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Yangban at Pasjoli

Nov23

Restaurant: Pasjoli [1, 2]

Location: 2732 Main St, Santa Monica, CA 90405. (424) 330-0020

Date: April 24, 2024

Cuisine: Bistro French

Rating: Really good

Pasjoli is an elevated French bistro from award-winning chef Dave Beran. The restaurant pays homage to French cuisine utilizing the bounty of produce available in Southern California. Dave Beran is the guy behind Dialogue, which I didn’t love on my single visit. In any case, looking at the photos of Pasjoli (before I went) it looked very good: straight up but precise rich French cooking. Tonight Erick and I went for a co-lab with Yangban Society.

It’s located on Main Street, on the Venice end of Santa Monica. Rooted in classic French cuisine and inspired by the Parisian markets, Pasjoli reflects Beran’s thoughtful cooking style, showcasing his creative touches on bistro fare.

The front has been built out in a very Parisian style.

The interior is Bistro crossed with LA contemporary.

Quite attractive though.
Pasjoli’s elegant dining room invites in Yangban for a colab.

The special menu.

kimchee salad. beets & first of the season cherries, zara meiji tofu, almonds, herbs, marigolds, roasted sesame. Nice texture. Sweet and spicy.

Perilla Taco. sprouted cauliflower, wild radish pods, perilla leaf, toasted pine nuts, eomma song sauce.

gougere with chive mornay.

rice cakes a la parisienne. chicken jus, brown butter, celeries, parmesan-toasted crumbs. Really did taste like a Korean/French fusion.

Black cod. doengang-glazed black cod, yu choi, sake & blue crab beurre blanc. Delicious.

Korean cassoulet. peads & barnetts pork belly, aged kae sung kimchee, cannellini beans, pistou of chrysanthemum & perilla. Delicious — but daringly tackling the bean factor.

six-hour roasted carrots, carrot & miso glaze. Sweet and crunchy and chewy.

Baggett.

Crepe. Black sesame butterfinger, sesame & honey custard, diplomat cream.

Tasted just like halavah.

Strawberries and cream.

Bonus of Burnt Basque Cheesecake!

Very delicious dinner. About 70% yangban but with noticiable French elements.

I really liked everything about Pasjoli. It’s not cheap, but it felt worth it. The decor is elegant/updated. The service was very friendly and efficient. Food was extremely on point. Updated French bistro fare, and the Yangban co-lab was even more intersting.

For more LA dining reviews click here.

By: agavin
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Posted in: Food

Tagged as: Pasjoli, Yangban

Yangban Society

Nov10

Restaurant: Yangban

Location: 712 S Santa Fe Ave Los Angeles, CA 90021. (213) 866-1987

Date: April 11, 2024

Cuisine: Korean Deli Fusion?

Rating: Really tasty!

I’ve wanted to try this well reviewed Korean and “Deli?” Fusion for a long time.

Yangban, the genre-defying Korean American culinary ‘conversation’, which opened in Los Angeles’ Arts District, re-opens after a transformative interior overhaul of the space, revealing an evolution of the highly acclaimed restaurant. Now featuring a full-service dining room and updated food and beverage programs, the concept remains at its core a Modern-Korean American restaurant as told through the lens of husband-and-wife chefs Katianna and John Hong.

Yangban is down near Bestia. In the Arts District.

The complex menu of small dishes.

Large and attractive (if dark) interior.

Golden Hokkaido Scallop Toast. Hokkaido scallop, brown butter, YANGBAN makgeolli, cherry tomato, golden sauce, cured egg yolk. Very crunchy toast with a delicious — and rich — dynamite-style scallop goo.

Wagyu Stuffed Perilla Leaf. vermicelli, beef fat tare, cotija. Crunchy!

Acorn Beignet. caramelized onion, gruyere, Benton’s ham.

Pretty yummy.

Blue Crab Tostada. gochujang, perilla, red leaf lettuce, creme fraiche. Very bright flavors and great textures.

Squashini Jeon. whipped creme fraiche, trout roe. Soft and vaguely Jewish in flavor.

Banchan. selection of side dishes highlighting local produce.

Brokaw Avocado & Shinko Pear. hot mustard, California almonds, toasted ggim, yeast.

YANGBAN Kimchi. Kae Sung Market, habanero, roasted sesame oil.

Honey Glazed Carrots. whipped yogurt, fresh date, walnut oil, herbs. Sweet and crunchy.

Grilled Cucumber. celery, YANGBAN chili oil, toasted cumin, meyer lemon juice.

Steamed Broccoli. yuzu, chicken skin furikake.

Green Tea Leaf Salad. gem lettuce, green cabbage, buchu, seasoned spinach, cucumber, tomato, snap peas, edamame, herbs and seeds, nokcha-lemon vinaigrette. Looked a bit deconstructed.

But tasted quite nice with a bright vinegrette.

Tteok. king trumpet and shimeji mushrooms, doenjang cream, preserved black truffle. Basically tasted like clam chowder. Super creamy. Super rich. And interesting deep chew from the rich cakes.

Matzoh Ball Mandu. stuffed with Grandma Sindy’s matzoh ball, chicken broth, shmaltz. I liked the texture but the shmaltz factor was a bit strong — too chickeny.

YANGBAN Wings. cucumber and Korean radish pickles, kimchi hot sauce, black rice. Amazing wings. Super sweet and crunchy. Great with the hot sauce.

The wings were served with the pickles and hot sauce.

Pickles. I love pickles.

Hot sauce.

Steamed Black Cod. pea shoots and flowers, chive, yuja, ginger, brown butter, onion soubise. Soft and buttery.

Grilled King’s Cut Short Rib. potato puree, grilled king trumpet and shiitakes, galbi jus, toasted breadcrumb, horseradish, chive. Meat was great. Very sweet.

YANGBAN Cheesecake. coconut biscuit and brown butter crust, coconut cream, local cherry jam. Amazing cherry cheesecake. Totally addictive.

Sesame cookies.

Overall the food here is great. Really interesting meld of flavors. Very bright and tasty. A lot of sugar though. Portions are small. This whole meal was two of us — and we had doubles of many dishes — and the kitchen closed before we got full! But highly recomended.