Sunday, June 8, 2014

These are a few of his favorite things

Time for the annual birthday steak dinner for my husband.  I was originally going to go somewhere else when a coworker mentioned to me that there were new restaurants at the Americana at Brand.  A quick Google revealed that famed chef Michael Mina had just opened a branch of his Bourbon Steak chain at the mall, and with a name like that, how could I pass it up!  Plus I've heard great things about Michael Mina, so this would be a good opportunity to give him a try.

Now while I might be an amateur foodie, there are a few things I won't eat and one of those things is duck.  There is no rational explanation for why duck is considered a "forbidden food," so you just need to accept that it is.  Michael Mina is known for his duck fat fries, and they are served at his restaurants as an amuse bouche, so I was prepared to turn them away.  The server brought them much quicker than I expected and I felt guilty cutting her off with my "We don't eat duck!" declaration as she was starting to explain the dish, so imagine my relief when she said they no longer prepare them in duck fat.  Hallelujah!  I don't know what they were cooked in, and to be honest, I don't care either.  She explained the fry seasoning and dipping sauces too quickly for me to catch, so all I can tell you is that the middle sauce seemed like a Caesar and I didn't like it, but otherwise it was very tasty.

Amuse Bouche: a trio of fries not cooked in duck fat

For our appetizer we decided to go with the tuna tartare which is assembled tableside traditionally with a quail egg; however, quail is a "forbidden food" so we asked our server to substitute with a chicken egg.  It might have changed the taste a little, but I'm not sure how.  The plate comes with the diced tuna shaped in a circle and the accouterments on the side, but before you know it, its all mixed together and then shaped like a heart.  It took me a second to remember that the diced white pieces were pear and not onion, as that would have been overwhelming.  The dish was perfect and was served with the right amount of toast points.

Michael's Tuna Tartare (Asian pear, pine nuts, scotch bonnet, mint, sesame)

One of the unique aspects of Bourbon Steak is their bourbon cart.  The sommelier comes by and serves a trio of bourbons smoked tableside to accentuate ones particular flavor profiles.  When I first read that description I thought the smoking was particular to the individual diner, but its more about finding a flavor that will accentuate the bourbon.  Each flavor accentuator is smoked into the glass before the ounce of bourbon is added.

The Bourbon Cart

Tonight's trio were Rittenhouse Rye with Cinnamon, Elijah Craig with Star Anise, and Larceny with Orange and Lemon Peel.  As the drinks were for my husband, I can only tell you what he said which was that it was amazing how the smoke had accentuated the flavor of the bourbon, but he wasn't sure that it made enough of a difference.  Honestly, I think he was just excited to get to try three other bourbons.

The Bourbon Cart Trio

For our salad course my husband selected the beets.  I got an opportunity to taste a golden beet, and it was as good as it should be.

Heirloom Beets (cypress grove goat cheese, pistachio, golden balsamic)

I went with the garden kale salad, which is traditionally served with blue cheese, but I asked to be served without as blue cheese does not like me.  I'm honestly not sure what the chips on top were.  The salad was good, but honestly too large as I found myself tiring of eating kale.

Garden Kale (kumquat, golden raisins, candied pecans)

I wasn't sure what to order as I wasn't in the mood for steak and our server made the lamb sound so tasty, I couldn't refuse.  She said it was actually the dish that she recommends to foodies.  The dish is made up of two lamb chops, a lamb cigar, and lamb tongue.  The tongue was interesting, and I think, quite possibly, the first tongue I have ever eaten.  It was small, but I shared it with my husband.  The lamb cigar was heavenly.  It was, I believe, lamb shank rolled in a phyllo dough and fried.  And, of course, the lamb chops were heavenly, though I had to bring the bones home in order to get all of the goodness off the bone instead of embarrassing my husband in the restaurant.

Anderson Valley Lamb (medjool date, carrot couscous, harissa jus)

One of the specials that night was an American Wagyu Rib Cap.  My husband has loved this cut of meat ever since he first experienced it at Gordon Ramsay's Steak at the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas.  He said it was exceptional.

American Wagyu Rib Cap
For sides my husband selected the lobster whipped potato.  This picture was taken after my husband served himself a spoonful.  I'm not sure if it was intentional or not, but the whipped potato was looser than one would expect.  It was quite gloopy which you can sort of tell from the aftermath of a serving in the picture below.  Also, I didn't notice much lobster.  The flavor was good, but not what I would think of when ordering whipped potatoes.

Lobster Whipped Potato

For the vegetable he selected the Delta Asparagus, I think because he was curious what the seven treasures were.  He said the seasoning reminded him of something he would have gotten out of the freezer section of the grocery store.  I have to disagree with him as I thought it was fantastic.  One of the seven treasures is I believe a Chinese sausage cut thinly, but honestly I'm not certain.

Delta Asparagus with 7 Treasures

Dessert was a difficult decision to make, but ultimately we selected the bread pudding.  The bananas didn't seem very caramelized, but I'm not complaining.  The bread pudding was the perfect consistency, and not very sweet, making the buttered rum sauce the perfect compliment.

Pastry Case Bread Pudding (caramelized banana,buttered rum sauce)

Bourbon Steak was the perfect restaurant for my husband's birthday dinner, and I can't wait to go back again and this time, try the steak myself!

Not Distrito

We found ourselves back in the Palm Springs area again this weekend and decided to try Chef Jose Garces' other restaurant in the Saguaro Hotel, El Jefe.  If you try to research El Jefe on the Garces Group website all you really see is that its known as Distrito at its other locations, reservations are not available at this location, and the menu is not online.  So let me sum it up for you: its the hotel bar that serves nachos and tacos.  Now, don't get me wrong, the nachos and tacos are far from average, but the ambiance is a bar with limited seating.  It was actually hard to nail down what we were going to eat from all of the options, and yet the menu is listed on a simple laminated piece of paper.

We decided to try the goat tacos, because well, how often do you eat goat?  The tacos come three to a serving on a single tortilla, which I appreciated as I often find myself leaving the second tortilla behind as its too much "bread."  Be warned, the tacos are very saucy, so have your napkin handy.  The goat meat was tasty and soft, but not smushy.  The orange habanero salsa was not hot at all, which was a pleasant surprise.  And the tortillas are housemade, so they taste just right and aren't too corny.

Cabrito Tacos (goat, black beans, orange habanero salsa, goat crema)

A cabrito taco, up close

I've never had gazpacho before as I've been admittedly weary of eating cold tomato soup, but when I saw watermelon and crab in the contents, I knew this was the gazpacho I had to try.  The dish is served with the soup on the side for you to pour over the filling as you choose.  I was pleased with this dish.  I can't say that I had more interest than maybe four spoonfuls, but it was quite good and would probably be very refreshing on a hot summer day.

Gazpacho as its served, with the soup on the side for you to pour yourself

Gazpacho (watermelon, roma tomato, dungeness crab, chives)

I was most excited about the nachos, but unfortunately my server misunderstood which nachos I ordered and I ended up with the vegetarian Ignacio nachos and not the skirt steak laden Encarnacion.  The other primary difference between the two nachos is the beans, with the skirt steak being accompanied by refried beans and the vegetarian served with black beans.  I wish I had gotten the Encarnacion as I was disappointed with the Ignacio.  I did appreciate that the tortilla chips were made from the same tortillas used for the tacos, but there seemed to be too many of them and they weren't adequately covered with goo.  Also, radish should probably be the first ingredient listed as the nachos seemed covered in radish.  And while I'm not a fan of black beans, they seemed to be very few of them, which seemed unusual for a dish that lists the beans as the first ingredient.  If you are a true nacho fan, these are not the nachos for you.

Ignacio Nachos (black beans, tomato, queso mixto, jalapeno, chile de arbol, radish)

My husband wanted to try the yellowfin ceviche.  Its not a traditional ceviche as it doesn't have strong citrus flavor.  To get that you need to eat it with a small serving of the accompanying lime sorbet.  Also, the tostaditas that the ceviche is served with were too few and too small to be of any use.  I actually found myself using the lime on the rim of my margarita to season the dish, and the tortillas from the nachos to serve myself.  The fish was good and fresh, but this was not a ceviche to me.

Ceviche de Atun (yellowfin tuna, serrano coconut sauce, lime sorbet, tomatillo, tostadita)

If you want a quick easy way to dine on food prepared by an Iron Chef, then El Jefe is for you.  I'll probably go back to try more of the tacos, but that's probably it for me.  I'd much rather eat in the fine dining restaurant, Tinto, a few feet away.

Beef, and nothing but beef

A few weeks back some friends of our tagged themselves at a restaurant that looked intriguing.  I think I might be using the term restaurant loosely with Top Round as they probably belong on Diners, Drive-ins, & Dives.  So an opportunity presented itself and we took a trip down there for lunch.  The restaurant is located on the southeast corner of a busy intersection, so making a left into the establishment was no easy task, but we were pleasantly surprised to find ample parking.

Ordering is pretty simple.  Outside is where you order your meal based off of the menu posted to the wall, and then inside is where you order your dessert.  There is covered seating outside, and ample seating inside as well.

First up were the dirty fries.  It should be noted that their fries are hand cut in their kitchen and cooked in 100% beef fat.  I can't say I noticed the difference with the cooking liquid, but maybe its because my fries with smothered with so much yummy stuff.  Provel cheese is created through a combination of cheddar, Swiss, and provolone cheeses and has a low melting point.  According to Wikipedia you don't see it outside of St. Louis, but I guess they are wrong.  Anyway, back to the fries covered in a hearty gravy full of beef bites and glazed with their in-house Round Sauce, which is similar to Arby Sauce, but yet, not the same at all.  I actually found myself going up to their condiment bar to get more Round Sauce.

Dirty Fries (curly fried cooked in beef fat with gravy, provel cheese, caramelized onions & round sauce)

The sandwiches come simply wrapped with identifying stickers on top.  My husband and I couldn't decide between two sandwiches, so we got both and shared.

Our sandwiches

First up was the Horse & Hole.  An interesting name, but perfectly describes the simplicity of the sandwich: horseradish and mushrooms.  I loved this sandwich.  Everything was in the right proportion and the roast beef was freshly cooked to perfection.

Horse & Hole (provel cheese, horseradish cream, roasted mushrooms, sesame bun)

I was a little nervous about ordering the Beef on Weck because I wasn't exactly sure what Atomic Horseradish was.  Ironically, I think they forgot to put it on our sandwich because I didn't notice any horseradish at all.  My husband actually had to go up to the condiment bar to serve himself some of their freshly grated horseradish for the sandwich.  Yes, I said freshly grated.  No horseradish cream at the condiment bar, Hooray!  I found the caraway seeds and salt a little overwhelming for the roast beef, personally, so I spent more of my time on the Horse & Hole.

Beef on Weck (atomic horseradish, caraway & sea salt bun)

We passed on any dessert this trip, though I am curious to try their frozen custard.  All in, this was a good meal.  We thought it was more out of the way then it ended up being, so our likelihood of returning is high.  Its a great place to go if you want a simple, good roast beef sandwich without all the fuss.