The Divine Dish

Dinner at Gordon Ramsay at the London West Hollywood

Posted on Sep 21, 2010 under Archives | 1 Comment

I recently visited Gordon Ramsay’s restaurant at the London West Hollywood hotel for a story for lowfares.com.  The restaurant is located in the ultramodern London West Hollywood, perched just below the Sunset Strip.  The hotel oozes Regent Street sophistication with English bulldogs and wrought-iron balconies. The 200 rooms are spacious with sweeping views of Beverly Hills and beyond, faux alligator upholstered chairs, marble bathrooms, and grey suede walls.   The boutique hotel also has a well-equipped gym and rooftop pool.

We liked the British accents, especially the English bulldogs everywhere.

The London’s namesake restaurant from Hells Kitchen chef Gordon Ramsey is glamorous with distressed white wood, gold blinds, tooled leather seats and velvet banquettes.   The hillside dining room has stellar city views and the menu showcases small plates with local ingredients.  Here is what we sampled:

We had a wine sampling to go with our tasting, and our fave of the night was the Botani muscat from Spain, from Bodegas.  Really great wine for a fabulous price.

I also have to mention the Waiwera water.  We loved the look of the bottle and it was the best bottled water I have had.  It’s from New Zealand and it’s the first time I have sampled this water.

We started with the local halibut and shrimp ceviche.  Delicious and expertly plated.

My friend had the Santa Monica Farmer’s Market salad, I devoured the black truffles on top.

Next came some foie gras and potato dumplings served with blistered cherry tomatoes.

Next we had the sweet butter poached lobster with blue lake green beans and sugar snap peas.  The lobster was cooked perfectly.

Our main was a lovely filet with mushrooms and onion ragout and a potato mash.  The reduction sauce was amazing.

For dessert, Chris had a chocolate cylinder with passion fruit, mint granite and coconut ice cream and I got the chocolate mousse cake.

We both thought the restaurant was a great place for a date or to enjoy the views of the Hollywood Hills.

Next time you find yourself on the Sunset Strip or in WeHo, head to Gordon Ramsay’s for dinner or just grab a drink in their swanky lounge.   Located at 1020 San Vicente Boulevard, reservations at 310/358-7788.

Dinner at Roy’s Restaurant Rancho Mirage

Posted on Sep 21, 2010 under Archives, Palm Springs | No Comment

Roys restaurants are renowned for their upscale exotic Euro-Asian fusion cooking.   Chef Roy Yamaguchi opened his first Roy’s in Honolulu 22 years ago and today his haute-cuisine chain stretches from Atlanta to Tokyo.

I stopped by the Rancho Mirage location, which opened in 2002, for a sampling of the Hawaiin fusion cuisine and to include the review in an upcoming iphone application.   The 7,,200 square foot location features and exhibition kitchen, a lounge area, bar seating and an outdoor patio.  Here’s what my friend Chris and I sampled.

We headed to the bar and tried their famous “1988” drink, a blend of tart grapefruit and tangy pomegranate with Ruby Red Vodka, Lychee Liqueur and Patron Citronge Liquor.  Strong and tangy and a great way to start off the meal.

Our waiter brought out some Szechuan spiced pork ribs from the chef.  These are smoked and grilled in a mongolian sauce and were spicy and good, and a huge portion.

I am a sucker for a good California roll and these included avocado, cucumber and lobster and were fantastic.  Also a huge portion so plenty to share.

Chris got their garden salad which was a basic simple salad, but a good pair for the lobster rolls if you are sharing like we decided to do.

I ordered the combination surf and turf, a petite filet mignon, lump crab oscar on top and a Maine lobster tail.  It comes with a poblano mash and asparagus.

I thought the filet was very good and cooked perfectly.  I would order the lump crab oscar on the side next time as the sauce was a little strong for me.

The lobster tail was cooked well and had a ton of lobster meat.

Chris tried their signature Misoyaki Butterfish, very similar to a sablefish or cod.  It comes with a tri-pepper soy vinaigrette.  We both really liked this dish.

For dessert we were served Roy’s melting hot chocolate souffle, a flourless chocolate cake with a molten hot center served with vanilla ice cream and a raspberry sauce.  This was delicious.  We also were given a bread pudding.

This was also yummy, but we were so full we took it home to Paul and he finished it immediately.

Roy’s restaurants can be found in varies cities, including locally in Pasadena, so you don’t have to travel to the islands when you get a craving for traditional Hawaiian fusion food.  Roy’s Rancho Mirage is located at 71959 Highway 111, reservations recommended at 760/340-9044.

Dinner at Raya, Ritz Carlton Laguna Niguel

Posted on Sep 15, 2010 under Archives | No Comment

The Ritz Carlton Laguna Niguel, a grand white castle perched on an ocean bluff,  houses 393 pastel-colored rooms and suites with French doors leading to charming private terraces overlooking the Pacific Ocean.  The resort features lush gardens, intimate walkways, golf courses, tennis courts and a seaside spa, as well as the revamped RAYA restaurant serving Pan-Latin coastal cuisine amidst sweeping views of the coastline.  I recently stayed at the resort and was lucky to eat at the renovated Raya restaurant.  The views were amazing, here are views from the table.

My friend Nicole and I samples a few items from the menu.

I had an extra dirty martini and Nicole sampled the mojito.  Both were very good.

The chef brought us out a few appetizers, the first was this yummy mushroom huarache.  It had caramelized onions, roasted wild mushrooms, goat cheese, truffle oil and a black bean puree on top of a crispy masa flatbread.  It was also very large and delicious.

The sweet corn soup was one of the best soups I have ever had.  The corn flavor was so strong it tasted just like fresh picked corn.  It was topped off with truffled masa dumplings and huitlacoche puree.  We both could eat a huge vat of this soup.

Next we had the lobster tacos with main lobster, black bean puree, chile de arbol salsa and avocado.  Also very tasty.

We both ordered the special of the night, short ribs with broccolini in a chile sauce.  Very good and spicy.

For dessert the chef sent out a sampler which included a very strong and very good lime sorbet with raspberries, a chocolate tart with Mexican chocolate an almond crust and a caramelized passion fruit sauce, and our favorite, the churros with cinnamon sugar and a citrus anglaise with chile ancho chocolate sauce.

Most people are blown away by the killer views at Raya, but the food is equally impressive.  Whether you want to kick back and catch up with a good friend like I did or invite someone special for a romantic dinner, Raya is the perfect place to enjoy great food and great panoramic vistas of the Pacific Ocean.   Located at One Ritz Carlton Drive, Dana Point, reservations highly recommended, 949/240-2000.

Tasting Menu at Five Sails Restaurant, Vancouver

Posted on Aug 17, 2010 under Archives | No Comment

On my last trip to Vancouver to visit my dad (and do a story for lowfares.com), I was lucky enough to get to visit the Five Sails restaurant located in the Pan Pacific Hotel at Canada Place.   The restaurant is owned by husband and wife team Chef Ernst Dorfler and Gerry Sayers.  Five Sails restaurant diners enjoy panoramic harbor and mountain views as well as seafood focused delicacies on the AAA Five Diamond menu.   Highlights of the fresh Northwest/Asian fusion cuisine include soy glazed sablefish, rack of lamb and roasted breast of duck.

My friend, and my dad’s wife, Lynda joined me for a really good tasting menu from owner and Chef Ernst Dorfler.  Here’s what we had.

We started with a lovely trio of foie gras.  I loved this as I can’t get enough foie gras.  This is labeled “Foie Gras – Yin and Yang” on the menu and it is spectacular.

This version was traditional, with a nice petal and gold leaf topping.

Equally good was the middle selection on the plate, plated with fruit compote and toasted brioche.  Yum.

Our third version was a pan seared foie gras with caramelized mango and a port wine reduction.  I could eat this all day.  If you like foie gras, this is the dish to order. This was served with a Armajan des Ormes 2003 Sauternes from France.  A terrific pairing.

Next came a delicious duo of fresh big juicy scallops, glazed with mirin, capers, lemon and shallots.  They sat on a celeriac mousseline scented with vanilla bean and a carrot reduction.  This was expertly paired with a Laurenz V. Singing Gruner Veltliner, 2007, Niederosterreich from Australia.

I have to mention something about the view.  Five Sails looks over the harbor, Stanley Park and the Vancouver coastal mountains.  This, as well as the exceptional food, is a huge draw and a great choice for a first date, celebration, or just as an excuse to get out and enjoy a great meal with beautiful surroundings.  When we went in early June it was typical dreary Vancouver weather but if you can dine here in mid summer around sunset it is truly spectacular.  Okay, enough about the view and back to the food.

One of the signature dishes at Five Sails is the homemade Austrian style mountain ravioli, which we were lucky enough to get to try.  It is filled with spinach, herbs and ricotta cheese and served with hazelnut brown butter.  It was paired with a Matua Shingle Peak Sauvignon Blanc, 2008, from Marlborough New Zealand.

Our last course before dessert was this yummy lamb, cooked perfectly, served with a fresh mint aioli, honey glazed artichokes and vegetables, and crispy yam wafers.  We really loved this dish.  It was paired with a glass of Therapy Merlot, 2008 from Naramata Canada.

Our dessert was a chocolate delight, a valrhona chocolate opera slice with caramel ice cream.

It was served with a lovely Inniskillin Riesling 2006 Ice Wine, very popular in Canada, from Oliver.

We loved both the view and the food.  I highly recommend making a stop at Five Sails if you happen to visit Vancouver.  It’s a short walk from gastown, located on the R level at the Pan Pacific Hotel at Canada Place. Reservations are recommended, 604/844-2855.