eecue's Profile
Mode : Downtown LA 24 Hour Dining?
So in this week's LA Downtown News, there is both an ad and a blurb about a restaurant called mode. Never heard of or about it. Their tagline goes Fois Gras or Pork Chop... something like that and it's listed as French in the restaurant guide. I called the number and nobody answered. Is this place opening soon or what? Downtown can always use more 24 hour dining, right now we have the Pacific Dining and the Pantry...
Return to Santa Fe : ISO Fine Dining
Here is our lineup:
Last night we got in pretty late and just ate at one of my old faves, the Blue Corn Cafe and Brewery, the green chile stew was excellent and perfectly spicy. Today for lunch we did Pink Adobe.
Tonight: The Compound
Monday: Picnic @ The Opera (we're gonna pack out own via Whole Foods / Wild Oats / TJoes)
Tuesday: Fuego
Wednesday: The Old House
Thursday: Geronimo
Friday and Saturday we're in Taos, any suggestions?
Return to Santa Fe : ISO Fine Dining
Hello Fellow Chowhounders,
I'm sure I'll get flamed for labeling myself as an Ex-Santa Fean because I only went to Jr. High (De Vargas) and High School (SFHS) in SF, thus only living there for about 6 years, but I'll take that risk.
Anyhow, after living in Los Angeles for over a decade, I'm returning on vacation with my wife. She has never been to Santa Fe and she is very excited to experience the culture, beauty, and most importantly, the food of the City Different.
We are leaving on Friday and will be arriving in Santa Fe on Saturday after a short stopover in AZ to visit some of the wife's friends. We're staying the week, but will be taking off just in time to miss the insanity that is Indian Market.
We are looking for some recommendations for fine dining. When I lived in Santa Fe I was a teenager, so I never really ate at the upscale restaurants that SF had to offer. We like food of all types, but obviously want to focus on Santa Fe style cuisine, although a French restaurant would be nice as well. For lunches I'll likely hit a bunch of old favorites: Tomasitas, Blue Corn, Tecolote, Cowgirl, etc. Here is my short list for dinner (which will become shorter obviously):
el farol
geronimo
anasazi
trattoria nostrani
the compound
amavi
el meson
la boca
fuego
the shed
la choza
horseman's haven
We're staying very close to the Plaza, but we have a vehicle if we need to drive. So what are the best upscale restaurants in Santa Fe right now?
Best kaiseki in Los Angeles
The kaiseki at TC is amazing. I absolutely love it. Each item is prepared beautifully and everything is scrumptious. The setting is beautiful, and I'm not just saying that because I got married in the garden last year!
This isn't the kaiseki, but it does give you an idea about the tenshin sampler lunch:
http://eecue.com/log_archive/eecue-log-512-Thousand_Cranes___Senbazuru_at_the_New_Otani.html
Somewhere I have photos of the actual kaiseki, but I can't find them right now.
Lookin' for LA's La Folie!
Yeah we had a wonderful meal at La Folie and the foie gras was amazing and plentiful. We are doing Melisse for our Valentines dinner (although the night before as my wife works in find dining and thus on valentines night). I'm looking forward to our next trip to the bay.
Help! Need a place to impress visiting New York friend in 2 hours!!
The presentation was top notch and the seafood was quite fresh to my palette, although I don't have a boat!
Perfect (Belated) Valentines Dinner Out
Well I guess nevermind, I looked around and decided on Melisse. We're looking forward to it.
=]
Great Sandwiches in OC
Hands down the best vietnamese sandwich shop is Lee's .... they're open late, too. if you're adventurous try the sardine sandwich. They sautee them in a sort of marinara sauce, delicious.
http://leessandwiches.com/
Japanese Steakhouse
yes there is a Teppanyaki restaurant that is either a part of or just next to Thousand Cranes.
Help! Need a place to impress visiting New York friend in 2 hours!!
Well this isn't really much of a help, but there are several interesting restaurants you could get in to in Downtown LA:
1. Water Grill - great food and seafood, no view
2. Windows - amazing view (best in LA? ) just OK food
3. LA Prime - good steakhouse, great view
Matzo Ball Soup Challenge
I will also vouch for Canter's. I also love the Mishmosh which comes with a nice gigantic matzoh ball as well as other goodies. For some strange reason I really love having matzoh ball soup AND beet borscht with a dallop of sour cream... not in one bowl though!
Canter's is cool because:
a. it is open 24 hours
b. the waitresses have worked there for 60 years
c. my mom used to go there when she was a teenager
d. the same waitresses probably served my mom
Chicken Wings
I like the wings at Hamburger Hamlet and Hoff's Hutt (is there even one in LA proper?)... but the HH wings are some times a bit dry.
Where to find the best Pad Kee Mao (AKA Drunken Noodle) in LA?
I also will vouch for Sanamlaung... their Pad Kee Mao is delicious. I love the fact that they're open to 4:00am. When I used to live in Hollywood all the waitresses knew me and when I go back they still remember me. I also love the duck salad. One thing that totally rocks, but isn't on the menu is Spicy Coconut Seafood soup, order it, you'll love it. Also the food is inexpensive.
Perfect (Belated) Valentines Dinner Out
Ok so when I say Valentines Day, I actually mean either the following evening or the weekend, as my wife works in find dining and won't be able to take the night off. She actually works every holiday mostly, but that is a different topic for a different post and perhaps even a different website. She's going to be an RN in a few years so this whole thing may or may not change... anyhow.
We just got back from a week in SF and had some really wonderful food. I am looking for something French, at the level of La Folie. So my budget with wine and a multi-course meal is somewhere between $300 and $500 including tip for the both of us. I would love a nice prix fixe tasting menu with a wine pairing.
Thanks!
=]
Vacation in SF - Recommendations, Please
Here is a copy / paste from my review of La Folie:
Last night was our final dining experience in San Francisco, and as it turns out we saved the best for last. On the drive up to SF we asked for recommendations via chowhound, and recommendations we received. For our French restaurant we ended up choosing La Folie and we were extremely satisfied.
We arrived a few minutes late, but thankfully it was a weeknight, and although three quarters of the tables were full, we were not given any static by the hostess due to our tardiness. After taking our coats and bags, the hostess sat us at a nice corner table next to a window and beside a couple celebrating a birthday. The birthday couple ended up being the only slight annoyance as they took about 20 flash photos of their food and each other, but hey it was a special day for them.
We opted to start with a half bottle of Philipponnant champagne that reminded us of a carbonated port, which the sommelier promptly delivered to our table, and deftly opened without a sound. Soon after our toast the amuse buche of lobster risotto with a parmesan crisp was brought to our table. The risotto had a nice flavor, although I did get a piece of lobster shell in mine. I would say that the amuse buche was the least impressive item we consumed.
I ordered the 5 course meal, and Penelope the 3 course. Our first courses came out at the same time and the 2 courses I had that she didn't were delivered with a dish for her to share, very considerate of our waiter Caley. I had read some bad reviews on Chowhound about the wait staff not being polite or speaking English, but Caley was an excellent server and spoke English with no accent, not that we care about the spoken dialect of our waiter.
My first course was a duck consumee, with tiny slices of roasted duck, enoki mushrooms and a single foie gras stuffed tortelloni. It was quite good, very light and a wonderful starter. Penelope had a baked day boat scallops with shrimp soufle atop a delictable mound of pureed Jerusalem artichokes. As usual we split our plates at the halfway point.
At this point our champagne was imbibed and we moved on to a half bottle of Langoa Barton Bordeaux which was full bodied and velvety. The red came just in time for my seared Hudson Valley Foie Gras, which was the largest most buttery and delicious piece of foie gras I have ever eaten. Penelope is not normally a fan of organ meats, but she thoroughly enjoyed it.
Next up was my Lobster, which I think may have actually been crawfish as it was about that size, with Pork belly and baby vegetables. Despite its tiny size it was delicious and flavorful and the pork belly was wonderful and smoky. The broth which I scooped up with my fish knife was complex and rich.
Our main courses arrived in unison, Penelope had the Veal Loin with a Chanterelle and Sweetbread Crepinette with Sautéed Brussels Sprouts (I refrained from making my famous baby mooing sounds), and I had "Le Boeuf", Beef Tenderloin, Braised Beef Short Rib, and Burger Rossini with a Truffle Madeira Sauce. The waiter reccomended that I start with the burger, as I would want to savor the short rib and tenderloin. I followed his advice and started with the wonderfully cute foie gras stuffed mini burger which was excellent, and finished with the short rib and tenderloin which were both heavenly. Penelope's veal was amazing and I especially loved the sweetbreads which where like a layer of rich pate.
For desert I opted for the cheese plate and penelope went for the chocolate fondant. The cheeses were excellent and the fondant was amazingly delicious. We complimented or deserts with a glass of mapley Cockburn tawny port and a glass of Layon desert wine, that tasted of summer and apricots.
La Folie was our favorite dining experience in San Francisco and we look forward to a return visit in the future.
http://eecue.com/log_archive/eecue-log-646-La_Folie.html
Perbacco, go there now!
Here is a copy/paste from my review of Perbacco:
There is nothing quite as satisfying as a delicious meal after a long drive. When you start your vacation with hand held nodules of culinary blasphemy known as McGriddles, your next dining experience can only go one way, up. While driving up the beautiful and inspiring Pacific Coast Highway I am a bit embarrassed to admit that I spent a good amount of time surfing the web looking for a good place to eat upon our arrival in San Francisco.
It actually wasn't a complicated process, as the top thread on Chowhound SF was entitled "Perbacco, go there now!." After checking in to our hotel, I made a reservation, albeit 30 minutes later than I was shooting for, at Perbacco. We caught a taxi to the barely three month old establishment on Cal and Front and were greeted with a warm handshake by the friendly host, who sat us in a comfortable corner booth.
Our server, Franco, was cordial, charismatic and quite Italian and thus able to execute perfect pronunciation on each and every menu item, while both Penelope and I, speaking only Spanish and English, faked it as best we could. We started with a quarter liter of Sauvignon Blanc to compliment an order of Scallops Crudo, which were coated in olive oil intermixed with Meyer Lemon zest, sliced Serrano peppers and daikon sprouts.
Our second course, accompanied by a half liter of Barbaresco, was a half-order or the Salumi Misti, which consisted of a delicious sextet of cured pork products including two varieties of salami, blogna, proscuitto, imported lonza and ciccioli, which basically makes me the worst Jew ever. The pork parade was presented with gherkins, crackers and breadsticks and was exceptionally delicious.
For our next course we split a pear and endive salad, thick with a rich chestnut honey dressing, toasted hazelnuts and a pungent triangle of gorgonzola. I'm glad we ended up sharing the salad, as it was quite decadent, and perfectly proportioned when conveniently split by our server.
For the main course, Penelope had the butternut squash Mezzelune and I had the Pork Shoulder. My entree was accompanied by the richest polenta ever, which much have had an entire stick of butter mixed in to the quarter cup of polenta on my plate, which defies probability, and most likely possibility, but nevertheless was a supersaturated polenta which could have been used to make rock butter.
During our meal I couldn't help to notice that the family next to us seemed to be the most popular trio in the restaurant, and my suspicions where confirmed when I asked Marco if we were sitting next to the owner. I introduced myself and mentioned the good buzz going on Chowhound about his restaurant, to which he responded that Chowhound was too kind to them. I noted that we drove up from Los Angeles that day and heard about his establishment on the internet during our drive. His wife and daughter said there were from LA and I told them that we live in Downtown, a block from Skid Row, and they mentioned their aunt was a fan and supporter of the Downtown revival.
After our meal we opted for the cheese plate, and allowed Marco to make our choices for us, within the constraints of 2 soft and 1 hard cheese. I failed to note the exact types of cheese we were presented with, but they were damn good, and we ate them up with the included bread, marconi almonds, raisins and honey. We washed the cheese down with a 20 year old Dow Tawny and a 27 year old Graham.
Our meal was delicious, the atmosphere was warm and friendly and the service was excellent. Sitting next to and meeting the owner was a nice perk and we have added Perbacco to our list of establishments that will receive our repeat patronage on our next trip to the Bay.
http://eecue.com/log_archive/eecue-log-638-Perbacco.html
Vacation in SF - Recommendations, Please
Ok to start with his is a copy/paste of my Perbacco review:
There is nothing quite as satisfying as a delicious meal after a long drive. When you start your vacation with hand held nodules of culinary blasphemy known as McGriddles, your next dining experience can only go one way, up. While driving up the beautiful and inspiring Pacific Coast Highway I am a bit embarrassed to admit that I spent a good amount of time surfing the web looking for a good place to eat upon our arrival in San Francisco.
It actually wasn't a complicated process, as the top thread on Chowhound SF was entitled "Perbacco, go there now!." After checking in to our hotel, I made a reservation, albeit 30 minutes later than I was shooting for, at Perbacco. We caught a taxi to the barely three month old establishment on Cal and Front and were greeted with a warm handshake by the friendly host, who sat us in a comfortable corner booth.
Our server, Franco, was cordial, charismatic and quite Italian and thus able to execute perfect pronunciation on each and every menu item, while both Penelope and I, speaking only Spanish and English, faked it as best we could. We started with a quarter liter of Sauvignon Blanc to compliment an order of Scallops Crudo, which were coated in olive oil intermixed with Meyer Lemon zest, sliced Serrano peppers and daikon sprouts.
Our second course, accompanied by a half liter of Barbaresco, was a half-order or the Salumi Misti, which consisted of a delicious sextet of cured pork products including two varieties of salami, blogna, proscuitto, imported lonza and ciccioli, which basically makes me the worst Jew ever. The pork parade was presented with gherkins, crackers and breadsticks and was exceptionally delicious.
For our next course we split a pear and endive salad, thick with a rich chestnut honey dressing, toasted hazelnuts and a pungent triangle of gorgonzola. I'm glad we ended up sharing the salad, as it was quite decadent, and perfectly proportioned when conveniently split by our server.
For the main course, Penelope had the butternut squash Mezzelune and I had the Pork Shoulder. My entree was accompanied by the richest polenta ever, which much have had an entire stick of butter mixed in to the quarter cup of polenta on my plate, which defies probability, and most likely possibility, but nevertheless was a supersaturated polenta which could have been used to make rock butter.
During our meal I couldn't help to notice that the family next to us seemed to be the most popular trio in the restaurant, and my suspicions where confirmed when I asked Marco if we were sitting next to the owner. I introduced myself and mentioned the good buzz going on Chowhound about his restaurant, to which he responded that Chowhound was too kind to them. I noted that we drove up from Los Angeles that day and heard about his establishment on the internet during our drive. His wife and daughter said there were from LA and I told them that we live in Downtown, a block from Skid Row, and they mentioned their aunt was a fan and supporter of the Downtown revival.
After our meal we opted for the cheese plate, and allowed Marco to make our choices for us, within the constraints of 2 soft and 1 hard cheese. I failed to note the exact types of cheese we were presented with, but they were damn good, and we ate them up with the included bread, marconi almonds, raisins and honey. We washed the cheese down with a 20 year old Dow Tawny and a 27 year old Graham.
Our meal was delicious, the atmosphere was warm and friendly and the service was excellent. Sitting next to and meeting the owner was a nice perk and we have added Perbacco to our list of establishments that will receive our repeat patronage on our next trip to the Bay.
Vacation in SF - Recommendations, Please
Thanks for all the great ideas! We ended up eating at Ozumo two nights ago and having their prix fixe meal. It was quite good, and I'm going to write about the experience on my blog shortly. Tonight we have a reservation at El Raigon for dinner and then a reservation for dessert at Cafe Jacqueline. Tomorrow evening (our last night in SF) we're have a reservation at La Folie. Today we're going to have Chinese and tomorrow seafood, we haven't decided exactly where we're going for seafood... but we may just do something at Fisherma's Wharf... and for Chinese we're most likely going to do Sam Wo's for the nostalgia value.
Vacation in SF - Recommendations, Please
We have a reservation or Perbacco tonight so that covers Italian.
Vacation in SF - Recommendations, Please
This year, the wife and I didn't buy one another Christmas presents (apart from a few stocking stuffers) and instead opted to spend 5 nights in San Francisco. We live in Los Angeles and have family in the Bay, including my wife's new niece. I've been saving up my freelance money (my regular paycheck goes towards those darn bill things) for a few months and we've budgeted roughly $300 a day for food.
Our plan is to eat at a nice restaurant every night, and we'd like to do one of each of following (with some possibilities listed for each)
* Italian
-- Perbacco
-- Quince
* French
-- Fleur de Lys
-- Chapeau!
-- Cafe Jaqueline
-- Boulevard
* Steakhouse
-- El Raigon
-- Alfred's
-- Lark Creek
* Seafood
-- no idea
* Something "San Francisco"
We're also interested in lunches, but we don't really have any set categories, but we want to get chinese and sushi and have fond memories as of Sam Wo's and we've heard good things about Brand Ho. Looking through SF chowhound I've read positive reviews for Aziza and Bong Su. We're also open to breakfast recommendations.
If it makes a difference we're staying at Hotel Majestic, where we've stayed a few times before and which we enjoy. I like how it smells like old books and I'm hoping the remodeling didn't destroy the charm.
We're a few hours from SF now (I'm posting this via my Macbook Pro through bluetooth to my Blackberry and on to the EDGE network)
Thanks!
=]
* Random geekiness note, I love the fact that this site runs on Ruby on Rails, I've just recently started developing in RoR for both my 9-5 and several freelance projects. I've only deployed 1 app so far, but man RoR totaly rocks.
takoyaki at ebisu
Ate there for lunch today... I really love this place! Suamina Natto, which I found out today is just a typo for Stamina Natto, is great, but I think it needs to come with a spoon!
Takoyaki, where are you?
Tombo and Gaja are both on my okonomiyaki list... I have only eaten okonomiyaki once since I was in Japan (other than the homemade kind) and it was only so so, plus I didn't get to make it.. it was at one of the little mini restuarants in Mitsuwa in Torrance.
takoyaki at ebisu
There is now an Ebisu in LT... it rocks... we love it... their takoyaki is much better than Kobe Ramen's, but it isn't quite the traditional type that is made in the vibrating grill machine. I had that when I was in OSaka and it was amazing.
Kokekkoko or Suehiro?
Suehiro is one of our regular spots in LT... if you link different type of japanese comfort food, this is the spot. They're open very late as well. I love natto and mountain yam so this is by far one of my all time faves. The newly opened Ebisu is excellent as well and open until 1am.
