restaurants in Santa Monica/Venice Beach
 

My husband and I will be in the LA area in late September for a few days. We will be staying in Santa Monica--I need suggestions for restaurants--I am somewhat of a foodie but don't like to have to take a second on our house to afford a restaurant meal. We like all kinds of cuisines--Help--

One of my favorite places to go in Santa Monica is Earth Wind & Flour. It is on Santa Monica Blvd. It is a pasta/Italian place with some atmosphere, good food & won't break the bank. You don't have to dress up to go. <BR>Also, even though the name slips my mind at the moment, there is a seafood place somewhere along the 3rd street promenade. It is really dress down, you go up to the counter & order from a large selection of items & there are picnic tables all over the place to eat at. Comfortable atmosphere, good food, & decent price.

Marty, <BR>Also forgot to mention my favorite breakfast restaurant - The Omlette Parlor on Main Street. The omlettes & everything else is great. They serve fresh orange juice, & have an outdoor eating area out back. It usually is crowded & may have to wait 15 - 30 minutes for a seat, but it is worth it.

Depending on what type of food you like, there is the Warszawa on Lincoln Blvd which serves authentic Polish food. <BR> <BR>I have not been, but The Lobster, on the pier, comes highly recommended by freinds.

If you like asian food - Monsoon on the 3rd street promonade and Typhoon at the Santa Monica airport are both a little bit different from the normal thai/other asian places and the prices are reasonable. Border Grill has fairly good Mexican and is on 4th street downtown, but as you may have seen from an earlier post, not everyone has had good experiences there (I have). It serves more gourmet Mexican than the normal bean, cheese and tortilla dishes. La Serenata de Garabaldi, also on 4th street, also has gourmet Mexican and is a little fancier and quieter than Border Grill. For Italian, try I Cugini - it's on Ocean right across from the water. The next step up (i.e., more expensive) includes Ivy at the Shore, Jiraffe (Cal-French), Chinois (Chinese-French) and Valentino's (consistently rated the best Italian in LA). My personal favorite for Italian is Il Restaurante de Georgio Baldi (also in Santa Monica, but right off of the Pacific Coast Highway about 5min. north of downtown Santa Monica).

Sushi Roku on Ocean Avenue. We just loved it!!!

I love Warszawa--great food and a cool place. Everyone I take there loves it. <BR> <BR>Monsoons is fun--really great atmosphere, the food is pretty good--nothing awe-inspiring. <BR> <BR>I would wander around the 3rd Street Promenade--lots of restaurants. For a cheap but good lunch go to Falafel King in the food court on the promenade. Yummy! <BR> <BR>Also, if you have a car, try going to the Farmer's Market on Third and Fairfax--near the museums if that is something you are in to. Great place to people-watch. You can wander around the food stalls and graze. I like the cajun food and the crepes are devine. <BR> <BR>Welcome to LA.

Thank you to everyone for the recommedations. My husband reminded me that about 10 years ago we ate at a restaurant in Venice Beach, he thinks, named Rose Cafe or something like that. Is it still in business? How's the food?

Yes Rose cafe is still there...going strong. <BR>By all means splurge on Chinois. It's my favorite restaurant in the world!