Napa Valley Grille - Tasting Menu - Westwood

I've been to Napa Valley Grille twice already as well as talking about them here before. Coming here for my third time, I wasn't too sure with what to expect besides possibly trying out the rest of the menu items I've yet to lay my fork on. Without much notice, I made a reservation for the following day.

Upon arrival, we were informed that Chef Clinton had prepared a few special dishes for us to try. Without hesitation, I resigned the menu as I decided to let the chef prepare the whole meal for us.

|The first course| Melon Bowl |

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Honey Kiss | French Baby | Ogen | Mint

When I first saw this.. I was caught off guard. My literal thoughts were wtf, where am I? This was definitely not something I am used to seeing at NVG. 

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The dish looked simple. A bowl of melons. But as you ate into this, you begin to realize how brilliant this course was. This melon bowl was the best starting course I've had all year. The flavors were bright, refreshing, and the citrus gazpacho hidden under these balls of wonder really opened up my palate for the next course.

|Second Course| Avocado Ravioli |

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Steelhead Gravlax | Cucumber | Tarragon

Yes. Avocado Ravioli. Inside the avocado is more of that house Steelhead Gravlax. Served with thinly sliced pickled cucumbers to help cut through the richness of the avocado and Steelhead. The choice of fresh herbs that was playfully placed made each bite fresh and vibrant.

|Third Course| Scallops |

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Sweet Corn | Heart of Palm| Lava Fennel Salt | Ginger Citrus

At this point. I can't help but constantly look over my shoulders to see when the next creations arrive. I haven't had scallops in a long time. One of the reasons (if not the only) is people always mess it up. Either they are overcooked or sadly cooked with no sear marks. These were in no comparison to sad scallops. Beautifully seared served on top of a sweet corn puree/sauce, heart of palm with lava fennel salt on top, and a ginger citrus gastrique.

|Fourth Course| "Surf and Turf" |

Smoked King Crab | Bernaise | Wagyu | Armagnac Sauce | Crispy Rice

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An amazing pairing with A5 wagyu beef with an Armagnac Sauce and a perfectly, but lightly smoked King Crab with a Bernaise sauce sitting in a claw. Beef was marbled and tender. Crab was definitely acting like a King with the crispy rice wrapped around like a crown. After this meal, I still had a lingering smoked sensation on my palate. Was pretty wonderful actually.

| Fifth Course | Dessert |

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Basil Oil Cake | Creme Friache| Fruit | Strawberry Sorbet

How perfect is this. A basil cake with a strawberry sorbet to bring lighter flavors after a smokey entree. The basil olive cake eaten with the sorbet and all the components on the dish screams summertime. We enjoyed this with coffee. So delightful.

I spoke with Chef Clinton about his concepts and ideas. Playing with fresh local ingredients, he is able to create special tasting menus for any occasion. Napa Valley Grilled is open to preparing special menus such as the one I've experienced the past weekend. I would recommend for you to start thinking about your next food adventure with a group of friends. Call ahead and arrange a special menu, or go in a bigger group to share the fun.\

1100 Glendon Ave #100, Los Angeles, CA 90024 :: (310) 824-3322

Paper or Plastik Cafe - Mid City

Paper or Plastik Cafe was founded in 2010 by a family of artists: husband-and-wife design team Anya & Yasha Michelson alongside daughter, Marina, a filmmaker and actor. Their mission is to sustain their customers not only with quality food and drink, but also with culture and community all under one roof.

After a good workout from the gym, I was so ready to eat! I've mentioned this before, but I love finding places that offers a good brunch selection away from the typical. After browsing the menu, I was pretty sure I knew what I wanted to try.

First things first. Caffeine.

Left to right: Cappuccino, Maple Latte, and Canelé. The maple latte was definitely a nice touch and I highly recommend it if you love sweet flavored lattes. I also loved the Canelé. In addition to their made-in-house menu, they also work with excellent local bakeries, including Cake Monkey, Clark Street Bread, CocoBakes, and Bread Lounge.

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Avocado & Prosciutto Toast poached egg, aleppo pepper & micro greens

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Moroccan Fried Chicken Sandwich - buttermilk, cilantro & jalapeno battered chicken, tangy slaw, harissa aioli on ciabatta

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Polentina & Root Vegetable Bowl - red flint polenta and tomato-chile broth, poached egg, roasted broccolini, pecorino

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Shakshuka & Griddled Polenta - red flint polenta, labneh, za’atar, sunny side eggs

I will definitely be back. 

7AM - 10PM 5772 W PICO BLVD LOS ANGELES, CA 90019

Weho Bistro - West Hollywood

Weho Bistro is a low key French-inspired restaurant located on the corner of La Cienega and Holloway drive. With a large variety of selections on their menu, I am delighted to share a few items from our dinner. Our dinner was accompanied by great friends, Frances, Hugh, Rob, and mi amor John.

1040 N La Cienega Blvd West Hollywood, CA 90069

High Valley Vineyard 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon - Excellent red. Full bodied with a smooth finish. 

Bread, herb olive oil & balsamic, and olive tapenade.

We planned ordered family style. A few items from their shareables were avocado and burrata toast, escargot, Cheese and pate board, mushroom soup and french onion soup.

Filet Mignon with Peppercorn Mushroom sauce

Angus filet, wrapped in bacon, seared till golden and medium rare, topped with crispy onions, served with a side of potatoes dauphinoise and tomato provencal . The mushroom sauce was killer in this dish. Each bite of the filet gets a glorious dip with a slather of mushrooms. 

Magret De Canard

Duck breast with a cognac and honey sauce. The duck was cooked beautifully. Crispy skin which soaked up the decadent cognac sauce. Also served with potato dauphinoise and their tomato provencal. 

Shrimp Provencal

Six sauteed JUMBO tiger shrimp drenched in a garlic, basil, shallot, and tomato sauce served with a basmati and wild rice medley and sauteed garlic green beans. Anything drench in the sauce described above is an absolutely hands down "GIVE IT TO ME" dish. I can't help but eat the tails as well.

Dessert crepes, tartetatin, ice cream sandwich and banana creme brulee to end our dinner extravaganza.

Parking is available shared with CVS. That's right, free parking in West Hollywood. So surreal. 

3rd Generation Sake Bar - DTLA

“Located in the Heart of Downtown Los Angeles’ Financial District. 3rd Generation Sake Bar specializes in Ramen, Sushi hand rolls and popular Japanese side dishes.”

— 3rd Generation

Finding a decent ramen place has never been easy. There's so much components that makes a ramen special. 3rd Generation does ramen decently for what is offered in Downtown LA. Besides ramen, the restaurant also serves handrolls, cut rolls, Poke Bowls, and many sides like takowasa to takoyaki. There are also modern spins like spicy tuna burger and pork belly bun. And of course, beer, sake and wine. So you can pretty much get an idea of what this place is like.

I would recommend getting sides and cut rolls/hand rolls. Drink a lot. Snack some more. And then order the Ramen to end your meal. I've worked at an Izakaya for 3 and a half years of my life and had visited Japan as well to say that's what I would do at a place like this. Given the menu.

All in all, it's great to have something away from the pretentious crowds. There's tons of people in Little Tokyo. Too much in my opinion. But again, the restaurant game is strong. So you can basically land on any street throughout downtown to find some great food. Here on 7th and Flower is where you will find 3rd Generation.

Our meal started with snow crab and salmon avocado handrolls. They do have blue crab which is one of my favorite things. Snowcrab was on the tasting menu today so that was what we went with. They have a 4 handroll special that comes with backed crab, salmon avocado, spicy albacore and spicy tuna. A pretty good steal for $14.

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Spicy Miso Tonkotsu Ramen

The spicy miso was delicate and not overly salty like other ramen joints I've been to. The noodles were wavy and thick. The pork was cooked perfectly. Served with sweet corn, bean sprouts, green onions, spicy miso paste, tender chashu, and half a soft boiled soy egg. Not extremely spicy, but carries a subtle kick.

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3G Ramen - House Tonkotsu Broth

Served with bean sprouts, green onion, soy egg, chasu, nori, fried garlic, and a black garlic oil that gives a light smokey nutty flavor to the ramen. Nothing over powering as well. The noodles were not the same as the spicy ramen, but resembled the traditional wavy noodles we are used to.

Tonkotsu broth is normally made with pork bones. Cooked down for a long period of time. Some places will cook it for a few hours while some will cook it for 24. It's insane the care that goes into the broth. I've warned many friends to beware with drinking the broth. Imagine a bowl of liquid fat just trailing down your neck. Yeah, some places make me feel dirty.

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The meal was ended with one of my favorites, black sesame ice cream. Smooth and roasty, this is something I would always order when offered at a restaurant. Not a lot of places carry this on their menu so it's always a delight to see.

808 W. 7th St. Los Angeles, Ca 90017

low and slow 8 hour pork butt

After getting a Crockpot recently, I've been on this crazy low and slow cooking mood. I made a pot roast the other day and then this pork butt yesterday. I am in love with how simple this was. I kept the flavors extremely minimal so I can alter the pork according to the types of dishes I want to use it for.

Recipe

• 3 pounds of pork butt
• 1 white onion
• 1 red pepper
• 1 green pepper
• Salt and Garlic powder to season pork (salt according to your preference)
• 6 large cloves of garlic
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of white pepper
• 1/4 cup of chicken stock

Equipment:

• Crockpot

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I got one pork butt around 3 pounds. I trimmed off the fat from the pork. This cut of pork itself has a lot of fat running through it, so don't be afraid of cutting it down or you will end up with a big pot of fat. I cut up the meat in a large chunks, seasoned it with salt and garlic powder, and then seared it in a screaming hot pan with Thrive Algae oil. The smoke point on this oil is fantastic giving these buddies a nice golden hue.

As the pork was tanning, I sliced up 1 green pepper, 1 red pepper, and 1 white onion. I also peeled 6 large cloves of garlic, smashed. All the ingredients were thrown straight into my Crockpot with 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of white pepper. Layer the pork on top, and Isplashed the top with a little chicken stock. Lid it, and then set it on low for 8 hours.

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MMmmm nothing like pork cooked low and slow, bubbling in it's own fat drippings. I left the pieces of pork chunky, and didn't shred it until I dropped a few in a hot pan. I let the pork crisp on the edges. What you can always do is add spices as it's searing in the pan. Sometimes I like to add cumin, and sometimes I add a little cayenne and paprika. Again, it really depends on the types of flavors you are going after. But this came out so good like this I just left it alone.

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I cooked 3 cups of Jasmine rice because that's what I had. I like to cook extra rice to have enough for work. I chopped up 3/4 cups of cilantro, and squeezed 1 whole juicy lime (you might need 2). Adding 2 tablespoons of butter is optional, but I drizzled a little bit of the pork fat instead.

I quickly mashed up an avocado with a squeeze of lime and a pinch of salt as a side. Lastly, I popped open a can of Jalapenos in Escabeche. This was SO GOOD I even washed the dishes after.

With the left over meats, we will have BBQ pork sliders with coleslaw!

Now, go and get a Crockpot and pork butts.

Daisy