Newbie Endorsement: Crispy Crust Pizza

UNLIKE THESE FELLOWS in SaxEno's video, we don't get that excited about the mathematical possibilities of different pizza sizes. ("The area of the circle is not being expressed!") But very much like these fellows, we do enjoy ordering dinner from Crispy Crust Pizza (3111 Glendale Blvd.) in Atwater Village. We live close enough to pick up our extra-thin-crust chili con carne pizza and overflowing antipasto salads, and cheesecake and tiramisu slices (with an excuse to pick up a bottle next door at 55 Degree Wine). But if you don't live in the 'hood, Crispy Crust delivers for no extra charge. Tell 'em the Newbie sent ya.

Newbie Endorsement: Church and State

Church & State at Biscuit Company Lofts, originally uploaded by fridayinla.

WE VENTURED DOWNTOWN recently for dinner at the new French bistro Church & State (1850 Industrial Street). Our $130 dinner for 2 included appetizer, wine, shared entree, shared dessert, tax & tip. May seem pricy, but some LA places have you at $100 before they've even unfolded your napkin. Everything was tasty. Buttery. (French.) The made-in-house caramel is worth the trip. And worth saving your appetite for dessert. Parking's easy. Only $4, attended lot. And even though it's Skid Row-adjacent, the restaurant sits on a precious downtown corner, a Hugh Grant movie set waiting to happen across from Toy Factory Lofts and Royal Clayton's pub. Just add cobblestone. Church and State's website is MIA, but we reserved on OpenTable.com.

Newbie Endorsement: Breakfast at Baracoa

RICE AND EGGS, sunny side up. Chorizo omelette. Plantains. All good stuff available from 7:00am at Baracoa Cuban Cafe, 3175 Glendale Blvd. And they don't even complain too much if you bring your own coffee.

The Newbie Endorsement: 55 Degrees Wine

IF YOU FIND WITHIN Los Angeles city limits a better Italian varietal and French bubbly wine shop and basement tasting room (with a wine locker kept at, you guessed it, 55 degrees) - co-founded by an Iranian expatriate who currently lives in Hawaii - buy it! Unless you just bought it. In which case, welcome to the neighborhood. 55 Degrees [Thrillist] "You can pop into for nightly-changing, sommelier's choice wine flights" 55 Degrees [Iron City Ex-Pat] "Go down a flight of steps and you'll find this gorgeous, exposed brick and wrought-iron tasting area. It's kind of like learning about wine, whilst on break from a 19th century British factory." The Dish: 55 Degrees [Eater LA] "Expect lots of color coding, take-away info cards and other 'idiot proofing' measures for wine shopping." 55 Degrees in Atwater Village [Miles Think] "The staff is incredibly nice, the owners outgoing and the look and feel of the place is quite inviting." Wine Store and Tastings in Atwater [Eater LA] "In addition to what owner Ali Biglar says will be a rotating selection of some 2000 Italians, he's planning a nice selection of Spanish bottles, 500 rotating small-production sparkling wines and eventually beer, cheese and condiments." On opening day this weekend, the staff urged Mrs. Newbie and I to stop by at least 4 nights a week to take advantage of the changing wine flights. (Wouldn't want to miss one!) And when they sold us $85 worth of Italian reds, they also sold us a story that one of them has been bottled for 1,000 years and was once reviewed by Leonardo da Vinci. By the last drop, we didn't really care if it was true. (55 Degrees Wine, 3111 Glendale Blvd., next to one of the Starbucks stores in Atwater Village; store 11:00am to 10:00pm, tasting room 6:00-10:00pm)