Seafood :: All Things Andy Gavin

Archive for Seafood

Bovon Holbox v1

Sep22

Restaurant: Holbox [1, 2]

Location: 3655 S Grand Ave c9, Los Angeles, CA 90007. (213) 986-9972

Date: January 20, 2024

Cuisine: Mexican Seafood

Rating: Private room shenagigans

I’ve been meaning to try Holbox for a while — years even. Recently (summer 2024) they earning a Michelin Star!

One of just eight restaurants inside Historic South Central L.A.’s Mercado La Paloma, Holbox (from the Mayan-named island of Holbox – pronounced “hole-bosh” – off Mexico’s northern Yucatán Peninsula) is a Mexican seafood restaurant that focuses on fresh local ingredients, vibrant flavors, and unpretentious presentation. The menu features specialties from coastal regions of Mexico, seen through the lens of its southern California and Baja California ingredients. We offer a casual order-at-the-counter service in a food hall setting and also host weekly 8-course tasting menu dinners on Thursdays and Fridays.

Holbox emerged from the Mercado, where Chef Gilbert Cetina cooked alongside his father at the still vibrant neighboring stall, Chichen Itza. Holbox opened in 2017 and has continued to garner awards and recognition, including 1-Star Michelin 2024, Michelin Bib Gourmand in 2019, 2021, and 2022, LA Times Restaurant of the Year 2023, and ranked #5 on the 2023 LA Times 101 Best Restaurant list. Chef Cetina was a 2023 James Beard Finalist for Best Chef California.

Food court!

The actual space.

Typical line just about all the time.

Bovon setup this special dinner in their large but unglamorous “private room.”

Tonight’s menu.

All you can eat oysters.

And scallops.

These were served with a variety of toppings — hot sauce and vinegar.

Sea Urchin & Halibut. Live Santa Barbara Sea Urchin and local halibut ceviche.

Scallop Aguachile.

Bluefin Tuna Tostada. Baja bluefin tuna, avocado puree, arbol-peanut sauce.

Wagyu Taco. Miyazaki wagyu striploin, guacamole, handmade tortia, pico de gallo. Very tender.

Tomahawk. Grilled prime Tomahawk steak, roasted fingerling potatoes. This is not on their normal menu.

Rice and beans

Kanpachi al Carbon. Omega Azul Baja kanpachi cooked whole over mesquite, handmade tortillas, pico de gallo, avocado.

Tortillas.

Grilled lemons.

Cheesecake.

Almond Ricotta and Orange Old Fashioned Gelato.

The wines.

Very fun night. Food was good, although in some ways similar to Bea’s Tacos. The zesty seafood was better than the meats, as the steak was a bit overcooked. It’s not one of their normal things, only being available at this special private dinner.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: BYOG, Gelato, Holbox, Jeff Bovon, Mexican, Seafood, Steak, Wine

Eating Tysons – Patsy’s

Aug09

Restaurant: Patsy’s American

Location: 8051 Leesburg Pike, Vienna, VA 22182. (703) 552-5100

Date: November 22, 2023

Cuisine: American (duh)

Rating: Solid

My parents (or maybe my Dad) are a bit obsessed with this small Virginia chain. It’s like the more modern, more commercial variant of all the small American restaurants we used to eat at in the 1970s — but stripped of the soul.

Actually this interior space was once a Chesapeake Bay Seafood House, a place that served AYCE seafood and that was popular with my friends and I during High School.

Ozzie Rolls. Like donuts, but about half as sweet. Sugared butter.

Seafood Platter. 6 oysters, 6 midneck clams, 3 jumbo shrimp, smoked mussels & blood orange mignonette.

Shrimp Cocktail. 6 jumbo shrimp, fresh lemon & cocktail sauce.

Field Greens. grape tomatoes, sun dried cranberries, dates, pine nuts, garlic croutons & champagne vinaigrette…blue cheese or Laura Chenel goat cheese.

Crab & Corn Chowder.

Short Smoked Salmon Filet. marinated and smoked, then hickory grilled with fresh asparagus, mashed potatoes & creole mustard sauce.

BBQ Baby Back Ribs with fresh, hand cut fries & traditional cole slaw.

Warm White Chocolate Bread Pudding. bourbon custard sauce, vanilla ice cream & caramel.

It’s not bad, but it’s so “white bread.”

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: American Cuisine, McLean Va, Patsys, Seafood, ThanksGavin, Wine

Tin Time – Saltie Girl

Aug01

Restaurant: Saltie Girl

Location: 8615 Sunset Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90069. (310) 734-7296

Date: November 9, 2023

Cuisine: Seafood

Rating: Quite different with all that conserva

This was a Erick and I duo foodie night.

Salty Girl in West Hollywood offers a cozy yet vibrant dining experience, merging a relaxed atmosphere with sophisticated seafood dishes. This eatery stands out with its emphasis on fresh, high-quality ingredients, showcasing a range of oceanic delights from rich, buttery lobster rolls to expertly shucked oysters. The menu, thoughtfully curated, features inventive yet comforting options like clam chowder fries and tuna crudo. The interior’s rustic charm, accented by nautical decor, complements the laid-back but polished service, making it an ideal spot for both casual dinners and special occasions. Salty Girl’s commitment to flavor and freshness leaves a memorable impression, ensuring it’s a must-visit for seafood enthusiasts.

The menu.

The have a whole book of conserva.

Chilled Florida Stone Crab Claws. Tasty, but expensive at $42 a claw and hard to get out of those thick shells.

TORCHED SALMON BELLY. avocado / apple / cucumber / miso glaze. Very rich and satisfying with a subjective sweetness.

WARM SPICY KING CRAB ROLL. avocado / soy paper / ponzu. Mild and pleasant.

SANTA BARBARA UNI TOAST. tomato jam / mangalica ham / quail egg. Good mix of briny and salty flavors.

CHARRED OCTOPUS. coco beans / chorizo / piquillo peppers / fingerling potato chips. Really really tender. Not chewy in the slightest.

Our selection of tins. They have the largest seafood tin list in the country!

served with trio of salts / crunchy butter / pickled piparra peppers / piquillo pepper jam / french bread. I liked all the accompaniments — other than the salt which I didn’t try (didn’t need MORE salt).

Bread for the tins.

Cockles in brine. Very succulent and delicious.

SPICED SARDINES IN OLIVE OIL. Porthos / Portugal / 4.4oz. Nice sardines, but fairly straightforward.

HAKE CHEEKS IN OLIVE OIL. Alalunga / Spain / 4.72oz. Delicious and tender.

SMOKED EEL. Gulf of Maine Conservas / New Hampshire / 6oz. Great smoky flavor. Pretty salty.

GRILLED VENTRESCA (TUNA BELLY). Güeyu Mar / Spain / 5.29oz. We were hoping for richer. This was excellent tuna, but nothing that exciting.

SALTIE GIRL LOBSTER ROLL. served warm. house made salt & vinegar potato chips. Quite nice lobster roll.

FRENCH DOVER SOLE. lemon / capers / butter / parsley. Fish was perfectly cooked so it had a great texture. Beurre blanc was silky rich. The only problem was the sauce was a touch salty without enough compensating lemon.

Beurre blanc sauce.

Overall, an interesting place ina very cute space. Service was good. It was loud and crowded and there was a lot of seafood on this menu. It was salty and not exactly cheap. But I’d come again at some point. Unfortuantly they do have a 2 bottle limit although a reasonable enough $40 corkage.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: conserva, fish, Foodie Club, Seafood, West Hollywood, Wine

Tata’s Two

Jul26

Restaurant: Tata’s Cafe [1, 2]

Location: 12627 Hawthorne Blvd, Hawthorne, CA 90250. (424) 675-4168

Date: October 20, 2022

Cuisine: New American

Rating: Great ingredients and a lot of fun

My good friend Jeff Bovon owns and operates this unusual restaurant in Hawthorne. He’s part chef, part food importer and supplier, being a purveyor of super high quality seafood and meats and he basically took over this little cafe and turned it into a very unusual destination. Chevy setup a big custom group dinner.

The interior is basically a little Hawthorne cafe that’s been mildly scaled up.

60 day dry aged Tomohawk — too old — but ambitious.

Giant lobsters

Cold Seafood plater. Very nice. The red sauce on the scallop (a sweet chili sauce) was pretty good too.

Steamed Littleneck Clams. With a mild curry flavor.

Seared Branzino. The fish was nice, but the green spicy tomatillo sauce was amazing!

Leering at us.

Seared A5 Wagyu. Super tender and probably the best “main.”

60 day dry aged Tomohawk. I actually didn’t like it at all, too “cheesy” and funky.

Baked Lobster Tails. These, however, were awesome. I think I had three.

Creamed spinach — rich but great.

Sautéed mushrooms. Nice.

Brussels. Also good.

My personal plate.

Cheese plate.

Dessert plate.

Pure and Concentrated Evil — Kentucky Mud Pie Gelato — Expresso Knob Creek Bourbon Custard Gelato base with layers of house-made Crushed Oreo Valrhona Fudge Ganache, and house-made Vanilla Coconut Cream Cheese Icing — The Plaid Mode of Gelati and includes a hefty Caffeine kick — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #coconut #valrhona #chocolate #ganache #expresso #bourbon #custard #oreos #icing

Summertime calls for — Yuzu Meyer Lemon Sorbetto — Japanese Yuzu Juice, Fresh Meyer Lemon Juice — 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 #sorbetto #yuzu #meyer #lemon

We had a very fun time. Big group and diverse wines with a LOT of food. I mean a LOT of food, even by our standards!

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: A5, BYOG, fish, Foie gras, Gelato, Jeff Bovon, Seafood, Steak, Tata's Cafe, Wagyū

Eating Dutch – The Seafood Bar

May26

Restaurant: The Seafood Bar

Location: Amsterdam

Date: July 4, 2023

Cuisine: Seafood

Rating: Pretty similar to a San Francisco style seafooder

Our final meal of the trip (not including bad plane food).

It’s always hard to find somewhere that will please our entire large group and so we tried pretty hard to get into this small chain Amsterdam seafooder — which would.

The menu.

This lovely Sancerre that birthday girl Emma chose.

Fried calamari rings with mayo — nice.

Bitterballen. The classic Dutch croquette and I was told an excellent one at that.

Sea bass ceviche.

Salmon tartare with avocado.

Oysters of several types.

This epic plat du mer had lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, salmon, crab (two types), crab salad, Dutch shrimp (the tiny ones), lagostinas, clams (2 types), mussels and more!

Cesar salad with salmon.

Cod filet with pumkin and beurre blanc.

Dover sole.

Fish and chips “kibbeling” style (in small peices).

Fish and chips “whole cod” style — like in England.

Extra fries with mayo because it’s Holland.

Chocolate ice cream.

Chocolate bavoroise with chocolate ice cream. A bit dry.

Lemon meringue pie.

Expresso martini.

Expresso.

A fun and tasty end to our epic trip. The Netherlands part of the trip wasn’t food focused — nor actually was any of this trip — but we did have some really nice stuff. This place is fairly similar to Santa Monica’s Watergrill or many California-style seafooders, but it had a Dutch bent and was quite delicious.

For more Dutch dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Amsterdam, Eating Amsterdam, Eating Dutch, Eating Netherlands, Seafood, The Seafood Bar

Northern Cafe Temple City

Jan26

Restaurant: Northern Cafe

Location: 9608 Las Tunas Dr, Temple City, CA 91780. (626) 286-5288

Date: May 5 & July 23, 2023

Cuisine: Northern Chinese

Rating: Great private room experience

Normal Northern Cafe is a solid but casual fast casual spot but…

Northern Cafe in Temple City sure is a bit different than the ones in Century City or West LA as we shall see in this special dinner organized by Eve and another I put together myself.

The normal dining room is fairly normal NC.

But they have 5 private rooms, a smaller one being shown here.

We set up in this larger one.

It’s pretty big.

It even has a bit of a lounge area, perfect for organizing our wines.

I think this is the “regular” menu.

And this epic tome is the special menu!

Spicy Cucumbers. Nice garlicky cucumber salad.

Cold Flavored Pork Head. Very chewy texture that was offputting to some with a lovely, but highly porcine, flavor.

Up first came this big installment of Geoduck sashimi. This is the body meat and it was served on ice with Astrea Caviar that Eve brought. Turns out geoduck is excellent with caviar! And this was some very fine geoduck with a very clean mild sea flavor and a nice chewy texture.

It was served with soy sauce and (faux) wasabi.

We had pre-ordered several large live lobsters and the tails were served as sashimi. Probably the best “Chinese” lobster sashimi I’ve had. Quite lovely and subtle.

Eve also brought her own King Crab! They sell it on the menu, but she BYOCed.

King Crab Salty Egg Yolk. The crab might have been a touch overcooked in this prep but the yolk batter, which is not normally my favorite, was quite good as it wasn’t too salty or too pasty.

Bamboo Shoot with Shredded Pork. I loved this dish. It was a pretty classic brown sauce, but very tasty, and the crunchy bamboo was delightful with that bit of porky flavor (classic Chinese velveted slivered pork).

Pork Spareribs with Garlic. Chewy, salty, and very tasty.

Pork and Scallion Pancake. This is a kind of classic Beijing meat pie with a filling that is probably the same as standard dumpling filling: pork, ginger, green onions. They were super greasy, but great.

House Special Smoked Duck. It was served with a bit of hoisin and some Northern style pancakes. The meat was really flavorful, but VERY salty, almost to the Smithfield ham level. Speaking of that, because it was salted, smoked, and cured, it tasted not unlike ham — just ducky ham.

This are the flaky pancakes for the duck.

Next they brought out this lovely Cloisonné hot pot.

This is the basic broth, but Eve ordered it as “mushroom chicken” and so…

They added a mess of mushrooms and…

Some raw chicken.

This mix was allowed to boil for 20-30 minutes (covered).

Here is the result.

First we were served cups. The broth was incredible, with a very deep woodsy and comforting chicken and mushroom flavor. The short boil had extracted a lot of flavor.

For extra things to add to our hot pot we kept it fairly simple, enjoying the legs of our crab. Boiled for 20-30 seconds they were incredibly sweet and succulent.

These lobster “bits” were chopped up and reason to be tossed into the pot.

Also some tofu.

And greens. We kept drinking this broth (with the stuff) throughout the evening as it was delicious.

As was this incredible delicious of live Grouper.

The grouper meat cooked in a bout 30 seconds and was subtle and delicious.

Rib Eye and Lamb Shoulder to boil in the pot. These meats, alone of what we had tonight, is better (IMHO) with the spicy broth served at various Sichuan hot pots.

Some extra fish was also fried up “salt and pepper” style — aka MSG style.

Clams with Basil. This is the classic Chiuchow dish that’s a bit Vietnamese/Cambodian. Some nice basil flavor and a good number of succulent clams. I enjoyed this, even if the clam meat was a bit evasive.

Sauteed Cabbage. I always love this classic and it didn’t dissapoint. This was a simple rendition with a lot of garlic and oil, but cooked perfectly. It didn’t have either the ham (and its nice lardy flavor) or dried shrimp or chilis that some versions of the dish have, so it wasn’t the most flavorful I’ve ever had, but the crunchy texture on the oily cabbage was lovely.

French Chopped Beef with snowflake. Chunks of filet with black bepper sauce. I don’t generally love this dish as I consider it a bit boring, but this one had a real black pepper kick which in combination with the onions was quite enjoyable.

The geoduck neck came back fried. Quite nice, but not nearly as delightful a fry as the Longo version.

Eve also brought not one but two Turbot!

Turbo steamed with ginger, garlic, spring onions, and soy. This fish is best done this way, simply, so that the soft mild flesh and generous cartilage can be enjoyed “as is.”

Crab Custard. This is the third dish from our King Crab.

The custard was a bit stiff, and while still delicious, didn’t have that silken texture I really love.

Yang Chow (or everything) fried rice. Absolutely awesome fried rice with big whole shrimp and chunks of fried pork.

Walnut Shrimp. Fu ordered this guilty pleasure classic, joking that it was for the white guys, but this was a first rate example. The shrimp were succulent and the fry nice and crispy, perfectly offset by the sweet mayo and walnuts.

Fried fish with green batter. This is a Hangzhou dish. There green tea is added to the batter. I’m not sure it was tea here or some other variant, but it was a nice tempura-style deep fried fish. Right out of the frier too as it was very hot and juicy.

House Special Smoked Duck. Very salty, but very good. With that smokey cured pastrami-like flavor. Lots of “flavor.”

Pea Tendrils with Garlic. Great version of this basic dish.

MaPo Tofu. Not a bad version at all. Some Ma and a bit of meat.

Beef & Scallion Roll. Awesome version of this with some hoisin and cilantro. Quite lovely.

Boiled dumplings. Probably pork. Delicious for sure. I didn’t (finally) manage to get some black vinegar for them. Really I like a proper dumpling sauce, but vinegar will do.
XLB. Solid versions.

Scallion pancake. Bready, but really tasty — particularly with some black vinegar.

Inside.

Pan fried dumplings. I’m not sure if this was the same filling. It was late, but they were also good. Skin was a little thick on these, not like the amazing You Kitchen variants, but like all decent dumplings they were hot and delicious.

Nocciola Crunch Gelato — Nocciola (hazelnut) base made with egg yolk and Pure PGI Piedmont hazelnut paste mixed with Nestle’s Buncha Crunch — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — new higher fat base formulation — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #hazelnut #nocciola #Chocolate #Nestle #crunch

Hojicha Latte NSA Gelato – Ceremonial Hojicha Roasted Green Tea base with No Sugar Added (Allulose) — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato –#dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #matcha #Hojicha #GreenTea #Allulose #NSA

Cannoli and Baklava’s Evil American Lovechild — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — Base crafted from Galbani Whole Milk Ricotta and Sicilian Toasted Noto Romano Almond Paste with a touch of the sugar subbed out for Sicilian Honey. Mixed in is Malibu Honey, California Pistachios, and house-made Gluten Free Honey Graham Crackers (almond flour and so good you can’t tell them from the wheat flour version)! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #dessertgasm #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #ricotta #almond #RicottaCheese #cheese #Sicily #honey #GrahamCracker #pistachio

Cap’N Crunch Gelato – Smooth Peanut Base with house-made White Chocolate Coated Crunch Berries! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — oh my! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #peanut #cereal #CrunchBerry #CapNCrunch

Fu makes off with a bit of booty for the family.

Meal 1 (May 2023), was a super fun night. Awesome wines — and only one red thank Dionysus (given the food). Company was amazing too and the food really stood out. I enjoyed this slightly northern twist and they seem to have an excellent and very flexible Chinese kitchen and great private rooms. Who would have thought at a Northern Cafe? Service was super friendly and excellent too. We did get too many dishes too fast because no one gave them the “one at a time” instructions and fast is the Chinese default. Still, an awesome time and awesome food. That broth was really amazing!

Meal 2 (July 2023).

For more dining reviews click here.

Just a bit of great wine!

And some fire water.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Babykillers, BYOG, Caviar, Chinese cuisine, Foodie, Foodie Club, Gelato, geoduck, hot pot, Seafood, SGV, Wine

Food as Art – Corridor 109

Aug24

Restaurant: Corridor 109

Location: 727 N Broadway #207, Los Angeles, CA 90012

Date: January 28, 2023

Cuisine: Fusion

Rating: Delicious, minimalist

Corridor 109 | Test Kitchen is inspired by Chef Brian Baik’s passion for sourcing and experimenting with the world’s finest seafood ingredients. Influenced by experiences at high caliber establishments such as Bouley, Eleven Madison Park, The Chef’s Table at Brooklyn Fare, and Sushi Noz, Chef Brian begins his West Coast journey with an intimate tasting menu of 8-9 courses. Seating is limited to only 8 guests.

Corridor 109 tucked away, almost invisible, on the upper floor of a Chinatown mini-mall.

Tonight’s menu.

The small interior space.

NV Jérôme Prévost Champagne La Closerie Extra Brut “Climax” Les Beguines. 93 points.

Spot Prawn & Caviar Tartlet. Ebi miso, vidalia onions, wasabi, citrus. Really lovely caviar tart bite with a fantastic textural and flavor contrast. Very umami.

Jeju Island Fluke with Ensui Uni. Citrus soy gelee, myoga ginger, shiso oil. Essentially a sashimi, the soy gelee served to bind together the very fresh flavors.

2020 Domaine du Côteau de Tormery Vin de Savoie Chignin-Bergeron Côteau des Ducs.

Scallop with Herbal Clam Broth. Herb Oil Extracts. The broth was delicious but subtle, with an intense clam quality enhanced by the oils. Lovely, although a challenging wine pairing.

2017 Prager Grüner Veltliner Stockkultur Smaragd Achleiten. 94 points.

Iwashi Toast. Homemade milk bread, pickled red peppers, aioli. An awesome little “sando”. I love the marinated quality of the macherel, which was perfectly cut, and it paired effortlessly with the light, fluffy bit of milk bread.

Side view.

2020 Egon Müller Riesling QbA Scharzhof.

Nagawaki Red Tile Fish. Anchovy dashi, parae seaweed, Tokyo turnips. The fish itself was light and mild prepared with hot oil in the French manner. The seaweed broth however was very Japanese with that mild sea herb note.

Katsuo with Pesto. Spaghetti, shallots, grated ginger. The pasta was perfectly cooked, very green, and had an almost startling but addictive intense ginger quality nicely offset by the fatty fish.

2006 Billecart-Salmon Champagne Cuvée Elisabeth Salmon. VM 94+. The 2006 Rosé Cuvée Elisabeth Salmon is powerful, intense and also classically austere in its make up. Crushed flowers, mint, red berries and cranberries are all finely sketched. The 2006 finishes with striking mineral-driven precision, and while it doesn’t have the opulence or exuberance of the 2002, it is still a very pretty and appealing Champagne. The Elisabeth Salmon is 50% Pinot Noir and 50% Chardonnay, with about 8% still Pinot Noir. Dosage is 6 grams per liter. (Drink between 2018-2031)

Dungeness Crab. Crab consomme, chives. Crab and crab guts — who wouldn’t love this? Well, certainly I did.

2015 Y de Yquem. 94 points.

Gorgeous large abalone from Japan.

Abalone Risotto. Sumidaya rice, black truffle, gamtae seaweed. I lovely risotto. Not as rich as an Italian variant (with more butter and cheese) might be, but with great savory/umami notes and nice bitey rice. The abalone itself was tender and full of subtle flavor and chew.

Pixie Mandarin Sorbet. Very intensely mandarin with quite a bit of satisfying bitterness and a silky texture.

Corridor 109 was some very fine and innovative food. It’s possibly a bit subtle for some people’s tastes, as there is a very strong Japanese aesthetic and nothing is over the top, but it was superlatively prepared and quite elegant. Location is “interesting” — but all in all very enjoyable.

This dinner was small, but organized by Liz Lee of Sage Society.

For more Italian dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Tagged as: Corridor 109, DTLA, fusion, Sage Society, Seafood

Lots more Longo

Jun16

Several more really epic Longo meals have been rolled into this mega post.

Check it all out here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Chinese Food, crab, duck, Lobster, Longo, Seafood, Wine

Quick Eats – Savida

May24

Restaurant: Savida

Location: 1303 Montana Ave, Santa Monica, CA 90403. (310) 310-3772

Date: October 8 and 15, 2022

Cuisine: Crudo

Rating: Hit and Miss

This brand new place is close to our house and so we went two weeks in a row (and haven’t been back since actually). It was fast and fairly tasty, with a good selection of low carb options, but a tiny menu that changes constantly. This “crudo” concept is kinda in, perhaps because it works in a small place without a proper hood. I think you could run it out of a “food retail” space.

Inside was tiny and unappealing, but the patio was nice.

The menu.

SUMMER GAZPACHO. Seasonal fruits & vegetables, balsamic whipped cream. Weirdly thin. Tasted good, but the almost water-like texture with the glops of cream bothered me on some visceral level. And besides, they brought this with desert due to staff “confusion” (they were very confused).

CEVICHE. flounder, aji Amarillo, red onion and cilantro. Very bright flavors which I enjoyed. Almost yuzu-like marinated. Even the onions were good soaked in the marinate.

Uni sashimi. This was actually inedible. There was no flesh in there and it tasted off — I wasn’t going to eat off uni.

TOMATO & NECTARINE. burrata, arugula, marcona almonds, balsamic vinaigrette. A nice little salad. Cheese made it but the rest was good too.

Crab Salad. Not so great.

Arugula, pistachio, pomegranate, cheese salad. This salad “replaced” the peach salad on our second visit.

Truffle Burrata. The cheese was good but it was that canned truffle — not a fan.

SALMON. avocado, cucumber aguachille, sesame. This could have used a little more acidity but was plesant. The “sauce” underneath tasted a bit like tomato water.

Salmon toast. This replaced the better salmon from our first visit.

Hamachi. Tomato soy yuzu koshu dressing, cilantro, mint, dill, crispy shallot.

LOBSTER ROLL SLIDER. crème fraiche, coconut cream, lemongrass, celery, crispy shallots. Surpirsingly nice. The bread was really savory (and slightly greasy in a good way). Some big hunks of lobster claw.

SPECIAL OF TUNA SCHWARMA. Seared tuna with pinenuts, onion, and tahini on a warm pita. Actually kind of delicious. There was some acidity to offset the heaviness of the sesame.

Dessert Menu.

A FIGMENT OF MY IMAGINATION. figs, mascarpone, candied walnut, honey, fresh oregano. This dish lived in an odd intersection between the savory and the sweet. However, it was tasty, particularly the cheese with the nuts and honey, which at times seemed almost savory. Really nice, but wasn’t there the second time we went.

Service was extremely confused in these early days at Savida — don’t know if it has improved. I do need to go back and try it out again. It seems like it’s aping Crudo y Nudo a bit to the south on Main Street. That place is better. But still I like the concept and Savida is very close to our house. Their execution, however, is very hit or miss.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Crudo, Montana, raw, Santa Monica, Savida, Seafood

Boston Lobster New Digs

Apr09

Restaurant: Boston Lobster Seafood Restaurant

Location: 4501 Rosemead Blvd, Rosemead, CA 91770. (626) 288-4388

Date: September 4, 2022

Cuisine: Cambodian Cantonese Chinese

Rating: Huge, Great Deal, Solid

This Sunday’s Chinese is a return to Boston Lobster. It’s been awhile, like 7 years. They have new digs, having moved from a small shop on Valley Blvd to this huge location on Rosemead.

The new spot must have been some kind of “Seafood House” in the kitchy 50s style and it even includes an old (WWII?) antiaircraft gun.

The place is enormous with multiple wings and a very current (if a little cheesy by western standards) Chinese build out inside.

Lobster tanks.

And a big menu of southern Chinese and Cantonese Chinese dishes.

We had a jumbo — and I do mean jumbo — private room where our table took up just a corner.

Boston House Special Lobster with Garlic Noodles. We actually had two of these huge plates for our table of 14. Lobster itself was excellent. Not the best “house special lobster” I’ve ever had, and I didn’t see any roe (which I like), but good. And pretty well cooked and tender. Noodles were a touch bland.

Geoduck Clam Sashimi Style. Served with soy sauce and wasabi. Decent, but chewier and fishier than at Longo, and not in that same delicate awesome way.

Geoduck Clam Neck Fried Salt and Pepper Style. Tasty with a nice chew but not as awesome as at Longo.

Clam with Basil Sauce. Tender clams but the basil sauce (as usual) gives an interesting medicinal note to the dish.

Shrimp with Walnut. Middling version of the classic.

Steamed Whole Fish. This was basically soy sauce fish with scallions. Nicely cooked and tender, but not super exciting.

Kung Pao Pork Chop. I’m not sure I’ve had this (Cantonese) cut of meat as Kung Pao. It was a very Southern Kung Pao with no spice, no Szechuan Broad Bean Chili Paste. More a salty sour brown sauce, but pretty tasty regardless.

Special Off Menu Smoked Duck. Very interesting flavor and super tender. This was one of the best dishes.

It was served with a soy gravy.

And a And a sweet and sour sauce (which was better than the gravy). (which was better than the gravy).

Sliced Beef with Pea Sprouts. Beef was super tender and soft and packed with “flavor” (MSG). The pea sprouts were great too with that salt and garlic yum factor. I actually liked this dish a lot.

Chicken with Curry Sauce. Not very Chinese, but kinda delicious. Very tender and “flavorful” with a nice mild yellow curry.

One of the standard Chinese greens with garlic. Not bad at all.

Oyster on Hot Sizzling Plate. Very “fried” (not deep fried but cooked) oysters. Pretty good flavor but I don’t love my oysters cooked.

Yang Chow Fried Rice. Classic.

Oranges.

Double Mint Oreo — Base made with Fresh Spring Mint infused milk and then laced with Crushed Mint Oreo Thins and Chopped Valrhona 70% Chocolate! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — lovely strong mint flavor and color is all natural — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #dessertgasm #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #mint #valrhona #chocolate #oreo

The gang.

Overall, Boston Lobster was good but not great. It’s huge. And it’s well priced. And the lobster is good. Dishes are fairly typical for Southern/Cantonese Chinese. I actually think it’s quite a bit better than the way over-rated Newport Seafood. But there are plenty of “meh” dishes (still tasty, don’t get me wrong, this is solid Chinese) that aren’t nearly as good as at a better Cantonese restaurant. For example, Longo and Monterey Palace Geoduck is WAY better. But if you have a big party and/or want this kind of Chinese on a bit of a budget than there is certainly not much to complain about with Boston Lobster. It’s just not best in class.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

For more LA Chinese dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Boston Lobster, BYOG, Cambodian Cuisine, Cantonese Chinese, Gelato, geoduck, Lobster, Seafood

Eating Porto Cervo – Clipper

Jan24

Restaurant: Clipper Ristorante

Location: Via della Marina, 10, 07021 Porto Cervo SS, Italy. +39 0789 91644

Date: July 1, 2022

Cuisine: Seafood Italian

Rating: Solid (this is Italy) but nothing amazing

Online various people seemed to insist that Clipper was the best restaurant in Porto Cervo and “quite a scene.” Not sure I trust “those people” too much anymore.

The outside was cute enough.

They specialize in fresh seafood like many restaurants all over the coast of the Mediterranean basin.

Inside is cute but casual. They had a fairly bustling bar.

The menu.

Something fishy about these plates.

2020 Capichera Isola dei Nuraghi IGT. We ordered it again. After I tried some other Vermentinos I went back to ordering Capichera!

Crispy Sardinian bread.

They had gluten free bread (and crackers) but it was all packaged. A far cry from Confusion, but still they had it.

DOP Buffalo Mozzarella, tomatoes, basil and EVOO.

Plate of Sardinian cheeses.

Antipasto of fresh seafood, including various shrimp-like creatures, clams, oysters, etc.

Sauces for the crudo.

Simple Spaghetti pomodoro.

Linguine all’astice with half a live local lobster. Very fresh tomato sauce. I was to have this basic dish a bunch of times in Sardinia and it was delicious every time. Really nice straightforward Italian pasta.

Spaghetti with tomatoes, fior di latte.

The other half of the lobster grilled with potatoes and beans.

Random packed cookies and candies.

A free degistivo.

Confusion was a much better “deal” at 2x the price of Clipper. But Clipper was enjoyable enough. Just basic good local Sardinian food done for the higher end tourist audience. Not fancy exactly, but perhaps a bit International. Like most decent kitchens in Italy it was totally enjoyable, if not exactly exciting. Not totally sure why this place was considered by so many online as “the best” though.

For more Italian dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Eating Porto Cervo, Eating Sardinia, eating-italy, Italian cuisine, Italy, pasta, Porto Cervo, Sardinia, Seafood, Wine

Eating Orange – Tram Chim

Jan02

Restaurant: Tram Chim Fresh Seafood

Location: 9455 Bolsa Ave, Westminster, CA 92683. (714) 717-6885

Date: June 22, 2022

Cuisine: Vietnamese

Rating: Swimming in tanks!

No parental visit would be complete without a trip down to the OC for some awesome Vietnamese.

Tram Chim has a typical looking frontage.

Big “pseudo fancy” room.

Creatures in the tanks.

They sell all sorts of stuff too.

Phonebook sized menu. Check!

Sauces. It should be noted that the room “reeked” of shrimp paste. Very funky smell.

Vietnamese snails with garlic and butter. Pretty tasty, if chewy.

Large grilled scallops with flying fish eggs. Solid.

Live Santa Barbara Spot Prawns with Tamarind Sauce. Goopy and sweet, but a decent balance of acidity, so a pretty tasty sauce. Possibly the prawns were a tiny bit over cooked.

Free exotic fruit.

Tram Chim was way too hardcore for some of our party. The fermented shrimp paste factor alone — not to mention the whole in-shell creatures — was too much. The food was tasty though as I’m a fermented fan. So I’d rate it as “authentic good.”

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: OC, Orange County, Seafood, Tram Chim Fresh Seafood, Vietnamese cuisine

Amazing Angler

Oct16

Restaurant: Angler

Location: 8500 Beverly Blvd Suite 117, Los Angeles, CA 90048. (424) 332-4082

Date: March 1, 2022

Cuisine: American Asador

Rating: Very pricey, very good

Angler is a sea-life focused restaurant from Chef Joshua Skenes and Saison Hospitality located in the heart of Los Angeles. However, in 2019 Skenes seems to have “stepped back” from daily operation of his restaurants. Not sure what that means.

The location is — really oddly — in the bottom of the Beverly Center. I loathe malls and nearly everything about them, and they rarely have any kind of decent restaurant.

Angler is basically wood fired “stuff” aka an Asador (Spanish word for a wood fire grill).

The interior is like an updated version of that SF Seafood “ship’s cabin” feel.

They have live creatures. Some are staggeringly expensive like the crab who was over $2000!

From my cellar: 1992 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Rougeots. JG 93. The ’92 Coche Rougeots is totally into its apogee of maturity, and towers above ninety percent of the wines of this vintage. It has retained a degree of freshness and snap that is fairly uncommon these days with many of the 1992s, which have aged at rather surprisingly brisk paces. The bouquet is classic Coche: ripe apples, passion fruit, a touch of grapefruit, almonds, iodine and a fine framing of vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, deep and refined, with sound underlying acids, excellent focus, and great length and complexity on the finish. At age ten it is drinking beautifully, with no signs that it will have any difficulty cruising another decade or more. (Drink between 2002-2010)

agavin: our bottle was like a 98, just amazing.

1999 Coche-Dury Puligny-Montrachet Les Enseignères. VM 96. This 1999 Puligny-Montrachet Les Ensegnières perhaps sums up why Coche-Dury is so revered. How did Jean-François extract such a stupendous wine from a Village Cru? It exhibits breathtaking precision on a nose that is actually reminiscent of one of Lalou Bize-Leroy’s wines from d’Auvenay. Both the nose and the palate effortlessly convey so much energy and tension. There is the depth and length of a Grand Cru with a tangy, spicy finish that urges you back for another sip. Magus Jean-François in full effect! (Drink between 2021-2032)

agavin: our bottle drank great, but it wasn’t in the same league as the Rougeots.

2011 Coche-Dury Bourgogne-Aligoté. 90 points. Well developed, floral and perfumed aromas in the direction of Sauvignon Blanc. Some toast comes in addition. Light, tight and quite tart for an Aligoté. High class, though.

agavin: this came from the restaurant. They only had one bottle left though.

2007 Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos. VM 96+. Bright yellow. Subtly complex nose melds Asian pear, violet, lavender, ginger, iodine and powdered stone. Tactile and dense on entry, then creamy in the middle, conveying an impression of great volume without weight. This extremely backward, youthfully understated Clos firms up dramatically on the back end, finishing with palate-saturating citrus and talc flavors that refuse to fade. One of the longest Chablis bottlings I tasted for this issue, this truly transcends chardonnay.

2011 Domaine Roulot Meursault Les Narvaux. 93 points. Punchy and broad. With most vivid palate among all village-level wine tonight. Hint of Santalum toward the end.

The menu.

Ice Cold Bivalves (aka oysters and clams). Very clean and delicious.

Tai Bream Ceviche. Unusual look with the crispy plantain on top, but extremely acidic and delicious.

Lobster Toast, Coconut, Gluten-Free While Grain Toast.

Bluefin Tuna with Tomato Jelly and Shiso. Looks weird but tasted great.

Parker House Rolls and Cultured Seaweed Butter. Lovely looking rolls. Very soft and tender.

Dungeness Crab with Garlic Aioli. This crab came from the tanks of course.

Here is the garlic aioli and drawn butter.

Whole Main Lobster. “Only” $100/lb! Simply done but gorgeous.

Spot Prawns with Harissa Butter. Small but delicious.

In case you need a weapon to slay your meat.

Here is the charcoal factory.

And the bed of charcoals they cook over.

2006 Tenuta dell’Ornellaia Masseto Toscana IGT. VM 99. I remember the first time I tasted the 2006 Masseto. It’s that kind of wine. The 2006 is every bit as magnificent today. Dense, richly-textured and potent to its core, the 2006 is a wine for readers who can be patient. I love the brooding intensity and sense of gravitas the 2006 conveys. Tonight, it is stellar, but still so young. (Drink between 2020-2036)

agavin: brooding monster

Baby Artichoke with Miso and Spiced Butter. Delicious.

Angler Potato with Sauce from Sonoma Cheeses. Like everything else it was cooked on the grill. It was sliced into sheets and nice and crispy with the rich sauce to offset.

28 Day Dry Aged Prime NY Strip. NOT overcooked.

Whole Pastured Chicken Roasted in the Wood Oven. This was actually one of the best roast chicken I’ve ever had. The skin was crispy in a sort of Chinese style. The meat was incredibly juicy.

“Buffalo” type sauce for the chicken.

The dessert menu.

Chocolate Bar. Ganache mostly.

Soft Serve Sundae.

Caramel sauce was added. It was pretty delicious.

Overall, a stunning meal. I’d heard Angler was expensive, and it was, but the food was very very good. Simple ingredients but the charcoal cooking is precise and lends a ton of subtle flavor.

Our wines were stunning. hehe. And it was just a very fun night.

For more LA dining reviews click here.
Or for epic Foodie Club meals, here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Angler, Beverly Hills, Chicken, coche, Foodie Club, Seafood, White Burgundy

Quicker Crustacean

Sep20

Restaurant: Crustacean Beverly Hills [1, 2, 3, 4]

Location: 468 N Bedford Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90210. (310) 205-8990

Date: January 11, 2022

Cuisine: Vietnamese Fusion

Rating: Awesome as always

Crustacean is one of our regular haunts and features a great patio in these “outside is better” days. Tonight’s meal was a Hedonist wine dinner — but for some completely inexplicable reason I totally forgot to photo all of the wine. I have no idea why and I’ve never done that before. Wine was good though.

We’ve had a couple awesome meals here in the last couple of years.

For extra caution in these uncertain times we ate on one of their fabulous patios.

Our menu tonight.

Diver Scallop & Green Apple Sashimi. Earl Grey, Thom Yum Calamansi, Kaffir Lime, Ancient Grains. This looks like a bit of fruit or cucumber or something but was a mix of scallop and apple. It was actually incredibly delicious with a briny, sweet, spicy vibe and a contrast of soft and crunchy. Very bright too and unique.

A5 Wagyu Tartare. Rau Rum Salsa Verde, L’Amuse Gouda, Quail Egg. Another great dish. In fact, one of the best tartare’s I’ve had, but very unusual.

Roasted Bone Marrow. Escargot Brunois, Garlic Baguette, Rau Ram. I don’t normally like Bone Marrow (and it’s a total Yarom pick) but this was an amazing dish. It didn’t really come off as that bone marrow-like, but more like escargot with the snails and all that garlic butter.

Asparagus Soup with Langoustine and Black Truffle. Another unexpectedly excellent dish.

Smoked Pork Belly with Roasted Acorn Squash, Hazelnut and Vietnamese Caramel with Winter Truffle. Sounds too sweet and heavy but it was great.

Rib Eye Salt Block Steak.

With An’s Famous Garlic Noodles — can never have too many of these!

And Kung Pao Eggplant. Thai Basil, Thai Red Chili Gastrique. Pretty much just great friend eggplant.

Raspberry Sorbetto — French Raspberries, a touch of lime juice, and a splash of Amaro — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — I had to add a bit of Amaro for my “art” otherwise it would have been too simple — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #sorbetto #raspberry #amaro

Hazelnut at the Ritz Gelato — Nocciola (hazelnut) custard base made with Pure PGI Piedmont hazelnut paste then mixed with house-made caramel and crushed Ritz Crackers (for that salty offset) — 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 #hazelnut #nocciola #caramel #caramello #ritz #crackers

Overall, this was an awesome evening. Boy did the Ans treat us right and we had an incredible menu, amazing service, and great wines. A was initially skeptical of tonight’s particularly menu, as it had less dishes than usual and none of the “favorites” (except the noodles) but they turned out to be home run unique dishes that really knocked it out of the park.

Wines were great — if only I had taken pictures of them.

Discussing the food analytically. Very good, and most dishes varied from good to great. The Vietnamese influence is far more subtle, less heavy handed, then at most newer fusion places like Little Sister / LXSO or the more contemporary small plates style Khong Ten. Definitely more roughly 2000 in formal fine dining style — which I don’t mind at all. In some ways it feels like a millennium event fine dining place with Vietnamese — and to a lesser extent Thai and Chinese — notes. It’s a pretty fancy place, and priced accordingly — but they do knock it out of the park.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

or more crazy Hedonist dinners here!

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Beverly Hills, BYOG, Crustacean, Gelato, hedonists, Seafood, Wine

Power Providence

Oct15

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

Location: 5955 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038. (323) 460-4170

Date: June 15, 2021

Cuisine: Cal French

Rating: Best meal I’ve had at Providence

I usually make it to Providence about once a year, and so we return with the Foodie Club for a small, epic main dining room. After a long time off (for the pandemic) the core gang of myself, Erick, and Fred met up, joined by Michael Z wanted to really up the game and we focused on the awesome white Burgundy wines from d’Auvenay and Coche-Dury.

The space used to be Patina in the 90s.

While the colors are different, Providence still looks a lot like Patina to me — as the layout is basically the same.

This is the view from the chef’s special tasting room — adjacent to the kitchen in it’s own little nook.

Our special menu tonight.

One of the few places in town that still has elegant table wares.

2000 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières. BH 95. Very Puligny in style with discreet white flower, pear and apple aromas with flavors that are so powerful that the palate experiences them in waves as they roll from the mid-palate to a thundering, top grand cru finish. Yet this is by no means monolithic as there is detail and subtle gradations of wet rocks, minerals, earth and an indefinable crystalline essence. I literally had to pause for a minute due to palate fatigue as this both stains and saturates the palate yet it remains perfectly balanced. For a premier cru, this is a veritable tour de force! A brilliant wine. (Drink between 2008-2020)

2000 Coche-Dury Meursault 1er Cru Caillerets. BH 93. This has now peaked and is drinking beautifully with a fully mature nose of honeysuckle, peach, apricot and very subtle spice notes that can also be found on the enveloping flavors that possess a wonderfully seductive mouth feel and ample dry extract that both completely buffers the still firm acid spine and coats the palate on the long, lingering and strikingly perfumed if ever-so-slightly warm finish. One character that Coche seems to consistently be able to achieve is how his wines are at once generous yet retain a fine sense of focus and precision and this wine certainly displays this. Lovely stuff that is perfect now. Tasted thrice with consistent notes. (Drink starting 2016)

1999 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Meursault Les Narvaux. VM 92. At nearly twenty years of age the 1999 Meursault Les Narvaux is just starting to enter its early plateau of maturity now! Exuberant and powerful, the 1999 possesses off the charts intensity and a level of pure class that is far beyond the realm of most village crus. Time in bottle has started to bring out slightly tropical overtones that add complexity to the yellow orchard fruit character. Readers lucky enough to own it can look forward to another 20 years of exceptional drinking. (Drink between 2018-2038)

2005 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Folatières. VM 96. The 2005 Puligny-Montrachet Les Folatières 1er Cru has a multidimensional bouquet that delivers intense honeycomb and brioche intertwined through the mineral-rich citrus fruit. The palate displays a perfect line of acidity, a brilliantly poised and tensile Folatières from Lalou Bize-Leroy that unlike the 1999 just builds and builds towards a focused and electrifying finish that shimmers with energy. Frankly, I cannot think of many Puligny Premier Crus that have surpassed this astonishing wine. 897 bottles produced. Tasted at Carré des Feuillants restaurant in Paris. (Drink between 2018-2038)

From my cellar: 2009 Domaine d’Auvenay (Lalou Bize-Leroy) Meursault Les Narvaux. 95 points. Rich quince, citrus, popcorn, crème brûlée, and minerals galore backed by abundant acidity. Fantastic wine, and will last a long time.

An amuse of crisp with seafood.

And amuse of toro tartare.

A third amuse of shellfish “tart”.

The final amuse of scallop with contrasting fruit.

With a bit of sauce. Super zingy and delicious.

Bald Point Oyster. Gently warmed, with golden kaluga caviar.

Tai Sashimi. Seville sour orange, rosemary, ogo.

Uni Egg. Sea urchin, champagne beurre blanc, brioche croutons.
Maine Lobster. Favas, daikon, ramps.

Special bread.

And French butter with salt.

Farfalle. Box and dungeness crab, uni, geoduck, basil. Amazing flavors with a strong Thai basil character.

Black Cod. Black truffle, dutch white and green asparagus.

Australian Black Winter Truffle. Porcini Cannelloni.

Australian Black Winter Truffle.

All put together it was spectacular.

A5 Wagyu. Potato, morel, watercress, bordelaise.

Fried Wagyu lump, amazing.

Rhubarb, citrus, almond.
With sauce and very refreshing.

House-made Hawaiian Chocolate. Chocolate gelato, whiskey.

Sauce for the chocolate.

Tea.

Petite Fours. I love some good fancy candies.

This was by far the best main dining room and probably the best Providence meal I’ve ever had. They had just recently reopened post-lockdown and had clearly spent the time well retooling the menu. Service was exceptional as well which was very nice, particularly in contrast with so many “middle end” places that are short staffed right now.

There was a little take home goodie too, but I forgot to photo it.

For more LA dining reviews click here,

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Burgundy, coche, Coche Dury, d'Auvenay, Foodie Club, Providence, Seafood, White Burgundy, Wine

Tong Tak – Epic Cantonese

Mar27

Restaurant: Tong Tak House Seafood Restaurant

Location: 1265 S Baldwin Ave, Arcadia, CA 91007. (626) 638-3388

Date: February 9, 2020

Cuisine: Cantonese Chinese

Rating: Really great execution

Our friend Tony Lau organizes the best Cantonese banquets.

He always manages to find new places that surprise. Tong Tak isn’t exactly new, but it’s new to most of us.

Classic “palace” interior. It was pretty empty too. Sure it was Academy Awards night, but hard to say.

After an initial foray into a private room that was way too small they set us up downstairs at this huge table with the awesome blue thrones.

The whole gang.

Salted peanuts.

Spicy cold marinated cucumbers. Pretty good version of this typical Chinese starter. Nice crunch, garlic, and a bit of spice.

I ate a lot of these because oddly, they didn’t serve any real dishes for 45 minutes despite the place being deserted! Then the dishes came on like a storm.

Chinese Mountain Yams with Raspberry Sauce. Crunchy yam, not slimey (sometimes it is). The yam itself doesn’t have a lot of flavor. Raspberry sauce is a bit odd..

Beancurd wrapped mushroom rolls. Interesting texture.

Marinated wood ear mushrooms. I love the rubbery texture.

Beans. Not sure what kind. Very mild and I don’t love the pastey bean thing.

Hot sauce.

XO sauce.

Spicy clam with vegetables. Very interesting spongy/chewy texture on the clam and very nice crunchy vegetables.

Fried oysters typhoon style. Really delicious. Probably the best fried oyster’s I’ve ever had with the crispy fry and lots of garlic.

Cheesy lobster. Nice tender lobster with a cheesy sauce. Very interesting combo.

Condiments for the duck and pig.

Suckling pig with buns. Nice small pig, actually a suckling. Nice crunchy skin and good flavor.

The pig head returns after a discombobulating encounter with the cleaver.

Beef with asparagus. Tony always orders a straight up beef dish like this. It was fatty and pretty tender with nicely cut asparagus.

Crispy roast pigeon. Very nice hot juicy pigeon. Not too dark, not overcooked at all.

Peking Duck (Cantonese style) with buns. Very tasty as always, but is of course much better with pancakes and cut a bit differently.

Duck part 2: Lettuce cup duck. The meat from the duck mixed with water chestnuts and celery.

Lettuce cups to go with the duck.

Packed lettuce cup ready to eat. These were good.

100 Flower Chicken. 2 ways. Pressed chicken with shrimp paste. This version was mostly shrimp paste. Almost no chicken meat under the skin. Still it was delicious.

Wok cooked vegetables and oyster mushrooms. I like the double texture thing.

Yin Yang Fried Rice. Two types of sauce covering fried rice. The lighter one was asparagus stalks and shrimp in a light sauce. Very savory and delicious. The red one was with chicken and a tomato based sweet sauce. A bit too sweet for my taste.

Dessert Buns. The yellow topped ones were filled with pineapple and egg custard.

Crackerjack Gelato – Smooth Peanut Base with homemade Dulce de Leche Ribbon, Toffee Peanuts, and Caramel Popcorn! — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — oh my! — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #peanut #caramel #DulceDeLeche #Popcorn #CaramelCorn

Raspberry Sorbetto — French Raspberries and a touch of lime juice — made by me for @sweetmilkgelato — Unusual for me to go so “straight” with my flavors but I wanted a complement to a complex flavor — #SweetMilkGelato #gelato #dessert #icecream #FrozenDessert #nomnom #dessertlovers #dessertporn #icecreamlovers #gelatoitaliano #foodporn #gelatolover #food #foodgasm #foodblogger #dessertgasm #desserttime #foodphotography #gelatoartigianale #gelatomania #dessertlover #icecream #icecreamlovers #sorbetto #raspberry

Overall, another great night. Really, these Tony Lau dinners are always great. Despite the slow start to the food, service was very good and the execution of the dishes was excellent. Very nice plating and on point flavors. The kitchen’s command of vegetables was particularly impressive. They know how to cut them into the proper shapes and to wok them quickly so they are still crunchy and tender.

It just goes to show that just because a Cantonese place has that “dated” palace look, doesn’t mean the kitchen isn’t first rate. Somehow they have 3 stars on Yelp. I wonder if we just got the royal treatment of if it’s just Yelp haters.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

For more LA Chinese dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Arcadia, BYOG, Cantonese cuisine, Chinese cuisine, Gelato, hedonists, Peking Duck, Seafood, SGV, suckling pig, Tong Tak, Tony Lau, Wine

White Glove Dining – Get Bbul

Dec04

Restaurant: Get Bbul BBQ

Location: 3189 W Olympic Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90006. (213) 380-7070

Date: October 21, 2019

Cuisine: Korean Seafood BBQ

Rating: First time and I liked it

On reading this, you must recognize that this is “Second Dinner.” After a special Krug Champagne dinner event — with 5 or so courses of modern cuisine — four of us just didn’t feel full enough so headed out to Korea Town to “snack.”

Never been to this kind of Korean Seafood BBQ so I was excited to try.

The interior — hoods as usual.

The menu. We ordered most of it of course.

This plate has seen some heat. Anyway, we ordered the works.

Various condiments for wrapped up one’s BBQ. Radishes, sauce, egg (both yolk and white), carrots, peppers, cabbage etc.

More fixings.

Leaves and oniony stuff.

Salad.

Soy and garlic.

Hot sauce. It is a Korean restaurant after all.

Coming off our Champagne tasting we decided to go with Solju / Beer shots. Sort of like a sake bomb. You fill a glass about 3/4 with beer.

Then drop a shot-glass of solju (Korean vodka) in to make sure it’s extra strong. Tastes great too!

Crispy fritters with mayo. Great drinking food.

Seafood pancake. This was a delicious one too.

Corn “pudding” with dynamite or whatever on top and baked.

Cold sliced pig foot salad. Yum (really was good).

Korean fluffy egg.

Our modest seafood plate arrives.

The BBQ is real coals.

Eel (left) and hagfish (right). Not sure I’ve had hagfish before. It looks like snack. Abalone was on the far right.

They cut up the chunks as it BBQs. Hagfish had a delightful chewy texture white the eel was nice and rich.

Dinner comes with special Korean Michael Jackson “white gloves” so that you don’t burn your hand while working the hot grill. They really helped actually.

Clams. When they open you eat them.

Spicy Soft Tofu Soup with Seafood. Delicious and a bit spicy.

Spicy noodle and tofu soup. Because when it’s time for second dinner, you need a second stew too!

Cheesy clams and scallops on the BBQ. The cheese melts into a yummy mess.

Some kind of conch or clam back there.

Giant oyster!

Grilled shrimp.

The four of us actually managed to eat most of this feast — pretty impressive after having this dinner right before!

I’d like to come back to Get Bbul a bit hungrier and get even more, but what I had was very good and quite interesting. I’ve never had this kind of grilled seafood with these exact trappings and it was quite interesting.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: beer, Foodie Club, Get Bbul BBQ, Korea-town, Korean BBQ, Korean cuisine, Ktown, Seafood, Second Dinner, solju

Providence Chef’s Table

Sep27

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

Location: 5955 Melrose Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90038. (323) 460-4170

Date: August 12, 2019

Cuisine: Cal French

Rating: Awesome food, awesome night

I usually make it to Providence about once a year, and so we return with the Foodie Club for a small, epic Chef’s Table night.

While the colors are different, Providence still looks a lot like Patina to me — as the layout is basically the same.

This is the view from the chef’s special tasting room — adjacent to the kitchen in it’s own little nook.
Our special menu tonight.

One of the few places in town that still has elegant table wares.

Ron brought: NV Krug Champagne Brut Grande Cuvée Edition 167eme. JG 96. The new release of Krug Grande Cuvée “167eme Édition” is stellar. The wine is from the base year of 2011 and utterly transcends that vintage, but, of course, it includes nearly two hundred different wines in the blend, with the oldest reserves dating all the way back to the 1995 vintage. Fully forty-two percent of the cuvée this year is made up of reserve wines. The cépages for the 167eme Édition is forty-seven percent pinot noir, thirty-six percent chardonnay and seventeen percent pinot meunier. The wine shows its lovely preponderance of pinot noir on the nose, wafting from the glass in a beautifully complex blend of apple, white peach, a touch of patissière, very complex soil tones, caraway seed and a gently floral contribution in the upper register from the pinot meunier in the blend. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied, complex and nicely broad-shouldered, with great depth at the core, refined mousse, bright, seamless acids and outstanding focus and grip on the very long, complex and beautifully balanced finish. This is simply outstanding and should age effortlessly for fifty to seventy-five years!

Yellow tomato soup shot. Bright like a gazpacho (but not so vinegary).

Rolled salmon with salmon roe on crisps — delicious!

Mussels with curry sauce. A sort of deconstructed Moules Frites dish.

Crispy seafood taco in shiso (relative). Scrumptious.

Crab tartlet.

Cucumber wrapped oyster.

Wagyu “cigar.” Like a super taquito — crispy and amazing.

From my cellar: 1993 Robert Ampeau & Fils Meursault 1er Cru Les Perrières. 93 points. From a late Domaine release. Golden color. A lot of Wows on the table from the first smells. This bouquet had it all. Orange peel, flint, lemon curd, grass, flowers, very deep and complex. The palate was crisp as well with excellent freshness and length.

Kanpachi. Nasturtium, espelette, lime. Very bright flavors, soft textures, with a creaminess. Absolutely delicious.

Bread and (fancy) butter and salt.

The bread even comes with its own “about the bread” sheet!

Coleman farms celtuce, geoduck clam, box crab, osetra caviar — amazing! One of the best dishes of the night.

Erick brought: 2006 Domaine Leflaive Meursault 1er Cru Sous le Dos d’Âne. JG 91. The 2006 Meursault here is a bit cooler than the previous two wines, and shows no signs of alcohol poking through on the finish. The nose is very lovely, as it offers up notes of pear, apple, almond paste, flowers and vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, fine and focused, with a lovely base of soil, crisp acids and an almost crystalline profile, with good length and grip on the finish. This is a very good bottle that is rather atypical in the context of this vintage chez Leflaive in its more classic profile, though the wine is still quite forward stylistically. This will make a great restaurant wine list option.

Prawns live in this tank.

Peel ‘n’ eat spot prawn, shiso, basil, nuoc cham. You just eat this with your hands, wrapped in the herbs. Gave it a slightly Vietnamese vibe. Great prawn, perfectly fresh and cooked.

Aori ika, haricots, hazelnut, ogo. Vaguely Japanese and very pleasant “salad.”

Ron brought: 2013 Paul Pernot et ses Fils Bienvenues-Bâtard-Montrachet. VM 93. Pale yellow. Lovely purity to the aromas of nectarine and flowers. Sweet and fine-grained, showing a compellingly silky texture to its stone fruit and nutty oak flavors. Finishes sedate and long, with lovely balance. Really seamless for the vintage.

Black cod, artichoke, mint. Nice buttery white fish. Very “new French.”

Salmon belly, porcini, zucchini.

With the sauce. This cut of salmon is particularly rich and tender, very nice seared like this.

From my cellar: 2001 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Bonnes Mares. VM 94. The 2001 De Vogüé Bonnes Mares exhibited uncommon depth and richness in the luxuriousness of its vibrant fruit, with a personality that was delicate yet powerful. Still very much an infant, it was a privilege to catch this gorgeous wine in its youth.

Ron brought: 2003 Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé Bonnes Mares. VM 91. Medium red-ruby. Blackberry, violet, mocha and bitter chocolate on the slightly roasted nose. Huge, sweet and expressive, with extravagantly rich flavors of currant, blueberry, chocolate and spices. Quite velvety and sensual for this wine, thanks to its unusually fat, broad texture. Finishes with suave but serious tannins.

Duck — we added this as a supplement.

Larry brought: 1999 Tenuta dell’Ornellaia Masseto Toscana IGT. VM 95. The 1999 Masseto is a cool, inward wine graced with exquisite finesse, but it still needs a few years in bottle to show its potential. That said, it is pretty spectacular even today. This is a vintage that will appeal to readers who enjoy firm, structured wines. (Drink between 2013-2024)

A5 Wagyu, magic myrrna potato, nori. Meat hidden under leaves.

And another supplement, because we had so much big red wine left, we got a second (different) A5!

Cheese cart. Love me the cart and you so rarely see it now.

My prep of gooey strong cheeses.

Bread for the cheese.

And a second cheese course!

Mango, makrut, finger lime. Really interesting texture, partially frozen (beneath). Delicious.

Peach, jam mousse, lemon verbena. This was my favorite of the desserts, extremely fruity and refreshing.

Ban this dessert. Harry’s berries strawberries, pistachio.

With the strawberry sauce. The pistachio was formed into a kind of mousse and felt like, and even almost tasted like, foie gras. Superb.

Crunchy pastry.

Bon bons. Chocolates, meringues, and jellies.

Parting gift of a bit of Zucchini cake or something for the next morning.

This was a great night and tons of fun. The chef’s table is by far the best way to do Providence, and the total tab wasn’t even that bad as it was no corkage monday — even with our Chef’s Tasting Menu and a bunch of supplements. With Melisse gone, this is now the only remaining 90s/00s style elegant white table Cal French spot left in LA. Good thing it’s great!

Service was (as usual) superb too tonight — as were our bevy of wines. 7 for 4 people. Didn’t feel the fastest in the morning!

For more LA dining reviews click here,

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Burgundy, California French, Chef's Table, Foodie Club, Providence, Seafood, Wine

Eating Tel Aviv – Manta Ray

Aug28

Restaurant: Manta Ray

Location: Promenade | 7 Koifman St, Tel Aviv 63305, Israel. +972 3-424-7717

Date: July 6, 2019

Cuisine: Israeli

Rating: seafood!

Our final night in Israel — just hours before heading to the airport for a very long series of flights home.

Some friends had recommended this.

And it’s right on the beach.

With a straight on view (and the typical glass barrier beach restaurants often have).

The menu.

Plain pasta.

Pasta sauce.

Here they bring this slate of mezze and you can choose whichever ones you like. Pretty good stuff.

And served with fresh bread.

Filleted Blue Bream served on red rice, pineapple & chili butter.

Chunks of Filet of Grouper on mashed blue potato and shallot flakes.

Mixed seafood in a black cast-iron pot. This had a slightly sweet sauce.

Sharing Seafood: mussels, shrimp, and crabs, sweet potato and grilled pineapple in a coconut milk sauce with lemon grass, ginger and curry paste. This broth was better (although the seafood quality was good for both). Really nice vaguely Thai flavors. Lots and lots of crab! Probably 4-5 whole ones.

Overall, a fairly simple menu, but I liked the Mezze and the seafood was delicious.

Click here to see more Eating Israel posts.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Beach, Easting Tel Aviv, Eating Israel, Manta Ray, Seafood

Eating Hawaii – KPC

Apr24

Restaurant: Kamuela Provision Company

Location: 69-425 Waikoloa Beach Dr, Waikoloa Village, HI 96738. (808) 886-1234

Date: April 3, 2019

Cuisine: Hawaiian American

Rating: Solid, great view

Our third night in Hawaii we headed over to the Hilton to check out KPC (Kamuela Provision Company).

This place is huge!

So huge, they even have a train on the grounds!

Following it along.

We get to the crazy pool complex and the floating oceanside restaurant of…

KPC (aka Kamuela Provision Company).

The menu.

This is one big and ugly fish!

Terrible view, too! And our son had wanted to sit inside!

Bread.

Mai Tai.

Frozen strawberry drink — no sugar here.

Caesar salad with avocado. hirabara farms baby romaine, garlic patis aioli, taro sticks, hamakua medley tomato, avocado, grana padana.

Seafood tower for 2 — all for me! Pretty typical (except for poke) and pretty good. I always like good raw bar. Keahole Lobster, Tiger Prawns, Ahi Poke, Pacific Oysters, King Crab.

Plain cheesy pasta for the boy.

Miso Marinated Seabass. waimea sweet corn, ali’i oyster mushrooms, yuzu carrot puree, broccolini.

Ginger Monchong. cilantro, carrot, green onion, kabayaki, peanut oil, sushi rice cake.

A giant serving of cookies and cream ice cream.

This place was solid for a Hawaiian resort hotel restaurant. I’m never that impressed by food in Hawaii. Service was good. Location was great. Prices were hotel prices. Execution was good but not great. So good for what it was, but not exactly break through cuisine or really on point.

For more Hawaii dining reviews click here.