I can't help but think of that catch-phrase, though, when I look back at this month's posts and realise that I haven't added anything to the site in nearly two weeks. <sigh>
Well, folks, here's the skinny. Bob's a musician, like Willy, and he's been on tour. A USO tour to be exact. He left January 4th and my interest in cooking and food has slowly declined with each day's passing. Despite a steady stream of houseguests, I just don't seem to be in the mood for food. You could chalk it up to solidarity (Bob's been reporting back to me about all of the horrible meals he's had on military bases throughout the Pacific Rim) but I don't think that's the case.
The reality is that though I adore cooking and grazing upon deliciousness, my taste buds are firmly affixed to my heart. Would it be silly to call Bob my muse? Perhaps not, since it seems I can barely muster the will to cook anything at all, and it's getting worse from one day to the next. As I think back on my life, I can definitely identify a pattern. When I'm alone, I eat very simply. Cooking and dining are an extension of my love, and when love's on tour, my motivation goes into hibernation.
So, I decided to force the issue. A couple days ago, I started some yogurt cheese, letting it drain overnight in the fridge. Today I toasted sesame seeds and chopped Morrocan olives, added it to the "cheese", seasoned with salt and pepper, even took a couple of photos of the process. Then, I went in search of the crackers I'd bought to accompany the dip and found that my current houseguest had eaten all but five of them. Now I'm in a funk. It's not rational, but who cares?
Bob returns this weekend (HALLELUJAH!!) and after at least a week of complete isolation from the rest of the world, we'll both emerge to eat again. Food of love, indeed.
-steen
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I was on tour in the UK a couple of seasons ago & developed a special fondness for the thick "rasher" bacon they served up for breakfast over there. I looked for a local source in LA, figuring it'd be easy to find....not so easy. Trader Joes?...nope. Wild Goats?.....huh uh. Overpriced Bristol Farms?....negative captain! Even indie butchers didn't have the first clue where to get it. I finally found an Irish store in Hollywood that kept a good stock of it. You can find me fumbling in their freezer every 3 or 4 weeks.
I live in Long Beach & have become a regular customer at a pub near downtown called the Auld Dubliner.....yeah, kind of a hokey name & it's right on the edge of one of those horrible new retail super complexes, but a friend of mine coaxed me into checking it out.
What a find! All the food there is fantastic & amazingly consistant visit to visit. And......they had my rasher bacon!! They have a list of "Boxty" dishes on the menu & one of them is a Rasher & Cheddar Boxty. A boxty is a large potato pancake folded over whatever goodies you want to stuff inside..... really simple & really tasty!
Their appetizers are delicious & wide ranging. I ordered some shrimp & crab cakes with a spicy mayo sauce & was delighted to find no breading or filler in 'em.....mostly just shrimp & crabmeat. The salads are excellent as well. The have a huge iceberg wedge drowning in bleu cheese that they serve with a steak knife. Seared beef, lamb, wilted spinach with apples & bacon are some of the other salads that'll do fine as a "super-appetizer" or main course. Check their site AULD DUBLINER for the whole menu.
Off the menu, you'll have to order their homemade BROWN BREAD ICE CREAM for dessert. It's incredible!
You'll want to get there in the afternoon or early evening as the kitchen closes at 10:00. Around 10:30 or so, the Dubliner sneakily transforms itself into more of a club than a pub. It's right across Pine Avenue from the LB convention center & can get pretty packed late nights. Sometimes it's fun to throw back a few ales & check out the also consistantly great live music. It's always a good show too with a thick mix of locals & all the out of town suits rolling through.....as well as the occasional "service" women who tend to the comfort of lonely conventioneers. I call it the "Gents & Rents Show." There's plenty of great food & a good variety of good times at the Auld Dubliner.
I'll be covering more cool spots to eat in Long Beach soon.
--WILLY
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I really do. I eat pasta most often of all the dishes I make at home. When it is really cold and gross out I will make Maultaschen soup with garlic bread, but its been unusually warm here, so that hasn't happened yet.
In any case, I whipped up this quick and tasty pasta dish last night and will share it with you today.
Pasta with Pancetta and butter sauce.
Here is what you will need.
I have (clockwise from top) A tupperware with pre-grated Grana Padano, a nice Rioja from 2005, Pasta (your choice...) fresh Grana Padano, Pancetta and butter.
First, slice the Pancetta into strips or make nice smallish bits of it. I made this dish first with fresh homemade pasta from my pasta machine. (I told you I love pasta. I made some Tagliatelle and the pancetta strips went perfectly with the fresh pasta. Fresh isn't necessary, but boy does it make a difference.)
Melt the butter on medium heat, and add in the pancetta. DON'T CRISP THE PANCETTA! You can theoretically use thick-cut bacon, Serrano or whatever, but we are not going for crispy, just cooked and a bit firm.
Cook the pasta as per required, and drain. Add in the Pancetta and butter, tossing well. You wont need salt, as the pancetta is plenty salty. Grind some fresh perrer and top with fresh grated Padano, reggiano or parmesean.
Voilá!
I added the pre-grated padano to the pancetta/butter, but it just made it more clumpy, not so creamy. It is a trick I use when making alfredo sauce, but here it did not turn out as I wanted. You will need to add a bit more butter than in the second photo as well, what I had was not enough for a half-package, so I added another bit near the end. you can butter as needed.
—Christian
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I have in the last few years, really enjoyed scotch as an after-dinner drink. Something to enjoy while under a blanket watching a rented DVD of 'My Name Is Earl' or something else that is not available on TV here in Munich.
During the SSWC'06 in Stockholm, we flew there thru Amsterdam (Schipohl?) and I bought a hip flask of Famous Grouse. Known as the 'Absolut of Scotch' for its economy as well as easy drinkability, It helped me get thru a horrible race, where my allergies were all tuned to 11, and there was no relief in sight. Thanks to the organizers of the race, and my hip flask, one lap was made bearable, and now I can say I appreciate the relaxed atmosphere that embodies (and encourages) the love of a good single malt.
That said, I chose to do a side-by-side of two single malts. Aberlour is the current favorite of the missus, and rightly so. It is sweet, with a light smoky nose, citrus and oak-y taste, and a light but satisfying afterburn.
Talisker was the newest that I decided to try. I like Aberlour, but I get bored of the same thing all the time. (It is the same with beer. I need to switch out the traditional 'Helles' for a Weissbier or Dunkel once in a while. But I get easily distracted.)
The Talisker has a much more smoky nose. So much so, that it even recommends a dollop of water to bring the aroma to its fullest. Even with water, (possibly more than a true scotsman would add...) it was still surprisingly smokey. The taste was more full and a bit more aggressive than the Aberlour, but not unpleasantly so. The finish was smooth with no hint of that fishy aftertaste that goes with some of the more smokey scotches. (Smokehouse, I'm talking to you. That shit is like drinking a smoked fish covered in 80 proof. Ugh. Cleveland, I still owe you a replacement for that. Bad choice on my part.)
Both of these 10 year old scotches are a good starting point for anyone wanting to try a sipping scotch for those lazy evenings at home. Be warned, it can be addictive. You may end up with a shelf full of half-drunk bottles varying from 10 year old Aberlour, to cask strength; from Highland to Isle of Skye, to blended variations and then some. Just don't drink half of one in a night. Not only will you not appreciate it, your pee will smell like asparagus pee the next morning. Not to mention the possibility of a well-earned hangover.
—Christian
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As always happens, Betka's visit was filled to the brim with activities, so some of our plans have been postponed until next time. Though we wanted to get all adventurous and seek out little ceviche places around town, time constraints dictated that we just visit our old standby, Mario's Peruvian.
What can I say about Mario's? I've got this love/hate thing going on with them. There's the crappy decor, and the sullen looks on the faces of the wait staff... If it wasn't for the great food at very reasonable prices, I'd never go back. I suppose that goes without saying, though.
This time, our waitress nearly smiled at us, so we were off to a great start as far as I was concerned. Ms. B ordered the fish ceviche and I got the Siete Mares soup and we enjoyed the rolls and spicy green sauce (aji) while we waited. What I've always wondered about, though, is why they serve the rolls with Country Crock? That crap is insipid. Just nasty. Don't bother asking for butter either, just enjoy the aji and get on with it.Man, I love Mario's ceviche. It's so vividly lemony that the juices fairly glow yellow. B was served a decent portion of fish bathed in that glorious citrus, accompanied by one half of a boiled potato, and a little corn-cob-ette. The fish is piled high with thinly sliced red onion which I adore, but B doesn't. We pulled it off and added it to my soup instead. Her only complaint was that they didn't have tortilla chips to eat it with, though for me, a fork does nicely.
Ordinarily, I'd order one of Mario's famous saltados, meat and french fries stir fried with onions and tomatoes (I can't bring myself to eat two starches, so I usually decline the rice). I've also enjoyed their fried fish on occasion and the cold mussels appetizer with buttloads of onions, but this time I was there to satisfy my craving for the Siete Mares.
What a wonderful soup. Thin but extremely flavorful seafood broth is packed full of octopus, shrimp (both shell on and shell off), crab, mussels and fish. It's so comforting a meal, perfect for winter. The bowl is huge, though, so I'm always left with enough to enjoy again at another meal.
-steen
tags: Peruvian+food, ceviche, fish+soup, restaurants, eating, dining
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Way on back in the early 80s, my mom sparked my love of adventurous eating by giving me my first experiences with dim sum and sushi. All these years later, we still go out for dim sum on occasion, usually to Ocean Seafood in Chinatown.
My mother is not usually found sitting at a computer, but I thought she'd love Chowhound.com so I sent her links to a few threads to get her excited about it. One of the first was to a lively discussion about dim sum. She lives in the valley so good reviews for a restaurant on Reseda decided our destination. She said that she'd seen the place before but didn't know if it was any good.
We arrived later than we would have preferred, but there wasn't the huge early afternoon crowd we're used to in Chinatown, so the time wasn't a big deal. Even before we were given a small post-it with the number 18 written on it, my mom commented that she didn't see any Chinese patrons which immediately made us suspicious. After a short wait, we were led to the first table in the dining room, but I asked them to seat us at the next available one because I didn't want to sit by the entrance.
The dining room is smaller than what we're used to at those dim sum palaces downtown, but that in itself is no indicator of quality, right? What about the non-Chinese wait staff and cart pushers? Huh...
Here's what we ate:
Haa Cheung Fun (rice noodles with shrimp)
This being the first dish we sampled at A&W, I was sorely dissapointed. It was cold. Not fun. The sauce was also sweeter than we're used to.
Tripe
I actually tasted tripe! Wow. That's a first for me. It was pretty good, chewy yet tender, gloriously vivid in color, and cooked in the same red sauce as the chicken feet. I only had a few bites, but I'm proud of myself still. LOL
Haa Gao (shrimp dumplings - spelled so many different ways, including har gow and others)
These were quite good. The wrapper was light with a slight chew, the filling plentiful and tasty.
Spare Ribs
Icky gray, tender and slightly gelatinous, just like we like them.
Shrimp and Scallop Dumplings
Again, the wrapper was great. This dumpling was filled with a large shrimp and a tiny bay scallop and I had no complaints with flavor. The dumplings stuck to the paper lining, though, and tore apart when pried loose.
Fung Saau (chicken feet with red black-bean sauce)
Our favorite dim sum, and these were very good. Tender flesh saturated with savory, ever-so-slightly spicy sauce just slid off the bone with no effort at all. Yum!
The verdict? Ehhh. The food was pretty good over all... Lately Ocean Seafood has been greasy and this meal wasn't in the least. Still, I'm loathe to drive out to Northridge. If I'm gonna treck, it'll be in the direction of Monterey Park.
-steen
A&W SEAFOOD RESTAURANT
9306 Reseda Blvd.
Northridge, CA 91324
tags: dim+sum, chinese+food, dining, eating, San+Fernando+Valley
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I currently have a song running through my head. To the tune of "Whatever Lola Wants"...Whatever Betka wants
La la la
Betka Gets...
Madame wanted ceviche (she ALWAYS wants ceviche). We were headed downtown for some shopping and El Siete Mares was right on our way. Thanks to some questionable driving on my part, we narrowly missed oncoming traffic on our way into their parking lot but only had to walk a few feet to the door.
We were the only people in the restaurant at 2:30pm on a weekday, but that didn't seem to impact the quality of service. And, by that, I mean that I imagine the waitress would have been just as displeased to attend to us if there were more people there. Though I could be wrong.
B ordered the mixed ceviche and I had the tilapia. The ceviche arrived first, at the same time as my salad. We were really amazed by the sheer quantity of the serving. You could not accuse them of skimping. An enormous mound of fish was piled high on a cutesy-wootsy fish shaped plastic plate, a melange of "fish" (they didn't elaborate on the menu), clams, shrimp, octopus, and Krab (surimi). It wasn't in a bowl and therefore wasn't swimming in the citrusy marinade, which we both appreciated. The whole dish was mildly seasoned, needed a pinch of salt, and lacked cilantro almost entirely. That made me happy but was a bit of a bummer for Ms. B. We avoided what appeared to be store-bought hard taco tortilla rounds in favor of the tortilla chips that started off our meal. All told, Betka was really happy with her meal except for the surimi which was kinda gross. I have to wonder why they bother with it as it is pre-cooked and therefore doesn't benefit from the acidity the way raw fish does. I was particularly impressed with the texture of the octopus which was tender and not chewy in the least.
When my meal arrived I was surprised to find that it was a whole fried fish. I don't know why it hadn't occurred to me. They did a fairly good job frying it up, delivering a "crisp enough to eat the tail though somewhat overcooked" critter along with rice and a generous mound of very nice fries. I was not disappointed by it and would probably have thought it a great bargain if I didn't know that I could get a fresh whole fried tilapia at the Bangkok Market on Melrose for about $1.70. Betka picked up the tab so I'm having a hard time remembering the exact price, but I believe it was somewhere in the $10 range.It seems that people either LOVE this place or hate it, but I thought it was OK. I hope Betka and I can hit some other ceviche places before she leaves on Tuesday because I'd like to get her opinions, and I know it'll make her real real happy.
Would I go back? Sure. It's not something I'd go out of my way for. It won't inspire any cravings, but I think it's a serviceable option if you're in the neighborhood.
-steen
EL SIETE MARES
3131 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026
tags: restaurants, ceviche, food, eating, dining, mexican+food
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I just happened to be flipping across the channels the other morning and saw Amy Sedaris on Martha Stewart's show. After I stopped clutching my stomach hard enough from my guffawing, I zipped to the PC to see if anyone had posted this cake segment on YouTube. The show itself has this truncated clip of the goings on. This is a fair representation of what went on that morn, but the whole shebang was even more rip roaring than this little tidbit ever good be. I've got to get my hands on that show!
It reminds me of the time that Martha had the late Julia Child on her
Xmas special one year. They were making side by side croquembouches (how fucken showy of Mz. Stewart anyway - if she had Joey Heatherton on, they would be making PB&J!). Julia's was a beautiful, rustic mountain of caramel-strewn profiteroles and looks as if it were made with more heart and soul than Mother Theresa ever could muster. La Martha's was a perfectly shaped cone, made with the cold precision of an Eames chair that not even a gnat would dare get stuck on for fear of offending. Julia rocks in perpetuum!
So, check out Amy giving Martha her just deserts:
-Quinn
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Ok, so it's late on a Saturday night, about 1:30. Betka went out with our friend, Amy but I was just too tired to join in the fun. Instead, I made some yummy yummy tomato soup* and watched the Simpsons on Tivo and I'm rounding out my night with some FoodBlog visits. (Is that lame? LOL)
So, there I was reading this post about Yuca's on Hillhurst and I realized that I never posted about my own visit there, even though I've had the photos uploaded for quite some time.
Shame on me!
;)
;)
;)
By now I've forgotten all of the deep insights I'd almost certainly developed with regard to the cuisine. What I do remember is that my carnitas taco was freakin' tasty, and I made a second visit a week later for another cochinita pibil burrito because I liked it that much. But, that is inconsequential. Everyone's eaten at Yuca's already and you all know it's good.
No. The reason I'm even bringing it up is that reading about it reminded me of what transpired after our meal. Bob and Julie wanted coffee (I never touch the stuff) so we went across the street to Starbuck's to feed their jones. On the way over, I asked Bob what he thought of his burrito (both he and Julie had ordered bean and cheese). He said, "It was ok". Months of tongue-biting bubbled over and I finally had to ask him, "How come whenever we go to a restaurant that specializes in one particular item, you order something completely different?" I mean, really. He's the guy that goes to a classic steak house and orders the chow mein. It's crazy. Well, when I asked him, his eyes kinda glazed over and he just looked at me for a minute. You could literally see the comprehension as it seeped into his brain. "You're right!" (Eureka!!)
I shared with him a story about my friend, Colin. A big group went to some BBQ place in Pasadena some years ago. It was Colin's first time there and he asked the group for suggestions. They told him that the baby back ribs were the only good thing on the menu and that's what everyone ordered. Except for Colin. He got the beef ribs. Wanna guess what happened? Icky, chewy, tough and inedible, the beef ribs offended his sensibilities. And I don't know that he appreciated the guffaws from his friends when they laughed at his folly.
Bob claims to have learned his lesson. Only time will tell.
YUCA's
2056 Hillhurst Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90027
* Tomato Bisque (adapted from this recipe)
1 tsp butter
1 tsp flour
1 26.5 oz box Pomi chopped tomatoes
1/3 tsp baking soda
2 tsps salt
1 tsp sugar
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups milk
Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over low heat. Add the flour and cook gently for 2 minutes or until the flour is cooked. Add the tomatoes and stir to incorporate.
Add the salt, sugar, and baking soda. Mix well and simmer 5 minutes. Taste, adjust seasonings. Add the garlic and cook on low another 10 minutes. Add the milk and cook on low until heated through.
Serve with sliced bread.
-steen
tags: tomato+soup, cooking, eating, soups
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Isn't she adorable? That's Betka. She's in town for some work and play and arrived in time to celebrate NYE.She had an appointment last night til nearly 10pm so our dinner had to wait until she got back. I consulted Chowhound for our late-night seafood options and one of the posts reminded me that a return visit to the Hungry Cat was due.
I'd been to that Sunset and Vine shopping center dozens of times since it opened and the Hungry Cat always seemed appealing, except for the clientele. A little too "cool kid" for me. But Bob and I wanted lobster rolls a couple months ago and there aren't many options for that New England specialty here in LA so we trucked over to the Hungry Cat on a weekday for a late lunch and it was nice and empty. We got our lobster rolls which I'll describe below, but I have to mention that there was a guy down the bar from us who was eating a burger and... Dang! It looked really really tasty. I wasn't feeling burgery last night but I'm dying to try it.
;)
;)
Betka and I braved the strong winds and falling palm tree debris and made it to the restaurant about a half hour before closing. The joint is pretty swank with a bright, cozy bar surrounding the open kitchen and candle-lit banquettes along the walls. The ambiance had us feeling rather fancy and in the mood to treat ourselves so we got right to business with a half-dozen oysters and four clams on the half-shell. (Oysters $2.25 ea, Clams $2 ea.)
Wanna get on my good side? Wanna woo me? Wanna get me to hand over secrets? Easy as pie. Just plop me down in front of a big old pile of gorgeously plump, sweet oysters and clams. I'll be putty in your hands.
On to the entrees. I reprised my previous meal experience and ordered the lobster roll. It's basically a chilled lobster salad (mayo, celery, herbs) in a soft bun (smaller than hot dog size) which has been grilled face down so it gets greasy and crunchy. Frankly, I wasn't too crazy about it last time and I only ordered it again last night because I couldn't decide what I wanted and felt pressured by our time constraints. It's fairly small, though served with a mountain of very good fries, and I think I'd rather have a steamed lobster without sauces and stuff to mask the animal's natural flavor. For the price ($22.00), I think it's a bit of a rip off.
Speaking of.... Ms. B ordered the Alaskan king crab legs (1/2 lb) w/ mustard butter. That's really kind of funny. The part that says "legs". It was ONE crab leg. Yes. ONE. For $20. They ought to be ashamed of themselves. I mean, the sauce was pleasant, and the plating artful, but, really... $20 for one crab leg?
Writing all of this is making me re-think my desire to go back for that burger. Which costs $14, by the way.
-steen
THE HUNGRY CAT
1535 N. Vine
Hollywood, CA 90028
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