I've Fallen For Freddy

I'm obsessed with Freddy Smalls Bar + Kitchen, which recently opened up in West LA near my pad. I love having cool spots to wet my whistle close by... and add good grub to that? Perfect-o!

Freddys is super cute inside. Loved the modern retro vibe, comfy booths and tall tables to perch at.

The menu boasts an assortment of delicious sounding cocktails. I ordered the Mayberry Smash, Death’s Door Gin, fresh berries, sage honey, lemon and a mint leaf garnish. I swapped the gin for vodka. Don't judge. 

Over the last few years, I've become a HUGE fan of brussel sprouts, specifically fried ones (hee hee).  Freddy's fried brussel sprouts with smoked goat cheese and apple cider glaze was savory and the touch of goat cheese seemed to bring the sprouts to life. This preparation is my favorite way to eat them (need to learn the recipe) and I have been dreaming about them ever since. They are slightly charred, full of flavor and melt in your mouth. Must. Have. Again. Soon.

Whenever burrata is on the menu, I'm ordering it. Tonight was no different. The artichoke buratta bruschetta was full of fresh refreshing flavors with the crunch of the toast that helped balance out the textures.

The mushroom and farrow stew was a perfect fall/winter dish. The farrow added a rich, substantial texture to the stew, paired with hearty mushrooms, to give it an overall earthy flavor experience. Definite comfort food.

House-smoked steelhead trout was just so so. I'm not a huge smoked fish fan so that's probably why the "so so" response. I was with a friend who was not eating meat, so we opted for the fish dishes. There were so many meat dishes that made me salivate. Must go back to try those ones!

Belgian waffles with grilled lady apple, bacon butter and bourbon maple syrup. Bacon butter. Seriously? Seriously.

Wish you were here? Me too!

Freddy Smalls Bar + Kitchen. Los Angeles, CA.

Gushing Over Guilliams

After my week of incredible gluttony in the Napa Valley at the end of December, I have not done well at posting about all of my foodie adventures! Here is another one to hold you over. 

There are hundreds of wineries in the Valley, and I aspire to one day say I’ve been to half of them. Among my favorites this trip was Guilliams, a small family-run winery in the Spring Mountain district. I lean more towards the small, family-run, non-commercial vineyards so this was right up my alley.

We made an appointment at Guilliams and John Guilliams, the winemaker himself, gave us the intimate tasting… in the vineyard! We sat about four feet from the vines and got to hear all about how he got his start, the wine making process and his love for wine. It felt so personal and special. Definitely a highlight of the trip!

Loving LudoBites 8.0

If you're anyone who's anyone in LA who loves food, you make an appearance at LudoBites, Chef Ludo Lefebvre's pop-up restaurant that made its way to the Westside in version 8.0, and nestled in at Lemon Moon. We feasted on sinful pairings of bold flavors a novice wouldn't ever think to pair together.

Burgundy gougère – Baked savory pastry dough mixed with cheese. Yes, please.

Chicken Tandoori Crackling – Essentially chicken pate on fried chicken skin. You’d think being a good Jewish girl that I could live off pate, but I never acquired a keen taste for it so I had a difficult time eating it. But the fried chicken skin was like crack. Give me more!

Lobster Salad, Yuzu, Honey – To call this a salad is an understatement, and misleading. Unless the greens were liquefied, this was not much of a typical “salad,” but more of a refreshing bite of sweet, sensational heaven! The yuzu paired seductively with the honey and I could taste each flavor layered on top of each other and finished off with a thick piece of lobster. Yum.

Sweet Shrimp, Miso Cream, Beans, Smoked Salmon – Meh.

Uni Crème Brulee, Coffee – While not an uni fan (quite frankly, it freaks me out), we had to order this as all the reviews and blog posts raved about this dish. As I saw the gentleman at the table behind us stick his finger into the bowl and lick the remaining uni off his finger, I took my first bite, and had a hard time getting it down. Call me unrefined, whatever. Not an uni fan, not a fan of this dish. And neither were my friends.

Big eye tuna, Tahitian vanilla, Somen and 7 flavor vinaigrette – One of my favorites. The flavors were so bold and clean and authentic with the kiss of vanilla at the end.

Veal, black olive tapenade crust, orange caramelized endive, clementine beurre blanc – The only thing I didn’t like about this dish was that I had to share it with my friends. Incredibly deep flavors that introduced themselves in a linear fashion as each ingredient touched my mouth. Cooked to perfection and perfectly flavored.

Lemon meringue, poppy seed crumble, extra virgin olive oil – We couldn’t decide which dessert to order and were leaning towards the brown butter almond cake as none of us were meringue fans. We took a poll of the waitstaff and all, without any hesitation, said “meringue” when asked which dessert to order. Meringue it was for us. When it arrived, I became giddy like a five year old. Just the presentation was enough to send this foodie into pure foodie bliss. Deconstructed and sophisticated. And then I tasted it. Hummena, hummena, I do declare, LudoBites waitstaff do not steer a girl wrong! The fresh lemon paired with upscale marshmallow fluff tasting goodness was heavenly. This meringue has ruined all other meringues that will ever cross my path.

LudoBites.

In-N-Out vs. Five Guys

I had my first Five Guys burger today. I know. Slacker! I had to know once an for all... in my foodie books... who had the better burger... In-N-Out or Five Guys?

The verdict: Fries? Five Guys. Burger? In-N-Out.