Mottainai Ramen

Lucy looks to see what ramen she wants.

Al and Polly lately have been raving about a new ramen place in Gardena. Knowing that I'm a fan of a good ramen and that we have no ramen to speak of in Baltimore, they insisted on bringing us there. Of course, I'm only too happy to comply.

Located in the very Japanese marketplace not too far from the 110 Freeway (and the Hustler Casino), Mottainai Ramen is modern, bright and Japanese all the way. The staff is friendly and the ceiling reaching flames that come from the toasting of miso (I think) is very reassuring.


Melon Creamy Soda - kind of like bubblegum.

While the focus is on the ramen, there's a handwritten sign advertising their Mini Curry Bowl. I had to investigate.

The curry is traditional Japanese style though a little on the thick side. It's creamy and delicious as a proper Japanese curry should be with generous slices of chicken and fluffy white rice underneath. Excellent


The ramen broth sample tray.

Without a doubt, Mottainai is about ramen. So serious are they that they are only too willing to bring out a broth sample tray where you can taste their four broths to choose from. Miso, shoyu and two types of Yokohama broths compete for your attention but the miso is clearly the champion and the choice of the table.

After a complimentary side of chasu that's thinly sliced and oh so delicate, our ramen arrives. Mine comes with medium boiled egg with a runny yolk that adds extra flavor and texture to the ramen, along with a generous helping of corn butter. Yum!


Curry Mini Bowl.

Shake, shake, shake goes the little togarashi pepper shaker and I'm off to ramen heaven. The broth is delicious and everything is just right - except that I find the noodles to be on the toothy side without that usual chewiness that I prefer in a ramen noodle. Al and Polly assure me that this is an oddity because the noodles are usually more chewy. I believe them.

Whatever the case, the broth and extras are delicious and I make a note that I must revisit Mottainai on my next visit - just to be sure.


A side of char siu, compliments of the chef.



Miso Ramen with egg and corn butter.


Mottainai Ramen
1630 W Redondo Beach Blvd Ste 9
Gardena, CA 90247
310-538-3233
mottairamen.jugem.jp

My First Cheesecake Factory

Ana, Lucy and Polly on the way to The Factory.

When Polly called to tell me that we were all meeting at the Cheesecake Factory I could hear the apprehension and apology in her voice - as though I might lash out in disdain for choosing a national chain restaurant. "There's going to be like thirty of us," she reasoned.

My initial reaction was to bemoan the choice, but I understood the challenges of organizing and mobilizing our group of friends and was grateful for the effort. I mean, it's not as though The Cheesecake Factory is that bad.


Ian awaits the fried calamari.

We were going to meet at the Marina del Rey Cheesecake Factory, reputed to be the very first Cheesecake Factory and the one that started it all. I don't know if the history is correct but this location was the very first Cheesecake Factory I ate in back in my college years, sometime around 1990, or so.

Ironically, I was brought here by my old friend and temporary college roommate, Lisa Garcia. I was visiting and she brought me here - to Marina del Rey and to Cheesecake Factory, way before I even knew what "Cheesecake Factory" was all about.


And Fried Calamari it is!

Of course, all I remember was coming here. I don't remember the specifics. It was probably good and I probably left too full like most people who eat at Cheesecake Factory. Who knew back then that the restaurant would become the national powerhouse it is today and that it would take me twenty years to return?

Serendipity. That's the best way to describe a gathering of our friends here in Los Angeles. Jules and Carm live in Toronto, Edennison lives outside of Sacramento, Chuck and Anne live in Las Vegas and everyone just happened to be here on the same weekend. Had it been a few days later then The Bob (Hawaii), as well as Gerry, Vanessa and Rod (Maryland) would have been here too. Had they actually been here, we probably would have had to reserve a hotel banquet room (wouldn't be the first time).


Buffalo Tenders.

You've probably been to a Cheesecake Factory somewhere. Two hour waits seem to be the standard, as are massive portions and ridiculously large cheesecake slices. Nothing about TCF is petite. Everything is large, and the bread is pretty damn good too.

I don't know what it is about the bread. It's nothing artisan or even "special", it's simple soft textured bread that's probably been leavened with some sort of industrial agricultural product to make it soft and supple, but slather it with the softened butter (wish the fancy restaurants would get this right) and you want to plow through three baskets of the stuff - especially that pumpernickel.


Spinach Dip and tortilla chips.

Everything is simple, straightforward and to be expected. Jules is running on about the chicken special and I'm caught up in the frenzy and order one too. When it comes, I find it decent but nothing to rave about. Probably should have ordered the thai chicken pasta, I could use a little panang-style flavors right about now.

The nice thing about our group of friends is that everyone enjoys food, and since almost everyone is Asian, the Family Style thing just comes naturally. Grab a taste or two and pass the plates around. So maybe you were wondering just how that dip tastes like. Fear not, because you're about to try some.


Christian, Ian and Jules work the bread.

The plates fly, the meals come, parts of them are devoured, the rest are left forlorn on the plate. I can finish barely half of mine, probably owing to the calamari and the generous helpings of the buttered bread.

When dessert rolls around, it's time for the Red Velvet Cheesecake. It's pretty darn good - especially with the side of vanilla ice cream. I went for it because I've had it before and remember it being pretty good. I probably should have tried something more adventurous from the menu, but I didn't. Again, more passing around for a wider range of flavors.


Our friends ponder their bread.

With the kids having consumed their meal, plus a good portion of sugar from the desserts, it's time for them to go ballistic. Luckily, there's a playground next to the restaurant for them to get their fix. There's nothing like watching bloated parents trying to chase after their sugar-riddle children. They should make a tv show about it and call it "Yo Gabba Gabba."

Oh wait, they already did...


The Chicken Pasta Special.



This is Christine's first time at Cheesecake Factory. Seriously.



Lucy remains unconvinced.



Red Velvet Cheesecake with vanilla ice cream.



The Girls: Anne, Carm, Elaine, Polly, Ana, Christine, Rhea and Anna.



The Boys: Al, Jay, Chuck, Milton, Jules, Edennison and Christian.

Strawberry Fields

It might not look like much but soon there will be strawberries.

Driving along the 101 South back to Los Angeles, I'm again struck by the immensity of the agriculture here on the West Coast. Miles and miles of crops - as far as the eye can see. Our ability to maintain a continuous food stream for our nation is staggering.

As we make our way south of Salinas, it's fields of lettuce. On one building I quickly notice the "Andy Boy" brand sign and am suddenly excited. Yes, Andy Boy is one of those large scale industrial agricultural brands, but it's one that I'm familiar with and one that I've used in the past. If it wasn't so late in the day, I might try to stop and ask for a tour.

Continuing on, it's strawberry fields aplenty. Right now they're not much to behold but in a few weeks time, they will be bursting with red fruit ripe for the picking. Hoardes of migrant labor will descend upon these fields to pick and harvest that food which will feed the people. Yes, some of them are guaranteed to be illegales and lest the more narrow-minded of you start complaining about paperless workers, ask yourself if you're truly ready to pay Kona Coffee prices for that head of iceberg lettuce for your thousand island dressing tonight?

Jack In The Quesadilla

They say "Tacos", she says "It's like a Quesadilla."

Carmel Belle

Purity Apple Juice and Fizzy Lizzy Raspberry Lemon.

Ana wanted to see Carmel, so on the way there I fantasized about sitting on an outdoor verdanda, sunlight streaming across my face and eating some kind of hot sandwich (maybe a burger, crabcake or fish thing) with fries and a Coke. I don't know why I thought this way, but it's kind of how I remembered my previous visits to Carmel (back in the early 90s)

While part of my veranda fantasy included frozen pre-packaged Sysco style fries, the last place I want to eat is a Sysco supplied kind of restaurant. Ironic, really. With that in mind, I consulted Yelp to see what people recommended since I'm unfamiliar with Carmel's dining scene.

The top listing on Yelp? Carmel Belle. Tucked away in some artist studio off the main drag and a bit of a pain to find, the Belle comes highly recommended but turned out to be as far from my veranda fantasy as I could have found.


Slow Cooked Berkshire Pork - red onion currant chutney on ciabatta.

Imagine one of those Farm to Table restaurants and compact them into a counter-style place serving light fare and you've got the Carmel Belle. The ingredients are good. The flavors are nice but for some reason I was a bit off put by a place that puts out a large tip jar for counter service - condiments and silverware are off to your right.

Call me old fashioned but when it comes to food, I prefer a little service. You're going to the trouble of using ceramic plates, glasses and silverware but want everyone to serve and bus their own tables? I don't get it and I certainly don't think that warrants a tip - especially if the tables are left with used plates and stuff.

And then there's the bathroom. Pick up the key for the bathroom at the service/silverware counter and walk the three paces to the bathroom. I don't get it. Maybe it's to discourage summer tourists from inundating the bathroom but if the key is just laying out for anyone to pickup and use, why not just leave the bathroom open?


Free Range Rotisserie Chicken Salad - avocado, tomato, Hobb's bacon & blue cheese with mixed greens and lemon vinaigrette.

All that aside, we're here for the food. I have to say that since I was in the mood for Sysco fries, I was a bit disappointed - especially since the Carmel Belle doesn't make fries. I always wonder if places like this don't do fries because of some weak excuse like "too much grease" (that's why you have your hood) or simply because they frown upon menu items like that (maybe it's not healthy, but those bagged chips are).

Overall, the quality of our dishes was good, if a bit done in that Farm2Table sameness that I'm seeing nationwide (which means it's starting to get played out and tired). My real wish is that they would take a heavier hand on their seasoning since most of it was on the bland side but really started to shine after a confident dose of the nice table salt.

Then there's the question of the salad. Yes, the ingredients looked great and with salt, tasted great, but what is with the "let's stack all of the salad components next to each other and cram them on the plate" approach? Things are so crammed together that you still need to toss the ingredients to get the idea of what they're thinking with the dish, only to find your bits of greens, chicken and more falling to the table surface.

Couldn't they toss all the ingredients in a bowl before plating? They certainly did that with the greens and vinaigrette - making me wonder why they didn't just put a side of the vinaigrette and eliminate the toss altogether? Maybe it's to save on the vinaigrette since unruly customers might ask for more and not coat their own lettuce "properly"?

Personally speaking, I would have liked to try the salad with its ingredients properly tossed instead of the mess that we created by trying to do it ourselves on that tiny plate.

But once we got that semblance of toss, added some salt, both the sandwich and salad came alive and was pretty darn enjoyable.

Carmel Belle
Doud Craft Studios
Ocean & San Carlos Streets
Carmel-by-the-Sea, CA
831-624-1600

Hurley's

Seared Ahi Tuna with sesame crust.

The problem with short trips is that you feel like you're trying to cram too much into too little time. Thank goodness Ethel and Matt were willing to come up to Napa to hang for a couple of hours. They asked where I wanted to eat and since I only know The French Laundry, I left it up to them to select a nice place that's kid friendly.

So after homework and baseball practice, they trucked up from Marin for a little respite at Hurley's. Thanks guys!


Mussels.



Croquettes.



Ethel and Hilve.

Bistro Don Giovanni

Bread for olive oil and balsamic.



Jackie and Michelle.



2007 Clos du Val Cabernet Sauvignon.



Ana.



Aaron and Jackie.



A little Bolognese.



Some fries.

Model Muffins

Red Velvet Cupcake.

Aaron called to tell us that they were at Model Bakery in St. Helena. I knew nothing about Model so when we arrived, Aaron and Michelle "encouraged" us to try the english muffins - labeled "the best" muffins in the world.

Honestly, I'm a Thomas' English Muffins kind of guy. Give me that fork split goodness, burn it in a heavy toast, slather it with butter and I'm very happy. I've tried other "english muffins" at different restaurants and they never got the right texture or the "nooks and crannies".


The "World's Best" English Muffins.

There are no nooks or crannies in a Model English Muffin but these are some seriously good muffins when given a hard toast, slathered with butter and then a layer of jam. Amazing. From what I've been told, part of the key to these muffins is that they are cooked on a griddle to give it the proper crust.

However they are made, I like them and am even happier that I can buy them online.

Paul Hobbs

The tasting room at Paul Hobbs.

Before jetting out to California, I was caught up in a bit of a conundrum (not Caymus, they're pretentious and arrogant) - what wineries to visit in the Napa Valley?

I first started visiting Napa back in 1988 when the valley wasn't encroached by the development and tourism it is today. Back then, a trip to Robert Mondavi was still a small and relatively casual affair. Go there today and it's massive group tours and commercialism. Whatever the case, I knew relatively nothing about wines then and, to be honest, my understanding of wines really has not improved some twenty years later.


Ana ready for a tasting.

Lately, I've been drinking more French wines. Specifically Cotes du Rhone and Chateauneuf du Pape, and maybe a smattering of California zinfandels, but the Napa Valley? I really was coming up short. Two years ago, we went back to visit Caymus (where they were as pretentious and arrogant as possible), Raymond (fun) and Silver Oak (impressive building).

This time I thought about a few others, like Pezzi King (Healdsburg? Too far!), Vineyard 7&8 (no available tastings) and Orrin Swift (I like their Saldo), but still the question of "where?" reigned.


Emily leading us down to the processing buildings.

That's when James and Austin of Swirl Wine in Timonium suggested Paul Hobbs. Hmmm, sounded like a good idea and set up an appointment.

The terrible irony is that I first decided against visiting Pezzi King, even though I am a fan of their 2005 Old Vine Zinfandel, because they are in Healdsburg in Sonoma County - an hour or so drive from Napa. I wanted to keep the tastings along the 29 in the Napa Valley.

Of course, I didn't bother to check that Paul Hobbs is located in Sebastopol, about fifteen minutes south of Healdsburg, and an hour and ten minutes from our next appointment at Orrin Swift. Without realizing it, I had set myself up for failure.


Fermentation tanks.

Tastings at Paul Hobbs are by appointment only and it's not easy to find along the highway. There's a simple boulder, surrounded by trees, with the address affixed to it. No large signs to alert you of the magic happening to your right. Once located, you pull in and it's fourteen acres of rolling vineyard and a stunningly modern house with sculpted and manicured lawns.

Emily was there to greet us and as it turns out, we were the only two tasting that afternoon. For those of us used to the mass tours of Mondavi, or the open tasting rooms of Chateauneuf, the quiet of a private tasting is both inspiring and slightly off-putting.


Barrel aging room.

Admittedly, I knew little about Paul Hobbs, the man. After starting off education in medicine, he discovered a love for wine and switched to the oenology program at UC Davis where he wrote his thesis on wine barrels and was wooed by Robert Mondavi himself to help start up Opus One. Not a bad way to begin a career.

From there his genius gives way to slight insanity. The man is obsessed with the details of winemaking. While other winemakers are content to buy fruit from farmers, Paul Hobbs dictates which row(s) of the vineyard that farmer will cultivate for his purchase. Sun, soil and more all play a significant role in his decisions and Paul is involved in every step of the process.

The psychosis in cultivating just the right crop is crazy inspiring and I secretly wondered just how we might be able to export that kind of thinking to coffee production. While we currently laud an entire farm's production, could those high altitude hills in Central America and Ethiopia yield more incredible results with careful selection and cultivation? If only I possessed this guys' expertise in agriculture.


The foyer.

We tasted and then we toured. The facility is most impressive. Everything modern, everything done to a "T". Grape vines from Paul Hobbs home of upstate New York are trellised along the walkway in homage to his past, the catwalk above the stainless fermentation tanks can be removed and the facility is absolutely spotless. So spotless that I was compelled to ask Emily how it is possible that they get their staff to maintain such a rigorous regiment.

As we toured the barrel aging room, I noticed a variety of barrels from different cooperages and asked. I'm guessing that it's rooted in his thesis on wine barrels but Paul Hobbs utilizes different barrels from different cooperages to achieve a particular effect. Turns out that French Oak, Medium toast barrels vary from cooper to cooper and that they can be combined to develop specific recipes. Impressive.


By the vineyard.

As our time at the winery winded down, the light rain started to abate and even after drinking nearly a bottle of wine, I still didn't feel light headed or unprepared for the open road.

So, with two bottles in tow, we set back to the Napa Valley excited by the wines and a bit saddened that we would not be able to make our appointment with EJ at Orrin Swift. Sorry EJ. Next time, I promise.

The Boon Fly Cafe

Pom Cooler - St. Germaine, Prosecco



A set of condiments: maple syrup, butter, ketchup and Tapatio hot sauce.



World Famous Boon Fly Donuts.



Buttermilk Griddle Cake.



Applewood Smoked Bacon.



Chilaquiles - scrambled eggs, chorizo, black beans, cheddar cheese, flour tortilla chips, salsa verde & pico de gallo.



Breakfast Flatbread - two fried eggs, bacon, caramelized onions and mozzarella.