My visit's to LA Live are usually because I have a game or a show to catch, but this time I came to eat. As many times as I had been here before shockingly I have never seen Tom's Urban. Why is that so shocking? Well because this place is HUGE and it's right on the the main street on Figueroa. I walked in and was seated in a nice booth away from the bar area so I would have privacy for a conversation and to take as many pictures of my food as I wanted without being judged by other diners. The booth was awesome not the long rectangular kinds we're all used to these were round and and benches went almost all the way around too, but they were split right at the sides for you to get in and out and for the waiters to drop off the food. Of course not all the tables were like this there was a bar, big tables and small tables to fit any party size or type. The great part is that no matter where you sit - there is a screen for you to watch. The place is designed that way and sports aren't the only shows on the screens, you can find music videos playing or special Tom TV, which is hand-curated content exclusive to the LA Live crowd.
So we sat down to look at the menu - at first glance it's a bit overwhelming cause it's a large menu, but on the bright side you're sure to find something you like somewhere in there. In my case I found a lot of things that sounded great. I love seafood and steak so when I found items like Lobster and shrimp Mac & cheese, and a BLT Lobster Roll I knew I had to have them and my all time favorite steak frites but not just any steak this was Argentine Style with Chimurri - that was it for me, I was set.
***A little side note hold on to your menu and read through it it's got some interesting info about Tom (yeah he's a real person) and his travels, also some funny and educational tidbits that can make great conversation starters.
As for drinks they looked great but I had no one I could settle on so so I decided to skip them that is until my waitress informed me of the flight. What?! Yes! Definitely! I took one of those and it was great choice! the Margarita and Long Island Iced Tea where my favorites.
The first of my order to arrive The Lobster and Shrimp Mac & Cheese I gotta tell you it was pretty awesome - cheesy and creamy not dry like most mac and cheeses tend to be. It was ooey it was gooey and I loved it. My complaint on this dish though is that It's loaded with shrimp and if there was any lobster in it it was maybe a little piece and I wasn't the one who ate it so for me it was just shrimp Mac and cheese. So if this dish was called shrimp Mac and Cheese or even Shrimp & Lobster Mac and Cheese - it would be a 5 star dish all the way! Plus It's a pretty large order and well worth the price once more lobster is added.
Lobster and Shrimp Mac & Cheese | $19
But I wasn't left with a hankering for lobster because soon after arrived The Lobster BLT that left me so impressed with the amount of lobster it had in it. (Perhaps they used it all in this dish and didn't have enough for the other - either way I'm coming back for both of them). This sandwich was delicious from the first bite to the last and worth every penny. When you think of paying $22.00 for a sandwich great deal is not the first thing that comes to my mind but the sandwich is large and served with your choice of fries (regular,garlic fries or sweet potato). I've paid the same price for those mini lobster rolls elsewhere and they barely make an appetizer size and don't come with a side. This dish is a must!
Lobster BLT |$22
Another goodie that interested me on the menu was The Crispy Chicken & Corn Bread Pancake with salted caramel better ( I just drooled a bit). Corn bread pancake?! Salted caramel butter?! Sounded too good to pass up and when I heard I could make it spicy ( WHAT?!?!?) - I was in! I really enjoyed this plate sweet salty, spicy and the chicken juicy. I was concerned that because the pieces were small that maybe they would be dry, but I was happy to have enjoyed juicy chicken bites with my corn bread pancake. I drizzled it with the Maple syrup and ate every last bite. Another great deal at only $13 and good for any time of the day I can have this for breakfast, lunch or dinner and it kind of feels like a meal and dessert all in one.
Crispy Chicken & Corn Bread Pancake |$13
Sadly I didn't love the steak Frites. When I read Argentine style I was expecting the classic juicy skirt steak oozing with juices and topped with a drizzle of chimichurri and a side of fries. That's it - simple and delicious, but the steak was really dry and tough not sure what cut it was but it was lacking a little fat and it was cut with the grain instead of against the grain which made it even harder to eat and then it had a gravy on it topped with chopped parsley not the chimichurri as it said on the menu. Luckily I had so much other food that I was enjoying at the moment I just left this dish to the side and continued to enjoy those. I guess it couldn't all be great when the menu is that large but I had loved everything else. This one I felt was a bit pricey coming in at $25.
Steak Frites |$25
As if I hadn't eaten enough up to this point I was able to finish my meal on a sweet note with a giant slice of New York style cheesecake. Now I've gotta tell you I had real New York style cheesecake in New York just a few months ago and this was way better. It was the same in size, look and golden brown top layer the texture was thick and creamy but a lot smoother than the cheesecake I had in New York - It was delicious.
Colossal Cheesecake | $8
So will I be dining at Tom's the next time I have a game or show to watch? Absolutely! I am very much looking forward to coming back and sharing an order of the Lobster BLT and the Lobster and shrimp Mac & Cheese with a cocktail flight and cheesecake of course. I'm also really looking forward to trying their Happy Hour. I hear it's a great one. They have a really cool beat the clock Happy Hour - deals starting at $3.00 at 3:00 p.m. and it goes up a dollar every hour from there until 6:00 p.m. and then again a late night happy hour that drops a dollar as it gets later starting at 10:00 p.m. This is definitely a great place to grab a bite and some drinks.
