Edems Guide to LA

In addition to the usual things (like Yelp), a good guide to the area is the little t, the Caltech undergrad guidebook.

Food

In-n-Out (Various locations about LA, one near Caltech). This should be the first place that you eat. In-n-out has a secret menu, but here are some choice selections:
- Double-double: 2 beef patties, 2 slices of cheese
- Animal style: Burger is cooked with mustard on it, and has extra sauce and fried onions. Delicious.
- Neopolitan shake: mixture of chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla shakes.
Roscoe's (Various locations around LA, one near Caltech). Southern-style food, specializing in chicken and waffles (served together). Order the #1: Scoe's southern style. Eat some of the chicken and waffle in the same bite; it will blow your mind.
Zankou Chicken (Various locations about LA, one near Caltech). Amazing Armenian food. The "plates" are an especially good deal and are enough food to make a few wraps; it is enough for about 2 lunches. Try the quarter dark chicken, tarna, shwarema, or falafel plates. The individual wraps ("sandwiches") are good, but pricey compared to the plate.
Taco Azteca (143 South Verdugo Road, Glendale, CA). A bit of a drive, but these may well be the best tacos in the United States.

Burger Continental (Pasadena, near Caltech). Once you have a Caltech ID you can get the "Caltech special," which is a burger and fries for super cheap. They also have good Mediterranean food; I would recommend one of their chicken breast specialties.
Souplantation (Pasadena, near Caltech). A buffet place with salads, soups, and hot dishes. Great comfort food with lots of light and healthy options.
Tarantino's (784 East Green Street Pasadena). Italian food. Try the stromboli or Carmine special (which is like stromboli). These are in fact the only things I have ever eaten here.
Puebla Taco (700 North Lake Avenue, Pasadena). Mexican food. It is all good, but my favorite thing is the torta de asada.
Zono Sushi (230 South Lake Avenue, Pasadena). Try the crunchy roll. You can get much better sushi in California than you can in Boston.

President Two. Thai food. Try the chicken yellow curry or the president's fried rice.
Fredos. Italian food.
There are not pizza places in LA like there are in Boston. Your best bet for pizza is something like Papa John's.

Old Town (Area around Colorado Blvd between Raymond and Fair Oaks, Pasadena). Lots of shops and restaurants.
Laemmle's One Colorado (42 Miller Alley, in Old Town). My favorite movie theater. Unlike the giant theater in Paseo Colorado, which is always filled with obnoxious high schoolers trying to impress their stupid girlfriends, this theater is small, not as crowded, cheaper, and more quiet.
The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Gardens (San Marino, near Caltech). The gardens are the best part, but they also have great art collections.
The Getty Museum (Los Angeles, on top of a mountain). It looks like the base of a Bond villain; you even have to take a tram up a mountain to get there. Great art collections, but the museum is even worth seeing for the architecture and the location.
Third Street Promenade (Santa Monica). Lots of shops, restaurants, and street performers. Santa Monica also has beautiful beaches, views of the ocean, and a fun pier.
Museum of Jurassic Technology (Culver City). A museum of lies. Everything here is fabricated; it is very bizarre and worth checking out.

Supershuttle. Without a doubt the fastest and cheapest way (short of bumming a ride) to get to and from the airport. If you get picked up or dropped off at Caltech, you will get a discount. If they ask you which stop number, say #1 (the corner of San Pasqual and Holliston). I don't know how much it costs these days, but you can check online (shouldn't be more than $30).
- To the airport: reserve online >24 hours in advance. They can pick you up at your place, or you can meet them at Caltech (stop #1) for a discount.
- From the airport: no reservation required. Ask someone at the airport where the Supershuttle picks up. There will be a Supershuttle employee there; tell him that you want to go to Pasadena and then wait for the next shuttle (should't be more than 30 minutes).