To the California members....

[Kylehnat]

L.A. sucks

There it is! As one-sided as your post seems, it's all true. I would never want to live in the Los Angeles area. Most areas south of there are less destructive to one's soul, however.

Speaking of the earthquakes, is there any way to know when one is starting?

The ground will start to move juuuuust a little, and your brain will tell you that something is horribly wrong, but you won't be able to figure out what. As the shaking gets worse, you'll eventually think "earthquake". Most earthquakes aren't too bad. The problem is that you don't know whether it's a "small" earthquake or a "big" one while it's happening. The main fear comes from not knowing. Seeing the floor all wavy-like is also discomforting.

 

[Blackbird.]

I thought California did have snow up in the north?
All the info is still being appreciated guys. Seems my biggest problem would be the cost of living there.

Speaking of the earthquakes, is there any way to know when one is starting Smallhorses? Tornadoes can normally sound like a train coming, so is an earthquake any different, or would I just feel a shaking motion?

Sorry, heh, I was being kinda selfish I guess. Yeah California gets snow just not where I live (San Jose) that's for damn sure.

As far as early warnings for earthquakes: I think they're trying to make improvements/developments on early warning systems for earthquakes. I haven't heard much at all though just heard it mentioned on the news but didn't pay attention. I'm just not worried about them of course I didn't experience one like '89.

 

[V1P3R]

The straight truth answers from me...

Parking sucks... (well not as much as say LA or SF but we're getting there)

Traffic sucks... (well not as much as say LA or SF but we're getting there)

Public Trans... Goes no where and is really called the Poor Trans.

LA does Suck.

Earthquakes? well... lets put it this way, I'd much rather live in earthquake country than say hurricane country where it seem like EVERY YEAR you must rebuild.

The bottom line... if there weren't so many friggin people here it'd be nicer.

 

[Smallhorses]

The bottom line... if there weren't so many friggin people here it'd be nicer.

Yeah, damned immigrants!

Oh, wait.

 

[V1P3R]

Hay Bub... I was born here!

 

[tabs]

Where are you living now, *McLaren*?

 

[Blackbird.]

Ignore.

 

[McLaren]

Thanks for that huge amount of info Smalls, and Danoff. 👍 👍

Where are you living now, *McLaren*?

I'm currently in Texas.

 

[Danoff]

I'm currently in Texas.

That's where I came from.

 

[Seanman]

LA does NOT suck.

 

[Sage]

This is the first time I’ve ever heard someone complain about LA food. Com’n Dan, be a little more adventurous. And no Mexican food? You’re kidding, right? LA’s such a great place to get cheap, greasy, authentic Mexican food.

 

[tabs]

LA does NOT suck.

LA's great to visit, but it probably would suck to live there. Good, no...GREAT hot dogs, though. 👍

And sea urchins are yummy.

 

[Smallhorses]

He's grown up on Tex-Mex. There's a difference.
You can't get good Tex-Mex in LA, but you can get great authentic Baja Mexican cuisine and that's just droolsome!
He just doesn't strike me as an adventurous eater, and each to their own, I suppose.
If you're a strictly meat & 2 veg type or steak & fries, fair play to you. It leaves all the gourmet exploring to the rest of us!
Personally I've never let me eyes or my mind influence what I'm eating. Food is all about taste. So what if your mind is telling you raw fish isn't what you were brought up on, try it! If it doesn't taste good, go ahead spit it out, but I can safely say Sushi is a personal favourite of mine, and I've always been of the opinion that you can't say you don't like something until you've actually experienced it. I'll draw the line at live snakes, and other Indiana Jones type food though! Having said that, I've eaten Snake Soup before, and had deep-fried Rattlesnake near the Grand Canyon, tried candied Crickets (courtesy of our Sushi Chef) and I love fresh Oysters!
I ate Sushi in Japan, Frogs Legs in Belgium, I've tried Snails (although in England!), I eat Vietnamese food here with all the stuff that usually makes the waiters go "But you're not Vietnamese? Are you sure?" (Porkblood cubes, tendons & tripe! ) never been to Korea and tried dog, but hey, I'm game, you can't knock it until you taste it, right?
I've made Indian and Thai waiters gawp in amazement that I stomach stuff that they usually consider too spicy to serve to anyone but themselves (comes from growing up close to Manchester, England and attending Uni in Leicester, 2 cities where the South Asian populations are huge!)
No offense meant to Danoff, you like what you like, and no-one has any right to tell you where to live, what to eat or where to take a vacation, for example, but there are those in this world who're adventurous and those who ain't. I'm the former, he's the latter. We're both normal people, and the World in general is a better place for it!
"If everybody looked the same, we'd get tired of looking at each other."
Not the greatest lyric ever, but one that rings true!

And yes, I'll agree with tabs Sea Urchins are yummy, the fresher the better. Especially the ones from Santa Barbara area!

Oh, here's proof of Cali snow too! Taken in Tahoe on Superbowl day!

 

[Sage]

I love watching Andrew Zimmern’s Bizarre Foods show. I want to try everything he’s tried!

(For those of you who haven’t seen it, here’s an episode.)

 

[V1P3R]

Oh, here's proof of Cali snow too! Taken in Tahoe on Superbowl day!

💡 Nick you should tell them how much it cost for one day there. xD

And it's definitely not that empty there usually...

 

[Smallhorses]

$61 for a discounted liftpass from REI, which includes a $7 food credit. Not all that bad.
And yeah, that's why it pays to ignore the Superbowl-hype and head for the hills! There's no-one there on Superbowl weekend 'cos people are busy drinkin' Coors Light and eating Cheese Puffs on the sofa in front of the game!
We've been up there the past 4 years in a row on Superbowl weekend, and it's one of the best riding weekends of the year, wide open runs, no lift lines, it's an absolute no-brainer if you can't stand American "Football"!

 

[V1P3R]

Well, OTHER than during the Superbowl.

 

[Danoff]

This is the first time I’ve ever heard someone complain about LA food. Com’n Dan, be a little more adventurous. And no Mexican food? You’re kidding, right? LA’s such a great place to get cheap, greasy, authentic Mexican food.

Seriously Sage, LA food sucks. It's the worst. I've tried most of it and I'm appalled that you people eat this crap. The mexican food here is atrocious. It's enough to make people think they don't like mexican food and never try it again. What we get in LA is either Cal-Mex or authetic mex. Why anyone would want to sample authentic food of a country that's famous for tire fires and poverty I'll never know. In my mind, Tex-Mex is all there is. Cal-Mex is bad, but not quite as bad as authentic mexican. And no, Taco Bell definitely doesn't count for any of the above categories.

Adventurous is one thing. Adventurous means that you have to be open to new foods and give them a try. I have. Most of them are horrible. Going back to the trough after that is just silly.

You can't get good Tex-Mex in LA, but you can get great authentic Baja Mexican cuisine and that's just droolsome!

I can safely say Sushi is a personal favourite of mine, and I've always been of the opinion that you can't say you don't like something until you've actually experienced it.

I've experienced it. Sushi is not too bad when it comes to taste. Actually better than most cooked fish - which I don't care for. But there are still major issues with it. First of all, it's not great tasting either. Secondly, I don't like eating food that I have to force myself NOT to think about. Thirdly, it's damned expensive. So why would I go out of my way and spend lots of money on a food that's marginal at best? No idea.

I ate Sushi in Japan, Frogs Legs in Belgium, I've tried Snails (although in England!), I eat Vietnamese food here with all the stuff that usually makes the waiters go "But you're not Vietnamese? Are you sure?" (Porkblood cubes, tendons & tripe! ) never been to Korea and tried dog, but hey, I'm game, you can't knock it until you taste it, right?

Yup, you're the reason I don't like CA. No offense. Listen to you brag about the fact that you like Sushi, not only that you like Sushi but that you had in in Japan. Ooooohhh, I'm so impressed. It's quality, not quantity. Eat good food, not weird food. The goal should be to find the best food, not to eat as many different kinds as possible. The goal should be to find the BEST places to visit, not to visit as many places as possible.

I know your worldview is much different from mine and that you totally disagree with what I just wrote. But that's part of the reason I dislike CA. Because people here think like you do. That different or weird is better.

I've made Indian and Thai waiters gawp in amazement that I stomach stuff that they usually consider too spicy to serve to anyone but themselves

Try doing that in Texas.

but there are those in this world who're adventurous and those who ain't. I'm the former, he's the latter.

See above.


Edit: It also grates on me how in CA the automatic response to anyone who says they don't like Sushi is "you should try it". It's so conceited. Like it's an automatic fact that if you try it you wouldn't say you don't like it. Smallhorses and Sage are BY FAR not the only people who have responded that way to either myself or my wife when we say something disparaging about Sushi. Having tried Sushi I know that to me it's about like water or lettuce. It's best when it has no taste. So it amazes me that people actually like it.


Edit2: And before people start writing me off as a picky eater. It's not the case. I love lots of different kinds of food. I try all kinds of foods (you have to in LA). When people say "Let's go out for Lebanese food" if my response is "I've never had Lebanese" it means that I'm willing to go and try it. I've also found plenty of places to eat out here and really enjoy myself. But I've found that one of my favorite things to do when I'm in any state besides CA is to eat. Because I'm usually astonished at how much better their food is. For some reason, CA people just favor all the kinds of food that I don't.

 

[dylansan]

Maybe some people like the foods that you consider weird. Not everyone eats sushi just because it's strange. It might actually taste good to some people.

 

[Danoff]

Maybe some people like the foods that you consider weird. Not everyone eats sushi just because it's strange. It might actually taste good to some people.

Maybe the rice, or the soy sauce. Lots of sushi doesn't actually have much taste. I suppose if people like bland food... A TON of people eat sushi just because it's different.

 

[TheCracker]

Why anyone would want to sample authentic food of a country that's famous for tire fires and poverty I'll never know.

So you don't rate Indian, Thai or Chinese food either then?

 

[Danoff]

So you don't rate Indian, Thai or Chinese food either then?

Chinese yes. Maybe not authentic - but I've never tried Chicken feet. Some Thai is acceptable, but not much of it. They seem to have perfected the technique of ruining meat. I've had Thai noodles that I liked. Indian food is generally bad. Again, some of it is ok, nothing to write home about.

One thing I will say for Thai and Indian food - they have a lot of flavor. Just wish it was good.

 

[TheCracker]

Chinese yes. Maybe not authentic - but I've never tried Chicken feet. Some Thai is acceptable, but not much of it. They seem to have perfected the technique of ruining meat. I've had Thai noodles that I liked. Indian food is generally bad. Again, some of it is ok, nothing to write home about.

One thing I will say for Thai and Indian food - they have a lot of flavor. Just wish it was good.

I think it's rare, even in a China Town or similar kind of area, to get genuinely authentic foreign cuisine outside of the country of origin. Indian food in the UK would be almost unrecognisable to your average native Indian (and i'm obviously not talking tomahawk wielding red indians here). You'd also be hard pressed to find a Chinese restaurant in Europe that sells Chicken feet or the like. My local Thai restaurant, although critically acclaimed, doesn't include Golden Retriever Masaman either.

'Foreign' food is almost always localised to suit local tastes or percieved tastes. It just comes down to how well a dish is cooked and to a large extent individual tastes. I think it's a sweeping statement to say all '_____' food is poor.

 

[Danoff]

I think it's a sweeping statement to say all '_____' food is poor.

Agreed, and if I said that above (which seems probable) it was intended as an exaggeration. Obviously it's going to be difficult to find a region who's food is completely without merit. But if most of it is, I'm probably going to say I dislike it.

 

[///M-Spec]

Maybe some people like the foods that you consider weird. Not everyone eats sushi just because it's strange. It might actually taste good to some people.

Werd.

Dan, if you think most of the pieces have no flavor, you've been eating at McSushi joints that aren't selecting good fish and serving them fresh. It's easy to happen because there are a lot of them out there. I happen to think sushi tastes great. But my wife and I are foodies and we love food and drink in general.

I'm not going to try to change your mind about it; if you don't like it, you don't like it. But good, fresh sushi prepared correctly definately has taste and is made of pure ****ing win.

EDIT:

Obviously it's going to be difficult to find a region who's food is completely without merit.

Ever been to Wisconsin? I kid.


M

 

[Danoff]

Werd.

Dan, if you think most of the pieces have no flavor, you've been eating at McSushi joints that aren't selecting good fish and serving them fresh. It's easy to happen because there are a lot of them out there. I happen to think sushi tastes great. But my wife and I are foodies and we love food and drink in general.

I'm not going to try to change your mind about it; if you don't like it, you don't like it. But good, fresh sushi prepared correctly definately has taste and is made of pure ****ing win.


M

My experience with sushi is limited to one particular time. It was a small (size-wise) celebratory dinner with one of the founding partners from a law firm that my wife worked for. He is a sushi connoisseur, and knew that we were relatively untested as far as sushi went. He took us to his favorite sushi restaurant (big $$$). He then proceeded to "ease" us into sushi by ordering cooked dishes first, then some of the lighter raw stuff like tuna. Then salmon. Eventually I was eating stuff that I don't even remember what was.

I tried it all. None of it was amazing. Didn't really dislike it either. But I've found with most seafood that if it's prepared at a very expensive restaurant, it probably isn't going to have much taste (which is usually as good as it gets). This seemed to be true for most of the sushi.

I used to think I loved lobster. I remember telling someone that one of the best meals I'd ever had was fresh Maine lobster from a restaurant that was also a dock for the lobster boat to bring in the catch. Now I'm realizing that most of what I liked about lobster was the butter I was dipping it in. Lobster is still good, but it's far more bland than I realized at the time.

 

[///M-Spec]

Bah, I guess we can't be friends anymore then

Ever had Ukrainian food? Now that's bland. And scary looking at the same time. I had a bowl of beet stew once and when they brought it out, I swear it looked like gibs. Or the leftovers from a surgical procedure... performed in medieval times. But it tasted utterly unremarkable. Like sub-average cafeteria food.


M

 

[Danoff]

Bah, I guess we can't be friends anymore then

I was expecting a rant about how Chuck Norris eats sushi.

Ever had Ukrainian food? Now that's bland. And scary looking at the same time. I had a bowl of beet stew once and when they brought it out, I swear it looked like gibs. Or the leftovers from a surgical procedure... performed in medieval times. But it tasted utterly unremarkable. Like sub-average cafeteria food.

I've never had Ukrainian food, but now I have another bad food experience to look forward to I'm sure. Any minute now I'll hear a group getting together for lunch "hey, let's do Ukrainian!!".

 

[Smallhorses]

Wow, it's amazing how a thread can degenerate so fast!

I've experienced Danoff in other threads, and he seems like your typical straight-up All-American Boy. As I said each to their own. He considers Las Vegas a holiday destination. I consider it a cesspool.
What do you know 2 human beings with differing opinions? Never seen that before! Let's go to war over it! Oh, wait.

So come on Danoff, what then, is your ideal type of food / restaurant?

I've made Indian and Thai waiters gawp in amazement that I stomach stuff that they usually consider too spicy to serve to anyone but themselves...

Try doing that in Texas.

Been there, done that, (you know just to show off a little more! ) didn't get anything hotter than Tabasco sauce, since after all this is the USA, and folks are scared that you'll sue 'em if they serve you anything that's too hot!
To be honest I had great barbeque food, and good steaks in Texas but I wouldn't therefore classify it as the new Gourmet capital of the world!

There's definitely stuff in this country that I can't understand, Grits, for example, but I'm not going to call the Southern US weird 'cos they like them & I don't.
To be honest I used the locations as a case in point that when I travelled I experience what was on offer. I know plenty of folks that travelled with cases full of Ramen noodles to avoid having to eat anything "Local"!
My wife & I have a regular Sunday habit of going for Sushi in Berkeley so it's not just in Japan that I've had it. One thing I will say is that you should ensure a Sushi pace has a Japanese chef. If they have 63 different kinds of rolls on the menu, it's probably not an authentic place and is probably run by Chinese or Koreans!

I know your worldview is much different from mine and that you totally disagree with what I just wrote. But that's part of the reason I dislike CA. Because people here think like you do. That different or weird is better.

How strange. A Texan that thinks their view of the world is the only one that's right, and must therefore be imposed on everyone. Where've I come across that before?

To you what seems "weird & different" is perfectly normal to others. Picture an Indian Hindu looking at your ideal menu and thinking "How weird is that? He's eating Cow!"

California isn't Texas. Come to terms with that. It's more liberal, less insular, generally better educated and is sure as hell more expensive! However, if it's purely the fact that you've followed a big paycheck out here but you're not happy, then do yourself a favour and realise that money isn't everything, and happiness is. I'm here 'cos I like the place. The paycheck is a bonus that allows me to enjoy what my area has to offer and the rest of the world too!

My Worldview doesn't begin at the Atlantic and end at the Pacific.

And no, Taco Bell definitely doesn't count for any of the above categories.

Well, at least we can agree on one thing! The Vermin that scavenge dumpsters even avoid Tacky-Hell! It's not even fit for Rat food!

[Dripping Sarcasm]That said, off back to Texas with your narrowminded self, and enjoy your roadkill surprise & Bud-Light on the way! No Offense.[/Dripping Sarcasm]

Mmmmmmmmmmmm dripping.
Damnit, that's the Northern English in me coming out!!!

 

[Sage]

Dan: Don’t you think it might be that since Californians are often raised with so much variety in food, they’ve often developed a taste for the wide variety of food? (Notice I said “the wide variety” instead of “a wide variety; I’ll try to clarify.)

For example, someone raised on Chinese food would be able to tell you good dim sum from bad dim sum, but to most Americans, dim sum is just dim sum. Or, another example: before I came to UCSD, I ate fish probably 4–5 times a week. Because of this, I’ve developed a pretty fine-tuned taste for fish, to the extent that I can usually take one bite of salmon and tell you if it’s Pacific or Atlantic. On the other hand, I’ve eaten very little steak, and so while you can probably taste all the nuances in steak qualities, I really don’t know the difference between an acceptable steak and a really good steak – as long as it’s bleeding, I’m usually happy.

Thus, my point is that if you’re raised in an environment where you eat Chinese food on Monday, American food on Tuesday, Thai food on Wednesday, etc., your taste buds “learn” those flavors and learn to like them and appreciate their nuances, and so your taste palette of what tastes good to me is apt to be much wider. In fact, I could almost reverse your argument and say that because many Californians are exposed to a wide variety on a daily basis from the time they’re born, it’s not a matter of purposely looking for what’s different, but what’s comfortable and tasty, because we already find this wide variety of food comfortable and tasty. To you it’s different, but to me it’s what I’ve grown up with.