The Color Redd

Since this trip to Napa was longer than out traditional two-day tip, we were able to branch out and try new restaurants instead of our usual offerings.  A friend of mine recently traveled here and recommended Redd.  And as luck would have it, it's located directly across the street from our hotel.  While I always prefer to try a restaurant such as Redd for dinner as that is when they really get an opportunity to put their best menu-foot forward, our schedule only allowed for lunch.

The menu is simple, broken into appetizers (3 ounce servings of protein) and entrees (6 ounce servings of proteins), but they also have a five course tasting menu for $60, with an optional wine pairing for an additional $35, provided the entire table participates.  Since we have dinner plans, and since our trips here are all about eating, we passed on the tasting menu.

Our shared appetizer was the yellow fin tuna and hamachi tartare.  The presentation was simple and pretty, and was served with a large serving spoon and fork, but that was it.  It was awkward spooning the tartare onto our plates to then be eaten with a fork.  In our opinion, the fried rice should have been thin rice cakes that the tartare could be spooned onto.  The other thing I noted about the dish was how large the cubes the fish was cut into, rather than a fine tartare.  Now, admittedly, I was not expecting the superfine texture of a Morimoto tartare, but I also wasn't expecting pieces that were 1/2 inch thick.  The flavor of the fish was excellent, and the fried rice made a nice crispy compliment.  It was just awkward to eat.

Yellowfin tuna and hamachi tartare, avocado, chili oil, fried rice, cilantro

My husband selected the lamb meatballs for his entree.  I had been considering them as well, but since I know we have a heavy dinner planned for this evening, I wanted to go for something lighter.  The presentation of the dish was simply gorgeous and redd.  I was able to snag a taste of the meatball (yummy), the tomato broth (tasty) and the mint yogurt (minty).  I also snagged a tomato, which was fresh from a garden.  That is one great thing about Yountville, I don't know if its because of the the French Laundry garden or what, but the produce is all fresh and amazing.  This is what the so-called farm-to-table restaurants in Los Angeles are attempting to achieve.

Lamb meatballs, summer squash, couscous, spiced tomato broth, mint yogurt

I decided to go with smoked trout salad with the hope that it would not be slathered in mayonnaise, and I was not disappointed.  The salad is served with a slice of brioche toast sliced in half.  The baby beets were cooked perfectly and were the right amount of sweet to go with the smoky fish.  The top half of the fish was sprinkled with egg white and the bottom with egg yolk.  The trout was smoked just the right amount, so that it had the flavor and texture of smoke, but without the "barbecue" flavor.  And the horseradish creme fraiche only slightly dressed the fish.  My only complaint with the dish was that the lemon vinaigrette was a little too pungent, but thankfully it was only tossed with the frisee.

Smoked trout salad, beets, lemon vinaigrette, horseradish crème fraiche

We decided to pass on dessert, though all of the selections were extremely tempting.  All in this was a great, California lunch in a great atmosphere.  Next time, though, I'm coming back for dinner to see what they really have to offer.

A trip to The Farm

As you know by now, I'm a fan of food related television shows, one of which being Top Chef.  So when I watched Top Chef Season 10 I became curious about chef Stefan Richter, mainly because he seemed so sure of himself and his cooking.  A few months back a Living Social deal for his Santa Monica restaurant popped up, so I jumped at the chance to partake in his 5-course tasting menu.

Upon arriving at the restaurant we found the chef sitting outside by a fire pit smoking a cigarette.  I immediately thought to turn to my husband and whisper "There's Stefan!", but before I got a chance, Stefan greeted us.  And then the next thing I knew, Stefan was talking to us like we were old friends, and showing us how badly he does laundry.  It was a very warm welcome to the restaurant, and very different from his Top Chef competitor C.J. Jacobsen who only talks to single, attractive women in his restaurant, or old people with money.

Once inside the restaurant we felt like we were outside.  The interior was designed to look like an exterior with a pagoda and lighting.  It was a very cool feel, with an open view of the kitchen and the bar.  We looked at the cocktail list and were impressed by both the beer and wine selection, but since we had recently heard amazing things about Justin cabernet sauvignons, a bottle was in order.

First up on the tasting menu was the gravlax.  The salmon had a very subtle flavor to it, not at all like what most of us think of when eating smoked salmon, or anything with the word lax in it.  But personally, I loved the egg mousse.  It was like two tiny dollops of the best egg salad I have ever had.

Gravlax (salmon, dill mustard sauce, watercress, egg mousse)

Next up was the mushroom ravioli.  I had hoped to borrow the full description of the dish from the website, but sadly this is not listed on the posted menu.  It might be hard to tell from the picture, but inside the bowl are four quarter sized raviolis filled with goodness, surrounded by the yummiest of mushrooms in a fantastic sauce.  Even my husband, who is not a fan at all of cream sauces, used the complimentary bread to wipe his plate clean.

Wild Mushroom Ravioli with parmesan reggiano

Our next dish was the scallop, which our waiter informed us was something that was always on the menu.  He even told us the best way to cook a scallop, presumably from watching the chefs in the kitchen.  This scallop was just perfect, with a nice crust on top.  The only thing wrong with the scallop, was that it was missing the S at the end - it was just one scallop.  But what else could I ask for from a tasting menu.

Scallops (sweet corn puree, pumpkin seed oil, crispy parsnips)

There seemed to be a very long gap between the scallop and the next dish.  In fact, the table next to us who was also doing the tasting menu and had started after us, got their next dish before us.  It was okay as we weren't in a rush, and we got to take nifty pictures of the Justin in candlelight.  By the way, did I mention that the Justin was served in a Bordeaux glass?  Apparently Bordeaux is French for freaking large wine glass.

Justin Cabernet Sauvignon in the dark

Our server's break must have ended, as the rack of lamb appeared.  I'm a big fan of lamb and I don't mind its gaminess at all, so I was disappointed when the lamb didn't taste like lamb.  I know that sounds weird, but it didn't.  While it was too dark in the restaurant by this time to see, part of me wondered if the lamb might have been overcooked (or sitting too long under a heat lamp) because of the time delay in service, and if so, then that is not fair to the lamb.  But it was delicious, if a tad bit too mustardy.

Rack of Lamb (red wine mustard crust, black truffle grits, curry roasted romanesco, natural jus)

And now for the final course.  Imagine my concern when our server appeared with two dishes of bitter chocolate mousse, considering the fact that my husband hates chocolate.  But would you believe that he finished his mousse before me?  Yup, it was that good.  I can't remember what the sauce was below it, but it was some sort of berry that was perfectly sweet and tart at the same time.

Bitter Chocolate Mousse

Our overall experience at Stefan's was fantastic.  The food was great.  The ambiance was inviting.  And even the chef was friendly and welcoming of his patrons, even if he wasn't cooking because his housekeeper needed the day off and he ruined his laundry.  Our only regret was that we don't live closer, but that doesn't mean we can't find an excuse or two to go back, and hopefully finally put an S on the end of that scallop.

The Three Amigos

Trois Mec is the hottest restaurant in Los Angeles right now based on every article you read.  The LA Times calls it "The Golden Ticket."  Esquire Magazine listed it in its Best New Restaurants list for 2013.  Eater includes it in its 38 Essential Los Angeles Restaurants.  LA Weekly named it the best new restaurant of 2013.  And the accolades go on and on.  So I obviously had to try it, so I went to their website to look into how to make reservations and that is where the adventure began.

There is no phone number to make reservations as there are no reservations.  Trois Mec sells tickets to eat at their restaurant.  Yes, tickets.  See the restaurant is in a converted pizzeria so they only have 26 seats and instead of following in big brother Animal's footsteps, the founders of Trois Mec must have decided that if people really wanted to eat there, then they would be willing to pay for their meal upfront - and that's currently $75 per person, plus tax and 18% gratuity.  Tickets go on sale every other Friday morning at 8am for an upcoming two week period, so I marked the date on my calendar thinking this would be like buying concert tickets and I would have this in the bag.

The ticket buying experience was the single worst "entertainment" experience of my life.  I think it literally took years off of my life.  The website is not designed for the level of traffic involved with a ticket on-sale so only the truly dedicated, or those who are willing to pay people to do this for them, will successfully get tickets.  Long story short, after 45 minutes of trying during which I argued with my husband and drove to work, I finally got tickets and completed the transaction on my tiny iPhone screen.  Since the restaurant has three tables for a party of four, one table for a party of six and a counter that holds four parties of two, I ended up with tickets for a party of four.

My husband and I then had to decide who to bring.  It was like a Sophie's Choice between our friends and ultimately we chose a couple who are foodies like us.  We explained to them all of the technicalities: meal is prepaid, restaurant is in a crappy strip center bearing the name of a pizzeria, and I have no idea what could be on the menu.  They were in!  At least until the day before when their children got sick and then shared their germs with their parents.  So in spite of Trois Mec being "The Golden Ticket" we couldn't pay anyone to go with us.  And if the reservations had been like a traditional restaurant I would have been able to either change the date or reduce the number in my party.  Instead, my husband and I reached out to practically every friend we have in both LA and Orange counties which basically highlighted to all of them that they weren't our first choice.

So after pulling into the Yum Yum Donuts parking lot and finding a spot, we walked down to the Raffalo's Pizza where the front door has no sign at all, but you know you're there because there are space heaters hanging from the rafters.  You see, if you don't have the first seating of the night you are forced to stand outside until your table becomes available.  We walked in curious as ever as what to expect since even Google maps says the restaurant is a "compact spot with global tasting menu."  Thankfully the mystery was quickly over as our menus where waiting for us at the table.  Beverage choices: water, sparkling water, Coke, Diet Coke, wine.

First up: snacks. The first snack was buckwheat popcorn which had a flavor similar to salt and vinegar potato chips. They were one if those things that you ate because it was in front of you and not because you enjoyed them.

Buckwheat Popcorn

Our second snack was a sunchoke chip.  Our server made a point of stressing that it was chip singular.  I can't recall how else it was described, but there was definitely something creamy inside. It was a tasty bite.

Sunchoke Chip

No one at my table caught the name/description of the third snack because all we heard was O Nigiri Sushi Rice Ball and to the best of my knowledge there is no such thing as "O".  That said, it was enjoyable. Even if I didn't know what it was.

Nigiri Sushi Rice Ball

Our fourth snack might have been my favorite dish of the night. Garlic Bread. Oh my gosh. Buttery. Garlicky. Heavenly. Literally dripping with butter. I so badly wanted more than just one bite. 

Garlic Bread

Our first plate was a crab ceviche with radish flower. It was very limey and delicious and the buckwheat popcorn gave it a needed crunch.  While we were given both a spoon and fork to eat it with, I found that the spoon was the only utensils needed..

Avocado, citrus, crab ceviche, buckwheat popcorn

We decided to go with the optional meal supplement of the scallops.  When in Rome....  The dish was interesting and was not a favorite of anyone at my table. The scallops were served on top of a cauliflower purée with some yummy sesame chips and some powder that tasted like a radish. We asked our server when he came to collect the plates what the powder was and he said it was cauliflower. Huh. Good but I wouldn't order it again. 

Nantucket Bay Scallops, tandoori, sesame, cauliflower

Our third dish was probably the most interesting of the night. Miso flan served with brined and grilled cabbage and a horseradish condiment.  We weren't sure how to eat it and one of my friend's said "I'm Armenian, we roll everything up" and with that he made his own burrito of the dish.  I chose a more conservative eating approach of just cutting things into small bites and eating them together.  The dish was very umami and unique,

Grilled cabbage, smoked almond milk anglaise, miso flan, fennel pollen

Next up came the starch course.  I mean, what else do you call a course dedicated to potatoes?  To quote Jonathan Gold of the LA Times "slightly undercooked Weiser Family Farms potatoes passed through a ricer directly onto a plate of brown butter, onion soubise and Salers cheese from the Auvergne, then sprinkled with dried Japanese bonito flakes. The texture is not cloudlike but substantial, not just grainy but super-grainy — the onion sweetness, the funk of the cheese and the smokiness of the bonito not overpowering but enhancing the mildly acerbic sharpness of real potato flavor. If ever there was an anti-Robuchon potato dish, it is this one, constructed by a chef who knows the rules all too well … a potato actually served by itself as a main dish."  Couldn't have said it better myself.

Potato pulp, brown butter, bonito, onion soubise, salers

The fifth dish was the rib cap which has become a very popular cut of meat in high end restaurants of late. The meat was served medium rare, thinly sliced, and was very tender.  Even my friend who prefers her meat well done appreciated how good the not horrifically overcooked meat was.  We were all curious (nervous!) about the smoked peanut butter, but it was actually really tasty. Probably because it was fresh peanut butter and not from a jar. 

Beef rib cap, charred broccoli, smoked peanut butter, crispy shallot

I was admittedly nervous about the dessert and asked what "creme de brie" was in hopes that it wasn't what it most obviously was. But, it was exactly that - creamed brie cheese. See, I like brie, but brie does not like me.  So I approached this dish very cautiously in hopes of eating as little brie as possible.  The dish was served in layers with the toasted barley on top, then some cream, the apple butter, and finally the brie.  I think I would have enjoyed the dessert more had I been able to just "dive in".

Apple butter, creme de brie, toasted barley, hay

Mignardises finished our meal.  Mignardises are simply small desserts and tonight we were given two: a black sage marshmallow and a sunchoke ice cream choux.  Neither was a hit with our party.  Upon tasting the marshmallow my friend cried out "Tastes like mouthwash."  And it kinda did.  I mean, it was blue green, and once you got past the extremely strong sage flavor, it left a mouthwashy flavor in your mouth.  As for the choux, she proclaimed "Tastes like artichoke!"  And I was pretty sure that wasn't a compliment.  To me it was just bitter and not worth the calories.

Sunchoke ice cream choux and Black sage marshmallow

The whole experience just seemed like a restaurant with too much hype to live up to.  I mean, maybe I was there on an off night, but seeing as how I'll never go through the ticket buying experience again, the odds of my going back are slim to none.  Well, until I make my millions off this blog and can hire someone to face the on-sale on my behalf.  Until then, time to floss after my mouthwash.

Pot of Gold Inside the Rainbow

Two years ago my husband and I embarked on our own version of Iron Chef America during a two day stay in New York City.  During that visit we ate at restaurants (or Italian mega marts) of as many Iron Chefs as we could including Geoffrey Zakarian, Alexandra Guarnaschelli, Bobby Flay, Masaharu Morimoto, and Mario Batali.  And during our recent Cleveland trip we got our Michael Symon card.  And I've also been to the restaurants of honorary Iron Chef's Wolfgang Puck and Emeril Lagasse, so it was a matter of time before we would get our Jose Garces card since he has a restaurant only two hours away, and I'm glad we finally did.

Chef Garces has two restaurants located within the Saguaro Hotel in Palm Springs and for this trip we chose the fine dining spot, Tinto.  If you're not familiar with Palm Springs let me tell you that this hotel is one that you can't miss.  The architecture is from the 1950's, but its bee updated with all of the colors of the rainbow - literally.  In front of the hotel is the hotel van which may as well be a Volkswagen van from the 1960's with its rainbow color scheme.  Lets just say that the decor fits the area.  The interior of the hotel is just a kitschy with a display of Barbie-type dolls in multiple dioramas showcasing all that the hotel has to offer.  Makes me wonder what about this hotel made Chef Garces say "There!  My restaurants must be there!"

You'll be relieved to know that the hotel's decor did not rub off on Chef Garces as he built a classic looking restaurant.  We were given the opportunity to sit outside, and since it was a warm day in January, we took advantage of it.  Space heaters are placed in the rafters above the seating, and they also have fire pits set up in more casual seating areas.

Exterior patio seating

Once seated outside we were handed our menus and our server explained that the food is from the Basque region: Southern France, Northern Spain.  She then recommended that we try the Chef's Tasting Menu of four courses including 11 dishes if we really wanted to get a variety of the menu. She also mentioned that the wine list is mostly from Spain as well as the beer, but since I was eating Spanish food, I was drinking Sangria.  One thing to note, with as many Iron Chef restaurants as I have been to, this was the first restaurant where they made a point of referring the chef proprietor as "Iron Chef Garces."  Kinda like how now he's not Paul McCartney, but Sir Paul McCartney.

Back of the menu explaining the name/inspiration

First up was the Pan de Majorca bread (yes, redundant, but that's what they said when they put it on the table) with smoked tomato goat cheese.  This is their house bread and I found it heavenly.  It was buttery like a croissant. Cheesy. Decadent.  Mmmm was my first reaction. The spread to me was just Eh, but my husband preferred it over the bread. Thankfully the bread was tasty enough to not need an accompaniment.

Pan de Majorca with smoked tomato goat cheese

Next up was the Marcona almonds and mixed olives.  Getting these two dishes alone proved what a deal the Tasting Menu was as individually they are $5 each.  The almonds are smoked on site and served with olive oil and salt resulting in a subtle flavor.

Marcona almonds and mixed olives

The next cold tapas, or pintxo, was the Jamon Iberico de Bellota which is cured acorn fed Spanish ham.  Texture-wise it reminded me of prosciutto, but it tasted sweet, yet salty.  The fatty ends were creamy in my mouth, but still a little too fatty for my taste.  The ham is aged for two years and is served with bread that my husband preferred.  

Jamon Iberico de Bellota

Next up was the cheese plate which included three cheese including manchego.  Admittedly I didn't catch the names of the other two cheeses.  Also served on the plate was sliced apples and something that I originally noted to be "jellied goo," but later learned was dulce de membrillo or quince paste which is commonly served with manchego.  I was actually quite fond of the dulce de membrillo and was pleased when it appeared again later in our meal.  Considering that it was part of a rather large tasting menu the platter was a bit much for just two people.  I actually left most of it for my husband to enjoy.

Cheese plate

So I think I accidentally ordered the bean salad. When our server was explaining the Tasting Menu she wasn't clear as to which dishes were to be included, so I simply asked if the bean salad was on the menu as it included quail eggs and I don't eat quail.  Her answering wasn't clear as to whether it was or whether it would be as a result of my question, but either way, we were served it.  And I'm glad we were as I think it may have been our only vegetables of the night.  The beans were perfectly al dente and the tuna didn't have strong canned-tuna flavor to overpower the dish.  Overall it was a very flavorful salad.

Chilled Bean Salad (ventresca tuna, toasted hazelnuts, buttermilk lemon vinaigrette, sans quail egg)

Bacon Wrapped Dates.  Mmmm.

Coachella Dates (bacon, almonds, pearl onions, valdeon fondue)

The menu says Lamb Brochette.  And yes, it mentions bacon. What it really was was bacon wrapped lamb brochette.  It's served in a shot glass with an eggplant puree and sherry jus.  Just dip and stir. Eat the lamb and when done with the brochette, drink the remainder as a soup. Ah-mazing. It wasn't gamey, but it was still lamby nonetheless.  My husband told me he would leave me for it.

Lamb Brochette (lamb loin, eggplant, bacon, sherry jus)

The one dish I most excited for was the Spanish Tortilla. I've seen Chef Garces prepare it on TV before, so I had high expectations.  I can say that it was light and fluffy, but I'm honestly not sure if I liked it. It was the most subdued dish yet.  Our server noticed that we barely ate it and assumed it was because we were saving it to eat with the steak as is customary, but seeing as how we had no idea what we were being served, I'm not sure where she came to that conclusion.  Some foreshadowing here: I tried it with the steak and it still wasn't good.

Spanish Tortilla (Weiser Farms potatoes, saffron aioli, red watercress)

After five cold tapas and three hot tapas, we finally were served large plates or raciones.  First up was the halibut. I actually like fishy fish, so the salsa verde was a much needed burst of flavor for the bland fish. I definitely preferred the cockles and the sauce on them was extremely tasty. 

Halibut (cockles, roasted spring onion, salsa verde)

Our second entree was the Wagyu Culotte Steak. Culotte is the cap of the top sirloin.  Caps seem to be the in thing lately, though usually its the cap of the rib eye.  The steak was perfectly chewy and full of flavor, but the accompanying potatoes only had subtle flavor. And as I mentioned earlier, the steak did not improve the taste of the tortilla.  My one complaint about the steak was that the sauce was a little too sweet. 

Wagyu Culotte Steak (roasted fingerlings, Idiazabal cream, membrillo)

We were allowed to choose our own dessert to finish our meal.  My husband surprisingly selected the donuts.  The donuts were a perfect blend of dense and airy, if that's at all possible, but that side of date ice cream is what made the dish.  It was amazing and not too sweet. The honey was a great compliment to the donuts. 

Buñuelos (doughnuts, date jam, spiced honey, date & olive oil ice cream)

As we were enjoying our coffee and rubbing our extremely full bellies, suddenly a second dessert appears.  Without any explanation, our server presents us with a second dessert.  She says something about how it was unexpected and she understands if we need to take it to go, but that we need to eat the sorbet before it melts. So suddenly now we have the tarta. It was the perfect texture, airy and yet dense just like the donuts. I was wary of the blood orange sorbet after my experience at Hatfields, but thankfully it was not too tart and very enjoyable.  And somehow, we mostly finished the second dessert.  I just wish I knew why we were served it. 

Tarta (cheese tart, blood orange, meyer lemon sorbet)

The saddest part of our meal was that with as full as our tummies were after 12, yes 12, courses, we had to sit in our car for the long two hour ride home instead of going on a nice walk to aid in the digestion.  My husband asked if we could come back again, and I said we could as long as we didn't order the Tasting Menu.  No one needs to eat that much food.  But perhaps next time we can try Chef Garces's other restaurant at the Saguaro.  There were a couple of misses, but overall this was a great dining experience.

Don't Tell The McCoys

Nothing could be worse then having a birthday on New Years Day.  I could bore you with a lengthy list of reasons, but I think you should just trust me.  Or, how about this nibble as an excuse: nothing is open.  That's right, since all of the restaurants stay open late the night before and often have special menus, they decide to give their staff the day off and are closed on New Years Day.  So my choices are often limited.  This year my husband selected Hatfield's from the list of limited restaurant options.  Thankfully it was actually on the list of restaurants I wanted to try, so its not like we were stuck going to Outback Steakhouse.  The one bummer from the evening is that I lost all of my notes from the night, so this review will be based on memory.  Wish me luck!

The restaurant is on the northwest corner of Melrose Boulevard and Citrus Avenue, two blocks west of Highland, so you would think you would find the valet on Melrose right?  Nope, its on Citrus next to the restaurant, so if you're heading west on Melrose after turning off of Highland, be prepared to do a u-turn to get to the valet.

The interior of the restaurant is simple in neutral colors with the main pop of color coming from the pots and pans hanging over the kitchen.  Also the bar has a bright wall of color to contrast with the dining room's neutrality, but you have to be facing that direction to notice it.

Have you ever had that experience where you see another waiter and wish he was yours?  Part way through our meal we had that moment as we watched another waiter explain to a neighboring table that items from the prix fixe menu can be ordered a la carte.  It would have been nice to know that before we placed our order - not that I have any complaints about what we ended up with, but I probably would't have gone with the Vegetarian Prix Fixe menu had I known I could just pick items from it.  But, when else can I have a piece of cauliflower as an entree?  For the record, the Vegetarian Prix Fixe was $56 and was comprised of the Butter Lettuce Salad, Ricotta Agnolotti, Brown Butter Roasted Cauliflower, and my choice of dessert.

The meal started off with an amuse bouche, but unfortunately all I can remember about it is that it was barely one bite, it had dungeness crab in it, and it was tasty.  Great review, eh?

Crab amuse bouche

First course for me was the Butter Lettuce Salad which was very tasty.  The lettuce required slicing which I find to be an annoyance, but I got over it.

Butter Lettuce Salad (compressed pear, manchego, roasted pecan, apple cider vinaigrette)

The husband decided to go with two appetizers for his first and second courses - we were celebrating after all.  I don't normally eat octopus after a bad sushi experience (rubbery!!!), but this was very tasty and not rubbery at all.  Still, I can't say that I'm convinced to try the cephalopod again.

Japanese Octopus a la Plancha (green garbanzo, roasted globe carrots, asparagus, ginger chermoula)

The husband's second course was the roasted carrot and sweet potato soup.  Thankfully the sweetness of the two vegetables was cut by the pork belly and the sweetbread.  Having once tried sweetbreads at Butter in NoHo in Manhattan, we still haven't been sold on the taste of this delicacy.

Roasted Carrot and Sweet Potato Soup (crispy pork belly and sweetbread, maitake mushrooms)

My second course was the ricotta agnolotti.  The pasta itself was perfect, accompanied by butternut squash cubes in a perfect sauce.  The problem was that the ricotta stuffed inside the agnolotti was bland and unseasoned.  In fact, it was bland for even being plain ricotta.  Perhaps this was a brand issue.

Ricotta Agnolotti (butternut squash, sherry brown butter, parmesan)

Time for the entrees.  Thankfully we had learned that the lamb was a small serving of only two rib chops, which prompted my husband to have ordered the second course.  I'm not sure how a restaurant can claim that two rib chops is an entree sized portion, or how they can justify charging $38 for such a small portion, but Hatfield's did both.  That said, the lamb was cooked perfectly and which the potato puree was green from the chives, it was quite creamy though it only seemed to get its color from the chives and not much flavor.

Date & Mint Crusted Lamb (roasted heirloom root vegetables, fresh chickpeas, potato chive puree)

My entree, as mentioned earlier, was a slice of cauliflower.  If I weren't dieting, I would be outraged as seriously, cauliflower as an entree?  But I'm dieting, so cauliflower was my entree.  Surprisingly the cauliflower was quite filling and perfectly complimented by the plantains and raisins.  I can't say I enjoyed the celery root puree, but my guess is its because I learned I don't like celery root and not because it was prepared poorly.

Brown Butter Roasted Cauliflower (toasted almonds, celery root puree, golden raisins, plantains)

For the dessert I selected the coconut tres leches cake as I'm quite fond of tres leches.  I'm glad it was included in my meal as it was quite small.  I loved the compressed pineapple and wanted more of it.  And the cake itself and coconut toffee was yummy as well, but all I needed was one bite of the blood orange sorbet to know that I didn't want any more of that.  It was tart and completely contrasted with the tastiness of the rest of the pastry.

Coconut Tres Leches Cake (compressed pineapple, coconut toffee, blood orange sorbet)

Coconut Tres Leches Cake, up close

My husband was inspired by my dieting and decided to go with the ice cream/sorbet trio and selected the three most unusual flavors available.  All three flavors were yummy, but I enjoyed the pineapple chili the most.

Ice Cream & Sorbet Trio: Medjool Date, Butterscotch-rosemary, Pineapple Chili

At the end of the meal they presented us with a complimentary dessert of two tiny cupcakes.  Since they were chocolate, my husband passed on his and I got both.  Yeah, so I was dieting, but it was my birthday and I had cauliflower as an entree.  Yum Yum.

Complimentary dessert: mini espresso chocolate mint cupcakes

I really wish I hadn't lost my notes as this would have probably been a better review, but c'est la vie.  My husband said he would gladly go back to Hatfield's, but I can't say that I agree with him.  While I enjoyed my meal, it didn't rock my world.  That said, I want to thank the management of Hatfield's for being open on New Years Day and recognizing that not everyone wants to stay inside all day watching football and recovering from a hangover.

Alma

Bon Appetit Magazine named Alma the best new restaurant of the year in August.  Makes you wonder how they define year as they obviously don't use the Gregorian calendar.  But of course, once that happened, I had to make a reservation.  I decided that our dating anniversary, known by my husband as our "unniversary", would be the proper occasion for such a celebrated restaurant.

After riding the Metro we walked through some seedy parts of downtown Los Angeles before coming upon the "blink and you missed it" restaurant.  It doesn't look like much from the outside, and its sparsely decorated on the inside.  We were seated in our clear lucite chairs near the wine bar where there is shelving featuring cookbooks from presumably some of the chef's favorite chefs.

The menu is simple and looks like its printed on a small pad of yellow lined paper.  Drinks are limited to water, beer, wine, or seasonal soda.  No iced tea.  Our server expalins that the menu is broken into three sections: tiny, small, and medium and then advises us how many of each we should get.  She also tells us that the dishes will come out as prepared, so it'll be a surprise as to the order.  We decide to order two from each of the three sections.

My husband decided to try the seasonal soda as neither of us had ever had yam soda before.  We're not certain if the soda is made in house, or from a craft soda factory, as it was served already in the glass.  Upon first glance it looked like a mixed Thai iced tea with foam on top.  It was actually quite tasty, but I stuck to my water.

spiced yam soda

First dish served was the Seafood and Tofu Beignet.  Usually when I think of a beignet they are light and airy, but these were dense.  They were surprisingly spicy, but that's because we did not realize that yuzu kosho is a type of Japanese seasoning: a paste made from chili peppers, yuzu peel and salt, which is then allowed to ferment.  I just thought it was some sort of yuzu juice sauce.  All in all it was an interesting dish, but I'm not certain I would ever order it again.  Beneath each beignet was a small drop of citrus aioli, which was so small you barely even knew it was there and yet it was needed to enhance the dish.

seaweed & tofu beignet, yuzu kosho, lime

Next up was the housemade bread which tonight was rye and ale bread.  Being Jewish I have my own expectations of what a rye bread should taste like and this was nothing like it.  This was a hearty loaf that was complemented by the cultured butter, and the rye and ale complimented each other nicely.

housemade bread with cultured butter

Now, as you know, I love crab, so when we saw a crab dish it was automatically ordered.  What I appreciated about this dish was its simplicity.  This dish was about the crab and simple unadulterated taste of crab.  The citrus added the perfect touch of acid and brought out the flavor of crab. While not appealing to look at, the avocado smear was tasty.

dungeness crab, smoked avocado, citrus, fennel

The tartare looked nothing like a traditional beef tartare.  It was a deconstructed tartare made with rib eye and barely cooked egg yolk droplets.  All in all it was very tasty, but it was missing one key element: toast.  Tartare is traditionally served with some sort of food delivery system like toast, but this tartare could only be eaten with a fork which made it difficult to incorporate the egg.

beef tartare, tangerine, maitake, Flower Avenue egg

My main course was the Brussels sprouts.  It was surprisingly more filling than one would suspect.  The mushroom mousse smear tasted like a pate. It was obviously made with red wine and was a tad too salty.

mushroom, brussel sprout, apple, miso

My husband's main course was unsurprisingly the 60 day dry aged rib eye which should have been served with one more slice of beef.  We were never quite certain what the green smear was as it didn't really have much flavor at all.  The server recommended that we order it medium rare, and that was definitely the right call.  While enjoyable, we both felt that the alfalfa sprouts were an odd accompaniment for the steak.

dry-aged rib eye, carrot, wild mushroom, grass

Having never had sunchoke before, we had to have the sunchoke split for dessert which had like six elements to the dish.  The candied sunchokes were just eh.  The applewood ice cream was good. The marshmallow whose specific ingredients I can't recall was yummy, as was the hay ash meringue.  The whipped cream was surprising as it had little to no sugar.  I could have eaten the meringue and the ice cream just as its own dish and been quite happy.

sunchoke split

Alma is falling under two current trends in the culinary world: small plates and dishes that spotlight the food.  Each dish you could truly make out the main dish as it was never overdressed with any other flavors.  That said, I love flavorful food.  I'm glad I got to experience Alma, but to me it was just okay and not worth the walk through the scary neighborhood.