Brasa Brasil Grill...stuffing our faces with some of the best meat in Culver City

10022 Venice Blvd.
Culver City, CA 90232
(310)558-3287
Lunch: Mon-Fri 11AM-3PM
Dinner Daily 5PM-10PM

First things first, sorry about the delay in posting. Sometimes you get a string of restaurants that suck and therefore can't be posted about. I had a sizable run of "wow...that was a waste of time and money and I feel tainted for going here". Some people may say, " but you can still write about other places?" My answer? Yes I can, but pictures convey so much in telling stories, and if I'm posting about some place I really like, I want to do it justice. So, when I have pauses from posting, you can be assured it's due to lack of pictures.

The second order of business is about this brand spanking new place (and that's "new" as of October) on Venice in Culver City called Brasa Brasil Grill. Bring your massive appetite to this spot! As many Brazilian eateries do, they concentrate heavily on meats. This has got some of the best meat going on in Culver City (which is saying a lot considering it's the mecca of mastication at the moment and shows no sign of stopping thanks to Sony).

The interior is pretty chill and please don't think it's messy cause the picture shows all the chairs wacked out, there was good size party there for a birthday party. The eating style is buffet and yes there is a buffet bar, and no I didn't grab a picture of it. Rest assured the buffet bar is not the main attraction here, though it sports all the sides you'd want for your meal such as garlic rice, beans, plantains, poached salmon, Brazilian potato salad, cucumber and tomato salad, black eyed pea salad, farofa, fresh greens and even boiled quail eggs. The place was spotless and the buffet bar was a reflection of that as well the fact that everything that we had from it was fresh.

Notice the object I took a picture of. This red and green wood dowel looking thing rules your meal. When you get there they tell you how it works, "When you want us to bring out more meat turn this so the green side is up. We'll bring out whatever you want from our meat menu and we'll keep on bringing out meat until you turn this so that the red is facing up". Sounds simple enough. It happened 3 times at least that we forgot to flip back over and they kept bringing meat (though you can decline it when it comes out...just made for a funny times is all). The best thing is that it's all you can eat and your choice of which meat or meats you want.

Salad (that's right...from the buffet) , as stated, was fresh and the boiled quail eggs were a pleasant surprise. Celeste topped her spring greens with the black eyed pea salad (firm but smooth) and the cucumber and tomato salad (crisp and almost sweet) as well.

Their garlic rice, black beans and plantains were superb. If you had nothing else from the buffet bar this would be more than excellent to accompany any of the meats. The beans were marinating in meat making their flavor more pronounced, the rice hinted at the garlic and the plantains were perfectly ripe and made to perfection (as you can see).

We tried ALL the meats they had which would be quite the feat for some people (and was actually for Celeste) . Did I mention that after having this we've realized we really need to lose some weight haha? Shown up above is a piece their bacon wrapped chicken and one Brazilian sausage. The bacon wrapped chicken was succulent and glistened with bacon juice. The sausage packed a huge flavor that was gentle on the salty side. As for the rest of the meats (except for the Spicy Chicken...sorry about that) take a look...

Tri Tip (not to be confused with their Picanha)...it tasted even better than it looked. Super moist and great marbling in the meat with an outstanding spice blend that complemented it well.

Their garlic beef was super tender and packed a wallop of spices, and oddly, it is called Garlic Beef but it's richness wasn't from the garlic.

Here's their Picanha which is their creme de la creme meat. Picanha is technically tri-tip (or sirloin), and is, to date, now in our top five for that cut of meat. The slight garlic char on the outside sealed in the wonderful juices inside. Just a mighty fine piece of meat.

Their lamb was almost perfect (Celeste's piece had a little bit of fat, but it's not hard to see). Slightly sweet on the outside with a perfectly done inside. And, if you do get a bit that has a good sized piece of fat, that's the beauty of the place...you just get another piece. I personally loved their lamb. It was nice having lamb a little nontraditional to me.

The only thing that wasn't all that happening, and unfortunately goes with the territory, was their pork. All their meats are on open fire on a spit and while all the other meats have a lot leniency when it comes to keeping them warm, the pork has to be very precise. Once you go passed that temperature you start to lose moisture inside the meat. While the outside of the pork was wonderful the inside was a bit on the tough side for lack for juice. That said, based on everything else, it might have just been an unlucky fluke.

The restaurant itself could seat about 50 or so and is in a small strip mall that has about 15 spaces and 4 other restaurants, but thankfully, street parking is abundant in that area. Pedro the owner is a totally sweet guy and was eager to please (no he didn't know who I was and from what I could tell never saw me taking a pic of anything) . This restaurant is definitely for those who can put it away, but make sure you sure you only eat what you can as they have a policy to charge additionally the full meal price if more than 1/2 a pound of edible food is left on your plate...though if you're like me, once you taste it, you'll totally stuff yourself.

PS: ON A BIG SIDE NOTE, KEEP YOUR EYES GLUED TO WHAT'S TO EAT LA AS I'LL BE GIVING AWAY MORE TIX VERY SOON!


Free refills: yes on Soda only
Entree Price ranges: Buffet and BBQ combo dinner is $23 for dinner and $15 for lunch (you can have the BBQ meats only for $16 or the buffet only for $15 but hey go for both and be happy).

JR's Barbeque...It is summer officially!

3055 So. La Cienega Blvd.
Culver City, CA 90232
(310)837-6838
Mon-Thu 11AM-9PM
Fri-Sat 11AM-10PM

To set the mood. "Take it away Will"


The rays of summer are upon us and feeling the heat we remember that it's time to savor the flavor of barbecue sauce. When you speak of bbq in LA, people have varied opinions as to who is the best. While I'm not going to argue as to who I believe is the best(as it will never be decided, and can never be decided, cause it's all about taste), I will say that JR's BBQ is an outstanding entry into the annals of Los Angeles Barbecue hotspots.

When you go over to a friends place for barbecue you bring an appetite and expect to help yourself. Going to JR's is like going to a close relatives house where you feel welcomed immediately and are at home when you sit down. One of the owners (Bobby) was helping take care of us and was one of the nicest guys we've met. It seemed like every 4 minutes or so he was making the rounds making sure everyone was all good and chatting with them for a little. He had the attitude like he actually wished you were in his family.

How do I begin talking about food that leaves such a strong impression that after you've had it you still talk about it and taste it on your mouth the next day? By saying it was one of the best BBQ plates I've had ever. We got dinner plates (comes with 2 sides and both of us got the classic combination of potato salad and baked beans) of the chicken links (served medium heat) and a dinner plate of the pork shoulder meat (also served medium). The chicken links, which they make themselves, were absolutely to die for. Thinking about them right now makes my mouth water. They were tender and exploded with juicy chicken and spicy flavors. The BBQ sauce they serve it with is their own special recipe and packs a wallop of dense Memphis flavor. As I said we got the links medium and they were just that. By the end of the plate our mouths were a little warm but not in pain. As a side note, they can make them hot and if you do get them be prepared as they're NOT for the faint of heart.

The pork shoulder plate had a huge serving of incredibly tender pulled pork meat. Once again what we have here is a plate of meat that stands above the rest with each bite tasting better than the last. I grew up in both Puerto Rican and black families for get togethers. Puerto Ricans have a dish that's called Pernil, which is essentially roasted pork shoulder. I've had many examples of Pernil as well as lots of Tennessee style pork meat. This is the closest you're going to get to authentic Memphis in LA.

The potato salad was different in a very cool way. Lying somewhere between traditional potato salad and mashed potatoes with their own extra seasonings (Celeste thought maybe ground celery seed). This was something of a special signature on the plate. The baked beans were wonderful with the taste of liquified sweet bacon in the sauce. Man... intensely good! We ordered a side of mac and cheese to split between the two of us that was great. I love how it had the ever so slightly crunchy top but creamy underneath.

To finish off we had the Sock-It-To-Me Cake (as recommended by Bobby, with a scoop of ice cream) and it finished us off perfectly. Let it be known that Jeannie (Bobby's mom and the other owner along with Bobby) used to make desserts for restaurants, so she knows a few things about satisfying a sweet tooth. The Sock-It-To-Me Cake (shown below) is a sour cream based cake with a streusel of cinnamon, pecans and brown sugar in the middle that is so soft and so well balanced that you feel you just might die eating it! I do admit that the ice cream was the absolute perfect side for it as it kept your mouth from being overwhelmed with the sweetness. A single cake is a good enough size for two people. At $3.50 this things is a STEAL! The other two desserts worth recommending are the 7 up Cake ($3) which is a butter yellow cake made with yes...7 up as a main ingredient as well as cream cheese. And lastly, the sweet potato pie ($2.50) which is dynamite.

The rest of their menu meats consist of Chicken, Turkey Breast, Chicken Breast, Pork Ribs, Beef Ribs, Beek Brisket, Links (chicken and beef), Small End Ribs, and Rib Tips all of which can be made into a sandwich from what I remember. A word about their beef brisket, and about the way they do their meat in general... it's all done fresh in their BBQ pit in the back of the restaurant. Brisket is a tough meat to work with requiring time to be any good. That's why they do their brisket for 14 hours! On yelp I see great reviews about them and then the occasional post that says the meat is dry and not happening. It makes me wonder if it's a random anonymous writer who happens to work for the competition. I say this for two reasons. 1) How can meat that's being done this way, randomly have a bad batch just for that person? and 2) their customer service and attention to how much they want their customers to love everything they're eating is at such a high level, that if by some miracle chance you were to get a dry piece of meat and you didn't like it, they would've asked you if everything was okay and how it tasted and they would have done so for certain since the owners are always there checking in on their patrons as if they were their own family. They would have rectified the situation immediately. Had to go into debate mode cause sometimes I have a problem with Yelp. Sometimes. This place should AT LEAST be a 4 out of 5 on every BBQ lover's list. It's even gotten raving reviews from people such as the LA Times and (one of our personal favorites) the Wally's Wines newsletter.

It's summertime, and though I love the taste of BBQ I'm not always down for doing it myself or waiting for it to be cooked up. This 4th of July why don't you call JR's and have them make you up a batch of some of the best Memphis Barbecue you may ever have! (check out the family meal deals for four starting at $23 for chicken up to $30 for the brisket & ribs)

Free Drink Refills: Only on their Tiger Woods' (raspberry ice tea and lemonade)
Entree Price Range: Sandwiches about $8 and Dinners (which include 2 sides) are about $10 to $12

Phillips BBQ

4307 Leimert Blvd. (though there are other locations which I'll pst at the end)
Los Angeles, CA 90008
(323) 292-7613
Mon 11AM-8PM
Tue-Thurs 11AM-10PM
Fri-Sat 11AM-11PM
Sun. Closed

In an effort to continue stepping things up on my site I'm trying to write more and more. Today I have a standard in LA for you. Phillip's Bar-B-Que has been one of the places to beat for great tasting bar-b-que for years. Foster Phillip's flavoring on his meats is something that late at night you just crave. I used to play over at the World Stage with a guy by the name of David Ornette Cherry and after our set we went right around the corner to Phillip's where he introduced me to some of my favorite all time bar-b-que. At the top I said that there is more than one location (3 to be exact) but the one I'm talking about today is the Leimert Park location, nestled on the northeast edge of the area.

Now I'll tell you this initially that the spot is humble and you know what? That's fine with me. I like it when you know that the food and service is all that a place is about. It tells me that looks don't mean everything and that the product is all that matters. I LOVE THIS PLACE! The first pic below shows the entire restaurant (which is for pickup only) and the second pic is the entire customer area inside taken from outside the restaurant. Not much really but all the food inside is dynamite!


What you can count on for a cheaper plate is $6 to $9 for a sandwich and the meat choices you can choose from are pork ribs, beef ribs, sliced beef (my favorite), beef link, chicken link, ribs tibs and chicken (your choice of white or dark) . It comes with bread (picnic style bread..oh yeah...keeping it real) and a choice of one side order of BBQ Baked beans (which I could seriously have a meal of by themselves) and cole slaw, or potato or macaroni salad (the macaroni salad is the best I've had for this style. Simple and yet flavorful.) The dinner plates have the same meats except for small ends and baby backs and give you two side orders. Let me say for $15.70 for the combination dinner which gives you 3 meats (except small ends or baby backs) is a huge deal. For dessert I would say try the peach cobbler or sweet potato pie. If any of you out there have tried the Sock It To Me cake let me know how it is cause I still have yet to try that one.

All in all this place is about the food and nothing else. They're not trying to impress your vision, they're trying to impress you mouth. Their other locations are as follows:

2619 S. Crenshaw Blvd.
LA, CA 90016
(323) 731-4772

1517 Centinela Ave.
Inglewood, CA 90302
(310) 412-7135

They do catering as well and I can only wish now that I had had them cater my wedding. I don't even care that I would have been a mess afterwards.

Free Drink Refills: It's pickup only
Entree Price Range: Sandwiches about $8 and dinners average around $13...a little pricey but trust me YOU WON'T BE LET DOWN!