Happy eating!
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Shin Sushi is where all the FTCers flocked to tonight, it appears. And for good reason… Take-san’s debut of his Deluxe Bara Chirashi was absolutely superb. The order included that incredible ebi miso soup I often dream about. The kohada, delicate and yet just the right amount of oily, was just the epitome of what hikarimono should be.
“I miss touching fish!” said the ever-ebullient Take-san from behind his counter. I’m so glad he’s back in the game.
I know, I know, the clear bang bang choice was Pizza Wagon, but I instead opted to create a homemade strawberry shortcake with the Antico Harry’s Berries strawberry ice cream, McConnell’s sweet cream, and Sara Lee Pound Cake. (and I know Chef Colby’s got his own version of this coming out tomorrow…) Word. #enoughcaloriestopowerasmallvillage
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That pound cake takes me back to childhood…my Mom used to buy it all the time. What a delightful meal!
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Don’t worry, I banged for y’all. May is off to a stunning healthy start (lunch and dinner pictured below). Last pic is Maple Block. Wonderful smokiness, but a touch dry.
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Solid biscuits at Maple Block.
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wow - did not know
I always get the pork ribs without sides
Can you do a single restaurant Bang Bang?
P had to go pick up some equipment in Van Nuys, so we decided it was our chance to finally try Pizza Wagon. I love Pepperoni Cups and had been very happy with the slices we have been getting at Superfine Pizza… But this one lived up to the hype… Loved the chalices and the sauce. The crust had a wonderful structure to it, but not shattering crisp or dry. A winner for sure!
We also got a Spinach Stick, which I loved and a slice of the Eggplant Pizza. We were suprised that the eggplant topping was like eggplant parmesan. Like the Pepperoni slice, the toppings were generous including big dollops of ricotta. Overall, the slice the good, but not as good as the White Pie Slices from Vito. So stick to the red sauce.
We were were headed to the pick up, when we decided that we would bring home a Sicilian pie for dinner later. They asked us when we were going to pick it up (Literally like 40 minutes later) and we told them we were going to reheat it later on our Pizza Steel. When we came back… it was all ready and they said they held back baking it so it was totally done, but could benefit from a few minutes on that steel.
This is the pizza before getting on the steel…
Sorry not shot of it post steel… but the crust did heat up really well and the onions did get a little more crisp. Now, the Sicillian comes plain and each topping is $3… so with three toppings, it was quite pricy… but it’s A LOT of pizza… And it had much more of that awesome red sauce and the crust was not heavy in the slightest. I had Antico’s pizza when it was at the Fields and I loved it. this one is pretty much identical except for the Calabrian Chiles…
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My first time trying Felix in any form:
They mixed up the order and gave us the oxtail ragu instead of the sausage sugo. Argh. Not a problem, though, since the oxtail and casarecce go together just fine. Not sure if I needed to stir the sauce more vigorously b/c some bites had only a little flavor, while other (and, thankfully, most) bites were slow-cooked flavor bombs. The portions looked pretty small prior to cooking, but the taste is so rich that I think it works okay for 2 people, if you get just a few extra. Burrata was very good, and the budino was weird but pleasant (I certainly enjoyed it not being cloyingly sweet).
THE FOCCACIA IS INSANE. It’s like a glutinous pillow. So soft, so spongey, and yet it holds its form. And it makes an excellent device to scoop up any sauce left on your plate. Can I be romantic w/ food? If so, I would cuddle w/ this foccacia.
Got some Antico strawberry ice cream for later… 
Edit: just tried the ice cream. OH, MY F*CKING GAWD. Lordy, it’s intense and SO GOOD.
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The ice cream is like crack…and I adore it! Hope you had a great celebratory dinner.
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Cofax - Pastrami Burrito 
Holy fuck was this good! Ordered online through their website which redirects you to ChowNow and boom, select pastrami burrito. It features that amazing Ugly Drum pastrami with smoked potatoes, eggs, cheese and I even detected a wee bit of mustard, and they add some very spicy pickled jalapeños which sets this fucker off. The 1” cubes of pastrami make each bite a flavor bomb of deliciously smokey pastrami, fatty but not over the top fat and the acidity balances it nicely. I added some salsa verde just to mix it up a bit, but it didn’t need it. Definitely grab one or three.
Shin Sushi - Deluxe Bara Chirashi
When word was out that Shin was opening back up, I had to pounce. What a lovely array of ingredients, all adding different textures and flavors. The scallop for some luscious sweetness. The anago for velvety smooth buttery richness. The kohada bringing forth a nice oily richness with a slight bite and tender finish. The tobiko and ikura both added a nice salty flavor yet contrasting textures. I loved how the fish was cut into smaller pieces, made for a lovely eating experience. And the sushi meshi really made this for me, which brought it all together.
Sidecar Donuts - Santa Monica
For dessert, left to right: celebration cake, dulce de leche churro, strawberries and cream
And cuz we all love more pictures.
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This take-out kaisendon by Shunji Japanese Cuisine tonight was simply decadent: O-toro, aji, hotategai, Santa Barbara uni, ama ebi and ikura in dashi, all over a bed of toasted nori and steamed rice. Just a really great box of seafood over rice: The essence of great kaisendon!
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Chef Sugishita’s chirashi bento
Raku bento boxes
Everything was great. I’m sure if I ate the karaage in the car it would’ve been better but overall, still an awesome dinner
My wife and I shared the chirashi and we ordered the steak and karaage bento from Raku
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What’s the difference between kaisendon and chirashi?
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kaisendon typically sliced fish and only seafood.
chirashi can be non seafood and usually diced seafood or small bitesized.
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kaisendon is usually on unseasoned rice, chirashi is on sushi rice.
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Chirashi rice is typically vinegared seasoned rice with scattered toppings. It is fantastic and great for making onigiri with the leftovers. We always have chirashi rice for New Years.
Chirashi sushi is basically a sushi bowl, the fish is sliced like sashimi or nigiri over sushi rice.
Bara chirashi is chirashi sushi where the fish is cut into smaller pieces over sushi rice.
Kaisendon is a donburi, or rice bowl, and is fish over plain rice.
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How was the rice?
Rice was good, nicely seasoned.
Next time, I’m thinking about doing delivery. Chef Sugishita said that he does a lot of deliveries to the 626 area.
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Lucky! I think he nearly had a heart attack when I said I was in the 562/714. Im sure he was relieved when I told him that I would pick up.
