Last month, I finally got around to eating an actual meal at gr/eats, a tiny eatery on Sawtelle Blvd. in West LA. GR/eats is the slightly random restaurant arm of Giant Robot, a magazine-media-culture-art empire created in 1994 by Eric Nakamura and Martin Wong. Previously, I had only gone inside the restaurant after hours, for a really intimate Goh Nakamura concert hosted by Giant Robot.
Some three or so blocks of Sawtelle Blvd. are my favorite place to go in Los Angeles, and a lot has to do with Giant Robot. The two retail stores and gallery space on the block are what got my 2nd year roommie at UCLA and me to hop on the green number 6 Culver City bus and explore the area in the first place several years ago. Sawtelle is replete with culinary wonders at affordable prices. Hide Sushi offers an authentic, simple, fresh experience at reasonable prices. Furaibo’s small side-dishes and crunchy fried chicken couples well with friends and Japanese beer on tap. Chabuya has comparatively small but satiating bowls of hot ramen. Volcano Tea is always crowded with students and young people inside and out. And of course, there’s a Nijiya grocery store and a Yogurtland, so no food craving is left unanswered.
Nestled amongst the whole Sawtelle scene, gr/eats is easy to overlook. It’s slightly recessed from the street (only because it boasts a rarity in the area — its own parking spaces in front), and a little diminutive next to a slightly misplaced hardware store. Still, it’s located only a few yards away from GR2 and just across the street from the original Giant Robot retail store.
Inside, the restaurant is small but cozy. GR artist Ai Yamaguchi’s works grace the walls, along with clips from a Rachael Ray magazine article highlighting GR’s deep-fried garlic meatballs.
Leaf-shaped wasabi
The menu at first glance looks to be Asian Fusion, serving up a mix of Japanese, Chinese and American dishes, but the term and all its connotations just don’t do the food justice. It’s probably most accurate to call this place a singular Asian American restaurant, serving up international homestyle dishes, from the tempting seared tuna sandwich, fish tacos, curry shrimp, and penne pesto. The flavors favor a Japanese influence; Chef Nelson Magana often serves up daily specials like chicken katsu sandwiches or veg-friendly tofu tamago donburi.
I ordered the Seared Tuna Salad, which came with a very generous portion of seared tuna placed around a bed of mixed greens topped with a flavorful house dressing. As an appetizer, I had the Okra Rolls, which have a surprising but delicious blend of ingredients including chicken, okra, enoki mushrooms, and avocado. I also had some standard fare: miso soup and a hot coffee.
The care for flavor and attention to detail was evident in each dish, not only in presentation but in flavor. For such a small operation, the eatery serves up a rather vast variety of foods, but with no apparent sacrifices in quality.
Next time in LA, I know where my first stop will be — and I’ll have to start off with those famous meatballs.
gr/eats
http://www.gr-eats.com/
2050 Sawtelle Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90025
