Fun fact: if you wear dark pants, they will offer to replace the white napkin on the table with a black one, so as not to throw off the color coordination of your ensemble. I never knew the color of one's napkin was something to take into consideration whilst accessorizing, but now I'm in the know. Only in LA??
Anyway, my husband and I liked everything we had. Neither one of us was very hungry so we just stuck to pasta dishes, which were both cooked perfectly and clearly homemade (homemade noodles are such a treat). My husband ordered the one with the crab, which was extremely tender. I am (ridiculously) picky, and all the options had at least one element I didn't like. The server was so kind about this: she basically said, name your noodles and name your sauce (or accompaniments); the kitchen will oblige. I have never seen such flexibility in any restaurant.
I would go back to try more of the menu. Give it a try!
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Scarantino's Italian Inn
Seeking good, honest, old-school Italian-American fare your parents would feel right at home eating? Craving surroundings of wood paneling, plastic grape floral arrangements and red-checked tablecloths with your Italian meal? Then check out Scarantino's. They offer good-quality versions of Italian standbys like Pasta Primavera, pizza, Pasta Pomodoro, Baked Mosticiolli, etc. There is nothing innovative here, but this is honest, home cooked (for the most part) Italian food. Their minestrone (included with most meals) is homemade and crave-worthy, especially in winter. It's a thick chicken-based broth, full of beans and large-cut celery, potatoes and carrots. A couple of things to be aware of: most of the vegetarian pasta dishes (there is a whole page on the menu dedicated to these) come garnished with a generous sprinkling of fresh parsley, which can tend to overpower the other flavors. So if you're not craving parsley, you can ask them to hold this. Also, I don't think their ravioli are very good. Years back, I think they were house-made, but now, they taste frozen and kind of mealy. Definitely a 'pass'. Also, I have had both the 'baked' eggplant and 'baked' zucchini, and while the cheese on top of these dishes is baked onto it, the veggies are fried, and these dishes just tend to taste like fried mush. If you stay away from these dishes (and the menu is huge), you will likely enjoy a hearty, old-school meal.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
WP 24
Of course you know the ambiance and view are spectacular. What you want to know is, is it worth $70 per person (minimum) price tag? I found the cost a bit worrying before the meal, as nothing is offered a la carte. You must spend at least $70 for the 3-course tasting menu. So is it worth it? The answer is a resounding 'YES!'
We didn't absolutely love everything we ate, but most of it was excellent, and the dishes that weren't were still quite good; these will just be substituted for something else the next time we go in hopes of finding more excellent dishes. Here's the breakdown of what we ate:
1) complimentary soy/chili marinated cucumber: simple, cool, light, perfect start to the meal
2) complimentary prawn toast sandwich crusted with sesame seeds: perfectly seasoned, perfect warm-but-not-hot temperature, perfect toastiness to the bread. Prawns are not a favorite flavor of mine, but I still found myself anxiously eyeing my husband's portion of this dish, hoping he would not finish it so I could. (He did not oblige me. I can't blame him.)
3) complimentary lobster, prawn, crab dumpling: this seemed to be baked. The pastry was really good (light yet also dense) but the filling didn't have a lot of flavor or a varied enough consistency.
APPETIZERS
1) My husband ordered the lobster/prawn spring rolls. They were ok. The rolls are deep-fried and the oil must have been very fresh and at the perfect temperature as the wrapper was light and clean tasting. The filling was ok; prawns were a bit chewy. However, this was a very generous portion (4 3-inch or so rolls)
2) I ordered the Chicken Dan Dan Dumplings on a friend's recommendation (and I think the LA Times raved about these as well). This was another generous portion (5 small-ish dumplings). The dish is presented covered, and the server made a point of wafting the steam from the dish toward me so I could enjoy the aroma, and it did smell delicious. However, the sauce did not have enough flavor. I found if I included a cilantro leaf with each dumpling, that added a lot of pop. Also, there was a strong 'dark meat' taste to the dish. This is great if you like dark meat, but it's not a favorite flavor of mine.
ENTREES
1) husband ordered the Indian-spiced prawns. It was brought to the table in an Indian-style tureen and the smells were intensely Indian. This dish was a bit spicy, and the peppers cooked with the prawns were great as well. This dish had 5 LARGE prawns; a very generous portion for a restaurant of this caliber.
2) I had the salt-crusted sea bass - and THIS IS THE THING TO ORDER. This is the most tender fish I have ever eaten. So often when I go out to eat, I feel somewhat let down because I am paying big $ for food I can make a home, or at least make a reasonable facsimile of at home. This fish was so tender, so evenly cooked, and so subtly seasoned, I knew it was cooked by a master. I would return to this restaurant solely to eat this fish again. They even provided extra sauce for it, so you could season it to your taste (a very light soy sauce, garnished with sliced scallions). Also, this was very generously portioned.
I couldn't finish it, which was a shame, but I had to ask myself, when is the last time I left a high-end restaurant stuffed? This isn't a place where you get amouse-bouche sized entrees. This is a place where you can really eat beautiful food in beautiful surroundings.
Also, both of our dishes came with a generously-sized cup of Jasmine rice (perfectly damp and slightly sticky) and the table also gets a bowl of chili sauce if you prefer to add some heat to your entree.
Desserts were ok; they cherry cake was good but rich, but the cherries were so sweet and soft, but not mushy. Just perfect. They also brought out and large flat-ish almond cookie shaped like a large piece of tree bark (ok; my husband joked about it being a cod-piece) that covered two little chocolate chip cookies. This came out AFTER we each had our dessert. Overall, a beautiful restaurant with many extra touches. I will definitely return.
We didn't absolutely love everything we ate, but most of it was excellent, and the dishes that weren't were still quite good; these will just be substituted for something else the next time we go in hopes of finding more excellent dishes. Here's the breakdown of what we ate:
1) complimentary soy/chili marinated cucumber: simple, cool, light, perfect start to the meal
2) complimentary prawn toast sandwich crusted with sesame seeds: perfectly seasoned, perfect warm-but-not-hot temperature, perfect toastiness to the bread. Prawns are not a favorite flavor of mine, but I still found myself anxiously eyeing my husband's portion of this dish, hoping he would not finish it so I could. (He did not oblige me. I can't blame him.)
3) complimentary lobster, prawn, crab dumpling: this seemed to be baked. The pastry was really good (light yet also dense) but the filling didn't have a lot of flavor or a varied enough consistency.
APPETIZERS
1) My husband ordered the lobster/prawn spring rolls. They were ok. The rolls are deep-fried and the oil must have been very fresh and at the perfect temperature as the wrapper was light and clean tasting. The filling was ok; prawns were a bit chewy. However, this was a very generous portion (4 3-inch or so rolls)
2) I ordered the Chicken Dan Dan Dumplings on a friend's recommendation (and I think the LA Times raved about these as well). This was another generous portion (5 small-ish dumplings). The dish is presented covered, and the server made a point of wafting the steam from the dish toward me so I could enjoy the aroma, and it did smell delicious. However, the sauce did not have enough flavor. I found if I included a cilantro leaf with each dumpling, that added a lot of pop. Also, there was a strong 'dark meat' taste to the dish. This is great if you like dark meat, but it's not a favorite flavor of mine.
ENTREES
1) husband ordered the Indian-spiced prawns. It was brought to the table in an Indian-style tureen and the smells were intensely Indian. This dish was a bit spicy, and the peppers cooked with the prawns were great as well. This dish had 5 LARGE prawns; a very generous portion for a restaurant of this caliber.
2) I had the salt-crusted sea bass - and THIS IS THE THING TO ORDER. This is the most tender fish I have ever eaten. So often when I go out to eat, I feel somewhat let down because I am paying big $ for food I can make a home, or at least make a reasonable facsimile of at home. This fish was so tender, so evenly cooked, and so subtly seasoned, I knew it was cooked by a master. I would return to this restaurant solely to eat this fish again. They even provided extra sauce for it, so you could season it to your taste (a very light soy sauce, garnished with sliced scallions). Also, this was very generously portioned.
I couldn't finish it, which was a shame, but I had to ask myself, when is the last time I left a high-end restaurant stuffed? This isn't a place where you get amouse-bouche sized entrees. This is a place where you can really eat beautiful food in beautiful surroundings.
Also, both of our dishes came with a generously-sized cup of Jasmine rice (perfectly damp and slightly sticky) and the table also gets a bowl of chili sauce if you prefer to add some heat to your entree.
Desserts were ok; they cherry cake was good but rich, but the cherries were so sweet and soft, but not mushy. Just perfect. They also brought out and large flat-ish almond cookie shaped like a large piece of tree bark (ok; my husband joked about it being a cod-piece) that covered two little chocolate chip cookies. This came out AFTER we each had our dessert. Overall, a beautiful restaurant with many extra touches. I will definitely return.
Red O = O No!
Here are 3 things that should never happen in a high-end restaurant:
1) you should not be rushed to place your order when 1/2 the place is empty (well, you should never be rushed, but especially not when it's empty;
2) two appetizers should not come out at the same time, and be crowded onto the table (oh, and placed any which haphazard & crooked way);
3) staff should not take the appetizers away (because the food came out too soon) before diners are done with them. We were still eating the chips & guacamole when the runners approached with the food. I had a bitten chip in my hand. Runner #3 grabbed the dish with the remaining chips & salsa and took them away. It was so rude and inappropriate that the whole experience became a joke from that point on.
So does the food make up for this stellar service? ABSOLUTELY NOT. It was bland, bland, bland. I could have really used that uneaten portion of salsa the runner was in such a hurry to remove to add some flavor to my entree. You know how mole sauce is thick, with multiple layers of chilis & chocolate? This one wasn't. It was watery and bland. I would expect more out of a bottled sauce I bought off the shelves at a grocery store. The chicken tasted as if it was simply boiled and then placed under a broiler to brown. I am not knocking this technique outright as I've had WONDERFUL chicken moles that seemed to be prepared this way, but this was among the most bland-tasting chicken I have ever had the misfortune to taste, and it was on the chewy side.
Guacamole: yes, it was smooth. But I'm not looking for smooth in guacamole - I'm looking for flavor, and there wasn't any. It tasted like they simply mashed the avocado. No lime. No garlic. No good.
I will say the drinks were excellent & strong. But that's the only nice thing I can say about this place.
1) you should not be rushed to place your order when 1/2 the place is empty (well, you should never be rushed, but especially not when it's empty;
2) two appetizers should not come out at the same time, and be crowded onto the table (oh, and placed any which haphazard & crooked way);
3) staff should not take the appetizers away (because the food came out too soon) before diners are done with them. We were still eating the chips & guacamole when the runners approached with the food. I had a bitten chip in my hand. Runner #3 grabbed the dish with the remaining chips & salsa and took them away. It was so rude and inappropriate that the whole experience became a joke from that point on.
So does the food make up for this stellar service? ABSOLUTELY NOT. It was bland, bland, bland. I could have really used that uneaten portion of salsa the runner was in such a hurry to remove to add some flavor to my entree. You know how mole sauce is thick, with multiple layers of chilis & chocolate? This one wasn't. It was watery and bland. I would expect more out of a bottled sauce I bought off the shelves at a grocery store. The chicken tasted as if it was simply boiled and then placed under a broiler to brown. I am not knocking this technique outright as I've had WONDERFUL chicken moles that seemed to be prepared this way, but this was among the most bland-tasting chicken I have ever had the misfortune to taste, and it was on the chewy side.
Guacamole: yes, it was smooth. But I'm not looking for smooth in guacamole - I'm looking for flavor, and there wasn't any. It tasted like they simply mashed the avocado. No lime. No garlic. No good.
I will say the drinks were excellent & strong. But that's the only nice thing I can say about this place.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)