Benu - I'm Back and Yes, I Do Pay Top Dollars For Asian Food (San Francisco, CA)

Benu

One of the things that I cringe the most has always been paying for overpriced Asian food, especially if it's Asian Fusion. PF Chang's? Ugh. Lukshon? Still not interested. Red Medicine? After that mediocre meal at Test Kitchen, my interest in trying Jordan Kahn's menu is at a nil. (That's besides the fact of what happened to SIV, which I found unprofessional to be frank). However, Benu has been a restaurant I've had my eye on ever since Corey Lee, the former chef de cuisine at The French Laundry moved on to helm his very own restaurant in San Francisco. Call me a hypocrite, but if Chef Lee was good enough for Thomas Keller, he's good enough for me. After given the green light from my buddies up North, I booked a tasting at Benu this past weekend.

19 Course Tasting Menu at Benu

Upon entering the restaurant, I looked at the space. Clean, and modern, just what a restaurant should be these days.

Buckwheat Sesame Crisps

Instead of a bread course, we were given a "basket" of buckwheat crisps. The flavors were subtle, but tasty. Think soba in a cracker form, but better.

1. Thousand Year Old Quail Egg, Lily Bulb, Ginger

We were started off with a thousand year old egg made with a quail egg. This was something I'm familiar with as it's a common ingredient for us Taiwanese. The presentation reminded me of "Pi Dan Sou Rou Zhou," or a thousand year old egg and minced meat porridge and surprisingly the taste did too. For those that knows the porridge I'm speaking of, think of this as a deconstructed version.

2. Oyster, Pork Belly, Kimchi

An one biter, I quite enjoyed this bite. Pork belly, oyster encased in a crispy kimchi shell, similar to a sugar shell. The flavors of all three main ingredients were quite apparent.

3. Monkfish Liver, Salmon Roe, Buckwheat, Daikon

Monkfish liver, or ankimo in Japanese and Salmon Roe are two of my favorite ingredients. Combining the two can't go wrong, right? Right. The liver was presented looking similar to an egg yolk was rich, fatty, and delicious. The salmon roe was fresh and had a nice snap to each bite. This was one of my favorite dishes of the night. The buckwheat added a nice texture contrast to this dish.

4. Apple, Cucumber, Poppy Seed, Nasturtium, Lemon

Next up, a palate cleanser of sort. Refreshing, tasty, but nothing special.

5. Eel,Feuille de Brick, Creme Fraiche, Lime

Think of this as an eel egg roll. It was pretty good, but I wish there was more to this than eel inside a fried pastry dough. Yes, yes, I don't like fried dough, though I wished there was just something more than a creme fraiche dip. Good dish nevertheless.

6. Risotto, Sea Urchin, Corn, Lovage, Black Truffle

I was told about this dish by Alex, whom I met on a recent dinner at Wolvesmouth and I'm glad I made the substition. This was one of the best things I've ate this year. Sea urchin, black truffles, corn risotto. Come on, tell me that doesn't sound good! I think I would have added some nice sweet crab meat to this, but maybe I'm just being greedy here. I would have been happy eating 19 courses of this that night, though I might die of some sort of a cholesterol attack. If you do the tasting menu at Benu, make sure you ask for the sea urchin risotto!

7. Conch, Tomato, Green Orange, Dashi

Compared to the risotto dish, the conch was quite light and refreshing. It's almost a conch ceviche, without all the ingredients. The presentation of the conch was a nice touch as well.

8. Salt And Pepper Squid

This dish is a playful take on a popular dish found in many Chinese seafood restaurants. In this case, A crispy squid chip (I think, or it could be shrimp) is presented with chopped jalapeno peppers, green onions, and little pieces of squid. I'm almost tempted to try this at home with some store bought chips.

9. Jasmine Chicken With Dates

I was slightly weary of this dish after seeing it on the menu. I was worried the jasmine tea flavors would overpower the chicken. Thankfully, I was wrong. The jasmine tea flavors was spot on, with a hint of sweetness. The chicken itself was done beautifully. It came out moist and sweet, it was definitely money!

10. Foie Gras Xiao Long Bao

I was looking forward to this course, but I was left slightly disappointed. While the skin was done quite nicely, in fact, a lot better than I had expected, I was hoping the foie gras be more dominant in this dish. While I tasted bits of foie gras, the filling and the juice lacked the strong rich flavors of the foie.

11. Abalone, Potato, Caper, Lettuce

As the table pointed out this being one of their favorite courses of the night, I can't help but agree, it was quite tasty. The abalone was fried, similar to a Taiwanese chicken cutlet and was served on a bed of potato puree. The abalone was very nice, I would never have thought to fry an abalone. I wonder how this would taste if it was on a bed of minced meat rice Taiwanese style with some sour mustard.

12. Fresh Noodles, Shrimp Roe, Tarragon, Chicken Jus

At first I was a bit surprised the noodles came nary of ingredients, but the flavors of the shrimp roe was quite apparent once you take the first bite. Rich, succulent, and all in all, one of my favorites of the night.

13. "Shark Fin" Soup, Dungeness Crab, Jinhua Ham, Black Truffle Custard

Like with the foie gras xiao long bao, this too I was waiting for, but with much better results. Although the star was supposed to be the faux shark fins, I loved the broth made from the Jinhua ham and the crab and truffle custard were bordering on insane. It's almost as good as the Chinese version you get at banquets. I'm biased, sue me.

14. Duck, Celery, Cherry, Shaoxing Wine

Another winning dish, in fact, probably my second favorite course of the night after the risotto. The duck was cooked perfectly, and tasted like a beautifully roasted duck. The duck itself was stuffed with a duck mousse, make its flavors and texture even more intense. Very, very nice!

15. Beef Braised in Pear with Sunflower and Mushroom

The beef, short ribs I believe was cooked fork tender. The flavors were spot on and I enjoyed the accompanied mushrooms. While it's not as good as the duck, I thoroughly enjoyed the last savory course of the night.

16. Malted Rice Tea, Pine Nut, Pine Needle Honey

This first dessert reminded me of shik hae, a Korean sweet malted rice drink, but the version at Benu added this silky panna cotta on the bottom which was quite nice.

17. Fig, White Chcolate, Balsamic Vinegar, Sake Lees

I found this to be quite light and the balsamic vinegar was used very nicely here. The white chocolate ice cream wasn't overpowering and countered the fig quite well.

18. Lychee, Red Bean, Matcha Custard

This was richer than I had expected, but tasty nevertheless. My favorite part of this particular dessert was the lychee ice cream and the matcha custard. This was definitely an Asian influenced dessert, trending towards Japanese.

19. Chocolates

Finally, we finished our meal off with some chocolates. My favorite piece of the night was the passion fruit white chocolate. That was quite tasty!

All in all, Benu either met or slightly exceeded my expectations. I was expecting a good deal of Asian flavors and I got it. Chef Corey Lee's skills was apparent. The flavors, the presentation were top notch. The wines we had paired during our meal were strong and I especially liked that Riesling we had to start the meal. The questions everybody wanted to know was did I like it and would I return? The answer would be Yes to both, but with the abundance of fine dining around the San Francisco Bay Area, I'm keen on trying the other places first. Comparing a place like Benu to Lukshon would be a disservice to Benu as it's on an entirely different level. While I still wouldn't pay to dine at Lukshon, I would happily pay to eat at Benu. The quality, the skills of the chef, the dining atmosphere are just different. If you're in the San Francisco area, I'd highly recommend dining at Benu. Just remember, make sure the duck and the uni risotto are on the menu. Cheers!

Benu
22 Hawthorne Street
San Francisco, CA 94105
(415) 685-4860

Ibaraki Benefit Dinner at Breadbar - Great Cause, But Please Don't Serve Me Charred Food (Los Angeles)

Breadbar

I'll be the first to say, since my recent trip to NYC, I haven't been interested with the food scene in Los Angeles. The recent restaurant openings of Sotto, Son of a Gun, and Lukshon has not interested me one bit, and probably never will. However, when I was invited by Darin to a benefit dinner at the Breadbar in the Century City mall headlined by Hiro Urasawa of the famed Urasawa, I knew I had to try it. Ever since my previous dinner at Urasawa, I've been meaning to try his cooking again.

Menu

Along with Hiro Urasawa (Urasawa), we had Noriyuki Sugie (Breadbar), Michael Cimarusti (Providence), Walter Manzke (Formerly Church and State), David Myers (Comme Ça), and Ramon Perez (Sona) collaborating on this 6 course tasting menu. Priced at $110 sans tax and gratuity, all of the proceeds from this dinner (along with another dinner at Comme Ça) goes directly to the Japan Earthquake relief aid. A great cause, and hopefully for us, a great meal ahead.

Bread Basket from Breadbar

You'd assume the bread from a place called "Breadbar" would be out of this world right? Sadly it was merely passable, but I enjoyed the soft butter that accompanied the bread. Since I wasn't here for the bread, it's no big deal.

Canapé: Pumpernickel, Aged Lard. Artichoke Barigoule. Caramelized Eel, Sansho Pepper (Noriyuki Sugie)
NV Jean Philippe, “Brut, Blanquette de Limoux,” Languedoc, France

Here to start: a trio of canape.

Artichoke Barigoule

I'm a fan of artichokes, and I enjoyed this starter. This was a light and refreshing starter.

Pumpernickel, Aged Lard

Next we have shaved lard on top of pumpernickel bread. While I enjoyed the taste of the aged lard (similar to lop cheung (Chinese sausage)), I didn't particularly like the pumpernickel pairing.

Caramelized Eel, Sansho Pepper

This was my favorite of the trio. I enjoyed the sweet taste of the eel, which tasted similar to the eel found on Japanese eel rice (unagi don). The pineapple that went with the eel was a wonderful complement.

1. Tartar Duo - Hokkaido Scallop and Marinated Salmon Roe, Wasabi, Shiitake Mushroom. Toro, Osetra Caviar, Takuan, Scallion (Hiro Urasawa)
Hananomai Sake “Katana” Junmai Ginjo, Japan

This was my most anticipated course of the evening, a dish by Hiro Urasawa, and it fails to disappoint. I enjoyed the flavors of the scallops and ikura, but the texture of the scallops were slightly mushy, but that said, it was a wonderful bite. The second tartar of toro and caviar was definitely my favorite of the duo. I hope I'm not being partial since toro and caviar are two of my personal favorites, but that mouthful was quite delicious. Along with the duo of tartar, the accompanied daikon flowers and vegetables were delicious as well.

2. Soymilk Panna Cotta, Santa Barbara Sea Urchin, Geoduck Clam and Fresh Wasabi (Michael Cimarusti)
Epiphany 2009 Riesling Santa Barbara County, California

Next up was my favorite course of the night. The aesthetically looking, as well as the tasty looking dish was prepared by Providence's Michael Cimarusti. The soymilk panna cotta by itself reminded me of an unsweetened dou fu hua or tofu flower, which is a popular Chinese dessert. However when he added the Santa Barbara sea urchin, geoduck, tomatoes, wasabi and other components, it created something truly magical, epic even. This dish was one of the best things I've ate in the past year.

3. Santa Barbara Prawns, Thai Curry, Spring Pea (Walter Manzke)
Jean-Marc Brocard, 2009 Petit Chablis, Burgundy, France

Eating this course really made me wish Chef Manzke would quickly open up a permanent place here in Los Angeles. The initial layer of the pea purée was creamy and delicious, but the second layer of Thai curry was even better. It went wonderfully with the perfectly cooked piece of prawn. I couldn't have asked for a better dish from Chef Manzke. Trust me, there wasn't a drop of curry or piece of shrimp left when I was done with this one.

4. Charcoal Akage Beef, Maitake Tempura, Tsukemono (David Myers)
Fat Monk 2009 Pinot Noir, Central Coast, California

Next came what I thought was the weakest dish of the night. I've personally never had any of David Myer's cooking in the past, so this wasn't a good impression. Even though the beef and the maitake mushroom tempura was meant to be blackened and charred with the use of bamboo charcoal, I personally did not enjoy this technique. The mushroom quickly broke apart and was dry (though that was a given), nary of any flavor other than char. The beef itself was tender, but it wasn't anything special. Ultimately, it didn't look very good, nor did it taste very good. Even my camera had a hard time taking a picture of this dish. (Though it's probably my fault on the photography part)

5. Sakura Cream, Black Okinawa Sugar, Alpine Strawberry, Cherry Blossom-Yogurt Sorbet (Ramon Perez)
Mizbasho Sparkling Sake “Pure,” Gunma, Japan

Thankfully, we closed the night on a strong note with a dessert prepared by ex-Sona's Ramon Perez. The base itself was subtly sweet and delicious. The accompanied alpine strawberry was SO good, the sorbet was wonderful, and just as a whole, this dessert was truly delicious. This was my kind of dessert! The paired sparking sake was something new for me. I definitely need to get a bottle for myself.

Mignardises: Chocolates, Marshmallows, Green tea macarons (Photo Courtesy of Darin Dines)

The trio of mignardises were great, especially the green tea macaron. I just wish they served it to the tables instead of placing it at the one corner of the room.

Group Shot (Photo Courtesy of Darin Dines)

I thought the meal as a whole was very strong, even if there were a few thing I didn't particularly cared for. I do hope Chef Cimarusti would add that soy panna cotta to his tasting menu at Providence, because it was a definite hit with the most of us diners. In the end though, we have to remember this meal was more than for us to eat good food, but it was for a great cause. Bravo to all of the chefs who participated in this event!

Ibaraki Benefit Dinner at Breadbar
10250 Santa Monica Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90067

Redd - A Simple Elegant Lunch (Yountville, CA)

Redd

One of the benefits of having your hometown being a 30 minutes drive to the Napa Valley is the access to all the fine dining close by. However, it's not a luxury that I've enjoyed until recently. On a recent trip up (in fact, it was my lunch before my dinner at Bottega), my friends and I decided to catch an early lunch there before going to the vineyards for wine tasting.

Menu

I loved the dining room at Redd. It's so clean and open. I wish I had taken a shot of the space. Since we knew we had a heavy dinner in a matter of hours, we decided to go light and ordered family style.

Bread Service

It's hard to go wrong with some warm crusty bread. Though I had to make sure I leave plenty of room for the dishes coming up.

Corn Soup - smoked salmon panini

As a starter, we went with a cream corn soup. The texture was smooth and creamy. It was quite delicious. The accompanied smoked salmon panini was tasty by itself and worked well with the corn soup. The soup was the definite star here. It was a bowl I wished I had all to myself.

Tasting of Cold Foie Gras Preparation - stone fruit, pistachios, brioche

This dish was recommended by Julian, though I doubt I would have bypassed anything with the words "foie gras" on the menu.The trio of foie gras were all quite nice. It was rich, but yet delicate at the same time. I'd recommend this as a starter to anyone visiting Redd. Which one was my favorite you ask? The foie gras with the pistachios was quite nice. I enjoyed the flavors of the foie gras and pistachio together.

Braised Beef Short Ribs - bacon, cipollini onions, fingerling potatoes, red wine jus

Short rib might be an ingredient that's a bit too played out these days, but that doesn't mean this dish was any less delicious. It was fork tender good. I loved the red wine jus that went with the short ribs.

John Dory - creamy jasmine rice, clams, chorizo, saffron curry nage

Even though the menu states this dish as John Dory, we were told that they were out of that particular fish, and will be replacing it with halibut (or at least I think it was halibut). Since we also enjoyed the replacement ingredient, we gave her the green light with the order. The fish was cooked nicely, tender and moist. I enjoyed the rice bathed in clams and chorizo. It was actually surprisingly light. Of the savories, this was my favorite of the day.

Crispy Duck Confit - lentils, foie gras meatballs, crispy spaetzle

Duck confit AND foie gras meatballs? Wow, on the menu it sounded like a winner to me. Although I enjoyed this duck confit, I preferred the version served at Bottega.  I wished the foie gras meatball had more of a foie gras flavor to them. With that said, it's still a solid preparation of duck confit.

Mango and Coconut Sorbets - pineapple, lime granite

Now, it's onto dessert. I was actually more intrigued with the dessert menu coming in as I heard the pastry chef Nicole Plue was a recent James Beard award winner. We started off with the duo of sorbet with pineapple and lime granite. What can I say? Cool and refreshing. A much needed dessert after the savory courses.

Vanilla Bean Fontainebleu - apricot verbena ice, corn fritters

The vanilla fontainebleu was quite nice with the apricot verbena ice. It had a nice smooth yogurt texture to it. I'm not sure if the corn fritters were necessary, though since I'm not too keen on fried desserts, it might be more of a bias on my part. Though, with that said, I liked this.

Butterscotch Sundae - vanilla rum ice cream, salted butter galette

Let's close this post on the best thing I had at Redd on that particular afternoon, the butterscotch sundae. I had thought the butterscotch budino at Mozza was good, but this one beats it. I loved the sweet and salty flavors, the texture of the caramel corn, the cool vanilla ice cream. The dessert was clean, simple, and left a great impression for me at the end of our meal.

Redd

Everything about Redd just screams simple and clean, yet it's quite elegant. The food and service was great, and the space itself I adored. Whether eating indoors or outdoor at its patio, Redd is definitely a restaurant that should not be missed if you find yourself in the Napa Valley. Unlike some of its neighboring restaurants, the price point is fair and it menu is accessible to most of the general public. I can't wait to make a return visit back to Redd. Until then, it's off to the vineyards!

Redd
6480 Washington St
Yountville, CA 94599-1294
(707) 944-2222
Website