Consuming LA

January 4, 2012 · 11:00 am

Shut Your Pie Hole

Everyone else can vow to go to the gym and eat healthier in 2012. My New Year’s resolution is to eat more pie. Obviously I’m kidding; well, maybe half-kidding. But even if I tried to watch it with the sweets, it would be difficult since I just discovered what is possibly the best pie I have ever tasted. It’s a Maple Custard Pie and it puts all other pies heretofore consumed by me to shame. This pie is the perfect combination of a sublime buttery not-too-sweet crust and an incredible caramelized custardy filling. I found it at The Pie Hole, a new pie joint packed with vintage-wearing, Weezer-listening hipsters and located downtown in the Ã¼ber-hip Downtown Arts District, right across the street from Ã¼ber-hip Wurstkuche.

The Pie Hole has a limited menu inscribed on hanging rolls of butcher paper each day of both sweet and savory pies. The daily pie offerings depend on what’s in season and what looks good to the Pie Hole’s bakers at local farmer’s markets that week. All the pies are baked on the premises and sold, along with great organic coffee, until they run out each day. The last couple times I was there, the savory pies included a tasty Chicken Pot Pie, a Mac-N-Cheese Hand Pie and a Burrata, Tomato & Basil Pocket Pie. The sweet pies included Lemon Meringue, Poached Pear and Cranberry, Mexican Chocolate and Bourbon Chocolate Pecan. They also had a delicious Chocolate, Caramel and Sea Salt Crostata (which is technically not a pie, but a shallow tart baked on a cookie sheet) as well as a triangular Peanut Butter, Chocolate and Almond “Pie Bar.” Every pie I tried was good, but the clear stand-out was the Maple Custard. It’s hard to put a price on perfection, but most slices cost around $6. This is comfort food at its best and worth every penny.

The Pie Hole is located at 714 Traction Ave., Los Angeles (Downtown).

Chicken Pot, Chicken Pot, Chicken Pot Pie!

Chocolate, Sea Salt and Caramel Crostata

Mexican Chocolate Pie

Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie

Pie Bar with Peanut Butter, Chocolate, Almonds & Sea Salt

Hipster hangout across from Wurstkuche

I love the Downtown Arts District!

[mappress mapid=”61″]

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Filed under Downtown

Tagged as Chicken Pot Pie Los Angeles, Chocolate Crostata, LA Downtown Arts District, Los Angeles Downtown Arts District, Mac-N-Cheese Pie, Maple Custard Pie, Mexican Chocolate Pie, Pie Bars, Pie Hole, pie hole downtown la, pie hole downtown los angeles, Pie Hole LA, Pie Hole Los Angeles, pie hole menu, Piehole, The Pie Hole, the pie hole downtown la, the pie hole downtown los angeles, The Piehole, Wurstkuche Pies

December 30, 2011 · 12:14 pm

Wishing You A Delicious New Year

Happy New Year from Consuming LA! As the food scene in Los Angeles continues to get more and more innovative and exciting, I will be there to bring the best (and sometimes the worst) to your attention. I’ve got a great 2012 planned for this blog and have already made a few changes. Please check out my new Manifesto. Also, I’ve created indexes to make it easier when you’re using the blog as a reference guide to pick a place to eat. Now you can search not only by neighborhood, but also alphabetically and by type of cuisine. There are also separate lists of dessert places, food trucks and places which are suitable for special occasions. More changes will be coming in the New Year. See you on the other side!

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Filed under Uncategorized

December 20, 2011 · 10:20 am

Get Shorty

Short Order, which opened a few weeks ago in The Original Farmer’s Market (next to The Grove), is the latest in a number of upscale, hip, artisanal hamburger joints popping up around LA. Short Order is the creation of local celebrity chef Nancy Silverton (Osteria and Pizzeria Mozza, Campanile, La Brea Bakery) and chef Amy Pressman, who tragically died a few months ago before the restaurant opened. I’ve been there a few times already and while I don’t think Short Order’s burgers are as good as Umami’s, they are pretty darn good. They’re juicy, have brioche-type buns and ultra fresh ingredients. The menu features seven burgers, only three of which are beef; the others are turkey, pork, lamb and tuna. My favorite beef burger is Ida’s Old School Burger (pictured above) made with grass-fed beef, cheddar, pickles, tomato, griddled onion, iceberg lettuce and secret sauce. I also really like the unusual Pork Burger, which has rapini, Stracchino cheese, bibb lettuce and a lemony flavor.

Short Order is a two-story restaurant and I recommend sitting on the top level. I like the vibe up there better, probably because there’s a really cool bar with great cocktails designed by uber-talented mixologist Julian Cox. If you don’t want a burger, Short Order has “rafts” (open face sandwiches), melts, corn-dogs, as well as “pretzel pups” (two short dogs with kraut and mustard on a La Brea Bakery pretzel bun) which is the only thing I’ve had there which I didn’t really like. To accompany your burger or sandwich, I recommend getting a basket of the Short Order Spuds, which are closer to crispy potato skins than fries, along with the sour cream dipping or truffle sauce. Like any respectable burger joint, Short Order has rich, creamy shakes, and Short Order makes theirs with house-made frozen custard. You can finish your meal with a yummy seasonal mini pie or an awesome chocolate chip cookie.

If you want more of a dessert selection or a snack for later, walk over to Short Cake, the bakery sister of Short Order, which opened in the Farmer’s Market this past weekend. Short Cake’s array of gourmet baked goods is quite impressive. They have several savory items, including an excellent Anson Mills Corn Muffin with Aged Cheddar and Hatch Chiles, a very good Quiche with Bacon, Leeks and Comte cheese, and a delicious Feta Scallion Scone. The sweet offerings include Twice-Baked Hazelnut Croissants, Chocolate Cinnamon Babka, Sesame Date Scones, Chiffon Cake with Orange Curd and Meringue, Chocolate Bun Bread Pudding and amazing “Brunette” Bars with Pine Nuts and Thyme. Short Cake shares its Farmer’s Market stall with Single Origin Coffee, which serves pour-over coffee brewed to order.

Short Order and Short Cake are located in The Original Farmer’s Market at 6333 W. 3rd Street, Los Angeles.

Nancy's Backyard Burger with cheddar, pickles, tomato, griddled onion, iceberg lettuce and secret sauce

Pretzel Pups

Pork Burger with rapini, Stracchino cheese and bibb lettuce

Short Order Spuds with dipping sauce

Mini Kabocha Pie topped with frozen custard

The patio on the top level

A nicely stocked bar of premium spirits and luxury liquors

Short Cake

"Brunette" with pine nuts and thyme

Anson Mills Corn Muffin with Widmer Two Year Aged Cheddar and Hatch Chiles

[mappress mapid=”60″]

6 Comments

Filed under Fairfax, Mid-City

Tagged as Burgers Farmer's Market, Burgers LA Farmer's Market, Burgers Los Angeles Farmer's Market, Julian Cox, Nancy Silverton, Original Farmer's Market, Short Cake, Short Cake Bakery, Short Cake LA, Short Order, Short Order LA, Single Origin Coffee

December 16, 2011 · 9:30 am

Christmas, Hawaiian Style

I love King’s Hawaiian Bread, especially their irresistibly sweet, soft and buttery rolls. I used them all summer as the buns for my signature barbecue sliders. So when I discovered that King’s has a Hawaiian retail bakery and restaurant in Torrance, I hightailed it down to the South Bay to check it out. The restaurant reminded me of places I’d been to in Hawaii. It was very large, diner-ish and somewhat kitschy (in a fun way); a great place to take kids. There is an aquarium, a giant pineapple and right now it’s totally decked out for Christmas.

While I’m not sure King’s would appeal to hardcore foodies, I thought most of what I ordered was really good, and some things were great. All lunches and dinners begin with a basket of King’s famous Hawaiian rolls with butter. Their extensive menu features all of the typical Hawaiian comfort foods including Poke (Hawaiian marinated sashimi, which is really good here), Spam Musubi (basically a sushi roll with slices of spam instead of fish), Kalua Nachos (tortilla chips topped with Kalua Pork, black beans, cheese and sour cream, and served with guacamole and spicy pineapple chutney), Portuguese Bean Soup, Grilled Mahi Mahi, Huli Huli Chicken, Kalbi Ribs and great fried rice. There are several holiday specials which are on the menu until the end of the month, including a really yummy pork chop stuffed with King’s Hawaiian bread and Portuguese sausage, drizzled with guava glaze and served with “Hawaiian mashed potatoes” (which have cabbage in them and are really good), baby bok choy and fried onion strings.

The best part of the meal were the desserts. King’s most celebrated baked good is its Hawaiian Paradise Cake, a colorful and delicious three layer (guava, passionfruit and lime) cake with a whipped cream frosting and a fruit glaze. It was thankfully not too sweet and totally lived up to the hype! They also have an awesome Macadamia Nut Cream Pie. Make sure to stop at the bakery on the way out for Hawaiian bread, malasadas (Hawaiian doughnuts), delicious cookies (I highly recommend the snowball cookies) and other sweet treats. The cakes (especially the Hawaiian Paradise Cake), pies and cookies make great holiday gifts. Just write on the card “Mele Kalikimaka” (Merry Christmas).

King’s Hawaiian Bakery and Restaurant is located at 2808 W. Sepulveda Blvd. in Torrance.

It's Poke, Mon!

Spam Spam Spam Spam

Sesame Chicken Wings

Kalua Nachos

Stuffed Pork Chop with Hawaiian mashed potatoes, baby bok choy and fried onion strings

Hawaiian Paradise Cake

Macadamia Nut Cream Pie

Big, kitschy and fun

[mappress mapid=”59″]

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Filed under Torrance

Tagged as Hawaiian Restaurant LA, Hawaiian Restaurant Los Angeles, Kalua Nachos, King's Hawaiian Bakery, King's Hawaiian Bakery and Restaurant, King's Hawaiian Bread, King's Hawaiian Restaurant, King's Restaurant, Kings Hawaiian, Los Angeles Hawaiian Food, Los Angeles Hawaiian Restaurant, Spam Musubi, Torrance Restaurants

December 9, 2011 · 9:30 am

Super Soup Dumplings

A soup dumpling is a wonderful thing. For the uninitiated, a soup dumpling is not a dumpling that is found in soup like a kreplach or wonton. It’s the reverse; the soup is actually inside the dumpling. Soup Dumplings, also known as Shanghai Soup Dumplings or Xiao Long Bao, are a Chinese delicacy that were traditionally part of a Jiangnan-style morning tea. Nowadays, you can get them throughout the day and at restaurants located in places like Alhambra, Arcadia, Monterey Park and San Gabriel. My favorite place for soup dumplings is Din Tai Fung in Arcadia. Din Tai Fung serves over a dozen different kinds of dumplings, including chicken, melon & shrimp, shrimp & pork, vegetarian, sweet taro and red beans, but my favorite by far is the Juicy Pork Dumplings. These dumplings have a chewy and moist skin, which is wrapped around hot savory soup and delicious minced pork. They arrive at your table by the dozen, freshly steamed and ready to eat with vinegar, soy sauce, chili sauce if you are so inclined, and shredded ginger.

For novice soup dumpling explorers, here’s some instructions on how to eat these tasty treats:
Step 1: Use your chopsticks to pick up a soup dumpling by its ridged tip and place it on a Chinese soup spoon.
Step 2: Add a few drop of vinegar, soy sauce and chili sauce, as well as a few strands of shredded ginger.
Step 3: Bite a small hole in the top of the dumpling to release steam (so you don’t burn your mouth in Step 4!).
Step 4: Put the whole dumpling in your mouth.
Step 5: Bite into the dumpling, let the savory soup explode in your mouth and enjoy the hot, wet, doughy goodness.
Step 6: Repeat.

Din Tai Fung serves other things besides dumplings. They have pretty good noodles and decent fried rice. But why fill up on other carbs? Just eat more soup dumplings! Din Tai Fung is located at 1108 and 1088 S. Baldwin Ave. in Arcadia. UPDATE: Din Tai Fung is opening at the Americana in Glendale in September 2013. Now most of us won’t need to make the long schlep out to Arcadia anymore to get our soup dumpling fix!