Jeff 8 LA

Whoa, there's a burger down there somewhere! Yesterday I hung out with Jeff, my friend from UCLA days who lives in Portland. Last time I saw him, I was selling T-shirts for Damon & Naomi and Boris on their Oregon stop! This time, I met him at The Basket in Eagle Rock. I had never heard of the burger stand, probably because I don't eat meat, but it's almost right across the street from Auntie Em's.


Jeff's pals Jay and Meg ordered him a dish that was called something like "heart attack light" and it was no misnomer. I think it was about 8 bucks if you are up to the challenge. The omnivores were pretty happy with their burgers and beers, and were only disappointed that the radio couldn't get 103.1 so they had to miss Jonesy's interview with Killing Joke--the band that Jeff had flown down to see.


Meg left the sausage party, which made a "brief" stop at Amoeba. After that, I though Jeff needed to check out a fruta fresca stand. They weren't around back in the late '80s and they definitely aren't in Portland. We ordered everything with a little extra limon. A $5 dollar bag with three forks was good for a snack.


Coffee came afterward, as well as some a chance for the dudes to meet Eloise. Intelligentsia is the shit these days but I think too much posing goes on there. Casbah Cafe is more kick back and you don't feel like you have to sit up straight and suck it in when you're hanging out there. The coffee was fresh, good, and fairly priced.


As is the norm in L.A., we had an actress sighting. Okay, Jeff and Jay aren't indie, Asian-American, or sci-fi cinema buffs, but Jacqueline Kim introduced herself. It turns out she and I have a ton of mutual friends, including my old pal Cliff. She was just visiting him in New York and knew that he and I share the same birthday!


The guys went back to the crash pad before we reconvened for the Killing Joke show--more on that later, but it was almost 2 hours long, the set dug way back, and the band was totally on--and followed up with one more stop for food. This time it was the taco wagon outside Vons in Echo Park around 1 a.m. I had a veggie burrito and they had tacos. I think Jeff ordered al pastor and Jay had carne asada. Maybe some cabeza or lengua? I don't recall, but Meg showed up and ordered a chorizo quesadilla, trumping everyone. Booya!

Tonight, Jay and Meg have to work so it's up to me to make sure Jeff's vacation keeps cruising along. I've got some plans... Wonder if he's hungry?