dfunghi
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Posts posted by dfunghi
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I would second Grace, I only omited it because it is relatively new and you asked for longtime establishments. Patina group is another I overlooked. You may want to talk to chef Ko at Kinkichi ( bistro 21) if you want to learn and not worried about your resume. He is extremely talented and has only 1 assistant so there is a lot of teaching. I would add Josie to the list as well , she has a lot to offer.
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Ore, I understand the chef ( Collin) at the new Argyle may be looking for some staff. Good luck
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Is this for dining or employment? If it is for employment maybe try the Bay Area instead. Los Angeles is not a culinary training ground for the most part IMHO. Melise, Luques,Campanile,Water Grill are your best bet for a "stage" but after that it gets pretty thin. Especially with looking for older established places.
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B'Klyn, I would just add that if you have time and are in SF for breakfast go have some Dim Sum. The Dim Sum in NYC cant touch what is served in SF. I know from what I say since I lived in NYC for the first 30 years of my life and drove a yellow taxi and learned from Chineese cabbies about Dim Sum and I am from Flatbush so trust me on this. There are many options for Dim Sum from fancy and amazing to run down and delicious. There are dimsum in SF threads on this board. Other than that you have all the info already and it is just time to choose. Ah, choosing is always the hardest part.
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In Berkeley you have Bettys 4th st diner, in Pt reyes I believe it is called "pine cone diner" but I could be wrong. I mentioned it in a bodega bay posting last year. Both of these places have huge portions of locally produced eggs , meats, etc. Home cooked wonderful food. Both worth a side trip since both located in an area with many other attractions. In Santa Barbara we always like "The Breakwater" for breakfast or lunch. It is very dinerish. If passing through the SLO or Santa Maria area on a weekend look for any busy "parking lot" bbq. Tri-Tip over oak grill on a soft roll for about $4. Why not have a couple. I usually look for a church parking lot or auto parts / strip mall type store and avoid grocery stores like the big chains. Just cruise around town a little.
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Some really good Apricots are showing up at Santa Monica on Weds and the cherries are getting nice and sweet. A new ( new to me anyway) fruit called Appriums, sort of like a reverse Pluot. An apricot plum cross, heavy on the apricot. They were OK. Strawberries are finally tasting like something and the prices are way down from a month ago. Tutti Frutti has the best IMHO since they are super tasty and organic. Harrys Berries is, as always, the crowd favorite but out of my budget . Anothe couple of weeks and the Stanwick nectarines will be available at the market soon followed by Circle K fruit, the best cherries, stone fruit, and of course persian mulberries.
Currently I have fresh porcini, morels, and Ramps
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Most of the info here was spot on about the markets listed. There is one more little hidden gem in Santa Monica. Guidi Marcello on 10th st just north of Olympic. It is not a store per se but more of a showroom. They have a bit wider selection and better prices. Do not go to get a sandwich or a 1/2 pound of ham , it is not that kind of place. It is a wholesaler that sells to the public for cash on the sly. Mon - Fri 9 AM to 4PM ONLY!
David
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The Formatgeria La Seu must have been shuttered when I was there. It is a tiny street only a coouple of blocks long and we searched. Now that I see thier website I am even more disappointed.
As to bringing home any type of food if the dogs are on duty you will get caught no doubt. We were fortunate as perhaps they were on a bathroom break
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We could not find Formatgeria La Seu and we looked and looked. We asked nearby shops and noone knew it. Is it still there? It was a tiny street so we walked up and down the whole way with no luck. We did enjoy yummie pastelerias in the area however so it was not a total loss.
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Foodman, Sunday all shops worth going to will be closed as is the Boquria. Shop on Saturday if you can.
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Just to weigh in on the "Poor Brother" situation.
Having purchased Parma Ham in Parma from a purveyor at the market after surveying all the action and finding the best source, where I was able to taste diferent hams . Some sweet, some more "dry" and all wonderful and all artisinal.It was better than any Parma I had in USA ever. Then on my first trip to Spain ( 2000) I had Iberico Bellota for the first time , since it is unavailable in USA, and it floored me! Never had I tasted anything like it. Still to this day I will say that it is one of the most delicious, unique, and pleasurable foods I have ever been lucky enough to eat. A top shelf Bellota is one of the finast foods on the planet IMHO. Worth the 125Euros a kilo. With over 20 years in the food biz and a size 44 waistline I have tatsted many , many foods. Iberico stands near the top of a short list of truly remarkable foods. In Spain Jammon is taken with the seriousness that wine is in Burgundy. Terroir, age, variety, and the skill of the maker all matter.
If anyone does not believe this to be true just eat them ( Parma -vs- Iberico) side by side.
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Having just returned ( yesterday) from BCN here is my list
Some fine Jammon (2 200 gr. packages) but not Bellota ( if US customs found it they would take it and I could not stand for that and to avoid being arrested for my irate response .....)
A big hunk ( 1/4 wheel) of manchego viejo
1 whole fresh cheese from Santiago ( Vaca. like a young San Simon? ) bought at the market from a very old women that was keeping them fresh by covering with damp , very old sweaters. Which prompted the wife to ask " you're not going to eat that are you?" Yes and so are you was my response. Of course she did and it is great.
2 Picon from Bejas direct from producers
2 Cabrales from Sotres direct from producers
Assorted small whole cheeses of Oveja, and Cabra from in and around the Pyrenees such as Roncal and Benasque.
2 small sealed packages of boquerones ( white anchovies)
Several chorizo de' casa bought all over Spain.
Several packages ( cans) of Pat'e ( goose and duck) from the Pyerenees near the French border. Some better than others and some expensive, some not.
Some really fine Membrillo
Some artisanal chocholates from Catalunya near Bor. as well as others.
Amazing ceramics from Bun`o and Bonxe.
We did not have any problems with customs so in hindsight I wish I had bought some Bellota.
David
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Touar, It is probably 2 things. First is rent, second is exactly why it is where it is. It's stealth. Who would ever guess that the rundown looking generic Suhsi place in a strip mall in Canoga park would be an amazing restaurant. Go likes to keep it simple. I would advise you to give it try if you can bring yourself to the Valley. We go from Santa Monica. Recently we had a Tai sashimi with truffle oil on it that was mind blowing.
Bon Apettite,
David
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Sasabune is not what it once was. Sorry to say. Had some very "fishy" clam and less than stellar sweet shrimp last time and it was and will be my last time.
Tour. Why not shoup and sherman way?
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There are no places here like those in the Bay area that I have found in the 17 years I am here. If you want that you have 2 choices. Go to a farmers market ( preferably a large one) or go to San Gabriel valley large asian grocers. You will find great fresh interesting things although little or no organics in asian markets. At FM you are limited to whats in season in California. Berkely has some of the best food shopping on the West Coast IMHO. Several excellent cheese shops, wonderful bread, great produce, amzing wine shops and a city that supports those business'. Try to find really good sourdough bread here. Ha! You may need to adjust your cooking and your palate to what is fresh and in season at FM for your own good.
David
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Although not a "steakhouse" the steak ( not the flat iron steak on the bar menu) at BeechWood in Marina Del Rey is great. They use prime aged NY Strip that has that mouthfeel of well aged beef. I guess it is between 12 -14 ozs and cooked as ordered. It is topped with a Cabrales butter and served alongside arugala salad. I am not sure but I believe it is in the $30 price range.
David
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We all know and love Mori and the few that have been love Urasawa and why wouldnt we. Here are a couple I find to be real "sleepers" . In the Valley on the SE corner of Shoup and Sherman Way in the back corner of a strip mall is Go Sushi. The sign just says sushi and if you walked in you would think this place would be ok for some rolls to go. There is little to no ambeince but what there is are two amazing people. Chef Go and his wife who is the procurer of the fish. Friends of mine ( including Mori) have told me that she is number 2 or 3 in the pecking order at the fish market. The quality of the fish is beyond anything you will find outside of LA's top 3 or 4 sushi bars. The pace is all about food, not show, not scene, not fame. I first learned of Go from a very , very wealthy customer of mine that haas him cater his partys with 2 or 3 thousands of dollars of sushi. Although it does not have the same level as say Mori where every kernal of rice is hand picked and polished he has his own charm. The fact that you sit in a brightly lit bar with no fancy surrondings yet eating divine sashimi and sushi has its own appeal. Well worth a try and dont be put off by the looks. Dinner for 2 usually runs us about $150- $200 for maybe 12-14 courses and worth every penny. Fresh Wasabi, Toro that is practically white, live scallop, amazing ankimo, etc.
Secondly is Sushi Sushi on Beverly DRIVE ( not blvd) just north of Olympic. Great selection and minimaly prepared. We go for the great selection of Sakes ( they do flights) and big slabs of really excellent fish. We have gone and just had 5 different clams and 5 tunas. Also a place to find things such as fresh wasabi and first class uni . I have been devoted to both of these for many years and have tried probably hundreds of others over the years and these two stand out.
Both chef owned and chef driven.
Lets hear about others .
David
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I would like to add a little something here. LA County DHS ( health dept) has started using the letter grade system to generate fees. I have heard from several of LA's chefs at very well known restaurants that the inspector's work hard to find enough violations to issue a "B" since there is proof that a "B" will affect sales. Specially if it stays up for more than a few days. To avoid this the restaurants can correct any violation ( i.e. No light bulb cover on a lightbulb above the ice machine on a 12 ft ceiling, roll Paper towels not on spindle in the Employee bathroom. Fresh from the grower veggies not in a walk in, Homegrown herb garden not certified by dept of Agriculture. These are some of the violations recently) and request a reinspection for a fee. Or they can wait till their next inspection comes due. They will always pay. This is a predatory practice and is improper at best and illegal at worst. The LA County DHS inspectors do not even have to be in possesion of any degree in Health Sciences.Its as if the Post Office wasn't hiring so they became DHS inspectors. I know some of you are aware of my own recent run in with them so I may seem to harsh. However I spent 5 weeks out of business until I finally got a letter admiting I was OK and could go back to business. No changes demanded no violation found.
Secondly if the food is great and I never get sick I will eat at a "B" with no worries, such as Hua's or Dinos Burgers ( chicken).One well known Raw food place got a "C" for not keeping fresh veggies for the juicer in a refrigerator and not cooking ( even though it is a Raw restaurant) certain things to above 140 degrees.
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Hungry? If that was the only reason to eat I would have sooo much money in the bank. Never let a lack of hunger stop you from eating. Especially on vacation. It would be like only drinking wine if you were thirsty.
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Thank you for all the great info V. We have been to Santander and it is a beautiful city I agree. We stayed atop the city in the 5 star Palace hotel ( I think that was name of it). We are trying to see all new places this trip. I believe Burgos would be an easy detour for lunch. Bux, I will swing by Abac if we can fit it . It seems as though we have far more places we want to eat at in BCN than we have days. My wife has a good palate and an OK appetite but is not a 2 large meal a day gal. So I have to pick my choices carefully. I did love the baby roast Lamb and Suckling Pig from our first trip but we were in Leon, Castilla Leon, Rioja on that trip. Perhaps there will be less Meats this trip. I would like to find a great Beef Steak if anyone knows of place known for this. We had great steaks outside Donastia in a little roadside place near the Cidra but have no idea exactly where or the name. We stumbled upon it. The chef / owner just took out a huge peice of meat ( porterhouse maybe?) and cut a 3 inch thick steak for 2 and grilled it to med. rare perfection and served it with a salad. Best of all I think it was local beef and cost all of about $25 USD for the meal with some house red.
David
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FYI there is an auction comming up in NYC through Zackys Auctions with a truly amazing amount of older wines from Piedmonte. Including many from Bartolo. I have no personal interest / connection in the sale of these wines it is just FYI. I wish I had the money to buy some of them. The catalouge is online and worth a look if only to see what an amazing cellar is being sold off.
David
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Hi, we will be traveling from BCN to Santiago with detours to Sort / Lleida, Ezcaray, Picos de Europa, then the Coast Verde. Still need to locate some amazing roast baby lamb and suckling pig. We went to Segovia last trip so wont be there this time. Any other great places between BCN and Santiago along the northern route would be appreciated. I also have some seafood recs in Asturias / Cantabria from a friend here in USA but would love some from the experts on this board. We have enjoyed the Basque coast and Donastia before and will not be going this trip unfortunetly. I am sure there will be great seafood places along the Cantabria / Asturias coast as well. Driving an hour or so out of the way for a great town or a great meal is my idea of a vacation. No such thing as too rural for us. We love quiet, sleepy, little towns. We will probably pass Gijon, Santander and head for the countryside instead.
TIA,
David
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UPDATE
LATimes has a great story about the whole issue in Weds. Food Section.
It sums it up perfectly. Including what an ego maniacal bunch are at the LADHS.
David
I would like to add one thing.Pickers like everyone else in a cash business "fib". I have never seen $2 a pound trompettes. $5 -$8 to the pickers more likely.
IT'S-IT
in California: Dining
Posted
We used to get them in Santa Barbara which is almost 400 miles south of SF. Not sure wherelse but if you call and find their distributors they can tell you exactly where to find them. They may be more widly distributed in Summer, such as campgrounds or ballparks. Unfortunetly for me they are not available here in Santa Monica.