DineLA: Petrossian

This post is late but it was too delicious a meal not to post about.
DineLA Restaurant Week is a 2 week dining event that runs twice a year. I usually try to schedule a couple dinner reservations but since I had just returned from a food-indulgent Southeast Asian trip, I decided to trim it down to one dinner.

After surveying the participating restaurants' menu, we decided on Petrossian. Two words completely sold me. Foie Carbonara. Petrossian, the gourmet shop specializing in caviar, spells decadence.

Caviar Salad ~ butter lettuce, shaved egg, shallot chives, parsley, lemon, dill, creme fraiche
I don't usually care for salads in a restaurant, but this dish was a great blend of simplicity and elegance. The butter lettuce was fresh and light, and the caviar added a right amount of saltiness.

Egg Royale ~ Scrambled egg, whipped cream, caviar
The egg mixture was smooth and nicely seasoned. It was such a fun and delicate dish to eat.

Butternut squash soup ~ brown butter, sage, creme fraiche
I was completely pleased with my soup selection. The soup was poured table side into a bowl that contained a interesting mix of spice and crispy walnut. It really worked, and the crunchy texture was nice. The soup was rich and bursting in flavor.

Foie Gras carbonara ~ home made fettucine, bacon, parmesan
The foie carbonara was everything I had hoped for. I was very impressed with the amount of foie in the dish. The al dente strands of fettucine were mixed up with a foie based sauce, and furthermore, the pasta was topped with a slab of foie. There were bits of bacon incorporated into the dish which added a saltiness and smokiness. The dish was extremely rich and decadent, but worth every single bite. I just didn't want it to end.

Scottish Salmon ~ mushroom, leeks, farro, serrano ham, honey mustard
My friend ordered the salmon cooked on the rare side in a mild flavored mustard sauce. The skin on the fish was crispy but the center was still pink and tender. I really enjoyed the accompaniments which included a nicely textured farro, and crispy serrano ham and leeks.

Caviar gelee ~ vodka, white chocolate mousse
The creamy mousse had a very strong alcoholic flavor. There was a crunchy walnut crumble at bottom of the glass which was mixed with caviar. The salty tones in the dessert really worked.

Vanilla panna cotta ~ espresso pearls, cardamon shortbread cookies
The panna cotta was much thicker than what I was used to but it tasted great.

Almond creme brulee~ russian tea cookie
Pretty standard dessert but still good.

I really enjoyed my meal at Petrossian. The foie carbonara was such a treat - when do you ever get such a serving of foie. I was expecting have only enjoyed the foie carbonara, but I thought all the appetizers were strong. Standout meal.

Petrossian
321 N. Robertson Blvd.,
West Hollywood, CA 90048
(310) 271-6300

WP24: Wolfgang Puck's Pricey Asian restaurant

I’m always hesitant to dine at an upscale Chinese restaurant. It's fine to shell out the bucks for a fresh piece of uni or wagyu beef, but somehow it’s hard to spend $100 per person on Chinese food when you can get a better meal in LA for a fifth of the price. But I was keen when my friend suggested Wolfgang Puck’s newish upscale restaurant WP24 at the Ritz Carlton, at the LA Live in Downtown.

When we first walked in, we sat at the bar waiting for our table. The space is huge, with the outside dining and bar area completely empty. Diners were escorted into the separate dining room with wraparound windows and a gorgeous view of downtown.

While sitting at the bar, I had a glass of bubbly which our bartender kindly filled it up.

The food is served family style and only offered as a three or four course menu. The three course meal costs $80 and includes a starter, main course and dessert. We requested to replace one dessert for another starter, and supplemented the meal with a side of noodles.

Gotta love an Asian restaurant that serves an amuse bouche. The prawn toast is also offered in the lounge menu. There was a large plump shrimp within the buttery deep-fried toast.

The second amuse bouche was seafood turnovers. The pastry was buttery and the filling was well seasoned, although I thought this needed a dipping sauce.

Tasting of Dumplings ($8 supplemental)
This consisted of chive dumpling, dan dan dumpling, tiny dumpling, scallop-shrimp shu mai and shrimp har gow. My favorite was the dan dan dumpling which had a spicy kick and crunchy peanuts. I appreciated that the dumpling skin was fresh and not gummy, and that there was a good serving of shrimp in the filling. However I thought the dumplings tasted almost similar and didn’t offer anything unique from dumplings you can find elsewhere.

Cheow feung rolls with braised kobe beef cheeks, with chile, scallions, cilantro, crispy garlic, hot sesame oil
Once again, I was impressed with the wrapping. The beef cheek filling was tender and spicy. The rice noodle rolls were tasty but I wouldn't have known that it was filled with beef cheeks. The meat tasted almost like braised short ribs.

Crispy suckling pig, quince apple puree, sweet bean, chinese 10 spice
The crispy suckling pig was cooked nicely with layers of fat and a crispy skin. I liked the combination of the salty seasoning and the mildly sweet apple puree.

Singapore Style Chili Prawns, fresh crab, fried garlic, chili, scallions, shallots, pickled ginger
As a Singaporean who has grown up on chili crabs, I was rather disappointed with this dish. While the flavors were fine, I was expecting the layered flavors of a traditional Singapore chili sauce. I was expecting the sauce to have lots of garlic and a zing, perhaps from some homemade sambal. Instead the chili tasted like sriracha. While the dish had good Asian flavors, it did not remind me of anything I’ve had in Singapore.

Crispy glazed Cavendish Farm Quails "General Tso", garlic, dried chiles, ginger, black Chinkiang vinegar
This was perhaps my favorite dish. The portion was quite generous (6 pieces!). The quail was tender and juicy, but still had a crispy skin.

Shanghai noodles with fresh chiles, thai basil leaves, slow cooked oxtail
I thought the noodles needed more seasoning. With all the chiles and herbs, you would think it would have been more flavorful.

Passionfruit Semi Freddo, vanilla scented pineapple, coconut sorbet, gold toffeeMarjolasian, layers of dark chocolate, white espresso mousse, cashew nougatine, coffee ice cream

There was a long delay in getting our dessert. We didn’t mention anything but the waiter told us he would be bringing over an extra dessert. I thought that was a nice touch. Both desserts were pretty good, with lovely presentation. Unfortunately, we were both too full to enjoy more than one bite of each plate.

I have mixed emotions about WP24. I thought some of the dishes were great (quail, shrimp toast), but I expected the flavors to be more explosive. When I compare this to my meals at other upscale Asian restaurants such as Lukshon and Red Medicine, I have to say that WP24 does not meet the mark. The prices are high for dumplings and noodles, and the dishes are not as unique as what you can get from the other two restaurants. The service was also a bit spotty. Our waiter brought by an extra dessert but unfortunately, water glasses were rarely filled, and we had to wait over 20 minutes for our table as we were told that we had to 'wait for hostess' to come back from the dining room. The view was great, so while I may not come back for a full dinner, I may stop by the bar for some cocktails and shrimp toasts.

Hits: quail, view
Misses: pricey, chile prawn not Singaporean
Rating: **1/2

WP24
900 West Olympic Blvd.,
Los Angeles, CA 90015
(213) 743-8824

Marea, NYC: Uni and Crab Pasta will forever be ingrained in my mind

I ended my trip to New York with Sunday brunch at Two Michelin Star Italian restaurant Marea. I actually didn't know much about Marea (gasp) but it came highly recommended among friends and bloggers. Their seafood and pastas are not to be missed, so I've been told.

We were one of the first guests to arrive but the restaurant filled up quickly. I liked the upscale yet modern decor with leather chairs and a lovely view of Columbus Circle.

I don't ever take photos of bathrooms, but I loved their sinks.

Their brunch menu includes 2 courses for $42. First course includes a choice from their crudo or antipasti section, and second course allows a selection from their pastas and entrees. It was a pretty easy decision for me as I knew exactly what I was going to get and had been thinking about it for days - their sea urchin and crab spaghetti.

Bread selection was a seven-grain and olive foccacia.

Assaggio Di Tre ~ tasting of three crudo (additional $9)
This is the way to go if you can't decide between their 9 crudos. I chose the sepia, octopus and razor clams. The sepia (cuttlefish) was served with soffrito and bottarga. I really enjoyed the sharpness of the bottarga. The razor clams were nicely seasoned and served with fennel and peperoncino. It was supple with an oceanic flavor. I loved the texture of the octopus which was dressed with chili oil, lemon and parsley. The flavors of the crudo were really clean and fresh.

Moleche ~ crispy soft shell crab, charred radicchio, orange, pancetta vinaigrette
The soft shell crab was uniquely breaded with polenta which resulted in a grainy texture. It was nicely seasoned. The slightly bitter radicchio was dressed with fresh citrus dressing.

Fusilli ~ durum wheat pasta, red wine braised octopus, bone marrow
This is apparently one of their most popular dishes. The wheat pasta was toothsome and the crevices really held on to the sauce. The large octopus tentacles were cut to the same length as the pasta so they almost blended into the sauce. The pasta was cooked in a rich tomato sauce that was full of flavor. Huge chunks of fatty bone marrow were mixed in the sauce and really added richness to the dish.

Spaghetti ~ fresh cut Semonlina pasta, crab, Santa Barbara sea urchin, basil
This dish was absolutely glorious. The fresh pasta was cooked al dente and mixed in completely with the creamy bright orange uni sauce. I can never get enough of pasta with uni as it has the right balance of sweetness and oceanic flavor. The fresh crab was topped on the pasta for an additional seafood touch. Crumbled breadcrumbs were added for texture and saltiness. Such a standout dish that I hope to be able to make at home.

Ippoglosso ~ herb crusted east coast halibut, broccoli rabe, sopprasetta, royal trumpet mushroom, cipollini
The halibut was perfectly cooked with a crusty coating, and was quite a generous portion. The mushroom had an intense earthly flavor and the soprasetta was sweet with a nice spice. Although the halibut dish was tasty, I think the pasta dishes resonated more with my party.

Petit fours of Pistachio Madeline, espresso and gooey salted caramel were presented. Who needs to order dessert when you can get this for free?

Brunch at Marea was exquisite. I was really impressed with the freshness of the crudo. The pasta dishes were definitely standout, perfectly cooked with hearty and comforting flavors, yet cooked with such finesse. They were also surprisingly served in rather filling portions. My only critique was that our waiter was a bit snobby and rather curt. Understandably, this is an upscale restaurant, but it was also during Sunday brunch, not a weekend dinner reservation. Otherwise, an excellent last meal to round up my New York trip.

Hits: crudo, uni pasta, fusilli
Misses: waiter a bit snobby
Rating:***1/2

Marea
240 Central Park South,
New York, NY 10019
(212) 582-5100
www.marea-nyc.com

Gramercy Tavern, NYC (An American Classic)

I didn't realize that Gramercy Tavern was such a New York establishment. When you walk into the upscale restaurant or peruse the contemporary cuisine, you wouldn't realize that the Michelin One Star restaurant has been around for 17 years. You may not even recall that Top Chef judge Tom Colicchio was a previous co-owner and executive chef.

The restaurant is split into a bar area and a more formal dining room.

A prix fixe menu is offered in the dining room, three courses for $88. They also offer a six course tasting menu, including a vegetarian option.

Fresh bread with choice of plum ciabatta and sourdough.

Next, an amuse bouche of potato souffle with goat cheese and Parmesan. The souffle was airy and similar to a gougere with a pungent goat cheese essence.

Beef tartare with sorrel and farm egg
The delicate and fresh beef was nicely seasoned. After combining the poached yolk with the finely chopped meat, you get a lovely mixture that's rich and almost buttery. I liked that you could really taste the freshness of the meat, and that the tartare wasn't overpowered by capers and seasoning.

Duck fettucine with parsnips and brussel sprouts.
This was one of my favorite dishes of the night. The pulled duck confit was tender with pieces of fat attached. The sauce was slightly creamy, perhaps from the fat of the confit and the pasta combined. There was also a nice balance of sweetness and tang in the sauce. The leafy sprouts and parnips added crunch to the dish. Overall, a very hearty and comforting dish.

Rack and shoulder of lamb with hen of the woods mushrooms, sunchokes, hazelnut and collard greens
This dish is apparently a crowd favorite. The duo of lamb was perfectly cooked and not gamy. I really enjoyed the pairing of the chunks of sunchokes and earthy mushrooms. The lamb jus really combined with and flavored all the components on the plate.

Pork loin & belly with Heirloom beans and red rice
The pork loin was amazing, perhaps one of the juiciest piece of pork I've had. It was served with a smaller portion of pork belly that was was tender and fatty. I thought the red rice and beans were an interesting choice of sides which gave this dish a very Southern touch. The rice and beans were spicy and flavorful in a sauce that was infused with coriander and thyme. The dish was topped with emulsified pork skin which was a nice touch.

The last course is a dessert of your choice.

But first, a palate cleanser was brought over. Mandarin jelly, marscapone sauce and a meringue which was light and citrusy. It reminded me of a creamsicle. The sharp flavors really did a good job of cleansing the palate.

Sticky coffee fig cake and coffee ice cream
My favorite dessert of the night. The sticky coffee cake was gooey and sticky, with an intense caramel flavor. It was definitely very sweet and rich so a couple bites was more than enough.

Warm chocolate bread pudding with cacao nib ice cream
The chocolate pudding would be a chocolate-lover's dream. It was not super heavy or dense, and was moist in the center.

As if the meal wasn't filling enough, petit fours were presented with the check. Mint chocolate ganache, black sesame meringue and chocolate ganache tart.

I love when restaurants pack some fresh baked goods for breakfast the next day. We were given a homemade muffin which came in handy after the bars had closed.

The 3 course menu was more than sufficient food. Add on the amuse bouche, palate cleanser and petit fours and that's essentially six courses. I definitely walked away full and very satisfied. The food was spot on, flavorful and well executed. A truly lovely meal. After all these years, it seems that Gramercy Tavern hasn't missed a beat.

Hits: all the dishes, portions
Misses: get crowded, so make a reservation
Rating: ***1/2

Gramercy Tavern
42 E 20th St
New York, NY 10003
(212) 477-0777
www.gramercytavern.com