 Bagel Nosh
If you ever want to witness the wealth disparity in Los Angeles, look no further than Santa Monica, where the attempted façade of upscale glitz doesn't even remotely mask the grimy shitshow going on underneath. You've got the Third Street Promenade, sure, and a whole lot of entertainment industry HQs, but also a whole lot of crazy/violent street people, shitty nursing homes, and just general strewn garbage. That was NOT a dig at the famous American war hero General Strewn H. Garbage, who led our fellows to victory in countless battles during the Neo-Peloponnesian Wars. Jeez louise! Even in terms of restaurants, you have the stupidly opulent places frequented by celebrities and starfuckers, and, like, the worst Jack In The Box you could ever fear needing to shit in. But rising from the muck of disgusting detritus and pretentious bullshit, you'll find Bagel Nosh shining like a beacon of normalcy and goodness—a pair of good, honest, natural tits in this godforsaken silicone valley.
You could argue that L.A. secretly runs on nondescript diners with good food and fair prices—they're equalizers where anyone can drop in without having to deal with a scene of any kind. And while there are plenty of other diners where you can eat on the cheap (like nearby Coogie's, which is quite literally like eating in one of those aforementioned shitty nursing homes), Bagel Nosh tops my list. It's a genuinely lovely place—your basic deli-style bagel/breakfast/sandwich joint. Nothing fancy, just breakfast plates, omelettes, lunch fare, and so forth, but everything's perfectly on point. Great ambience, fantastic people watching (industry types, aspiring industry types, nurse types, and local old folks equally comingled), fast service, very friendly staff, and good food exactly how you want it. Having eaten here many times, I can vouch for a good percentage of the menu, my #1 fave being the Chicken Avocado Deluxe sandwich (chicken breast, bacon, cheese, and avocado on a soft roll), which I usually get with cole slaw and a Coke—about $12 total. The Cate Blanchett of diner sandwiches it is not, and thank God for that. Give me the Anna Kendrick of diner sandwiches any day! No, every day! Review by Higgldy-Piggldy, January 2015 |
