LA Market at JW Marriott: Mediocre

I had read about celebrity chef Kerry Simon's famous burger so ventured to his latest restaurant, LA Market, in the lavish, towering JW Marriott in LA Live. The space was spanking new, very airy with tall ceilings and showered with super bright SoCal sunlight. The food was disappointing.

First of all, the menu wasn't even online. Second, I had to send back my burger because it was overcooked. This from a so-called Iron Chef? Pu-lease. Granted, they apologized and cooked it decently (but not perfectly) the second time. I appreciated that they were willing to cook my half of the burger medium rare and my dinner mate's half of the burger medium.



However, the patty was a bit anemic and therefore had a hard time being cooked properly. The works it came with were not impressive either. The butter lettuce, caramelized onions, tomato and two thick-cut bacon were unremarkable. The bun, oh the bun. The bread basket before our meal was so much better than this bun. This bun was dense and dry, not soft enough.

This place did get extra points for having sweet potato fries, which came out hot and good. But I wouldn't return for the burger.

The tuna, rice and crab napoleon-like appetizer wasn't too successful. This dish represented how Asian fusion could go wrong by adding an all-too sweet sauce over it unnecessarily. The flavors and textures just didn't gel. The only thing I liked about it was the crunchy crust on the bottom of the rice patty. Don't mess with the sushi formula if it ain't broke, I say. Is it a seaweed-less roll-cum-rice sandwich? Is it a sashimi rice layer cake? Two rice patties were stuffed with raw tuna sat on a thousand island-like dressing with micro greens and fish eggs and topped with a heap of crab meat. I loved the meaty crab meat but what's with that nasty teriyaki-wannabe sauce drizzled over the iffy concoction? That killed it.

I needed to add some serious hot sauce to taste some kind of flavor.

Then there was the mac-n-cheese, which was probably one of the better dishes.



I liked its garlicky taste and crunchiness from the bread crumbs, but the top could have used more cheese. After all, isn't mac-n-cheese all about spooning a mouthful of piping hot, gooey, stretchy cheese as you dive in?

Lately I've been into reinventing leftovers in my kitchen and I was inspired by Corkbar's mac-n-cheese with chile to add canned roasted green chiles when reheating it. When the flavor still wasn't intense enough, I added some Cholula sauce, which made it better, in my humble opinion.

At the end of the meal, we were treated to a massive basket of sweet goodies, presumably to make up for the burger snafu.

That was nice of them, except neither of us has a sweet tooth at all so most of the uber-colorful sweets went untouched.

It was cute to bring all the brownies, cotton candy and caramel corn with two comforting glasses of good ol' fashioned milk shakes.

Other items included rice crispy and marshmallow cakes, cheerios and marshmallow cakes (they're probably called something more appealing but I'm no fan so don't know what else to call them), some super-sweet looking pink balls and a ton of chocolate-y type of things.

Unfortunately, everything was far too sweet for my taste. My dessert indulgences are bread pudding, tiramisu, creme brulee or some killer chocolate souffle or semisweet cake with a dollop of hazelnut gelato and caramelized banana...

But I digress. LA Market may need to develop an exciting happy hour menu for the downtown office crowd or not sure how well it's going to do.

Starry Kitchen Downtown: A Second Chance

I usually have a strong disdain for anything fusion-like, especially fusing Vietnamese or Korean food with others, mostly because I've rarely had a successful combination. So it was with some trepidation that I walked into Starry Kitchen in Downtown LA whose menu smelled like fusion (Located in California Plaza to be exact, where they have Grand Performances concerts in the summer).





I wanted to like it, as I know people who know the owners and they're artists! But the first trial was not great. I had the Taiwanese fried pork chop banh mi sandwich with a side of curry shallot fried rice. Sounds great on paper, right?

Delivery was iffy, however. The pork chop wasn't warm or crispy. It was like a thin piece of tonkatsu that'd been fried hours ago and not bothered to be refried or reheated for the sandwich assembly. I'm sorry but if I'm going to have a fried something sandwich, I want mine piping hot!


The banh mi fillings were ok but a tad bland, which leads me to the one good thing it has going for itself -- the delicious pickled jalapeno, carrot and onion relish a-la-taqueria. If it weren't for this, the sandwich would have been too bland for my taste.

Speaking of bland, the Thai cobb salad that came recommended with lemongrass chicken was oh-so disappointing. There was nothing Thai about that salad except its name. It was a basic cobb salad with romaine, cucumber, avocado (which I used as filling for my sandwich), bacon, boiled egg, blue cheese and the odd addition of lemongrass chicken. Not only did the flavors not blend with the addition of the chicken, the chicken itself tasted like bad airplane rubber chicken! Couldn't taste a hint of lemongrass anywhere. Oh, it needs work.


Even the Thai beef salad in Houston's is far better with its peanuts, mango and other ingredients that make it far more Thai than this odd version.

I will be returning just to try other dishes before writing it off completely but for now, I'm not too impressed.

By the way, on our way out we were so dissatisfied with our food that we decided to hit up some lunch trucks parked outside of the Plaza and ran into Mattie's Southern Kitchen, which purports to serve Southern food.

Well, I recommend avoiding it. The bbq pulled pork sandwich was god-awful. No hint of any bbq sauce. It was just plain old, unseasoned, tasteless, pasty pork stuffed in a sandwich with some cole slaw. Yuck! What a waste of my $5...

Food Trucks Roundup: Fressers and Grilled Cheese

I randomly ran into not one, but five trucks on Abbot Kinney one recent evening, so after having had a full dinner, I sampled each and every one of them with my partner in crime and here's my report.

The best trucks were Fressers hot pastrami and the Grilled Cheese Truck. The very worst were Calbi and Flying Pig. A sympathy vote goes to the mediocre Fire Hook, which doesn't twit or even have a Web site. But more on that later.




Let's start with Fressers, the best: piping hot, hand-sliced pastrami sandwiches on rye with good quality mustard. The pastrami was soft and seasoned just right, except there was something slightly off in the seasoning that was too pungent and didn't gel well. Otherwise, a very solid sandwich.

The price of $9.25 seems steep for street food, but I was able to finagle half a sandwich for $5 and they threw in a delicious potato salad that had just the right amount of mayo -- enough to actually taste the potato. It was no Langer's and definitely no Katz's in New York, but for a mobile truck, it was superb. And hands-down the best out of all of the trucks that night.

Now for the grilled cheese truck. Going for a plain one seemed too boring, so we got the Signature, aka Cheesy Mac and Rib, which is mac-n-cheese and bbq pork with caramelized onions, all melted into one goodness of a sandwich. Who's in for carb overload? It tasted like comfort food on steroids. There's oozy cheese, tender bbq pork and warm, toasted bread all holding it together? Sign me up! Definitely not for every day consumption but would go great with a cold glass of hefeweizen!




Now for the duds -- BIG time. I should preface this by saying I never liked kogi's tacos, only because I thought the relish was overpowering and oftentimes the meat was overly sweet. But these impostors or copycats were so incredibly bad that they made kogi look good. To be perfectly honest, it's easier and better-tasting to make Korean tacos and kimchi quesadillas at home!

First off, Flying Pig. The braised pork belly in a bun was not soft (the bun was but the pork wasn't) and Momofuku-wannabe combination of adding red onion escabeche and sesame cucumber wasn't working.

The short rib and spicy pork tacos were drowning in sugar or whatever sweetening agent they used. The meats were not good quality and smelled. The relishes were straight up bad.

The bigger offender, however, was Calbi. Perhaps not too surprising, considering it cut a deal with the Baja Fresh owners to franchise the truck. Franchise this garbage? Sacrilege! We could barely take another bite of these tacos that I would go as far as describing as disgusting. The short rib and spicy pork tacos were just that -- not edible. We threw them in the trash after one bite. Ugh.

The Fire Hook truck was standing in an isolated corner, with no foot traffic to speak of. There were two older Korean ajushis hanging out in the back who made our spicy pork tacos. The minute we spotted the OG of all Korean orange juices -- Sac Sac -- we knew the meat would be a lot better than the other trucks. We also saw other cans of refreshments offered, like shikhe, the sweet rice dessert drink, and soojeonggwa, a ginger and cinnamon-based dessert drink. As expected, the spicy pork itself was as it should be -- spicy and flavorful without being too sweet. But the taco wasn't really a taco. One shell of tortilla that they topped with some shredded lettuce lightly tossed with some sesame oil and sesame seeds. To make matters worse, they added chopped tomatoes and cheap, rubbery-tasting shredded cheese. The only good addition was chopped kimchi that was barely noticeable.

It was clear these guys had jumped on the bandwagon without much thought or preparation. I mean, living in LA, it ain't hard finding someone who can actually make authentic tacos. Even if one were to argue that these were their interpretations of an authentic taco, it still wouldn't fly because it didn't have any such character. It was mimicking but poorly so. If you want to reinvent what kogi did or a real taco is, I'm all for it, but poor reproductions don't help anybody.

Burger Roundup: Magnolia and 140 South Cafe

Being a burger fiend, I make it my business to sample as many burgers around town as possible. Here are few good ones and those you can skip.

Most interesting buns
Rockenwagner 3 Square Cafe & Bakery (left) has the much hyped pretzel bun and as much as I like the German chef's other offerings, the burgers weren't my favorite. I like softer buns but the slider sampler was fun and came with bun variations that gave burgers an interesting twist.



Most unlikely decent burger
Magnolia's (right) downtown outpost seeks to be a swanky bar but while the ambiance and most of the food don't accomplish that, its burger has a very serviceable patty that was juicy and cooked just right -- medium rare. The sesame bun was on the dry side but I would return for the burger. The atmosphere isn't much to write home about. Good if you have a concert or game coming up at LA Live or Staples Center.





Best deal(s)
This is somewhat of a tie between The Park in Echo Park and Cafe 140 South in Pasadena. The Park (left) has burger nights on Wednesdays where you can get a burger and a side for only $5.

Cafe 140 South (below) offers a burger, curly fries and a solid pint of Craftsmen beer for $11.50. Craftsmen is a Pasadena brewery and its IPA went perfectly well with the bloody meat.




The portions were generous in both, but ultimately, the patty at Cafe 140 won out over the slightly pasty patty in the Park. The fries were also better at Cafe 140 although the curly fries would have been better spicy. Many places had a hard time serving piping hot, fresh out of the fryer fries.

The bun at Cafe 140 was on the dense and dry side. It needs to be softer and more fresh. The shredded iceberg lettuce could be replaced by butter lettuce or arugula.


Overrated
I was disappointed at the burgers at Hal's Bar & Grill on Abbot Kinney and Hole in the Wall Burger Joint in Santa Monica.

Hal's came overcooked with room temperature fries. Great live jazz but wouldn't return for the food.

Hole in the Wall (pictured left) is known for its build-your-own burger and message boards raved about the pretzel one but it didn't do anything for me.

I also tried burgers at fancier venues like bld and the gorbals (pictured below -- full review coming soon) but while ok, they didn't measure up to my all-time favorite burger at Houston's or its sister Bandera on Wilshire Blvd. I had to send an overcooked burger back at the Gorbals and they replaced it with a bloody one and also generously took it off the bill. The compressed sesame bun was interesting but I prefer the soft bun.


I also tried the burger at Le Grand Orange Cafe in Pasadena and it was a juicy enough burger, especially enhanced by the roasted poblano chiles topping.

I am looking forward to trying many more burgers dripping in their juices with, ideally, sweet potato fries and a cold pint of IPA.

I'm also not going to list the restaurants' addresses and phone numbers if I link them.

Enjoy!

Dinela Roundup: Locanda Veneta Rules, Ortolan, Craft and Palate Disappoint

I didn't go all out this dinela season but it's always a pleasant surprise when I discover a gem I hadn't previously noticed. This time around, it was Locanda Veneta, a low-key Italian joint in Beverly Hills that might as well be straight out of a small alleyway in Venice. It's rustic Italian food at its best, with decent service and hugely generous portions (maybe this part is more American).

The perfectly grilled baby squid atop spicy greens was superb, probably one of the best dishes I've had during Restaurant Week this time around.

The squid was seasoned lightly with some salt and pepper, and squirted some fresh lemon juice over it and I could taste the sea. So soft with enough of a bite. I'll definitely dream about this squid, or I'll just have to return for that.


The first course consisting of mushroom risotto, a creamy lobster squid ink (aka black) ravioli and a spicy penne alla arrabiata was a great pasta sampler. I liked the risotto the best, cooked al dente with an intensely mushroom flavor that took me back to the woods. The arrabiata was nice and tomato-y with a bit of a kick. The lobster was not fresh and pretty much killed the ravioli. I was mildly annoyed when I asked the owner to announce the dishes and he went on this patronizing explanation that would be fit for someone who's been living in a cave all her life and had never had Italian food before. "Risotto is made from arborio rice...The ravioli sauce is a saffron sauce. Saffron is..." and I had to stop him. I couldn't take it anymore. I know he was trying to be friendly. Let's not go overboard here.

As for the others, the radicchio, arugula and endive salad that was very lightly dressed in a vinaigrette was refreshing; the braised rabbit with olives, pearl onions and mushrooms was very tender, a bit salty and reminiscent of coq au vin, the classic French chicken dish braised in wine and veggies; and the pork loin stuffed with fennel and Italian sausage accompanied by grilled radicchio and caramelized onions was good but I don't like the strong Italian sausage flavor, so had to remove it before eating. The grilled radicchio transformed the bitterness into a wonderful sweetness and the onions were very sweet. The desserts were nothing special -- tiramisu and a Nutella crepe that was overly sweet and ridiculously over-decorated with creme. This from a Nutella fiend...

Portions were so large I currently have a lifetime supply of rabbit in my fridge, not to mention spinach gnocchi that it came with that I'll sear on a pan when reheating. They'll taste better that way anyway -- less mushy and crispier.

Ortolan
Did somebody say Michelin 2-star restaurant? I was never a Michelin believer, but I was appalled at how awful Ortolan was. So what if the chef is French? The service was downright terrible and the food was highly forgettable.

The only, and I mean, only saving grace for this place was the seared scallop appetizer that came with chestnuts (one of which was past its prime), grapes and kumquats in a truffle sauce. The scallop was perfectly cooked -- browned and crusty on the outside and soft on the inside. And the tartness, sweetness, sourness and nuttiness of all the accompaniments worked very well together.

The asparagus soup that came in a test tube on the house was ok. The "open ravioli" (consisting of a single sheet covering the veggies) with green beans and other vegetables was extremely bland. The braised short ribs over a light risotto and topped with some haricot verts and greens was overly salty but passable. The salmon wrapped in a pastry with some other things was bland and the salmon didn't taste fresh at all. The chocolate tart and panna cotta desserts were embarrassing.

But the biggest beef I have with Ortolan is the outrageously bad service. To add insult to injury, it automatically adds a 20% service charge to your bill (apparently all dinela patrons as a matter of policy) without telling you and has the audacity to include a "tip" line when paying by credit card. Thank God my dinner companion caught it and after speaking with a manager, it was removed and I was able to give what I believed the service warranted. Whatever you do, Ortolan, you have to pay more attention to the service. Or at least make sure your food tastes amazing so people are willing to endure the sub-par service, especially for those prices. Get thee to the Bazaar or Osteria Mozza to see what I'm referring to when I say good service.

Nick & Stef's Steakhouse
I went for the burger during the lunch hour, since it's a steakhouse and it's hard for a steakhouse to mess up a burger. The burger was decent, cooked medium rare as I like it, with a sturdy bun and basic accouterments like lettuce, tomato, red onions, cheddar cheese and pickles. The Thousand Island dressing/sauce it was smothered in was interesting.

The room temperature, over-salted sweet potato fries, however, were unacceptable. They were sliced too thin and dipped in some sort of sodium bath. No good at all. The skirt steak was tasty but the sides were unremarkable (potato puree and arugula). The lemon merengue pie was too sweet and sorbets tasted like they were out of Ciao Bella boxes (which I like, actually, but I could get that in the store!).



Craft Los Angeles
I was curious to try this celebrity chef's (Tom Colicchio) restaurant even though I never watch Top Chef. Well, I was disappointed. The best thing was the foie gras and jelly spread that was part of the charcuterie plate. It was very well made and was a great match for the bread. The greens salad with pecorino and hazelnuts sounded better on paper than it tasted. Didn't jump off the plate. We got the exotic-sounding "Hawaiian blue prawns" to much disappointment (totally bland and unexotic) and the loin steak atop beans and thyme was decent but nothing to write home about. The desserts were so blah that they don't warrant mentioning. Should've gotten the pork shoulder entree that sources later told me was the best choice...


Palate Food + Wine
A group of us went there for the dinela menu but upon arriving, decided to order off the regular menu. I would not return. Service was equally bad as Ortolan and the food was forgettable. We got the "porkfolio" cured meats sampler that consisted of prosciutto, speck, salumi, finocchiona, saucisson sec and bresaola (air-dried salted beef). I think I could get a better sampler at the Cheese Store or even the Whole Foods in Pasadena. The only thing worth mentioning was the pate-like potted pork that spread like mustard on bread and almost had a chicken/tuna-like consistency and taste but somehow worked well.

The beet and citrus salads (two separate salads) were ordinary. This may sound anal but I took issue with the way the citrus was cut in the salad. Don't cut them against the rind. Segment each piece so we only get the "meat" of the citrus. The extra work is worth it because it doesn't detract the flavors from the peel and white parts.

The best entree was the grilled hanger steak but that was not that remarkable. The dish was good but was neither original nor transformative. The pork belly with squid was the next best dish but it could have been a lot better. The squid's flavors and textures didn't pop to bring out the best in the ingredients, like the squid at Locanda Veneta above. The salmon wasn't fresh and the grilled cod was not edible. The cod was overcooked and smelled fishy.

Now for the service. Our server was not attentive and we had to continuously flag him to get more water and other baisc things that should be done by default. I was looking forward to chef Octavio Becerra's creative concoctions but alas, they didn't work and bad service didn't make the experience any better. I'm surprised at how many restaurateurs don't understand the importance of good service and don't take it seriously, especially when it comes to a so-called fine dining establishment.

Now onto burning all those calories!

Craft Los Angeles
10100 Constellation Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90067
(310) 279-4180

Locanda Veneta
8638 W. Third Street
Los Angeles, CA 90048-3323
(310) 274-1893

Nick & Stef's Steakhouse
330 S. Hope Street
Los Angeles, CA 90071
(213) 680-0330

Ortolan
8338 W. Third Street
Los Angeles, CA 90048-4311
(323) 653-3300

Palate Food + Wine
933 S Brand Blvd.
Glendale, CA 91204
(818) 662-9463

Korea Roundup II: Crab, Spicy Noodles and More

Here are highlights of my Korea trip 2009-2010:

Pro Kanjang Kyejang (프로 간장게장)
Seochogu Chamwondong 22-19
Phone: (02) 543-3529

Meaty raw crab marinated in soy sauce, garlic and other spices. Usually, this kyejang is too salty from an overload of soy sauce, but this one was just salty enough for me to want to suck out all the gooey flesh out of the claws and smother some steamed rice into the crab shell filled with innards and leftover marinade to make the best finale to a keyjang meal.


A bonus was the live small octopus (산낙지) we had as an appetizer, as they wiggled and suctioned their tentacles onto the plate for dear life to resist our chopsticks. They were hard to grab and to hold but a fresh dip of soy sauce with some wasabi and it hit the spot. Chewy but extremely fresh and tasty.

We also had the spicy fish stew that was good but not as good as the fish stew we made from the fresh taegu fish bought from a fish market near Sorak Mountain in Korea's east coast.





One thing I always lament is the sad dearth of good rabokki places in LA. Rabokki is like ttukbokki, the spicy rice cake dish mixed with spicy pepper paste, garlic and other spices, except it uses ramen noodles either exclusively instead of or in addition to rice cakes. I personally like it better than ttukbokki that can be pretty dense. Anyhow, I had excellent and very spicy rabokki right outside of the Pyunghwa Market in East Gate where the shopping rules. Get off at Dongdaemun Park (formerly Sports Stadium). Actually, fashionistas would probably already know how to get to the Pyunghwa Market, so the place is just outside of that market. Don't forget to get the kimbab to go with it to temper the saltiness and spiciness.


Another relevation was that the old rest stops peppering the freeways throughout Korea have vastly improved. To my delight, the food served in those rest stops (휴게소) was actually good! I had yookkyejang, which is a spicy soup of beef, bean sprouts, radishes and green onions that is the perfect meal when it's sub-zero temperatures out there.

Unlike the tasteless fish cake soup and kimbab (Korean rolls) containing sausages too bright pink for their own good (not to mention of mysterious origin) of the rest stops past, this soup was actually made from real beef broth and had some flavor.

Most of the newly renovated rest stops had decent food, so it didn't matter which one you went to. I was traveling east toward Sorak Mountain in Kangwon Province so take note.



Hamheung Shikdang (함흥식당)
Koseungkun Keojineup Keojinri 5ri 8ban
Phone: (033) 682-1180

Located in a tiny town near the DMZ Museum (I didn't link to the museum itself because I had problems calling it up but it should be dmzmuseum.com) that is worth a trip, Hamheung is all about the freshest fish of the season. When I went during the winter time, it served dorumook in addition to usual suspects like the flat gajemi and the saltier jogi. Dorumook is translated as "sandfish" but I'm not convinced real translations exist. Ditto for gajemi and jogi. You're just going to have to trust me and order them. Dorumook wasn't my favorite (too many fisheggs) but the perfertly charred grilled fish platter went very well with the rice and multiple side dishes it was served with. The fish was cooked and seasoned just right and the "seasonal grilled fish sampler" must change constantly. Highly recommended.

So You Think You Know Bulgoki?

Just returned from a great eating tour of Korea. My first stop undoubtedly had to be Kwangyang Bulgoki Marohwajeok in Samseongdong. It's important that this place not be confused with Kwangyang Bulgoki down the street, only a few restaurants away. It's deceptively close, with the same name but it's not related and not nearly as good as the one that has Marohwajeok as part of its title.

One wouldn't think of bulgoki as something a person living in LA may crave when going to Korea, but I definitely could not get this out here. The meat is hanwoo, meaning Korean beef, and it has a distinctively fresh taste I've only detected in the best grass-fed beef in the best steak houses here.

But the clincher is the marinade, both for its amazingly balanced flavor and curiously invisible nature to the naked eye.



What I mean is that when the beautiful raw meat arrives, there's no juice dripping, no chopped green onions or sesame seeds on the meat. The meat looks plain and totally unseasoned. But the minute it hits the grill that looks made out of twisted copper wires, it imparts a perfectly well-seasoned flavor. The wait staff insisted they used soy sauce to marinate their meat, but there was no trace of it that I could witness with my eyes. My palate, however, did taste it. I was in heaven. I couldn't get enough.

What makes this bulgoki better are the accompaniments, of course, such as the kimchi, greens to wrap the meat in and other side dishes sprawled across the table.

I particularly liked the kookmul kimchi, the non-spicy, ice-cold, radish kimchi usually served in the winter that is so refreshing to have with the heavier-tasting meat.


I also liked the greens that were lightly dressed in some rice vinegar and sesame seeds. Koreans call these greens chicory but they must have been from a different family from the chicory we're familiar here. My favorite combo was taking a piece of bulgoki with some of these greens and wrapping them in a perilla leaf. So delicious and perfectly balanced!

The other side dishes were average, if not curious (e.g., a weird smoked salmon, lettuce and peanut butter concoction I used to have at local robatayakis way back when that strangely works when drinking beer or sake but frankly doesn't go with bulgoki).


It's fairly expensive but well-worth it. The only risk is that you may seriously overeat once you taste this mysteriously well-marinated meat that --if you'll excuse the cliche --melts in your mouth. I'm not sure what some people mean when they say that Korean food and barbecue is better in LA than in Korea. What are they smoking? Get thee to Marohwajeok!

Kwangyang Bulgoki Marohwajeok (광양불고기 마로화적)
Kangnamku Samseongdong 120-3
(02) 539-9922