Urasawa: Splurging once every 3 years

Sorry, I haven't had time to write it up completely. But everyone knows how amazing Urasawa is anyway, right? So for now, just enjoy the pictures and the brief reviews...

Hairy crab salad.Toro tataki, with yuzu, crysanthemum leaves, and gold flakes.
This dish has uni underneath. Urasawa's uni really is the best I've ever had. Nothing else is quite like it. Very sweet and the freshness is undebatable.














Sashimi ice sculpture. The one at the very left is of course, toro. The one furthest to the right is some great hamachi.
This was is a sort of chawan mushi, but potato-based.

Cod sperm sac tempura. (Sperm sac?? Yep .. Hey, it was GOOD)
Hairy crab, with hairy crab brain, topped with uni.

Seared wagyu beef. Yumm ...
This was what we got for the shabu shabu dish. It has live lobster, scallop, toro, and foie gras (in that order).
I spent a good part of the night just gawking at him while he does his stuff.

Hiro's apprentice killing a lobster.













Fresh lobster sushi.
We had so many different types of fish that night. Including needle fish, fresh kuruma shrimp, mirugai ...

Seared toro. The best sushi ever ... I had like 5 of them that night ... *sigh*
Hiro-san kept asking me if I was full. And all I kept saying was "I'll have more toro." What? I'm getting money's worth :P

Negi toro maki.
Ripe persimmon for dessert.
Azuki (red bean) with sesame seeds and gold flakes.



Urasawa
218 N Rodeo Dr
Beverly Hills, CA 90210
(310) 247-8939

The Quiet Italian

The few bad things about Angelini Osteria (and these are not necessarily "bad" things, depending on how you look at it) are that it's hard to get reservations and it is always crowded. We think that this was probably the main reason Gino Angelini decided to open La Terza. And while La Terza with its white tablecloths and high ceiling seems much more formal than its Osteria counterpart, it actually feels more casual and relaxed (probably because you're not surrounded by dozens of Beverly Hill-ers).

We started with some bruschetta compliments of the chef. The bread at La Terza was drizzled with olive oil and black peppers, delicious and the peppers gave it a kick.

For appetizers we got mussels and clams in polenta. I never have imagined mussels, clams, and polenta together but they went very, very well with each other. The mussels were not on the huge side, but nonetheless the taste was excellent and we scraped the polenta off this dish.
In between we had some risotto with parmesan and artichokes, again, compliments from the chef.
For our main course, we had spaghetti with lobster and fried artichokes, and the rotisserie duck with swiss chard and dried figs.
Not enough lobster in the spaghetti, but the taste was nothing to complain about :)

The duck was juicy and tasty and the skin was crispy but not burned, just the way I like it. It goes very well with the chard and figs.
For dessert we had the Cioccolato which was a Piemonte's bunet. The bunet was excellent! with a strong chocolate taste. Highly recommended.
We also had the Affogato which is served at Angelini Osteria also.

All in all, the food was on par with Angelini, although the pasta dishes are probably better at the Osteria (the desserts are better at La Terza though). However, La Terza makes for more of a relaxed and pleasant dining experience.

La Terza Restaurant
8384 West Third St.
Los Angeles, CA 90048
323.782.8384
www.laterzarestaurant.com