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Dinner

Claudine - Encino

June 15, 2016

"Claudine Artisan Kitchen & Bakeshop is the collaborative effort of Chef Anthony Jacquet and Pastry Chef Lea Newton, whose combined skills and culinary passions have led to the opening of a globally-influenced neighborhood café and bakeshop in the San Fernando Valley. Named after Jacquet’s late sister, the driving force behind his decision to become a chef, Claudine Artisan Kitchen & Bakeshop is a full service restaurant, bakeshop, coffee bar, and grab n’ go deli. Serving only the highest quality food made with local and sustainable ingredients, Claudine Artisan Kitchen & Bakeshop features an assortment of breakfast, brunch and lunch dishes.Highlighting the bounty of local and seasonal produce in California, the restaurant’s menu draws inspiration from the many cultures and people who have shaped the city."

16350 Ventura Blvd., Suite F, Encino, CA 91436

Located on Ventura Blvd in Encino is where you will find Claudine. From the outside, it blends it with the neighborhood Chipotle which sits in the same center. But walking inside, the expectations are blown away by how adorable this place is. Open kitchen with tons of baked goods ready for you to hover over. Everything is made fresh daily, so if you see low inventory, that's a good sign.

Claudine also serves wine and beer which is always a plus. I started with a Stone IPA. They also carried a few specialty cocktails like sangrias and micheladas.

We had a few dishes to sample, all delicious. They make their own house cured lox on toast. The salmon was not overly salty served on top of some preserved Lemon Cream Cheese, Pickled Shallots, Cucumber and Capers. Their Briana's Short Rib Grilled Cheese is also a must order. Stuffed with Stout Braised Onions, Roasted Mushrooms, ‘Merican Cheese, Black Vinegar Teriyaki, and russet wedges. Get your napkins ready.

They also make their own naan pizzas. We've tried 2 and fell in love instantly. Cianna's Naan-Zza: pesto, buratta, bacon, mushrooms and asparagus. Serrano Ham and Olive Naan-Zza: fresno chile, buratta cheese and oregano. The Lea's Lightened Quiche was a winner all around. Custard made with spinach, basil, and only one egg with salad greens (SO GOOD).

If you are not sure what to do about your life, order the Malted Milk Pancakes. Cinnamon-Blueberry compote, salted honey butter, Warm Maple Syrup and Bacon. Sandwich this baby together and eat it with pride. Lot's of it.

16350 Ventura Blvd., Suite F, Encino, CA 91436

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Maximiliano - Highland Park

June 13, 2016

Maximiliano is another restaurant concept by Andre Guerrero. Many of you LA natives are familiar with one of his famous restaurants in Eagle Rock called The Oinkster. With their famous pulled pork sandwich to their highly talked about Belgian french fries with garlic aioli that changed the world. Honestly, their french fries here are killer. It was my first time and many others of having a twice fried potato. It's pretty genius, but Oinkster's really made it their own.

Maximiliano is a different concept than Oinkster's. Practically being the only Italian restaurant in Highland Park, Maximiliano has a full menu that carries a wide range of Italian favorites.

5930 York Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90042

To get started right away, I ordered a raspberry bellini with a cup of Intelligentsia coffee.

It was raining a little bit on this day, so a little Prosecco definitely helped with the gloomy weather.

I am happy I get to share with you a wide variety of the items on their menu.

This was one of my favorites on the menu. The crust was thin and crispy, the smoked salmon was nice and salty, but balanced with the creamy subtle flavors of the Burrata. I would order this again.

Better eat this fast or the potatoes will starch up once cold. Delicious fennel sausage with the over easy eggs to really put a dent in your gut. There's nothing wrong about this. Just douse each slice with more chili flakes to get the full experience.

Hand-Made Linguini, nice and al dente with bacon confit, pecorino and a poached egg waiting like a hot water balloon waiting for you to slice for the ultimate yolk porn. You should've seen it run in all its glory. Pass the chili flakes. Butt fires will be worth it.

Delicious melt in your mouth pulled pork. Sweet, savory, and luxurious with the ooey gooey egg. This is definitely a good breakfast item to order if you are a meat lover like me. So perfect with a sunny side up egg. Break the egg into the short ribs before enjoying.

Another house made pasta. What you see is squid ink linguini served with clams, calamari, scallops, spanish chorizo, mussels, shrimp, jalapeno roasted red pepper served up in a pomodoro sauce. They are not shy of seafood.

Tender fall off the bone Moroccan braised lamb shank. This was served on some curried couscous. Very delicious and slightly gamey without it tasting viciously grassy. With the leftovers, you can always make dumplings with the meat, turn it into a ragu, or even just straight up wrap it in some tortillas. Definitely worth ordering when you come.

One of the best pancakes I've ever put in my mouth. Once it comes out straight from the kitchen, the aroma from the lemon curd will make you salivate almost immediately. The pancake had a nice crispy crust, hot, melting the lightly dusted powder sugar before dousing a large scoop of curd goodness. We had to share, but in reality, I would want this all to myself.

Make your reservations if you have not. Go in a group so you may try more things.

Also, here's a snip of their drink menu (Beer & Wine)

Maximiliano is also Craftsman Brewing Company’s Official Tasting Room! Join them every Monday & Tuesday for their awesome Beer Flight Nights where you can try Five 5oz pours of North East LA’s finest Craft Beers for just $12. I'll definitely be here for that.

5930 York Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90042

Click here to visit Maximiliano.

Cheers!

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The Factory Kitchen - DTLA

June 6, 2016

If you think you know DTLA, there's still a lot of little nooks and cranny for you to go through. Seems like every time you find a new restaurant, you end up discovering 5 more. It just never stops. The Factory Kitchen is one of those restaurants you kind of have to be in the know to hear about it. Luckily, this place was passed along through word of mouth, and I was fortunate to try out a few of their signature cocktails paired with a few of their tasty bites.

A few cocktails

All the cocktails had were delicious and friendly to drink. There wasn't one that I wasn't able to consume. Nothing was overly sweet and can always be adjusted if you are sensitive. Love the spicy Mezcaline.

This thing right here was pretty freaking awesome. Besides the parma prosciutto being amazing and aged for 24 months, it's served on top of a lightly fried sage dough with stracciatella cheese on top. The stracciatella cheese would remind me of a consistency like Burrata cheese, but like shreds, hence the name. Amazing quality to make this one of my favorites on the menu.

They also have a few selections of amazing Focaccina Calda Di Recco Al Formaggio. Thin dough with crescenza cheese that brings a lovely salty and briny finish. Loved all the renditions from san marzano tomatoes, capers, anchovies, oregano to foraged mushrooms, zucchini blossoms, ligurian olive oil and parsley. Crispy to eat. Makes you feel great without the guilt.

For dessert, we shared an order of bigne.

Definitely worth a shot to come by if you are looking for a destination in DTLA. Seating's were forgivable, but can be packed so get ready to wait if you don't have reservations. This just might be the birthday destination for me. Just might.

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Pitchoun Bakery - DTLA

June 5, 2016

Pitchoun is a fairly new bakery located in DTLA on Olive Street. Pitchoun is also a family owned bakery who were originally from South of France. Besides it being a bakery, it is also a cafe that serves up some tasty sandwiches as well as tartines. I'm such a huge fan of french Pâtisserie so it didn't take me any hesitation to say yes to swing by.

some baked goods and sweets.

This smoked salmon tartine was served on a bed of arugula, country bread, and topped off with capers, creamy spread with chives and shallots. The Country bread was nice and thin that allowed easy bites without playing tug of war. The smoked salmon was fresh, with no fishy aftertaste. Just a nice smoked flavor with the brininess of the capers. I loved this and will definitely order it again. For $13.50, you definitely get a great sizeable portion good enough to share.

This tartine was composed of Ciabatta break, topped with fennel, asparagus, sundried tomatoes, pisto, fresh basil, chicken, and cheese. Fresh and light with a yummy bright pesto. Piled high, but not heavy at all with the nice combination of veggies.

Cappuccino - Enjoy this with your lunch or a Pâtisserie

Could not say no to that Fig. This tart was delicious, buttery and flaky. The fruits were also really fresh. There's not much to say about this besides it being great. With a nice cup of cappuccino, I can sit here for a while.

Oh yes. This angry bird eclair exists from time to time. Whether you are getting one for a kid or you just want to feel like one all over again, these are fun to have.

545 S Olive St. Los Angeles, CA 90013

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Pizza Romana - Fairfax

June 1, 2016

“All of our dough is fermented for 24 hours in the traditional Roman style. We then hand-stretch and bake all our pizzas in authentic Italian wood-fired ovens. We use produce from the farmer’s market and our own downtown garden, organic and pesticide-free whenever possible; meats raised in a humane manner and without the use of antibiotics.”

— Pizza Romana

I just want to immediately say how amazingly delicious the food was at Pizza Romana. It doesn't get anymore authentic than this. Almost all the ingredients used in this restaurant is imported from Italy. We are talking from the tomato sauce to their water used to make their pizza and lasagna pasta sheets.

615 N La Brea Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036

There's plenty of seating from indoors to outdoors. They also have wine tasting every Thursday night which you will definitely find me there pretty soon. Pizza Romana also carries an extensive wine list. I highly recommend you ask about their wines to pair perfectly with your tastes.

Pizza Bianca served with the Salumi & Fromaggi. Super thin and killer crust.

Super simple, but having all cheeses and salumi imported from Italy just makes it that much more exquisite. These were so delicious to eat. I mean, there isn't any other way to really describe how tasty these were. We have Speck, Capicola, and Mortadella. Served with some dried cranberries, apricots, cashews, and 2 types of cheeses. The cheeses were mild, but complex. Nothing gamey about them which I can appreciate. I'm not a huge fan of stinky cheese as it takes over everything. Their pairings were spot on.

This is better than Mom's lasagna. This is quite frankly the best lasagna I've ever had in my life. The bolognese sauce is made with 3 meats: pork, beef & veal. Layered with bechamel and mozzarella, this rustic dish deserves to be put at a 5 star restaurant. Each bite was luscious with a beautiful bite from the elasticity of the handmade pasta sheet. For $8, there's definitely nothing to complain about. No sharing on this one.

Simple Margherita pizza with an amazing crust and chew. The pizzas are light and airy. The dough is also easy to digest. What really stood out from the pizza was the cheese. Amazing quality. With the delicious tomato sauce and fresh basil, I could sit by the beach and eat this while watching the sunset.

Buffalo Mozzarella with arugula and Prosciutto

There is absolutely nothing that tastes like this. Nothing. You have to get this. The prosciutto was amazing. The creamy Mozzarella was to die for. The pizza dough. Just everything is perfect about this. The saltiness of the prosciutto paired with the cheese and the lingering peppery arugula... this has changed my life.

When we think of Pistachio ice cream, we think of mont green. I grew up eating Thrifty's ice cream from Rite Aid, but never understood what tasted like pistachios in that ice cream. I loved it though and has always been one of my favorite go to. The gelato from Pizza Romana is actually imported from Sicily. How f'ing cool is that right? This tasted nothing like Pistachio made here. This is the real deal. Sweet and subtle. Has a faint flavor of roasted pistachios. An amazing treat to end our amazing meal.

I highly recommend you check this place out for many reasons. One big reason is how it made me felt like I was traveling. Each item on the menu has a story from where the ingredients were sourced. Ask about it. They have something great going on here. The other reason, and I really want to stress on this, is how affordable the items on the menu are. Even their bottle of wines are less than $40.

Map it now: 615 N La Brea Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036

Buon Appetito!

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Wine & Dine

Claudine - Encino

Maximiliano - Highland Park

The Factory Kitchen - DTLA

A few cocktails

Pitchoun Bakery - DTLA

Pizza Romana - Fairfax