4.11.2019. Republique. Los Angeles. California.

Hilariously we were shooting at Republique, which happened to be on my list of restaurants to dine at in LA. Since we wrapped right before dinner service and we had a break for dinner, my team did dinner there. Republique was also Charlie Chaplin's production office back in the day. What a gorgeous space along with a lovely dinner. I loved all the vegetables, the prawns and the lamb tagine. I really enjoyed the strawberry tiramisu for dessert as that was a very interesting tiramisu with the different textures and flavors of strawberries in one cup!

Republique
624 South La Brea Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90036
310.362.6115

CHARCUTERIE BOARD

EUROPEAN WHITE ASPARAGUS
morel mushrooms, green asparagus mousseline

LIVE SANTA BARBARA SPOT PRAWNS
ponzu sauce, brown normandy butter

OCTOPUS
arnett farms citrus, cabbage, santa barbara pistachios, chile, lime 

BRUSSELS SPROUTS
applewood-smoked bacon, wild ohio ramps, soft egg

SPINACH CAVATELLI
morel, black trumpet and porcini mushrooms

LAMB TAGINE
verni farms preserved fruit, chickpeas, meyer lemon

ALMOND BROWN BUTTER CAKE
citrus, earl grey ice cream 

WARM DARK CHOCOLATE CAKE
gianduja, banana caramel

STRAWBERRY TIRAMISU
caramelized white chocolate

4.11.2019. Cora's Coffee Shoppe. Santa Monica. California.

Cora's Coffee Shoppe is my favorite for breakfast in Santa Monica. It also is the same kitchen as my favorite restaurant, Capo. When I have time, I like to go there for breakfast al fresco before my crazy day gets started. I really love getting the hues rancheros. If you go for lunch, you can get Capo's (my favorite pasta dish at Capo).

Cora's Coffee Shoppe
1802 Ocean Ave
Santa Monica, CA 90401
310.451.9562



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@corascoffeeshoppe is my little piece of quiet in between all my shoots in LA. It’s a nice way to start off my day before crazy production town hits. The food is also excellent as it’s the kitchen from one of my absolute favorites, Capo. Which was much needed since we wrapped at 1am last night...

A post shared by Amy Yvonne Yu (@amyyvonneyu) on Apr 12, 2019 at 11:13am PDT

4.8.2019. Gjelina. Venice. California.

In between a tech scout, we were able to squeeze in a lunch at Gjelina since we were already in Venice. It was the first day of their zucchini flower pizza and it was phenomenal. If you are in Venice this season, check it out before it's gone.

Gjelina
1429 Abbot Kinney Blvd
Venice, CA 90291
310.450.1429

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The first day of the zucchini flower pizza at @gjelinarestaurant.

A post shared by Amy Yvonne Yu (@amyyvonneyu) on Apr 8, 2019 at 1:27pm PDT

3.27.2019. Peter Murphy: A Tribute to David Bowie. The Chapel. San Francisco. California.

Peter Murphy was supposed to do his month long residency 2 years ago at The Chapel. Sadly due to visa issues, he has not been able to do it until this year. Lucky for me, I was able to score tickets to his first time ever David Bowie Tribute. It was out of this world good as you would imagine. Life on mars good even. Then I was educated to the fact that Dandelion Chocolate across the street closes at 11PM and that was where I got my much needed caffeine before the show since I had been up since 5AM that morning delivering videos for work. Then I saw Peter Murphy do Bauhaus with Davey J on Friday too.

The Chapel
777 Valencia St
San Francisco, CA 94110
415.551.5157

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Finally. A proper Bowie tribute. Thank you @petermurphyofficial ! 🖤⚡️🖤⚡️🖤

A post shared by Amy Yvonne Yu (@amyyvonneyu) on Mar 28, 2019 at 8:03am PDT

3.11.2019. Bestia. Los Angeles. California.

Bestia has been on my hit list for LA for a while now. Except I never have time since it's typically a fly by when I go to LA for a shoot. This time, we did a group dinner there before the shoot. It was an exceptional meal and the roasted bone marrow is to die for and the general favorite of the entire table. Naturally, we also ordered all the desserts since there were 6 of us.

Bestia
2121 E 7th Pl
Los Angeles, CA 90021
213.514.5724


Lobster Crostino.

squid ink aioli. pickled chilies. opal basil. citrus.

Kohlrabi & Apple. 

persian cucumber. tarragon. dill. trout roe. scarlet frill. nigella seed.

Roasted Marrow Bone. 

spinach gnocchetti. crispy breadcrumbs. aged balsamic.

Margherita Pizza. 

san marzano tomatoes. mozzarella. basil. olive oil. sea salt.

Pici al Sugo di Agnello. 

lamb ragu. saffron. capra sarda. breadcrumbs.

Double Tomahawk Pork Chop. 

herb salt. red endive. toasted sesame. meyer lemon. honey.

Bar au Chocolat Bittersweet Chocolate Budino Tart. 

salted caramel. cacao crust. olive oil. sea salt.

Butterscotch Coconut Tart. 

fresh coconut sorbetto.

Frozen Meyer Lemon Meringue Tartlet. 

graham cracker crust. finger lime. lime zest.

Rhubarb & Frangipane Crostata with Raspberry Glaze. 

housemade buttermilk ricotta ice cream.

Crème Fraîche Panna Cotta. 

gaviota strawberries. blood orange-honey syrup. meyer lemon cookies.

Coffee & Donuts. 

spiced chestnut zeppole. whipped cream. coffee ice cream.

3.10.2019-3.13.2019. Ace Hotel. Los Angeles. California.

I stayed at the Ace Hotel Downtown LA for this shoot last time as we were shooting near Downtown LA. It's as what you would expect from Ace Hotels: well designed rooms and very comfortable for the price point with a great cafe/restaurant downstairs. It also has a great roof top bar as well.

Ace Hotel Downtown LA
929 S Broadway
Los Angeles, CA 90015
213.623.3233

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This week’s office.

A post shared by Amy Yvonne Yu (@amyyvonneyu) on Mar 10, 2019 at 4:54pm PDT

3.10.2019 + 4.72019. Park's BBQ. Los Angeles. California.

My friend Joel brought me to Park's BBQ back in March when I was in LA for a shoot. Last time I was shooting in downtown LA, we went to a different Korean BBQ restaurant every night. Then I did a juice cleanse when I got home. Park's is now my new favorite Korean BBQ restaurant in LA. So much so that I had to go again last week when I went down to LA for another shoot. The meat is extremely high quality and the gal-bi is a must. Even all the banchan (side dishes) is top quality and extremely interesting. I will come back to try the wagyu! So stay tuned for that.

Park's BBQ
955 S Vermont Ave G
Los Angeles, CA 90006
213.380.1717

3.10.2019. Runyon Canyon. Los Angeles. California.

Because before you eat a ton of Korean BBQ, you hike first. I had no idea Runyon was so steep! And I am extremely active. Since it had been raining in LA, we got a bunch of dramatic clouds and a lot more greenery than your average LA brownness.

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Hollywood. Thanks for the much needed sunshine and great friends! 🌞

A post shared by Amy Yvonne Yu (@amyyvonneyu) on Mar 13, 2019 at 11:51am PDT

2.21.2019 + 3.28.2019. Dartealing. San Francisco. California.

It's been a minute. That's because I have been very busy work wise and working 60-80 hours a week for about 2 months now. This weekend will be the first in 2 months where I do not have to work. But as you suspect, I have been getting up to some food and travel adventures for work. So here are a few highlights. I hope you will find something good for inspiration.

I probably high tea more often than your average person, but then again, I am English. So I would say I high tea a proper amount. Since I have been freelancing in SOMA, I have gone to Dartealing twice in the past months. It's very charming and the food is great. The decor is also very quaint. I typically opt for the Hand of the King Tea Service here with a black tea as I like savory with my sweet.

Dartealing
470 3rd St
San Francisco, CA 94107
415.644.0142