Morocco

Hi all! In February I had the absolute pleasure of visiting the country of Morocco with my mother. And I have to say, I was blown away. It is a beautiful country, and really has something to offer for everyone. It has a ton of old world culture (especially in the medinas of Fez and Marrakesh), the beach and partying (Casablanca), and the desert (we even took camel rides and went glamping!). This being a blog based on food, I am of course highlighting some of the absolute amazing cuisine. We had some wonderful local wine but I unfortunately didn't take any pictures of the bottles. We are already planning our next trip back to take the rest of our family to Morocco, and definitely want to make a stop in their wine country (Meknes). 

Ever since we have been back home, my mom and I have been trying to recreate some of the flavorful and fresh ingredients we ate there. We were fortunate enough to take a cooking class with chef Najat Kanache at her restaurant Nur, that I had heard about in the New York Times article - 36 hours in Fez. She has trained at some of the best restaurants in the world (including French Laundry and Alinea) and wanted to go back to her home country of Morocco and elevate their cuisine. She is truly so bubbly that it was impossible not to become fast friends! 

If you are thinking of traveling to Morocco, DO IT! Feel free to contact me for more information as well. I also want to refer you to my mother's cooking blog, Thyme to. Here she highlights some of the non-food aspects of the trip we enjoyed. Until next time!

A selection of moroccan "salads" - a massive order for one!

Another version of Moroccan "salads", lots of zuchinni, pumpkin, carrots 

and a variety of other veggies

An example of their unique tagines

Tagines arrived to our table - what a presentation

Delicious pastries being sold in their local markets

And more pastries...

A ridiculous selection of local olives

This is how their spices and herbs are sold, sort of like an apothecary

On the street they sold caramelized nuts and sesame seeds in bars. So yummy!

A selection of Moroccan rugs

Some of their beautiful handmade ceramic work

Starting from left, clockwise, me, my mom, Chef Najat, one of her helpers

Prepping food in the kitchen

Dinner is served! The fruits of our labor were flavorful and divine

189 by Dominique Ansel

James-Beard award winning chef Dominique Ansel became famous for his innovative creation, The Cronut. His pastry shops have lines that wrap around corners and The Cronut sells out within hours everyday. 189 is his first full-service restaurant, and his first location in Los Angeles. Located in the Grove, the downstairs is the pastry shop that still had a line when I showed up for our dinner reservations at 8PM. The restaurant is above the pastry shop. I really liked the decor of the restaurant but unfortunately forgot to snap any pictures.

Their menu for dinner (unlike their brunch) is small plates style. We tasted a good variety of dishes. I would say everything was good, but overall nothing absolutely amazing. The most interesting dish was surprisingly the roasted radicchio and endive salad with fresh honeycomb. The short rib was tasty also but tasted much more like a steak than a short rib. The chicken had some hype but the accompaniments that came with the chicken were better than the chicken itself. In reading the descriptions of the dishes, garlic was all over the menu! This made me a little nervous given I am not a huge garlic lover but I never felt the garlic over-powered the dishes. 

The dessert we settled on had a really interesting presentation. It was a milk granita that came out looking like a sunny side up egg. Next time I want to taste some things from the pastry shop and also stop by for brunch, which is served with different food carts stopping by the table.

Mussels with Spicy Chorizo, Rice Vermicelli and a Ton of Garlic

Roasted Radicchio with Fresh Honeycomb, Endive and Hazelnut - amazing!

Dirty Potatoes - Smashed and Crispy, with Mustard and Whole-roasted Head of Garlic

Seared Hen of the Woods with egg and shaved parmesan

7 Hour Slow-roasted Lamb Shoulder with Apple Cider and Roasted Persimmons

Grilled Fruit Marinated Short Rib, Deep Balsamic Reduction, Winter Squash

Half Rotisserie Baby Chicken with Black Garlic Rice Stuffing and Chilled Spicy Scallion Salad

Served with a side of Chicken Jus (not pictured)

"The Well" - Milk Granita, Wildflower Honey, Passion Fruit Gelée, Fennel

Clearly made to look like a sunny side up egg

Stateside - Seattle

I went to Seattle for the first time in January and was really impressed by the food selection. A lot of seafood present, of course. But I also noticed a large Asian influence. I presume given it's proximity to Asia, they have a large Asian population. I had brunch at a French-Vietnamese fusion restaurant called Stateside right by Starbucks Reserve (a must go!). After spending a month in Vietnam last year, it brought back good memories. Nothing like an iced Vietnamese coffee to get me going in the morning. The food was really interesting at this restaurant and the decor was so charming. I wouldn't mind going back to try out their dinner menu next time. 

For those who have been to Seattle, you already know Pike Place Market is the place to be. Every type of food, from fruits to cheeses to fresh seafood, is available there. I spent the majority of my time just walking around tasting this and that. One day as I was headed there, I stumbled upon what I would imagine my heaven to be. It was a chocolate and wine shop called The Chocolate Box! Of course I went in for a fantastic chocolate and wine pairing and bought some chocolate lovers paraphernalia to take home with me. Their chocolates were absolutely amazing, I definitely recommend stopping by if you are in the area!

We were overall adventurous in trying a variety of wines from the Washington area throughout the trip. But our favorite by far was by Fidelitas, the 2014 Red Mountain 4040 Red Wine. Hopefully I can get my hands on a few bottles to enjoy at home.

Gorgeous Bar

Vietnamese Iced Coffee

Coconut Yogurt Parfait with Tropical Fruit

Open Faced Omelette with Gruyere and Country Ham

Open Faced Omelette with Shrimp and Lemongrass

Side of Lime Leaf Sausage - super interesting

Wine and Chocolate pairing at Chocolate Box on Pine Street

Some of the contraptions at the Starbucks Reserve

Our coffee-chocolate pairings at Starbucks (WAY better than their typical coffee)

Cal Mare

Before the holiday madness hit, I had the pleasure of eating at new Los Angeles restaurant, Cal Mare.  It is one of the first openings in the Beverly Center Mall, which is currently undergoing a massive renovation. It is a Michael Mina restaurant, headed by chef Adam Sobel. I fell in love with the place - round tables with overhead lamps, an open space bar, beautiful dome ceilings and a kitchen open to the dining room. The restaurant is cozy, charming and really sets the mood for the meal to come. Speaking of the food....each dish was truly excellent. The menu is of course centered around seafood in addition to a variety of pizza and pasta dishes. Most impressive was the unique chickpea "pancake" dish. Really more of a thin crepe laid over a bed of shrimp and greens with saffron aioli. I was tempted to order a second!

It is rare for a new restaurant to get their flavors so perfect this early on. That being said, the restaurant was lacking in efficiency. Dishes came out poorly timed, the appetizers coming fifteen minutes apart. We had also ordered Brussel Sprouts to be served with the Branzino. We wiped our plates clean of the fish and still did not have the Brussels. I hope that the kitchen can work on its timeliness and still keep the high quality of its dishes, to ensure the restaurant's success.

Open Concept Kitchen

Adorable Bar Area

California Squid stuffed with 'Nduja, Hazelnut

Spicy Shrimp and Chickpea Pancake with Saffron Aioli

(this was the definite favorite!)

Gluten Free Pasts with Octopus, Mussels and Calabrian Chile

Grilled Whole Branzino

Above Branzino, Filleted, served with Salsa Verde, Smoked Butter, and Livornese

Toro - Cabo San Lucas

The day after Thanksgiving, I flew down to Baja California for a relaxing few days. I have been visiting Cabo since I was a kid and it has a special place in my heart. Blue skies, fresh seafood, and endless margaritas and guacamole. If that doesn't sound like paradise to you, I'm not sure what is. This time around we tried a restaurant called Toro, right off the main highway between the two towns of Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo. The restaurant is the brainchild of Richard Sandoval, who has over 40 Latin American-inspired restaurants worldwide.

You walk into the restaurant via an impressive entryway of stairs. First thing I noticed in the dimly lit restaurant was the baskets of bread, chilis and various other goods along the wall behind the hostess. We chose to sit at the bar this evening and I was most impressed by the bar area. The bar is set a little lower in the ground which gives a nice view to the artwork of the bartenders. Floor to ceiling open shelving line the walls, with terra cotta pots filled with different succulents all the way to the ceiling. Yellow lighting tracking all the shelves, lending a great ambience to the room. There were several other seating areas as well as a beautiful patio near a whale fountain.

Everything from their unique drink menu to the variety of appetizers we tried were absolutely fantastic. They had a lot of small plate options, including ceviches, a raw bar and grilled entrees. Looking forward to my next trip to Mexico so I can try more of their wonderful dishes.

Baskets of breads and other goods

 

Beautiful shelving and lighting

Raw Seafood Bar

Watermelon, Hearts of Palm and Tomato Salad

Peruvian Fish Ceviche with Plantain Chips

Octopus Anticucho

Gluten Free Brownie

Rosaliné

Chef Ricardo Zarate used to be the Peruvian king of Los Angeles, until he closed all of his restaurants over a year ago. Now he is back with Rosaliné, named after his mother. Call and make a reservation for your next group dinner ASAP. I definitely recommend going with a small group of adventurous diners so you can taste a large portion of the menu. It's a very open restaurant with greenery hanging from a glass ceiling, making you feel like you are outside. Starting with their drinks and ceviche menu - we tasted four different drinks, all of which were tasty and refreshing. We tried two different cevichés, one of which was a vegeterian one, which was new to me and incredibly flavorful. We were adventurous with what we ordered and tried dishes from all over the menu, including beef heart skewers. One of the standout dishes was the paella. I am a huge fan of Spanish paella but this was my first experience with Peruvian paella. The rice is crispier and the flavors are overall different. This dish aslo came with a fried egg and the server broke the yolk and mixed it with the rice which added a nice creamy texture. We were celebrating a birthday and accidentally ordered two desserts. Despite being stuffed, I left so content with my meal and waiting to go back!

Atrium-style ceiling

All our drinks were fantastic!

Ceviché crocante - halibut, crispy baby calamari, yuzu kasho marinated,

aji amarillo leche de tigre

Ceviché de hangos (veggie) - king mushrooms, shimenji,

palta avocado, charred tomato ponzu

Corazon anticucho - highly recommended by our waiter

beef heart skewers, rustic tocoto pepper, feta cheese, walnut sauce

Aceitunas - marinated spicy peruvian olives, eggplant puree, 

cancha corn, turmeric flat bread

Solterito - lima bean salad, avocado, blistered cabernet tomatoes, 

pickled onions, goat cheese, botija olive, choclo corn

Lomo saltado - sautéed filet mignon, roasted tomatoes, braised 

cipollini, sunny side egg, kimlan soy dressing, tomato coulis

Chaufa paella - peruvian fried rice paella-style, pancetta, 

la chang sausage, bagoong, prawns

Paella being mixed all together with the egg 

(with my necessary spotlight shining haha)

Birthday Dessert

Norah

I recently had dinner at Norah restaurant in West Hollywood and was so impressed. It is a hidden gem in West Hollywood with a cute decor and an indoor-outdoor dining room. I find it rare to have a family-style dinner where you sample a bunch of different dishes and love every single one. There is not a dish that isn't bursting with flavor at Norah. There is definitely a Mediterranean influence in the spices and vegetables used in the dishes. I think my favorite dish was between the cauliflower tartare and the eggplant and cauliflower salad. The crispy octopus was very tasty too, but had a more Asian flavor which didn't fit as well with everything else we ordered. I would say the "least" (but still really tasty!) dish were the meatballs. We finished our meal off with a really interesting corn ice cream. I unfortunately didn't photograph our cocktails but we all tried different ones and they were all wonderful! I'll definitely be back here and recommend everyone goes as well. 

Duck Liver Mousse with apple mustard and cucumber slices and grilled bread

Grilled Broccolini with white bean hummus, fermented chili, seed dukkah

Eggplant and Cauliflower with cherry tomatoes, za'atar and pistachio

Cauliflower Tartare with sunchoke chips, crispy chickpeas, tahini

Lamb and Pork Meatballs with cucumber and tomato relish

Crispy Octopus with squid ink caramel and herb salad

Local Seabass with fresh corn grits and summer squash