By now, everyone knows that executive chef Daniel Humm picked up the James Beard Foundation"Best Chef: New York City" Award. That, however, wasn't the case when we stepped into Eleven Madison Park for an early and eventually memorable dinner.

Welcome to Eleven Madison Park from Nick Cannell on Vimeo.

First impressions are important and Eleven Madison Park does an excellent job here.

EMP is a beautiful space. I don't even feel qualified enough to properly describe it, but I'll give it a shot. There are giant windows that bathe the restaurant in a ton of natural light during the day. Through the windows, you can catch the tops of the trees across the street at Madison Park. The tables are large and spacious, just far enough apart from each other for you to have your privacy, but not so far as to make you feel like you're on an island. There's a lively bar populated by Credit Suisse bankers taking a break from deal making upstairs and injecting good background noise into main dining room. But really, enough about the space. We came for the food and there's a lot to go through.

EMP offers a three course prix fixe, a Spring tasting menu, as well as "Eleven," Chef Daniel Humm's selection of eleven courses. We chose the "Eleven" and for good measure, threw in a twelfth course. We'll go ahead and refer to the rest of the dinner as "Twelve."

Cheese Gougères

We were presented with these cheese gougères as we looked through the wine menu. They were tasty, light, and just enough to jump start the palate.

2006 Arnot-Roberts Hudson Vineyard, North Block Syrah

900 pages later, we settled on this bottle.

I didn't capture a picture, but EMP uses a lot of unique decanters and it was fun watching the different ones used throughout the evening.

Soon after the wine arrived, a long tray of hor d'oeuvres arrived at the table.

Carrot Marshmallow

Tuna Tartare

Foie Gras

Morel and Egg Quiche Tartlet

Sweetbread Cornet

The hors d'oeuvres were all good, but the sweetbread cornets stood out for us. I could have eaten a hundred of them without flinching. There was a decent amount of tweezer work put into each of these morsels of yum.

Before we jump into the food, I decided to have a derby julep, created by Jason Littrell of Death & Co.

Did it fit into our dinner plans? No. Did I care? Not really.

With our drinks ready and hors d'oeuvres completed, we jumped into our dinner.

Sterling Royal Caviar with spheres of smoked Sturgeon and Salmon Cream

I will admit, this was my first encounter with spheres. And yes, it was a flavor explosion in my mouth. I can't wait for the next sphere to pop in my mouth.

Santa Barbara Sea Urchin, Custard with Green Apple and Shellfish Ragout

I kept thinking I'd somehow crack the shell and they'd have to bring me another, but alas, nothing cracked. The concept behind the dish is to have the three different ingredients represent three different temperatures: cool, warm, hot. Each spoonful was rich, tart, and briny, a great combination.

Amuse Bouche: Garden Pea & Mint Lollipop

It arrived in a patch of grass and I wasn't sure what to expect, but a bite of the lollipop revealed exactly that: a hard shell with a soft center tasting like garden peas and mints. The amuse bouche was playful and fun, a theme that we'd continue to see the rest of evening.

Spring Out of Winter: Variations of Asparagus with Jamon Iberico

This was one of my favorite courses and I'm not even a big fan of asparagus. The combination of flavors and textures, the delicate nature of the dish, everything about it was on point. Who knew I'd fall in love with a veggie dish? Yes, it did have ham and that helped, but still, a great representation of the seasons.

Foie Gras Torchon with Tete de Cochon, Picked Spring Vegetables & Horseradish

A beautiful presentation which easily could have been a meal in of itself. EMP is liberal with their portion sizes and it's evident when you have this course. The plating of the dishes was done so well that it was almost difficult to take your fork and knife to the plate, almost.

The only weakness in my book was the bread service. The butters, especially the goat milk butter, were fantastic. However, the breads we did get were a little harder than expected.

Seared Atlantic Halibut with Smoked Spring Garlic and Crayfish

If restaurants could prepare Atlantic Halibut the way EMP did, I'd never order Chilean Sea Bass again. The Atlantic Halibut was incredibly tender and buttery, and melted in your mouth the moment you bit into it.

Poached Nova Scotia Lobster with Young Carrots, Ginger, and Vadouvan Granola

One of the more impressive aspects about EMP's Gourmand Tasting was that each dish was better than the next. The poached Nova Scotia lobster did not disappoint. There is a precision to the EMP staff that was fun to watch. Whether it was the specific routes they took through the dining room, the table side preparations, or the ironing of the table linens, the movements and actions of the staff were like a carefully choreographed performance. This video of EMP never gets boring watch.

Eleven Madison Park from Nick Cannell on Vimeo.

Earth and Ocean: Slow Cooked Poussin with Hawaiian Blue Prawns and Seaweed

This was an interesting dish and as soon as it was set in front of us, we reminisced about Ludo Lefebvre's Chicken Royale. Would it be as tender? Would it be as good? Yes and yes. At first glance, it didn't even look like chicken, based on the way it was presented, but indeed, a very unique dish.

The below video shows how the poussin is prepared.

The Art of Sous Vide - Organic Poulard with Black Truffles and Autumn Vegetables from Nick Cannell on Vimeo.

Herb Roasted Colorado Lamb with Sucrine Lettuce, Garden Peas and Oregon Morels

This course was actually Colorado Lamb prepared five ways. In addition to the obvious, there was lamb ravioli, lamb sausage, lamb short rib, and sweetbreads. Was it a lot of lamb? Yes, but it was incredibly good.

At this point, you started feeling the weight of all the previous courses settling into your system, but the EMP team does a great job of spacing out the courses, allowing you to recover before heading into the next course.

Lavendar Honey Glazed Grimaud Farms Muscovy Duck with Asparagus, Ramps and Strawberries

As you'll recall in the beginning, this was a Gourmand plus one tasting and the duck for two was the plus one for our party. Our waiter had a chuckle when I asked if we could add the duck to our tasting. Neither of us realized just how big the duck would be.

Waiter: "Of course you can, but you won't finish it. You'll have it for breakfast tomorrow."
Us: "So, we shouldn't order it? Is it excessive?"
Waiter: "Most definitely, but you should order it, it's fantastic. You'll be taking it home, everyone does."
Me: "We'll see about that."

Needless to say, we ate the whole thing. In addition to the duck breasts that were carved and plated tableside, a small dish duck confit was prepared in the kitchen and brought back to the table for us (not pictured). I strongly recommend this dish, regardless of whether you go down the a la carte or tasting menu path. The presentation and taste were both exemplary. The duck was seasoned well, the skin crisp, and the meat tender and juicy. Donald duck would not be happy.

Another video from the EMP site showing a similar duck dish.

The Art of Sous Vide - Roasted Duck with Endive, Orange & Ginger from Nick Cannell on Vimeo.

Fromage

A cheese cart to rival that of Bistro LQ's! At this point, I couldn't remember which three cheeses I had. I recall asking for: medium/soft, briny, mixed and that's exactly what I got. The fig tart was great. The raisin walnut bread that came along with the cheese course was excellent and helped redeem the bread service at EMP. This was the perfect transition into the final two courses.

"Soda Pop" with Tangerine, Grapefruit, Pomelo and Lemon

This dish literally pops when you take a bite. I already knew what I was in store for, but it was fun watching the table next to us experience this dessert. I can eat 10-15 tangerines a day, so I really loved all the different types of citrus that were part of this dessert. Plus it looked cool.

Milk & Chocolate: Variations of Flavor and Texture

I was not ready for this. It was awesome. It was not as rich as the dish suggests, and the different textures were very fun. I always enjoy a dish that brings a lot of surprises and this is one of those dishes that accomplishes that. Each bite was different and you never knew what you'd expect.

Top (L-R): Pink Peppercorn with Caramel, Chocolate Banana
Middle (L-R): Peanut Butter, Coconut with Chocolate Ganache, Meyer Lemon
Bottom (L-R): Toasted Sesame with Green Tea, Grapefruit with Fennel

I'm not normally a big fan of macarons and when we were presented with a gigantic plate of them, I wasn't really sure I'd enjoy them. But after describing the different types that were available, I threw caution to the wind (I mean come on, they're just macarons) and we got one of each of them. They were actually pretty good. My favorites were the peanut butter and meyer lemon. I'll have to give macarons another try.

Digestif: Guillon-Painturaud Cognac V.S.O.P.

Drinks for Two

To close out our tasting dinner, we were presented with a bottle of Guillon-Painturaud Cognac V.S.O.P. and told that we could enjoy as much of it as we wanted. And oblige we did. Right around this time, Will Guidara, general manager of EMP, stopped by the table and introduced himself. Earlier in the night, with texts from some guy and twitter updates from JBFA, I congratulated our server on chef Daniel Humm's win for Best Chef NYC. He was surprised that we knew he won as the staff had just been told minutes before. Apparently the story got to Will and when he came back from the JBFA Gala, he invited us to stay the night as there would be a party to celebrate the win. And oblige we did on this request too.

And was the party incredible! With nearly ever restaurant industry player in attendance, it was just awesome being a spectator. We enjoyed seeing Wylie Dufresne, Rick Moonen, Danny Meyer, Gabriel Kreuther, and many others throughout the night as we sipped on our cognac.

Later in the evening, we got to enjoy this scene. Yup, that's Daniel Boulud celebrating with Daniel Humm spraying the crowd with champagne. Memorable times indeed.

To close out the evening, ladies are given a parting gift, a small box of jellies.

EMP was of the best dining experiences I've had a chance to enjoy. It was refined, upscale, and fun, but without the pretentiousness typically associated with this type of evening. The accolades EMP has garnered is well deserved and I am glad I had a chance to be partake in such a unique evening. As many places as there are to enjoy in NYC, EMP will now become a regular stop whenever I'm in NYC.

Eleven Madison Park
11 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10010
212-889-0905

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I had that moment of clarity at Sapp Coffee Shop.

At this point, I might be the very last person in the food blogosphere to try Sapp, much less thai boat noodles. Hell, even Anthony Bourdain had it with Dylan of Eat, Drink & Be Merry.

So what have I been missing out on? Joy. Happiness. Flavor bombs. Bliss. Seriously, I mentally kicked myself as I slurped down this bowl of noodles, thinking "why the f**k did I not come here sooner????"

I love Pho and I usually get the #1 or #2, because it's the one bowl that gets all the fun parts in there: tripe, tendon, brisket, meatball, etc. But the one thing that was always missing for me was a strong, savory flavor profile. I can appreciate the light and delicate nature of good pho broth, but I always end up dropping in a dollop of hoisin and sriracha (ok, make that five dollops of sriracha) sauce into the bowl, and thereby really destroying the essence of the broth. But I LOVE a strong, savory soup.

Cue Sapp's thai boat noodles.

It was love at first smell. It might not be a big bowl, but it packs a big punch. Sweet, salty, sour, hot, spicy, you name it, it's in there and hitting your senses. And damn, did it smell good. Visually, it was just as complex. You have pork rinds, meat balls, tendon, beef liver, beef tripe, all bathing in a rich, dark, broth. Each spoonful, each bite was rich and unique. It was simply...fantastic.

It's heaven in a bowl and it's perfect for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

Sapp Coffee Shop
5183 Hollywood Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90027
(323) 665-1035

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You can guess exactly when I took this picture from KFC's website.

Psych!!! Sike?!? wtf knows? Come on now. Did any of you really think KFC would extend an invitation to me to test out the Double Down before its launch on Monday? Here's what really happened:

It was a lazy Saturday afternoon and we were headed to see Jill at Domaine LA when out of the corner of my eye, I spotted a bunch of banners for the Double Down at the the KFC on the corner of Vine and De Longpre in Hollywood. Immediately, I thought "there's no way they'd put that many signs up for a product that wasn't available until Monday right?" Right? Curiosity got the better of me and I pulled into the KFC parking lot and said to C "I'm just going to run in real fast and see if the Double Down is really available today."

Once I was inside, I nearly crapped my pants when I realized: it WAS available. What to do though? I just had Sapp's Thai Boat Noodles, so I wasn't hungry. But did I really want to pass up on the opportunity to try out the Double Down? Minutes turned into hours (ok, it was a few more minutes), as I decided what to do. I wasn't planning on eating the Double Down today, especially since I had a lunch date meeting with one of my twitter unicorns, Jesse aka TriceraPops, Monday for the Double Down showdown tweetup. My fried chicken addiction got the better of me and I ended up getting in line to order one of these bad boys.

With the bag in hand, I jumped in the car, opened up the box and the first I did was...snap a pic.

What were my initial thoughts upon looking at this thing? It's f'ing substantial. It's a large ass sandwich, that's a lot of fried chicken and there is NO WAY that thing is only 540 calories. NO WAY. You're holding two pieces of fried chicken with some cheese, bacon and sauce. It's absurd. With that thought in my head, I took a bite of the thing.

Verdict? Wow, was this thing salty! I couldn't taste anything except salt. In fact, my tongue went numb after the second bite. I could feel my body starting to bloat from two bites of this bad boy. Whatever spices they used on the chicken, it was just too much. I couldn't taste the Colonel's special sauce, but it was probably adding to the saltiness of the "sandwich." 1380mg of sodium my ass. Everything on the nutritional content for the Double Down screams BS once you take a bite.

Don't get me wrong, I love my fried chicken, but when I order a two or three piece combo somewhere, I don't try to eat ALL of the chicken at once. It's eaten and enjoyed one piece at a time. For me, good fried chicken means taking a bite and getting just the right ratio of fried skin and juicy tender meat. You just don't get that with the Double Down because there is TOO MUCH OF IT AT ONCE! Even for someone like me who loves fried chicken, this was overkill. I never thought I'd say I had too much fried chicken, but I had to capitulate with the Double Down. We stuck it back in the box and tossed it in the back seat.

Later on in the afternoon, C and I decided to walk around Hollywood and Melrose like tourists. We'll take a little picture break before getting back to the Double Down situation.

With that little tour Hollywood and Melrose out of the way, dinner became our topic of discussion. Granted, my tongue still felt like it was stuck to a salt lick from the first two bites of the Double Down, but as a fried chicken fanatic, I couldn't let it go to waste. C suggested we eat light and at the moment, it clicked: the Double Down Chopped Salad was born.

Fried Chicken should never be wasted. NEVER.

Once we got home, we took the remainder of the the Double Down, heated it up and chopped it. It became the protein for our chopped salad.

We chopped the Double Down down to size

The Double Down plus the salad was an perfect evening dinner. Chopping up the Double Down brought the fried chicken into proportion and was a perfect complement to the chopped salad.

So in the end, we still salvaged the Double Down. On Monday, I will still slay the Double Down beast with TriceraPops. Game on KFC. Game on. And yes, my life insurance policy is updated.

You can get C's take on the Double Down here. She was the executive chef of the Double Down Chopped Salad.

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Gram and Papas, home of Ludobites 4.0

While I do have a few reservations lined up for Ludobites 4.0, I was fortunate enough to be invited as a guest to the FoodDigger TastEvent: Ludobites 4.0 Preview Dinner. The evening was hosted by FoodDigger (aka: I didn't pay a dime), wine pairings were provided by Domaine LA, and the food, obviously provided by Chef Ludo.

Since this was a FoodDigger event, this meant that there would be bloggers. And there were lots of them.

Bloggers mingling and breaking some ice prior to dinner.

The LA Times was in attendance this particular night.

Point and shoot cameras were the camera of choice for this evening. If memory serves me right, I counted 3 dSLRs in the group. It brought a smile to this Canon S90 point and shoot user.

After a few glasses of bubbly, we jumped right into the first course.

Tartine Plate "Three Fat Textures"

What were the three fat textures: lavender lard, clarified butter and whipped brown butter. Diners at Ludobites 2.0 will remember the lavender, although this version doesn't share the same sweetness as 2.0. Needless to say, you'll be asking for more lard, sweet or not.

No, I didn't scoop the fat textures right into my mouth. I had this nice baguette to use.

While getting my fill of lard, I noticed the wineglasses had some engravings on them.

Before I continue with the food, I just have to say Jill of Domaine LA did an AMAZING job pairing wines with the preview dinner. If you are going to Ludobites, I strongly recommend you stop by her store. In fact I suggested that she create a Ludobites wine pairing package so that folks could stop by and pick up all the right wines for this dinner.

Chef Ludo is Iron Man.

Carrot Salad, Saffron Anglaise Cream, Pearl Onions, Citrus, and Mustard Powder

The saffron cream really brought this course together.

Chef Ludo is always working hard.

Egg, potato mousseline, lobster, borage flower

Not much to look at right?

Well, dig a little deeper and you get to the surprise.

This was freaking fantastic. I'm already trying to figure out how to ration this out on Friday. More than likely, we'll each be getting one...yes it's that good.

Jill from Domaine LA always made sure our courses were properly paired.

Foie gras croque-monsieur, lemon turnip chutney

The foie gras croque-monsieur makes its triumphant return from Ludobites 2.0. Chef Ludo used lemon turnip chutney since cherries are not yet in season.

In addition to his sous chef, Chef Ludo has quite a few interns this go around and it was fun watching them get harassed. The completely open kitchen will make for some interesting moments.

Burgundy Escargots, Garlic Flan, Green Jus (Parsley), Yellow Flowers

Saying that this dish is rich would be an understatement.

Saying that Gram and Papas is all kitchen would also be an understatement.

There's a whole lot of coqs in the kitchen.

It's a good thing all these coqs in training have mastered the art of synchronized plating.

Columbian River King Salmon Confit, Spring Cabbage, Orange Skin & Juniper Berries

This salmon, which was cooked to 85 degrees, was amazingly tender. The crispy salmon skin brought this dish home for me.

Poached Jidori Chicken, Crispy Skin with Hazelnuts, Garden Vegetables, Bacon Royale

Tender moist chicken, you'd almost think this was prepared sous-vide, but no, it was poached. And crispy skin?

Yes, crispy skin. I just wanted to emphasize that one more time: CRISPY SKIN. And BACON royale.

Brie Chantilly Napoleon, Honey Comb, Balsamic, Frisee Salad

The brie was churned for 2 hours. I feel sorry for the poor coq in training that had to do that. Thank you though, it took me 30 seconds to inhale this thing.

I just loved how this dish was plated. And anything that was churned for 2 hours deserves more love than just one shot.

Krissy does it all.

Dark Chocolate Souffle, Black Pepper Mill Chocolate Ice Cream, Chocolate Cream

The black pepper mill chocolate ice cream was intense.

After dinner, Chef Ludo spent a few minutes chatting with the group. Ludobites 4.0 is his twist on classic French cooking. As previous Ludobites diners know though, this is bound to change. Even Chef Ludo admitted that he'll likely bore of the classic French cooking concept in a few weeks, so it will be interesting to see how the menu evolves over the next eight weeks. A chef's imagination, especially Chef Ludo, cannot be restrained!

The preview dinner and wine pairing menu.

Ludobites 4.0 at Gram and Papas
227 East 9th Street
Los Angeles, CA 90015
(213) 624-7272
From 4/28/2010 - 5/28/2010

Post Script: There is ABUNDANT free street parking on 9th Street after 6p. My recommendation is to park on 9th or at the intersection of 9th and Los Angeles or 9th and Santee. If you do park on Santee, I recommend parking on the North side (left) of Santee rather than the South. Lots are available, but they are a bit farther away and there's really no need to park that far.

Insider Tip: The yellow loading zone is free and parking ticket free AFTER 6p and there are 2 spaces directly in front of the restaurant and 2 more across the street, so take advantage of those spots!

This dinner was free and sponsored by FoodDigger.

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While I don't find myself in the South Bay often, I was impressed enough with Nozomi Sushi that I would definitely take another drive down to experience the omakase there.

The omakase is really a chef's chance to show off their skills. Chef Yasu's attention to detail really comes through as you taste and experience each course.

Not to mention, Chef Yasu is one funny guy, so make sure you try to get a seat with him when you are at Nozomi.

But enough of the chatter, really what you want to see is the food, and without further ado, a journey through Nozomi Sushi's omakase.

Dinner was kicked off with a cracker topped with uni, marinated squid and cream cheese. At first, I thought, cream cheese?!?! But yes, it was a rich and savory way to start off the evening.

The standard sunomono to cleanse the palate and soul for the onslaught that was about to begin.

The alfonsino is an ugly fish (based on what I saw on wiki). It's better known as red bream or Tasmanian snapper. It was a tasty fish and something I've never had before. The grated yuzu on top was the perfect complement.

The black sea breem was topped with a very interesting ponzu jelly that Chef Yasu carefully cut and formed. The level of intricacy and detail to each dish was amazing.

This red snapper was topped with a sesame soy sauce.

The hiramasa was brushed with soy sauce.

We take this quick commercial break to introduce you to Sapporo. Sapporo, it's Japanese for sharing...and getting your ass drunk since 1876.

Sorry about that, let's get back to the omakase.

We took a short break from the sushi extravaganza and the kitchen brought out these tasty plates of calamari. I can't remember what the green stuff was, but it provided a nice tart flavor to the calamari. I'm a sucker for anything tart and vinegary.

It's always exciting when the chef breaks out the torch. You know something is about to get seared/burned/fried.

I never had barracuda before. I kicked this barracuda's butt. Does a barracuda even have a butt? The barracuda was topped with yamaimo, which is a Japanese mountain yam. Supposedly it's an aphrodisiac. I requested a second serving.

We had a healthy debate about this shrimp since we misunderstood the chef and thought the shrimp came from the Dead Sea instead of the Red Sea. See what happens when you let Sapporo sponsor your dinner? (Note: Sapporo didn't sponsor jack ish...)

The orange clam was really good and didn't have the texture that you expect to get from a clam.

With all the unique cuts of fish we were experiencing, could I dare say that this was kind of...boring? The white thin kelp was a nice addition and reminded me of Shibuya's toro in Calabasas, CA.

Hamachi. Yum. No other words necessary.

This tuna was marinated in soy sauce which added a layer of flavor to it. Very interesting.

Toro. Sushi for the Gods. Need I say more? Melt in your mouth good.

What's under the hood?

Eggy goodness. A nice break from the sushi.

The Santa Barbara uni was rich and flavorful.

Rich and flavorful in a different way, I ate cod milt. I'll give you 30 seconds to google cod milt. Yes I ate it. Tasted kind of like monkfish liver.

The ikura had a ton of flavor. Dos Huevos senor!

Our last course was the anago with lemon zest. Topped with a little teriyaki sauce, this was a nice warm treat to end the meal.

Don't piss off the chef or he might just shank ya.

Nozomi stood out it with its eclectic selection of fish, attention to detail and delicate handiwork. It was an an excellent time, and I can't wait to go back.

Nozomi Sushi & Japanese Restaurant
1757 West Carson Street
Torrance, CA 90501-2828
(310) 320-5511

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- Ludo visits The Foundry last week, tweeting that Chef Eric Greenspan wasn't around and that "maybe" he should take over the kitchen.
- Eric responds by tweeting him to join him in the kitchen on Tuesday for Bluesy Tuesday at the Foundry for fried chicken night.
- Eric tweets out an APB for more deep fryers, with Akasha Richmond of Akasha Restaurant tweeting in for the rescue.

And as a result, diners had a chance to enjoy fried chicken prepared two ways a la Chef Ludo and Chef Eric.

The question you're asking yourself is: so which chef had the better fried chicken? The answer would be: tough to say. Our table of four was evenly split as to which chef fried the better chicken. Both have their styles, both were good and it really came down personal taste buds. Chef Ludo's crispy shell, seasoning, juicy innards popped when you bit into each nugget, whereas a bite of Chef Eric's fried chicken took you back home, where you were having a lazy Sunday afternoon picnic with a bucket of fried chicken. At the end though, the fact that my friends ranked both fried chickens in the Popeye's/Roscoe's echelon was a good sign. Two fun chefs, two pieces of fried chicken, tasty soulful sides, how could you go wrong?

Eric Greenspan's Fried Chicken - down home goodness

Ludo Lefebvre's Fried Chicken - uptown flavors

But since we couldn't subsist on fried chicken alone, although I could argue otherwise, and since we could not place more than one order per person, we took a stroll down the Bluesy Tuesday menu.

Short Rib Grilled Cheese Sandwich

This wasn't on the Bluesy Tuesday menu, but it did win top honors at the Grilled Cheese Festival. We had two more of these later in the evening. Tasty little buggers.

Collard Greens

Grits

Fried Green Tomatoes

Aside from the fried chicken, this was the most popular dish of the night at our table.

Creamed Corn

Potato Soup

Another item from the main menu. With leek and bacon bread pudding sitting underneath the fried egg, it felt like I was eating a baked potato. My friends really enjoyed the leek and bacon bread pudding.

So who won? The diners did. It's great to see chefs harness the power of twitter, work together and create a night of fried chicken heaven. Hopefully this won't be the last time we see great chefs in LA working together on a fun night like Bluesy Tuesday.

Amazingly, on a night when most of the twitterverse was in the house, I managed to only run into @frenchchefwife, which means that maybe I'm back to being undercover...again.

The Foundry on Melrose
7465 Melrose Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90046
(323) 651-0915

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Charcuterie Plate at Drago Centro

More on the flip.


Truffled Potato Skins at 8 oz Burger Bar

Crackalicious

Fried Oysters at Tar Pit Bar

So good you'll probably lick the half shell.

Dungeness Crab Beignets at Checkers Downtown Happy Hour

Tasty little morsels.

Pig Trotter at Lazy Ox Canteen

"What's trotter?"
"Don't worry about it, just eat it."

Macaroni and Cheese at Tar Pit Bar

MacSteamy.

Bacon Wrapped Matzoh Balls at The Gorbals

Hot balls. Hot balls.

Crispy Pigs Ears at Lazy Ox Canteen

No commentary needed.

Gribenes, Lettuce and Tomato at The Gorbals

Chicken skin. Nuff said.

Fried Anchovies at Lazy Ox Canteen

Deep fried goodness.

You can't have small plates without the requisite alcohol.

Old Cuban at Tavern LA

On a lonely afternoon.

British Empire at Checkers LA

No wonder the British empire fell.

Old Cuban at Tar Pit Bar

A dark drink for a dark venue.

Bundaberg Ginger Beer at Lazy Ox Canteen

Yes, I gave up alcohol for Lent, so now I'm drinking ginger beer.

And of course, a dessert or two wouldn't hurt either.

Roasted Pears and Butter Biscuit at Lazy Ox Canteen

Ask for another butter biscuit. Seriously.

Fresh Apple Tart at Tar Pit Bar

Almost like d**k in a box, except it's apple and it's not really a surprise.

Fun times indeed. There's nothing as exciting as small plating your way around Los Angeles.

The Gorbals
501 South Spring Street
Los Angeles, CA 90013-2310
(213) 488-3408

Lazy Ox Canteen
241 South San Pedro Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 626-5299

8 oz. Burger Bar
7661 Melrose Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90046
(323) 852-0008

Tar Pit Bar
609 N. La Brea Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323) 965-1300

Checkers Downtown
535 South Grand Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90071-2601
(213) 891-0519‎

Drago Centro
525 South Flower Street
Los Angeles, CA 90071-2200
(213) 228-8998

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Giada De Laurentiis noshing at Church & State

Sorry honey, it doesn't matter that you're famous and beautiful, you have to deal with the same haphazard service the rest of folks had to deal with.

Service aside, the kitchen continues to delivers kick ass food. More importantly, we were able to pig out and turn into pigs thanks to the 30% discount from Blackboard Eats.

The baguette, good enough that my colleague and I wanted to take some home. Need to find out where they bake this magical stuff.

Moules Marinière with white wine, pommes frites, aïoli

I'll leave the expert analysis to Noah Galuten, but this starter was excellent. The broth, the baguette, ugh, I think I'm going to have to go back for lunch, again.

Can't forget the fries. Golden, crispy, and addictive. What was once an afterthought, good fries can now be found all over the city.

Soupe Gratinée à l’Oignon

The primary reason why I lunched at Church and State: French onion soup. 1/3 cheese, 1/3 onion, 1/3 bread, and heavenly, definitely not for the faint of heart. Rumor has it Mercantile makes a mean ass french onion soup as well. I'll need to check it out.

Croque de Bœuf - braised beef short rib, caramelized onions, Cantal cheese

I didn't get to try this during lunch, but I did take home my colleague's half for leftovers that evening. Dinner...was good.

Bouillabaisse - Provençal fish soup, prawns, mussels, clams

My other colleague had the bouillabaisse. I didn't have a single bite of this so I really have no idea what it tasted like. My colleague liked it.

Poulet Rôti à la Bourgeoise - roasted chicken, carrots, pearl onions, bacon

Juicy, tender, with crispy skin. I have this irrational fear of that roasted chicken ends up being dry. Not the case here though. And with the crispy skin, yum. Can't we just call this fried chicken? Whatever, I'm calling it fried chicken. On an aside, I'd love to see someone put together a fried chicken competition.

Pot de Crème au Chocolat

Les Tartes du Jour -Chocolat

Citrus shaved ice

Got dessert? We all stuck to our own desserts, and I stuck with the shaved ice I had at Sunday supper. All excellent choices, whatever your weakness might be.

Church and State satiates the appetite, again.

Church and State Bistro
1850 Industrial Street
Los Angeles, CA 90021
(213) 405-1434

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Serious signage

No, the sign doesn't fall under the LA moratorium on billboards. It is Cube's signage and it is huge. You can't miss it. It's also a good way to find The Tar Pit Bar, which is right next door.

Dinner at Cube was a last minute decision and I was afraid we wouldn't be able to get a table. Luckily, we scored seats at the communal table in the back. The communal table, which can also be reserved for private parties, is a converted walk in fridge. It was a unique and perfect setting for an evening of conversation and food.

Take time to go through the broad menu. From salads to not so small plates to pastas and entrees, the menu requires careful consideration. Your best bet is to order a flight of cheese, a glass of wine and then start on the menu.

Amuse bouche: raschera cheese, wheat thin, honey

Once we placed our order, we were presented with an amuse bouche. If you're a cheese lover, Cube should be high on your list of places to check out. The list of cheeses runs deep with over sixty options to choose from. Ten to fifteen cheeses, a few bottles of wine, and friends would make for a fantastic afternoon/evening at Cube. This will happen soon.

Cheese plate: La Tur, Wasabi Capri, Edwin's Munster

A restaurant that notates the cheeses, nice touch. It saves the staff from having to repeat themselves and saves me from having to remember what I'm eating. My next trip back, this plate will be larger.

Fresh maltagliati with fatted calf boudin blanc bolognese, red cow parmesan

The maltagliati was rich, but not over the top from the way it was described on the menu. It was an excellent starter. This was my dining partner's dish of the night.

Maple braised bacon with creamy polenta, cipollini onions

Winner, winner, bacon dinner. Aside from the cheese, this dish is worth coming back for over and over again. Maple braised bacon, does it really require any commentary?

Whole roasted branzino with shaved fennel, meyer lemon, baby potatoes, sugar snap peas, salsa verde

Truffle burger with house brioche, cheese, charred shallots, crispy potatoes, chipotle ketchup

Don't be fooled by the generic menu description. This is a serious f'in burger made with premium cuts of meat, short rib and hanger steak I believe, housed between a spongy, sweet, brioche bun. The chipotle ketchup provides a nice kick. The only thing I would do differently next time would be to order this burger black and blue. Contender for top burger in LA? Definitely. A Hamburger Today and Lindsay of LAist both agree.

Pea tendrils

Or as we called it, Chinese veggies. It was my vegetable intake for the evening.

Mac and Cheese with crispy shallots and balsamic glaze

Not sold on the balsamic glaze, but the mac and cheese itself was good.

Blueberry crespelle with blueberry compote, caramel, rosemary gelato

Completely stuffed, we naturally ordered dessert. Rich would be an understatement.

The main reason I'll be going back to Cube has to do with something that's not captured in these pictures and it is the staff. The staff at Cube was engaging, attentive, friendly, and helpful, but they also knew when to be ninjas. Whether it was a refill of toasted pita bread, more wine, or water, the staff never interrupted our conversations. They knew when to be there, when to be engaged, and most importantly, when to leave us alone. There was never a rush to move onto the next course. It was just a very smooth operation that made the evening that much more enjoyable.

I will be back for you soon my pretties

Fantastic service, a serious cheese selection, good wines, and a great menu, you can't go wrong at Cube Café and Marketplace.

Cube Café, Cheese Bar and Marketplace
615 N. La Brea Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90036
323-939-1148

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The bäco was on the menu. I'd heard about it. I read reviews about this thing, but I had never encountered it until tonight. It'd been a long day and I was tired, so my intention was to order the food to go, but I ran into Michael Cardenas, owner/partner of Lazy Ox Canteen, who convinced me into having dinner at the bar. It was worth it.

Choosing what to eat wasn't easy though. My first choice was the Ox burger because I'd heard good things about it. Further inspection of the chalkboard also showed a few other items of interest: the crispy pigs ears and pork belly rillettes, which I tried on a previous visit, as well as the pig trotter and lengua, which I had not yet tasted.

After some thought, I figured it was time to slay the mythical beast.

Josef Centeno's Infamous Bäco

So what exactly is it? It's part taco, part pizza, part crack. It's fresh made pillowy flatbread, a spicy aioli concoction, deep fried pork belly, all of it topped with arugula. The bäco packed a ton of flavor and texture with each bite. I knife and forked it and was chastised (in jest) by Michael for not picking the thing up with my hands and scarfing it down like street food. Next time, I will.

Along with the bäco, I had an order of Kennebec fries and St. Bernardus Tripel. Tony Chen, aka: sinosoul, says that "they are perhaps the best fries in Los Angeles" and I would say he is right, assuming you like the In N Out style of fries. No need for ketchup or aioli to go along with these bad boys.

Kennebec Fries

So while the Lakers may have lost (they certainly deserved it because the Clippers showed up to play), the night was easily saved by my virgin bäco experience.

With its close proximity to my office, Lazy Ox Canteen is quickly becoming the neighborhood bar for me to stop by after work for a quick drink or meal. It's certainly much better than "Club 21" near my house in Monterey Park.

Lazy Ox Canteen
241 South San Pedro Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
213-626-5299

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