Circa 55

Yet another Travelzoo special that was well worth it. This time it was a buffet brunch with unlimited Mimosas at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. Circa 55 is the restaurant by the pool. We left early as we were worried we would be late for our reservation due to street closures for the L.A. Marathon. We arrived way too early which was okay because we had time to walk around, take pictures and we may have acted like silly school girls which was fine since we had fun and didn't know anyone so who's to judge.

We had the option of dining indoor or outdoor. I normally dislike outdoor dining since the food can get cold fast plus I hate birds flying in to join in the festivities. It was a beautiful day and we found a spot in the shade by the lemon trees and so I succumbed to eating outside.

The buffet was quite lavish. There were crab claws, shrimp, oysters, numerous salads. They had slices of tender beef, salmon, potatoes, fried chicken and waffles, vegetables and the usual bacon and eggs, omelets of your choice. Zohreh and I loaded up on the crab claws, beef, and shrimp.  Sandi and Jodi ate like "normal" people, in other words, they did not overeat. The seafood was nice and fresh except for the oysters which they added later. The only way to describe it was "not good".  Other than that, everything was perfect. I must mention that the French fries were wonderful. We had several servings!

Dessert was overwhelming. They had bread pudding, cheese blintz, a variety of tarts and chocolates. I did not try the bread pudding since Sandi makes the best bread pudding so I was afraid I would be disappointed. I had the blintz with the vanilla sauce from the bread pudding. It was delicious though I think it needed a fruit sauce. I was surprised at how the chocolates were of high quality. I especially loved the salted dark chocolates.

All four of us had a great time. Our server Gloria made sure our glasses were never empty from mimosa or water. The next time you see a special deal on Travelzoo for the Sunday Brunch, do not hesitate to try it as you will be glad you did.

Tilapia at Silog

Another Friday in Lent called for a meal with the absence of meat. I recently saw a picture of a Tilapia fish with coconut milk and curry sauce on the facebook page of Silog. It looked very appealing so last Friday, we ventured over to Silog. Lemuel, the Filipino owner, and the chef was there to greet us and take our order.

Chef Lemuel suggested the Yellowtail Tuna marinated in vinegar with ginger, red and green onions for our appetizer. Sandi is not a sashimi fan but decided to give it a try. She enjoyed the flavor but didn't like the texture of the raw fish. I was delighted to eat the rest and I did inhale them all as they were so nice and fresh and had some kick to it. What Sandi really wanted and looked forward to ordering for appetizer was the Shanghai Lumpia till I told her it had pork in it and pork is meat. Then she announced she would order the Adobo Fried Rice till I informed her again that adobo was also meat. She then said, "I think I should be a Jew this Friday." Hahaaa, if only you could switch just like that. I told her "not a chance". I told her she should then be on her way to the synagogue!

I ordered the special drink which isn't on the menu; Calamansi Mojito which is so good. Our entrée came with soup or salad. We both opted for the salad which we both love. It's a small salad with a sesame dressing and chopped fresh mango.

The Tilapia from Canada was lightly breaded and fried. The fish was crisp outside, tender inside The curry coconut sauce was delicious and I even had to ask for more sauce which went well with the rice.

We split an order of Turon; fried banana served with mango ice cream for dessert. We left feeling very satisfied. One of these days, we will have to try the "Filipino" breakfast.

Silog is located at 1555 Sepulveda Blvd. in Torrance, California.

Musso & Frank

We had tickets to the Saturday matinee show at the Dolby Theater to watch Grace and Frankie which is a comedy series on Netflix. The comradery, especially between the four main characters, was very enjoyable.  We knew we would get out around dinner (early) time so it was a no-brainer to make a reservation at one of my favorite restaurants, Musso and Frank.

We arrived at around 4:15 pm for our 4:30 reservation. We had to wait our turn as people that had just walked in without reservations were informed there were no tables available unless they wanted to sit in the bar. The very nice maître d', Peter Landroche had someone direct us to our booth.

Shortly after we were seated, our server, Nick asked us what we would like to drink. Sandi opted for her usual non-alcoholic water and I was excited to try their Martini which they are known for. I was always leery about ordering one since I do make a very good one. Before he brought my drink, he gave us some sourdough bread with lots of salted butter. It was hard not to finish the delicious bread but we knew we had to pace ourselves and by the way, the martini did not disappoint!

Though I have been to Musso & Frank numerous times before, I cannot bring myself to order something different. Luckily Sandi agreed with my choices One was their signature dish, Grenadine of Beef; filet beef medallions with a brown sauce topped with a wonderful Bearnaise sauce. The other dish is the famous Original Fettucine Alfredo which is divine. If you haven't been to the original one in Rome, this is it.....the same recipe and you can take my word for it. It is good to split an order of both entrées, that way you have the best of both worlds. Nick suggested we split a salad.  We opted for the Baby Iceberg Wedges with a blue cheese dressing and smoked bacon, chives, and tomato.

Believe it or not, we were really too full for dessert which is unusual especially for me. Nick contributed to our wonderful dining experience and made us feel like we were his only customers even if he had several. I had to inform Mr. Landroche of our memorable experience. It is what dining should be all about. Good food and service equal: " I can't wait to go back". I just have to comment that the gentleman that showed us to our seats was not as friendly as the rest of the staff. Maybe he was having a bad day. Thanks again to Nick. Hope you get to serve us the next time.

Blue Kitchen Mango Chutney

This small jar of Mango Chutney made by Blue Kitchen in the Philippines was sent to me by my mother. I have had their Bicol Express, Santol in the past which was excellent. I finally remembered to use it since it will be expiring soon.

I had leftover cream cheese which I scooped with an ice cream scooper and poured 1/2 bottle of the mango chutney. I served it as one of my hors d'oeuvres. It was a hit. Amy couldn't stop talking about how she loved it.

It was a Friday in Lent so I could not serve meat. Instead of a salad, I served my favorite Tomato Bisque Soup from Bristol Farms. Both Sandi and Amy are not fans of tomato bisque but they liked this one.

For our entrée, I cooked Chicken Scampi which was purchased from Specific Pacific. I then added penne pasta, chanterelle mushrooms, and some Rao's Puttanesca sauce. It turned out to be very good.

For dessert, I served a store bought Apple Pie from Bristol Farms. I didn't expect it to be that good but Amy and I loved it because the apples were firm and not mushy which Sandi prefers. Oh well, we can't all have a sophisticated taste!

Gaetano's Family Night

We haven't been to "Family Night" at Gaetano's in a while so it was time for us to check it out once more. I could never remember if it was Tuesday or Wednesday that you can get dinner for 4 for a very reasonable price. It is now $55 which is a bargain for what you get. I made my reservation through Opentable but before that, I called the restaurant to make sure it was on a Tuesday and I asked the lady I spoke with what time it started. Her exact words were: " I believe it's 4 p.m.", I asked if she was sure and she said yes. I blame myself for not asking her name because when we all showed up at 4 p.m., we were told that it doesn't start till 5 p.m. They even suggested for us to wait till 5 p.m. I asked for Vince, Andreanna, Sean (owners) but they were all not there. I asked them politely to please call one of them because it was unanimous that we did not want to wait till 5 and we were ready to go elsewhere. Our server later came back to say they would honor the deal and serve us. The lesson here is whenever you ask a question from a restaurant, always ask you are speaking with.

Zohreh, Sandi, Amy and I were ready for the feast. We started with our favorite Arancini, rice balls which are the best with their wonderful sauce. We then had a Caesar Salad; for our pasta dish we decided on the Penne Asparagi; penne pasta with grilled chicken, mushrooms, garlic, parmesan in an olive oil sauce.

For our main meal, we had the Chicken Marsala which never disappoints. We were very happy with our feast. Believe it or not, we even had leftovers!

Gaetano's is located at 2731 Pacific Coast Highway in Torrance, California. I am happy to report that even if this restaurant has been in operation for many years, it is still worth going to.

Chicken Schnitzel

I have this wonderful recipe and I occasionally make it since it is such a crowd pleaser.  The recipe calls for chicken breast, eggs, flour, bread crumbs. You have to pound the chicken breast to make it thin. I season it with salt and pepper. I then coat it in Wondra flour, dip in eggs and I like to coat them in corn flakes crumbs which give it a slightly sweet taste. It is best to refrigerate it before frying it in lots of butter.

After frying it in butter, I garnish it with rolled anchovies which you can get at the market already rolled. Top it with a lemon slice and chopped parsley or any herb of choice. I serve it with slices of fresh lemon to squeeze over the chicken. This is best served with creamy pasta or potatoes. I served mine with pasta shells and some Brussels sprouts cooked with anchovies, capers, and butter.

The guests supposedly loved them, so at least they said they did!

Cronut & Champagne Anyone?

Dominique Ansel has done it again. Month after month I keep thinking this is the month when the cronut of the month will not be as good as last months. After lunch at Umami Burger at the Grove, which by the way has failed to impress me, we stopped by Dominique Ansel's Bakery.

The flavor for the month of March is Balsamic Fig & Olive Shiso Cronut. It has homemade fig jam with a hint of balsamic, creamy olive oil shiso ganache finished with lemon zest sugar. The key to the multilayer crispy cronut is incorporating something tart to complement the sweet stuff. Sandi bought 4 and I walked away with 6 in their beautiful box.

Since we had burgers and fries dinner had to be light. As I was wrapping the cronuts to freeze, I left one out. I didn't think I could wait till breakfast so I had the bright idea of having a cronut with Rosé Champagne. I am a firm believer that everything goes with champagne, unlike wine. It was a pair indeed!

It was a delightful dinner. Cronut & champagne. The only thing missing was Richard Gere!