Kickin' It K-town

2/1/07

As many of you know, I moved last year all the way across town... Koreatown that is. It was a big step for me to say goodbye to the westside (yes, that's still Koreatown we're talking about. What you say?!) and hello (Hola, como estas?) eastside (of K-town of course). Since then a lot has changed. First off, I went car-less or rather, had car-less-ness thrust upon me quite suddenly. Rather than rush out re-enlist with the ranks of the car-ed people, I decided to do the unthinkable in LA and go without wheels. It's been six months and I'm still going strong. I've got a bicycle, some bus tokens and a 24-hour taco stand a couple blocks away. Hot damn. I also live very close to a subway station. LA underground. It's a great place to go if you want to be alone. Y'know, on a Friday afternoon I can probably get across town faster than you on my bicycle! And, I have the luxury of having a car-ed roommate so all is not without hope. Did you know the Auto Club offers this amazingly cheap insurance policy where I am covered so long as I only drive cars I do not own? Incredible. I'd like to meet the actuary who thought that up and buy him a cheeseburger, sit with him and feel his pain.

It seems I have wandered far from the track, or perhaps it was my train of thought that left the station with me still wandering on the platform. Whichever, we're talking about K-town here (what you say?!). Specifically, I want to tackle the whole kickin' it westside vs. kickin' it eastside thing. Yes, I want to drag the age-old eastside / westside argument thru the mud one more time. Will I find out if Biggie really popped Tupac? Probably not, but I will shed some light on that whole mystery surrounding the origins of Boba. Interested? Read on!

I lived over yonder on the westside of Koreatown for close to nine years. I was one of the lucky ones. I landed near the corner of Wilshire and Western (and a very convenient subway station) in '97. I was about two years ahead of the official gentrification of the neighborhood. That happened when they opened the Starbucks across from the 24 Hour Fitness. Did you miss it? They had a big thing on the news about it. Ok, not really. But, it was minor local news. Still, it mattered not to me because I was one of the lucky ones. I already had a month-to-month rent control lease with all utilities included. Domino. Boba was one of the lucky ones too and continues to be. Drive thru K-town and you will see it advertised on nearly every cafe. So, just who or what is Boba? Do you know? Correct me if I'm wrong, and please do because I am curious, Boba is basically tapioca pudding added to your hot coffee or tea beverage. Right? It's actually quite good. My sister loves the stuff. What I'm worried about though is that Starbucks will catch on to its deliciousness, start selling it and take Boba out from the k-town underground and crush all the goofy little Korean cafes. Corporate Boba? That ain't right. Boba needs to be free. Well, not free exactly. I do understand that Boba requires a fee to be added to your beverage. What I'm trying to say is that tapioca should not be under the thumb of the man. That just ain't right.

Luckily, Boba is an all over Koreatown phenomenon. Boba is ubiquitous. However, the places I go into on this side (that'd be the eastside) of k-town to find Boba are a lot grungier. We have a Starbucks too, but it's sequestered inside a Vons. Speaking of Vons, is it just me or is that market pretty fucking freaky? I mean, can I just shop for my fruit and bacon without having every single store employee I pass ask me if they can help me find anything, or show me they're specials (isn't that illegal in Palm Springs now... to show one your specials. Gross), or did I find everything ok? I'll tell you what I find; I find the whole thing rather cultish in a Scientology kind of way. Oh Bob Davila, what have you set forth upon us? They probably hire armies of corporate shoppers who have beaten "The Fear" into every one of them while brainwashing them simultaneously. Poor dumb bastards. They probably can't sleep at night being constantly tormented by the possibility that one person they didn't say hi to while they were sneaking out thru the back of the meat dept to have a little smoke break was a secret shopper who was going to mention in his report that he wasn't greeted in a friendly and courteous manner by each and every employee that crossed his path. Never bag groceries for a living. The pay's bad. It's hard work. It doesn't impress the ladies. Oh, but they do have a union. Poor dumb bastards.

Well, now it seems I've written quite a lot, but haven't gotten very far with this whole eastside / westside thing. I'll try to do better. I promise. Well, the westside of K-town is ahead on the gentrification curve so it's a lot of those things one typically looks for in an LA neighborhood; it's nicer, safer, has wider streets, more and better restaurants (ever tried Korean fusion cuisine?), the Wiltern, 24 hour tofu, the Bounty, Brass Monkey, the subway, etc. You might know what I'm talking about. While the westside is definitely nicer, don't count out the eastside (yo?). Over here, the donuts are better. Way better. There's a pay phone on the sidewalk across the street from my apt... in the middle of the block. That's old school (no, that's kinda ghet-toe). My supermarket choice over here is between a Ralph's where I saw a dead mouse just cold chillin' it in produce and the aforementioned culty Vons. I've got a 24 hour taco stand two blocks away and the wildest German restaurant you can possibly imagine just a few blocks east of me (I mean, Oh my god). My current fav is the Vietnamese noodle restaurant that just opened called, "What the Pho?" I guess you gotta live here to find that funny.... or be Vietnamese, or maybe it just IS funny. I'm still subway close and not too much further from the 24-hour tofu joint. I'll keep going to the Vons up until the point where someone there tries to give me a free sample of "kool-aid." Then I'll stop going. I know what they're up to.

My next task will be to discover just what is Jolli-Bee. Do you know?

Till then, Kickin' it k-town.
P&H