Fancy Meeting You Here

Where else can you find this fantastic combo of plastic food and charming misspelling but in beautiful downtown LA? At 3am.

I LOVE Menchies!

I have to thank Jennifer for introducing me to Menchies. I resisted at first, thinking it would be another sour Pinkberry ripoff. But now I'm an addict. Menchies has a wall of frozen yogurt disensers, kind of like those French Quarter Daquiri houses.



Every flavor has easily identifiable labels to let you know if the flavor is kosher, nonfat, sugar-free, if it has a criminal record, and whether or not it is still a virgin.



It's do-it-yourself and they have an unlimited supply of taster cups. You can fill up on testers alone.



The flavors are delicious, ranging from the rich and creamy to the Pinkberry sour and from the familar standards to the exotic.





There is a wealth of toppings to choose from, including fresh fruit and a surprisingly sugar-free chocolate syrup. You would never know.



When you are all done, they charge you by weight. It's a fun, interactive experience to share with a friend, giggling and asking, "Oh my God, Did you taste the Dulce de Leche?"

Rising Stars: Julian Cox

if you are a regular reader, my love for Rivera should come as no surprise to you. In addition to the delectable food, Rivera boasts some of the best cocktails in town. Mixologist Julian Cox was turned off by artificially-colored syrupy cocktails and found inspiration in the use of fresh ingredients by Comme Ca and Milk and Honey.

Cox worked his way up at Comme Ca and honed his craft at Sona. In January 2009 he worked with John Sedlar Rivera who was opening up his Pan-Latin hotspot downtown. Rivera was already making his own tequila and tequila infusions, and Julian added his special cocktails to the party. He became known for his signature drink, Blood Sugar Sex Magic. In addition to Rivera, Cox is currently opening Las Perlas with downtown maven Cedd Moses.



At Rising Stars I watched Julian carefully craft his specialty cocktail. I did a double-take when I saw that his garnish was a piece of beef jerky. I looked at him, and he said, "Barbacoa." The Barbacoa is an unusual mixture of lime, ginger syrup, chipotle puree, red bell pepper and tequila.

My only response? "You're a madman."

Receiving his award from John Sedlar Rivera:







I caught up with Julian on another night at Rivera:

Rising Stars: Adam Fleischman's Umami Burger

I wandered around the back of Umami checking out the burgers. When I met the Adam Fleischman, I noticed him shaking a special seasoning on the burgers (I also noticed he bore more than a slight resemblancs to Jon Favreau). Hoping to start up a conversation on the general concept of umami, I said, "So it's like soy sauce..."

He cut me off, saying "Oh, it's definitely not soy sauce." I saw the wheels turning. I realized he thought I was guessing the recipe and he was deciding whether or not to tell me what was in his magic sprinkles (it was Tamari, by the way, not soy sauce. The recipe was in the booklet). I knew I had to change tactics. This was not someone who wanted to while away the afternoon chatting about flavor profiles. This was a serious businessman.



So I asked, "Are you planning on marketing it?"

He came alive, "We have a whole line planned - spice mixes, sauces, and [he paused to think] what else?" He seemed to have better things to do than give me the pitch at the moment, so I gave him my card and continued on my way.

Fleischman definitely is a businessman. Fleischman started out in Journalism, which led to wine journalism, which led to some very prestigious jobs in the wine field where he honed his palate. He subsequently founded Bottlerock and Vonoteque. He opened the first Umami Burger on La Brea and is poised to take over the world.



Later in the evening, the longest line was snaking around to Umami. When I finally got myself a burger, I told the other cook, "Wow. I had no idea. I'm impressed."

He said, "yeah, it's not all hype." Embarassed that he had read my mind, I wandered off to enjoy the fantastically meaty burger with a giant Parmesan crisp. True love.



Adam Fleischman receiving his award for Best Restaurant Concept from Will Blunt, Managing Editor of StarChefs.com and Antoinette Bruno, StarChefs.com CEO and Editor-in-Chief.



So, yeah, the basic recipe is in the program. Do I dare leak it? I'll just give you a taste.

Umami Seasonings:
2 salted anchovies, cleaned
Tamari
Worcestershire sauce
Marmite
Truffle salt
Harissa

Now if you're really good, maybe I'll tell you about the ketchup.

Rising Stars: Vinny Dotolo and Jon Shook

I was fresh from Michael Voltaggio's table, and his sous vide Wagyu short rib was so good it was blowing my mind. I finished the plate as I approached Animal's station, and I had an incredulous look on my face. Vinny Dotolo said, "I know. Amazing, isn't it?"

I said, "Yeah. Do you think you can beat that?"

He good-naturedly replied, "Well, it's not a contest."

Just then his assistant handed a guest a ballot and said, "Make sure to vote for us."

I hid my smile and walked away with their Poutine with oxtail, gravy and cheddar, unaware that the hinges were about to be blown off the door. Holy mother of God, going from the Wagyu straight to the oxtail may have been the best two bites I have ever had. In my life.

That poutine dish is going on my list of possible last meals. I have been lucky enough to eat so much amazing food I will have a hard time picking my last meal. They may have to kill me over and over again. It's on the menu right now at Animal, so I have got to get down there soon.



For anyone who doesn't know, poutine is like the national dish of Quebec, if it were a nation (and don't you dare tell them they aren't). Cheese curds and gravy on fries - the quintessential drunk dish. It's one of those things that can be made really, really badly and often is. It is an eye-rolling joke to the rest of Canada, but I will go to the mat for poutine now that Animal has elevated it to heavenly status.

The gravy was so rich -- first they made a veal stock, then used that to make a Bordelaise, then used that to make a foie sauce. All that hard work definitely showed. The meat, which braised for hours and hours, was flavorful and falling apart. The minor change to a quality cheddar cheese made all the difference. And it almost seemed like they magically worked out a formula so that every single fry had the perfect bite of cheese and meat instead of falling all over the place in a big mess. Let's give these boys a "Hell, yeah!"

Ryan Duval of the Cordon Bleu program, Vinny Dotolo and Jon Shook



Really, you have to love these guys. They are like the garage band of the culinary scene. How about this quote from Food and Wine when they were awarded in the category of Best New Chefs of 2009:

On the L.A. food scene:
Vinny: “People out here eat like kids: hamburgers, hot dogs, doughnuts. You can tell: So much fast food started out here.”

The two chefs met in culinary school in Florida, where they started their culinary career moving as a unit from one restaurant to another, then to Vail, and finally Los Angeles. After a short stint at the doomed Chadwick, they got an odd job painting Ben Ford's house, which eventually led to a job cooking for Ben's father, Harrison Ford (yes, that's why Ben Ford is such a babe). Then on to catering, The Food Network and finally Animal, where we can only hope we can keep them.

I first saw Vinny Dotolo at a panel called "Carnivore" where he proved himself to be knowledgeable and erudite.



Jon rocks the mic



Vinny Dotolo and Jon Shook with Will Blunt, Managing Editor of StarChefs.com and Antoinette Bruno, StarChefs.com CEO and Editor-in-Chief.



Vinny Dotolo and Jon Shook with Rory Hermann

Easter WTF

A picture is worth a thousand words.







Of course, juxtaposition helps.



And sometimes nothing but video can catch how surrealist and disturbing the everday can be



The rewrite of Sugar, Sugar isn't as curious as the fact that he is snorting a butterfly





How could Jesus love him when he has disemboweled his children and is wearing them on his feet?



OK, this thing is supposed to comically make the eyes bulge out. But it takes a lot of squeezing, and then it just ends really really badly.



But of course, I LOVE this one. A hip hop, a hibby, a hibby, to this hip hip hop and you don't stop a-rockin to the bang bang...

Have a Creepy Easter

My friend Donna has a thing about rabbits.

Harvey was one of my favorite movies as a child, so I really had no problem with them, even after one nearly bit off my finger. But over the years I have started to notice the creepy expressions on Easter bunnies. They always look like they are plotting something. I especially hate these candy eyes that make them look like they are taxidermied.



I have even started to break them up into categories. There's the angry bunny







The scared bunny. Maybe they know their ears are not long for this world





Poor things, trapped in their wee little cages. Destined for hassenpfeffer





The bunnies with secrets. See, bunnies are totally up to no good.



Was it Flopsy, Floozy and Cottontail?



Then there is the totally stoned bunny







This is kind of an emo bunny. He just stares at the egg, wondering what the point is.