The Skinny Critic

My finds at Artisinal LA

Artisinal LA was a cool event. It's a great way to find out about new products and vendors that you may otherwise never come across. I will highlight a few of my finds, and the good news is many of them are sold elsewhere or will deliver! The huge warehouse like space was a good choice for this event since it was 90 degrees outside...

I've had Cookie Good before and I have to say their cookies are really fantastic. The cinnabun was a standout to me. You can find their cookies at Blue Plate in Santa Monica.

The Brandt Beef was another winner. They were serving tender slices of flavorful corn fed beef - all raised naturally with no antibiotics or hormones. They were one of the few vendors offering things at GREAT prices. You can order online.

Cookie Casa Bakery was the shinning star for me! Their cupcakes were the best I've had in a long time. The chocolate was incredibly moist and topped with a great vanilla frosting. The vanilla cupcake are made with sour cream - also moist and fluffy.  Their peanut butter oatmeal cookie - amazing!! I have already scoped out where I can get their goods and they are sold at Froma on Melrose.

Gotta have S'more was a fun little treat! The caramel and cookies and cream flavors were the best.  A little smuffin! Plush Puff's gourmet marshmallows weren't anything calling my name, but when I tried them...I was hooked! I bought a box of the maple bacon - and once they are warm they melt in your mouth!

Finally All Jarred Up makes a delicious apple pie. It was honestly perfect.  I may have to order some of these.

The next Artisinal LA is in the Fall. I'll be there!

 

Artisinal LA this weekend @ Santa Monica Place

WHAT: Artisinal LA is an event that showcases more that 100 local, artisinal and handmade vendors. Tickets are $10 in advance and $15 at the door.

WHO: There are over 100 purveyors attending - here are a few I am excited about: I Heart Pies, Cookie Good, Gotta have S'more, and San Angel Mole.

WHEN: April 16th and 17th starting at 11am

WHERE: Santa Monica Place dining deck

WHY: Because you aren't going to Coachella, so might as well go support some great local vendors.

For more info go to Artisinalla.com

Capo

Capo has long been one of my favorite restaurants in Los Angeles and I am surprised that is has taken me this long to review it.  When I was away at Georgetown for college, Capo was always at the top of my list if I was home visiting for a weekend.  It affords the perfect environment for a meal with good friends – the tiny restaurant has a wood burning oven that is exposed in the back corner and you can see the chefs hard at work grilling steaks, seafood and other specialties. 

After ordering you are greeted with a savory poppy seed cone filled with mascarpone cheese and heirloom tomatoes.  It is one bite in size but the perfect way to whet the palate before your meal.  I just wish I could have more than one of these amazing little cones.

 
 

The menu is very seasonal Italian but always has some of the signature dishes such as white corn ravioli with black truffles.  At $28 this is truly one of the most delicious items on the menu.  The pastas are delicate and done in a butter sauce with fresh shaved black truffles on top. 

 

Other raviolis change with the seasons and can have spinach and ricotta or Kabocha squash. Gnocchi pomodoro is simple but hearty and spaghettini carbonara is a lighter version of the classic in a cream sauce with proscuitto pieces. All the pastas are wonderful but the corn raviolis are my favorite.

  

 
 

On my most recent visit I had the local spiny lobster that are now and season and was cooked in the wood burning oven.  I also had the corn ravioli and a side of mushrooms that unfortunately, the waiter forgot about, so they came out very late, and even more unfortunate was their flavor. They were bland and uninspired.  Thankfully he took them off the bill as a result of their tardiness…don’t EVER order the mushrooms.

 

 

The bone in filet that one of my friends ordered was incredibly flavorful. It came with a wonderful side of a vegetable medley and was as good as any steak you can get at a steak house in LA. Most of their meats are grass fed, however the filet is corn-fed and thus every bit more tasty.

  

Brazino was clean and light and topped with tomato sauce, basil and accompanied with broccoli and mashed potatoes. 

 

A plate of petit fours comes out for dessert with miniature pies, cookies and chocolates, a lovely end to a great (albeit expensive) meal. 

Capo  1810 Ocean Ave. (310) 394-5550

Cache

*Skinny Seal*

Josiah Citrin strikes again, and again in Santa Monica no less. Cache has moved into the space that once occupied Hidden, a concept that never won over the crowds.  Citrin's style is much more casual and inviting than his French Melisse on Wilshire Blvd.  Cache is part lounge, part restaurant and despite inconsisent service, the restaurant is putting out exactly the type of cuisine that people want these days. 

A beautiful warm atmosphere is filled with a middle aged crowd.  No one seems to have just wandered in, but many it seems are loyal patrons of Citrin.  Another group of younger group of women seem to have come in off the recent press from the LA Times and a table of business partners (and most-likely out of towners) are probably here for the Citrin name. 

Let's face it, tough times call for new measures, and something tells me Melisse is no longer as booked as it used to be.  For many that would splurge on a nice dinner maybe once a week, it has gone down to maybe once a month at most.  But Cache is no such place.  Most entrees fall into the 20-something dollar range, but the flatbreads would make more than a suitable meal at only $12. 

The flatbread was actually the highlight of my meal regardless.  Supper thin, topped with caramelized onions, brie, arugula and balsamic reduction, it had a great mixture of sweet and salty.

A special of kobocha pumpkin risotto topped with shaved black truffles sounded too good to pass up...unfortunately I should have passed it up. The color alone was a little off-setting.  Bright orange, it reminded me of a nacho cheese sauce at a sports stadium...not really what I want to think about when eating a $40 risotto. 

The Kurobota porkchop was a much better choice with the pineapple chutney and mint.  It was so tender and the chutney gave it the perfect amount of flavor.  Presentation was simple but refined.  A side of wood oven roasted mushrooms were underwhelming and a waste of an order...I hate that.

Time will tell if Cache has the staying power it needs, especially with the wonderful Gjelina only a few blocks away with even better food at even lower prices.

Cache 3110 Main St. (310) 399-4800

Gjelina

*Skinny Seal*

What would a replica of Pizzeria Mozza look like on Abbot Kinny? Maybe a little darker lighting.  Perhaps some outside dining space. But still fabulous food from a wood burning oven and a communal table for those who don't like making reservations weeks in advance. That's exactly what is to be found at Gjelina.  

There menu is a little different from Pizzeria Mozza but very similar, and same focus on great ingredients and wonderful food. I've been a couple times now and the food really is worth the hype.  Grilled peaches with buratta and prosciutto was a wonderful appetizer.  The perfect combination of salty and sweet, it was a great start to the meal.  

Crispy niman ranch pork belly with apple cider and greens is succulent and reminds me why I went to the gym that day-to enjoy a thick piece of bacon in the sweet cider sauce. Ricotta Gnocchi is done with not enough crispy sage or brown butter, but its still quite delicious and one of my must haves at this restaurant. 

Pizzas are another item not to be missed. Thin and bubbly from the oven, they are, in my opinion, even better than the pizzas at Mozza.  My favorite is topped with gruyere, caramelized onion, fromage blanc and arugula. I love anything with caramelized onions and this pizza has the perfect amount. 

The perfect neighborhood spot-always bustling with interesting people and great food.

Gjelina 1429 Abbot Kinney Blvd. (310) 450-1429

5x5 Collaborative @ Melisse

The Los Angeles Chefs Collaborative dinner is one of those ideas that is so ingenious, that I wish I had thought of it.  5 different Chefs from some of LA's most fabulous restaurants come together to prepare an amazing meal under one roof.  The dinner is 7 courses long.  Each chef prepares one dish and a 6th chef is flown in from another fantastic restaurant somewhere else in the country to mix it up a bit, and for the 7th course, the pastry chef at the restaurant of choice is responsible for making dessert.  

The brilliantness of this concept is that each chef is spending all their time focusing on one dish.  A dish that they know will be eaten right before or after another great dish. So as you can imagine, there is a level of competition between the chefs, which allows the diner (me) to feel like a judge on Top Chef.  All of the jest is in good faith as the dinner benefits the Special Olympics of Souther California.  

I choose to go to the dinner at Melisse.  The special guest was Chef Gabriel Kreuther of The Modern, one of my favorite restaurants in New York.  The other chefs and restaurants that are included in the 2009 5x5 include Michael Cimarusti of Providence, Neal Frazer of Grace, Josiah Citrin of Melisse, David LeFevre of Water Grill and Gino Angelini of Angelini Osteria.  

There is no peaking at this menu online before entering the restaurant, which makes it only more exciting.  A special, signed menu was placed in front of us at the start of the meal and then the fun began.  

Josiah Citrin made our first course, which was a veloute of asparagus-rosemary and passion fruit.  It was good but did not feel like much of a course, just a few small bites.

The second course was Hawaiian big eye tuna from Michael Cimarusti.  This dish was simple and the fish was fresh, but again didn't blow my socks off.  The bright orange sauce underneath the fish was a little off-putting. 

The next course was one of my favorites: maine lobster from Gabriel Kreuther with carrots, fava beans and nasturtium flower broth. The lobster melted in my mouth and the broth was the perfect accompaniment. 

Gino Angelini created the next course, a turbot filet with leek veloute and pioppini mushrooms and polenta crostini.  This is the best dish I've ever had from Chef Angelini and I wish it was offered at his restaurant.  The fish at his restaurant unfortunately rarely gets more creative than a dover sole. 

The final savory course was cumin scented lamb from chef David LeFevre.  This dish was phenomenal.  It was finished with a tomato date compote, a hummus like garbanzo coulis, kumquat, and pomegranate strewn couscous.  I have never been a huge lamb fan, but this dish converted me not only to a fan of lamb but also Chef LeFevre.  There were so many components, yet the dish was perfectly balanced. 

The final course was prepared by Melisse's pastry chef and was described as a rather boring sounding apricot-caramel with panna cotta and almond croquant.  It ended up being the perfect ending to a great meal.  

The chef's all came out to greet us, which made the evening even more special and it all went to such a great cause.  Every city should have a 5x5. 

LA BBQ fest

*Skinny Seal*

Cupcakes, flamenco dancers, cobbler and rock and roll were all to be had at this weekend's LA BBQ festival in Santa Monica.  There was no shortage of BBQ as well-pulled pork, ribs and sausages were all aplenty.  I (foolishly) bought a VIP pass so that I didn't have to wait in lines, but I got there so early that there were no lines...so a waste of $35.  By the time I left, longs were really long, particularly for alcohol and cobbler.  

My friend and I thought we'd share a try a few different BBQ's.  Unfortunately, the only option was $10 a plate from each BBQ place so it was hard to 'sample'.  They would be ahead to offer a half-plate for $5 so that you could try more of the places.

 We had an excellent pulled pork sandwich from Texas Thunder BBQ with a uniquely seasoned coleslaw on the side.

 Then we sighted people walking by with what looked like the most amazing cobbler...ever.  The line was 50 deep so this was the one point in which my VIP ticket came in handy.  Hot peach cobbler was topped with the perfect cakey crumble and a scoop of vanilla ice cream, yummy! I wanted to lick the sides of the little paper plate it came in, but I restrained.  

After the sugar rush we decided to go for some more BBQ as it was, after all, a BBQ festival.  We asked around and people seemed to be enjoying Gus's BBQ from South Pasadena.  We had Memphis baby back ribs, Carolina pulled pork and BBQ baked beans. 

The pulled pork was not as good as Texas Thunder, the ribs were great and the beans were a little strange as they tasted more spicy than sweet and tangy.  I don't think I will be driving to Pasadena just for the ribs anytime soon, especially with the new Baby Blues down the street.  

We decided to finish off our meal with some cupcakes, because every good meal should have a cupcake.  Polkatots cupcakes was there from Pasadena.  I had heard of them as they won the Cupcake Challenge.  We met the owner and she recommended the Dulce de leche and the strawberry.  

I wasn't expecting anything too spectacular as I have very high standards for my cupcakes, but let me tell you, these cupcakes were awesome!! I thoroughly enjoyed eating both-the strawberry was made with real strawberries, which is a must, and the Dulce de leche had the potential to be too sweet but was perfect and quite unique.  

I will definitely be driving to Pasadena for cupcakes in the near future.  

The BBQ event was deemed an overall success.  It was a nice opportunity to meet new people (which doesn't happen as often as you would think in LA), sit out by the beach, listen to live music and eat great food.  I can't wait until next year. 

http://www.labbqfest.com/

Il Ristorante di Giorgio Baldi

Giorgio Baldi is one of LA's hidden gems.  Tucked at the beginning of West Channel Road, it is a tiny restaurant adorned by a gay bar and what once was Brass Cap.  The Ivy covered building leaves very little for passer byers to see, hence the celebrity heavy crowd. When you enter the restaurant the smell of truffle oil engulfs you along with the warm ambiance and simply set tables.  The restaurant cannot have more than 25 tables and is always packed...and for good reason.  The menu changes frequently, and the waiter will practically recite it in its entirety as if every item is a special.  They bring bread and be sure to get the olive oil and vinegar...the vinegar my mother swears is the best she's ever tasted, and I must admit it is excellent.  The wine list is extensive but they seemed to be low on many of the half bottles.  We had a Brunello that stood up nicely to our starters. 

So, on to the food. Take your time ordering and be sure not to skip the pastas as they are of the best in LA.  We started with a pasta "sampling," which I highly recommend. A variety of tomato basil gnocchi, truffle and sweet corn agnolotti and pumpkin ravioli with brown butter and sage.  They were all divine but my favorite was the pumpkin.  The creamy filling was perfect for what felt like the first real fall day in Los Angeles, i.e. it was below 60 degrees.  

 For my entree I choose the Dover Sole which came in a lemon butter sauce.  It was perfectly prepared and is such a delicate fish.  All the entrees come with spinach and potatoes and I asked for extra of the lemon butter sauce and poured it all over my spinach...wonderful.  I also tasted the lamb, which came with a mint sauce and was perfectly prepared.  

 

For dessert we had the tiramisu...a definite for coffee lovers.  I am not so much a coffee lover and thus probably should have ordered a different dessert, but this was a particularly strong tiramisu and came with espresso ice cream.  

Overall, an incredible dining experience, one that makes me feel that I am in Napa Valley somewhere...but alas it is here in LA, lucky angelenos!

Il Ristorante di Giorgio Baldi 114 W Channel Rd. (310) 573-1660.