Dish of the Month (DoTM) -- August 2017 -- SALADS

Vespertine

samphire succulent
Does food that my food eats count?

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The Palm - DTLA

I know. I know… other restaurants to come. :slight_smile:

The Gigi (sans bacon)


Meh…

Carpaccio of Beef Tenderloin


Fresh, earthy, just short of gamey, but still meh…

Three-Cheese Potatoes au Gratin


Not meh…

Cookie-fied


I’d have to relinquish my name if I couldn’t turn those dishes into something tasty. :kissing_heart:

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Is that … Martin Shkreli?

Forgot to take a pic, but my Chinese Chicken Salad with avocado at CCC was tasty as usual.

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If you like Pliny, I highly recommend getting over to Monkish Brewery in Torrance near Mitsuwa Marketplace. Their juicy IPAs are delicious. They have 750ml growlers so you can take a couple home too and return to growler fills.

See above.

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Subarashi. Great 411.

Nhom Sdao Salad

Little La Lune
2054 E Pacific Coast Hwy
Long Beach, CA 90804

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What’s in it? :slight_smile:

Sdao bitter leaf, fish, pork, cucumber, scallion, and bean sprout with house special sweet and sour fish sauce.

We’ve been able to try a variety of new Salads this month, starting with:

Izakaya Hachi

Octopus & Daikon Radish Salad (Ginger Dressing):

This was a vibrant, crunchy, lively Salad. :slight_smile: The Octopus was just cooked through, still tender, the Kaiware (Daikon Radish Sprouts) imparted a fantastic herbal, onion-y spiciness, and nice crunch, along with Shredded Daikon, Mizuna Lettuce and the Ginger Dressing was delicious! :slight_smile:

Izakaya Hachi
1880 W. Carson St.
Torrance CA 90501
Tel: (310) 618-8357

Shin Sen Gumi (Irvine)

Definitely a surprise this month, Shin Sen Gumi branches have been declining for a while, but their newer Irvine branch features a totally different menu compared to their other Ramen branches. Their Kaisou Salad was light and refreshing! :slight_smile:

Seaweed Salad:

Their Kaisou Salad was delicious: A nice mix of a various Marinated Seawood, fresh Greens and Tomatoes, in a light Sesame Miso Dressing.

Shin Sen Gumi (Irvine)
6404 Irvine Blvd.
Irvine, CA 92620
Tel: (949) 596-7036

Sweetgreen (Hollywood)

We were stopping by the Arclight and wanted something quick and light, so Sweetgreen seemed like a good choice.

OMG Omega Salad (Organic Arugula, Baby Spinach, Cucumbers, Tomatoes, Basil, Avocado, Roasted Steelhead, Nori Furikake, Miso Sesame Ginger Dressing):

This was pretty tasty. The Organic Arugula and Spinach blend gave a bit of bitter and mellow vegetal flavors, the Tomatoes were sweet and ripe (from local farms (they list the farms they procure from)), and the Avocado added some nice creaminess. :slight_smile:

The Roasted Steelhead Fish was flaky, moist and not overcooked giving the Salad some meatiness to it. If there’s one thing we’ll ask for next time, it’s more Nori Furikake seasoning. We couldn’t really taste much there but I’d imagine it’d really make this Omega Salad standout. :slight_smile:

Rad Thai Salad (Organic Arugula, Organic Mesclun, Bean Sprouts, Shredded Cabbage, Spicy Sunflower Seeds, Organic Carrots, Cucumbers, Basil, Citrus Shrimp, Spicy Cashew Dressing):

This sounded really tasty on paper, but the final taste was just OK. There was some evocation of “Thai” from the Bean Sprouts, Carrots, Cabbage, combined with the Shrimp (which were still tender, not overcooked thankfully). But it needed some Fish Sauce or Lemongrass (or maybe some Shallots / Garlic / Dried Shrimp or Soy), etc.

Their Spicy Cashew Dressing didn’t really taste like anything “Thai,” either. The actual veggies were fine and bright, but it was just an expectation issue since they advertised this as a play on “Pad Thai” (Rad Thai) and you didn’t really get much of that.

Our favorite Salads at Sweetgreen are still the Shroomami Salad and the SQIRL Salad from Chef-Owner Jessica Koslow. :slight_smile:

Sweetgreen (Hollywood)
6115 West Sunset Blvd.
Los Angeles CA 90028
Tel: (323) 498-5558

Also in Santa Monica, West 3rd, Culver City.

Joan’s On Third

Opened by Chef-Owner Joan McNamara, it’s been a long time occupant along 3rd Street (near the Original Farmer’s Market) since 1995.

We’ve never really tried Joan’s On Third’s Salads, but with DOTM, we suddenly thought about trying one. It seems their Chinese Chicken Salad is somewhat famous and recommended, so we decided to go with that. :wink:

Chinese Chicken Salad (with Crispy Wontons, Rice Sticks and Almonds):

This was tasty. If you were in the mood for the classic L.A. “Chinese Chicken Salad,” I think Joan’s On Third might evoke those flavors. It’s lightly sweet, there’s some nice crunch from the Crispy Wontons and Rice Sticks and the nuttiness from the Almonds helps to accentuate the Roasted Chicken slivers.

The one aspect I don’t like about it is that it uses Iceberg Lettuce (which feels like a waste of space), when most Salads these days have done away with that and moved on to more nutritionally dense greens, but that was the “classic taste” back in the day I guess. :wink:

Fried Chicken Sandwich (with Jalapeno Cole Slaw, Garlic Aioli and Butter Lettuce on Ciabatta Roll):

Hearing about a Fried Chicken Sandwich and you know we had to order it! :smile: It is sadly, not really a “Fried Chicken Sandwich” in terms of what you might expect. There’s no crunchiness or crispiness at all. :frowning:

However, if you view it as just a “Chicken Breast Sandwich,” it was surprisingly tasty. :slight_smile: The Chicken Breast was moist and tender (great!), and the Jalapeno Cole Slaw added a bit of crunch, while the Garlic Aioli was this really fragrant creamy fatty deliciousness.

But the star of that sandwich was the fresh Housemade Ciabatta Roll. It was so light, fluffy and airy, and it had some fresh, toasty bread fragrance. :blush:

Joan’s On Third
8350 West Third Street
Los Angeles, CA 90048
Tel: (323) 655-2285

Sycamore Kitchen

From Pastry Chef-Owner Karen Hatfield (and Co-Owner Chef Quinn Hatfield), we’ve been fans of Sycamore Kitchen for a while now. It’s a cute little spot along La Brea that gets quite busy at times.

We’ve always enjoyed Karen Hatfield’s Pastries and Desserts over the years (at Hatfield’s in their old location and larger location), and Sycamore Kitchen just allows her to really open up and offer a huge menu of wonderful baked goods. :slight_smile:

Unsweetened Iced Black Tea:

Refreshing, perfect for this heat wave. :slight_smile:

“Buttercup” (Kouign-Amann):

We couldn’t really stop by Sycamore Kitchen and not order at least 1 Pastry, :wink: and we saw that they just brought out a batch of their “Buttercup” (Kouign-Amann), and I knew I had to order one! :slight_smile:

It looked gorgeous, golden brown, and it smelled amazing fresh out of the kitchen.

Taking a bite… crisped on the outside, firmer than a Croissant, but then it gives way to a fluffy, airy interior, with a good Butter taste and sweetness. This was amazing! :heart:

I’ll let our Kouign-Amann experts (@J_L @ipsedixit @PorkyBelly @paranoidgarliclover @Porthos @linus and others) chime in, but this was pretty amazing fresh out of the kitchen, and better than the one we had at B. Patisserie, but we want to go back and give B another try (I’m guessing our visit was a fluke).

Shredded Ginger Chicken Salad (Cabbage, Gem Lettuce, Pickled Carrot, Apple, Roasted Almond, Puffed Rice):

This was at once similar to a “Chinese Chicken Salad” but at the same time nothing at all like a “Chinese Chicken Salad.” :slight_smile: The crunchiness of the Roasted Almonds, Puffed Rice and the Shredded Roasted Chicken evoked aspects of that classic Salad, but Karen Hatfield’s version is something totally different at the same time.

There’s healthier greens - Cabbage, Gem Lettuce - and the Pickled Carrots gave it a tartness. The Ginger Dressing was spicy and sufficiently infused with Ginger, which was really nice. :slight_smile:

Spicy Vietnamese Salad (Organic Baby Greens, Peanuts, Chicken, Chilies, Carrots, Cucumber, Whole Grains, Lemon Vinaigrette):

This was recommended by our order taker, and it was surprising. The greens were bright, and I loved the combination of the Chilies, Cucumber and Carrots. The Roasted Chicken (chopped up in chunks) was amped up by the “Lemon Vinaigrette,” which was far more than the typical version, it almost tasted like it had a bit of Fish Sauce in it, but either way, this was pretty good. :slight_smile:

Sycamore Kitchen
143 South La Brea Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90036

http://thesycamorekitchen.com/welcome

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Great coverage as usual. I think salads are going to be very popular this coming week, so you’ve laid out some great choices.

Karen Hatfield is one of LA’s top bake chefs IMHO. Her offerings at Sycamore Kitchen are always ringers. I for one have mentioned how fantastic her Kouign-Amann is and how her more modest amount of offerings are superior to the offerings at Republique.

Republique is eye candy. Their offerings of pastries are mind-blowing - total eye-gasm when one sees the offerings. But vis-a-vis, I think Sycamore wins hands-down.

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Such a great brewery, in terms of both quality of beer and vibe. Right up there with Highland Park Brewery as my favorite local beer.

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Thanks @bulavinaka. :slight_smile: What are your favorite pastries at Sycamore?

The buttercup/Kouign-Amann, floorless lemon almond cake, pecan roll, coconut custard pie, the cookies, the crostatas, and the cakes of the offering of the day suits you.

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Thanks @bulavinaka! We didn’t see any cakes when we went (probably sold out), I’ll definitely order some of those next time. :slight_smile:

The babka roll. Salted caramel babka roll to be exact.

Forget everything else.

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That’s it - pecan babka roll with salted caramel. But forgetting everything else would be no fun.

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True, very true.

But my tailor refuses to make larger pants for me.

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Sweat pants will give your tailor a break. In fact, gift your tailor a pair along with a salted caramel pecan babka roll.

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Big Salad, Wexler’s, Santa Monica

It’s big, but the dressing was too tart for my taste. I couldn’t eat it, which made me sad because the lettuces were beautiful.

But I would like to say, the Wexler’s people are some of the nicest people ever. They smile at everyone, they’re relaxed. They all seem to like their job, which makes me happy.

Also, when I asked if I could get matzo ball soup without the chicken, the guys weren’t phased at all, simply smiled and told me I might end up with a shred or two, “… but I’ll do the best that I can.” :heart_eyes: And the soup was great.

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I (mostly) recreated Hillstone’s recipe for the Thai Steak & Noodle Salad at home tonight using a recipe submitted to Bon Appetit by Hillstone. We used rotisserie chicken, which is how my wife usually orders it (we didn’t have time to recreate the steak, but I’ll be doing that soon). The results were great. Lots of ingredients and prep has me wondering if it’s worth the effort at home, but my wife’s reaction tells me we’ll be doing it again. Sorry, no pics. It was really tasty, but not all that pretty.

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