carpet bagger

BUX sorry for the delay in the response. The waiter probably thought I was a critic of some kind. (that was what I wanted him to think) I'm sure that Thomas new immediately because I didn't try hide anything from him. It actually started out as a little game for me. I enjoyed myself.

Without going into all the horible details, i am glad that we were not the only ones this happened to. I cannot for the life of me understand why there is so much hype for this restaurant. It was packed the nite we were there. 6 of us were packed into a corner at a round table, which I was initially gratful for. The waiter was rude and acted as though he was the special one. We were not allowed substitutions even though they had the other items on the menu. The steak supposed to be med rare towards rare came charred on the outside and med well in the middle. The desert was a chocolate of some kind ( I have put it out of mind ) but it was completely inedible. As was the other desert items. There were many other problems which I mentioned to a friend who is a backer of this and other of their restaurants. His response was that the Lady chef was not working that Saturday so you have to come another time. I'm sorry there will be no other time. Wow am I glad to get this off my chest.

Please help with advise of Bed and Breakfast( Romantic) for this Thursday through Sunday. Also advise on how to get reservations at the hottest restaurants lunch and dinner again this weekend. For two people driving up from L.A. Please help fast! Also winery visits special difficult great wines. Sorry for the short notice. This for my friends celebrating their anniversary 11. :

Steve I just had a bottle of 1983 Quinterelli Valpolicella red, it was drinking as well as it could. It was very nice but not spectacular. You do have to wait 15-20 years for the best results. The fruit has a powdery fullness and was definitely more fruity than tanic. It did a nice balance between the two and the finish did go on for a while. It also had a little astringency not too terible but still more than I like. Wouldn't rush out to buy any more of that vintage, but if a spectacular vintage comes along I would be interested. I really enjoyed the 1978 in 1995 when I drank it. Actually it was incredible. Tasted more like a big red Burgandy. Lots of berry fruit and lushness, a beautiful food friendly wine.

My memory isn't what it used to be, so I have to take notes. I also ask for a menu to take home. I have been known to take it anyway when my request was denied. Once when my wife and I had lunch at The French Laundry, as a ploy I decided to pretend to take notes. I tried to look like I didn't want to be seen, all the time being obvious. At the end of the meal the waiter came over and asked how we liked the food. We expressed that everything was incredible, as it was. In fact it was and still us one of the best meals we have ever had. He asked if we would like to go to the kitchen and meet Thomas Keller. Of course our answer was yes. We went back and told him how incredible the experience was. I said there was only one problem! What is that he asked? I said that everything was so good I wanted to bring my friends, but getting reservations was nearly impossible. He was relieved and reached into his wallet, took out abusiness card put the kitchen # on it and said call me if you have a problem. He said that his office staff hate him to do that but just call. I actually did get his help once. So don't be so quick to not take advantage of what taking notes may do for you. Phew!

ajay I love my cellar. I have been fortunate over many years to have discovered the kinds of wines I like and have made a study of finding them. I try to build my food and restaurant experiences around the wines so they complement each other. I am know to be opinionated about food and wine experiences which some of my friends like and others just put up with. Oh well!

Beachfan they must because I don't go for lunch. Only because I work so far away. Let me know and we'll meet for dinner. Also there are some dishes I would not order, such as Thai bbq chicken, bbq pork spare ribs Mee Krob and some of the basic dishes. I prefer the moere interesting things like Faux crab meat and cheese wonton and Tom Yum Po-Tak soup with shrimp,scallops, mussels, crab and squid lemongrass seasond broth. Another dish I almost always order is the Haw Mok Seafood which is a combination of all kinds of seafood in a red curry sauce over cabbage and red pepper slices. Like I mentioned before the way Peter blends his sauces and spices is incredible because nothing overwhelms anything else. Try again at night.

Dlc I love this question. There those of us that have the experience to judge where a wine will end up even though it may not be approachable at the time of release. I am not one of them, though I keep practicing. There are many factors that change how well a wine will score, and these change throughout a wines life. Factors such as but not limited to; The food it is served with. You can put a "100 point " wine with the correct complementary food and it will taste delicious. Put that same wine at the same meal with a totally inappropriate food and the wine will taste bad. Think about how many times you go to dinner and drink just one bottle of wine with all the cources. It is hard to make that work wiyhout a lot af planning. As others have said the evolutionary cycle would also have an infuence on how the wine tastes. Wines will definately taste different during their lifetime and probably score different scores. The score for me is not as important as the taste, and that is why I try to buy in depth. That way I can taste the wines along their evolutionary road and still have some left when they taste great after the necessary time in the bottle. Then I drink them up with enthusiasm. By the way when I go to a restaurant I like to take wines at their peek, different ones for different food for the above reasons.

Lizziee, thank you for your eloquent descriptions. I have looked forward to your experiences and their descriptions, which really help me to get a feeling of my anticipated tastes. I hope you respect the writings of Robert Parker as I am enjoying your interpretations as I do his even though I don't necessarily agree with all his scores and tastes. Actually I have agreed with almost all your judgements and I love the fact that you are honest in your words. Do you tend to take your own wine to restaurants? How do you feel if a restaurant doesn't allow you to bring wine at all? On another note there is a restaurant in Oak park (near Thousand Oaks) called Thai Ranch. It is in a small shopping mall with a Pavillions as the anchor. This food is to my taste different than any other Thai restaurant that I have been to. Most Thai places concentrate on coconut and tend to be fairly heavy in flavour and in the mouth. Thai Ranch ( peter) is amazing. His flavour combinations are perfectly balanced, without any one overtaking the others. His choice of combinations is also wonderful.For example we had pompano fish which is plump giving it a special moistness. It is deep fried but does not suffer from any oilyness. The sauce is a sweet spicy one perfectly balanced and not too sweet. It has just the right amount of ginger added. The sauce allows you to still taste the delicious moist plump pompano. We started with a simple spinach and mushroom salad with onions in a brown sauce, A great starter. I love the spicy beef noodle, just as it sounds and beautifully balanced flavours. My wife likes the yellow curry with chicken and potatoes in curry milk. The curry is very mild and does not overwhelm the flavours that come through. This place is a great find in a relatively remote part of L.A. but his dishes are world class in ther combinations. Absolutely worth the drive. Phone is 818-991-4499. You can bring wine and they don't really know much about handling wine but thet can take the cork out.

Beachfan have you ever been to Bistro 21? If so how did you like it ? How does it compare to 2117?

Tissue another similar and delicious restaurant is Bistro 21 on La Cienega just 2 blocks south of Santa Monica Blvd.(east side) 310-967-0021. Also a Japanese chef that cooks California/ Pacific rim with French sauces. His specials are often one of a kind things from unusual places. One night I had a clam item from a shell long and thin approximately 1-1/12 in diameter. He said it came from back east. It was absolutely scrumptious and I wish he would have it again. He does a lamb shank that it wonderfully moist and unlike some that I have had where they were made days before, is delicious. His sauces are very complex and you want more and more. He does a floating island desert, egg white in a Creme Anglaise, I really enjoyed. They do allow one to bring your own wine $15.00 corkage and though a little slow they treat your wine with proper respect. They can be a little slow in the service but they are so caring and friendly that I don't care. Besides the food is delicious.

Tissue I will have to go there unfortunately I have not been there yet.

My wife and I had dinner at Restaurant 2117 last nite. Been there many times and want to recommend it very highly. Hideo is Japanese but his style is Cal/ Pacific rim with French sauces. My wife had the airplane chicken, if that is what it is I want to know which airline. Great brown sauce, rich and balanced, a wine reduction. I had the quail stuffed with sweetbreads in a port wine reduction. Absolutely to die for. He knows how to cook the sweetbreads to the right texture and consistancy. Not too dry, perfect moisture, I don't know the words to describe the feeling I'm left with from this dish. I then had the veal chop, also cooked to perfection, medium rare really. I wont mention the name of the restaurant from the night before that over cooked then under cooked the steak. Only made me appreciate Hideo that much more. On his menu I would say if it sounds good to you it will be. The address is 2117 Sawtelle Blvd Los Angeles. 310-477 1617. If you get know Hideo he is more than willing to prepare special dishes with enough notice. He is very tallented and will do things for you with pride. I am not related to him but I love his food and style.

Steve was that really a 1985 Quintarelli Ca de Merlo? Have you tried any recent vintages? Should I be holding on to my 1997 1998? Have you also tried Quintarelli's Valpolicellas? They do really need a lot of time to come around.

Lizziee, Good morning. You mentioned you were going back last week to Sona. How was it? What did you drink? You also mentioned in another section that La Folie in SF is too over the top for you. How long has it been since you were there? I happen to like a bit over the top but I was there late last year and I felt Rolland has changed in such a way as to benefit you. Much less intense but still hugely flavourful and incredibly complex flavours that work impecably together. His sauces are delicious. May I suggest you try again. Back to LA have you ever been to 2117 on Sautelle in W LA? Love to hear what your experience was like.

I would like to add an experience a group of us winos had some years ago. We got together to build a wine dinner around a 1995 Araujo Syrah. Others were to bring other cult wines to try. I brought the Araujo. Once opened we found that we felt it was corked. Though it was not as bad as other corked experiences we had had. Nothing we tried in order to make it even remotely drinkable worked. Ultimately I put the cork back in the half ful bottle and took it home in my wine carrier. On the following Monday I called Bart Araujo and related the story as I am right now. Though I never asked for anything, by Wednesday I had a replacement bottle. I thought that was classy. Approximately 30 days later and I'm not exaggerating I opened the wine carrier holding the half full bottle of Syrah. I decided to try it before I spilled it down the sink. Boy am I glad I did. It was glorious, complex, full bodied, voluptious,velvety smooth with the finish going on for what seems like ever. Though that was 3-4 years ago I can still taste the wine. If I never have a bigger richer red wine than that I would not feel deprived. I have been fortunate to have had some of the biggest Australian Shiraz's including the Three Rivers and this would not have paled by comparison. When I called Bart Araujo back and told him this story and admitted that I owed him for a bottle of 1995 Syrah, his only reaction was amazement and of course ha would not hear of being reimbursed for the bottle. One classy guy who really knows how to make spectacular wine. Am I glad I am on his mailing list. There was no question that the original bottle had corked qualities. I have never been able to explain the result and nor could Bart.

If price is not important then one of my favorites is Tement Zieregg from Austria.If you can still find the 1997 and it has been stored properly you will have a real treat. It is not over grassy it is very elegant, complex long finish on the palate. A food friendly sauvignon blanc. By the way as much as I really like this I have had mixed experiences with different vintages so chack carefully about the level of the current vintage. If you are able to find the Araujo sauvignon blanc from Napa you would have a very Bordeaux style complex full of different flavors and aromas. Though vintages differ you will only notice differences. I have never had a bad Araujo.

Long time since the last reply but I recently found egullet{glad I did} My very favorite champagne under $50.00 is Tarlant N.V. Cuvee Luis. Serve very chilled -spectacular.

Good morning !Lizziee I have often wondered what Ginza would be like. I thank you and your friend Southern Girl for sharing your experience. Southern Girl you were so descriptive that my taste buds are satiated at a very affordable price. It really sounds great and my experience is only one step below going on someone else's expense account. Going on your perfect description. Based on your words I would suggest that you try a little known sushi bar on Sunset Blvd in Hollywood "Take Sushi" 1/2 block East of San Vicente on the south side of Sunset. Nobu has been the sushi chef 20 years and his quality rivals and often exceeds Sushi Nozawa which I really love. Go there with the expectation of being totally surprised and you will by how great it really is. Tell Nobu that you want everything he has.Tell him you are a friend of George. The bill should be approximately $100.00 plus tax tip and you can bring wine. He loves both wine and beer. Be generous and you will have a meal you will not forget. I hope I have built up your expectations but not beyond his capabilities. Please let me know how much you like.

Lizziee- the corkage was kept at $15.00. As a matter of fact I normally am able to have the corkage waived but I want this restaurant to last. Besides the service is so good that they are entitled to the extra.

Good morning Lizzie and Sound. Thank you for your encouraging words about Sona. I too went last night with a total of 8 people. We had the 9 course tasting menu. David Myers ability to blend flavors is scrumptious and reaches to one's subliminal stommach. I have had the pleasure of eating in some European restaurants where the service is perfect and unseen but at the ready. We in southern California finally have service that reminds me of Europe. They didn't miss a beat. The bar though a little crowded was cosey,warm and in tune with our needs while waiting for our group to meet. We sat at a round table which made everyone feel part of our experience. Our first taste was a large spoon incredibly holding an interesting combination of peruvian purple potato, salmon belly/ sturgen and burrata. The flavors were distinct yet melded together without any overwhelming any other. The next taste was sashimi of white Morrow Bay tuna with thin slices of citrus in bood orange and ginger sauce. Hidden under was an oyster which together with the whole, coated my mouth with a seamingly velvet and pleasantly course texture at the same time. With the above tastes we had 1996 Bannockburn Chardonnay from Geelong Australia. It was perfect time to drink and continued to intensify with added complexities the longer it was open. The next was Moroccan squash soup which had a chai foam floating on top and herbed spaetzle pieces underneath. The flavor of the squash was mild and allowed the foam and the spaetzle to show through. The next was a real wow dish. Simple sounding but heavenly exciting in my mouth. Confit of salmon that was sooo tender and smooth that I wished it was 10 times the size. It was combined with english peas, parsnip puree and tarragon. The slight sweetnes of the peas complimented perfectly the smoothness of the salmon. With the above 2 courses we had 1995 Leeuwin Estate Chardonnay from Western Australia Margret River area. This had a finish that seemed to last and last. It showed an elegance and reminded me of a Corton Charlemagne.It was perfect with the dishes. The European Cod had an interesting use of very palatably pleasing intense flavors of junper-infused red cabbage, cumin scented butternut squash. I was surprised how well the flavors worked even though they were intense. The 1997 Tement Zieregg Sauvignon Blanc from Austria went well probably helped by the slight maderisation.The wine was interesting though this bottle should have been drunk a couple of years ago. Our next taste was Liberty Farm duck breast done to perfection, rare, with chunks of chestnuts in chestnut confit with walnuts and beluga lentils. There was also a delicious, cooked perfectly piece of foie gras. The dish was scrumptious with the 1990 Gevrey Chambertin Combe aux Moines from Philip Le Clerc whith big fruit in the mouth and a finish that went on for at least 30 seconds and became bigger the longer it was open. The beef rib eye was amazingly tender and perfectly medium rare. Being served on the same plate as the rich marrow and herb crusted short rib allowed one's emotion to enjoy both without one being too strong or too weak. A great combination with the two wines we opened. 1997 Killibinbin shiraz from Langhorn Creek in South Australia and 1994 Orion Red Blend by Sean Thackery California. Thackery does not divulge the grape variety he uses but it has a lot Syrah I'm sure. These two wines were each intense and beautifully balanced. They showed richness, smoothness velvety feel throughout my mouth. The combination with the food was perfection. Yes there was room for desert. Michelle, Davids wife is an extraordinary pastry desert chef. Sometimes one goes to a restaurant and has a desert that really pleases you but to have so many different and absolutely heavenly tastes makes you realize how tempted your brain can be. How do you think this tastes? English sticky toffee pudding, bannanas, butterscotch sauce and milk jam ice cream. The milk jam ice cream is a reduction of milk that is excruciatingly good. Each of the flavors were soooo delicious that I can still taste them as I am typing this. Another desert was Brown Betty spiced sour cherries with olive oil ice cream. The cherries tasted like wild intense and delicious cherries. An almost palate cleansing desert was a blood orange sorbet, tangerine froth in a prosecco granita. Salute to the Myers for finally opening and carrying out what Los Angeles has been crying out for for a long time. I was pleased that it was packed last night and even though it may mean that reservations may become difficult by telling everyone I would rather have Sona stay available. Go while you can still get a reservation.