Mar 2017

Chef’s Tasting Menu at Providence – Los Angeles

Providence - Los Angeles - February 2017

I was spoiled to pieces on my 35th birthday. In addition to heaps of noodles with colleagues and a made-from-scratch blood orange upside-down cake baked by The Astronomer, I was treated to dinner at the nicest place in town: Providence.

The last time The Astronomer and I dined here was back in 2010 for an eight-course dessert tasting. And before that, it was in 2009 for The Astronomer’s birthday. It felt really good to be back.

Providence - Los Angeles - February 2017

Dinner began with a glass of bubbles for me…

Providence - Los Angeles - February 2017

…and a Muay Thai cocktail ($12) for The Astronomer. Both were festive, setting the proper tone for the evening.

Providence offers three menus during dinner service—the Providence Tasting Menu ($120), Signature & Seasonal Menu ($185), and Chef’s Tasting Menu ($220). We decided to go for the Chef’s Tasting this evening because fancy dinners are a rare treat, so why not go for gold? Also, the promise of squid phở was too intriguing to resist.

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Feb 2017

Mr. Holmes Bakehouse – Los Angeles (Highland Park)

Mr. Holmes Bakehouse - Los Angeles (Highland Park)

If flaky pastries are just what you crave, then it’s time you get baked at Mr. Holmes’ place in Highland Park. Here, laminated dough, which requires a laborious process of folding butter into dough numerous times to create very thin alternating layers, is elevated to an art form. Every bite brings a rush of richness and hundreds of flaky, airy layers.

Mr. Holmes Bakehouse - Los Angeles (Highland Park)

The original Mr. Holmes was opened by Chef Ry Stephen and business partner Aaron Caddel in San Francisco in 2014. In the past two years, Bakehouses have popped up in L.A., O.C., and even Seoul, Korea.

To fully take in the Mr. Holmes experience, my girlfriends and I picked out half a dozen of the shop’s greatest hits to share.

Mr. Holmes Bakehouse - Los Angeles (Highland Park)

First up was the intriguingly savory California Croissant ($5) stuffed with smoked salmon, ginger, wasabi, and seaweed. I liked how the nori permeated every bite, but would’ve preferred the smoked salmon in a silky state rather than in its shelf-stable cooked one.

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Feb 2017

Cento Pasta Bar – Los Angeles (Downtown)

Cento Pasta Bar - Los Angeles (Downtown)

When it comes to work perks, birthday lunches rank somewhere near the top. It’s always a real treat to ditch our cubes for the afternoon and sit down for a celebratory meal. In honor of my 35th last week, I elected to lunch at Cento Pasta Bar, a two-year-old pop-up inside Mignon, a wine bar Downtown.

Cento Pasta Bar - Los Angeles (Downtown)

Behind the bar is Avner Lavi, a former pasta cook at Bestia and Sotto, two of my favorite noodling spots in town. Here at Cento, it’s a one man show. Chef Lavi takes orders, prepares food, banters with diners, and busses tables. It’s an easygoing vibe, but formal enough to avoid feeling like a dinner party at a friend’s house.

With the new minimum wage looking to shake up the dining ecosystem in the near future, this could be a new model for how restaurants operate.

Cento Pasta Bar - Los Angeles (Downtown)

The setup wasn’t ideal for our party of eight, but we made it work by flanking both sides of the bar.

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