El Balcon: Alta Cocina in San Felipe (Baja, Mexico)

Unlike the more metropolitan Tijuana, there aren't too many high end dining options in San Felipe, a sleepy town during the off-season. Still, there is at least one, and a very good one at that.

El Balcon Cocina Artesanal opened in Jaunary this year by Chef Julio Cesar Gonzalez Zetina who had previous worked at the Ritz Carlton in Cancun and researched Mayan culinary traditions for the university there. Now he also teaches the subject at the local university after a recent move from Ensenada.

El Balcon wasn't a fancy restaurant, just a few cute tables outside on the second floor of La Plazita, and an outdoor kitchen. Thick tortilla chips are accompanied by a bold housemade salsa.

Our lunch tasting began with an Aguachile de Cazon (dogfish marinated in burnt chili sauce and green sauce, smoked tuna, sea asparagus and "Huaxes" (toasted seeds), grasshopper, verdolaga

We have had plenty of bounty from the Sea of Cortez, but this was the first time in San Felipe that we had it raw. The fresh dogfish carpaccio reminded me of kanpachi and both of the chile were so good that despite not being able to eat that spicy, I had to finish the entire plate (while downing plenty of water).

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Tasting Menu at Shunji (West LA)

Shunji is one of the hot recent restaurant openings, with Chef Shunji Nakao's serving his "contemporary" omakase in an inconspicuous stand-alone building on Pico Blvd. There are only a handful of tables and a few seats at the sushi bar, and the chef prepared most of the dishes personally (some get fired in the kitchen).

His printed menu looks like the standard Japanese restaurant, but we had read about his omakase (the omakase was not printed on the menu) and just asked for that.

As an amuse bouche, a small bowl of jelly with cucumber and vinegar sauce

Next is a plate of small bites of vegetables, ankimo topped with caviar, a ball of purple potato with blue cheese and persimmon, and sweet potato with feta and truffle

Unsure if we were supposed to eat these in a particular order, we moved in one direction and it moves from rich (ankimo) to the palate cleansing, crisp, unadorned vegetables to the creamy potatoes

The scallop sashimi, topped with arugula flower, was so fresh

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For the Downtown Beer and Wine Geeks: Buzz Wine Beer Shop

We know plenty of watering holes in Downtown LA, but where do downtowners go to buy beer and wine for their homes? Well, now they should all be going to Buzz, the new wine and beer shop on Spring Street.

Buzz is not only about the eclectic selection of wine and beer (a fairly large collection of beers at that), they also have a tasting room in the back where you can get flights, taste beers on tap, and attend special tastings.

I was invited to a tasting party there along with other media, wine distributors, and the wine producers. The tasting showcases some of the more interesting (some rare) wines they have at Buzz, like Eastern European wines from Blue Danube Wines, and La Clarine Farm wines from the Sierra Nevada foothills. Sierra what? It's apparently a region east of Sacramento - a growing wine region that had escaped my radar thus far.

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Anchor Bar (Buffalo, NY): Home of the Original Buffalo Wings

Anchor Bar may no longer be the best place to go for buffalo wings in Buffalo, NY, but it will forever be the place where the wings were first invented. Naturally it still draws plenty of tourists; it's after all fun to go to "the home of the original buffalo wings!"

The buffalo wings were said to have been invented by Teressa Bellissimo in 1964, when she served them to her son and his college friends late one night. Now, there's a 15-30 minute wait for a table. Photos of celebrities at Anchor Bar and articles fill the walls. Shot glasses and t shirts are available as souvenirs.

We got a "bucket" of 50 wings ($39) to share among 8 people. I was worried about the spiciness and we ended up ordering a "medium" which the waitress said had a good kick to it but wasn't too spicy. Well ... the "medium" was actually super mild ... even for me!

The skin on the wings were nice and crunchy, but we could barely taste the buffalo sauce. They were still good wings, but towards the end of the bucket, I decided to ask the waitress for extra hot sauce. It was much more flavorful with the hot sauce, but she charged us for it.

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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.

Watching the setup and action is certainly part of the draw for this drink.

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.

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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.

Flagship Mendocino Farms in West Hollywood Opens May 31

Mendocino Farms, the beloved sandwich shop, is getting ready to open their flagship location on 3rd and Fairfax, just across the street from The Original Farmer's Market.

This fifth location is their swankiest (being the flagship and all) with a kid's corner, communal table, outdoor seating, and a lit-up "EAT HAPPY" sign above the kitchen.

They're also trying to have beers that are more interesting than the ones at the Marina del Rey location and will be selling those that have been selling well at Blue Cow Kitchen.

We tried small portions of various sandwiches during the press preview, from the classic to the seasonal sandwiches. All the sandwiches are served on breads specially developed for them by Dolce Forno (Celestino Drago's bakery).

Here are some highlights of what we tried
Spanish chicken: shaved, roasted chicken breast, housemade Manchego pimento cheese, romesco, paprika vinegar, house marinated red peppers, roasted tomatoes, Scarborough Farm's arugula on ciabatta

Summer Cubano: slow braised carnitas, prime honey ham, Mendocino mustard, housemade dill pickles, Cuban mojo sauce, drispy plantains on Dolce Forno's soft roll

They have finally "perfected" their cubano sandwich using the new mojo sauce developed at Blue Cow Kitchen, and topping it with fried plantains

Try also the "Not so fried"chicken sandwich: roasted chicken breast in Mendo's krispies with herb aioli, mustard pickled slaw, tomatoes, pickled red onions on toasted ciabatta with chipotle BBQ Sauce.

Some new salads are also coming out for the summer, full of healthy grains like this Fregola Salad.

Starting May 31, you don't have to drive to Marina del Rey or downtown for their popular pork belly banh mi anymore.

Mendocino Farms
175 S Fairfax Ave
 Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323) 934-4261
www.mendocinofarms.com

Sunday Brunch Buffet Extravaganza at TAPS Fish House & Brewery (Brea,CA)

When I think of brunch buffets, I think of the expensive $70+ ones at fancy hotels with fresh seafood and unlimited mimosas. At TAPS Fish House and Brewery, however, $35.99 gets you a buffet of over 100 items and your choice of beer or sparkling wine (2 TAPS beer or unlimited sparkling wine).

The owner Joe Manzella so loved the brunch he had in New Orleans that he was determined to replicate the fun here, with a balloon lady and all. He didn't know how well it would do but now TAPS does about 700 covers every Sunday brunch.

There's a DIY Bloody Mary Bar, though for our media tasting they had gone ahead and prepared some for us, complete with pepper, olive, and a cocktail shrimp as garnish.
 

There are over 100 items in this buffet. Where to start? Start with the fresh oysters, of course!

In this station they also had ceviches and dungeness crab salads. Then, move on to the made-to-order omelets

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Beachside Cocktails at KuDeTa (Bali, Indonesia)

When drinking in Bali, you'd want to drink by the beach, with an ocean view. You can do exactly that with good cocktails on a beach lounger at KuDeTa. KuDeTa is situated in the Hotel Oberoi. To the left is the dining room, the more casual bar is to the right, while the middle section opens up to a set of loungers facing the beach (you can go down to the beach via a set of stairs guarded by a security guard).

The cocktails are much better than the bar in Kuta but they also cost a lot more at Rp.110,000 (~$12). Still, I was happy to see some tiki classics like Blood and Sand and Mai Tai on the menu - happier still to find out they were done well.

To relax on a sunny day, and especially if you can snag some seats during sunset, KuDeTa is currently my bar of choice.

KuDeTa
Jalan Hotel The Oberoi Indonesia
036 173 6969
www.kudeta.net/

Happy Hour at Casa Vega, a Restaurant with a History (Sherman Oaks)

How old on average are the restaurants you know of in Los Angeles? Chances are, not that old. Even what we consider to be old have probably been around for about ten years. Well, Casa Vega in Sherman Oaks has been in business for more than 50 years. There's something to be said about that!

I was invited there recently to check out their happy hour. There's no separate happy hour menu, just $4.95 house margaritas, 20% off other drinks, and 50% off appetizers. The happy hour also runs from 2:30-7pm daily (in case you want to get your drinking on early in the day).

Other than the house margarita, they have other variations such as the blood orange (with blood orange soda though) and some frozen blended ones like the coconut margarita - think pina colada with tequila (regular price $7.95).

The food menu is extensive since long time customers complain when the restaurant tries to take their "favorites" off the menu, so it just kept growing. Most of them are the "typical" Mexican food you encounter, but they have quite a few interesting items as well. We tried a few appetizers. For me, the highlights were these two:
Queso Fundido (regular price $8.75)

A bowl of hot melted Jack and Cotija cheese, what a perfect food for drinking.


Lobster Quesadilla (lemon garlic lobster, jack and cheddar cheese, guacamole, sour cream - regular price $14.95)

They actually use chunks of lobster in the quesadilla. The quesadilla itself was pretty inexpensive for lobster, plus half off? Quite a deal.
 For desserts they have flan and churros, but you can get an after dinner boozy drinks like the Senior's Famous Mexican Coffee. What's in it? It's apparently a "secret recipe" but it's sweet and strong.

Checking out Casa Vega was fun for its history. The decor and the food is more of the mainstream/typical Mexican restaurants as opposed to some of the more regional specialists that are starting to emerge these days, but remember this place was opened more than 50 years ago! For the Sherman Oaks or Studio City locals, happy hour is a pretty good deal, especially when it goes on at 2:30!


Casa Vega
13301 Ventura Blvd
 Sherman Oaks, CA 91423
(818) 788-4868