The Mac-Attack

After watching an event at the Saban Theater yesterday, we knew we had to eat as hunger did strike! It was mid afternoon. Too late for lunch and too early for dinner. Most restaurants don't start serving till 5:00 p.m.

Sandi had the bright idea of going to Canter's Deli on Fairfax.  We didn't know where and how far it was from the theater. No problem; just googled the address and programmed it in my GPS.  At around 3:30, we were at the parking lot of Canter's.

The last time we were there, we had the Brooklyn Ave. which was a corned beef sandwich with coleslaw, Swiss cheese, Canter's Russian dressing on rye bread with a side of potato salad. We had to have it again so we split that sandwich. We thought we should split a salad or a side when Sandi asked me about Macaroni and Cheese. That sounded good. Shortly after reading it, she realized it was a sandwich. It was called The Mac-Attack; described as grilled macaroni and cheese with chopped bacon, sharp cheddar cheese on sourdough. We were curious and intrigued. It came with potato chips. When the sandwiches were delivered, we attacked the Mac-Attack which is appropriately named. It was so good....the mac and cheese with the bacon and sharp cheese all came together on the grilled sourdough.  I asked the waiter if they've always had this and he said: "No, it's new on the menu." Who would have thought to make something so simple into a sandwich?
The corned beef was delicious as ever. The meat sliced paper thin then layered piled high and just tender as can be.

Otto did not order a meat sandwich as he says he can't possibly open his mouth that wide. So he opted on an Open Face Brisket with mashed potatoes and gravy on challah egg bread. I tried a bite of it and it was so-so...though he seemed to enjoy it. Give him anything with mashed potatoes and gravy and he's a happy camper.

If you're ever in the area of Fairfax in Los Angeles, stop by Canter's Deli and attack the Mac!

Damon's Steak House

Zagat describes this 75 year old tiki bar and Polynesian themed steakhouse in Glendale, California as a restaurant that delivers "good" cuts (steak) and strong Mai- tais. I wouldn't know and can't confirm as I didn't get to try the steak as it was a Friday in Lent. 

There were 4 of us that dined there last night. You may wonder how we ended up at a steakhouse?  The answer is that we had tickets next door to see the play "Crazy for You".
The person who suggested the steakhouse did order a big chunk of prime rib. Two of us catholics tried to dissuade him to order something else. The friend who shall remain anonymous, ignored our suggestion. Bless him Father, for he really has sinned.

Konnee ordered the fried oysters for an appetizer which was quite good with whatever dip it came with. We all had the family style salad which also was good with a lot of crunchy stuff in it. I did recognize the celery in there. The rest was a mystery to me.

Konnee ordered the Tagliolini Seafood Pasta. I managed to try it and did like it though it was not aldente.  My husband (not catholic) ordered the Chicken Tenders and I had the Grilled Mahi-Mahi which came with the twice baked potato.

Though we were all full, we managed to order 2 desserts. One was your typical "Mud Pie" which was coffee ice cream with oreo cookie crust. The other one was called "Moon Pie" It is a cookie with ice cream and marshmallow cream, then fried and served with more ice cream and caramel sauce. This was surprisingly good.

Damon's Steakhouse is not what I would call "gourmet" dining but it is well worth your time to visit this landmark where you can still get steak for a reasonable price and  partake in this lively atmosphere with a friendly staff.

Funny, I did take a picture of the "sinful" steak but when I checked my picture gallery on my phone this morning,....it had VANISHED.....again, I pray "Bless him Father for he has sinned."

Nectarine Lovers

Nectarine lovers rejoice!  I like nectarines when they are in season. The perfect nectarine is not too soft (mushy), just the right amount of tartness but mostly sweet and juicy.

The only thing much better than the real thing; at least in my eyes (and mouth) is a Nectarine Tart especially when it is made by L'Amande Bakery.  You get the idea just by looking at the picture. It is flaky, crisp, a bit burnt on top and has the right amount of balance on tartness and sweetness.

All the delicious tarts from L'Amande Bakery are best eaten on the same day; they strongly recommend this but I have to confess, I have had a slice or two the next day.
I serve mine with a bit of whipped cream, though some prefer a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

You never know what tart they sell on the weekend but if you call them at (310) 326-8980 on Friday afternoon, they can tell you what tart to expect. You can also go on their facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/lamandefrenchbakery

Spaghetti ala Rao's

This is the easiest spaghetti to make. The first step is to buy a bottled Rao's Homemade Puttanesca Sauce which is sold in most supermarkets and Cost Plus World Market.  Puttanesca has capers, olives and anchovies. I included a small can of chopped olives to the sauce and heated it. I added a bit of cream to make it thicker.

I then cooked 4 servings of spaghetti in my "pasta boat" (a lot less time than recommended) just enough time to make it aldente. Served the spaghetti on plates which I microwaved for a minute to keep the food warm. I put enough sauce to cover most of the spaghetti and added some parmesan.

The spaghetti was better than expected. It had a lot of flavor with the anchovies and olives; the extra olives added a lot more texture to the sauce. I served this with a salad I made with candied pecans, roasted edamame, dried cranberries, cherry tomatoes, and some blue cheese. The dressing was just course salt, pepper, olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

I should have saved this for Friday since we are still in the Lenten season.

Salted Caramel Napoleon

Everyone has heard of Napoleons but have you heard of Salted Caramel Napoleons?
It is to die for! Ana, executive chef of L'Amande Bakery in Torrance, California has done it again.

This past weekend was the first time they sold these beautiful pastries at the bakery. Not to forget they also have the regular Napoleons for the purists.  I love regular Napoleons but since the introduction of the Salted Caramels, I have to say that this is one of my favorites. My brother who is always busy came to meet me at the bakery on Sunday morning to preview the never-heard of Napoleon. Of course we didn't want to start with dessert though that has not stopped us before.  I talked him into ordering the Croque Madame. After that hearty breakfast, he had the salted caramel napoleon which he loved judging by his moaning. Then, Ana came over and insisted he try the regular Napoleon so he could compare it to the one he just had. Though he was full, he must not have wanted to hurt Ana's feelings so he allowed her to twist his arm.....not much twisting went on.  He inhaled the regular napoleon with the custard filling. The verdict was he preferred the original custard to the salted caramel. It just depends on your taste; I suppose.

Since Napoleons are hard and messy to eat as they seem to have 100 layers of flaky and buttery dough, I found that the best way is to eat it is with your hands. By holding it on one end, you are able to keep everything intact.  When you use a fork and knife, all the filling comes out the other end. If you are like me, I want to have the right amount of filling in each bite, getting your hands dirty is a must. You actually don't get it that dirty-just three fingers!

So the next time you have the opportunity to try these Napoleons, do so and let me know your preference.

Livello - 2013

This was my first visit to Livello in 2013.  I can tell you I have been there numerous times and I keep going back since my very first time in July of last year.  It has to be good enough for me to keep driving the hour drive.  Two nights ago, it took me an hour and 20 minutes! We were a bit disappointed that they have closed their main dining room which is now reserved for private parties.  The current room is nice a cozy with the bar and fireplace but it's not the same.

Sandi and I took advantage of the Gild City offer which was $95 for a four course dinner for two with a glass of wine. Some restaurants are better than others when it comes to prix fixe dinners; some may give you microscopic portions that when you leave, you want to drive to the nearest Carl's Jr. or have a late dinner at a coffee shop. Livello is one exception to that rule.

We started with the Chef's choice of Amuse Bouche which was called a Surf & Turf; this was Lobster with Tenderloin, Asparagus and Shallot chip. It was delicious. For the second course, we both chose the Brussels Sprouts. We both just loved it. It had big chunks of goat cheese, mitsuba, whole grain honey mustard sauce. We would have been happy to have that as an entree (bigger portion of course).

For our third course, we decided not to order the same thing. Sandi had the 5 spice Garlic Crust Lamb Chops with long beans and I had the Stewed Squid & Spaghetti pomodoro with broccoli cream.
The lamb was tasty, tender and just outstanding. The spaghetti was perfect that this may be the first time in a loooong time that it didn't even occur to me to ask for parmesan cheese.

For dessert we had one of each from the menu. The Ricotta Cheesecake with spiced pear compote and lemon ice cream and the Chocolate Cake with marshmallow, salted caramel and pistachio ice cream. I have had the chocolate cake before and remembered how good it was. The cheesecake was nice and light, not your typical heavy, dense cheesecakes.

Amy our server was attentive and very nice but we missed our favorite server, Joseph.
Chef Dayag came to greet us. I gave him my seal of approval on everything we had.

A note to Chef Dayag:  You could make that Spaghetti with the Stewed Squid a signature dish. It does not even come close to Scarpetta's spaghetti (Chef Conant's signature dish).  Yours have a lot more flavor. It was great seeing you and hope to see you soon.

Livello is located at the L'Ermitage Hotel in Beverly Hills.

Best Boeuf Bourguignon in Beverly Hills

Hold your horses.......before you get excited!  The best Boeuf Bourguignon is still on it's way....but will soon be at the L'Amande Bakery in Beverly Hills.

I was lucky enough to be a guinea pig and try the boeuf bourguignon which Ana & Gonz are planning to have in their bakery which will open sometime this year.

Before the main dish, we were served a nice salad; a foreplay of what was to come.

The plates came individually, served by non other than the owner and executive chef, Ana.  All I can say is it was the best I have ever had.  She chose to serve it on pasta which was cooked to perfection (aldente) and that's a big plus considering this is not an Italian restaurant. The meat was ever so tender that I really should have used my spoon because as soon it came in contact with my fork, it just fell apart.  The pasta of course was a perfect accompaniment as it absorbed the wonderful sauce that had bacon, cognac, wine, carrots and sweet pearl onions. What the pasta did not absorb, the French bread did!

She gave us all a "to go" container for our left overs as they were big portions. Needless to say, I didn't get to touch my container. I ate the whole thing! She warned us to leave room for dessert.  I ignored that warning.  Dessert was chocolate mousse which I have had before; pure delight with an orange flavor. My husband Otto ate half of it. Luckily there was another dessert that I absolutely went crazy over.  It was a Caramel Napoleon.  I don't have a picture of it but decided this needs a blog of  it's own.  The good news is they will be selling these Napoleons this coming weekend (March 2,3,2013) and some other weekends at the current L'Amande Bakery in Torrance. You have not lived till you try these very flaky, crispy and just plain wonderful Caramel Napoleons.

In the meantime, we all have to sacrifice and wait (after all it's Lent) to get a taste of the Boeuf Bourguignon when it makes it's grand opening at the L'Amande Bakery in Beverly Hills. You can all join me in prayer that they open sooner than later.