Monthly Archive for April, 2011

Page 3 of 3

Jogasaki Sushi Burrito – Los Angeles

Published by Gastronomer on April 8, 2011 in Japanese, Los Angeles, Meals on Wheels and Restaurant Review. 5 Comments

After feasting on fried chicken at the Ludo Truck and swinging by the Manila Machine for a beef tapa slider and ube cupcake, The Astronomer and I stalked down the Jogasaki Sushi Burrito truck for our final bite of the night. Launched in late January, Jogasaki specializes in jumbo sushi rolls, stuffed with a hodgepodge of fixings and wrapped tightly in either a flour tortilla or soy paper.

Far from subtle or refined, Jogasaki’s sushi burrito lies somewhere on the sushi spectrum between Trader Joe’s prefabbed rolls and Mori’s pristine nigiri. We’re not dealing with the finest fishes on the block, but it’s passable, affordable, and hits the spot.

Messily scrawled onto a dry erase easel, Jogasaki’s bill of fare included various permutations of spicy tuna, crab meat, eel, shrimp tempura, avocado, cucumber, and lobster. The only non-sushi burrito offering was the “Spicy Tuna Nachos” ($5), which was comprised of Dorritos topped with spicy tuna, avocado, and eel sauce. Yow!

I settled on the #3, which included spicy tuna, shrimp tempura, avocado, and cucumber ($8). I’m glad that I asked for the eel sauce on the side, because its sticky sweetness would’ve wrecked my burrito.

Continue reading ‘Jogasaki Sushi Burrito – Los Angeles’

Ludo Truck – Los Angeles

Published by Gastronomer on April 6, 2011 in French, Los Angeles, Meals on Wheels, New American and Restaurant Review. 17 Comments

Chef Ludo Lefebvre of Ludo Bites fame (II, III, IV, V, VI) is currently traveling across America starring in a reality show about pop-up restaurants for the Sundance Channel. As a big fan of the chef, I am extremely proud that he’s been given this opportunity to share his inventive and delightful food with eaters outside L.A. The good folks of North Carolina, Alabama, New Mexico, Baltimore, Colorado, and Texas are in for a real treat!

As happy as I am for Chef Ludo, a small part of me (mostly my stomach) wishes that he would ditch his commitments, hurry back to the town that adores him most, and pop-up with something delicious for us to eat. It’s been a long couple of Ludo Bites-less months.

Until Chef Ludo returns home and orchestrates the next installment of Ludo Bites, the second best option is dining aboard the Ludo Truck. Chef Ludo launched the Ludo Truck following the tremendous success of his fried chicken balls at the inaugural LA Street Food Fest.

The Astronomer and I chased down the truck last month at downtown’s Art Walk. The line for the chef’s famous fried chicken was the longest in the lot. Thankfully, service was quick and efficient, and we had our food in less than fifteen minutes.

We ordered a two-piece serving of the Provencal Pepitte ($6). The first batch that we received was over-browned, so we exchanged it for a less overdone set of balls. The chicken was served with homemade barbecue sauce and “Ludo Slaw.”

It takes three whole days to prepare Chef Ludo’s rosemary- and Herbes de Provence-infused fried chicken. Each ball is comprised of juicy, boneless dark meat magically bound together by a crisp and golden batter. Both the meat and batter are so flavorful and well-seasoned that sauces aren’t really necessary. The “Ludo Slaw,” a mix of savoy cabbage, celery, red onion, chives, and Italian parsley, offered a hit of freshness in a sea of deep-fried goodness.

Continue reading ‘Ludo Truck – Los Angeles’

Red Boat Fish Sauce

Published by Gastronomer on April 5, 2011 in Phu Quoc, Products I Love and Vietnamese. 24 Comments

When shopping for Vietnamese groceries, I always purchase the brands that my mother and grandmother use in their kitchens. From rice noodles to curry powder to fish sauce, every ingredient found in my pantry has earned my family’s trust for its dependable quality and most satisfactory flavor.

For years I’ve been using the Flying Lion and Squid brands of fish sauce. Both are readily available in Asian supermarkets and are competitively priced. I didn’t think much about the origin of either bottle, or their ingredients for that matter, until I received a sample of artisanal Red Boat Fish Sauce. It turns out there’s a lot more to nước mắm than packing a mean umami punch.

Founded in 2006 by Vietnamese-American Cuong Pham, Red Boat strives to produce the purest fish sauce available on the market. Every bottle is made on the island of Phu Quoc using wild-caught black anchovies (ca com). The fishes are salted within minutes of leaving the ocean water, then aged for more than a year in wooden barrels to achieve the smoothest, richest, and sweetest flavor. Red Boat bottles the first press “extra virgin” fish sauce, so the only ingredients are anchovies and sea salt.

On paper, Red Boat Fish Sauce sounded just about perfect. However, only a blind taste test could convince me that the product was actually different and better than its competitors. In a thoroughly scientific tasting conducted in my kitchen, I pitted “extra-virgin fish sauce” against the standard stuff. Both bottles in my cupboard were produced in Thailand and contained anchovy extract, fructose, and MSG.

After tasting the fish sauces on plain white rice and straight up, the differences between the products were very clear. Whereas standard fish sauce tasted assertive, pungent, and well, fishy, Red Boat’s brew was well-rounded and nuanced. I’ll still reach for Squid and Flying Lion’s fish sauces for noodle soups and braising meats, but for fresh salads and nuoc cham, I’m going with Red Boat.

Continue reading ‘Red Boat Fish Sauce’

Yun Chuan Garden – Monterey Park

Published by Gastronomer on April 3, 2011 in Chinese, Los Angeles, Monterey Park and Restaurant Review. 9 Comments

The Astronomer and I dined at Yun Chuan Garden many moons ago when my mother was in town for work. Even though no one in our party read Chinese or was familiar with Szechuan cuisine, we still enjoyed a solid meal by blindly trusting the menu’s cryptic English descriptions.

The Astronomer and I returned to the restaurant a few weekends back with our friend Danny. With a Chinese-speaking Szechuan expert at the table, we were excited to re-experience Yun Chuan Garden.

Joining the three of us for dinner were Amy, her fiance Dennis, and Laurie. Our group of six gathered around a large table toward the back of the restaurant. Danny took charge and ordered an array of beloved standbys, as well as a handful of new dishes.

To start, Danny, Amy, and I picked out a few cold appetizers from the selection at the front counter. The fried tofu, beef shank, and jellied headcheese all rocked. The spicing and seasonings were just right for my chili-loving tastes.

Continue reading ‘Yun Chuan Garden – Monterey Park’