Love It Or Hate It...
1918 W. Sunset Blvd.
Phone: 213-484-9800 | map

Brite Spot, like Home and Fred 62, racks up more complaints than most. Change of management, slow service, surly service, poor eating conditions, terrible food, hipsters have cooties, we waited twenty minutes and everyone was too cool to notice us, etc. I notice that many of these occur when someone is coming in late at night after a show at the Echo.

I admit two things: that 1) Bianca and I are rather magnanimous when it comes to eateries because we know what it's like to work in them, and 2) on a day when Brite Spot is busy and understaffed, they will be like a freshly-stomped-on anthill. What we tend to do is go on weekend mornings/afternoons.

Perhaps the most rewarding thing about the place is the ambiance: vintage wooden walls with 1900s-era photos of graduating classes, colorfully chipped carvings of kings' heads, and Chinese checkerboards. Brass-topped tables flanked by sparkly red vinyl booths that actually, for the most part, aren't covered in duct tape. Amber chandeliers with those tiny threads hanging from them. (I hate to use the word eclectic, but if there's a better description for the kind of decor you might get if your wacky old aunt from Pasadena just passed away and you're in charge of the estate sale, then please give it.)

Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, or Spirit might well be playing overhead. Tattoos abound. It's possible that two of you might be seated at the same long booth as another couple. It's always bustling, and always interesting in the people-watching realm.

They have a full vegetarian/vegan menu, which is gratifying. The veggie burger and soy cheese, or the soy-rizo con huevos, are my usual staple. Bianca's bounced from the pancakes to the turkey burger to the grilled cheese and been pleased with all of them. The shakes are somewhat thin, so I stick with iced tea or iced coffee.

Parking is also cramped and based on luck and timing, but you'll get there. Wait a bit, relax, take in the extremely casual atmosphere, leaf through the piles of cards and flyers advertising concerts, clubs, and protest events, and go into zen mode.