We have a special place in our hearts for The Oinkster, Andre Guerrero’s masterpiece of “slow fast food” on trendy Colorado Blvd. in Eagle Rock (and one of Jonathan Gold’s 99 Essential LA restaurants in 2008).

Part of this is Pinoy Pride: as the celebrated owner and chef of Max, Senor Fred, and Oinkster, Guerrero is one of the highest-profile Filipinos in town.

Another part is nostalgia: we celebrated our first “dating” anniversary at Max. We can still taste the magnificent miso-marinated black cod and ritzed-up lumpia shanghai (which, sadly, has been taken off the menu!).

Mainly, though, we love Oinkster because it’sso damn good.

In fact, it’s near the top of our To-Do list whenever we have meat-eating guests in town, which is how we ended up there with Chris’s Dad a few weeks ago. From the look on his face, it didn’t disappoint!

The Ultimate Pastrami

With Oinkster, Guerrero puts a gourmet spin on the classic roadside burger stand. You can see it in the details: the red-roof A-frame and bulb-rimmed signage boasting burgers, pastrami, and rotisserie chicken is revamped with red leather lounge seating flanking flat-screen TVs. Composite floors lead out to a spacious patio ringed by close-packed bamboo.

Like Bruce Wayne training with Ra’s Al Ghul in order to become Batman, Guerrero apprenticed himself to Norm Langer, L.A.’s top deli man, in order to come up with the perfect pastrami recipe. The result? Mouth-watering mounds of meat that Guerrero cures himself in-house for two weeks. He smokes it with applewood and rubs it with spices, then heaps it generously onto French rolls, slathering it with Gruyere cheese, caramelized onions, and red cabbage slaw.

Guerrero backs up this Abrams tank of a sandwich with an infantry of Belgian fries. They’re twice-fried, meaning you get them hot, with a firm, crisp bite on the outside and a light, fluffy reward on the inside.

Oinkster Ketchup

Dip these suckers in homemade ketchup (plain or chipotle) or the garlic aioli, which fellow Filipino blogger Burnt Lumpia described as “containing the souls of a million garlic cloves.” We also like dipping the fries in Guerrero’s Carolina-style barbecue sauce which, true to it’s name, is vinegary and sweet, though it’s no Bone-Suckin’ Sauce.

Forget about the chili fries: the chili is thin and relatively flavorless. We say keep the fries plain and indulge yourself in the ketchups and sauces instead.

This time around, Yuri tried out the burger, which gives Pie ‘n Burger a run for its money. Weighing in at 1/3 lbs. of Nebraska Angus and doused with Oinkster’s house-made Thousand Island, this burger’s only drawback is that all that goodness soaks the bun fast: we had to finish it off with a fork and knife!

Next time, we want to try the pulled pork sandwich. According to the menu, it’s “brined with soy and honey, then slowly roasted and smoked,” and finally topped off with that Carolina barbecue sauce. Even copying and pasting that text makes us salivate.

Shake Your Ube

If you can swing it, Oinkster’s ube (OOH-bay) shake delivers a knockout punch.

We’d been meaning to try it — after all, this is the one menu item that gives Oinkster some Filipino flash! — but are usually flattened by the sandwiches and fries. This time, though, we saved room.

What is ube? It’s the purple yam that gives Filipino baked goods like <i>hopia</i> a violet hue and buttery flavor. Oinkster’s shake features Fosselman’s ice cream, fusing ’50s malt shops with Pacific Island palates. (We thought there was a hint of coconut milk in there too).

After a greasy meal of savory standbys, the ube shake is mind-numbingly good. Instead of beating you over the head with sweetness, this shake is rich, buttery, refreshing, and complex.

Co-Manager Hajnal Molnar-Szakacs at work

Fulfilled is a brand new venue offering a completely unique treat, dubbed by owner Susumu Tsuchihashi as “Ima.” The Beverly Hills-based shopfront is an exquisite little jewel-box of a café, where they offer a traditional Japanese delicacy known as imagawa-yaki but with a twist!!

This pocket-like Japanese dessert is often found at festivals and other places that one might, say, in the States, find funnel cakes. Traditionally, imagawa-yaki are made from a pancake-like batter that is cooked in a special pan (similar to a waffle iron but minus the honeycomb pattern), and filled with sweet Azuki bean paste.

History:
As far back as the late 1700s, Imagawa-yaki began to be sold near the Kanda Imagawabashi bridge, hence the name [the “yaki” suffix means fried].

Anyway, the batter is prepared and cooked on a cast aluminum grill with the paste filling sandwiched and then cooked within. But here in LA, the bold and inventive Susumu Tsuchihashi has developed the treat to include a nice variety of different fillings and flavours from all over the globe.

The traditional ‘Ima,’ called Sweet Geisha and filled with azuki bean, goes for $1.75, while all the other, more complicated flavours sell for $2.75.

MENU

The Honey Yakuza contains goat’s cheese, mission fig, honey, walnut and cracked pepper. I wanted to like this one but felt it definitely needed more balance to its ingredients; the walnut overpowered all the other flavour components.

Others on the menu with cute and catchy names include sweet ones such as Harajuku Monkey (banana and Nutella) — this one was my favourite — and Karoke Kitty (Strawberry, cream cheese and Ghirandelli white chocolate) or savory ones such as Sumo Italiano (Prosciutto di Parma, aged parmesan and fresh basil) and Spicy Samurai (chicken apple sausage, pepper jack cheese, green chili and fresh cilantro).

Verdict:
I’m glad I sampled these pancake-like treats, but to be perfectly honest I found them to be fairly stodgy and a bit on the heavy side…

I first heard about Fulfilled over at EaterLA, so check out their recent postings: one & two.

Chandelier

Fulfilled
9045 S. Santa Monica Blvd, Beverly Hills, between Canon and Beverly Drives
(310) 860 0776
Open daily 10.30am – 7pm
Free two hour parking is available across the street, with entrances on Canon and Beverly Drives.

Doomie’s Home Cookin succeeds in what it strives to do: replicate American comfort foods with vegan ingredients. Our meal, including a cupcake, ended up being a little more than $30. It was more expensive than we thought it should be, but I guess part of it is its concept. While omnivores still have their favorite diner for comfort food, it’s nice that there’s one now for vegans too.

View Larger Map
686 N. Spring St. Chinatown LA, 90012
Open Tue-Sun 11a-8p (714)883-7657
Doomie’s Home Cookin

I am relatively familiar with Old Town Pasadena. Restaurants open and close all the time along Colorado Boulevard, but I’m not sure how many of them successfully reopen after a major revamp. I do think the odds are in favor of Bar Celona. This Spanish-styled restaurant has reopened with a brand new menu. Chef Josef Centeno has been consulting for Bar Celona for the past month and created some new items that will surely be a hit. Last night, I was invited to sample some selections from the new menu. Here are some of what I sampled:

Drinks
First up was the featured specialty drink, Montresor & Fortunato. This is one of the drinks that is currently a candidate for favorite Grand Marnier cocktail for the Travel & Leisure’s Beverage Arts Challenge. This drink is basically a mix of sherry, vermouth, and of course, grand marnier. I think the drink by itself was just okay at best. It was too sweet, somewhat reminiscent of caramel, for my taste. What I liked was how this sweetness contrasted the saltiness of the 3 olives that the drink was served with. I also tried the sangrias ($8). Personally, I preferred the white sangria. This was interesting to me because most of the white sangrias I have tasted in the past were citrus heavy. I believe Bar Celona’s white sangria used more apples. The white sangria is still very sweet. In fact, a guy next to me tried the white sangria and had it sent back for a red instead for that very reason.

Tapas Menu
For the most part, everything was good. There were just a few items that I felt really stood out. My favorite of the entire night was the citrus grilled shrimp. The shrimp retained the slight crispness on the outside without tasting charred. The inside of the shrimp was very tender. I know based on this description, the shrimp doesn’t really seem special or unique, but my taste buds were entranced anyway. The other one I liked a lot was the whipped salt cod. This was an elegant concept with a homestyle comfort. Basically, it tastes a little like a croquette, but not as fine, which I actually preferred because I wanted to know I was actually eating fish. I liked how the whipped salt cod was topped with pomegranate, creating a contrast in both texture and taste. I am also biased towards pomegranate. I think it is the key to this dish. Without it, the whipped salt cod would probably be less sophisticated.

So now that I’ve shared the positives, it’s time for the negatives. While I enjoyed most of what I sampled last night, I do think Bar Celona leans a little more towards the expensive side. For instance, the grilled shrimp is $8 and the whipped salt cod is $9. Earlier in the night, there was this one blond server who kept passing me by without ever offering me any of the food. She was the only server who did this to me - REPEATEDLY! Everyone else was friendly and courteous. At one point she even made eye contact with me and walked with the tray of sample chicken empanadas right by me and offered it to the party next to me. Those people were a great bunch and laughed with me and my guest about how ridiculous that was. They then gave us the chicken empanadas they actually ordered, which was $8. These were a little larger than the sample ones that were given out as samples, and they were served with a romesco sauce (red pepper and hazelnut sauce) instead of garlic aioli like in the samples. Now even though they were (a smidge) larger than the sample ones, there were only 2 empanadas given per order. I imagine the rest of the tapas items are also going to be similar, including the grilled shrimp and whipped salt cod. I think there are many other restaurants on Colorado Boulevard that are overpriced, and Bar Celona is very close to entering that area, but the restaurant has not crossed that line yet. I can not really recommend Bar Celona as a restaurant, but I do support them as a bar. Hanging out there, meeting new people, and enjoying one of their specialty cocktails and ordering a couple small plates items. Beyond that, it’s at the risk of your own wallet.

Bar Celona
46 E. Colorado Blvd.,
Pasadena, CA 91105
626-405-1000

Two fantastic places on Tujunga Blvd, in Studio City — namely my local Italian-style sandwich joint, Press Panini, and the sensational Gelato Bar — are both running a promotion!

photo by MaxMillion

On Tuesday, November 4th, at Gelato Bar they are giving away a free coffee (they serve killer espresso over there) to anyone who voted and brandishes their “I VOTED sticker.”

Just across the road and up a few doors at Press Panini they are giving away a panini-slider to anyone who voted and flashes their “I VOTED sticker.”

How cool is that?

You can choose from their six mini panini flavours:

Salami (with provolone and swiss cheeses);
Pastrami (swiss, kraut and pepperoncini);
Cuban (bacon, turkey, ham and swiss);
Turkey Pesto (with brie and artichoke pesto);
Caprese (mozzarella, tomato and basil);
Bacon and Egg (with swiss cheese).

Below — Grilled Tofu panini sandwich –photo by Foodeater from To Live and Eat in L.A.

Anyway, Press Panini offers a rather extensive menu – about thirty choices – of a variety of hot, pressed sandwiches, priced at $8.31, with a ‘kids’ size available for selected flavors for $5.08. With some of the choices you can opt to have your sandwich cold.

They also serve these incredibly tasty soups ($3.69 for a cup; $5.54 for a 16oz bowl) – I love the Lentil and Bean – and several big salads ($9.23). They do a meal deal of a sandwich (all are on their long, white panini bread roll) plus a side of soup, salad or chips and a regular sized drink for $12.93.

Sliders are normally priced at $2.99.

I love their classic Caprese, which is a tasty and simple combination of fresh mozzarella, sliced tomato and fresh, whole basil leaves, all dressed with a piquant balsamic dressing.

My guy likes the classic Prosciutto with provolone cheese, tomato and romaine lettuce and dijon mustard as well as that same balsamic dressing.

Another great one is the ‘Olive All-Over’ with brie and parmigiana cheese, sliced kalamata and black olives, portobello mushroom, fresh spinach leaves and olive tapenade.

So, if you are feeling peckish after your trip to the voting booth, head on over to Press Panini for your reward.

Remember to return here to post a comment and let us all know who you voted for how great your slider was!

In other news, they now take Credit cards.

Press Panini
4389 Tujunga Ave, just S of Moorpark, Studio City.
(818) 487 2564
Open 9.30am–7pm.
Local delivery available.

Gelato Bar
4342 1/2 Tujunga Avenue, Studio City, CA 91604
(818) 487 1717
Open — monday – thursday: 7:30 am – 10 pm
friday and saturday: 7:30 am – 11:00 pm
sunday: 9:00 am – 10:00 pm

After learning from Daily Candy and Chowhound about this hot new watering hole in my ’hood (that had replaced the rather cool Sapphire lounge) we strolled over to Laurel Tavern one Thursday, just over a week ago, to see what the fuss was about.

We sauntered in around 6.30pm and found the place buzzing and almost packed. Luckily, there were some empty tables right up the back, in the corner. But I was wistfully eyeing the primo tables near the large front windows that open up onto Ventura Blvd., deeming them perfect for people watching. (There isn’t all that much pedestrian traffic on that section of Ventura, but still…)

Anyway, after we snagged our table and checked out the chalkboard menu, one of us went up to the bar to place our order (Father’s Office-style – pay as you go).

I noticed it was all American fare…

… meaning they have local wines by the glass, spirits available and sixteen or so beers on tap. I ended up imbibing several glasses of decent Pinot Noir ($9) and my guy sampled a few of the beers ($5-6), including the Lost Coast Downtown Brown (a little too sweet for his liking) before he settled on the Anderson Valley Boont Amber as being the best of the bunch. His preferences: a dark, flavourful ale – not sweet and slightly bitter.

Other draft beers available are:

Bayhawke Honey Blonde Ale
Hollywood Blonde (those are the two $5 ones)
Craftsman 1903
Lost Coast Apricot Wheat
Green Flash West Coast IPA

I wanted my guy to try the Stone Arrogant Bastard, purely for its cool moniker.

As far as I can tell, the food items look to be chosen to complement the beers, which fits in with the whole pub ethos.

SIDE NOTE:
A brief word about “Gastropubs.” Gastropubs originated in Britain in the early 90s and are so-named because the food they offer is a marked improvement over your usual dodgy pub fare of limp fries and soggy pies. Gastropubs have been described as the Anglo-equivalent of the French brasserie or the Japanese izakaya, where the food still takes a back seat to the drinking.

Interestingly enough, in the LA Times article [link below], co-owner Will Shamlian appears to be nervously downplaying their menu:

“We’re not restaurateurs,” Shamlian says. “We’re not trying to compete with Gordon Ramsay… We’re just doing solid food that goes well with a drink.”

Well, the food is much better than merely ‘solid’ and the vibe is lively and fun. The groovy decor certainly helps with the ambience. Laurel Tavern is a cozy, New York-style bar with exposed brick and stripped back wooden floors allegedly salvaged from a 1920s Nebraska industrial warehouse. Exposed wooden beams cross the ceiling and wooden benches line the walls, accented by a chic, dark brown padded leather head rest (reminiscent of a Chesterfield sofa). The butcher block tables are accented by metal chairs and bar stools painted a jolly blue.

Anyway, on to the pub grub. All items were priced from $6-$12.

I’d read some rave reviews about the spicy maple-glazed Pork Belly Skewers ($6). The six, succulent morsels were every bit as delicious as expected, and, as the chowhound OP (holla!) had mentioned “the skewers idea allows you to eat a small portion of this highly indulgent food.” True.

MENU:
Includes:
Burrata with Heirloom Tomatoes ($12) – large platter– I’ll have to get that next time.
Roast Marrowbones ($9) – served with toast points. Sounds rich and intriuging.
Basket of Fries – They offer standard fries ($5) as well as steak fries cooked in pork fat ($6); the latter were very crispy, delicious and decadently evil!
Or, for an additional $3, get a half serve of fries with your $9 burger (recommended)
Croque Monsieur ($6) – these were mini baguette rounds, toasted, containing ham and melted cheese (probably gruyere, which is traditional, but possibly just some American cheddar). These were just ‘okay’ and too dry so I wouldn’t order them again.
Grilled Artichoke ($11) comes with lemon dipping sauce and apparently somehow contains nuts, which is important info for the nut-wary. Again - something to try next time.

BURGERS:
Old School Burger ($8): basic meat, bun and ketchup
Hickory Burger ($9): caramelized onions, Tillamook cheddar, iceberg, hickory sauce

Of the three burgers on offer, we all ordered the Laurel Burger (aka their house burger, $9) which was beyond perfect. Small in size, the white bun housed a medium-rare cooked beef patty with melted gruyere, fresh arugula and caramelised onions. Superb!

VERDICT:
Laurel Tavern is really great! We had heaps of fun and it’s a lively, cool place with inexpensive food and drink.

*** Insider note – Valet parking – $3.50 – is available right next door, at Teru Sushi ***

Laurel Tavern
11938 Ventura Blvd., (just E of Laurel Canyon)
Studio City, CA 91604

tel: (818) 506 0777
fax: (818) 506 1629

Mon–Fri, 4pm-2am
Sat & Sun, 12pm-2am

*Kitchen Hours 5pm-11pm*

Their website is currently under construction.

More info here:

LA Times reviewed Laurel Tavern the same day we went.

Also, you might wanna check out radman’s original chowhound post.

I urge you to check out Laurel Tavern soon and post a comment about your experience!

Located in the sleepy area of old town Whittier is Golden Triangle, a family-run Burmese restaurant. The choice of location is strange; I don’t know of any major Burmese population in Whittier. Their menu consists of Thai, Chinese, Burmese, and even some Indian-influenced dishes. After talking to the owner, I found out that the Thai dishes were mostly remnants of the Thai restaurant that sat in the same place this one did before the Burmese family took over.

We started off with the tea leaf salad (vegan). It had shredded cabbage, some crunchy yellow peas, fermented tea leaves, and a delicious dressing. The dish tasted pleasantly of tea without any of the bitterness one would expect of tea leaves. It was a refreshing introduction of what was to come.

Next came the battered and fried onions (vegan). They were thin slices of onions clumped together with a light almost tempura-like batter. Yes, these were better than onion rings. The dipping sauce was the perfect blend of salty, spicy, and sweet without being too cloying. Another plus is that the sauce was vegan as well.

As an entree, I had the catfish chowder with rice noodles. The broth was so warming and tasty it was like a flavor party in my mouth. I could taste a savory fish or seafood paste, some tomatoes, and a bunch of other yummy spices that I can’t identify other than it tasting Asian. The dish also came with some crispy chips with yellow peas crumpled on top, which gave a satisfying crunch to a mouthful of soup. While I didn’t have any actual pieces of fish, I did find sliced fish cakes in the broth as well as slices of hard boiled egg. The bowl looks small, but I was stuffed by the time I was 3/4 of the way done with it.

The BF ordered some sort of country-style red curry sans coconut milk (vegan). It was more watery and soupy than the curry I was used to, but the flavor of the broth was present in full force. The waitress also offered a 1-10 scale of spiciness; the BF picked 8.5.

The restaurant also makes their own ice-cream and even though I was beyond stuffed, I ordered a pandan ice-cream. Unfortunately, it was so delicious that I dug in without taking any pictures of it. The pandan flavor was strong, but the ice-cream wasn’t too sickingly sweet — perfect for me.

Golden Triangle is situated in such a strange area culturally, that it wasn’t surprising that there were only a small handful of people eating lunch at the same time we were. I hope they get the business they deserve because even compared to the dearth of Burmese restaurants in LA, every dish that we ordered was great and had that home-made-with-love taste to them. The waitress and owners were also very helpful with our questions about what dishes to order. The owner even suggested I break up the fried onions and sprinkle it over my fish chowder, which made the dish even more awesome.

Upon entering The Kitchen, we were invited to sit anywhere we would like. We already knew exactly what we were going to order days ahead, so we barely glanced at the menu. I had my heart set on the pear pancake ($10), and my friend wanted the fried chicken fried eggs ($11). On top of that, since The Kitchen has a sign that says they “support daytime drinking,” I had to order a mimosa ($5).

We didn’t wait too long before our order arrived. I was extremely happy with my pear pancakes. First of all, I loved the pear slices in the center of the pancakes. In addition, the pancakes were so simply light and fluffy. The pancakes were topped with a delightfully sweet caramel sauce that pretty much made me wonder why I ever used maple syrup to go with pancakes. Along with the pancakes, I was given a few strips of bacon and breakfast potatoes. I also ordered a side of fried eggs. I had a severe case of food coma after this meal.

My friend really enjoyed her fried chicken, too. She was kind enough to offer me a portion to try. The chicken was crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. I was really surprised by how crispy the chicken was considering how it was topped with gravy. Just like me, my friend finished her entire plate of food and ended up with a case of food coma.

The Kitchen was the perfect choice for my first meal of a new year. I am also very pleased to make The Kitchen my 100th post at la.foodblogging. It is definitely worth a visit.

The Kitchen
4348 Fountain Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90029
(323) 664-3663
Hours: Mon-Thurs 5pm-12am, Fri 5pm-1am, Sat 11am-1am, Sun 11am-10pm
(Brunch is served on weekends, 11am-3pm)

“Are you bringing the cream puffs?,” Cliff asked hopefully. Then drolly, “Don’t bother coming if you’re not.”

So prized are the cream puffs of Patisserie Chantilly that I believe my dinner party stock value has tripled because of them. (But I want you to love me for who I am!) 

——-
Open the door to the chic bakery and ZAP! You’ve stepped over the threshold to Shinjuku or Ginza. Suddenly, everything FEELS different.

You walk up to the case and peer inside. Jeweled edibles present themselves and you wonder whether it would be too embarrassing to order one of everything. But, being in the know, you know there is only one thing to order: The Cream Puff.

In the past few years, Los Angeles has been living through something of a cream puff boom, spearheaded by the arrival (invasion?) of Beard Papa, the Japanese chain.  Beard Papa is the Toyota Corolla of the cream puff world–high volume, flabbily non-descript and perfectly fine for those with low thresholds for gastronomic satisfaction.  

Sometimes, however, the grass IS greener on the other side of the fence. In this case, the greener side is in Lomita and takes the form of a taut, disciplined confection handcrafted by Keiko Nojima, the reigning master of the Los Angeles cream puff. 

There are three forms that temptation can take–vanilla custard, black sesame and the newest–chocolate. Black sesame is the most original flavor with kinako sweet soybean powder sprinkled on top and honey swirled into the black sesame cream. It is simultaneously earthy and transcendent. Custard, their bestseller, is refined, adult and completely addictive. Comparing it to the Beard Papa version is like putting an elegant geisha next to a gum-chewing bar girl. No comparison. Chocolate is high quality and a welcome addition to the trio. But somehow not as original as black sesame or as satisfying as the traditional custard. 

No matter what, these are glorious things and your dinner parties will never be the same. 

Patisserie Chantilly
2383 Lomita Blvd
#10
Lomita, CA 90717
(310) 257-9454
www.patisseriechantilly.com