Hey LA-GAF,
I'm heading down to LA with a group of seven (we're all from Vancouver, BC) from August 14th-18th. We're in our mid twenties and we plan to go to Six Flags on one of those days. The other days, we haven't really decided but we relaly wanna check out K-Town and see what it's all about. Word on the street is that it's a really cool place, and my buddies and I all like Asians so it's win-win!
Are there any places you guys could recommend we go? We plan on staying in downtown LA. We just wanna kick back and enjoy beautiful LA. hahaha
Anyway, thanks for the help!
K-Town is largely a dump, not sure where you heard it was "a really cool place." There are some great places to go that happen to be in Koreatown but I wouldn't call the area cool. Maybe that's just me. Definitely worth going to a good Korean barbecue place though with a group of 7. People will have recommendations no doubt, but Genwa is considered the cream of the crop. But I also like Honey Pig, because pork is delicious. There are some fun Korean bars too.
If you're staying in downtown and you're into Asian stuff, go to Little Tokyo, which is very nearby. Daikokuya is probably the most famous ramen joint in that area, though wait times get VERY long if you're going during a normal eating hour. That said, they don't really have room for 7 people, it's a tiny place. Maybe go to Shabu Shabu House instead. That area is very walkable and there's a lot of neat little places to check out.
Also Wurstkuche is adjacent to Little Tokyo (east of it) and is a great place for delicious sausages (read: hot dogs) and german/belgian beers. Hipsterish kinda joint but I bet you guys would love it. Get the rattlesnake and rabbit sausage.
Chinatown also isn't too far off. It's not as nice and walkable as Little Tokyo is, but there are some good places. I recommend Yang Chow. Get the Slippery Shrimp there -- it's like crack, so good. Everybody gets that there, it's their most famous dish. But a lot of things are good there. I like the Hot and Sour soup too.
The weather has been fucking sweet here lately, but in August expect it to be hot. If you can, I suggest hitting the beach. Santa Monica has a promenade and a pier along with their beach and is an extremely popular place, but if you head just south from there you can hit Venice Beach, which is basically full of weirdos (it's actually known for its strange boardwalk folk).
Also, near downtown but in a completely shitty area is a deli with the greatest sandwich in the world: The #19 at Langers. I tell everyone to go there. In my eyes it's the perfect sandwich: the most delicious rye bread in the country, freshly cut pastrami, swiss cheese and coleslaw. Let me say that normally I do not like coleslaw. However on this sandwich it is perfect. I wouldn't change a single thing about it. Also get a cream soda with it, they have delicious cream soda there.
If you guys have travel capabilities (read: a car or two), there are a lot of other places to check out. Lemme know.