Showing posts with label rick bayless. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rick bayless. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Rick Bayless Opens Red O in Santa Monica

by guest blogger @btsunoda

Celebrity chef  Rick Bayless, recently extended his LA base of operations to include another Red O. Located on picturesque Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica, it’s just a hop skip and a jump from the iconic Santa Monica Pier.

A pre-grand opening party was recently held there. The menu is similar to their original location on Melrose: appetizers, ceviche and raw bar, soups and salads, steak and seafood, other entrees and sides. Thanks to corn being the staple starch in Mexican food, almost everything on their menu is gluten free.
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The interior is modern chic. Premium tequila and mezcal bottles attractively line the walls.
During the party, an impressive “Red O” tower of seafood commanded the interior.
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It was surrounded by two different types of Mexican ceviche, oysters on the half shell and crab legs.

One of my favorites that evening was the Shrimp & Calamari Ceviche.   IMG_1800

Monday, June 14, 2010

Rick Bayless' Frontera Grill, Chicago

Serendipity would have it that the Amalfi hotel where I stayed at in Chicago was two blocks away from Rick Bayless' Frontera Grill and XOCO.

I decided to walk to Frontera Grill as soon as I checked into the hotel. The restaurant was packed, including the bar, but a bar seat for one is apparently pretty easy to come by. One advantage to dining solo (the disadvantage would be having a guy hitting on you while he's hiccuping, but that's another story ...).
I'm not sure what the theme was supposed to be, but the decor was rather ... unique, with some awesome-but-a-bit-creepy sculptures hanging by the ceiling, like this one:

The cocktail list at Frontera was pretty interesting. I started with Cerveza y Tamarindo ($10), since I don't come across 1) beer cocktails and 2)tamarind cocktails that often in the states.
This was made with fresh tamarind, Cazadores blanco tequila, and Ayinger "Ur-Weisse" heffe weizen. The tamarind lends the drink both body and tartness. Quite an interesting drink.

I wasn't used to eating alone at a new place and had a hard time deciding what I wanted to order. I narrowed it down to a few things and with the help of the bartender finally ordered the weekly special of the day:
Barbacoa de Borrego (red chile-marinated Crawford lamb slow-roasted in banana leaves, $23) - available on Thursdays.
Served with some warm corn tortillas, of course.
It was indeed a very good barbacoa, with the right flavor components. Despite having been marinated in red chile, it wasn't particularly spicy. I I found the tortillas a bit thicker than I would've preferred it, but the barbacoa itself was tender and very flavorful. t's just that the last time I had barbacoa I spent $8 instead of $23.

The people sitting next to me were gushing about the Topolo Margarita ($9), so oh, well, why not ...
Made with Sauza Commemorativo tequila, Gran Torres orange liqueur and housemade limonada, shaken at the table. A very good margarita, indeed.

"Sopa de frutas" (velvety tropical mamey-orange ice in guava, orange, and passionfruit afloat in passion fruit "broth", $7.50) sounded pretty light and I didn't want to leave and just review one dish, so I ordered it.
It didn't end up being as light as I expected, as passionfruit broth was actually a pretty thick puree.

It's undeniable that I had quite a good meal at Rick Bayless' Frontera Grill. It had a fun vibe and a solid cocktail program, which may justify spending an extra $20 on Mexican food than I normally spend. Maybe. At least on my very first trip to Chicago, I didn't mind doing so.

Frontera Grill
449 N Clark St
Chicago, IL 60610
(312) 661-0381
http://www.rickbayless.com/restaurants/grill.html
Frontera Grill on Urbanspoon

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