3 Days, 3 Sandwiches

I love sandwiches, such a nice simple food. I had three equally delicious but different sandwiches for lunch on 3 consecutive days.  It's hard for me to pick a favorite, what's yours?

1. On Saturday, after my board meeting in Rosemead, I had a banh mi with ham, meatloaf and headcheese from Banh Mi Che Cali, which is a small Vietnamese chain in LA and Canada.  I am still a banh mi novice, but they are so tasty; I love the combination of the freshly baked baguette that is just a little crispy on the crust, but nice and chewy in the middle, with the different meats: the simple ham, slightly more complex and salami-like meatloaf, and the rich pate-like headcheese, contrasted with the crunch of the lightly picked vegetables and cilantro.  I like to add some hoisin and sriracha for a little heat and sweetness.  At 3 banh mis for $5 dollars ($1.67 each), where else can you find a better deal??  One sandwich is perfectly filling for me.  I also had a nice vietnamese iced coffee that had me buzzing after; I always forget how strong the coffee is.  Banh Mi Che Cali is my current favorite; I think they are more generous with the meat and filling than at Saigon's Sandwich and Bakery, which is the only other banh mi place in LA that I've been too.   I like Baoguette in the West Village, a small (upscale) chain in NYC, but for $5 for just one sandwich, I feel a little indignant, but then again, it's the West Village.  I need to check out Banh Mi My Tho in LA next and I will report back. 
   
   
   
2. On Friday, after stop at Maxfields to check out the competition (Jen is a buyer for one of their larger and much better competitors), we had lunch at Urth Caffe on Melrose. I had the portobello with pesto panini with their moroccan mint boba iced tea and J. had a tostada.  I like Urth Caffe a lot; the food is tasty and fresh, and there is always nice people watching out on the patio.  It's definitely a nice place to take out-of-towners for a nice leisurely lunch outside on nice sunny days, like Friday.  The only reason that I don't go more often is that I find it expensive.  I can never get out of there for less than $20 for lunch.  Their portion sizes are ample and often include a nice side salad and I usually have to take home half of my lunch, but I still find it overpriced.
   
   
   
3. On Thursday, I made my own panini at home out of leftover scraps from the fridge: a panini with fresh mozzerella, proscuitto and basil from my basil plant, drizzled with a little balsamic vinegar and seasoned with just a little salt and pepper.  It was so simple, but sooo good; the salty meatiness of the proscuitto combined with the mild gooey mozzerella and freshness of the basil, with a little tang from the balsamic vinegar and the crispness from my panini maker (thanks Janice!).  So tasty and no more leftover scraps!

Random statue outside of Maxfields

My wonky basil plant

Banh Mi Che Cali

135 S. San Gabriel Blvd

San Gabriel, CA  91776

(626) 286-8728

Urth Caffe

8565 Melrose Ave

West Hollywood, CA  90069

(310) 659-0628

Why Roadrage?

I spent Friday and Saturday running around all over Los Angeles preparing for Sunday's mother's day dinner.  Why doesn't one store have it all: specialty food items, everyday staples, fresh organic produce, good seafood and meats, cooking accessories, liquor, all at the best prices?  Instead, they make me run all over the place. At least I finally got some mileage on the new car!

After dropping off Jen at Union Station downtown after lunch, my first stop was Surfas, where I picked up a bottle of lychee syrup for cocktails (I was looking for elderflower, but they were out), 1 lb of bittersweet chocolate, 1 lb of semisweet chocolate, and peach bitters.  I love that store; they carry the most random, but useful collection of stuff.  Not cheap though.  Next, it was onto Costco, where I picked up a handle of vodka, Grand Marnier, wine, shrimp, blackberries, flowers, napkins and plant food.  I also got gas at Costco for the first time in the new car (after over a month of ownership).  Then, I went next door to Albertsons for some fresh tarragon, wonton wrappers and creamed corn.  Next, I went to Trader Joe's for goat cheese, marscapone, and sparkling water.  I thought I was done, but of course as soon as I got home, I realized I forgot a bunch of stuff.  Saturday, after my non-profit cultural organization's board meeting in Rosemead, I stopped by Hong Kong supermarket in San Gabriel for garlic, sriracha, wonton wrappers, and "A" tsai (type of Chinese vegetable).  Then, I went to Crate and Barrel in Beverly Hills for martini glasses (at $3.95 a glass, I think they are a good deal, and nice too!) and a new pepper mill for mom (same one that I use), her mother's day gift.  Finally, I stopped at Trader Joe's (again) for some heavy cream, white balsamic vinegar, mango / mangosteen juice, peanuts and butter.  I was exhausted from all the running around alone!  Next, onto the actual cooking...

Night on the Sunset Strip

Bad iphone picture of Skybar

My friend Jen was in town from New York so we met up for dinner and drinks on the Sunset Strip, convenient to the London Hotel, where she was staying (and highly recommends, as opposed to the new W in Hollywood where she had a terrible stay the night before).  We started out with dinner at Il Sole on Sunset.  It was a nice quiet place to catch up, though the food was nothing special, I had the lobster ravioli (didn't seem like fresh lobster) and we had a bottle of montepulciano / syrah that was fine, though not particularly noteworthy.  We then headed over to Skybar for a couple of drinks.  Even though its been a couple of years since I've been there, it hasn't changed a bit.  The bouncers are still unnecessarily obnoxious and the crowd is the same; there was this random exhibitionist, but that's LA for you!  Still, we enjoyed ourselves; the outdoor view over LA cannot be beat, the dj was pretty good and it was nice to hang out and catch up with old friends.


Il Sole Restaurant
8741 West Sunset Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90069-2205
(310) 657-1182




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San Francisco Daze

Bay Bridge

So after we got back to San Francisco from Napa, Sarah and I attempted to go out for a night on the town.  We started with a drink in the Redwood Room at the Clift Hotel.  It was pretty crowded, so we walked over to Bourbon and Branch for some tasty cocktails.  I liked the decor a lot; it was like an old library with various antiques.  Apparently, it was an actual speakeasy during the 1920s.  We had an elderflower drink and a sparkling wine drink.  Both were excellent.  After a long day of wine tasting, we called it a night fairly early.

The next day, Sarah gave us a little tour of San Francisco.  We started by walking to the Ferry Building and checking out the specialty shops there.  Then, we walked over to Red's Java House along the water for some perfect day-after wine tasting comfort food: cheeseburgers, chili cheese fries and onion rings in a divey setting right on the water.  Chili cheese fries are definitely my weakness, and these really hit the spot; the sliced jalepenos on top were a really nice touch.  After lunch, we then headed over the AT&T stadium, which was just a couple blocks away to try and catch a Giants game.  Unfortunately, they were sold out of everything except for standing room only.  After all, it was a beautiful 70 degree day in San Francisco.  Instead, we hopped on a trolley and headed just past Fisherman's Wharf to Crissy Field for an afternoon of relaxation on the fields.  I have to say, the public transportation in San Francisco is great; I wish LA had good public transportation options.  For just $2 (and using the free transfers), we were able to easily run around the city, between the trolleys and the buses.  I also found BART and Caltrain super easy to use and efficient to get to and from downtown San Francisco.  I will definitely be back to visit Sarah and Jenny again soon.

Walking to the Ferry Building

Lots of mushrooms in the Ferry Building

Yoga Recovery

That is Dee Dee; how cool is that!

After quite the decadent long weekend in the Bay Area, I detoxed today with a challenging yoga class taught by my friend and fellow wine clubber, Dee Dee. While I was a still a little tight from my run around the country club yesterday and tired from dropping K. off at the airport at 6am, I still had a really great class with lots of flow sequences, some fun handstands, and even learned some new arm balances (no pictures unfortunately).  I highly recommend checking out her classes in LA!

Off the Beaten Path in Napa

Keever Vineyards

On Saturday, Jenny, Jim, Sarah and I drove up from San Francisco to Napa for a very memorable day of wine tasting and eating, with a focus on the smaller, off the beaten path boutique estates. 

We started out with a private appointment at Keever Vineyards.  Keever is a small, family-owned vineyard (only about 6 acres of vines) up on the hillside near Yountville.  Ashley Keever and her dog, Bones, showed us around the estate.  We started by tasting the 2009 Sauvignon Blanc ($28), which was quite nice and had a little more complexity than typical Sauvignon Blancs.  We then tried the 2007 Syrah ($45), the only non-estate grown grapes.  I actually haven't had very much Napa syrah, so it was nice to compare it with the Santa Barbara Syrah that we usually have.  To me, it was a little more refined than the usual Syrah, with a nice and soft mouthfeel and lingering finish.  We finished with the 2007 Napa Cabernet ($90), which was beautiful and refined.  Ashley took us through the area where they process the grapes, the tanks where they ferment the grapes and through their caves. 

View at Keever overlooking the valley

Bones, one of our Keever tour guides

Tank room at Keever

Inside the Keever Caves.  I think this is their entire Sauvignon Blanc production

All their wines are aged in new barrels purchased every year

Next, we had made an impromptu stop at Whitehall Lane Winery, where we tasted a variety of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and dessert white.  We also tried a very nice 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon library wine that they were nice enough to let us taste.  Their wines were relatively reasonably priced.

We then made our way all the way up the mountains past St. Helena for our 1:30pm appointment at Pride Mountain. We started by having a little picnic with some delicious Molinari sandwiches and a bottle of 2000 Lynch-Bages Pauillac, which made for a very nice pairing (though understandably, Pride wasn't exactly happy about us opening a bottle of non-Pride wine at their vineyards).  After lunch, we were taken on a tour of Pride Mountain.  What is really cool about Pride Mountain is that most of the pours actually takes place in different parts of their cave.  We tried a really elegant and unusually complex Viognier ($42), Chardonnay ($37), lovely Merlot ($56), and several excellent Cabernet Sauvignons ($66+).  We got lucky and took our tour with a member of Pride Mountains reserve list and were able to do several barrel tastings of not yet released wines including a reserve cabernet and syrah.  I would definitely go back to Pride Mountain; the setting is very unique and there is a nice variety of excellent wine at various price points.  We even saw Will Ferrell stop in for a tasting as we were wrapping up.

 Pride Mountain View

 Molinari Sandwich

Cave at Pride, much bigger than Keever.  Barrels are stained red from barrel tastings

 Most of the tastings at Pride were set up like this; at little stations inside the cave

Our last private appointment of the day was with Alicia at Merus Vineyards, a very exclusive operation hidden in the hills around St. Helena.  They specialize in small production, highly rated Cabernet Sauvignons, several of which have been rated above 95 points by Wine Spectator.  We tried a Cabernet Sauvignon by their second label, 2005 Altus ($75), which was quite nice (a few of us picked up a bottle).  We next tried their 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon (a library wine) and 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon, which were both amazing.  At over $130 + for a bottle, they are definitely meant for cellaring and saving for special occasions.  The tasting salon and caves were very cool; very modern with funky, interesting design.  Since we were clearly enjoying ourselves very much, Alicia sent us over to 750 Wines, a small gallery-like wine shop in St. Helena.

Barn at Merus

Merus' library

Merus' cave

Merus' tasting salon

750 Wines was really cool; the owners, Monica and David Stevens poured us several interesting wines from small producers that I had never tried.  We tried a 08 Morlet Sonoma Coast Chardonnay ($75), 08 Zacherle sparkling Syrah Rose ($35), 09 Lorenza Rose ($20), 07 Bevan Cellars Oakville Merlot ($70), MacPhail Anderson Valley Pinot Noir ($50) and H.L. Cabernet Sauvignon ($150).  Although some of the wines we tasted were a little over our usual budget, we still really enjoyed the trying them out.  We'll definitely visit Monica and David again the next time we are back in Napa.

We finished up with dinner at Redd in Yountville (we were a little tardy).  Some of the dishes we tried included the oysters, lamb loin and loin, duck confit, and cheese plate.  While everything was excellent, I thought some of the sauces were a touch rich.  I would perhaps give it another try, although there are so many great restaurants in the the area.  All in all, it was another perfect day in the valley.  Thanks to Jenny for driving!!


Redd Restaurant
6480 Washington Street
Yountville, CA 94599-1294
(707) 944-2222

Cooking Lessons

Yesterday, I helped a family friend prep dishes for a party today in what I think is truly a cook's dream kitchen. She had multiple burners including a wok burner, two ovens, one steam oven, several warmers and chillers, built-in deep fryer, three sinks, two dishwashers, built-in coffee and espresso maker, all Viking and Miele appliances, built in wine fridge (to complement the huge wine cellar in the basement).  She had attended culinary school and also owned her own restaurant. I picked up a lot of great recipes from her; we made the following dishes:

five spice pulled pork buns with lightly pickled cucumbers and cilantro

lamb chops with cilantro parsley cashew pesto and tzaziki sauce

noodles with tahini garlic soy sauce mixed with chopped peanuts and scallions

egg rolls

chocolate mousse

I learned a lot from her about balance, complex flavor profiles, and how to bring it all together into one harmonious, incredibly flavorful dish.  Her food is incredibly savory with multiple layers and nuances of flavors. Even the dishes that looked deceptively simple, like the noodles, had a long list of steps and ingredients, including such diverse components such as tahini, white balsamic, chili oil, rice vinegar, stewed garlic, rock sugar, sesame oil.  Every element is crucial to the final taste.  Her food is flavorful and rich, without being overpowering, and just delicious.  We also had some tasty elderflower martinis and homemade limoncello.  Her house is way up in the hills of Milpitas. The surroundings are quite gorgeous, with rolling grassy hills and lots of horses.