la.foodblogging

Don’t worry, this isn’t going to become a baby blog. Obviously, my life is consumed with the little one right now, so that’s what is on my mind.

We actually haven’t made it out to a restaurant yet with the baby, but we do have plans to make a sushi run this week.

We have had some great meals provided by family and friends, both home made and taken out.

Since we delivered at Santa Monica UCLA, we had some food from some of the Westside spots, including at least one place that I hadn’t tried yet — Izzy’s Deli. Izzy’s is a convenient spot when you’re at SM UCLA, it’s right across the street, has an enormous menu, and is open 24 hours. I had a chicken caeser salad delivered by my parents. It was huge and the ingredients were fresh.

My wife was able to order room service all day, anytime she wanted. The food was actually pretty good, plenty of options and enough variety to keep her interested.

I ate most of my breakfasts from the cafeteria. It’s probably the best meal available there. The cook makes up breakfast burritos and breakfast quesadillas to order. I have been long searching for a good source for breakfast burritos, and I may have found the spot in the SM UCLA cafeteria. Made with fresh scrambled eggs, cheese, onions, potatoes and wrapped in a whole wheat tortilla, a great way to start the day.

In the hospital we had two meals delivered by family from Jinky’s. I had a really good southwest chicken salad and my wife had her favorite: the chopped salad with turkey.

One night friends brought over Hawaiian BBQ Chicken from L&L Barbecue. The chicken, rice and macaroni salad was the perfect comfort food and after finishing dinner, I had enough left over for lunch the next day.

After we made it home, we had cooking support from my wife’s mom who did some shopping around for some special ingredients. Some of our treats:

• Burrata and Fresh Baked Bread from Bay Cities Deli, topped with basil pesto and tomatoes from Wednesday’s farmer’s market
• Cupcakes from Yummy Cupcakes
• Baked goodies from Amandine
• Chicken, hummous, garlic sauce (of course) and tabbouleh from Zankou — Twice!
• Fresh beef medallions from a vendor at Wednesday’s Farmer’s Market
• A full fridge from Trader Joe’s

The guard has changed and my mom is here now to take care of us for a bit. Chicken romano last night and french toast this morning to kick things off.

We’re a lucky family to have such great support and food. I’m lucky to be able to take a fair amount of time off of work, for all those new and soon to become dad’s, don’t miss out on California’s Paid Family Bonding Time.

By Jonah (see more of his posts). Jonah is the founder of la.foodblogging and also created Digesty, a food blog aggregator and Cheww.com, a spam free foodblog search engine.

The best thing we ever cooked up, baby Simon:

Born April 19th, he was a big boy, well fed from our pre-infant dining tour for sure. Just look at all that hair!

By Jonah (see more of his posts). Jonah is the founder of la.foodblogging and also created Digesty, a food blog aggregator and Cheww.com, a spam free foodblog search engine.

Hatfields was incredible.
Just incredible.
I mean, I went with really high expectations and not only were they met, but exceeded.

Backstory: Hatfields has been high on my hit list for well over a year. We just hadn’t made it until now (we’re not eating out as often as we used to or as much as we’d like to) I decided it was the place I wanted to try for my birthday dinner out, which was last night.

Three of us went after a movie last night (Forgetting Sarah Marshall - it was quite funny), so we didn’t go for the whole three courses or drink very much as it was late when we got there (after 9.30pm).

We each had one entree and a dessert (but I was given a free dessert because I’d told them it was my birthday and sensibly opted not to order one - I’m no dummy!)

Also we each had one drink, namely beer, a glass of prosecco ($11) and a very nice Cotes de Rhone ($11) with my perfectly pink, date & mint crusted lamb cutlets ($38). My guy raved that his slow cooked beef ($33) was the most incredible thing he’d eaten since a highly memorable Christmas Eve dinner at a fancy place in Paris (Le Carre des Feuillants) where we were served rare lamb that you could virtually cut with a spoon.

Our friend had the Olive oil poached halibut which was truly sensational. This is something I’ve seen a lot on Iron Chef but have never made myself. It had a fresh sheen of citrus on it, which was yet another example of this fantastic chef’s restraint (Quinn Hatfield; Karen Hatfield is the pastry chef and I believe often runs front of house). Also our friend was going to ask for the mushrooms to be omitted, because he never eats them, but I urged him to try them and it turned out he really liked them!! None of us had heard of shimeji mushrooms, but I assumed they were a japanese variety.

I think it worked out to approx $60 pp
Not bad for such high quality fare.
Everything — I mean everything – was outstanding, from the amuse (a shot glass of warm celeriac soup plus a devilled quail egg with smoked trout on a tiny spoon) to the best little bread rolls EVER to the magnificently prepared, presented and perfectly cooked meals. The desserts were great - I loved the crispy napoleon.

Just WOW.

Oh, here’s the other thing - I am not a huge eater and generally take food home. The portions (also our ordering) were so spot on that we all cleaned our plates. The only thing that wasn’t consumed was one of the little petit four that we were given with our bill. One tiny cake. Every dish went back empty. If I were a chef, that would be proof positive I was doing something right, right?

But I don’t know if this is just a special occasion, birthday place.
The place seemed very small (we were seated right in a front window and I didn’t go exploring, but I believe they have a patio) There was nothing remarkable about the decore or ambience.

It’s more like a really great and unpretentious place to dine out every once in a while.

The thing about Hatfields was, yes $32-38 entrees…
With three courses and ample drinks, you could rack up quite a bill…
So I thought it was fairly reasonable and comparable in price to (one of our favourite places) Lucques, I would say, and slightly more impressive in result.
Loved it!

Open 6pm till 10pm or 10.30pm Fris and Sats
Closed Sundays

Hatfields
7458 Beverly Blvd, between La Brea and Fairfax (actually between Vista and Gardener, on the sth side)
(photos via Hatfields’ website)
tel — 323 935 2977

By MaxMillion (see more of her posts). Max Million is the nom de 'net of Pauline Adamek. Born in Sydney, Australia, Pauline has lived in Los Angeles for the past thirteen years and finds it agrees with her. She has been reviewing films and filing celebrity-based interview articles since 1991, and has filed stories from various international film festivals, including Cannes, Venice, Berlin, Toronto and Sundance. She completed a family cookbook and has also written novels for 8-12 year olds. She is the creator and host of ArtsBeatLA.

It’s getting warmer, the days are getting longer, and my allergies are starting to act up. That can mean only one thing: asparagus season!

Why do I love asparagus? Nothing else tastes quite like it, for starters. It’s sweet, it’s tangy, it’s pungent, it’s fresh, it’s savory, all in one vegetable! It’s like a complete food that way, needing little more than salt and pepper to enliven the senses. Sure, it has its classic pairings, such as hollandaise sauce, morels, or bacon, but for this grad-student epicure, usually just a quick steam, boil, or saute is enough to bring out their full glory.

This season I have been eating a lot of Zuckerman Farms’ jumbo asparagus (South Pasadena farmer’s market, Hollywood farmer’s market) — I would recommend buying the thickest stalks you can afford, and maximize that volume-to-surface area ratio. Here’s why: skins just don’t have that much flavor. So while the thin asparagus may be more tender, resulting in less trim loss, there is no way they can compare with the jumbos in flavor. Jumbos are also a lot more convenient to clean and prep, because there are fewer of them in a batch, and because they keep well in some water. Avoid being suckered into paying more for asparagus “tips”? too — usually they are just old tips trimmed off of woody stems (you can tell by examining the tips for dried out “leaves”), and not at all a premium product.

So here I offer you my modular technique for making boiled asparagus, sauteed asparagus, and asparagus soup. I love this method because each technique builds on the last, so they’re easier to remember. You only need a couple things, though to enjoy this spring bounty: a knife, a cutting board, a fruit/vegetable peeler, some pots and pans, kitchen tongs, and a blender if you’re making soup. As for other ingredients, this calls only for salt, pepper, olive oil, butter, cream and vegetable/chicken stock — homemade is best, but try to get the no-sodium stuff so you can adjust the seasoning to your taste.
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sneakypeteiii is a doctoral student in Chemistry at Caltech. He has been eating since he was a child, and reckons himself quite good at it. (see more of his posts).

My husband and I managed to survive being married for six years recently, and we decided to celebrate that momentous occasion by going to Providence and feasting like kings and queens. This was the second time we had been to Providence and so far both meals have been some of the best I have ever had.

Both times we sat out on the patio area. The patio does not feel like an outdoor area, since it is surrounded by a high stone wall and covered by a canvas roof. The weather, however, feels like outside. We were nice and cozy next to the inside wall with a heater, but two parties seated near the outside wall requested to be moved inside due to being chilly, so something to remember when making reservations in winter.

We reluctantly had to set aside the cocktail menu, as we knew we were going to be getting the tasting menu with wine, but the cocktails looked excellent. On one page was classic cocktails, along with a credit to the inventor. On the other page were house cocktails. All looked delicious and the house cocktails looked very unique. I would have had a hard time deciding between old favorites and trying something new.

But we steeled our will-power and set it aside so that we could order the nine course full tasting menu with wine pairings, and then we commenced to eating. The meal was well-paced so that I never felt full or overwhelmed. However, it also took over three hours, so make sure you have time to spare if you do this!

The meal started with an amuse bouche that lived up to its name by being very entertaining. It was our substitute for cocktails - there were three small bites. One was a gin and tonic gelee candy, then a “mojito”, which was a sphere with a rush of minty, rummy liquid in the center. Finally, there was a fennel and saffron soup with the fennel bisque on top of a saffron syrup underneath. You were to eat it by downing it like a shot, so that the flavors mingled. The saffron was a little much, but other than that the amuse was very fun.
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By KT (see more of her posts). You can find more of KT's writing at her own website Gastronomy 101.

Part I and Part II of the Pre-Infant Dining report covered a range of spots. This report concentrates on some of the more casual spots we hit Pre-Infant. We are more likely to hit these spots with the baby, for comfort and budget reasons.

Asahi Ramen
I like the curry ramen, she likes the wonton ramen. For about $20, the both of us can leave satisfied. The space is tight, but I think that we can bring an infant or baby here for sure. It’s an easy exit if he gets whiny, plus - what kid doesn’t like noodles? (hopefully ours likes them)

Chabuya Ramen
A bit more expensive than Asahi Ramen, but offering a little bit higher quality ramen and broth, Chabuya is sort of a “grown up” ramen restaurant. Chabuya satisfied some salty cravings during pregnancy, I’m not sure how kid friendly it is though. One tip, the Chabuya green salad is about the best house salad in town. Filled with fresh greens and topped with some blanched veggies like asparagus, and accompanied by perfect ginger dressing. I can’t remember the exact price, but I think that it’s under $4.

California Chicken Cafe
I like California Chicken Cafe for the sides. the chicken is certainly good, and I loooove rotisserie chicken in almost any form. We stopped here when it was a little but cooler and I enjoyed their soup with my dinner. Odds that we will come here with the infant? Almost guranteed for the simple fact that it is a couple doors down from the Pump Station.

Zankou Chicken
Zankou also fulfilled some cravings, specifically for the garlic sauce. We actually went here less than I would have guessed during the pregnancy. I predict that I will be stopping to pick up Zankou to go more than dining in the restaurant. The restaurant is plenty kid friendly though and I assume that hummous can be used as baby food? Garlic sauce, however, may result in terrible diaper blowouts (but will they smell like garlic?)

Bergamot Cafe
The Bergamot Station Cafe is a great option for lunch on a nice day. The expansive patio and comforting food will provide a santuary for us. Plus, we can walk around the galleries and stores in Bergamot Station to provide the little one some visual stimulus. We actually didn’t make it to Bergamot Cafe together during the pregnancy, but I did go solo and had a nice lunch with my mom there.

Third and Fairfax Farmer’s Market
Some of the spots we hit during pregnancy: Loteria Grill, Moishes, The Banana Leaf, Gumbo Pot, and Bennett’s Bennett’s Bennett’s! This place is a slam dunk with kids. Plenty of room, good food at reasonable prices, a fun atmosphere (ok, a little touristy, but that’s alright). Danger factors are the stores at the Grove, including Pottery Barn Kids and The Children’s Place.

Costco
Yes, we eat Costco hot dogs. get over it.

Veggie Grill
The closest location for most of you will be across from the (massive) Whole Foods in El Segundo. It’s almost worth a special trip to eat here. Veggie Grill serves faux meat meals (tempeh, soy, tofu, etc) which are incredibly flavorful and filling. The buns on their burgers are some of the best wheat buns I have had. Also, try the sweet potato fries some time. I’m not sure that we will make a trip down there to eat, but if we’re in the area, it’s definitely a place you can eat with kids.

By Jonah (see more of his posts). Jonah is the founder of la.foodblogging and also created Digesty, a food blog aggregator and Cheww.com, a spam free foodblog search engine.

Continuing on the previous report on our Pre-Infant dining tour, here is Part II.

Sushi Karen
Yes, we did go to sushi during the pregnancy, although my wife stuck with mostly cooked stuff like the tempura rolls and some eel. I can say with 110% certainty that we will be going to Sushi Karen post-infant. In fact, my wife may divert our trip home from the hospital to go get some salmon there. Not only is Sushi Karen family friendly, but I believe that the owner, Toshi, has a couple of his daughter Karen’s old high chairs for people to use. These aren’t restaurant style wood or metal contraptions, they are fully pad home high chairs.

Previous Sushi Karen write ups here and here.

Baby Blues BBQ
Great pregnancy food, or anytime food that you need a meat boost in your life. I assume that when the baby gets here, we might have him try out their mashed sweet potatoes once he’s branching out from the breast milk. Baby Blues BBQ is pretty loud, which may comfort the baby or freak him out.

Previous Baby Blues BBQ write ups here and here.

3 Square
3 Square was a nice place to have a pre-infant meal. It’s pretty quite and the food is generally pretty heavy, but also very flavorful. They have revamped their menu a bit to include more vegetables, the first time we went was a bit overwhelming with the lack of greens on the plate. Also, one quick design note, replace the orange overhead lights with white lights. It’s not flattering to see everything on your plate look orange — orange pasta, orange tuna, orange potatoes, orange carrot soup (well, I guess that one is ok).

I would probably go back to 3 Square for brunch with the baby, but dinner is nice to enjoy without distraction and there isn’t a whole lot of room for baby accessories. Previous 3 Square address here.

John O’Groats
We had breakfast here just this past weekend. Still as good as ever with the Eggs Benedict over artichoke bottoms. Most breakfast spots are kid friendly, John O’Groats fits the bill and also has good room between the tables. If we do go here with the baby, it’s imperative to get here before 9:30 or risk waiting a long time for a table.

Minotaure
We should get double points for pre-infant dining here, since we went with another pregnant couple. Minotaure serves tasty tapas in an intimate setting, accompanied by live Spanish music. Minotaure is a spot to enjoy wine and sangria, I’m going to classify the space as not kid friendly. I’m sure that the friendly owner would accommodate babies, but this is another date night type place, particularly with friends.

Jinky’s
Another breakfast spot, already on heavy rotation. Like John O’Groats, very accommodating for families. Also, a place that can have a bit of a wait and not a very good waiting area, so going with a baby will require planning or preparation to stand around.

Odds that we will go with the baby? Nearly 100%.

Mao’s Kitchen
Mao’s Kitchen was a great spot to hit up to satisfy pregnancy cravings for wonton soup and tasty Chinese food. Space is pretty tight, so although I’m sure that we could bring an infant in, it is probably more comfortable to go without a baby. This can be a reasonably priced escape for dinner, or even for take out.

By Jonah (see more of his posts). Jonah is the founder of la.foodblogging and also created Digesty, a food blog aggregator and Cheww.com, a spam free foodblog search engine.

In January, I told you about our plans to do some Pre-Infant dining before the birth of our first child. We are down to the final week or two B.C. (Before Child). According to our credit card bills, we have done pretty well. I haven’t done a good job of updating here, so I will give a quick run down.

La Botte
I did Write about this one. Dinner was fantastic, definitely not somewhere I would bring an infant. The tables are pretty close together, not uncomfortably, more intimately. Also, much diaper money was spent on the dinner, but it was definitely worth it.

Literati II
Also wrote about this dinner. The food was great, service was terrible. That being said, this actually is a place you could take an infant. The restaurant is loud and there were a number of kids there when we ate dinner. Odds are that we will be back eventually, I would like to give them another chance.

The Nook
I didn’t write about the dinners we had since being pregnant, but I have written about The Nook before. We had a couple dinners at The Nook, both of them fantastic. The soup at The Nook is the untold hero, I suggest ordering it everytime. For these two dinners I had a white bean chipotle soup and a creative summer squash soup with a hint of mint. unfortunately, The Nook is not a good place to take an infant. The space is small and not suited for a small baby carrier. That’s ok though, we will save The Nook for date nights with a babysitter.

Joe’s (for brunch)
Joe’s Brunch was not only a terrific place to go pre-infant, but will be a nice outing with the infant. We hit up Joe’s twice during the pregnancy. The last time we were there, we saw a little infant on the patio, sleeping soundly next to the sounds of the fountain. The write up for one of our brunches here.

Fraiche
Fraiche was high on our list to try and we made it over there last month for dinner after waiting I think a month to get our reservation. This is definitely not a place to take an infant for a number of reasons. The first being that I think the host might kick us right out the door. As it was, we were essentially rushed out after finishing our desserts. The host stood, glaring at us, while the bus boy cleared everything from in front of us, including water glasses that we were still drinking out of. Overall the service was pretty terrible all night, absent waiter, having to tackle the busboy for water and no offer of coffee with our desserts. Now the food was another story, very good, if a little over priced. For the money, I would probably go back to La Botte. The absolute star were the desserts though. We ordered four different desserts for four people and polished them all off — and not because they were small. My chocolate pavlova was divine.

The Counter
We have made a couple trips here for a burger and some sweet potato fries. This will definitely be a place to go with an infant, although we promise not to CHANGE A DIAPER ON THE BENCH SEAT like we saw one couple doing. We watched in horror while the baby’s naked buns were pointed at another diner.

Le Petit Cafe
Always solid food and good French food and sauces. Too cramped to bring an infant, but not really the right venue for a little one anyway.

Osteria Mozza
Glad that we made it to Mozza before starting in earnest to save for college and worry about testing my life insurance policy by clogging my arteries. Incredibly flavorful and creative dishes, tight space and lots of buzz around the restaurant. I have the feeling that they wouldn’t mind if you brought an infant, but this isn’t really the kind of place I would want to go — in case we have a screamer and have to trade off going outside. I would go here for a special occasion date night, with a baby sitter. Pizzeria Mozza might be more comfortable with an infant, but again, tight space and not much room to stash a baby seat.

Abode
We went here for the DineLA meal. The food was good and definitely worth the $34 price for the three courses. We were particularly impressed by the cheese plate and the study in chocolate. Looking at the normal menu, I can’t see us going back. The food was good, but normal prices were way high. Also, the atmosphere is a bit too stuffy for me. Along with the atmosphere, the service wasn’t too inviting.

Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse
Another of our DineLA meals. We were lucky that the DineLA event coincided with our pre-infant dining tour. Not that $34 is a low cost dinner, but it was a good way to try some places that we normally wouldn’t have. Ruth’s Chris is definitely a place you could take an infant. It’s fairly noisy, there is generally room at the tables, especially if you get a both. I’m not normally a patron of steakhouses, so I doubt that we would make a trip back here with the little guy, plus the normal prices are a bit high.

There are more restaurants, I will give a quick update when I think of them. I would also like to note, when I say I could bring an infant to a restaurant, I mean a little infant. I don’t mean bringing a teething baby or toddler to a nice restaurant, just one the sleeps the whole time. I’m certain that our dining routines will change, but I’m looking forward to a new era in our lives!

By Jonah (see more of his posts). Jonah is the founder of la.foodblogging and also created Digesty, a food blog aggregator and Cheww.com, a spam free foodblog search engine.