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Robo Eats – Anarbagh

Mar19

Restaurant: Anarbagh

Location: 22721 Ventura Blvd, Woodland Hills, CA 91364. (818) 224-3929

Date: September 20, 2022

Cuisine: Indian

Rating: Ok old fashioned Indian

During my son’s robotics team meetings I have a chance to explore random spots in the Western San Fernando Valley, so I’m nicking naming this the “Robo Eats” series.

Anarbagh is a well rated Indian with several branches.

Obviously this location was once some kind of mid century restaurant.

Inside it has that drop ceiling and booth “classic” Indian restaurant vibe. Part of the classic style has always seemed a near absence of customers. I guess most people order takeout.

Papadam and chutney’s to start.

Chicken Tikka Masala. A little heat, fairly sweet. Decent, but not savory enough. Nowhere near as good as at Akbar.

Lamb Korma. Decent, but still not enough flavor.

Shrimp Sag. Pretty good.

Eggplant Bharta. Also pretty good, but not the best I’ve had.

Free bit of Persian-style sweet.

Anarbagh is fine, but it’s that kind of old school Indian where all the curries are vaguely similar, vaguely sweet, and pretty thin. They don’t have a lot of personality. They are heavy, and it’s still enjoyable, but it’s so hard to find really good Indian restaurants in LA. Akbar is my favorite and a few others — like Mandovi — are at least much more interesting.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: curry, Indian cuisine, Robo Eats, SFV

Curry at Cobi’s

Sep10

Restaurant: Cobi’s at Dhaba

Location: 2104 Main St, Santa Monica, CA 90405. (424) 238-5195

Date: December 14, 2021

Cuisine: Southeast Asian

Rating: Lots of great flight flavor

Dhaba was a local Indian restaurant that was a fixture on Main St in Santa Monica for decades (50 years!). Recently it’s “rebooted” (been replaced?) by Cobi’s, a new Southeast Asian place.

It’s helmed by the team of Cobi Marsh and Lance Mueller.

The interior has been lightly updated and is rather charming.

The menu.

The have a mostly natural wine list, of course we brought our own.

2002 Laurent-Perrier Champagne Millesime Rare.

From my cellar: 2012 Veyder-Malberg Grüner Veltliner Hochrain. VM 91. Enticingly fragrant nose combines apricot, acacia honey and white pepper. A touch of vanillin oak from a new cask troubles Peter Malberg, but others will find that it adds an element of complexity. Although supple and wonderfully ripe without undue alcohol, a subtle freshness gives a filigree character to the pear extract flavor. Finishes with lingering notes of wet stone, pistachio and subtle spice.

2010 Domaine Lignier-Michelot Gevrey-Chambertin Cuvée Bertin. VM 91-93. The 2010 Gevrey-Chambertin Cuvée Bertin is rich, dark and sensual. Black cherries, plums, spices and minerals are some of the notes that are woven into this generous, textured wine. The Cuvée Bertin finds a higher, brighter register on the mid-palate and finish. This is a beautifully poised, elegant Gevrey. The Cuvée Bertin was made with 40% whole clusters. (Drink between 2015-2025)

2004 Torbreck The Factor. VM 94. Opaque ruby. Powerful dark berry liqueur aromas are complemented by a kaleidoscopic array of fresh and dried flowers, incense, Asian spices and vanilla. Suave and silky in texture, with explosive blackberry and mulberry flavors complemented by exotic spice and floral qualities. Finishes with superbly integrated tannins and outstanding persistence, leaving sexy spice and mocha notes in its wake.

2002 Shirvington Shiraz. 94 points.

Dry Aged Kanpachi. finger lime, green chili, coconut dressing. Nice bright flavors and with the coconut milk decidedly southeast asian in vibe.

Grilled Prawns (3pc). ginger & yellow bean sauce. Like prawn satay.

Curry Puffs. curried split peas & potatos, pickled onion, tamarind ketchup. Samosas basically.

Pork & Shiitake Dumplings (5pc). chili crunch, black vinegar. I think we ordered 2 of these.

Egg Noodles. pork belly, ginger relish, szechuan.

Nasi Goreng. fried egg, rice, sambal terasi, long beans. An Indonesian classic.

Roti.

Chili sauces.

Beef Rendang. chili sambal, crispy shallot, gulai, squash. I love beef rendang. This one is more classic (but not quite as good) as the Cassia version.

White rice.

Jungle Curry. thai eggplant, long beans, baby corn. Thinner and not as spicy as the Jitlada version.

Devil Chicken Curry. mustard seeds, habanero chili vinegar. Good stuff.

Butter Chicken. tomato masala, cilantro, fenugreek.

Beef Short Rib. chili & tamarind dressing, roasted peanuts.

The desserts. These were light and sweet and soothed all that curry heat.

Vanilla Soft Serve Sundae (modified version for a kid). salted caramel, milo brownie, peanuts.

Vanilla Soft Serve Sundae. salted caramel, milo brownie, peanuts.

Shaved Ice. berry granita, kiwi, passion fruit, coconut, tofu cream, basil seed.

Thai Tea Pudding. boba pearls, black sugar, lemongrass.

Overall, I really liked Cobi’s and need to get back. Execution is very solid even if many of these dishes I’ve had slightly better versions at more specialized places. But it brings together under one roof a whole host of goodies that that potent set of spice, herb, and acid forward flavors that I love. It’s also very close (to my house) and has a cute little decor.

And all of the above was just 4 of us!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Cobi's, curry, Dhaba, Foodie Club, Santa Monica, southeast asian cuisine, Wine

Pa Ord Noodle

Apr11

Restaurant: Pa Ord Noodle

Location: 5269 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, Ca, 90027. 323-536-9929

Date: September 3, 2021

Cuisine: Thai

Rating: Another solid (authentic) Thai

Pa Ord Noodle is another highly regarded Thai Town place.

We visited in the middle of the pandemic “opening up” phase and ate outside in the parking lot — hence all the takeout wares.

The menu.

Various chili sauces!

Papaya Salad – great.

Coconut Soup with Seafood — also delicious. Similar to the “coco lotus” soup at Jitlada.

Fried Shrimp Cake – Delicious. Very friend but great.

Roast Duck Noodle Soup w/ Egg Noodles.

Drunken Noodles Combination meats – very nice.

Pad Prik King Chicken – spicy and quite good.

I pulled this out of the freezer because it was “on theme”:

Buko Pandan Gelato — Infused the milk with fresh Pandan Leaves and then crafted it into a dairy coconut base as my take on the Filipino favorite. Unusual and soothing. — 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 #buko #pandan #coconut

All the dishes here were quite good, and while this was just a lunch, and not a “comprehensive review” (aka big dinner), it’s clear Pa Ord has a very good kitchen. You certainly couldn’t go wrong stopping in here for a Thai food fix!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: AFF, Asian Food Friday, BYOG, curry, Gelato, Pa Ord Noodle, Thai cuisine, Thai food, Thai Town

Quick Eats – Menya Tigre

Dec14

Restaurant: Menya Tigre

Location: 2012 Sawtelle Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90025

Date: July 13 (and others), 2021

Cuisine: Japanese Curry & Ramen

Rating: narrow but pretty good curry ramen

The not-terribly-great chicken only ramen place on Sawtelle closed a long time ago and was replaced at some point by this curry based ramen joint.

The small menu.

The interior — although I’ve never actually eaten inside as they have a nice patio.

Tasty Japanese salad with the zingy ginger dressing.

Takoyaki. Fried octopus balls with mayo and okonomiyaki sauce. These were actually the first kind of food I had on my first trip to Japan 30 years ago!

Curry Tsukemen. Chicken curry broth with noodles and chashu. This is the ramen variant where the noodles are served on the side (cold) and dipped into the broth.

Zoom of the parts.

Curry Ramen. Chicken and curry broth ramen with pork and egg. It’s pretty good, but not as thick and unctuous as I might like.

Keema Bowl. Side bowl of ground meat curry on top of rice.

Chashu Bowl. A similar bowl of marinated chashu pork on rice.

Karaage Curry. Karaage fried chicken with curry and rice.

Surf & Turf. Karaage chicken and fried shrimp with curry and rice. This was solid curry rice, but it isn’t nearly as good as the late (and missed by me) Kimukatsu.

Overall, Menya Tigre is ok. I like curry and I particularly like curry rice. I’m actually very sad that Kimukatsu closed as that was the best Sawtelle curry rice. This is a passable substitute, but just not as good. The ramen is ok too, but not as good as Killer Noodle — which is by far my favorite except for its not-so-subtle GI consequences.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: curry, Menya Tigre, noodles, ramen, Sawtelle

Amphai – Northern Thai Food Club

Mar06

Restaurant: Northern Thai Food Club

Location: 5301 Sunset Blvd #11, Los Angeles, CA 90027. (323) 474-7212

Date: January 17, 2020

Cuisine: Northern Thai

Rating: Small Space, Big Taste

Asian Food Friday is always a good opportunity to try out some of the oddball and amazing corners of Los Angeles eating.

Which brings us to Amphai, or Northern Thai Food Club, which has been on my “to try” list for some time. Supposedly this is some of the best and most authentic Northern Thai in the country. It’s on a grungy Sunset corner in Thai Town.

And the interior is tiny. The staff appear to be family and are extremely friendly. Service is casual and all on disposable plates with the flimsiest of plasticware. On entering the thick pungent smell of fish sauce blankets the air and informs you that this is the “real deal.”

Much of the food is on display in a big deli/steam table — including the amazing Norther Thai Sausage (that looks like something a large dog might leave in the yard).

They also sell some random Thai snacks.

The menu is surprisingly long.

Som Tum Thai. Papaya Salad. Salted Crab Flavor. Green Papaya with Thai chilies, tomatoes, dried shrimp, green beans, fish sauce, lime jices and salted crab. Bright flavor with a hint of fishiness.

Spicy green laxative — I mean chili sauce — awesome complex flavor and hearty burn.

Sai Qua. Northern Spices Pork Sausage. Ground pork marinated with herbs and spices. Tons of flavor, very soft texture.

Cabbage and sticky rice.

Moo Sam Chan Tod. Fried Pork Belly. Deep fried pork belly. Tasty, particularly with the green sauce.

Larb Moo Kija. Minced pork northern spices salad. Pan-fried minced pork, liver pork, skin pork with fresh mint leaves, in Northern spices. Tons and tons of flavor. Interesting fishy and livery notes.

Gaeng Hang Lae. Northern pork curry. Stewed pork in Thai-Burmese curry powder and tamarind paste with ginger root. Very tender meat and lots and lots of flavor.

Gaeng Khanoon. Jackfruit soup. Spicy soup of young jackfruit chunks, Chaom leaves (Acacia) and pork ribs seasoned with tomato and garlic.

Yum Nor Nam Poo. Bamboo shoots with crab paste. Bamboo shoots with Thai chili, limes, fish sauce and crab paste juices. Lots of fiber and a very different funky flavor. Probably my least favorite dish, but still tasty and interesting. Plus it has “poo” in the name.

Kao Soi Gai. Curry egg noodle with chicken. Seasoned chicken drumstick curried with flat egg noodles, topped with crispy noodle and served with sour mustard green, shallot, lime, and thick red chili sauce.

Condiments for the Kao Soi.

Kao Soi Nua. Curry egg noodle with beef. Seasoned chicken curried with flat egg noodles, topped with crispy noodle and served with sour mustard green, shallot, lime, and thick red chili sauce.

More condiments for the Kao Soi.

With the toppings.

Special of vermicelli and jackfruit and I don’t know what. Mushy texture but tasty.

Sample of something with jackfruit. Sour, but tasty too.

A kind of strong pork curry. Very strong “bay leaf”? flavor sauce. Tasty.

Sour pork rib soup. I think Jor Pak Pung. Ceylon spinach in tamarind soup with cut pork ribs.

The kitchen is tiny.

The shelves on the way to the rest room are loaded with Thai products.

See!

And the bathroom includes its own glamorous strapped water heater — clearly not going anywhere!

Overall, this place is legit. Not your suburban strip-mall Thai by any means. Eating here on the tiny plastic stools makes you think of a little hangout in Chiang Mai. Nearly every dish is $7. Very unusual flavors, and quite spicy, but if you can handle all that well worth the trip.

After, we felt we needed some authentic Thai desserts to quench the burn.

Inside this crowded shop.

Pandan pudding being made fresh.

Pandan custard pudding. Super thick, creamy, mild in flavor but hit the spot.

Ultra light crispy crepes with coconut cream (crispy) and either yellow mango (sweet) or curry (orange)

Taro cakes.

Mystery in a banana leaf.

Cookies.

Delicious hot fried rice and coconut balls.

All sorts of yummy stuff.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: AFF, Amphai, Asian Food Friday, curry, Fish sauce, lunch, spicy, Thai cuisine, Thai Food Club, Thai Town

White Elephant is Pretty White

Jan15

Restaurant: White Elephant

Location: 759 Huntingdon Pike, Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006. (215) 663-1495

Date: November 26, 2019

Cuisine: Thai

Rating: Fine, but “Americanized” Thai

This year for ThanksGavin 2019 we arrived a day early in Philadelphia and so went out locally with my parents and Aunt & Uncle to:

White Elephant, a nearby strip mall Thai.

They have nicely decorated the fairly boring space. No Thai (language) on the menu!

Some kind of lobster roll.

Crispy Roll. Filled with pork, bean thread, and julienne vegetables, then fried until crispy golden brown, and served with sweet and sour sauce.

Coconut Soup. Seafood combination in coconut milk , with galanga, lime juice, mushrooms, onions, carrots, celery and red bell peppers.

Mushroom Soup. Thai style fresh mushroom soup with herb and Marsala wine.

Chicken tenders and fries for the boy.

Thai Eggplant. Thai sweet eggplant sautéed until brown and stir fried with chicken, onion, carrot, broccoli, red bell pepper, basil and aromatic herbs.

Seafood Lover. Sautéed seafood medley of salmon, calamari, shrimp, scallop, and green shell mussels, with, Thai basil, onion, broccoli, carrot and red bell pepper in delicious and spicy sauce.

Sweet Surrender. Fillet of salmon crusted with pecan and baked to perfection, served with mellow apricot brandy sauce.

Chicken Panang Curry. Chicken cooked in a traditional delicious Panang curry sauce with coconut milk, broccoli, red bell pepper and green beans….Chicken/Beef.

Chu Chee Duck. Crispy roasted semi-boneless duck, served in a special red curry sauce flavored with pineapple.

Overall, this was tasty because Thai is always tasty — but it was pretty “whitebread” as you would expect from a Philly suburb strip mall. No Thai on the menu, spice and flavors toned down a bit.

For more Philly dining reviews click here.

More ThanksGavin events here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: curry, Philadelphia, Thai cuisine, ThanksGavin, ThanksGavin 2018

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

Thai Tour – Pailin Thai

Jun12

Restaurant: Pailin Thai

Location: 5621 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028. (323) 467-7715

Date: May 13, 2019 & June 29, 2021

Cuisine: Northern Thai cuisine

Rating: Great Northern Thai — highly recommended

So the Hedonist Thai Tour continues with this fourth stop (3rd for me) at well known:

Pailin Thai — in Thai Town of course, a slightly better part of it too.

The interior is still very mom and pop — and small — but there is actually a bit of decor.

The husband runs the front and the wife the back — and they were mobbed, leading to slow initial food production rates. But they more than made up for it in quality.

The menu.

Pork Satay. Grilled marinated pork marinated in thai herb and coconut milk. Served with peanut sauce and cucumber salad.

Fried Chicken. Winston LOVES this fried chicken — and it was very good — and very fried.

Northern Style Sausage. Full of flavor.

A different Style Sausage. Even moister, almost like the crocodile sausage I had last year.

Spicy shrimp ball. In sweet and sour sauce. I loved these little fellows.

Pork Larb (6/29/21) — delicious with great balance and lots of limey acidity.

Larb tod. I had assumed this was like normal larb, but no it’s deep fried larb! Pretty awesome actually.

Cucumber Salad (6/29/21) — sweet and tangy.

Roast Duck Salad. With lemon grass, mint leaves, onion, and curry paste.

Pork Jerky (6/29/21) — incredible flavor and soft texture.

Beef Jerky (6/29/21) — chewier than the pork.

Chicken Feet Salad (6/29/21) – a bit warm, nice texture and flavor.

Raw marinated shrimp. Really juicy slow marinated shrimp with a spicy green chili sauce.

Raw marinated Thai blue crab. Same prep as the shrimp above, but with crab. A bit similar to Korean raw crab, and just as delicious. You have to crunch through the shells and suck out the meat.

Beef tendon soup. A delicious savory and sour beef soup.

Papaya salad.

Khao Soi. The traditional Northern style egg noodle chicken curry “soup.” I love this dish and order it whenever I see it. Love it. Love it.

Manilla Clam Curry Paste. Pretty much clams in Thai basil. Delicious sauce. Lots of flavor.

Spicy frog leg curry. Yummy yummy, kermit in my tummy.

Tom yum goon. Shrimp with mushroom in hot, spicy, and sour soup. We couldn’t resist.

Seafood Soup (6/29/21) — Tom Yum with all sorts of seafood.

Pad see ew. Pan fried rice noodles with egg, black soy sauce.

Napa cabbage pork. Just like in Europe, pork and cabbage seems common in the east — like in China too. It’s delicious either way. Nice crispy texture on the pork.

Green curry with beef. Delicious too. Not as killer hot as Jitlada.

Roast Duck Curry (6/29/21).

Prog pow squid with Thai curry, onion and chili.

Glass Noodles with Beef (6/29/21).

Crispy Pork Belly with Stir Fried Veggies (6/29/21).

Preserved Egg Stir Fry (6/29/21).

Egg Plant with Pork Stir Fry (6/29/21).

They have bags of house-made crispy chicken and pork skins you can take out or use to top your food.

Crispy chicken skins. Salty and delicious little snacks.

Some gelato by me:

It doesn’t even look like a gelato, but trust me it is — Almond Amaretto Truffle Gelato — Amaretto Zabaglione (egg yolk, amaretto, and sugar custard) Sicilian Almond gelato base with stacked layers of house-made Valrhona Almond Amaretti Ganache — 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 #Valrhona #almond #amaretto #amaretti #cookie #ganache #ChocolateTruffle

Pineapple Ginger Sorbetto — Fresh Pineapple infused with Fresh Ginger — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — nice little ginger ale like kick — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #pineapple #ginger #GingerBeer #sorbetto

Burnt Basque Cheesecake Gelato — Milk steeped with Tahitian Vanilla Beans and Valencia Orange Peels and then blended with Cream-cheese and Egg Yolks, layered with house made “burnt” Caramel and topped with house-made Caramel Brittle, finished with the torch! — created 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 #basque #cheesecake #caramel #brittle #orange

Overall, Pailin Thai was one of the best places on our Thai Tour. Writing about it after all 6 (5 for me) I thought it was maybe tied with Jitlada, and the best of all the new Northern Thai places we tried in this set. It was super tasty with a wide variety of dish styles, consistent winning execution, friendly (if somewhat slow) service, mom & pop atmosphere with a touch of style, and loads of interesting unique dishes like the raw crab and shrimp.

Our second visit (6/29/21) confirmed that Pailin is a great place. Nearly every dish was fantastic. Tons of variety and flavor. This is a but cut above above average and one of the best Thai places I’ve been.

Highly recommended.

For more LA dining reviews click here,

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, curry, Gelato, hedonists, Pailin Thai, spicy, Thai cuisine, Thai Tour

Thai Tour – Spicy BBQ

Jun03

Restaurant: Spicy BBQ

Location: 5101 Santa Monica Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90029. (323) 663-4211

Date: April 29, 2019

Cuisine: Thai

Rating: Great Thai

This is the third stop on our great spring Thai Tour, although only the second I’ve been able to attend (the first being Sri Siam). Yarom set this in motion a couple months ago by deciding to hit up most of the top 10 recommended authentic Thai places in LA we HADN’T been to.

Spicy BBQ comes highly recommended. It’s a tiny place.

In a mini-mall on Santa Monica Blvd at the Thai Town / Little Armenia border. Just a touch scary.

They have a taste for amusing signs.

And a definitely mom and pop shop interior!

Plus mangos ever at the ready.

The menu.

My notes. Gotta have an ordering plan!

Fried chicken wontons. Deep fried wontons stuffed with ground chicken. Surprisingly delicious insides.

Fried Tofu. Deep fried tofu with sweet and sour dipping sauce. Not bad either for something so simple.

Papaya salad with grilled shrimp. We had to order a side car of extra shrimp to get around the table. The salad was a bit spicy actually and quite delicious.

Ground pork with chili paste. A “dip” of ground pork and spices. You use the veggies to lever it up.

Spicy and Sour Curry with chicken. Interesting and different curry.

Spicy Mint Leaves Beef. Delicious, with a lot of flavor.

Northern Thai Sausage. Soft and salty.

Pad Kee Mao Shrimp. Pan fried big flat noodles with bell pepper and basil in spicy sauce with succulent shrimp.

Tom Yum Chicken. Spicy and sour soup made with lemon grass, mushroom, onion, and celery. Delicious!

Northern Thai Egg Noodle. Khao soi. With the pickles.

Close up of the curry. I just love this dish. I’m a curry junkie.

Spicy Coconut Seafood. Really nice flavor.

BBQ Beef Spareribs. Tender with good flavor.

Pork Larb. Stir fried ground pork salad with lemon grass and Northern Thai spices.

Spicy BBQ Pork. The porky version of above. Still pretty tender.

Thai Peanut Coconut Lime Chili Gelato — Try 2 — Salty peanuts, Thai coconut, lime zest, and serrano chillies — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — the last batch was too spicy so this one has no chilie in the base itself — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #IceCream #NomNom #dessert #chili #spicy #thai #peanut #coconut #lime #SavorySweet #Serrano

Lol.

Spicy BBQ was very tasty. Small place, low key, small menu, but almost all the dishes were excellent. Not as exotic as some places, but they did a nice job.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, curry, Gelato, hedonists, spicy, Spicy BBQ, Thai, Thai cuisine, Thai Tour

Thai Tour – Sri Siam

Mar11

Restaurant: Sri Siam Cafe

Location: 12843 Vanowen St, North Hollywood, CA 91605. (818) 982-6262

Date: February 11, 2019

Cuisine: Thai

Rating: First rate Thai

Yarom has been scheduling a whole long series of Thai Mondays this spring — and you all know how much I love Thai food. I unfortunately couldn’t make the first one at Sapp, but I slogged out to North Hollywood for Sri Siam (which I had tried to go to before but failed).

Very casual storefront.

This is not exactly the loveliest neighborhood — check out the laundry-mat.

And the unassuming entrance.

Inside is bright and cheery though.

Crispy Rice Salad. This might be carby, but it was scrumptious. Nice texture and great flavor. There is crispy rice in there too.

Chicken Satay. Broiled marinated chicken skewer served with toast, cucumber relish & peanut sauce. This particular version came with a great little mini BBQ you could use to sear your own satay on. The cucumber salad was fabulous too, sweet and tangy.

Spicy Grilled Salad. Pork with shredded green apple, lemon grass, onion & mint leaves in spicy lime dressing. Great flavor and nice crunchy/chewy texture.

Miang Pla Too. Fried Macherel herb salad served with romaine and cilantro. Extremely polarizing dish. I loved it for the salty/fishy chew of the fish and the complex herb flavor. The Mayberry types at the table hated it.

Dried Fish Cake. Seasoned curry paste, fried ground fish and green bean patties. A bit contentious at the table for the spongy/chewy texture. I thought they were fine, but not super exciting.

Tom Yum Koong. Coconut milk chicken soup with lemongrass, galangal root & lime juice. I love this rich savory and slightly spicy soup. It has all sorts of savory/sour flavors going on. Sebastian complained that I got the one with the coconut milk because he’s watching his girlish figure — but everyone else at the table loved it.

Prawns with glass noodles. A lovely special dish with tasty tender giant prawns.

Pad See Mao. Shrimp, pan fried noodle w/ chili, garlic, and basil.

Khao Soy. Curry soup with chicken and egg noodle. Plus those interesting pickle condiments.

I love this dish and with a bit of the chili oil it can be pretty hot!

Sri Siam Spicy Ribs. Fried spicy pickled pork spareribs. A bit chewy, but tons of flavor.

Duck larb. No dish was as polarizing as this sauté of duck meat with red onion, cilantro, and chilies. The meat was very chewy and had a strong fish sauce flavor. I happened to love it because it was so intense and flavorful. Again, the wusses differed.

Spicy Basil Beef. Stir-fried basil leaves, garlic & chili with beef. Also a bit chewy. This place is small and they don’t use the highest quality meat in the universe.

Green Curry with Chicken. Green curry in coconut milk, bamboo shoots, Thai eggplant and basil. Other people had forced me to tone down the spice of most dishes but this one I got hot — which meant it was “acceptable” 🙂

By special birthday request — Gorgonzola Fig Walnut Gelato — Gorgonzola Dulce base with Fig Jam and Candied Walnuts! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — oh my! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #IceCream #NomNom #dessert #gorgonzola #fig #walnut #SavorySweet

Another new flavor, but continuing my Sicilian theme — Pistachio Almond Lemon Gelato — base made with a 50/50 blend of Pistachios from Bronte Sicily and Noto Almonds, plus Sicilian candied lemon! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — oh my! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #IceCream #NomNom #dessert #Pistachio #Almond #lemon #sicily

Overall, the food at Sri Siam was great. The place is cute and friendly and this is a somewhat different style of Thai than Jitlada. The menu is big but not quite as vast and they seem to make things for Thai taste (with fish sauce). It isn’t super hot though by my standards.

The servers were very nice and she put up with my “flighted” ordering (where I put in 3ish dishes at a time so as not to have them all arrive at once). She a couple times warned me off of several “too Thai” dishes that again I would have liked — as would Yarom and some of the more “seasoned” eaters — but the riff raff would have found “weird.” Still, I got a couple like the duck and the mackerel.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

From my cellar.

I thought both these wines were wretched over extracted messes.

Number two.

This was murky, but actually pretty tasty — one of the best of the night.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, curry, Gelato, hedonists, satay, spicy, Sri Siam, Thai, Thai cuisine, Thai Tour, Wine

Elephant Jumps

Jan18

Restaurant: Elephant Jumps

Location: 8110 Arlington Blvd, Entrance is on Gallows Rd., Falls Church, VA 22042. (703) 942-6600

Date: November 24, 2018

Cuisine: Thai

Rating: Very nice modern Northern Thai

On our last night of the ThanksGavin 2018 trip, back in the Washington DC area, we decided to check out a new Thai place my parents have been frequenting.

This is a newer place and has a cute name.

And a newish large mall as its location.

The interior is small but cute.

THAI SPICY SHRIMP SOUP. Tom Yum Goong shrimp, mushroom in thai herbs spicy soup.

FRIED WATERCRESS SALAD. Yum Puk Num Todd Grob fried watercress. served with minced chicken, fresh lime juice, onion, chili sauce.

EGGPLANT BASIL. One of those traditional Thai preps, a light slightly sweet, slightly spicy basil sauce, with sliced eggplant being the “main” ingredient.

GREEN CURRY with CHICKEN. green curry paste, coconut milk, eggplant, mushroom, basil. Had a bit of heat, although nothing like Jitlada.

CRISPY COCONUT SHRIMP. Fried shrimp with lots of coconut in the batter. Like an excellent Thai version of the American appetizer classic!

Overall, Elephant Jumps was quite nice. Stylistically it’s a bit like a Northern Thai place like Renu Nakorn — including the big mall — but Elephant Jumps is a bit more modern and stylish, with a smaller menu and slightly less intense flavors. Still, you could smell the fish sauce in the air, this is real Thai, with a lot of flavor.

For more ThanksGavin dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: curry, Elephant Jumps, Northern Thai, Thai, ThanksGavin, ThanksGavin 2018, Washington DC

Driving to Daw Yee

Nov14

Restaurant: Daw Yee Myanmar Corner

Location: 2837 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90026. (213) 413-0568

Date: September 26, 2018

Cuisine: Myanmar Cuisine

Rating: a touch bland and hence disappointing

I braved the deadly rush hour traffic to the ass’s end of LA (from a Westsider’s perspective) — Silverlake!

Mostly because I wasn’t sure if I’d ever had genuine Myanmar food before. This is a relatively new branch of an SGV place. It’s located right next to Silverlake Ramen, Pho Cafe, and down the street from Ma’am Sir.

The interior is small and cute.

The menu.

Fish curry. Rakhine style tilapia fish fillet, tomatoes, lemongrass, shallots, cayenne pepper, and paprika. Served with coconut rice. Odd way to start off!

Laphet Thoke (Tea Leaf Salad). Myanmar imported fermented tea leaves, tomatoes, roasted peanuts, fried yellow lentils, fried garlic, toasted sesame, diced tomatoes, shredded cabbage, dried shrimps, and fish sauce.

All mixed up. Interesting.

Gin Thoke. Pickled ginger, roasted butter beans, roasted lentils, toasted sesame, peanut butter, and shredded cabbage. Nice crunch to it.

Samosas. Fried pastry filled with poatoes and onions seasoned with masala curry. Can’t go to wrong with fried.

Kima Platha. Platha sutffed with masala seasoned chicken, beef, or lamb. A bit like a Beijing meat pie.

Potato pancakes. Pan fried mashed potatoes stuffed with ground lamb, mint, and Thai chili.

Kachin Style Salmon Belly. With cilantro, lemongrass, and spicy chili steamed in banana leaves.

Inside view. Not sure they had Salmon in Myanmar back in the day.

Mohinga. Myanmar’s national dish. Round rice noodles and hard-boiled egg in catfish chowder.

Shan noodles. Rich stick noodles served with coconut chicken, roasted peanuts, toasted sesame, chili oil, and Shan pickles. This was tasty.

Vegan bowl. Curried potatoes, seasonal vegetables, Myanmar tofu, several kinds of noodles, and coconut rice. Not bad at all for vegan.

Garlic noodles. Wheat flour flat noodles tossed in garlic oil, soy sauce, and shredded duck. Chinese in style, but good.

Goat Curry. Naah! Pretty mild though.

Platha. Daw Yee special homemade platha served with mashed garbanzo beans. Dips well in curry, otherwise greasy.

Beef Curry. Beef shank in onion, lemongrass masala curry, served with coconut rice. On of the stronger (and therefore better) curries.

Lamb Curry. Lamb with potato in onion and garam masala. Served with coconut rice.

Steak Bowl. Tri tip steak, shallots in spiced rum, seasonal vegetables, brown rice, and topped with a fried egg. Interesting mix.

Pumpkin curry. Pumpkin, potatoes, mustard seeds, and curry leaves. Served with coconut rice.

Lemongrass chicken. Ground chicken wrapped in lemongrass stick, seasonal vegetables, and brown rice.

Spicy Prawns. Prawns, seasonal vegetables, and coconut rice.

Tapioca Cake. Tapioca, coconut milk, and white rice flour. I loved these actually. Gummy with a mild coconut flavor.

Shew Kyi Cake. Semolina wheat cake with poppy seeds. Hmmm. Dry.

Cassava flour and egg. A bit like a dry custard/flan cake.

Overall, Daw Yew was good, and interesting, but the flavors were kind of muted. The dishes visually look like they would be strong in flavor, but the intensity, fish sauce, spice, etc were all toned down. The owner told us that he “did it because of the neighborhood.” I like strong flavors though so I was a bit disappointed. Fun evening though. And they treated us really well.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Random wines from the evening:

By: agavin
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Tagged as: beans, curry, Daw Yee, Egg, goat, hedonists, lentils, Myanmar Cuisine, noodles, Rice, Silverlake, Wine

I Luv2Eat

Aug11

Restaurant: Luv2Eat

Location: 6660 Sunset Boulevard P, Los Angeles, CA 90028. (323) 498-5835

Date: June 26, 2018

Cuisine: Thai

Rating: Awesome LA Thai

Luv2Eat has been on my “to eat” list for years — largely because people said they had to die for crab curry — but given that it’s at the other end of the city it took me a long time to fit it in.

But now I have. It’s located on Sunset in a mini-mall not far from Jitlada.

Clearly the Chef’s are Fern and Pla. Apparently, like me they Luv2Eat!

The inside is recently done, but fairly “minimal.” Definitely has a lunch feel.

The menu is big, but not nearly as big as the tome at Jitlada. I think this is more Northern focused too.

Tasty spring rolls.

Papaya salad with shrimp. Always a great sweet/tangy flavor.

The much lauded Phuket Crab Curry. You eat it in a bowl with the accouterments in the rear.

So as you can see in this curry close-up, it’s a rich yellow coconut milk based curry. The crab shell was impossible to break into, but that didn’t matter as the meat had pretty much all cooked out.

You put this stuff (noodles and some herbs and veggies) in your bowl and then add the curry on top. Makes a nice curry noodle soup. Delicious light coconut flavors. A good bit of heat (at medium) but not overwhelming.

Pineapple Duck Curry. Another favorite curry of mine, the red curry based slightly sweet duck curry. A solid version but maybe not as good as at Jitlada.

Jade noodle with pork belly, roast pork, and more. Quite pleasant in flavor. A bit reminiscent of the Vietnamese noodles commonly found in central Vietnam.

Crying Tiger Beef. The classic Thai marinated beef. Very tasty.

Unfortunately, they were out of khao soi which is one of my favorite Thai dishes and a northern speciality. But this was some very good Thai at great prices. Bright and on the lighter side as it goes. And they can get very spicy on request (as I like it). I probably prefer Jitlada’s more “intense”, richer style, but Luv2Eat is a really solid lunch option and I want to go back and try more.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: curry, lunch, Luv2Eat, Thai, Thai cuisine, Thai Town

Night + Market + Sahm

May28

Restaurant: NIGHT + MARKET Sahm

Location: 2533 Lincoln Blvd, Venice, CA 90291. (310) 301-0333

Date: April 21 & November 8, 2018

Cuisine: Thai

Rating: Good food, long lines, hipster clientelle

I’ve been meaning to try Night + Market for years — since they opened — but I never made it out to the Hollywood location.

So it’s great they opened one here in Venice, just a block from my friend Avi’s awesome Indian restaurant, Akbar.

The interior is like the fantasy of a kitchy beach Thai restaurant in Thailand. And in fact it is a beach Thai restaurant, just not in Thailand. But they certainly didn’t pull out the big bucks for all the plastic beads and Christmas lights. We waited about 45-50 minutes and we were fairly lucky, it looked like some people would be waiting easily over an hour.

The seating is very casual as well.

The menu is also formatted like a real Thai place, although the specific dishes are definitely California interesting.

There is only one beer on the menu, and they seem to be pushing wine — unusual for Thai.

Papaya salad. A bit spicy. Light and delicious.

World famous fried chicken sandwich. Chiengrai-style fried chicken thigh, papaya slaw, home-made ranch dressing, jalapeno, cilantro, tomato. Like a high(er) end Thai McDonald’s fried chicken sandwich! Haha.

Larb gai. Minced chicken, lime, fish sauce, rice powder, chili, cilantro, onion, spicy!

Classic spicy, salty, tangy, larb.

Coconut sticky rice. I love this

P.D.P. Peking Duck Pizza. Roast duck, garlic ginger hoisin, marinated shitake mushrooms, and mozzarella on grilled roti bread topped with green onion, sambal, and wonton chips.

Pork toro. Grilled fatty pig neck, salty like bacon, served with spicy ‘jaew’ northeastern chili dip. Chewy pork meat with that fat and tendon thing. Very tasty though.

Pastrami pad kee mao. Spicy drunken noodles with decadent Langer’s pastrami. Spicy! This was a fabulous combo of the pan fried rice noodles and the pastrami. Those green round things are pepper corns and VERY spicy. Great dish.

Khao soi rib. Mae sai curried noodles with pork spare ribs. I love Khao soi as it combines two of my favorite things: noodles and curry. This one was late (I think the server forgot it) but worth it. Nicely spicy, with lots of flavor. More a yellow curry than a red one.

Overall, I very much enjoyed Night + Market. Maybe not the wait out front, which was, for what it was, handled excellently, but certainly the food. It was pretty loud in there with lots of young Venice hipsters. Food was really tasty. Quite spicy. Certainly the best Thai I’ve had on the westside. I wish they were open at lunch. Might not be too bad on a weekday night though, hard to tell. But they don’t take reservations and it’s so loud, so would be hard to do a wine dinner there.

They are now open for lunch — which is great. I’ll have to go more often. Could even do at the end of one of my bike rides.

Also as a side note, testing out the iPhone X using Lightroom Mobile and raw to try to get better photos out of it — of course not nearly as good as my big Canon. Some of the daytime photos (from November) were on the iPhone XS (considerably better camera).

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: beer, curry, Night + Market + Sahm, spicy, Thai cuisine

Jazz Jitlada

Dec15

Restaurant: Jitlada [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

Location: 5233 W Sunset Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90027. (323) 663-3104

Date: November 9, 2017

Cuisine: Thai

Rating: Gut burning great

Tonight’s outing is a Hedonist return to Jitlada, an outrageously authentic Southern Thai place deep in Thai-town. The joint gets 27 in Zagat! It’s run by Jazz Singsanong, and just last month her brother, partner, and chef tragically passed away. We came to pay our respects (and enjoy some excellent Thai cooking).

You know it’s real because they don’t skimp on either the chilies OR the fish sauce. The menu can be found here.

2010 Domaine Louis Michel Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre. BH 93. Here the components of the nose are similar to those of the Fourchaume yet here it is notably more floral. There is impressive complexity to the dense, rich and concentrated flavors that offer plenty of oyster shell and iodine hints on the balanced and stunningly persistent bone dry finish. This is really lovely juice and well worth your attention.

Papaya salad. Solid, but not as yummy as the fried one below.

2013 Domaine Michelot Meursault Sous La Velle. VM 90. Ripe yellow peach aroma shows an almost syrupy aspect. Suave and silky in texture, with fruit-driven flavors of peach and orange. The crop level here was “almost normal” in 2013, noted Mestre. This is very good. (Incidentally, the Bourgogne here, which is entirely from vines in Meursault, is dry, savory and classic, even if it’s more Chardonnay than Meursault.)

Crispy Morning Glory Salad. This salad of shrimp and fried morning glory is just plain glorious. Sorry, couldn’t resist. Basically tempura flowers and it’s really the tangy, slightly sweet sauce/dressing that really makes it. Very similar to many of the salads I had in Vietnam.

2006 Dönnhoff Schloßböckelheimer Felsenberg Riesling Felsentürmchen Spätlese. JG 94. To my knowledge the first time that Helmut Dönnhoff bottled this section of the Felsenberg on its own was in 2001, when this upper section of the vineyard supplied the auction Spätlese from the vintage. The 2006 will again be a magical bottle, as the wine offers up very primary nose of lavender, a huge base of stony soil tones, white cherries, oranges, petrol, iris blooms and an exotic spice note redolent of turmeric. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, pure, minerally and very racy, with more solid than liquid at the core, great cut and structure, and a blazingly long, palate-staining finish. A brilliant Spätlese! (Drink between 2012-2035)

Pepper pork belly. Really tasty chewy pork belly bits with super yummy spicy sauce.

2007 Dönnhoff Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling Spätlese. VM 93+. Tantalizing aromas of papaya, sweet herbs and incense. Discreet but intense black cherry fruit rises from the mid-palate, accompanied by brilliant acidity. Animated and finely spiced, with a deep, long finish. I may be underrating this.

Coco lotus soup. This was a mild red coconut curry soup with chicken. It was amazing! Really fabulous curry flavor. Tons of tamarind giving it a really balanced sour tone.

2006 Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese. JG 93. To my palate the auction Auslese from the Sonnenuhr was a significant step up from the Spätlese, and this was indeed a delightful wine in the making. The classy nose demonstrated a sophisticated glazing of botrytis, as it jumped from the glass in a blend of apple, pear, bee pollen, slate, incipient notes of petrol and spring flowers. On the palate the wine is medium-full, complex and beautifully glazed with botrytis, with a lovely, glossy attack, a fine core of fruit, and a very long, crisp and ethereal finish.

Flambe Prawns. Grilled giant prawns topped with our house curry sauce. These are amazing. The sweet curry sauce is just full of curry flavor goodness.

2011 Ovid Syrah.

2015 Robert Mondavi Winery Pinot Noir Pommard Clone. Yuck! Didn’t taste like pinot.

Jazz burger. A big beef patty covered in onions, peppers, and dressing. The flavors were fabulous.

White rice in the tin of mysterious lightness.

Red Duck Curry. Not spicy but incredibly delicious.

2004 Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese. 92 points. Selbach is such an elegant house, consistently producing kabinetten and spatlesen that are light, airy and elegant. This spatlese showed some of the reserve of the 2004 vintage, with less expressive fruit. The wine was nonetheless balanced, with a significant honey/honeydew/orange zest and general citrus overlay. While the wine has some development left, I did not find enough expression of more complex flavors at this stage to rate it higher.

Yellow pork curry. Saffron or turmeric taste. Again mild and delicious.

From my cellar: 2008 Zind-Humbrecht Pinot Gris Heimbourg Sélection de Grains Nobles. VM 98. Medium gold. Utterly captivating nose melds bitter orange peel, apricot, wildflower honey and minerals. Thick, tactile and extremely young, with powerful acidity giving it a slightly disjointed character initially. For all its huge density, there’s great cut to the flavors of apricot, honey and flowers, with the wine’s powerful sweetness leavened by a savory element. Finishes with palate-staining fruit, outstanding energy and uncanny persistence. This came together brilliantly with aeration, maintaining great refinement and a sensation of weightlessness. Will go on for decades.

Jungle curry with lamb. Exotic thai curry with god knows what in it. This stuff was HOT and pretty fabulous. The heat was insane. Slow burn, such that you started in on it and thought it would be fine, but then building to a head-sweating mind-altering gut-burning sear. Took me 6-8 hours to recover from a relatively small portion!

1988 Marcel Deiss Gewurztraminer Altenberg de Bergheim Sélection de Grains Nobles. 92 points. Popped and poured, with cork crumbling and the wine poured in to a decanter. I think the air this ended up getting was most helpful. Beautiful sweet (but not overly so) stone fruits and spice on the nose. And an initial sweetness in the mouth that morphs in to a somewhat surprisingly much drier mid-palate. Complex with a good, but not as lingering finish as the very best Deiss SGNs can show.

Larb. Ground pork with spices, fish sauce, etc. Pretty hot too and salty/vinegary. Not my absolute favorite Jitlada dish.

Turmeric fried rice with chicken wings. Interesting!

Pad See Yew with chicken. Rich noodles, sweet and mild. I could barely taste anything after the jungle curry.

I love Jitlada, and it’s hands down the best Thai I’ve had in LA. The menu is enormous and full of goodies. Tonight’s meal was one of the best we had, despite the absence of the chef in the kitchen 🙁 We had only 7-8 people, which is about the max you can have here. Once we had way too many people and and some late comers that botched the whole progression.

Tonight we ordered very well. Every dish was very good, most great. We had a pretty nice progression. Sure, there are favorites we missed, the menu is vast, but it was a great meal. Jazz hung out with us for a chunk of it and helped us order. The kitchen was really on point too with some dishes that have a little variability all coming down on the awesome side tonight.

Not super spicy either, only the jungle curry busting the 5 or 6 line (it was an 11, even on the weighted Jitlada scale of blistering heat).

All in all, if you like Thai food and live (or visit) in LA you must try Jitlada.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

Or for more crazy Hedonist meals.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: curry, hedonists, Jitlada, spicy, Thai cuisine, Wine

Marugame Udon & Tempura

Sep25

Restaurant: Marugame

Location: 2029 Sawtelle Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90025. (424) 317-2222

Date: September 25 & 28 and October 26, 2017

Cuisine: Japanese Udon

Rating: Interesting format, good prices, not the highest quality

I do love udon, and while Sawtelle has about 6 bazillion ramen places there isn’t any great udon, so I was excited to see Marugame was part of a new rush of noodle places opening this fall.

It’s just a touch north of Tsujita and has a good sized patio and a big inside. I’m pretty sure it’s related to a Hawaiian chain which is called Marukame there — but in any case the main chain has 778 stores in Japan!!!

Less than a week in, there is still a 20 minute line at peak lunch time. The seats weren’t even close to full so mostly this is throughput and will settle out as the staff gets faster (hopefully).

Inside is attractive with a weird Japanese cafeteria style.

And mostly communal seating.

There are a lot of udon options, although they mostly amount to different broths. It looks like a lot of choices

First you chose your broth. They have a lot of staff, I counted at least 12. The noodles were more or less precooked, then heated for a few seconds in boiling water on order.

Next you add tempura (if you like). You can see it frying back there but it’s all sitting out cafeteria style under heat lamps.

Frying at work.

People slowly drift through the stations. Payment seemed to be a bottleneck.

They also have a few (very cheap) rice bowls at their own station after the tempura.

I was going to get one even though it would be too much food but the hotel pans of stuff didn’t look so hot, so I skipped it.

The minimalist drink area. They actually have a beer/wine license as they serve 1-2 Japanese beers and some odd canned sake!

After you pay using a Revel checkout, you can go to the condiment station and load up on sauces, plasticware and the like.

They have sloppy negi (green onion).

Sloppy ginger, wasabi, sauces.

Various tempura. Here are some of my tempura. The usual shrimp, sweet potato, a bit of overcooked chicken and some fish cake. The tempura was weak. It was luke warm at best, nothing like the awesome tempura at Hannosuke.

Curry udon. The udon was better. The noodles were good. The curry sauce was good but not great. A little bland and mostly just noodles and sauce. There was some sweet beef in it, but not a lot. The green onion and tempura bits added some decent texture. I’ll have to try the Nikutama next time (more or less the classic). The whole thing felt a little “sloppy” compared to the usual impeccable neatness of most Japanese food.

Nikutama udon. Kak sauce with sweet beef and soft boiled egg. This is an undecorated regular size. Not very much broth (which is a pretty good slightly sweet soy/dashi. The sweet beef is the totally typical Japanese style cheese-steak-like sliced fatty beef. The egg is an onsen-style egg. Broth is a little anemic (i.e. not enough of it).
With “decoration” (adds nice texture). This udon was better in relative terms than the curry. It’s pretty classic. Not amazing, but solid with it’s sweet/salty flavors and the nice bite to the noodles. If you skipped the tempura it wouldn’t even feel that heavy — but when you add a giant plate of fry like below :-)… The vegetable kakiage was pretty good, basically onions. Still no Hannosuke.

Tonkotsu. Pork broth with chashu pork, miso ground pork, garlic, seasoned egg and chili oil. Broth tasted like one of those typical packaged tonkotsu broths, not bad but a touch salty. Spicy level (from the oil) was considerable though and really brightened up the pure fat factor.

Mentai Cream. Cream sauce with mentai cod roe, crispy bacon, spinach and cheese.

I jazzed it up a bit. Very rich and heavy. Cheesy and tasty, but SO heavy and creamy. Kinda weird.

Overall, the price was very good IF you don’t get any tempura. I lot a large and a whole bunch of tempura and it was $16 all in with tip. The second time I went somehow even with a “regular” it was $17 — must have gotten more tempura. Most people would spend $8-10 but it would be too little food for a guy like me. The third time I got a regular, some tempura and a water and it was $20! The format is kinda interesting, but I don’t love the disposable plastic spoons and lousy napkins (splattered my shirt of course). Hard to eat a big soup with a tiny super-flimsy plastic regular soup spoon. And you have to clear your trays too. I go out because I’m lazy, I don’t need to clear. So it’s ALL the way fast casual like a fast food place with no service at all (they do wipe the tables, but that’s about it). It’s a cafeteria style zoo.

The tempura needed some real love though. It was still fried stuff, so okay, but this was very mediocre tempura. Half the pieces are cold and most are soggy. Like the kind of tempura you get at a buffet.

I had hoped for a really good artisanal udon bowl, instead there is just an okay cheap one with a long line — and I just don’t care about cheap. I know a lot of people do, but the difference between a $8 bowl of udon and a $20 bowl (most expensive udon I can imagine) is irrelevant to me. And furthermore, it’s easy to get Marugame up to $20 so it’s only cheap if you are minimalist.

Interestingly too, they generated a TON of Yelp reviews (mostly positive) in a very short time with some kind of Yelp Elite event. Hiss boo Yelp (my stint as a restauranteur did not leave me with a warm and fuzzy feeling about the crowd sourced review mafia). WARNING: the below video is NSFW but is funny!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: curry, Japanese cuisine, Marugame, tempura, udon

Quick Eats – Summer Buffalo

Sep06

Restaurant: Summer Buffalo

Location: 7275 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90046. (323) 938-8808

Date: July 11, 2017

Cuisine: Thai

Rating: My one dish was good

I found this at random searching Yelp for lunch spots between appointments.

Funny name for a Thai place.

Cute and tiny.

But they have more hood than Ramen Roll did. sigh.

Thai iced tea. Mason jar trend!

Khao Soi. Chicken Curry Noodle. Northern Thai Yellow Curry, egg noodle, chicken. I prefer the red curry version of this dish, but this was still delicious — I do love coconut milk based curries. I still want to make a curry gelato.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: curry, Summer Buffalo, Thai cuisine

Akbar – Big Flavors, Big Fun

Apr04

Restaurant: Akbar [1, 2, 3, 4 5]

Location: 3115 Washington Blvd, Marina Del Rey, CA 90292. (310) 574-0666

Date: March 30, 2016

Cuisine: Indian

Rating: Bold and balanced flavors

ANY CHARACTER HERE

It’s time for my my Hedonist group to return to LA’s best Indian restaurant, Akbar (Santa Monica branch). Too many Indian places focus on low cost buffets of very over cooked food, but Akbar cooks everything to order — even baking their own Naan when you place the order. They are more focused on the cuisine of the Punjab (Northern India), with very good curries and kormas. You can get anything from extremely mild to blow the top of your head off. Once I had the “pepper lamb” on 5 (max heat) and my scalp sweat for hours.

This was one of those really crazy evenings where we took over half the place with 25 people and even more wines!

Fellow Hedonist Chef Avi commands the kitchen!

Avi’s Kale Salad with Balsamic Mango Dressing. Not your usual Indian dish, but a nice refreshing salad with a good mix of textures and a bright sweet/tangy flavor.

Chana Samosa. Sort of Indian loaded baked potatoes, potato samosas covered in yogurt, tamarind sauce, curry chickpeas, and more. Awesome tangy, spicy, sweet, curry flavors.

Poutine du Yarom. The big guy requested this one. Fries with curried lamb and fried egg! Good stuff, and certainly not on the vegan diet!

Ground meat skewered and cooked over the fire. One of the Indian variants of Kafta kabob.

Lamb Chops. My friend Dave declared these the best lamb he’s ever had. Incredibly soft and full of fabulous lightly spicy flavor!

Chicken 65. Spicy south indian specialty served with serano and onion. Hot wings crossed with chicken nuggets! Hottest dish of the night.

Fresh baked Naan.

Mushroom Pilau. Rice with mushrooms and maybe a bit of meat.

House favorite Chicken Tikka Masala. Another perfect batch of this amazing dish. The chicken itself is all super tender chunks of white meat. The sauce has this snappy tang and complex flavor.

Shrimp Goa Curry. Shrimp prepared in onion, coconut and tamarind sauce with sauté of mustard. Some found it too sweet, but I loved this — nice creamy sauce too.

Goat curry. A rich, dark, strong curry with chunks of flavorful goat. It is, after all, the most eaten meat in the world.

Kaddu Ki Sabzi. Butternut squash cooked with coconut powder with sauté of mustard and red chilli peppers. Very Southern Indian dish with that coconut and black mustard.

Apollo Fish. White fish battered fried served with tomato onion bhuna.

Shrikhand. Whipped yogurt with saffron and pistachios.

Gulab Jamun. The classic sweet dough/cheese balls in syrup.

This was such a big dinner that wines were many, varied, and chaotic. For the most part, not the really good stuff, and a whole bunch of the New World swill, but a few tasty fellows.

Bonus from Arnie: NV Marc Hébrart Champagne Premier Cru Brut Mareuil-Sur-Ay. 90 points. Light straw. Larger but good bubbles. Toast, apples, okay depth. Nicely done.

Bonus from Ron: NV Billecart-Salmon Champagne Brut Rosé. VM 92. Pale orange. High-pitched red berry, orange zest and jasmine aromas, with suave mineral and smoky lees notes adding complexity. Spicy and precise on the palate, showing very good punch to its strawberry and bitter cherry flavors. Opens up smoothly with air and picks up a bitter rhubarb quality that lingers onto the long, tightly focused finish. This bottling showed more brawny character than many past renditions of this cuvée, but with no lack of vivacity.

2013 Cyril gautheron Chablis Mont de Milieu 1er Cru. Never heard of this Chablis!

Ron brought: 2002 Joh. Jos. Christoffel Erben Erdener Treppchen Riesling Kabinett. 90 points. Crisp green apples, with some slight honeyed notes on the palate. A little sweet, with not quite enough acidity.

Arnie brought: 2012 Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese. 93 points. Crisp aromas of passion fruit, nut oils and cinnamon. Rich, sleek and invigorating, but with creamy tropical fruit flavors remaining light and ethereal. Well-balanced, elegant and impeccably long. This does not have the depth of the auction wine, but at present more it offers greater drinkability.

From my cellar: 2000 Trimbach Pinot Gris Sélection de Grains Nobles. VM 93. Bright medium gold. Superripe aromas of apricot jam, exotic spices, honey and tobacco; just misses the clarity of the best SGN bottlings from this producer. Very dense but not hugely unctuous thanks to firm, perfectly integrated acidity. Sappy, vibrant and very long on the aftertaste.

From my cellar: 1996 Maison Roche de Bellene Latricières-Chambertin Collection Bellenum. 93 points. A wonderful 1996 Burgundy. Needed a few minutes to open up, but then was great. Plenty of upfront plush rich cherry, still dominating the subtle emerging mushroom and forest floor flavours that should develop well. Lovely balance of acidity and some spice on the finish, makes this all too drinkable (I only wanted to have half a bottle, but it all vanished!)… slightly too sweet now for my liking, but that is evidence of the (further) potential here. Drinks extremely well now, but will easily cellar and improve for another 10yrs. Recommended.

Fernie brought: 2012 Occidental Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast. 90 points. Oaked fruit juice.

1999 Marqués de la Concordia Rioja Reserva. 87 points. A little thin, although had some character. Not bad for a cheap Rioja.

Ron brought: 1970 Marqués de Murrieta Rioja Ygay Reserva. 93 points. Still vibrant and dark red, a little VA but not off putting, surprisingly strong fruit and good acidity with a little dill on the finish. Plenty of life left in this one.

2003 M. Chapoutier Châteauneuf-du-Pape Croix de Bois (magnum). VM 91. Light red. Wild aromas of charred meat and garrigue add complexity to the sweet notes of raspberry preserves, candied cherry, red plum and subtle white pepper. Explosively fruity Chateauneuf du Pape with no rough edges to its lush strawberry and candied raspberry flavors. Finishes with excellent length. way too young.

2007 Domaine de la Janasse Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Chaupin. Vinous 94. Opaque ruby. Spicy raspberry and cherry aromas are complicated by garrigue and Asian spices. Sweet, focused red fruit flavors are given spine by zesty minerality and pick up an exotic floral quality with air. Expands nicely on the finish, leaving behind sweet lavender pastille and raspberry notes.

2006 Monti Coroni Amarone della Valpolicella Classico.

2005 Pax Syrah Walker Vine Hill. VM 93. Opaque purple. Sexy blackberry, mulberry and candied licorice aromas, with a gentle graphite accent. Silky in texture, displaying a full array of sweet dark berry flavors and outstanding depth and focus. Very fine tannins add support to this extroverted bundle of fresh fruit, with tangier red berry notes coming on with air. The fruit carries impressively through the bright, seamless finish. This is the highest in alcohol of this year’s releases at 14.8%.

No info on the front, no review.

2013 Justin Vineyards & Winery Cabernet Sauvignon. Can we say young?

2008 Troll Bridge Cabernet Sauvignon.

Not even in Cellar Tracker! Impressive.

2010 Eighty Four Wines Petite Sirah. Some reviewer liked this enough to give it a 93.

2013 Predator Zinfandel Old Vine Rutherford Ranch Vineyards. Oh lord, I don’t even love 70s Zin.

Lipper brought: 1997 Turley Zinfandel Hayne Vineyard. VM 94-96. Black-ruby. Bright, spicy, very complex aromas of blackberry, black pepper, iodine and brown spices, plus a lively floral note. Extraordinary fruit offers great sweetness and intensity. Thick yet almost miraculously poised. Finishes with endless, palate-saturating fruit and exhilarating Christmas spices. Always a monumental wine from Turley.

agavin: if I’d noticed this was ’97 I’d have tried it just to calibrate my semi-mature Zin palate.

Akbar has long been my favorite LA Indian, and this meal was probably my best yet — and very different than usual. Chef Avi really turned out a lot of unique things tonight, including a bunch of southern specialties. And the wines were really great too. All in all an excellent night.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

By: agavin
Comments (4)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Akbar, ctm, curry, hedonists, Wine

Eating Philly – Tiffin

Nov30

Restaurant: Tiffin Indian Cuisine

Location: 8080 Old York Rd, Elkins Park, PA 19027. (215) 635-9205

Date: November 23, 2015

Cuisine: Indian

Rating: solid Indian

Our annual ThanksGavin trip always begins with a big Wednesday night dinner out in Philly, but this year we were out a day early so there was a Tuesday bonus.

Tiffin is a local (to Elkins Park) Indian restaurant.

The usual kind of casual decor.

From my cellar: 2004 Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese. 93 points. Again, sulphur evident on the nose, although with plenty of bright and acidic fruit beneath. It is delicate, clean, minerally and has tingly acids. Then it seems softer, more gentle, not so much substance, with lots of bright character. Good potential.

Chutney and sauces are included which is nice.

Cauliflower with a coconut sauce. Very nice.

Fried fish. Like fish and chips with black pepper.
Samosas. Certainly a decent version of this classic.

A light creamy curry with potato balls (not unlike matzah balls in texture).

Saag. Creamed Indian spinach.

Chickpeas with a mild curry.

Shrimp curry. Again the slightly sweet goopy curry.

Tilapia with tomatoes and onions. One of the few without the smooth curry treatment.

2009 Bodegas Domeco de Jarauta Rioja Solar de Castro Vendimia Seleccionada. 89 points. Very healthy bright red, cherry and chocolate on the nose, great balance of concentrated but not overpowering fruit, tannins with good structure, giving it a long finish. Very yummy, great wine.

Chicken Tikka Masala. Dark meat. A credible version of this dish, but from the smooth and sweet school of Indian curries. Akbar’s is so much richer and more flavorful.

Chicken Tikka Masala. White meat.

Lamb in a coconut curry sauce. Again the sauce is very sweet with the spice blend being fairly mild and blended into the rich sauce.

Chicken Tikka. My uncle goes nuts over this “BBQ chicken.”

Bismatti rice.

Naan, plain and garlic.
Galub jamun. Perfectly nice syrup soaked cheese/dough balls.

Overall, Tiffin was a good meal, and decent Indian. All the curries have that smooth, creamy, and sweet thing going on, which is common enough at Indian restaurants. They were pretty good too, this wasn’t like the tomato sauce boring Indian. But it was also just too sweet, without the intensity of “spice” (and I don’t mean heat) that better places have. Now, I’m sure a good bit of that is catering to the Americans, but still. The smooth, sweet, creamy thing made all the curries run together, even though their colors and flavor profiles technically varied.

Still, I fully enjoyed it.

For more Philly dining reviews click here.

Or check out the full ThanksGavin feasting series.

By: agavin
Comments (1)

Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Chicken tikka masala, curry, Indian, Philadelphia, ThanksGavin, ThanksGavin 2015, Wine

Renu Nakorn

Oct14

Restaurant: Renu Nakorn

Location: 13019 Rosecrans Ave #105, Norwalk, CA 90650. (562) 921-2124

Date: October 11, 2015 & September 16, 2018

Cuisine: Thai

Rating: Far, but really great Thai

I’m always up for some Thai adventures and Renu Nakorn, although very far and deep down in the inland empire off the 5 is the seed restaurant that gave birth to Lotus of Siam.

The strip mall they used to be in rebooted up into this bigger 2006 mall. The Chutima’s ran it back in the 90s and in 1999 solid it to their friends Pharchumporn Shonkeaw and Umpa Sripetwannadee. Named after the Renu Nakhon district of northeastern Thailand, it serves up Northern Thai cuisine.

2011 Domaine des Baumard Savennières. 89 points. Quite creamy on the nose with subtle, slightly funky aromas of animal hide, papaya and fennel. Medium-bodied and slightly soft with savory, flinty flavors of grass, hard lemon candy and tangerine.

Fried sweet corn special. They made this up for us special. Absolutely delicious. Crunchy and sweet.

Rose

Renu Nakorn Sausage. Grilled sour rice sausage, served with fresh chili, ginger & peanut. Sausage was super tasty, although very salty.

Northern Thai Sausage (9/16/18), a slightly different more aromatic variant.

2005 Dönnhoff Schloßböckelheimer Felsenberg Riesling Spätlese. VM 91. Pale golden yellow.Subtle bouquet of pineapple, nut oil and lemon zest.The luscious yet crisp papaya fruit is brightened by a refreshing mineral character.Deceptively light and wonderfully drinkable.A charming riesling with a sweet/salty finish.

Nam-Prik-Noom (Green chili dip). Roasted green chili, garlic, onion and tomato pounded in mortar. One of the most popular dip of Northern Thailand, eaten with sticky rice, fried pork skin and fresh vegetable. Lots of flavor, not super hot by my standards.

The red chili dip (9/16/18) version of the same dish.

Some kind of special beef salad (9/16/18).

Larb koong (9/16/18). A northern style larb.

Stuffed chicken wings (9/16/18). Super awesome, we ordered 2 or three times!

Classic papaya salad (9/16/18).

Coconut chicken soup (9/16/18).

In the bowl.

2001 Weingut Johannishof (H.H. Eser) Rüdesheimer Berg Rottland Riesling Spätlese. 89 points. Peach, grapefruit and brown spice in the nose. Enormously rich and peachy in the mouth, expansive and bright across the palate. Effusively fruity, honeyed and spicy in the finish.

Special apple salad with salmon. The salmon was perfectly cooked, very mild yet flavorful.

2000 Erben von Beulwitz Kaseler Nies’chen Riesling Auslese**. 93 points. Sweet but not cloying.

Nam Kao Tod. Minced Issan sausage mixed with green onion, fresh chili, ginger, peanuts, crispy rice and lime juice. Super delicious, but incredibly salty.

2003 Le Haut-Lieu Vouvray Moelleux. 93 points. Sweet, with perhaps a touch of funk.

Nua Yum Katiem. Charbroiled spicy beef topped with fresh garlic and spicy sauce. Super delicious, and our spicy one actually had some heat (from those peppers). Lots of good garlic and acidic flavor too. The texture of the meat reminded me of tongue (in a good way).

2002 Inniskillin Vidal Sparkling Icewine. 93 points. Very nice. Few bubbles left, but what was left added just the right spark. Deep color. Flavors very concentrated. Probably near it peak, but showed zero hint of oxidation, so it may last quite a bit longer.

Northern Larb. A completely difference from the Is-san larb in taste, this Northern style larb (ground pork) is cooked with Northern Thai spices and no lime juice. Garnish with fresh herb and vegetable. Lots of flavor, a bit of heat, and extremely salty again.

2010 Rhys Pinot Noir San Mateo County. VM 94. The 2010 Pinot Noir (San Mateo County) is simply fabulous. Rich dark cherries, crushed flowers, mint and spices burst from the glass. This is a hugely delicious wine from Rhys. The 80% whole clusters are nicely balanced by the sheer depth of the fruit. This is a flat out stunning wine from Rhys. In 2010 the San Mateo is the entry-level Pinot. The 2010 is bottled under San Mateo appellation, as it includes fruit from Bearwallow (in Anderson Valley) rather than the more typical collection of sites from the Santa Cruz Mountains. Once again, one of the appellation-level Rhys Pinots shines.

They prep the next dish.

Khao soi. Northern red curry with chicken and flat noodles.

In the individual bowl. I loved this, but I LOVE red curries, and I love noodles, so go figure.

Condiments for the curry.

2012 Horsepower Vineyards Syrah The Tribe Vineyard. 96 points. Total rocks rockstar. If you want to show someone Rock terrior, this is about as good as it gets. Super clean, but showcasing that ethereal burn olive and blood flavor. Good acid on the palate for being obviously higher PH. Long finish.

Drunken noodles, combination. Good stuff, we went through the noodles fast.

2007 Carlisle Syrah Bennett Valley. 91 points. Drinking quite well. Most of the group enjoyed it even more than I. Plums, black raspberries and some black pepper on the nose. Tannic. Good fruit but certainly not uber ripe. Starting to show some complexity, but certainly no hurry at all. It really is a beautiful wine.

Pork stew Northern Style (9/16/18).

Spicy Young Jackfruit Curry (9/16/18). Interesting flavors.

Seafood Chili Mint Leaves (9/16/18).

More fried rice (9/16/18).

Red chicken curry (9/16/18). Classic and delicious.

Special green curry (2015 & 9/16/18) with pork, extra spicy. Loved this stuff, with a nice coconut flavor.

BBQ beef in spicy sauce (9/16/18).

Pad See Ew (9/16/18).

Catfish (9/16/18).

Crying Tiger Beef (9/16/18).

Bannana fritters with coconut ice cream. I only ate the ice cream, which tasted like ice milk or frozen coconut milk. It was okay.

Made by me for 9/16/18.

Cherry Cough Syrup Sorbetto – Amareno Cherry and Creme de Cassis Sorbet! — so intense — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #SummerTime #cherry #amareno #Sorbet #cassis

Passionape Sorbetto – Passion Fruit and Aperol Sorbet — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #SummerTime #Sorbet #PassionFruit #Aperol

Food was excellent, if a touch salty. Service was excellent. Only minus was the drive.

I still like Jitlada a bit better. Renu Nakorn has a different, more northern style, however. It also isn’t nearly as spicy. We asked them to give us nuclear hot dishes and they were only “hot”. My scalp never got sweating like it does at Jitlada.

For more LA dining reviews click here,

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!
Extra wines from 9/16/18: