A Taste of the Town
By: Dara Udobong ‘23
I’ve been at USC for a long time — for context, I just ordered my cap and gown for graduation over the weekend — yet I still don’t feel like I know “South Central”. For those of you who don’t know, USC is located in the heart of South-Central Los Angeles, which is Southern California’s cultural, artistic, and multi-ethnic heart.
While tourists know Southern California for its moviestar charm and take to Hollywood, Beverly Hills, or Santa Monica in search of the perfect photo opp., locals know the city for its community and traverse the streets of Inglewood, Crenshaw Blvd, and Downtown LA (DTLA) in search of good music, great food, and memorable people.
Far from a hidden valley, South Central boasts a wide selection of experiences and cuisine. Within this pocket of sunshine you can find anything from the Academy (Oscars) Museum of Motion Pictures to the Rose Garden on Exposition. Hungry? South Central offers everything from the Westin Bonaventure sky-high rotating restaurant to the best mom and pop chicken and waffles spots your taste buds have ever encountered.
Since USC borders DTLA, I’m pretty familiar with most of the brunch spots, ‘fusion’ pop-ups, and artistic cuisine that have become synonymous with the metropolitan area. However, with only a couple months left on my academic clock and driven by the desire to finally experience things, I decided to become more in tune with the community that has supported me these 4 years and finally explore its flavours.
Thankfully, the University Student Government (USG) and the Black Students Association (BSA) are making all my bucket list dreams come true. This Black History Month, USG’s External Affairs Committee and BSA teamed up to provide students with a taste of the local community (pun intended) via the first ever restaurant crawl featuring Black-owned businesses. Starting at USC and traversing the length of South Central LA, the restaurant crawl featured three restaurants that followed a three-course dinner menu perfectly curated for the eager (and hungry) college students who embarked upon this mission.
The restaurant crawl consisted of two buses that went on different routes in order to cover more ground and provide students with a range of cuisine. Here’s a brief review of the routes and their accompanying menus:
Route 1
Appetizer:
Earle's on Crenshaw
- Beef Hot Dog
- Vegan Dog
Main:
Little Belize
- Vegetarian Plate
- Stew Oxtail
Dessert:
Southern Girl Desserts
- vanilla
- double chocolate
- red velvet
Route 2
Appetizer:
Sky's Gourmet Tacos
- Potato & Cheese Taco
- Filet Mignon Taco
Main
My 2 Cents
- Fried Green Tomato Tacos
- BBQ Fried Chicken
Dessert
Southern Girl Desserts
- vanilla
- double chocolate
- red velvet
Each course featured vegan options to accommodate different diets (I mean, we are in LA). Students that signed up for the restaurant crawl were given the opportunity to select their desired route and order ahead by choosing one item from each course on that route. Each route had a 50 person capacity so it was first-come first-served. After you turned in the form, a confirmation email was sent out and the wait began.
A couple of days before the restaurant crawl, I received an email that confirmed that I was assigned to my route of choice (Route 1) and detailed the itinerary for the night. By 5:30pm, we were off into the night.
Earle’s on Crenshaw
For our appetizer, we stopped at Earle’s on Crenshaw. Born out of a hotdog stand, this local giant has been in the game for over 30 years and specializes in what I like to call American sports food: hotdogs, burgers, and fries. When we got there, a service line was already set up in the back so that our large group wouldn’t disrupt the ongoing flow of customer traffic. I got a spicy hotdog (out of a selection of chicken dogs, spicy beef dogs, a vegan alternative, and chili toppings), and I just have to say: it was delicious. It has just the right amount of spice to get the party started but not enough to get it shut down soon after. My spice tolerance is relatively high considering my background so I’m not easily impressed, but this dish really took the cake.
I didn’t expect a hotdog to ever fill me up or not mentally transport me to a baseball stadium, but Earle’s hotdogs felt like an experience all its own. Clearly cooked with love, their food brought back feelings of nostalgia, community, and warm summer nights. While one might not expect a hotdog shop to be such a hit, Earle’s has successfully pulled off what it means to be the heart of a community. Customers both young and old lounged around in the open air sitting outside the restaurant tucking into delicious hotdogs and reveling in their close-knit community.
The food was lovely, but the camaraderie was even better. Earle’s has catered at USC for multiple years, so if you ever see them at a USC-sponsored event, try them out! You’re guaranteed to fall in love immediately.
Little Belize
Before long, we shuffled back into the bus and headed to Inglewood.
Side note: While I’ve been to Inglewood before, I’ve always used the highway. For this trip ,we used the side streets. I’d encourage you to do the same because places like Inglewood are much closer than I thought there were and using the highway robs you of the chance to see the beauty of different communities.
Our stop in Inglewood was at Little Belize for our main course. If you’re looking for affordable Caribbean food and healthy portions, this is definitely the place for you. Our large group took over the whole restaurant and food was served almost immediately. My dish of oxtails, rice and beans, plantains, and potato salad was so good that I’m considering placing a catering order for graduation. Little Belize is very generous with their portions; so much so that multiple people took their leftovers home. I had enough leftovers to have it again for lunch the next day. The food itself was so full of flavour and was presented beautifully. A karaoke bar is nestled at the top of the restaurant and offers live music, shows, and karaoke night on Fridays. I would give Little Belize 10s across the board and will be sure to make another stop there very soon.
Southern Girl Desserts
Our final stop took us back into Los Angeles and merged the two restaurant crawl routes. Our now much larger group had dessert at Southern Girl Desserts, a pastery shop founded by two lovely Southern women seeking to bring a taste of the South to the West Coast. Each student turned in their meal ticket to get a chocolate, red velvet, or vanilla cupcake (you could get two if you wanted!). The cupcakes were the perfect end to an eventful night and were definitely a treat I didn’t expect to still have room for. I got the chocolate cupcake (and a vanilla one, which I said I would save for the next day but ended up devouring), and I must say, it was truly delicious. Our group stood outside the restaurant with the founders for a group picture to cap off the night before heading into the bus. As we got ready to leave, we took in the hard work and dedication poured into the business by its founders. It was sad to have to leave, but it was fulfilling to see the different moving parts of the food industry that builds a community.
In about 15 minutes, we were back at USC once again, and it felt surreal being back on campus so soon. The night felt like a magical escape, so knowing that each location was within reach was hard to accept. Moving forward, I’m making a conscious decision to explore South Central Los Angeles and develop a deeper appreciation for its people. I wish I had done most of this sooner — by myself or with friends — but I’m glad I got to see it before I left USC for good. So if you’re making your college bucket list (it’s never too early to start!), consider putting a restaurant crawl on there! It’s an experience of a lifetime.
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