Fatty noodles from Little Fatty in Mar Vista
By Kerry Slater
Comfort food comes in all shapes and sizes, including in the form of fatty noodles that are dangerously easy to eat from the aptly-named Little Fatty in Mar Vista.
Little Fatty, located at 3809 Grand View Boulevard in Mar Vista, does more than fatty noodles, but given their name I felt obliged to get the XO Fatty Noodles (rolled chow fun, XO sauce, bean sprouts, garlic chives). In somewhat of a rush, I ordered my lunch for pickup and popped a squat on the curb. There are dishes that you know are going to be good before the first bite and upon unboxing my fatty noodles, I knew I was going to be in for something special.
The XO Noodles do not come with any meat, and for good reason. Any protein would have stolen the spotlight from the noodles and this would have been a tragedy. The noodles, similar in shape and size to a cheese puff, are texturally somewhere between a bao and soba. Like cheese puffs, bao and soba, these noodles are the epitome of comfort food. I could have eaten a whole bowl of them plain and not stopped until I was on the verge of a food coma. As good as these noodles were on their own, when combined with the sauce and garnishes, the result was pure comfort food bliss.
The XO sauce was as addictive as the noodles themselves. Sweet, salty, rich and garlicky, it was similar to the remnants at the bottom of a bowl of ramen you know you should not slurp down but you still end up doing. The bean sprouts added great texture and were accompanied by some unidentified greens that were hearty and gave the dish a guise of being healthy. The finishing touch was the plastic container of roasted garlic meant to be tossed in with the dish. Not only did this add the wonderful taste of roast garlic to the equation, but it gave the dish a great crunch that took it to the next level. After I was done with the noodles, I found myself dumping the rest of the roasted garlic in the remaining sauce for an unnecessary, but still worth it, “dessert”.
Overall, this was one of the better dishes I have had on the Westside in recent months. The total bill with tip was around $17, which may seem a bit steep for a protein-less meal, but it was worth every penny. Was it world class? No, but still elite. Will I be returning? Absolutely, and am excited to try other items on the menu.
Taste: 8.8/10
Value: 7.5/10
Quality: 8.5/10
Overall: 8/10
