Cadet

Cadet is the new Santa Monica locale that is about to be your new home for food and drink. I sat at the bar last night with the amazing Nyugen Tran of Starry Kitchen and we ate until we couldn’t eat anymore.  I ordered the Classic Effervescent that included a sugar cube - it was bitter at the front and sweet in the end.  Delicious.  I could have had those all night but I had to mix it up.  Next was the French Negroni - completely solid.  I loved the huge ice cubes and the bartenders were incredibly lovely.  

Can you tell I loved the place?  The food was mesmerizing.  Kris Tominaga’s food kept the evening going.  From Rabbit Meatballs to Oxtail & Onion Soup…..amazing.  Every entree comes with these crepe-like pancakes with about 10 different flavors to put inside including one of my faves - creme fraiche.  Heaven!  Ember roasted black bass along with bone marrow was our main and then we topped it off with an Apple Crumble.  There is so much more I want to try on that menu.

Oh and I forgot to mention - there’s a glass enclosed fire where you can watch Kris and his staff cook away.  It’s beautiful and you will go home feeling incredibly warm and cozy inside.

Cadet: 2518 Wilshire Blvd, Santa Monica (310)828-3300

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Our Eat+Drink Supper Club heroes - Ted & Kim Osborne from Olabisi Wines and Eat+Drink’s very own back of house sous chef - Tere Throenle!

Love all these pics of our amazing Eat+Drink Italian dinner on May 31st.  If you haven’t been to one yet - you MUST soon!  :)

I can’t get enough of Ross’ amazing pictures so I’m just going to post them all!!!

I’m not sure what little Free was doing…other than bugging Marcus!!!

Check these guys out!  Savour This Sauce is a sister-brother team with a business in need of a kick!  :)

What Is Savour This Sauce?

Savour This Sauce is a gourmet cooking sauce and dressing line featuring our three signature flavors: Thai Chile Cilantro, Red Pepper Romesco and Pistachio Mint Pesto Sauce.

“It’s So Good, You’ll Spoon The Jar”

All of our sauces are vegan + gluten-free. We use locally sourced produce, yielding a high quality product while supporting small businesses and agriculture. We make the product by hand every week, growing the business one day at a time. We are now at the point where we are outgrowing our present facility and we are ready to take our company to the next level with you at our side. Vive Le Sauce!

Two weeks ago was our kick-off to the Eat+Drink 2014 Supper Club Season and it was AMAZING!  If you were there, you know what I’m talking about and if you weren’t, WOW did you miss out on a culinary experience that would have blown your mind.  Chef Clark Staub of Full of Life Flatbread and J.Brix Wines stuffed us full of food and wine until we cried for mercy.  Check out the pictures above and kick yourself for not joining us!  Our next dinner is May 31st - be there!

The 2014 Eat+Drink Supper Club 

A Curated Dining Experience

I can’t believe it’s been an entire year already and here we are with our second Eat+Drink Supper Club season - yes, that’s what I’m calling summer now, the supper club season.  We had so much fun last year with our chefs that we’re bringing a few of them back.  We’ve also paired many of them with amazing winemakers and other local culinary entrepreneurs to completely blow your minds.  I can’t wait to spend the summer eating and drinking with you!  

Our first dinner is April 26th with Chef Clark Staub of Full of Life Flatbread and J.Brix Wines (the full summer list is below). Chef Staub’s menu is to die for and the husband+wife team of Emily & Jody Brix Towe will regale you with why their wines are about to become your new best friends.

1st Course: Morro Bay Oysters with Mignonette & Spring Pea Soup 
Wine: 2012 j. brix “The Augur” Riesling, Kick On Ranch Vineyard

2nd Course: Burrata-stuffed Artichoke wrapped in Prosciutto & Spring-Greens Salad
Wine: 2012 j. brix “Audire” Pinot Noir, Kick On Ranch Vineyard

3rd Course: House-made Chorizo-stuffed Santa Barbara Squid w/Beans and Aioli & Shaman’s Flatbread 
Wine: 2011 j. brix “La Belle Rêveuse” Syrah, Alamo Creek Vineyard

4th Course: Smoked Goat-Milk Ice Cream, Cajeta, Pistachio Cake

Saturday, April 26th
7:00p Cocktails & 8:00p Dinner: $100

40 seats are available and $100 per person includes EVERYTHING (all beverages are complimentary), all you have to do is bring your hungry, thirsty self.  GET IN!

Headed to Bestia tonight in Downtown LA - can’t wait!!!

The Chef at 15

Flynn McGarry designs eight-course tasting menus and interns in three-star kitchens. Now he wants to open the best restaurant in the world.

The Chef at 15

The 2014 Eat+Drink Supper Club: A Curated Dining Experience

I can’t believe it’s been an entire year already and here we are with our second Eat+Drink Supper Club season - yes, that’s what I’m calling summer now, the supper club season.  We had so much fun last year with our chefs that we’re bringing a few of them back.  We’ve also paired many of them with amazing winemakers and other local culinary entrepreneurs to completely blow your minds.  I can’t wait to spend the summer eating and drinking with you!  

Our first dinner is April 26th with Chef Clark Staub of Full of Life Flatbread and J.Brix Wines (the full summer list is below). Chef Staub’s menu is to die for and the husband+wife team of Emily & Jody Brix Towe will regale you with why their wines are about to become your new best friends.

1st Course: Morro Bay Oysters with Mignonette & Spring Pea Soup 
Wine: 2012 j. brix “The Augur” Riesling, Kick On Ranch Vineyard

2nd Course: Burrata-stuffed Artichoke wrapped in Prosciutto & Spring-Greens Salad
Wine: 2012 j. brix “Audire” Pinot Noir, Kick On Ranch Vineyard

3rd Course: House-made Chorizo-stuffed Santa Barbara Squid w/Beans and Aioli & Shaman’s Flatbread 
Wine: 2011 j. brix “La Belle Rêveuse” Syrah, Alamo Creek Vineyard

4th Course: Smoked Goat-Milk Ice Cream, Cajeta, Pistachio Cake

I could go on and on about each of our 2014 supper clubs and why every single one of them is going to leave you dreamy and excited for the next but leave it to say that each of these dates needs to be seared in to your calendar as must-haves.  Don’t even think about booking yourself to do anything else!

April 26: J.Brix Wines & Chef Clark Staub, Full of Life Flatbread
May 31: Olabisis Wines & Chef Josef Morphis*, Mastro’s Ocean Club
June 21: Phifer Pavitt Wines
July 26: Chef David Feau*
August 23: Something amazing yet to be determined.
September 20: Something even more amazing coming your way soon.
October 11: Chef Eric Nelson Brown*

*Returning from stellar dinners you remember from last summer!

How to get into LA's 9 secretest supper clubs

They happen on clandestine boat docks. In candle-covered abandoned churches. Atop strand-lit loft rooftops. Secret supper clubs hosted in secret locations that… wait, we’ve said too much. Just keep reading.

Eat+Drink is so secret and exclusive…we’re not even on this list of the secretest supper clubs in LA!!

How to get into LA’s 9 secretest supper clubs

If this isn’t the best/handiest list for schmucks like me, I don’t know what is!!!  :)

A Handy Guide to Private Dining Rooms in Los Angeles

The holidays are always a time when big groups like to get together and enjoy a festive meal, which is why private dining isn’t just popular, it’s essential. Many restaurants take special care to have a part of the restaurant reserved for office parties and communal gatherings, often with special menus to streamline service, and customized beverage pairings. Here below, just in time for Christmas and New Year’s, a compilation of some of the best private dining rooms in Los Angeles.

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Eat+Drink Gang of 12

Our next VERY amazing Gang of 12 dinner will be January 7th 2014 at Hakkasan Beverly Hills.  The menu is AMAZING and I mean that, AMAZING!  If you’ve been living under a rock here in Los Angeles for the past few months, you might not know about the celebrity haven that Hakkasan immediately became upon it’s opening in September.  The food is high-end and the star sighting chances are likely so the cost is priced accordingly at $200 per person (all inclusive).  If you want to attend, I have a “few” seats left so let me know soon!

Eat+Drink Gang of 12

The first Gang of 12 dinner went off without a hitch last week.  We had an amazing meal - I’m still dreaming of those fish tacos!!!!  The drinks were delish and a great time was had by all.  Check out Mercado in Santa Monica on your next 3rd Street Promenade shopping spree - it’s right next door on 4th!

Oh it is ON tonight for the very first Eat+Drink Gang of 12 Dinner at Mercado Santa Monica.  The menu is out of control!  I’m so looking forward to spending some time with my fellow Eat+Drink-ers tonight.  Keep an eye out for our posts all over social media.  :)

Small Plates: Dos Gringas, Fish Tacos & Dip Duo (Guacamole and Choriqueso) 

Vegetables: Grilled Corn & Santa Monica Vegetables

Large Plates: Chef Jose’s Carnitas, Shrimp Skewers & Skirt Steak  

Dessert: Flan

Mercado co-owner, Jesse Gomez, has quite literally grown up in the restaurant business. The first in his collection of Mexican cuisine restaurants, El Arco Iris, was introduced in the Highland Park neighborhood of Los Angeles in 1964, by his grandparents Gustavo and Irene Montes, and today still serves as the cornerstone of his brand. 

In 2006, Gomez redesigned and reintroduced El Arco Iris, fusing a progressive new look with signature classic dishes passed down for generations, to create a restaurant that is both a neighborhood staple and a culinary destination. 

In 2009, Gomez introduced Yxta Cocina Mexicana, in the emerging Industrial District of Downtown Los Angeles and quickly earned acclaim for its inventive menu, artisan cocktails, design and impressive art collection. “The food at Yxta is contemplative, with each dish turned out with an eye toward presentation.” Los Angeles Times April 28, 2011.  Mercado serves as his third installation, which he co-created with long-time friend and revered chef, Jose Acevedo.

Mercado co-owner and executive chef, Jose Acevedo, began his extensive career training in the kitchens of Wolfgang Puck and the Hillstone Restaurant Group, before taking the helm at Irvine’s Taleo Grill in 2004. Hailing from Guanajuato, Mexico, Chef Jose’s early years were spent learning and perfecting the art of his native culture’s cuisine, which over the years, he has transformed into culinary creations that are as much artisan and contemporary as they are a classic homage to his roots. 

In 2010, Chef Acevedo began working with longtime friend, Jesse Gomez, at Yxta Cocina Mexicana, where he oversaw the creation of signature dishes and specials that would become the inspiration for Mercado’s menu. 

The OC Weekly’s Gustavo Arellano named Chef Acevedo’s signature dessert the “Best Flan in the Universe” in 2007, echoing the starry praise of Yelpers who have called his carnitas “the single best [they’ve tasted at a] commercial restaurant” and “as good as the best homemade [they’ve ever had].” Westways revered Chef Jose’s work, noting that “Taleo Grill might just be the best upscale Mexican restaurant in the region.” 

With a culinary style that is grounded in the finest Mexican tradition, fused with current sensibility, Chef Acevedo’s signature creations apply uniquely flavorful techniques to create incredibly inventive dishes time and time again.

Fascinating….

Georgia Olive Farms Oil, A Must-Have in Sean Brock’s Pantry

This Georgia state olive oil is distinctly Southern

Sean Brock takes the idea of local very seriously. He gets his truffles from Tennessee and sources his cured country hams from Kentucky. Now, for his Husk restaurants in Charleston and Nashville, the chef doesn’t have to look very far for olive oil, either.

Georgia Olive Farms released their incredibly smooth, clean-tasting oil ($32 for 500 ml) in 2011.

Brock likes what’s being pressed from Peach State olives.

“We treat it like gold,” the chef says. “The flavor of this oil is very fruity and has little to no spice, which makes it much more versatile.”

Georgia’s actually no newcomer to homegrown oil.

“Spanish settlers were growing olives on the coast as late as the 1860s,” says Georgia Olive Farms owner Jason Shaw. “We don’t know why it stopped.”

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These Food & Wine Daily recipes look AMAZING!!!!

Heirloom Tomato Salad with Anchovy Vinaigrette

Healthy & Delicious: This warm, garlicky anchovy dressing here is fantastic with an assortment of juicy, peak-season tomatoes. To finish the dish, Amelia O’Reilly and Nico Monday top it with tangy pickled shallots and an oozy, soft-boiled egg.

Recipe!

Some of these are already open…have you tried any yet?

LA’s 21 Most Anticipated Fall and Winter Openings

Summer is coming to an end and that means restaurants which have been built out and worked on throughout the warm weather are finally looking to debut during the busy fall and holiday months. There’s some pretty incredible places in store, such as Josef Centeno’s Orsa & Winston, Superba Food & Bread in Venice by Paul Hibler, as well as Walter Manzke’s Republique, replacing the iconic La Brea Bakery and Campanile building. Below, a list of the most important openings in Los Angeles for Fall and Winter.