July :: 2017 :: All Things Andy Gavin

Archive for July 2017

Toppers!

Jul30

Restaurant: The Penthouse

Location: 1111 2nd St, Santa Monica, CA 90403. (310) 394-5454

Date: June 17, 2017

Cuisine: American

Rating: Quite good, Greek influences

It’s date night again with my wife and we decided to try the Penthouse (atop the Huntley Hotel) after a long absence.

This space has always had a great view of Santa Monica and the bay — it was a cheesy Mexican joint in the 90s called Toppers but got a “Stark-style” white redo around the Millennium which has been kept up.

They have a new chef – places like this always do.

From my cellar: 2002 Faiveley Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Clos de la Maréchale. 91 points. Ruby red. A nose that screams Pinot, sous Bois, Earth, plums, raspberries, strawberries and a light cinnamon dusting. Medium body with more velvet than silky mouthfeel. Fruit purity on the palate with a sour cherry midpalate. Medium plus acidity and fine tannins. At peak.

Yummy looking bread.

Beets & Goat Cheese. Pistachio, mustard frill, arugula.

Wagyu steak tartare. Bone marrow, black truffles, foie gras, quinoa. Super rich, but totally delicious. Different than a normal tartar. Fattier, lots of pepper. Good stuff.

Wild King Salmon. Artichokes, fingerling potatoes, piquillo peppers, cerignola olives.

Shrimp Saganaki. Ouzo, San Marzano Tomato Sauce, Baby Fennel, Feta. Tasty, although not as cheesy as a traditional Saganaki.

Mac & cheese. Solid. There is a truffle/lobster one too, but this was the “normal.”

The dessert menu, but we were too full.

I was pleasantly surprised by The Penthouse. The view and atmosphere has always been great but the new chef is doing nice things. This is a slick menu, and execution was pretty on point.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Santa Monica, The Penthouse

Quick Eats – Popcorn Chicken

Jul21

Restaurant: Popcorn Chicken

Location: 2224 Sawtelle Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90064. (424) 832-3076

Date: June 21, 2017

Cuisine: Taiwanese

Rating: Taiwanese fast casual

More Chinese on Sawtelle – yay!

It’s in the row of fast casual joints by Daikokuya.

And it’s sort of a hybrid boba tea shop fast casual Taiwanese place.

Pictures on the menu.
Passionfruit green tea with boba. There is the usual vast array of such drinks.
Grapefruit green tea with boba.

Popcorn chicken. Tasty. Very fried.

Fried squid balls. Yep. If you’ve got the balls, eat ’em.

“lunch’s” come with this microscopic egg drop soup. It wasn’t bad.

Szechuan fish filet noodle soup. The fish itself wasn’t the most amazing and it wasn’t seething in peppers like at a real Szechuan place but it had some mala (numb taste) and a whole bunch of noodles. Not bad.

Scrambled eggs with shrimp over rice. Weird as these egg, sauce, rice dishes are — I kinda love them.

House fried rice. Always tasty.

Sesame Balls. 2 balls in one day! Filled with red bean paste.

Popcorn Chicken is sort of like a low end version of Little Fatty. Or Little Fatty is like a high end artsy Popcorn Chicken. Nothing wrong with that. Good extra option to have on Sawtelle.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

For more LA Chinese dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Chinese cuisine, Popcorn Chicken, Sawtelle Blvd, Taiwanese Cuisine

Republique 2017

Jul19

Restaurant: Republique [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]

Location: 624 S La Brea Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036. (310) 362-6115

Date: June 23, 2017

Cuisine: Modern Bistro French

Rating: Nice (loud) space, tasty hip food, great service

This is my 10th time writing up Republique! Woah. This time for a Sauvages lunch (White Burgundy). It’s even the second Sauvages lunch I’ve done here.

We were up in the private room with a custom menu — really the only way to do Republique. I’ve learn too that breakfast lunch is now sort of fast casual (you order then sit). Ick for this sort of restaurant. But up in the room is great.

Our special menu.

3L bottle of 2006 Bouchard Père et Fils Chevalier-Montrachet. BH 96. Prost was, justifiably, extremely proud of this wine and observed that it may be the best “straight” Chevalier that he’s ever made. Not surprisingly, this is a good deal more elegant than the Bâtard with gorgeously pure floral and white fruit, stone and subtle spice aromas that seamlessly merge into the almost painfully intense and vibrant flavors that, like the Perrières, possess crystalline purity and huge length. This is a knockout Chevy and if you can find it, don’t miss it.

agavin: Stunningly fresh in the big format. Fabulous.

The famous bread and Normandy Butter. We ate about 9-10 loaves of this. Not kidding. Plus I bought some to take home.

2011 Lucien Le Moine Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Caillerets. BH 91-93. This is presently very leesy and while there are background notes of citrus and dried flowers, this is hard to read today. By contrast the concentrated flavors pack plenty of punch and an abundance of both minerality and palate coating dry extract, all wrapped in an attractively textured, austere, serious and austere finish. This is a brooding and quite serious wine seemingly extracted from liquid rock that will require plenty of time to mature.

agavin: our bottle stank. Thin with no fruit!

2010 Vincent Dancer Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Tete du Clos. BH 91-93. The fresh, cool and beautifully well-layered nose exhibits white flower and lemon zest scents that give way to restrained, refined and energetic flavors that possess plenty of underlying tension on the balanced and ever-so-mildly austere finish. Like the La Romanée there is a distinct salinity to the finish and this should age well.

agavin: not drinking too well either, but way better than the Le Moine.

2009 Louis Jadot Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Le Cailleret. agavin 91. Nice wine. Young, but tasted like it should have.

2004 Domaine Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru La Boudriotte. BH 89. A deft touch of wood frames citrus and earth infused ripe chardonnay fruit aromas that lead to rich, full and fleshy flavors that are robust if not especially structured, all wrapped in a delicious and easy to like finish. There is good freshness here if not great underlying tension with fine overall balance and fine length. In sum, this is a generous and easy to like effort that should repay a few years in the cellar.

agavin: Meadows is being a hardass because this was the best wine of the flight by far.

Spot Prawns. Corn puree. Hazelnuts. Corn. Nice dish. I like sucking the heads.

2003 Henri Boillot Corton-Charlemagne. BH 93. A gentle touch of wood frames explosive and very ripe green apple fruit aromas that despite the ripeness remain stunningly pure and elegant with dense, hyper-intense and powerful flavors of serious intensity and persistence. All I could say was “wow” and it’s the rare Corton-Charlemagne that can not only follow a terrific Montrachet but not be found wanting in the offing. Great juice.

2001 Henri Boillot Chevalier-Montrachet. BH 94. The purity here is mind bending and this is perhaps the most transparent wine in this entire group. Elegant, fine and crystalline with superbly detailed fruit and flavors with a positively brilliant, almost painfully intense finish that is astonishingly long. Classy and altogether imposing with its unmatched combination of complexity, depth and focus. While I cannot argue that this has better material than either the Montrachet or the incredible Corton-Charlemagne, I can say that stylistically, the Chevalier is my personal favorite. This is unquestionably a great wine.

2004 Henri Boillot Bâtard-Montrachet. BH 95. Perhaps the most backward and reserved wine to this point as the nose reveals only hints of white flower and green fruit aromas that are framed in a subtle touch of pain grillé but the flavors explode on the palate as there is a chewy texture to them yet there is ample minerality present, particularly for Bâtard. This too is blessed with abundant dry extract and a finish that won’t quit but for all of the size and weight, this is impeccably balanced. This has that “wow” factor and in terms of style, it’s almost like a muscular Chevalier.

agavin: drinking nicely

From my cellar: 2005 Henri Boillot Bâtard-Montrachet. BH 95. An intensely floral and still exceptionally fresh nose is nuanced with hints of spice and citrus where the latter can also be found on the textured and borderline massive flavors that display absolutely no sense of heaviness on the exceptionally rich finish that drenches and stains the palate. This is a big wine yet there is a firm acid backbone that keeps everything in ideal balance and overall, it’s an extremely impressive effort. While the abundant dry extract enables this, like many ’05s, to drink with pleasure now, in magnum format I personally would allow for at least another 4 to 5 years of bottle age.

agavin: our bottle was a little advanced. Improved in the glass.

Halibut. Chanterelle mushroom pea and pork cheeks. The sauce was all about the butter and pork.

2004 Bouchard Père et Fils Chevalier-Montrachet. BH 92. This is presently quite reticent and it requires considerable aeration to coax aromas of airy white flowers, spice and limestone that precede textured, pure and defined energy-filled flavors that possess a linear mouth feel, all wrapped in a focused and mouth coating finish of impressive length. Perhaps this is just going through a phase but it seems a bit awkward at present, and while all the component pieces appear to be in place, I wasn’t knocked out despite the length of the finish. One thing that is clear though is that this definitely needs more bottle age before it’s ready for prime time. Tasted only once in bottle.

2004 Antonin Guyon Corton-Charlemagne. BH 92. A complex and perfumed nose featuring subtle wood spice and elegant, pure and layered green apple and white orchard fruit aromas, particularly pear. The powerful, intense and mouth coating flavors are sleekly muscled with a fresh, forward and wonderfully textured finish that goes on and on. This is structured yet there is so much mid-palate fat that it should be approachable after 5 years or so in bottle.

agavin: advanced

Spinach Cavatelli with morels, another mushroom, cheese, butter, and more butter and then a butter sauce. Fabulous texture to the pasta and the butter was great. They don’t go so far as to use the Normandy butter here, Strauss butter actually, but it’s still great.

2009 Remoissenet Père et Fils Montrachet Le Montrachet. VM 96. The 2009 Le Montrachet, from a parcel on the Chassagne side, is fabulous. Layers of exotic, tropical fruit flow effortlessly from this broad-shouldered, kaleidoscopic wine. There is plenty of freshness in the glass to support the fruit in this magical, captivating wine. I especially like the way this turns delicate, subtle and refined on the finish.

2009 Domaine / Maison Vincent Girardin Corton-Charlemagne Quintessence. VM 95+. Bright pale yellow. Sexy smoky oak and strong minerally silex on the nose, lifted by a violet high note. A densely packed wine with terrific force, offering outstanding cut to its citrus, apple, floral and mineral flavors. At once laid-back and powerful, and extremely unevolved. This really titillates the taste buds on the long, rising, lemon-and-stone finish. Wow! Girardin purchased a bit more Corton-Charlemagne in Aloxe-Corton this year but it’s unlikely to find its way into this special <i>cuvee</i>: he wants the Quintessence bottling, which is always from the same 80-year-old vines in the heart of the hillside on the Pernand side, to remain rare.

2010 Domaine / Maison Vincent Girardin Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet. BH 93-95. In relatively stark contrast to the expressiveness of the prior wine, this is distinctly restrained if not out and out mute as the nose only grudgingly allows glimpses of the lemon grass, honeysuckle and lemon/lime aromas. There is outstanding intensity to the round, generous and quite seductively textured medium-bodied flavors that possess that wonderful quality of underlying tension which adds a real sense of lift and vitality to the spherical and harmonious Zen-like finish.

Pork belly on risotto. This was a weaker dish. The pork was very fatty.

Chef Walter Manzke.

Our Somm did an awesome job. She replaces Taylor (who was awesome before her).

Les vins.

Cryptic notes.

The giant box for the 3L Bouchard.

1976 Zach. Bergweiler-Prüm Erben Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese. 93 points. Deep uric color, orange golden hues; golden raisin, Pledge, orange, lemon custard, still very fresh; delicious palate, has lost some sweetness, honey, apple, persistent; could easily have gone another 20+ years; everyone amazed at age.

agavin: he said uric!

Les fromages. The soft one (probably a Camembert) was slightly better, but both great.

Overall, a great lunnch – Savauges lunches always are.

Wines were for the most part fabulous. 3 of us sat at the bar downstairs afterward and drank another of my bottles over the next couple hours too.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: République, Sauvages, Walter Manzke, White Burgundy, Wine

Dragged out for Duck

Jul17

Restaurant: Duck House [1, 2]

Location: 501 S Atlantic Blvd, Monterey Park, CA 91754. (626) 284-3227

Date: June 11, 2017

Cuisine: Chinese

Rating: Interesting stuff

Big surprise that for my birthday dinner I chose — you guessed it — Chinese food! And because it was my birthday I managed to drag the rest of my family all the way out to the SGV. I went for a return to Duck House (previous recent visit here), as they have Peking Duck (no duh), it’s on the west side of Alhambra, and because it isn’t spicy or too weird. But I did pre-order a bunch of interesting dishes.

From my cellar: NV Demière-Ansiot Champagne Grand Cru Brut Blanc de Blancs. VM 91. Vivid yellow. Bright, mineral-accented aromas of orange, pear, anise and white flowers are lifted by a gingery topnote. Lively and precise, offering intense orchard and citrus fruit flavors and a hint of buttered toast. Shows impressive clarity and mineral cut on the finish, with the pear and floral notes echoing. This elegant Champagne should age well on its balance.

Slightly sweet soy marinated chicken wings. Always on the table here to start. Boney and cold, but nice taste.

My 8 year-old tried these fried buns. Basically the soft bao dough fried with sweetened condensed milk on the side.

2005 Seigneurie de Posanges Savigny-lès-Beaune. Not a bad young village.

Peking Duck. Served here with the meat and skin. We had it only 1 way, but two ducks. This is solid, but Tasty Duck and a few others have slightly better duck. Mostly I think they just need better Hoisin.

Egg with tofu. My wife liked this. Steamed egg with tofu and a vegetarian brown sauce.

Eggplant with garlic. A little mushy, and not as spicy/garlicky as the best Szechuan versions, but certainly nice.

Sweet and Pungent shrimp. Basically fried shrimp in sweet and sour sauce. Love it!

Vegetable crispy lo mein. With the sauce on the side.

Here is the sauce. Lots of ginger.

From my cellar: 2008 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Bougros Cote de Bouguerots. BH 96. An exceptionally elegant high-toned and strikingly layered nose of oyster shell, mineral reduction and perfumed cool green fruit is extremely seductive and serves as a fascinating introduction to the concentrated, serious and powerful yet refined flavors that ooze a fine minerality on the mouth coating and hugely long finish. This is blessed with buckets of sap that completely buffer the firm acid spine. This is a flat out great effort that is indisputably a “wow” wine.

Treasure Island, which somehow I keep mis-remembering as “buried treasure.” This was a special pre-order dish and I’ve never had its like before. Napa cabbage smothered (it’s huge) in egg yolk and crab meat sauce. Topped with goji berries. Unusual. Very mild and pleasant, but certainly a LOT of cabbage.

Steamed black cod. For the healthy folk.

2004 Domaine de la Janasse Châteauneuf-du-Pape Vieilles Vignes. VM 95. Opaque ruby. Incredibly powerful bouquet encompasses cherry, blackberry, cassis, candied plum, dark chocolate, licorice and garrigue Positively mouthfilling, with potent, liqueur-like dark fruit, licorice and mocha flavors, but also with surprising freshness and cut. As weighty as this is, there’s a sense of elegance, too. Finishes juicy, sweet and impressively long, with persistent cassis and blackberry flavors. Wow!

Jan, your ass is big!

Buddah’s chicken. Another special order dish. Whole roast chicken stuffed with seafood, taro, and I don’t know what and smothered in brown sauce.

Inside it’s like Chinese Thanksgiving! Cool texture.

2014 Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon. Can we say vanilla?

Sticky rice with BBQ eel. I don’t know why they always have this dish at duck houses, but they do.

Truffle Lobster. Can’t go wrong with a giant fried lobster in truffle sauce!

I was far too stuffed for cake, so had to have my candle in some eel rice!

Overall, a fun night and great to share it with the family and friends. Not sure I need to order the Treasure Island again, but it was very interesting. The sauce was actually great over rice, but there was so much of it!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Chinese cuisine, Duck House, Peking Duck, SGV, Wine

Wolf

Jul14

Restaurant: Wolf

Location: 7661 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90046. (323) 424-7735

Date: June 11, 2017

Cuisine: Contemporary

Rating: Nice brunch

Meeting friends for brunch on my birthday!

We decided to venture east to Wolf, a casual new place by my fried, Chef Marcel Vigneron (check out a meal he cooked at our house here). Off the bat it gets cool points for the uni-wolf.

Inside is casual and funky. They share a kitchen with Beefsteak his adjoining vegetarian restaurant.

The brunch menu.

Bloody Mary. It had some other name and was very smoked.

Turmeric Latte. Turmeric, cinnamon, ginger, honey, almond milk. Tasted great. Very earthy. No caffeine though.
Matcha Latte. Matcha, spirulina, maca, vanilla, coconut oil, almond milk. Very creamy and nutty. The almond milk offset the bitter matcha qualities nicely.

Hibiscus Latte. Hibiscus, almond milk. Not as popular with those that tried it.

The fat stack. Pancakes (minus the strawberry/rhubarb sauce).

Chicken and waffle. Buttermilk, maple whip, hot sauce. This was a great chicken and waffle. The combo of sweet, salty and hot was perfect. Nice fried chicken, very sweet maple whip, and a good bit of heat from the chili oil like sauce.

Waffle. Maple syrup, berries, whipped cream, powdered sugar.

Herb omelet. Mushrooms, goat cheese, side salad. The omelet eater didn’t love this dish.

Eggs Benedict. Hollandaise, coddled egg, spinach, smoked pork.

$10k Burger. avocado, sunnyside egg, muenster, watercress, potato roll. Most of the stuff was on the side here by request.

Bacon.

Avocado.

Sunnyside egg.

Crispy Potatoes. Aji amarillo aioli, lime, cilantro, serrano. Very crispy with a nice soft center. I really liked the potato texture. It came off like an excellent potatoes bravos.

This is just brunch of course, but overall the food at Wolf seemed both interesting, hip, and for the most part on point. I’ll have to try it for dinner.

Service was fabulous. Our waiter really knew what he was doing and handled our giant picky table with ease.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Brunch, Marcel Vigneron, Wolf

Finding the One at One Pico

Jul12

Restaurant: One Pico

Location: 1 Pico Blvd, Santa Monica, CA 90405. (310) 587-1717 (inside Shutters Hotel)

Date: June 10, 2017

Cuisine: American

Rating: Solid food, great setting

I don’t go to One Pico very often but I have a soft spot for it in my heart because it was here that my wife and I went on our first date.

So when our anniversary rolled around we decided to head back to the lovely white paneled room by the beach.

Tonight’s menu. I’m sure they’ve had several chefs since our first meal here!

When celebrating, you can never go wrong with Champagne:

From my cellar: 2006 Louis Roederer Champagne Cristal Brut. VM 97. Broad, ample and resonant on the palate, the 2006 Cristal dazzles with its pure richness and volume. Readers need to give the 2006 another 4-5 years in bottle, perhaps longer, as the wine appears to be shutting down a bit. Tasted next to the 2002, today the 2006 is a bit less opulent but just as intense, layered and deep. This is a fabulous showing.

Little gem caesar. parmesan croutons, red endive, white anchovies.

Rainbow cauliflower soup. apple curry madras. A little bit of heat and a distinct curry tone.

grilled country bread. Always good with soup!

Corn ravioli. piquillo pepper, lime yellow corn shoots, pecorino romano. Not a tomato sauce but a very Spanish tasting pepper puree.

Bucatini. Maine lobster, roasted tomatoes, capers, spicy Calabrian chili peppers. A touch of heat, plenty of meat.

Sea bass with a pesto puree. A nice crispy-skinned fish.

The dessert menu.

Bonus mini-tiramisu with a candle.

Salted Caramel Sundae. Candy Popcorn, chocolate brownie, and caramel ice cream. I should make a gelato with salted caramel, chocolate, and popcorn. This was a nice confection. Sweet, and good textural contrasts. Not sophisticated in flavor, but good.

Overall a very tasty meal at One Pico. It’s a great room too. Sure the prices are nice hotel prices, but they do a very good job.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Champagne, One Pico, Santa Monica, Shutters

Summer at 71Above

Jul10

Restaurant: 71Above [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

Location: 633 W 5th St., Los Angeles, CA 90071

Date: June 6, 2017

Cuisine: New American

Rating: Awesome in all ways

This is my fifth visit to one of LA’s latest and hottest event restaurants, 71Above. The first can be found here. Tonight is my wife and her sister’s birthday so we slogged through nearly 2 hours of traffic to downtown.

Besides being located on the 71st floor (950 feet up!) of the US Bank building, being the highest restaurant west of the Mississippi, and showcasing the food of Chef Vartan Abgaryan, it’s owned and operated by my friend Emil Eyvazoff!

This is no casual opening, but a massive (and gorgeous) multipart buildout that encompasses the entire floor. Above is part of the lounge/bar.

And behind that is the stunning dining room with its computer controlled auto tinting windows. Beyond that the view continues all the way around with the chef’s table and several more intimate private dining areas.

The view alone is worth the price of admission, and offers varied sights depending on your 360 degree angle. Notice how even the second tallest building downtown (seen under construction here) is below eye level! On a clear day you can easily see the vast sweep of the Pacific and several mountain ranges.

The current menu.

Some bonus rose champagne from our host Emil.

Plus we opened both these bottles side by side:

From my cellar (and the restaurant has it on its list): NV Savart Champagne Bulle de Rosé. JG 93. The Savart “Bulles de Rosé” is excellent wine. The cépages is seventy percent pinot noir, twenty-two percent chardonnay and eight percent still red wine (also pinot noir). The wine was finished off with a dosage of six grams per liter and offers up a very complex and still fairly youthful nose of strawberries, blood orange, chalky soil tones, fresh baked bread, caraway seed, orange zest and a gently smoky topnote. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied, complex and beautifully balanced, with a fine core, lovely soil signature, refined mousse and a long, crisp and complex finish. This is superb juice.

From my cellar: 2005 Morey-Blanc Corton-Charlemagne. BH 94. More evident wood with hints of spice and vanilla frames the green fruit and spiced apple aromas and a trace of it can also be found on the full-bore, rich and intense big-bodied flavors blessed with excellent concentration and muscle, all wrapped in a minerally, delicious and serious finish of superb length.

Butter and cheese pasta. For my son. Haha.

Gem Lettuce. Lemon, caper, parmesan, chervil, anchovy, garlic breadcrumbs.

Beets. Chocolate wheat berries, blood orange, kumquat, cocoa nib.

Hamachi. Crudo, matcha, tofu, mulberry, masago, fresno chile, basils.

English Pea. Chilled soup, shiso, hazelnut, mint, buttermilk. Really yummy soup. Gazpacho-like.

Carrot. Pickled raisin, kefir, chermoula, sunflower seed, mint.

White asparagus. XO sauce, uni aioli, basil, sea bean.

Morels. Cavatelli, english peas, pistachio, pecorino cream, mint, lemon.

Foie gras. Mousse, strawberry, rhubarb, black pepper crumble, wild fennel, cashew. Soft and sweet with interesting textures.

Halibut. Fava, sugar snap peas, asparagus, carrots, lemon verbena.

Young chicken breast. Swiss chard, beets, black truffle, buttermilk, dried cherry, jus gras.

Spring Lamb. Loin, crepinette, ramp panisse, fava, plum, pickled mustard.

The dessert menu.

I brought some gelato I had made for my wife’s birthday: Amareno on the left (white base with cherry’s I picked myself) and Stracciatella on the right (white base with chocolate drizzled in).

Creme Faiche Mousse. Cassis Lemon Curd, Creme Anglaise, Dill Kefir-Cassis Foam, Creme Fraiche Ice cream.

Caramelia Custard. Laproaig 10yr Scotch Caramel. Coconut sorbet, smoked pork powder, praline hazelnuts, Himalayan pink salt. Amazing flavor combo and texture. Really good. Particularly the pork powder really brought it up.

Chocolate. Cremeux, gel, ganache, smoked yogurt sorbet.

The group of us.

Heading down!

Overall, 71Above is just a seriously well conceived and executed one-of-a-kind restaurant. Really, it’s more like a NY, Singapore, or Tokyo kind of concept. First of all, the view is just awesome. I can’t wait to come back on a really clear day. Particularly once they begin brunch service, a nice winter day will offer an observation deck like panorama.

But then Emil and crew built out such a lovely space to capture the drama. It’s modern, but welcoming. Not too loud, you can here the conversation and the music both. And from when you enter off the double elevator ascent it folds from one experience to another: lounge, dining room, more intimate corridors, chef table, quiet and romantic view areas in the back, and a series of two adjustable private dining rooms. The attention to architectural detail is amazing.

Then the menu has a creative format with a fixed price (currently $70) and three savory courses. You can pick from six options per category. If you are a glutton like me, you can add extra courses – and of course dessert. At the chef’s table one gets a 6 course (+ a few bonuses) for a very reasonable (considering what you get) $110 a person!

It should also be noted that an interesting menu wouldn’t be anything without great execution. As you can see in this post, the plating is modern but approachable and highly attractive. But the flavor on the dishes is paramount, and really quite excellent, particularly considering their complexity and textural variation. There is a balanced quality between opposite forces in Chef Abgaryan’s cooking that pulls from Chinese culinary theory, while that specific flavors and combinations are largely American/European. It’s both approachable and sophisticated. Bravo!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: 71above, birthday, BYOG, DTLA, Emil Eyvazoff, Gelato, Vartan Abgaryan

Drappier at Petrossian

Jul07

Restaurant: Petrossian Beverly Hills

Location: 321 Robertson Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90048. (310) 271-6300

Date: June 3, 2017

Cuisine: Caviar +

Rating: Perfect food for Champagne!

Liz Lee of Sage Society organizes some of the best wine maker dinners. Tonight’s showcases Drappier Champagne, a house in Southern Champagne near Chablis that splits the line between House and Grower.

And what goes better with Champagne than caviar? Not much.So she hosted it with a special meal in the private room at Petrossian Beverly Hills.

Before we step into our room I’ll show the front area which splits caviar bar and restaurant.
All sorts of high end delectables like macarons.

Chocolates.

Tons of caviar of course.

Fancy salts, etc.

And Louis XIII.

The private room is lovely.

NV Drappier Champagne Carte d’Or Brut. VM 89. Light yellow-gold. Pungent aromas of orange pith, dried apple and toasty lees, with a hint of chamomile in the background. Fleshy and broad on entry, then tighter in the middle, offering bitter pear skin and quinine flavors and a touch of blood orange. Finishes with good grip and cut, leaving a subtle smoky note behind.

While we sip champagne some foie gras gougers.

And buckwheat blini with with creme fraiche and caviar.

The first round of “official” Champy (more details later).

Tonight’s special menu, so long it ran to both sides of the paper!

And a special kosher-style variant for my wife!

Here is Liz introducing our guest:

On the left: Charline Drappier of Drappier Champagne! Charline is 8th generation (I think) owning and operating Drappier.

This flight is all zero dosage offerings:

NV Drappier Champagne Brut Nature Dosage Zero. VM 91. Light yellow. Vibrant quince, orange zest and green apple aromas are complemented by smoky minerals and honeysuckle. Stony, sharply focused citrus and orchard fruit flavors show very good energy, turning juicier and deeper with air and picking up a melony quality and a hint of anise. Finishes on intense notes of dusty minerals and ginger, with very good clarity and persistence.

NV Drappier Champagne Brut Nature Zero Dosage Sans Ajout de Soufre. VM 89. The NV Brut Nature Pinot Noir Zero Dosage André et Michel Sans Ajout de Souffre is the same wine as the Brut Nature Pinot Noir Zero Dosage (although from different base vintages) vinified and aged with no sulfur. This is a relatively soft, caressing zero dosage Champagne with a relatively round, open core of candied, perfumed fruit. Tasting the two NV Brut Natures together it is hard to say with precision how much of the wines’ characters are due to the sulfur treatments versus the underlying vintages themselves. Sweet, earthy tones add a touch of complexity to a very Aube-like expression of Pinot.

NV Drappier Champagne Rose Brut Nature. VM 90. Pale orange. Mineral-accented red berries and citrus fruits on the nose, complemented by hints of candied rose and white pepper. Stony and precise, offering lively strawberry and orange zest flavors that expand slowly with air. Closes spicy, stony and tight, with very good clarity and floral persistence.

Chilled Shellfish.

Oyster with Ponzu.
Blue Crab with Green Apple & Avocado.

Maine Lobster with Creme Fraiche. Perfect with the rose! Really nice and meaty lobster.

Quinoa Salad, smoked almonds.

This flight is all blended Champagne with different grapes and styles:

NV Drappier Champagne Charles de Gaulle Brut. VM 91. Light yellow-gold. Potent, mineral-tinged Meyer lemon, pear and buttered toast aromas show very good clarity and a hint of anise. Sappy and focused on the palate, offering bitter pear skin and blood orange flavors that deepen and expand with air. Rich yet lithe Champagne with strong finishing cut, lift and stony persistence.

NV Drappier Champagne Blanc de Blancs “Signature”. VM 91. Pale gold. Candied lemon, lime pith and white flowers on the fragrant nose, with deeper orange and buttered toast qualities emerging with air. Juicy flavors of pear and Meyer lemon show impressive depth and cut, with a gingery nuance adding energy. Bright, focused and mineral-driven on the clinging finish, which leaves behind notes of honeysuckle and brioche.

NV Drappier Champagne Quattuor IV – Blanc de Quatre Blancs. VM 91. The NV Brut Blanc de Quatre Blancs Quattuor is laced with hazlenuts, almonds, orange peel and dried pears. There is an attractive, oxidative quality that mkes the the NV Quatre Blancs quite appealing. A gracious, crystalline finish adds considerable finesse and weightlessness in this expressive, layered Champagn., The wine keeps getting better and better with time in the glass, so some advance aeration is probably a good idea.

Cool knife.

Toasted Brioche.

Smoked Fish Plate. Tsar Cut Natural Salmon, Smoked Sturgeon, Cold Smoked Trout, Creme Fraiche.

Smoked Fish Plate, Tsar Cut Natural Salmon, Smoked Black Cod, Cold Smoked Trout, Creme Fraiche.

2006 Drappier Champagne Grande Sendrée. VM 92. Vivid yellow. Potent citrus pith, poached pear and floral scents are underscored by a smoky mineral quality and pick up a buttery nuance with air. Fleshy and dry on the palate, offering ripe orchard and citrus fruit flavors and a deeper suggestion of buttered toast. Shows very good energy and thrust on an extremely long finish of building florality and spiciness.

2008 Drappier Champagne Grande Sendrée. 91 points. Big bodied, lots of newly baked bread, yellow apples, slightly nutty, softish – yet decent acidity.

Caviar Egg Royale. Soft Scrambled Egg, Caviar, Chive. A purer version than the richer Melisse take (with creme fraiche). This tastes like omelet with caviar — lots of caviar.

Celery Root Soup, candied chestnuts, croutons, chives. Really nice veggie soup, very creamy.

NV Drappier Champagne Brut Rosé. VM 89. Dark orange-pink. Exotically perfumed scents of raspberry, pungent herbs, candied rose and smoky minerals. Fleshy and supple in texture, showing a floral accent to its red berry compote and tangerine flavors. Lush and broad but lively too, finishing with a hint of spiciness and good floral persistence.

2008 Drappier Champagne Grande Sendrée Rosé. JG 94. The 2008 Drappier “Grande Sendrée” Brut Rosé is composed of a blend of ninety percent pinot noir and ten percent chardonnay. The wine is produced using only first pressing juice, with the saignée method utilized with a three day maceration for the pinot noir, before the chardonnay is added. The 2008 was finished with a dosage of six grams per liter and was aged six years sur latte. The bouquet is outstanding, offering up a superb synthesis of delicacy and complexity in its constellation of wild strawberries, white cherries, wheat toast, dried rose petals, a lovely base of chalky soil and gentle smokiness in the upper register. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, crisp and complex, with a fine core, elegant mousse, brisk acids and excellent focus and grip on the very, very long and youthfully zesty finish. Very refined juice that will only improve with further bottle age.

1996 Drappier Champagne Grande Sendrée Rosé. 92 points. Very full, rich, and vibrant… many years left on this great grower champagne and a historic year.

Beef Tartare. Prime Flat Iron Steak, Capers, shallots, chives, crostini. Very nice tartar.

Beet Tartare, red beets, crostini.

2002 Drappier Champagne Carte d’Or Brut.

1995 Drappier Champagne Carte d’Or Brut. VM 93. The 1995 Brut Carte d’Or, tasted from magnum, is gorgeous today. Light honey, smoke, dried pears, spices and toasted almonds are some of the many nuances found in this rich, textured wine. This magnum was disgorged in December 2008, which has allowed the wine to develop gorgeous tertiary complexity. The 1995 is in a gorgeous place. It can be enjoyed today, or cellared for another decade-plus, especially of readers want to experience more tertiary nuance. This big, broad-shouldered Champagne captures the essence of the Drappier style to the fullest.
Grilled Octopus. Beurre Blanc, Leek Fondue. Super tender.Truffles Risotto. Very mild and spring-like.

1990 Drappier Champagne Grande Sendrée. VM 93. The 1990 Brut Grande Sendrée shows the warmth of the vintage in its dried apricots, flowers and honey, with pretty suggestions of mint on the finish that add an element of freshness. Soft and enveloping throughout, the 1990 Grande Sendrée impresses for its overall balance, restraint and enveloping sense of harmony.

1989 Drappier Champagne Carte d’Or Brut. 91 points.

Seared Foie Gras & Yellowfin Tuna. Ginger Ponzu, Cilantro, Sesame, Nori. Really nice combo of bright acidic fish (because of the ponzu) and the foie.

Yellowfin tuna, ginger ponzu, cilantro, sesame, nori.

1979 Drappier Champagne Carte d’Or Brut. VM 87. Pale copper color. Mature, enticing aromas of meal, toffee, brioche and melted butter. Creamy, toasty and soft on the palate; completely resolved and best suited for near-term drinking. Lacks real grip and verve but offers lovely ripeness and good depth of flavor. A bottle of 1969 Carte d’Or Brut was well past its best days.

agavin: under rated, really very very good

1976 Drappier Champagne Carte d’Or Brut. 92 points. Rather youthful, minty, ripe, honeyed nose – honey on a piece of rye bread. Very friendly and likeable.

1959 Drappier Champagne Carte d’Or Brut. 95 points. Super youthful. Very lively beautiful old moose. Long Carmelly finish.

Cheese from the Beverly Hills Cheese Shop. St Angel triple creme, cow’s milk. Le Secrete de Compostelle, raw sheep’s milk from Basque. Comte, 36-month aged raw cow’s milk from France.

The lineup.

And the water lineup.

Another stellar dinner from Liz and Sage Society! Very educational with Charline Drappier there and the way in which Liz has arranged the wines. Different flights explored different aspects of the Drappier style: like zero dosage, the broader blended style, or the more focused vintage styles. We wandered across the decades as well and the older vintage wines showed particularly well.

Plus Liz does an absolutely amazing job with the food pairings. There was plenty of food, and lots of different items, not the anemic 3-4 courses some people do with giant flights. Petrossian’s food was very good too. I’ll have to go back with a smaller group but it certainly won’t be this epic if I do!

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By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Beverly Hills, Caviar, Champagne, Charline Drappier, Drappier, Liz Lee, Petrossian, Sage Society, Wine

Big Ride to Big Oaks

Jul05

Restaurant: Big Oaks Lodge

Location: 33101 Bouquet Canyon Rd, Santa Clarita, CA 91390. (661) 296-5656

Date: June 3, 2017

Cuisine: Roadhouse

Rating: Terrible, but pretty location

After doing some seasonal cherry picking we took a deserted California road and ended up at this biker bar.

Like a set out of Sons of Anarchy ! This is barely a restaurant, but a total pub/roadhouse/biker bar with food. It’s apparently for sale too! The location is gorgeous in a Southern California Hills sort of way.

Lemon Slushy. Tasted like frozen Country Time.

Fries. Not too bad.

Italian Sausage and peppers with onion rings. The “sausage” was a desiccated and dry thing on an over toasted bun. The onion rings were lousy onion rings, but still half decent because how bad can onion rings get.

Hot dog. A picture is worth a 1000 words.

Tri tip sandwich. Barely qualifies for the label.

Cheese pizza. Straight outta the box and into the oven.

Pepperoni Pizza. Same.
BBQ Chicken Pizza. Did they actually have this as a boxed option or is it a modified cheese? Hard to tell.

Great location, and on this perfect SoCal day the breeze was great — food was what you expect. Odd that so many people were drinking. The idea of driving a motorcycle through those hills after a couple whiskies is more than a little terrifying.

Service was slow, but extremely friendly. Food came out at a glacial serial pace. Clearly the “pizza oven” can only handle one at a time.

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By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Big Oaks Lodge, Biker Bar, Roadhouse, Santa Clarita

Belle Vie

Jul03

Restaurant: Belle Vie

Location: 11916 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90025. (424) 832-7375

Date: June 2, 2017

Cuisine: French

Rating: Cute French Bistro

French restaurants used to be everywhere, but in recent years they have faded more into the Los Angeles background.

Belle Vie seems to be a relatively new one, a neighborhood bistro up in the not-so-neighborhoodly area of mid Santa Monica.

The interior is cute with a large selection of mysterious black & white photos of a mustachioed gentleman.

The menu.

And specials on the chalkboard.

From my cellar: NV Drappier Champagne Rose Brut Nature. VM 90. Pale orange. Mineral-accented red berries and citrus fruits on the nose, complemented by hints of candied rose and white pepper. Stony and precise, offering lively strawberry and orange zest flavors that expand slowly with air. Closes spicy, stony and tight, with very good clarity and floral persistence.

Beef Burgundy Tacos. Beef Bourguignon on a corn tortilla, raw mushrooms, pickled carrots and onions, crispy bacon, spring onions and Dijon mustard. Interesting taco and very tasty.

Petit Mesclun. Mix green salad.

Special with asparagus, thyme, ricotta, hazelnut and croquant lemon.
Gratin de Coquillettes. French mac and cheese with truffle cream, Compte APO and bread crumbs. On the dryer side for M&C.

7 Hours Lamb Leg. Braised with garlic thyme and rosemary, served with spring vegetables, Harissa. Not bad. Very tender and a good bit of flavor.

FFF (Fresh French Fries). 100% homemade with Kennebec potatoes, fried with beef tallow, seasoned with parsley, garlic and Porcinni mushrooms. Too thick for my taste. I prefer the classic thin French Fries.

Overall Belle Vie was okay. Nice in that it modernized bistro food a bit, a little medium in that execution wasn’t perfect and no dishes stood out as amazing. Some were good, and some just okay.

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By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Belle Vie, French Cuisine

Tallulas – Segundo Mexicano

Jul01

Restaurant: Tallulah’s

Location: 118 Entrada Dr, Santa Monica, CA 90402. (310) 526-0027

Date: May 28 & September 9, 2017

Cuisine: Contemporary Mexican

Rating: Tasty flavors, tiny portions, awkward service

Tallulah’s is a new “updated” Mexican spot in the same location as the old Marix – a kid oriented old school Mexican joint. I had high hopes as the new place is run by the group that brings us Rustic Canyon, Cassia, Sweet Rose, Milo & Olive, and Huckleberry.

They haven’t changed much since the Marix days except for opening the windows and getting rid of the koi pond in the middle. The building is a bit odd anyway as on the exterior it is Japanese (must have been a Japanese restaurant in the 80s or something) but rustic and beach like in the middle. The space was loud before and somehow even louder.

The bar has been repainted and switched over from old school Margarita’s to “mixologist” cocktails.

Strawberry Margarita. Tapatio Blanco Tequila, Fresh Lime, Strawberry Puree, Agave. This was an insipid and totally awful take on a non-frozen Strawberry Margarita. It just tasted like mild strawberry water. It was so disappointing I went out to the store afterward and bought ingredients to make a proper Strawberry Margarita the new day for Memorial Day.

Paloma. Tapatio Blanco Tequila, Aperol, Housemade Grapefruit Syrup, Steigl Grapefruit Raddler, Peychauds Bitters. Much better than the Margarita, but very light. Tasted like grapefruit soda and I finished it in about 2 seconds.

A Cadillac margarita (9/17). Pretty good, but at least $18 (might have been more).

(9/17) A smokey slushy drink that was pretty tasty too.

The menu. One of those menus were I had absolutely no idea what would actually come for anything I ordered. Yeah I saw the ingredients but I had no way to imagine how they were prepped. Things were even more different (and smaller) than I expected.

chile fundido. panela & oaxaca cheeses, blue corn tortillas. $12. I basically wanted chili con queso. This tiny dish had some cheese in it, but I hadn’t expected it to be fundamentally “red” (tomato? pepper?). It was fine, but as I expected, not what I expected.

Nachos “sencillo” (9/17). The “other” cheese snack, very similar to the first one, but with fried chips. Neither is actually as good as a great chili con queso.

Guacamole, salsa, & chips. Pretty good quac, but you do have to pay $11 for it.

Grilled baja halibut tacos. mexican sauerkraut. malt aioli, epazote. I don’t normally complain about prices, but this was $18! Lol. And where is the halibut? They tasted fine, like nice coleslaw tacos.

mexican white shrimp. rancho gordo hominy polenta, anahein chile, leek, salsa de madre. Shrimp and grits! Again not exactly what I expected. I thought maybe bigger prawns. I think there were 3 regular cocktail shrimp in here for $18. Decently tasty but swamped out by the grits.

duck cilaquiles. duck confit, cracklings, beans, queso fresco & jack, sauce colorado and organic egg. $19! Mostly it was chips soaked in a duck ragu. It was the best dish, and quite tasty, but so chip heavy it felt like eating matza brie.
arroz poblano. Green rice, spring vegetables, saffron aioli. $17. A sort of green light risotto. Not creamy at all (not that it needed to be, but to distinguish it from real risotto). Not bad, but kinda pricey for rice.

Organic turkey enchiladas (9/17). black recado sauce, quinoa, shaved cabbage, cotija. Pretty good enchiladas, entirely because of the sauce (which was a bit like a mole). Not sure the quinoa added.

Monterey squid (9/17). spicy eggplant, kohlrabi, peaches, purple basil.

Grassfed hanger steak carne asada (9/17). shaved onion, padron peppers, chipotle, tortillas. Tasty meat with a bit of a kick. $33 though.

Dessert menu.

Vanilla rum flan (9/17). poached pears. Solid flan.

Service was pretty lousy on my first visit. They are a brand new restaurant, and having done it, I know organizing good service is hard. But they are a very experienced group. We were seated fairly quickly (in the bar) but they took 20-30 minutes to come by. Then took only the drink order. That took another 20+ minutes to come. Had to almost grab their hand to put int he food order. That came quickly, but all brought by different people. Hard to find the server. Mandatory 19% auto-grat.

Drinks need serious work. Bartenders are very slow. There were several of them and both my drink orders took more than 20 minutes each.

On my second visit drink service was much swifter, although they still took a mysteriously long time between taking the drink order (and bringing them) and taking our food order. The waiter himself was absent for a good stretch. Once we ordered it came fast.

Food was fairly tasty but portions were way smaller than I expected using the price as a guide. Good thing I always over order. Menu needs a serious rewrite because without even the slightest suggestion of prep method you can’t imagine what you are going to get. Also, like many of the restaurants in this group, there is nothing even vaguely kid focused. The flavor combinations are such that most kids wouldn’t touch a thing on here — yet the basic concept, the previous restaurant, and the location are all highly child focused. So parents will bring them (saw it in action) and be disappointed. Of course, as I know from experience, they probably don’t want kids because their cover average is so much lower. sigh. But I’d have to see the cheese quesadilla from their kids menu to know if it was plain enough that I could come here with mine.

Only way to park is $9 valet.

I’ll try it again, as it’s close and this is a very good group and they just opened, but management needs to tune things up even more, and I’d like some more things on the menu without tortilla, and some playful takes on favorites (like a real chili con queso).

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