Iconic Neighborhood Restaurants: Whittier

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Whittier is at once a suburban tangle of endless streets and strip malls, as well as a lush, tree-lined town. Its downtown (here it's called Uptown Whittier) with its park, movie theater, and old-timey architecture, provides a central, small-town feeling that unites all people of Whittier. Located on the southern rim of the San Gabriel Valley, only 19 miles from downtown LA, it is a world in itself. Despite its small-town vibe, it is also surprisingly eclectic and irreverent. Here, you'll see rockabilly families, skater girls, punk rock kids dressed in all black, geek chic kids, older adults with piercings, full tattoo sleeves, and bright hair, all walking, hanging out, and sharing the landscape. You will also find vintage record shops, Mexican folk art shops, used bookstores, coffee shops, and restaurants, along with a 99 cent store, a pawn shop, and a beauty school.

Though Whittier is utterly and tediously landlocked, challenging to leave and return to, luckily there's plenty to do and eat any day of the week. Whittier is becoming a foodie destination, offering a good variety of well-crafted meals, from tapas and wine bars, craft brewery, Japanese, to fusion restaurants, more typical of big cities than this suburban college town (Whittier College is a rock's throw away from Uptown). In Whittier, you can skip the trappings of pretension, no overcharging the customers, no fussy vibes or snobbery. Outsiders are warmly taken in, assumed to belong.

Whittier is home to new immigrant families from Mexico alongside fourth and fifth generation US-born families and a young population, with the average age of 32. The restaurants and their food reflect the culinary traditions of its residents, yet present themselves and their dishes with much nuance and individualized flair. Local chefs combine traditional ingredients in surprising, unexpected ways, expanding people's expectations of traditional food. The chefs and staff at these establishments, who create the menus, cook the food, and provide a friendly environment to single people, couples of all ages, and families with wiggly children alike; each time tasting more like home.

The restaurants profiled here represent a cross section of these very welcoming spaces. The dishes profiled are vegan (sometimes modified as such), but still rich and complex. Each restaurant is also a variation of Latino cuisines, and demonstrates the very dynamic manners in which Latino culture is experienced in this predominantly Chicano/Latino town. What is most exciting about the Whittier restaurant scene is that you can eat savory, satisfying, and interesting dishes in little hole-in-the wall corners, or more formal venues.

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Forkin Good Cafe

Forkin Good Cafe is the creation of award-winning celebrity chef and owner Denise Portillo. She began as the owner of a flower shop, which evolved by her love of cooking and presentation, into event planning and catering. She is a 5th generation Mexican American on her dad's side, and 2nd generation on her mother's side. In her family, the love of food and traditional cuisine was essential, and culminated in her interesting and unique takes on Mexican food. She feels that it is possible to be creative with the essence of Mexican cuisine, without watering down any of the elements. Chef Portillo had her daughter in Whittier, and being part of this community, if offering her creativity and her imagination back to the community. She appreciates the small town feel, the trees, and the fact that she can walk to work.

The menu offers everything from fresh-to-order-fire roasted pizzas, to frittatas, to chilaquiles. In addition to the food, the coffee is notable, and situated just a few feet from the corner Starbucks on Greenleaf in Uptown, definitely worth walking further to sample their warm, spicy horchata lattes, churro lattes, cafe de la olla, and rosemary and lavender-infused coffees. Chef Portillo grows her own herbs and makes her own syrups. Her love of coffee goes back to childhood memories of old-school coffee houses in Los Feliz, complete with big burlap sacks of coffee piled up along the walls.

Forkin Good Cafe is welcoming and bright, with decor that flaunts Chef Portillo's creative flair. The ambiance is relaxed, if not enchanting, with groups of friends and couples laughing, smiling, absorbed by the Amy Winehouse and Billie Holiday music. Chef Portillo stresses the importance of slowing down enough to be engaged in the moment, the meal, and the people you come with.

Forkin Good Cafe: 6744 Greenleaf Avenue Whittier, CA - 90601 562 693-1010

Caption: Chef Denise Portillo in front of a peacock graffiti mural by local artist, Nuke. Photo by Claudia Morales

Slow down and have a brunch date (wifi-free) with friends, family or sweetheart at Forkin Good Cafe. Photo courtesy of Forkin Good Cafe.

Colonia Tacos Guisados

Colonia Tacos Guisados is one of three restaurants owned by a locally renowned Chef Ricardo Diaz of Cooks Tortas, Dorados Ceviche Bar, Guisados Tacos, Bizarra Capital (see below) and numerous other locales. He comes from a family of Mexican restuarant owners of the seafood chain Siete Mares. Diaz shared that he was practically raised working in the restaurants, every weekend, all summer, where he acquired the Mexican work ethic . This little tiny spot offers respite along the impossibly long stretch of road that is Whittier Blvd and that seems to made for cruising than for actual commuting. The building is mint green and shiny silver, it has a 50's mid century vibe, that looks like it may have at one point been a hamburger joint. It also has an inventive and surprising array of tacos, many of which are vegetarian, something you don't often see in more traditional taquerias. Diaz shares that he wished to elevate vegetables, in the way

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