Giant Cactus! Valle de Los Gigantes in San Felipe, Baja California,Mexico

People think of the beach and ocean when they think of San Felipe in Baja California, Mexico, but it is also a desert. A desert with giant cacti!

Thanks to Street Gourmet LA, I went along on a media trip to San Felipe this past week and saw these giants with my own eyes.
Valle de Los Gigantes in Rancho Punta Estrella features gigantic sahuaros, which are only 6 mm when it's a year old but can grow for 2000 (yes, 2000!) years!

They don't produce the first seed until they're about 75 years old, and after that it will go on to produce millions, but maybe only one will survive until maturity. Well, when "maturity" in the desert amount to thousands of years, that's not so surprising ...

For size comparisons:

See Street Gourmet LA with his camera to the right? It's not that he's far away in the background, that really is how big that cactus is.

I don't know why this one didn't sprout any branches, but it sure grew to be a lot taller than the rest!

San Felipe gets really hot in the summer months (March is the ideal time to vacation here), but it was definitely worth the trek to see them.

Farewell to Foie at Takami Sushi with Montes Wines

At least with the impending foie gras ban, there are many more chances to indulge in foie at numerous restaurants in Los Angeles until then. Takami Sushi and Robata in downtown LA also has a rotating foie gras special until July 1. I was recently invited a tasting of the foie dishes paired with Montes wines from Chile, hosted by Takami and Montes Wines. Chilean wines are much more affordable than the European or Californian counterparts. Before the dinner we were served a crisp and refreshing Montes Chardonnay that runs about $11 a bottle.

The first course was a Vichyssoise of foie gras

Naturally the soup was rich and smooth. It was topped w seared foie, which was a bit gritty.
The soup was paired with a 2011 Montes Cherub Rose of Syrah


The richness of the soup and the acidity of the wine neutralized each other nicely.

Seared foie gras, caramelized mango, rose reduction.
Paired with 2010 Montes Alpha Chardonnay

The seared foie here was much better and smoother than the one in the soup and it went really well with the sweet, tender mango!

Braised daikon, foie gras w shallot butter broth, paired with 2010 Montes Alpha Pinot Noir

I love this since it was a more unique combination and a fitting one for a Japanese restaurant. The daikon was very tender and sweet. Each bite was wonderfully savory and creamy and paired nicely with the pinot.

Next: Nigiri of Ahi tuna and foie gras with eel sauce

I've had foie gras sushi before, but not tuna sushi further topped with foie! Double the rewards.
This was paired with the only California wine of the night, 2007 StarAngel by Montes, Syrah, Paso Robles.

The last savory course was a filet of beef and foie gras with black truffle in veal stock reduction.

How can you go wrong with this trio? The beef was very tender, and combined with the oh-so-fatty foie and a generous piece of truffle it was a heavenly bite. I wanted a big serving of this!

Paired with 2009 Montes Alpha Carmenere

The final course was a couple of Foie gras truffles, fresh berries, and butter wafer, paired with their dessert wine: a 2010 Montes Late Harvest Gewurtztraminer

I didn't really taste the foie gras but these may be the richest and creamiest truffles ever!

The foie gras dishes will rotate in and out of the menu at Takami until the ban on July 1st, so get them while you can!

Takami Sushi and Robata
811 Wilshire Boulevard #2100
Los Angeles, CA 90071
(213) 236-9600
www.takamisushi.com

Yellowstone National Park

I'm on vacation! So I'll probably be a little slower in updating my posts :)

In the meantime though, here are some shots from the beautiful Yellowstone National Park. I highly recommend everyone to go there. The major sights are accessible by car and minimal walking, and there are so much to see!

In order below: the Grand Prismatic Spring, The Old Faithful geyser, a geyser next to Lake Yellowstone, the Opal Pool, and the Mud Volcano.

These are just some of the things you can see there. I also saw baby bisons that were just born next to a river and half a dozen waterfalls.