LudoBites 8.0 at Lemon Moon (Los Angeles, CA) [2]

LudoBites 8 at Lemon Moon
12200 W Olympic Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90064
310.442.9191
www.ludobites.com
Wed 02/22/2012, 08:30p-12:00a



February 22nd marked the conclusion of another chapter in the LudoBites saga, held this time at Josiah Citrin and Rafael Lunetta's Lemon Moon. After attending opening night, I deemed v8.0 the strongest yet, so I was curious to see how the menu would hold up all the way to the end.


And here we see the menu for the final night of LudoBites 8, a particularly lengthy carte featuring a whopping 17 courses. As in the past, a small list of wines was hand-selected by Domaine LA to pair with the food. Interestingly enough, Jill Bernheimer and Whitney Adams (Brunellos Have More Fun) were actually dining tonight, so sommelier duties were handled by Maxwell Leer, whom you may recall from The Tasting Kitchen in Venice. Click for larger versions.


We were in a beer type of mood this evening, so we ended up bringing a four-pack to share. First up was the BrewDog Punk IPA, which I actually really liked. I'm generally not huge on IPAs given their considerable hoppiness, but this was nice, with a very retrained bitterness laced with sweet, floral flavors that definitely worked for me.


Burgundy Gougères [$5.00]
Kicking things off were some rather large gougères: flaky on the outside, yet slightly creamy and funky on the inside. Rather tasty, though I would've liked a touch more cheesiness here.


Chicken Tandoori Crackling [$5.00]
I really enjoyed this dish during my last visit, and the cracklings were arguably even better this time around. I loved the pure, unmitigated essence of the liver, with its smooth, creamy tour de force of chicken-y sapor accented by pricks of salt. What made the bite even better, though, was that crispy skin, with its immense savoriness and crunch that complemented the mousse perfectly. A great show of both power and finesse.


Uni Crème Brûlée, Coffee [$34.00]
Ludo's uni crème brûlée has proven to be one of the most popular items on the menu. In fact, by the time we sat down, the kitchen was down to their last three servings (props to our server for grabbing two orders for us). What really surprised me here was how much the price of the dish had gone up, from $18 previously to a lofty $34 now. As I understand it, the reason for this increase was due to the substitution of pricey Japanese uni for Santa Barbara sea urchin. Nonetheless, the crème brûlée still showed off a smart mix of sweet and salty flavors, a deft interplay between the sugary custard, salty ikura, and the simultaneously saccharine, saline uni. I did notice that the dish seemed smokier, perhaps due to more caramelization on the crust or the coffee, with a consistency that was more austere.


Sweet Shrimp, Miso Cream, Beans, Smoked Salmon [$16.00]
Amaebi showed off a pleasing texture, along with a subtly sweet, briny essence that was further enhanced by the use of miso. The salmon, meanwhile, contributed a smoky, savory flavor profile to the fray, while the beans served to ground and temper the dish.


Our next beer was the Monk's Café Flemish Sour Ale, from Belgium's Brouwerij Van Steenberge. This was a tasty brew as well, a bit vinous and tannic in nature, with a restrained, fruity sourness balanced by a touch of malty sweetness, finished with a pleasant smidge of funkiness.


Lobster Salad, Yuzu, Honey [$16.00]
Medallions of lobster claw and tail came topped with a daikon "coin," honey-buckwheat vinaigrette, and lemon zest. The use of honey here augmented the inherent sweetness of the lobster, but went a bit too far in that direction, resulting in a "sweet 'n' sour" sort of character laced with pinpoints of salt. I really wanted to taste more from the crustacean.


Black Truffle (French) Scrambled Eggs [$35.00]
It's hard to go wrong with eggs and truffle, and indeed, this was pretty fantastic, something that I could just eat a huge bowl of. I loved how the truffe added a veil of earthy, aromatic flavors to the lush, creamy eggs, while bits of onion(?) contributed a countervailing tang and textural contrast to the dish. Just a perfect mélange of eggy and truffle flavors that I found immensely satisfying.


Celery Root Soup, Foie Gras, Mushrooms, Ash [$22.00]
On opening night, Ludo served up a lovely soup of Foie Gras, Tamarind, Turnips, Daikon, and this was a wonderful follow-up to that dish. I'm not a fan of celery root generally, but here it was put to perfect use, serving as a fitting counterpoint to the rich, heady broth, infused with the earthy relish of mushroom. The foie gras, meanwhile, was flawlessly integrated into the soup, adding a certain gravitas to the dish, while the ash contributed a delicate astringency to top things off.


Big Eye Tuna, Tahitian Vanilla, Somen, 7 Flavor Vinaigrette [$25.00]
Visually, this reminded me of the Raw Wagyu Beef, Somen Noodle, Peanut Vinaigrette, Watermelon dish from v5.0, but taste-wise, this was completely different. The vinaigrette was absolutely fascinating, with its mysterious mix of tart, sweet flavors and creeping hints of spice, all intermingled with whispers of vanilla on the palate. It worked out surprisingly well with the somen, and the tuna, with its satisfyingly supple body, actually served to moderate the dish.


The Gulden Draak ("golden dragon") was another beer from Brouwerij Van Steenberge in East Flanders, and what was interesting about it was that it's a tripel that's actually dark (instead of being a pale ale). It was excellent, my favorite beer of the night, conveying a remarkably malty, fruity sweetness balanced by a light spice and marked notes of alcohol. Very cool.


Monkfish Liver, Cucumber, Cornichons, Mustard Seeds [$20.00]
Another opening night redux brought us one of the more interesting presentations of monkfish liver that I've encountered. A hefty chunk of ankimo showed off a pleasant, slightly gritty consistency along with a rich, heady relish imbued with the essence of the sea. The sheer gravity of the liver paired well with the tart, tangy flavors on the plate, with the pickles of Japanese and hot house cucumbers, mustard, and greenery adding a counterbalancing sourness and crunch to complete the dish.


At this point, Maxwell brought over a taste of 2005 Adega Regional de Colares "Arenae" Malvasia from Portugal for us to try (from a bottle provided by Jill of Domaine LA). It was pretty amazing, reminding us a bit of a manzanilla sherry with its refined, refreshing mix of nutty, dry, tart flavors.


Steamed Foie Gras in Apple Cider, Apple Tapioca, Buckwheat [$34.00]
Once again, Ludo shows off his facility with foie. Here, it came cooked in apple cider and apple vinegar, then accompanied by apple gelée, apple tapioca, and small spheroids of buckwheat. I was afraid that the fruit would render the foie gras overly saccharine, but it was spot on, providing a wonderful amalgam of sweet, yet tart flavors to balance out the liver. The key, though, was the buckwheat, which added a fantastic savoriness to the dish along with a perfect textural component.


Scallop, Cauliflower Panna Cotta, Yogurt-Madras Curry [$19.00]
Scallops arrived nicely cooked--slightly rare, with a sweet, saline savor. The yogurt-curry foam provided a suitable counterpoint to the natural taste of the scallops, complementing but not overpowering them. However, the cauliflower didn't quite jive with me (and I'm a huge fan of cauliflower). Its light, vegetal essence just didn't seem to fit in with the other, stronger flavors at play.


Thai Snapper, Eucalyptus Oil, Potato, Leeks, Manzanilla [$26.00]
Snapper arrived wonderfully tender, with a mild, delicate, eucalyptus-enhanced flavor and delightfully savory skin, all beautifully complemented by the salty slivers of potato and charred leeks. The beet, meanwhile, contributed a bit of smoky-sweet flair, but wasn't absolutely necessary to enjoy the dish.


Our final beer of the night was The Bruery's 4 Calling Birds. This was a dark ale done in a winter style, a heavy, viscous brew displaying a marked fruity essence accented by delicious notes of sweet spice. It tasted like Christmas!


Veal, Black Olive Tapenade Crust, Orange Caramelized Endive, Clementine Beurre Blanc [$28.00]
Cooked in black olive oil and coated with an olive tapenade, veal came out looking somewhat like a lump of coal. Fortunately, it tasted much better, one of the best preparations that I've had in a while in fact: tender, nicely charred, with subtle flavors of olive throughout. At the same time, the orange juice-endive added a marvelous crunch to the dish, along with a great countervailing bitterness.


"Newport Pride Natural" Hanger Steak, Red Beets, Shallots, Goat Cheese [$25.00]
Our final savory course of the evening comprised a hanger steak from local purveyor Newport Pride Natural. The onglet itself was delicious, though not terribly tender, with a great depth of bovine flavor adroitly played against the creamy tang of the accompanying chèvre. I also appreciated the tartness of the shallots here, and amazingly enough, the pickled, crunchy beets worked out superbly as well.


Creamy Saint-Nectaire, Salted Praline Butter [$10.00]
The fromage course brought us a dish that was supposedly inspired by the childhood favorite of Handi-Snacks. We had Saint-Nectaire, a cow's milk cheese from Auvergne, France, that showed off a delightfully nutty, pungent character that I rather enjoyed. The cheese was joined by lardo, and then sandwiched between sheets of toasty brioche, making for a delectable eating experience. The salted praline butter added some further sweetness into the mix, but was purely optional.


Our final libation of the evening was the NV Pacory Poire Domfront, Normandy, France [$20]. This was basically a pear cider, conveying sweet, fruity notes, a touch of spice, along with a lively acidity. Pleasantly gluggable.


Brown Butter Almond Cake, Apples, Salted Caramel, Orange Creamsicle [$13.00]
Time for dessert. Almond cake came loaded with rich, buttery goodness, finely accented by the mashed apples and finished with a bright, refreshing citric tartness.


We liked the orange creamsicle ice cream so much that they brought out two extra quenelles of the stuff.


Lemon Meringue, Poppy Seed Crumble, Extra Virgin Olive Oil [$13.00]
We finished with a reworking of the Lemon Meringue Tart from last time. It tasted fairly similar to the previous version, with a tasty mix of sweet and sour nuances, all tempered by the charming crumbles of poppy seed.



The aftermath--time to drink up.

And there we have it. Another round of LudoBites, arguably the strongest yet, has come and gone. As for what's next for Ludo, Krissy, and company, the ninth iteration of the touring restaurant is coming up surprisingly soon--LudoBites "Nine-0" kicks off on March 6th and runs through the 17th. Here's the kicker though: it'll be in Hawaii. And I'm not even talking about the relatively convenient Oahu, but in Kailua-Kona, wherever that is. Sadly, I think this is one that I'm going to have to miss out on (though I will try to win the getaway package here).



Previous LudoBites posts: v8.0 at Lemon Moon, v7.0 at Gram & Papas, LudoBites America, v6.0 at Max [1], v5.0 at Gram & Papas [1], v4.0 at Gram & Papas [1], v3.0 at Royal/T [2] [1], v2.0 at Breadbar [1].

Wood & Vine (Los Angeles, CA) [2]

Wood & Vine Restaurant
6280 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood, CA 90028
323.334.3360
www.woodandvine.com
Tue 02/21/2012, 07:15p-10:35p



After being impressed by my last visit here, I figured that it was time to revisit Wood & Vine, probably my favorite Hollywood eatery at the moment. As you might recall, W&V debuted last February, serving market-driven, gastropub-y fare in the landmark 1923 Taft Building, helmed by ex-Bastide Sous Chef Gavin Mills.

Mills is still manning the stoves fortunately, but there's been a bit of a shuffle in the front-of-the-house. General Manager Albert Rothman has been replaced by Dario Dell'Anno, whom you may recall as the former Sommelier at Bastide (he worked with Mills during Joseph Mahon's tenure there).


We were in luck: unbeknownst to me, Chef Mills was serving up a special Cajun- and Creole-inspired menu tonight in celebration of Mardi Gras--talk about Fat Tuesday! Click for larger versions.


To go along with all the Louisiana cuisine, the bar featured some Mardi Gras-inspired cocktail specials, as well their everyday selection of craft, California-centric beers and wines. Click for larger versions.


Ramos Fizz [$12.00] | Gin, cream egg white, house sour, orange flower
The Ramos Gin Fizz is perhaps the quintessential New Orleans cocktail, and came enthusiastically recommended by our server, so I just had to give it a try. It was absolutely lovely, with the gin playing perfectly off of the tart flavors of the drink, while the egg white served as a creamy, lush counterpoint. Great finish on this one too: almost honeyed and floral, with a lingering sweetness.


CHARCUTERIE & CHEESE SELECTION [$21.00]
There's no doubt in my mind that Chef Mills produces some of the best charcuterie in the City, all done in-house, and he sent out a selection to kick things off, accompanied by whole-grain mustard, cauliflower pickles, and honey:

• Country Pate - We started with a version of the traditional pâté de campagne. It was delightful, robust and rustic, with a wonderfully satisfying consistency and a superb depth of flavor, amped up by the earthy essence of liver as well as a peppery prick.
• Chicken Liver & Port Pate - A pâté of chicken liver was also spot on, with its sweet undertones of port to go along with the delicate, yet heady nature of the liver. Great pinpoints of saltiness here, too.
• Salami - Salami was classic in character: salty, spicy, and full of porcine goodness, all with a nice bite.
• Spicy Coppa - I enjoyed the coppa as well, satisfyingly supple in texture, with a flavor profile that transitioned from subtly sweet to savory and spicy.
• Bresaola - Next up was the bresaola, which can almost be thought of as a beef version of the coppa. This was a leaner meat, mild at first, but with a creeping pepperiness and lingering bit of heat.
• Cantal, France, Cow - The Chef also included two cheeses into the mix, the first of which was a cow's milk variety from Cantal, France. I rather enjoyed it, finding its salty, somewhat buttery taste rather endearing.
• Fourme D'Ambert, France, Cow - Last up was a killer cow's milk blue, probably one of my favorites of its class, with a restrained mix of salty, nutty, and earthy flavors. Delish.

Vieux Carre [$12.00] | Old Overholt rye, Cognac, Carpano Antica, lemon twist
Magnolia [$12.00] | Sq. One Cucumber Vodka, ginger honey, cucumber
Time for some more cocktails. I went with the Vieux Carré (literally "old square"), a cocktail named after New Orleans' French Quarter. It was a fairly stiff drink, but with a lot of finesse at the same time, displaying a complex backbone of boozy character to match the sweet, spicy flavors in the drink--very nice. My dining companion, meanwhile, chose the Magnolia, which showed off a wonderful ginger-y heat that balanced out the cool, refreshing notes of cucumber in the cocktail.


CRAW FISH BOIL [$16.00] | red bliss potatoes, old bay, house-made andouille, corn
With this course, Mills pays homage to the legendary crawfish boils of southern Louisiana. This was actually my first experience with such a thing, and I gotta say that it was far too much work for so little meat! Nevertheless, the potatoes, corn, and sausage were all superb, and I thoroughly enjoyed the included condiment of what I believe was a remoulade or aioli--excellent with the crawdads.


LOBSTER ETOUFFE [$22.00] | brandy, poached lobster, white rice
Next up was the popular dish of étouffée, traditionally made with crayfish but elevated here with lobster. It was delicious, probably my favorite course of the night in fact. I loved the sizeable, snappy chunks of lobster here, and how the crustacean paired with the all the hearty, salty, savory flavors at play, while the rice did a great job in tempering the dish.


CRISPY PORK BELLY [$18.00] | southern greens, fried okra, grits
Pork belly was delightfully crunchy on the outside, yet still fatty and flavorful on the inside. Its considerable substance was deftly balanced by the grits, and the okra was some of the best I've had. However, I would've liked some less sweetness on the greens.


Stinger [$12.00] | Brandy, crème de menthe, heavy cream
My final cocktail riffed on the classic Stinger, though perhaps it would've been more appropriate to call this a Green Hornet. Nevertheless, I adored it, and found it disturbingly similar in taste to chocolate chip-mint ice cream. This one could be dangerous.


JAMBALAYA [$16.00] | andouille sausage, chicken, craw fish, holy trinity
Here was Mills' take on jambalaya, perhaps the most famous Louisianan dish of them all. It was a lovely medley of flavors and textures, with the whole chicken drumsticks adding a great depth of flavor to the dish, and I loved the spiciness imparted by the andouille.


SHRIMP GUMBO [$14.00] | andouille sausage, white rice, okra
Rounding things out was the shrimp gumbo, which I liked even better than the jambalaya. The star of the show was the shrimp: meaty, supple, and not overcooked. It paired superbly with the spicy flavors in the dish, the andouille especially, and the whole amalgam showed off a great boldness and robustness.


The last drink of the evening was a beer, specifically the Mardi Gras Bock [$7], from Louisiana's very own Abita Brewing Co. It showcased a surprisingly rich, caramel-y maltiness on the palate, but this was nicely balanced by a crisp, refreshing hoppiness that really worked for me.


KING CAKE [$6.00] | find the toy receive a gift certificate
Of course, we had to end with the traditional closer of kingcake. I believe this was my first time actually having the cake, but I found it quite tasty, with a wonderful sweet, cinnamon-y spice and delightful nuttiness. Sadly though, we had no luck finding the toy.

Chef Mills and company reminded me of why Wood & Vine is my top pick in Hollywood, with its robust, hearty, and satisfying cooking and delectable selection of cocktails delivering once again. Actually, this meal got me thinking: where can I find good Cajun/Creole food here in LA?

---

Ever since opening, Wood & Vine has had an ongoing partnership with the Los Angeles Youth Network. Founded in 1984, LAYN is a local non-profit organization aimed at ending adolescent homelessness, and provides food, shelter, outreach, counseling, and educational support for abused and abandoned minors. Since its inception, LAYN has helped thousands of youth transition away from a life on the streets and into a safe and secure place in society.

Wood & Vine's relationship with the Los Angeles Youth Network includes hosting kids from LAYN and educating them about food, nutrition, and the restaurant business. It even extends to having participants work as interns at Wood & vine, and furthermore, all revenue from the restaurant's profiteroles dessert goes straight to the organization.

Now, Wood & Vine co-owner Scott Kay (whom I met for the first time during this meal) is spearheading a new initiative called Cash for Kids, scheduled to run during the last week of March (the 25th through the 31st). During this period, the idea is to have patrons pay with cash/check/debit instead of credit cards at participating restaurants and retail shops. Thus, instead of paying the 2% processing/interchange fee to credit card companies, merchants will instead donate 2% of sales to the LAYN.

I thought that this was a pretty neat idea, as, in theory, a business should see no change in operating income due to Cash for Kids. In fact, businesses may see increased sales due to the initiative, and any donations are tax-deductible to boot, so this may in fact help the bottom line. Of course, there are always intangibles such as positive press and goodwill, and the benefit of helping children in need.

Click on the photo to the left to bring up the Cash for Kids flyer, and for more information, contact Scott Kay at the email address and phone number shown.