Oscars in the Summer

The weather in Los Angeles is one of the many reasons people move here from all over the world. Another reason is that they want to be in the movies. Now for everyone who loves the movies and enjoys the weather here, you can watch Oscar winning movies in Hollywood for only $5 (for students and Academy members it's only $3) at Oscars Outdoors.

This is as close as we get to having our own outdoor projection screening room; the 20 x 40 foot screen is probably bigger than what you could put up, and being able to bring your own food and drinks, makes this a Friday or Saturday night fiesta. All you need to bring is a blanket or lawn chair, get here by sundown, and enjoy Oscar winners like Casablanca (June 15) or classics like The Princess Bride (July 14).

A classic movie, food, drinks & great company....sounds like a recipe for a spectacular summer evening!

Cook's County

When someone like Amelia at Lindy & Grundy recommends a place, I make a mental note; people who make good food, know good food. It's taken me awhile to get to Cook's County, mainly because I tend to eat during restauranteur hours, i.e., between 3-5pm, and many restaurants are closed (because that's when staff members eat). One day I was actually awake and coherent during "normal" lunch hours, so I finally got to try the lunch at Cook's County and now I will gladly set my alarm so that I can be there in time for a meal!

My friend ordered the grass fed beef burger, brioche bun, grilled onion, white cheddar & aïoli ($13) and enjoyed it very much, saying it ranked in the top percentile of burgers in restaurants.

Of course burgers must have fries, and these were great, lightly salted, crisp and succulent.

I ordered the Idaho trout, lentils, marinated beets & cumin yogurt ($19), which was such a wonderful lunch, that I think I am now addicted.

The sautéed pea tendrils, shallot & lemon ($6) were so delicious that I wanted an order to take home after eating the entire plate for lunch. The greens were fresh, lightly dressed, and absolutely divine! If anyone you know does not like vegetables, this dish could convert them to vegetarians!

The chocolate shortcake, seascape strawberries ($8), was a surprise. The shortcake was actually SOFT and moist, not at all dry and hard as the picture suggests (goes to prove you should never judge anything based on appearance)! The strawberries were sweet and luscious, and the whipped cream was the perfect compliment to this dessert.

I can't wait to come back for dinner one night when I can get to Cook's County before they close!

Musso & Frank's Hollywood Legend

Very few places are still in business after one decade, much less NINE, but Musso & Frank's is one of the rare legends that lives on, weathering wars and trends with equal aplomb. Once you step inside, you may suddenly feel more sophisticated or worldly, but it is the old school service which has elevated your attitude. The red jackets and formal greetings are anachronisms which remind us that decorum should never die.

My friend has been coming here for decades, with "the old guys" who inhabit the booths like godfathers. The fact that I was deemed worthy to enter this sacred space with an old timer flattered me. The food was was like a time machine; it brought me back to the 60's and like an episode of "Mad Men", I enjoyed every minute.

My friend started off with the house salad with blue cheese dressing. You may opt for additions to your salad, but like a true old man, my friend had only the greens.

I chose the sand dabs ($23), which I never see on menus anymore. They were perfect, just as Julia Child swooned over in her first trip to France, I swooned over these delicate filets done "comme il faut" (as it should be) with capers, butter and lemon. If anyone you know does not like fish, make them taste this and convert them!

Since this is old world style dining, every entree is served separately, so I ordered braised spinach ($8) with my fish and the side was as lovely and perfectly done as my main course.

Most people who come here order the steak ($33) and they cook it exactly as ordered, meaning, rare is bloody and well is brown. Of course the old timer ordered rare, and of course it was done as ordered. Nearly every table ordered steak, so if you can't decide what to get, I suggest you go with the odds and order the steak.

The steak fries ($5) were wonderfully crisp on the outside and tender on the inside.

As a child, I always like jello ($3.50), but I haven't seen it on a menu since I was a child, so I had to order it here. Served with fruit, I felt as if I was 5 years old and finished every bite!

I was not the only one to finish my dessert, my friend ordered the sundae ($6.25) and ate every spoonful!

On another night I came and had the special duck a l'orange with a friend who ordered the lobster thermidor. Both dishes were so rich and decadent that the pictures came out fuzzy; I guess even cameras get thrown off balance when transported to another era!

JR's BBQ

Having had ribs in Memphis at Central, Corky's, and Interstate BBQ, it was wonderful to find JR's BBQ here in Culver City serving great Memphis style dry rub ribs.

This family owned (mom is the J and son is the R) place is warm, friendly, and spotlessly clean, with perfectly cooked meat done over mesquite, white oak and pecan wood. Their secret recipes should be kept in a vault if they aren't already.

I like the beef ribs dry with just a dab of the hot sauce, which I am happy to say is actually HOT and smoky. The meat is tender, but holds together enough to give it some texture, for those who have tried ribs in Memphis, JR's is similar to Central BBQ's style. The quality of the food here makes this place a favorite for fans of Memphis BBQ, and the prices make this place a bargain for big families or groups. For families, the family pack meals serve four people with sides and prices starting at only $24! My half serving was 5 big beef ribs was only $14 and generous enough to feed two hungry people or one starving linebacker.

My friend ordered the pork ribs with a mild sauce, served with beans and cole slaw. I tasted both the tender rich beans, and the crisp cole slaw, and I could have easily made of meal of just the sides.

I had to try the collard greens and I was glad I did because the only rivals to a version this good were from chefs (both from the South) who no longer work in Los Angeles.

It's a great sign when the details of side dishes like corn muffins are done with a deft light hand.

The piece de resistance was their famous sock-it-to-me cake for $3.75 which was about 7" long and 4" wide (for ONE serving). This lightly sweetened streusel cake topped with a thin layer of icing would be a great breakfast pastry as well as a dessert.

Memphis BBQ without a 3.5 hour flight, fantastic sides, and a family who love their clients makes JR's is a triple winner.

Red Hill is a Real Hit

Sometimes you have to live in a neighborhood to find the gems hidden behind the fast food chains and drugstores. My friends David & Krista discovered Red Hill as they walked around, and it has become their favorite spot (and it is literally hidden behind a fast food chain and a drugstore). The area is called Red Hill because in the 1950's many artists and left wing liberals congregated here, and back in those days, they were called "Reds" or Communists. Whatever your political views, your palate will thank-you for a foray into this wonderfully welcoming place which features inventive and market driven plates for very reasonable prices (average $40 per person for 2-3 plates with drinks & gratuity).

The starter plate of house made pickled vegetables and home made butter was a harbinger of great things to come from the open kitchen. All the vegetables, from the red onions to the spicy cauliflower had a slightly different pickling mixture that ranged from spicy to slightly sweet. The home made butter was so good we asked for more of the dense chewy bread so we could finish it.

Krista had the burrata salad with pesto, beet greens and carrots. The burrata was freshly made and the combination worked well as the burrata added a smooth mellowing counterpoint to the spicy greens and strong pesto.

Four of us split two orders of the venison meatballs and all of us loved the flavors of this appetizer even though a few bites had nearly too much red pepper, we all ate like addicts, unable to stop regardless of any pain we experienced. If they would have mixed the red pepper in more evenly or simply used less, we would have been even more addicted.

The only disappointing dish of the evening was the salad with radishes, Marcona almonds and Meyer lemon dressing. It was actually only the vinaigrette which weakened this dish; it was too salty without any complexity and a bit too much acidity.

Everyone loved Krista's choice of main dish, the pappardelle with pork ragu and goat cheese agnolotti. The light pasta was perfectly done, and the fresh zucchini, peas and pork all contributed their own texture and flavor to this perfect dish. If you order only one thing here, order this dish!

I chose the bone in pork chop which was served with pureed squash and sauteed greens. The flavors of the accompaniments were all perfect, and the presentation was beautiful, but my pork chop was a bit overdone and dry. It was not bad, but it was not great either. David said that when he ordered this dish, his chop had been thicker and less dry, so perhaps I will try this again some other night.

Robin ordered the roasted chicken, which was moist, full of flavor, and served with some of the best collard greens I have ever tasted.

David's duck with cherries was spectacular, with crisp skin, moist meat, and beautifully tart cherries. If you love duck, order it here, and if you have never tried duck, try it here.

Somehow we managed to find some room for dessert, so we chose to share two of them. The meringue and sorbet with tart cherry sauce was a refreshing way to finish a meal. The meringue was not baked long enough to give structure, so the texture was a bit rubbery, but overall, this was very nice.

The favorite of both the dessert connoisseurs was the orange flan with chocolate dipped candied orange peel. It was a thick smooth rendition of a classic with a slight twist.

Whether you want to explore a historically famous neighborhood, visit friends, or simply eat a great meal after a Dodger game, head over to Red Hill and you'll hit a home run.

Red Medicine

Red Medicine is the infamous restaurant where famed food critic Irene Virbila was outed  (i.e. photographed) and refused service. While I agree with many opinions on both sides of this incident, I had not been keen to go to this restaurant until a fellow foodie friend said it was high on his list of places to try.

Fortunately I am not famous enough to be either recognized or refused service for my "power" as a food critic, so I was seated and served without incident with two of my friends who are both as critical of food as I am. 

Since the menu is meant to be shared, we ordered several small plates, the first one to arrive was the brussel sprouts with caramelized shallots, fish sauce, and vermouth for $9. The crunchy chips on top were a nice way to present this dish and some of the brussel sprouts were fabulous, while others (especially at the bottom of the dish) were overly salted. When using fish sauce, it is very important to use a light hand when salting and apparently the kitchen didn't understand that concept yet.

We also tried the beef tartare for $15 which was made with water lettuce, water chestnut, nuoc leo (peanut sauce), chlorophyll, and peanut. This was such an unusual version of beef tartare that we all said "Whoa!" after the first bite. But we all took second and third bites until we finished the dish. Combining all the ingredients on the rice chips was essential to getting the full flavors this dish incorporated. I'm not sure I would order this again, but I was glad I had tried it.

The most disappointing dish of the entire night was the white asparagus with fried burdock root and coated in tapioca salsify, with spot prawn roe, on top of almond milk. It was completely tasteless, with no seasoning whatsoever, and the asparagus was so stringy that we had trouble eating it (or even biting through it). It was a shame since we all loved asparagus, but none of us wanted to eat this.

It is hard to tell from the photo, but the sweetbreads under the charred cabbage were wonderful. This was one of our favorite dishes of the evening, with perfectly crispy and tender nuggets. Once again the salt was a bit overdone on the charred cabbage, but the sweetbreads made this dish a winner.

For our final hot course, we chose the rice porridge with the uni supplement for $27 made with egg yolk, hazelnuts, ginseng, butter and Santa Barbara Red Uni. This was a very rich dish which we all loved. The combination of flavors made this the ultimate comfort dish of all time. This was definitely not your run of the mill home made or even restaurant quality rice porridge. It should definitely be shared unless you want to eat only one dish here.

For our desserts we shared the Green Gage plum with frozen cream, sorrel, elderflower, wild chervil. It was an interesting (as in neither good nor bad) alchemy of flavors both tart and sweet, but no one like this enough to finish it.

The dessert winner of the evening was the birch ice. It was THE most unusual dessert I have ever tasted and it beckons me to come back to Red Medicine with it's scintillating composition of textures and flavors. The presentation was beautiful.

But upon cracking open the crunchy top layer, the cold, sweet, and creamy secret treasures below were absolutely addictive. Made with birch ice, almond praline, red currants, green almond, and jasmine, this was a palate pleaser. 

I'm glad I was not on their "hit list" and able to taste their unique fare. Although I loved all their presentations, I was not impressed with all their flavors, especially since over salting food is a big faux pas that was repeated in two of their dishes. At prices that hovered around $60 per person, this kind of amateur mistake should have happened even once. People care more about tasting their dishes than looking at them, so the execution of recipes must be precise to elevate the food to the same level as the plating.

We all remember a flavorful dish long after it is eaten, but no one will remember a beautiful plate after they have seen it.

Decadent & Delicious Champagne Truffles

I admit I am an addict; I can not say no to either great champagne or great chocolate.

Last night, the gracious Madame Chocolat (aka Hasty Torres), invited me to her Decadent & Delicious event to introduce her new champagne truffles. Her new milk chocolate truffles are infused with Domaine Carneros Champagne, a winery whose founder, Eileen Crane, thought she knew me from one of my former lives on the East Coast. As women who follow their passions, it is very fitting that they have now combined their talents into a new unique treat for the senses just in time for Mother's Day, the day of celebration for women who create and nurture new lives.

The truffles are dusted with gold glitter which add a very festive note reminiscent of the bubbles in sparkling wine. I'm normally not a milk chocolate fan, but the the smooth creamy 43% Belgian chocolate ganache filled truffle complimented the balanced brut champagne. I ate two in about two seconds and had to move away from the table to restrain myself from eating the entire tray.

Gift boxes with 12 champagne truffles and a bottle of 2007 Domaine Carneros are available for delivery on Mother's Day (or any other day) for only $55 and will begin shipping May 4, 2012, so place your order here now.

It was fun to be behind the counter of the shop for the first time! The new glitter heeled shoe chocolates were also beautiful to behold (they had literally just been finished that day).

The heavy duty machines kept working even though all the guests were drinking and eating chocolate!

There were delicious savory bites catered by Chris Brugler which were not only beautiful to behold but delectable to eat. The Watermelon Feta Mousse Bites with Aged Balsamic was both refreshing and rich with complexity.

The Sesame Encrusted Ahi Tuna Topped with Sweet Chili Avocado Mousse was one of my favorites.

The Sweet Potato Cake with a Black Bean Salsa and Chipolte Aioli was a surprisingly sweet and savory delight with a nice smoky flavor.

My favorite of all the small bites was the aged Prosciutto with Burrata served on Crostini finished with Aged Balsamic. I loved this so much I ate three!

I didn't taste the Black Mission Fig Challah Grilled Cheese with Caramelized Onion & Thyme with Brie Cheese, but it looked amazing.

Chris is the Challah King and sells his breads at Nate n Al in Beverly Hills, but his catering is impeccable and professional.

Thank-you and gros bisous to Hasty and Eileen for a fun, festive, and fantastic event launching their new joint venture of decadent and delicious champagne truffles!