Posted on Mar 25, 2009 under Archives |
Bacon, salami, sausage, guanciale pizza
A reservation at Mozza, the tiny trendy pizzeria from Italian cuisine guru Mario Batali, founder of La Brea Bakery Nancy Silverton and restaurateur Joe Bastianich, is hard to get. I was joined by my friend Todd and his co-worker Joanne on a recent visit, but our reservation for Saturday lunch was made a month in advance.
We entered the West Hollywood pizzeria, adjacent to its more formal and more expensive counterpart Osteria Mozza, to find 13 tables and 20 bar seats housed in a tiny space with orange and yellow walls, a blue ceiling and rustic wood surfaces. Once seated we were inches away from eaters on both sides, good for glimpses of what to order but very noisy.
Nancy's Chopped Salad
We settled on Nancy’s Chopped Salad for a light appetizer to start, with chopped iceberg and radicchio tossed with an oregano dressing. It was very refreshing. Other good choices for starters inlcude the marinated peppers – red and gold mini-peppers in a mixture of balsamic vinegar, olive oil and capers or the fried squash blossoms with ricotta cheese.
Goat cheese, leeks, scallions, garlic and bacon pizza
Todd chose the goat cheese, leeks, scallions, garlic and bacon pizza. The salty and creamy flavors produced a nice taste.
Potato pizza
Joanne chose one of the potato pizza options – with gorgonzola dolce, fingerling potatoes, radicchio and rosemary.
Meaty pizza
I chose the meat heavy pizza, with bacon, salami, fennel sausage, guanciale, tomato and mozzerlla. I loved this pizza and it was the table favorite. All the pizzas had a flavorful lightly crispy crust, rare on most pizzas I have tasted, which we all noticed. Although a bit pricey, pizzas range from $10 to $22, Pizzeria Mozza is a great choice if you are craving either traditional or inventive pizza. 641 N. Highland Avenue, 323/297-0100, reservations highly recommended.
Posted on Mar 25, 2009 under Archives, Food and Travel News, Los Angeles |
Illy issimo new drinks
Two of the world’s great beverage brands, Coca-Cola and Illy, launched illy issimo premium ready to drink coffe products to LA area coffeehouses.
Now Angelenos can enjoy Caffe – with full-bodied character, bold and energizing, Cappuccino – intense, illy espresso blended with milk and dark cacao, and Latte Macciato – energizing smooth illy espresso with milk
I received some sample cans in the mail:
Illy issimo samples, in my kitchen
I tried these with my neighbors and we liked all of them, the favorite though was the latte macchiato.
These new beverages are available at prestigious retailers and coffeehouses in LA.
Posted on Mar 25, 2009 under Archives |
Whether it’s a dry-aged rib-eye or a tender filet, Ruth’s Chris in Pasadena offers a variety of steaks to satisfy any carnivore craving. I recently had dinner (and got a peek at the kitchen) at the 93rd installment of the popular steakhouse chain.
Beef Trio
The first thing we tried was a tasty beef trio – steak, a burger slider and a yummy beef open face sandwich. This is also a perfect choice to sample if you are just having appetizers and drinks. Althought the restaurant is relatively new to Pasadena, the atmosphere feels timeless, an evocation of an earlier elegant era with marble floors, dark woods, white tablecloths and comfortable high booths. The steakhouse offers choice cuts of USDA Prime custom-aged beef broiled and bathed in butter in their trademark 1,800 degree oven and served sizzling hot on 500 degree plates (no kidding, our plates were smoking).
Ruth's Chop Salad
We also tried the signature Ruth’s Chop Salad, with iceberg lettuce, spinach and raddichio with red onions, mushrooms, green olives, bacon, eggs, hearts of palm and Bleu Cheese and lemon basil dressing. It also comes with crispy fried onions on top. This is also a great salad to share before moving ahead to one of their meat entrees.
Stuffed mushrooms
The stuffed mushrooms – broiled mushroom caps with jumbo lump crab stuffing tasted really fresh and they were very filling.
Rib-eye
My rib-eye was cooked perfectly – medium rare and was tender and delicious.
Au Gratin potatoes
We opted for the au gratin potatoes – served in a cream sauce and topped with cheddar cheese, very rich and a good side for the steak. Ruth’s Chris also offers many vegetable sides and other potato options.
Creme brulee
Dessert was creme brulee topped with fresh mint and berries and a frothy cappuccino. Yum.
Our waitress, Sabrina
Our waitress, Sabrina, provided such great service we had to snap a pic. We then got an invite to check out the kitchen, so here are a few pics. Everything was very well organized back there and each chef had control over their individual stations.
Chefs in RC kitchen
Cooking those sizzling steaks
I think these guys had the toughest job – cooking all those steaks (boy it’s hot back there) and getting them all perfect!
If you want to splurge and enjoy a top-notch steak dinner, head over to Ruth’s Chris in Pasadena.
369 East Colorado Boulevard
626/583-8122 for reservations
Posted on Mar 19, 2009 under Archives, Food and Travel News, Las Vegas |
Ice Elvis at Minus 5
Yesterday, Minus 5 degrees Lounge at Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino announced that the King is back in Vegas, well, sort of. Making a special appearance is his likeness in a 7-foot ice sculpture decked out in iconic garb.
The sculpture took over two days to sculpt and can remain cool inside the lounge’s chilly 31 degree temperature. Minus 5 is open Monday through Sunday from 10 am to 3 am.