Scott Steg (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} scottsteg) wrote,@ 2007-06-22 09:52:00 |
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Top Ten Reasons things are good in the neighborhood
10. Pho Siam - Without a doubt our favorite place to get a massage. Massage therapy in general has come a long way over the last several years. Its no longer practiced in some shady area with "happy endings." Now I can get some Nuat Phaen Boran which is essentially a small Thai woman beating the living bejeezus out of you for an hour and you feel like a million bucks afterwards.
9. Taco Trucks - While Chicago has gyros and Italian beef, Echo Park has an array of these mobile vendors laid out across the neighborhood on some curbside. They're usually open for business after 5pm in some places but all of them are open after-hours when the bars close at 2am. Nothing like some homemade carnitas and carne asada tacos for a $1 a pop.
8. Crooked Cowboy and The Freshwater Indians - Our friend Bron and company perform a couple times a month and its always a great show. I've posted about them before but its simply nothing I've heard before. Imagine a spaghetti western with psychedelics and a little Tom Waits. You get a sonic orchestra of sights and sounds reminiscent of stuff you'd see in the desert on 'shrooms.
7. Our House in Echo Park - I'm living in one of the most unique places I think I've ever rented. The only other home I've rented was when I was in Grand Rapids on Robinson where it was an old gatehouse on the Blodgett estate. This pales in comparison because we have our own private backyard with a garden, room for barbecues with our Weber grill and a ping-pong table thanks to our tax return. Did I mention the backyard is about as big as the house and shaded by an old avocado tree? The other cool thing is the rent is phenomenal for this area.
6. Elysian Park - Consider this the backyard to Echo Park residents. You've got miles of trails in the hills, parks that teem with activity on Saturday and Sunday with just about every culture, sight and food aroma you can imagine, and its all free to the public. On any given day you'll find some pinata being thrashed by kids, a church picnic, a quinceanera and a makeshift ice cream truck painted with some cartoon character that is beyond copyright infringement. Plus, if you go East up the hill you'll be in Dodger Blue territory.
5. Churros! - There's a truck just south of Echo Park and Sunset that sells fresh, authentic churros. These aren't the crappy ones you get at the movie theaters, amusement parks or malls. I'm talking fresh out the fryer churros doused in cinnamon and sugar. Only 6 for $2, they're too easy to give in and indulge. Plus, I love having fun with Brandi and her story of "The Churro Elves."
4. Nostalgic Downloading - I've recently come back to my old music roots and have recently begun listening to either the most aggressive stuff from Big Black / Rapeman or the new Polyphonic Spree. Nothing could be more opposite yet so enduring.
3. Grebo Birthdays - to celebrate my upcoming 36th birthday, we're throwing a "Grebo Birthday party" at our place. Expect loads of Doc Marten's with long pants cut at the knee, baggy flannel and army surplus shirts and music from The Midlands. Hipsters beware.. white belts are forbidden.
2. Wine - So much of it comes around out here. Either a 2-hour drive East or North or a 2-hour flight/drive North can get you some of the best elixirs the US can offer.
1. Brandi's creative cooking - All I can say is I swear I married a Food Network star. Whatever she chooses to make I agree 100% without reservation. Consider myself truly blessed a thousand times over.
10. Pho Siam - Without a doubt our favorite place to get a massage. Massage therapy in general has come a long way over the last several years. Its no longer practiced in some shady area with "happy endings." Now I can get some Nuat Phaen Boran which is essentially a small Thai woman beating the living bejeezus out of you for an hour and you feel like a million bucks afterwards.
9. Taco Trucks - While Chicago has gyros and Italian beef, Echo Park has an array of these mobile vendors laid out across the neighborhood on some curbside. They're usually open for business after 5pm in some places but all of them are open after-hours when the bars close at 2am. Nothing like some homemade carnitas and carne asada tacos for a $1 a pop.
8. Crooked Cowboy and The Freshwater Indians - Our friend Bron and company perform a couple times a month and its always a great show. I've posted about them before but its simply nothing I've heard before. Imagine a spaghetti western with psychedelics and a little Tom Waits. You get a sonic orchestra of sights and sounds reminiscent of stuff you'd see in the desert on 'shrooms.
7. Our House in Echo Park - I'm living in one of the most unique places I think I've ever rented. The only other home I've rented was when I was in Grand Rapids on Robinson where it was an old gatehouse on the Blodgett estate. This pales in comparison because we have our own private backyard with a garden, room for barbecues with our Weber grill and a ping-pong table thanks to our tax return. Did I mention the backyard is about as big as the house and shaded by an old avocado tree? The other cool thing is the rent is phenomenal for this area.
6. Elysian Park - Consider this the backyard to Echo Park residents. You've got miles of trails in the hills, parks that teem with activity on Saturday and Sunday with just about every culture, sight and food aroma you can imagine, and its all free to the public. On any given day you'll find some pinata being thrashed by kids, a church picnic, a quinceanera and a makeshift ice cream truck painted with some cartoon character that is beyond copyright infringement. Plus, if you go East up the hill you'll be in Dodger Blue territory.
5. Churros! - There's a truck just south of Echo Park and Sunset that sells fresh, authentic churros. These aren't the crappy ones you get at the movie theaters, amusement parks or malls. I'm talking fresh out the fryer churros doused in cinnamon and sugar. Only 6 for $2, they're too easy to give in and indulge. Plus, I love having fun with Brandi and her story of "The Churro Elves."
4. Nostalgic Downloading - I've recently come back to my old music roots and have recently begun listening to either the most aggressive stuff from Big Black / Rapeman or the new Polyphonic Spree. Nothing could be more opposite yet so enduring.
3. Grebo Birthdays - to celebrate my upcoming 36th birthday, we're throwing a "Grebo Birthday party" at our place. Expect loads of Doc Marten's with long pants cut at the knee, baggy flannel and army surplus shirts and music from The Midlands. Hipsters beware.. white belts are forbidden.
2. Wine - So much of it comes around out here. Either a 2-hour drive East or North or a 2-hour flight/drive North can get you some of the best elixirs the US can offer.
1. Brandi's creative cooking - All I can say is I swear I married a Food Network star. Whatever she chooses to make I agree 100% without reservation. Consider myself truly blessed a thousand times over.
