This is the 5th week of dining after restaurants were forced to close or convert to a delivery or “to go” operation. More and more, many restaurants on my “to visit” list are either temporarily and permanently closed. Many restaurants still don’t update their websites and feature their take-out menus using their Facebook and their Instagram channels.
This week I visited three restaurants. Hotville Fried Chicken delivers an authentic Nashville hot fried chicken experience. Pasta Sisters is a fresh pasta store featuring authentic Italian dishes and desserts based on their family recipes. Bebot Filipino Soul Food is Owner / Chef AC Boral’s first restaurant.
Hotville Fried Chicken
The splash page on Hotville’s Fried Chicken provided a heartfelt message with advice on reconnecting with family and friends and taking care of one’s emotional well-being. “Video chat versus texting – seeing your face will bring a big smile and send a complimentary e-card” are just a couple of suggestions mentioned.
Breast Quarter – Cali Mild 
Leg Quarter – Nashville Hot
After returning back home, I unpacked the bag and shared everything with my wife. She favors white meat and I favor dark. Her breast quarter had “Cali mild” level 2 spice seasoning. Conversely, I went after the hottest, the “Nashville Hot” level 4 seasoning. The exterior of the chicken was crunchy and you can taste the seasoning all the way down to the bone.
The sides and dessert I ordered 
Restaurant exterior
Each of the sides I ordered could stand on their own and there were definitely recipe focused. The mac and cheese had a nice smokey flavor, but the most interesting was the trio of baked beans made with navy beans, kidney and black beans marinated in syrup and served with a tangy BBQ sauce, brown sugar, and hickory smoked bacon.
The banana pudding was the ideal way to finish. The thick and slightly sweet pudding nicely countered the heat from the chicken. It was topped with banana chips and a Chessmen shortbread cookie.
Hotville Fried Chicken, 4070 Marlton Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90008; 323.792.4835
hotvillechicken.com
Bebot Filipino Soul Food
AC Boral leveraged the experience gained from his catering operation, Rice and Shine Eats and opened Bebot last September. The name Bebot was the nickname of his late father and Boral named the restaurant as a tribute to him. Bebot Filipino Soul Food is located in East Long Beach on 4th Street.
BBQ Chicken 
Coconut Milk Shrimp
Their barbecued chicken is the result of Boral’s inspiration for his late father. It is made from a delicious dark soy sauce-garlic marinade. The chicken was perfectly grilled, moist, tender and definitely worth ordering again. It paired nicely with the cherry tomatoes and baby bok choy. Their shrimp was surrounded by a delicious coconut milk sauce and a fresh vegetable medley. I sopped up the remaining delicious sauce with the white rice.
Lumpia with sweet and sour sauce 
Suman made with ube
For dessert, I selected Ube Suman, a Filipino rice cake. Instead of rice, Bebot uses ube, a purple yam. The result was a delicious easy to slice dessert that didn’t taste anything like yam. It was wrapped in a banana leaf and served with their amazing ensaymada butter.
Bebot Filipino Soul Food, 2741 E 4th St suite A, Long Beach, CA 90814; 562.342.6008
bebotfilipinofood.com
Pasta Sisters
Pasta Sisters’ Culver City location is larger than their original mid-city location. It is set up as a fast casual restaurant that issues numbers to place at your table. Just before Easter, I found out that they offered columba clasica, an Italian easter cake and announced it here. Because I wanted to try it, I pre-ordered one for our Easter dinner.
Wrapped Italian Cake 
The Italian Easter Cake from Pasta Sisters
The cake is actually made in Italy and shipped to the US. Its looks deceived me; I thought it would be dense and heavy like a fruitcake. I was delighted to find that it was fluffy and tasted like pound cake. The exterior glaze of granulated sugar and crunchy almonds nicely gave the cake a nice lift. As you take a bite, you can detect an orange peel aroma. It is the perfect dessert to pair with coffee. Unfortunately, it is only produced for Easter and is no longer available.
Pasta Sisters, 3280 Helms Ave, Culver City, CA 90232; 424.603.4503
pastasisters.com