Finally. The French Laundry.

I finally got the call. It was so unexpected I didn't even answer it for the first 2 times (hey, I didn't recognize the number). But there it was. They had a cancellation for a Sunday lunch, would I like to take it? Mmmm (do I want to spend the money right now, do I want ...) YES. So there it was. I was going to The French Laundry!! The aspiration that had seemed so elusive before is now coming true! :)

I decided to fly up Saturday and along with some friends hit up Chez Panisse, Ad Hoc, and then finally French Laundry. But I'll talk about the other ones later on .. :)

Sunday afternoon, we drove up the long, windy roads through the mountain to Yountville.

The host led us up to the second floor and into one of the dining rooms there. It was such a nice day out and they had the windows open.Since this is a special meal after all, I got a couple glasses of wine (no pairing - hey it's still early). I got a red: Martinelli "Jackass Vineyard" Zinfandel, 2004 Russian River Valley which is actually a special bottling exclusively for French Laundry.
For the white I Got a 1998 Rioja Blanco: Lopez de Heredia "Vina Gravonia" (Spain, of course).

For starters, we were served a small choux pastry filled with gruyere cheese.

Next is their salmon cornet, that you're supposed to eat like eating an ice cream cone.
The whole cone shape made the salmon to cone skin ratio vary as you eat it ... but the salmon itself was great and flavorful.

The celebrated Oysters and Pearls was not on the menu that day, so I asked if I could pretty please substituted it in. The waiter graciously said they would check with the kitchen and shortly after informed me that yep! No problem at all, oysters and pearls for moi!
Such an excellent dish, I can definitely see why this is Thomas Keller's most famous dish. The oysters were small because they were trimmed down, but they were definitely of great quality. In fact, everything in this dish was excellent and work together amazingly.

Cauliflower Panna Cotta with Island Creek Oyster Glaze and White Sturgeon Caviar
This was good, although after having the oysters and pearls, I just wanted more of the first one! :)

All the bread served here are, naturally, from Bouchon bakery. We had two different types of butter, one salted and the other sweet and unsalted, from a local dairy.

For the second course, we also had two options, #1: Salad of French Laundry Garden Broccoli (sunchokes, Marcona almonds and Perigord Truffle Coulis)

The broccoli, and probably many of the other vegetables, came from their own garden, located across the street from the restaurant. You can see it from the balcony of the 2nd floor (where many people go out to take pictures from).
Right across the street, how local can you get? :P Broccolis were excellent - freshest and sweetest ones I've ever had (well, minus the same broccolis I had at Ad Hoc the night before, where we got to have much more of em - more on that later).

Choice #2 ($30 supplement): Moulard Duck "Foie Gras en Terrine" with Hawaiian hearts of palm, Piedmont hazelnuts, Hosui pear, Mizuna and white honey.
I had anticipated this after reading other reviews and opinions, but yes, French Laundry's foie gras terrine is the best foie gras terrine I have ever had.

The terrine was served with a toasted brioche bread and three different salts on the side (they said this is to add texture). One salt was from the sea of Japan and the other (the pink-ish one) was some million-year moon rock salt (OK, I'm not sure abt the million year ...)
Terrine on brioche toast, spread a bit of the white honey, then sprinkle a teeny bit of salt - delicious!!

3rd course, Choice #1: Grilled Pave of Kindai Bluefin Tuna (Potato, radish and cucumber salad, jidori hen egg and preserved lemon "Aigre-Doux")
A great meaty piece of tuna. The middle part is still nicely rare. As far as grilled fish go, this one was excellent.

3rd course, Choice #2: Sea of Japan Bigfin Squid (Globe artichokes, Satsuma mandarins, red mustard leaves and thyme vinaigrette)
Squid was firm and chewy. The combination with the satsuma mandarin was nice and interesting both taste and texture-wise.

4th course: Sweet Butter-poached Maine Lobster Tail (Fennel bulb, "Panisse," Nicoise Olive, sweet pepper essence, and Noilly Prat emulsion)
This lobster tail was absolutely amazing. It's poached perfectly and had an incredible texture that I can only aspire to taste from time to time. I didn't care much about the fennel etc on the side there. I just wanted to slowly devour and enjoy this perfect lobster tail.

5th course: Thomas Farms Squab with Belgian endive, glazed cranberries, red beets, and watercress.
A very game-y (and very lean) squab, as we had expected from FL but on the other hand wasn't so expecting from a "Farm" squab.

6th course: "Blanquette" of Marcho Farms nature-fed veal (Hen-of-the-Woods mushrooms, Nantes carrots and green garlic).
The blanquette includes veal tongue (left) and sweetbread (upper right)

7th course: "Tomme du Berger" with Cipollini Onion, Musquee de Provence pumpkin coulis, brussels sprouts and Maple-pecan Sable.
I liked the cheese with the maple-pecan sable but the rest of it was not sweet enough to go with the cheese, IMHO. The cheese was semi-hard and on the mild side, so I didn't think the brussels sprout and onion were good pairings. Something sweeter/saltier would've been better.

8th course: Ruby Red Grapefruit Sorbet, with pistachio "Pain de Genes" and Mascarpone.
The sorbet was great, light and refreshing. Perfect palate cleanser. I'm ambivalent about the pistachio cake though, since it make the whole thing a bit heavier and hence not quite as refreshing.

9th course/Dessert option #1: Braised Golden Pineapples, with spiced sweet rice beignets, dark raisin coulis, and long pepper sherbet.
The spotlight here is on the pineapples, which are sweet and delicious, but didn't seem like there were enough of them :P It wasn't very 'satisfying'.

9th course/Dessert Option #2: "Mousse au Chocolat Amedei" with Gros Michel banana ice cream, candied cashews and curry "Arlette".
A nice rich chocolate mousse. I guess I needed a good amount of sweetness at the end, but anyway I thought this one was more satisfying than the first!

We'd seen everyone else getting this next dessert although it's not on the menu, so when they asked if we wanted to try their "coffee and donuts" we said "sure, what's another dish!"
Apparently the "coffee" was coffee mousse! Good thing I hadn't tried to pick it up and sip it! That would've been embarassing :P Donuts were good - nice and light. Since it wasn't actual *coffee* I decided to get some mint tea to get with the rest of my desserts/mignardises.

As the last part of our meal, we were presented with the mignardise, presented in a beautiful layered tray.
Oh oh but wait, there's MORE! We also got a small dish filled with crunchy chocolate macadamias. And while we're munching at those, one of the servers came bearing a silver tray of gorgeous chocolates. From left to right they were: banana, yogurt, coconut, mm ... something?, passionfruit, and peanut butter. Sigh ... you guys want me to choose? What torture ...




Having felt pretty good and full after the 9th course, they managed to completely stuff me with chocolates :P

BTW, we witnessed a proposal and the other ladies in the dining room started tearing up and one of the waiters dashed around with a tray of Kleenexes (for the ladies first, and then jokingly to everyone else after :P ).
This meal was definitely quite an experience.
Everything from ambiance to service to food preparation were excellent. With the nice breeze coming through the windows - relaxing in Napa over amazing French food was quite the luxury.

The French Laundry
6640 Washington St
Yountville, CA 94599
(707) 944-2380
www.frenchlaundry.com

DineLA09: Fish Dinner at the Water Grill

Water Grill was supposed to be my dineLA finale - before they decided to extend it LA&OC Foodie had planned this dinner and extended invitations to me and Rumdood, which we jumped on (or at least I did).

Since Water Grill is participating in the extension - all throughout February, I decided to blog about it sooner rather than later.

Although our party was late for our reservation, Water Grill graciously held our table for us. As the night went on, all tables were filled - good sign. The $44 prix-fixe dinner menu is, naturally, all seafood (except for dessert).

I started with the House Cured Salmon, with Potato and Brown Mustard Seed Salad with Dill.
The cured salmon was great, but I thought that the dish as a whole was a bit too busy. I would have preferred it simple and highlight the delicious taste of the cured salmon itself. I suppose I could've just picked off everything else.

For the entree I went with Grilled Columbia River White Sturgeon - Coriander Spiced Yam, Rapini, Baby Roasted Beets, Pearled Barley and Oregano
I really enjoyed the fish. It was quite meaty with a nice grilled flavor, but still moist. I liked it with the pearled barley but although I did enjoy the yam, I thought the two of them were better off being eaten separately.

For dessert, I had the Red Velvet Pudding with Mascarpone Ice Cream.
It's like an extra moist red velvet cupcake with ice cream rather than icing. It was quite rich. Tasted pretty good but got too rich for me at the end, especially when the ice cream was all gone.

Throughout the dinner, our server was very nice, friendly, and even funny. The food was very solid and with the great company, we all really enjoyed ourselves. Considering the regular price for a fish dinner entree is about $36, the DineLA menu is quite a deal. If you guys considered checking this place out for the extended DineLA, I'd recommend it!

Water Grill
544 S Grand Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90071
(213) 891-0900
watergrill.com

Deciding Where to Go on Dreaded V-day?

What's up with this overly commercialized, pressure-generating, meaningless "Valentine's Day" anyway right? Why should I do anything to celebrate it?
Yeah, I was gonna skip it too. Just stay home. Avoid the crowd. Save that $100 for a REAL meal another day.

But, man, then the menus for this "special" day start pouring in. And I do so love chocolate ...

In particular, I'm drooling over the thought of a multi-course chocolate dinner at Compartes Chocolatier for $30pp. The dinner will be on their newly renovated patio. Their dinner menu is being kept "under wraps" but we do know that the desserts will include homemade heart shaped chocolate molten cake with a gooey ganache center, an exotic fruit, cheese and spice plate, chocolate kaffir lime panna cotta with thai chile sauce, exotic gelatos in flavors like lemongrass, lavender and, homemade mexican "haute" cocoa shots, signature truffles, and more ...Mmmmmm. Mine!

Jin Patisserie, besides offering their annual beautiful beautiful gifts (one year I got a gorgeous hollowed out chocolate heart), also have a special Valentine's Day Cake made with white chocolate mousse, fragrant rose petals and juicy, poached pears decorated with delicate chocolate hearts. They're also doing a special Vday weekend menu. Reservations: (310)399-8801

For those of you wanting to indulge more, Providence is selling their handmade chocolates for $28/dozen (flavors include Coffee Urfa, Banana-Ginger, Orange Caramel Rosemary, Baharat, and Coconut-Green Tea). They're also offering a 6-course menu/with wine pairing for $140/$195. Reservations: (323)460-4170.

DineLA 09: Filet Mignon at Wolfgang's Steakhouse, So-so.

$34 for a 3-course meal that includes filet mignon. Sounds pretty good, right? That's what I thought and so I went to try Wolfgang's Steakhouse for the DineLA week - it was the cheapest of the steakhouses (no, Ruth's Chris is not even in the running) and seems to have pretty good reviews. I dragged Rumdood and Pepsimonster here with me.

I started with the lobster bisque.
The bisque was a tad too salty - maybe they had been heating the whole pot up all day/night long? I did find two bite-size pieces of lobster in it (ooh yay).

All three of us ended up getting the filet mignon (sounds like the most worthwhile!)
As always, I ask for my steak medium-rare. Here, the middle part was indeed medium-rare, but the outer sides were rather overcooked so I didn't start enjoying it until I get to the middle part. This steak was not as flavorful as we've had elsewhere. Good, not great.

The portion for the sides are generous. Among the three of us we got all of the available offerings: creamed spinach, german potatoes, and mashed potatoes.
Oh, and not only were the portions generous, they messed up and brought us extra servings of creamed spinach and mashed potatoes. But no, we didn't eat them (we didn't even finish the first serving). Spinach anyone?

For dessert, I tried the Apple Strudel
I thought this was okay - the pastry was rather soggy and it was served room temperature. They should've kept it crispier and warmer and this would've been much better.

Overall we were underwhelmed. The food was good enough as to not ruin the great company and we finished dinner just fine - but it definitely could've been better.
I guess we have to fork over more $$ for better next time? Like the $130 wagyu beef rib eye at Cut like Pepsimonster wants :)

Wolfgang's Steakhouse By Wolfgang Zwiener
445 N Canon Dr
Beverly Hills, CA 90210
(310) 385-0640
http://wolfgangssteakhouse.com/

dineLA 09: Lunch at Ocean and Vine

The truffled cheese sandwich on the menu lured us to lunch at Ocean and Vine. As it turns out, Ocean and Vine isn't open for lunch on weekends but we were able to get the dineLA menu at the lounge inside the same hotel (Loews), Papillon. Papillon boasts a nice ocean view, especially if you're strong enough to brave the cold and sit outside (we weren't!).

On to the food. We all got the same appetizer (seems to be most worthwhile compared to salads): Laughing Bird Shrimp Tempura - Wasabi Aioli, Sweet Chili Dipping Sauce
It came with three separate dipping sauces(cocktail, "sweet chili" - think fish sauce with chili, and wasabi aioli), which makes it more fun!

The shrimps were not that big, but were nicely crisp and light. It wasn't too greasy or too bready. Portions were also quite generous.

I got the Entree Option #1: Grilled Truffle Cheese Sandwich - With a cup of Heirloom Tomato Soup
The tomato soup was surprisingly very good!

The truffled cheese sandwich was pretty pungent with truffles, but my sandwich was not grilled enough :/
The cheese has not really melted and so the sandwich tasted rather dry. It was better when I dip it into the soup - but then that loses some of the truffle essence. My friend's sandwich seems to have been better prepared and she really enjoyed it.

Entree Option #2: Baja "Macaroni and Cheese" - Shrimp, Lump Crab, Baja Sea Scallops, Cavatapi Pasta
This wasn't cheesy enough for my taste - or for what I imagine to be "mac n cheese". It was a decent 'seafood pasta' although nothing outstanding.

The third option was a salmon dish, which this other girl ordered. Apparently it was overcooked though.

To end the meal, I got Dessert Option #1: Valrhona Chocolate Raspberry Cake
Good chocolate cake, rich and dense. Nothing outstanding, but definitely very enjoyable.

Dessert Option #2: Cinnamon Funnel Cake - Berries, Strawberry Ice Cream
This funnel cake tasted more like a crispy doughnut, but nonetheless we did enjoy it. It was somewhat dense, but eating it with the ice cream helps a lot.

Lunch cost us $22 per person. The food was nothing outstanding, but good and solid, and the portions were generous - so if you're looking for a dineLA lunch place, this may be an option to consider.

Ocean and Vine
1700 Ocean Ave.
Santa Monica, CA 90401
310.458.6700
oceanandvine.com

DineLA 09: The Foundry on Melrose, Dinner

This past Sunday I decided to take advantage of the dineLA deal and try out The Foundry on Melrose for the first time. The Foundry has a nice covered and heated outdoor seating (although the heater was blasting, making it a tad too warm).

Apparently, though, The Foundry has a prix-fixe menu on Sundays for $39 for 3-courses or $49 for 4-courses. This made us feel a bit ripped off by the whole dineLA deal - didn't feel like such a deal after all. The 3-course menu was almost the same as the dineLA's $44 menu except for the options of Pork Belly as appetizer (available in the 4-course) and the bread pudding for dessert.

Hmm. The pork belly and bread pudding do sound appetizing though. In the end we decided to get a couple of dineLA menu and a couple of Sunday 3-course menu and share.

They started us off with some bread amuse bouche with tomato sauce and parmesan.
The bread is pretty dense, making it quite a heavy amuse bouche.

As for the appetizer, I managed to taste the:
Option #1 (not in any order): Calamari "a la Plancha" - Olive Tapenade, Grapefruit, Piquillo Peppers
This roasted calamary was done quite well. Was not overcooked and had a nice texture to it. Light and crisp, and the combination with grapefruit makes this dish quite refreshing.

On the other end of the spectrum is Option #2: Crispy Pork Belly - Grapes, Almonds, Eggplant
This might be the best dish of the night (I guess it's worth the extra $5-$10 on top of the Sunday menu to get this?). Crispy and tender without beeing too fat-laden. Really liked the combination with the grapes as the sweet/sour notes help cut the fattiness of the belleh.

As for the entree, I went with the Entree Option #1: Hangar Steak - Crispy Fingerlings, Mushrooms, Anchovy Butter
Steak was cooked medium rare - it was still a bit tough because it is hangar steak. It goes well with the mushroom, but it was also served with some sort of mushroom puree that most of my friends didn't like (it gives them a weird aftertaste).

Entree Option #2: Crispy Skin Salmon - Crushed Potato, Orange, Fennel
The was a nice dish. The salmon was not overcooked and was pretty juicy - skin was nice and crispy. The fennel was good by itself and in combination with the fish.

Entree option #3: Chorizo Crusted Jidori Chicken - Mashed Plantain, Avocado Citrus Salad
I didn't get to taste this, but my friends seem to enjoy it and one said that it was the best of the entrees.

Dessert #1: Spiced Doughnuts - Pineapple Saffron Sauce, Chocolate Hazelnut Sauce
Thought this was okay. They were good, but nothing special. They are a bit on the dense side ( I prefer Grace's donuts).

Dessert Option #2: Chocolate Banana Bread Pudding - Rum Raisin Ice Cream
Definitely the best option for dessert. The bread pudding is warm, rich and moist.

Option #3 was the creme brulee which apparently was not really a creme brulee after all. Did not get to try this, though.

I thought the meal was pretty solid, although the service was quite a bit slow (the desserts took quite some time to be served). Also, with their existing Sunday prix-fixe menus, I'm not convinced dineLA is a good deal for people to try out this restaurant.

THE FOUNDRY ON MELROSE
7465 Melrose Ave.
Los Angeles, 90046
323.651.0915
thefoundryonmelrose.com

Chocolate Dessert Party at Jin Patisserie - Feb 5th

In celebration of Jin Patisserie's newest outpost in Century City, they are throwing a chocolate dessert party on Feb 5, 5-8 PM for $17 per person.

It will be held at their new Century City location:
Pastry & Tea Boutique
at InterContinental
2151 Avenue of the Stars
Los Angeles CA 90067
310.789.6485



Here's the menu Kristy has prepared:

FINGER SANDWICH
Roast Beef w/Brie Cheese
Egg Salad
Cream Cheese Tomato


SWEET
Spicy Milk Chocolate w/Mango
38% Rondo Felchin

Baked Chocolate Tart w/Pineapple
64% Manjari Valrhona

White Chocolate w/Peach Compote & Yuzu Jelly
29% Weiss

Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownie
72% Felchin


Served with a glass of wine and a specially blended chocolate drink


$17 per person

Jungle Food Marathon Part 1: From Africa to Peru

9 foodies, 4 "jungle foods" restaurants (+1 drink stop), 7 hours.

Back in November (yes, I'm behind ... ) 7 foodbloggers and some of their +1s made a trek from Inglewood down to Westminster to hit "jungle food" restaurants, i.e. cuisines from countries with jungles. Led by Mattatouille, the group that included FoodMarathon, LA&OC Foodie, FoodDestination, DigLounge, Teenage Glutster, and I made our first stop at a Nigerian restaurant, Nkechi African Cafe.

This was actually a detour as our original stop, Saaris, was closed. Thanks to iPhone's Yelp app we managed to find this African place nearby.
The place was completely empty when we arrived and the one staff they had there was definitely shocked to see the nine of us walk in.

We got some fermented palm juice to share around the table. It tasted slightly carbonated and was actually lighter and not as sweet as I had thought (or wanted it) to be.
So here you can order any type of rice/stew and get any of the different types of meat they offer.

We started out with some Jollof Rice with mixed meat
This was a good start. The tomato based rice reminds me of jambalaya a bit. The mixed meat was tasty (they were deep fried :P ).

Next we had some egusi soup (made with melon seeds) with goat meat, with some balls of starch (either fu fu which is made of cassava, or eba, made from yam)"
The egusi soup with goat meat was not bad, though the texture was rather interesting. It's rather hard to describe. Let's just say I would eat this again. If I have to.

The other dish we got was the ogbono soup, which is made with mango pits, and we ordered this with fish.
Umm. So. None of us liked this. I think Mattatouille was the only one who kept giving it more tries, while most of us stopped after two or three. The consensus, I believe, was that this tasted like "rubber tire with a slight hint of blue cheese."

Besides Teenage Glutster, I think this was the first time most of us had Nigerian food, but it's doubtful that we would try ogbono soup again. At least we can say that it tasted pretty darn authentic :P

Nkechi African Cafe
2717 W Manchester Blvd
Inglewood, CA 90305
(323) 541-1265


Now, with that rubbery taste in our mouth, we rushed down to our next stop - El Rocoto Peruvian restaurant down in Gardena.
The strip mall joint was relatively busy and our server was a bit surprised (disappointed?) that the nine of us only ordered 4 dishes but then we told her of our lil excursion.

BTW, I was also disappointed because I saw Cusquena Negra on the menu but apparently they don't actually have it :(

We started with, of course, some ceviche mixto.
Just like Food Destination, I also just went to Peru last summer, and having had the amazing ceviche at La Mar, this doesn't quite measure up, but it was still pretty good.

We also got a combination plate containing seco de cardero (lamb stew with cilantro) and cau cau (tripes and potatoes)
The seco de cardero is hearty and gamey - this was my favorite dish of the whole meal. I wanted to get seconds but it was all gone by the end :< (Hmm I think FoodMarathon finished it .... ) The 'saltado' dish which is just sauteed with tomatoes and onions with thick fries served with lightly seasoned rice is a very popular Peruvian dish. Here we got the seafood version, saltado mariscos
I thought this was a decent version, though not as flavorful as I've had before.

We also got some Chifa dish, which is the Peruvian version of Chinese dishes. This is the pollo enrollado (chicken rolled up with pork, shrimp, asparagus, with veggies in oyster sauce).
I have no real opinion on this dish. It was enjoyable though I prefer to have my Chinese and my Peruvian food separately.

This meal definitely was way more enjoyable than our first and we were glad to get the ogbono soup taste out of our mouths!

El Rocoto Peruvian Restaurant
1356 W Artesia Blvd
Gardena, CA 90248
www.elrocoto.com
(310) 768-8768



This adventure is to be continued on my next post as I go through the other restaurants. In the meantime though, you can read the other bloggers' accounts of this adventure:
LA&OC Foodie's , DigLounge's, , FoodDestination's, Teenage Glutster's and then you can take the quiz at FoodMarathon's site!