3575 Wilshire Blvd. @ Kingsley ~ Koreatown, CA 90010 ~ 213-382-6677 (TACO Map)

Other 8 L.A. locations: Torrance, Cerritos, Rowland Heights, Reseda, Garden Grove, Downtown & Western

Don’t let the name fool you, this legendary KTown eatery is not a flowery temple for keeping your karma in line, freeing the bees from their slave labor, and leap-frogging yummy animal parts for mung beans and soy cubes. At BCD Tofu House you will get a bite of just about every major animal group that ever graced man’s plate– burned, branded, and sliced up in an indulgent feast of Korean flavors. There is only one completely vegetarian item on the menu, the rest is pure meat mayhem.

The classic has a few outposts from LA to Garden Grove to Seoul to Tokyo, each with their own specialities. Neighborhood outsiders are welcomed, but sadly, for their sakes, few appear. I broke my BCD cherry along with the golden-paletted gourmand Ali Khan, from the hilariously mouth-watering Chef Jeff and Ali Show. It was creeping up on midnight so we needed a 24-hour option and were feeling like a healthy snack, allowing the “tofu” to mislead us from Thai Town down Western to Wilshire. The tofu comes from the centerpiece of every meal here, soontofu, a hot-as-Hades soup lined with melt-in-your-mouth silky tofu and copious ingredients from the animal and marine kingdom…..

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Melrose Blvd. ~ Hollywood

Camp Lo & The Oddibles ~ 8 PM~ Key Club ~ $20 ~ Thursday, August 31st, 2006

Taco favorites The Oddibles will be killing it opening up for Camp Lo at the Key Club this Thursday. Believe us, you will want to see these kids flow, they have a surplus of MCing talents. Also on stage…. Cali OB, The Acronyms, Billy Bapps and Pittsburgh Slim.

From Malingering

Opening reception Saturday September 2nd, 6-10 PM.

3204 Sunset Blvd. ~ Silverlake, CA ~ 90026

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2989 Artesia Blvd. ~ Redondo Beach

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7148 Pacific Blvd (@ Florence) ~ Huntington Park, CA 90255 ~ (323) 585-4433  (TACO Map)

Having spent some time in Huntington Park in the past year, I have grown to love the area, especially the bustling commercial strip of Pacific Boulevard between Florence and Slauson. One of the most action-packed hubs here is the sizable “El Gallo Giro” restaurant on a corner with Tokyo-sized foot traffic. I met up with TACO-loco editor Hadley and an OG Vegas friend of ours from the juvenile delinquent days, along with his dog, Buster, so that we could tackle the restaurant’s formidable best-seller: the torta cubana ($6.95).

Upon entering, you find your senses gang-banged by the multicolored papel picado decor strung from the walls, the almost too loud pre-recorded mariachi music, and various confusing lines of people. Gallo Giro is usually pretty busy — for restaurants, this is typically a good sign, no? Unfortunately, the set-up is slow and inefficient: there is one line for ordering at a taco station, one line for ordering tortas, one line for guisados (stews), and then one line used to order homemade horchata, atole, and fresh juices, then one to pay. It’s crazy but it suits the place, the aggravation is just part of the Gallo Giro experience.

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Venice Beach ~ California

From Los Angeles Citybeat

CARTOON SHORES

“Rainbow-rific media continues tonight at the “Venice Animation Festival” at the Ocean Front Walk Courtyard on Venice Beach.  This outdoor screening (B.Y.O. folding chairs, pillows, and blankets) will feature special guest film curator Jerry Beck of CartoonResearch.com, presenting wacky animated classics and contemporary cartoon flicks.

Walk, skateboard, rollerblade, or bike your way to this night of silly cinema under the stars. All ages welcome. Popcorn and refreshments available during the show. 8 p.m.; 7 p.m. pre-show. Free. 801 Ocean Front Walk Courtyard, Venice. Info: (310) 306-7330.”

Sorry, Freewheelin’ Franklin’ nor his freaky bros will be there, we just consider this the acme of animated art in our minds.

While our correspondent Hadley is taking pictures of Wild Things in Hollywood, the NYTimes turns its attention to some decidedly not-so-wild things in the same ‘hood: a short profile and interview of Sister Mary Pia and the other Dominican nuns cloistered at the Monestary of the Angeles. There is also an accompanying 6-minute video segment, which is, apparently, one of the features NYTimes provides with more and more frequency. Sister Mary Pia, pray for us sinners…