The Los Angeles, Safer at home take-out guide part one
It has been over four months since I have sat at a restaurant and had a meal. If any of you know me personally, that is a shocking statement. I am the one always out, organizing dinners, and trying new restaurants. It has been hard to not break bread over dining tables with friends and loved ones during this time. I am sure you miss this too. Although I have been home, it hasn’t stopped me from having great meals at local restaurants. In fact, I am able to support more places with modified menus and more approachable pricing. Here is my Los Angeles, take-out guide.
I had a lot to say so this guide will come in parts. Even so, this is a longer post, I hope the table of contents helps you to navigate to restaurants you want to try. At least, I hope this helps you keep your place if you need to stop and do a delivery or pick-up order in the middle of reading.
NOTE: Many of these places are open again after the initial stage of the pandemic. I am leaving this post up as take-out is still available and these restaurants are great. As of the update of this post, 12/29/2021, COVID-19 regulations are still in place for Los Angeles County. You can find a cheat sheet here.
Do not read while hungry.
This post is part of the series–The five things I have been doing during Los Angeles, Safer at Home.
I realize that my husband and I both still have our jobs and the recommendations might not be approachable for all. Part one offers more economical options than part two.
Table of Contents
Three: Supporting Los Angeles restaurants through take-out and delivery-Part one
The every night take-out all-stars
I thought I would start my Los Angeles take-out guide with the restaurants that we keep coming back to. These are the restaurants we have on speed dial throughout Los Angeles, Safer at Home. From our favorites before quarantine and new ones we discovered in the last few months, delivery made it easier for us to order more often than before.
Just to note, if you order for delivery apps, they may add costs and fees to the menu item totals and to your final bill. The costs below are from the restaurants’ actual menus.
Teddy’s Red Tacos (6 times)
I once told someone if I ever left Los Angeles, I would have to eat Teddy’s Red Tacos before leaving the city. It is my favorite taco, mulita, and soup in the city. I wasn’t super familiar with birria before EaterLA lured me into this place. If you haven’t experienced birria, it is a beautiful and flavorful, bordering on spicy, peppery tomatoey broth, with fresh herbs, and onions with shredded goat–or in Teddy’s case beef. The menu looks to be a bit limited with birria being the star of each and every item, but don’t think of it as one-note. Each item tastes different. Varied accompaniments add nuance to taco, tostada, and fresh cheese in the quesadilla. The consumé is a must-order for dipping everything in and finishing off at the end. If you can drink a hug, this is it. There are people more qualified than me to talk about birria, I just know I love it.
Hours, cost, and other information
- Website: https://www.instagram.com/teddysredtacos/?hl=en
- Location: The a brick and mortar at 2-46 Windward in Venice.
- Cost: $13.99 for the deluxe plate, tacos are $1.99, quesadillas $3.99.
- Order: the deluxe plate because you get a bit of everything
Bludso’s Bar and que ( I lost count how many times)
I hadn’t had Bludso’s in a long time and I hadn’t really stopped thinking about it since I posted the where to eat in Hollywood series. It was only when I saw it on a delivery app when we were too nervous to go out that we decided to order. Bludso’s is by far my favorite bbq place in Los Angeles. There are a lot more Texas-style bbq places in Los Angeles and none are better all-around than Bludso’s. I have been known to order brisket and mac and cheese from one place and get pork ribs and smoked chicken from another on the westside. With Bludso’s I don’t have to do that. It is all good. The brisket is so tender that you can hardly get it from the take-out container onto your plate. The collard greens are so full of smoked pork that you can hardly tell that you are eating vegetables. Their sauce is also my favorite, the hot has a bite, but only adds complexity to the smoke instead of drowning it out.
Hours, cost, and other information
- Website: https://www.barandque.com/
- Location: 609 N. La Brea Avenue. Open for pick-up and delivery through delivery apps.
- Cost: Brisket is $8, collard greens are $6.50,
- What to order: It is all good. (period)
- Note: If you go to their website, you can get it shipped to you in the U.S.
- COVID-19 INFORMATION: Available to pick up also on a few delivery apps.
Birdie Gs (3 times)
I have posted about Birdie G’s on This Ugly Beautiful City and you can read that post and see food photos here. I was a little concerned that this place would be hard to order from as a couple. The dishes are all large format and meant to feed a larger group. Birdie G’s did something interesting, not only could you get those larger format dishes, but you could also buy pounds of corned brisket, market items like eggs and sauces, and they served as a facilitator to get Girl & Dug Farmers Market boxes. I want to put that fresno chili sauce on everything.
They have recently pivoted again to offer three-course meals, meal kits, cocktails to go. In the past two weeks, they have opened their much larger patio.
Hours, cost, and other information
- Website: https://www.birdiegsla.com/
- Location: 2421 Michigan Ave. in Santa Monica.
- Cost: There are so many options at various price points
- What to order: Cornbread $8, lavender almonds $9, beets $19, corned brisket $36, and rose pie–available as part of the three-course option.
Charcoal Venice (New addition since publication)
Why have we been snoozing on this place?! I want to kick the person who told me to skip it, because they were so wrong. (figuratively)
Charcoal has become one of our go-tos after taking a gamble one night after exhausting our other take-out favorites. I love food cooked over charcoal–cabbages cooked in embers, carrots cooked in their own skins until they taste sweet, duck breast smoked over fire.
This restaurant is part of the group conceived by Joshua Citrin behind Melisse–which has received many awards and accolades since it opened. This is highly recommended by the L.A. fooderati.
Charcoal offers weekend at-home menus that have seasonal and regional themes. I am lusting after the pumpkin Basque cheesecake that I unfortunately missed.
This place is also a really great deal with five to seven dishes for $45 per person.
Hours, cost, and other information
- Website: https://www.charcoalvenice.com/
- Location: 425 Washington Blvd., Venice
- Cost: $45 per person
- What to eat: Duck cassoulet, anything vegetable
The best burger I had during L.A., SAH
The Win-dow at American Beauty
No Los Angeles take-out guide would be complete without a burger choice.
A group of friends and I from all parts of Los Angeles got together to do a burger potluck on Zoom earlier in the quarantine. We decided to get burgers from across the city delivered at the same time so we could eat together and talk about them. A popular pick for burger potluck was the patty melt at Cassell’s. It is one of the best patty melts in town and I was also surprised by how crispy the sandwich was when it arrived via delivery. I had expected the grease from the burger and onions to completely soak the bottom piece of bread during the ride over. Lo and behold, it did not disintegrate in my hands when I picked it up. But that is not what I ordered for the burger potluck.
My pick and now my new favorite burger in town is the cheeseburger at the Win-dow at American Beauty. This steakhouse’s little to-go window is churning out really great burgers at a super economical price. It is meaty, soft, and pillowy like Shake Shack, but the quality of the meat is so much better. At $4 it is less than the cost of Shake Shack or In-n-out and more satisfying.
Hours, cost, and other information
- Website: https://www.americanbeauty.la/
- Location: 425 Rose Ave in Venice. Available for pick-up or delivery on many apps.
- Cost: single is $4 and the double is $6.25
- Order: The menu is small. There is a vegetarian option.
Sophisticated snacks
Lady & Larder
Many farmers have partnered with restaurants around Los Angeles to offer seasonal fruit and vegetable boxes since Los Angeles was Safer at home This is how we discovered Lady & Larder. This woman-owned business offers beautiful cheese plates, sandwiches, and floral. Either design your own cheese board or allow them to curate one for you. Follow them on Instagram if you are a cheese fanatic or you just love food pictures.
I bought the $25 board to do a virtual dinner party with friends. It had a wide range of cheeses, olives, charcuterie, and dried fruits. A great starter box for those who already have dinner plans. Let’s be honest, I just had it for dinner.
Hours, cost, and other information
- Website: https://ladyandlarder.com/
- Location: 828 Pico Blvd Suite 2, Santa Monica
- Cost: It really ranges. A small cheese board is $24 or you can have an xxl curated cheese board for $200. The most beautiful sandwiches I have ever seen are $14-$18.
- Order: Cheese!
I have a lot of recommendations for my Los Angeles take-out guide. In the next post, I will talk about desserts-which I am eating a whole lot of, drinks, and the Michelin star restaurants.
I would absolutely love it if you shared your favorite Los Angeles take-out places. As you can see these recommendations stick to my side of town. I am sure there are great places in Downtown Los Angeles, Koreatown, Pasadena, and other eastside locations. Help a reader out.
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Comments (3)
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September 23, 2020 at 2:10 pm
[…] we aren’t cooking at home, which doesn’t happen a lot (see my take-out guides part one and part two) we tend to crave things we can’t make ourselves. We tend to choose vegetable-heavy […]
Los Angeles, Safer at Home take-out guide part two – This Ugly Beautiful City
October 27, 2020 at 6:49 pm
[…] These recommendations are more for special occasions and the price points reflect that. I know that with my husband and I still being employed we are able to do this type of meal more often. More economical options are in part one. […]
L.A. gifts for your Valentine – This Ugly Beautiful City
February 8, 2021 at 4:02 pm
[…] I have written about this place many many times on This Ugly Beautiful City because I love it. You can read those posts here and here. […]