Bouchon Restaurant
235 N Canon Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90210
310.271.9910
www.bouchonbistro.com
Thu 06/28/2012, 08:50p-12:15a



In the final days leading up to the foie gras ban, thousands of antsy Angelenos packed into restaurants, trying to get their fill of the gloriously engorged, soon-to-be-illicit liver. I myself indulged in a number of foie-centric dinners, but also made it a point to stop by Bouchon, sort of the bastion of French bistro cooking here in LA. I wanted to get one last taste of their famed foie, but was also curious to see how the place was progressing (seeing as how I hadn't been here since opening night). I was especially interested in Bouchon given the last 5x5 Chefs Collaborative dinner, where I was able to see Chef Rory Herrmann's cooking outside the limitations of a brasserie setting.


Terrine de Foie de Volaille [$16.00] | chicken liver mousse served with toasted baguette
Though foie gras may be going the way of the dodo, the kitchen quickly sent out what may be the next best thing: chicken liver mousse. The terrine was delicious, and compared with foie, it showed off a more robust, though less luxurious character, with a firmer, grittier texture and a somewhat similar, but still very unique flavor profile. The liver was great over toast, and especially tasty when taken with a sprig of the accompanying thyme.


We were then provided a textbook pain d'epi (modeled after stalks of wheat), paired with a fabulously soft, sweet, salty butter.


Huîtres Shigoku [$24.00] | shigoku oysters
I first tasted shigokus during a meal at Ohshima (arguably OC's best sushi spot), and ever since then, they've become easily one of my favorite varietals. A relatively new type of Pacific oyster, they displayed a wonderfully crisp, snappy texture and a really focused, marked brininess that lingered long on the finish. Delish alone, and also great with a dash of mignonette or cocktail sauce.


Foie Gras Terrine [$28.00]
And now, the foie de résistance. This was the real deal, a perfectly executed foie gras terrine. Vis-à-vis the preceding chicken liver, it was considerably more lush, feminine, sensual even, silky in consistency and palate-coating. It was exactly what you want in a terrine, a quintessential expression of the fatty liver, one that reminded me of just how special the ingredient is. I thoroughly enjoyed it spread simply over toast (which was continually replenished, just like at Laundry), but it also paired superbly with the sweetness of the accompanying fruit, as well as the tangy greenery.


Vichyssoise [$9.00]
The soupe du jour this evening was a vichyssoise, a sort of old-school potage that you don't see on menus all that often any more. It was just what I expected, with a deft balance between potato and leek flavors, over a heavy, creamy base and tarted up by a topping of crisp potato bits and chive.


Salade de Fenouil et Fruits de Saison au Canard [$16.00] | fennel bulb, seasonal stone fruit with house cured Pekin duck breast & crispy duck tongues
A salad of fennel was a surprisingly beautiful sight to behold. I don't see duck tongue too often, so I appreciated its inclusion here, with its salty, savory kick. As far as duck goes, though, the house-cured breast was even better, imparting a palpable depth and weight to the salad, nicely balanced by the sweet, sugary fruit and tangy, anise-laced tinge of fennel.


Escargot à la Bourguignonne [$18.00] | red wine braised Burgundy snails with garlic butter & Bouchon Bakery puff pastry
Escargots, naturally, were totally on point as well: hot, garlicky, and oh-so buttery bites, beautifully contrasted against the relative levity of puff pastry. Can't go wrong with these.


Salade de Melon [$13.50] | summer melon salad, cucumbers & heirloom radish with preserved meyer lemon yogurt
Compressed cuboids of melon formed the basis for this light, bright, beautifully-plated, summer-y salad. Here, the juicy sweetness of the fruit was on proud display, joined by the piquant crunch of cucumber and radish, with all the elements grounded by the creamy, tangy base of yogurt.


Flétan Poêlé [$37.50] | herb roasted fillet of halibut with ratatouille & sauce pistou
Moving on to some heartier courses now, the halibut was a prototypical example of the fish: firm and flaky in body, with a golden-brown crust and a delightfully savory, yet restrained relish. I really enjoyed the fish all by itself, but the slightly sweet, slightly sour zest of the salpicon-inspired ratatouille, in concert with the aromatic pistou, was an adept accoutrement as well, counterbalancing the gravity of the flétan in commendable fashion.


Sweet Corn Risotto [$16.00]
Though I'm quite the risotto fiend, I was a bit concerned with this one given the presence of corn. Fortunately though, the dish was restrained in its sweetness, with the corn actually melding well with the Parmesan and perfectly cooked grains of rice. The finishing touch, though, was the use of trumpet and honshimeji mushrooms, which lent an earthy, umami-soaked flavor to the dish.


Baba au Rhum [$9.00] | rum soaked cake with seasonal fruit & vanilla cream
For dessert, Chef Herrmann sent out a traditional rum baba, a dish that seems to be becoming harder and harder to find these days. What I really appreciated here was how the cake was just absolutely soaked in the liquor, the booziness of the rum playing perfectly off of the otherwise fruity, saccharine flavors present.


The baba was joined by a much lighter dessert featuring a small pot strawberries and cream, accompanied by shortbread cookies.


And finally, to wrap things up, we were provided an assortment of macarons in various flavors: raspberry, caramel, pistachio, chocolate, vanilla, passion fruit. They were spot on, some of the best I've had in fact, conveying a fantastic interplay between their rich, sticky fillings and the ethereal, fragile, yet moist meringue shells. Yum.

It'd been a while since my last visit here, and I can say that the restaurant has gotten better since then. I was expecting some very classic, very by-the-book French food here, and in that regard, Herrmann delivered, putting forth some pretty much perfectly executed dishes. At the same time though, it's clear that the Chef is stepping a bit outside the bounds of strict bistro cooking, elevating the cuisine in the process, yet still making it fit within the confines that make Bouchon Bouchon.

The Royce at The Langham "30 Ways in 3 Days: Foie Gras Farewell"
1401 S Oak Knoll Ave, Pasadena, CA 91106
626.585.6410
www.roycela.com
Sat 06/30/2012, 07:50p-01:20a





Sadly, by the time you read this, the sale and production of foie gras will be outlawed in California. To bid adieu to the controversial fatty liver, restaurants all over the Southland have been hosting foie-centric dinners over the past several months. I attended a few of them--at n/naka and Melisse notably--but for this final day of foie freedom, The Royce, one of the sole temples of French haute gastronomy around, was perhaps the perfect backdrop for such an occasion. Helmed by Guy Savoy protégé David Féau, the restaurant has become sort of a bulwark for fine dining in a City overrun with gastropubs, and is probably the only place around with enough gumption and resources to present to diners thirty courses of foie gras (yes, 3-0) to protest the ban of this most luxurious of ingredients.


We arrived at the Chef's Table to find a bowl containing three whole lobes of Hudson Valley foie gras, all of which, ostensibly, would be used to craft our meal tonight. The mound of liver even attracted the glances of random passersby, one of whom (Asian, natch) asked to take a photo of the spectacle.


And here was the menu, all thirty courses of it, priced at a very reasonable $180 per head. Note that the courses presented in columnar format were split amongst two diners each (a necessary accommodation to prevent us from becoming ridiculously full). Click for a larger version.


GM-cum-Sommelier Eric Espuny opened several bottles tonight to pair with the meal, and started us off with the 2010 Domaine Saint André de Figuière Côtes de Provence Atmosphere [$60]. This was a sparkling rosé, a dry blend of Cinsault and Grenache that was perfect for summer with its light, crisp character and delicious mix of strawberry and citrus flavors, all with a good backbone of minerality.


1: FOIE GRAS | CROQUE-EN-BOUCHE | foie gras mousse filled profiteroles, caramel pepper crust
2: FOIE GRAS | BONBON | bonbon of foie gras torchon, truffle dust, arugula
3: FOIE GRAS | SEAWEED | foie gras torchon sushi
4: FOIE GRAS | ARMAGNAC | foie gras mousse, dried prune macerated in armagnac
Bite-size portions of foie comprised our first four courses, and arrived on a plastic mold used to make The Royce's signature leaf-shaped chocolates. I began with the croque-en-bouche, which possessed a delightfully crunchy, caramelized, sugary shell laced with a wonderful pepperiness, the sum of which melded beautifully with the foie gras mousse inside. The bon bon was also thoroughly enjoyable, pairing a lush, creamy center of the liver with the heady, aromatic essence of black truffle. A seaweed-wrapped preparation, meanwhile, showed off some great flavors, with the algae playing surprisingly well with the foie; I just wish that it were crispier to better balance out the creaminess of the torchon. Finally, we had an armagnac-soaked prune, stuffed with foie gras mousse, a deft presentation of the ingredient that perfectly married the heft of the liver with the sugary, boozy relish of the fruit.


5: FOIE GRAS | APRICOT | seared and balled foie gras, roasted apricot, sauternes
This course presented the classic pairing of foie gras with Sauternes, but reimagined. I usually don't like my foie overly sweet, but the combo of apricot and Sauternes jelly really worked here, forming a sugary element that balanced out the heft of the liver nicely, while also serving as a great textural counterpoint.


6: PIZZA TAPENADE
Féau's miniature pizza was clearly one of the highlights of the meal for me. I loved the temperature contrast between the raw and cooked foie here, and how the combination of olive-y tapenade and tangy "pizza sauce" formed a perfect, piquant foil to the livers. We can't forget about the tortilla "pizza dough," though, which was wonderful in grounding and moderating the dish. Truly one of the best bites of foie that I've had all year.


7: FOIE GRAS | RHUBARB | marble of foie gras, rhubarb gelée, rhubarb compote, homemade brioche
Here we had a course that was very similar to one that I had during the recent C.H.E.F.S. dinner. It was a foie gras torchon, rolled in leek ash, then wrapped in pan-seared foie gras. As was the case before, I experienced the sweetness of the rhubarb initially, which then transitioned to a fascinating interaction between the two preparations of liver, both of which offered up different interpretations of both taste and texture. Meanwhile, the layer of leek ash contributed some astringency to the mix, while the brioche served to temper the otherwise strong flavors at play.


8: FOIE GRAS | SMOKED | sliced foie gras, peach cayenne, unagi
A thin slice of beechwood-smoked foie gras was stupendous, easily one of my favorite courses of the meal. The smoking imparted a fantastic "hamminess" to the liver, giving it a rather profound savoriness that was further enhanced by the chip of unagi eel. At the same time, the medallion of peach provided a wonderful, offsetting acidity and spicy kick that completed the course flawlessly.


Our next wine was the 2011 Zind-Humbrecht Riesling [$60] from France's Alsace region. This was a relatively dry interpretation of the varietal, with a marked minerality to be sure, but with still a good amount of soft fruity character. Yum.


9: FOIE GRAS | SPINACH | foie gras, spinach, button mushrooms, apple vinegar
Here, we had a disk of foie gras terrine, placed atop a stack of alternating strata of spinach and apple. The foie itself was spot on, just as you'd expect, but counterpoised by the levity and crunch of the fruit, with the apple vinegar added just enough tanginess to the mix.


10: FOIE GRAS | SALAD GOURMANDE | shaved foie gras terrine, smoked duck breast, red romaine lettuce, tomato, beans, gizzard
The next salad (seemingly inspired by the "Salad Lauraguaise" from a previous visit) presented duck in three different ways, with perhaps the foie gras actually taking a back seat to the two other preparations. The house-made jambon de canard was tremendous, conveying a rather profound savoriness that left me wanting more, while the gizzard displayed an immense depth of flavor that was simultaneously earthy, heady, and intense, but with a lot of finesse as well. Combined with the foie, these two incarnations of duck put forth some truly intense flavors, and thus the balance provided by the various veggies here was absolutely key. Probably one of my favorite salads, ever.


11: FOIE GRAS | PEPPERCORN | peppercorn crusted torchon of foie gras, iceberg lettuce, yogurt, truffle honey
A disk of foie gras torchon was superb, its weight adroitly counterbalanced by the sheer pepperiness of its outer crust, forming a delectable combination of flavors that lingered long on the palate. At the same time, I loved the crunch and lightness imparted by the lettuce here, and appreciated the lactic tanginess from the yogurt as well. Very nice.


12: FOIE GRAS | BARBEQUE | marinated foie gras a la plancha, asian barbecue, tomato sauce
Now we come to quite possibly my favorite item of the night. It was almost like a version of ssam, with Korean BBQ-marinated foie gras, seared on only one side, presented with Thai-inspired peanut sauce, scallion, and raw garlic. The end result was pretty amazing, a perfect bite of simultaneously sweet, spicy, and savory flavors that faultlessly married the liver with a harmonious medley of disparate tastes and textures.


Here was the 2008 Scholium Project Chardonnay Choêphoroi Los Olivos Vineyard [$80] from right here in California. I'm generally not huge into California Chards, but this I liked, with its great complexity, powerful sweetness, and tempering acidity.


13: FOIE GRAS | LENTIL | seared foie gras, lentil ragout, onion
A classically seared foie gras showed off a delightfully salty, savory flair, with its supple body contrasted against a wonderfully crisp crust. Lentils, meanwhile, did an admirable job in balancing out the sheer gravity of the liver with their earthy austerity.


14: FOIE GRAS | SPELT BERRIES | seared foie gras, spelt berry emulsion, papalo leaves, chicken jus
Spelt berry formed the base of this next course, with its light, nutty taste melding well with the textbook presentation of seared foie. I appreciated the mushroom here, but the crux of this dish was the papalo, or Bolivian coriander, which lent a positively intriguing piquancy to things that just made everything work.


15: FOIE GRAS | TARRAGON | dry aged beef "bouillon," foie gras fondue, tarragon printed pasta, pink salt
Another reworking of a dish from the C.H.E.F.S. dinner made an appearance here. The heady, mouth-watering relish of the foie gras was amplified by the umami-rich savor of the beef "bouillon," while the pasta served to moderate the dish, and also provided a keen textural contrast to the liver as well. At the conclusion of the course, we all made sure to sup up the remaining liquid.


16: FOIE GRAS | RAVIOLI | foie gras ravioli, morel coffee sauce
A singular raviolo stuffed with foie gras was tasty indeed: lush, creamy, and teeming with a delicate foie flavor, yet deftly counteracted by the light, ethereal essence of morel and just a hint of astringency from the coffee.


17: FOIE GRAS | LOBSTER | seared foie gras, poached lobster medallion, fava beans, basil jus
Olive oil-poached lobster arrived expertly cooked, still springy and snappy in consistency, with a light, sweet salinity that paired gorgeously with the vegetal flavors of the favas and basil. The foie was spot on here, too, but actually wasn't even necessary in my eyes.


18: FOIE GRAS | PIG FEET | german butter ball potato, crispy pig feet, muscat wine, garlic chives
Pig's feet rarely disappoints, and this was certainly no exception. The trotter was cooked à la plancha, and was remarkably light, with a subtle yet robust flavor and a delightful tenderness. It combined nicely with the foie here, and both elements were skillfully accented by the light, bright garlic chives, while the potato served to ground and moderate the dish. Nice!


Our sole red wine of the evening hailed from Burgundy, the 2009 Patrice Rion Côte de Nuits Villages [$68]. It was fairly prototypical of its type, with dark cherry flavor, a bit of gravel-y minerality, and an earthy, savory flair.


19: FOIE GRAS | POT-AU-FEU | poached foie gras, duck consommé, baby vegetables
Here, Féau presented a refined version of the traditional pot-au-feu stew. The foie itself was poached to a supremely satisfying bite, with a robust relish that was adeptly paired with the deep, heady, subtly sweet-yet-spicy smack of the duck consommé. Meanwhile, baby vegetables served to brighten the dish, adding a well-placed crunch in the process.


The Chef presents his foie gras en papillote tableside.


20: FOIE GRAS | GARLIC SAUSAGE | seared foie gras, garlic sausage, ginger, kale and napa cabbage "en papillote"
Slices of foie gras cooked in parchment paper were pretty awesome, with a perfect texture and delicate flavor that paired in stellar fashion with the lip-smacking garlic sausage. The whole amalgam was then accented by a ginger-y broth, imparting an Asian tinge to the dish, while the combo of kale and cabbage provided the perfect offsetting crunch and lightness. Just superbly integrated, and clearly one of the tastiest incarnations of foie that I've had in a long while.


Féau once again steppedx outside to present his dish of foie gras and porcini en cocotte.


21: FOIE GRAS | PORCINI | sautéed foie gras, cocotte of porcini mushrooms and pearl onions
Seared foie gras arrived utterly on point, with a great, offsetting char and full-bodied flavor. What was even more commendable, though, were the mushrooms, which showed off a tremendous amount of earthy, smoky, umami-laden sapor, with the pearl onions providing just a whisper of countervailing astringency. Quite good.


22: FOIE GRAS | TARTARE | beef tenderloin tartare, grosse frite, condiments
A steak tartar, blended with foie gras, was yet another standout of the meal. The liver was just so expertly integrated into the beef, adding, along with the marvelously yellow egg yolk, a palpable luxuriousness to the meat that took it to the next level. Vinegar, shallot, chive, as well as pickle lent a wonderfully piquancy that counteracted the heft of the tartar, and I adored the tangy "ketchup" as well. Last but not least was the "big French fry," with its hot, hearty, savory character that complemented the dish impeccably.


23: FOIE GRAS | SQUAB | baked squab breast with foie gras, tokyo turnip, kinomi, foie gras jus
On display here was the classic pairing of squab and foie gras: savory, undeniably aromatic, and unmitigated in intensity, harmonized by the bittersweet smack of the turnip. My major concern here was that the leg of the squab was a bit on the salty side.


24: FOIE GRAS | ROSSINI | seared foie gras, duck breast rôti, celery remoulade
Duck breast came to the table beautifully cooked, with a crisp layer of fatty skin and a slightly chewy body, just bursting with duck-y savor. The foie contributed further luxuriousness to the dish, and the whole shebang was duly moderated by the fantastic celery "coleslaw," with its cool, creamy crunch.


25: FOIE GRAS | ARTICHOKE | artichoke heart soup, shaved foie gras, summer truffle
A soup of artichoke was hot, homey, and heartwarming, teeming with artichoke flavor and possessing of a peppery bite that wonderfully counterpoised the lushness of the foie. Meanwhile, shaved summer truffle provided an overarching veil of earthiness that just tied everything together.


26: FOIE GRAS | BUCKWHEAT | foie gras custard, buckwheat crêpe, pickled grapes, peppercress
The quintessence of seared foie gras was nicely captured here, a compound of both power and finesse, equalized by the austerity of the buckwheat and zing of the peppercress, all while the grape served as a sweet, juicy counterpoint to the interaction.


27: FOIE GRAS | MULBERRY | seared foie gras, mulberry sauce, chervil froth, chocolate
Up next was the first of two transitional courses, which acted as bridges between the savory and sweet sections of the degustation. The use of mulberry here was pretty effective, adding, along with the bittersweet chocolate, a good modicum of sweetness to the foie gras. However, the aniseed tang of the chervil was too apparent here, overwhelming the foie somewhat.


28: FOIE GRAS | CHOCOLATE | seared foie gras, bordelaise chocolate, bitter orange marmalade
The chocolate-covered foie gras was more to my liking, conveying the classic combo of chocolate and orange, but with a base of the liver adding an additional layer of complexity.


For dessert, Espuny paired a half-bottle of N.V. J. Dumangin Fils Ratafia de Champagne [$88]. It was my first experience with such a drink, which is basically unfermented Champagne grape juice fortified by grape brandy. I rather enjoyed it though, finding its almost sherry-like quality and fruity-spicy character a good match to the sweet courses to follow.


Pre-dessert mignardises comprised some delectable cheese tarts (think cheesecake), chewy chocolate-pistachio nougatines, and sweet-nutty chocolate-gianduja "pots de crème."


29: FOIE GRAS | CHERRIES | foie gras parfait, cherries, coca cola espuma
A parfait of foie gras conveyed the subtle essence of the liver, which actually paired well with the fruity sweetness of the cherries, while a cola foam provided a somewhat disconcerting flavor that enveloped the entire dessert (I wasn't quite convinced). I was much more enthused about the cocoa nibs, which added a wonderful bitterness to the fray and also mixed things up texturally.


30: FOIE GRAS | STRAWBERRY | foie gras gelato, strawberry crème fraîche, black sesame cake
The meal ended on a high note with this dessert, which perfectly married a subtly sweet gelato of foie gras with the creamy, fruity bits of strawberry. It was a match made in heaven, duly accented by the airy, savory shards of sesame cake.


With the dinner over, it was time to bust out some of the hard stuff, specifically a bottle of N.V. Château de Laubade Bas Armagnac VSOP [$80]. This was like some good cognac, soft and delicate, with a delectable fruit and floral character that went down easy.


Of course, when the armagnac comes out, it means it's time for some singing (in French no less), courtesy of Féau and Espuny.


At this point, we were the only diners left in the restaurant, which meant that Espuny could start belting out in full operatic glory.


Before leaving, Chef Féau sent us home with a pastis gascon (a sort of flaky apple pie), which I'd enjoyed here previously. Five to 10 minutes in the oven at 350°F and it should be good to go!

I could not think of a more perfect place to say au revoir to foie gras. Féau and company were able to deliver thirty distinct preparations of the liver that really showed off the creativity and versatility of the kitchen, as well as the many faces of foie. The plates ranged from traditional to modern, with a few fusion-y twists thrown in for good measure, and several of the dishes rank amongst the top presentations of foie that I can remember. It was an experience worthy of the ingredient, a final blow-out dinner to mark the end of an era, and an evening of great joy and revelry, but also sadness, knowing that we may never get to enjoy such a meal ever again.

And now, for a completely different type of post:

You could say that I'm quite the analytical whore. What I mean is that I love looking at data, dividing and grouping information, examining trends, and trying to figure out the reason why things are the way they are. It should come as no surprise, thus, that when I found out about Google Analytics, I was eager to use the tool to delve into the inner workings of this site's traffic.

Since installing the software back in 2009, I've been intrigued by the results that I've been getting. I check my analytics periodically, and it's absolutely fascinating to see how things have progressed over the years. What I present below are my GA statistics from 2009 to present. I hope that some of you can get as much of a kick as I do out of this; however, if you're not the analytical or inquisitive type, you may want to skip this post--caution: a wall of data ahead!

Note that 2009 only includes data from April 8, while 2012 covers only the first half of the year.

Statistic	2009	2010	2011	2012
Pageviews	468,708	995,603	996,685	566,274
Visits	182,007	421,068	500,636	286,537
Unique Visitors	85,471	181,733	210,434	138,690
Pages / Visit	2.58	2.36	1.99	1.98
Avg. Visit Duration	3:36	2:58	2:19	2:08
Bounce Rate	66.24%	68.40%	71.56%	69.78%
% New Visits	46.95%	42.21%	40.76%	45.97%
Overall, visits and visitors to the site have been increasing steadily, and 2012 is on track to continue that trend. In fact, I'm looking forward to hitting the million pageview milestone this year. However, unfortunately, as the number of visitors increases, the "quality" of each visitor tends to decrease, which we see in the decline in pages per visit and average time spent numbers. We can also view this phenomenon perhaps manifested in the lower number of comments per post. In the end, I believe that the huge proliferation of food blogs in recent years has diluted the impact of any particular blog, mine included.

Statistic	2009	2010	2011	2012
Top 10 Countries	United States (154,104) Canada (6,772) United Kingdom (2,825) Australia (1,946) Germany (985) Singapore (811) Japan (804) France (787) Philippines (751) Taiwan (710)	United States (352,502) Canada (14,934) United Kingdom (5,670) Australia (3,621) France (2,603) Mexico (2,443) Germany (2,351) Japan (1,928) Philippines (1,824) Singapore (1,704)	United States (422,682) Canada (15,565) United Kingdom (6,437) Mexico (4,059) Australia (3,594) Philippines (2,695) Germany (2,404) France (2,094) Singapore (1,889) Indonesia (1,807)	United States (232,422) Canada (8,469) United Kingdom (4,567) Australia (2,720) Mexico (2,346) Philippines (1,864) Germany (1,667) India (1,631) France (1,613) Singapore (1,595)
Top 10 US States	California (93,240) New York (9,670) Texas (5,158) Illinois (4,250) Florida (3,322) Nevada (2,592) Massachusetts (2,422) New Jersey (2,369) Pennsylvania (2,217) Washington (2,040)	California (221,133) New York (22,308) Texas (11,394) Nevada (9,093) Illinois (8,977) Florida (6,114) Pennsylvania (5,424) Colorado (4,717) Massachusetts (4,702) New Jersey (4,574)	California (273,931) New York (25,409) Texas (13,484) Illinois (9,631) Nevada (7,204) Florida (6,174) Washington (5,745) Massachusetts (5,571) Virginia (5,550) Pennsylvania (5,478)	California (145,969) New York (13,751) Texas (6,308) Illinois (5,469) Massachusetts (4,438) Washington (3,774) Florida (3,683) Pennsylvania (3,369) New Jersey (3,328) Virginia (3,060)
Top 10 California Cities	Los Angeles (27,729) Beverly Hills (3,857) San Francisco (3,764) Irvine (3,139) Santa Monica (2,683) Culver City (2,362) West Hollywood (1,930) Pasadena (1,547) San Diego (1,055) Westminster (1,002)	Los Angeles (64,668) Beverly Hills (11,500) San Francisco (8,716) Culver City (7,341) Santa Monica (6,148) Irvine (4,690) Pasadena (4,642) West Hollywood (3,388) San Diego (2,509) Torrance (2,064)	Los Angeles (93,381) San Francisco (10,861) Santa Monica (8,197) Irvine (7,920) Pasadena (7,724) San Diego (6,930) Beverly Hills (6,741) West Hollywood (5,411) Burbank (3,924) Torrance (3,788)	Los Angeles (45,351) Santa Monica (6,140) San Francisco (5,509) Pasadena (4,237) Irvine (4,198) San Diego (3,956) Beverly Hills (2,762) Burbank (2,477) West Hollywood (2,416) Glendale (1,810)
No big surprise here: in terms of traffic, USA is #1, with several other Anglophone countries taking up the next few spots. Japan, for some reason, seems to have fallen off completely, while the Philippines has witnessed good growth. Seeing India as a top contender in 2012 is peculiar. Another interesting thing to note is Mexico, which has gone from not even registering in 2009 to being a major source of visits to this site. In terms of US states, California's the top dog for obvious reasons. New York makes sense, given the financial, educational, and cultural achievements of the state; plus, I've got a decent number of posts about Manhattan restaurants. Same thing goes for Illinois, which I assume just means Chicago. I've never written anything about Texas, so its placement has got to be due to just having a large population. Colorado made an appearance in 2010 but then disappeared, curiously. What I find most interesting here is that former stalwart Nevada has completely dropped off for some reason. In general, states that appear on the list tend to trend high in both population as well as income. One more thing: the rank for visits per capita for 2012 goes California, Hawaii, Nevada, Vermont, New York, Massachusetts, Oregon, Washington, Colorado, and Rhode Island. Within the great state of California, the most prevalent city is, of course, LA. BH had a strong showing early on, but I'm not sure why it's fallen off so drastically; Culver City shares a similar story. San Francisco, meanwhile, does very well for a city that I don't write about too often, while Santa Monica and Irvine have been pretty consistent. San Diego has risen up the ranks, perhaps a nod to the City's burgeoning food scene, and Pasadena has come up nicely as well.

Statistic	2009	2010	2011	2012
Top 4 Browsers	Firefox (46.19%) Internet Explorer (30.44%) Safari (15.88%) Chrome (5.96%)	Firefox (37.40%) Internet Explorer (27.97%) Safari (20.83%) Chrome (12.06%)	Firefox (28.02%) Safari (27.36%) Internet Explorer (21.26%) Chrome (19.71%)	Chrome (27.41%) Safari (26.12%) Firefox (24.30%) Internet Explorer (18.69%)
Top 6 Operating Systems	Windows (72.37%) Macintosh (24.59%) iPhone (1.60%) Linux (0.84%) BlackBerry (0.16%) iPod (0.14%)	Windows (67.28%) Macintosh (27.15%) iPhone (2.80%) iPad (0.76%) Android (0.66%) Linux (0.65%)	Windows (56.52%) Macintosh (31.71%) iPhone (4.91%) iPad (3.45%) Android (1.78%) Linux (0.59%)	Windows (56.80%) Macintosh (32.13%) iPad (4.63%) iPhone (2.62%) Android (1.15%) iOS (1.08%)
Some interesting trends here. The notoriously outmoded Internet Explorer (lots of people are still on version 6.0!) has seen a steady decline in usership over the years. Initially, its users seem to have migrated to Firefox, but even Firefox traffic has fallen, leading me to believe that people have subsequently migrated to Chrome, which has displayed a pretty meteoric rise to the top. Safari remains strictly an Apple phenomenon, so the percentage of Apple users visiting this site has steadfastly increased, too (probably due in large part to the prevalence of iDevices). As far as operating systems go, I'm sure nobody's surprised that Windows is the most popular OS here, but its lead is quickly diminishing, losing its dominance to Apple, with its one-two punch of MacOS and iOS. Meanwhile, Android is creeping up there, but it'll probably be a few years before it becomes a significant player.

Statistic	2009	2010	2011	2012
% Mobile	2.76%	4.80%	10.63%	9.76%
Top 5 Mobile Operating Systems	iPhone (76.12%) BlackBerry (12.17%) iPod (5.28%) Android (4.37%) Windows (1.51%)	iPhone (58.37%) iPad (15.77%) Android (13.86%) BlackBerry (7.43%) iPod (3.82%)	iPhone (46.22%) iPad (32.42%) Android (16.70%) BlackBerry (2.57%) iPod (1.83%)	iPad (47.42%) iPhone (26.83%) Android (11.78%) iOS (11.06%) BlackBerry (1.60%)
Not surprisingly, mobile traffic has been on the rise (doubling each year from 2009 to 2011), though I'm pretty surprised at the slight dip in the first half of 2012. Initially, mobile was all about the iPhone, but its dominance has since given way to its bigger brother, the iPad, which now commands a firm grip of my mobile readership. The iPod has fallen off the chart--good riddance I say; who really uses their iPod to browse the Web? Android has quickly established itself as a player in the market, though the nearly 5% drop in the first half of 2012 seems a bit anomalous (this may have to do with the breakout of iOS as a separate entity from the other iDevices). To me, the real shocker here is that, as of 2012Q1, Android comprises a full 59% of the Smartphone market, yet trails the iPhone by a huge margin here. What this tells me is that Android users really must not be using their phones to surf the Net. But why? Is the Internet experience on Android so much inferior to that on the iPhone? I doubt it; my guess is that Android users probably have a standalone PC that's used for Web browsing, while iPhone users tend to use their phones more as a primary Internet device. Rounding things out of course is BlackBerry, which continues its steep, painful fall into irrelevancy.

Statistic	2009	2010	2011	2012
Traffic Sources Breakdown	25.27% Search Traffic 33.32% Direct Traffic 41.41% Referral Traffic	35.01% Search Traffic 33.14% Direct Traffic 31.84% Referral Traffic	44.25% Search Traffic 33.26% Direct Traffic 22.49% Referral Traffic	51.08% Search Traffic 28.38% Direct Traffic 20.55% Referral Traffic
Search has become a bigger and bigger source of traffic for the site, which I suppose makes sense since the amount of indexable content only grows with time. What's also fascinating is how Direct Traffic remained nearly constant from 2009 to 2011. Is this trend of Search dominance beneficial? I have my doubts.

Statistic	2009	2010	2011	2012
Top 20 Referral Sources	tastespotting.com (8,107 10.76%) chowhound.chow.com (7,246 9.61%) images.google.com (6,293 8.35%) kevineats.com (5,395 7.16%) foodgawker.com (3,879 5.15%) stumbleupon.com (3,765 5.00%) twitter.com (3,314 4.40%) reddit.com (3,184 4.22%) biggestmenu.com (2,492 3.31%) google.com (1,803 2.39%) chuckeats.com (1,666 2.21%) la.eater.com (1,660 2.20%) yelp.com (1,545 2.05%) facebook.com (1,467 1.95%) blogger.com (1,029 1.37%) photograzing.seriouseats.com (1,015 1.35%) kungfoodpanda.blogspot.com (995 1.32%) mattatouille.com (830 1.10%) gourmetpigs.blogspot.com (624 0.83%) digesty.com (532 0.71%)	google.com (18,279 13.64%) la.eater.com (10,448 7.79%) twitter.com (9,487 7.08%) images.google.com (8,974 6.69%) tastespotting.com (6,574 4.90%) kevineats.com (6,372 4.75%) facebook.com (6,000 4.48%) files.kevineats.com (5,289 3.95%) chowhound.chow.com (5,129 3.83%) digesty.com (3,830 2.86%) blogger.com (3,419 2.55%) biggestmenu.com (2,095 1.56%) stumbleupon.com (1,497 1.12%) google.ca (1,456 1.09%) yelp.com (1,405 1.05%) latimesblogs.latimes.com (1,372 1.02%) foodgawker.com (1,299 0.97%) chuckeats.com (1,077 0.80%) google.co.uk (1,014 0.76%) ludolefebvre.com (876 0.65%)	google.com (20,458 18.17%) facebook.com (8,061 7.16%) twitter.com (7,760 6.89%) la.eater.com (6,432 5.71%) chowhound.chow.com (4,751 4.22%) digesty.com (4,252 3.78%) t.co (3,492 3.10%) tastespotting.com (2,988 2.65%) blogger.com (2,259 2.01%) saveur.com (2,141 1.90%) darindines.com (2,095 1.86%) losangeles.grubstreet.com (2,021 1.79%) files.kevineats.com (1,874 1.66%) stumbleupon.com (1,510 1.34%) biggestmenu.com (1,330 1.18%) kungfoodpanda.com (1,283 1.14%) foodgawker.com (1,241 1.10%) kevineats.com (1,201 1.07%) gastronomyblog.com (1,031 0.92%) rodzillareviews.com (1,028 0.91%)	google.com (13,099 22.25%) la.eater.com (4,416 7.50%) facebook.com (4,236 7.20%) t.co (3,444 5.85%) saveur.com (2,686 4.56%) chowhound.chow.com (1,834 3.12%) blogger.com (1,677 2.85%) darindines.com (1,649 2.80%) digesty.com (1,048 1.78%) stumbleupon.com (1,045 1.78%) tastespotting.com (1,019 1.73%) losangeles.grubstreet.com (827 1.40%) animmovablefeast.blogspot.com (669 1.14%) files.kevineats.com (576 0.98%) foodjetaime.com (516 0.88%) foodgawker.com (500 0.85%) rodzillareviews.com (500 0.85%) kevineats.com (499 0.85%) yelp.com (493 0.84%) gastronomyblog.com (490 0.83%)
Some great trends on this one. First off, the significance of Eater LA jumped drastically in 2010, and the site has remained a major contributor of traffic since. Previous top dogs Tastespotting and Chowhound have fallen off a bit. There appears to be some confusion as to google.com versus images.google.com, so I'm not sure what's going on there, but in any case, Google Images is definitely a force to be reckoned with. We also see the meteoric rise of Facebook, and to a lesser extent Twitter. Saveur, meanwhile, shows up due to my nomination in their "Best Food Blog" awards. In terms of non-commercial sites, local blogs such as Gourmet Pigs, Kung Food Panda, and Mattatouille that were previously in the top 20 no longer register. In their place, we have the ascendancy of Darin Dines, as well as An Immovable Feast, which seemingly appeared out of nowhere this year. San Diego blogger Rodzilla Reviews is also an up-and-comer that demonstrates a lot of potential.

Statistic	2009	2010	2011	2012
Top 20 Search Terms	kevin eats (6,982 15.18%) kevineats (5,135 11.17%) sushi zo (665 1.45%) bouchon beverly hills (556 1.21%) kevineats.com (538 1.17%) kevin eats blog (531 1.15%) totoraku (384 0.83%) urasawa beverly hills (333 0.72%) shibucho (297 0.65%) urasawa (288 0.63%) the bazaar los angeles (272 0.59%) club 33 disneyland (253 0.55%) kevineats twitter (252 0.55%) father's office menu (245 0.53%) sushi zo los angeles (237 0.52%) thai nakorn (222 0.48%) www.kevineats.com (184 0.40%) saam at the bazaar (180 0.39%) melisse santa monica (164 0.36%) bazaar los angeles (160 0.35%)	kevineats (20,185 13.69%) kevin eats (18,297 12.41%) {Interactive Dining Map} (3,458 2.35%) test kitchen los angeles (2,213 1.50%) kevineats.com (1,659 1.13%) urasawa (1,273 0.86%) bouchon beverly hills (1,240 0.84%) bar masa las vegas (1,114 0.76%) kevin eats blog (891 0.60%) totoraku (883 0.60%) sage las vegas (833 0.57%) julian serrano menu (789 0.54%) julian serrano (777 0.53%) sushi zo (631 0.43%) {Interactive Dining Map} (505 0.34%) twist las vegas (499 0.34%) ludobites 5.0 (483 0.33%) kung fu panda food blog joel robuchon (480 0.33%) {Interactive Dining Map} (462 0.31%) saam at the bazaar (451 0.31%)	kevin eats (28,031 12.65%) kevineats (24,962 11.27%) (not provided) (7,488 3.38%) {Interactive Dining Map} (3,609 1.63%) urasawa (1,952 0.88%) lukshon (1,840 0.83%) lukshon menu (1,718 0.78%) son of a gun los angeles (1,497 0.68%) mb post (1,308 0.59%) kevineats.com (1,207 0.54%) totoraku (1,167 0.53%) sushi zo (1,034 0.47%) wolvesmouth (897 0.40%) http://www.kevineats.com/ (831 0.38%) e by jose andres (806 0.36%) son of a gun la (798 0.36%) son of a gun restaurant (772 0.35%) scarpetta beverly hills (666 0.30%) picca los angeles (664 0.30%) scarpetta brunch beverly hills (612 0.28%)	(not provided) (33,775 23.08%) kevin eats (11,689 7.99%) kevineats (8,701 5.95%) {Interactive Dining Map} (3,051 2.08%) urasawa (1,123 0.77%) kevineats.com (462 0.32%) post and beam (458 0.31%) sushi zo (430 0.29%) totoraku (430 0.29%) e by jose andres (355 0.24%) picca los angeles (353 0.24%) ink (346 0.24%) mori sushi (330 0.23%) wolf (315 0.22%) maison giraud (307 0.21%) red medicine kevineats (306 0.21%) e by jose andres menu (288 0.20%) ink los angeles (267 0.18%) red medicine (256 0.17%) burger parlor fullerton (253 0.17%)
Search keywords are another fascinating facet to examine, as they give you a peek at what people are interested in on the Net. Urasawa has always been a big draw to the site, and I'm told that the restaurant has actually seen a noticeable increase in business due to my posts. You can sort of see what restaurants are "hot" at the moment by looking at the search terms. For example, in 2009, we had the debut of Bouchon Beverly Hills. 2010 saw Test Kitchen do its run, and we also visited several new eateries in Las Vegas. In 2011, Lukshon, Son of a Gun, and MB Post all bowed, as did Picca, and José Andrés' é in Vegas. So far, in 2012, the focus for new restaurants seems to be on Post & Beam.

Statistic	2009	2010	2011	2012
Top 25 Pages Viewed	{Main Page} (191,890) Urasawa [5] (9,486) Urasawa [4] (6,579) French Laundry (6,018) Saam at The Bazaar (5,118) Joël Robuchon (3,711) The Bazaar (3,501) Alinea [2] (3,365) Urasawa (3,357) Bouchon (3,209) CUT (3,177) Sushi Zo (3,050) L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon (2,995) Restaurant Guy Savoy (2,927) The Dining Room at The Langham (2,851) Moto (2,702) L2O (2,643) Twist by Pierre Gagnaire (2,570) Per Se (2,560) Alinea (2,327) LudoBites at Royal/T (2,277) Providence [5] (2,246) Father's Office (2,221) Animal (2,208) Stefan's at L.A. Farm (2,156)	{Main Page} (429,048) Urasawa [5] (6,980) Twist by Pierre Gagnaire (6,950) Julian Serrano (6,867) Sage (6,812) Red O (6,634) French Laundry (6,625) Why Are There So Many Asian Food Bloggers? (6,382) Urasawa [6] (6,365) Bar Masa (6,213) Saam at The Bazaar (5,539) Joël Robuchon (5,538) Bouchon (5,111) Test Kitchen (4,634) Red Medicine (4,368) The Dining Room at The Langham [3] (4,350) Urasawa (4,249) Sushi Zo (4,187) Per Se (3,941) The Bazaar (3,835) Hatfield's [2] (3,833) Animal (3,710) Urasawa [4] (3,633) LudoBites 5.0 at Gram & Papas (3,536) L'Atelier de Joël Robuchon (3,533)	{Main Page} (411,085) é by José Andrés (12,439) Son of a Gun (12,053) ink. (7,920) Lukshon (7,121) Urasawa [6] (6,480) MB Post (5,537) Urasawa [5] (4,999) French Laundry (4,814) Aburiya Toranoko (4,687) Picca (4,675) Saam at The Bazaar (4,455) Molecular Menu at AnQi (4,219) Red Medicine (3,815) Animal (3,740) Fat Spoon (3,604) Per Se (3,495) Playa (3,461) Table 21 at Volt (3,249) Sushi Zo (3,219) Twist by Pierre Gagnaire (3,211) Joël Robuchon [2] (2,972) Le Bernardin (2,971) Bouchon (2,966) Alinea [2] (2,935)	{Main Page} (212,957) LudoBites 8.0 at Lemon Moon (5,939) é by José Andrés (5,189) Post & Beam (3,873) Urasawa [5] (3,323) ink. (3,289) French Laundry (2,841) Urasawa [6] (2,761) Son of a Gun (2,338) Maison Giraud (2,298) Black Hogg (2,288) Little Bear (2,271) Saam at The Bazaar (2,153) ink. [2] (2,132) Animal (2,083) Picca (2,054) Sushi Zo (2,043) Red Medicine (1,915) Sushi Nozawa (1,802) French Laundry [2] (1,795) Wolf in Sheep's Clothing (1,795) 2012-01 {Archive Page} (1,751) Ohshima (1,735) Per Se (1,696) Bouchon (1,687)
Much like the aforementioned search terms, looking at what pages are viewed the most provides insight as to what was "hot" during a particular period. Just look at how LudoBites 8 dominated this year; Mike Voltaggio's ink is doing pretty good, too. There are some stubbornly popular posts, though, such as Urasawa, and to a lesser extent, French Laundry. The exclusive é by José Andrés and Saam at The Bazaar may be heading in that direction as well.

The Playground Restaurant
220 E 4th St, Santa Ana, CA 92701
714.560.4444
www.playgrounddtsa.com
Fri 07/13/2012, 08:30p-12:55a





Wow, it's been a while Orange County. The last time I was down south was all the way back in February, when I made trek to attend Pascal's last night of service. The reason for the prolonged absence? I guess there just hasn't been much exciting going on, nothing to really draw me in (plus it's a bit of a drive). What piqued my interest tonight, thus, was Playground in Downtown Santa Ana, the new brick & mortar debut from Jason Quinn, the 25-year-old former chef of the Great Food Truck Race-winning Lime Truck. I'd heard nothing but raves from my contacts in OC about the place, so what the hell I thought, let's give it a go.

About the Chef: A SoCal native, Chef Quinn grew up in the idyllic setting of Irvine, the son of two lawyer parents. He attended Tarbut V' Torah, a private Jewish school in the City, then started out as a chemistry major at the University of California Santa Barbara. During his studies there, he caught the cooking bug after watching episodes of Emeril Live. Inspired, he quickly switched majors to history, writing his final thesis on UK chefs Heston Blumenthal, Jamie Oliver, Gordon Ramsay, and Marco Pierre White. Quinn skipped culinary school, but instead got his start waiting tables in 2008 at Houston's in Irvine, a gig that he soon parlayed into a catering business. From there, he met Kerry Simon on a trip to Las Vegas, and the Chef eventually invited his young fan to stage at Simon LA. After that, Quinn moved on to Charlie Palmer, then transitioned to Hanna's in Rancho Santa Margarita, where he became sous chef.

However, Quinn soon got fed up with customers constantly modifying his dishes, and decided that it was time for a change. He partnered with longtime friend Daniel Shemtob and Jesse Brockman to conceptualize The Lime Truck, which bowed in June 2010, near the height of the food truck frenzy started by Kogi the previous year. The truck was a hit, and largely recognized as one of the top players in the game, at least in Orange County. In April 2011, The Lime Truck crew was able to turn this early success into an appearance on Season 2 of the Great Food Truck Race, a contest that the trio eventually ended up winning. Quinn took his share of the $100,000 prize to launch his own place, which he'd dreamed of doing all along. He went into business with his father Bob, and the two found a spot in Downtown Santa Ana's East End and set up shop, debuting in November of last year. The restaurant was initially a burgers 'n' beer concept, but Quinn quickly decided to change the direction of the place, turning it into the eatery that we see today, helmed by a team of young, hungry cooks, including Sous Chef Frank DeLoach (whom I first encountered at Mezze), Brad Radack, Tim Anderson, Zach Scherer, and even Ryan Carson ('Pri-ve chef and former head toque at AnQi). The front-of-the-house, meanwhile, is run by the Chef's wife Hillary and his brother Brandon.


Playground is situated right across the street from the Yost Theater, in the old Mariscos Tampico building. The space was totally revamped and features a 27-foot-long white quartz-topped bar that forms one side of the room, while a cluster of black ebony tables takes up the rest of the area. There are even plans to have patio seating on the adjacent Sturgeon Promenade.


Playground's menu comprises a bevy of small plates, modern rustic American in essence, with an ingredient- and technique-driven flair. Equally as engaging is the restaurant's craft beer list, which features 15 taps and a selection of over 100 bottles (with some only available upon request). It's quite possibly the largest array of beer that I've experienced in OC, perhaps even eclipsing that at Beachwood. Though Playground was originally a beer-only restaurant, a small wine list has been added as well if that's your thing. The entire beverage program is overseen by Certified Cicerone Jarred Dooley, who we last saw at The Bruery Provisions, and who's also working on his Court of Master Sommeliers credential. He also happens to be one of Chef Quinn's best friends. Click for larger versions.


We began with a troika of beers on tap, all priced at a reasonable $5 each (with pour size varying depending on the particular brew). Going left to right, we had the Hangar 24 Essence, a delightfully subtle double IPA with a great base of citrus flavors, all intermingled wonderfully with a focused hoppiness. The Bootlegger's Old World Hefeweizen, from nearby Fullerton, was a prototypical example of the style with its marked fruity character, while Bootlegger's Black Phoenix (nitro version) was enjoyable as well, with its chipotle-laced attack and coffee-stained finish.


The kitchen quickly sent out a plate of jamón ibérico de bellota, which the Chef had just procured on a recent trip to Las Vegas. The meat was absolutely lovely, exactly what you'd expect from a good jamón, with a smooth, fatty, somewhat waxy consistency and immensely rich, savory, nutty, palate-coating taste.


Buy the Kitchen Staff a Round of After-Service Beers [$24.00]
If you decide to purchase the kitchen a round of beers, the boys in the back will be grateful and might send out a special complementary course to show their appreciation. On this particular evening, we received disks of Sauternes-laced foie gras torchon, with toasted pistachio and blackberry-maple jam. The foie was classic in essence, with the sweetness of the fruit melding well with the liver, while the pistachio served as a nutty counterpoint and also provided a keen textural contrast. And the accompaniment of crisp, buttery toast? Superb.


Chef Quinn had recently received a whole halibut, and sent out its prized cheeks: simply cooked with a wonderful char, simultaneous fibrous and melt-in-your-mouth, and imbued with a sweet, buttery flavor.


The cheeks were followed up by halibut collar, simply roasted and served with chimichurri. These were even more decadent, and immensely tender, with a rather lush, profound richness that was wonderfully tempered by the tang of its paired condiment. Yum.


Our next round of beer comprised both the Ballast Point Dorado [$14] and the Ballast Point Sculpin [$7]. Now, the Sculpin is Jarred Dooley's favorite IPA, and happens to be one of mine as well, though I think I actually preferred the Dorado here, a double IPA that I'd never tasted before. It had a somewhat stronger pine-y taste, with a tarter finish, while the Sculpin was fuller bodied, but more subdued. In the end, both great beers--you can't go wrong with either.


Help Send Ryan Carson to Rehab [$15.00]
As I mentioned earlier, Ryan Carson from AnQi and 'Pri-ve is working here now, and, apparently, is in desperate need of rehab. As such, we decided to contribute to the cause, and enjoyed a plate of foie gras nigirizushi as a token of appreciation. They were wonderful, with a great crisp caramelized layer adding a sugar-y counter to the lush, luxurious liver, all while the shari served to moderate the interaction. Delish, and at the same time, very different than the foie nigiri that I'd eaten not long ago at n/naka.


Half Dozen Hama Hama Oysters, Nitro Lime-Aid Mignonette [$15.00]
Beautiful Hama Hama oysters were light and bright, with a meaty, satisfying chew. The nitro lime-aid, meanwhile, added a counterbalancing citric kick to the dish, and also served up a rather bracing temperature contrast. However, I would liked less of the "snow," to let the inherent ocean-y character of the oyster shine through a bit more.


Pan Roasted Wild Mushrooms with Slow Egg [$14.00]
Mixed mushrooms showed off a wonderfully satisfying texture and delightful char, with their earthy smack accented by an almost Asian tinge of flavor. At the same time, the runny, slow-cooked egg oozed an enveloping richness that deftly tied everything together. My only concern was that the dish was a touch on the salty side.


Canary Island 15 Minute Octopus, Mache, Blumenthal Potatoes, Aji Amarillo [$16.00]
The octopus was pretty awesome: supple and snappy in bite, with a clean, subtly sweet flavor adeptly matched by the piquant relish of the accompanying aji amarillo. I loved the Heston Blumenthal-inspired taters here as well, with their crisp, crunchy exteriors, pillow-y insides, and savory weight forming a fitting foil to the cephalopod.


IDB Lardo-Truffle Scrambled Eggs [$12.00]
It's hard to mess up a mixture of jamón ibérico lardo, truffle, and egg, and indeed, this was no exception. The egg itself was light and undeniably fluffy, with a mild relish that was perfectly augmented by the earthy gravity of the truffle, all while the lardo provided a subtle undercurrent of porcine goodness to the dish. I appreciated the sharp pricks of piquancy from the scallion, too. Yeah, I'd love this for breakfast!


3 Year Aged Tuna Belly Ensalada Rusa [$13.00]
The aged tuna belly here was not unlike canned tuna, but taken up to the Nth degree, showing off a mouthwatering savoriness that was beautifully balanced by the accompanying mix of veggies. You could almost think of this as the best tuna salad you've ever had.


Frank's Death Row Meal Course 6: Butterfish Tataki [$11.00]
Playground's "Death Row" series presents dishes that members of the staff would request if they had one day to live. Tonight's selection came from Sous Chef Frank DeLoach, who served up a delectable tataki of butterfish. I loved the firm-yet-yielding consistency of the fish, and how its subdued-yet-substantial flavor was heighted by its tangy, Japanese-y sauce.


Buy Jarred Dooley a New Haircut [$20.00]
Playground's Cicerone/Sommelier Jarred Dooley is quite the hirsute kinda guy, and ostensibly, is long overdue for a haircut (see photo here). We obliged with giving him a trim, and the kitchen returned the favor with a special foie gras "PB&J" dish. Now regular readers will know that overly sweet foie scares me, but fortunately, the sugariness here was actually restrained, making the course come together surprisingly nicely, and really capturing the essence of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.


Our next beer was the Upright Four [$16], which I adored. It's probably one of the best saisons that I've had, with an incredible lightness to it that melded perfectly with its tart, grassy, citric, refreshing character.


Chipotle Corn, Lime Butter, Queso Oaxaca [$8.00]
Quinn's presentation of corn was one of the best that I've had. The sweetness of the corn was on proud display, gorgeously augmented by the weight of Oaxacan cheese and butter, all while the chipotle added a lingering touch of heat to the fray. Everything just came together here--it's something you could eat a big bowl of, and we did just that.


Dragon Roasted Asparagus [$12.00]
Thin, crunchy spears of asparagus were roasted in a straightforward manner with garlic, chile, lemon, olive oil, and salt. The result was enjoyable to say the least. The course almost had an Asian verve to it in fact, with the inherent astringency of the vegetable faultlessly married to the tangy, savory flavors at play.


Pan Roasted Quail, Wilted Spinach [$8.00]
Quail was as tasty as you'd expect, with the juicy, succulent bird conveying a mouth-watering savoriness that was nicely put up against the vegetal bitterness of the accompanying spinach.


Corned & Smoked Veal Heart Reubenish [$13.00]
Next up was Playground's take on the classic Reuben sandwich, with veal heart taking the place of corned beef. The meat was on point, with a great smoky character that worked well with the cheese and creamy dressing, all while pickles added pinpoints of piquancy to things. However, I actually found the toast a bit much here, and would've liked more meat to balance things out.


I Heart Lamb Vermicelli Noodles [$7.00]
Here was a light, refreshing, Vietnamese bún-inspired dish featuring lamb heart. The meat was spot on, tender and toothsome, with a lovely savor that went swimmingly with the peppery, minty herbs and sweet, acidic flavors in the dish, all while the vermicelli moderated the interaction. Great nuttiness and crunch from the peanuts, too.


Here was the Bruery Smoking Wood [$30], a bourbon barrel-aged rye smoked porter. This one was an intense, dark, smoky, coffee-tinged, chocolate-y affair, with just a hint of offsetting spice. It definitely stood up to the heartier courses to follow.


Iberico De Bellota Secreto, Romesco, Blumenthal Potatoes [$6.00/oz]
Now we come to what may arguably be my favorite course of the evening. The so-called secreto is a special cut of pork that is amazingly marbled, almost oozing oil in fact, with an unabashed fattiness and gobs of porcine flavor. I know people hate using the word "unctuous," but this piece of pig really was deserving of that moniker. As incredible as the meat was, we can't forget about the romesco here, which offered up an apt counterpoint to the pork, as well as those wonderful Blumenthal potatoes, which made a repeat appearance here. I'd had the secreto before at é by José Andrés, but I actually preferred this version.


Maple Glazed Pork Chop [$25.00]
What came to the table next was a real sight to behold: easily the thickest pork chop that I'd ever experienced--it must've been a good five inches, damn! It was intimidating to be sure, but was a joy to eat, no question one of the best chops I've had. The meat, still slightly pink, was simultaneously juicy, tender, and full of pork-y flavor, with just a bit of maple sweetness to go along.


Pan Roasted Hand Diver Scallops, Ranchero, Charred Corn [$19.00]
Scallops arrived expertly cooked, with a great bit of caramelization to go along with their sweet, saline sapor. The key here, though, was the ranchero sauce, which added a great kick of heat to the dish, and I really appreciated the sugary kernels of corn as well.


Wagyu Ribeye Lomo Saltado [$22.00]
Quinn's riff on the Peruvian staple lomo saltado wasn't the most visually-appealing dish, but made up for its homeliness with its lip-smacking flavor. The wagyu utilized here was just as fatty and tender as you'd expect, adding a palpable gravity on top of the French fries, all while the veggies and cilantro salsa completed the dish. A tasty course that really captured the essence of the traditional preparation.


At this point, the Chef brought out a line-up of some of his favorite beers, including the Lost Abbey Red Poppy Flanders Red, Drie Fonteinen Gueuze (which I'd had not long ago at Beachwood), Haandbryggeriet Haandbakk Oud Bruin, Mikkeller Swinging Harry Belgian dark with mango and papaya, Mikkeller Blondeaux Belgian blond with berries, Mikkeller Sur Munk quad-sour, and Ducato/Drie Fonteinen Beersel Mattina saison-lambic blend. We decided to go with the Mikkeller Sorachi Ace [$8], a stupendous single-hop IPA, as well as the French oak barrel-aged Haandbryggeriet Sweet & Sour [$17], which really lived up to its name. An impressive selection to say the least!


Finca Pascualete Queso De Torta, Blackberry-Maple Jam, Crushed Pistachios [$21.00]
Time for dessert, which Quinn is responsible for himself (as Playground lacks a dedicated pastry chef). First up was an unpasteurized sheep's milk queso from Spanish producer Finca Pascualete. It was tremendous, a creamy, smooth, gooey, Époisses-esque cheese with a mouth-watering, salty tang and funky, lactic kick that I adored. I thoroughly enjoyed it alone, but the cheese was also delicious when taken with a bit of blackberry-maple jam, pistachios, and toast. A must try for all you fromage aficionados.


Sticky Toffee Pudding [$7.00]
No surprises here with Playground's sticky toffee pudding, with its rich, dense sponge cake teeming with toffee and dark fruit flavors, all moderated by the levity of the paired whipped cream.


Serious Business Summer Fruit Cobbler [$10.00]
Our final dessert was this summer fruit cobbler. What I really loved here was the topping of liquid cheesecake ice cream, which displayed a positively intriguing texture (it was almost caramel-like) and lactic tartness that formed a great balance to the warm, fruity base of the dish.


Some more beers. First was the Mikkeller Beer Geek Cognac [$15], a civet coffee stout aged in cognac barrels that was positively loaded with coffee, caramel, and chocolate notes. More interesting was the Deschutes Brewery The Abyss 2009, a rare stout that wasn't even on the list. Instead the beer was a birthday gift from Jarred Dooley to Chef Quinn's brother Brandon, and he decided to share the bottle with us. Quite simply, it was fantastic, quite possibly the best stout that I've ever tasted. Of course, you had your expected notes of coffee, wood, and malts, with a touch of spice, but it also showed off a remarkable finesse, balance, and complexity that clearly put this beer on another level. I can see why this was worthy of being a birthday gift!


Albacore Belly Conserva [$10.00]
At this point, we noticed that we somehow missed the Albacore Belly Conserva, a dish on the menu that we'd wanted to try. It was subsequently brought out, and I quite liked its powerful, yet refined brine, grounded by the earthy beans in the dish, with the greenery forming a fitting contrast to the tuna.


Playground Burger [$14.00]
The kitchen, apparently, thought we were still hungry, and thus sent out the signature Playground Burger, an off-menu special available upon request only. It was all sorts of awesome, one of the tastiest burgers I've had certainly. The patty, a good two-and-a-half inch thick portion, is a hand-ground blend of wagyu tri tip, wagyu brisket, Angus chuck, and Angus ribeye, formed using the famed "log" method developed by The Fat Duck's Heston Blumenthal. Cooked medium-rare, and only medium-rare, the beef conveyed a unique mouth feel, slick and luscious, but also light, with an almost steak-like quality to it--a pure expression of beef. Joining the meat were Fontina and Gruyère cheeses, maple-bourbon compote caramelized onions, shreds of iceberg lettuce, and a housemade mustard-mayo sauce, all on a custom-baked bun. Everything came together in wondrous fashion, with the various accoutrements doing a great job in highlighting the beef, making for a flawlessly integrated burger that truly stands among the Southland's best.


To cap off the evening, we ordered a bottle of Jolly Pumpkin iO Saison [$20] to share with the staff. Much like the aforementioned Upright Four, this also stands as one of the most delicious saisons that I've had. The beer's brewed with rose hips, rose petals, and hibiscus, making for a fantastically floral drinking experience, with the essence of the flowers intermingling wonderfully with the beer's otherwise tart, citric, funky flair.

Perhaps there is some hope for Orange County after all, as Playground managed to meet, and actually exceed expectations. Quinn's cooking is some of the sharpest in the area, and the kitchen's dogged pursuit of top-notch ingredients, prepared lovingly with precise technique, is paying dividends here. It's exciting, interesting, honest, yet humble fare that we're talking about, and I have no qualms deeming Playground's rustic-yet-refined food among the best, if not the best, in OC.

As for what's next for Quinn and company, the Chef is sort of following in Roy Choi's footsteps here, making the transition from food truck to some really great restaurant concepts. His follow-up project is a 17-seat omakase-only restaurant, codenamed "2.0," situated right next door to Playground and done in partnership with Ryan Carson (November ETA). "Secret," which was supposed to be housed in the Yost Theater, is a no-go now unfortunately. Instead, Quinn is teaming with his Sous Chef Frank DeLoach to debut a Neapolitan-style pizza joint; look out for that and perhaps some more exciting developments next year.

[UPDATE 2012-07-28: Since I'm helping organize this year's PbP, I've been given a special discount code: KEATS2012. Use it here to take $15 off the price of a general admission ticket and $30 off the price off a VIP ticket.]

[UPDATE 2012-07-25: Well that was a tough decision. It took me almost an hour of deliberation before picking a winner, especially since I had relatively few disqualifications this year. I kept waffling between Anthony Hoang, Chunk, Jordan Sandler, Matty, The Offalo, and RyanE, but finally decided upon Mr. Sandler. Congrats!]

On the evening of Saturday, August 4th, Project by Project (Facebook, Twitter) will be hosting its tenth Annual Tasting Benefit, Plate by Plate. For the uninitiated, Project by Project is a national non-profit volunteer organization centered around issues relating to the Asian American community, with the LA chapter celebrating its 15th anniversary this year. As always, the upscale event will showcase the gastronomic talents of some of LA's most popular restaurants, as well as alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages from a bevy of leading purveyors. Be sure to check out my report from last year's Plate by Plate tasting.

The benefit will be held at the stunning Vibiana cathedral in Downtown, future home of Neal Fraser's Grace. Here's the current list of participants, comprising our best line-up to date:

.EAT(30). Bistro LQ "Fooding Around in LA" Black Hogg Broadway by Amar Santana Charlie Palmer at Bloomingdale's Chaya Brasserie Chinoise Cuisine by Chef Jack Lee Church & State Fat Spoon Fundamental LA Grace / BLD / Fritzi Dog Guelaguetza Haven Gastropub & Brewery Jar Lazy Ox Canteen Little Bear Milo & Olive Mo-Chica / Picca Night + Market Playa / Rivera Raphael The Royce Rustic Canyon Sadie Scarpetta Seoul Sausage Company Short Order / Short Cake Starry Kitchen West Restaurant & Lounge Wilshire Wood & Vine

.VIP(3). Connie & Ted's / Providence Kali Dining Pour Vous   .SWEET(4). Drunken Udder Fluff Ice Tasty Clouds Cotton Candy XT Patisserie   .DRINK(19). Asahi Beer Bartenura Boutique Sake The Bruery Gekkeikan Sake Greenbar Collective Kigen Sake LAMILL Coffee / Café Dulcé M&M Enterprises Millesime Cellars Nobleza Tequila Privé Water Quady Winery San Vicente Cellars So Cal Beverage St. Germain Stone Brewing Company VeeV Ventura Limoncello

Tickets are currently on sale at $150 for regular admission. However, I'm giving away two VIP tickets (which let you into the event an hour early), valued at $250 each! To win, just leave a comment with your name, email, and a brief blurb about what you're looking forward to most about the event (the food, the open bar, the women, the men?), and why. Please submit entries by noon, July 24th. I'll select the best entry and announce the winner Wednesday. Good luck!

CR8 The Art Of Underground Dinner
8440 Warner Dr, Culver City, CA 90232
www.robertocortez.com
Tue 07/17/2012, 07:30p-12:10a





Over the past several months, some of my most memorable meals have been the result of CR8, a series of high-concept "dining installations" choreographed by Chef Roberto Cortez. His latest venture ran from July 16th to 18th, and was entitled The Art Of, the name chosen in reference to the process of "searching and expressing artistry with unorthodox elements." For this effort, he designed a nine-course degustation, with each dish representing a topic that the Chef approached and studied in depth, with the goal of understanding its quintessence and expressing it through "visual, conceptual, and edible art." If that wasn't enough, Cortez collaborated with famed LA barman Matt Biancaniello, who designed (blind, mind you, without tasting any of the food) a beverage pairing for each course.


CR8 dinners travel from place to place, and tonight's event was held at Michael Carpenter and Todd Ziman's Redd Collection, an industrial-chic loft space in Culver City that functions as a wine retailer.


For this event, CR8's resident artist Noah Lee created a dining installation walled off in translucent fabric, attached to vibrant strings that reached for the ceiling in bright bursts of technicolor fancy. Centerpieces, meanwhile, were specially constructed by CR8 team member A.C. Slamet.


One of the benefits of the space: a respectable kitchen and a full size bar for Biancaniello to do his thing.


Our bartender extraordinaire started us off with a welcome cocktail called the Pimms #10, a housemade Pimm's infused with rhubarb, muddled shiso, radishes, lemon cucumber, and lime agave. Not surprisingly, it was superb, with just the complexity and finesse that you'd expect from a Biancaniello-made libation. The interplay between sweet, spicy, and boozy flavors was spot on, perfectly balanced by the refreshing notes of shiso and cucumber, all while the sprig of lavender added a wonderful floral overtone to the entire drink.


1: Liquid | CR8 B.B.Q
Bubbly Mary
For our first course, Cortez explored the liquid form of matter and presented an oak-grilled chicken consommé, layered with a Ratte potato salad cremeaux, Persian pickles, and rosemary blossom, all served with a side of spherified B.B.Q. sauce. This was a fun, whimsical amuse, perfect for summer and really capturing the essence of a backyard cookout, with a savory base of chicken contrasted against the potato mousse, perked up by pinpoints of piquancy from the pickles, and all tied together by the tangy relish of barbeque sauce.

Biancaniello brought along a non-alcoholic mocktail here, a blend of Zebra and Lemon Boy heirloom tomatoes, scallion, red bell pepper, dill, and cucumber, all dripped from a Superbag for six hours, then garnished with a single cherry tomato. The end result of all this was a fantastically clear liquid, tinted yellow, with a delightfully pure, focused gazpacho-esque flavor, brimming with tart, vegetal flavors that just danced on the palate. A refreshing counterpoint to the bulk of the BBQ course.


2: Geometric Art | BITTER ELLIPTICAL
Rustica
The Chef, like myself, is a fan of bitterness, a flavor that perhaps doesn't get utilized as much as it should. That wouldn't be the case here though, as the inherent astringency of the roasted endive was on proud display, augmented by a dusting of black olive ash, yet simultaneously tempered by the lush, creamy Pont-l'Évêque cheese, all while the kumquat-thyme dressing provided sharp, citrus-y, overarching notes to the dish. I greatly appreciated the crunchy, nutty character of the crispy nutmeg-pecans here as well. Just a real showcase of what bitter can do.

Going along with the course was the Rustica, a blend of arugula, lime juice, agave, and Hendrick's gin. It was an arugula gimlet basically, one that gleefully put the peppery taste of the plant at the forefront--an intense, yet eminently balanced concoction that most definitely stood up to the preceding dish.


3: Hellenic Elements | AETHER
Mother Earth
We were then presented with a bowl of clams cooked with seaweed butter, in a consommé made from pine cone-smoked clams, joined by a cremeaux of bergamot, Parmesan, summer truffles, and a homemade forest oil created from pine needles that the Chef personally collected near the edge of highway. The dish was absolutely lovely. What struck me first was the texture of the clams--perfectly spongy and slippery--while their considerable brine was gorgeously countervailed by the bright, green essence of pine, with the truffles adding a mouth-watering earthiness to the fray as well.

The aptly-named Mother Earth combined anise hyssop-infused Plymouth gin, grapefruit, lemon, yellow Chartreuse, and agave, with the whole shebang topped with a blueberry air and garnished with pink blueberries. It was a delicious concoction, with a base of berry sweetness flawlessly countered by the otherwise herbal, spicy flavors at play. What was interesting here was that the Chef mentioned that he tasted pine and even oysters in the finish of blueberries. I don't know if psychosomatics were at play or what, but I picked out those notes as well.


4: Perfume | SECRECY NO. 13
Fig get about it / Cleanser
The thrust of this course stemmed from the Egyptian notion that a good perfume should have 12 parts, while a 13th would take the scent to another level. Naturally, this meant that we would have 12 components on the plate: maple, chive, ginger, inverted wild mushroom puff pastry, wheat, coriander, PX sour vinegar, corn cinnamon oil sabayon, rose, green apple, floral elements, and yes, even foie gras. Now, I've had my share of foie, but I can definitively say that this was one of the most creative uses of the ingredient that I'd ever seen. The liver, shaved thin, carpaccio style, conveyed all the heady intensity that you'd expect from it. But at the same time, it was light, ethereal even, beautifully tempered by the juicy crunch of green apple, while the various sweet, sour, and especially floral notes rounded out the dish in commendable, complex fashion. And the mystical 13th element? A bottle of liquid that some of my fellow diners described as tasting of a pumpkin horchata, with its fantastically sweet spice that truly did a great job in binding all the various parts of the dish together.

Biancaniello delivered two drinks here. The first was actually something that I'd had before: a Basil Hayden bourbon, infused for five days with black mission fig. The fig and the whiskey melded particularly well in my eyes, resulting in a fantastically viscous cocktail loaded with deep, dark flavors of sugary fruit and bourbon. The second libation was meant as a sort of palate cleanser: a three week Blenheim apricot-infused fino sherry (using dry farmed fruit from the San Joaquin Valley), joined by fresh passion fruit. I loved its intense, in-your-face blast of apricot flavor here, keenly moderated by the dry savor of sherry, all while the passion fruit seeds provided an interesting textural element to the mix.


For the following "bread" course, Cortez instructed us to stand up and untie the package in front of us, making sure to inhale the intoxicating aroma of the brioche as it was released from its cellophane keeper.


5: Bread | BRIOCHE AROMATIC L'ETE
Sweet bitter end of Tokyo
Here, Cortez aimed to really highlight what's possible with bread, showcasing it as the star of a dish, not merely an accoutrement. Thus, we had a saffron-honey spiced brioche, accompanied by a cylinder of French beurre, coated with cashew, chicken skin, fried leeks, and a cucumber flower. Dyed a vibrant yellow from the saffron, the brioche conveyed a tremendous amount of grassy, spicy, astringent flavor that put my taste buds on attention. As impressive as it was, the paired butter was key, its fantastically savory, crispy complexion forming the perfect complement to the bread. Impressive.

Joining the brioche was Biancaniello's mochi-infused sake, with lime juice and agave. Here, I was quite taken by the interaction between the rice wine and subtle sweetness of the mochi, which just seemed natural. At the same time, the agave provided a palpable gravitas to the drink, and the citrus component worked wonders with the flavor profile of the saffron bread.





6: Alchemic Chemistry | 79
Hanky Panky
This next course was all about turning something ordinary into something truly special, base metal into gold for alchemy, or common ingredients to a truly fantastic dish in this case. Indeed, I'm not generally a fan of squash blossom, but here it was stupendous, easily the best preparation of the ingredient that I've had. Joined by a bath of gold toasted rice velouté and courgette purée, the blossom showed off a wondrous crispness and lightness that went in stellar fashion with the sweet, supple stuffing of wild shrimp, all while a soubise of Padrón peppers added a whisper of heat to things. Lovely tanginess from the tomato extract (a single dollop, made from five pounds of tomato), too.

Biancaniello's Hanky Panky was perhaps the most polarizing cocktail of the evening. It combined Page mandarins, lovage, Aperol, ghost pepper salt, and genever gin to form an almost curry-like ensemble that concurrently played sweet, salty, and spicy flavors off of a base of jenever.


7: Disharmony | FLORAL MOLLUSK
Easter Island
Disharmony was the theme here, manifested on the plate with a roster of potentially discordant ingredients inspired by a dream that the Chef recently experienced. We had a perfectly pan roasted diver scallop, combined with the somewhat unusual pairing of lavender (and honey I believe), along with cauliflower, shallot, and a Japanese sesame risotto. The natural salinity of the scallop was commendable of course, but it was its sweetness that formed the crux of the course, amplified by the other elements on the plate, thus allowing the floral essence of the lavender to make sense.

We were definitely in the mood for some Hanky Panky, a commixture of muscat grapes, huacatay (black mint, as oft used by Ricardo Zarate), lime juice, agave, ginger, and cachaça. Its subtly sweet, tangy flair transitioned beautifully to the herbaceous zing of the huacatay, making the cocktail a fitting foil to the floral disposition of the scallops.


8: Vibration | WILD BEEHIVE
Parisian after thought
Our "main course" brought us wild boar from Texas, brined and sous vide'd for 18 hours with bee pollen, accompanied by artichoke purée, coffee sabayon with honeycomb, puffed sorghum, and hazelnuts. The boar was delicious, easily the tastiest preparation of the animal that I've had, with a superb depth and body permeated by a certain honeyed sweetness. I loved the nutty crunch of the sorghum and hazelnuts here, too, which offered up an appealing counterpoint to the heft of the meat.

Currants, purple basil, green Chartreuse, cognac, lemon, agave, and Champagne formed Biancaniello's whimsically-named Parisian After Thought. The bright, fruity zest of currant was the star of the show here, puckering the palate upon first sip, yet transitioning smoothly to the herbal flavors of the Chartreuse, with the boozy weight of the cognac lending further gravity to the cocktail.


9: Tea | CERASUS INFUSION
Bee's Knee
Dessert comprised cherries cooked with muscat and infused with rooibos tea, along with a cinnamon toast cake cream, lemon verbena oil, sheep's milk yogurt, and malt meringues. I'm quite the fan of cherry, so it was great to see the fruit's restrained sweetness expressed here, complemented by the herb-y, astringent flavors of the tea, while the yogurt added a lusciously lactic component to the fray. Meanwhile, I adored the cinnamon toast cream, which showed off a fantastic sweet spiciness that bridged all the various ingredients together on the palate admirably. Loved the airy crunchiness of those meringues, too.

An interesting tidbit: Matt's brother Mark Biancaniello holds the Guinness World Record for bee bearding, successfully attaching 87 pounds of the insects to his body. I would assume, thus, that it was Mark who helped his brother create his own bee colony, from which the bartender ostensibly gets his honey (though we're told that the colony was wiped out a while back in a freak pesticide incident). Nonetheless, what we have here is a reworking of the Prohibition-era cocktail the Bee's Knees: coconut vanilla chai infused Plymouth, buckwheat honey, and lemon, poured in a peculiar ovoid vessel. Served warm, the drink played the sugariness of the honey against the herbal flavors of tea and the sourness of lemon, all with a finish that lingered long and fruity on the tongue.


Acting as our "petit four" course was Biancaniello's Upside Down Umami Milkshake, which he likened to a "deconstructed beer float." We had a base of candy cap mushroom-infused bourbon with cream, egg, and agave, a mixture not unlike eggnog. Up top was a blend of coffee-infused Cynar, cassis, and a light Belgian ale reduction, separated by a Kirsch-soaked maraschino cherry. The entire amalgam was served in a quaffer glass (great for Jägerbombs) and garnished with a Harry's Berries Gaviota strawberry. The cocktail was delicious, and served as a fitting conclusion to the meal with its great sugary, spicy, coffee-laden flavors up front, leading to a "chaser" of sweet, creamy booziness, all punctuated by the sheer fruitiness of that cherry.

Cortez was once again firing on all cylinders tonight, putting together a near-flawless dinner that truly allowed him to show off his inimitable style and culinary artistry. Meanwhile, Biancaniello, as always, delivered masterfully on the cocktail front, crafting an array of libations that faultlessly complemented and augmented the Chef's cooking--I could think of no better barman for the job. Together, these two successfully engendered a sort of "uniformity to the dining environment" that truly allowed their collective vision to be fully realized. Well played.

Previous CR8 dinner events: Purotekuta, Dark Illuminated Forest, Texture Lab

Superba Snack Bar
533 Rose Ave, Venice, CA 90291
310.399.6400
www.superbasnackbar.com
Thu 07/19/2012, 08:45p-10:55p





Perhaps the most anticipated debut in Venice so far this year is Jason Neroni's Superba Snack Bar, which celebrated its grand opening on the 19th. The restaurant is the Chef's first real solo project, and represents a partnership with Pitfire Pizza founder Paul Hibler. Superba is described by the Neroni camp as a "post modern pastaria," a somewhat nebulous but neat-sounding term that I will assume means that the Chef won't be sticking to classic pasta norms all the time.

About the Chef: Neroni was born in 1977, and raised in the idyllic setting of Orange County, California. Early on, he had an interest in art, and at age 16, started taking art classes at a local college. To pay for the education, he began working at Disneyland, where he spent three years, cooking his way up from Blue Bayou to the exclusive Club 33. Neroni decided to forego culinary school, and instead moved to San Francisco, working days at Wolfgang Puck's Postrio and nights (as a stagiaire) at the iconic Chez Panisse. After a year, he transitioned to Spago in Beverly Hills, where he was mentored by Lee Hefter. Hefter, however, encouraged the young chef to move to New York, and Neroni did just that in 1999.

Neroni had initially wanted to work at Lespinasse, but Gray Kunz had already left the restaurant by that point. Instead, he ended up getting his start at the longstanding Le Cirque. That tenure didn't last long, though, and soon he was off to Floyd Caroz's Tabla, then to Dan Barber's Blue Hill. Neroni's next step was to Alain Ducasse at the Essex House in 2001, where he served as a tournant for several months. The job also allowed him to work at Ducasse's restaurants in Europe: Louis XV in Monaco, and Alain Ducasse at the Plaza Athénée in Paris. Upon returning to New York in 2004, Neroni found employment at the short-lived Bid in the Sotheby's building, then became Chef de Cuisine at The Tasting Room. This was followed up by the Executive Chef position at 71 Clinton Fresh Food, where he served as the third replacement for Wylie Dufrense (who'd left in 2001). The gig lasted until March 2006, when the restaurant lost its lease.

Later that year, Neroni became head chef of the pork-focused Porchetta in Brooklyn, but things would not end well for the Chef here. In April 2007, he had a huge falling out with owner Marco Rivero, was charged with petit larceny, and was even held briefly at the 76th Precinct Station House. Following the debacle, Neroni consulted briefly at Cantina in the East Village, then took on the Executive Chef role at 10 Downing Street. The Chef received considerable acclaim for his work here (even snagging the Star Chefs Rising Star award), but would leave the restaurant in September 2009, moving back to Orange County with his wife and 3-month-old son to be closer to family. He took a job at Blanca in Solana Beach, but left the place after just seven months (replaced by Gavin Schmidt). After doing a few pop-ups and working on a cookbook, Neroni moved north to Portland to take the reins at Bruce Carey's Asian-influenced Saucebox in November 2010. He left Oregon in February the following year however, returning to LA to helm the stoves at the overhauled Osteria La Buca, where he would stay until just this past January, leaving to consult for Pitfire Pizza and start work on Superba.


Superba Snack Bar occupies a building on the corner of Rose and Dimmick (right next to Venice Beach Wines, but nowhere near Superba Ave) that some might liken to a dark gray corrugated shipping container. The space was overhauled by the whimsically-named Design, Bitches, the firm responsible for Coolhaus. Inside, GM Alex Gonzalez (ex-Alinea) runs the show, and things are cheerier in the airy, high-ceiling'd, and loud dining room, anchored on one end by a gleaming open kitchen and filled with a mix of regular and communal tables. There's also a small patio seating area out front facing the street.


The Superba Snack Bar menu features a healthy selection of housemade "modern" pastas (which means uncommon shapes, alternative flours like buckwheat and rye, and interesting infusions), joined by an array of small plates. To drink, think a small list of locally-procured wines, a smattering of craft beers, and even a couple beer/wine cocktails. Further down the road, look out for lunch and brunch services, too. Click for larger versions.


To quench my thirst, I ordered Superba's beer cocktail of the night [$8], which combined beer, ginger beer, and apricot juice. The end result was actually rather delicious, with a lovely effervescence from the beer joined by the sugary smack of apricot, all perked up by the spicy, puckering kick of ginger.


porchetta di testa pastrami on rye with celery pickles [$8.00]
If you're not familiar with porchetta di testa, it's basically an entire pig's head, cleaned, deboned, seasoned, rolled up, cooked, and sliced. Neroni takes things one step further though, putting the porchetta through the pastrami process, resulting in a wonderfully rich, savory meat, dutifully taken up a notch by the incorporation of various herbs and spices. The pork was absolutely delectable alone, but I also appreciated the countervailing acidity and crunch provided by the pickles. However, I could've done with less of the accompanying sauce, which had a creamy, piquant character that tended to overwhelm the porchetta at times.


ocean trout crudo, pickled mustard seeds, sesame puree & chorizo oil [$14.00]
A crudo of ocean trout came out looking more like a tartar, which I found a bit peculiar. Nevertheless, the fish was light and mild, with a good bite and a slightly nutty character that paired well with the pine nuts and subtle tang of mustard seeds. The concentric rings of sesame oil, meanwhile, left me a bit conflicted, as they lent an overarching earthiness to the dish that I'm not sure if I liked or not.


fried duck egg, papas bravas, truffle vinaigrette & tuna prosciutto [$14.00]
Potatoes arrived nicely cooked here, still slightly firm, with a pleasant saltiness and savory flair that was duly enhanced by the lush, runny egg. The use of truffle, meanwhile, offered up a weighty, earthy undercurrent to the dish, while the tuna added a delectable salinity to things.


cucumber salad, puffed rice, vietnamese vinaigrette, crab & salted black beans [$13.00]
A salad of cucumber was light and bright, with the refreshing crunch of the vegetable beautifully augmented by the tangy relish of the Vietnamese-inspired dressing, all while the onions added a delightful crunch and astringency to things. The crux of the course, though, was the use of black bean, which served as a great, heady base to the dish, tying everything together admirably. Loved the crisp little bits of puffed rice, too.


With my beer all drunk up, I moved on to Superba's wine cocktail [$9], a combination of pinot noir, plum, housemade blood orange soda, mint, and what I believe was basil. The end result was basically like a sangria, with a fruity, almost candied sweetness, accented by a well-placed hint of mint.


smoked bucatini, carbonara, pancetta, black pepper, egg [$16.00]
Time for some pasta. Neroni's take on the classic carbonara was spot on. The bucatini, infused with a touch of smoke, was perfectly al dente, and melded in gorgeous fashion with the countervailing notes of pepper, cheese, and pancetta, with the egg adding a luscious component to the mix that enveloped the entire dish. It's hard not to like this one.


casarecce, crispy sardines, preserved lemons, lovage & botarga bread crumbs [$17.00]
I was quite the fan of the casarecce, medium-length curls of pasta that were wonderfully firm, with a very satisfying chew. The star of the show here, though, was the sardine, cooked perfectly crisp and loaded with a mouth-watering brine that was only heightened by the use of bottarga. The fish was certainly tasty alone, but was also nicely moderated by the comparatively mild noodles, as well as notes of lemon that overarched the entire course.


spaghettini nero, sea urchin, squid puttanesca & fried capers [$17.00]
Our final pasta of the evening was Neroni's spaghettini, dyed 50 shades of black with squid ink. The noodles were imbued with a marked ocean-y savor courtesy of the nero di seppia, a flavor that was only enhanced by the use of sea urchin. The puttanesca, meanwhile, provided a tempering tanginess that offered up a modicum of balance to things, though, according to a fellow diner, the course still "tasted like the ocean." It was actually pretty intense; I didn't mind it, but if you're sensitive to that type of thing, I'd perhaps consider thinking twice before ordering this dish.


Time for some of the sweet stuff. Click for a larger version.


PB&J, sesame, hibiscus & basil [$8.00]
Dessert comprised a small canning jar filled with Neroni's reimagined PB&J. Now, I'm not exactly a fan of peanut butter, so I quite appreciated the use of black sesame in its place here. The sesame conveyed a delectable mix of sweet, nutty, and earthy flavors that I rather enjoyed, and blended beautifully with the fruity hibiscus "jelly," all while the basil added a whisper of herbaceousness to the fray. Nice.

Given the notoriety of Chef Neroni, I was a touch wary going in to Superba, but although there were a few quibbles here and there, I didn't find anything too worrying. I quite appreciated how he's sort of melded his Californian sensibilities into his plates. The pasta alone is worth a trip, but his non-pasta dishes are mostly good too, with clean, robust flavors and a satisfying mix of both refinement and rusticity. It seems like a winning combination, and I look for the restaurant to only get better with time. As for what's next, look out for Superba Food & Bread, a bakery-cum-market that's slated to bow at the end of the year, located at the intersection of Lincoln and Superba. Could the notoriously mercurial, transient chef have finally found a home? We can hope.

Vagrant at the Yacht Club
1320 Echo Park Ave, Echo Park, CA 90026
213.481.0454
thevagrancyproject.tumblr.com
vagrantayc.tumblr.com
Mon 07/23/2012, 08:00p-12:10a





One of the latest pop-ups to, well, pop up on the scene is Vagrancy Project, the brainchild of former Son of a Gun Executive Sous Chef Miles Thompson. He's setting up shop at Bill DiDonna and Charles Kelly's Allston Yacht Club in Echo Park, taking over the joint Mondays and Tuesdays through the end of August. This "residency" is actually the second part of Thompson's grand plan. The first was a series of elaborate underground dinners hosted at the Chef's tiny Hollywood apartment, which kicked off on February 11th. Next comes this pop-up, and then an honest-to-goodness, permanent restaurant if all goes according to plan.

About the Chef: Chef Miles Thompson, a mere 24 years old, was raised in the small, idyllic town of South Salem, New York. He started his restaurant career locally, taking up a position washing dishes at the age of 13, and started cooking professionally just a couple years later. During this period, he also dabbled in acting, and even starred in Miranda July's Me and You and Everyone We Know, which won the Caméra d'Or at Cannes in 2005. In 2007, Thompson moved to LA and quickly secured a job at Nobu, working as a lead line cook under Alex Becker after BS'ing his way through an interview. Following, he transitioned to Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo's seminal Animal in 2010, then helped open their acclaimed seafooder Son of a Gun. He left SoaG late last year, and worked a stint alongside underground dining visionary Craig "Wolvesmouth" Thornton. Following, Thompson partnered with Aubrey Huestead (wine director for Son of a Gun) and launched the Vagrancy Project in February. The dinners were a resounding success, and on June 11th, the Chef debuted his cooking at the AYC.


As for the menu, it comprises a five-course prix fixe at $70pp, plus an additional $50 for wine pairings, as well as an à la carte selection of dishes at the bar. We actually requested a combination of the two menus, resulting in a 13-course degustation at $125 per head. In addition, Nathaniel Oliver (ink, Church & State, Harvard & Stone) tends the bar, offering up a unique cocktail list to pair with the eats. Click for a larger version.


We arrived early and took a seat at the bar, which just so happened to be occupied by none other than Devon Espinosa, the former ink and Tasting Kitchen barman who's now mixing it up at Pour Vous. He was here to support his fellow bartender Nathan Oliver, and in fact, the two of them are in the process of launching BTL SVC, a line of ready-to-drink, bottled craft cocktails. We were actually able to sample the duo's first creation, called the Frisco (read about Frank Bruni's quest for the drink here), which was a combo of Rittenhouse 100 rye whiskey and Bénédictine, perfectly blended and diluted. Patrons are encouraged to pour the drink themselves, over a block of Névé ice and garnished with a twist of lemon zest. I was a bit skeptical, but the end result was pretty fantastic, with the boozy weight of the rye deftly balanced by the sweet, spicy, medicinal relish of the liqueur, all while the lemon added just a whisper of tartness to the fray. Espinosa and Oliver could really be on to something here!


From BTL SVC, we moved on to The Lost Abbey's Angel's Share, a bourbon barrel-aged ale graciously provided by Chef Jason Quinn. This was a fairly creamy, almost sticky beer, with low carbonation and tons of vanilla on the nose. Taste-wise, we're talking more vanilla, along with loads of caramel, oaky, and boozy flavors.


Thompson started us off with an amuse bouche comprising a hamachi and strawberry tartar dressed with yuzukosho vinaigrette. The yellowtail itself I found fresh and fatty, with a slight fishy character that paired nicely with the piquant Japanese condiment, all while the strawberry provided an overarching veil of sweet 'n' sour flavors.


1: Oyster | Kimchi - Pied de Cochon - Jus de Cuisson
Our first course proper got us going with a singular Luna oyster, enveloped in kimchi gelée, then paired with a block of supple pied de cochon. The marriage of pork and oyster is an uncommon one, but it actually worked out rather well here. I appreciated the bracing brine of the bivalve, moderated by its kimchi wrapper, and how that flowed to the pork-y goodness of the pied. At the same time, there were some notes of sweet-spice and umami that tied everything together, and I liked the levity imparted by the pickled radish, scallion, and agretti as well. Some interesting interplays between texture and temperature going on here, too. Very cool.


The next beer was The Bruery's whimsically-monikered Tart of Darkness. This was basically a hybrid of a stout and a sour, and as such, showed off a puckering tartness on the front end, which then led gracefully to some lovely chocolate and coffee notes on the close. I'd never had anything quite like it before.


2: Garlic | Blade Steak - Tarragon - Grenobloise
Given how well the steak was cooked, the question arose at the table of whether or not the meat was done sous vide--turns out that it was not. The beef (described by the Chef as the "garnish") was beautiful, with a wondrously satisfying chew and a delectable bovine sapor that paired swimmingly with the garlic as well as the Grenobloise elements of caper and lemon. The chili paste added a lovely touch of lingering, countervailing heat to things (though it was a bit too spicy for me), while the green goddess dressing tempered and integrated the entire dish. Loved the crunch of the lettuce here as well. Definitely one of my favorites.


We had here another bottling from The Lost Abbey, their Red Poppy Ale. Done in the Flanders Red style, the beer blended bright bursts of sour cherry flavor against a sharp, almost lactic funk, with a marked sugariness and even a touch of wood-y spice on the finish.


3: Escargot | Country Sausage - Green Tomato - Black Eyed Pea
The escargot was almost unanimously our favorite course of the night, and just might be the most inventive use of snail that I'd ever witnessed. With the incorporation of country sausage and gravy, fried green tomatoes, okra, and black eyed peas into the dish, the flavors of the South were on proud display. The escargot was spot on and delectably tender, while the tomatoes added a fantastic textural component that balanced out the snail gorgeously. The BEPs, meanwhile, did an admirable job grounding and moderating the course, making for a flawless mélange of flavors overall.


4: Merguez | Squid - Sultana - Escarole
I'm quite the sausage fiend, so it's no surprise that I was a fan of Thompson's housemade Merguez, made from a blend of lamb and pork and encased here in an outer layer of soft, supple squid. The tubed meat really showed off a lovely savoriness, counterbalanced by just a touch of herbaceousness. My concern here was the escarole salsa verde, which conveyed a certain astringent character that was perhaps a bit too much for the sausage, overpowering the meat at times.


At this point, Oliver delivered to the table this untitled white-tinted cocktail, an admixture of Boyd & Blair potato vodka, lemon juice, St. Vincent orgeat, and lemon verbena, all with a mist of green Chartreuse up top. It was delightful, displaying an almost medicinal sourness up front, but then transitioning to a blend of sugary and herb-y flavors on the midpalate, perked up by hints of lemon-y tartness.


5: Scallop | Hibiscus - Sword Lettuce - Plum
Next up were some of the biggest scallops that we'd seen in a long while. They were a prototypical example of the mollusk, a tasty mix of sweet and saline relishes, all in a supple, satisfying package. Indeed, it was really the sweetness that was key here, linking up with the saccharine flavors of Santa Rosa plum, rhubarb, hibiscus, and brown sugar molasses to make sense of the dish, all while the yogurt served to add a lush, creamy, and integrating component to the course.


6: Takabe | Chamomile - Watermelon - Yuba
Thompson presented here a dice of takabe, or cured Japanese yellow stripped butterfish, set in watermelon, chile, and salt, with a chamomile-laced yogurt. The fish melded surprisingly well with its accompaniments, the sweet-floral nature of the dish actually working with the takabe. However, I would've liked heartier, more substantial pieces of the fish to better appreciate it. My favorite element, actually, was probably the fried yuba curd, with its fantastically crisp consistency and lingering touch of savory spice.


7: Chorizo | Grapefruit - Robiola - Toast
In her recent piece in the LA Times, Jessica Gelt raved about Thompson's chorizo dish, likening it to a "bizarro Welsh rarebit." I wasn't quite as enamored with it, however, finding the sausage somewhat domineering in the dish, overwhelming the Robiola cream somewhat, and I really didn't get much from the grapefruit. The Chef paired the chorizo with a slab of pork tail, topped with lobster cassoulet. The tail was pretty stupendous, tender and conveying a superb porcine savor that was adeptly countered by the included veggies and snappy bits of lobster.


8: Chicken Liver | Tomatillo - Black Cod - Basil
A lone raviolo arrived stuffed with chicken liver, its earthy, heady relish on proud display, counterbalanced by the enveloping sweet spiciness of what I believe was caraway. The cod, meanwhile, offered up a mild tasting, yet fatty component to the dish, while the snap peas were great with their light, green flavors and satisfying crunch.


Our next beer, the Drie Fonteinen Schaerbeekse Kriek, came from my personal stash. This was basically a fancier version of the brewery's regular kriek, made with the legendary wild sour cherries of Schaarbeek, Belgium. As you'd imagine, there was tons of tart, tangy cherry on the palate, which played nicely against the dry, funky, oak-y barnyard flavors present. A quintessential kriek, really.


9: John Dory | Boba - Miso - Shiitake
Thompson's Dory was another highlight of the meal. The fish was well-cooked, firm to the bite, with a savory, buttery character that was smartly paired with the sweet-yet-earthy essence of candied shiitake mushroom, as well as the umami-laden miso tapioca "risotto." The celtuce, meanwhile, added some well-placed brightness to the course. Definitely some fascinating tastes and textures going on here.


The final beer was The Bruery's 2 Turtle Doves, a Belgian style dark ale made with pecans. It was pretty delicious, with a lot of dark fruity character initially on the nose, even more dark fruit on the tongue, and a good balance of coffee, cocoa, and nutty flavors to round things out.


10: Chirashi | Tamago - Maple - Tosa-zu
Our last savory course of the night brought along a scattering of ingredients, the Chef's play on the chirashi bowl. We had in our possession tamago egg omelet, ayu (sweetfish), beef tongue, salmon roe, nectarines, maple, nori, crème fraîche, and tosa-zu vinegar. It was a unique blend of differing constituents, each item being distinct and true-to-form, yet with everything coming together in a seemingly cohesive fashion: a medley of disparate tastes and textures, all underscored by a distinct ocean-y overtone. I was especially fond of the smoky, savory, supple tongue, as well as the sweet-fishy smack of the ayu. Loved the crunch of the puffed rice here, too.


Oliver then sent out a version of the Frisco cocktail served earlier, this one made with Buffalo Trace bourbon instead of rye. Compared to the drink above, it was somewhat lighter in character, with less of a boozy kick and a slightly fruitier taste.


11: Cheesecake | Walnut - Maple - Sour Cream
Moving on to dessert now, the first comprised a whipped cheese cake paired with a sour cream curd, maple syrup, walnut oil, and a graham cracker sablé. It may not have looked like much on the plate, but the flavors were delicious. The key was the interplay between the sugary maple and tart, lactic tanginess of sour cream and cheese, all moderated by the nuttiness of walnut. I loved the sweetness and crispness of the graham cracker "crust" here, too.


12: Bavarois | Brown Butter - Lemon - Berries
I'm usually not a huge fan of lemon desserts, oft finding them overly sour, but this Bavarian cream of lemon curd was to my liking. There was definitely a persistent tartness to the dish, but the use of brown butter and a yuzu-mulberry compote definitely balanced things out a bit, all while leaves of Persian mint added a whisper of lightness to the mix.

I came in here not knowing quite what to expect, but this “kid” can definitely cook, and cook in a style that was so different than what he was serving up at Animal or Son of a Gun, which was sort of surprising to me. Thompson’s food here is actually more complex, more ambitious, more cerebral than I’d imagined, with unique, unexpected flavor combinations and juxtapositions that mostly work. He’s really got a well-defined style going for him, and I have high hopes for his prospects in the future--definitely one to watch for sure. As for the Chef's next move, he envisions Cottage (his permanent spot) debuting late this year, as a small tasting menu-only type of restaurant, seating around two dozen diners. It sounds like just the type of intimate, chef-driven place that I like the most, and you can bet that I'll be showing up there post-haste once it opens.

Saddle Peak Lodge Restaurant
419 Cold Canyon Rd, Malibu, CA 91302
818.222.3888
www.saddlepeaklodge.com
Thu 07/26/2012, 08:00p-12:20a





My last visit to Dr. Ann Ehringer's longstanding Saddle Peak Lodge was almost exactly three years ago to the day. Back in 2009, Chef Adam Horton still held the reins here, and it was around then when he really started making a name for himself on the culinary scene in LA. Since that time, Horton's decamped, replaced by his former right-hand-man, Christopher Kufek. Given the change in leadership, I figured that it was time to give the grand dame another go.

About the Chef: Kufek is a Los Angeles native, born in the affluent West Hills district of the San Fernando Valley. The 28-year-old Chef actually started out as a carpenter at age 17, working on private jets, high-end residences, and other such frivolities (in fact, he's in the midst of renovating his own condo at the moment). When Kufek turned 21, he decided to switch to a career in the restaurant industry, initially as a way to meet more women (makes sense--I can't imagine there are too many female carpenters). He moved in with some friends in Santa Barbara, and began his culinary career at the bottom, working as a dishwasher at the now-shuttered Cafe Buenos Aires on State Street. Naturally, he eventually began cooking there, but then moved back to LA a year later to start slanging pasta at Maggiano's (yes, that Maggiano's). The gig lasted two years, and at the end of it, Kufek was itching to work at a real restaurant.

In pursuit of that goal, he showed up on the back doorsteps of Saddle Peak Lodge, continuously for several weeks, and eventually head chef Steven Rojas (ex-Patina) caved and offered him a job. Kufek started at the amuse bouche station, then worked his way up to a Sous Chef position in a year's time. During this period, he also staged at a number of restaurants in the San Diego area, including the renowned El Bizcocho at the Rancho Bernardo Inn, under James Beard award winner Gavin Kaysen. Coincidentally, in July 2008, Kaysen would leave El Bizcocho to head up Cafe Boulud in New York, replaced by none other than Steve Rojas. Given the kitchen shuffle, Adam Horton took over as Executive Chef, with Kufek becoming CdC. Horton, however, left SPL at the start of 2011 to relaunch Raphael in Studio City, taking Sous Chef Heather Bogue and Pastry Chef Kasra Ajdari with him.

Given the chef shake-up, Kufek is joined in the kitchen these days by his Sous Chef Jaron Gugliuzza. Gugliuzza hails from Calabasas, California, and is a 2004 graduate of Agoura High School. He began cooking at an early age at his father's catering company, a motion picture caterer called Cafe on Location. The family eventually moved to Texas, where Gugliuzza worked at a few local restaurants, but he would eventually move back to Los Angeles to attend the Academy of Culinary Education. During his tenure there, he worked the line at RH at the Andaz, under Chef Sebastien Archambault. Upon graduating in 2011, he joined the team at Saddle Peak Lodge as a line cook, and was recently promoted to Sous. Interestingly, Gugliuzza's classmate Bree Vivante also took a position at SPL, but in the pastry department.


The interior hasn't changed much from my last visit, and is pretty much what you'd expect from a longstanding, game-focused restaurant situated in the near wilderness. The main dining room, once a bordello, recalls a hunting lodge, replete with mounted animal heads and lots of wood. It's also very, very dark, and one of the most challenging shooting situations that I've ever encountered.


The menu options here at Saddle Peak Lodge comprise both à la carte as well as five- and nine-course tasting menu options. By special arrangement, we were provided a special degustation, priced at $45 per head. To drink, think a sizeable California-centric wine list, a surprisingly decent array of beer, cocktails, and a separate selection of Scotch. Click for a larger version.


Honey Badger [$15.00] | Aberlour 12 year scotch, Drambuie liqueur, lemon juice, lavender honey, shaken and served on the rocks
The Pig Apple [$15.00] | Buffalo Trace bacon-infused bourbon, Carpano Antica vermouth, Paychaud's bitters and candied bacon
About Figgin' Thyme [$15.00] | Bombay Gin, orange juice, fig balsamic vinegar, strawberries, thyme, muddled and served on the rocks
To wet our whistles, we began with a threesome of cocktails by new Sommelier/Manager Jen Carter, who started here in January. The first was the Honey Badger, my favorite of the trio, which showed off a tasty mix of citrus and honeyed flavors, all with overarching floral and herbal notes and a boozy kick toward the finish. The Pig Apple, meanwhile, was much more in-your-face, with loads of porky goodness up front, leading to a marked bitterness on the midpalate, with the weight of the bourbon coming toward the end. As for the bacon itself, it was wonderful, with a great mix of sweet, smoky, and porcine flavors; one of my dining companions even likened it to "Chinese pork jerky." Last but not least was the About Figgin' Thyme, the lightest drink of the troika, with its bracing gin base deftly augmented by the herb-y tang of thyme, all while the strawberry and fig-balsamic added a lovely sugariness to the fray.


Bread was of the pretzel variety, and quite good, especially when taken with plenty of the soft, sweet, salty butter supplied.


Before the meal proper, we were treated to a series of three canapés. First up was a spoonful of heirloom tomato, burrata, caramelized shallot, and pumpernickel. Naturally, the pairing of mozzarella and tomato made perfect sense, reminiscent of an insalata Caprese in essence, and I adored the nutty crunch of the pumpernickel here, which served as a near-perfect counterpoint in the bite.


Next up: a demitasse of corn soup, replete with roasted corn, onion, tarragon crème fraîche, cilantro, and lemon zest. It was a tasty little potage, with a definite corn sweetness up front, leading to a slightly herbaceous spiciness. Hearty and heartwarming.


Our final canapé, surprisingly, was actually a reworking of a course from my last visit here. It was a very classic combination of poached salmon and caviar, all on a potato blini. The fish itself was creamy and soft to the touch, with a subtle brine that was duly heightened by the dollop of roe on top, while the blini served to moderate the course. Tasty, but I really wanted more textural variation in the bite, which seemed a bit too uniform.


With the meal proper about to get under way, we ordered a bottle of sparkling wine, the whimsically-named 2008 Flying Goat Cellars Goat Bubbles [$45] from the nearby Santa Maria Valley. This was a tart, tannic rosé, unquestionable dry, with some light berry flavors joined by an undercurrent of crisp minerality


1: Prosecco Gelée | lemon foam, Osetra caviar, basil oil
Kufek commenced with a fairly avant garde course. Here, the salty zing of the caviar was on proud display, balanced against the boozy base of prosecco jelly, all while the lemon served up overtones of citrus-y tartness. A refreshing course, and one that actually reminded me of a similar "Champagne & Caviar" dish that I'd had a while ago at AnQi.


2: Peekytoe "Watermelon Gazpacho" | garlic, bell pepper, heirloom tomato, basil, pea greens, pickled watermelon, cucumber
Here we see a deconstructed gazpacho of sorts, with many of the traditional dish's ingredients represented. The quenelle of peekytoe was clearly the hero here, conveying a delectably sweet salinity that was further enhanced by the watermelon. The various vegetables at play were on point as well, and I loved the bright finish imparted by the pea tendrils. A light dish, full of summer-y flair.


3: Albacore Sashimi | Hawaiian papaya, red onion, cilantro, avocado, orange-ginger, pea tendrils
Albacore was light and fresh, augmented by the almost bracing acidity of its various accoutrements--a real jolt to the palate. Avocado, meanwhile, added an ascertainable weight to the entire dish that grounded the zingy tastes at play. Nice.


4: Rabbit Roulade | bacon, mushrooms, Fuji apple, sage, huckleberry
A roulade of rabbit was nicely savory, with some heady flavors present that were only heightened by the umami-rich mushrooms and bacon. Apples, meanwhile, provided an offsetting crunch, but overall, I wanted more kick, more verve to the dish.


5: Dover Sole | brown butter sauce, grilled zucchini and Japanese eggplant, bell pepper, artichokes
A Dover sole was presented to us whole, then filleted and served tableside. The fish, accompanied by lemon-caper brown butter, was on point, with a firm-yet-yielding bite and mildly savory relish that was adeptly accented by the citrus-y notes in the sauce. At the same time, the vegetables on the plate were commendable as well, with the carrot and fingerling potato being especially enjoyable.


At this point, we enjoyed a shot of slivovitz (a sort of Croatian plum brandy) with the Chef. It was my first experience with the liquor, and I rather liked its undertones of fruity sweetness.


6: Alaskan Halibut | grapes, tarragon, dates, hazelnut, cauliflower, lemon and Brussels sprout leaves
Halibut was nice, flaky and firm in consistency with a subtle, yet satisfying savoriness that was duly offset by the enveloping lemon-y notes in the dish. However, I wasn't huge into the grapes and dates here, finding them a tad sweet, but did appreciate the use of cauliflower, as well as the astringent taste and crunch of the Brussels sprouts.


7: Muscovy Duck Breast | baby leeks, morels, white asparagus, blood orange, coffee dust, pinot noir
Muscovy duck, unfortunately, was a touch dry, though it did show off a good flavor, nicely paired against the earthy morels and subtle bitterness of asparagus. The incorporation of blood orange, meanwhile, added a sweet 'n' sour component to the fray, though I wasn't quite as convinced about the use of coffee, finding its acridity a bit distracting.


8: Elk Tenderloin | brandied cherries, cipollini onions, butternut squash, crimini mushrooms
A petite tenderloin of elk was lean, yet tender, with a venison-esque quality to it and a delectable savoriness up front, along with a creeping gamy character toward the close. The meat was certainly tasty alone, but I also appreciated the cherries, which weren't overly saccharine, as well as the earthy flair of the 'shrooms and sweet-tangy cipollinis.


9: Brigante | pickled green apple, honey foam, fruit and nut bread
Transitioning to the sweet stuff now, our fromage course was a triangle of Brigante, a sheep's milk varietal hailing from the island of Sardinia in Italy. It was an easy-eating cheese, with a delicate, creamy essence and soft, smooth consistency. As such, the Brigante paired well with the crisp cuboids of apple, as well as the airy dollop of sugary honey foam. Great with the accompanying bread, too.


10: Beignets | sweet peach, bourbon caramel
Beignets were lovely, loaded with a hot, peach-y sweetness and showing off a perfect texture that was a blend of crisp and luscious. They were delicious alone, but what took 'em over the top was the bourbon caramel, with its boozy kick that formed a fitting foil to the fritters.


11: Chocolate Molten Whiskey Cake | Guinness ice cream and Bailey's whipped cream
We concluded with the kitchen's take on the ubiquitous molten lava cake, which I typically don't like seeing on menus. What made this iteration interesting, though, was the use of not one, but three types of alcohol. The cake itself was expectedly rich, oozing with dark chocolate-y goodness but taken up a notch by the woody quintessence of whiskey. At the same time, the Guinness ice cream and Bailey's Irish cream added further facets of booziness that did an admirable job in balancing out the heft of the cake.

It seems like Chef Kufek is doing just fine here, continuing in the tradition set forth by his predecessor Adam Horton. The cuisine suits the hunting-lodge-turned-restaurant environment, offering up tastes that are rustic and traditional in essence, but with a few twists and modern techniques thrown in for good measure. The food's interesting enough, refined enough, but doesn't stray too far from what diners expect of this romantic, old-world restaurant.

Sons & Daughters Restaurant
708 Bush St, San Francisco, CA 94108
415.391.8311
www.sonsanddaughterssf.com
Tue 07/31/2012, 08:00p-10:45p





To kick off my recent NorCal trip, I paid a visit to one of SF's latest and greatest newcomers, Matt McNamara and Teague Moriarty's Sons & Daughters, located in the City's TenderNob district. The Animal-style duo, almost unknown prior to the opening of the restaurant, have made quite a splash in the past year or so with their product-driven, progressive Californian cuisine, which many look toward as the future of Bay Area cooking: that is, the blend of modernist concepts with a firm commitment to "farm-to-table" ideals (as evinced by their one-acre farm in Los Gatos, tended by Cacye Hill). The two actually met in culinary school in 2004, reportedly a result of their shared interest in home brewing.

About the Chefs: A Bay Area native, Matt McNamara attended the University of Colorado at Boulder, and also began his professional kitchen career at about the same time, working as a baker at the Grana Bread Company in Carbondale, Colorado. This was followed up by an internship at the well-regarded Montagna at The Little Nell in Aspen, and later a stint at the famed Eleven Madison Park in New York, under Daniel Humm. He studied at the California Culinary Academy, and following graduation, worked the line at San Francisco's Poleng Lounge. In 2006, McNamara moved back to Carbondale to serve as Sous Chef at Restaurant Six89. He stayed there for two years before leaving to stage in Europe, landing at Dal Delicato in Naples, Italy; the Michelin three-star L'Arnsbourg in Baerenthal, France; and Vincents in Riga, Latvia. Upon returning Stateside, McNamara apprenticed at both Alex and Guy Savoy in Las Vegas, and then at Jean-Georges' eponymous flagship in NYC. He then returned to Northern California and became a private chef before starting work on his own restaurant.

Teague Moriarty, for his part, also hails from NorCal, Santa Cruz in particular. He too began his culinary career as a baker, at Emily's Bakery in his hometown, and also worked at the City's Whole Foods. Like his partner, Moriarty attended the CCA as well, graduating from the school in 2005. Following, he began cooking at San Francisco's Limón Rotisserie, then moved to B Restaurant & Bar across the Bay in Oakland. Moriarty later secured a Sous Chef position at Gregoire in Berkeley's famed Gourmet Ghetto (the home of Chez Panisse). He left in 2009, however, and began working as a private chef, all the while planning Sons & Daughters with McNamara and honing his modernist techniques.

Along with co-owner Travis Curtis, McNamara and Moriarty debuted Sons & Daughters in June of 2010, in the building formerly home to Fredy Fahrni's Cafe Mozart. Just three months later, Michael Bauer dropped a solid 2.5-star review in the SF Chronicle, a rating that was upgraded to a full triple a year later. Michelin, meanwhile, also granted the Chefs a star, and the restaurant enjoyed good press from Bon Appetit and GQ as well. Business was (and is) booming. In 2011, they brought on a full-time pastry chef from Boston, Kevin Gravito, and laid plans for Sweet Woodruff, a casual take-out place run by Manresa alumnus Isaac Miller (it bowed in January). Their latest accomplishment? Being named "2012 Rising Star Chefs" by the Chronicle.


As for Sons & Daughter's menu, it's definitely been ratcheted up a notch since the restaurant's debut. They opened with four courses at $48, plus $36 for wine, with all the dishes available à la carte as well. These days, it's an eight-courser priced at $98 (there's also a slightly cheaper veggie menu), with an additional $69 added for pairings by Sommelier Carlin Karr. Note signatures from Chef de Cuisine Duncan Holmes (ex-Saison), Sous Chef Val Cantu (ex-Benu), Tony Luangrath (ex-Saison), Timofei Osipenko (ex-Benu), and stagiare Kathy Ayers. Click for larger versions.


1: Marin miyagi    Trout roe    Buttermilk
BRUT CHAMPAGNE  .  Lancelot-Pienne 'Blanc de Blancs' Grand Cru  .  NV Cramant
Kicking things off was a duet of amuses. First: a lone Marin Miyagi oyster, topped with lime granité and opal basil. There was an intense (perhaps too intense) sourness up front, leading to a clean, refined brine on the finish, joined by a bracing temperature contrast courtesy of the granita. More to my liking was a buttermilk chicharron with smoked crème fraîche, green onion salt, dill, and trout roe. This was straightforward in concept but fantastic in execution, with a beautiful balance between saline and onion-y flavors, all moderated by the lush, creamy crème. Great textures, too, and lovely with the accompanying crisp, apple-y, mineral-tinged sparkler.


2: Fort Bragg sea urchin    Local seaweed    Purslane
ALBARINO  .  Do Ferreiro 'Rebisaca'  .  2010  .  Rias Baixas
The kitchen followed up with a beautifully-composed salad, highlighting the natural sweetness and luxuriousness of sea urchin, as well as its inherent salinity. The uni was spot on, even garnering the approval of one of my urchin-hating dining companions. As delish as it was though, the tempering taste and crunch of the seaweed was crucial as well, forming a dish that really showcased the essence of the sea, tied together by an enveloping dashi vinaigrette.


Serving as the first item of our bread service was a "cute" piece of buckwheat toast. Taken alone, I found it delightfully buttery, crisp, and delicious, but the bread was taken to another level with the application of the accompanying yogurt- and sea-salt-laced butter.


3: Marigold greens    Radish    Tomales bay mussel
GRUNER VELTLINER  .  Hiedler 'Loess'  .  2011  .  Kamptal
I'm quite the fan of fried mussels, and here the Tomales Bay varietals were totally on point: crisp on the outside yet wonderfully creamy and saline within--I could've eaten a whole bowl of 'em. As good as the mussels were, though, the crux of the dish was the chilled marigold gazpacho, which provided an eminently robust, citric, minty, kick-in-the-pants jolt of verdant relish, that, along with the crunchy radishes, counteracted the bivalve in superb fashion. The sheer brightness in the course was a good pair for the accompanying Grüner, with its heady dose of minerality and quintessentially strong food friendliness.


Next up was an archetypal sourdough roll, nice and tangy, rather spherical in shape, and with a satisfyingly crisp outer layer.


4: Beet    Vadouvan    Quail bush
RIESLING  .  Doennhoff  .  2010  .  Nahe
Beets were surprisingly palatable to me, pleasantly firm in consistency, their sweetness deftly offset by the creamy and vegetal components in the dish. In addition, I really appreciated the pickled mustard seeds here, and how their astringency helped to ground and moderate everything. Great wine pairing too, with the Dönnhoff showing off a classically off-dry Riesling character.


5: Local salmon    Summer squash    White strawberries
REBULA  .  Kabaj  .  2009  .  Goriska Brda, Slovenia
The salmon was about as flawless as they come, a perfect example of a cooked specimen. I loved its supple, yet still slightly resilient consistency, as well as its wonderfully saline flavor, amped up by the fish's gorgeously crisp, salty layer of skin. The salmon would've been heavenly alone, but the accompanying sweet and spicy fumé broth was a superb complement, accenting the fish in stellar fashion. I also appreciated the various vegetables at play here, as well as the tart, tiny strawberries present.


Our final bread of the evening was arguably my favorite, and perhaps the best pretzel bread that I'd ever eaten. I absolutely adored the salty kick on this one--yum.


6: Squab    Marcona almond    Fennel
PINOT NOIR  .  Evening Land  .  2009  .  Vosne Romanee
The most substantial course of the menu was this prototypically prepared sous vide squab, done to just the right temperature, making it juicy and tender, and teeming with deep, earthy flavors. Fennel, meanwhile, imparted a delicious crunch and astringency to the course, and even the juicy suprêmes of tangelo made sense. I was a bit concerned about the use of almond in the dish, but its nutty flair actually worked, too. One of my dining companions, who'd never had squab before, loved the dish upon first bite, and so did I.


7: Melon    Geranium    Salad burnet
An intermezzo before dessert: the sorbet of germanium was a taste to behold, an energizing jolt to the senses augmented by the minty salad burnet, dampened in part by the sugary cubes of melon by its side. Very nice.


8: Chocolate    Eucalyptus    Chocolate mint
FLORA  .  Matthiasson  .  2010  .  Napa
Dinner ended on a strong note. A Napoleon of dark chocolate conveyed a saccharine, mouth-watering bitterness, interspersed with notes of mint and fruity hints of Bing cherry. Tasty. However, the star of the show was the marvelous eucalyptus ice cream, with its exhilaratingly refreshing, herbaceous flavor that played perfectly against the chocolate--a real breath of fresh air.


To close: some delightfully floral chamomile-lavender madeleines.

McNamara and Moriarty have got a winner on their hands in the form of Sons & Daughters. Their cooking represents a welcome evolution of a culinary scene that has moved beyond mere "figs on a plate." The food shows an avant garde bent, but pays homage to the farm-to-table cookery that Northern California is known for. Technique is utilized to the maximum, sure, but it's not necessarily made obvious to the diner. Instead, the Chefs are doing a bang-up job in showing us all that's great about fresh, local, seasonal product, but just presenting in a slightly new light. These guys are killing it at this point, and I'm betting that they'll only get better with time. Two stars doesn't seem too far away.

---

Though quite happy with the meal at Sons & Daughters, we weren't quite full at this point and thus headed out to the Mission in search of the district's famed burrito. Our intended destination was the well-regarded La Taqueria, but alas, they'd already closed by the time we arrived. Downtrodden, we settled for El Farolito, where, ironically, I enjoyed not their burrito but five types of tacos: pollo, sesos, carne asada, carnitas, y cabeza. Not bad, though nothing mind-blowing.

---

After stuffing ourselves with tacos, we headed up to Twin Peaks to catch a panoramic view of the City from Christmas Tree Point. That particularly bright row of lights is Market Street.

Marlowe Restaurant
330 Townsend St, San Francisco, CA 94107
415.974.5599
www.marlowesf.com
Wed 08/01/2012, 11:40a-01:00p





Following dinner the previous night at Sons & Daughters, our first lunch in the City would be at Marlowe in SoMa, a modern, market-driven neighborhood bistro recommended to me by Alma's Ari Taymor (himself a Bay Area chef). Marlowe is the work of restaurateur Anna Weinberg, partner Dave Stanton, plus Executive Chef Jennifer Puccio, and is actually named after Weinberg's great-grandfather's butcher shop back in Boston. It's also, apparently, the home of San Francisco's best burger (says Bauer).

About the Chef: Puccio hails from back East, and got her start with James Beard winner Ana Sortun, chef/owner of Oleana and Sofra out in Cambridge, MA. Following her stint with Sortun, she and her husband Ed moved out to Northern California, and Puccio soon found employment at Daniel Patterson's former restaurant Elisabeth Daniel, the predecessor to Coi. From there, she transitioned to Rivoli in Berkeley, then to the well-regarded vegetarian-focused Ubuntu in Napa (now shuttered, sadly), and finally to tapas joint Ramblas in San Francisco. In 2008, Puccio took on the Exec Chef role at Cortez. The restaurant received a healthy three stars from the Chronicle's Michael Bauer, but closed in the latter half of 2009.

Following that setback, Puccio started work on Marlowe and debuted the restaurant in the former home of Anna Weinberg and Luke Mangan's South Food + Wine Bar in February 2010. Just a few months later, Bauer once again bestowed three stars on the Chef, and Marlowe was quickly recognized as one of the top 10 best new restaurants of the year, and one of the top 100 places overall in the Bay Area. Given the acclaim that Marlowe had enjoyed, the trio opened Park Tavern (an "upscale American tavern") in North Beach last year, which has also been a success.


Marlowe's menu slants towards the meat-centric and the market's whims. It's a short but sweet selection of appealing dishes, joined by a commendable selection of wines, some decent beers, and smattering of interesting sodas, all assembled by GM Sarah Varley. Click for larger versions.


I began with the Butcher's Mistress [$12], Marlowe's oft-changing sparkling wine cocktail, featuring Prosecco, elderflower, and grapefruit on this day. It was a light, refreshing, summer-y libation, with a fruity, almost peach-y sugariness up front, balanced by tangy tones of grapefruit and the booziness of the wine.


Classic Steak Tartare [$13.00] | poached quail egg, crostini
As the name implies, Puccio's steak tartar definitely leaned toward the classic side of things. The meat itself was on point--supple yet slightly springy--with a satisfying savor and a great bit of herb-y kick. Egg, meanwhile, offered up an enveloping richness to tie the beef together, and naturally, the crunchy slivers of toast functioned accordingly as well.


Crispy Brussels Sprout Chips [$7.00] | lemon & sea salt
Everyone knows that I'm a Brussels sprouts fiend, so this was a must-order item for me. What we have here are the leaves of the vegetable, fried with brown butter and joined by lemon and sea salt. I loved the crisp consistency of the leaves, as well as their bitter touch of char and pinpoints of saltiness, deftly counteracted by an overarching essence of lemon. My only concern was that I would've liked some of the hearts to have been included here, to offer up a more satisfying, substantial bite to the dish.


Baked Oysters [$3.00/each] | New England chowder in a shell
I'm also quite the sucker for baked oysters, and here they did not disappoint. Likened to a "New England chowder" on the menu, they really didn't stray far from that description. I found them delectably hot and hearty, with a lovely savory character at first, and the inherent brine of the bivalve showing through on the finish. I appreciated how the texture of the oyster was so adeptly preserved here as well.


We also made sure to sample some sodas. The Boylans Regular Cola, New Jersey [$4] was solid, but nothing to write home about. On the other hand, the Abita Root Beer, Louisiana [$4] was fantastic, no question the best root beer that I've tasted. Abita, interestingly enough, is much better known for its beers; I'm particularly fond of their raspberry-laced Purple Haze.


Marlowe Burger [$13.00] | caramelized onions, cheddar, bacon & horseradish aioli
And now the moment of truth. This was a tasty burger, featuring a patty of Niman Ranch beef, enhanced by the incorporation of lamb, then joined by a tangy horseradish aioli, salty cheddar, caramelized onions, shards of lettuce, and bacon, all on an Acme bun. The meat itself, done medium-rare, was on point--utterly tender and juicy, with a great savoriness and weight, keenly augmented by the slight sweetness of the onions. The key, though, was the saltiness and crunchiness imparted by the bacon, as well as the cool, refreshing counter of the lettuce. Overall, very nicely integrated. Of course, we can't forget about the French fries, either. They were delicious as well: crisp on the outside, yet still creamy on the inside, and excellent when taken with a dab of ketchup.


Warm Rock Shrimp Roll [$13.00] | Napa cabbage slaw, basil, mint, citrus aioli, smoke & chili
Given the heft of the burger, we followed it up with a lighter sandwich that could be thought of as a riff on the traditional lobster roll. Indeed, in place of lobster, we had snappy, springy bits of rock shrimp. I also appreciated the crunch imparted by the cabbage here, as well as the minty, herbaceous notes enveloping the entire dish, all tied together by that tangy aioli. However, overall I wanted more zing, more brightness to the course; it just didn't "pop" for me.


Crispy Fried Chicken Sandwich [$13.00] | Caesar aioli, bacon & field greens
We thought that was it for the savories, but the kitchen decided to send out Puccio's take on the classic fried chicken sandwich, much to our surprise. We were already pretty full at this point, but still ate it up. I found the bird itself tender and succulent, with a light, yet crisp fried coating and a delicate flavor amped up by the salty, crunchy strips of bacon layered on top. Rounding out the sandwich was a mixture of greens, dressed with a Caesar aioli, its light, piquant character balancing out things nicely.


This was a heavy lunch, and we were quite stuffed already, but made sure to save room for at least one dessert. Click for a larger version.


Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta Affogato [$7.00] | amaretto, lemon biscotti
Interestingly, Marlowe's desserts come exclusively in jar form, so we went with a delightful vanilla panna cotta. It was pretty fabulous, one of the best preparations I've had in fact. The cream itself was dense, yet delicate, with a refined vanilla taste duly accented by the dark, nutty, chocolate-y, coffee-tinged flavors up top.

So is this SF's best burger? It just might be. Unfortunately, I haven't had the opportunity to sample some of the other contenders, but I can say that it was pretty damn tasty. Really though, there's more to Marlowe that just the hamburger. We're talking about "bistro" fare, sure, but there's a certain precision and robustness here that I recognize and appreciate. It's an appealing, approachable mix of rustic yet elegant that points to the talents of the Chef--the quintessential neighborhood type of place perhaps?

Benu Restaurant
22 Hawthorne St, San Francisco, CA 94105
415.685.4860
www.benusf.com
Wed 08/01/2012, 08:00p-12:20a



[NOTE: There's a first time for everything, and unfortunately, tonight was the first time that I'd forgotten my camera's memory card. When I saw the "NO CARD" flash on the LCD, my heart sank, and I had a sick feeling in my stomach; it took a few seconds for the shock to actually register. To attempt to remedy the situation, I searched for open electronics stores nearby, but no such luck. I asked my dining companions if they knew anyone close by with a compatible card, and even inquired with our server to see if the staff had access to one, but no dice. As such, I had to ask one of my colleagues, Shane Liu, to photograph the dishes using a camera phone. The results, regrettably, were of course suboptimal, but given the strength of the meal, I felt that they were still worthy of posting.]

My first experience at The French Laundry, way back in '07, remains, to this day, one of the best, and most important meals that I'd ever had. The chef in charge of the kitchen at the time was Thomas Keller's right-hand man Corey Lee, and given the sheer strength of that dinner, it came as no surprise to me when he announced his departure from the landmark restaurant two years later. Lee left to open up his first solo project, entitled Benu, named after Bennu, the Egyptian mythological incarnation of the phoenix. The debut of the restaurant in 2010, thus, represented a rebirth of sorts for Lee, who broke way from the constraints of TFL to bring forth his own brand of modernist American fare, imbued with a keen sense of Asian cookery and making for a unique style that simply wasn't feasible in his previous kitchen.

About the Chef: Chef Lee was born in Seoul in 1977, the son of a graphic designer mother and engineer father, whose career brought the family--including two sisters--Stateside in 1983. Lee was raised in New York City at first, but then also lived in Connecticut and eventually New Jersey, graduating from Tenafly High School in 1995. It was then, at age 17, when he began his culinary career, accidentally no less. He needed a job, and a friend landed him a position at the new Blue Ribbon Sushi in SoHo, which had just opened at the time. Lee started out waiting tables, but was instantly drawn to the kitchen, and ended up cooking for the first time at the Bromberg brothers' other restaurant, Blue Ribbon.

After committing himself to the profession, he moved to England in 1997, staging at a number of places include Interlude, Gordon Ramsay's Savoy Grill, Marco Pierre White's Oak Room at Le Meridien Piccadilly, Pierre Koffmann's La Tante Claire, and Tom Aikens' Pied à Terre. During this period, Lee also worked in France, cooking in the kitchens of legendary chefs Guy Savoy and Alain Senderens. He actually received a job offer from the Michelin-starred La Grande Cascade, Jean-Louis Nomicos' place near Paris' Bois de Boulogne, but visa issues caused that opportunity to fall through. Lee, thus, moved back to Manhattan, taking up residence at Normand Laprise's Cena for a year, then moving to Lespinasse (under Christian Delouvrier) in the St. Regis for a couple more. He worked for Daniel Boulud at DB Bistro Moderne briefly before shipping out to California in 2001

Lee started out at The French Laundry as a chef de partie, and was promoted to Sous Chef in 2003. The following year, he helped open Thomas Keller's Per Se out in New York, then returned to Yountville in 2005 as Chef de Cuisine. It was then when Lee really began making a name for himself. In 2006, he was deemed "Rising Star Chef of the Year" by James Beard, as well as a "Rising Star Chef" by the San Francisco Chronicle. During his tenure there, The French Laundry was also named the top restaurant in the country by The World's 50 Best Restaurants, and received three stars from the Michelin guide. Lee was at the top of his game, but soon, to the dismay of many, he announced his departure from the iconic eatery in 2008, leaving for good in July 2009 to work on Benu.

Benu, as it were, was originally slated to debut in New York, but due to the Great Recession, Lee ended up in San Francisco. The decision actually worked out for the better, as the Chef was now free to leverage all the existing relationships with purveyors that he'd built up over the years, not to mention his old customer base. Lee spent over a year building up Benu, with the restaurant finally bowing in August of 2010. It was met with considerable acclaim from the get go. Michelin doled out one star right off the bat, with the deuce coming the following year. The SF Chronicle's Michael Bauer award 3.5 stars just three months after opening, and upgraded that rating to the full four just this February. In January 2011, the New York Times called Benu one of the "10 Restaurants Worth a Plane Ride" and the Wall Street Journal followed that up in October with a nomination for "Next Big Restaurant." Food & Wine, meanwhile, christened Lee "Best New Chef" for 2012, and perhaps most tellingly, notorious Bay Area food scene hater David Chang (remember figs on a plate?) even wondered if Benu could be the "best restaurant in America?"


There are two dining options at Benu: à la carte and an 18-course tasting menu priced at $180, though I'm not sure why you'd go with the former here. To drink, think an optional beverage pairing priced at $130 per head, courtesy of Beverage Director Yoon Ha and Sommelier Bobby Conroy, in addition to a lengthy list of wines, sakes, and beers. Click for larger versions.


1: thousand-year-old quail egg, potage, ginger
schloss gobelsburg, grüner veltliner, steinsetz, kamptal, austria 2010
We started our adventure with Lee's homage to the Chinese century egg, a variation of which has pretty much been on the menu continuously since Benu opened. The pidan itself was spot on, with a delightfully gelatinous consistency and an eggy, piquant flair that intertwined beautifully with the notes of ginger present. The paired potage, meanwhile, contributed an enveloping weight and heartiness that grounded and moderated the dish.


"Bread" service was composed of a thin buckwheat lavash, infused with nori and sesame. It was quite nice, somewhat reminiscent of the sesame seed flatbread at wd~50 in fact, with a great crunch and nutty notes of sesame initially, leading to the umami-rich relish of nori on the finish.


2: oyster, pork belly, kimchi
schloss gobelsburg, grüner veltliner, steinsetz, kamptal, austria 2010
The curious combination of oyster and pork made a reappearance here, not long after I'd had a tasty version at Miles Thompson's Vagrancy Project. Here, Lee presents a singular bite containing braised belly, oyster, kimchi crème fraîche, and kimchi foam, all encased in a container of dehydrated kimchi broth "glass." There's quite a bit of complexity that goes into this one bite, with the flavors of briny oyster and savory pork dancing back and forth on the palate, all tempered by a subtle veil of pickle-y piquancy.


3: potato salad with anchovy
konishi, sesshu otokoyama, "man's mountain," junmai, hyogo, japan
Regular readers will know that I'm quite the potato salad fiend, and the version served tonight--made with Yukon Gold potatoes, caramelized anchovy, chili curls, and microcelery--was unquestionably the most ambitious version that I'd ever had. The dish showed off a fantastic salinity from the anchovy that recalled the dried fish snacks I used to consume as a child. The intense brine in the dish was perfectly countered by the sweetness inherent in the caramelization process, while the chilies and celery further balanced out the course. Just some laser-focused flavors here, making this one of the highlights of the meal for me.


4: wild salmon roe, eggplant, buckwheat, perilla
konishi, sesshu otokoyama, "man's mountain," junmai, hyogo, japan
Here, the smokiness of the eggplant purée was deftly played against the sharp salinity of the ikura, making for a forceful combo that was keenly moderated by the crunch bits of buckwheat in the dish. I also appreciated the subtle whisper of shiso here, and found the course superb with the paired junmai sake.


5: chicken liver steamed in rice wine, caviar, green apple, radish, brioche
huët, vouvray, le haut lieu, demi-sec, loire, france 2007
Next up was a variation on Benu's longstanding monkfish liver dish with pistachio purée and shaved cauliflower. Instead of ankimo, we had here a disk of the more prosaic chicken liver, but what a liver! Invigorated by a bath in rice wine, it displayed a delicate, refined headiness that crept up on the palate, augmented by salty kicks of caviar, yet toned down by the sweet, juicy, crunchy cubes of apple. And to round out the dish? A perfect slice of toasted brioche and a super smart wine pairing from the Sommelier.


6: eel, feuille de brick, crème fraîche, lime
do ferreiro, albariño, rías baixas, spain 2010
In this whimsically-presented course, eel came rolled in a "cigarette" of crisp, flaky filo pastry (the feuille de brick), the slight sweetness in the dough keenly counteracting the fishy savor of the anguille. The straw-shaped contraption was certainly delectable alone, but I also appreciated the lushness of the crème fraîche, duly perked up with sharp accents of lime. Beautiful wine here too, with the Albariño complementing the citrus in the dish in stellar fashion.


7: omasum tripe, shrimp, yellow chive, lovage
do ferreiro, albariño, rías baixas, spain 2010
The star of the show in what could arguably be my favorite course of the evening was omasum, a sort of tripe sometimes utilized in dim sum. The offal was prepared sous vide with a ginger-serrano marinade, making for an utterly tender cut of stomach that showed off an endearing, almost yuba-like consistency. Rock shrimp were also highlighted, their snappy texture on proud display in contrast against the silky omasum, all while a nose of ginger enveloped the entire dish, making for a finish that lingered on and on with a touch of spice. I loved the bright, focused flavors here, making this easily the best tripe dish that I'd ever eaten.


8: tomato and preserved plum
Acting as sort of an intermezzo in the progression of food was a shot of preserved plum joined by fresh tomato, jellied tomato, and whipped tomato. This was certainly a bracing kick to the palate, with the plum taking on a salty-sour suan mei-like essence, counterbalanced by the subtly sweet, refreshing character of the three faces of tomato.


9: lobster coral xiao long bao
rodenbach, flemish red brown ale, grand cru, belgium
Call me crazy, but this might've been the best xiaolongbao I've ever had. Chef Lee's original version of the dish contained foie gras, but given the recent ban, lobster coral (eggs) has been substituted in its place, and with fantastic results. The roe imparted an immense depth of flavor to the dumplings, which burst instantly upon mastication, their thin skins giving way to loads of rich, briny soup on the palate. I loved the XLB alone, but the acidity provided by the black rice-banyuls vinegar dipping sauce formed a superb complement, countervailing the gravity of the dish admirably. I could've easily taken on a half-dozen more of these.


10: salt and pepper squid
rodenbach, flemish red brown ale, grand cru, belgium
This next course was, of course, a reimagination of the ubiquitous Chinese dish, a pretty big reimagination at that, composed of a squid ink chip, squid mousse, dehydrated garlic powder, dehydrated serrano powder, puréed garlic, and pickled serrano. It really did a wonderful job in smartly conveying the essence of the squid in multiple facets, and I loved the bright flavors and heat imparted by the chili here, as well as how the garlic undertones bolstered the entire chip. A fun dish, one that sort of reminded me of a shrimp cracker, but taken to the Nth level.


11: sablefish, soft shell clam, black bean, squash
schloss schönborn, riesling kabinett, hattenheimer pfaffenberg, rheingau, germany 2003
We had here sablefish, a.k.a. black cod, joined by squash blossom, squash ribbons, black bean, and pickled garlic, all topped with clam. The fish itself was spot on: fatty, flaky, and falling-apart tender, with a mild taste that went swimmingly with the sweet piquancy of the fermented bean. Clams, meanwhile, did a great job in adding some textural variation to the dish, and I appreciated the levity imparted by the crunchy squash as well. I loved how the wine paired with the soybean here, too.


12: abalone blanquette
louis michel, vaillons, prémier cru, chablis, france 2010
Here, Lee riffs on the classic French dish of blanquette de veau, substituting abalone in place of veal, and adding clove, lemon confit, and button mushrooms, all over basmati rice. It was pretty fantastic, actually, one of the highlights of the meal no doubt. It started with the rice: firm, long, distinct grains that really set the stage for the dish. On top of that, I absolutely adored the textural interplay between the mushrooms and abalone; in fact, the latter was some of the best I've had, ever. Also key was the overarching veil of lemon, which, along with the dish's broth, integrated everything together just perfectly. A hearty, home-y dish in some ways, yet utterly refined.


13: roast quail, turnip, cherry, nasturtium
lioco, pinot noir, anderson valley, california 2010
Moving on to the heavier courses now, we had here quail, marinated in tamari (soy sauce) and Shaoxing wine, then roasted. It was a flawlessly-cooked example of the bird, with a mouth-watering savoriness accentuated by the sugariness of cherry (which I especially enjoyed against the vanilla notes in the wine), all while turnips provided delightfully offsetting notes of bitterness to the mix, as well as a well-placed crunchiness.


14: beef rib, crispy lily bulb, celery, shiitake mushroom, steak sauce
skinner, grenache blend, eighteen sixty one, el dorado, california 2008
Here was an absolutely gorgeous cut of beef, from Kansas' Cherry Creek Farms (I believe that was the name). The rib was beautifully marbled, with an undeniably rich, heady, positively bovine relish that was keenly matched by its accompaniments of lily bulb (which I was particularly fond of) and celery. I even liked the sweet-ish "steak sauce." My only concern here was that some of us wanted the beef to be more tender and a bit less "crunchy."


15: "shark's fin" soup, dungeness crab, Jinhua ham, black truffle custard
blandy's, verdelho, madeira, portugal 1968
And here we come to Lee's pièce de résistance, the one dish that the Chef is unquestionably the most known for. It's something that's been on the menu since day one, and is basically a modernist interpretation of the iconic shark's fin soup, a staple of Chinese culture oft served at wedding banquets and other such celebrations. The "mock" shark fin recalled the gelatinous consistency of the real thing, though it certainly wasn't spot on. That being said, the dish was delicious--and better than any traditional presentation of the dish I've had--a real explosion of flavors that left me wanting more. The crux of the course for me was the Jinhua broth, with its incredible depth and umami-soaked savor that just enveloped and enriched the entire dish. To this, we had an amazing earthiness from the truffle custard, joined by a very focused sweetness and brine from the crab, as well as a delightful tint of piquancy from the ginger. A must try.


16: melon, sake, pine
With the savories dispensed with, we enjoyed a sort of pre-dessert course of sake sorbet. The sorbet was quite something, really doing a nice job in capturing the essence of the beverage. It was tasty alone, but I quite appreciated its interaction with the sugary bits of melon present, and really liked the overarching notes of pine in the dish.


17: spice cake, blueberry, yogurt, oatmeal ice cream
niepoort, colheita tawny, portugal 1998
Our last proper course of the evening brought along this artfully-plated dessert. The herbal, spicy nature of the cake was certainly commendable, and I appreciated the integrating sweetness of the berries, but for me the hero in the dish was clearly the oatmeal ice cream. It was marvelous, proudly conveying the quintessence of oat while moderating and tying together the course. Overall, a complex, multifaceted dessert with a smart use of varying tastes and textures, along with a very laudable incorporation of a savory element.


18: chocolates
Various chocolates arrived in their own custom-designed container, seemingly carved out of a single block of wood. We had a white chocolate with dried fruit and almond, a fleur de sel chocolate with toasted sesame and strawberry, a dark chocolate shell with cognac, and a milk chocolate with walnut, surprisingly my favorite of the quartet.

Based on my experience tonight, it's my belief that Benu deserves to be upgraded to Michelin three-star status. The meal, as well as Lee's culinary point of view, was that strong. The food shines as a testament to modernist sensibilities and contemporary aesthetics, but at the same time, draws upon the culinary traditions of Asia to pay homage to the flavors and culture of the region. Lee's style isn't overly "molecular," and the genius here is that such techniques are so seamlessly integrated into the meal--you know it's there, but it's not in your face, so to speak. This is evocative cooking, cutting edge cooking, intellectual cooking, but also uncompromisingly delicious cooking, and to my knowledge, there's no one else doing quite what Lee's doing at the moment, at least not in the United States. And while we're at it, let's not forget about the beverage pairings, the handiwork of Beverage Director Yoon Ha. In terms of matching with the character of the food, as well as being delicious alone, they were simply some of the best I'd ever encountered. Ha should definitely be commended for his efforts. In the end, everything just came together in near-flawless fashion at Benu, making it arguably my top meal of the year so far. Mr. Chang may be on to something here after all.

Yank Sing Restaurant
49 Stevenson St, San Francisco, CA 94105
415.541.4949
www.yanksing.com
Thu 08/02/2012, 12:55p-02:05p



Following a stellar dinner at Benu the previous night, we stuck with the Asian theme and headed up to Yank Sing for some dim sum. Named after the "City of the Rams," an ancient name for Guangzhou/Canton, the restaurant is one of the grande dames of Chinese dining in San Francisco, and is considered by many to offer the City's premier yum cha experience.

Yank Sing is the brainchild of Alice Chan, who, along with her family, immigrated to the US from China in the 1950's following the Communist revolution in their home country. She initially found employment at Lotus Garden, one of San Francisco's few Chinese eateries, and eventually had her son Henry start helping her there (he was nine years old, so child labor laws must've been a bit more lax back then). After working at Lotus Garden for several years, Alice and her husband George launched Yank Sing in a small 40-seat space in Chinatown (at the southwest corner of Broadway and Powell) in 1958. It was the third dim sum restaurant in the City, and was a rousing success; as a result, in 1962, Yank Sing relocated to a larger 120-person space down Broadway.

Son Henry, meanwhile, studied finance at Cal State Los Angeles, and thus came up with the idea of growing the business by turning Yank Sing into a more modern, upscale restaurant that appealed to non-Chinese customers. This was a vision not shared by his father. After getting married to wife Judy in 1970, Henry opened a new outpost of the family business at 53 Stevenson in the Financial District. The year was 1974, and the place was a smash hit. However, Henry and his dad kept butting heads about how things were run, causing a rift in the family. As such, Henry and Judy moved away to pursue their medical careers; Henry enrolled in a medical school in Manila, while Judy studied pharmacy. However, in 1979, family matriarch Alice fell ill, and her son soon returned to keep the business afloat. She passed away in 1981, just months after a third, grander location of Yank Sing opened on Battery Street.

The new restaurant was a handful financially, though. The Chinatown space fell by the wayside the following year, and Henry continued to fight with his father, who, along with his cronies, was eventually forced out of the business. With the familial issues taken care of, Henry focused on running the show at Yank Sing, turning the restaurant into one of the City's premier dining destinations. The Stevenson location, meanwhile, ended up closing from 1986 to 1990, during which time the building it was housed in was demolished and rebuilt; it reopened with a street number of 49. In March of 2001, the Battery restaurant shuttered after the building's owner decided to turn the structure into a hotel. In anticipation of the closure, Henry had scoped out a 248-seat space in Rincon Center, and the restaurant quickly moved into that space, where it remains today.

With Henry edging near retirement, Yank Sing is transitioning to the third-generation of ownership: Vera Chan and her husband Nathan Waller. From an early age, Vera knew that she wanted to take over the family business, even attending Cornell's hotel management school to sharpen her skills. Following graduation, she moved to Hong Kong for four years to work in media sales, during which time she met her future husband. After the two tied the knot, they relocated back to the Bay Area to be closer to the family as well as the restaurants, which they control today. So far, they appear to be doing quite well. Yank Sing has been a mainstay on Michael Bauer's list of "Top 100 Bay Area Restaurants," as well as the Michelin Guide's Bib Gourmand list ever since its inaugural 2008 edition. In 2009, it even got a nod from James Beard in the form of an "America's Classics" award.


Inside, things are bright and clean, though you'd be hard-pressed to spot any Asians dining here--generally not a good sign.


Yank Sing prides itself on offering a large variety of dim sum items, both traditional and modern. You'll find all your favorites, though there are genuinely a few oddballs in here such as chicken satay, lettuce cups, and even crab rangoon(!), all part of the "Creative Collection" I assume. Note that there's no Chinese on the menu--generally not a good sign. Click for larger versions.


Shanghai Kurobuta Pork Dumpling [$12.25]
Yank Sing's xiaolongbao are one of the restaurant's signature items, made here with the upscale ingredient of minced Kurobuta pork, along with scallion and ginger. They were actually quite nice, with a lovely pork-y relish, a delicate wrapper, and a torrent savory soup released upon mastication. I especially enjoyed the dumplings with a dollop of vinegar, but what a price to pay!


Honey Baked Seabass [$19.00]
Seabass was tender and flaky, with a mild flavor accented by undertones of sweetness from the honey utilized. Sort of an odd dish to find at dim sum.


Turnip Cake [$4.95]
The luobo gao was a commendable version of the classic dish, made from daikon and rice flour. I appreciated its soft, creamy interior and crisp fried outer layer, and quite enjoyed the contrast between the subtle turnip and the umami-rich smack of the xia mi dried shrimp.


Shrimp Dumpling [$6.10]
Yank Sing's xia jiao were spot on, a tasty mix of chopped shrimp and winter bamboo, all encased in a delightfully delicate skin. I was especially fond of the texture of the shrimp: still snappy and with a good bite. A quintessential example of har gow; we even ended up ordering another round.


Pork & Shrimp Siu Mye [$6.10]
The shumai was also a paradigmatic preparation of the classic dish. I had no complaints about the combination here of shrimp and pork, with its delectable mix of savory flavors.


Szechuan Chicken [$8.40]
This kung pao chicken-esque dish wasn't anything to write home about. There was a slight sweetness at play here, countervailed by the dish's slightly numbing spice (from Sichuan peppercorns I imagine), but unfortunately, the bird was dry, overcooked even.


Sweet Rice Dumpling [$9.90]
One of the items that I look forward to the most during yum cha is haam sui gaau, a.k.a. the saltwater dumpling. It's basically a football-shaped rice flour dumpling, fried and stuffed with a mixture of barbecued pork and veggies. Here, I liked the sweet, sticky, gelatinous exterior of the dumpling, as well as the salty, savory filling, making for a nice contrast in flavors and textures, but the dish was served too cold.


Steamed BBQ Pork Bun [$4.95]
Cha siu bao comprised a fluffy steamed bun encasing a center of honey-glazed BBQ pork. The flavors here were on point, with a good mix of sweet and savory from the meat (in fact, the dish was even featured on The Best Thing I Ever Ate), but unfortunately, there wasn't nearly enough of it--stingy on the filling!


Scallop Siu Mye [$5.25]
The scallop version of shaomai was quite tasty actually, and showed off the inherent sweetness, brine, and supple consistency of the shanbei rather well. Especially good when taken with a dab of hot mustard.


Chicken Feet [$4.95]
I'm not a huge fan of feng zhao, but these were about what I expected: gelatinous and crunchy, with an abundance of deep, dark, umami-rich notes.


Steamed Spareribs [$4.95]
Paigu were pretty textbook, with a typical mix of douchi and porcine flavors.


Beancurd Roll [$4.95]
The tofu skin roll was actually a pleasant surprise, with the skin really showing off the soft, supple character of the yuba, its mild savor deftly accompanied by the savoriness of the roll's filling.


Sautéed String Beans [$8.00]
String beans were tasty enough, sautéed to a crisp, crunchy consistency, with their bright, vegetal flavors keenly offset by the substantial umami relish imparted by the use of dried shrimp.


Peking Duck (by the slice) w/ Bun [$5.70]
Our final savory course comprised pricey slices of Peking duck, another one of Yank Sing's most well-known dishes. The skin was delicious, paper-thin and utterly crisp, with a great sweet-and-savory flair. The duck itself was less impressive. The flavor was there, but the meat I found somewhat dry and tough, as well as slightly cool to the touch. Nevertheless, it certainly wasn't bad when taken with some scallions and hoisin.


Sesame Ball [$10.50]
For dessert, we started with some sesame balls, which are glutinous rice flour shells stuffed with yellow bean paste, then rolled in sesame seeds and deep-fried. They were a good example of the dish: sticky and palate-coating in consistency, with a lip-smacking blend of nutty and sugary flavors.


Egg Custard Tart [$10.50]
We closed with Yank Sing's interpretation of the ubiquitous dan tat, which are crisp pastry shells filled with egg custard and baked. It was an excellent example of the dish, with a delectably smooth, eggy, sweet custard that was perfectly balanced by the warm, flaky pastry.

I appreciate what they're trying to do here: attempting to elevate and modernize dim sum, all while holding on to tradition. It's an admirable goal, but as it stands, it's not quite happening. As far as the food goes, it's above average overall. Some items were excellent examples of their respective dishes, but others, sadly, were merely passable. More troubling, perhaps, is the restaurant's attempt at modernization. The non-traditional dim sum dishes that we tried were somewhat lackluster, and really not all that modern (unlike the transcendent lobster coral XLBs at Benu, for example). And then there's the issue of cost, which came out to about $50 per head, easily four times the damage of a typical dim sum meal. If the cooking were spectacular--the best dim sum I've had (that would be Koi Palace)--I'd accept the price, albeit begrudgingly, but it simply wasn't.

The French Laundry
6640 Washington St, Yountville, CA 94599
707.944.2380
www.frenchlaundry.com
Thu 08/02/2012, 08:10p-12:45a





Following an absolutely stellar dinner at Benu the previous night, we made the trek to Corey Lee's old stomping grounds: The French Laundry, helmed these days by Chef Tim Hollingsworth.


Though the standard French Laundry menu goes for $270, service included, the price rises to $350 a head if you partake in the private dining room as we did. In addition, we added on a wine pairing at $250pp, as well as a supplemental truffle course at a hefty $75 a pop. Click for larger versions.


As always, we began with some gougères of Gruyère: utterly creamy, crisp, cheesy little bites that conveyed a simple, satisfying savoriness that one of my dining companions likened to that of Goldfish crackers!


Next up was The French Laundry's famous cornets, comprised of salmon tartar, red onion crème fraîche, and chive, all rolled in a black sesame tuile. They were as tasty as always, with the fish playing superbly against the lush, tangy crème, all while the tuile provided a deft undercurrent of nuttiness and a well-placed bit of crunch.


1: "OYSTERS AND PEARLS" | "Sabayon" of Pearl Tapioca with Island Creek Oysters and White Sturgeon Caviar
Gaston Chiquet, Blanc de Blancs d'Aÿ, Champagne, Grand Cru MV
If any dish deserves to be called The French Laundry's signature, then "Oysters & Pearls" would certainly be it. We had here a duo of trimmed oysters, uncommonly luxurious and buttery in character, with a soft, subtle brine that commingled wonderfully with the unabashed saltiness of the caviar. At the same time, a sabayon of tapioca served as the perfect temper to the course, counterbalancing the other elements both in terms of taste and texture. A perfected dish, and interestingly, one that I find almost comforting and home-y after having it so many times.


An off-menu, but oft-served course was composed of egg custard, white truffle, black truffle ragout, and a chive-embedded potato chip. Not surprisingly, we found this rather tasty, with the deep, earthy veil of truffle melding wonderfully with the mild, eggy custard, while the chip did a nice job in mixing things up texturally.


Bouchon Bakery bread service, once again, kicked off with a warm pan au lait, served with unsalted butter from Andante Dairy and a Thomas Keller-exclusive salted butter from Vermont's Diane Sinclair.


2: SALAD OF HAWAIIAN HEARTS OF PALM | Fresh Umeboshi, Cucumber and Black Sesame
Weegmüller, Riesling, "Haardter Bürgergarten," Kabinett, Pfalz 2009
Unfortunately I've never counted myself a fan of hearts of palm, but the presentation here was certainly palatable. The soft, vegetal essence of the palm was proudly displayed, brazenly contrasted against the salty, piquant pickled plum, while the sesame added an enveloping earthiness that actually tied everything together quite well.


A puck-shaped brioche was nicely flaky, with an almost croissant-like consistency that I enjoyed.


3: "BEETS & LEEKS" | Confit Fillet of Atlantic Cod, "Pommes Maxim's," Young Leeks and Red Beet Essence
Lieu - Dit, Chenin Blanc, Santa Barbara County 2011
Moving on now, the cod here was spot on: soft, dense, and flaky in consistency, with a mild taste that actually went surprisingly well with the sweetness of the beet. Meanwhile, the leeks provided a touch of countervailing astringency to things, but my favorite item was actually the pomme, with its mouth-watering salty, savory flair and wonderful crispness (we cracked its top crème brûlée style).


The last of three breads was a sourdough, a prototypical example of style.


4: "CAESAR SALAD" | Sweet Butter-Poached Maine Lobster "Mitts," Caramelized Romaine Lettuce, Garlic Melba and Anchovy "Ravigote"
Mas de Daumas Gassac, Vin de Pays de L'Hérault, Languedoc-Roussillon 2011
Hollingsworth's riff on the classic Caesar salad was one of the highlights of the meal. The "mitts" were superb, the best I've ever had in fact, with a wonderfully spongy consistency and briny sweetness that transitioned beautifully to the savory weight of the Parmesan. The ravigote, meanwhile, provided a delightful offsetting piquancy to the dish, and I quite appreciated the refreshing crunch of the lettuce as well.


5: DUNGENESS CRAB "PORRIDGE" | Ibérico Ham, Sweet Corn, Oyster Lettuce and Shaved Australian Black Truffles
Sandhi, Chardonnay, "Bien Nacido," Santa Maria Valley 2010
This porridge represented the $75 truffle supplement to the menu, but unfortunately, it was the weakest course of the evening. The kernels of corn were quite nice: crisp and sweet, pairing very well with the truffle. I also was fond of the saltiness imparted by the ham, but found the salinity of the oyster lettuce a bit too jarring. My biggest concern, though, was the lack of crab character in the dish. It was almost as if they forgot to add the ingredient at all (a sentiment shared by most all of my dining companions).


6: KUROBUTA PORK JOWL | Cauliflower, Sultana Raisins, Spanish Capers, Meyer Lemon, Parsley and "Beurre Noisette"
WesMar, Pinot Noir, "Oehlman Vineyard," Russian River Valley 2008
Fortunately, the kitchen bounced back with a lovely dish of Kurobuta jowl. The pork itself was pretty stellar: supple yet satisfying in texture, with an offsetting, bitter char and boatloads of pork-y savor. It was as pure of an expression of porcine goodness as you can get, with a tremendous gravity that was adroitly balanced by the meat's various accoutrements, the citrus-y overtones in the dish in particular.


7: SNAKE RIVER FARMS "CALOTTE DE BŒUF GRILLÉE" | "Sofrito," Haricots Verts, Tomato and "Fiçoïde Glaciale"
Livio Sassetti, Brunello di Montalcino, "Pertimali," Tuscany 2006
Our final savory course of the meal was this gorgeous rib eye cap. The meat was cooked in flawless fashion, with a wonderfully crisp, savory crust leading to a tender, succulent interior that really conveyed the heady, inherent character of the beef. The ribeye easily stood on its own merits, but its accompanying array of veggies was on point as well, providing crisp, refreshing points of levity to the dish. Overall, marvelous--one of the best cuts of steak that I've had in a while.


8: "LANDAFF" | Young Fennel, Brooks Cherry, Red Walnuts and Niçoise Olives
The cheese course featured Landaff, a cow's milk varietal from New Hampshire. It was a mild, easy-eating cheese, making it a suitable stage on which the other ingredients could really make themselves known. The cherry was key here, its sweet and tart flavors forming a fitting foil to the astringent, puckering smack of fennel.


9: PERSIAN LIME SORBET | Chilled Summer Sangria, Alpine Strawberries and Opal Basil
Pre-dessert comprised a delightfully sour lime sorbet, its kick-in-the-pants tartness duly counteracted by the sugary sangria and the bright, minty overtones from the basil.


10: "MARJOLAINE" | Praline Mousse, "Dacquiose" and Banana Sherbet
Disznókõ, Tokaji Aszú, 6 Puttonyos, Tokaj 2000
Dessert proper riffed on the classic French dacquoise, which is basically a cake of almond and hazelnut meringues. It was absolutely lovely, with an eminently balanced combination of chocolate and nutty flavors that played wonderfully off of the sweetness of the banana. Great textures, too.


Our parade of post-dessert treats began with the restaurant's signature "Coffee and Doughnuts:" beignets accompanied by a demitasse of espresso ice cream semifreddo.


An impressive platter of chocolates arrived next. Varieties included passion fruit, hazelnut, white chocolate-coconut, PB&J, mint, and salted caramel.


Finishing things off was a bowl of caramelized macadamias. They were excellent, with a wonderful crunchiness and a great mix of saccharine and nutty flavors.


Shortbread cookies to take away. Note the new metal tin, a recent addition.

This was a very solid meal, and the courses were mostly delicious, but it didn't quite live up to the expectations that I had for the restaurant. In fact, I'm sad to say that it was probably my weakest meal so far here. Not only did we have the misstep with the porridge, but, despite a few standout dishes, the courses in general lacked a certain verve and vitality that I've come to expect. Compared with meals at the likes of Benu or even Sons & Daughters on the nights leading up to this dinner, the food seemed somewhat staid, as if the kitchen has gotten a bit too set in their ways. I really hope that's not the case, but I do feel that some evolution is called for, lest the Laundry get left behind.

Mission Chinese Food
2234 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94110
415.863.2800
www.missionchinesefood.com
Fri 08/03/2012, 11:30a-12:55p





After dinner at The French Laundry the previous night, we headed out early the next day to lunch at the white-hot Mission Chinese Food, Danny Bowien and Anthony Myint's pop-up turned restaurant-within-a-restaurant turned eminently of-the-moment hipster Chinese haunt.

A bit of history: The story of MCF begins way back in 2008, when Bar Tartine Sous Chef Anthony Myint and his wife, Kenyon College professor Karen Leibowitz, began slanging pork belly flatbreads out of a rented taco truck in San Francisco. The truck was a rousing success, leading the duo to open up the Mission Street Food pop-up inside Lung Shan, an old-school, hole-in-the-wall Chinese eatery owned by Sue and Liang Zhou. Myint started out cooking once a week, then expanded to two nights a week and began bringing in a rotating selection of guests chefs, each preparing a totally different menu. Eventually, a chef that Myint worked with previously at Bar Tartine came in.

His name was James Daniel Bowien, a native of Korea who was adopted by an American family and raised in Oklahoma City. Though he grew up on a steady diet of fast food and other Middle American mainstays, he became fascinated with cookery after watching countless hours of the Food Network. After finishing high school, Bowien ended up being the frontman for a band that reportedly opened up for the Flaming Lips, and moved to the Bay Area in 2002 when he was 20 years old. He enrolled in, and dropped out of culinary school, and subsequently relocated to New York. Bowien worked at the famed Tribeca Grill for a while, then took on a role at Josh DeChellis and Pete Serpico's now-shuttered Sumile (Sushi).

With a solid foundation in the kitchen, he returned to SF and found employment at Blowfish Sushi. Later, he began working days at Mike Selvera's Bar Crudo (for free no less) and nights at Slow Club and Tsunami. From there, Bowien became opening Chef de Cuisine at Italian eatery Farina, and in 2008, shocked everybody by winning the Pesto World Championship in Genoa. Soon afterward, he auditioned for The Next Food Network Star, but didn't make the cut. The Chef then worked a stint at Bar Tartine in 2009, and also took on positions at Good Evening Thursday and Magnolia Pub & Brewery before joining Myint at Mission Street Food.

Bowien quickly ditched his other jobs, and the two debuted spin-off Mission Burger at Duc Loi Supermarket in August 2009, serving up a high-end burger replete with a Heston Blumenthal-inspired patty (à la Playground) and pickled okra. At MSF, meanwhile, they would recreate and reimagine a wide variety of cuisines from across the globe, but eventually came to settle on “Americanized Oriental food,” which they served concurrently with the standard fare at Lung Shan. Though Bowien had never cooked Chinese food before, the restaurant garnered considerable accolades. This success allowed Myint to open up the much higher-end Commonwealth in 2010.

With his attention devoted to the new restaurant, the pair decided to shutter Mission Street Food and Mission Burger in summer that year (which also allowed time for Bowien to get married to his wife Youngmi Mayer in Korea). MSF, however, was soon reborn as Mission Chinese Food in July, Bowien's baby that would serve seven days a week for both lunch and dinner. The place was another hit, and the following year, he was named "Rising Star Chef" by the San Francisco Chronicle, while MCF was deemed one of the "Best New Restaurants in America" by Bon Appetit. Myint, meanwhile, opened Mission Bowling Club, and just this past spring, the twosome debuted a second outpost of Mission Chinese Food in New York City's Lower East Side.


The 60-seat dining room is about what you'd expect given the circumstances: a bit drab, a bit dingy, and obviously low-budget, with busted Christmas lights on the walls and a huge paper dragon adorning the ceiling.


Mission Chinese Food's menu is an appealing-sounding selection of about two dozen mostly Sichuan-inspired dishes, all reasonably priced, especially considering that the restaurant donates 75 cents from each entrée to the San Francisco Food Bank. Note that Lung Shan's original menu is no longer available. Click for larger versions.


To drink, we ordered up one each of MCF's four beers available. Going from left to right, we had the prosaic Tsing Tao [$3]; the 21st Amendment Watermelon Wheat [$4], which showed off a candied, almost Jolly Rancher-esque essence on the close; the nicely refreshing, not-too-bitter 21st Amendment IPA [$4]; and the Einstök Icelandic White Ale [$6], a classically-leaning witbier with its floral and spicy notes.


Savory Egg Custard [$12.00] | Sea Urchin, Trout Roe, Citron, Apple, Green Perilla
The first dish of the day was also the lightest, with the sweet, saline uni melding well with the saltiness of the ikura, both elements enhanced by the rich umami undertones present. At the same time, the two types of roe were duly offset by the dish's light, custard-y, eggy base, while the crisp bits of apple and shiso provided the requisite levity.


Chicken Wings with Explosive Chili Pepper [$8.00]
You can't go too wrong with fried chicken, and that old adage was certain true today. Mission Chinese's version was ostensibly inspired by the "Chicken with Explosive Chili Pepper" at Z & Y, a well-regarded Sichuan place in Chinatown. Comprised of battered and fried wings in a pile of peppers, it was a powerful dish, yet with a certain refinement. The chicken itself was juicy and tender, with an excellent crispness, and went superbly with the numbing, curry-esque spice of the dish.


Married Couple's Beef [$9.00] | Sliced Beef Tongue, Heart, Tripe, Numbing Chili, Peanuts, Cilantro
Here we had Bowien's take on fuqi feipian, a cold Sichuan dish of various bovine body parts. The tongue, the heart, the tripe--all were nicely tender and paired swimmingly with the hot, mouth-numbing flavors at play, and I also appreciated the countervailing lightness and crunch provided by the bean sprouts, cucumber, and cilantro. Quite tasty, though, due to the intensity of the spices here, it was difficult to discern the various bits of offal at times.


"Mouth Watering" Chicken [$9.00] | Seared Chicken Hearts, Vegetable Noodles, Szechuan Pepper
Hearts of chicken were nicely presented, supple and satisfying in consistency, with the spiciness inherent counteracted by the light, bright veggies present, which also offered up a well-placed touch of crunchiness in the dish. I also appreciated how regular pieces of chicken meat were incorporated here, which helped to moderate things.


Tiger Salad [$7.50] | Xi'an Herbs and Lettuces, Turnip Vinegar, Chili Oil
Some rather impressive-looking wraps brought together a delightful mélange of herbs and vegetables. The dish showed off an invigorating, minty character, but one keenly augmented by the heat and weight of the chili oil.


Red Braised Pig Tails [$10.00] | Root Beer, Sweet & Sour Pineapple, Plum Sauce, Salted Cucumber
Pig tail arrived after presumably undergoing a hong shao cooking process (as well as frying I'm guessing), the result of which was a delectable mix of tender, lean meat and fat, highlighted by the pork's perfectly crisp, unabashedly savory skin. With the boatloads of porcine goodness present, the pineapple, cucumber, and other veggies did a great job in balancing out the dish.


Salt Cod Fried Rice [$10.00] | Mackerel Confit, Chinese Sausage, Egg, Scallion
Fried rice is a staple of the Chinese table, and Bowien's version incorporated slow poached mackerel into the mix, which imparted a subtle saline undercurrent to the dish. Everything else came together admirably too, with the sweet sausage component front and center, mixing wonderfully with the egg and tangy scallions. As tasty as the fried rice was though, I could've handled even more of the fishiness.


Stir-Fried Pork Jowl and Radishes [$11.00] | Fermented Black Bean, Mint, Red Perilla
A stir-fry of pork jowl and radishes contained far too many radishes, and not enough meat. I think at least half of the veggies were left on the plate. Despite the abundance of radish here, the pork seemed overly salty, with perhaps too much black bean present. The perilla and mint added an overarching lightness to things, but even that wasn't enough to balance out the dish.


Kung Pao Pastrami [$11.00] | Explosive Chili, Celery, Potato, Roasted Peanut
Bowien's version of pastrami, taken alone, was quite appealing: tender and supple, with a great touch of spice that really captured the essence of the traditional preparation. However, the meat was somewhat lost in the rest of the dish, a fact that was not helped by the pieces being cut rather small. There's a lot of potential with the pastrami, but I'd really like to see it better showcased.


Westlake Rice Porridge [$11.00] | Hangar Steak, Rock Shrimp, Soy-Cured Egg, Cilantro
The Chef's interpretation of Chinese congee was pretty amazing, my favorite item of the meal in fact. It was a hearty, heartwarming dish, with a wonderful soup base that showed off a tremendous depth of flavor, beautifully tempered by the use of cilantro and ginger. Bits of rock shrimp thrown in were spot on, and I loved the salty, soy-cured egg as well. Overall, a masterful course, one that a buddy of mine quipped would be great after night of drinking!


Sizzling Cumin Lamb [$13.00] | Salt & Peppered Lamb Belly, Chili-Pickled Long Beans
This one was pretty intense. The lamb itself really conveyed the "gaminess" that one often associates with the meat, but was well-cooked, with a lovely char. At the same time, the earthy, warm, spicy tones of cumin were thrust to the forefront as well, making for an in-your-face punch of flavors that was offset by the countervailing astringency of the onions and scallions present.


Ma Po Tofu [$11.00] | Berkshire Pork Shoulder, Broadbean Paste, Chili Oil
We closed with perhaps the most well-known of Szechuan dishes, the ubiquitous mapo tofu. Bowien's version features a slow-cooked, Kurobuta-based "Bolognese" with Shaoxing wine and black vinegar, as well as plenty of Sichuan peppercorns. The resultant sauce was salty and spicy, with deep, dark, numbing flavors that weren't shy on the palate. It was quite tasty, but unfortunately, the tofu didn't pick up much of that character at all, and seemed almost like an afterthought.

The lunch definitely had some highs and some lows. I appreciated the technique, ingenuity, and quality of the food presented, as well as how Bowien's able to respect Chinese food while also having some fun with it. However, not everything worked; several dishes were heavy-handed and lacking in finesse. Subtleties and nuances often got lost in the torrent of heat and numbingness attacking the palate. Though it's what the region is most known for, not all Sichuan food is overtly spicy, so I'd like to see the Chef explore some of those, more milder dishes, or perhaps tackle the culinary traditions of other parts of China. I think it'd make for an equally as interesting, but more balanced meal overall.

Plate by Plate 2012
214 S Main St, Los Angeles, CA 90012
www.platebyplate.org/la/
Sat 08/04/2012, 06:00p-10:00p





On Saturday, August 4th, Project by Project hosted its 10th Annual Tasting Benefit, Plate by Plate, at the Vibiana cathedral and event space in the heart of Downtown Los Angeles. For the uninitiated, PbP is a nationwide not-for-profit organization focused on issues relating to the Asian-American community, and as always, the event showcased the culinary chops of some of the City's most popular and up-and-coming eateries, all washed down by a selection of liquor, wine, beer, sake, and even non-alcoholic beverages from a wide array of purveyors.


The requisite group photo of all the participants.


Accompanied by The Langham's Director of Communications Elsa Schelin, Chef David Féau of The Royce presented an attractive plate of Marinated Cantaloupe, Kampachi, Toasted Ginger.


Elsa is joined by FOX 11 News anchor/reporter Susan Hirasuna, whom I actually ran into during the recent C.H.E.F.S. foie gras dinner held at The Royce.


Chef Greg Daniels of Haven Gastropub & Brewery was on hand with his Cola-Glazed Berkshire Pork, Smoked Cream Corn, Garroxta, Thyme.


The Seoul Sausage team--Ted Kim, Chris Oh, Yong Kim--served up their Flaming Fried Balls: Deep Fried Spicy Pork Seoul Sausage Cheesy Kimchi Fried Rice Balls topped with Da "DMA" Sauce (Kimchi Sriracha Garlic Jalapeño Aioli). The trio recently competed on Season 3 of the Food Network's Great Food Truck Race, which they may or may not have won, and which may or may not have anything to do with their upcoming brick & mortar store in Little Osaka.


Chef Mathew Woolf of the revamped West Restaurant & Lounge had his Crispy Egg, Bacon Jam, Arugula on offer, which seemed to go over well with guests.


Though Chef/Owner Kris Yenbamroong was over at that other food festival across town, Night+Market had another "Kris" in tow: Sous Chef Chris Napaamporn. To eat, think Moo Sadoong "Startled Pig": Grilled Pork Shoulder, Lime, Fish Sauce, Bird Eye Chile, Basil, Lemongrass, Kaffir Lime Leaves, Sugar, Rice Powder.


Guelaguetza was en la casa with their Tamales Oaxaqueños: Black Mole and Chicken Breast Tamales wrapped in Banana Leaf, as well as their famed Michelada.


Sharing is encouraged between participants. Here, Jason Mattick of Milo & Olive swaps his sliders for some of Guelaguetza's mole-drenched tamales.


Chef Jeremy Berlin has been doing a fine job over at Church & State, and tonight he gave us a refreshing Heirloom Tomato Salad, Charentais Melon, Vinaigrette with Greens and Reduced Balsamic.


Left: Former ink. GM-cum-Sommelier Josh Goldman looks rather contented here, and for good reason.
Right: Sauce LA's Mary Park, looking lovely in red.


The award for the most interesting protein of the night goes to Team Mo-Chica and their Alpaca and Lamb crostini, Pickled Cucumbers, Avocado, Aji Amarillo Yogurt dressing.


With Andre Guerrero out of town, Little Bear was repped by Chef de Cuisine Sainegee Wong and Pastry Chef Jan Purdy. Their dish? A Carbonnade de Flamande.


Recently replacing Walter Manzke at Josh Loeb and Zoe Nathan's Milo & Olive is Chef Jason Mattick, who showed off his Mini Chicken Meatball Sandwiches with Fresh Mozzarella and Country Line Harvest Arugula.


Chef de Cuisine Kevin Luzande of Playa rolled deep, serving up a svelte dish of Maize Cornet, Chopped Salad of Rooftop Vegetables and Lettuces, Chipotle Crema, Avocado, Micro Amaranth.


A highlight of the VIP hour was a cooking demo hosted by Chef Nyesha Arrington of Wilshire restaurant (and Top Chef Season 9 contestant), who utilized tofu from producer AFC.


An open bar sponsored by Ketel One was certainly a big draw.


Left: PbP's Manager of Campaign Partner Relations Jackie Fung and Co-Manager of Past Partner Relations Stephanie Huynh.
Right: Justin Wang, Director of Events for Project by Project New York, along with Los Angeles Legal Counsel Annie Lin.


Left: Short-haired Asian girls stick together!
Right: PbP's Manager of Design Risa Yanai looks happy.


PbP partnered with TOMS and Viva La Art to have some specially-decorated shoes auctioned off at the event. Artists included Adam Talan and Nora Martin-Hall, and I hear Eater LA editor Kat Odell even won a pair.


Stepping inside of the Vibiana now, whom do I see first but the Mo-Chica/Picca duo of Ricardo Zarate and Stephane Bombet, along with noted Pour Vous barman Devon Espinosa.


I first headed over to the VIP area, where Pablo Moix was repping Black Market with his Pisco Punch.


The Cured Wild King Salmon Tartare, Crispy Buckwheat, Nori Crème Fraiche and Ikura from Providence's Michael Cimarusti was regarded by many as the prettiest plate of the evening.


Left: Michael introduces himself; Josh checks his phone.
Right: Brothers Eric Tung and David Tung. Getting a sort of American Gothic vibe on this one.



Kali Dining's Kevin Meehan served a trio of dishes: Duck Mousse, Grapes, Gel, Almond Powder; a Savory Corn Pudding, Vegetable Chips, Zucchini, Olive Dust; and Lamb Belly with Onion Ash, Carrot-Ginger Jam, Crispy Pea-Sesame Soil.


Here was an Artichoke and Fava Paella with Chicken and Pork, courtesy of Chef Perfecto Rocher of Lazy Ox Canteen.


Tasty Clouds' founder Nina Rodecker was on hand to offer up a variety of her haute cotton candies.


Scarpetta at Montage Beverly Hills sent a dish of Branzino as well as Sous Chef Victor Boroda (quite the shutterbug himself it seems).



The ever-ebullient Nguyen Tran was of course all about getting people to sample Starry Kitchen's Citrus Sesame Tofu and Salted Plum Lychee Panna Cotta, prepared by his wife and chef Thi Tran.



Sharing a table were Short Cake and Short Order. Short Order, helmed by Chef Christian Page, presented Pretzel Pups: Smoked Beef & Bacon Link, Sauerkraut, Grainy Mustard, Pretzel Bun, while Short Order's Head Baker Hourie Sahakian brought along a variety of baked treats.


Left: Restaurant Relations team member Danny Li and Margaret Lin.
Right: Director of Operations Ray Warriner with his date Theresa Kiang.


Neal Fraser and Amy Knoll Fraser's Fritzi Dog will be launching soon, but the even bigger news is that Grace's replacement (which will not be named Grace) will finally be getting off the ground, taking over the space currently occupied by the Vibiana's rectory building. Plans call for both indoor and outdoor dining rooms, a bar, a separate bar/lounge on the second floor, and a number of private dining rooms.


Chef Hiroyuki Fujita served up a hearty Beef Tongue Curry: Chopped Beef Tongue with White Rice, Curry Sauce and Pickles for Downtown Japanese curry slinger Fat Spoon.


Sadie Chef Jason Petrie injured himself recently, and thus had to pull out as a food purveyor at the last moment. However, the Hollywood newcomer still managed to deliver with a selection of three cocktails: the Friar Fresh (Plymouth Gin, Velvet Falernum, Lemon Juice, Grapefruit, Honey), the Veev Gveev (Vodka, Chartreuse, Grenadine, Lemon, Fresh Berries, Orange Juice), and the Guayabera (Basil Infused Avion Tequila, Lemongrass, Watermelon Syrup, Lime Juice, Soda, Chili Salt Rim).


PbP Co-Manager of Event Productions Risa Abarientos and her boyfriend seemed to have enjoyed Sadie's cocktails.


Drunken Udder Ice Cream's Matt Donley was on hand to serve up his company's alcohol-infused frozen treats in four flavors: Bourbon Salted Caramel Ice Cream, Lemon Basil Sherbet with Lemon Vodka, Raspberry Orange Sorbet with Orange Vodka, and Chocolate Espresso Sorbet with Espresso Vodka. Booze and ice cream? How has anyone not thought of this before?


Celebrity caterer Jack Lee's Chinoise Cuisine put out some Filet Mignon & Grilled Shrimp fresh wraps with Mint Leaves with sweet and tangy dipping sauce.


Jar's Chef de Cuisine Preech Narkthong offered up a duet of desserts: their signature Jar Chocolate Pudding and a Butterscotch Pudding, Salted Caramel.


Chef Seakyeong Kim from Charlie Palmer at Bloomingdale's embraced his Korean heritage with his Gochujang Glazed Lamb Belly in Steamed Bun.


Right next door to Charlie Palmer was Broadway, the new-ish restaurant by CP's former head chef Amar Santana. His sticks of Crisp Pork Belly, Miso-Caramel Togarashi, set in a bed of grass, may have been the evening's most interesting presentation of food.


Chaya Downtown's Chef Atsushi Kenjo cooked up a plate of Stone Fruit & Fromage Blanc, Jamon Serrano with Sherry, Vinegar Gastrique.


Fluff Ice co-founder Matthew Hui was on deck with four varieties of his shaved ice: Honeydew, Original, Mango, and Thai Tea, all served with a bevy of accompaniments.


Surprisingly, 9021Pho's Kimmy Tang wasn't slanging pho, but rather her version of a Chicken Salad.



Laurent Quenioux was defiant in his serving of foie gras at the event. It came as a "Hure" of Foie Gras, Salmon Roe, Smoked Eel, Lobster Gelee, Vietnamese Shiso as well as in "sashimi" form. He also featured bread from newcomer bakery B1 Breadshop, with dozens of pieces available for patrons to take home.


With her cooking demo done, Chef Nyesha Arrington came over to sample some of Laurent's wares.


XT Patisserie co-owner Tuan Trinh had a colorful spread of macarons for us to try.


Beverage Director-slash-Partner Jeffrey Faust for fundamental LA had two dishes for guests to consume: the Pickled Floret, Avocado, Crispy Shallot, Thai Coconut Sauce and the Vanilla Panna Cotta, Black Pepper Granola, Sorrel


Longstanding Plate by Plate participant Akira Hirose and his restaurant Maison Akira gave out a Braised Pork Belly "Kakuni" with Yuzukosho Kabocha Coulis.


Marcus Baird's Feast Catering presented several dishes, including a Blue Cheese Studded Yorkshire Pudding with Slivered Beef and Horseradish Crème Fraiche.


The charcuterie program over at Wood & Vine is arguably the best in the City, and we were happy to have Chef Gavin Mills present a trio of his House-Made Charcuterie at the event.


Stepping back outside now, I ran into former Project by Project team member Yulree Chun, who was here representing Gogobot, a new socially-focused travel site.





The St. Germain-sponsored cocktail challenge got underway, pitting Chris Hewes, Gia St. George, and Devon Espinosa against each other to see who would prevail with the top cocktail incorporating the elderflower liqueur. When all was said and done, it was Library Bar's Chris Hewes who would reign supreme with his whimsically-named "Gettin' Figgy With It."


Left: Restaurateur-of-the-moment Bill Chait was in attendance with girlfriend Julie. As reported earlier, he's partnering with Neal Fraser to take over the Vibiana.
Right: Perfecto Rocher with Ibérico Fresco's José Ignacio Martínez-Valero, importer of fresh 100% jamón ibérico products from Spain.


Somehow, during my first sweep through the garden area, I'd managed to miss Rustic Canyon. The restaurant offered a dish of Sweet Corn and Rosemary Fritter with Honey Crème Fraiche, presented by new head chef Jeremy Strubel.


Co-Manager of Restaurant Relations Joy Bitonio just happens to be the girlfriend of Chef Jeremy.


More PbP'ers: Manager of Design Risa Yanai, Director of Marketing Rosanna Huang, Co-Manager of Team and Leadership Development Irene Choi, and Co-Manager of Multimedia Paul Kim.


Left: Our Director of Fundraising Sunny Chung and friends.
Right: DineLA director Stacey Sun, with beau Josh Lurie of Food GPS.


Jeremy Crooks on stage performing, in between sets by DJ Freddy Ruxpin.


This year, the Plate by Plate ice sculpture doubled as an ice luge.


Left: Director of Events Marian Bacol-Uba along with National Director of Events Oanh Nguyen (and previous Los Angeles Director of Events), with Lindsey Wang.
Right: Events Team member Vickie Chan.


Left: Event planner Amy Ling with husband Paul Lee, VP Director of Purchasing at Hing Wa Lee Jewelers.
Right: Angela Park working it at the silent auction station.


Left: Devon Espinosa looking quite smug with his stache.
Right: Longtime PbP fixture Sherwin Goo, along with former PbP team member Helen Kim.


Left: Playa CdC Kevin Luzande is smiling for a good reason.
Right: PbP NY President Eleanor Lem, PbP National General Counsel & Secretary Nirendran S. Kathirithamby, and PbP LA Legal Counsel Annie Lin.


Taking the stage: Argentine-Australian-Korean actor Leonardo Nam.


Left: Irene Choi and budding restaurant investor Caroline Choe, along with Jennifer Sanderson.
Right: Bricia Lopez having a good time with Perfecto.


Director of Partner Outreach Eden Tol with past partner Michelle Freridge, Executive Director of the Asian Youth Center.


Left: PbP PR/Social Media Manager Camellia Cheng and acquaintances.
Right: The unmistakable duo of Ramiro Arvizu and Jaime Martin del Campo from La Casita Mexicana.


Wong Fu Productions in the house.


Left: Director of Events Marian Bacol-Uba with PbP team member and noted Hello Kitty fiend Kayla Vu.
Right: Is she pulling Eden's tongue?


Left: Perhaps a punch is more effective.
Right: Soft like pillows.


Left: National Director of Marketing Grace Hsiang with LA Director of Marketing Rosy Huang.
Right: PbP Operations team member Christie Liu, with Clayton Tran.


Yes, that's none other than former MasterChef Season 3 contestant Felix Fang (who works at Katsuya here in LA). It's too bad she got the boot on the last episode; I was really rooting for her to win the whole thing!



Having fun with cake toward the end of the night.



Previous Plate by Plate posts: 2011, 2010

The Parish Restaurant
840 S Spring St, Los Angeles, CA 90015
213.225.2400
www.theparishla.com
Tue 08/14/2012, 08:40p-11:20p





The last thing LA needs is another gastropub.
Despite that, one of the year's most anticipated openings is The Parish, a "true gastropub" from The Tasting Kitchen's Casey Lane. Plans for the Downtown eatery were revealed way back in September last year, and though the restaurant debuted just weeks ago on July 27th, it's already fast becoming one of the summer's hottest tables.


The Parish is situated in a skinny sliver of land bounded by Main and Spring streets. The space, in fact, was the former home of Angelique Cafe, but has since been completely redone by Venice-based firm Bishop Pass (Gjelina, M Street Kitchen, Abigaile). It's split into two levels: a bright, casual cafe on the ground floor highlighted by the open kitchen, and the dark, clubby, masculine main dining room up top (pictured).


The Parish's menu reads gastropub-y for sure (with a definite Indian slant to boot), serving up an appealing selection of booze-centric fare. Apparently, there's even a breakfast menu in work. Click for a larger version.


As for the tipple, we have John Coltharp (The Tasting Kitchen, Copa d'Oro, Seven Grand, Sona) in charge of the beverage program. He offers up around a dozen classically-leaning cocktails, along with 20 or so craft beers on draft, as well as a smattering of wines by the glass or bottle. Aiding Coltharp is none other than Brian Summers, who we may remember from Harvard & Stone, Sotto, Test Kitchen, Library Bar, The Bazaar, and Comme Ça. Click for larger versions.


Black Bee [$12.00] | Bourbon, Lemon Juice, Honey, Stout
The Real McCoy [$13.00] | Rhum Agricole Blanc, Pot Still Jamaican Rum, Lime Juice, OJ, Orgeat
While waiting for our table to clear, we started things off with a cocktail twosome. The Black Bee was quite something, with a really complex, multifaceted character that subtly conveyed the chocolate-y, malty essence of the stout/porter, while the lemon added a well-placed touch of levity to things. The Real McCoy, on the other hand, showed off a fruity, tropically-tinged sweetness up front, transitioning to the booziness of the rum on the midpalate, all with tangy, overarching notes of citrus accenting the entire drink.


Deviled Eggs [$6.00]
I'm known to be quite the egg slut, so these deviled darlings--tarted up by the inclusion of curry, chile, fennel, vinegar, and a crème fraîche aioli--were naturally a must-try. They were certainly tasty, and rather unlike any other preparation I'd had before, with an aromatic, spicy, curried attack leading to a satisfyingly creamy egginess, all with a piquant undercurrent from the vinegar.


Haricots Verts [$13.00] | Grilled Peaches, Garam Masala, Burrata
Haricot verts were crunchy, waxy, and on point, with bright, verdant flavors that actually went surprisingly well with the sweetness of the peaches. Bits of potato added a definite heft to the dish, and, of course, I appreciated the burrata as well, its luxuriousness offering up a keen counterpoint to the levity of the green beans. Very nice.


Wood-Grilled Bone Marrow [$15.00] | With Celery Salad
Bone marrow was exactly what you'd expect: fatty and trembling, classic in design, with great depth in the flavor department, all tempered by the bright, peppery smack of celery. Bone luging is an option here.


Poutine of Crispy Pork Shoulder [$14.00] | With Paneer, Crackling & Peas
The poutine over at Animal has pretty much become legendary by this point, but Lane's version may be an icon in the making. The fries themselves were spot on, forming a delectably savory, yet moderating base to the dish. On top of that we had positively scrumptious shards of crispy pork and supple cubes of cheese, a winning combination that was duly offset by the inclusion of peas (I tasted flashes of mattar paneer), as well as a delightful herbiness that lingered on through the finish. Definitely one of the best poutines that I've had.


Fresh Gin Gimlet [$12.00] | English Gin, Lime Juice, Hint of Sugar
Disco Nap [$16.00] | Grappa, Aperol, Muddled Lemon, Mint
Time for some more cocktails. First up was the Fresh Gin Gimlet, which was very classic in style, really conveying the inherent nature of the gin, while perfectly balancing it against the tart-ish lime. The Disco Nap, meanwhile, was also quite tasty, with a deft mix of bitter and sweet flavors that melded seamlessly with the aromatic, grape-y essence of the grappa.


Burger [$17.00] | With Epoisses, Pickled Carrots
Now here we have The Parish's requisite hamburger, the simply titled "Burger." The real crux of the course was the utilization of Époisses, which happens to be one of my favorite types of fromage. Those of you who've had the cheese will know that it's got quite a pungency to it, and in fact, here it added just enough funk to augment the potency of the patty (seriously, if you're not a fan of stinky cheeses, you might want to stay clear of this one). Simultaneously, the pickles and greenery in the burger provided a much needed shot of brightness and acidity to the fray, making for an enjoyable, though not typical eating experience. My only concern was the bun, a rosemary ciabatta bread; it was perhaps a touch too chewy.


Mojama [$16.00] | Duck Egg, Truffle, Potatoes
Here's something new: Mojama is basically salt-cured tuna of the Spanish variety. I'd never had it before, but took to it rather quickly. I appreciated its unmistakable saltiness, a nice counterpoint to the intense truffled notes present, while potato provided a hearty, savory component to the dish. And the runny, gooey duck egg? Yeah, hard to go wrong with that.


Fried Chicken [$23.00] | With Grilled Peaches, Tomatoes & Currant Vinaigrette
Fried chicken arrived in breast, thigh, and drumstick form. I picked up the latter, and thoroughly enjoyed its tender, succulent, and oh-so savory character, the meat encased in a light, but not too light crust that almost recalled a KFC-like goodness. The various fruits and veggies here added some tart, tangy counterpoints in the dish, but really, the bird stood alone on its own merits. Yum.


Fish & Chips [$20.00]
Our last savory item of the night was Lane's take on the traditional fish & chips, featuring battered cod, celeriac remoulade, cornichon gelée, and malt vinegar aioli. It was actually quite wonderful, probably the best interpretation of the dish I've had. The fish itself was tender and almost fluffy in texture, with a light coating of lager-infused batter and a lip-smacking flavor that really showed off the nature of the cod. The large, flat slices of potato were commendable as well, and I really appreciated the cool, refreshing crunch of that remoulade. A great change of pace from your everyday fish 'n' chips.


The Nightshift [$13.00] | Bourbon, Czech Fernet, Espresso, Pu-Erh Tea and Chocolate Syrup, Milk
Housemade Pomegranate-Lemon Soda [$6.00]
Next up, we ordered up The Nightshift, which had an appealing mix of boozy, coffee, and chocolate flavors that really went swimmingly with dessert. We also tried The Parish's delicious pomegranate and lemon soda, made in-house of course.


Gulab Jamun [$4.00]
For the sweet stuff, first was Pastry Chef Brooke Mosley's take on the ubiquitous Indian dessert of gulab jamun. It was actually a pretty straightforward version of the dish: not too sweet, with a nice floral character from the rosewater and a marked nuttiness from the sprinkles of pistachio.


Sticky Toffee Pudding [$7.00]
We closed with a sticky toffee pudding. It was everything that I'd expected from the dessert: deep, dark, and unabashedly saccharine flavors with a mouth-watering caramel component, all balanced out by the tartness of plum.

I may be sick of gastropubs, but Lane's got a good one on his hands here. For the most part, the flavors were robust and heady, perfect for alcoholic consumption, and the cooking shows a certain sensibility and aesthetic that seems to jive with LA's current culinary Zeitgeist. It really is a welcomed addition to the Downtown dining scene. The Chef is not content with just The Parish, though. Come October, he plans to debut Itri, a pasta and rotisserie concept set in the building formerly home to Evan Kleiman's Angeli Caffe. I'm guessing that that one should be worth the wait, too.

Patina Restaurant
141 S Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90012
213.972.3331
www.patinarestaurant.com
Thu 08/16/2012, 08:00p-02:05a




Since debuting all the way back in 1989 (when it was still located at the current site of Providence), Joachim Splichal's flagship Patina has been a mainstay on the Los Angeles dining circuit. Certainly, the place hasn't always been the trendiest, the hippest, or the most of-the-moment, but what it has done is consistently turned out fine dining-focused fare, and given birth to a veritable mini-empire of other PRG restaurants. Over the years, Patina has played host to a number of chefs, and the latest in that line-up is one Charles Olalia, the restaurant's former sous who replaced Tony Esnault in June. Esnault, it turns out, has teamed up with Church & State's Yassmin Sarmadi, and the two are planning to open Spring in Downtown, a French restaurant situated on the spectrum somewhere between bistro and fine dining (sounds like Walter Manzke's upcoming République). But that's not the only part of the kitchen shake-up. Former Pastry Chef Joel Reno left late last year to open his own pastry shop, Baguetier in Huntington Beach, and has since been supplanted by Kasra Ajdari, whom you may recall from Raphael.

About the Chefs: Chef Olalia was born in the Philippines, and after taking on an interest in food at an early age, attended and graduated from the International School for Culinary Arts and Hotel Management in Manila. Following some time spent in his homeland, Olalia moved Stateside, landing at the Ritz-Carlton Half Moon Bay. In 2008, he became a chef de partie at the Las Vegas outpost of Guy Savoy, under Executive Chef Eric Bost (who has since decamped to helm Savoy's Singapore restaurant). Afterwards, Olalia served as a commis at Thomas Keller's famed French Laundry, then became Executive Sous Chef of the Village California Bistro in San Jose. From there, he moved on to a gig at Oracle, then, sick of the corporate world, he left and staged at a number of places in the Bay Area, including the Michelin-starred Dio Deka, Dan Patterson's two-star Coi, and Chris Kostow's three-star Meadowood. Olalia then relocated to Southern California in 2010, finding employment at Patina under Tony Esnault. After working here for two years, he assumed the Chef de Cuisine role in June 2012 following Esnault's departure.

A Southern California native, Kasra Ajdari's interest in food grew from inside his family's kitchen, under the tutelage of both his parents and grandparents. After graduating from Valencia High School in 2001, he enrolled at the University of California, Santa Barbara and was well on his way to becoming an attorney before he started experimenting with bread baking at home. This weekend hobby soon consumed his free time, and he decided that his future would be in the food industry. In pursuit of that goal, he attended the California School of Culinary Arts in Pasadena after finishing up at UCSB in 2007. While still in school, he was introduced to Adam Horton, and after graduating from the CSCA's Le Cordon Bleu program in 2009, Ajdari quickly found employment under Horton at Saddle Peak Lodge. He followed Adam to Studio City's Raphael in early 2011, but left in February to take on the Pastry Chef role left vacant by Patina's Joel Reno.


Inside, things have largely remained the same since my last visit, with perhaps the notable exception of the lighting being distinctly less yellow (a blessing for photographers).


As far as Patina's menu goes, the standard à la carte selections and seven-course tasting menus are still available, joined now by a more affordable "Market Menu" offering. We, however, opted for an extended, by-special-request-only 15-course Grand Menu Degustation at $150 per head, plus $90pp for wine pairings by Sommelier Silvestre Fernandes. Click for larger versions.


Olalia commenced with his amuse bouche of chilled sweet corn soup, with crostini and chive oil. It was a great start to the meal, chock full of bright, refreshing, summer-y nuances. The corn was certainly sweet, but not overly so, and I appreciated the saltiness and crunch contributed by the toast, as well as the offsetting tang of the chive.


Bread on offer this evening included pain de epi baguette, seven-grain, and green olive varieties.


1: Watermelon Gazpacho | Japanese Octopus, Pedro Ximenez
Trefethen, Dry Riesling, 2008, Napa Valley
The summertime spirit started by the corn soup continued on through our first course proper. Tender, yet chewy slices of octopus were spot on, joined by an amalgam of cilantro, cucumber, celery, and various other elements that made for a delightful mix of disparate textures and tastes. A watermelon liquid with garlic and olive oil, meanwhile, contributed an enveloping, integrating dash of sweet and savory that beautifully wrapped everything together.


2: Dungeness Crab Fraicheur | Mango, Avocado, Basil
Pazo Barrantes, Albarino, 2010, Rias Baixas, Spain
A fraicheur of crab was refreshing to say the least, living up to its name. Indeed, the Dungeness was on proud display here, its saline sweetness becoming the clear hero in the dish, melding gorgeously with the mango. At the same time, a deft combination of microgreens, tomato gel, avocado mousse, and basil seeds lent a tart, herb-y bent to the course that rounded things out perfectly.


3: Heirloom Tomato Salad | Santa Barbara Sea Urchin, Soy Caramel
Pazo Barrantes, Albarino, 2010, Rias Baixas, Spain
The so-called "Heirloom Tomato Salad" has become a trite sight on menus these days, but Olalia's version was anything but. Tart red peppers joined with bright, juicy bits of tomato to form a sort of sweet 'n' sour complement to the lush, briny relish of sea urchin, while a broth of tomato water laced with bonito contributed a rich, savory, almost dashi-like flavor to the dish that smartly tied all the elements together.


4: Poached Hen Egg | Fresh Peas, Calamansi, Arugula
Château Toumilon, 2007, Graves, Bordeaux
The next course was ostensibly inspired by Chef Olalia's time at Guy Savoy, in particular a dish called Tout Petits Pois, or "Peas all Around." We had here a pea purée, fresh shucked peas, an arugula-calamondin foam with Tabasco, an Espelette pepper tuile, and microherbs, all with a beautifully poached egg. Indeed, the bright, verdant zest of the peas was forcefully conveyed here, augmented by the airy foam yet adeptly weighed down by the rich, luxurious, runny yolk. The tuile was also well-placed, offering up an offsetting crunchiness to the course, as well as a salty, savory component. I was particularly fond of the wine pairing here as well, a white Bordeaux that showed off a delectable vegetal component that worked wonderfully with the peas.


5: Santa Barbara Spot Prawns | Carrot, English Celery, Lemon
Elio Zanotelli, Mueller Thurgau, 2009, Trentino, Italy
Chef Olalia's presentation of spot prawn was successful in paying homage to the vaunted crustacean. The shrimp was cooked superbly, showing off a snappy, supple bite and a delicate taste keenly accented by a touch of lemon and olive oil. At the same time, a salad of celery contributed a crisp, clean brightness and countervailing astringency to the course, and I even enjoyed the spicy, ginger-y carrot mousse, which I'd feared would be overly sweet.


6: Weiser Farms Potato Gnocchi | Lobster, Summer Truffles, Haricot Vert
Elio Zanotelli, Mueller Thurgau, 2009, Trentino, Italy
Gnocchi were dense and doughy, yet with a certain appealing fluffiness that I appreciated. Along with the pommes mousseline, they formed a fitting base to the course that really allowed the snappy bits of lobster and crunchy green beans to shine, while the whole dish was integrated by an earthy veil of truffle. Interestingly, we likened this to a similarly-profiled porridge dish that we'd had recently at The French Laundry, and we all preferred this version.


Thalvin, S. De Siroua, Chardonnay, 2009, Zenata, Morocco
The kitchen inserted this special risotto per one of my dining companion's request. Based on zucchini, it was a perfect version of the dish for the summer time: light, with bright vegetal flavors over firm, al dente grains of rice, tied together by crème fraîche and tarted up by the inclusion of black garlic preserves. The fried zucchini blossom, meanwhile, added a lovely crunch and saltiness to the fray.


At this point, one of our servers brought out a beautiful pastry-encrusted black bass from Greece, and preceded to carve and plate the fish. You don't see tableside prep too often these days, so I definitely appreciated the effort.


7: Black Bass en Croute | Flavors of Barigoule
Valle dell'Acate Bidis, Chardonnay/Inzolia, 2006, Sicily
After being filleted, our loup de mer was dressed with a shallot-garlic-white wine-lemon verbena-lemongrass sauce, then accompanied by glazed carrot, artichoke, cipollini onion, bacon, and a dehydrated lemon tuile. The fish was right on: supple and delicate, with a fantastic lemon-y tone to it that really sang with the sea bass' various accoutrements, the salty bacon in particular.


8: Local Black Cod | Fresh Shelling Beans, Toasted Almond, Purslane
Valle dell'Acate Bidis, Chardonnay/Inzolia, 2006, Sicily
Black cod showed off a wondrous texture, with a near falling-apart consistency and a hefty, yet mild taste that was keenly highlighted by the piquant purslane and piquillo present. Shelling beans, meanwhile, did a great job in grounding the dish, but I was a bit less enthralled by the almond foam and toasted bits of almond, which seemed a tad too pronounced in their nuttiness.


9: Caramelized Scallops | Lilly Vegetables, Lardon, Maple
Miura, Pinot Noir, 2008, Silacci Vineyard, Monterey County
Maine diver scallops arrived with onion soubise, lardons, baby shallot, and a line of maple-balsamic. They were pretty much spot on, with a firm, yet yielding consistency, perfect caramelization, and a great show of salinity. I really enjoyed them with the various forms of Allium, their tanginess offsetting the richly-flavored scallops beautifully, but the real surprise was how well the sweet maple melded with the bivalves.


10: Snake River Farms Pork | Black Mission Fig, Fennel, Plum Radish
Prazo de Roriz, 2009, Douro, Portugal
Snake River pork made an appearance in two presentations: loin and belly. Loin can often seem a bit boring, but here it was delicious: tender and juicy, with a refined porcine relish that paired wonderfully with the herb-y, fennel notes in the dish. The belly, meanwhile, was also commendable, with a prototypically rich, fatty character underscored by a delightfully crisp, salty skin that showed off an almost chicharrón-esque flair.


11: Colorado Lamb | Eggplant Variation, Summer Peppers, Mint
Cuvelier Los Andes, Grand Vin, 2007, Mendoza, Argentina
In our final savory course, lamb was delivered to the table in a duo of preparations. I was definitely a fan of the expertly-cooked rack and its quintessential ovine flavors, delectable alone but also excellent when taken with a mix of Japanese eggplant, Indian eggplant, farro, and shishito peppers. As good as that was, though, the confit'd, shredded lamb meat stuffed in filo dough was even tastier, with a profound, heady richness and depth that was perfectly paired with its pastry crust.


The presentation of the cheese cart: always a pleasant sight.


Château Picque Caillou, 2007, Graves, Bordeaux
Six varieties of fromage were presented in an appealing cheese plate. We had, from front to back: Capriago, a subtly salty goat's milk varietal from Bohemian Creamery in Sebastopol, CA; a tangy, soft Sainte-Maure from France; Cowgirl's creamy, mild Cana de Cabra; the cow's milk Saint-Marcellin, with its mushroom-y flair; the legendary Époisses de Bourgogne, one of my all-time favorites; and finally the big, bold Caveman blue from Rogue Creamery in Oregon. Accompanying the cheese was French acacia honey, kalamansi compote, toasted hazelnut, and two types of bread.


12: Tom Kha Semifreddo | Gai Nougatine, Cilantro, Yuzu, Rau Ram
Yuki No Bosha Sake, Akita Komochi Daiginjo
With the savories dispensed with, it was time for new Pastry Chef Kasra Ajdari to shine. For our first dessert, he prepared a dish that he's planning to present at the upcoming StarChefs International Pastry Competition. It was a reimagined version of tom kha gai, the classic Thai soup made with coconut milk, galangal, lemongrass, chicken, and herbs. All the elements were well-represented here, with the dessert really capturing the essence of the soup. The sweetness of the semifreddo paired admirably with the lemon-y notes in the dessert, all while the cilantro and Vietnamese mint added a fantastic herbal tinge to the entire dish. The coolest thing here, though, was the use of chicken skin, its immense savoriness rounding out the course nicely.


13: Harry's Berries Strawberries | Crème Fraiche, Elderflower, Basil
Iron Horse Wedding Cuvee, 2007, Russian River Valley
Halved strawberries from vaunted producer Harry's Berries were accompanied by a crème fraîche custard, buttermilk ice cream, elderflower jus, basil, and a thin ribbon of strawberry tuile. The berries were clearly the hero in the dessert, really delivering the pure, unmitigated essence of the fruit, while the combo of crème fraîche and buttermilk added a creamy, lactic counterpoint to the berry. Fantastic herbaceousness from the basil, too.


14: Mango Bavarois | Sugar Plums, Star Anise, Pistachio
Iron Horse Wedding Cuvee, 2007, Russian River Valley
A mango-based Bavarian cream was joined by both raw and pickled sugar plums, candied pistachio, anise foam, chamomile, and microcelery. This made for a smart, multifaceted dessert with a laudable base of spicy-sweet flavors balanced by a distinctly herb-y, floral character, with the pistachio serving as a mitigating element


15: Chocolate Moelleux | Dacquoise, Passionfruit, Hazelnut Sorbet
Ramos Pinto Quinta Do Bom Retiro, 20 Years Old Port
The final, chocolate-based dessert played off the classic French dacquoise and featured hazelnut and chocolate meringues, chocolate mousse paper, hazelnut sorbet, as well as passion fruit. It was an effective use of the traditional flavor profiles, with a deft mix of chocolate-y and nutty flavors, all countervailed by the bright, tart, tangy nature of the fruit.


Mignardises comprised pistachio-rose bonbons, pistachio macarons, passion fruit-dark chocolate bonbons, strawberry-blueberry pâtes de fruits, and peanut butter and fudge chocolates.


The team: General Manager Kevin Welby, Sommelier Silvestre Fernandes, Chef de Cuisine Charles Olalia, Pastry Chef Kasra Ajdari.

Olalia and company managed to exceed expectations this evening, making this dinner my strongest meal at Patina to date. Compared to the food of his predecessors, the new Chef's cooking seems to be lighter in character, with a more casual, more Californian, less pronounced French bent to it. There's an effective emphasis on brightness, acidity, and astringency, along with intelligent incorporation of disparate textures. Ajdari's desserts, meanwhile, are keenly contemporary, managing to be novel (and beautifully plated) without seeming overwrought. Fernandes' wine pairings were praiseworthy as well, as was the service directed by Kevin Welby, making for a confluence of factors that resulted in a near flawless meal. I was a bit concerned when I heard that Tony Esnault was leaving, but the restaurant is holding up just fine, making now as good of a time as ever to (re)visit Patina.

Simply click a heading to reveal a comprehensive list of all visited restaurants in a given region.