Son of a Gun

Can you believe people are too busy to eat?  For me, the world stops just so I can eat.  Some how though, I have a hard time getting people to gather for a good meal.  Always some ridiculous business about work, feeling sick, feeling tired, journal club, I mean the laundry list of excuses is endless.  I mean, uhh, priorities people??   Anyways, I finally got a reservation for Son of a Gun and gathered a small party of people.  Apparrently there is only 1 table that accomodates large parties so I had to keep my party small.  Of course, The Bottomless Pit was first in line.  Buff Bear, who is not as robust as his name would suggest, finally got over his umpteenth sinus infection and brought gf, Cher Bear along.

Shrimp Toast Sandwich herbs, siracha mayo (MUST HAVE #1)
WOW, best mother^%@!ing shrimp toast sandwich EVER!!!  This was my FAVORITE dish of the night.  I totally wished there were more of it to go around.  We ordered 2 to split between 4 people and if I were to return I would suggest each diner get his/her own shrimp toast sandwich.  Sadly, the sandwich is definitely smaller than a 4x4 gauze pad.  The exterior of the toast was well toasted with the help of a generous slathering of butter I am sure.  The bread itself was so fresh and soft.  All the bread that night was perfect!  Now the combination of the shrimp and siracha mayo was a harmonious combination of my favorite ocean protein with a dyn-O-mite creamy and spicy sauce.  It dripped down onto my plate and I seriously wanted to lick it up!  LOVE LOVE LOVE.


Lobster Roll celery, lemon aioli (MUST HAVE #2 per popular opinion)
Somehow I imagined this, and pretty much all the sandwiches to be much bigger than they actually were.  This seriously was no bigger that a White Castle Slider, and again we only got 2 to share among 4 of us.  Anyways, these didn't have as much kick as previous dish.  Similarly though, the bread was super fresh and soft and toasty.  The lobster was creamy without being overwhelming and heavy.  The potato chips were a nice touch but didn't add all that much.  I think it could have used a touch more lemon to balance out the cream.  Don't get me wrong, this was another winner in my book!




Hiramasa mojo de ajo, red onion, sunchoke
This was a nice refreshing dish.  Fresh slices of hiramasa were swimming in a tangy citrus.  The flowers didn't taste like anything according to The Bottomless Pit.  Cher Bear really seemed to enjoy this dish.


Peel and Eat Shrimp Boil lime mustard sauce (MUST HAVE #2 per my opinion)
The shrimp were so plump and meaty!  Imagine the crap you get at boiling crab taken to nirvana!  While it was called "peel and eat" some of us, myself included, attempted to just eat the shrimp with skin on, partly out of laziness and habit.  I never met a shrimp skin I couldn't just chew right through and swallow without choking.  Unfortunately, my shovel shaped incisors and flat topped molars were no match for these thick skinned bad boys.  I also suffered a severe flavor overload during my attempt since the shrimp are obviously meant to be eaten peeled.   Intense salt and spices numbed my tongue at times.  The lime mustard really helped to cut the saltiness.  Who eve thought you could ever dip shrimp in mustard?  These guys are geniuses!  Anyways, don't be too lazy or dainty with this dish.  Buff Bear proved that he could peel the shrimp with a fork and knife alone, leaving his hands clean for some hygenic iron pumping later!


Fried Chicken Sandwich spicy b&b pickle slaw, rooster aioli (MUST HAVE #3)
This is the third dish to the trio of "must haves" at Son of a Gun.  If only you could get something so down home and comforting at your local KFC.  Alas, $11 only got us 1 sandwich which we divided into 4.  The chicken was pretty moist.  The breading was spiced, flavored, and crisped to perfection.  The slaw was only lightly dressed.  Rooster aioli?  Not sure what it was, probably just more goodness that went straight to my ass and thighs.  And the bun.  Just read above for that description.


Brandade soft egg, arugula, grainy mustard
Nobody knew what brandade really was, aside from being a fish.  It tasted like a flaky white fish.  It was super soft and combined with the soft egg with its runny yolk, the bed of mashed potatoes, and the pool of mustard sauce, it was a perfect dish for those poor veterans I work with who always seem to lose their damn dentures.  The grilled crusty bread added some more texture to the dish.  Flavor wise, I really liked it.  The mustard was rather subdued for being mustard.


Linguine & Clams uni aglio-olio, chili, breadcrumbs
This was probably my least favorite dish of the night.  I think I knew that other bloggers commented on the very ho-hum nature of this dish but I guess I forgot or got too caught up in the excitement.  I don't think I tasted any uni, although I'm no uni connoisseur.  I only tasted a strong acid component, like too much lemon and olive oil.  The clams made an unnoticeable appearance.


Idaho Trout carrot, potato, caper dill butter
I found it hard to believe that trout could be one of the stand out dishes, but it really was.  I mean when do you ever seen trout at a high end restaurant?  Hardly ever.  In any case, I think what makes trout really special is browning up its skin so its perfectly crispy and salty which this was.  All the root vegetables gave a sweet warmth.  Even though the fish was sitting in butter, it didn't feel overwhelmingly oily.  The capers rounded out the flavors.


Flourless Chocolate Cake banana, peanut, coconut ice cream
This was another dish I found hard to believe could be so good, but it was.  It probably looks totally unsatisfying since its not something you can dig your fork into and get a big hunk of something sweet and fattening.  It's presentation is probably what makes you wanting more since each bite only gets you a little bit of the cake, bananas, peanuts, ice cream, and caramel.  You just keep going back hoping for more taste, and before you know it, its gone! 


Frozen Lime Yogurt graham crumble, toasted meringue
I definitely preferred the previous dessert over this one since I like chocolate, but this was certainly good in its own right.  It felt like a deconstructed version of a key lime pie.  The yogurt was tart and refreshing.  The graham crumble and meringue were pretty standard.  I liked the presentation the the meringued smeared onto the side of the bowl and then toasted.



I really enjoyed the food here and I HIGHLY recommend you pay this place a visit.  The food is innovative like at Animal, but certainly not as heavy or gratuitously sinful.  Because of the "lighter" fare, I walked away not needing to undo the top button on my jeans (always a good thing, right?)  Next time I'm getting my own shrimp toast and lobster roll, and only splitting the chicken sandwich between 2 people.  Top me off with some shrimp and chocolate cake and I'll be a happy blogger.  The food is solid all around and the menu changes daily so you know they are using the fresh high quality ingredients.  Be sure to make a reservation ahead of time.  Oh and bring a camera, cuz you never know what C list celebrities you may run into =P


It's Ilan Hall, winner of Top Chef Season 2!  Thanks to The Bottomless Pit for pretending to sit across from me so I could pretend to take a picture of him, when really I was trying to snag this desperate photo of Ilan, who is either a new father or likes to parade around someone else's baby (he is holding a bottle in his left hand while he feeds his baby who is laying in his lap).  I also saw Shiri Appleby (holla to all my Rosewell fans!).


Son of a Gun
8370 W 3rd St
Los Angeles, CA 90048

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