while using the crosswalk at 4th and Main noted that Orlando's will be closed Sunday and Monday for Memorial Day as well.

Good News though is that the Market downstairs (Ray's place.. I don't know the correct name) is going to be open through the weekend so if you have a crazy ice cream fix or something, someone should be there. He was saying the only day they close is like a 'half day' on Christmas!

So just remember before you head out to maybe call ahead to see if what you are looking for is open.. Hoagies & Wings is also going to be closed Monday for Memorial Day.. (I know cause I had dinner there earlier).

Yeah I know, 2 Fridays in a row at Hoagies & Wings.. those cheeseburgers are good! I am going to need some intervention if I keep this up... ;)

*******

ps: wanted to make sure to congratulate Richard too! =)

busy weekend! busy week!

What can I say, it's been a busy weekend, and it's going to get even busier! (which is good for good reasons!)

This past Saturday was the Cherry Blossom Festival in Little Tokyo (which I attended briefly before heading out to Anaheim,CA). We all next headed over to the Block at Orange,where we had a nice & very filling meal at Koji's with friends (there were 7 of us) for shabu shabu, and a special treat to get to see our friend Kimmie who was visiting home from out of state for a couple days.


Happy belated bday to Kimmie-cat, who doesn't read this anyway. =)

Sunday found me on a 6 hour bus ride through kitsch-y Los Angeles thanks to the LAST EVER Charles Phoenix "Disneyland Tour of Downtown Los Angeles." It was not so much a tour of "LA as Disneyland", but more like a historical romp through town with a very brave & intrepid travel guide, (he was wearing Mickey ears and carrying a bullhorn which he wasn't afraid to use!) I would have loved to have taken this tour when we first moved to Downtown LA, but alas I would say that this would be a great treat for the out-of-towner's and new to Downtown folks, (assuming the tour was to continue).



More on that later.. I got a write-up to do on it and TONS of pictures to edit or upload or both. Just thinking about all those photos wears me out! LOL

This coming Thursday is the Downtown LA Art Walk & Comedy Walk.. not to mention a couple other treats in store, including a future move to the Historic Core,(good thing I didn't change the name of my blog!).

Today was an alright day, and not just because there's a new place for hot-wings in town.. I feel like there's been a small movement forward, not just for myself but for others around me. Kimmie is a good example and I'll just leave it at that. =)

Banquette and bikes... and blogger

Today I ended up trying two new places.. Yorkshire Grill and later in the day coffee at Banquette. Walked around, checked out a bike shop on Main Street.


Yes there is a bike shop downtown!!! No excuses not to run over there and pick up a new or used bike! Good exercise for us over-indulging downtown dwelling folks (and a very out of shape Meeko!)

Then finished an errand or two and hung out at the Banquette Cafe on Main Street with some fun blogger folks, Urban Memo, Big City POZ (whom I met briefly once before) and of course View From a Loft's Ed Fuentes. He was actually the one who introduced me to Urban Memo, so thank you!

I had fun at Banquette and even though there were so many folks whose names I didn't catch they were all so very cool and nice. A good place to go and get a coffee for certain and a nice place to relax before the hike down the hill back to South Park. =)

B&W but not really

I had a mostly good day yesterday taking pictures and hanging out in the Arts District & around there. I took a lot in B&W again and a lot of them weren't so good and some of them I was "wow!" happy with.

I had a wonderful lunch at Pitfire too and I owe someone for that, taking the time to show me around new places to take photos and listen to me ramble. It was all good.

Last night oth, wasn't so hot. I was having computer issues and (hopefully) the computer stuff won't get messed up again, and I think I may have said some weird stuff to people that I'm not so sure about and I wasn't feeling too hot. I didn't get to sleep til around 4am.

After all the good stuff, I think I got a little sick from being up so late. I had sniffles from my last long walk downtown, and while I wasn't exactly sneezing (I brought a packet of Kleenex so of course I didn't need it this time) the air has been really dry for me and I've been having issue processing food. I hope it wasn't something I ate. I'm sure I'll feel better in a couple hours. I was going to say my lunch at Pitfire was really freaking good. I'd go there again on my own that's how comfortable I got just being there. I'd have to bring a book or something though as I still feel odd eating alone. =)

Ok so about the not getting sleep. I tend to let things run through my head over & again whether I should or not. I don't sleep good in general then I worry about how I spent the day babbling like an idiot, or saying something dumb or ticking off the wrong people. Then there's the cats not getting along.

We have been getting them 'felaway' diffusers to plug in so calm them down. That and catnip actually calms our feral tabby down but the two of them still go at it. Last night was bad as someone above us was having a LOUD party til all hours. It ended soon after 330am when I called my husband to complain. He was up at 530am much more bright-eyed sounding than me. But someone was running around yelling something and it sounded like drums and guitar riffs were still going on for some time. Then I guess the party headed out with a lot more noise. Someone must of called the party off but not before I was feeling really woozy and cranky. Then Alexander starts up again when the paperguy shows up to throw the Friday paper on the mat. The cat goes off like a fire engine. "mrrrOWWWWWWW mrrOOWWW!!?? MROOOWWWWW!!!?" this is typical for him, then he starts scratching at the door or the Ikea cabinet. *scratch scratch* Time to get the paper and the cats fed. Seriously this usually does the trick. The cats get fed about the same time everyday and so it's a schedule I try to keep. So this is probably wayyyy more info than anyone need to know here.


Then there's the weather in Chicago. That's where the husband is coming home from this afternoon/evening. He's at the airport and the first flight (which had seats available) is delayed. That doesn't sound so good. Delays make the other flights delayed. *bleh* So hopefully his flight this afternoon will work out. So yeah I got about 2 1/2 hrs of sleep and it's no wonder I feel nauseated. (not to mention I didn't eat dinner last night because my lunch was so big).

Breakfast is a diet Sprite and a big tub of apologies to my cat Alexander for not only for receiving the brunt of my annoyance (I stepped on his tail by accident when he was playing "hide and attack" under one of the barstools) and then when I went to get the leftover cat food from the fridge, I didn't check for him to be sticking his head in the door. He does this quit often and I shut the door on his head.. He's sitting here on the desk in front of me, so he must not be too mad at me. Unlike our other cat, he's good at sitting on the desk and not blocking my monitor. Thus I can do stuff and still give him the attention he didn't get yesterday. He really is the best wedding gift I ever got. He keeps me company pretty good, when he's not making me crazy with the meows and the feet attacks. =) Not as good as people but alright.

I hope today is a better day. I hope things that were bad are better and that I don't make any sense it's because I don't know what to make of things either. Sometimes I wish I could go to square one and start the day over, more sleep, less babbling, more sun.. less cold. More calm. Better organized. A fresh start.. and no sneezing. =)

Happy Yule.. Happy Christmas! Happy Birthday..

I'm pretty open to all of them. I come from a family of die hard Christmas people.. Ok.. so my mom is crazy about Christmas (can't say as much about the rest of the folks) but from October to January.. it was always festive if nothing else, (stressful is the 'if nothing else'). Since then the holidays tend to get me a little down.

Tomorrow I'm thinking (oh tomorrow is today.. *sigh*) I may end up going to the Holiday Celebration over at the Music Center. I read about it on BlogDowntown and it sounded cool. It takes a while to find out that tomorrow is just another work day for some of us, but not me. I asked him if he wanted to go, but SeanYoda doesn't sound as enthused. 10minutes of each performance maybe isn't compelling for him, but there's bunches more going on so we'll see when I can drag myself up the hill and over there. Sooner than later, I would think. Why watch it on tv if it's right there in my back yard? (ok I don't have a back yard). It's not like I have to walk all the way over to WeHo or something. *grin*

But it's nice to be around people that are celebrating too. I need to soak up some happy energy, even if it's from a distance. Then again it might make me depressed for all those over-decorated, over-gifted, over-fed holidays. LOL My needs are few.. Just enough food, just enough festivities without making an ass of myself, and just enough kindness to go around.. One must take all the kindness one can get I would think: let make merry. =) Christmas is once a year.

I guess that's when I'll get some sleep too.. (next year).