Quince

My summer of fancy schmancy eating didn't end with Grace.  Oh no, no, it just started there and continued with my visit to Quince with The Pouter.  It felt like a hot date.  We both got all dolled up, she picked me up,  we had wine, great conversation, and then the date took a turn towards doomsville.  The check came and we went dutch!  Well not every date that starts well, ends well =P.  Anyways, the place is pretty elegant, and would be a great place to celebrate a special occasion.  The Pouter and I were celebrating, um...life, love, and food?  Heck, we don't really need an occasion to blow some cash on any ole weekday.  I guess I was visiting SF, so that was occasion enough!

Green Garlic Parmesan Chips
They had the texture of shrimp chips with a very subtle cheesy taste.  A bit on the greasy side but its just so easy to eat anything in chip form.

Pickled Green Tomato Tartlet squash chips
These were some of the best bites of the night.  This one tasted like a fresh tomato pie.

Arugula Financier seville orange purée
Wow, this was soo good!  Like a sweet yet savory vegetable pound cake.  I wanted a whole loaf.

Russet Potato Skin guanciale marmalade
Yum!  A singular bite that encompassed all the flavors of an awesome baked potato.

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Incanto

It's been a while since I've dined with Weeners.  The last time was when she still lived in LA and that seems like ages ago.  Now, she is proud to call herself a San Franciscan and has really adapted to the hippy dippy lifestyle of those folks up there and she loves it.  SF is too cold and gloomy if you ask me, but on those rare occasions when the sun is shining, I will admit the city has its charm.  I love visiting, since the food is so derricious, and since I have yet another friend who has relocated up there, Craire (formerly known as CMac Attack).  All of us met up at the Italian restaurant of Top Chef Master, Chris Cosentino, winner of season 4.  To my shock, he was actually IN the kitchen cooking when I arrived, but moved to expediting by the time we were seated.  Expectations were certainly high for me knowing this.

Foccacia Bread olive tapenade
Pretty tasty, even more so because we were pretty hungry by this point.

Handkerchief Pasta rustic pork ragu, sizzled duck egg
A really solid, hearty meat pasta dish.  No complaints here.

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Roku

Triple F and Running Man really love this place. Apparently the guy who opened up Roku actually had a food truck serving Japanese curry and was successful enough to open up a brick and mortar joint serving a larger selection of food, izakaya style. The menu is surprisingly extensive here so I was a bit wary of the quality. I mean the place serves pretty specialized Japanese dishes like takoyaki, okonomiyaki, and ramen so it could easily do it all wrong. Fortunately, it does it all right!

Mentai Bowl crab meat, spicy cod roe paste, rice

I'm not sure why Triple F loves mentaiko so much. It's quite fishy funky and Triple F is not usually one for unusual foods. Anyways, this was ok but I'm not a fan of mentaiko I guess.

Mochi Bacon

Running Man loooved this, which again was not my thing. The bacon wasn't crispy enough and it wasn't enough meat to balance out a big hunk of starch.  

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LA Food & Wine Festival 2013: Live On Grand

I like going to food festivals, almost exclusively the non-FREE ones. You may be asking yourself, why would you prefer to pay for something rather than get something for FREE? I really hate large crowds and long lines. Free food festivals just attract a TON more people, so you end up having to elbow your way around and stand in a long ass line in the, usually, brutal hot sun, to pay for your food plate for plate in the end.  I'd rather pay a larger sum of money upfront for an all-you-can-eat experience, which naturally weeds out a good chunk of people. Buuuut, I suppose I took this attitude a bit far when I gathered the forces, Triple T and Smooth Obturator, for the LAFW festival at $250 a ticket. Was it worth it you might ask?  Wine was pouring from every place you turned, lines moved quickly, celebrity chefs actually prepping and serving their food, and Gavin DeGraw performed live! I guess most of your probably care more about the food though, so on we go...


Kris Morningstar | Ray's  & Stark Bar spiced lamb with pistachio yogurt
Salty but a good amount of spice and heat.

Johnathan Sadler | Rivera autumn corn custard, asparagus, morel mushrooms

Definitely one of my favorite dishes of the night. It's summer, so all the corn dishes I've been eating have been fantastic and this was no exception. It was just a pile of umami goodness. Sweet from the corn, salty from the mushrooms, crunch for the asparagus. Smooth Obturator and Triple T went back for seconds. 

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Little Goat

Stephanie Izzard's first restaurant, Girl & The Goat, is probably one of the hottest tickets in town since it opened in 2010.  Reservations are still hard to come by and sometimes can't be snagged even months in advance.  I dined here some time ago and was very pleased with my meal here, though I feel like there are plenty of other restaurants in Chicago that are just as tasty, if not tastier, and a lot easier to eat at.  Anyways, Triple F and I needed a place to brunch at and even though Chicago had many other stellar offerings and Buff Bear only gave it a lukewarm recommendation, we were intrigued by Little Goat, mostly because of our good experiences at Girl & The Goat.

Little Goat is more like a diner, which means more typical American fare like burgers, sandwiches, eggs/bacon, pancakes, biscuits/gravy.  But, this is Stephanie Izzard here right?  Everything's got a twist.

Breakfast Spaghetti 'N Clams 'N Crabs eggs, parmesan, pork guanciale, bok choy
We were intrigued by the possibilities of this dish but SEVERELY let down.  Don't order this.  It's frankly BAD.  I guess they took spaghetti and fried or baked it with cheese to make this giant carb conglomerate sitting in a pool of clam broth? topped with all that stuff above.  It was difficult and messy to eat.  It tasted fishy.  I didn't understand what was going on here.  FAILURE.

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