Pasadena Wine Bar Renaissance? Part 1: Vertical Wine Bistro

I admit, I never paid much attention to wine bars in Pasadena before because, well, what's in Pasadena? At least that was my thought.

With the exception of Noir that I checked out a couple of months ago, I haven't gone to the others, but a recent visit with Mattatouille to Vertical Wine Bistro in Old Town changed my perception of the Pasadena scene. We were there for their $5 champagne special that they for the 12 days of Christmas (and also to celebrate our birthdays a few days apart).

Vertical Wine Bistro recently recruited "wine dude" David Haskell (BIN 8945, 2006 Sommelier of the Year award from Angeleno Magazine) to revamp their wine program, and his touch is showing. Lucky me, Mattatouille knows the dude and knows just to take his recommendations on wine instead of ordering on our own.

Vertical's impressive wine list of more than 400 wines spans 10-some pages and ranges from bottles in the $20's to the $100's, including some unique and rare varietals. How are you supposed to pick? Well, we just ask. Otherwise, you can always choose one of the 7 flights they have available on the menu.

It's a bistro after all, so a review of the food is warranted. We decided to get some small plates to share at the bar, and I just went along with Matt's recommendations here.

First up: Corn Fritter (cured salmon, creme fraiche) - $12
Unlike what I expected, the crispy corn fritters were topped with a thick slice of smoked salmon. Lovely texture contrast, lots of flavors. These are some great bites.

Shoestring fries (truffle oil/ketchup) - $8
These thin fries were not overdone and had great texture. Not to mention the generous dousing of truffle oil made me unable to stop popping them into my mouth.

Chorizo Pizza (tomato, mozzarella, basil) - $10
Quite a well prepared rendition of flatbread and always a crowd pleaser, this pizza gets a flavor kick from the spicy chorizo.

So here's where David Haskell comes out and greets Mattatouille. He decided that we didn't have enough to eat though, so soon after he brought out the tour de force:
Roasted Jidori Chicken for 2, roasted tableside - $48
David himself prepared our chicken tableside for us.
I don't normally order chicken at restaurants since it tends to be dry and overcookedy. Of course, I went straight for the chicken leg myself, but I did try the white meat pieces to see how they were and found them to be moist and juicy as well.

David paired our chicken with a 1990 Chapoutier Hermitage.
Smooth tannins and full bodied, pretty rich and complex. This was a beautiful wine and it paired wonderfully with the roasted chicken. We wouldn't have made this pairing on our own, but that's why David Haskell is there.

We also tried a couple of cocktails made by Nikki the bartender.
Her new concoction made with blueberries is light, sweet, and refreshing. We liked it better with bitters and I promised her I'd bring some rhubarb bitters next time I come ( I still haven't yet, but I will, I promise!).

She also claims to make one of the best Margaritas in town, so of course we had to try that.
It was indeed one of the best margaritas I've ever had, a simple but balanced drink.

I've heard of Vertical Wine Bistro before, of course, but now it baffled me why I haven't thought about checking it out. With more than solid food, great wine list, and good (albeit still small) cocktail list, this place should be a go-to place for Old Town Pasadena.


Vertical Wine Bistro
70 N Raymond Ave (upstairs)
Pasadena, CA 91103
(626) 795-3999
http://www.verticalwinebistro.com/

My New Fave Dim Sum: Lunasia

Happy New Year to all!
Hope everyone had a great winter break.

So, now that it's 2010 and all, I wanted to try to get my backlogged posts out! My favorite dim sum place as of late is Lunasia, which replaced Triumphal Palace a while back.

Why do I like Lunasia so much?
1. The wait is typically less than other places like NBC, Elite, etc.
2. The ambiance is nicer, the place cleaner, the dishware nicer, and the service better. They actually changed the plates regularly.
3. The prices are quite reasonable.

Even if they did bump up the price last year, "Medium" dishes are still only $3.28. The popular fares like shiu mai and har gow still fall under this category. (Small dishes are $2.28 and large $4.28)
Compared to Dim Sum Express' $0.75 shiu mai, the ones here taste that much better and for 4 of them you'd only end up paying $0.28 more.

The shrimp dumplings (har gow, M) are also great. The skin is not too thick as to taste doughy, the shrimp nicely flavored and fresh.

Chicken feet in black bean sauce.

I also always like getting their bean curd skin wrap ($4.28)
These are meat and veggies wrapped in thin bean curd skin in a delightful broth.

Buttery char siu bao ($2.28)

The egg custard tarts are rich with a nice, flakey crust ($3.28)

Earlier in 2009, they had these durian puff pastries that I loved. Alas, they didn't have it on my last 2 visits and so I can only reminisce about it.
The pastry was warm and flakey, and inside you could find creamy durian paste the way it should be - sweet, strong in flavor and aroma. If you don't like durian and thinks that it's not at all sweet, then I'm sorry to say you had a bad durian.

I have never had to wait more than 15 minutes at Lunasia, even on the weekends! Add the taste and price point to that, this is my go-to dim sum place.

Lunasia
500 W Main Street Suite A
Alhambra, CA 91801
(626) 308-3222
www.lunasiachinesecuisine.com

Hot and Soupy #4: Ochazuke! Suehiro Cafe, Little Tokyo

Being the holidays, I ended up spending a lot of time watching Japanese dramas. And those, well, they make me crave Japanese food.

So one day, while watching Shinya Shokudo, I found myself craving Ochazuke.

Ochazuke, or chazuke, is a simple dish, really, and if I had the ingredients I probably could make it myself. It is made with rice served in a green tea and dashi broth. The toppings vary but the typical ones are salmon, tarako (cod roe), ume, nori (seaweed), etc.

Not having much luck locating a place that serves it in Pasadena, I dragged a friend to Suehiro Cafe in Little Tokyo. Suehiro Cafe is a popular place serving cheap comfort food like katsudon. I ordered the mixed chazuke with salmon, tarako, and nori for $6.30.

The bowl camed with a dollop of wasabi.Mixed Chazuke - $6.30

While it isn't as 'gourmet' and impeccable as the chazuke I had during my kaiseki meal at Wakuriya, this one is all about slurping it down. Warm, soupy rice full of dashi flavor would hit the spot any day. Oh, and I think tarako adds a great texture to the dish, so I recommend you get that topping next time you try chazuke.


Suehiro Cafe
337 E 1st St
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 626-9132

The List of New Year's Eve Lists + A Bit More

I still can't decide what to do for New Year's Eve either. In my search I came across some great lists from other bloggers/publications, so instead of rehashing what they said, I'm going to give you links to these lists so that they may help you too! I'll also add a few other things that may not be listed. Here goes:

Los Angeles Magazine: Roundup: New Year's Eve Planner

e*starLA: New Year, New Decade: The NYE Dinner-Party Round Up

Thirsty in LA: NYE Parties in LA: "So Long Aughts, and Thanks for All the Fish!"

OpenTable: New Year's Eve Dinners

For the bigger parties:
LA Times: Ramie Becker's Ring in 2010: Los Angeles New Year's Eve Parties

For more parties and hot shows:
NBC Los Angeles: LA's New Year's Eve 2010 Hotlist
lists of dinner or drinks with shows including Lucent Dossier's Haute Cirque

**************

Other goings-on:

For an early dinner, Bistro LQ will have a 4-course prix fixe menu at $55 for early seating (5:30-6:30) and a 6-course menu at $90 otherwise. Roasted Maine lobster, foie gras french toast-style, lamb loin, and duck magret are on the menu. Call (323) 951-1088.

Wolfgang's Steakhouse will have their full menu available plus a few specials (Lobster Mac and Cheese, a special cocktail). Not only that, they'll also have their Happy Hour menu available in the Della Robbia room starting at 10pm. And of course, complimentary champagne will go around twice here, at 9 pm (a toast to their NYC roots) and at midnight. Call (310) 385-0640.

Getting Into the Spirit: Infused SKYY Cocktails

When a PR email about the infused SKYY vodkas hit my mailbox, one cocktail recipe in particular caught my interest. That was the Mele Kalikimaka (Hawaii's way of pronouncing "Merry Christmas" and now also a song once recorded by Bing Crosby).


Mele Kalikimaka Martini

1.5 oz. SKYY Infusions Pineapple
3 oz. Eggnog
Splash of Coconut Cream or Coconut Milk
Nutmeg
Cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake vigorously and strain into martini glass. Top with sprinkling of nutmeg and cinnamon and garnish with a cinnamon stick.


I got samples of the SKYY Infusions Pineapple and Passionfruit and last weekend tried a "punch" using the passionfruit.

I'm bad at coming up with clever names, so here goes the

Passion-Quince Punch

1 part lime juice
2 parts agave syrup
3 parts Licor de Membrillo (quince liqueur that I obtained in Tijuana - I'll probably find a substitute you guys can actually work with sometime)
4 parts Passionfruit SKYY Infusions


The flavors from the fruit infusions come out strongly in this drink. A sweet but quite strong punch that I thought was perfect for my party guests who's not used to drinking but whom you want to get wasted anyway. Plus, it's easy to make when you're rushing to get your party started. (I've been told I always time things too tightly :P )

Hot and Soupy #3: Kaori Sushi, $50 Omakase, and Lobster Soup

I try not to come down to Orange County much (what would I do there?), but when I have to (i.e. when former roommate Kat's 9 Lives demands a visit from me), I ask for good food. The last I visited her in OC I was coaxed with some omakase at Kaori, a Korean-run sushi joint in Fullerton.

OK, this visit was actually quite some time ago, but I thought it would be an appropriate post for the "hot and soupy" series because the most memorable part of the meal was the lobster miso soup.

Now why would I go have omakase at a korean-run sushi place in Fullerton of all places? Well, Kat's previous report of a $50 omakase that included live lobster was pretty enticing.
Apparently you can call ahead and tell him you want to spend $50 and that you want the lobster soup so he can go buy lobster for you.

Turns out here at Kaori, $50 goes a long way.

We started with some vegetable tempura, followed by some Ankimo with ponzu sauce.

The came a plate of softshell crab.
Nice and crunchy although a tad heavy on the sauce.

Amaebi

Marinated oyster.
The Sashimi plates were also pretty impressive. We got two plates throughout the night consisting of toro, uni, hamachi belly, and more.
While they aren't the best pieces of sashimi you'd find around town, the quality and variety were both quite good considering the price we were paying.

A series of sushi came next, from Albacore belly to Ono with jalapeno ponzu sauce.

The sushi chef Gino showed his own flair too with local ingredients, as exemplified with the Anaheim Chili stuffed with salmon, topped with sriracha sauce.
It was just a li~ttle spicy for my level (I'm training, believe me), but it was a pretty creative dish. An Asian, fishy take on Chile Relleno?

Finally came the main attraction. The headliner of the night. Live lobster!
Live lobster sashimi in a $50 omakase? You have to call ahead and tell him you want it so he can go buy one for you, but if you do, a lobster will be killed and snapped in front of you.

Well, enough with the gore. Here's the delicious part: Live Lobster Sashimi
That's not all though. The best part is still to come. After you're done with the tail sashimi, he will take the rest and make an amazing Lobster Miso Soup.
This was the tour de force of the meal. The soup had so much flavor and texture from the miso base, the bits of lobster meat, and - perhaps the key secret ingredient - the lobster eggs which really added a lot of texture.

The meal ended with a simple matcha ice cream. Being my first time here, I was actually rather worried at the end, incredulous that the meal would actually only cost $50, but there it was on the bill: $50 per person.

Definitely a great deal for some omakase and while the sushi isn't at the level of the top joints in town, the lobster miso soup is worth a try.

Kaori Japanese Restaurant
500 N Harbor Blvd #C
Fullerton, CA 92832
(714) 871-9395

Hot and Soupy #2: Ippudo, NY. Best Ramen in the States

A New York trip calls for Ippudo - if you haven't been there, that is.
I met up with an LA blogger (now Destination Eats) who's relocated to NYC, and his girlfriend for lunch during my trip.
There was a 45 minute wait, so we went to Momofuku Milk Bar to get some goodies while waiting for a table, but Ippudo's staff wouldn't let us take our cookies into the dining area. We had to leave them in the staff closet to be picked up when we leave.

We had fun observing the wall of ramen bowls behind the bar, and wondered what would happen during an earthquake. Well, good thing they're not in California!
After a while we were called to be seated and walked through a fairly large dining room - much fancier than other ramen joints I've been too, but I guess this is a popular spot in NY after all.

I've heard good things about their pork buns, so we ordered some. But beware although at the bar you can order them for $4 each, when you're seated at a table you have to order two at a time for $8! Why? Who knows. Because they want to?
Some people may kill me for this, but I actually liked Momofuku's pork buns better ...
The problem with these are the mayonnaise. Too much mayonnaise that it overwhelms the pork flavor. While the oyster sauce in Momofuku's pork buns are reminiscent of Beijing duck, mayonnaise just reminded me of ...well ... sandwiches?

But the main attraction here is the ramen. I ordered the Akamaru Modern ($14)
Akamaru means 'red circle,' Destination Eats' girlfriend explained to me. The red circle most likely referred the dollop of spicy miso paste in the middle.

Some food porn shots for you: thin straight noodles in true Hakata-style, thick chashu, medium boiled eggs.
This was indeed an excellent bowl of ramen. I liked the firm Hakata thin noodles, the tonkotsu broth is rich and flavorful, the chashu thick and succulent, and the half boiled eggs added an extra texture that neither poached nor hard boiled egg can. It is indeed a magnificent bowl of ramen that hints of the gloriousness that you might get at the original Hakata outpost.

The $14 price tag aside, the attitude about the pork bun ordering and taking cookies in aside, this was conceivably the best bowl of ramen I've had in the US. Whether or not you should pay $14 for a bowl of ramen, though (even if you are in New York), is entirely your decision.

Ippudo
65 4th Ave
New York, NY 10003
(212) 388-0088
www.ippudo.com/ny/

Hot and Soupy #1: Handmade Soba and Udon at Ichimiann (You Never Knew It Could Taste This Good)

I've eaten at Ichimiann so much it's a wonder that I hadn't written about it sooner, but this cold winter weather is the perfect time to start it off as the inaugural post of my "Hot and Soupy" series of posts!

Ichimiann is a place I found through Exile Kiss' blogpost, lauding it as the one amazing teuchi(handmade) soba place in town. I was on a crazy soba kick and wanted to venture further than Yabu.

Ichimiann, aka Bamboo Garden, is a tiny shop on a dilapidated side street right next to Foster's Freeze and looks just like a typical noodle shop.
Cash only, you can place your order and then take a seat at the bar by the wall.

The rite of passage for all soba noobs is the Zaru Soba, so even though it doesn't meet the hot and soupy winter theme, it simply cannot be left unmentioned. Zaru soba gets its name from the bamboo sieve that it is served on and is typically served with tsuyu (a mixture of dashi, sweetened soy sauce, and mirin), scallions, and wasabi.
Mix the scallions and wasabi in the tsuyu, then pick up the buckwheat noodles and dip it in the tsuyu.
This is the dish that best highlights Ichimiann's excellent handmade soba, the wonderful texture and the flavor of the buckwheat noodle itself. The soba here is devoid of that doughy and powdery taste and texture that I always hated in mass produced noodles.

If you want hot soba, however, Ichimiann has plenty of options for you, from a simple bowl with poached egg to many more. The flavors of the broth are subtler here, unlike many places which tend to be salty, but it is ultimately more satisfying and worth savoring.

When you want your protein you could opt for the unagi soba topped with grated yam.
Even though this dish made me realize I'm not big on japanese yam, the rest of the dish was excellent. The unagi is nicely grilled and lends a nice flavor although I did miss the crisp texture of the unagi before it's soaked in broth and yam.

When Exile Kiss did a second post, this time on the udon noodles at Ichimiann, I had to go back and try that too (even if I'm still a soba girl).

A bowl of beef sukiyaki udon seems like the perfect meal for a chilly Saturday morning (ok, afternoon).

Ichimiann's udon is thin, unlike the type you normally see in stores and restaurants.
The sukiyaki udon bowl is bolder in flavor than the other soba dishes that I've had and it really hits the spot. The udon, while thinner than usual, is wonderfully chewy without that doughy consistency.
Ichimiann's subtle but deeply satisfying flavor doesn't leave you overwhelmed and dehydrated like some salty dishes might, but instead it just keeps you satiated all day long.


Ichimian Bamboo Garden
1618 Cravens Ave
Torrance, CA 90501
(310) 328-1323