The Starbucks What’s What

Greetings!

If you are reading this post today expecting that doing so will result in some savvy new information about the corporate policy changes or stock prices at Starbucks, you are barking up the wrong blog :) What I'm writing about are opinions, based on new experiences, and old! that I would like to share with you as a sometimes consumer of this maniacal coffee chain.

So, here's what's what. After what seemed to be a recent complication of practices--folks in line asked to pre-order, baristas filling out tiny cheat sheets with the pre-orders, baristas wearing head mics, new honey lattés (?)--it's as if the great flood arrived and wiped the slate clean. Starbucks is turning back to its roots!

Remember when they added the brewing of the breakfast blend way back, for people who wanted a milder coffee taste in the morning? You know, for those of us who don't want their daily addiction to sizzle their taste-buds off? The stores also change the non-breakfast blend daily so you get to "mix it up" and taste new flavors each day. You'd read the "Today we are brewing..." sign and order by flavor name, Gold Coast or Café Verona or Café Estima. But let's be honest. No one ever tastes the difference, with the exception of Sumatra being the most brewed-from-middle-earth-like than the others.

Well guess what, if you haven't heard, Starbucks has now eliminated that and added instead the “Pike Place Roast” blend. I met this nostalgic attempt at remembering the early coffee days in Seattle with a private tip to their marketing hats along with an indifferent “whatever.” But sure, of course I’ll try it one time…that is my job as an active consumer, right? Not that I really had a choice. Even though the sign said "We will be grinding and brewing Pike’s Place Roast every 30 minutes. Other coffees will also be offered throughout the day," other coffees had not been brewed, so we drip buyers really had no choice.

I got my typical “tall in a grande cup.” This because I always add a lot of whole milk and half-n-half to my Starbucks to combat this equivalent to a coffee sludgehammer. And funny enough, after the whole milk was poured into my Pike Place Roast, would you believe my targeted coffee color* needs were prematurely met, beFORE pouring in the half-n-half? (*This color can be referred to in CMYK as either dark wheat, sand, bread, or the formula magenta 20, yellow 40.) So I thought this was already pretty interesting.

(By the way, if I don’t love Starbucks why do I go through this? Because it’s the only coffee shop near USC campus that takes credit cards. Simple as that. Drink this or deal with the office’s “Alta Office Services” machine that was made in like 1962.)

As I walked the short distance to campus I took a sip of the PPR and oh my gosh, my lips uttered an unexpectantly cocky “Well well well,” you know with the same inflection the producer gave to Dustin Hoffman when he stood up to Dabney Coleman for the first time in “Tootsie.” It's like saying "You’ve got balls, Starbucks, but you did it, good for you (damn it)."

The pleasure mounted more so when that first sip kinda reminded me of my first latté. Yes, I was one of the lucky ones in this matter. While some people have a transcendent first kiss, I had a transcendent first latté...

It was on a business trip to Seattle in the late 90's. We flew out to do a focus group on coffee and the up-and-coming chai tea. I’d already visited the first ever Starbucks and had a regular cup of coffee there. It was nothing better than I’d had at any other one really. However the next morning I walked over to Post Alley, and wandered into a place I’d never heard of, Seattle’s Best Coffee. It was there that I decided to be a little more coffee-daring, as I was in the coffee capital of the country. I ordered the latté so plainly though, without the de rigueur customization demands, that the barista probably thought I was mentally challenged.

My first latté was the most beautiful cup of coffee & foam I’d ever seen. I gingerly carried it outside to the alley--which overlooked Pike’s Place Market and Elliott Bay--and while the salty, rising fog tickled my nose I sipped and was brought to coffee hallelujah glory. *sigh*

Nah you’re right, that experience was not repeated two days ago when I had my first sip of Pike Place Roast at the Starbucks on Hoover St. near USC. But you know, I was reminded of that, oh because this new coffee blend was so smooth, and it tasted great! without that Starbucksey burned, heaviness that people-sheep think equals good coffee. And when I repeated the experiment this morning, it confirmed there was no flaw. My morning pleasure--and no need for half-n-half--occurred again. Damn you Starbucks! Now I can only pick on your food!

Let's talk about the food.

A Starbucks employee in Northridge, CA recently told me that their breakfast egg sandwiches that remind me of happy Korean deli mornings in NY would be gone by the end of the year. No! Well if I have anything to say about it, the lack of success on this project is not because these sandwiches aren’t 1) tasty, or 2) necessary as a counterpoint to their other food offerings which are probably made with 90% white sugar.

The problem is that some corporate wonder is having the stores sell fairly identical sandwiches; they eliminated the one unique sandwich from the menu altogether. I’m talking about all the egg sandwiches being made of English muffin, egg, aged cheddar cheese, plus something from a pig (sausage, Black Forest ham, or peppered bacon). That's right, each one has the same cheese. Oh sure there’s one egg white version with turkey bacon and some reduced fat cheese, but it's still cheddar cheese! So why the fabulous Spinach Florentine sandwich (English muffin, egg, Havarti cheese, spinach, herb spread) was deleted early on, I’ll never know.

Hmm, also the scones at the east coast Starbucks were great, especially the cinnamon chip (I miss you), but out west they're all bad, all covered in some version of white sugar muck, or in the case of the blueberry scone, actual white sugar. Even the always-reliable marble pound cake has been modified in some way, as if they removed the butter in the recipe altogether. I can’t eat that! But I can, and will probably now more than ever, drink the coffee.

Until we eat again,
Marly

Two Fab Asian Dining Experiences in LA

여보세요, 안녕하세요

According to Babelfish, the above characters mean “Hello, how are you?” in Korean. I say this half kidding but I think we should all start learning some basic Korean if we want to continue going out for a meal in Koreatown. Especially deep in the soul of Koreatown...

Asian Place #1

…like when visiting a place called B.C.D. Tofu House.

There was a little bit of a language barrier when this pop tofu temple on Wilshire was recently visited after a USC Basketball game (Go Trojans!). Neil and I were hungry and he suggested going out to find hot soup, but what decent local place was still open at 10:30 p.m.?

Many times I’d driven past the brightly lit mecca “TOFU HOUSE” and remembered the sign "open 24 hours." So we ventured into the rainy night in search of soup, hoping this place would be okay.

Oh it was packed! A school bus or two worth of teenagers was just exiting the premises. While waiting, we viewed a framed articled on the wall from when this spot was included in Saveur's LA Koreatown issue (#46, Nov. '00). We learned there are branches of B.C.D. Tofu House in other parts of the world too, including Tokyo! And I will tell you now that I felt like I was in Tokyo or Korea while dining here because to me the place was real crazy different.

The menus were in Korean, with sparse English translations. We ordered #13 and #14: BBQ short rib & premium tofu combo + Beef bulgogi (sautéed beef) & premium tofu combo, about $17 or $18 per combo. (Note: #15 pork and #16 chicken sounded really good too.)

The waitress asked "How spicy?", and I confidently answered "Medium" (my standard buffalo wing response), and then quickly, “Is medium spicy here really medium, or is it hot?” and the lady said “Medium is medium.” Okey doke.

She walked away with our order and immediately came back with the myriad little dishes typical of a Korean restaurant, which covered our tiny table with scant room to spare. The dishes included kimchi, cold marinated tofu slices, two hard-boiled eggs, seasoned pickle, etc., and just when we thought that was it, they squeezed in two whole fried mackerel (each on its own plate).

In the next wave came the tofu soup. It was bright gorgeous red! It was filled with soft tofu and fresh seafood and maybe even some pork sausage. Our soup bowls were placed before us in full rolling boil. If I may admit, this shocked the hell out of me. I felt like I was in an Indiana Jones movie, probably the 2nd one. "How is the soup boiling??" I exclaimed to Neil, "What’s in there??" He'd already figured out that there was a hot plate under the soup, so in the end, alas, it was not crazy magic soup! We quickly learned too that the spice request was not for the main dishes, it was for the soup. And it was not medium hot... Nay, it was what I like to call “ow ow ow ow ow” hot soup. Don’t say you weren’t warned...

Along with the tofu soup came two metal crocks of white rice. The waitress scooped each of our rice crocks out and into small bowls, leaving some rice caked in the bottom of the crocks. Then she swiftly poured water into the rice crocks. Okay. Maybe because they're busy they do some pre-dish-soaking Korean thingy, but nope, they left the water in the rice crocks on our very crowded table and walked away. And then... a few moments later... the water started boiling! Ah, more magic! Oh oh, see there's a hot plate under that crock too. Damn this is a crazy place. (Or maybe it's just me being crazy, getting all riled up over boiling things.)

Finally (after oh 7 minutes?) our entrées arrived. They looked and tasted delicious. Happily we ate and chatted, and it seemed like a good time to douse my rice with some spicy tofu soup, then chopstick up some of that with sautéed beef for a sumptuous, tasty bite. That’s when my taste buds wanted more fabulousness, so I figured some hard-boiled egg would be a nice addition. I grabbed one of the eggs and cracked it over my plate of beef and immediately discovered the egg was raw. Yes, it was unarguably raw. That's also when I discovered that the boiling water in that metal empty rice crock was there to boil my egg. Ah. I get it now.

At the time, though, I thought this was all delightfully silly! Until my raw egg in the water didn’t really cook because I’d waited way too long for this stage of the game… you’re supposed to drop the egg in pretty much right away. Ten minutes later I had a somewhat cooked egg, and was able to scoop the yolk out and half throw/half flump it over the beef dish. It was worth it. And for a total of like $40 all in, we had a crazy, tasty, adventurous feast that I do recommend for everyone, even if you don’t love tofu.

Asian place #2

Hello, how are you?

According to Babelfish, the above characters mean “Hello, how are you?” in English. Oh I see you already got that. The words are in English this time because even though the next place is an Asian-fusion restaurant, it's quite American, so learning another language will not behoove an easier dining experience. Yes it is quite easy to dine at Red Pearl Kitchen, if not damn enjoyable.

My-Lien and I met there to have a bite to eat, shared some appetizers, and sure maybe I had a tad bit of non-entrée-ordering guilt. Turns out at Red Pearl Kitchen, with its red and black lacquered walls and non-deafening sound system, everyone comes in to chat over shared small plates, or even one large one.

We had:
- chicken & garlic roll $8
- crispy Japanese eggplant with shrimp $9
- miso salmon satay $11
- chicken pine nut, iceberg lettuce wraps $9

and

We smelled heaven when other people were served:
- caramel chicken, cashews
- fillet mignon, ginger, scallion
- Peking duck with pancakes (offered as a weekend special)
- s&p shishito peppers

Lucky for us the nice table next to us noticed our craning necks and offered a taste of their s&p shishito peppers. They were great! I later realized these ladies were TV character actresses (one from Everybody Loves Raymond), and what an actress she is because her TV characters are usually harsh and in real life this actress was friendly, generous and quite delightful.

One more thing to mention: Beyond the scenic ambiance of Red Pearl Kitchen, they have a pretty unique and refreshing wine & beer list, serving one of my favorite imported beers that a few years ago became ubiquitous on the NYC dining scene: Hitachino Nest White Ale from Japan. Oh it’s good… sorta like a non-sweet dessert beer, featuring a thick, apricot-y bouquet.

I will be going back to these places and soon. They're too enjoyable to ignore.

Until we eat again (and yes probably in Ktown),
Marly

Why Long Weekends In California Rock

Hello, nice to see you again :)

So let's see, at this point I've lived in California for over a year and a half. And in this native east-coaster’s humble opinion, the beauty of long weekends in California (besides...all that sun) is there are always fun and myriad options of where to go and what to do just a short road trip away. Here are some basic examples of what I'm talking about:

1) If you’re in the north, go south to LA or north to Oregon
2) If you’re in the south, a) go south to San Diego & Mexico or b) go north to San Fran & wine country

That’s what I did this past President’s Day weekend (#2b). What a great trip! I was graciously introduced to the bounty of the California breadbasket, where much of our country’s produce is grown. Here are some special things I was able to experience just over a week ago:

• A drive through Castroville, home of artichokes, the giant artichoke (a globular statue) and restaurants that serve artichoke fries and fried artichoke hearts galore
  
• Gilroy, home of garlic and the first place I ever tried garlic-stuffed olives
• Olallieberry Pie (yes, this is a berry!) in Watsonville, along with the juiciest, tastiest strawberries, and the birthplace of Martinelli’s Sparkling Cider
• Yummy Marini’s salt water taffy and the Giant Dipper (a fantabulous rollercoaster, not an ice cream cone like I first thought) at the Santa Cruz Boardwalk
• Humble wild salmon (for the menu did not list this as wild) and the freshest steamed artichoke at the Jay Leno-touted The Whole Enchilada restaurant in Moss Landing
  

Truly a foodie’s dream, this part of the world. Thanks, host Neil!

On another day we (Neil, Nick & Rachael) drove up to San Francisco and stopped in at… don’t be surprised when I tell you… The Ferry Building!... after which back in the car we sampled Recchiuti rose caramels, fleur de sel caramels, sesame nougat and the new, seasonal Champagne truffle made with 2001 Schramsberg Blanc de Noirs. SO GOOD.

If that wasn't enough to blow my foodie mind, we then drove north to beautiful Sonoma in search of a great meal, and it was certainly found!

But first...en route to Sonoma we stopped at Viansa Winery and Italian Marketplace. Wow. Not only are the grounds exceptionally regal in the “oh yeah we’re in wine country now” way (see photo above); inside there are endless jars of pestos, jams, marinades, etc. and each is open for tasting (and imminent purchasing, you know because it isn’t every day you come across cilantro pumpkin seed pesto). This was a good thing.

So, we arrived in lovely downtown Sonoma. It reminded me of Santa Fe a little, with the big town square. And off of the town square and down a quaint little pedestrian lane was LaSalette, our dinner destination. This is a family-owned and operated restaurant specializing in Cozinha Nova Portuguesa, a.k.a. “contemporary, inventive Portuguese cuisine.” It was my first official foray into this cuisine, and I will tell you I can’t wait to get back to Sonoma and LaSalette. The restaurant is warm and charming, with great service and authentic, exciting food preparations that were all over-the-top delicious.

Here is what we ordered:

Portuguese White Wine Flight - (3 oz. pour of each) Muralhas Vinho Verde, Quinta Do Casal Branco, & Campolargo (the Campolargo was our fave so we ordered a bottle with dinner)

As a starter we shared:
Fresh Portuguese rolls and butter (so soft, so good!!)
+
Portuguese Cheese and Charcuterie Plates, 5 items
1) Queijo do Topo, cows-milk, semi-hard, sharp with house-made quince paste!
2) Queijo Fresco, house-made farmers cheese with house-made tomato jam!
3) Sardine Pate, house-made with onion, garlic and Piri-Piri
4) Linquica, traditional Portuguese home style sausage
5) Chourico, dry Portuguese pork and garlic sausage

For four of us, three entrees were enough:
1) Bacalhau, traditional baked casserole of salt cod, potatoes, onions and olives
2) Cataplana de Marisco, our signature seafood and white bean stew served in a copper bowl
3) Feijoada Completa, Brazilian national dish of stewed beef, pork, smoked sausage and black beans, accompanied by herbed rice, collard greens and traditional condiments

Then for dessert:
Arroz Doce, Lasalette Azevedos special recipe for Portuguese rice pudding garnished with a light caramel sauce with dried figs

Mmm mmm. While it is true that all the dishes were outstanding, the Feijoada was my favorite. It’s also important to note the items (rice, greens, salsa) that came with this dish were not mere sidekicks but bold co-stars with the Feijoada itself.

Saveur magazine did an article in issue #66, April/May 2003 about Feijoada from Brazil, however if I ever attempt this at home I’ll be more likely to try the recipe from Time/Life Foods of the World Cookbook: The Cooking of Spain and Portugal. And when I do that, there should be enough for sharing so I’ll let you know ;)

Until we eat again,
Marly

Food Markets in LA: Ethnic and...Trader Joe's?

Happy Valentine's Day!
So, what do ethnic markets and Trader Joe's have in common you may ask? A lot! Both offer unique food items that taste great and are also affordable. It's that simple.

You should know that before coming to LA, an excursion to Trader Joe's was like a trip to Disneyland for me. I had to travel far to find one, and when I finally got there the lines were very long! It only got worse when Manhattan's 1st Trader Joe's opened in Union Square a few years ago. The line ran down 1.5 city blocks, you know, those long vertical blocks, outside, in the cold and snow?! Damn city living. And the line inside was so long it snaked around the entire circumference of the store. I bought my food in 10 minutes and waited 45 minutes to pay -- add another 45 minutes on 2 subways home and my frozen items were no longer frozen. I stopped shopping at TJ's at that time, and then I moved here (ok so the impetus to move is not entirely related).

These days, in the land of Trader Joe's freedom, I not only have many TJ's to choose from, BUT once you find one there are pretty short lines. And because this is LA--the land of fantastic, authentic ethnic food--there are also a handful of ethnic markets that have so far beguilingly tempted me to visit. Therefore, a handful of ethnic markets I like, and one farmer's market too, are listed below. Below that, my favorite items from Trader Joe's in case you didn't know...

1. SOME ETHNIC MARKETS IN LA (and what I like about them)
a) Grand Central Market - dried chiles, best selection of fresh made moles I've ever seen + many Latin American food stalls
b) Liberio Markets (best location Pico & Alvarado) - fresh Mexican cheeses, fresh & dried peppers, beans, corn meals, sodas
c) Papa Cristos - all things Greek + a restaurant next door
d) Simpang Asia - Indonesian & Malaysian sauce mixes (ie. to make green curry chicken or beef rendang), candies, snacks, spices + a café next door
e) Koreatown Galleria Supermarket (in the basement) - great produce dept with exotic fruits & veg, Korean sauces & spices, seafood, hot prepared foods, cookies, enough kimchi to feed a small city + Koreatown fried chicken café
f) Mitsuwa Marketplace (Centinela & Venice) - great selection of Japanese food items, candies, large Pocky assortment + food stalls
g) Santa Monica Farmer's Market - a great outdoor farmer's market with a view of the Pacific, it runs several days a week

2. SOME TRADER JOE'S REASONS TO CELEBRATE

• Grilled Chicken Salad with Orange Vinaigrette*
• Spicy Thai Style Peanut Salad with Chicken*
  (*please note, before TJ's I was eating Lean Cuisines daily for lunch and for the discovery of TJ entrée salads at $3.50 a pop I am forever grateful)
• Unique Beer Selection - ie. Full Sail LTD batch 01 limited edition lager... in fact this listing is a bit of a tease, 'cause they already ran out
• Charles Shaw Wine - you know, "2 Buck Chuck," not to be confused with lame Dane Cook/Jessica Alba film "Good Luck Chuck"
• Wisconsin Cheese Curds - including instructions on how to get them to squeak (I'm not kidding)
  
• Applewood Bacon - the fancy stuff served in restaurants!
• Tarte d'Alsace Pizza (in the green box) - I'm telling you it's as good as I had in Alsace
• Double Creme Brie Cheese - there are about 3 kinds they sell, and one of them is perfection, it's a blue/red label I think? Sorry, I wish they sold only one kind
  
• Organic Blue Corn Tortilla Chips - addictive!!
• Cilantro Roasted Pecan Dip - great paired with the above
  
• The new-to-me-and-haunting Artichoke and Parmesan Dip - also fab when paired with the above
• Salsa Kit - sold in the produce section
• The new "Tortilla Chips with an Identity Crisis" - made with corn, brown rice and potatoes, odd at first taste but now loving it
• Spanokopita Triangles
• Blister Peanuts (salted)
• Peanut Butter Zbar - a Clif Bar for kids, yes I already wrote to Clif to say they should be made a tad larger and sold for adults because it's not as sweet as other bars and has a nice, soft texture
• and much much more that I don't know about yet!
  

Of course there are gripes for Mr. T. Joe's too, like they don't carry good tonic, have limited toiletry items, no maple-flavored yogurt for sale or baking ingredients or roasted chickens in a bag for $5 like at Ralph's, plus their Chinese Chicken Salad that is sold in two varieties (the noodles are different in each?) leaves a lot to be desired. BUT, isn't the Gripe List not what this blog entry is about? Isn't today's entry about food loving? You know, because it's Valentine's Day, and food is love and all that? Yes, it is, so please forget you ever read this paragraph, or just read it tomorrow :)

So, if you know of any other great LA ethnic markets or feel I've lost out on more Trader Joe's food love because I don't know about one particular item or another, please let me know via comment!

Until we eat again,
Marly

Fobloog Gripe List (2008 so far)

Hello!

So at this exact moment you're probably saying to yourself, it's just barely 2008 Marly, how can you present a Gripe list so soon into 2008?

I admit, these items are not really "of" 2008. They are definitely from before that, and so their time has come. You'll notice the list below has only 4 items on it, 6 fewer than the 2007 list, yet these items have more explanation. The list is in order from least important to most important in my foodie-opinioned head. Here goes...

4. Sparkling, still or tap?
Everyone knows about this one, so why list it at all? Because it annoys restaurant patrons, though admittedly the smarter restaurants have learned not to be as obnoxious about it these days.

This gripe is about when the restaurant server asks, "What kind of water would you like? Sparkling, still or tap?" (Sure sometimes the word “tap” is left off that short list of options and we're left to struggle with having the nerve to say "TAP is FINE.") As a matter of fact, this trend exists solely as a way to up the check average for your table. More profits for the restaurant, bigger tip for the server. If you actually prefer the bottled water, so be it! But be aware that after your bottle runs out, some shiesters will keep opening bottles until you’re finished with the meal. One price-gouged check later, you’re disgruntled and feel like a sap. So watch for that, and don’t buy into this sort of peer water pressure unless you sincerely don’t like tap.

3. New restaurants that are irrelevant
I'm talking about places that open and are a new place and a new space but don’t offer anything unique to the scene or the city. When people open a new restaurant, there needs to be a reason behind it. Not just to fulfill a dream to open a restaurant and then do what everyone else does, especially on the ubiquitous dessert front!

I once worked on a "let's open a fake restaurant" school group project at the French Culinary Institute. One student in my group was a flag-waving resident of Long Island who we'll call Dave. It was Dave's dream to open a seafood restaurant in the seafood-restaurant-laden town of Port Jefferson, Long Island. In truth, he was using the class to help him actually open the restaurant, he'd been to a realtor and everything. Well when it was time to plan the "fake" menu, two of us from the group built a really unique seafood menu that stood out from the crowd. But when Dave saw this, he said "Where's the shrimp cocktail?" I said "Every restaurant in Port Jeff serves shrimp cocktail. I thought the group decided we wanted our 'restaurant' to be different." Dave went on and on, not budging on the shrimp cocktail, asking why isn't cheesecake on the menu, where's the clam chowder, where's the Caesar salad and the fried shrimp plate and the skate with brown butter (apparently the only way skate wing is served on the east coast)... You get my meaning? There's no point to that restaurant existing, because it already exists in that location twenty-times over.

2. Tortilla chips in big bags
Have you ever noticed that tortilla chips aren’t sold in small, snack-size bags? You know, if you go to a convenience store and want a 99¢ bag of Tostitos, all you see is Fritos and Doritos? I called Frito-Lay once with this question...Why can’t I buy Tostitos, my favorite chip, in a snack-size bag? About a week later a very nice lady from Texas left a 5-minute voicemail explaining that in the eyes of Frito-Lay, Tostitos are a party food. They’re not thought of as a snack that any one person would want to eat on their own without salsa. It's something that is eaten in the company of others. (I responded to myself, "Not in New York! Our homes are too small for company!" :) She also mentioned that some states do sell snack-size bags of Tostitos in vending machines, but this is only in the Midwest, and alas, I lived on the east coast, dang it.

1. French is for toast, not fries
I will spare you the very long story about why I care whether or not the world understands that “french fries” is an all-lowercase phrase. I will, however, tell you that most publications that write about food are incorrect when they spell it “French fries.” This includes the paper of record, The New York Times (and no they never printed my complaint letter on the subject). Many restaurant menus are incorrect as well. And I laugh at them all, ha! and not in French.

So now you know, the phrase “french” in the case of french fries is a verb, “to french,” and here is the definition according to the THE FOOD LOVER'S COMPANION, 2nd edition, by Sharon Tyler Herbst:

> french fries
Potatoes that have been cut into thick to thin strips, soaked in cold water, blotted dry, then DEEP-FRIED until crisp and golden brown. They are called pommes frites in France and chips in Britain. The name does not come from the fact that their origin is French, but because the potatoes are "frenched" — cut into lengthwise strips. Other versions of french-fried potatoes are shoestring potatoes (matchstick-wide) and steak fries (very thick strips).

That concludes this early edition of the Fobloog Gripe List 2008. I know this was a short list but hopefully some gripe recognitions were sweet (ok for me, yes, it was ;) Feel free to send along your nominations for future lists any time!

Until we eat again,
:) Marly

Evolving Beyond Bacon: The Glories of Pork

Hello long lost readers,

Yes it's been awhile, please forgive! There've been travels galore and many excuses as to why I haven't updated in 2 months. Let's look forward, though. It's time to talk about pork.

When Neil and I traveled to Germany in November, the trip reminded me -- beyond the glorious Christmas markets, fun and adventure -- how one-dimensional our experiences with pork are in the U.S.

You know what I mean, in restaurants there are basically 3 ways to order pork: as a chop, as a medallion, as a side of bacon. Hey no one here is dissing the side of bacon!; all this foodie's saying is in a great dining country like this, why do most restaurants serve the same cuts of pork?

The best pork dishes we ate in Germany -- and typical of that part of the world's cuisine -- were the pork steak (with ie. pepper cream sauce) and the pork filet (with ie. mustard cream sauce). In addition, there was the bratwurst and all sorts of beautiful crackly pork sausages served with mustard, and of course don't forget the schnitzels... a pounded filet (usually veal but sometimes pork) breaded and exquisitely fried with a squeeze of fresh lemon and a dash of capers on top. Fattening though so wunderbar!

It's because pork is such a prominent protein in the German culture that we were even delighted to find the when-will-that-come-back-again McRib sandwich (formed pork in the shape of ribs doused in BBQ sauce on a soft bun with fresh onions) on every McDonald's menu in the cities we visited. We had to partake...because we could! And yes it was good.

So when back to this part of the woods, I wondered why pork isn't often served as a steak or filet on indigenous menus when it's so amazing! To me standard pork chops are ok but have a heavy taste from the fat around the bone that gets redundant. And usually pork medallions are too dry. The steak and the filet were moist and so flavorful! The pork flavor shines through and on the steak was especially excellent if served with a caramelized char. Oh yes if you can find it, try it.

Although I didn't have such luck once home, pretty much forgot about it really until last Sunday when I went about my foodie business and tried the fab BLD for brunch. I was quite excited to try their gourmet egg sandwich with Gruyère, aioli and Nueske's applewood-smoked bacon. But you know what? Suddenly this wasn't good enough. My expectations of pork had been raised and there was no going back. Bacon as my only pork outlet -- even if the famed Nueske's -- was a big fat "eh."

Thankfully while in New York City just over a week ago I had several opportunities to have pork in ways beyond bacon... First, I went to Blaue Gans with my cousins, a casual Austrian place from one of NYC's top chefs du jour. There I had the pleasure of eating one of their signatures, called the Jaeger Schnitzel. This is a style of Weiner Schnitzel made with pork, with a mushroom-bacon cream sauce (double the pork!) and some of the most succulent spätzle I've ever had. Y U M. They even served Cologne, Germany's famous Kölsch beer which one would think would be impossible to find outside of that city. Ending with Apfelstrudel, this was truly a great meal, plus it finally got me my non-chop, non-medallion pork fix on American soil.

The very next day in the city I had the pleasure of dining with Dan (see previous blog entry about our LA Korean BBQ experience, which happened to include the excellent spicy pork). For the 2nd year in a row Dan took me to that pleasure palace of soup dumplings, Joe's Shanghai. Woo hoo those dumplings (see photo above) were amazing! You cannot imagine. I'm sure they're somewhere in LA in Monterey Park, though you should know, the best are at Joe's. Fly don't walk, as Dan would say.

So my advice to you is this: try to eat some non-traditional pork cuts when you have the chance, they are really amazing. Sure being in Germany or Austria helps, and if you're in Denmark, I hear the Roast Breast of Pork with Crackling is to die for (fyi, Saveur magazine issue #67 has the recipe). The Red Lion in Silver Lake might have some good options for you too.

And if you count yourself as a person who hasn't yet had soup dumplings and would like to try making them, yes it will take a day, though for you culinary adventurers try this penultimate soup dumpling recipe by Anita Lo, chef at Annisa in New York, which includes a little explanation of these pork-filled doughy delights.

As for me, I'm probably going to have bacon for dinner at this point (the craving is suddenly unbearable ;). Wishing you all the best in 2008 in food, wine and beyond,
Marly

The Fried Chicken Report (LA)

And now my little chickadees, what you've all been waiting for...the outrageous, crispy, crunchy and sometimes spicy

Fried Chicken Report
(also known as the not-too-thorough list of my top fried chicken spots in Los Angeles, because a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do)

But wait! Before we dive into the Los Angeles chicken scene, you should know about my earliest treks into fried chicken land, started when I was a wee girl back in the N.J. then taken over the river to the big city (and Harlem and Raleigh/Durham)...

Early Life
1. Honey Bee Chicken in Somerville, NJ on the Somerville Circle (think they are now closed) was the favorite of my family. Honey was put into the batter for a touch of sweetness, and it was really good, probably my sister's favorite to this day.
2. Roy Rogers Fried Chicken - Sadly this chain is in a few locations back East. Too bad too, because this chicken is super awesome. Since we can't get it out here I think it's only fair to provide a copycat recipe for y'all to try at your leisure.

Adulthood East Coast
1. Sylvia's of Harlem, famous for their Sunday Gospel Brunch with an order of fried chicken and grits. (Best to arrive before the busses.)
2. Mama Dip's in Raleigh/Durham has to be one of the best ever. If you are in this area, RUN DO NOT WALK.
3. Jacques Imo in New Orleans still reigns as my ultimate favorite today, even tho I've only been to the NYC location (I've got a date with them in December, don't even think about talking me out of it!) Note: Subsequent to this post, NYC location now closed :(.

Los Angeles
Ok it was a bit of a challenge to find the best fried chicken in Tinseltown, probably due to all those skinny people suppressing the demand. That is why this Report has been so delayed. And because I didn't want to gain too much weight. So without further ado, here is the list, in order of my least favorite to the best:

8. The Prince - Written up in food blogs and given a big OK by my chiropractor Dr. Lee, Prince is a dark, atmospheric Ktown bar that serves standard cocktails and Korean snack food. Tried 2 times, the 1st = cut-up whole fried chicken and the 2nd = deep fried spicy chicken, both with a big fat ruling of "eh". Sorry Dr. Lee. And to everyone else, you can totally skip this one.
7. Pollo Campero - An important part of the Guatemalan culture and located right on Olympic Blvd. and Union, I blissfully skipped to Pollo Campero and ate the chicken and really wanted to love it but it was just ok.
6. Dinah's Fried Chicken - On San Fernando Rd. in Glendale, this place is a favorite of many and reminded me of the Honey Bee a little, however it's lower on this list simply because I'm a fan of the crunchy 3-D style of bird skin and Dinah's boasts a thin, shellacked sweeter skin. Great biscuits though Dinah!
5. Popeye's Chicken & Biscuits - Call me Jersey white trash but there's something about this chicken, especially the spicy fried variety, that is pretty awesome. When I couldn't find places good enough for this list, I ended up resorting to Popeye's.
4. Pioneer Chicken - Neil took me to the Pioneer on Sunset, and there isn't a lot to write because perhaps I was a little distracted by the company? ;) Ok though when I did try the chicken it was fairly tasty, with a point on for good slaw and two off for stale biscuits.
3. Roscoe's Chicken & Waffles - Also tried 2 times (the Hollywood location is better) and the 1st time not so good because the chicken sat in the car on top of a waffle for 30 minutes before I sunk my teeth into it. Alas, on the 2nd try, eating chicken with red beans and rice, cornbread and hot sauce at the restaurant, I was in Roscoe heaven.
2. Zeke's Smokehouse - This down-to-earth BBQ place by the La Brea Target should be on people's radar more than it is. The discovery here is surprisingly awesome fried chicken. Does it matter that it's boneless? You know at one time I thought it did but it does not matter, it's awesome chicken, and n.b. the sides and atmosphere also rock. Note: Subsequent to this post, La Brea location closed and the only location in Montrose changed the chicken recipe not for the better.
1. Louisiana Fried Chicken - Zeke's had the #1 spot for a long time but I couldn't shake that guilt about the #1 chicken needing to be on the bone. Then just last week the Lousiana Fried Chicken on Adams crossed my car Kenny's path and lo and behold... No they don't have any good sides and you may take your life into your hands if you arrive on this doorstep late at night. What's important is the fried chicken, which is hot, moist, and flavorful with a hint of spice. It really is that good, in fact great, and that's why it's my #1.

Note: The findings of this report are final, until other fried chicken places are discovered and taste-tested. Challenge me if you dare!

Other area spots I didn't get to that are worthy of checking out
Honey's Kettle - The place for fried chicken & pancakes in Culver City
The Ivy - Heard they serve fab fried chicken with a side of paparazzi
Stonehill Tavern - Popular west coast chef Michael Mina's ritzy spot in Orange County features an apparently wonderful whole-fried organic chicken for two

And with that dear readers, I lay down the greasy gauntlet to take the higher path of cholesterol-resistance. The real reason being, of course, to save some of my arteries for Germany.

:) Marly