Fresh Dish: Your New Prep Cook

Fresh Dish is another "meal delivery service", but it's a bit different. Instead of sending you prepared meals, they send you meal kits that you can cook/prepare in 30 minutes. They run from $8-12 per person ($32 for a meal for 4 or $24 for 2) and they've included everything in the kit, from the big ingredients to small packets of salt and pepper.

The meats and vegetables are raw, and most things are already pre-measured in their own containers.

The fajita was super easy to make. Just season the meat with salt and pepper and cook on both sides. The tortillas just needed some heating up and then all the toppings like guacamole and salsa were already prepared. The most labor I had to do was probably slicing the steak up.

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Fleming's: Annual Wine Tastings, New Small Plates

Every September, Fleming's revamps their "Fleming's 100" wine list. Now, what that means for you is that every September, there are multiple wine tasting/pairing events at Fleming's! That included a series of "Opening Nights" on Fridays, where guests can taste 25 wines from their list of 100 for just $25! Not only that, this year we also got a sampling of their new small plates menu.

The first three weeks showcased the same wines across all Fleming's, while the last week featured wines chosen by the local Wine Manager. I made it to this last night to Fleming's at LA Live in downtown LA.

The wine selection included Kelly Fleming wines from Napa Valley which is owned by Fleming’s cofounder’s wife.

Here are some of the highlights for me:
1. Il Conte d’Alba, Moscato D’Asti, Italy, NV. This sparkling moscato is made from the Moscato di Canelli grape, the sweetness is just right for me.
2. La Croix Gratiot, Picpoul de Pinet, Coteaux du Languedoc, France 2010. Very crisp and clean.

3. Meyer Syrah, Mendocino county, 2006
4. Rombauer Zinfandel, Napa Valley, 2009. Suprisingly pretty sweet. Smooth.
5. Justin Cabernet, Paso Robles, 2009. Always a crowd pleaser. Fruity, a bit of tannin for a bright finish.

The middle table was also consistently refilled with a tray of their new small plates items. They had started with some flatbreads then moved up to scallops (these ran out quickly), Filet Mignon Skewers with gorgonzola bacon fondue, ...

.. to New Zealand lamb chops with pistachio-mint pesto!

Even when preparing a whole tray of them, they still managed to get the lamb chops medium rare and so tender.

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Meat 101 Classes at Nick+Stef's

Can you taste the difference between bone-in and boneless steaks? How about wet aged vs dry aged? Or meats from America vs New Zealand? or Argentina?

Well, now you can learn by tasting them back to back during one of Nick+Stef's Meat 101 classes, starting on Thursday October 20 (that's tomorrow).

The classes happen every other Thursday at 7:30PM and will last about 30 minutes. The cost is $35 and attendees will get the meats for that class plus whatever wine/beer/whisky pairing they are doing. Here is the class schedule:
10/20: "Which Rib-Eye to Buy?" Bone-in, Boneless, or Dry-Aged.
11/3: "New York, New York, ... and New York!" Same idea as the rib-eye, but with New York steaks.
11/17: "A Well Aged Steak". Try wet aged vs dry aged rib-eyes, and wet aged vs dry-agged New York steaks.
12/1: "US vs The World". Learn the difference between steaks (and wines) from New Zealand, Argentina, and America.

They held a media preview last week for the third class ("A Well Aged Steak"). Clockwise from the top left is the dry aged rib eye, wet aged rib eye, wet aged New York, and dry aged New York.

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Happy Hour at The Capital Grille Beverly Hills

The Capital Grille in Beverly Hills recently launched a happy hour, with $6 drinks and bar food every weekday from 4:30-7pm. To spread the word, they offered to host a happy hour for my friends and readers with complimentary food and happy hour-priced drinks! There's a bar next to the main restaurant downstairs, but you can drink while getting fresh air at the Terrace upstairs.

The happy hour food turns out to be a really great deal! For $6 you will get two mini tenderloin sandwiches, each with a thick, juicy piece of tenderloin steak and sauteed mushrooms. Who needs burgers when you can have steak?

Or, two lobster and crab cake burgers. That's $3 each for a lobster-and-crab-cake burgers! Last time I had crab cake I paid $13 for one. These were not one of those crab cakes that are mostly flour, these are filled with crab and lobster.

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Cheripan in Tijuana: Argentinean Steak and Exotic Martinis

The Zona Gastronomica in Tijuana, Mexico isn't all about Mexican or Baja-Med food. Located in the heart of this district is Cheripan, a wonderful Argentinean restaurant offering a great selection of steaks and other Argentinean cuisine, a nice list of cocktails, and a large wine selection.

Naturally, it was one of our 8-restaurant-stop first day of Baja extravaganza sponsored by Cotuco.

Cheripan has a whole list of fresh fruit martinis, from the fruits you typically find in the US like strawberry to the more interesting ones like tamarind and nanchy. On my first visit I opted for the tamarind martini, shaken and poured tableside.
Sweet, smooth, and strong, it definitely goes down easy. We all liked having the shaker left next to our glass - you know, refills. You definitely get a lot for your money.

The second time I tried the nanchy martini. Nanchy is the fruit you see here, and tasted like something fermented.

Now, back to my first visit, and our meal there.

We had two types of empanadas: meat and spinach/cheese
When they give you fresh flaky puff pastries with two different fillings, that just means everyone will end up eating two of them.

Chorizo sausages were nicely spiced.

I really enjoyed the Ensalada de palmitos (hearts of palm salad), which were fresh and crisp.

Fried sweetbreads were nice, although they could be crispier for my taste.

Although skirt steak is typically known to be a touch cut of meat, the skirt steak at Cheripan was not only very flavorful, but very tender as well. A winner.
You'd be hard pressed to find skirt steak this good in LA.

For dessert, some chocolate gelato from the gelato shop owned by the same chef/owner.

And, of course, milhojas (literally "thousand layers") an Argentinean dulce de leche 'napoleon'


Cheripan
Zona Río Escuadrón 201-3151
Col. Aviación C.P. 22440
Tijuana, Mexico
www.cheripan.com/english.html
Phone: (664) 622-9730

CUT: 100% Wagyu Beef and a $200 Meal

I was coaxed by the 100% Japanese wagyu beef! By a reservation that suddenly becomes available. At any rate I found myself at what is purported to be the best steakhouse in LA, Wolfgang Puck's CUT, with fellow bloggers Pepsi Monster, KevinEats, and tangbro1.


We started with a variety of bread including these Gougeres,
and a bottle of champagne: 2002 Jose Dhondt Champagne Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Mes Vieilles Vignes.

We pretty much dined family style, sharing everything from appetizers to steaks. We ordered a series of appetizers according to CUT veterans Kevineats and tangbro1.

Prime Sirloin "Steak Tartare", Herb Aioli, Mustard ($22)
A classic but well-done preparation of steak tartare, with high quality meat. This was delicious and rich with the addition of the quail egg.

#1 Grade Blue Fin "Toro" Tartare, Wasabi Aioli, Ginger, Togarashi Crisps, Tosa Soy ($32)
This was a good quality tuna and a well-done dish, but quite the "classic" preparation - in other words, rather boring.

Kobe Steak Sashimi, Spicy Radishes ($22)
I enjoyed this dish quite a bit and wished I could have more. The meat tasted fresh and had a nice flavor and texture.

Warm Veal Tongue, Marinated Artichokes, Cannellini Beans, "Salsa Verde" ($17)
Perhaps my favorite appetizer of the night, tender flavorful tongue and delicious tomatoes. This was the most interesting of the appetizers. The tongue was gamey which might put off others but I personally love.

Maple Glazed Pork Belly, Asian Spices, Watercress, Sesame-Orange Dressing, Rhubarb Compote ($16)

Since we couldn't decide on a red wine, I chose a 1997 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape, because I've never had a Châteauneuf-du-Pape. This one was not particularly smooth - I thought it was okay.

We also shared 2 non-steak entrees:

Kobe Beef Short Ribs "Indian Spiced", Curried Sweet Pea Purée, Garam Masala, Slowly Cooked For Eight Hours ($39)
Sashimi Quality Big Eye Tuna Steak ($42)
Surprisingly, the tuna takes the win in this competition. The short ribs were quite tender but a bit too sweet. The tuna was excellent - high quality fish and seared just right. The middle rare part was delicious.

As for the steak, we decided to get each one and divided it evenly among everyone (6 people total). These are the 4 steaks, in the order of least favorite:

4. U.S.D.A. Prime, Illinois Corn Fed, Aged 21 Days; Bone In New York Sirloin 20 Oz ($56)
The cheapest, and weakest, of all the steaks. It's probably good by itself, but after having the other three, I'd stick with one of the other three no doubt.

3. American Wagyu / Angus "Kobe Style" Beef From Snake River Farms, Idaho; New York Sirloin 8 Oz ($75)
Before trying the 100% wagyu, I quite liked this. After a while though, it isn't as meaty as the dry aged, but not as amazingly-fatty as the wagyu. Feels like it's just stuck in the middle for me.

2.U.S.D.A. Prime, Nebraska Corn Fed, Dry Aged 35 Days; New York Sirloin 14 Oz ($59)
Flavorful, juicy, and meaty. If I had to eat more than 2 oz, this would be my favorite any day as the 100% wagyu would just be too fatty. An excellent piece of steak.

1.True Japanese 100% Wagyu Beef From Saga Prefecture, Kyushu, Japan; New York Sirloin 6 Oz ($120)
What we came for. Let's take a look:
In the middle is the American Wagyu while to the right is the 100% Wagyu. The difference in marbling is strikingly noticeable (pardon the flash, but I had to capture it). And aye, it's that fatty. Yes, it is delicious. If you're eating 2 oz or less. Anything more and I would have a heart attack :P (Well, I may be able to handle 3 oz).

Indulgence does not end there. It's time for some dessert!

We started our dessert courses with a Brooke Cherry Toasted Almond Crumble, Tahitian Vanilla Ice Cream ($14)
They scoop the crumble onto the bowl tableside. I'm very much partial to berry cobbler/crumble and thus really enjoyed this.

Dark Chocolate Soufflé, Whipped Crème Fraîche, Gianduja Ice Cream ($14)
I've heard about the Valrhona chocolate souffle at CUT and thus have been looking forward to this dessert. A well done souffle with a rich chocolate flavor.

Warm Brioche Doughnuts, Huckleberry Compote, Butter Pecan Ice Cream ($14)
The simplest turned out to be the table's favorite. The doughnuts were warm and fluffy, they were perfect with a bite of the nutty, creamy ice cream.

To finish the meal were three types of dessert bars: lemon, caramel, and chocolate.
I liked the lemon bar the best, though I've always been against caramel because it sticks to your teeth ...

Kevin says that this was the weakest of his CUT visits thus far, which was unfortunate since it was my first. I still had a good impression overall, though, and would probably come back another time. This meal cost $184 including tax and tips. At first I was proud for spending less than $200, but then I went to pay the valet .... which cost another $16 :P
So there you go, $200 even for a grand tasting at CUT.


CUT
9500 Wilshire Blvd
Beverly Hills, CA 90212
(310) 276-8500

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

AK in Venice: The Swedes and Pork Schnitzels

We walked into AK on a Tuesday night with no reservation. I thought, Tuesday night, how bad can it be? Wrong. AK was packed (and yes, LOUD). Luckily they had room at one of the two communal tables. I love communal tables because I can eavesdrop on other people's convo ... no, I mean, I get to meet new people. Yeah.

Anyway, on to the food. The place being as loud as it is, there's not much conversation going on on my end ...

We went healthy with the appetizer, and got the "in the raw": alfalfa sprouts, lotus roots, seeds and nuts, with blood orange poppy seed dressing ($11).
To sum it up, it tastes very healthy yet still tasty. Very refreshing. Everything being mostly roots and seeds, it had a nice crunchy texture.

Since I've heard that they do the European dishes best, I went with their pork schnitzel. That's Kurobuta pork Schnitzel, by the way ($24).
Delicious. Loved it. What? It's just a cutlet you say? This is kurobuta cutlet, and a darn good one at that! Tender, flavorful, delish. Do be careful while eating in the dark - I think there's a herring or something on the top there that I couldn't quite see - but it's _salty_. I can eat this everyday for 2 weeks or so, and you guys should too. Or at least try it.

My dinner companion went with the rib-eye, medium-rare. Served with crispy popover and bearnaise sauce ($34).
This was very tender, probably the most tender steak I've had in a long while (with the exception of Ad Hoc's skirt steak - to be reviewed) !

We also shared some sweet potatoes as a side dish.
These are quite sweet, they border on dessert for me but my friend loves sweet potatoes. They're moist and juicy and was quite good, actually.

For dessert (of course I had to have dessert), I had the chocolate ganache tart ($9) served with praline ice cream.
Rich and tasty, although does not particularly stand out from similar desserts at other places. At least I know it's solid and thus the other desserts could potentially be great. Desserts are important to me :P

I don't care if the place is loud, I will definitely be back here. Hopefully I will try their other entrees, but I'm not sure if I can bring myself to NOT order their kurobuta pork schnitzel. Maybe after the 3rd time ...

AK Restaurant
1633 Abbot Kinney Road
Venice, CA 90291
(310)392-6644
http://www.akinvenice.com