ostudio's Profile
Manhattan Chowhoud coming to LA for a long weekend end of September
It's VERY expensive, but worth every penny...
Urasawa.
Transformative omakase experience.
Dinner Near Greek Theater -- Advice?
Blairs's on Rowena for a nice preshow dinner.
http://www.blairsrestaurant.com/
Raymond Restaurant, Pasadena
Going to the Raymond for the first time this evening for dinner. I've always heard mixed reviews on the food.
Any hints, tips or favorite dishes would greatly be appreciated.
Thank you in advance fellow chowhounders!
I want to buy Robiola Cheese Please!
I cannot recommend anywhere in the 818 area. sorry.
but I would suggest going to the Cheese Store of Beverly Hills.
A few weeks ago they had at least 4-5 different robiolas.
Truffles
Yes, the CSBH has the best selection of truffle cheese, as well as the best handling.
Boschetto is an italian semisoft cow's milk cheese studded with black truffles. There is also a very dry pecorino (sheep milk) with black truffles and another sheep's milk one that is soft and crumbly. The first 2 are my favorites.
Not cheap, but alittle goes a long way. very delicious & aromatic sliced thin.
Shibucho
shibucho's on beverly is indeed open. just ate there last week.
yes vbabe, the toro was incredible. also had sauteed scallops in a foie gras sauce; and uni that was so fresh and delicious it gave me a head rush.
his wine list is extensive and can be expensive, but just tell him what you want to spend. we had a very nice spanish rioja for $45.
go omakase.
Omakase ideas in Los Angeles area
shibucho's is fantastic. top quality fish. omakase may include sauteed scallops with a foie gras sauce. BUT expect to pay min, $75pp. I suggest telling him a max. at the beginning of your meal.
La Cabanita - Glendale
the homemade chicken soup is very yummy.
sweet clear broth with nice chunks of chicken and vegetables topped with fresh cilantro and sliced avocado. and homemade tortilas on the side.
Providence - Wow
ended another great meal with a fantastic dessert there a few weeks ago...
passion fruit gelee topped with an eleant scoop rosemary sorbet and sprinkled apple strusel flakes sitting in a pool of fresh cracked basil seeds (which were supspended in a clear aqueous gel). then coconut milk sauce elegantly poured into the bowl.
it was a refreshing combination of textures, colors and aromatic tastes.
a way-sophisticated "boba" (reference) desert. it was one of the most exciting desserts that I've had in a long time!
Wolfe Burger, Pasadena
Haven't been there for awhile, but I do remember the turkey burger being very tasty. and yes, those onion rings!
Intelligentsia Coffee Opening in Silver Lake!
It will be a wecome addition to the neighborhood!!
...especially since Pazzo uses Intelligensia beans but makes one of the worst espressos. They really know how to take a good bean and screw it up completely.
Blair's cafe uses intelligensia beans and they pull a pretty good latte on their La Marzocco.
Fresh homemade ravioli store?
This may be obvious, but Surfas has a good selection of raviolis.
Canter's - what happened?
canters is absolutely dreadful and has been for quite a while.
HOWEVER, some of the bakery items at the bakery counter are good.
pulling over in the green loading zone at 1:30 in the morning for a poppy seed danish to go does the trick!
Leaf Cuisine (review + pics)
With all due respect, I absolutely did not enjoy my lunch at Leaf.
I am not a vegetarian, but I do enjoy well-prepared flavorful veg. cooking.
The wrap sandwich I ordered was soggy, dense, grainy and didn't taste like much.
My soup was tepid (I understand that nothing is meant to exceed 118 degrees, but...)
and lacked flavor. The best thing I ordered was my apple/carrot juice.
Oh how I long for a restaurant like Green's (SF) down here in L.A.! until then I'll just keep cooking from Deborah Madison's books.
Indigenous treats?
Here are a few ideas that come to mind:
-delicious handmade choclates from
L'Artisan Du chocolate
3364 West First Street
Los Angeles, CA 90004
http://www.lartisanduchocolat.com/
(can also be purchased at CulverCity and Palisades Farmer's market, call first)
-dried fruits, nuts or honey from the Hollywood Farmer's market
(I love the dried apricots, flame raisens at the Peacock family stand)
-box of tiny exquisite Italian cookies from Susina Bakery.
Need a cake that just screams...January
Susina makes a delicious St. Honore. It's a scrumptuous French desert which is hard to find in L.A. I've noticed it on the Susina bakery menu but it can only be ordered whole. Had a slice last week at a party and it was delicious!
Have you tried Boule on La Cienega?
Valentino's, Santa Monica
Haven't been to Valentino's for a couple of years. Kinda fell off my radar with all these other new great places in l.a.
Feeling the urge to go tomorrow night for some delicious pasta fresca.
What's the lastest on this l.a. establishment?
Who's in the kitchen?
Any specifics would be great appreciated.
Grazie!
Beverly Hills vs Silver Lake for cheese?
IMO there is no comparison-the variety at the Cheese Store of BH is exceptional.
they have the best selection of fermier and artisanal cheeses.
Currently they have some hard to find goat cheeses- individual banons (wrapped in chestnut leaves), la racotiere (beautiful!) and clochettes.
Looking for a Yule Log
I saw a few in the case at Amandine Bakery (Wilshire, near Bundy).
Call, don't know if they were special orders.
Knife Sharpening
Ross Cutlery at the Bradbury building IMO is the best.
They are friendly and knowledgable.
They also happen to be one of the few places in the states that sharpens ceramic knives.
My friends back east send them to Ross.
Where can I buy Malasada in L.A.?
Nata is wonderful.
Had a malasada with coffee there yesterday-delicious.
The traditional natas are great,-just as good as the ones in Lisbon.
Canele in Atwater
I am glad that you both enjoyed your meals at Canele.
However, I was a bit disappointed when I went last week.
We ordered the beet salad which was very good.
However, the app special which was roasted delicato squash on a bed of arugula with roasted lemon slices and raisens. The flavors were good, however the squash was so charred and burnt- ended up only eating half the squash on the plate.
The steamed clams were very mediocre-kinda bland infact.
And the roasted leg of lamb-meat was sliced in the wrong direction so meat was very tough.
Did not order desert. Caneles on the way out were indeed a nice touch, but were ok...IMO didn't have the 'hours of slow baked texture' that I love.
Authentic Japanese sushi et al in Los Angeles? No mayo.......
Sushi Shibuicho on Beverly Blvd (not far from downtown)
Shige serves traditional style Edo-style sushi.
Go omakase. Not inexpensive ($75 and up), but the quality of the fish is superior.
He also has an astounding french red wine list and will pair fish selection accordingly.
ZONA ROSA CAFFE, pasadena - so disappointing!
EricW you are correct I am in search of the transcendant latte pulled by a bonafide barrista. IMO there are so few places in L.A. -Caffe Luxxe and Sabor Y Cultura are the only 2 that I have found. If there are other places on par with these, please share!!
I haven't tried that place in Culver City that people speak highly of...
as an aside, last weekend, was in SF and had a delicious latte (complete with an autumn leaf latte art on top) at the Blue Bottle Coffee kiosk. http://www.bluebottlecoffee.net/
yuuum.
Prime Rib Christmas Dinner: Where to Buy the Prime Rib?
The prime rib at Marconda's Meats at the Farmer's market (3rd and Fairfax) is terrific.
IMO worth the extra $, especially for a holiday meal. Call in order early if you want it aged.
ZONA ROSA CAFFE, pasadena - so disappointing!
amandine, I assume you go to Sabor Y Cultura when you drive yourself to hollywood? I love Caffe Luxxe on Montana street, but I dont' live on that side of town.
Pazzo Gelato in Silverlake uses Intelligentsia beans, but the people behind the counter are clueless when it comes to pulling an espresso. anywhere else on the eastside?
SPAGO=The Best TM LUNCH in LA
sounds delicious! wow impressive lunch for a tuesday afternoon.
how were the sweetbreads and venison prepared?
ZONA ROSA CAFFE, pasadena - so disappointing!
After all the buzz about Zona Rosa Caffe in the LAT coffee article and friends telling me that it's the best, I was very excited to go there (my first time) for a delicious latte. I went yesterday morning, ordered a latte and requested that it be very hot. (secretly hoping that they would heat the cup up first...) First bad sign, the woman behind the counter did not tamp down hard on the fresh grounds. Latte served- very flat looking...
oh well, I took my first sip right there at the counter, expecting to swoon. As I took my first sip she said, "oh I forgot you wanted it really hot", so she took my cup and dumped the entire latte into the metal pot that she just steamed the milk in with the intention of re-steaming the whole thing. (eh gads, what the ...?!)
I was slightly shocked and asked nicely if she could make me a double shot latte instead, since my first sip revealed that it was way too weak for my taste.
She emptied the latte out of my cup and pulled a double shot into the streaky used cup and poured some hot milk into it.
There was no crema, no frothy layer of milk-it was one of the worst lattes I've had in a long time. What happened? !
Please tell me that it's usually NOT like this.
