Consuming LA

April 18, 2013 · 10:46 am

Your Armenian Mama’s Kitchen

Nestled on a residential side street a few blocks from The Americana and Glendale Galleria, Mini Kabob is a little mom and pop shop that serves some of the best Armenian food in the city. Â To say it’s aÂ hole in the wall would be an understatement. It has three small tables and you feel as if you’re eating in the kitchen of your grandmother or favorite aunt while she cooks for you. Â Ugly upholstered chairs and a dreary oil painting on the wall add to the charm of this hidden gem.

The restaurant is run by “Mama” Alla and “Papa” Hovik, a friendly immigrant couple from Yerevan, Armenia. Â Mama does the cooking in the open kitchen and Papa works front of the house. Â Everything Mama makes is delicious. Â Your meal starts with amazing homemade hummus served with Armenian lavash bread. Â There are several choices of kabobs including beef, pork and beef luleh (ground beef), but the best is the chicken. Â Expertly seasoned and grilled, topped with onions and parsley, and served with basmati rice, a charred tomato and spicy pepper, and a side of garlic sauce, the juicy chicken shish kabob is pure perfection. You can wash it all down with an Armenian mineral water or a tarragon or pear soda.

Mini Kabob is located at 313 Vine St. in Glendale. It’s cash only.

Hummus and Armenian Lavash Bread

Combination Plate with Chicken Shish Kabob, Pork Shish Kabob and Chicken Luleh Kabob

Garlic Sauce

Vegetable Cake (special order)

Jermuk Mineral Water

Alla and Hovik

A tiny hole in the wall...with great food.

Walking distance from The Americana and Glendale Galleria

A tiny hole in the wall..with great food

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Tagged as Armenian Restaurants Glendale, Armenian Restaurants LA, Armenian Restaurants Los Angeles, Best Armenian Restaurant Glendale, Best Armenian Restaurant Los Angeles, Hole in the Wall Armenian Restaurant Glendale, Hole in the Wall Los Angeles, Los Angeles Sausage Restaurant, Mini Kabab, Mini Kabab Glendale, Mini Kabab Restaurant, Mini Kabob, Mini Kabob Glendale, Mini Kabob Menu, Mini Kabob Restaurant, Mini Kabob Restaurant Glendale, Mini kebab, Mini Kebab Glendale

April 11, 2013 · 10:38 am

Pikey, Me Likey

Call it the “New British Invasion.” Â Modern English gastropubs have been regularly opening on this side of the pond for the past couple of years. Â My favorite in Los Angeles is The Pikey. Â Its dark wood, brass rail and mirror-laden decor reminds me of the pubs I frequented when studying abroad in England during college; the perfect place to down a pint of ale. Â But The Pikey is more than just a cool-looking place to drink, and is not, as they say in London, “all fur coat, no knickers.” Their elevated British pub grub is abso-bloody-lutely delicious!

My favorite dish is the Fish and Chips. Â The golden battered snapper is crispy on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside, and the thrice cooked chips (what we Yanks refer to as “fries”) are gobsmackingly good. Â I’m also a fan of the Curried Cauliflower, Mary’s Vinegar Chicken, and the brilliant Crispy Pig’s Ear Salad with Young Kale and Mustard. For dessert, I suggest getting either the Sticky Toffee Pudding with Butterscotch and Clotted Cream or The Pikey’s “Fool” of the day, a smashing concoction of puréed seasonal fruit, whipped cream and sugar. Â Blighty-themed cocktails such as the “Laddie Dill” (vodka, cucumber, dill, lime, salt and pepper) and “The Guvnor” (gin, lemon juice, egg whites and bitters) will have you saying things like “it’s the dog’s bollocks!” and “Bob’s your uncle” in no time.

The Pikey is located at 7617 W Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles (in Hollywood).

Welsh Rarebit

Crispy Pig’s Ear Sald with Young Kale and Mustard

Mary’s Vinegar Chicken with Thrice Cooked Chips

Curried Cauliflower

Brussels Sprouts with Boiled Bacon

Char-Grilled Beef Burger with Bandaged Cheddar, Tomato, Worcestershire Aioli and Chips

Strawberry and Rhubarb Fool with Meringue

Sticky Toffee Pudding with Butterscotch and Clotted Cream

Laddie Dill with Svedka Vodka, Crushed Cucumber and Dill, Lime Juice, Salt and Pepper, Rocks

A little bit of Blighty in Hollywood

Blogiversary Giveaway

Today is Consuming LA’s two year blogiversary! This blog is truly a labor of love and I’d like to thank all of you who read it regularly. On this momentous occasion, I want to celebrate Oprah-style — by giving away stuff, including $50 gift certificates to some of my favorite restaurants in LA! There are twelve prizes in all.

Here’s how to enter to win: If you do not already subscribe to Consuming LA, you can enter simply by subscribing (which is free). Once you become a subscriber or if you have already been one, you can enter by referring friends to subscribe for the first time. You will receive one entry for each referral and you can enter as many times as you want. The deadline to enter is April 8, 2013. Click here to see the official rules. Here are the prizes:

Shaved Mushroom and Black Truffle Pizza from Stella Rossa Pizza Bar

$50 Gift Certificate to Stella Rossa Pizza Bar Stella Rossa is an amazing upscale pizza restaurant and wine bar that’s presided over by uber-talent chef Jeff Mahin, who competed on The Taste on ABC recently. Mahin serves the best pizza in the city, including my favorite, an incredible mushroom and truffle pie.

Maple Fried Chicken, Pork Belly, and Bison Chili Tacos from This cool restaurant is Silverlake

Maple Fried Chicken, Pork Belly, and Bison Chili Tacos from Diablo

$50 Gift Certificate to Diablo This cool restaurant, which opened in Silverlake last year, serves my favorite fusion tacos in the city. My favorite is the Maple Fried Chicken Taco with Purple Kale and Red Rooster Vinaigrette. Diablo is also a great place to drink and their signature Micheladas are served with yuzu or tomato popsicles and are incredible.

Gougere Sliders with Fried Oysters, Tarter Sauce, Applewood Smoked Bacon and Arugula from Little Bear

$50 Gift Certificate to Little Bear. I love this fun and hip Downtown gastropub, its updated versions of rustic Belgian cuisine and its awesome selection of craft beers. I named their fried oyster and bacon sliders on Greyere cheese puffs my favorite of all dishes that I blogged about last year.

Peanut Brittle Cookie from M Street Kitchen in Santa Monica

$50 Gift Certificate to M Street Kitchen I love peanut butter more than anything and my favorite peanut butter cookies in Los Angeles are baked fresh daily and sold at M Street Kitchen in Santa Monica. Besides having amazing baked goods, M Street Kitchen is a great casual restaurant with Modern American cuisine.

Fritzi Dog on Pretzel Bun from Original Farmer's Market on Fairfax

Fritzi Dog on Pretzel Bun from Fritzi Dog

Five winners will each receive a pair of free hot dogs from Fritzi Dog Fritzi Dog is my favorite hot dog joint in LA and my favorite place in the Original Farmer’s Market on Fairfax. Their dogs are insanely good and I also love their wide selection of gourmet toppings and buns, including soft pretzel buns.

Figueroa Philly Cheese Steak

Lunch or Dinner for two at Figueroa Philly I went to around 30 Philly cheesesteak places in LA last year in search of the best and I picked Figueroa Philly (which is right near USC) as my favorite. I love everything about their cheesesteaks, especially the marinated ribeye and Amoroso rolls imported directly from Philadelphia.

The Hungry Games, a puzzle and quiz book for food lovers

Two winners will receive a copy of “The Hungry Games — Improve Your Chowcabulary,” a newly published puzzle book with great word games and quizzes for food lovers.

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Tagged as Chewcabulary, M Street Kitchen, M Street Kitchen Santa Monica, The Hungry Games

March 20, 2013 · 11:37 am

Scottish Tapas for Reform Jews

The Gorbals is the ultimate hipster hang. Â It’sÂ accessed through the lobby of the creepy Alexandria hotel, which is something right out of a horror film and probably haunted. Â Inside the dimly lit restaurant, you’re safe and warm in the glow of a large open kitchen. The decor is minimal and vintage industrial chic. Â Bowler hats, handlebar moustaches or mutton chop sideburns would not look out of place here. Â On Thursday nights, a Hot Jazz/Americana band known as The California Feetwarmers blows the roof off the house while Lindy Hop dancers show off their mad swing skills. On other nights, you kind of expect someone to ride through the restaurant on one of those industrial revolution era tall bicycles with the gigantic front wheel and tiny back wheel.

The Gorbals is the Hasidic fever dream manifestation of Top Chef season two winner Ilan Hall and his business partner and childhood friend Natan Zion. The food was originally inspired by Hall’s Jewish and Scottish ancestry, a combo that I like to refer to as “Scotch and Rhoda (Morgenstern).” While neither the Jews nor the Scots are known for amazing regional cuisine, Hall’s fusion creations are delectably inventive and surprisingly wonderful.

The restaurant’s signature dish is Bacon-wrapped Matzoh Balls (pictured above), which Hall clearly had in mind when he famously described his mash-up fare as “old Jewish food that has been date-raped by bacon.” Although this irreverent intermix sounds like a joke, it tastes astonishingly good. Hall’s creations are not limited to Jewish and Scottish-themed eats and incorporate ingredients from all over the world like uni butter, feta and macadamia nuts. My favorite dishes are the Vietnamese/Canadian comfort concoction of Bahn Mi Poutine, the insanely amazing Lamb Neck with Creamy Oats and, to balance out the richness, the Israeli-inspired salad of Persian Cucumbers, Avocado, Crispy Garbanzos and Sumac. I love a good salty dessert and The Gorbals’ Sticky Toffee Pudding with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and Maldon Salt is incredible. Just like the food, the cocktails are creative and fun, and highly recommended.Â

The Gorbals is located at 501 So. Spring St., Los Angeles (Downtown).

Latkes with Smoked Applesauce and Sage

Persian Cucumbers, Avocado, Crispy Garbanzos and Sumac

Cornbread Stuffed Quail with Red Wine Balsamic Reduction

Bahn Mi Poutine

Lamb Neck with Creamy Oats

Sticky Toffee Pudding with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream and Maldon Salt

Entrance to the The Gorbals inside the creepy Alexandria Hotel

Inside you’re safe and warm in the glow of a large open kitchen

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Fez Not Required

When I hear “Moroccan restaurant,” I think of waiters in fezzes and embroidered vests, belly dancers, exotic over-the-top decor and eating with my hands. Tagine in Beverly Hills has none of these things and is all the better for it. Instead of the typical Disney-esque tourist treatment of a Moroccan dining experience, you get the kind of meal that I could see served in the home of a wealthy and cultured family in Tangier or Marrakech.

Tagine, which is co-owned by actor Ryan Gosling, is upscale and incredibly romantic; the ultimate date spot if you’re looking to score. It’s intimate, beautifully understated and dimly lit. Parties of two sit side by side.

As for the food, talented chef Abdessamad “Ben” Benameur elevates classic Moroccan dishes and serves cuisine which is highly refined and across-the-board excellent. I highly recommend going with the tasting menu. Whether you do or not, your meal starts with a tray of amuse-bouches which often include cups of asparagus soup, vegetable cigars and spoons of goat cheese with dates. The homemade hummus with freshly baked Berber bread and the tomato and cucumber tartar topped with lemon sorbet and raspberries should not be missed. I also love the bastilla with buttery, crispy phyllo dough atop a mixture of Cornish hen, scrambled eggs, saffron and sugar, as well as the tender and juicy lamb chops marinated in Moroccan seven spices.

The best is saved for last: a life-altering rich chocolate soup with a tiny scoop of vanilla ice cream, accompanied by sticky and sweet baklava. It’s one of the best chocolate desserts I’ve ever eaten; right up there with the Frozen Hot Chocolate at Serendipity in NYC.

Tagine is located at 132 N. Robertson Blvd. in Beverly Hills.

Amuse Bouche: Asparagus Soup, Goat Cheese with Dates, and Vegetable Cigars

Amuse-Bouches: Asparagus Soup, Goat Cheese with Dates, and Vegetable Cigars

Bastilla

Roasted Vegetables

Sea Bass Tagine

Lamb Chops marinated in the seven spices

Chocolate Soup served with Vanilla Ice Cream and Baklava

Your Armenian Mama’s Kitchen

Pikey, Me Likey

Blogiversary Giveaway

Scottish Tapas for Reform Jews

Fez Not Required

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