Rest in Peace, Mark Petix

August 5, 2012 6 Comments

There are few people I have ever known for whom all was truly yar, who really did live the good life in all of its many forms, more than Mark Anthony Petix.

A gifted writer, he was most familiar to the world for his many years at The Press-Enterprise of Riverside, covering the Inland Empire in all of its glory — especially all of its food-related glory.  My favorite of Mark’s many foodie pieces is his behind-the-scenes look at making the family’s Easter Bread.

Of course, he wrote about much more than food; his ability to crystallize any moment in time was best evidenced in his multi-part series following an Army Reservist from Riverside around Bosnia in 1999.

His easy-going charm and wit translated well to the page, but to see the mischievous glint in his eyes  and wry smile on his face as he spun his stories was a privilege given to those who knew him personally.   He was the kind of guy everyone genuinely liked being around because he always made you feel good, always made you laugh, and always made you hungry as he talked about something yummy.

A few weeks ago, he began to complain of back pain, so he and his lovely wife, Tena, saw a doctor to find out what was troubling him.  To their shock, they learned that Mark was suffering from cancer in a very advanced stage that had spread throughout his body.  With Tena’s loving support, he tried his best to fight it, but being the pragmatist that he was, knew that he didn’t have much time.

Yesterday afternoon, Mark passed away in his own home, surrounded by family and friends.  He was only 57 years old.

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Farewell for now, foie gras — and many thanks to Michael Cimarusti, José Andrés, et al, over the years

July 3, 2012 3 Comments

I don’t remember the first time I had foie gras, but I definitely know when and where I fell in love with it:  it was at Water Grill in Downtown LA, right before the turn of the New Millenium.  Michael Cimarusti had taken over the kitchen from Allyson Thurber a year or two before.

On this particular night’s five-course tasting menu, the chef offered up an appetizer of “foie gras au torchon” that was poached or somehow otherwise infused with cognac.

It was insanely good.  ”Decadent,” was the actual word that immediately came to mind after I put that first bite of foie gras yumminess smeared onto a brioche toast point into my mouth.  I was hooked, and fortunately for me, the portion size was extremely generous — almost too much of a good thing.  Almost.

So it is poetic and more than a tad melancholy that the last time I’m likely to have foie gras in California (for the foreseeable future, at least) was at the hand of Michael Cimarusti, now chef and owner of Providence on Melrose Avenue. A few days ago, Mrs. CKDH and I sat down for a 15-course chef’s tasting menu*, where his joint seafood and foie gras brilliance was manifest in two of the dishes:
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The final course: LACO’s Westside Connections 3 with Susan Feniger

April 17, 2012 Leave a comment

Margaret Batjer, Maia Jasper, Roland Kato, and Andrew Shulman: a vividly realized Ravel String Quartet in F

It was Holy Thursday and a few days before Passover,  and therefore rather appropriate that the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra would serve up the final version of this year year’s food-themed “Westside Connections” concerts as a kind of last supper.

Margarat Batjer, LACO’s concertmaster and series curator, mentioned that the initial premise for the evening was to salute the influence of great French music and cuisine.  Curiously, the only food-themed music came from a Czech composer, and the guest chef joining them for the evening, Susan Feniger, became famous for NOT cooking French cuisine.

Be that as it may, the best moments of the evening were definitely French.

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Yummilicious: Jonathan Gold sets the table for LACO’s musical sampler

March 25, 2012 Leave a comment

The folks at the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra have no qualms about taking non-standard approaches to building concert programs.  Their latest innovation is this year’s version of their “Westside Connections” series:  three events trying to find links between music and food.  Curated by Margaret Batjer, LACO concertmaster, each concert invites a different member of the culinary world to add their own thoughts and contributions to an otherwise musical get-together.

The second of these events, held Thursday at the Broad Stage in Santa Monica, featured food critic Jonathan Gold and an eclectic mix of music that seemed a worthy metaphor for the kind of random, off-the-beaten-path restaurants that he has been known to champion.  It proved to be an amusing and entertaining evening.  If there were no “a-ha” moments that illuminated a previously unrealized connection between food and music, chalk it up to the presenters wanting to have fun with the premise without over-intellectualizing it.

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A March full of music

March 1, 2012 Leave a comment

A smattering of musical stuff to check out over the next 31 days . . .

Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra’s “Westside Connections”

Margaret Batjer, LACO’s Concertmaster, curates this novel combination of food-themed music and discussion about gastronamy and the culinary arts.  The first of three presentations is tonight and features LACO musicians being joined by noted writer and blogger (not to mention favorite of Mrs. CKDH), Michael Ruhlman, whose many credits include co-writing The French Laundry Cookbook with Thomas Keller.  Jonathan Gold (Pulitzer prize-winning food critic who is in the process of moving from LA Weekly to the Los Angeles Times) and Susan Feniger (chef and founder of many L.A. restaurants) will be participating in the coming weeks

  • Thursday March 1, 2012, 7:30 pm:  Michael Ruhlman and Music of Rossini, Puccini, Falla and Schoenfield
  • Thursday, March 22, 2012, 7:30 pm:  Jonathan Gold and Music of Bach, Bernstein, William Bolcom, Timothy Andres and Dohnányi
  • Thursday, April 5, 2012, 7:30 pm:  Susan Feniger and Music of Saint-Saëns, Martinů and Ravel

All of the performances will be at The Broad Stage in Santa Monica.

“Good food and good music are a natural pairing,” says Batjer.  “LACO is delighted to present these stellar culinary celebrities as we explore in these whimsical and informative programs the many ways music influences and enriches society and our lives.”  To hear Ms. Batjer talk more about these concerts with KUSC’s Brian Lauritzen, click HERE (both stream and MP3 download available).

LA Children’s Chorus, American Youth Symphony, and James Conlon (7pm, Sunday, March 4, 2012)

As part of the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s “Sounds About Town” series, the Los Angeles Children’s Chorus and American Youth Symphony present a joint concert conducted by Anne Tomlinson and Alex Treger, featuring a number of Shakespeare-themed works by the likes of Vaughan Williams, Britten, and others.  James Conlon conducts the concert’s finale:  the world premiere of Daníel Bjarnason’s The isle is full of noises, a three-movement work based on The Tempes.  The Icelandic composer has two works being featured in the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s upcoming 2012/2013 season, so here’s a chance to get an earlier taste of his music.

(Four more events after the jump)

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Now taking reservations

September 14, 2011 Leave a comment

The Strand House: Finally, FINALLY -- a restaurant where the food lives up to the view. . . . Now all they have to do is figure out how to take reservations without annoying people

A couple of local star chefs who had been on hiatus from the kitchen as they started up new ventures are both now taking reservations at their respective establishments.

Michael Voltaggio a year ago

Michael Voltaggio isn’t opening his new restaurant, “ink.” (yes, the period is part of the official name), until September 21st, but he began taking reservations today.  The “Top Chef” Season Six winner was most recently Chef de Cuisine at the Langham (nee Ritz-Carlton) Huntington Hotel & Spa in Pasadena, but since his departure from there last summer, the anticipation for this new project has been growing to a fever pitch.  And if you didn’t already make a reservation today, you’re going to have to wait until tomorrow to make your reservation, then you’ll wait another 30 days before you actually sit down to eat Chef Voltaggio’s food:

  •  There is a reservation link on their website, but as of right now, that won’t get you anywhere.  Apparently, their partner of choice — Urbanspoon — isn’t working quite as they had planned.  It turns out that once they fill up all of their available tables for 30 days, the website just stops showing a reservation link of any kind; therefore, if you were to go onto ink.’s Urbanspoon sight right now, you’d see nothing related to reservations.  Confusing.  At least the ink. homepage gives a bit of an explanation.
  • What this all means is that each day, reservations will become available for tables exactly 30 days out and only 30 days out; this will go on until things slow down (unlikely anytime soon), someone cancels a reservation (possible, though tough to plan around), or Mr. Voltaggio and his team begin taking reservations for tables further into the future than just 30 days (we can hope).  We’ll see how that turns out.

The Strand House team tries to avoid getting wet underneath the Manhattan Beach pier: Exec Chef Travis Lorton, Owner Michael Zislis, Consulting Chef Neil Fraser, Pastry Chef Seth Caro

Meanwhile, Neil Fraser — former chef/owner of Grace and hopefully future chef/owner of Grace at Vibiana — and his partners, Michael Zislis (owner of The Shade Hotel and other South Bay establishments)  and Travis Lorton (late of Gjelina) recently opened “The Strand House” in Manhattan Beach.  I doubt there is a better combination of high quality food and magnificent view anywhere in Southern California — perhaps anywhere in California period.  If there is such a place, someone please tell me.  Mind you, I haven’t actually eaten there yet, I’m just going by the reviews being published (Merrill Shindler and KevinEats offering just a pair of examples), the reputations of Consulting Chef Fraser and Executive Chef Lorton, and my own wonderful meals at Grace.

Of course, I’ve been planning to get into the restaurant, but they only accepted walk up business until last week when they began to take reservations over the phone.  Even though they’re now willing to take reservations via OpenTable, it’s still practically as hard to get a reservation as ink. Moreover, when you do get a reservation, you are told that you have a time limit of 2.5 hours.  No joke — an exploding dinner reservation.  A good friend of mine said she had a similar experience, and one person even complained about it on the restaurant’s Facebook page, calling it a “silly and somewhat offensive policy.”  Can’t say I disagree with the man.  In any case, I decided to wait until they came up with a more tactful and subtle way to encourage table turnover before trying “The Strand House” for myself; instead, I walked the block and a half up the hill and grabbed a spot at David Lefevre’s still crowded and still spectaculr MB Post (where I have never been given a time limit for how long I can occupy a table).

If any of you happen to make it to either of these restaurants, I would love to hear your experience — or if you want to share your own war story of trying to get a reservation, unsuccessful or not, I’d be open to hearing that too.

  • ink., 8360 melrose ave., los angeles, ca 90069, 323.651.5866, http://www.mvink.com, reservations up to 30 days in advance on Urbanspoon.com
  • The Strand House, 117 Manhattan Beach Boulevard, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266, 310.545.7470, http://www.thestrandhousemb.com, reservations via phone or OpenTable.com
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photo credits:
  • The Strand House:  all images taken from their Facebook page
  • Michael Voltaggio:  Charley Gallay/Getty Images North America

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A better idea than “warm salty nuts”

September 8, 2011 Leave a comment

I’d put ice cream up there on my list of favorites along with the aforementioned orchestras and beer. And when it comes to ice cream, Ben & Jerry’s takes pride of place in our freezer. Each time I think I’ve found my go-to flavor, they manage to invent some tasty new creation, often with a wink and a nod to some humorous pop culture reference.

Their latest creation has just been announced: “Schweddy Balls”

Christmas comes a little early this year thanks to Pete Schweddy.  If you are unfamiliar with Pete and the Saturday Night Live classic from which his holiday dessert concept sprung, follow the link below for the original skit which launched this delicious dish.

Saturday Night Live:  Pete Schweddy appears on National Public Radio

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Yefim Bronfman on Iron Chef America again

August 29, 2011 3 Comments

I was settling in for the evening when, on a whim, I decided to watch the latest episode of Iron Chef America.  Mind you, this is something I do very rarely these days because I don’t think the latest crop of contest-chosen alleged “iron chefs” are actually worthy of the title (Marc Forgione on the same plateau as Masaharu Morimoto??  Please).

This episode happens to feature challenger Cesare Casella going up against Jose Garces in “Battle Hawaiian Snapper” (AKA opakapaka).  I was more interested in the secret ingredient than the chefs — I love opakapaka — and was only half paying attention when they started announcing the judges, the third of which was introduced as “a Grammy award-winning musician whose piano concerts have been enjoyed by audiences all over the world:  this is Yefim Bronfman!”

Fima!  I’ve seen him in interviews, so I know that he’s got an unexpectedly dry sense of humor which would make him a fun judge.  He’s been on ICA before back in 2009, judging Michael Symon vs. former Spago executive chef Francois Kwaku-Dongo, though I had missed that episode.  A couple of his fun moments this time around:

  • Shortly after being introduced:

Yefim Bronfman:  ”What is amazing is that I think musicians and chefs have a lot in common:  I think that they work under stress, so do we; you know, they’re working strange hours like musicians do.  And also some us are prima donas, and I’m sure some chefs . . . “

Restauranteur and fellow judge Donatella Arpaia quickly interjects:  ”All of them are!  All of them!!”

  • When being introduced to one of the dishes by Chef Jose Garces:

Chef Jose Garces:  ”A scallop sausage which has a scallop and snapper mousse that has pieces of snapper folded into it, served over basically a lentil porridge at the bottom.”

Donatella Arpaia:  ”You’re confusing me — but not in a bad way.”

Yefim Bronfman:  ”I like the fact that you’re confused because it’s a sign of a true professional.  When I play music, I’m very confused.”

Overall, he was notably easier on the contestants than the other two judges, but his comments  on their dishes were generally insightful.  I was not familiar with Chef Casella before the show, and his Italian-styled take on opakapaka certainly looked interesting and appetizing.  Chef Garces took a more Asian-inspired approach, incorporating some Hawaiian ingredients without tryng to mimic Hawaiian cuisine.  They both came up with successful dishes, but without spoiling the final result for those of you who may watch the many repeat broadcasts, there was one clear winner.

As for Mr. Bronfman, he looked like he had a great time.  It was nice to see him in a different setting than normal, and I can’t wait to see him in more typical environs:  sitting at the keyboard of the Model D Steinway at Walt Disney Concert Hall playing the Bartok 3rd Piano Concerto with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in mid-October.

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Photo credits:

  • Yefim Bronfman:  Dario Acosta, http://www.yefimbronfman.com
  • Iron Chef America logo:  http://www.foodnetwork.com/iron-chef-america/index.html

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Even eateries need their own Parsifal: Nickel Diner’s maple bacon donuts

August 13, 2011 2 Comments

Nickel Diner's Maple Bacon Donuts: Hide your kids, hide your wives, and hide your husbands too (photo: Kimberli Ransom Photography)

Nickel Diner is just about three years old now.  In that time, it has gone from gritty Downtown L.A. pioneer to hip Downtown L.A. legend, all while managing to stay true to its sense of both aesthetic and culinary style.  Unlike the Main Street USA located in a certain Orange County theme park, this Main Street eatery is not staffed by “cast members” who smile cheerily as you walk through the door, nor is does it open onto a sidewalk cleared of stragglers and steam-cleaned every night.  And yet, people come from all over the Southland to revel in (or brave) the still funky neighborhood to eat Monica May’s yummy take on classic diner cuisine — and to eat donuts that are hand covered in genuine maple glaze and dipped into bits of freshly cooked bacon (fast forward to about 4:06 of the video below to watch them being made).

Every legend needs a hero, and Nickel Diner became the legend of which I speak because of the heroics of these donuts.  Don’t get me wrong — success could not have come without the rest of the elements serving their vital role.  But let’s face it:  the Maple Bacon Donut is the Parsifal at Nickel Diner’s veritable Round Table of Grail Knights; it is Gloria Estefan and everything else is the Miami Sound Machine.   The donuts are so very good that when Koa Duncan brought her formidable pastry skills and resume (including stints under both Alain Giraud and Ludo Lefebvre at Bastide) to the diner in 2010, the Maple Bacon Donuts stayed — even though she used to be a vegan.  (She is now a happy carnivore)

This past week, it was my turn to bring Thursday breakfast for all the co-workers at The Day Job.  Most people bring some muffins or bagels, the more health conscious bring fruit, and a box or two of Krispy Kremes has been known to appear (and quickly disappear) on occasion.  I had mentioned Nickel Diner’s treats in the past and people laughed it off as a myth, so I knew that I was bringing The Donuts when my week came around.

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Wine and a Weekend of Celebration

June 25, 2011 1 Comment

Typically, when the weekend comes around, Mrs. CKDH & I tend to open a bottle of wine (or perhaps two or six bottles, depending on which folks we happen to be drinking with).  Since last weekend was a particularly celebratory one filled special occasions with family, friends, and lots of yummy cuts of USDA prime beef, I went into the celler and pulled out a couple of Cabs that had been laying down for a little while.  I’ve been asked a couple of times by the wonderful folks with whom we dined to remind them what we drank — my apologies for the week-long delay:

  • 1995 Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley, right before the U2 concert at Angel Stadium, coinciding with the wedding anniversary of me & Mrs. CKDH:  Once it opened up a little,  still lots of great fruit on the nose; on the palate, nice and complex, though the tannins were quite a bit softer compared to how I remember the last bottle of ’95 we opened last year.  Smooth and long lasting finish.  The prime rib and steaks that we ordered at Prime Cut were decent, but undistinguished; what can you expect from a place where burgers take up almost as much room on the menu as the steaks; still, we weren’t expecting anything much more than we got.
  • 2001 Groth Cabernet Sauvignon Oakville, Father’s Day dinner at Nick & Stef’s Steakhouse:  First bottle of ’01 Groth that we’ve opened.  Quite big, even after all this time, but not overpowering.  Complex and a bit spicy, drank very well on its own, paired exceptionally well with the dry-aged New York that is the specialty of the house whether I took the bite plain or with some Maytag blue cheese sauce, and even complimented the bread pudding we had for dessert. Yummy. Very yummy.  So glad I’ve got more bottles left.

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Video humor: Whole Foods Parking Lot

June 13, 2011 Leave a comment

Classic.  ”Pay my 80 bucks for my six things and get out”

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