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Raving about Miyagi

Sep01

Restaurant: Sushi Miyagi [ 1, 2, 3, 4 ]

Location: 150 S Barrington Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (323) 382-5635

Date: December 15, 2023

Cuisine: Japanese Sushi

Rating: Top Shelf Omakase Sushi

Great sushi is always a good excuse to pull out the beloved Champagnes and White Burgundies. Tonight’s Foodie Club theme was Raveneau.

The unassuming storefront on the largely ignored side street that is S Barrington Ave.

The space is small but attractive (these are pre covid pics).

This is chef focused serious sushi, and so we pre-ordered the largest omakase possible — Erick even egged them on to a larger than offered menu. This picture is also pre-covid, post there is a plexiglass barrier across the bar and no bar seating.

Chef Shinichi Miyagi says about himself on his website:

Born in Osaka, the art of sushi mesmerized the chef at an early age and decided to devote his life as a “Decchi” (apprentice) under Master Higuchi at the age of 16. He opened his first “Kappo” (traditional style of cooking in front of a crowd) restaurant at the age of 25, and moved to LA at 29, working in numerous well known Sushi restaurants in West LA, Beverly Hills, and San Diego.

Through managing a Sushi restaurant in Manhattan Beach (i-naba), now in present day, he found an opportunity to try his skills as an executive chef in Brentwood/Los Angeles. The chefs many years of experience in choosing the freshest fish, will surprise even the most sophisticated pallets of this beautiful city.

His methods and techniques in preparation follows the traditional Japanese style, bringing out the true flavors of the fish. The chef also prepares two styles of rice, AKAZU SHARI (Red vinegar sushi rice), and SHIROZU SHARI (White vinegar rice). The SHARI (Sushi rice) will alternate depending on the fish being prepared, and we hope you enjoy the eclectic flavors of the different vinegars being used.Sushi Miyagi is exactly the kind of sushi place I like best — all omakase and very traditional. This is some seriously good fish. Mostly just straight nigiri and a bit of spectacular sashimi and a handful of cooked dishes. This is really really good and instantly catapulted into the top westside sushi joints. Very friendly too. Intimate as well. Sushi at this level is all about the chef and Shinichi Miyagi is very talented.

Appetizer plate with oyster and caviar (left), sea squirt (top), monkfish liver (front), Japanese conche (right), and fried river crab (back right).

Sashimi plate with two whitefish and smoked bonito.

Shirako (cod fish sperm sacks), boiled, with ponzu. This is my favorite prep.

Fried oyster and clam with mustard sauce.

Sekogani (female snow crab). Super succulent with that deep crab flavor and lots of roe.

Snapper.

Hokkaido scallop.

Shimaji. Stripped jack.

White fish with liver. Quite interesting.

Lightly seared fish.

Salmon.

Can’t remember.

Awesome maguro.

Toro.

Sardine or mackerel, oily and marinated.

Clam.

Seared Baby barracuda.

Snapper with truffle.

Hokkaido uni.

Seared A5 beef sushi (awesome).

Dashi with noodles.

Crab hand roll.

Truffle ice cream.

Tea.

The gang.

Sushi Miyagi is exactly the kind of sushi place I like best — all omakase and very traditional. This is some seriously good fish. Mostly just straight nigiri and a bit of spectacular sashimi and a handful of cooked dishes. This is really really good and instantly catapulted into the top westside sushi joints. Very friendly too. Intimate as well. Sushi at this level is all about the chef and Shinichi Miyagi is very talented.

Not for the sushi neophytes and roll lovers, but fabulous for those of us who really enjoy great fish being showcased in a straightforward and delicious manner.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Brentwood, Chablis, Foodie Club, ravenau, Sushi

Petrified Peppone

Jun22

Restaurant: Peppone Restaurant

Location: 11628 Barrington Ct, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (310) 476-7379

Date: November 11, 2022

Cuisine: 1970s Italian American

Rating: Saucy!

Jeffrey was clamoring for months to visit Peppone in Brentwood for Old School Italian eats.

I, myself, hadn’t been in 15 or 20 years!

Not that the interior changed. It hasn’t changed since disco was king! This place opened in around 1971 and looks it. All the hot girls were there too (later) — just the girls who were hot in the 70s!

At the bar.

The petrified menu.

From my cellar: 2012 Borgo del Tiglio (Nicola Manferrari) Collio Studio di Bianco. 95 points. Borgo del Tiglio’s flagship 2012 Studio di Bianco is the most precise, sculpted wine in the range. Lemon peel, white flowers and crushed rocks are some of the nuances that take shape in a wine that deftly balances the richness and tension. As is often the case, I expect the Studio will need a few years in bottle to truly open up and show the full breadth of its personality. (Drink between 2017-2027)

Cheesy Garlic Bread with Marinara Sauce. I didn’t try these (avoiding the carbs) but people said they were pretty good. But they do start off tonight’s “sauce” theme, even if it’s a dipping sauce in that EVERY dish served was covered in a sauce.

From my cellar: 2018 Azienda Agricola Valentini Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo. VM 92. Bright pink. Minerals, fava beans, pomegranate and violet on the bright nose. Then very harmonious in its acid-fruit-tannin profile, with lively balanced acidity nicely extending the flavors similar to the aromas on the long back end. Strikes me as a rather refined, sneakily concentrated Cerasuolo. (Drink between 2019-2025)

Jumbo Artichokes Venetian. Not only is this pretty hideous (and decidedly messy) but it was probably the worst artichoke I remember having. The sauce was just vaguely salty and the artichoke itself was very thick and heavy and it was difficult to scrape any meat off of the leaves. This is an easy dish and can be delicious steamed with butter, garlic, and a bit of salt — don’t complicate it.

Baked Zucchini Blossoms. Ugly as hell, but actually fairly tasty. The overall texture was much like an omelet as the blossoms were smashed flat and slightly soggy. A fairly tasty brown sauce of some sort was sort of drizzled over it.

Escargots. Another looker! Passible, but these shelled snails were drowned in this mysterious brown sauce. Straight French-style garlic butter escargot are much better.

Scampi Vesuvio. Nicely cooked shelled shrimp were soaked in the vesuvio sauce which seams to be butter, lemon juice, and some seafood “juice.”

From my cellar: 1965 Badia a Coltibuono Chianti Classico Riserva. VM 97. Garnet-tinged red. Aromas of raspberry, red cherry, dried flowers, licorice and smoky spices complicated by white pepper and herbs. Suave on entry, then sweet but gripping in the middle, with harmonious acidity giving terrific definition and lift to the multifaceted flavors of red berries, minerals, iron and spices. A wonderfully creamy, almost fleshy Chianti with utterly silky tannins. Offers amazing vibrancy while saturating the entire palate without conveying any impression of weight on the extremely long finish. A great wine from a vintage that received mixed reviews at the time, with some producers liking it a lot, and others much less so. The general consensus, though is that it was inferior to both 1964 and 1966.

Would have been home on the original opening list!

Pasta Trio with Rigatoni with Italian Sausage, Fettuccine Alfredo, and Lobster Ravioli. Three “classic” pastas. The good one was the Rigatoni which was quite al dente and had a nice Italian American Sausage sauce. The Fettuccine was mushy and just tasted like cream. The Ravioli sauce tasted mostly like salt with almost no lobster shell (aka bisque) taste.

From my cellar: 2002 Romano Dal Forno Valpolicella Superiore Vigneto di Monte Lodoletta. VM 94. Dal Forno’s 2002 Valpolicella is a massively endowed effort revealing backward dark fruit, new leather, spices, herbs, roasted coffee beans and toasted oak on an imposing, tannic frame. Made in a super-concentrated style – even by Dal Forno’s standards – it will require several years of cellaring for the tannins to soften somewhat, although it is hard to imagine that will ever completely happen. Beginning with the 2002 vintage Dal Forno’s Valpolicella is made from 100% dried fruit, whereas in previous vintages the wine had been made only partially with dried fruit. (Drink between 2013-2017)

Sweetbreads Pompei, Sandabs in Padella, and Chicken Livers Flambee. These were all actually pretty good. The Sandabs were fabulous, albiet coated in another of those salty old fashioned sauces, but they were very delicate and moist (drowned). The Sweetbreads were also good, but hard to tell under the sauce. The Liver was my least favorite but it was still solid for liver of this sort as it was soft and not chewy or heavy.

From the ancient list: 1989 Gaja Barbaresco Costa Russi. VM 97. The 1989 Barbaresco Costa Russi is a thrilling wine that literally takes my breath away – and that comes from someone who usually isn’t the hugest fan of this particular wine. In 1989 the Costa Russi offers a touch more roundness and spiciness than the Barbaresco. The fruit here is super-luxurious and silky, while the tannins possess remarkable polish. The finish remains firm and full of life. Even 20 years ago Angelo Gaja and Guido Rivella were making wines most producers would kill for today. Simply put this is a magical bottle; I only wish I owned it. Wow. (Drink between 2013-2030)

Sausages Pizzaiola. This seemed more like sausages and peppers. But regardless the sausage itself was great, classic Italian America with a nice bit of fennel. Sauce worked well making it like a good street Sausage and Peppers. The old fashioned veggies lol. Steamed with maybe a bit of butter. Drowned in the sauce they were actually fine as they were still reasonably crunchy — but so old fashioned!

Vitello Saltimbocca. Hard to find the veal under all that sauce, and it was salty, but it was also tender and pretty delicious.

Lamb Osso Buco with Gnocchi. I usually expect Osso Buco to be vertical with more fat and collogen and this is more reminiscient as a cut to a Middle Eastern lamb shank, but the meat was delicious. The Gnocchi were a bit chewy, not the light fluffy ones that are best.

Sautéed Mushrooms. Ugly delicious for sure! Looks like a bowl of dog food, but these mushrooms, nearly invisible under the thick salty brown sauce were quite delicious. Certainly it was all about the salty mushroom (and maybe beef) sauce.

Yar! Ghostly skeletal praline pirates are marauding — Pecan Pirate Praline Gelato — An eggy Texas Pecan base layered with my creepy skull-shaped New Orleans style Vanilla Bourbon Pecan Pralines and Pumpkin Spice Chocolate Pumpkins — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #vanilla #bourbon #pecan #praline #candy #halloween #spooky

We were joined tonight by the lovely and vivacious Lisa of LisaEatsLA. Plus her boyfriend.

Overall, the room at Peppone is gorgeous. The clientele consists of 1968 California Girls dolled up and ready to party — in 2022. The waiters have all probably worked here for decades and they were great. Very nice, very knowledgeable, efficient. Our meal did take mysteriously long. They kinda did that thing where they ignored us a bit until the bulk of the crowd (which had seated before us, even though we at at 7pm) thinned out.
Food was better than I thought, but OMG the hideous plating and all that sauce. Literally every single dish is drowned in a barely identifiable heavy sauce. The driest dish was the Garlic Bread (which also included a sauce). And it’s just poured over. And it’s all so 1970s. I love sauce but this was a bit much. And we aren’t talking a precise french Beurre Blanc or even a peerless Marinara but these heavy sloppy butter based “brownish” sauces. Plus the antiquated veggies. However, must dishes were pretty tasty in a salty buttery way. Pastas were weak. We didn’t try dessert.

They do have a pretty well priced big wine list. It’s poorly spelled and only sometimes includes vintages but we did manage to find a fantastic 1989 Gaja Russi for $349 (which is probably about retail).

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Brentwood, BYOG, Foodie Club, Gelato, Italian cuisine, Lisa Eats, Peppone, Sauce, Wine

A.O.C. Brentwood

Oct18

Restaurant: A.O.C. Brentwood

Location: 11648 San Vicente Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (310) 806-6464

Date: March 10 and April 5, 2022

Cuisine: Vaguely Spanish New American

Rating: Tasty

A.O.C. has been a Hollywood staple for two decades. Founded by chef Suzanne Goin, they’ve had this former Hamburger Hamlet space in Brentwood for years, running it as Tavern. I think the pandemic knocked out that particular restaurant and they decided to reboot it, giving the landlord back some space, as a Brentwood outpost of their Hollywood original.

Not exactly Rembrandt.

The interior is basically the bar area of the old Tavern. They’ve let go the cool back sun room.

The menu.

a.o.c. rustic boule & salted butter.

bacon-wrapped dates stuffed with parmesan.

Salad of citrus, arugula, maxorata, paprika, alornea olives, & quicos.

Grilled white trumpet mushroom focaccia, asiago, raclette & sherry.

Grilled seabream, coconut rice, mustard greens & kumquat sambal.

Clams, sherry, sliced garlic & toast.

Hand-cut noodles, rabbit sausage, maitake, nettles & mustard creme fraiche.

Lamb chops, swiss chard bread pudding, tomato confit & olives.

Hanger steak, chermoula, toasted pepitas & james’ arugula.

Cauliflower, curry & red wine vinegar.

A.O.C. is a useful addition to Brentwood in that it’s a pretty tasty New American style place. Brentwood is dominated by Japanese and Italian, so this allows for more options. It’s a tasty place, even if the menu is fairly small. Theoretically it’s supposed to be a bit Spanish, but barely. It is at least relatively free of the overused Asian influences dominating many similar places. Of course I love Asian food, but I don’t always need it mixed into EVERY cuisine.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: AOC Brentwood, Brentwood, New American, Suzanne Goin

Not a Cylon — Baltaire

Mar25

Restaurant: Baltaire

Location: 11647 San Vicente Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (424) 273-1660

Date: February 8, 2020

Cuisine: Steakhouse

Rating: Things I had were very good

My wife and I were looking for a fairly close place for dinner and we ended up trying out Brentwood’s newish (a year or 2) steakhouse Baltaire.

Baltaire replaces the former Cheesecake factory, and good riddance as I loath chain restaurants.

It’s a high end clubby American steakhouse, as you can tell right away from the decor.

A contemporary restaurant with classic genes, Baltaire is where to enjoy lunch in the sun and dinner under the stars. It’s the perfect place for cocktails and conversation or an intimate dinner any night of the week.

With Executive Chef Travis Strickland leading our kitchen, and our certified sommelier conceptualizing cocktails and curating the wine list, Baltaire brings the highest grade steaks, exceptional seafood, resplendent drinks, and plenty of healthy, light fare options to Brentwood.

They covered over the “Factory’s” outside patio.

Have a big bar — pretty much where the cheesecake display was.

And private rooms.

The menu.

Bread.

Roasted Baby Beet Salad. drake farms goat cheese, tarragon, pecan.

Organic Iceberg Wedge. red onion, hard boiled egg, bacon lardons blue cheese dressing. Very nice wedge, particularly with the generous real lardon chunks.

Mediterranean Branzino. cucumber tzatziki, quinoa tabbouleh.

16oz bone in ribeye with king crab oscar. If I order a whole steak I need to do something like oscar as I can’t “handle” a plain piece of meat. This was a good one — at least in combination. Meat was tender and not over cooked and the oscar was generous with both sauce and crab.

Roasted Mushrooms miso butter. Tried to get a low carb side.

The dessert menu, but we didn’t order any.

Overall, for what I could tell during this small meal, I liked Baltaire. Menu is pretty good for a steakhouse, with some interesting stuff, and the execution I had was all excellent. I’ll have to come back with a larger party for more of a blow out.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Baltaire, Brentwood, Steak, steakhouse, Wedge Salad

Mr. Miyagi’s Sushi Bar

Oct23

Restaurant: Sushi Miyagi

Location: 150 S Barrington Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (323) 382-5635

Date: Sept 10 & October 1, 2019

Cuisine: Japanese Sushi

Rating: Top Shelf Omakase Sushi

Great sushi is always a good excuse to pull out the beloved Champagnes and White Burgundies.

And I was excited to hear that a new high end omakase sushi place had opened in Brentwood — in the conveniently located but anoying to park at junction of Barrington Ave and Place.

The space is small but attractive.

This is chef focused serious sushi, and so we pre-ordered the largest omakase possible — Erick even egged them on to a larger than offered menu.

Chef Shinichi Miyagi says about himself on his website:

2017 Guillaume Selosse Champagne Ville-sur-Arce Largiller Extra Brut.

From my cellar: NV Jacques Selosse Champagne Rosé. VM 94. The NV Rosé is laced with the essence of crushed rocks, mint, chalk. white pepper and cranberry. Chiseled and vibrant in the glass, with tremendous energy, the Rosé is fabulous. This release is based on the V.O. blend of 2011, 2010 and 2009 vintages, with a touch (3-5%) still Pinot from Francis Egly, vintages 2011 and 2010. Disgorged November 7, 2018. (Drink between 2018-2026)

Marinated Sardines from Japan with dashi. Lovely soft delicate fish with the strong sardine oil flavors in perfect balance with the vinegary marinade.

Shigoku oyster from the pacific northwest. On the left with uni and on the right with caviar and yuzu. In the front is Japanese plum.

Buri with ponzu, daikon radish and green onion. Delicate and delicious sashimi.

On the left, monk fish liver. To the right, octopus (tako) with mozzarella, then tomato and on top seaweed from Okinawa with mountain yam. All scrumptious.

Toro tartar with caviar and wasabi ponzu. The nobu classic but perfectly executed.

Fresh king crab, grilled. Simply sweet crab meat.

2005 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières. VM 92. Complex, leesy aromas of stone fruits, flowers, smoke and nutty oak. Dense, suave and ripe, with nuanced, lightly sulfidey flavors of white fruits, flowers and nuts. Layered and quite long. This, too, has turned out very well.

Tai sushi.

King mackerel sushi.

2010 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles. VM 95. The 2010 Puligny-Montrachet Les Pucelles 1er Cru is an absolute killer wine from the late Anne-Claude Leflaive. Lucid in the glass, it has a crystalline bouquet with crushed stone, a touch of oyster shell, Nashi pear and citrus peel. The terroir seems to just burst from the glass. The palate is cool, calm and collected. The acidity is nigh pitch perfect, the tension palpable from start to finish. This is a live-ware Les Pucelles: edgy and citrus fresh, yet utterly composed and befitting a wine that frankly is Grand Cru in all but name. Tasted at Fook Lam Moon in Hong Kong. (Drink between 2019-2035)

2010 Pierre Morey Bâtard-Montrachet. BH 92-95. Here too there are vestiges of the malolactic fermentation present. The palate impression though is completely different compared to that of the Perrières as the intense and overtly powerful flavors are substantially bigger and even more intense, indeed almost painfully so, before terminating in a citrusy, explosive and stunningly long finish. While this is certainly large-scaled it is not without a certain refinement and this should amply reward long-term cellaring, in fact it will require it as this will not, in all likelihood, drink well young. (Drink starting 2020)

Baby barracuda sushi.

Blue fin tuna sushi.

O-Toro sushi. The rich tuna belly never disappoints — at least not at a place this good.

Shima Aji (striped jack) sushi..

Black throat sushi.

Golden snapper sushi with truffle paste.

2008 Giuseppe Quintarelli Cabernet (Franc) Alzero. 94 points. This was great. Shared with me at a restaurant. Had an Italian feel for a Cabernet. Very red fruit driven, with some roses and balsamic. Closest other wine I’ve had to this was the 2007 Sassicaia, but this wine has more energy and elegance. A different take on Bordeaux blends then most Bordeaux and even less like most Super Tuscans or Napa Cabernet. Elegance, acidity, and polish. Drinking nicely now.

This bottle has an unusual story as we had all of the sushi bar but one seat and that last chair was occupied by an older gentleman in the music business. We got to talking during dinner and he was extremely nice. Turns out he doesn’t really drink wine anymore but was a collector and he went out to his car and brought back two bottles of this extremely are Giuseppe Quintarelli. Now I’m a GQ fan — I even use his olive oil in some of my creations — but I didn’t even know he makes a Cabernet. It was great though.

The gentleman also picked up a huge portion of our tab too — just because he was that kind of guy! Thank you!

A5 Wagyu, truffles, uni, Mizutaki mushrooms.

A Yama-like bite of quail egg, uni, and toro.

Ikura (salmon roe) sushi.

Uni sushi.

t

Sardine sushi.

Torched butterfish sushi.

Seared Toro with shoyu koji. So rich it tasted like beef.

Fermented squid guts — I gotta say, I like these.

Toro handroll.

Green tea ice cream. Much denser and less creamy than my gelato.

I brought these though, homemade old-fashioned chocolate fudge — made by me.

The wine lineup.

And the people lineup.

Not for the sushi neophytes and roll loves, but fabulous for those of us who really enjoy great fish being showcased in a straightforward and delicious manner.

I also came in here a few weeks later for a quick lunch. The lunch menu is very reasonable given the (exceptional) quality.

Lovely little salad with homemade onion vinegar dressing.

Miso soup, of course.

BATTERA. Saba mackerel box sushi, salad and miso soup.

OMAKASE SASHIMI. Chefs best choice of today, 8 pieces of sashimi, salad and miso soup.

OMAKASE CHIRASHI BOWL. Chefs best choice of Sashimi pieces over a bed of sushi rice, salad and miso soup.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Brentwood, Chef Shinichi Miyagi, fish, Sashimi, Sushi, Sushi Miyagi, Wine

Quick Eats – Tara’s Himalayan

Sep02

Restaurant: Tara’s Himalayan Cuisine

Location: 262 26th St, Santa Monica, CA 90402. (424) 744-8948

Date: July 12 and August 22 & 31, 2019 & March 7, 2020

Cuisine: Nepalese / Tibetan

Rating: Salty, but tasty

I’ve been waiting for this new place to open right around the “corner” from me.

Himalayan is pretty exotic for Brentwood (and across from the Country Mart at that), but I’m glad to have something besides boring cafe fare.

Inside is pretty much what you’d expect.

The menu is pretty big.

Ginger tea was so hot I could barely drink it.

Samosas. Fairly typical, but include the sauces at least and very reasonably priced.

Tandori salmon. Lots of salmon, but the vegetables were a bit weird and there is a slightly sweet and sour sauce. The cooking also brings out the fishy quality of the salmon. Not my favorite dish.

Yak Chili. Sliced boneless Yak sautéed with fresh ginger, garlic, onion, tomato and bell pepper. This was very salty but had a very nice flavor. Pretty spicy too. The meat was chewy but rich and delicious. Not sure I’ve ever had yak before but happy to add it to the pile of meats I’ve devoured.

Tandoori baby back ribs. Tender pork ribs marinated in coconut milk, coriander, cumin and cardamon. Very mild and pleasant flavor. Almost sweet because of the coconut/cardamon vibe.

Lamb Korma. Boneless tender Lamb simmered with fresh garlic and ginger in a homemade curried coconut milk and cream sauce. This is basically Indian, and was quite mild. Decent flavor though.

Paneer Butter Masala. Homemade cheese cooked in our creamy tomato-butter sauce. Very similar to the Tikka Masala, maybe slightly more flavor — hard to tell.

Chicken Tikka Masala. Tender white meat chicken marinated in Himalayan spices, baked in our tandoori oven and served in our delicious tomato-onion cream sauce. Tasty chicken, sauce is great. Maybe the Butter version with the paneer was a touch better.

Lamb Tikka Masala. Marinated in Nepali spices then backed in a Tandoori oven, our tender lamb is served in a creamy tomato-onion sauce. Medium spicy and pretty good. Not as good as Akbar CTM, but solid.

Lamb Vindaloo. Boneless Lamb curry prepared with fresh potatoes, bell pepper, onion, tomatoes and blend of Nepali herbs and spices. This was’t particularly spicy, or as “brown” as some vindaloos. It did have that tangy vinegar flavor but I didn’t like it as much as the Masalas.

Okra. Sautéed slices of okra and tomatoes sautéed in fresh garlic, cilantro, and Himalayan spices. Delicious with nice texture and great flavor.

Lamb Saag. Boneless tender lamb prepared with a puree of spinach seasoned with garlic, ginger, and roasted cumin powder. Slightly spicy and pretty tasty.

White Basmati rice.

I’ve been twice. I have to come back and expand my ordering, as I do love curry, but some of the items I had, particularly the Tikka Masala and Okra were really good. From the menu things are fairly similar to North Indian food, but with a few more exotic items like the Yak.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Brentwood, curry, Nepalese Cuisine, Tibetan Cuisine, Yak

Quick Eats – Jon & Vinny’s

May30

Restaurant: Jon & Vinny’s Brentwood

Location: 11938 San Vicente Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (310) 442-2733

Date: April 24, 2019

Cuisine: Italian American

Rating: Food was excellent

Despite the fact that Brentwood is already full of Italians, I was excited to hear that Jon & Vinny’s was opening on San Vicente as I’d been meaning to go and never make it out to Fairfax for someplace so casual.

Clean looking frontage.

And similar interior. Sometime by myself I’ll have to try the bar. Today I was meeting an old friend for lunch — but it was passover AND both of us are eating low carb, so despite the killer looking pastas and pizza we only ordered veggies and meat balls!

The breakfast and lunch menus.

Cappuccino.

Marinara braised meatballs, ricotta, garlic bread. These were really good.

Gem lettuce, calabrian chili dressng, parmesan, bread crumbs. Good and zesty/mildly spicy caesar clone.

Tuna brentwood, tuna conserva, heirloom tomato, gem lettuce.

Grilled broccolini, golden raisin, almond, chili vinaigrette. The chili etc made these excellent for veggies.

Grilled asparagus, lemon, parmesan. Same with the asparagus.

What I had was all very well prepared, giving me the sense that this is a good kitchen. Very bright flavors and on point. I also kept seeing all these incredible looking pastas and pizzas. When I’m either off my diet or being bad I will definitely have to come back. Sigh. It’s very convenient, being on the close side of Brentwood and only 10-15 minutes from my house.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Brentwood, cappuccino, coffee, Italian cuisine, Jon & Vinny's, Salad

Takao Reprise

Feb04

Restaurant: Takao [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7]

Location: 11656 San Vicente Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (310) 207-8636

Date: December 27, 2018

Cuisine: Japanese / Sushi

Rating: 8/10 creative “new style” sushi

I’ve already covered Takao in some detail HERE and then separately here, here, and here, but we went back (we go often). The full menu and some information on the history of the place can be found through the first link. However, I haven’t written it up in a while so I thought we’d take another look.

This particular meal is another take on the medium sized omakase, which is a very good deal (in a relative high-end sushi kind of way).

From my cellar: 2010 Joseph Drouhin Beaune 1er Cru Clos des Mouches Blanc. VM 93+. Bright yellow. Gingery peach, toast, crushed stone and smoky minerality on the slightly reduced nose. Rich, sweet and plush, with a touch of spice to the ripe, smoky stone fruit flavors. Boasts an almost glyceral sweetness today, but this very young wine needs time in bottle to lose some of its baby fat. Philippe Drouhin notes that this wine always gets reductive during elevage and that this quality takes at least a year in bottle to dissipate. He likes Clos des Mouches old, pointing out that the 2004 and 2002 bottlings are still young. But then Drouhin admits that he generally prefers older wines because he dislikes the aromas and flavors of new oak.

We start off with abalone, monkfish liver, and sweet shrimp with caviar.

Three kinds of live octopus sashimi.

New Style Tai Sashimi with truffles.

Toro and uni.

Mushroom and fish egg custard. Traditional Japanese egg custard with mushrooms and fish. Like creme brulee without the crust or the sugar and with fish!

Pan fried crab cake with aioli.

Grilled mackerel.

Pan seared wagyu.

Sushi — I would have eaten 5 plates.

Clam miso.

Coffee jelly with fruit and ice cream.

Another intensely satisfying Japanese meal down the gullet. As you see, we keep going back to Takao and while the style remains the same, the ingredients mix it up substantially each time. I would have liked a tempura course tonight. Solid place. More reviews here: [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6].

For more LA area sushi, see here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Brentwood, Japanese cuisine, Omakase, Sashimi, Sushi, Takao

Quick Eats – Maradentro

Oct15

Restaurant: Maradentro

Location: 1168 S. Barrington Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90049. (424) 273-1377

Date: July 20, 2018

Cuisine: Mexican (seafood focus)

Rating: Very similar to Mercado

My never-ending quest to try all the new restaurants brings us to…

Maradentro, which I only realized on arrival is owned by the same group as fellow Mexican Mercado.

The menu is short and basically similar to the Mercado menu, but with a slight seafood shift.

Passionfruit Margarita. Inexplicably blue. Tasted ok, but as usual for a drink of this sort, with all that packed ice very small.

CRABIQUESO. melted cotija, parmesan, oaxaca cheese, house chorizo, poblanos, mushrooms, lump crab, fresh chips.

GUACAMOLE. hass avocados, serranos, red onions, cilantro, spicy pepitas, fresh chips.

Both quite good. I liked the chunky avocado and its interesting textures, the smoked salsas, and particularly the cheesy queso. Pretty similar to the Mercado queso except crab instead of Chorizo! Although, I actually make a better chili con queso myself, but that’s no surprise (it is a good amount of work roasting the peppers and all).

Chips.

TACOS DE PESCADO. grilled white fish, Mexican slaw, avocado salsa, chile de arbol aioli.

Dos Gringas de Camaron. Chili morita marinated shrimp, oxaca cheese, pineapple, yxta salsa brava, avocado salsa, red onions, cilantro, flour tortillas, cilantro lime rice, market vegetables. Not bad. Bright flavors. Small, which was okay today because I had a big BBQ lunch.

Maradentro is basically Mercado. It’s sort of modern Mexican without any surprises, for a reasonably sophisticated crowd not ready to venture into LA’s more ethnic South of the Border spaces. I actually like the (bright) flavors here, but they have a certain workman-like quality.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Brentwood, Maradentro, Margarita, Mexican, Seafood

GuYi — Szechuan in Brentwood?

Jun29

Restaurant: GuYi Restaurant

Location:11677 San Vicente Blvd suite 315, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (424) 293-0988

Date: May 24, 27 & June 18 & December 10, 2018 and May 2, 2019

Cuisine: Szechuan Chinese

Rating: Amazing for the neighborhood

I was stunned when I learned from a friend (Sklar) that they had opened a Szechuan place in Brentwood!

Yeah, Brentwood.

And not just Brentwood on Wilshire or something, but in Brentwood Gardens, least ethnic mini-mall in Los Angeles! I mean this place is gentrified to the hilt. It still features CPK.

In fact, GuYi is right on top of CPK and looks like… well a newish SGV place with a view.

I ignored these boring white bread lunch specials. Forget about ’em!

The usual large menu, featuring Szechuan and Northern dishes — but oddly very few noodles.

They have some bottled smoked plum juice. It tastes like it always does. Maybe it’s always bottled. I don’t think they have a liquor license.

Boiled dumplings with pork and cabbage. They were light and delicate, tasted mostly like cabbage, but were actually rather excellent.

Clear noodle with sauce (spicy). I didn’t expect this dish, although I’ve had it before and this was a decent version. More vegetable (cucumber?) than noodle. And it’s the pappardelle-like rice noodles. Strong mustard flavor as it should have, but I was alone and it’s hard to eat a whole bowl of these oneself.

Bean Jelly in Szechuan Chili Sauce. Got these twice. I love them in general, and I loved them here. Nice jelly texture and great tangy/spicy sauce.

Cold Beef with chili oil. Really excellent (and spicy / tangy) version of this dish. Lots of cilantro to balance it out. There was quite a bit of tendon in here too — which I find rather excellent due to its nice mouth feel (but I’m “adopted” Chinese).

Griddle cooked chicken (w/ bone) and mixed vegetables. What I often call dry hot pot. Very nice flavor. The celery and potatoes soaked up the chili. Chicken tasted really good, but did have all those bones (authentic style).

Popcorn chicken (sometimes known as Szechuan fried chicken with chilies). A nice rendition of this dish, a touch sweet with a fairly thick fry, but no bones and very tasty.

Fried Sweet and Sour “Squirrel” Fish. The squirrel refers to how it looks, all fried and fluffed up like that. Nice fish.

GuYi Sautéed sliced pork. Almost bacon with green and red peppers. This was REALLY good. Very spicy too with a longer burning heat from the green peppers. Like super spicy tasty bacon!

Boiled fish slices in hot sauce. A solid rendition of the classic Szechuan dish. Not enough mala (numbing Szechuan peppercorn) for my taste though.

Boiled beef with tofu pudding. You can get the fish this way too. Similar sauce, with beef and lots of tofu. Sometimes at Szechuan places you get it with beef, tofu, AND fish. I liked this one slightly better than the fish, but both were very good. Nice strong flavor. Maybe a touch salty.

Kung Pao Shrimp (12/101/18). Very nice Kung Pao sauce with that tangy/sweet/spicy blend. Not enough shrimp, but the ones that were there were great.

MaPo tofu (pocked marked old lady face tofu). An ok version of this dish, but not great. Some heat, but no numbing, not too much pork. Needed more depth of flavor.

Overall, I’m blown away that this is in a mainstream Brentwood mall. Hard to imagine most white Brentwoodians eating here, and if they did they’d just have the boring lunch special or American stuff. But service was very nice (if sometimes a touch slow) and it is very tasty. It needs more mala (numbing) and a slightly more tuned up Szechuan flavor balance, but great to have so close!

For more LA Chinese dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Brentwood, Chinese cuisine, Gu Yi, Sichuan, spicy, Szechuan Chinese

Pizza at Pizzana

Nov17

Restaurant: Pizzana

Location: 11712 San Vicente Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (310) 481-7108

Date: October 9 & 24 and November 16, 2017 plus January 20 & February 26 & September 1, 2018

Cuisine: Neo-Neapolitan pizza

Rating: very good pizza for LA

Brentwood’s former Osteria Lantini location has been rebooted as Pizzana. Candace and Charles Nelson, the couple who brought you Sprinkles Cupcakes, are opening a pizza restaurant called Pizzana in Brentwood on Friday. Chef Daniele Uditi, who is from Naples, is making Neo-Neapolitan-style pies using 48-hour fermented dough.

Right on San Vicente.

Looks like Osteria L, just repainted and no customer accessible upstairs.

Very crowded all the time because it got great reviews.

The menu. Lots of pizzas which is nice.

Pizza oven.

Caesar salad (10/24/17). Crunchy fried capers. Nice texture and good flavors. Not as potently bright as I like a (great) caesar — and this didn’t seem to have anchovy — but fine.

Carulina Salad (1/20/18). Baby butter lettuce, crispy prosciutto crudo, charred corn, parmigiano oregano dressing. Nice salad with a lively texture, good crunch, and nice flavor.

Cavoletto di Bruxelles (9/1/18). Shaved brussels sprout, lolla rossa, apple, toasted pistachio, caramelized shallot vinaigrette.

Carciofi Arrostiti (2/26/18). Charred articoke heart, fried baby artichoke, toasted pine nut, parmigiano, lemon olive oil. Very crispy and salty tasty.

Pate di Fegatini (10/9/17). Housemade chicken liver pate, san marzano jam, wood fired bread. This is about as good as chicken liver gets. Pretty darn good.

Instagram shot!

Kid’s cheese pizza (1/20/18). Basic, same size, but it’s nice that they make a kid’s version.

Pizza Margherita (10/9/17). San marzano dop, fior di latte, parmigiano, basil.

Pizza Corbarina (10/9/17). San marzano dop, squash blossom, burrata, cherry tomato, gremolata. Very bright flavors. Nice cool burrata. The gemolata (like a chimi churri) had lots of lemon juice in it.

Pizza Carnivoro (10/9/17). San marzano dop, fior di latte, spicy soppressata, fennel sausage, prosciutto cotto, parmigiano, basil. Like a spicy artisan version of the Little Cesars “Meatser Meatser”! But a really nice pie. I like it meated up like this.

Zoom!

Uovo pizza (1/20/18). Fior di latte, cherry tomato, prosciutto crudo, bacon jam, arugula, egg. I really liked this pizza with it’s very bright acidic flavors and sweet/savory bacon jam. Photo isn’t as good though because it was shot on an iPhone instead of the real camera.

Pizza Amatriciana (10/24/17). Housemade amatriciana sauce, fior di latte, cripsy prosciutto crudo, red onion, shaved parmigiano. Nice crunchy ham and a good approximation of amatriciana, but I would have maybe liked more of a Guanciale porkier vibe. Pizzana is good, but a little pulled toward mainstream and so they don’t really feature those more Italian funkier flavors — like that pork jowl.

Pizza Pignatiello (11/16/17). Neapolitan Sunday Gravy, fior di latte, parmigiano crema, basil. The “gravy” is a tomato based Bolognese like sauce, very rich and savory – as good a beef/pork gravy as you will find. There are chunks of short rib here too and two types of cheese to brighten it up. Very good pizza, less acid than the other ones I had here, but a good hearty rich beefy taste. Very much like some kind of beef cannel or something in Southern Italy.

Carbonara Pizza (9/1/18). Fior di latte, carbonara sauce, pancetta, parmigiano, activated charcoal bread crumb. Very nice meat and cheese pizza with a good eggy quality. Tasted a lot like a carbonara, although I could have lived without the charcoal.

Vanilla gelato and chocolate sauce.

Overall, I need to go back. I liked the dough, very stiff and chewy. I liked that there are a lot of different pies. I have to try more to get a real verdict. Certainly now there with Milo and Olive as the best dedicated westside pizza joints.

After four visits I like the pizza a lot. Good variety and great dough. Service can be a little dicier. On visit four it took 15 minutes for anyone to come to our table (and a good 5 after I asked) and then several tables that sat long after us got their food first. It was quite noticeable (other tables were sympathetic) and I mentioned it and the server just said sorry — she should have comped the ice cream or something. Still, if the food is good I’ll keep going back.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Brentwood, Pizza, Pizzana

Totally Toscana

Oct04

Restaurant: Toscana

Location: 11633 San Vicente Blvd #100A, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (310) 820-2448

Date: August 18, 2017

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Excellent upscale neighborhood Italian

I haven’t been to Toscana (other than one quick lunch) in over 10 years but Seb was willing to drive across the city so we headed out on a Friday night “double date” (my wife was my date obviously). The place has been open since 1989 but is still seriously holding its own. It was mobbed as was Bar Toscana next door.

Raw vegetables on the table. Toscana has had these for at least 20 years, probably longer.

Sebastian demos — a theme for this post.

From my cellar: 2013 Azienda Agricola Bucci Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico Superiore. VM 92. Bright-straw yellow. Knockout nose combines orchard fruits, anise and crushed stone. Dense, juicy and brilliantly delineated, offering very pure, intense flavors of tangy stone fruits, almond paste and flinty minerality. Offers lovely grip and intense, lingering floral notes. This is much more minerally than the 2014 Verdicchio.

Crispy pizza-like bread.

Insalata Carciofi. Baby artichokes, fine slices of pecorino cheese, lemon, walnuts, fennel & fava beans.

Burrata. Creamy mozzarella, bibb lettuce, tomato. Love burrata of course.

Insalata di Pere. Spinach salad with pear, goat cheese and walnuts. My wife’s dream salad (she loves pear, goat cheese, and walnuts).

Prosciutto e Melone. Artisanal 24-months prosciutto di Parma with *melon

Tartufo Nero e Burrata. Burrata cheese and winter black truffle. Tasted of truffle…

Smelled like truffle!

From my cellar: 2007 il Cocco Brunello di Montalcino. 95 points. Great grapey brunello.

Trenette al Pesto. Linguine with pesto sauce. Nice solid classic pesto.

Ravivioli di Carne. Homemade veal ravioli with butter and sage. I love this old school butter and sage sauce with a meat ravioli.

Special spaghetti with king crab and shrimp. Great pasta too with lots of crab.

Risotto ai Funghi Selvatici. Arborio rice and wild mushrooms. A solid risotto.

Milanese. Pounded veal chop in bread crumb. Old school!

The lemon helped lighten it up. I was getting very full though.

Bone in.

The dessert spread. Like many traditional Italian places in Italy, Toscana has a great selection of tortes.

Blueberry torte. Fabulous buttery crust.

Chocolate mouse torte and profiterole. The torte had milk chocolate mouse, white chocolate mouse, and shaved white chocolate.
Overall, I was very impressed, and we should go back more often — far more often than once a decade. Toscana was a regular place for my wife and I when we were young and used to eat out late (Naughty Dog hours). I assumed it was “dated” but far from it, still a great Italian and one of the best in Brentwood (which is jammed with Italians).

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Brentwood, Italian Cusine, pasta, Pizza, Toscana, Wine

Katsuya Brentwood

May11

Restaurant: Katsuya Brentwood

Location: 11777 San Vicente Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (310) 237-6174

Date: May 2, 2016

Cuisine: Sushi / Robatayaki

Rating: Like nobu light

Katsuya started in the valley and branched over into Brentwood some time ago. I’ve been many times but somehow never gotten around to writing it up.

The inside has one of those trendy (circa 2010) Stark designed interiors. It’s loud and generally crowded. When it was never there was a velvet rope! Now, although busy on a Monday night, we got a party of 11 in that morning.

From my cellar: 2011 Zilliken (Forstmeister Geltz) Saarburger Rausch Riesling “Diabas”. 90 points. As usual, very crisp and precise on the nose – light and pure: powdered stone, light citrus. Gentle now with just the right touch of sweetness to round it out a bit while still having it stay exciting. Lemon and stone, nice balance. This is great. Spicy nose: cinnamon, nutmeg, petrol and apple. Quite dry on the palate. Gentle, balanced, spicy with good acid. Apple. Apple/spice finish.

EDAMAME. served warm and tossed lightly with salt.

VEGETABLE TEMPURA. asparagus, onion, yam, shiitake mushroom and green bean.

SAUTEED SHISHITO PEPPERS. A bit of a kick.

CRISPY RICE DUCK CONFIT. duck confit, foie gras and scallions over crispy rice. Nice rich hoisin/eel sauce sauce. Hard to tell what was under it though.

CREAMY ROCK SHRIMP. crispy bite-size rock shrimp tossed in a creamy, spicy sauce. Small portion, but I always love this dish.

From my cellar: 2013 Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey Montagny 1er Cru Les Burnins. 91 points. This wine is a dead ringer for an Aubert Ritchie with a few years of bottle age. And I’m trying to figure out if that is a complement or not. Only deep into the finish does a little white burg peek it’s head out from under the oak. It’s a delicious wine, but not to typicity. Balanced and a long finish.

MIXED GREEN SALAD. Miso dressing.

MUSHROOM SALAD. warm sautéed japanese mushrooms served on a bed of butter lettuce. Hard to eat these big lettuces with chopsticks, but the flavor was good.

TOFU SALAD. crispy tofu over mixed greens with miso vinaigrette.

YELLOWTAIL SASHIMI WITH JALAPEÑO. fresh yellowtail, ponzu and jalapeño make for a guest favorite. light and refreshing. This is certainly a classic.

SPICY ALBACORE SASHIMI WITH CRISPY ONION. a crunchy twist on albacore sashimi. Soft, but I wanted more in terms of flavor.

HALIBUT USUZUKURI. halibut sashimi delicately sliced with a hint of spice and citrus. One of my favorites — mostly because I love yuzu (which they don’t even name on the menu because their audience has no idea what it is).

From my cellar: 2008 Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Bougros. 93 ST. Good pale yellow. Restrained aromas of fresh apricot, pineapple and spices; showed riper stone fruit notes as it opened in the glass. Sweet, tactile and elegantly styled, with strong acids framing and lifting the intense peach flavor. Already boasts a lovely fat texture and considerable pliancy but this wine really needs three or four years to express itself.

MISO-MARINATED BLACK COD. This Katsuya signature uses sweet miso and the special taste of baked black cod to deliver unparalleled flavor. They call this a signature, but every upscale Japanese place has it! I’ve even made it at home (from the Nobu cookbook)!

Various Robata: Corn, pee wee potato, eggplant.

JIDORI CHICKEN BREAST. Nice tender chicken.

WAGYU TOBANYAKI. served sizzling hot with wild mushrooms. Also yummy, but I’ve certainly had better versions of this dish.

LOBSTER DYNAMITE. a half lobster sautéed with mushrooms, tossed in chef’s creamy dynamite sauce, and baked to perfection. Tasty. But dynamite makes everything tasty.

Various sushi. front to back: toro, albacore, blue fin, red snapper, salmon. Fine, but this is not great nigiri. Just “solid.” Better than supermarket by far, but well below any serious sushi bar.

Fresh water eel sushi.

Salmon egg sushi (ikura).

Tamago (egg omelet) sushi.

Overall, Katsuya is a Nobu copycat restaurant. The menu (except maybe the Robata) is lifted wholesale from the Nobu menu circa late 90s. There are a couple different items, but not much. Execution is slightly sloppier than Nobu, and there are none of the new experiments that Nobu uses to keep itself fresh. And even Nobu feels like a concept that needs some more innovation. This Japanese / Peruvian blend was mind-blowing in 1997, but feels overused 19 years later. So while Katsuya is tasty, and actually moderately reasonably priced “considering” (considering being that it’s “fancy” Japanese), to my super jaded restaurant guy sensibilities it seems jaded. Still, when I bring guests, particularly out of town guests to these type of restaurants they are always blown away, as other cities don’t have the Japanese depth LA does. And even in this city, a lot of people don’t know about the really great sushi bars, or can’t handle the more extreme ingredients, or extreme prices. Katsuya, Nobu, etc are more approachable for novices. Nobu himself wrote about this, saying pouring on all the vinegar based sauces made the raw fish palatable for beginners. It also hides mediocre fish quality.

I’d say that Katsuya is right there in the crowd a bit behind Nobu, even a bit behind Katana, but maybe a hair above Roku. It’s not in the league of more serious experimental sushi at all.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Brentwood, katsuya, Robatayaki, Sushi

Holy Cow!

Mar16

Restaurant: Holy Cow

Location: 264 26th Street. Santa Monica, CA 90402. 310-883-6COW

Date: November 24 and December 1, 2014

Cuisine: American BBQ

Rating: Great meats

I’m always excited about anything new this close to my house (15 minutes), and seeing as we have absolutely no good BBQ closer than maybe Culver City, the opening of an up-to-date smoked meat place at the Brentwood Country Mart is great news.

The frontage is right next to The Little Door and across from Sweet Rose.

The interior is fast casual, you order at the counter. While I hate that for dinner places, I’m a big fan for lunch joints like this that one might tend to visit alone.

The menu.

I ordered a three meat combo.

BBQ Brisket. Dense, but tender. Delicious with the sauces too.

Pulled pork. This is where it’s really at. Great stuff, with a soft texture and nice smokey flavor.

Hot links. Spicy porky fatty goodness. Can’t complain.

Tri tip. Tasty and tender. I have mixed opinion about those fatty bits at the end, but hey, that’s just me.

THE HOG. Smoked pulled pork, Carolina sauce, slaw, crispy onion, B&B pickles, brioche bun. Pretty superb sandwich. Like a great slight update to the Carolina classic.

Mac & Cheese. Vermont white & yellow cheddar, munster, gruyere, béchamel. This was okay, but could have been more intensely cheesy.

Fried cornbread. This was the only disappointing dish I ordered. Basically these are hushpuppies. They had a chewy texture but didn’t give me that soft cornbread goodness that I was looking for.

Overall, this was some great BBQ. I’ll have to return and try more stuff, like the baby back ribs! BBQ is all about the meat and the main meats were all fabulous. Very modern presentation and nice selection of sauces and pickles. It all reminds me of The BBQ Joint in Easton MD, which is only a good thing.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Barbecue, Barbecue sauce, bbq, Brentwood, Holy Cow, Pulled Pork, Santa Monica

Sugarfish – Sushi by the Numbers

Aug27

Restaurant: Sugarfish

Location: 11640 W. San Vicente Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90049. Phone: 310 820-4477

Date: August 13, 2012

Cuisine: Sushi

Rating: Fish is good, format is annoying

My relationship with sushi goes way back. My parents first took me to Washington DC’s (then) single Japanese restaurant, Mikado, in the 70s and I started on sushi by eight years old. In the 80s I constantly evangelized sushi. To people’s unanimous response of “yuck, raw fish?” I’d respond, “but it’s SO good.”

Fast forward to 1994 and my move to California. Sushi was just going mainstream and I was an experienced devotee. I’d been to Japan, I knew the names of most fish in Japanese, I’d had a sushi poster over my bed since high school. Still, Sushi Nozawa, conveniently located just 5-10 minutes from Universal Studios (where we were then making Crash Bandicoot), was hands down the best I’d ever had. There were a couple funny things about it:

1. The rice was warm and fell apart easily

2. There was often vinegar like sauce on the fish (which was really good)

3. The seafood itself was incredibly fresh and not fishy at all

4. Chef Nozawa, who made everything personally at the tiny sushi bar, enforced all sorts of rules in a Seinfeld “soup nazi” like manner. No cel phones. No mentioning California or Spicy Tuna roll, no asking for anything. Just “trust me” he said.

All and all an amazing experience.

Fast forward again 10+ years and I’d long been dining happily at what Nozawa spawn restaurants: Echigo, Sasabune, Sushi Zo, and the like. These chefs trained with the master, and deliver fantastic sushi in his format (sometimes including cel phone and roll rules — although at Sasabune I have twice seen Brett Ratner pacing back and forth between customers with his iphone/blackberry glued to his ear).

Then we have Sugarfish, Nozawa’s direct progeny. It’s a problem child for me, mostly because of the format: It’s a chain (albeit a small one) and the chef is missing. Any chef. There is still a vestigial sushi bar, but there are no knife-wielding Japanese guys in white hats behind calling out as you enter or leave. Instead you order packages of “trust me” off a short men and caucasians bring it to you. This seems… unclean… improper.

The Sugarfish menu (see here: Lunch Menu) feels like a packaged corporate imitation of the whole experience. Converting what is essentially a handmade and human relationship (diner and chef) into a by the numbers formula. And besides, even “The Nozawa,” the largest package, is like a snack for someone like me used to gigantic omakases (sample some on my sushi page)!

But here it is:

I’ve never been a huge edaname fan. These are fine, but the oil gets all over your hands.

“Tuna sashimi.” The fish is good, but the whole thing is dominated by the sweet vinegar sauce. Not that I mind, as I love sweet vinegar sauce.

“Albacore sushi.” Tasty enough, and melt in your mouth.

“Salmon sushi.” Good enough fish, but blander than some.

“Yellowtail sushi.” Also nice pieces of Hamachi. Nothing wrong with it, but like almost everything else on this menu, a bit boring.

“Halibut sushi.” Also nice fish.

“Toro hand roll.” Felt a tad bland for some reason.

“Blue crab hand roll.” This was tasty, and the crab hand roll was always a highlight at Nozawa, but this felt like an 80% imitation, perhaps not sweet and crabby enough.

“Halibut fin sashimi.” Bizarrely served at the end. By normal Japanese standards this should have come before any rice. Still, it was a fine dish, again amped up by the vinegar sauce.

Overall, Sugarfish has good fish. Not great fish, but the typical good fish that is now widely available in LA. But the whole thing is so watered down, a packaged imitation of the real sushi experience aimed at dabblers. The room was filled with women catching lunch. They like sushi, may even recognize that better places are tastier, but they aren’t committed to the experience. Unless I’m in a real hurry, I’ll take a human chef who can recommend what is fresh or make me something I haven’t tried before. Nozawa once said to me, “today I have seven types of fish and every day, I ask myself, can I do seven fish well? Should I perhaps do only six?” This espouses the very Japanese sentiment that any small thing can be done exceedingly well with enough focus and concentration. That doesn’t seem to dive with corporate packaging.

For more sushi reviews, click here.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Brentwood, California, Japan, Japanese cuisine, Los Angeles, Nozawa, Sugarfish, Sushi, Sushi Nozawa, Universal Studios

Villetta Update

Dec03

I made a bunch of updates to the excellent (but overpriced) Brentwood Italian, Villetta. This includes another meal worth of dishes.

Read the full review here.

I’m working on a bunch more website upgrades which I should have out in a day or three — plus, producing darkening dream elements — plus the edits for Untimed are supposed to come back today. That will mean an entire novel worth of line edits to process!

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Brentwood, Villetta

Osteria Latini 3

Sep03

Restaurant: Osteria Latini [1, 2, 3]

Location: 11712 San Vicente Blvd.Brentwood, CA 90049 310.826.9222

Date: August 20, 2010

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Excellent neighborhood Italian

We have a regular rotation of neighborhood Italians. There are so many of them, but only a few make the cut as genuinely good. Osteria Latini is one of them. You can see my previous reviews here and here.

Olive and chickpea/squash/bean pastes.

The 1997 Biondi-Santi Brunello. This is a solid Brunello I had bought years ago in Italy (probably in 2000). It probably scores somewhere in the low 90s, maybe 91 or 92 points.

A special, lobster bisque.

“BELLA SALAD. Arrugola, pears, dry cherries, goat cheese, shaved parmesan.”

A special, calimari steak stuffed with lump crabmeat and drizzled in ponzu sauce. This is unusual, and certainly has a bit of fusion about it — but it’s good.

Gnocchi genovese (in classic basil pesto).

“ACQUERELLO RISOTTO. Organic carnaroli, sea urchin, truffle scent, lemon zest (Please allow 20 Minutes).” A very nice subtle sea urchin risotto. This special hand shaved rice takes 20-30 minutes to cook.

“OSSOBUCO ALLA MILANESE. With saffron risotto.” Latini’s version of the classic dish. Certainly good with a very nice meaty bone. The risotto could have been perhaps a tad creamier.

Two “rounds” of freebee desserts. This mixture of prosecco, lemon sorbetto, and meringue is very refreshing.

Chocolate chip cookies and biscotti.

Osteria Latini is always reliable. They have a big menu of modern Italian favorites and pretty much everything is very good.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Or for a legion of great eating in Italy itself, here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Brentwood, Cooking, Dessert, Fish and Seafood, Italian cuisine, Italy, Los Angeles, Osteria Latini, pasta, Restaurant, Restaurant Review, Risotto, Salad, Sea urchin, Squid, vegetarian, Wine

Takao Sushi Taking Off!

Aug16

Restaurant: Takao [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]

Location: 11656 San Vicente Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90049. (310) 207-8636

Date: August 6, 2011

Cuisine: Japanese / Sushi

Rating: 9/10 creative “new style” sushi

I’ve already covered Takao in some detail HERE and then separately here, here, and here, but we went back (we go often) and I built another “custom omakase” trying some different things. The full menu and some information on the history of the place can be found through the first link.

As you can see comparing this to the other Takao meals, you my dear readers, come first, as I ordered completely differently for your vicarious enjoyment.

After my spectacular N/Naka Kaiseki meal and its really good sakes I decided to up my sake game. This is the cheapest of the “shaved rice” sakes on the menu at Takao. It was good, not as good as the two amazing ones at N/Naka (Takao has half a dozen “better” ones too), but good.

The chefs at work. Takao himself was cutting for me tonight.

Scallop sashimi. I do love my japanese scallops. There was sea salt to dip them in too.

Toro tartar with caviar. I just can’t resist.

Spanish Mackerel chopped with scallions. Very tasty!

Squid, two ways. On the left normal. And on the right I’m not sure, but it there was a sour (and I mean sour) plum sauce (above left) to dip it in. Same sauce as I had the other day at Kiriko.

Mysterious grilled bit of sea creature. Soft and chewy, not bad.

Grilled Alaskan king crab legs. A sprig of pickled ginger.

On the left Uni (sea urchin) and on the right Ikura (salmon roe).

Fresh water eel with the sweet BBQ sauce.

And then a winter mushroom miso to finish.

For more LA area sushi, see here.

By: agavin
Comments (4)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Alaskan king crab fishing, Atlantic Spanish mackerel, Brentwood, California, Caviar, Fish and Seafood, Japanese cuisine, Kaiseki, Los Angeles, Omakase, Restaurant, Restaurant Review, Sea urchin, Sushi, Takao

Villetta – More Italian in Brentwood?

Aug10

Restaurant: Villetta

Location: 246 26th Street. Santa Monica, CA 90402. 310-394-8455

Date: July 30 & Nov 18, 2011

Cuisine: Italian

Rating: Very good, but prices are steep

One of the great mysteries of the culinary universe is how Brentwood in general, and San Vicente in particular, is able to support so many Italian restaurants. Every time someplace closes and resets it comes back Italian! The only other option in the entire town are 3 Japanese and a couple chains (CPK and Cheesecake — but you all know I don’t eat chains).

This gorgeous 1920s space used to be Chez Mimi, an old school French place that my wife and I used to eat at quite a bit.

It’s still very cute with a little bar inside.

A quaint dining room.

And most importantly a lovely patio. I had been trying for about three weeks to get into this new place but it was always booked on opentable.com, so we just showed up at 6:15 and had no trouble getting a “bar seat” in the patio.

They give you to start faggioli (Tuscan white beans) mashed with garlic and salt, and drizzled in olive oil. For such a simple thing, it’s surprisingly delicious. You can see the old school version here in florence about half way down the post.

The bread, two types.

The wine list was a bit odd. Three quarters New World. Which for an Italian restaurant is strange. They also had no half bottles (boo hiss) so I had to get glasses, which is expensive. The pours were generous though. This is a decent Amarone (but $25 a glass!).

And a Pinot Grigio from the Venato. I’d never drink Ca wine with Italian when there are so many great wines from the boot.

The menu.

“Villetta ‘Caprese’ with heirloom tomatoes, bufala mozzarella, basil pesto and grilled bread.” Villetta claims to be farmer’s market driven, and you can see that here in this lovely caprese. Very high quality ingredients.

Same goes with the “burrata, prosciutto, cherry tomatoes and bruschetta.” These were good enough tomatoes that I was able to put aside my nightshade aversion and eat half of them. Nice prosciutto too, probably from parma.

“ravioli with zucchini and chive blossoms and sweet corn.” Also very nice homemade pasta. Very straight up but delicious butter-sage sauce. Note though that this is the large ($25) portion.

On a different night, a very similar pasta filled with slightly different vegetables as was more appropriate to the season (late autumn).

“Mezze maniche with hot and sweet sausage, peas, tomato, and cream.” This is basically a sausage ragu. The pasta was very al dente (good) and the sauce was pretty wonderful.

“Santa Barbara spot prawns with salad of borlotti beans, mizuna and orange citronette.” These were pretty darn delicious. Even the beans underneath were incredibly good with garlic and olive oil. Again this is the large ($50!) portion. You can see the Ligurian version of this same dish here.

“Grilled Sonoma lamb leg with fresh flageolet beans and eggplant caponata.” The meat itself was pretty spectacular and cooked perfectly.

I had to order this red from Campagnia to go with it too.

A little free watermelon sorbet to cleanse the palette.

And on a different night it was orange sorbet, much like a granite or Italian ice.

The dessert menu.

“Chocolate chip cookie sundae with vanilla and chocolate gelato, whipped cream and chocolate sauce.” This was delicious. I don’t think the ice cream was actually gelato though — but it was good. I’d put good money on it coming from Sweet Rose Creamery across the street as it had the same kind of consistency.

Overall, the food at Villetta was first rate. Really good actually, and the service was very friendly too (not super fast, but warm). The prices however are high. They also have what looks to be some really good pizza, as they have a full wood fired pizza oven and a chef from Napoli, but we didn’t try it. So I’d put this in the same category with Capo, Georgio Baldi, and Vincente of excellent but overpriced westside Italian.

Click here to see more Italian than you can shake a stick at.

Or more LA restaurants.

By: agavin
Comments (2)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Amarone, Brentwood, Buffalo mozzarella, California, Dessert, Insalata Caprese, Italian cuisine, Los Angeles, New World, Olive oil, Restaurant, Restaurant Review, Restaurants and Bars, San Vicente, Santa Monica California, Villetta

Pecorino – No Sheep is Safe

Apr13

Restaurant: Pecorino

Location: 11604 San Vicente Blvd., Brentwood, CA 90049. 310.571.3800

Date: April 9, 2011 & August 7, 2016

Cuisine: Abruzzi Italian

Rating: Unusual, tasty, very slightly over priced.

Pecorino is one of the twelve or so Italians on San Vicente in Brentwood. It’s relatively new, and replaced a good new American called Zax at the end of the street. One might ask why the street needed another Italian. Well it didn’t but Pecorino does offer a different (and good) take on the boot. The place specializes in the rustic cooking of Abruzzo, which is not only interesting and good, but certainly underrepresented.

The facade. Inside is cozy and stylish.

The menu.

Pecorino has a number of premium wines by the glass, which is nice. They are a little pricey, but I still like the option. I got a glass of Brunello followed by one of Amarone.

The bread.

And they serve it with this chickpea paste, which is tasty.

Caprino. Warm goat cheese “Crouton” served on a bed seasonal greens with hazelnuts.

Special burrata and tomato and avocado tower.

Baked onion. Whole big onion filled with eggplant, pinenuts, raisins and pecorino cheese with a touch of balsamic vinegar.

Sweet and sour.

Carbonara. Spaghetti with beaten eggs, crispy home made bacon, pecorino cheese and black pepper.

Pappardelle al Pesto. Fresh wide noodles in a pesto sauce with green beans, peas, fava beans and grated pecorino cheese.

Classic penne pomodoro.

Gluten free tomato pasta.

Spaghetti with lobster. Chopped Maine lobster in a light garlic sauce with lobster juices and parsley. This is a really nice pasta. There’s a lot of lobster meat in here too.

Penne. In a tomato and basil sauce with green onions, cherry tomatoes and shaved pecorino cheese.

Risotto Primavera. Rice creamed with mixed season vegetables and parmigiano cheese.

Lamb “Casserole”. De-boned Rack of lamb with pecorino cheese and artichokes “Chef’s Hometown recipe. This is an unusual, rustic, and delicious dish. It’s mildly cheesy, with big chunks of lamb and lots of artichokes.

Pecorino is a very good place, and it’s nice when an Italian gets away from the same old litany of dishes. It is however, mysteriously a bit more expensive than some of the others of fairly equal quality (like say Palmeri down the street). There’s a good amount of price variation in the Italians, and I’m not sure I get it. Still, the food’s very good.