Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Petrossian - Will I Ever Get Enough? (West Hollywood)

Black Truffle Mac N Cheese

Petrossian's Black Truffle Mac 'N Cheese


Here lies the question, "can one have too much of a good thing?" In my opinion, while it's good to take things in moderation, at Petrossian, the rules are meant to be broken. As profiled on my trips 1, 2, and 3, Petrossian has become one of, if not, my favorite restaurant in Los Angeles. On this particular dinner, with the help of the ever so awesome BlackBoardEats, with everything at 30% off, we went with the so called "tasting menu."

*Please note, the tasting menu is not normally offered, but I just ask Chef Ben Bailly to just send out whatever he likes and we'll eat it.*

Belirium Tremens

Delirium Tremens


Hibiscus ChampagneHibiscus Champagne

Hibiscus Champagne

While some in our party went with the Delirium Tremens, a delightful Belgian Brew, I went with the ever refreshing hibiscum champagne. Very nice!

BlinisBlinis

Blinis - Caviar, Trout & Salmon Roe

How can you come to Petrossian and not get an order of their famous Blinis with creme fraiche, topped with caviar, trout and salmon roe. Simple, yet unworldly delicious!

Classic cold borsht, caviar

Classic Cold Borsht - caviar

Beets. Beets. Beets. You're truly not my friend. I've tried you many times and I'm rarely a fan, yet here at Petrossian, I could drink you. Some saltiness from the caviar with a spicy finish (wasabi perhaps?), this I can accept. I may not love you, but I'll accept you.

Mushroom CappuccinoMushroom Cappuccino

Mushroom Cappuccino

One thing I absolutely love are mushrooms, especially cream of mushroom. The wild mushroom cappuccino at Petrossian was simply fantastic! Now as we were served the soup, the server proclaimed "I've never seen Ben shave truffle into this before...." Although it's a bonus having the truffle in the soup, the soup itself is top notch. Probably one of my favorite things at Petrossian. Simple, yet delicious.

Shrimp “Papillotte”

Shrimp "Papillotte" - passion fruit, chili ginger sauce

A classic here at Petrossian. I think I've had it so far during each of my dinner visits. You have a well cooked shrimp wrapped in a won ton like wrapper with an Asian touch in terms of the sauce. Very nice.

Champagne

Champagne

Next, we opted to split a bottle of champagne. Petrossian has a pretty decent selection of beer and wine, which are great compliment to the specialty of the house: caviar.

Salmon Tartare

Salmon Tartare - avocado, lime, yuzu, quail egg

Another favorite for the group, the salmon tartare. Here we're presented with a freshly chopped salmon, mixed with avocado, lime and yuzu, which created a slight tartness in the tartare which was quite nice. Counter the tart flavor were the saltiness of the caviar and the creaminess from the quail egg, done sunny side up. Once you mixed the flavors together, it was quite harmonious.

Napoléon TartareNapoléon TartareNapoléon Tartare

Napoleon Tartare - Hand sliced steak tartare with layer of caviar

After the salmon tartare we were presented with the steak tartare. This preparation was similar to what I had from my first visit and I liked it even better. I thought this time it wasn't as salty as the previous visit making this tartare pretty much perfect. The serving of caviar in the tartare was aplenty and I strongly suggest this dish to be shared among 2-3 people in your dining party.

Caviar Pizza

Caviar Pizza - Crème fraîche, chives, capers, red onion

Smoked Salmon Pizzette

Smoked Salmon Pizzette - Crème fraîche, red onion, capers, Transmontanus caviar


First we had a duel of tartares, now we have a duel of pizzas, more specifically, caviar themed pizzas. First we have the caviar pizza that I adored on my previous trip. A combination of creme fraiche, eggs, caviar, red onion, and chives, how can that NOT be good? It's friggin' delicious! Following the caviar pizza we were presented with the smoked salmon pizzette, which used slightly similar ingredients as the caviar pizza, but with the inclusion of the smoked salmon. Surprisingly, I liked the caviar pizza more than the smoked salmon version. I liked the simplicity of the dish, but with the addition of the luxurious ingredient like caviar, it made it even better!

Black Truffle Mac N Cheese

Black Truffle Mac 'N Cheese - orechiette, bacon, parmesan


Finally, the last savory course would always be one of my favorites, the black truffle mac 'n cheese. Now, this dish is quite heavy and probably not for everyone, but I love it. The key to this dish was the cheese sauce made of parmesan and bacon. I think the mac 'n cheese would work even better with a simple macaroni pasta to soak up all the wonderful sauce. Regardless, for me, it's almost always a must order, though it's another dish I'd recommend to be shared amongst everyone in the dining group.

Dessert TrioDessert Trio

Dessert Trio (Top Picture From Left: Vanilla Panna Cotta, Gianduja Parfait, Pistachio Creme Brulee)

These were the exact same dessert trio that I had on my previous trip, and again, it was fantastic. As usual all 3 desserts were wiped clean by our dining group and I myself could probably clean out the trio personally. If you want to read more about it, check out my previous trip to Petrossian, but these were simply fantastic!

As I look back for the month of June, it's been a Petrossian and Providence duel, and what a fantastic duel. Though in the end, I personally prefer Petrossian. There are lots of unique dishes here and Chef Ben Bailly is always creating new dishes for the patrons like myself to try. As long as Chef Bailly runs the ship at Petrossian, I'll be eating here again, and again, and again. It's simple as that!

Petrossian West Hollywood
321 North Robertson Boulevard
West Hollywood, CA 90048
(310) 271-6300
Official Website

18 comments:

stuffycheaks said...

wait, you don't like cheese but you can eat the M&C? Maybe I'll like it too, I like Parm. Everything looks so indulgent esp the generous amounts of caviar on the salmon tartare. Looks like a great dinner!

weezermonkey said...

I want to go back!

How are you not the mayor of Petrossian?!

Gastronomer said...

Panda - I want in on your next trip to Petrossian. There hasn't been nearly enough caviar in my life lately.

Diana said...

If you go back for brunch again, give me a ring! D takes a B will be right over in a flash!

kirbie said...

Everything looks amazing. This is definitely going to be the next LA place I try after Providence. I really want to try the mac n cheese.

Nomsnotbombs said...

Truffle mac and cheese FTW!

Lori Lynn said...

Danny - this is fantastic! I cannot wait to take my brother and SIL next time they are in town. I cannot wait to re-create that caviar pizza. Your photos are terrific!
LL

Banana Wonder said...

Chef Baily REALLY likes you because I didn't get any truffle shavings like you did on my mac n cheese (nor my shroom cap). But maybe I just need to go for visit 2, 3, 4. etc :)
BBE, are you listening?

Daily Gluttony said...

Dude, if I'm reading my tweets correctly, aren't you there tonight too? Dang!

I wanna go back too. The only time I went in was for a quick bite before the Bourdain show. Felt like I didn't get to fully enjoy it.

Epicuryan said...

That damn salmon tartare looks unreal. Interesting you found the beef tartare too salty both times I went it was too bland.

Ravenous Couple said...

battle of shrimp en papillote! your photo does make it look much better..let me know next time you try

Kung Food Panda said...

Stuffycheaks: I should rephrase, I don't like stinky cheese (ie: bleu), or cheese like feta. The Mac 'N Cheese at Petrossian is fantastic!

WM: Now I am! :)

Cathy: I got you in. Ben wants to do a French Comfort Food tasting menu.

D: The mayor will definitely go back for the brunch!

Kirbie: I hope you get a chance to try it!

Kung Food Panda said...

Misty: Agreed!

Lori: Thanks! :) Petrossian is a great place, just make sure you don't go on a Monday/Tues as Chef Bailly is out those 2 days.

Anna: What can you say? I'm the mayor!

Pam: Hah! You're correct. If you ever want to go, I'll be glad to take you.

Ryan: I think you had the tartare in the rice paper? It does change the flavors a bit, but the preparation wasn't as salty as my first visit.

Hong: You know what side I'm on. If you ever want to go, let me know :)

Liz said...

Wow! This looks like an amazing meal.

Kung Food Panda said...

Liz: Petrossian is truly a great place. I wish more people would try it out!

gourmetpigs said...

Dude, my truffle mac n cheese DEFINITELY did NOT come w shaved black truffles ... I don't know if I like this unfairness in treatment? :p

Pandalicious said...

damnnn, droooling over the salmon tartare!!!!

Kung Food Panda said...

GP: HAHAHAHA!! No comment!

Amy: It was delicious!