Friday, December 16, 2011

Animal

435 N Fairfax Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90048

Occasion: Dinner with Ele! I guess you can call it a pre birthday celebration. 12.06.11

Chicken liver toast
It reminded me of pate in Vietnamese sandwiches, but in a creamier form.  It was topped with what seemed to be caviar and chopped up green onions.  I thought it was pretty tasty!  If you're not a fan of pate, you may not enjoy this.
Pig ear, chili, lime, fried egg
Delicious!! Definitely one of my favorite dishes of the night.  The chili-lime sauce added a nice kick to it that almost reminded me of chicharonnes. The pig ears seemed to be deep fried and were crunchy.  We all enjoyed this dish very much!
Veal sweetbreads, finger lime aioli, cumin and shallot
So good! The veal cheeks were battered and what seemed to have been deep fried creating a slightly crispy skin with a soft and tender inside.  It was so soft, it almost reminded me of fish meat.  I loved dipping it into the lime aioli.  The acid really complemented the meat very well.  Ele on the other hand thought the meat was too gamey. Really? I don't think so.  It's all in the head.  We shouldn't have told her what sweetbreads were.
 Marrow bone, chimichurri, caramelized onions
Another great dish.  I think the chimichurri sauce really helped take away the rich flavor of the bone marrow and can even hide the fatty texture of it.  I've never had bone marrow made like this before and I'm not sure which I like better.  I can usually taste and feel the texture of the bone marrow, where in this case I feel that the chimichurri sauce almost takes over.  I don't mind the fatty texture and rich taste of roasted bone marrow and I guess some people may.  Anyhow, caramelized onions added a touch of delightful sweetness to it, which we also all enjoyed.
Barbeque pork belly sandwiches, slaw
One order came with two.  The pork belly wasn't as tender and more on the dry side, but the flavor was great: sweet and tangy with some crunchy slaw. While everything else seemed to be out of Ele's comfort zone, this stayed true to flavors and ingredients she was a bit more familiar with.
Foie gras loco moco, quail egg, spam, hamburger
Ever since my first loco moco in Hawaii, I was craving for something comparable.  This definitely had a fusion twist to it and not your authentic loco moco, but it was good.  The foie gras was flavorful and seriously melted in your mouth.  This was a very very rich dish that I'm glad was shared between three of us.
Balsamic pork ribs, delicata squash, arugula, pecan
It was just mediocre, but the walnuts squash salad that came on the side was amazing! The squash was sweet and mushy and the walnuts were roasted.  The meat was tender, but not fall of the bone tender and the sour taste of the balsamic sauce didn't work too well for my taste buds.  

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