Please The Palate |

Rose’s Luxury in Washington DC

Tell me a restaurant that is a challenge to get into and I am up for it! After all, month after month, I book at reservation at the 25-seat Maude Restaurant in Beverly Hills. I was in San Francisco and lined up in the early afternoon to get into State Bird Provisions. So when a friend in DC mentioned Rose's Luxury to me, I made it a point to eat there on my last visit to DC.

Rose's Luxury is a neighborhood restaurant. But to get a seat to eat here, it is based on a first-come, first-served basis.There is no pretension to it. It is a cozy, energetic restaurant that has an inviting manner and delivers on the food. They maintain a first-come, first-served policy because their priority it to remain a neighborhood restaurant and make it possible to anyone to dine there without advance planning.

But, this means that there is a line that forms around 4pm each day with people hoping to get in that night. And, I was one of them. It was towards the end of winter when I was last in DC so it was a bit crisp and cold outside. But, I arrived at 4pm and was the second person in line. I did not think there would be a big line due to the cold but within a few minutes, the line was inching its way down the street. As we all stood out in the cold, everyone was chatting, making the time pass but also setting the tone for the friendly neighborhood spot.

11 July, 2016

From the palette to the palate, food meets art at Ray’s & Stark Bar at LACMA

Food is art. And at Ray's and Stark Bar, the restaurant at LACMA, art is food. Inspired by the museum where Ray's is located, Chef Fernando Darin has created an internationally inspired menu using local seasonal ingredients. But it is the plating that takes it from food to art.

Chef Fernando Darin was born to an Italian family in a region of Brazil with Portuguese and African influences. He recently arrived to Ray's and Stark Bar after working for Eric Greenspan, Michael Voltaggio and most recently for Patina at the Hollywood Bowl and the Walt Disney Concert Hall. Previous to cooking, he was a musician and artist for fourteen years. It is his global upbringing and artistic background that influence his food and drive his creativity. We started with the tuna tartare with avocado, oroblanco citrus fruit and taro chips and I was immediately transported to the realm of food as art. The presentation was like a beautiful art piece of art, balancing of color and dimension. The flavors are fresh and the oroblanca citrus brightens up the dish.

Tuna Tartare, avocado, oroblanco citrus fruit, taro chips

27 June, 2016

Same Same But Different in Silverlake

Same Same......but Different. That is the name of the Thai restaurant tucked in a strip mall on Sunset Blvd in Silverlake. Locals know the place as Rambutan Thai and while the kitchen and food remain the same, the front of the house is different. Now the name makes sense, right?

Adam Weisblatt of Last Word Hospitality and his partners Angus McShane and Holly Zack are what is different about Same Same. They were on a mission to find a small, established business to buy and take over and create a Basque wine bar. They found Rambutan, a 13-year-old family business in Silverlake. However as Weisblatt shared with me, as they were looking to buy the place they noticed how customers were drawn to owners Katy Noochlaor and Annie Daniel. So instead of buying the place, they decided to collaborate.

20 June, 2016