I am a Hawaiian food junkie. If there's a Hawaiian restaurant nearby, I will be there, even if it's just a local Aloha Cafe or L&L BBQ. And at the top of the list of items I order: Kahlua pork and loco moco. Very few restaurants can make a good Kahlua pork, and fewer places can make a good loco moco (I've only had two good loco moco's that weren't homemade).

So imagine how happy I was to discover that Gardena is a home to quite a large Japanese-American population that likes Hawaiian restaurants! In addition to the standard L&L BBQ restaurants, I'm happy to have been introduced to Cherrystones and Gardena Bowl.

Cherrystones is a small restaurant in the middle of an industrial district that cooks AMAZING Kahlua pork. Not only is every single bite of the pork tender and soft (without necessarily being fatty), the flavor actually complements the cabbage. I very rarely eat the cabbage, since it always drowns the taste of the pork. In this case, though, the cabbage was cooked al dente, which left it very flavorful for a cabbage. The side salads were even good, but of course I never even touch that until I finish with the pork. So far, probably the best Kahlua pork I've ever had outside of Hawaii itself (at the luau, straight from the underground oven).

The Gardena Bowl is a bowling alley. A bowling alley with a small restaurant not unlike your resident greasy spoon. If there was such thing as a Japanese greasy spoon, this would be it, only the dishes were authentically Japanese and still relatively healthy as the item allows. I, of course, didn't opt for health, satisfying my craving for a loco moco. I figured, if this place is the way it looks, it should make a damn good loco moco. And boy, did it! This loco moco topped a plate of rice with grilled onions, a still-tender and moist ground beef patty, an egg made-to-order (mine was sunny side up), and GRAVY all over the whole thing. Since they were generous on the gravy and tender with the meat, it seemed to make all the difference in the world. This is one of the very few loco moco's I can enjoy without having to cook myself, and I'm so glad it's only a block away from Cherrystones and a couple blocks from where I work! Added perks: apparently Anthony Bourdain visited this episode in a Gardena/Hawthorne episode! Immediate props!

Cherrystones
15501 South Vermont Avenue, Gardena, CA 90247-4100 - (310) 329-8200
http://www.cherrystones.org/

Gardena Bowl Coffee Shop
15707 South Vermont, Gardena, CA 90247 - (310) 324-1244
http://www.gardenabowl.com/

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After blogging about Comme Ca, I confess it's kind of hard to think highly of STK Steakhouse. It's not that STK was bad, per se. It was okay for a steakhouse. But for a high end steak restaurant in Los Angeles, competing with the likes of Mastro's, Lawry's, or even Ruth's Chris, I expected better.

I give the place points for atmosphere. The place was trendy, the ambiance was nice, and the place actually was relatively quiet. Because EM and I had a 7 p.m. reservation, they even spaced us apart sufficiently for a great quiet space conducive to conversation. By 8 p.m. the place was filling up and by 9 p.m. the place was jam packed, but even then, it didn't get very loud. The restrooms were up a spiral staircase and the bar was a lounge one step lower and off to one side of the restaurant. Ambiance: beautiful.

It did not, however, make up for the food. The appetizer was amazing. We ordered a foie gras with french toast, and it was a taste explosion. The foie gras provided the salty counterbalance to the sweet green apple and the earthy french toast (which was indeed prepared as a traditional french toast with egg and powdered sugar). Texture was kind of bland, but the flavors (and the fact that it was foie gras) made up for it.

The entrees were mediocre, to say the least. EM ordered a bone-in ribeye and I ordered a filet mignon. We both ordered it rare (that's how we do), and his came out deep red and mine came out pink. I do fault this slightly on the fact that his was three times the size of mine, but they really should have timed it better. When mine came to the table, it looked a very grey-brown color, and if my meat isn't outright mooing, I don't find it enjoyable.

The sides were better, with larger than life steak cut ("log cabin cut, if you will) truffle fries and parmesan cheese grated on top, and green beans. The green beans were actually my favorite, since they were seasoned so very well. There was a richness of a red wine sauce with a pepper touch. The fries were pretty good too, very crispy on the outside (from being heavily deep-fried) and tender on the inside. The texture was pretty good, as was the hint of truffle oil.

All in all, I'd say go for the appetizers and the ambiance, but don't rely on the place for a great steak.

STK - LA
755 North La Cienega Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90069 - (310) 659-3535
www.stkhouse.com

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Oxtail jam. What exactly is a jam made out of oxtail? Don't ask. Just eat. Enjoy. SAVOR.

I confess, I'm a new convert to bone marrow. All those years growing up, my mom always made pho with an oxtail base, and I never thought to indulge in the bone marrow for the richest flavor. Today, as a glutton for rich flavors, I find myself craving these fatty morsels of love, longing for a chance to scoop those tiny spoons in deeper for the kill. FTW!

It turns out that Comme Ca (French for "Like That") does it so well that it deserves the name--"It's like THAT, bitch" (*SMACKDOWN*). And everyone runs scared.

Because what you get on a plate is TWO--not one, but TWO--slices of bone with the marrow so properly executed that you can't help but want more. Along the edge and a little inside is a sprinkling of sea salt, which accentuates the meat flavor of the marrow. You are supposed to indulge with the oxtail jam, which really just seemed to be oxtail meat--very tender--sauteed in almost a wine reduction sauce. It was full and thick in texture, rich and salty in flavor. This was contrasted with the very thinly sliced and toasted slices of bread that added the crispiness to your mouthful. The result? A very filling and fulfilling flavor and texture combination that leaves you wanting more (but you're too full to have more!).

The price point is also awesome, at $14, and it makes for a nice stop-over for a first date at a bar. Full in flavor, light as a meal (listed as just an appetizer), and utterly gratifying. Highly recommended!

Comme Ca
8479 Melrose Avenue, West Hollywood, CA 90069 - (323) 782-1104
http://www.commecarestaurant.com/

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In this little hole in the wall restaurant just outside of the Larchmont district, there is a magical Peruvian restaurant that will knock your socks off. The best damn ceviche you will ever have, the best battered fish you will ever have, and the best beef saltado you will ever even dream of. This is Mario's Restaurant.

The wait will be crazy and the parking will be ridiculous, but once you get in and manage to get yourself seated in the very humbly inexpensive tables and chairs, you'll find yourself surrounded by a surprisingly quiet restaurant--because everyone is eating.

The ceviche is sliced larger than usual, with pieces of squid and octopus, but like Wilson in Culver City (which is now closed! :( ), it is cooked amazingly tenderly. The result is a ceviche which is not only perfectly tart, but also perfectly tender AND al dente, if you will.

The battered fish is salty and slightly spicy, but the perfect consistency of a high-end fish and chips, without the high-end price tag or the low end breadiness. A treat for future Lenten seasons!

The saltado was my favorite. The fries appeared to be sauteed with the meats for the perfect amount of time, to make them flavorful without losing the crispiness. The seasoning of the meat was the real winner, though, with a rich flavor that only years of history could inspire. Apparently the owners are Chinese, but they are transplants from Peru itself! Way to bring the homeland food to LA--this place is quite a treat at a great price point with the authenticity to boot.

Mario's Peruvian & Seafood Restaurant
5786 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90038 - (323) 466-4181

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I was a huge fan of Water Grill. As one of the most well-known seafood restaurants in LA, it enjoyed a reputation as a fresh, high-end seafood restaurant where you could order a seafood platter that was bigger than your entire upper torso. (Okay, I exaggerate. But not by much.)

And the evening did start off well. We were delighted to enjoy some complimentary spicy tuna wrapped in cucumber on a spoon, a palette prep for what was to come. And check this out:

I had the MSC Certified Chilean Sea Bass (Soy-ginger baked with red chili jam, long beans and Japanese eggplant). This was drowned in Asian flavors, a taste explosion in your mouth. The flavors were clearly inspired by the Southeast Asian spices and flavors, and the fish was tender and well-cooked, as a Chilean sea bass always is to be.

DD had the Alaskan Black Cod (Sautéed and basted with lavender, Meyer lemon, and Madagascar vanilla bean oil). This was also very flavorful, a lot of salty and almost a gritty texture to the surface, as it it had a dry rub. The flavor was tart, almost as if to boast the citrus flavors, and all it seemed to need was a yuzu to calm down the citrus without taming it. The grapes and almonds were a very nice touch though. It tasted good until the middle of the evening, when I heard D say, "I think my food is moving."

"What?"

"There's something moving in my fish."

I checked myself, wondering if it was just a neurological reaction, like when you rub salt on a newly executed fish. No, to my dismay and disgust, there appeared to be a red worm wriggling and writhing along the surface of the fish. We called a waitress over, and she took it away, only to come back with a menu, citing that “It was a blood vein, moving along with the sauce.” Let me tell you, it was no vein. It was clearly red and moving on its own accord.

And you know they were hiding something because after they brought out a new dish, several people came by to check on our food, and they comped both the black cod and the new (expedited) dish. I think it would have been more worthy if they had admitted it and then comped us the dishes, but I suppose they thought we would buy into their Water(Grill)Gate scandal and eat and be merry. Needless to say, I didn’t finish my Chilean sea bass.

Out of principle, I’d still recommend the Water Grill if only because the rest of the seafood was amazing (and we had a coupon for a dozen free oysters). Just don’t order the white fish unless you want to nibble and carefully inspect as you go.

Water Grill
544 South Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90017 - (213) 891-0900
www.watergrill.com

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I hadn't been disappointed in a restaurant in awhile. I guess I was overdue. After eagerly anticipating DineLA as an opportunity to eat at fine restaurants for reasonable prices, I decided to go with my Twin to Jer-Ne, a blind stab in the dark based on what sounded like a good menu. What I got instead was food that attempted to be "fusion" and eclectic and modern, and instead ended up being cooked oddly, tasting slightly "off", all while sitting in a freezing cold restaurant.

I fought the butternut squash movement for awhile, first scorning the notion of an orange vegetable puree being a cold soup... New York changed that with Gramercy Tavern serving what to this day is still one of the best butternut squash soups I've ever had. So I've been adventurously daring in ordering the butternut squash soup, in hopes that it would replicate the greatness of the Gramercy Tavern experience. Jer-Ne fell miserably short. The butternut squash soup (butternut squash, Frangelico, pumpkin oil) was so bland and slightly bitter that I ended up adding tons of pepper in hopes that it would save it. It did not. The bitterness actually overwhelmed the pepper, creating this very sad aftertaste in my mouth that hardly felt like what I was paying for. I happen to love Frangelico, and theoretically, it should have made the butternut squash a little sweeter, but perhaps the pumpkin oil just overwhelmed it.

For the meal, I ordered a Chilean sea bass, also a favorite of mine. Usually the fish is so tender you don't even need a butter knife, but this time it was seared on one side and soft throughout. The only problem was, it was over-seared. In other words, the bottom of the fish was hard to prod through, even with a knife, and the rest was too soft. It had quite an odd texture to it, too divergent, and I couldn't deal with it.

The dessert was hardly better, with pumpkin creme brulee and maple walnut ice cream. In my general order of preference, I would usually pick the creme over the maple walnut, but this time I enjoyed picking at the walnuts more than I enjoyed the creme brulee. The creme was almost too crispy, and again there was something slightly off about the flavor... Almost as if it lacked sweetness. It was odd, coming from a dessert to lack sweetness, but I suppose it may have also been part of the theme of autumn and dreariness.

Overall, nothing to write home about, though presentation was awarded a few points. Next time I suppose we'll have to gun for something in the Beverly area, since I'm having more and more orgasmic meals from there than anywhere else in the LA area.

Jer-Ne Restaurant + Bar

4375 Admiralty Way, Marina del Rey, CA 90292 - (310) 823-1700

http://www.ritzcarlton.com/en/Properties/MarinadelRey/Dining/Jer-NeRestaurantBar/Default.htm

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The second DineLA experience was much better than the first at Jer-Ne. Don't get me wrong--the company was equally enjoyable, but the food was absolutely exquisite and exceeded expectations.

This and Gotham in NYC are among the few times I couldn't finish a meal that was absolutely orgasmic because it was too rich. This and Mario's Peruvian Food were the only two times I have ever regretted having even one piece of bread. Yes, it is that good.

As appetizers, DD and I chose the crispy pork belly and the butternut squash bisque. The crispy pork belly was tender and crispy, cooked to perfection. The meat itself was full of flavor, and it was actually juicy, which is so hard to do with frying. It was seasoned with carmelized apple, quail egg, yukon gold puree, and frisee, a perfect balance of delicate, yet fruity flavors that didn't detract from the fact that pork is a more subtle meat. Quite a success! The butternut squash bisque was an equal success! They created a lobster salad with crisp sage in the middle of the bowl and waited until arriving at the table to pour the exact amount of soup from a perfectly measured container (unlike Gramercy Tavern, NYC, which was also delicious but poured their soup from a larger container, almost as if to say you were sharing that soup with the rest of the restaurant like pigs eating from a trough. Yes, the little things get to me. In all fairness, Gramercy Tavern's soup was delicious!). The lobster salad accentuated the soup and yet also brought its own flair. Unlike Jer-Ne, which left the butternut squash to wallow in its own bitterness, you tasted Dakota's butternut squash light up and flair up, like a dear friend telling an exciting story. In the end, a dense and thick soup ended up being a light, refreshing appetizer.

Equally compelling were the entrees. DD picked the beef duo, a coriander crusted grassfed New York and a short rib, paired with poached asparagus and fingerling lyonaise with bordelaise. The meats were filling and heavy from what I tasted, almost as rich as Arcadia's steak rossini (but let's face it--nothing is truly that rich). I had the trout meuniere. Let me just say that to this day, it still leaves me a bit breathless. The trout was so fresh and so rich, a wild trout, I'm told, that it was PINK like a salmon. Not only was it tender and rich, but it was cooked to perfection with lump crab meat, baby parsnips, heirloom carrots, and carmelized salsify. The only thing that could have made it better was the butters.

THE BUTTERS. I still fantasize about those saucy little minxes. Apparently at Dakota, you can order a butter as a side. So for every meal, be it fish or steak, vegetables or soup, the chef recognizes that like bacon, butter tastes good with everything. Of the four choices of butter, DD and I opted for the fine herb and the foie gras butter. You heard me. Foie gras BUTTER. In case you can't tell, I have an inordinate obsession with foie gras, and I love me some butter. So imagine my surprise when the two were wrapped up in one, ready to be eaten with my delicious trout! A-MAZ-ING. I have no other words. You simply haven't lived until you have tried the foie gras butter with the trout. With the meat. With ANYTHING. I want it for my fried rice. I want it in every dish I make. I'll die an early and very happy death.

The desserts were delicious, but nothing to write home about. Honestly, I was still reeling from the ecstasy of having discovered a love of my life. We ordered a chocolate mousse blossom and the warm apple tartin. Since I'm still light-headed from remembering the goodness of the appetizers and entrees, I'll leave you to the pictures. I believe they speak for themselves.

Overall, this was a great experience. Getting there was a disaster since it's located in the heart of touristy Hollywood, and it was in a loud hotel (hotel restaurants kind of irk me), but I'd do it again in a heartbeat to get me some of that foie gras butter with trout. Entirely worth the DineLA experience and still on my list since I'm pretty sure I saw a foie gras on the appetizer list as well... :)

Dakota Restaurant

Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, 7000 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, CA

http://www.dakota-restaurant.com/

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Few things get me more excited than leisure trips. I absolutely love the thrill of exploring new places, eating new foods, planning how to get there, where to stay, how to find the best bargains, and how to maximize every waking second of time I get to escape whatever reality my life is in, and simply enjoy another reality for awhile. So imagine my thrill and surprise when DD decided to take a trip with me, hopefully our first of many together!

We decided to take a trip to Northern California together. Both of us being ambitious and determined people, we decided on several main stops in a span of four short days: San Jose, Napa, San Francisco, Berkeley, and back to San Jose. ...And we decided to drive.

The good news is, with each other's company, the drive went by like a breeze. It felt like a drive, but it felt like a much shorter drive than 5-6 hours. And the further good news is (since with DD I hardly ever have bad news), there was heinously good food on this trip!

Side Stop #1:
Pismo Beach: Mo's SmokeHouse BBQ

Only after looking at the website to research the address and phone number of this place did I discover that this is a chain restaurant with SoCal locations! Woot! I had one of the best Louisiana hot links I have had in my entire life. Well cooked, well seasoned, tender and moist.... I'm salivating just thinking about it! This hot link was a rich shade of red, looking just as appetizing as it tasted. I shared some with DD who also admitted that it was one of the best sausages he'd ever had. I didn't care too much for the ton of onions and peppers they had on top, but I swept it to one side and enjoyed my sausage. The side of coleslaw was pretty good too, though I confess that may at least be in part due to the delirium of happiness upon eating the sausage.

DD had the tri-tip, which was remarkably tender. I confess I don't remember much of it since our trip was at least a month ago and I wasn't eating it as my own main course, but I do recall that in addition to the meat's tenderness, the BBQ sauce made it that much more heavenly.

We ate our food with some beers in one of the outside patio seats, and even though the table was lopsided and annoyed the hell out of us, it was such a beautiful day, sunny with slight winds, that you couldn't help but to just enjoy it and take it all in. So we did, when we walked to the pier on the beach, just a couple storefronts away. Pismo Beach was an amazingly relaxing choice for a pit shop, exactly halfway along the coast, and it fed us well!

Mo's SmokeHouse BBQ

221 Pomeroy Street, Pismo Beach, California 93449 - (805) 773-6193

http://www.mosbbq.com/

Side Stop #2:

Napa: Taylor's Automatic Refresher

It's like the resident In-N-Out, with more options! This is the oddest, and yet cutest 50's diner cafe, in a prime location--directly in the middle of the Napa strip. High traffic passes by the location, and there's always a line. But with good reason! The line goes fast, and once you get to the front, you can order anything from garlic fries to a salmon burger.

DD and I had already eaten lunch, but we were determined to have some food here in between Reverie and Hartwell. So stop we did, and we only got a light snack--which in our world is two orders of fries and a drink. Sweet potato fries, garlic fries, and a root beer float! Oh, I'm salivating just thinking about it again! The sweet potato fries were freshly cooked and extra crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and the garlic fries were SMOTHERED in garlic. I can't vouch for whether it's better than Dodger fries, since it's been awhile since I've been to Dodger's Stadium, but I can say it comes pretty damn close. And the root beer float? What better way to finish off a wildly unhealthy meal at a 50's diner joint while sitting out in the open on a sunny, beautiful day? The root beer may as well have been wine for how good it was to us.

Taylor's Automatic Refresher

644 First Street, Napa, CA 94559 - 707-224-6900

http://taylorsautomaticrefresher.com/

Side Stop #3:

San Jose: Arcadia

I hardly even need to actually describe them. I just need to say their names.

Foie gras sliders.

Duck fat fries.

Lobster corndogs.

Ahi tuna tartare.

Steak Rossini.

Okay, maybe that last one deserves a fuller description: filet mignon topped with Hudson Valley foie gras and glazed in a pinot noir wine reduction. Toss it on a tower of seared potato and sauteed spinach and you have a recipe for LEGEND. This was not only one of the richest items you will ever eat, but it was also a dish that simply melted in your mouth for as long as you would let it before taking it all in. Yes, it was that good. The filet mignon was tender, the foie gras left nothing to be desired, and the wine reduction was such a flavorful and yet delicate complement to the meal that it brought out all the subtle richness of the filet and foie gras, without making it overbearingly rich. In short, the dish sang perfect harmony at a perfect tempo and a perfect volume. It was magnificent.

Also magnificent was how beautiful the dessert was. It was just a couple of mini doughnuts, but it was arranged so beautifully, with hazelnut ice cream and crushed nuts all around the plate... It was rich and decadent without being too sweet or too salty. A good mix of flavors and textures.

Book a reservation next time you're ever in the San Jose area. You will not regret it. The decor could use a little work, but if you ignore the fact that it's a hotel's continental breakfast bar by day, you can eat a meal that will knock your socks off. Needless to say, I recommend the steak rossini.

Arcadia

Marriott, 100 West San Carlos Street, San Jose, CA 95113 - 408-278-4555

http://www.michaelmina.net/arcadia/

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Kotteri. Kotteri is the magic word.

Before this word, I hardly knew what ramen was. Now, it feels as if my eyes have been opened, and a new ramen has come to rule them all. KOTTERI. You. Are. Beautiful.

It all started after a football game, when we all decided to eat dinner together somewhere near the downtown LA area. Our friend AY recommended this place, describing the food and admitting that it sounded disgusting, but it was amazingly delicious. It was pork simmered in pork with pork fat. I don't know about you, but that kind of gets me going.

After finding street parking and waiting the excruciating hour for one of the maybe 20 seats in the place, we finally sit ourselves down to the real deal. But like Levar Burton said on Reading Rainbow, you don't have to take my word about it--from the menu:

Daikoku Ramen
the process begins the afternoon before it ever reaches your table by boiling pork bones and joints in a large cauldren all throughout the night reducing at an undisclosed location. by the time it reaches the stove behind the counter the next day all the goodness is concentrated in our famous tonkotsu soup base. from the pot the soup goes into bowls (large and half size available upon request) where it is infused with our secret blended soysauce. into the completed broth we add boiled chijire style egg noodles, the firmness of which can be altered upon request. finally the kurobuta pork belly chashu, marinated boiled egg, bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, green onions and sprinkle of sesame seeds completes the reason why you're here and why we are still in business. for all tonkotsu fanatics: ask for the richer, kotteri flavor which uses added soup extracted from the back fat

You try to read that and tell me it doesn't sound amazing. The soup base is amazingly rich, so rich that it's almost a pure opaque white color with all of the soup base. After hours of simmering, the soup hardly even splits into miscible layers--it stays one solid rich color and flavor. I've never seen anything like it, and I grew up watching my mother simmer pots of pho that I could swim in. The pho always had oxtail and bone marrow and rich pieces of meat, but it never came out looking as rich as this ramen did. The meats were tender, the sesame seeds added a perfectly faint flair, and the marinated egg is absolutely amazing. It's unlike any egg you've had before. Almost like a seasoned duck egg, but less salty and more flavorful and zesty.

All in all, I was MORE than impressed, and from the time I was introduced a month ago, I have tried to go at least twice since. It's a looooooong wait and parking is annoying, but for a $10 meal, this is absolutely worth it.



Daikokuya
327 E 1st Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012
http://www.daikoku-ten.com/

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Eels are scary creatures. They're slimy and slippery and Flotsam and Jetsam from The Little Mermaid used to make me all scared with their yellow camera eyes and smirking faces. Eels are not the prettiest creatures on earth. They give me nightmares when I watch them swim around.

But cook them up and slather them in teriyaki sauce? Well then they're delicious!

There's nothing quite like a piece of eel, delicately scorched to the perfect warmth and crispiness with a teriyaki glaze on top (if indeed that is the sauce they typically use) lying ever so softly on a piece of sushi rice, wrapped in a slice of seaweed and ready to pick up and eat in one warm bite. Well, nothing like it until you take that same concept and put it in a bowl, multiply the proportions by 30, and add an EGG!

Meet the Eel Egg Bowl at Miyabi Tei, in the Mitsuwa Supermarket food court in Costa Mesa. While this isn't exactly the most romantic date spot in OC, it's the perfect little lunch spot, always with a long line and always smelling like heaven. The eel egg bowl is exactly what it sounds like. Eel and egg, cooked together and slathered in that rich sauce, then served over some sauteed onions and white rice. And while you're deprived of the crunchier or crispier textures, you get a lot of the softer textures in this dish to complement the flavors. It's the soft eel flesh attached to the slightly unyielding eel skin, cooked in an egg that has parts where it's fully yellow and parts where it's soft and white jelly. If you dig deeper, you notice that the rice, soft and sticky, also has some sauce all over it, allowing you to savor the flavors without worrying that the rice will dull it all down. Even with all the sauce, it's not overwhelming, and with all the textures, it makes up for the lack of color and the fact that you're eating Flotsam and Jetsam.

Yes, friends, tonight I sleep well!

Miyabi Tei
665 Paularino Ave., Costa Mesa, CA
http://www.yelp.com/biz/miyabi-tei-costa-mesa

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Oh Prix-Fixe menus! How I will never tire of thee! Who's in for some good food lovin'??
http://www.opentable.com/promo.aspx?m=6&ref=2954&pid=268

Last week DD and I caught some Ruth's Chris for the Orange County Restaurant Week, and my, was it good! Nothing like the smell of beef roasted in butter... Like Anthony Bourdain said, "Mmmm. Tastes like it died screaming!"

Which brings us to my steak rankings! In a loose order of preference, since, well, all steaks are meat and therefore wonderful, I present to you my top 5 destinations for brilliance:
1. Ruth's Chris - It's all about the butter....
2. Lawry's Prime Rib - So tender and so wonderful. Once the manager walked up to me and saw that I was finishing a Lawry's Cut by myself. He said if I finished it, he'd give me another on the house. I finished it.
3. Mastro's Steakhouse - Classic and tender.
4. Porterhouse Bistro - Well-prepared and well seasoned. Order the 40-oz cut for two.
5. BOA - I think I just really like the roasted garlic.

On the list to try:
1. Cut (LA)
2. Jar (LA)
3. Peter Luger's (NYC)

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Don't be fooled by this adorable smiley face with his chef's hat and a huge, almost phallic, loaf of bread. Behind this chipper exterior is the face of a beast. A fat-mongering, grease-loving evil mastermind. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to introduce you to brilliance. Brilliance has a name, and it is Mr. Baguette.

The fact that he's not named Monsieur Baguette (to continue the French theme) only adds to his rebellious nature. The crime? The rebellion? The absolute anarchy masked in a smiley face and a quiet, small restaurant in Rosemead, CA? Fried EGG! Sesame! In a banh mi sandwich!

DD and I were foraging for something to munch on, when he remembered a place that he swore would put Lee's Sandwiches to shame. Now, having grown up with Banh Mi Cali Sandwiches and Lee's Sandwiches, I was leery of anyone who tried to intrude on my already comfortable niche market. If I wanted lots of meat and a full loaf of bread, I went to Banh Mi Cali. If I wanted crunch bread and a quick fix in a rapidly expanding franchise, I went to Lee's Sandwiches. And if I couldn't get to one of those, I would go without.

So needless to say, I was a little reluctant to try out this intruding sandwich shop in the middle of the asian capital of Los Angeles, Rosemead/Alhambra/Monterey Park. The outside was unassuming, which is bonus points in my book. Once inside, it looked remarkably like a Lee's Sandwich, clean, well designed menus with color pictures of each item, everything clearly labeled, and a front counter displaying foods you could buy to make your own at home.

And then I saw it. There, in the refrigerated counter, food-saver sealed with their own meat-market looking label, was a chunk of pate--5" in diameter and 2" thick. Lucious, savory, and delicious looking.

SOLD.

While looking at the menu of sandwiches, I decided on the "Dac Biet" Special sandwich. And then, from the mouth of the love of my life came the magical words: "You have breakfast sandwiches. Is there any way we can have an egg in the Dac Biet sandwich?" "Yes." (The counter clerk may as well have said "I Do", the word was so magical.) So there we went on our way, to wait for the sandwiches we ordered and a couple more we ordered to go. When we got them, they gave us the pickled veggies on the side, which is an added perk--the sandwich won't get soggy later and you can reheat the whole thing without ruining the fresh, cold flavors of the veggies. Once combined, I realized what made this place a mecca for Vietnamese sandwich lovers--the combinations of flavors. It wasn't just the meat, which was tender and present in relative abundance, but it was also the toasted sesame seeds on the bun that added a rich toasted flavor. The egg was just icing on the cake! While the pate was sporadic at best, when you got a rich spread of it in one bite, it was that much better--like you'd been waiting for it your whole life!

And thus, I concede defeat. Yes, Mr. Baguette, you can come play with my other banh mi favorites. And somewhere in my head, the scene plays:

"Do you expect me to talk?"
"No, Mr. Baguette, I expect you to feeeeeed me!"

Mr. Baguette
8702 Valley Blvd., Rosemead, CA, (626) 288-9166
www.mrbaguettesandwiches.com

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"Are you feeling safe or adventurous?"

Even as DD asked those words, I was trying to balance whether he would be tired, or whether I was feeling introverted. This particular evening, I was open to anything. Those are usually the evenings that end up with the most potential, because really, anything can happen. So despite the fact that a home-delivered pizza and a Vietnamese roast duck was on the table, I opted for adventurous. Who knows what the night would bring?

So to Roy's we went, a place DD had not been to in something on the order of 6 years, and a place I had never been to. I always walked by the Roy's in downtown Los Angeles, but I never went in. Looking back at it now, I should have stopped in at least once a week, if only to savor the glory of The Lakanilau. The Lakanilau is a sushi roll described in the menu as: Seared Kobe Beef Wrapped Around Yuzu Crab, Tempura Asparagus & Avocado. The Lakanilau is nothing like your everyday sushi roll. Whereas you would typically eat a sushi roll for freshness and a delicate flavor intermingled with a soft texture, this roll was an explosion of both flavors and textures. It's almost hard to describe, and I'm not usually at a loss for words... It was like the texture of the rarest of meats combined with a mildly crispy tempura asparagus surrounded by the warm, almost sticky rice. Delicious!

For my entree, I could not resist the mahi mahi: "Roy’s Classic Roasted Macadamia Nut Crusted Mahi Mahi", a tender filet of mahi mahi, covered in crushed macadamia nuts and seasoned in a lobster cognac butter sauce. Oh yeah, you heard me. Lobster. Cognac. Butter. That's almost all I need to say! The fish was cooked to perfection, nice and tender, flaky to the point where that knife on the edge of your place settings looked on with envy. Each time you dipped it into the sauce, which was a full, thick glaze, you felt like you were going to have a heart attack, and it was going to be worth it!

As part of the prix fixe menu, DD had the crispy shrimp lumpia, which was lightly crispy on the outside (not overcooked or too oily, as many lumpia tend to be), and soft and tender on the inside. The flavors were a mix of salty and sweet and sour all at once. Not your everyday lumpia! The entree was the "Pulehu" sirloin, with truffled fries and roasted shallot jus. The sirloin was prepared rare, though still a little tough on the outside. It was very tender on the outside and very richly marinated, almost like a red wine reduction. When you mixed this with the truffled fries, which were more like truffled potato fritters, it was yet another mix of textures and flavors, salty and sweet, tender and tough and crunchy, fully roasted and fried. It seemed like the theme of the evening was "multi-pronged approach", with both rich flavors and textures, and being a huge fan of textures, especially crispy/crunchy textures, this was quite a treat!

The finisher on the prix fixe menu was the "Roy's Melting Hot Chocolate Souffle", which was so very rich and thick. The top surface was crisp, almost like a brownie, but the inside was flowing out chocolate like molten magma--the way every chocolate souffle was born to disperse. And while I didn't like the crispy texture of the top, since I usually like my souffle's soft and tender, I loved the richness of the flavor. DD and I got through maybe half of it, as opposed to my usual one or two bites. (My favorites, for the record, are still the Eiffel Tower Restaurant at Paris, Paris, Las Vegas, NV, and Ten Restaurant, Costa Mesa, CA. This does come a close third!)

Without adventure, we cannot discover potential new #1's, new options, new taste explosions... And while the dessert that drew us to this restaurant wasn't the absolute best I've ever had, everything else was so decadent, so full and rich, that I couldn't help but feel absolutely content and happy. It was delicious. And all was well.

Maybe I should have taken that lobster cognac butter sauce to go.

Roy's Restaurant
453 Newport Center Dr, Newport Beach, (949) 640-7697
http://www.roysrestaurant.com/

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What to cook, what to cook? I always ask myself what I want to cook, and every time I brainstorm, I come up with all sorts of new options I (1) haven't tried before, or (2) tried before, loved, and want to repeat. So last Saturday, when I tried coming up with ideas, I thought of a few items I wanted to cook, and then realized a theme: Faux Breakfast!

The appetizer was the start of the inspiration. I love creating cheese plates with meats and cheeses and sauces and toppings, often creating brie and gruyere and sunflower seed and whole grain mustard combinations to wash down with great wines. But by far, my favorite flavor combination is smoked prosciutto with brie and whole grain mustard. After years of experimenting, it still remains my favorite, though some French and sheep cheese combinations with fruit jams have given it a run for its money. So Saturday, I decided to do something creative--put them in a roll form, with the prosciutto wrapping slices of brie and the whole grain mustard. I had to get the combinations of each one just right, but when I did, it took all the work out of the actual enjoyment of the flavors. This was my "bacon and cheese". (It looks like bacon, doesnt' it?)

For my entree, I wanted to cook Korean BBQ, but if I was having rice, I wanted the egg on top. (I'll always want an egg on top of my rice. My cholesterol levels are normal, thank you very much!) So here came the inspiration for "Asian steak and eggs". I found a couple choice pieces of tri-tip, and remembering them to be tender, I wanted to try a Korean BBQ marinade on them. I broiled them for 10-15 minutes, as instructed on the Trader Joes label, but they still came out a little overcooked and only mildly pink. I sliced it in advance so I wouldn't have to slice at the table, then I realized this was a critical mistake. Apparently tri tip dries out very quickly, and regardless of how tender the meat was when it was first sliced, when pieces with fat marbling would turn out to be dry and flavorless. I tried brushing on more of the marinade and meat juices, only to realize it would dry out a couple minutes later. Note to self: ALWAYS go for the rib meat or leave the slicing to the dinner table right before you eat it.

Dessert was simplest, with very little preparation. I had "toast and chocolate". For this, I sliced up a couple pieces of Sara Lee pound cake (forever a classic!) and a piece of chocolate chocolate mochi. Mochi, for those of you who are unfamiliar with it, is a flavored tapioca wrapped around a morsel of chocolate, so you can hold it with your fingers and bite into it. The chocolate chocolate is my favorite because not only do you get the two different textures, the tapioca and the ice cream, but you also get chocolate chips in the ice cream! Mmmm! It served as a sugary counterpart to the pound cake, which is typically sweet enough on its own. I don't have a picture of this, but you know how Sara Lee pound cake looks--like a loaf of bread and slices of toast!

The whole meal made me miss having people over for dinner and reminded me I need to invite more people over to entertain as guests. I was born to be a hostess in my home!

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Orochon Ramen. From my early college days, pre Man vs. Food, this place was my santuary, making such a delicious version of what is otherwise considered 25 cent college food. As the years went by, I honed in on how spicy I liked my ramen, how much noodle I wanted, which flavor I liked best, and exactly why no other ramen place I've tried has compared to the deliciousness of this bowl of spicy goodness.

The concept is simple enough. Egg noodles in a broth of your choice--miso, soy sauce or salt. The bowl, by the way, is exactly as large as it seems in this picture. It eats up half the table, and it can fit your head.

The fun part, though, comes when you order your level of spiciness. Unlike Thai places that have arbitrary scales of spiciness depending on who's cooking, this place is pretty consistent: a 3 will always be a 3, and a 5 will always be a 5.

Super Orochon 2
Super Orochon 1

1. Extreme Orochon
2. Hyper Orochon
3. Impact Orochon
4. Orochon
5. Osae Orochon
6. Osae - Osae Orochon
7. Non - Spicy Orochon

So not only are you deciding between 1-7, but if you're a superstar, you have the additional options of Super 1 and Super 2. This restaurant's claim to fame is that if you finish the Super Orochon 2 in half an hour (including the broth), you get your picture on the wall. So of course, this became a visit for Man vs. Food. The preparation didn't seem as spicy as other foods Adam has tried (like the Indian food episode where the cook had to use a gas mask to cook the peppers), but it was enough to get him sweating and fully appreciative of the zest and zeal of this legend of LA. Yes, he even finished the broth!

And while the appetizers are good (especially the gyoza), don't bother ordering them if you're not really hungry because (1) they'll fill you up, and (2) they won't arrive before the food. My sister KN didn't enjoy the gyoza because they were pan fried, so if you like the soft boiled gyoza better than the pan fried ones, don't bother either.

Every time I go, I order the Number 5 soy sauce bowl (I know, weak sauce), with extra noodle so I can savor more of the broth... And I'm never disappointed. I can always count on this meal to warm me up, fill me up, and make me happy I chose to come to this place, even on the hottest of days. Like a Japanese bowl of pho, there's simply never a bad time for it, because it's just that good.

I'm on the hunt for a better tasting ramen place, but after years of tasting places in Orange County, I think I'll need to pursue my mission in LA. Suggestions? Send them on by! In the meantime, I'm perfectly content with this as my "safe" spot, especially since they added more tables and kept the food exactly the same: spicy, zesty, and delish!

Orochon Ramen
123 Astronaut E S Onizuka St., Los Angeles, CA
http://www.yelp.com/biz/orochon-ramen-los-angeles

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It was like a HOME. And maybe it wasn't really my home, it felt so welcoming and so loving and so delicious that it may as well have been.

Yesterday I was invited to join DD to friends' JT and JT's house. They had a cozy house in Chatsworth, CA, and while the drive on the 405 N during rush hour was agonizing, I would do it twice over again if I'd known what was in store.

DD and his brother and friends chartered a boat this weekend and caught some pretty amazing tuna. The jackpot fish (the largest fish that won the pool of money) was 47 lbs. and quite large. I haven't seen pictures yet, but I can imagine it's a handful! (EDIT: I was provided some pictures of the trip. Check out how many fish there are here! Pic courtesy of H.) So in honor of all of this fresh fish, they had a fish dinner with 10-20 people that turned out to be quite the smorgasbord!

On the menu:
- Albacore sashimi
- Yellowfin sashimi
- Tuna poke
- Seared albacore
- Grilled squid
- Seaweed salad (purchased)
- Deep-fried wings, spicy and non-spicy (purchased)
- Shrimp tempura (purchased)
- Roasted tuna collar
- Roasted calico bass
- Sauteed mushrooms
- Home-made sauces
- Sesame-lotus balls (purchased)
- Melon ice cream bars (purchased)

I told the chef he was doing a Dinner: Impossible meal. And it truly was quite a feat! The fish arrived at around 6:30 p.m., and by 8:00 p.m., everything was on the table, ready to go! And everything tasted amazing. There's nothing quite like fresh sashimi--the texture practically melts in your mouth, and the flavors aren't nearly as fishy as they get when they've been sitting around for awhile. Of course fresh fish is the best start to a good tuna poke, with crushed macadamia nuts and sliced green onions. (*bite* "Oh, it's tuna, so soft and so firm." *bite* "Oh my! It's a crunchy macadamia nut--so crunchy and yet full-bodied!") The rich mix of textures makes this dish totally worthwhile, and so easy to make at home with crushed macadamia nuts and pre-made mix for the onions and fixings.

On the hot-cooked side, you know when I neglect the sauteed mushrooms and the shrimp tempura, typically two of my most cherished and beloved items on any menu, that the dinner is delicious! The roasted collar and calico bass were so tender, and so well prepared, like the first time DD cooked it for me. The seasoning is simple enough, with sea salt and some soy sauce, but when you bite into a tender, moist, warm and rich piece of fish and then bite into a small taste explosion of sea salt, at first it seems shocking, but after awhile, you realize it's the perfect complement and it's simply HEAVEN. Toss in a fork full of rice, and you're all set to be full and dying to go back for seconds and thirds.

I put down two plates and I wish I had room for more, since there was still more food to be had. DD and I talked on the way home about how wonderful the calico bass would taste over a bowl of ramen, and I couldn't help but to thank God for blessing me with so many people who love FOOD. Bons vivants forever!

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I confess, I don't remember the egregious offense. Maybe it was him blowing into my face while he was almost drunk, but I can't quite remember exactly what it was that PP did to cause him to ask, "How can I make it up to you?" Before thinking, I kicked off the smart-ass auto-response. Of course! "Be my slave."

Before I knew it, we were negotiating the terms, deciding that yesterday at noon was too late to start for a whole day, and that he would start the next day. He even text messaged me to ask what I wanted for breakfast. And when offered money, he politely declined. (I would have left money at his desk, but he moved desks and I don't know where he sits anymore.) This is how I was greeted this morning at my desk:

Okay, I admit, that's pretty damn cute. LOL. PP and I are both the resident OCD people in the office, providing Tide detergent sticks, hand sanitizer, 409 spray, and computer air cans to the rest of the people in the office, in vague hopes that everyone else will live as cleanly as we do... (We fail in an office of people who can barely shower, no less keep their desks clean.) That aside, this is such an OCD thing to do. Four packets of ketchup, a packet of salt and pepper, a container of salsa, a stack of napkins, and a knife and fork, all aligned at proper 90 degree angles, except the salt and pepper, which were delicately angled for effect. What could possibly warrant all of these bells and whistles, you ask?

A sausage and egg muffin. Mmmmmmm.... The cafe downstairs from where I work, Cafe 201, serves this grilled work of art every morning, sometimes with more eggs, sometimes with more cheese, and each time a heart-stopping (literally) stack of fatty goodness. Their sausage Chipotle burrito is also amazing. It's not much to look at and it's a disaster to try to eat without getting your hands all oily and greasy, but it's far worth the walk to the bathroom to wash your hands (and, let's face it--burn off some of that fat you just ate).

Again, I guess I'm just a sucker for breakfast.

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Yeah, I was expecting more.

After hearing so much about Chef Joseph Citron, I was expecting Cache Restaurant to knock my socks off. Don't get me wrong. It wasn't bad.... Probably around a 7.... So "good"..... Just not orgasmic.

My list of complaints could go on forever, but the foie gras was bland (but it's seared foie gras, so I can't complain too much), the pork was sort of bland as well with no zest, the steak was mediocre (just a basic wine reduction), and the pizza almost looked soggy. Nobody finished their meals, and there was absolutely no commentary amongst a table of fellow bons vivants. Just silence. Almost as if there was some unspoken assumption that the food wasn't that good and we shouldn't speak of it.

After we paid our bill, we made our way over to a Whole Foods, where A picked up some blessings and gifts for his bartender friends at Grace. Now THERE was a place of brilliance! I had one of the bartenders mix me my usual: "Something girly and strong" (you'd be suprised at all the fun drinks I get). This time, it was an inspired strawberry martini--only instead of stopping at pureed strawberry, slices of strawberry, and vodka, he chose to mix in some crushed thyme, which was faint and distinct enough to prolong that "fresh, first bite of cold strawberry" sensation. It was rather brilliant! Long after the drink went cold, that fresh sensation lingered. Wonderful!

The group also split some mini donuts, which are taste explosions in your mouth. Sweet and spicy and sour and salty and cinnamonny and fruity and doughy all in one taste, with a scoop of ice cream in the middle. Literally. A taste explosion. I have no had anything like this, EVER. I loved it! And T said they change it up every week, which only inspires me to keep going, maybe next time to try the food. Grace might have been a far better pick than Cache, with comparable ambiance, and MUCH better drinks and desserts. Can't wait to try and review the full menu!

Cache Restaurant
3110 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica, CA
http://www.cacherestaurant.com/

Grace
7360 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA
http://www.gracerestaurant.com/

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EDIT (10/2009): This place was just closed. :(

The only other time I can remember having food that made me feel like I was in a puebla in the middle of New Mexico (aside from when I was in New Mexico) was at Mesa, Bobby Flay's restaurant in Caesar's Palace, Las Vegas. Bobby Flay, from Iron Chef and on Throwdown, is very clearly a lover of all the spices and seasonings and flavors of the Southwest, those zesty combinations that remind you that we live so damn close to Mexico.

I know I might get some hate mail for this, but I didn't like Mesa. I'm not a fan of Southwest cuisine, opting instead for the fresher Mexican flavors of Baja Mexico. Southwestern cuisine seems to heavy, sometimes too spicy, sometimes too sour, sometimes too.... tomato-ey. I didn't like what I had at Mesa, or anything I tried from anyone else's dish. And this is at the restaurant belonged to an IRON CHEF.

So enter Wilson. Located in the burgeoning social district of downtown Culver City, Wilson is just off the restaurant strip, which is perfect for the quiet ambiance for this semi-kitchy restaurant with plastic chairs. Despite the patio furniture indoors and the lamps that looked like they came from Ikea, the place looked surprisingly CLASSY. Walking past the full bar, DD and I sat ourselves in the far corner, where we got a glimpse of the rest of the restaurant and giant mural of chefs rejoicing.

And did they have something to rejoice!

For drinks, DD had a Belgian beer, Delirium Tremens, which was tart, but fresh. I tried ordering the cherry margarita (quite a curiosity!), but they had just run out. I opted instead for the strawberry margarita, which went down like a smoothie. Beautiful. Our starters consisted of ceviche and grilled octopus. Let me stop for a moment, because it hardly does justice to even put these two items in the same sentence--they each deserve their own epic poems.

The ceviche was not your average ceviche. I've had home made ceviches, ceviches made in Mexican restaurants, and ceviches made in Grand Hyatt hotels, and they're all.... je ne sais quoi. Too tart. Too sour. Too.... fishy. They're all a little too much of something, or they're completely bland. This was seasoned to PERFECTION. You tasted the tartness, the sourness, the fishiness, the flavors of the tomato and onion, and yet it wasn't overwhelming. It was perfectly balanced in every way, and perfectly complemented by fried and salted tortillas. Delicious!

Also cooked to perfection was the octopus. The grilled octopus may as well have been flank steak, it was seasoned and grilled so beautifully. While usual preparations of octopus are chewy and leave the diner looking for something to wash it down with, this octopus looked exactly like grilled vegetables and tasted like a steak. When you bit into it, you got it on the first bite, and if you tried, you could probably separate it with a fork. It was so tender and so juicy, and yet you got so much richness of the grilled, charred taste without so much as a hint of burnt taste. It was an opus! (Har har har.)

The main courses were equally impressive, a plate of lengua (tongue) and a soft shell crab burrito, one dish a hard-core return to Mexican roots and the other a defiant Cali-Mex fusion. And while tongue is usually chewy and tough (actually one of the things I love about it), this lengua was refreshingly soft, cutting like butter with a generous side of fat to make it tender and rich. The slices, which usually come out 1-2" in diameter and 1/2" thick, came out looking like slices of filet mignon. One slice was actually 1" thick and 3-4" in diameter. I couldn't finish it, no less work on the side of popcorn tossed in Tapatio we had also ordered (you can see it at the top of the next picture).

DD worked on his softshell crab burrito for awhile, finally opting to eat the goods and skip the whole tortilla and burrito concept, a strategy becoming of El Tepeyac (an LA burrito pilgrimage). The soft shell crab was cooked to perfection, not too tender and not too crispy, and the flavors were so refreshing, they were Southwest meets Baja. The ingredients were clearly fresh, and the flavors were so tangy and zesty that you couldn't help but want more. This seemingly obnoxious fusion was actually very inspired and flavorful, with light vegetables and rice to complement the ensemble.

Would I go again? Hell yeah, if only to try the cherry margarita this time. Would I recommend it? Only to someone who wants to try an inspired twist on Mexican food and hate on every other ceviche they've ever had in their entire life.

Wilson Cafe + Bar
8631 Washington Blvd., Culver City, CA 90232
http://www.wilsonfoodandwine.com/

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Really, need I say more?

For those of you who have the pleasure of visiting the West Coast, make it your Harold and Kumar mission to find an In-N-Out. It will change your life.

For those of you familiar with In-N-Out, doesn't just seeing the red palm trees on white cups and wrappers make you drool? That's because they offer fresh meat that's never been frozen, handcut fries, handcut lettuce, and all sort of other tough manual labor and suffering that makes everything apparently taste better. (Actually, they manually run the items through machines and manually pull levers and crank devices to cut and churn everything, so the machines do virtually all the work. So much for claim to fame.)

The result?

A luscious, juicy burger topped with American cheese made to your liking. How do you know it's going to be to your liking? Because you can not only custom-order the food, but you can also order items not on the menu! In-N-Out is notorious for only having something like 10 items on their real menu, relying on attendees to know there's a secret menu with all sort of other items or combinations of existing arrangements. You can get fries ordered extra crispy or burgers "animal style" with tons of sauce and cheese and onions or fries ordered "animal style". The sky is the limit!

The end result? One of the best fast food meals you'll ever have for something in the general range of $6-7. Toss in a chocolate milkshake, and you know you'll be working extra long at the gym tomorrow.

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These are dangos. Born before we ever saw the first deep-fried candy bars, deep fried ice cream, or deep fried soda, these deep fried balls of dough are a staple of LA festivals like Tofu Festival, Lotus Festival, and Nisei Week. Tofu Festival was cancelled two years ago, after the likes of Tofu Ninja and Tofuzilla, due to lack of a large enough venue. (And I was looking forward to the next tofu mascot.) Lotus Festival this year was so dull that DD and I ended up buying food from a Mexican vendor off the street, hovering just outside the perimeter of the festival, waiting on people like us, who just didn't find anything appealing in the suprisingly large food court. We munched happily on duros and corn slathered in mayo and parmesan cheese, though I still wistfully longed for deep fried dango goodness...

Nisei Week to save the day! Though the Nisei Festival (J-Town, Aug. 15-23, 2009) was considerably smaller than either of the other two festivals, of the 5-6 food booths they had, DD and I were able to buy four powdered sugar-covered dangos and a couple Asahi beers for less than $10. And while these (in my humble opinion) didn't compare to how I remember Island Dangos tasting, they were still enough to soothe the craving and remind me of why I deal with the parking and the crowds and the funky entertainment at any festival: deep fried dough balls covered in sugar!

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I have always been a fan of breakfast. Any meal that inherently requires frying foods, using oil and butter, and sizzling on flat griddles is automatically BOMB in my book. The smell of eggs reminds me of Saturday mornings at home, when Mom used to make scrambled eggs with any variety of breakfast foods. Some days it was taco meat for breakfast burritos. Some days it was egg-battered toast with powdered sugar for French toast. Other days it was simply eggs and bacon. But through it all, the Asian in her always served it with RICE.

Meet the Kenny's Special. The inspired creation at Kenny's Coffee Shop, located on the corner of Grand and 28th Street. This non-descript building in the middle of run-down South Central is an oasis of flavors and home-made loving. Inside, you'll see bright green walls, adorned with pictures of past guests and fellow bons vivants who have cherished this hallowed haven of good greasy food.

The Kenny's Special consists of one to two pieces of beef steak, adorned with their homemade teriyaki sauce--a thick mix of brown sugar and soy sauce. On the other side, you'll receive a generous helping of fried slices of kielbasa sausage, fit for a king. Perfectly cooked, these tender morsels of love are fully cooked and yet not burned--so as to retain the moisture and that small dose of sausage oils that splash out when you take a bite. Genius. In the last corner, a fried egg--a necessity for any breakfast. Think you're drooling yet? The whole thing tops a huge mound of FRIED RICE. Off to the side, they provide an extra helping of teriyaki sauce and some pickled onions, which I hardly touch because I'm too busy devouring every bit of fried goodness in front of me. "Impressive" was the word used when someone heard I had finished every last bit of food and grain of rice in the Kenny's Special. Yes, it was that good.

And while the occasional excursion to Kenny's is entirely worth it, sometimes you just want that homecooked loving in the privacy of your own home. Sunday mornings were born for this sort of loving. Breakfasts at my place include sausage and bacon and spam and Chinese sausage, with eggs sunny side up and sometimes a mimosa to kick things up. Each dish, of course, is always served over a generous helping of rice.

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Let me start by saying what I have always said to my friends and family:
New York City is my affair, my mistress, my lover, and Los Angeles is the love of my life.

An LA girl at heart, I have been to NYC at least once a year to enjoy not only the atmosphere, but also the 5-star restaurants and the hot dog vendors on the street, who sometimes oh-so-kindly cut me a slice of the lamb rotisserie to top the hot dog. Heaven.

Since I left Los Angeles after college, I didn't get a considerable amount of time to explore the finer restaurants in LA, so I didn't know they existed. Yes, I had been the the generic Beverly Hills restaurants--the Lawry's and Porterhouse Bistros and Stinking Roses of the world--but I hadn't been to any restaurants which compared to New York's fine gourmet dining.

....Until I went to Maison Akira.

Maison Akira, located in Pasadena, CA, is home to Chef Akira, a chef who combines French and Japanese influence into dishes that pay stunning attention to detail, play on the senses, and touch the most complementary parts of the pallate. In short, the meal was orgasmic.

DD and I opted for the 9-course tasting menu, which encompassed almost every prized dish on the menu. The chef paid such amazing attention to detail that he even interspersed small servings of raspberry sorbet to cleanse the pallate after a fish dish!

It was after this inspired meal that my man and I decided it would be a failure NOT to get what they called the "Hollywood Bowl Bento Boxes" for our recent excursion to the Hollywood Bowl. These boxes of brilliance were designed to bring to the classiest picnic you ever had at the Hollywood Bowl, before going into the show. Needless to say, this meal continued to excite and awe, and was nothing short of brilliant.



The menu:
- Soba Pasta Salad
- Shrimp Cocktail
- House Smoked Duck Breast
- House Smoked Salmon
- French Cheese
- Salami & Garlic Sausage
- Ratatouille Nicoise
- Assorted Vegetables
- Bread, Butter and all necessary utensils

Main Course:
Miso Marinated Chilean Sea Bass & Grilled Sliced Chicken Breast
Or
Miso Marinated Chilean Sea Bass & Kobe Steak (add $8.00)

Dessert:
Apple Tart with Caramel Sauce

The price? A mere $25. Can I buy this for a regular dinner without the Hollywood Bowl?

Every single thing that the chef prepared was delicious, and DD and I only left the steamed vegetables and the bread behind, since we knew the chef didn't do anything special to them. Every item was a crescendo, leading to the next item, which was even more explosive. The finishers, the kobe steak and the sea bass, were beyond words. Needless to say, the meal was eaten in silence, with occasional sounds of contentment.

I confess, Maison Akira rivaled Gramercy Tavern and Jean-Georges. New York, something tells me LA is about to give you a run for your money.

Maison Akira

713 E Green Street, Pasadena, CA

http://www.maisonakira.com/

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