One of the perks to living near any college campus is the food. It’s no secret that the majority of college students don’t know how to make their own food, or it could be that they are simply too lazy, but one way or the other, there is always good restaurant food around any college campus, and USC is no different. The best aspect of finding food around USC, located in East LA, is the variety. If you’re looking for something quick, easy and relatively unhealthy, there are a plethora of fast food restaurants, ranging from McDonalds and Burger King to Taco Bell, Del Taco, Subway or even Panda Express. All of these fast food restaurants are within walking distance of campus, and any of these options will offer a quick fix for your empty stomach. Panda Express, McDonalds, Del Taco and Subway are also open 24 hours, which can come in especially handy on the all-nighters that inevitably surface every term around finals.
If the typical fast food chains are not your cup of tea, there are many other viable options in the USC area. Sizzler is located right next to the Radisson Hotel and offers a nice variety of sea food and steaks at reasonable prices. If you like Mexican food, you’ve got possibilities at nearly every corner. La Barca [where: 2414 S Vermont Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90007] is the most notorious Mexican food restaurant in the USC area. If you go to La Barca, you cannot miss out on their infamous margaritas. The food is pretty standard Mexican style, ranging from tacos and enchiladas to chimichangas and burritos. Whatever food option you pick at La Barca, you don’t have to worry about quantity of food. Every portion is massive, easily big enough to share. This offers a great option for a cheap meal, as long as you don’t mind sharing with a friend.
Pasta Roma [where: 2827 S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA 90007] is the best Italian style cuisine around USC. Pasta Roma’s menu ranges from all types of pasta to sub style sandwiches to freshly baked pizza. All of the food at Pasta Roma is delicious, and even if you close your eyes and point at the menu, it’s hard to go wrong. Another great aspect of Pasta Roma is the fact that they deliver. I’ve never had a delivery from Pasta Roma where my food wasn’t still steaming as I started to dig in.
Every living area has its dark horse in the food industry. Near USC, this dark horse is Eat Street Grill [where: 3031 Figueroa at 31 Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007]. Eat Street, as it is called, is the biggest steal around USC. They serve breakfast all day and the other options on the menu are vast. Their salads are wonderful, their burgers are fantastic, and their chicken fried steak is to die for. Best of all, Eat Street is always cheap. Never expect to pay more than $10 or $12 bucks for a full meal!
The food options are definitely a high point of living in the USC area. No matter what kind of mood you are in, you are guaranteed to find something that will appease your craving!
