Martin

Touche Pas a Mon Foie Gras – CHEFS Dinner at Melisse

May 16, 2012

Martin Nom Adventures foie battle, foie gras, josiah citrin, melisse, michelin star restaurant, santa monica Leave a comment

The other night (on Monday, May 14th) renowned chefs from Northern and Southern California united to celebrate foie gras through fundraising dinners held simultaneously at four different venues in Los Angeles for CHEFS – Coalition for Healthy and Ethical Farming Standards in an effort to overturn the ban on foie gras soon to take effect in California. We decided to splurge and come out to the one at Melisse, and the menu and experience were absolutely incredible.

With a celebrity lineup featuring Brendan Collins of Waterloo & City (easily our favorite local gastropub!), Hiro Sone and Lissa Doumani of Terra and Ame, Raphael Lunetta of JiRaffe, Justin Wangler of Kendall Jackson, Josiah Citrin and Ken Takayama of Melisse (of course), and Mark Dommen of One Market, we knew we were in for a treat! From start to finish, it was a beautifully orchestrated dinner that truly does this decadent ingredient justice.

Don’t touch my foie! Alice picked up a t-shirt to commemorate the event.

Fresh Baked Focaccia – Quick and Easy

April 1, 2012

Martin Side Noms, Small Noms bread, bread recipe, easy bread, easy to bake focaccia, focaccia, focaccia recipe, fresh baked bread, recipe 1 Comment

While wasting time on Facebook I came upon an amazing image of freshly baked focaccia from my friend Tru. She was generous enough to share her recipe with us and we replicated with some minor changes. Best if eaten the same day with some olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Tastes amazing with Global Garden’s Meyer Lemon Olive Oil and Peach Cinnamon Balsamic Vinegar that we picked up during our olive oil tasting.

Fresh Baked Focaccia - 1.5 hour prep, 40 min bake.

Get the Focaccia Recipe!

Day Eight: San Francisco – The Codmother and Our Last Meal of 2011

February 25, 2012

Martin Nom Adventures cassoulet, codmother, escargot, fish and chips, fishermans wharf, foie gras terrine, french, fried oreos, le charm, new years eve, san francisco 2 Comments

A short walk away from Fisherman’s Wharf, the Codmother is the an eye-catcher of a food truck with its noticeable pink-puckered lips of a cod. Once “inside”, you’ll meet the very friendly, British-accented owner, Suzanne who greets both regulars and tourist lookers alike.

We shared an order of the fish and chips not because we were skeptical but because we were planning to eat several more times at other places. The fish was great, fried in batter seasoned with salt and black pepper, a simple addition something a lot of fish and chip places tend to overlook. The fish was neither super moist that it melts in your mouth nor overcooked and dry but maintained just a firm enough texture expected from deep fried fish filets. Our only criticism is that the chips were just average and could use some more crunch to them – perhaps a thinner cut version or longer frying time.

Fish and Chips - seasoned with salt and pepper.

Day Six – San Francisco: Chez Maman and Tropisueno

February 10, 2012

Martin Nom Adventures best burger in SF, ceviche, chez maman, french, mexican, san francisco, tropisueno 1 Comment

After a brutal 19-hour Greyhound ride (never again), we arrived in San Francisco and the first thing we did was pass out in our hotel room. After all was said and snoozed, we made our way out to Chez Maman, actually walking past it to Chez Papa and getting extremely confused before doubling back to the tiny hole-in-the-wall that boasts the best burger in SF.

We lucked out to catch the odd time between lunch and dinner and didn’t have to wait at all to be seated. Service, however, seemed to scale down with the slowdown in customers. We had very high expectations for the aforementioned burger.

Voila! Basic Burger w/ Swiss and Bacon, Side of Frites w/ Garlic Aioli

Day Four: Portland – Voodoo Doughnuts, St. John’s Theater and Pub, Veritable Quandary

January 31, 2012

Martin Nom Adventures ice wine, mcmenamins, osso bucco, portland, theater pub, veritable quandary, voodoo doughnuts 3 Comments

After a short yet scenic 4-hour Amtrak ride, we arrived at a rainy and miserable Portland. Despite not being able to visit the International Rose Test Garden nor the Widmer Brothers brewery, we decided to make the most of our brief 1.5 day stay. Much of Portland, but really the entire trip, was dedicated to food. First destination after checking in to our hotel: Voodoo Doughtnuts.

Large variety with their own spins on the classics!

nom nom cat

Touche Pas a Mon Foie Gras – CHEFS Dinner at Melisse

Fresh Baked Focaccia – Quick and Easy

Day Eight: San Francisco – The Codmother and Our Last Meal of 2011

Day Six – San Francisco: Chez Maman and Tropisueno

Day Four: Portland – Voodoo Doughnuts, St. John’s Theater and Pub, Veritable Quandary

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