New York Hearts L.A.

Unlike the rather tired and off-handed assessment of the LA food scene that the SF Chronicle tossed off about six months back, the New York Times has been showing how it's done: their recent piece on "36 Hours in Hollywood" and last week's survey of Sunset Junction. Okay, yes, some of their picks are probably geared to the curious tourist rather than the traveler interested in a more gritty L.A. experience -- Teddy's nightclub is one of their spots to hit up (although you do get to see L.A. teenage wildlife in its natural habitat).

Current coffee talk of the town Intelligentsia is included in the Silver Lake round-up (no LA Mill, though!), as well as popular foodie spots like the Cheese Store of Silverlake (the city's best, according to the NYT), and Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles (the Hollywood location).

They've highlighted some destinations that are a little farther off the radar, however: Los Balcones del Peru as a food pick in Hollywood? Nice! That's been on my To-Do list for ages. It's a lunch spot you'll want to hit up as you're taking in an ArcLight flick and shopping at Amoeba (neither of those are what you'd call secret spots, but they sure do impress the out-of-towners). Breakfast spot Square One also gets a shout-out, where they recommend you start your morning before heading over to Barnsdall Art Park.

All in all, there's nothing here that would really surprise the L.A. native, but it's always nice to get a little travel-savvy love from the Gray Lady.