mas masa por favor

cold weather must mean staying in doors, which means bowchickabowwow for you folks lucky enough to find someone that would allow you to touch them. that's right. don't get insulted. like i said before, folks must make mucho whoopee during the january/february months because 9 months later, there are a ton of october birthdays to celebrate. yes, october shows a spike in birth rate in the u.s.

another friend had her celebratory bday dinner at masa of echo park. she loves this place cuz it's close to her house (don't lie friend, you know that's the truth), and because they have a great croissant bread pudding. i love this place because of the atmosphere, good service, and the yummy food and price points. sshhhh...don't tell anyone this, but this use to be my "go to" place when i went out on dates. why? 1) good parking 2) close to my home (to make a quick ass getaway when needed) 3) inexpensive menu items (yup, i'm not one of those girls that will use you to feed me) 4) cute, chillaxin atmosphere 5) dark enough so i couldn't see every pimple on the said dude's chin. it is a fine place to date, but i digress......

the decor is "farm house meets gay pride parade" with all them colors and knick knacks. but i like it. homey feel to it.

after two bouts of masa lovin' in the past 2 weeks, i decided it's time to post, so keep in mind it's a compilation of a lot of food from two different events lest you call me a fatty and make me cry inside.

my all time favorite manchego salad. i LOVE it. it's definitely a sweet salad with sweet dates, granny smith apple slices, manchego cheese, and a balsamic vinaigrette. this salad is a regular in my book.

greasy side of fries. it's not like you need a pic of fries cuz you don't know what they are, but yeah, not so tasty here. i prefer mine thin and crunchy. thicker ones soak up oil like these suckers did.

the five cheese pizza. it was a "special" that day and boy was it cheesy and tasty and oh so specially. there was a suprising spiciness to it and the mound of cheese in the middle tasted like a cheesy hummus. i really liked it and would order it again if it ever came around again.

the douglas pizza. italian sausage, green peppers, and red onion slices with marinara sauce. it tasted like a typical hearty pizza to me. good but not noteworthy. i love how it blends with the table cloth.

the santa ynez pizza. proscuitto, pineapples, and jalapenos in marinara sauce. this sucker you better watch out for. a few of the jalapeno slices were pretty potent and shocked a few of my grubmates.

the bonnie brae. sundried tomato pesto, sundried tomatoes, and spinach. i liked this one too. i enjoyed the tartness from the sun wrinkled tomatoes and the bed of spinach made me feel like popeye with his deformed forearms. but in my case, my arms are gorgeous.

and of course, you MUST round out your masa experience with the chocolate croissant bread pudding. although you may develop another chin roll or another dimple on the buttocks, this dessert is rather worth it. simple, dignified, and remarkably delicious....don't we all enjoy simple desserts that make us happy?

masa is a cute spot for chillaxin eating. they are also known for their chicago deep dish pizzas which takes about 30 minutes to make. oh hell no. i would rather not wait if i can help it. maybe you can try it and tell me what i'm missing out on...or maybe you can't wait just like me.

Masa of Echo Park
1800 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026
(213) 989-1558
www.masaofechopark.com/
price: $$
verdict: omg, i love it!