Anisette Brasserie

NOTE: this was published 3/6/09. I am lazy.

These photos are from the summer before Cindy Koh left for med school. As such, I don't really remember enough to type something of substance, suffice it to say the food was delicious.






Beautiful interiors!






Cheers!





Steak + ...


... Frites


Bag of vegetables.


Steamed to perfection.


Duck confit






Lavender ice cream

Anisette Brasserie
http://www.anisettebrasserie.com/
225 Santa Monica Blvd.
Santa Monica, CA 90401

Rustic Canyon Wine Bar and Seasonal Kitchen

Inspired by Surafel single-handedly breathing new life into the food blog, I'm going to probably write 2-3 entries today. Alas, my long-in-the-works Happy Hour Round-Up isn't quite ready for the big leagues.

Last night I went out to Rustic Canyon Wine Bar and Seasonal Kitchen, encouraged by the promising review from the LA Times and the yuppy-sounding name (the Prius felt right at home).

But I won't be returning.

Let's start with the name. The restaurant, located at 1119 Wilshire Blvd, overlooks a strip mall with nary a canyon-- or any rust, thank God-- in sight. I'm all for idealistic names, but you have to have the theming to go with it-- just ask Disney's California Adventure (or... don't).

Walking in the restaurant, I hadn't felt that conflicted since I found out The O.C. was finally ending (once it got good again, but before I could get bad again). The decor is pretty nice and mellow-- some would say stark. But the acoustics are awful-- it might have been the loudest restaurant I've ever eaten at, and whole "communal table" idea pushed things over the edge, to the point where I felt like I had to yell at my dining partner to carry a conversation.

The food was good but overpriced. In all, a glass of wine cost about $10 dollars, bringing the total meal cost to over $50 for just one person (no appetizer-- just drink, meal and dessert). I had the chicken-- and while the chicken was perfect, the strange cabbage and risotto combo underneath added some interesting flavors. Still, good chicken. But nothing truly daring or remarkable.

The money would have been better spent at a therapy session-- at my personal favorite, the Rustic Canyon Whine Bar and Seasonal Bitchin' (that's the obligatory pun, admittedly weak, for this entry).

Overall: Don't go.

(to other food bloggers here: since we all know Jane has the market cornered on super-detailed numeric rating systems, how's about we go for a simpler "go/don't go" standard rating system?)

Panera Bread

How you let me down.

Oh, I've been before-- which is what makes this post so hard to write. Panera, how I loved you. And how you've hurt me so.

Eric was hungry. Kathy, Colin, Eric and I were driving down Wilshire trying to decide what to do. I suggested Panera and everyone else agreed (they were all first-timers).

We got to Panera. I went to the menu (I had already eaten, but there's always room in my tumbly for a baked good).

Kathy asked, "Ravi, are you going to order something?"
I answered, never one for word variation, "Yeah, probably a muffin or something."
"But what about the grade?"
OH GOD.
I glanced up and there it was. Panera got a B! Panera, a chain restaurant that can afford to pay for reinspections, settled for the B!
But you know what, I ordered anyway (more about that on my personal blog).

As I made my way to the line to order, there was a vision usually reserved for my nightmares: a basket of bread, in which they had placed several loaves, and from which sampling patrons would have to tear a piece of the bread off, and (if they so chose) dip it in olive oil.

EWWWWWWW.

This picture is far too large:




-->Ravi

Wilshire Restaurant (2)

Wilshire Restaurant is like a young Mexican girl on the eve of her Quincieñera: bright-eyed, beautiful and eager to enter the best years of her life. Though WR has yet to develop a strong following it has all the makings of a great restaurant. The service, fare and ambience of this newbie effortlessly keeps up with the Jones' of this town (more commonly known as the Puck's and the Chow's) Give this place a couple more years and you'll definitely run into a couple of those no talent ass clowns from "The OC".

Service: Good
The staff is pretty young but definitely well trained. At first I got a "Aah geez here come a couple of kids who are going to drink water and leave me a shitty tip" vibe from our waiter but that lasted only miliseconds. (It might've even been in my head, who knows?)They were very attentive, the courses came out like clockwork, and one of them even offerred to adjust the heating lamp when they thought I was cold.

Fare: Very Good
I don't usually order chicken at restaurants because KFC does a pretty good job but the chicken breast offerred on WR's menu was too tempting to pass up. IT WAS PERFECTION.

Skin: Crispy
Meat: Juicy
jus: well there is no such thing as bad jus
farm fresh vegetables: foreign but delectable, esp. when rubbed all up in the jus.

Ambience: perfect
I generally hate eating out on the patio because I feel like the restaurant is telling me that I'm not important enough to eat inside the house. This outdoor patio, however, REALLY does feel like an indoor patio because its warm and there is a lot going on above the tables (giving it a bit of a treehouse feel) and the music is just loud enough.

Bad stuff: The cups in this joint are awkward and stupid. Imagine the coconut cups that Gilligan and the gang used on the island except they are made of glass. I practically had to hold it with two hands. I was afraid my mits were going to shatter the delicate glass or that I was going to accidentally take a bite of one whilst drinking.

Other than that, the place is great. Be ready to spend between 50-75 dollars a person. And don't come when you're in a rush because you'll be there at least an hour and a half. Like a Quincieñera party, Wilshire Restaurant will practically take up an entire night of your life but UNLIKE a Quincieñera party, your night won't end in a no holds barred chola brawl complete with lipstick liner shanks and wind tunnel bang casualties.

Wilshire Restaurant (1)

I'd eat here every day if any one of these people was my father.

Apparently they aren't real, so I guess I'll have to survive eating at Wilshire once in a blue moon.

I started with foie gras, and while I enjoyed the opportunity to try it, I'll probably never have it again (sort of like 6th grade camp for my tummy). Still it was tasty.

Oh, and the bread. Three varieties: olive, some sort of fruit-and-pumpernickel (probably prunes), and plain french. They were all decent but not earth-shattering.

For the main course I ordered the Santa Barbara sea bass. A hallmark of the Wilshire Restaurant is their commitment to purchase organic food from local farms and fisheries. I don't know if I tasted the difference, but what I did taste was fantastic. Possibly the best fish I've ever had.

The dessert was a lot like power in that I couldn't get enough. Chocolate cake with caramel ice cream sprinkled with delicious.

None of the portions were huge, but there was so much and it was so well-timed that I never felt uncomfortably full or still hungry.

Impeccable service: whenever I needed a water refill all I had to do was turn my head and there they'd be.

I wish we had taken pictures, but I thought it'd be out of place in a restaurant like this, so you'll just have to imagine it. Outdoor seating that doesn't feel like outdoor seating.

I'm really tired, so that's all I'm going to write. I'd like to note that Joanne said she'd have her review up that night (Wednesday) but seems to be at a loss for words. So, really, I hadn't planned to write much.

http://www.wilshirerestaurant.com/

Overall, the meal made me feel:


(yes, that's Steven Seagal, perhaps the most underrated actor of our time)

-->Ravi

Rick's Tavern vs. Father's Office

I didn't have my first hamburger until I was 17, partly because the Hamburglar scared me and primarily because I HATE CONDIMENTS. And the main reason why people like hamburgers is because they are smeared in ketchup or mustard or (dry heave) mayonaise or "special sauce". I don't care for any of the above so I steered clear of hamburgers altogether. After a couple choice encounters with In N Out --tomatoes, lettuce and grilled onions ONLY-- I've acquired a taste for them.

On the Westside I know of two places that are famous for their hamburgers. One being Rick's Tavern on Main Street, the other Father's Office on Montana. Even though its probably not fair to compare the two because they are so different, I am going to face them off against eachother anyway. Because that's life.

FATHER'S OFFICE: The heavyweight
Upscale, trendy bar with a bazillion beers on tap.
Specialty: Mouthwatering gourmet burgers smothered in bleu cheese and carmelized onions.
Pros: The burgers are really great, the atmosphere is fun if you like interracting with strangers (i.e. you are the type of person who doesn't mind talking to the people next to you in line at the supermarket) They have a ton of old Trivial Pursuit questions cards from the 70's that help kill time. The bartenders are very helpful and attentive.
Cons: Finding a table during peak hours is tough. I suggest going on a weekday before 7 or after 10. The prices are painfully high. A burger, drink and fries (which have to be purchased separately) will run you about $15-$20 depending on what you drink.
The Pros about the Cons: The crowded atmosphere can be a lot of fun. Snagging a table is easiest when you make friends with someone who is getting ready to go. For those of us which social anxiety issues, Father's Office is a good place to practice that assertiveness everyone keeps talking about.

I know, it's tiny.

Rick's Tavern: The Underdog
Dive bar with sticky floors, tv screens and old men.
Specialty: Enormous burgers that are half off on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Pros: The 1/2 off special (comes out to be about $4.50) can not be beat. The burger is about the size of a ten year old's face and it comes with CRISS CUT FRIES. All of the hamburger accessories, including the condiments, are served on the side. They even have A1 sauce, which is one of the few condiments I actually like.
Cons: The place is pretty janky. Not exactly a great date place unless your date is an awesome person that can look past the disgusting sports bar paraphanalia and cheap old man cologne. Parking is kind of a bitch, but the biggest bitches around are the waitresses. Yeah, they are tired and underpaid and sexually harassed but can I please have an order of courtesy, hold the sarcasm.
Pros about the Cons: The atmosphere really puts you at ease to eat your burger comfortably. Its a big burger so its hard not make a mess.


Who says you can't find love in a sports bar?

The name's of these two places ALONE give you an idea of what to expect. F.O. is the kind of place your Father would go after leaving the Office. That is, of course, assuming your father is a 20 something year old yuppie struggling to hide the remnants of his frat guy past. Rick's Tavern isn't OG pirate enough to deserve its surname but it could definitely satisfy a pirates hunger.



--Just for the record I like F.O. more but I'll probably go to R.T. more often in my lifetime.




-Joanne


Rick's Tavern --> 2907 Main Street Santa Monica, Ca 90405
(310) 392-2772

Father's Office --> 1018 Montana Ave Santa Monica, Ca 90403
(310) 393-2337

Taco Showdown: King Taco vs. Tacos Por Favor

If tacos could tac, what would they say?
















(Images courtesy of tacohunt.blogspot.com, because I forgot to recharge my digital camera's battery. Technically we did not visit that King Taco branch.)

King Taco has found its queen: Joanne is possibly the most devoted customer they have. That's not to say that her allegiance is blind: when they mixed up my order, she showed them who's boss (it wasn't me).

The winner of this battle? King Taco, at least for the time being. At both places I had tacos, but at King Taco they were each $0.62 cheaper, which really adds up when you eat four tacos. At KT I also tried a carne asada burrito with my chicken tacos. You are what you eat, I guess, because I was too chicken to tell them that my burrito was supposed to be made of meat-- they rectified the situation quickly and without protest, though.

King Taco also wins on the salsas. The red salsa packed punch but also had flavor, while the TPF salsa was a bit runny and was hot more than anything else. TPF's green salsa didn't have much of any flavor.

Ah, but Tacos Por Favor wins on menu variety. That is, they actually had a menu with more than just tacos and burritos. I look forward to trying their chile rellenos.

But I'll also be back for their hot chorizo and cheese little number in the corn tortilla skirt. (That made no sense.)

Does this spell the end of my Chipotle trips? If anything, it's made me realize that Chipotle isn't all that expensive-- both meals cost more than the Potle.

I also prefer crispy tacos.

Overall, Mexican Food makes me feel:



-->Ravi