Burger on the Brain

There are few things as rapturous as opening up wide and taking that first big bite of a juicy burger; it’s an explosion of sensations you can barely contain in between your lips. The soft bun is familiar and comforting in the way that only bread can be; the thick beef patty is redolent in all its meaty glory; and the melted cheese oozes gooeyness that bines the flavors and textures together for the perfect mouthful.

I like burgers, obviously; and lately, I’ve been on a burger binge. I seem order one every other time I eat out.

Let us begin with Grace—LA restaurant Grace, that is, and the burger they put on the menu Sunday nights. What I enjoyed about this burger was everything that was on the plate with it. It wasn’t just about the burger, which was wonderful; the sides and condiments also rose to meet its quality. The fries were tender and well seasoned; they were good enough to eat plain, if the ketchup and mayonnaise aioli weren’t so good to pass up.

The ketchup has a unique sweetness to it that to me was reminiscent of ketchup from the Philippines that is made from bananas, a.k.a. Filipino ketchup or Banana ketchup if you want to look for it in stores. The aioli was rich and creamy and seasoned ‘til it had an almost briny quality to it. Two pickle wedges finished the plate. And while I’m not a big fan of vinegar pickles—probably ‘cause I’ve had many badly cured ones in my past—these were good. The pickles still had their bite and they weren’t so soaked in vinegar that they became astringent. Finally to fuss over the burger, the bun perfectly soft and spongy—I’m a firm believer in soft bread for a burger—and in the right portion to the patty.

But what took my meal over the top was the chocolate ginger shake I had to wash it all down; it was probably the thickest, creamiest shake I’ve ever had. It was like drinking velvet, ultra-smooth, super rich, and divinely chocolate.



Just up the coast, the burger from the Tupelo Junction Café ruled a daytrip to Santa Barbara with a patty covered in melted cheese studded with bits of caramelized onions. It was an excellent lunch to fuel my afternoon of walking and shopping up and down State St. with out-of-town friends. The Tupelo Junction Café also serves its burger with fried sweet pickles, as well as French fries; a Southern thing that I wish would get more play in other parts of the country.

From one beachside city to another, my most recent burger was a “gourmet burger” made of ground Rib eye, New York steak, and Filet Mignon at the Library Alehouse in Santa Monica. I’ve been curious about the Library Alehouse for sometime and finally made a point to have dinner there last week. I think the server ran the burger to me the second it came off the grill, because the lovely juices that rolled in my mouth when I took the first bite were hot, not warm, and if there wasn’t all-the-fixing with it, it probably would have burned.



A good burger is satisfying—no bones about it—and I’ve had three this summer.


Grace Restaurant
7360 Beverly Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90036
Phone: (323) 934-4400
www.gracerestaurant.com

Tupelo Junction Cafe
1218 State St.
Santa Barbara, CA 93101
Phone: (805) 899-3100
www.tupelojunction.com

Library Alehouse
2911 Main St
Santa Monica, CA 90405-5315
Phone: (310) 314-4855
www.libraryalehouse.com

A Full Evening at Ford's Filling Station

I've always thought of myself as a one glass of wine, one bottle of beer, or one cocktail with my meal kind of gal. As a result, I'm shy about suggesting ordering a bottle of wine when dining out with friends, preferring to play it safe with something by the glass. But I had dinner with E. a couple nights ago who feels differently on the subject. She thinks wine by the glass is a complete rip-off and restaurants make away like bandits on suckers (my word, not hers) like me who go in for it; moreover, the amount in a bottle is made for two to share, she stressed. Persuaded by her argument, I decided to do a bottle with her.

After some thought and consideration of a Vouvray or Sancerre, I choose the Sancerre ‘thought pricier of the two and more of a spurge. (E. let me pick the wine.) It was a light 'n lively fruity wine that was very drinkable. E. and I finished it nicely during our 3-hour leisurely dinner, proving E.'s bottle and 2-people theory and leaving me surprisingly proud our accomplishment—I'm not as much of a lightweight as I thought.

With issues of drink discussed and out of the way, E. and I moved to address the food situation. We quickly decided that none of the entrées were that compelling, so we'd share assorted appetizers instead.



The first of our three rounds of food was a plate of cured meats and flatbread with shrimp and white bean purée. Now maybe my palate has been compromised by spicy salumi and hot pastrami sandwiches when it comes to cured meats, and it can't appreciate the subtle tastes that lomo and bresaola have to offer, but I found our meat plate to be lacking in a little something. I would have liked it dressed with more than olives, possibly some olive oil and cracker pepper to encourage these lean cuts of meat to release more flavors.

The flatbread with shrimp remains one of my favorites at Ford's; the second time around for me was as good as my first time last year. And as I said before, it’s the thin slices of fresh lemons that make this dish; they are the perfect grace note to the other mellow flavors on the bread, brightening the creamy beans and delicate shrimp with a touch of citrus.

The second round continued the parade from the sea with Kusshi oysters on the half-shell with a tomato jam mignonette and fried clams. What can be said about the divine pleasure that is eating—or slurping—a raw oyster that hasn't been said already; words often fail in the experience, which for some are profound the first time—including me. Full of contradictions, oysters are beautiful things to eat: simultaneous sweet and briny, and possessing a mouth-feel that’s cool and refreshing, yet rich and luxuriant.

But enough about oysters in general, and more about these Kusshi; they were plumb little things, more sweet and lighter on the brine. The tomato mignonette didn't do much for me and actually washed away some of the flavor of the oyster, so in the end I preferred to go without the condiment. The fried clams were just fun to eat—popcorn of the sea. I'd had them before and their quality remained consistent. They were fried well; crisp cornmeal batter sealed the juicy sweetness of the clams, which were tender and nicely done, chewy without being rubbery.



I started seeing red when our final around of food was brought to our table, meaning it was time to dig into the steak tartare and roasted beets with burrata. While I'm comfortable eating dried meat that I know is in essence still raw, this was my first time with fresh, raw meat. I don’t know what I was expecting, but this steak tartare wasn't it. And it wasn't because I didn’t like it, but what threw me was that the raw meat was so altered in appearance that I couldn't recognize it. I was expecting ground beef and marbled texture, but these red bits were lean and looked diced into mini cubes.

‘Though my perceptions of beef were being challenged, I can honestly say I liked the steak tartare. While being strange and new, there was something oddly familiar about it, too; and after repeated puzzling mouthfuls, I finally put my finger on it—it tasted like an altered version of corned beef and hash. Now bear with me, this wasn't the wine talking, doing a number on my cognitive functions and taste buds 'cause we'd finished the bottle by now. There was seasoned beef, topped with a fried egg and served with potato chips. Think about it—see the connection. I announced this to E. and she saw were I saw coming from although she's didn't taste it that way herself.

The roasted beets seemed pedestrian when next to the steak tartare cum radical corned beef, but they were pleasantly so. I'm very fond of beets and cook them at home, so I've found another simple preparation for them. I also like the delicate touch of creaminess that the burrata brought; it was a richness that didn't overpower the mild beets.





Six plates later, E. and I had eaten a lot of food, obviously, but I was still determined to have desert. One needs to have something sweet to cap off a meal like this; it's only proper. And when a girl wants satisfaction in food, what does she do—she heads straight for the chocolate. So it was with me in the form of a chocolate malted créme brûlée with fudge bottom.

I had saved room for this and wouldn't be denied the gratification. I crack the burnt sugar, plunge my spoon through the chocolate cream, and scrap up through the fudge-y bottom. First anticipation, then taste, and finally the reward of pure pleasure; each bite was a chocolate rush that made me giddy, layers of chocolate, cream and fudge, melting in waves across my tongue.

So, happiness came, one bottle of wine, six small plates, one desert, and two cups of coffee later—and it was worth the wait, and the bill.

I left Ford’s Filling Station full—and bursting.



Ford's Filling Station
9531 Culver Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90232
Ph: 310-202-1470
www.fordsfillingstation.net

Day Tripping in Little India

I can't think of many better ways to spend a day than exploring one of LA's many ethnic communities. A few weekends ago, I went Artesia, which is also know as Little India, to hang-out with my friend, J.. My adventure got off to a rocky start as I got horribly lost trying to find the place where we were to meet, an ice cream shop call Saffron Spot.

Flash forward five phone calls between us later and three turns up and down a four block stretch of Pioneer Blvd. and I finally arrive thirty-minutes late for a tasting event organized by Abby of "Pleasure Palate". Completely frustrated and flustered at losing my way, I didn't take any pictures of the ice cream, so I'll send you to J.'s blog, UnHip LA, to see her photos. If you ever decide to visit Saffron Spot be aware that the address of the store isn't the same as the address of the strip mall it's in.

As for the ice cream, it was rich and creamy and in flavors found in traditional Indian foods—saffron, mango, and pistachio. While their ice cream was good and reason enough to visit, the favorite sweet treat I sampled was their shaved ice or Gola. I particularly appreciated the crushed peanuts sprinkled a top the frozen mound. Their saltness helped to balance the sweet rose water and thick milk that flavored the ice.

With four frozen treats down the hatch, I took a break from food and hit the Naz Theater to catch a Bollywood film. I've watched a couple of Bollywood films, but they have all been in the comfort of my own living room, seeing one in a theater was a first for me. Indian films are long by traditional Hollywood standards and there's an intermission so you can take a break, stretch your legs, and refill your snacks. J. and I skipped the snack bit, so we would be good and hungry for dinner afterwards.

We took our dinner at Jay Bharat. J. and I shared a number of savory snacks: Masala Dhosa (pictured above), Samosa, and Palak Paneer Parotha. But most of the patrons, and every seat was taken with a steady steam of customers the whole time we were there, seem to be enjoying the Pali or assorted curries, chutneys, and bread served on a silver tray, the more traditional dinner.

I think most people are familiar with the fried triangles that are samosas, but for those who might not know a dhosa think of it as a very large rice crepe filled with roughly mashed potatoes mildly seasoned with curry spices. One rolls it up like a burito and eats it while dipping it in samhbar or thin lentil curry. Parotha is a round flat bread and our was stuffed with spinach or palak paneer. Dinner was a delight and a wonderful way to end the day.

Artesia was a bit of a trek for me, but it was well worth the trip—and I had a happy full stomach to keep me company on the drive back home.


Saffron Spot
18744 Pioneer Blvd.
Artesia, CA 90701
Ph: 562-809-4554
Fax: 562-809-6226
www.saffronspot.com

Jay Bharat
18701 Pioneer Blvd.
Artesia, CA 90701
Ph: 562-924-3310
Fax: 562-924-2911
www.jaybharat.com

Pasta to the Rescue

I've been a cooking funk for the past few weeks. I would walk past my kitchen and 'sigh', so completely uninspired to make anything that my feet wouldn't even leave the carpet and touch its linoleum floor.

This cooking torpor began innocently enough with the loss of appetite from an unpleasant summer flu in the beginning of July after returning from Washington D.C.—the trip left me more run down than wanted to admit. My body recovered from its feverish state in a few days, but my stomach didn't follow for many days longer. And when it did revived itself, I somehow lost my desire to cook in the meantime. So thus began a string of buying takeout for dinner or making sandwiches for my meals.

But in about a week my budget couldn't take the abuse of eating out every night, nor could my tummy take could the steady diet of restaurant prepared food for that matter. Then several days later sandwiches became tiresome. Bread is good, but I can't exist on it alone—I'm Chinese; I need rice and noodles to feel complete.

Over the weekend, to dig myself out of this food downer, I decided to force myself to make something and that something was pasta. So now you might be asking why didn't I make rice. Quick explanation: My rice cooker broke several months ago; I was borrowing a friend's in the meantime, but that needed to be returned a few days ago; and I'm researching what rice cooker to next, still—if anyone wants to suggest a brand/model feel free. But back to the pasta....

I decided to do a simple carbonara. What could be more stimulating for my appetite, yet soothing to my stomach, than a luxurious sauce of egg, cream, and cheese, I thought. I used a recipe from Nigella Lawson's Food Network show as a point of reference and modified it suit my mood and what I had in the fridge.

Instead of pancetta, I used Canadian Bacon, the only porky produce I had on hand. I tossed in a variety of vegetables—green, yellow, and red peppers and zucchini—because I had bags of them, along with broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, and celery, at my disposal after attending a lecture a couples days earlier and making off with the leftover veggie tray at the host's insistence.

Hardly a traditional carbonara, but it was still okay to eat. I had a small plate for dinner and took more to work for lunch the next day.




SPAGHETTI ALLA CARBONARA

1 pound spaghetti
2 cups cubed pancetta rind removed
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 cup dry white wine or vermouth
4 eggs
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1/4 cup heavy cream
Freshly ground black pepper
Freshly ground nutmeg
Put a large pan of water on to boil for the pasta.
In another large pan that will fit the pasta later, cook the pancetta cubes in the oil until crispy but not crunchy. Pour over the white wine or vermouth and let it bubble away so that, after a few minutes, you have a small amount of salty winey syrup left. Take the pan off the heat.

In a bowl, beat together the eggs, Parmesan, cream, and pepper. Cook the pasta according to the packet instructions, but since you want it kept al dente start checking it 2 minutes before end of the recommended cooking time.

When the pasta is done, remove approximately 1/2 cup of the pasta water before draining. Put the pan with the bacon cubes back on the heat and add the drained pasta, tossing well to coat with the syrupy pancetta. Take the pan off the heat again and add the eggs and cheese mixture, swiftly tossing everything to mix. Thin with pasta water, if needed. Grind over some more pepper and grate over the nutmeg to serve.

Food Network
Show: Nigella Feasts
Episode: Solitary Sensations

Red Mango Instead of Ice Cream

Frozen yogurt joints are popping up all over place in Los Angeles, the most ubiquitous being Pinkberry, but joining Pinkberry in Westwood is Red Mango, the newest fro-yo shop to hit that neighborhood. It opened last month, but I didn't get to it until last Friday when I nipped in for a frozen treat after catching No Reservations at the Mann Bruin across the street.

Now I'm not going to take sides on the frozen yogurt fight between Pinkberry and Red Mango, suffice to say that each is the other's biggest competition, but I will discuss the difference in their "original" plain frozen yogurt. Pinkberry's fro-yo has an icier consistency than Red Mango's, which is smoother in texture and richer in taste. I was hard press to distinguish it from regular, full on ice cream just from mouth feel, although its tart flavor gave it away as yogurt.

The live and let live part of me feels that there's room enough in world—and in people's stomachs—for both fro-yo chains to be around for sometime. Although I was a skeptic last year, now I thing the the frozen yogurt craze is back, revived from the 1980's, and alive and thriving in LA. And the apologist in me can comfortably say I like both on their own merits, light and refreshing Pinkberry and the richer Red Mango. But if you want to feel like you're eating ice cream without the calories then hit up Red Mango the next time you're craving something cool and creamy. And I just might there, too, doing the same, because the adult that I am should be watching all the sugar and fat I eat more than I do.


Red Mango
10942 Weyburn Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90025
Ph: 310-464-8526
www.redmangousa.com

Note: More shops are coming soon to LA, the OC, and San Diego, CA, as well as Las Vegas, NV, New York City, and Washington State.