In-and-Out Burger, Westwood, California

OK I’ll just get it out of the way now. In-and-Out burger is featured prominently in one of my favorite films, The Big Lebowski. So it was with great pleasure that I was able to scarf at this west coast fast food restaurant. I as a rule don’t eat fast food except for a kryptonite-like weakness for Taco Bell but for In-and-Out I made an exception. When in Rome.

Ian had been admitted to UCLA and said he was hungry for a cheeseburger. When your friend is in the hospital and they request a cheeseburger you comply. Stephanie and I returned to the cafeteria that served me an awful burrito only to find it closed so we ventured, with help from the GPS, to In-and-Out Burger in Westwood. Neither of us had ever been to this fast food restaurant so we were not familiar with the ordering etiquette or set up. There was a young man waiting on the street with an electronic clipboard and he was very eager to explain the menu. It is quite simple, one, two, or three burgers on a bun, lettuce, tomato, onion, cheese, and “special sauce”, which is similar to Big Mac sauce. Fries, Coke products, and shakes round out the menu. He took our order effortlessly and sent us to the window to pay and collect our dinner.

I ordered the Three by Three. A triple burger with all the trimmings, For Ian we got the Double Double their famous double stacked cheeseburger, and Steph order the single as she is not a glutton and she is a girl. Fries and Cokes all around were also bought. After we smuggled the food back into the ER we started to chow down. This burger was mammoth and I was immediately pleased. Juicy, flavorful, greasy, and totally bad for you, it had all the makings of a great burger. When I say “bad for you” I mean the kind of thing where you are eating it and you know it is going to kill you, add inches to your waste line, and destroy your gastro-intestinal track but you eat it like a death row prisoner on suicide watch’s last meal because you are compelled to do so by some other worldly force sent by the cheeseburger Beelzebub. You know, that kind of thing. The fries were in my opinion sub par and the Coke was good in that I only drink like two Cokes a year. Everyone seemed to enjoy the meal and it brightened Ian’s spirits so it was worth the adventure to get it. As Ian was being transferred to his room the nurse informed us that we had to put the fries into a bed pan if we wanted to take them with us. I could not resist taking a picture of French fries in a bedpan. I have the maturity of a ten-year-old boy. In-and-Out Burger is one of those things that can now be crossed off my list of places to eat at and given the havoc it brought to my stomach I don’t think I will be returning anytime soon. But the gastric distress I experienced was worth it in light of the tastiness of this fast food icon’s burger. Eight out of ten.

Lunch at UCLA Medical Center Cafeteria, Westwood, California

My little buddy Ian got very sick on our last full day of vacation, so much so that we had to take him to the emergency room. Not being one to waste an opportunity I thought we should all eat some lunch before the triage nurse sent us to an actual room so I traveled to the cafeteria.

I found a host of offerings in this posh setting (yes a hospital can be posh, note the valet parking picture!) For Ian and Stephanie I decided on grilled cheese sandwiches and fruit salad, which looked a lot better than my Pollo Loco burrito, and in hind site that is what I should have ordered. But a blog is a cruel mistress and I wanted to eat something interesting for you my devoted fans.

The burrito was dry, under seasoned, and over processed. It was a sizable burrito but all it did was make me miss Chipotle on Brown St. Pinto beans, guacamole, shredded chicken, guacamole, “salsa”, and rice were the ingredients in the meal. Of all the disappointing fillings the salsa was the worst. It was, to the best of my knowledge, pureed canned tomatoes. No seasoning, no peppers, no onion, NO FLAVOR! While the hospital was nice and I believe Ian is getting some great care the food there is abysmal. One out of ten.

Cannellini Restaurant, Playa del Rey, California

Ian had an urge for Italian so we visited Cannellini. Cannellini is a traditional American-Northern-Italian restaurant not far from Aaron and Stephanie’s apartment in Playa del Rey. Traditional red sauce and mozzarella cheese abound in this Americanized version of Italian food. Upon surveying the menu I saw the usual offerings of lasagna, spaghetti and meatballs, fettuccini alfredo, eggplant parmesan, and baked ziti. I ordered the veal marsala which came with a side of fettuccini alfredo and house salad. Ian and Stephanie ordered one of the evening’s specials, chicken tortellini in a tomato cream sauce tossed with fresh peas and mushrooms. Aaron ordered traditional lasagna.

The service here was not exactly top notch. The caprese salad Ian ordered never arrived and there was no mention of it by our server. The drinks were not refilled promptly, we had to ask for the bill three times and even after we finally received it we were then presented the dessert menu. This along with long a wait between salads and entrees resulted in our server only earning ten a percent tip, not something I am in the habit of doing.

The food was adequate as far as I am concerned. My dining companions seemed pleased with their meals and I am glad. My veal was under seasoned and over sauced. The key to good veal marsala is getting the veal crisp in the pan the removing it to deglaze with the marsala and make your sauce. I think that they simply left the veal in the pan as they made the pan gravy or even worse the sauce was made separately and added to the pan. Whatever the case the veal was soggy, over sauced, and under seasoned. One of the first things I try to teach students is the importance of salt and pepper. Not everything is supposed to taste like a pretzel but salt and pepper work to heighten all the other flavors of the dish. Without the proper amount of these often a dish will fall flat or simply have one note. The pasta served with my entrée was good but also under seasoned. The pasta was cooked to a beautiful al dente but the sauce lacked the proper amount of salt and pepper and that hint of nutmeg that makes alfredo well rounded. The real star here was the salad. The house salad was full of vegetables, garbanzo beans, and tender greens all tossed in a garlicky dressing reminiscent of Dominic’s and served with what Aaron dubbed the “salad doughnut.” This is essentially a deep fried roll basted in garlic butter. Amazing!

All in all we had a good time, we laughed we ate, we enjoyed each other’s company so the meal was not a complete disaster. Sometimes the meal becomes secondary to the experience as a whole. I enjoyed myself despite the food and service being a little lack-luster. Five and a half out of ten.

El Compadre, Hollywood California

After an exciting morning at Engelbert Humperdinck’s mansion in Bel Air my group of traveling companions and I were famished. As we made our way back to Playa del Rey we drove through Hollywood and we stopped for lunch at El Compadre, a reasonably priced Mexican restaurant.

Ian, Stephanie, and I grabbed a booth in the very dimly lit, windowless, dining room and began to scarf down our chips and salsa. The chips were thick and crisp and not too salty. The salsa was smooth and flavorful but I felt it could have used a little more heat. Our server came by and got our drink order and then didn’t return for a long time. When she finally did we were able to order our entrees. I ordered huevos con chorizo, Ian ordered something known as “El Grande”, and Stephanie ordered the beef tacos.

When our entrees arrived I was pleased with the look and smell but I was not served the warm corn tortillas I needed in order to eat my entrée. Ian seemed pleased with El Grande if not somewhat intimidiated and Steph enjoyed her tacos a lot. When my tortillas arrived I dug into my lunch. Smoky spicy chorizo paired with rich scrambled eggs on warm corn tortillas topped with the house-made salsa and a few drops of hot sauce and I was in heaven! I have an affinity for all things pork but especially chorizo. This version was long on spice, with just the right amount of heat, and it had a touch of clove and black pepper that made it really well balanced. Also this sausage wasn’t too greasy as some chorizo has a tendency to be (see Mexi-Hole.) Stephanie ate her tacos with a smile, and then we come to Ian. El Grande bested my friend. Just as I was defeated the day before by Fogo de Chao, this huge plate of Mexican food destroyed Ian. He enjoyed the taste but the sheer quantity of the food was too much.

The service here was pretty subpar. We waited for the drinks, we waited for the entrees, we waited for the check, and we waited for the credit card slip to sign. In short, we waited. The dining room was maybe a third full and we were there during a slow part of the day after the lunch rush if there was any. The service staff had no reason not to be on their game. I enjoyed my meal and I enjoyed watching Ian eat himself into pain. I am enjoying my vacation. Viva chorizo! Seven out of ten.

Fogo de Chao, Beverly Hills

The Brazilian steakhouse concept is not one that is used very often in restaurants mainly because of the high cost of operating an establishment like this and the market to which you are appealing is a small niche of the whole restaurant going public. The concept is that you are given a coin one side is green for go and one side red for stop. Roaming carvers or gauchos (the Brazilian word for cowboys) walk around with fourteen different meats on spits and carve freshly roasted meat onto your plate. In addition to every type of meat imaginable they have a phenomenal salad bar.

Ian, Stephanie, Aaron, and I went to Fogo de Chao yesterday for lunch. Let me say that this was a hell of a meal to eat in the middle of the day, so much so that it essentially rendered us useless for the remainder of the afternoon and well into the evening. First I was in awe of the Lamborghinis, Ferraris, and Porsches we passed to get to our Hollywood lunch spot. Next I was struck by the fantastically appointed dining room. Deep rich wood tones, Frank Lloyd Wright style glass, and lush carpet abounds. Our server, who was excellent, suggested that we start with the salad bar then move onto the main event. Salad bar offerings include marinated olives, asparagus, artichokes, and mushrooms, roasted peppers, fresh mozzarella, salad greens, antipasto items such as Prosciutto, salami, Manchego cheese, and several balsamic vinegars and olive oils to choose from. To be honest I could have made a whole meal out of this wonderful spread, I would have been happy and probably would have eaten too much of this as well. But then came the meat…

Fourteen different meats are walked around the dining room by the gauchos for your carnivorous pleasure. Here is a short list of offerings I remember: Linguica sausage, ancho rubbed ribeye, pork ribs, beef ribs, leg of lamb, lamb chops, bacon wrapped filet mignon, bacon wrapped chicken thighs, garlic flavored sirloin, and bottom sirloin. The sheer amount of meat that was continually heaped on my plate regardless of my coin facing red side up was ridiculous. The true standouts here were all the pork items especially the Linguica sausage. Also the ancho rubbed ribeye was really excellent, smoky and spicy but rich and full of fatty ribeye flavor. I would like to say that I conquered Fogo de Chao, that I fought the good fight, but I have to say this restaurant defeated me. I ate and ate and I wanted so badly to eat all fourteen meats but I am afraid that I simply couldn’t do it. The meat bested me, there was too much for me to experience all of it.

The service here was really attentive and warm. Our waiter had a sense of humor without being too familiar. He tended to our every need with out being too pushy or hovering around our table. I think it also helped that the gauchos were there about every five minutes to carve so that if our server was not around they were able to get a clean plate or pick up a dropped fork. This was a very decadent meal, especially for lunch. I can’t see eating at a place like this more than a few times a year. I had a really great time with my dining companions and the meat was delicious! Nine out of ten (mainly because I ate so much I was sick until the next morning!)

Café Orleans, Disneyland, Anaheim California

When in Disneyland it is hard to find food that is not out of a cart, or in hotdog form, not that I am apposed to either of these. When we went searching for dinner we found Café Orleans in the New Orleans Square section of the park. Our group of five had to wait about ten minutes for a table at which point we were squeezed into a table right next to the front door that was a little uncomfortable. The fare here is supposed to be authentic Cajun and Creole but I found it to fall a little flat. The hallmark of Cajun food is bold, spicy flavors that have deep and rich flavor. I ordered garlic frites with remoulade as an appetizer and a chicken gumbo crepe for my entrée.

The fries were actually very good and between the five of us at the table we managed to eat all of these. Fried golden brown and seasoned with Parmesan and garlic these fries really well done. They were served with a spiced remoulade sauce that took them over the edge.

The entrees were where the restaurant failed. The depth of flavor was simply not there on my selection. Chicken, Tasso ham, and andouille sausage were generous in the dish but not necessarily good. The chicken was over cooked, the Tasso was flat and the andouille seemed over processed. The whole thing was topped with an uninspired “gumbo sauce” that was closer to gravy than anything Cajun I’ve ever had. My dining companions had the other crepe offering which was a seafood crepe. This was filled with generic white fish, again overcooked, and no other seafood at all. Perhaps it should have been called fish crepe. This was topped with a Mornay sauce that I think was probably from a packet or a tin. Ian ordered the Mardi Gras chicken sandwich and it was met with mixed reviews and I would say the high point for this sandwich was the cornichons pickles it was served with.

Service here was all right but nothing to write home about. The whole staff seemed worn down by the fact that they served the thousands and thousands of visitors that Disneyland greets everyday. I suppose that I should have stuck to the hotdog cart, maybe the mouse would have fed me a better dinner. Four out of ten.

Airport Sushi in Atlanta? One Flew South!

Let’s face it airport food courts are not exactly the place to find haute cuisine. A meal at an airport usually involves a fruit cup with under-ripe cantaloupe, a soft pretzel with fluorescent orange cheese sauce, and a six-dollar bottle of water. On our way to Los Angeles Ian and I happened upon an Asian-American bistro called One Flew South in the Atlanta airport.

The first departure (pun intended) from your traditional airport food was an actual dining room with a hostess and servers. Not the usual carry your food on a tray and bus your own table type setup. Next surprisingly was our server, Sopee. She was pleasant, knowledgeable, and efficient. The menu, which I have included here, is very well put together and was a nice break in an otherwise long and bizarre travel situation. http://www.oneflewsouthatl.com/foodanddrink.html

So we ordered the braised pork belly sandwich and the Kobe beef burger. Kobe beef in an airport! The pork sandwich was excellent! Pork belly braised slowly in rice wine and seasoned with Asian spices was succulent, rich, and juicy. The pork was heaped on toasted foccacia bread and topped with in-house pickled jalapenos, and fresh avocado. The sandwich was served with a rich dark mole and an asparagus cheese sauce for dipping as well as a portion of Napa cabbage slaw. The two sauces were out of this world. I am a sucker for a good mole and this was it. Deep chocolate flavor, bitter, sweet, and then just enough spice at the end. I have never considered mole a sauce to use for a sandwich. Mole is something that usually is used as a means of braising tougher cuts of meat like pork shoulder or chicken thighs. It was used here masterfully. Ian ordered the Kobe beef burger, which has sautéed shiitake mushrooms and creamy goat cheese on it. The burger was cooked to a beautiful medium and accompanied by a heap of five-spice seasoned fries. Ian loved the burger and wolfed it down. He turned his nose up at the fries claiming, “a bad experience with seasoned fries in the past” so I was only too willing to help him out.

This meal was an oasis, everything from the service, to the gorgeous dining room, to the wonderful food was a complete surprise and not at all what you would expect from a food court. Well done One Flew South, ten out of ten!

Corndogs on the left coast!

Ian (my bf) and I are on vacation in LA! Look forward to many posts this week as we will be eating ourselves sick daily. Here is the first of many...THE SINGLE GREATEST CORNDOG I'VE EVER HAD (and I've had a lot!) from Disneyland, yes Stacie it cost $6 and it was worth every cent!

French Toast Explosion!

Steve and Anja put Ian and I up for the Chicago weekend. As a way of returning their kindness I decided to cook a big breakfast Sunday morning after the LSF show. I made French scrambled eggs, home fries, bacon, and French toast. The real star here was the French toast. To make really good French toast you must start with French bread. Cut the loaf in one inch thick slices on the bias and allow the bread to stale for at least an hour, or overnight if possible. Next comes the custard that you will batter the bread in. Six eggs to a pint of heavy cream will really coat the bread nicely as well as crisp up due to high amount of protein in the eggs. To season the batter I always use cinnamon, nutmeg, and sugar. Other items that compliment these flavors include vanilla, clove, and bourbon if you have any.

To cook the toast properly melt plenty of butter over a medium heat, dunk each slice in the custard, and place in the skillet. Cook three to four minutes per side or until a nice golden crust has been achieved. Hold the finished slices in a warm oven while cooking the remainder of the toast. Serve with warm maple syrup and more softened butter. This is sure to BRIGHTen up any Sunday brunch!

Arturo's Tacos

Arturo’s Tacos
WOW! This was my favorite meal of the whole Chicago trip. Arturo’s Tacos is a twenty-four hour restaurant that serves up authentic, reasonably priced, Mexican and Latin American cuisine with fast, efficient, service. The portions are huge and everything meets or exceeds expectation. I was surprised to see tacos filled with brains, tripe, and tongue, as these are typical of the American view of Mexican food. I ordered the chorizo torta, a dish that is masterfully handled by Dayton’s own Mex-a-Hole so they had big shoes to will. In addition to this huge sandwich I ordered a taco langua (tongue.)

The torta was filled to the max with wonderful house-made chorizo that was really strong on clove. Steve informed me that this was the case prior to eating it and to be honest I was weary. Clove is not a spice I ordinarily enjoy especially when used in savory dishes. The clove was definitely the main flavor in this sausage but it was in complimented the fattiness and the spiciness of the meat. The bread used to make a torta is a rich, eggy, brioche, like bread. Shredded lettuce, diced tomato, and sour cream served as the garnish on the sandwich and helped to cool the heat of the chorizo.

The taco langua was fantastic. The texture of tongue is often stringy and chewy but not this version. The meat was braised well and was so soft it fell apart in your mouth. The taste of tongue is similar to regular beef only much more intense. When I was in culinary school I spent ten days eating nothing but organ meat and tongue was one of the offal products that I truly enjoy. These tender bites were topped with mild farmer’s cheese, fresh chopped cilantro, and diced onion for texture. Then everything was wrapped up in a house-made white corn tortilla.

My dining companions enjoyed carne asada, chorizo, and vegetable tacos in addition to cheese quesadillas. The service here was quick and pleasant. Everything was very laid back and our waitress did a great job. 10 out of 10!!!

[An] Ear [Full Of] Wax

This past weekend I went with Ian (read hetero-life-mate) to Chicago. We visited friends Steve and Anja as well as being able to see Les Savy Fav. We ate several places that I loved. The first was Ear Wax, (ed.-excuse the above GBV reference) in the Wicker Park neighborhood of Chicago. They serve up a variety of vegetarian fare as well as some really good sandwiches. I ordered the steak sandwich pictured above which came with gorgonzola cheese, lettuce, tomato, on a house baked hoagie roll as well as a generous helping of seasoned fries. I was reasonably happy with my meal. The steak was well seasoned and the bread was great. The cheese was cream and rich without being overpowering as I feel it has a tendency to do. My complaint with the sandwich was the steak itself. They used a generous cut of rib-eye but they over cooked the meat, which makes all the connective tissue in the meat very tough and stringy.

Other dishes ordered at the table included a black bean burger and two beautifully cooked medium rare bison burgers topped with goat cheese. These plates seemed to be met with approval by all.

Service was a bit of an issue. The hippy girl that waited on us was not really on the ball. I ordered hummus and pita bread for the table that never came, which she seemed indifferent about. My other complaint is that the tables in this place are about two inches apart so it feels as though you are eating with the strangers next to you. The food was decent and the company was nice so my lasting impression is a good one. 7 out of 10.

I ate vegetarian?!

http://www.amarindiadayton.com/index.htm
Last night I had occasion to dine with my friends Emily and Ian at Amar India. This is a Dayton Indian food institution that never fails to deliver. I ordered the vegetable pakora, a deep fried spinach and potato fritter for a starter. These were light and crisp not dense and doughy like most Indian places. For an entrée I ordered Saag Panner, a combination of cheese curds in a creamy a spicy sauce with spinach. Also I ordered my favorite, garlic naan bread. Both of these items were well done also but I would have preferred a few more of the cheese curds in my entrée. Ian ordered Chicken Tika Saag. Chicken cooked in a tandoori oven, diced, and then added to the same Saag sauce that was my entrée. He ordered his at a spice level of 3 and that is the threshold of spicy for me. I like spicy food but if it gets to the point where one can’t enjoy the taste of the food it becomes a liability as far as I am concerned. Emily ordered Malai Kofta a mix of vegetables ground and shaped like meatballs and served in a tomato sauce spiked with raisins and nuts. I had never had this dish but I was very impressed. Our service was adequate, our server was timid and shy due to a language barrier but he got the job done. At one point in the meal he was reprimanded by the owner a few feet from our table so we felt sorry for him for the rest of the meal and I for one “pity-tipped.” My only complaint was that Amar tends to be on the pricey side for this type of cuisine. Our bill was over $65! C’mon we’re talking rice, bread, and vegetables! I will say that we had a good time and the food was great! 8 out of 10.

Mac n Cheese Night!

Last night I made dinner for my friends Ian and Stacie pictured above. Ian has a strong love of my homemade mac n cheese so for X-mas I gave him a coupon for a pan of it. We ran into Stacie the evening prior as we were out on a man date and we invited her as well.

Good company and good food were the highlights of the evening. I had to make two pans of pasta, as Stacie is a vegetarian. In the Ian batch I started with pancetta and both had Herkimer county cheddar, Manchego, and Boursin in the Béchamel (read “cheese sauce”). We also had fresh brussel sprouts in brown butter (a new experience for Stacie) as well as red grapes and we finished the meal with cream puffs from Dorothy Lane (cream puffs FOR cream puffs!) As you can see from the photographic evidence, a good time was had by all!