Memo Torres returns with his latest restaurant recommendations for Apple Maps. Growing up down the street from Banadir Somali in Inglewood, he describes the restaurant as the city's hidden gem. Despite a faded facade and letters missing from its sign, diners are greeted with a big, bright yellow wall once they step in. Torres touts the tender goat with roasted ends and a "bone that falls off the meat." It's served with rice, a fresh banana, and an "unforgiving" green salsa. It's a "wonderful, big, large plate as long as your arm, full of flavor," he says.
When Torres met the family of his "Armenian queen," they pushed him towards basturma, a dried beef dish that he describes as "somewhere between a salami, a pastrami, and a jerky." He recommends starting the day with the basturma burrito at Bed & Breakfast.
At Lalibela on South Fairfax in Little Ethiopia, grandma is in the kitchen, sharing her cuisine. Order the Veggie Utopia with chickpea stews, red lentils, and injera for a group outing. When Torres sits at a table for one, he opts for the doro wat, a complex, spicy, sultry, chicken stew.
Having grown up just down the street, Memo Torres considers the goat plate at Banadir Somali to be Inglewood's hidden gem. Photo by Memo Torres.
El Barrio Cantina, with its modern Mexican birria lasagna, and Moo's Craft Barbecue round out his latest additions to the map.
"You can't go to Moo's [Craft Barbecue] and not try all the meats," Memo Torres says of the Lincoln Heights barbecue spot that he refers to as "Texas in your own backyard." Photo by Memo Torres.