Ideas for Pasadena
March 12, 2024 9:42 AM Subscribe
We're going to Pasadena for a long weekend, staying in the hotel where my partner's conference is held. The kid and I will mostly be on our own. Where should we eat, and what kind of activities will be low-key and fun? We'll have a car.
We will visit with friends and colleagues, so I'm not looking for too much, but I am not real familiar with SoCal or Pasadena specifically. I want to go to the Huntington, so that's on the list. My friend in Claremont tells me that downtown Pasadena is cool, but what does that meannnn???
Best burrito? Best Korean? Low-key and kid-friendly a plus. The last relevant AskMe was in 2018 and I assume things have changed.
We will visit with friends and colleagues, so I'm not looking for too much, but I am not real familiar with SoCal or Pasadena specifically. I want to go to the Huntington, so that's on the list. My friend in Claremont tells me that downtown Pasadena is cool, but what does that meannnn???
Best burrito? Best Korean? Low-key and kid-friendly a plus. The last relevant AskMe was in 2018 and I assume things have changed.
Descanso Gardens is a gorgeous 150-acre botanical garden, nice walking spots and has a cafe.
posted by horsegnut at 10:22 AM on March 12 [1 favorite]
posted by horsegnut at 10:22 AM on March 12 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: I'm hopeful that y'all may have Pasadena-specific recs! Like, we might make a trip to the Westside, but I have a plan for that if it happens. What could we do within 1/2 hour of the hotel?
posted by Lawn Beaver at 10:28 AM on March 12
posted by Lawn Beaver at 10:28 AM on March 12
How old is your kiddo? I live in Pasadena and have a 2 and 4 yo, so my tips will be more for the younger set!
posted by samthemander at 10:35 AM on March 12 [1 favorite]
posted by samthemander at 10:35 AM on March 12 [1 favorite]
Highland Park is just southwest of Pasadena; there you'll find Debs Park for a walk with an Audubon Center for bird orientation. (Ernest E. Debs Regional Park; closer to Pasadena than Griffith Park and not as large.)
There's a tiny pond at the top of Debs Park with papyrus. Not a natural pond, but pleasant. Picnic in the park?
If your long weekend includes Thursday evening, South Pasadena farmers market from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.: fresh and prepared foods, kids, families. Recommend light rail from Pasadena to South Pasadena as the rail stop is right at the market.
Strictly in Pasadena, Vroman's Bookstore.
posted by xaryts at 10:37 AM on March 12 [2 favorites]
There's a tiny pond at the top of Debs Park with papyrus. Not a natural pond, but pleasant. Picnic in the park?
If your long weekend includes Thursday evening, South Pasadena farmers market from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.: fresh and prepared foods, kids, families. Recommend light rail from Pasadena to South Pasadena as the rail stop is right at the market.
Strictly in Pasadena, Vroman's Bookstore.
posted by xaryts at 10:37 AM on March 12 [2 favorites]
Huntington Library & Gardens is fabulous and huge. You can spend an entire day there. Seconding Descanso Gardens as being very nice. The LA Arboretum is also cool, if you're not already tired of gardens.
I have not been, but the Bunny Museum in Altadena looks bonkers in a good way.
posted by mrphancy at 10:38 AM on March 12 [2 favorites]
I have not been, but the Bunny Museum in Altadena looks bonkers in a good way.
posted by mrphancy at 10:38 AM on March 12 [2 favorites]
Downtown Pasadena would generally refer to the area along Colorado Boulevard/Green Street near Fair Oaks and the streets near there with a bunch of shopping, dining, etc. The conference hotel is likely nearby.
I moved away from Pasadena in 2016 so I'm not up on all the latest restaurants, but things I'd suggest beyond the Huntington, which is amazing but already on your list.
You can easily hop on light rail in Pasadena that will take you to downtown LA to do things like go to Grand Central Market without having to deal with traffic or parking.
posted by kbuxton at 10:56 AM on March 12 [6 favorites]
I moved away from Pasadena in 2016 so I'm not up on all the latest restaurants, but things I'd suggest beyond the Huntington, which is amazing but already on your list.
- Norton Simon Museum
- Pacific Asia Museum
- Vroman's Bookstore
- The Gamble House tour (from Back to the Future)
- Pie n Burger
- Guisado's
- Randy's Donuts
- El Portal
- Lucky Boy for breakfast burritos
You can easily hop on light rail in Pasadena that will take you to downtown LA to do things like go to Grand Central Market without having to deal with traffic or parking.
posted by kbuxton at 10:56 AM on March 12 [6 favorites]
Thinking about within 1/2 hour of your hotel, here.
Pasadena can be sort of a dreadful state of mind--for example, your friend Clare is wrong about downtown Pasadena unless your goals are to go to Urth Caffe or an ill-stocked J Crew. I think kbuxton kinda nailed all there is to think about in Pasadena beyond Huntington Gardens.
You're just a 30 minute Gold Line ride from Chinatown, Little Tokyo and Downtown LA though. So you could hop on a train and not have to deal with parking, and go to LA State Historic Park in Chinatown, or walk around Little Tokyo and go to little shops, or go to Grand Central Market or various museums.
You're really very far from much Korean food, but any stop on the Gold Line in Highland Park or thereabouts will bring you to any number of good taco trucks.
posted by kensington314 at 11:20 AM on March 12 [1 favorite]
Pasadena can be sort of a dreadful state of mind--for example, your friend Clare is wrong about downtown Pasadena unless your goals are to go to Urth Caffe or an ill-stocked J Crew. I think kbuxton kinda nailed all there is to think about in Pasadena beyond Huntington Gardens.
You're just a 30 minute Gold Line ride from Chinatown, Little Tokyo and Downtown LA though. So you could hop on a train and not have to deal with parking, and go to LA State Historic Park in Chinatown, or walk around Little Tokyo and go to little shops, or go to Grand Central Market or various museums.
You're really very far from much Korean food, but any stop on the Gold Line in Highland Park or thereabouts will bring you to any number of good taco trucks.
posted by kensington314 at 11:20 AM on March 12 [1 favorite]
Would be nice to go to Vroman's, it's a sweet bookstore with an uncertain future.
posted by kensington314 at 11:22 AM on March 12 [7 favorites]
posted by kensington314 at 11:22 AM on March 12 [7 favorites]
I like Senor Fish for burritos and tacos (many fish options, both fried & grilled - my favorite is the scallop taco). There's one off Colorado in Eagle Rock (not a bad drive from Pasadena) and one in South Pasadena. The one in Eagle Rock has all outdoor seating, which you may find a plus.
Last time I was in Glendale/Pasadena, we stopped in Highland Park at the Galco Soda Pop store and bought some bonkers sodas and then took them to Descanso Gardens and found a nice bench for chatting (make sure you check if the pop has a twist off top, or remember to bring an opener). Of the two, Huntington is a show stopper, their Chinese garden is looking spectacular now that the plantings have grown in. The Japanese garden has a classic Japanese house they added a few years ago. But it is BIG. A bit pricey too, if you're not going to do two or more gardens plus a gallery visit. Descanso is a bit more manageable and a little cheaper. Don't know the age of your little one, but they have a train on weekends.
If you do the gold line suggestion from kbuxton to Grand Central Market, step across the street to ride the funicular called Angels Flight. Gold line will also take you to Little Tokyo, which I love, just walking through the grocery stores there and buying snacks & candy is a joy.
Old Town Pasadena is basically a mall, classic buildings but most of the vendors are national chains. But still a nice walk and there's a movie theater, so if you're looking to decompress for a bit, it's a nice diversion and some good restaurants.
For hikes we liked to go up to Altadena and hike along Arroyo Seco by JPL. Right now the creek is running, and if you go far enough up, there is a waterfall. If the weather is clear, a drive up to Mt Wilson to walk among the telescopes and see the entire LA basin and Catalina is amazing. (Though often cold & windy, check current conditions.) There's also a small set of trails behind Descanso gardens that has a seasonal creek and great views if you go up to the hill with the radio towers in Cherry Canyon park. AllTrails.com is really good for these types of hikes in the area, look at the reviews for current conditions.
posted by typetive at 11:39 AM on March 12 [1 favorite]
Last time I was in Glendale/Pasadena, we stopped in Highland Park at the Galco Soda Pop store and bought some bonkers sodas and then took them to Descanso Gardens and found a nice bench for chatting (make sure you check if the pop has a twist off top, or remember to bring an opener). Of the two, Huntington is a show stopper, their Chinese garden is looking spectacular now that the plantings have grown in. The Japanese garden has a classic Japanese house they added a few years ago. But it is BIG. A bit pricey too, if you're not going to do two or more gardens plus a gallery visit. Descanso is a bit more manageable and a little cheaper. Don't know the age of your little one, but they have a train on weekends.
If you do the gold line suggestion from kbuxton to Grand Central Market, step across the street to ride the funicular called Angels Flight. Gold line will also take you to Little Tokyo, which I love, just walking through the grocery stores there and buying snacks & candy is a joy.
Old Town Pasadena is basically a mall, classic buildings but most of the vendors are national chains. But still a nice walk and there's a movie theater, so if you're looking to decompress for a bit, it's a nice diversion and some good restaurants.
For hikes we liked to go up to Altadena and hike along Arroyo Seco by JPL. Right now the creek is running, and if you go far enough up, there is a waterfall. If the weather is clear, a drive up to Mt Wilson to walk among the telescopes and see the entire LA basin and Catalina is amazing. (Though often cold & windy, check current conditions.) There's also a small set of trails behind Descanso gardens that has a seasonal creek and great views if you go up to the hill with the radio towers in Cherry Canyon park. AllTrails.com is really good for these types of hikes in the area, look at the reviews for current conditions.
posted by typetive at 11:39 AM on March 12 [1 favorite]
...will add more later, but
Lucky Boy breakfast burritos are great!!
and available all day and all night!
posted by calgirl at 11:46 AM on March 12 [1 favorite]
Lucky Boy breakfast burritos are great!!
and available all day and all night!
posted by calgirl at 11:46 AM on March 12 [1 favorite]
*ok not ALL night but Monday-Sunday 6am-12am [missed edit window]
posted by calgirl at 11:52 AM on March 12
posted by calgirl at 11:52 AM on March 12
Pasadena is fine but my rec, as an Angeleno, is yes to hop on the Metro A line to the Broad Museum (you can wait in the standby line, or get advance free tickets), then walk over to Grand Central Market for a fun meal, poke your heads into the Bradbury Building for a quick look, exit the Bradbury's rear door and look at the Biddy Mason Park art/timeline to learn about little-known Black history in LA, and then take Angel's Flight back up the hill for your train home. This is all in a two-block radius downtown, and mostly free aside from $1 for Angel's flight + your lunch cost.
posted by BlahLaLa at 11:58 AM on March 12 [2 favorites]
posted by BlahLaLa at 11:58 AM on March 12 [2 favorites]
I grew up in Pasadena/Altadena. Such a great town.
Since you've got an 8 year old, you should check out KidSpace. I'd bring my own kids there when visiting family, and they always had a blast.
There are lots of great hikes, but again when I was visiting with my kids we'd just to to the Eaton Canyon Nature Center, right off Altadean Blvd., and splash around in the stream.
posted by lex mercatoria at 12:04 PM on March 12 [3 favorites]
Since you've got an 8 year old, you should check out KidSpace. I'd bring my own kids there when visiting family, and they always had a blast.
There are lots of great hikes, but again when I was visiting with my kids we'd just to to the Eaton Canyon Nature Center, right off Altadean Blvd., and splash around in the stream.
posted by lex mercatoria at 12:04 PM on March 12 [3 favorites]
Food: In Alhambra, just south of Pasadena and ten minutes from the Huntington, there's an area with fantastic Asian cuisines like Indonesian Borneo Kalimantan and amazing Sichuan Chengdu Taste.
Also, for a rare regional style of burrito, in El Monte there's La Palma serving "Zacatecas-style" burritos in exquisite house-made tortillas— they're small (you'll want at least two), homestyle, deceptively simple; to me, worth the 20-minute detour to an area with not a lot else going on.
posted by xueexueg at 12:09 PM on March 12 [1 favorite]
Also, for a rare regional style of burrito, in El Monte there's La Palma serving "Zacatecas-style" burritos in exquisite house-made tortillas— they're small (you'll want at least two), homestyle, deceptively simple; to me, worth the 20-minute detour to an area with not a lot else going on.
posted by xueexueg at 12:09 PM on March 12 [1 favorite]
Best answer: I am here for you. There is actually a lot to do in Pasadena.
Go to:
The Huntington -- you need to pre-buy tickets. They have a cool kids garden there now!
The Arboretum is fun; they have an old train station that the kids like and a bunch of weird old buildings. Once a month they have Goat Yoga!
Descanso Gardens is gorgeous but you probably don't need it AND the Arboretum and the Huntington. The Huntington is your can't miss.
The Santa Anita Race track is gorgeous and very fun, although there was been a recent and distressing trend of the horses dying so...FYI.
We have a KidsSpace Museum, as just mentioned up-thread.
If y'all are into sports, you can take a tour of the Rose Bowl and/or Dodgers Stadium. If the Dodgers are in town, it's a very quick drive to a game. (Don't try to deal w. public transport, just pre-pay for parking and get there early. They have tons of stuff for kids -- playgrounds, etc, including one that's basically in center field.)
Old Town has an awesome little arcade called the Neon Retro Arcade where you can pay like $20 and play all the old school video games you want. It's a blast.
Vroman's is a great bookstore with a fab kids section and a coffee bar AND a wine bar.
Across the street from Vroman's is El Portal which is a medium Mexican place with a GREAT patio which is very kid-friendly. I agree La Palma is fab if you get out there.
If you guys like pizza, I'd recommend Side-Pie in Altadena. It is VERY CASUAL, you eat the pizza in what is essentially a parking lot.
Korean food is a bit of a haul from Pasadena but the Chinese food in the SGV is, in general, fantastic. I recommend Sichuan Impression in Alhambra.
Have a great time, Pasadena is very 8-year old friendly!
posted by Countess Sandwich at 12:19 PM on March 12 [4 favorites]
Go to:
The Huntington -- you need to pre-buy tickets. They have a cool kids garden there now!
The Arboretum is fun; they have an old train station that the kids like and a bunch of weird old buildings. Once a month they have Goat Yoga!
Descanso Gardens is gorgeous but you probably don't need it AND the Arboretum and the Huntington. The Huntington is your can't miss.
The Santa Anita Race track is gorgeous and very fun, although there was been a recent and distressing trend of the horses dying so...FYI.
We have a KidsSpace Museum, as just mentioned up-thread.
If y'all are into sports, you can take a tour of the Rose Bowl and/or Dodgers Stadium. If the Dodgers are in town, it's a very quick drive to a game. (Don't try to deal w. public transport, just pre-pay for parking and get there early. They have tons of stuff for kids -- playgrounds, etc, including one that's basically in center field.)
Old Town has an awesome little arcade called the Neon Retro Arcade where you can pay like $20 and play all the old school video games you want. It's a blast.
Vroman's is a great bookstore with a fab kids section and a coffee bar AND a wine bar.
Across the street from Vroman's is El Portal which is a medium Mexican place with a GREAT patio which is very kid-friendly. I agree La Palma is fab if you get out there.
If you guys like pizza, I'd recommend Side-Pie in Altadena. It is VERY CASUAL, you eat the pizza in what is essentially a parking lot.
Korean food is a bit of a haul from Pasadena but the Chinese food in the SGV is, in general, fantastic. I recommend Sichuan Impression in Alhambra.
Have a great time, Pasadena is very 8-year old friendly!
posted by Countess Sandwich at 12:19 PM on March 12 [4 favorites]
It's been 25 years since I was hanging in Pasadena, but at that time I was one of the homeless bums on the street asking for spare change and/or leftovers. Old-Town (Downtown) is the couple of blocks along Colorado Blvd and the side streets that is jam packed with stored and places to eat and on friday/saturday evening is jam packed with people just walking around and people watching. Movies, bagels, ice cream, clothes, bistros, it was packed on the weekend, and now there's the arcade (OMG).
At the west end there is the Colorado St. bridge, there's a park beside it, there's an ugly fence sround now to keep people from jumping, but it's iconic... you will see it in so many movies it will make your head spin. If you go across there used to be stairs on the other side that take you down into the Arroyo, there's this little/big valley of wild there, you can hike across the Arroyo and end up at a road that leads you back up and around to the park where you started. I used to sleep under some bushes in that Arroyo, shhhh, don't tell anybody
Vroman's is fantastic, and if it survived there was a theater next door that showed very artsy films. And if it's still there if you go down Fair Oaks Ave. to South Pasadena you hit the Rialto theater which used to on weekend nights at midnight show The Rocky Horror Picture Show, not sure they'd let an 8-yr old in.... someday everybody need to see TRHPS in it's full cult/fan glory and have toast thrown at them.
Head east to I think Hill St. and go north and you run into a Tommy's, it's OK, but you really want to head west on Colorado across the bridge almost to Glendale (I think it's probably in Eagle Rock) to find the Original World Famous Tommy's. It's disgusting chili cheeseburgers, chili cheese onion fries, need napkins and spoon, and OMG what did I just eat that sits in you gut for a couple of days. A few months later you'll wake up and think "I could really use some Tommy's again". Head further west on Colorado to the edge of Glendale and you'll find and In-n-Out burger joint, no So-Cal trip is really complete without hitting an In-n-Out if you haven't before. Check out the "secret" menu beforehand, they only have a few items on the menu, but there are a plethora of things they'll make... it's a checkbox on the So-Cal trip.
The Metro is cool, there's a line into Pasadena to Downtown and lines from there to many places, The Natural History Museum (they have a Space Shuttle, and a fantastic Rose Garden). Not really just hanging around the Pasadena area
Sadly I don't know what's changed in Pasadena over the years. Probably the same but just different. Most places in the greater LA region have charms that probably still exist.
posted by zengargoyle at 2:11 PM on March 12
At the west end there is the Colorado St. bridge, there's a park beside it, there's an ugly fence sround now to keep people from jumping, but it's iconic... you will see it in so many movies it will make your head spin. If you go across there used to be stairs on the other side that take you down into the Arroyo, there's this little/big valley of wild there, you can hike across the Arroyo and end up at a road that leads you back up and around to the park where you started. I used to sleep under some bushes in that Arroyo, shhhh, don't tell anybody
Vroman's is fantastic, and if it survived there was a theater next door that showed very artsy films. And if it's still there if you go down Fair Oaks Ave. to South Pasadena you hit the Rialto theater which used to on weekend nights at midnight show The Rocky Horror Picture Show, not sure they'd let an 8-yr old in.... someday everybody need to see TRHPS in it's full cult/fan glory and have toast thrown at them.
Head east to I think Hill St. and go north and you run into a Tommy's, it's OK, but you really want to head west on Colorado across the bridge almost to Glendale (I think it's probably in Eagle Rock) to find the Original World Famous Tommy's. It's disgusting chili cheeseburgers, chili cheese onion fries, need napkins and spoon, and OMG what did I just eat that sits in you gut for a couple of days. A few months later you'll wake up and think "I could really use some Tommy's again". Head further west on Colorado to the edge of Glendale and you'll find and In-n-Out burger joint, no So-Cal trip is really complete without hitting an In-n-Out if you haven't before. Check out the "secret" menu beforehand, they only have a few items on the menu, but there are a plethora of things they'll make... it's a checkbox on the So-Cal trip.
The Metro is cool, there's a line into Pasadena to Downtown and lines from there to many places, The Natural History Museum (they have a Space Shuttle, and a fantastic Rose Garden). Not really just hanging around the Pasadena area
Sadly I don't know what's changed in Pasadena over the years. Probably the same but just different. Most places in the greater LA region have charms that probably still exist.
posted by zengargoyle at 2:11 PM on March 12
Heads up that the Tommy's on Hill has closed and the Rialto is, unfortunately, now a mega-church. The movie theatre next to Vroman's is still there, but now a Landmark. (Still artsy!) The Space Shuttle is also no longer at the Science Center, but you CAN see it if you go over to that collection of museums because they're currently building its own museum around it. (It's upright now, and shrink-wrapped at the moment.)
If you want In-n-Out, you don't need to go all the way to Glendale, we have one on Foothill in Pasadena!
posted by Countess Sandwich at 2:25 PM on March 12 [1 favorite]
If you want In-n-Out, you don't need to go all the way to Glendale, we have one on Foothill in Pasadena!
posted by Countess Sandwich at 2:25 PM on March 12 [1 favorite]
Darn, but at least it was the least likely things suitable for 8 yr olds.
posted by zengargoyle at 2:38 PM on March 12
posted by zengargoyle at 2:38 PM on March 12
Zankou chicken if he likes garlic.
The Bob baker marionette theater is nearby.
posted by brujita at 2:41 PM on March 12
The Bob baker marionette theater is nearby.
posted by brujita at 2:41 PM on March 12
I live in Altadena and work in Pasadena, and have a kid who is a little older than yours.
- Huntington is a solid choice if you like gardens. Descanso and the Arboretum have also been mentioned. The Huntington is the most expensive and has the nicest food. The Arboretum has a lot of peakcocks.
- Seconding kids space museum and neon retro arcade as being particularly kid friendly.
- If you really want a museum that isn't dedicated to kids, the Norton Simon is in town and has a really nice sculpture garden. The Asia Pacific Museum is also nice. Both are in town.
- Seconding a walk in Eaton Canyon. You can also do a hike near JPL. There's some little creeks there.
- Pasadena has a farmer's market every Saturday at Victory Park. (South Pasadena is a different city and also has a farmer's market as mentioned above, but it is a different place.)
- The Rose Bowl Flea Market could be fun if you like vintage and if it's happening when you are in town. There's also a smaller Pasadena City College flea market if the timing works out better.
- If you want a fancy tea / spa experience, you could go to the Langham
- Old Town Pasadena has a lot of shopping. If your 8 year old likes clothes or ice cream, you could walk around there. There are a million restaurants there. If you want to eat out on Friday or Saturday nights, I would try to make reservations or eat early.
- The Pasadena Playhouse could be fun depending on what is playing while you are in town. If you like fancy food, Bar Chelou is a good place to eat in the Playhouse district. Or the above-mentioned El Portal for Mexican and Settebello for great pizza are more down-to-earth nearby options. Or you could see what's playing at "A Noise Within Theater".
- I am not an iceskater, but you might find the Pasadena Ice Rink interesting.
- I do like the Caltech turtle pond, but I'm not sure it's worth a trip to Caltech and the parking you'd have to figure out.
- I love Vroman's, but it is a bookstore like others in other parts of the country. So if you love bookstores, go visit! Your child will not be allowed inside the wine bar.
- I live very near Side Pie and the Bunny Museum. My child hates Side Pie, although the adults in our household like it. And it's very expensive. I don't find the Bunny Museum to be that interesting.
posted by pizzazz at 2:53 PM on March 12 [1 favorite]
- Huntington is a solid choice if you like gardens. Descanso and the Arboretum have also been mentioned. The Huntington is the most expensive and has the nicest food. The Arboretum has a lot of peakcocks.
- Seconding kids space museum and neon retro arcade as being particularly kid friendly.
- If you really want a museum that isn't dedicated to kids, the Norton Simon is in town and has a really nice sculpture garden. The Asia Pacific Museum is also nice. Both are in town.
- Seconding a walk in Eaton Canyon. You can also do a hike near JPL. There's some little creeks there.
- Pasadena has a farmer's market every Saturday at Victory Park. (South Pasadena is a different city and also has a farmer's market as mentioned above, but it is a different place.)
- The Rose Bowl Flea Market could be fun if you like vintage and if it's happening when you are in town. There's also a smaller Pasadena City College flea market if the timing works out better.
- If you want a fancy tea / spa experience, you could go to the Langham
- Old Town Pasadena has a lot of shopping. If your 8 year old likes clothes or ice cream, you could walk around there. There are a million restaurants there. If you want to eat out on Friday or Saturday nights, I would try to make reservations or eat early.
- The Pasadena Playhouse could be fun depending on what is playing while you are in town. If you like fancy food, Bar Chelou is a good place to eat in the Playhouse district. Or the above-mentioned El Portal for Mexican and Settebello for great pizza are more down-to-earth nearby options. Or you could see what's playing at "A Noise Within Theater".
- I am not an iceskater, but you might find the Pasadena Ice Rink interesting.
- I do like the Caltech turtle pond, but I'm not sure it's worth a trip to Caltech and the parking you'd have to figure out.
- I love Vroman's, but it is a bookstore like others in other parts of the country. So if you love bookstores, go visit! Your child will not be allowed inside the wine bar.
- I live very near Side Pie and the Bunny Museum. My child hates Side Pie, although the adults in our household like it. And it's very expensive. I don't find the Bunny Museum to be that interesting.
posted by pizzazz at 2:53 PM on March 12 [1 favorite]
+1 Huntington my kids enjoyed it a lot to my surprise. They have a fun cactus garden and Japanese and Chinese garden.
posted by St. Peepsburg at 8:01 PM on March 12
posted by St. Peepsburg at 8:01 PM on March 12
Best answer: El Portal which is a medium Mexican place with a GREAT patio which is very kid-friendly.
I’ve been going to this restaurant for 25 years and this description nails it. It’s where I went for my 21st birthday and the first restaurant I went to with my infant son. I once took a friend who was having a bad trip there to calm him down.
I would add that the staff is incredible. They lean towards overstaffing, so there’s always someone there for you. And there are servers who I’ve seen there for decades.
But, yeah, the food is medium. Conchinita pibil is good. I’d stay away from the fish and shrimp.
But VERY kid friendly.
Best restaurant in Pasadena is Sushi Enya. This isn’t even controversial.
Second best restaurant in Pasadena is Osawa. Then Bar Chelou, then Union.
Pizza is kind of exploding here now. Side Pie is great, but inconvenient. Settabello serves neopolitan pies in a very low-key full service dining room. Again, I’ve seen servers who have worked there for yeeeeaaaaars—good sign. Always see a bunch of kids there. They absolutely nail this style of pizza.
Agreed with above that breakfast burritos are the burritos to get. Lucky Boy is great. But Kings on Los Robles and Woodbury might be better. Less convenient though. For non-breakfast burritos Mi Casa on Fair Oaks is the low-key champ. Tacos La Estrella a few blocks south on Fair Oaks is also great.
Tacos Ensenada way North on Lincoln is part of a mini-chain (maybe a dozen locations) that specializes in Baja-style seafood. Hole-in-the-wall counter service place; fish tacos and shrimp cocktail are excellent.
Best supermarket is Vallarta on Fair Oaks. High-end Mexican supermarket. For an 8-year-old: they have a paleta bar. Also an agua fresca bar. Good prepared food, great prepared salsas (so many options!). I don’t like grocery store guacamole, but I like Vallarta guacamole.
Pasadena hosts three of the Very Hot LA microchains: Howling Rays (fried chicken; beloved but I think it’s overrated), Home State (Tex-Mex specializing in breakfast tacos), and Guisados (you should go here, the tacos are knock-your-socks-off good).
Roma market is fine. Not worth going out of your way.
Obviously the best Korean restaurants are in Koreatown, but Soh Grill House makes a tofu/dumpling soup that is one of my favorite things.
Your food options in Pasadena are very, very good. Of course over all of LA, there’s so much more. But the concentration of good restaurants in Pasadena is kind of a happy surprise.
That’s what I think about food in Pasadena.
posted by mr_roboto at 11:24 PM on March 12 [2 favorites]
I’ve been going to this restaurant for 25 years and this description nails it. It’s where I went for my 21st birthday and the first restaurant I went to with my infant son. I once took a friend who was having a bad trip there to calm him down.
I would add that the staff is incredible. They lean towards overstaffing, so there’s always someone there for you. And there are servers who I’ve seen there for decades.
But, yeah, the food is medium. Conchinita pibil is good. I’d stay away from the fish and shrimp.
But VERY kid friendly.
Best restaurant in Pasadena is Sushi Enya. This isn’t even controversial.
Second best restaurant in Pasadena is Osawa. Then Bar Chelou, then Union.
Pizza is kind of exploding here now. Side Pie is great, but inconvenient. Settabello serves neopolitan pies in a very low-key full service dining room. Again, I’ve seen servers who have worked there for yeeeeaaaaars—good sign. Always see a bunch of kids there. They absolutely nail this style of pizza.
Agreed with above that breakfast burritos are the burritos to get. Lucky Boy is great. But Kings on Los Robles and Woodbury might be better. Less convenient though. For non-breakfast burritos Mi Casa on Fair Oaks is the low-key champ. Tacos La Estrella a few blocks south on Fair Oaks is also great.
Tacos Ensenada way North on Lincoln is part of a mini-chain (maybe a dozen locations) that specializes in Baja-style seafood. Hole-in-the-wall counter service place; fish tacos and shrimp cocktail are excellent.
Best supermarket is Vallarta on Fair Oaks. High-end Mexican supermarket. For an 8-year-old: they have a paleta bar. Also an agua fresca bar. Good prepared food, great prepared salsas (so many options!). I don’t like grocery store guacamole, but I like Vallarta guacamole.
Pasadena hosts three of the Very Hot LA microchains: Howling Rays (fried chicken; beloved but I think it’s overrated), Home State (Tex-Mex specializing in breakfast tacos), and Guisados (you should go here, the tacos are knock-your-socks-off good).
Roma market is fine. Not worth going out of your way.
Obviously the best Korean restaurants are in Koreatown, but Soh Grill House makes a tofu/dumpling soup that is one of my favorite things.
Your food options in Pasadena are very, very good. Of course over all of LA, there’s so much more. But the concentration of good restaurants in Pasadena is kind of a happy surprise.
That’s what I think about food in Pasadena.
posted by mr_roboto at 11:24 PM on March 12 [2 favorites]
Oh shit there’s also Roscoe’s chicken and waffles. Another LA microchain: locally legendary soul food. Obama once made a point of visiting the mid-city location. There can be long waits which honestly I don’t think are worth it.
posted by mr_roboto at 11:36 PM on March 12 [1 favorite]
posted by mr_roboto at 11:36 PM on March 12 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Thanks everybody for the useful lists! I came back to this question whenever we were out and hungry.
Things we did:
The Huntington, for 3 hours or so. We hit the limit of what the kid could take, her legs got sore, but the desert gardens and the Japanese and Chinese gardens were absolutely worth the whining later!
Mediocre sushi, unfortunately, at a moment when kid and I just needed to eat. I think it was called Akira.
Pizza at Settebello, which was very good. The branch on Colorado is closed as of today, so we just squeaked in!
Japanese/Hawaiian at B-Man's Teriyaki Bowl in San Marino after we left the Huntington. This was a shot in the dark, in a strip mall near a Trader Joe's, but everything was pretty tasty and we all got what we wanted: Korean short ribs over rice with cabbage, a burger, and gyoza and shave ice (that was the kid's order).
Vroman's for books and a very timely breakfast burrito.
Octavia's Bookshelf for more books. More books! I was dimly aware that Pasadena is Octavia Butler's hometown, but did not remember that her papers are at the Huntington, so it was nice to think about her a bit under the chilly sun.
I also ate at the conference hotel, since sometimes it wasn't worth it to go out when I knew that we were tired and my kid just wanted to go to the hotel pool.
We spent part of a day in Claremont with old friends, and while I had hopes of making it out to the West Side, it became clear that that was overambitious. So we didn't get to everything, or even a fraction of the things, but we passed a good time, in part with y'all's help.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 7:52 AM on March 18 [1 favorite]
Things we did:
The Huntington, for 3 hours or so. We hit the limit of what the kid could take, her legs got sore, but the desert gardens and the Japanese and Chinese gardens were absolutely worth the whining later!
Mediocre sushi, unfortunately, at a moment when kid and I just needed to eat. I think it was called Akira.
Pizza at Settebello, which was very good. The branch on Colorado is closed as of today, so we just squeaked in!
Japanese/Hawaiian at B-Man's Teriyaki Bowl in San Marino after we left the Huntington. This was a shot in the dark, in a strip mall near a Trader Joe's, but everything was pretty tasty and we all got what we wanted: Korean short ribs over rice with cabbage, a burger, and gyoza and shave ice (that was the kid's order).
Vroman's for books and a very timely breakfast burrito.
Octavia's Bookshelf for more books. More books! I was dimly aware that Pasadena is Octavia Butler's hometown, but did not remember that her papers are at the Huntington, so it was nice to think about her a bit under the chilly sun.
I also ate at the conference hotel, since sometimes it wasn't worth it to go out when I knew that we were tired and my kid just wanted to go to the hotel pool.
We spent part of a day in Claremont with old friends, and while I had hopes of making it out to the West Side, it became clear that that was overambitious. So we didn't get to everything, or even a fraction of the things, but we passed a good time, in part with y'all's help.
posted by Lawn Beaver at 7:52 AM on March 18 [1 favorite]
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Didn't make it over to Pasedena though. Some little old lady kept trying to race me...
posted by Windopaene at 9:57 AM on March 12