LA's Best Dishes: The Infatuation's favorite meals of the week.

"Ever since Kat profiled Mama Drive-By Kitchen, I’ve been following their every move. Finding out which two mom-and-pop restaurants from opposite corners of LA will be paired up next gives me something to look forward to every week. This go-around it was Gamboge and Medan Kitchen, but I didn’t place my preorder fast enough because procrastination is my favorite sport, so I missed out on Gamboge’s Cambodian contributions. I did, however, get to try nasi padang and nasi bungkus from Medan Kitchen, an Indonesian spot that opened in Rosemead last year. I can confidently say this was the best meal I’ve had in 2021, and also that banana leaves are the ideal takeout box. The leaves on both dishes unfurl to reveal sweet bricks of rice, loaded with beef rendang, chicken, boiled egg, and, in the case of the nasi bungkus, sambal belacan with just the right amount of funk, spice, and fishiness. -AS" - the infatuation los angeles crew