Showing posts with label pablo moix. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pablo moix. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 30, 2013

The Taste of Mexico Returns Oct 11, Presale Ends July 31

The Taste of Mexico is returning on October 11, and you have until July 31 to get special presale pricing of $50 VIP admission ($20 off with code LASFF13) and $40 general admission ($10 off with code LASFF) on their website
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Some of the best Mexican restaurants in LA like La Casita Mexicana, Coni Seafood, La Guelaguetza, and Mexikosher will be there, along with various tequila, wine, and Cerveza Victoria to quench your thirst.
Last year, the Guelagetza siblings even got these sweet outfits for mixologists Steve Livigni and Pablo Moix.

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Melisse Ups the Ante with New Cocktails by Steve Livigni and Pablo Moix

Melisse has always been one of the top restaurants in the city, but it lacked a good cocktail program - until now. Chef Josiah Citrin and the team at Melisse recently hired the team behind La Descarga and other great LA bars, Steve Livigni, Pablo Moix, and Lindsay Nader, to come up with a bar program to meet the level of their food.

The result? A fun and sophisticated list of cocktails. There's no physical bar at Melisse, but with a kitchen of this caliber, they can do a lot of fun and ambitious things "table side" that you cannot do at a busy bar, like this deconstructed Zombie.

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Watching the setup and action is certainly part of the draw for this drink.
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Steve Livigni pouring in frozen nitrogen
The deconstructed zombie consisted of rum jello made with three different rums (Flor de Cana 4 year, Appleton VX, and Smith and Cross Navy Strength), Passion fruit "dippin dots", mint gelee, and passionfruit juice. It's beautiful with the style of a Melisse dessert.

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Check Out Plan Check: Craft Cocktails on Sawtelle

There have been plenty of exciting new places on Sawtelle recently, including Tsujita and their amazing tsukemen, but Plan Check brings something completely new to Little Osaka: cocktails! I've been looking forward to the opening since learning that Pablo Moix and Steve Livigni are consulting and created the cocktail menu for this new place.

I was able to attend their friends and family night before the official opening, where they brought out the signature dishes for us to try. The kitchen menu is the creation of Ernesto Uchimura, the chef who was at Umami when they first opened, so think heavy drinking food: burgers, fried chicken, and the likes just a stone's throw away from all the curry and tofu houses.

Out of the two burgers we tried I liked the Bleuprint Burger: akaushi red wagyu beef, smoked blue cheese, pig candy (candied bacon), fried onions, steak sauce, peppercress, "crunch bun" ($11)

Bleuprint Burger
The buns are made especially this restaurant and they described it as a Portuguese milk bun with extra crunch. I liked how it's moist and sweet, though it makes the burger a tad richer. There's a lot going on in this burger, as you can see, but since I liked every component, I enjoyed it as a whole.

Their "standard" burger is the Plan Check Burger with akaushi red wagyu beef, americanized (?) cheese, ketchup leather, onions, pickles, "crunch bun" ($10)
Plan Check Burger
You've probably read about the "ketchup leather" elsewhere, but yes. Remember the fruit leathers you might have had as a kid? They've made their ketchup into one of those, to avoid the buns getting soggy from ketchup. I think I still like regular ketchup better, though, since it's a bit drier with the "leather." You can taste the flavors of the wagyu patty better in this simpler burger.

Saturday, May 16, 2009

Blogger Blowout at STK

A month or so ago, STK held a media dinner (organized by Pleasure Palate) for a bunch of bloggers who got way more than what we (at least I) imagined we would. When I say a bunch, I do mean a bunch. Throughout the night I met some bloggers I haven't met before like streetgourmetla, Matt Bites, Tara Met Blog, Alli411, Seeking Food, Food, She Thought, and Gastronomer. And then almost everyone else on my blogroll: Wandering Chopsticks, Kung Food Panda, Mattatouille, Choisauce, Teenage Glutster, Sinosoul, and The Liquid Muse. (Am I missing anyone? There were so many of you!)

The night started with a slew of cocktails concocted by mixologist Pablo Moix in the bar area.

A couple of interesting and 'spicy' drinks: Capsicum Mojito (bacardi, lime juice, mint leaves, bell pepper rings - $15)

The winner of the majority vote was the Green Intensity cocktail (aviation gin, lime juice, serrano chili slices, basil leaves - $14)
As someone noted upon first sip, this cocktail "tastes like Thailand in your mouth!" A little spicy for me to drink the whole thing, but definitely unique, memorable, and tasty.

My favorite drink was actually the uva caipirinha (lebon cachaca, red grapes, lime, clover honey - $14). Sweeter than your standard caipirinha because of the grapes, and I also love the taste and smell of the honey. Definitely planning on trying this at home!

The only off-menu item we had that night was the first course - "Tomato 4 Ways"
The most interesting and creative dish of the night, in my opinion. Seems like chef Todd Miller really showcases what he can do with this one. Tomato "tartar", dried tomato, flash fried tomato, and raw cherry tomato. Delicate, creative, very well-executed and nicely presented.

Since we ate sooo much, and I was drinking soo much to really remember and take decent photos of everything, let me give you the highlights :P

Roasted Beets (coriander, micro mint, yogurt, curry - regular price $12)
The creamy yogurt sauce might be a tad too sweet/creamy that it deters a bit from the beets, but otherwise I enjoyed this dish. The beets were amazingly sweet, and the little spice from the coriander and curry was a very nice contrast. And the micro mint ... well, I'm still not sure what a micro mint is.

And then there was my favorite dish of the night: The Li'l Big Macs (Japanese wagyu, "special sauce", sesame bun - regular price $20)
Thick, moist, juicy wagyu patty. Nicely toasted buns. A creamy special sauce and the essence of truffle. My god, this was sooo good. Eating this satisfies an almost (almost? no, it totally does) carnal desire.

Our steaks came pre-sliced - not sure if they do this normally or if this is just because we are sharing everything with a big group. Below is the dry-aged rib-eye.
The meat was pretty tender, cooked medium-rare (just right) and pretty juicy. They were already a little cold by the time I got to them though, so it's hard for me to say anymore (I don't like cold steaks).

Some of the sides were pretty notable, such as these Parmesan truffle fries (regular price $9)
These big, thick fries were the perfect media for truffle oil and parmesan cheese (Yes, that's where my priority lies. truffle>parmesan>potato).

Another side that I really enjoyed was the sweet corn pudding. So creamy, sweet, with a bit of saltiness. If you haven't yet noticed that I have a corn on the cob on all my festival posts, I'll tell you again. I. LOVE. CORN. So you might not want to take my word 100% on how good this sweet corn pudding is.

The dessert is notable because they used Nutella :)
A classy version of a chocolate pop tart, with Nutella.

I haven't paid much attention to STK until that night and I was pleasantly surprised. Pablo Moix's drinks were creative and delicious. The food was also pretty good with good steak and a few great starters/sides, such as the sweet corn pudding. Or like those Li'l Big Macs. Ohh. Must come back!

STK
755 N La Cienega Blvd
West Hollywood, CA 90069
(310) 659-3535
STK on Urbanspoon

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