Torta Tasting at Cook's Tortas

Awhile back, I was checking the Rants and Craves blog and came upon a posting about Cook's Tortas in Monterey Park. The descriptions and photos really had me salivating and I knew I had to check this place out for myself so I decided to set up an informal torta tasting for my dining group. Between 8 tortas and 5 sides, my group of 8 definitely got a good sampling of what Cook's Tortas had to offer. Before I talk about the food, I want to mention that they also serve a variety of agua frescas. I went with the Celery and Limon Aqua Fresca. At first, I wasn't quite sure that celery and lime would be a good match-up, but after taking a few sips, I quite enjoyed the interesting flavor combination.

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As mentioned, we shared 5 different side dishes. While I enjoyed all 5, three of them really stood out. First, there was the Caprese Salad. With its chunks of juicy tomatoes, crunchy cucumbers, queso fresco and basil, all topped with a very light vinaigrette, this was a salad that was fresh and refreshing.

For those with a sweet tooth, the apples and raisins coated with a sweet cream is like having a light dessert with your meal.

Finally, their sweet potato fries better known as their Red Fries, which were crisp and flavored with a hint of chili pepper, were quite addictive with or without the aioli sauce they came with.

One thing to mention about the bread that is being used is that it's not traditional. Tortas are usually made with bolillos or teleras. The Cook's tortas are made with ciabatta bread, but that ciabatta was so good that the other breads weren't missed at all. The bread was crusty on the outside, soft in the inside and had a wonderful light texture. Perfecto!

Now it's time for serious business and I'm talking the torta business which started with the arrival of the Queso Fresco. Ingredients included fresh cheese, lettuce, avocado, tomato, lettuce and chipotle. I have to say that if this was a sign of what's to come, I knew great things were coming our way. They were certainly generous with their cheese, which came in thick slabs. All the vegetables were crisp and fresh and I liked how the chipotle sauce added a zing of flavor to ingredients that are generally pretty neutral on their own.

The next torta we sampled was the Bacalao with Spanish style cod, roasted red peppers, olives, garlic, parsley and potato. From the reactions, I think everyone was surprised at how much they liked this particular torta. I absolutely loved the boldness of the flavors, but I also liked how the red peppers added a hint of sweetness. I would have the Bacalao again without question.

Unfortunately, I wasn't too enthralled with our next torta, the Cubana. With ingredients like ham, chicken, bacon, cheese, garlic and onions, it would seem like it would be an automatic winner, but I found the ham a little salty. Considering that the ham was a healthy serving, it was hard to get away from it. One of my dining partners put in her Cook's Torta Yelp that the Cubana needed a sunny side egg as part of the ingredients. I couldn't agree more. The yolk would have done a good job cutting into that salt.

Next in the queue was the Mojito with roasted pork, garlic mojo and slow cooked onions. That pork was amazingly tender and juicy. Add that pork to a plate of rice and black beans and you'd have yourself a fabulous meal. The only small thing to point out is that either there needed to be more garlic mojo or the garlic mojo that was there needed to more garlicky. With more of a garlicky presence, the Mojito would have been better. As it was, it was missing something, although I'm not sure what.

The Pambaso, which arrived next, was easily the most colorful of all the tortas we ordered. With the bread dipped in a guajillo chile sauce and ingredients that included chorizo, potato, lettuce and crema, this was easily my favorite of the bunch. I can't even put into words how much flavor was in this torta. You'll just have to try it for yourself.

Following the Pambaso came the Milanesa with breaded steak, tomato, mayo and jalapeno. Hmmm...fried steak, what's not to like? Fried steak that was pretty tender with a light and crispy batter? What's not to love?

We're almost at the finish line and the second to the last of our 8 sandwiches was the Cochinita Torta with achiote pork, onion escabeche, black beans and cilantro. If I didn't say it before, I'm going to say it now, Cook's Tortas really knows how to prepare their meat. The slow cooked achiote pork was tender and juicy just like the roasted pork in the Mojito sandwich we had earlier and the spices that were used went perfectly with the pickled onions and jalapenos.

Our tasting ended with the Carne Asada Torta with skirt steak, pico de gallo, avocado and lettuce. Considering how bold in flavor most of the other tortas were, the Carne Asada was bland in comparison or perhaps, the meat just needed more seasoning. Still, the steak on its own had a nice tender chew to it that was appealing.

Overall, I was really impressed with Cook's Tortas. From my housemade agua fresca to the tasty sides and to the even tastier tortas, our meal at Cook's Tortas was stellar as was the service. When I arrived and mentioned to Owner/Cook, Richard Diaz, about our group wanting to do a torta tasting, he kindly helped us see it through.

To make sure that everyone had enough, we ordered two of each sandwich. Richard would bring one sandwich out that was intact so that we could all get our photos and then he'd bring it back to the kitchen and cut both sandwiches so that each person would have their own section to sample. He did that for all 8 sandwiches.

Along the way, we also learned some tid bits of information. Did you know that he's actually a trained sushi chef? Yes, he is. Did you know that he has 500 torta recipes? In fact, when you look at the restaurant's chalkboard wall, you can see numbers beside the various tortas to represent what order they were developed.

To get some more great info about Richard and Cook's Tortas, check out the write-up that Food GPS did by clicking this link. To end, Cook's Tortas is a great place and hopefully, you'll decide to check it out for yourself.

To see all the pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157617827336193/

Cook's Tortas
1944 S. Atlantic Blvd.
Monterey Park, CA 91754
(323) 278-3536




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If I Could Cook...Avocado

If I could cook aka if I had the patience in general and I was in the mood for avocado, below are some recipes that might actually get me in the kitchen, courtesy of images I saw on Foodgawker!

Sweet Cream of Avocado
- Pink Bites

Avocado Gazpacho
- Spanish Recipes

Guacamole Ice Cream
- Elle's New England Kitchen

Avocado Cream Sandwich with Bresaola and Walnuts
- Lucullian Delights

Prawn and Mackerel Stuffed Avocados
- Coffee and Vanilla

Bon Appetit!

The Colombian Hot Dog at Tutti Frutti

While watching a tv show that was all about hot dogs, there was a particular segment that caught my attention. In that segment, a Colombian-born baseball player demonstrated how to put together a Colombian hot dog. Needless to say, the ingredients were a surprising choice and ever since then, I've wanted to try one, but couldn't find any place that made them. Thanks to Jonathan Gold, it turns out that they sell them at Tutti Frutti in Pasadena. I bet you're really curious now as to what exactly is a Colombian hot dog.

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Simply, it's a Hebrew National hot dog tucked with ham and mozzarella cheese into a bun with raw onion, spackled with crushed pineapple, sprinkled with crushed potato chips and finished with a three-squeeze-bottle lattice of catsup, mustard and mayonnaise. You're either cringing or entranced right about now. According to Jonathan Gold, "It is impossible to eat the thing without smearing condiments on your nose, but it isn't bad - the pineapple serves the same basic sweet-sour function as pickle relish, and even the crushed potato chips make a certain kind of textural sense."

Once I knew where to go, I headed off to Tutti Frutti with my iron stomach and even brought a couple of friends with me. Walking into Tutti Frutti, it was more of a fruit salad, yogurt and smoothie place rather than a harbinger of this extreme hot dog, but there it was on the menu. Before ordering the hot dog, I got side tracked by something else, the Tutti Frutti Fruit Salad and decided to start with that instead. Who says you can't have dessert first?

What was interesting about the Tutti Frutti were its ingredients which were seasonal fruit topped with sweet cream, frozen yogurt, cheese, coconut and blackberry sauce. Can you guess which specific ingredient gave me pause? Yes, it was the cheese. It seemed an odd choice, but when speaking to the owners who were Colombian, cheese in their fruit salad is quite common in their country. You know what? It works. The saltiness of the cheese balanced well with the sweetness of the other ingredients while the tartness of the blackberry sauce added a complementary flavor dimension. In short, the Tutti Frutti was fun to eat.

We also ordered a couple of Colombian drinks to try. The Postobon Apple Flavored Soda tasted apple-y and fizzy, although a little sweet for my taste. On the other hand, the Pony Malta drink definitely wasn't sweet at all, but was too thick and malty for me. A couple of sips and I was done.

Now it was time for the main event, the Colombian hot dog. When I first saw it, I was just in awe, because I had no idea where to start. There was just so much to it. I honestly wished for a knife and fork because I could already feel the ketchup-mayo-mustard smeared all over my mouth and nose. Heck, if Jonathan Gold could just bite it into, I could to and I did and yes, it was quite messy.

At one point, I just developed a strategy where I would take a bite out of the top part of the hot dog, leaving a lower ledge of hot dog and bread. That way, I could at least have some control over the condiment chaos and than I'd bite the lower part of the hot dog and just repeat. So what does a hot dog with all these interesting ingredients taste like?

With each bite, you taste sour, salty and sweet with both creamy, firm and crisp textures. It was definitely quite an experience. I couldn't even finish it. It was quite a good size dog, but I think it also had to do with the TuttiFruitti Fruit Salad I had earlier in the meal. Overall, at least I can say that I had a Colombian hot dog, but in the end, I just found the plethora of ingredients a bit overwhelming. I prefer my dog to be a little more basic - mustard, onions, hot dog and bun, but if you're willing to see what all the fuss was about, than definitely pay a visit to Tutti Frutti.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157618563908472/

Tutti Frutti
950 East Colorado Boulevard
Pasadena, CA 91106
(626) 793-3662
http://www.tuttifruttila.com/




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Delicious Veggie Dishes at One World Vegetarian

As much as I enjoy eating meat, there are those days when I just want veggies. Luckily, a friend suggested that we check out what she considered to be one of the best vegetarian restaurants in town. Considering that she's Vegetarian, I figured she would know her stuff so I had no qualms about making the trek with her to West Covina to dine at One World Vegetarian Cuisine.

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Before I start talking about the specific items we ordered, there's just a couple of things I want to mention about this restaurant. First, unless otherwise specified, everything on their menu is vegan. All their dishes are prepared without meat, poultry, seafood, eggs or MSG and they cook all their food with filtered water. Second, the menu is globally influenced featuring everything from American to Hispanic to Asian to European cuisine.

Our meal that afternoon revolved around their Asian-style offerings, starting with the Summer Rolls, which had veggie ham, tofu, jicama and carrots rolled in thin rice paper and served with peanut sauce. One thing to note is that the veggie ham didn't pass for real ham as far as I was concerned; however, it had just the right amount of salty-smokiness that played well with the tofu and the jicama, which don't have strong flavor profiles on their own anyway. The juicy crunch of the jicama and the sweet crunch of the carrots also added nice textures and flavor to this spring roll.

Next to arrive was the Golden Crescent, which were crispy veggie shrimp served with sweet chili sauce. Although they were a tad over fried and the batter was a little heavy, the veggie shrimp itself actually did a good job mimicking the sweetness of real shrimp.

Time for noodles and we shared the Everlasting Unity Chow Mein, which were deep-fried chow mein topped with veggie ham, tofu, mixed vegetables in house sauce. I enjoyed the crispy chew of the noodles and compared to the Summer Rolls, I actually thought the veggie ham in this dish tasted more like the real thing. I think the difference lies in the fact that the ham in this chow mein was sauteed and perhaps, picked up a bit of carmelization from the sauce it was cooked in.

Green beans is one of my favorite vegetables so it's not surprising that we also ordered the Emerald Threaded Pearls which are green beans wok-fried with carrots and button mushrooms. By the way, aren't you loving the names of some of these dishes? Just based on the names alone, I almost felt like I was eating at a Hara Krishna temple at times. This green bean dish was straightforward in that it wasn't cooked in any fancy sauces, but I enjoyed the crispness and the freshness of everything on that plate.

The last dish, before we ordered dessert, was the Spicy Lemongrass Tofu and it was also my favorite of the entire meal. I liked that the tofu was deep-fried and the sauce was amazing. It definitely had a kick to it and so flavorful. Even after the tofu was gone, I was spooning it over rice and enjoying it that way.

Even after 5 shared dishes, there was still room for dessert and we ordered two of them. The cheesecake was wonderful. I just loved how creamy it was.

I also enjoyed trying what was referred to on the menu as the Divine Chocolate Cake. Divine is a pretty strong adjective and while I wouldn't classify this cake as divine, it was still pretty good and something I wouldn't mind ordering again.

Overall, I really enjoyed my meal from start to finish and considering that One World Vegetarian Cuisine is fairly close to my part of town, I would definitely return to try other dishes from their extensive menu.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157618274755696/

One World Vegetarian Cuisine
178 S Glendora Ave
West Covina, CA 91790
(626) 917-2727
www.oneworldveggie.com




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Media Events: Fleming's/Illumination and Frito Lay

Flemings and Illumination Cocktail Party

Last week, I got a nice invite in my email box to attend an advance screening of Angels and Demons on May 14 at the Arclight in Hollywood. This event was a partnership between Sony Pictures, Fleming's Steakhouse and Quintessa Winery with the focus of the evening geared towards celebrating the release of Quintessa's 2008 Illumination and 2006 Faust Wines. The Illumination is a Sauvignon Blanc that received Wine Spectator scores of 92 in 2006 and 93 in 2007 while the Faust is a Quintessa “second label” Cabernet Sauvignon. At this pre-movie cocktail reception, guests were able to sample these two wines among other wines while noshing on delicious appetizers courtesy of Fleming's Steakhouse.

So what's the connection of the movie, Angels and Demons to this wine release party? Apparently, the storyline of light and dark forces provides an appropriate tie in with the Illumination Sauvignon Blanc and Faust Cabernet Sauvignon. One a white and the other a red, but both are two Napa Valley wines from Agustin Huneeus, legendary vintner and owner of the Quintessa Estate in Napa Valley’s Rutherford district.

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Running a bit late, I did manage to grab one of Fleming's Tenderloin Crostini, which was tasty and managed to sample one glass of the Illumination before heading into the movie. I'm by no means a connoisseur nor am I frequent wine drinker, but I know what I like and I really liked this Sauvignon Blanc. It was crisp, but not sharp and there were citrusy notes that really appealed to me. Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to sample the Faust, but you snooze, you lose. As for the movie, for the most part I liked it, although as with adaptations, I liked the book better.

Click the links below to find out more about Flemings and Quintessa!

Flemings Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar
Quintessa
Illumination Wine


Hollywood Premiere Webisode of "Only in a Woman's World"

Last February, I was invited to attend a world premiere of a webisode series called "Only in a Woman's World" presented by Frito-Lay at Coco de Ville in Los Angeles. I know I'm late in blogging about this, but as you all know, we can't always get to everything we need to get to.

The main purpose of this event was to really focus on appealing to women, a demographic that Frito-Lay has never really catered to in the past. So how does one appeal to women? First, develop a guilt-free snack line. Second, create an web-based animated cartoon series focusing on the trials and tribulations of 4 friends as a way of addressing some of our concerns as women.

Of course, it also doesn't hurt to throw a soiree for women bloggers at a swanky club and when you include signature cocktails and tasty appetizers (I totally fell in love with these mini cheeseburger sliders that were being served), you're definitely on the right track.

Scattered throughout the venue space were some of Frito Lay's new products ready to be sampled, which included a new Baked Lays flavor, the Southwestern Ranch, the Flat Earth Spicy Salsa Tortilla Chips, a new 100 Calorie Snack, which was Harvest Cheddar Sun Chips and finally, the Smart Food Popcorn Snacks. Women have a love/hate relationship with food, sometimes torn between healthy options and delicious options, with both them not always being one in the same. After trying each of the above products, I have to say, with surprise, that Frito Lay hit it out of the park.

In the past, I haven't been a fan of the Baked Lays since I found them to be dry and lacking in flavor, but that Southwestern Ranch Baked Lays was light, crispy and packed a little bit of heat. I totally fell in love with the Flat Earth Spicy Salsa Tortilla Chips. Again, it was light, crispy and also did have a kick in flavor. As for the Smart Food Popcorn, they came in multiple flavors with my favorite being the cranberry almond because of I liked the tartness of the cranberry.

Towards the end, we all got to see the premiere episode of "Only in a Woman's World", which is in effect, a much tamer version of Sex and the City. Since that premiere webisode, 7 more have been created and posted on the "Only in a Woman's World" website. I just watched them right now. Some are funnier than others, but there are definitely kernels of truth in every one of them that any woman could relate to.

There were also a couple of celebrities in attendance. Brooke Burke and Mel B looked just as gorgeous in person as on tv and it was definitely fun being a part of the celebrisphere even if only for a brief time. It was definitely a fun, "posh" kind of evening and I definitely appreciated being a part of it.

Click Here to Check Out "Only In a Woman's World".


Mel B and Brooke Burke Photo Credit: The Daily Stab

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Upcoming Pleasure Palate Events

For those of you who are or are not regular readers of my blog, you may not realize that I run a very active dining group that also goes by the name, Pleasure Palate. If you're in the LA area or even visiting the LA area and would like to join me and other food lovers, please check out my group by clicking here! While there's a variety of events currently on the calendar, I'd like to highlight some below.

May 17 - Gelato and Sorbet Tasting at Paciugo Gelato Caffe
Summer is just around the corner and what better way to get in the spirit than enjoying delicious ice cream by the beach. But we're not talking just any old ice cream. Instead, I've set up a tasting of exotic and unique gelatos and sorbets with Paciugo Gelato in Hermosa Beach. Flavors will include Violet Chocolate Chip, Beer Chill, Black Pepper Olive Oil and so much more. Click Here For More Info!

May 24 - Sausage Tasting with Beer at Wurstkuche
Join us for a sampling of 14 different sausages and when paired with beer, this is a meat lover event not to be missed. Click Here For More Info!

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May 31 - Beer Ranch Tour and Honey Tasting
This event will include a tour of the Bee Ranch where we'll get the opportunity to learn more about the production and uses of honey from Beekeeper Bill Lewis. We'll get to look inside a beehive as well as observe a small colony behind a glass partition and if that isn't enough, we'll even get to see honey extracted. To end the experience, we'll be able sample some of the honeys produced on the ranch itself. Click Here For More Info!

June 14 - Private Sushi Class with Chef Jay Terauchi
Do you love eating sushi, but have always wanted to play Sushi Chef and learn the ins and outs of making it yourself? If so, than this class is just for you. Taught by Chef Jay Terauchi who has taught sushi at the California Sushi Academy, this is going to be a fun 3 hours hands-on class. Click Here For More Info!

June 20 - Chef's Tour and Brunch at La Casita
This event is quite special because it'll include a tour of a local Mexican market led by Chefs Jaime and Ramiro of La Casita. Both of these chefs are known for their cooking segments on Univison, being nominated for James Beards awards last year and more recently, were featured in a Throwdown episode with Bobby Flay. This tour will be followed by a brunch that will be utilizing the fresh produce from that market back at La Casita. Click Here For More Info!

June 27 - Food in the Hood Series: Bigmista's BBQ
Time for some down home BBQ that is currently the talk of the town! So join us for delicious BBQ at Bigmista's BBQ. Click Here For More Info!

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Xinjiang Skewers and More at 818 JN Kitchen

In northwest China, there is a region known as Xinjiang and although lamb is rarely eaten in other parts of China, Xinjiang is known for its barbecue lamb or mutton. In fact, the Mongolian tribes who inhabited these areas were the ones who introduced lamb to the rest of China. Due to its geographical location, the food of north western China has been influenced by both Indian and Middle Eastern cuisine, which can be seen in the use of cumin in their cooking.

One of the most popular ways to prepare and eat the lamb or mutton is cut them in chunks, do a dry cumin/chili pepper spice rub on them, pierce with wooden skewers and then grill on a coal-fired barbecue. Considering how compact these skewers are, they have become a popular street-food staple in Beijing and now can be found in the city of San Gabriel.

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Open for more than a year, 818 JN Kitchen is tiny. Their dining room can probably only fit 14 to 16 people at one time and part of the kitchen where all the grilling happens is the size of a phone booth. What it lacks in size, 818 makes up for in a variety of tasty skewers and other foods that will definitely not break the bank. In fact, most of the menu items were priced at $6.99 or lower with skewers that range from $1.20 to $5.00 a piece. This is recession dining at its best. After my group settled down and checked the menu, we placed our skewer orders and decided to share some other dishes as well.

The first to arrive was the Special Home Guoba Soup. It was the least popular dish of the table. The soup seemed more like a gravy than broth and no one knew what to make of the torn pieces of what seemed like crepes that filled the bowl. I was pretty ambivalent about it myself. I didn't dislike it, but I was fine with just having a small sampling before moving on to the next dish.

A plate of Oil Pancakes soon arrived. Another thing that Northern Chinese cuisine is known for is their breads, which is why this made it to our table. Unfortunately, I would have been fine without it. It was very dense and dry. Perhaps, this oil pancake wasn't meant to be eaten alone, but torn in pieces and dipped in a stew or hot pot? Whatever the case may be, the oil pancakes were disappointing.

The next two dishes turned everything around. First, there was the Beef Pancake, which was a Pac-Man looking sandwich and one definitely worth chasing and devouring. Basically, you had something like a roast beef with cilantro and green onions between a toasted sesame bread. One is a snack, but two or three of them could be dinner. What are sliders again?

Then there was the Cucumber Salad with a sesame paste. It was so refreshing and I loved that the cucumbers were so crunchy and juicy. Our table loved it so much, we ordered a second plate just so everyone could get second helpings.

The last two dishes we shared arrived in between the skewers. One was the Pork and Leek Dumplings. The dumpling wrapper was thicker than I would have liked and although the filling was a bit oily, it still had good flavor.

The second one was a plate of pickled mixed vegetables, which was also both refreshing and crunchy. These vegetables acted as the perfect foil for the highly seasoned skewers, almost like a palate cleanser.

So now let's talk about the skewers. While I did mention that Xinjiang is known for their lamb skewers, there's actually quite a variety of other grilled meats offered at 818 JN Kitchen. Along with lamb, there were organ meats like lamb kidneys and chicken hearts as well as chicken, shrimp, quail eggs, corn and even yellow grouper.

The first skewer that hit my plate was the lamb. Considering the meat had a dry rub of cumin and chili peppers, the flavors were intense. One of my dining partners created a mixture of soy sauce and chili sauce in a plate to dip her skewers in and I soon followed suit. It added even more zing to the meat. As for the lamb itself, it erred more on the dry and chewy side, but that worked for me.

My next two skewers were the Chinese sausage and quail eggs. Although the Chinese sausage was a bit salty, I would order it again. Like the lamb, it was both chewy and also bold in flavor. It was actually almost cute seeing the little quail eggs on the skewer. They were a bit over boiled, but I still enjoyed them.

The grilled steak wasn't on skewers and the meat was a bit tough, almost like jerky, but still no complaints from me.

Next to last was the grilled corn, which wasn't seasoned at all, but perhaps, it's not meant to be.

Last, but not least, was the grilled yellow croaker fish. Of all the skewers, this was the mildest in flavor. I'm not sure whether they forgot to crust it with the cumin and chili pepper or they did, but the cumin and chili just did not adhere well to the fish skin, but in the end, it was crispy and the fish meat was quite delicate.

To end, there are a couple of things I do want to point out. One, the quality of the meat may not be up to par for some. As long as you don't expect tender cuts of meat and are fine with the meat being grilled to the point of being chewy, you'll be good. It's really all about the bold seasoning that make the skewers the stars of the show.

Also, since the same cumin and chili pepper seasoning is used and depending on how many skewers you eat, they all may start tasting the same. I think ordering the cucumber salad and/or the mixed vegetables and eating them in between the meats can give your tastebuds a rest in between bites. Finally, English is pretty limited at this restaurant, but the menu is in English, so there shouldn't be a problem pointing out what you'd like to order.

Overall, I really enjoyed my meal at 818 JN Kitchen and I didn't even have to sell my car to pay for my share of the meal. One thing I also learned while I was there was that the owners are all friends who are actually from Xinjiang and decided to open this restaurant together, which definitely tells me that this restaurant really does know its Xianjiang skewers.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157617898390596/

818 JN Kitchen
818 E. Valley Boulevard
San Gabriel, CA 91776
(626) 307-5128




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Discover LA: "Art's a Trip" Metro Art Tour

Other than being a great foodie town, LA has much to offer and while this blog will still be primarily about my culinary experiences, I also wanted to share with you other things about LA that have definitely made me smile, think, chuckle, appreciate and so much more and hopefully, they'll also help you discover an LA you've never known before and may want to know better.

Did you know that one half of one percent (0.5%) of rail construction costs are allocated to the creation of original art works. Well, now you know. :) Since 1989, Metro's Art Department has commissioned over 250 artists for a wide variety of projects.

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The job of the artists is to incorporate art into a wide array of transportation projects throughout Los Angeles County. From bus stops to rail stations, streetscapes to bus interiors, construction fences to poetry works, art creates a sense of place and engages transit riders.

A really cool thing that Metro does is hold free tours the first Saturday and Sunday of the month exploring the art at some of these stations. For the public tours, you'll primarily ride the Red Line; however, you can make special arrangements to check out the art on the Gold Line or the Green Line.

The tours run about 2 hours round trip and as a perk, you get a FREE pass that you can use even after the tour is completed. During the tour, you'll be led by a docent who will take you to 4 to 5 stations. As you get off the train and walk into and through the stations, the docent will tell you about inspiration for the art installations.

For the most part, the inspiration will come from the particular neighborhood that the station is at. For example, at the Lincoln/Cypress Station off the Gold Line, the installation is called "Water Street: River of Dreams" because of its proximity to the Los Angeles River. This particular area was at one time home to the Gabrielino (Tongva) Indians, so by having a statue of a Tongva woman drawing water from an imaginary river and pouring it into a tightly woven bronze basket, you get the connection between the LA River and a people long since gone.

I actually set up private Metro Art tours of both the Gold Line, Red Line and Green Line in the past and if you check the links below, you'll see all the pictures I took plus check out the captions for information about the themes being showcased at the various stations. Enjoy!

By the way, a nice thing about taking these Metro Art Tours is that it's a way to learn how to use the Metro System all under the guise of a tour and all for FREE! Aren't those Metro folks sneaky?


Click Here For More Info About the Metro Art Tours.

Check Out My Pictures Below of the:

Gold Line Metro Art Tour
Green Line Metro Art Tour
Red Line Metro Art Tour (starting from North Hollywood)
Red Line Metro Art Tour (starting from Union Station)



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I'm In the Mood for a Burger

I'm in the mood for a burger! So let's share a virtual one together.

Does anything below catch your fancy?

Office Burger
from Father's Office in Santa Monica, CA


Triple Pork Burger
from Umami Burger in Los Angeles, CA


Avocado Burger
from Wolfe Burgers in Pasadena, CA


Avocado Bacon Cheeseburger
from T Burgers in Monrovia, CA



Hellman Burger
from Pete's Cafe in Los Angeles, CA

To check out my Flickr Photos (foodie and otherwise), please click here!

Summer's Bounty at the Watermelon Tour of Tanaka Farms

Summer is just around the corner and soon one of my favorite fruits will be in season, the juicy watermelon. If you enjoy watermelons just as much as I do or even just sampling the freshest produce possible, than you should check out Tanaka Farms in Irvine, CA. Currently, they're conducting strawberry tours, but when I was there last summer, it was all about the watermelon. My eyes are glazing just thinking about taking a juicy bite out of one of them right now.

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Before I tell you about the tours, let's learn more about Tanaka Farms. Operating since 1998 and amidst all the development around Orange County, Tanaka Farms has been growing fruits and vegetables all year round. Around Mid-March, they open up their produce stand right next door to their fields, where you can purchase up to 50 different organic and non-organic fruits and vegetables.

Tanaka Farms also features farm tours. From March to June, they do strawberry tours. July through August focuses on watermelon tours. October is all about pumpkin tours and December is the time for Christmas trees. While each tour has a particular focus due to the seasonality of a particular fruit or vegetable, the tours are all similar. On that note, let me share my Watermelon tour experience with you, which revolved around a wagon ride we took around their 30 acre farm. The wagon ride started right around the corner from their produce stand.

On that wagon ride, we had a guide who gave us the history and background of Tanaka Farms and he also talked of and answered any questions we had about farm life, about growing practices, about the various produce grown on the farm and whatever else came to mind. Along the way, we'd stop and sometimes sample fresh vegetables literally right off the vine, with the watermelon being the final stop of our journey.

Our first stop was a small banana grove where our guide gave us some banana facts. For example, did you know that the banana plant is not considered a tree, but the world's largest perennial herb and is a member of the lily family? Also, bananas aren't fruits, but berries. Berries are identified as being many seeded with a fleshy inner layer. Another thing he shared, which I already knew, is that the banana flower is edible and in fact, used in a lot in Southeast Asian cooking. It's also used in Filipino cooking and I should know since my Mom includes it sometimes in the dishes she makes. Unfortunately, the bananas weren't ripe so we couldn't try any.

After our stop at the banana grove, we headed to the cherry tomato patch. If you didn't know already, tomatoes aren't vegetables but are actually considered to be fruits because tomatoes have seeds. In fact, other vegetables that are technically classified as fruit include bell peppers, chili peppers, cucumber and even zucchini. They all share the same characteristics of having seeds, but of course, you'll never see them in the fruit section of your local market. In a way, it's as if there are both savory and sweet options of fruit to choose from. It was at this cherry tomato patch that we were able to sample sun-ripened tomatoes that tasted so fresh and so sweet.

Next on the tour was a corn field where I had raw corn, pulled off the stalk and cut in quarters for us to take a bite out of. Wow! It was crunchy and sweet. I could have easily have snacked on whole cobs of that corn as a replacement for popcorn and would have been perfectly satisfied.

After the corn field, we headed off to a carrot patch where carrots were pulled earlier in the day for us to savor. The color of those carrots wereso vibrant and although I've been repeating this word for the last two paragraphs, those carrots were sweet and like the corn, they were crisp, too. All the produce up to that point were just bursting with flavor. It was just so amazing. Compared to what you get from your local grocery store, all these vegetables were just so much better and more enjoyable to eat.

I was feeling pretty happy at this point, but still looking forward to the watermelon portion of our tour. With everything tasting so fantastic up to this point, I could only imagine how wonderful the watermelon was going to be. Our last stop before heading back was next to these tents where underneath them, benches awaited us. Once seated, we got to sample even more fresh fruits and veggies.

The first two included fresh, crisp and refreshing zucchini and cucumbers.

Then we moved on to cantaloupe, which were also sweet and refreshing.

Finally, it was watermelon time with the red watermelon making an appearance first followed by samples of the yellow watermelon. By the way, did you know that yellow watermelons are actually sweeter than red watermelons, but because the appearance of the red watermelon seemed more ripe looking, it was grown more and became more mainstream than the yellow watermelon. Both of the watermelon were worth the wait. Considering how hot it was that day July day, both watermelons really helped to cool me down from the inside out.

I could have easily sat there and noshed on watermelon all day, but it was time for the tour to end and before we headed back to our starting point, we got to choose a watermelon to take home with us. We didn't get to pick them ourselves from the watermelon patch, but there was a selection at the end of each watermelon row and we chose from those piles.

Overall, it was a fun way to spend an afternoon. Given that there's no shade while you're on the wagon tour, I recommend everyone brings a hat. If you plan ahead, you can even bring a picnic lunch to enjoy after the tour, since there are also areas where you can sit and eat around the produce stand. As for the produce stand, everything we sampled on our tour and more is available for purchase. What a way to enjoy summer's bounty at home.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157617675697035/

Tanaka Farms
5360 3/4 University Dr
Irvine, CA 92612
(949) 653-2100
www.tanakafarms.com



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Japanese Pastry aka Imagawa-Yaki Tasting at Fulfilled - CATERING ONLY

Late last year, I got invited to a Pre-Grand Opening Party for a new shop in Beverly Hills called Fulfilled, owned and operated by Susumu Tsuchihashi. This was no ordinary shop, but that one that specialized in Japanese pastries called Imagawa-yakis or "Imas" for short. I really had no clue as to what imas were and to go visit their website to find out more. Basically, an ima is a pancake like pastry filled with sweet Azuki bean handcrafted on an aluminum grill. It originated from Tokyo in the 1800's and are sold all over Tokyo's shopping districts as well as during seasonal festivals all over Japan. Apparently, Fulfilled's imas are an updated version of the more traditional Japanese imas.

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I was definitely intrigued, but unfortunately couldn't make it, so the next best thing was to do a "re-do" of this Pre-Grand Opening Party for my dining group. As a part of this tasting event, we sampled 3 savory imas, 4 sweet imas and also had a taste of their iced Azuki Green Tea Honey Latte. Before I talk about the food, let me give you a brief description of how the imas are made.

First, you need a flat, hot surface and on that surface, you lay open a folding "cupcake-like" holder to heat it up.

Than you add the batter and your choice of fillings and let that cook for little bit.

After a little bit of time, you scrape around each of the imas so they aren't sticking to the sides as much.

Finally, you fold the holder in half and again, give it some cooking time before unfolding to see the golden imas ready to be served.

As you can see, making imas can be time consuming work. Before enjoying the imas, we were all served Fulfilled's iced Azuki Green Tea Honey Latte created by an award winning barista, Elton Tsuono. It's an interesting drink that's a little grainy due to the sweet red bean and wasn't to everyone's taste due to that texture, but I loved it. I found it very refreshing and liked how the sweetness of the red bean and honey counterbalanced the green tea, which can be a bit bitter at times. There was also a red chili pepper we could add to the drink to give it a zing, which I did add and enjoyed it even more.

Now we'll talk imas and we started with 3 of their savory options. The first one we sampled was the Green Ninja and its ingredients were comprised of spinach, feta cheese and sun dried tomato. Of all the imas we sampled, this was my least favorite one. It was way too dry. Although I liked how the feta added the right amount of saltiness to the spinach, it doesn't have a very good melting point and I think that's what contributed to this ima not having much moisture.

Next was the Sumo Italiano with prosciutto di Parma, smoked ham, aged Parmesan and fresh basil. This was a vast improvement from the Green Ninja, at least melting cheese-wise. What I thought was missing was the taste of basil. I love basil and it just didn't seem like there was enough. One thing to note though, we were served ima halves as part of this tasting, so it could have been a situation where the person who had the other half of my ima got the bulk of the basil. Also, while I loved the prosciuto and the smoked ham, this particular ima was a bit too salty because of those two ingredients.

Our last savory ima and my favorite of the three was the Spicy Samurai with chicken apple sausage, pepper jack cheese, diced chili and fresh cilantro. I love the spiciness and the bold flavors and I would order this as a snack without a question. The only thing I might change is that the chicken apple sausage is a bit too subtle because its flavor gets lost, especially when eaten with the other spicier ingredients. Personally, I'd go with a chorizo sausage instead because I think it would stand up well next to the pepper jack cheese, chili and cilantro.

With the savory imas behind us, it's time for our sweet tooth to be taken care of. Up first was the Fuji Sunrise which had a custard creme filling. It reminded me of a way better version of a custard donut. The custard filling was absolutely delicious and I liked the lighter pancake texture of the ima as opposed to custard donut, which can be a bit heavy.

Next was the Nutty Buddha with Ghirardelli chocolate, toffee and crunchy peanut butter. Being a peanut butter fan, I was expecting to love the Nutty Buddha, but didn't. I didn't dislike it, but the filling was too much on the drier end. The mixture of the crunchy peanut butter and the chocolate seemed a bit pasty. I also couldn't taste the toffee that much. Maybe, instead of the crunchy peanut butter, a creamy peanut butter could be used instead? But than a situation could come up where the chocolate and peanut butter could err on the other side and be too runny? I liked the overall flavor, but I just feel like this particular ima needs a little more work.

Our third sweet ima was the Sweet Geisha which has a traditional Japanese azuki bean filling. No need to mess with tradition. I'm a big fan of red beans and I was just as much of a fan of the Sweet Geisha.

Fourth on the rotation was the Harajuku Monkey with banana and nutella. It's hard to go wrong with nutella and banana and Fulfilled, but I would have liked more bananas to better balance the sweetness of the nutella.

The last ima of this tasting event was the Karaoke Kitty with strawberry, cream cheese, and Ghirardelli white chocolate. It was the perfect closer. The white chocolate could have made this ima extremely sweet, but paired with the cream cheese and the strawberry preserves, all the flavors were in synch. This was definitely one of my favorites that night.

I've talked primarily about the fillings, but I did want to talk about the ima pastry itself. When comparing the savory imas to the sweet imas, I definitely was more drawn to the sweet imas. The softer pancake texture really lent itself towards Fulfilled's dessert options, but for the savory imas, that wasn't the case. It's probably a preference thing, but I think that the savory fillings go better with more of a flaky pastry crust, almost like an empanada, but then we're talking another kind of food and not imas.

Also, Owner, Susumu, himself has said that his imas are not traditional Japanese imas and in fact, are more Westernized. If that's a sticking point, Fulfilled may not be for you; however, if you can accept the imas at Fulfilled on their own terms, you may find an ima or two that you'll enjoy just as much as their more traditional cousins. I certainly did.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157617514027685/

Fulfilled
(310) 860-0776
www.fulfilledpastries.com




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"The Great Pizza Hunt" at Antica Pizzeria and the Battle of Two Neapolitan Pizza Places

A while back, I decided to start a new restaurant series for my dining group, Pleasure Palate, revolving around pizza. Considering how many pizza joints are in Los Angeles, I knew that this would be a dining series that would probably take me into infinity, but you gotta do, what you gotta do sometimes, so "The Great Pizza Hunt" was on.

Our next stop was Antica Pizzeria in Marina del Rey. I chose Antica primarily because the restaurant is a certified member of The Verace Pizza Napoletana Association (VPNA) in Italy, which is a governing body that sets the specifications for what is a true Neapolitan pizza. For example, the specification clearly states that a pizza must have a 0.1" thick base, (a little more than a credit card), must use fresh mozzarella, must be thrown by hand, must use Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and must be cooked in an 800F (or higher) wood-fired oven for no more than 90 seconds. Look below for some links you may find interesting.

American Chapter of VPNA
http://www.verapizzanapoletana.org/vpn/vpn_frames-index.htm

Original Italian VPNA
http://www.pizzanapoletana.org/

Detailed English Translation of Specifications
http://www.fornobravo.com/vera_pizza_napoletana/VPN_spec.html

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The only other Neapolitan pizza place I've been to was Bollini's Pizzeria, but as far as I know, this restaurant is not part of the VPNA. My dining experience at Bollini's was stellar, so I was really interested in comparing both pizzas considering Bollini's wasn't certified and Antica was. Before I start talking about the pizzas, I wanted to mention 3 appetizers our groups shared, 2 of which I've never had before.

The first one was the Arancino di Riso, which is basically risotto mixed or stuffed with mozzarella and/or other ingredients, coated with bread crumbs and deep fried. Antica's version had spinach as the only vegetable component and came with tomato sauce. I liked the fluffiness of the filling and plus it's an appetizer that's not too heavy, especially considering all the pizzas we'd be sharing soon.

Our second appetizer was the timballetto which is a puff pastry filled with pasta, meat sauce and mozzarella. Hmmm...a puff pastry and rice as one dish? I never would have thought to put those two together. If you're watching your calories, this appetizer is definitely heavy on the carb size. It reminded me of when I was a kid when I'd make spaghetti sandwiches. Come on, don't tell me you didn't do that yourself? Anyway, the pastry shell wasn't as flaky as it could have been, but overall, I'm actually pretty ambivalent about it. I didn't dislike it, but I wouldn't go out of my way to order the timballetto again.

I would order our third appetizer again without a question. It was a Caprese Salad with sliced fresh mozzarella, tomato and arugula drizzled with an herb and red pepper infused olive oil. Simple ingredients, but oh-so-fresh and with a little bit of a kick from the olive oil.

With the appetizers out of the way, let's start talking pizza, first about the pizzas in general. Appearance wise, all the pizzas already looked different from Bollini's pizza in the sense that Antica had a more pronounced crust edge. While Bollini's crust was more cracker crisp, Antica's was softer and had more of a chew to it. Another difference is how cheese was utilized. Bollini's pizzas had the cheese spread throughout the pizza topped with various toppings and then cooked until the cheese was melted, similar to how we normally expect pizzas to be like. At Antica, the cheese were cut in chunks, mixed together with the ingredients and than placed on top of the pizza surface without even a tomato sauce as a base plus the cheese wasn't completed melted through. Please see a picture of a Bollini pizza below as an example.

Another thing to note is that 11 out of 15 of Antica's pizza have mozzarella as the only cheese of choice whereas at Bollini's, there was a selection of cheeses and sauces to choose from. From what I read, using a buffalo mozzarella seems to be part of being labeled a Neapolitan pizza. The final difference is that while the toppings at Bollini's were spread out from center to crust, all the toppings at Antica were pooled in the middle. Considering that Antica does have certification from The Verace Pizza Napoletana Association, it's probably right to assume that their Neapolitan pizzas are more authentic, but if anyone wants to chime in with their thoughts, I'd love to hear them.

So now, let's talk about the actual pizzas. The first one we had was the Del Cafone Pizza, which had Italian sausages, rapini and smoked mozzarella. I really enjoyed the combination of flavors coming from the peppering of the sausage, the slight bitterness of the rapini and of course, the smokiness of the smoked mozzarella. It was also a different experience to have the cheese not completely melted through and instead experiencing it is as a separate ingredient.

The next pizza to arrive was the Capricciosa with artichokes, mushrooms, black olives, mozzarella, prosciutto and tomato sauce. For this pizza, I wish they had spread out the toppings more evenly. Depending on which side you pulled your slice from, it would be comprised mostly of tomato sauce only. Also, if whole olives were going to be used, they should have put more of them or just use sliced olives. There were only 4 olives on the whole pie and with about 9 slices, that's really not enough. As for how it tasted, there was nothing special about it. It was just okay.

As for the Vegetali Grigliati, which came next, the toppings were a bit more generous and also spread out a bit more evenly. The ingredients were comprised of grilled vegetables, smoked mozzarella, chopped tomatoes and garlic. Actually, the grilled vegetables were really just grilled eggplant. There definitely needed to be more variety when it came to the vegetables, which would have added more flavor and color to this pizza and there also needed to be more garlic. There wasn't any on my slice, but maybe, it was distributed more heavily on the other half of the pizza.

Our last pizza, which was the Bianca al Prosciutto, was actually my favorite of the four we tried. There were only 4 ingredients on this pizza: mozzarella, Parmesan, prosciutto and arugola. Unlike the other three pizzas, the mozzarella along with the Parmesan cheese was melted as the base below the other toppings. I have a feeling that's one of the reasons I liked it so much. Melted cheese on pizza is just so right. How can it be wrong? This is also the first time that I had fresh, uncooked arugula as opposed to it being cooked as a pizza topping. I loved the use of the fresh arugula because you really get the full hit of its pepperiness that went perfectly with the saltiness of the prosciutto.

Between 3 appetizers and 4 pizzas, you'd think we wouldn't have room for dessert, but somehow we persevered and shared two of them. One was the Tiramisu which has a base of lady fingers soaked with espresso coffee and layered with mascarpone and zabaglione cream and dusted with cocoa. Tiramisu can sometimes be too sweet, but this was just right. It was light, fluffy and a pleasure to eat.

Last was the Cannolo Siciliano which was a pastry tube filled with a vanilla flavored cream of ricotta and candied orange peels. I've never really been that much into cannolis,. I always find that the pastry shell to be heavy and not light and flaky. That was the case with Antica's Cannolo Siciliano, but I really did like the filling which was fresh and citrusy.

To sum up, there were hits and misses for me at Antica. It's definitely not a destination pizza joint for me, but if someone wanted to go there for dinner, I wouldn't necessarily talk them out of it. The one real conclusion I came with is if Antica is supposed to be a true representation of Neapolitan Pizza, it's not necessarily for me. I prefer a thin, crispy-cracker like crust and I like having melted cheese on my pie, both of which I had at Bollini's. In truth, I am a little confused. I know Antica has the certification and as far as I know, Bollini's doesn't, but both restaurants refer to their pizzas as Neapolitan pizzas. So what is the deal with the whole Verace Pizza Napoletana Association classification and is there more than one kind of Neapolitan Pizza? If anyone has any insight, I'd love to read about it. Maybe, I also need to try other certified Neapolitan pizza joints, but unfortunately, Antica is the only one in LA. If you want to try Neapolitan Pizza for yourself, click this link to find a certified restaurant in your part of town.

To see pics, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157617284536570/

Antica Pizzeria
13455 Maxella Ave # 201
Marina Del Rey, CA 90292
(310) 577-8182
www.anticapizzeria.net




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Discover LA: Hollywood Forever Cemetary

Other than being a great foodie town, LA has much to offer and while this blog will still be primarily about my culinary experiences, I also wanted to share with you other things about LA that have definitely made me smile, think, chuckle, appreciate and so much more and hopefully, they'll also help you discover an LA you've never known before and may want to know better.

While the Art Deco Society of Los Angeles does a public walking tour of the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in October, I actually made special arrangements with them for a private tour and what a tour it was.

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What was amazing about the Hollywood Forever Cemetery was how beautiful it was. Compared to the flat lawns of Forest Lawn, you'll see a lot of unusual grave markers, from the very simple to the quite ornate. There are also various crypts that dot the landscape.

Then there's the mausoleums, some with gorgeous stained glass windows and others with a unique pink or yellow lighting within its walls.

There's a section just for those who are Jewish and be sure to check out the Buddhist Cemetary for grave markers that are definitely something you may not have seen before.

Along the way, we also learned quite a bit of information about some of the interesting people who are buried there. Side by side are gravemarkers for Carl Switzer, "Alfalfa" of Little Rascals fame and his father, Fred Switzer. So what's Fred Switzer's claim to fame? He supposedly invented a breast enlarger machine. You can actually see it marked on his grave stone.

Check out Johnny Ramone's gravemarker. He's kneeling on top with his guitar and around the square base you'll see messages from his family and friends etched on the surface.

Old Hollywood stars are buried there like Rudolf Valentino, Janet Gaynor and Tyrone Powers as well as other Hollywood notables like Cecil de Mille.

LA History is also buried there as in the gravestone of Colonel Griffith J. Griffith. He's quite an interesting story. While still alive, he designated 100 acres of his land towards a park and for other city improvements. After being tried and convicted for shooting and severely wounding his wife, the city would not accept any funding from him for the construction of an observatory, planetarium, and amphitheater in the park. It wasn't until he passed away that his money was used posthumously for these city buildings.

There's still a lot more I can write about, but it'll just be too much. You can also still wander the cemetery on your own, but I think it's the tour and with all the great info from the docent, in this case, Frank Cooper, that made everything more meaningful.

So if you're able to, get a group together, do the tour with the Art Deco Society and if not, get on their mailing list so that you can find out when they're doing the public tours in October.

Info about the Art Deco Society of Los Angeles:
http://adsla.org/

To see all the pics I took, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157594347947542/



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If I Could Cook...Shrimp

If I could cook aka if I had the patience in general and I was in the mood for shrimp, below are some recipes that might actually get me in the kitchen, courtesy of images I saw on Foodgawker!

Mofongo con Camarones
- The Noshery

Shrimp Burger
- Ezra Pound Cake

Shrimp and Duck Gumbo
- [no recipes]

Bittermelon and Shrimp in Black Bean Sauce
- House of Annie

Baked Shrimp Scampi
- Confessions of a Foodie Bride

Bon Appetit!

My Roller Coaster Ride with the Secret Balkan Menu at Metro Diner

From the outside, Metro Diner looks just as it seems, a diner. Breakfast and lunch offer the standard fare of eggs, omelets and pancakes or salads and sandwiches respectively. It's around dinner time that it gets a little more interesting. No, we're not talking about the Mediterranean and Italian dishes nor the burgers choices that customers can choose from.

It's more about asking your server about the "specials" for the night, with these "specials" referring to Restaurant Owners, Aleks' and Sasa's Serbian dishes, a couple that are on the menu, but some that are part of a secret "off menu" available to those in the know. These specials change daily, but thankfully, my friend, Cecilia, went to Metro Diner and made arrangements for about 20 of us to have a 8 course Balkan meal, a meal that certainly had its highs and lows.

Though not really Balkan, the first to arrive was half loaves of bread that were wonderfully crusty on the outside; yet, soft on the inside. The plate arrived with this little bowl of a very addictive spread. I think it was made of red bell peppers and I could easily see this as a perfect dip for raw veggies.

The first of the Balkan dishes came in the form of a White Bean Soup with Smoked Pork Ribs. It's a perfect stick to your ribs, cold weather soup. Thick, hearty and with pork rib meat that was tender, this soup was a definite winner.

Unfortunately, I was disappointed by the Cabbage Salad with Red Beets that came after the soup. I enjoyed the crunchiness of the cabbage and the sweetness of the red beets, but I expected the whole dish to be more vinegary. I could taste hints of sourness, but overall, it was pretty bland. Was I wrong to expect something more like sauerkraut? Maybe, Balkan cabbage salads aren't meant to be that strongly flavored?

The meal went on a high again when the Gibanica hit the table. Gibanica is made up of filo dough with ricotta and feta cheese. Although a tad greasy, it was one of the highlights of the meal. The pastry was flaky and buttery and paired well with the salty hits coming from the layers of cheese throughout the Gibanica.

Next to arrive was the Serbian Salad. Honestly, it looked like any other Greek or Mediterranean salad I've seen before and tasted the same. Don't get me wrong. It was still a good salad. All the vegetables were fresh and crunchy. I liked how they didn't overdo it with too much dressing, but there was really nothing special about it.

After the Serbian Salad, we got to savor the Sarma, which are collard greens stuffed with rice and ground pork. I've had stuffed cabbage before, but those have nothing on Sarma. I really loved the use of the collard greens and how well it was cooked so that it wasn't too mushy, but still had a little chew to it. The rice and pork filling was flavorful and the dollop of a yogurt based sauce added a nice freshness to the whole dish.

More than halfway through our courses and next to arrive was Chevapchichi with Fried Potatoes. The Chevapchici is ground beef that was shaped like a sausage and than fried. While I liked the flavor of the meat, I did not like the texture. It was too spongy when I would have preferred the meat to be more dense. I should note that I was part of the minority of the group. Most people really enjoyed the Chevapchici. However, what did it for me were the fried potatoes. Wow! They were crispy and golden on the outside and soft and moist in the inside. If I had to choose between the Chevapchici and the potatoes, I'd choose those potatoes each and every time.

The last dish before dessert was the Goulash with Mushrooms. One bite and I tell you, I could have easily swam in a pool of that goulash and ate my way out. It was just that good and was my absolute favorite course of the night. The beef was tender, the sauce was tasty and when both were eaten with the light and fluffy mashed potatoes, I felt like it couldn't get any better.

Our meal ended with the House Crepes with Raspberry and Nutella. By no means, this wasn't a very original dessert, but it was done well. I actually liked how the crepes had more of a pancake thickness as opposed to its usual thinner texture. It's hard to go wrong with nutella and raspberry and in general, this was a nice way to end our multi-course Balkan dinner.

In the end, it was a fun evening. I got to spend it with friends who share my same foodie passion. As for the food, the meal was indeed like a roller coaster. It had its dips and its heights, but I do appreciate Metro Diner's willingness to let us experience their home food with this special menu. Now if I happen to walk in and am craving that Sarma or the Goulash, I'll know to ask if they're available. Perhaps this "secret menu" has even more items than what was included in our meal, but hey, you got to start somewhere.

To see photos, go to:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/la_addict/sets/72157617282206154/

Metro Diner
11188 Washington Pl
Culver City, CA 90232
(310) 559-6821
http://www.metrocafela.com/