Monthly Archive for July, 2010

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Viet Noodle Bar – Los Angeles (Atwater Village)

Published by Gastronomer on July 7, 2010 in Atwater Village, Bo Bia, Cha Ca Thanh Long, Goi, Los Angeles, Restaurant Review and Vietnamese. 14 Comments

While I was living in Vietnam, one of the most popular restaurant trends was repackaging traditional street food with Western aesthetics in mind. Dubbed “air-con street food” by the expatriate crowd, these joints served Vietnamese fare in comfortable settings, complete with competent waiters and English language menus. While I didn’t care too much for these sterile eateries, places like Pho 24 and Bun Bo Xu were extremely popular with middle-class locals, tourists, and expats.

I thought that I had left air-con street food behind me when I moved to Los Angeles, but the moment I stepped into Viet Noodle Bar in Atwater Village, I was instantly transported back in time. Something about the exposed brick walls, sleek furnishings, and the romantically dated Vespa on display was reminiscent of District 1, Saigon.

Viet Noodle Bar serves a hodgepodge of Vietnamese dishes to a hip and trendy crowd. According to the Los Angeles Times article “Inspired by a World of Ingredients”, the restaurant’s owner, Viet Tran, traveled across North Vietnam for five years and studied noodle-making and soy milk-making in little villages. Viet Soy Cafe in Silverlake and Viet Noodle Bar were inspired by his experiences abroad.

My posse of noodle-goers [Laurie, Diana, and Anjali] and I started with an order of jicama spring rolls, also known as bo bia ($5). Rolled to order, each one was filled with tofu, a jicama and carrot slaw, fried shallots, and a basil leaf. A sweet hoisin dipping sauce was served on the side. Although I generally prefer the non-vegetarian version of this dish, the freshness of the ingredients, especially the powerful punch of the basil, made me forget about the missing Chinese sausages and scrambled eggs.

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GIVEAWAY: L.A. Street Food Fest Tix

Published by Gastronomer on July 4, 2010 in Giveaway and Los Angeles. 200 Comments

After the tremendous popularity of the inaugural L.A. Street Food Fest last February [read full recap here], Shawna Dawson and Sonja Rasula are returning with an all-new Summer Tasting Event on Saturday, July 24 at the Rose Bowl.

Enjoy sampling signature bites from more than 60 vendors including hot gourmet food trucks, old school carts and stands, celebrity chefs, and some of the city’s best restaurants. Additionally, there will be open bars and beer gardens to keep festival-goers hydrated and happy with cold suds, delicious cocktails, tequila tastings, juices, and more. For a full list of participating vendors, check out the lengthy list here.

L.A. Street Food Fest Tix Giveaway

Fellow street food lovers, I invite you to join me at the L.A. Street Food Fest. I have TWO all-inclusive general admission tickets to give away to ONE lucky gas•tron•o•my reader. To qualify for the giveaway, please leave a comment with your name and email address in the appropriate fields, and your answer to the following question: What’s the greatest street food you’ve ever eaten? Only one entry per person, please. I’ll be using a random number generator to choose the winner. All entries must be received by Friday, July 9, 2010 at midnight PST. Good luck!

[All-inclusive tickets are available online now through the L.A. Street Food Fest website and Eventbrite. General admission tickets are $45, VIP tickets are $65. No tickets will be sold at the door.]

Cacao Sampaka – Madrid

Published by Gastronomer on July 2, 2010 in Dessert, Madrid and Restaurant Review. 8 Comments

The Astronomer and I arrived at Cacao Sampaka planning to grab something quick and sweet for the merienda and then continue on with the rest of our day. Instead, we stayed for two hours luxuriating over divine chocolates and shopping for edible presents for our friends and families back home. We couldn’t pull ourselves away from this extraordinarily special shop.

Owned by Albert Adrià, former El Bulli pastry chef and brother of Ferran, Cacao Sampaka offers a full-on haute chocolate experience. One part cafe and another market, the store is a delight for the senses. I loved how unusual flavors like anchovy and hazelnut, black olive, and Modena vinegar shared shelf space with more traditional milk and dark chocolates. I also loved how white chocolate, which is oftentimes disregarded by cacao connoisseurs, was given the gourmet treatment.

Since it’s not wise to shop on an empty stomach, The Astronomer and I grabbed a table at the cafe. We began with two chocolates each—I chose the Parmasean cheese and black forest truffle varieties, while he went with thyme and cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Each piece of chocolate was boldly and distinctly flavored; there was no question that the quality was impeccable and the ingredients were top-notch.

My black forest truffle, which came from the “Gastronomic Innovations” collection, worked surprisingly well. The deep, earthy flavor of the truffle melded ideally with the dark chocolate. However, the same could not be said about the Parmesan cheese creation. It was weird, and not in a good way. The Astronomer didn’t endure any flops; both chocolates were exactly to his liking.

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Casa Marta – Madrid

Published by Gastronomer on July 1, 2010 in Madrid, Restaurant Review and Spanish. 9 Comments

All across Spain during lunch time, restaurants offer a menu del dia (menu of the day). It’s usually a three course affair that includes a soup or salad to start, a simple protein in the middle, and something sweet at the end—all for one very reasonable price. The Astronomer and I sampled a handful of menus del dia during our trip, but we loved none as much as Casa Marta’s in Madrid. What set this place apart from all the others was the warm hospitality that we received and the value of the meal. After spending quite extravagantly on our three-star feasts, it felt nice to get a lot of bang for our euros.

Opened in 1925, Casa Marta is a family-run restaurant serving homey Spanish staples. The menu del dia was priced at €10.50 and included bread and wine, in addition to three generously portioned courses. With a little help from Marta’s grandson, the restaurant’s current owner, and The Astronomer’s pocket Spanish dictionary, we made our selections and eagerly awaited our midday meal.