I thought that Handkerchief Pasta looked familiar.
Our family of four had a very good dinner here on Friday night. Octopus, roasted cauliflower, Fall panzanella salad, squid ink bavette with rock shrimp, mushroom lasagne, ricotta gnocchi with pastrami lardons, branzino, tiramisu and meyer lemon pie. Also had a nice bottle of nebbiolo off of the wine list.
While we felt all dishes delivered, my daughter and I were impressed with the cauliflower. Sure, roasted cauliflower is about as common as Brussels sprouts and avocado toast in LA, but JE’s version attacks umami from all angles. My daughter is a devout MEAT-atarian yet a vegetable dish was her favorite?
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I was there recently for an early lunch around 11:30 am, and I’m pretty sure I could have been out in thirty minutes.
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I’d agree. It’s a buyer’s market in El Segundo for lunch. Dinner here is a different deal, at least for weekend dinner. We got here just before 7PM. While being second on the wait list, it was still 15-20 minutes. After we were seated, at least four groups of four or more showed up.
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We’ve been looking for a place to take friends of ours who live in the area. This looks perfect.
Seating is tight. No reservations except for large parties. About half the seating is outside - ok as long as the weather is good but pastas cool down a lot faster than I’d like. Just some things to consider.
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And very good things at that! Ohhh, no… this will not work.
I’ll be in this area for the next few weeks. Looking forward to sneaking in a lunch here.
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Dropped by for lunch while I was in the area today. Parking is no joke around lunchtime. We were able to park in the back parking lot, but if you come after 12:30PM, you may have to park and walk further away.
Service was great. Got a table and was seated immediately. Our server was a former Republiqué server, and was super excited to share the menu and some of Chef Kalb’s culinary point of view. Sergio was in the house and actually making deliveries to tables.
We opted for a more simplistic lunch. Brussels sprouts, arugula pappardelle, and the capellini. The sprouts were pretty solid, but it’s not hard to fry them until they caramelize and then toss them in a simple acidic dressing. Still enjoyed the crispy loose leaves that become more like chips. The kid ordered the pappardelle…and thought it one of the best pastas he’s ever had. I really enjoyed the texture of the pasta, and it was nice to have lemon help offset some of the richness of the braised pork and pecorino.
But the star was the capellini. As @J_L stated, it is a fantastic plate of simple pasta. I think the texture of the capellini here is better than Scott Conant’s spaghetti. While, I think the Scarpetta/La Ponte version runs a little more sweet, there’s a savoriness of the sauce at Jame Enoteca that I may enjoy more.
We picked up the Meyer Lemon pie to go since they advertised it had taken second in the KCRW pie contest. Wanted to head home before 105 afternoon traffic built up.
P.S. The pie was fantastic. Perfect tart and sweet of a fresh Meyer lemon custard. Great graham cracker crust, and whipped cream just sweet enough to help create the perfect bite. My husband loved the slice we bought him.
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Finally made it here for lunch. It was almost a full house. Just a few 2 tops available around noon.
The capellini was al dente and savory. Was expecting the tomato sauce to be more like a ragu based on cooking time but it was well balanced and still maintained some sweetness. I like the Scarpetta version a little better but this was a very good plate of pasta. Good sauce to pasta ratio.
My friend had the scarpinnoc with braised beef cheek in brown butter sage sauce. Very well made pasta. The braised beef cheek was tender and the brown butter sauce was spot on.
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Had a super tasty lunch at Jame the other day. Ordered the lasagna special with foraged mushrooms, which was outstanding. Mushrooms can be a little watery but these were perfect. I also liked how the lasagna was made to order and baked on its own little plate, which allowed for crispy edges all around.
Followed up lunch with an excellent flat white from Two Guns up the street.
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Enjoyed another nice dinner here last Wednesday night. They open for dinner at 1730 - we got there at 1745 and grabbed the last 4-top inside. The wait list grew from that point - it was a little too cool for dinner outside.
The dishes that stood out to me were the crispy risotto, roasted cauliflower (again) and the roast pork shank.
The risotto was like an Italian fried rice where great care was taken to crisp the outside of each grain of rice just north of soccorat. Full of flavor, spice and wonderful aromatics of herbs.
I mentioned the cauliflower in the past - perfectly roasted and full of umami. Our kids (16 & 19 yrs old) ordered this without hesitation.
The pork shank didn’t scream Italian to me - a glaze of honey and mustard and …? But it was crazy delicious just the same. A nice browned outer crust gave way to super flavorful and juicy meat. We took the remaining bone home to get at the remnants of meat caveman style.
Jame Enoteca is still first come/first serve, so go early or plan on waiting. As the weather warms, the outside tables become more of a practical option for dinner.
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Sugoi!
Is Chef Kalb still offering his unforgettable 36-hour San Marzano tomato cappellini on the menu?
Their chopped salad is the best I’ve ever eaten.
Have you tried Alimento’s version?
Sorry - I believe it was on the regular menu but I’m not positive - we ordered the cavetelli with sausages an parmesan sauce and the mushroom lasagne. Both were very good.
I was planning on ordering that but was voted down with the cauliflower.
Alimento has a version of crispy risotto? We will have to spread our neophyte wings and try it…
I’m not a chopped salad kind of guy, but Alimento’s take on caesar is best-in-class for me.