I was previously sad because one of my favorite places in L.A. closed, but now it's open again!!!! =). The original post is below...
Originally, my first food post was going to be about the Napa trip Jen and I went on, but now, I think it would be more appropriate to make my first post about my new favorite restaurant in Los Angeles, Doughboys.
We have been planning to go there for a while, but we finally had the chance to go on Match Day, March 15th. And yes, it was a great celebration meal....onto the food!
O.J. and an Arnold Palmer
The waiter took our drink orders first...I was planning to order breakfast, so I ordered some fresh orange juice and Jen ordered an Arnold Palmer.
Orange juice, freshly squeezed, and just a bit tart.
Jen ordered a Warm Portebello and Pancetta salad.
It was a very good salad - lots of contrast in both texture and flavor, with crunchy pancetta bits, warm cooked mushrooms, potatoes, pine nuts, and the salad greens.
What made it an excellent salad in my book was the bread that can be seen all around the salad; it reminded me of a chinese bread, probably because of the scallions on top of the bread. It was soft and chewy, yum!
Here's the dish I ordered, an egg dish named S.O.S.
Alright, before I start, yes, I am going to acknowledge that it looks like crap. Literally. But you can't judge all food by its looks - I refuse to discriminate on the basis of a food's appearance, because I am an equally opportunity eater.
It was the description of the dish on the menu that intrigued me - "S.O.S.: our update of an old army/navy classic ("shit on a shingle" if you don't have a dad that was in the service) and a favorite with the stuff, ours starts with grilled asiago bread, home fries, and is topped with a really flavorful rich creamed beef mixture, then 2 steamed eggs."
With a description like that, wouldn't you want to try it? Ok, maybe not...nevertheless, it was pretty good, but a very heavy and filling dish. I only finished half, and took the rest home. Let me just say that it tasted awesome as a leftover dish, even better than when I ate it fresh. Final score on this dish: Looks = 0, taste= 7, reheat value =10!
Now onto dessert, so good that it deserves three separate photos:
Red velvet cake...
Rated by Oprah as one of the best red velvet cakes in the United States...
And it was mind-blowingly good. The cake had great texture and the frosting had a cream cheese base, but it was very mild and sweet. The perfect red velvet cake in Los Angeles. *drool*
A pate sandwich. I would have liked the french baguette to be warm and toasty, but the texture was nice and chewy at least. They served it with chips...I must say, I think it would have been better with shoestring french fries.
Jen ordered a goat cheese salad - the goat cheese was too strong for me to eat =P.
And lastly, of course, dessert: a Poire Belle-Héléne, a dessert which I haven't seen elsewhere. There is a scoop of French vanilla ice cream, topped with a poached pear, warm semi-sweet chocolate sauce and sliced almonds. Yum.
