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LA Street Food Fest

Published

on February 15, 2010

in Banh Mi, Brazilian, Cha Gio, Food Event, Japanese, Los Angeles, Meals on Wheels, Mexican, Nem Nuong, Street Food and Vietnamese

. 21 Comments

Even though I was warned by the Twitterverse of hour-long lines and have experienced firsthand the utter chaos of large-scale food events (See: Grilled Cheese Invitational and Great American Food and Music Fest), missing out on the first annual LA Street Food Fest was completely out of the question—I live for meals on wheels!

I am not alone in my passion for street eats. Fifteen-thousand Angelenos descended upon LA Center Studios in downtown this past Saturday to stuff their pie holes with Brazilian acaraje, Japanese hot dogs, Mexican huarache, and so much more. The thirty-five trucks at the festival were armed and mostly ready to feed the masses. Even though lines seemed to snake on forever, nearly all of the vendors managed to bring enough food to last the entire day. Those who endured the lengthy waits were rewarded for their efforts.

Hands-down the most popular truck of the day was Chef Ludo Lefebvre’s pop-up fried chicken mobile. In true Ludo Bites fashion, Krissy ran the front of the “house,” while Ludo and his brigade churned out fresh bites in the back. Hungry folks hankering for a piece of LFC waited upwards of two hours for a taste.

Luckily, we were able to finagle a piece from our friend Mattatouille, who was helping out on the truck. Cutting in line is admittedly bad form, but Ludo’s fried chicken elicits bad behavior. The fried chicken was comprised of various pieces of boneless dark meat held together by a crisp batter. The meat was juicy as heck, while the crust was superbly seasoned. The side of sweet and spicy piquillos sauce was a nice touch—everyone loves to dip their nuggets.

The Astronomer took one for the team and waited forty-five minutes at the Phamish truck (@eatphamish), which specializes in Vietnamese home cooking. While my boy was diligently waiting in line, I met up with my pals Sook and Sarah, and we kicked it with Jonathan Gold. Woot woot! We talked about good food, Pasadena, and good food in Pasadena (not!).

When The Astronomer finally arrived on the scene, we dug into one very mushy cha gio, one sad nem nuong skewer, and two stale banh mi sandwiches. All of the food tasted like it was made the day before and with indifference. Mr. Gold quipped that the nem nuong had a Kibbles ‘n Bits-like quality to it. Hilarious. I’d like to give Phamish another go when the crowds have simmered down.

Next, we moved onto Dogzilla’s Japanese-style hot dogs.

Served on lightly toasted King’s Hawaiian Bread, the spicy sausage was topped with bacon, avocado, caramelized onions, furikake, Japanese mayo, and teriyaki sauce. The wiener was interesting, well-balanced, and quite tasty.

Following wiener time, we met up with my friend Bill for Brazilian street food at Sabor da Bahia. I indulged in a warm acaraje, a traditional Bahian street food made of black eyed peas fried in dendê (palm) oil. The fritters were served with a hotter than hot malagueta pepper sauce. We also shared some coxinha de galinha, drumstick-shaped bites filled with savory shredded chicken and cream cheese.

Our last stop of the day was at Antojitos de la Abuelita, a cart specializing in Mexico City-style street food.

Mr. Gold procured a huge spread for our group to share. It included huarache with cecina (dried beef); clayuda (Mexican “pizza”) with chorizo, tasajo (thinly sliced and seared beef), and cecina; mole verde (green) with chicken; pambazo (Mexican “French dip” in chile guajillo sauce filled with potatoes and chorizo); and Oaxacan mole.

I love this city. Check out the complete set of photos via Flickr.

Kabuki Japanese Restaurant - Los Angeles (Hollywood)

Published

Gastronomer

on January 24, 2010

in Chain / Multiple Locations, Japanese, Los Angeles, Media Event and Restaurant Review

. 15 Comments

Ask me what my favorite restaurant is and I’ll probably hesitate a bit, then launch into a long-winded and inconclusive answer. Ask me what my favorite cuisine is (other than Vietnamese, of course!) and without pause I will answer Japanese. I find sushi sensational, ramen rockin’, and bentos bomb. I could eat this stuff all day, every day.

I attended a blogger dinner at Kabuki last week to sample some of the restaurant’s classic offerings and a smattering of new menu additions. Media dinners are almost always a treat, but the ones that serve my favorite cuisine are definitely extra special.

Kabuki, a chain of Japanese restaurants serving both traditional and contemporary fare, has been serving Southern California, Arizona, and Nevada for the past 19 years. There are currently 13 locations in all with more openings on the horizon (as long as the economy allows).

The restaurant’s niche is affordable Japanese cuisine served in a hip atmosphere with congenial service. Whereas diners spending only $20 at most sushi joints leave hungry, that is the norm at Kabuki, and most go home more than satisfied.

Joining our blogger dinner was Kabuki’s sake sommelier, Yuji Matsumoto. He paired various sakes with our meal throughout the evening. Logistically, Mr. Matsumoto isn’t able to service all 13 locations personally, but he assured us that every one of Kabuki’s waiters is trained to pair libations masterfully.

Dinner began with one of the newest menu additions—tuna poke with avocado and spicy ponzu sauce ($7.95). The salad was well portioned and extremely fresh. There was an adequate amount of tuna to balance out the heap of daikon and seaweed.

Next to arrive was a yellowtail carpaccio with jalapenos and tomatoes ($8.95). This was also a new menu addition. I was indifferent to the slightly spicy puddle of citrus sauce, but quite enjoyed the thin slivers of fish paired with chilis. I remember enjoying a very similar dish at Nobu in Las Vegas circa 2005.

Following the two light starters was a trio of funky sushi rolls. Of the three, I enjoyed the Baja Roll ($6.95) the most. It consisted of a spicy crab roll topped with a spicy mayonnaise sauce and pico de gallo. I was really surprised by how well the traditional Mexican salsa paired with the spicy crab roll. Score one for Mexican-Japanese-Californian fusion.

The Vegas Roll with cream cheese and salmon fried in a light Tempura batter ($9.95) was a mouthful of richness. The fresh and clean flavors normally associated with sushi were completely absent in this creation.

My least favorite was the Lasagna Roll, which consisted of a thick layer of Parmesan, mozzarella, and cream cheese seared atop a traditional California roll ($7.95). With three cheeses weighing heavily on its back, the roll tasted overwhelmingly dense and all-in-all a bit much. Although this roll wasn’t for me, a few of my dining companions were taken by it.

For the next part of our meal, we ordered entrees straight off the menu. Prior to my main course arriving, I sipped a warm and comforting bowl of mushroom miso soup. The soup contained lots of fresh enoki and shitake mushrooms and plenty of deep miso flavor.

For my entree, I chose one of the restaurant’s specialties—grilled shrimp risotto with brown rice and shitake mushrooms ($14.95). I should’ve listened to my instincts and avoided ordering an Italian dish, because the entree turned out to be a total flop. The rice was tasteless and gluey, while the shrimps were dry and overcooked. I had it boxed up after just one bite.

Thankfully, my tablemates and I ordered a selection of nigiri to supplement our entrees. Clockwise from top left—mackerel ($3.50), fresh water eel ($4.95), fatty tuna ($9.95), and sea urchin ($6.95). Each pair of nigiri met our expectations, although Fiona of Gourmet Pigs found the rice to be too cold and dense. Kubuki’s fishes aren’t earth-shatteringly good, but at these prices, they were more than palatable. I also indulged in an order of inari ($3.25), which was fish-less but still great.

To finish, I ordered a hazelnut craquant ($6.95) with bittersweet chocolate sponge cake layered with chocolate praline craquant and hazelnut mousse. A sweet and pleasant ending.

Kabuki Pasadena, I’m coming by soon!

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Kabuki
1545 Vine Street
Los Angeles, CA 90028
Phone: 323-464-6003

Naga Naga Ramen - Pasadena

Published

Gastronomer

on January 4, 2010

in Chain / Multiple Locations, Japanese, Pasadena and Restaurant Review

. 15 Comments

I was stoked this past summer when Brigham Yen reported that a ramenya was arriving in Old Pasadena. Even though I love to hate on my resident city’s dining scene, I’m always hopeful that solid independent eateries will eventually take over the awful chain restaurants crowding the neighborhood. I intended to dine at Naga Naga Ramen during the early days following its grand opening, but after reading some lackluster reviews, I quickly lost interest in noodling in my ‘hood.

My friend and fellow Pasadena resident Laurie recently made a good case for giving Naga Naga a go. She and her husband had dined there one evening and found the offerings not only palatable, but worthy of raves and daydreams. Laurie’s enthusiasm convinced my skeptical and hesitant self that Naga Naga was worth investigating, so The Astronomer and I met up with her before the holiday rush to slurp our hearts out.

Naga Naga is owned by John Mekpongsatorn, a Thai-American who was born and raised in North Hollywood and currently resides in Monterey Park. In addition to two Naga Naga outlets, Mr. Mekpongsatorn is also the owner of Noodle World, a local chain serving a hodgepodge of Asian noodle dishes.

According to the restaurant’s website, “Naga Naga” is slang derived from the Japanese word nagai, meaning long. It is believed in many Asian cultures that eating long noodles symbolizes having a long life.

The vibe at Naga Naga is clean, colorful, and modern. Each table is outfitted with a jar of pickled ginger, a shaker of white pepper, two types of soy sauces, S&B chili pepper, and La-Yu chili oil.

To start, we shared an order of Naga Naga tofu ($6.95). The tofu was served on an iron skillet with eggs, green onions, and bonito flakes. The dish’s flavors were mild, bordering on bland. A sprinkle of chili oil and chili pepper added a much-needed kick to the tofu.

The Astronomer’s Naga Naga Ramen ($7.50) included sliced barbecued pork, seaweed, bamboo, cabbage, and half a boiled egg. The straight ramen noodles, which were purchased from the same supplier as Torrance’s Shen Shin Gumi, had a great bite to them and provided an excellent vehicle for the Tonkatsu broth to cling on to. The broth was competent in its porkiness, but not as swoon-inducing as the one I sampled last fall at Ippudo in New York City.

Laurie and I both went with the Tan Tan Men ($7.95) from the “Revolutionary Ramen” section of the menu. Other non-traditional ramen offerings included a Korean-influenced kimchi ramen and a Thai-influenced tom yum ramen. The Chinese-influenced Tan Tan Men included pork slices, ground pork, shredded cabbage, Chinese pickles, and curly ramen noodles in a hot and sour soup.

Laurie fell head over heels for the Tan Tan ramen after her first visit to Naga Naga, and it was easy to taste why. The broth had a pleasant sourness that reminded me of Vietnamese canh chua. The ground pork, cabbage, and plethora of Chinese pickles kept the bowl of noodles exciting through and through. The Tan Tan ramen certainly wasn’t authentic, but it was quite appealing in its bastardization.

Welcome to the neighborhood, Naga Naga.

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Naga Naga Ramen
49 East Colorado Boulevard
Pasadena, CA 91105
Phone: 626-585-8822