I: I Cugini

Overall: 2.8

If you want to have a stunning Sunday brunch with a gourmet buffet, live jazz, view of the ocean and don't plan on drinking bloody marys, I Cugini (http://www.blogger.com/www.icugini.com/) is for you. If bloodys are an intricate part of your Sunday jazz brunch as they are for us, save yourself the cash and reread our posting for "H".

I Cugini is hands down the nicest restaurant we've gone to so far. There's a strong possibility I was swayed by their bathroom's cloth towels, endless chocolate covered strawberries and the excitement at the possibility of a 4 hour Sunday happy hour, and gave a higher rating than what is deserved.

In struggling to stay grounded and focus on our bloody mary mission, I will say this: the bloody marys are only mediocre. The presentation was lovely as you can see in the picture, but they tasted as though the only seasoning added was pepper - the black-peppered rim, while very unique, didn't make the situation any better.

So, if you want to gorge on great food with solid live jazz playing, do it to it. Just order a mimosa and look like a bitch.

1. Spice - 1.5
2. Complexity - 4.0
3. Garnishes - 4.0
4. Overall Taste - 2.0
5. Price - 2.5

Overall: 2.8

H: House of Blues

Overall grade: 3.4

It's a little known fact, but each House of Blues (hob.com/la) holds a Gospel Brunch every Sunday. Though, regardless of what city you're in, as soon as you step inside you warp into the South. People are dressed in their Sunday best, lining up for all-you-can-eat cheese grits, jambalaya and biscuits & gravy….not the mention the $10 all-you-can-drink bloody marys, hence the reason we rolled to the Sunset Strip at the crack of 1:00 p.m. last Sunday morning.

The gospel choir encouraged us all to dance and wave our napkins like we were second lining down the streets of New Orleans, and apparently it's something they do at every show. I'm not going to lie - this part can be a little rough if you decided to binge drink for 12 hours the day before to celebrate St. Patty's Day as some people in our group did (um….me). But, for people that didn't have to make themselves vomit in the bathroom when they first arrived, this is actually really fun.

The bloody marys were decent here. While they weren't over the top fantastic, whenever you hear all-you-can-anything, you can already assume it isn't going to be top of the line. But, they certainly got the job done; I enjoyed them and our waiter was all over us, making sure our cups were never empty.

1. Spice - 2.5

2. Complexity - 2.75
3. Garnishes - 3.5

4. Overall Taste - 3.25

5. Price - 5.0

Overall: 3.4

G: Genghis Cohen

Overall Grade: 1.5

We debated why the name of this restaurant seemed to combine two flavorful cultures. One theory that arose was that when there were no other restaurants open on Christmas in colonial times, the early Jewish settlers began their love affair with General Tso’s Chicken and Pork Fried Rice. Whatever the reason, my people love Chinese food and Genghis Cohen (http://www.genghiscohen.com/) did not disappoint when it came to food.

On the other hand, the bloody marys were a true disappointment...like when your son changes his major from pre-med to sociology and starts dating a shiksa.

Here’s why the bloody mary was bad:

Lame garnish – just a lime and no olive – WTF?;

Weak spice with no yummy horseradish flavor;

And finally, simply, the taste was just bad– just tobasco and tomato juice.

Don’t be tricked by the fancy description on the drink menu for the New York Spicy Bloody Mary but do partake in the number of drinks on the “Foo Foo Drink Menu” that are amazing; i.e. the Lounge Lizard, Passion Fruit Margarita, or Mai Tai. We recommend you stop by and enjoy the 4 pm early bird special over some yummy drinks at Genghis Cohen, but just say no to the bloody mary.

1. Spice - 1.0

2. Complexity - 1.0

3. Garnishes - 1.0

4. Overall Taste - 1.5

5. Price - 3.0

Overall: 1.5