Ford's Filling Station

A few months ago, I saw a segment on the local morning news which featured food from Ford's Filling Station. I thought the food looked great. Last Saturday, I finally had the opportunity to try the restaurant.

The restaurant is located right in the heart of Culver City's developing area, next to several other new/trendy restaurants, all of which seem to keep quite busy. Given that it was a beautiful cool sunny day, we decided to eat outside, which was filled with metal tables and chairs. I didn't really get a feel for what the atmosphere was like inside; it seemed kind of dark and there was a long bar along the left side, but without having stayed inside for more than a minute or two, it's really difficult to state more than my initial impressions.

The menu at Ford's Filling Station focuses on American cuisine, much of what I'd consider to be in the vein of comfort food with a twist. There were a number of daily specials, but I suspect that because it was a weekend they were all breakfast foods (an example on the twist was the Kobe Hash that was on the special menu that day). The menu itself is rather small; I am under the impression that at Ford's Filling Station they would rather do a few dishes quite well than offer a wide variety of mediocre dishes. In fact, the alcohol menu was larger than the food menu.

For some reason, I had an odd craving for Fish and chips. I'm not a big fan of the dish in general, but that was what I honed in on when I saw the menu so I figured I would go with my instinct. While the dish satisfied my craving, I kind of wish I had ordered something else, just to get a better feel for Ford's Filling Station by tasting a signature dish rather than something I could have almost anywhere. In fact, I probably would have given it a higher rating if I had had another dish. The Fish and Chips was served in a small tin bucket - a small helping of fries, one onion ring, 2 fried and breaded pieces of asparagus, 2 carrots, and 3 pieces of breaded and fried fish. I really liked that it was served that way, I thought it was quite original. I also liked the variety of food that came in the bucket. And although fried, it wasn't the heavy greasy kind of fried - although it tasted nothing like tempura, I would compare the method of preparation more akin to that type of frying as I didn't feel overwhelmed by the grease. The fish was great - well flavored and very tender. The accoutrements were also prepared in the same fashion. I really enjoyed the fries. The asparagus was an interesting idea, but I could take it or leave it; the breading almost felt unnecessary. My sister ordered an eggplant sandwich, which looked great. It came with a very healthy portion of Burrata cheese and something that resembled salsa on top. It also included a small side of potato salad.

The food was good, but at Ford's Filling Station, good food doesn't necessarily come cheap. I felt the portions were a big small for the price; not that I needed more fish or my sister needed a bigger piece of eggplant, but that perhaps the side dishes could have been a bit larger. You're definitely paying for quality over quantity here. The next time I go, I would order a dinner salad or an appetizer to have with my meal, and I think that would leave me perfectly satisfied.



Ford's Filling Station
9531 Culver Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90232
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Alejo's Presto Trattoria

A couple of friends and I had to make the trek out to Marina del Rey to pick up a hard to find video game. Since we were going over there anyway and it was dinner time, I suggested we eat there. A friend had suggested a delicious Italian restaurant so I decided to give it a try.

Alejo's isn't in a really great neighborhood and aesthetically, not a great location. It is hidden next to a convenience store in a small strip mall. We were lucky to find parking there, but there may also be some parking on the street, although, I wouldn't park a Mercedes in the neighborhood.

We got right in and were seated immediately. It probably helped that it was a weeknight and not exactly the dinner hour. After we were seated they brought us a basket of fresh, cut bread pieces. The bread was incredibly fresh and delicious. The dipping sauce offered was olive oil with a TON of garlic in it. I thought the garlic was a little spicy and bitter, but that didn't stop me from eating it. I think roasted garlic would be better because it would add a little sweetness. We got our drinks and looked over the menu as we ate the bread. If you are so inclined, the restaurant allows you to BYOB.

The menu has a lot of seafood on it and the restaurant smelled a tiny bit like seafood, but it wasn't bothersome (even to those in my party that do not eat fish). I ordered the veal ravioli in white and red sauce. I like that they serve it with two sauces because mixing Alfredo sauce and Tomato sauce is one of my favorite things to do. The pasta was cooked perfectly. The veal flavor wasn't my favorite--but only because it is veal--I just really wanted ravioli and it was either that or chicken. Even though veal wasn't my favorite, the flavors of the ravioli and sauces were delicious. The portion was also really large and I had to take a fair amount home with me.

The other two people I went with ordered a Pepperoni pizza. The pizza was large with a thin crust and a little bit of that grease that makes it so good. The pizza came with a little shredded basil on top for extra flavor. I only had a bit of crust but it was pretty delicious all the same.

I noticed some other people got a large family style salad before their meal and then spaghetti and meatballs. The meatballs were the size of baseballs! I want to go back to this restaurant so that I can try them, they looked delicious!

The service was pretty quick and the food was good and the restaurant was clean. I wouldn't go for a walk in the neighborhood after dinner, but I would definitely go back to that restaurant night or day for the food.



Alejo's Presto Trattoria
4002 Lincoln Blvd
Marina Del Rey, CA 90292
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