Author Archives: Anne

Posted on January 11, 2009 by Anne| 3 Comments
Where Everybody Knows Your Name:
The Coffee Table, Eagle Rock

I love eating out….not just for the food but for the experience, and J and I will be the first to admit that we probably eat out too often. It’s a habit we’re trying to curb a bit in ’09, but there are some places we can’t stay away from for too long. The Coffee Table in Eagle Rock is one of those places.

Yeah, yeah, it’s cheesy to reference the theme song from “Cheers,” but The Coffee Table really does feel like a place where everybody knows your name. We’ve been going there to grab weekend brunches for years now and the food is consistent, the staff friendly and the coffee strong and delicious.

It’s a wonder I haven’t blogged about it before, actually. We go on Saturdays or Sundays (or sometimes both!) at least three times a month. Maybe because its such a regular occurrence I never really think to take my camera, but I finally did this time. The food is freshly made and brought out promptly after you order it at the counter. I love that you can “tweak” pretty much any item on the menu and the cashier doesn’t blink an eye. Here’s how a typical order is rattled off by Yours Truly: “I’ll get the Coffee Table scrambled, egg whites only, hold the cheese, wheat toast instead of potatoes and an iced coffee.” I can think of a few places where the counter person would probably want to body slam me for making so many adjustments, but the guys and gals of CT just smile and put it into the system. Or maybe they do want to body slam me but hide their feelings. Anyway, J and I aren’t really creatures of habit but somehow we almost always order the same things- J gets the Eggs From Hell (eggs scrambled with hot sauce, served with black beans and a tortilla) with egg whites only, easy ‘hell’ and no cheese. I flip flop between getting the aforementioned The Coffee Table scramble (a mixture of eggs, chopped chicken, tomatoes and scallions) , a Fresh Garden Sandwich (tomatoes, onions, avocado, lettuce, cheese and crunchy pepitas with aioli) or a turkey sandwich or wrap. The menu always features two soups which change daily, lots of burgers, pastas and main dishes since they are also opened for dinner.

On this particular day I opted for the wrap, and it was fresh and delicious. The menu is large and there are so many options to choose from; maybe one of these days I’ll go bananas and order something other than my usual!!

After all, sometimes you wanna go where everybody knows your name…….don’t cha?


The Coffee Table (Eagle Rock)

1958 Colorado Boulevard, Eagle Rock

(323) 255-2200

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Posted in Eagle Rock brunch, Eagle Rock restaurants, The Coffee Table Eagle Rock

Posted on January 5, 2009 by Anne| 4 Comments
Marinated flank steak with herb pesto and balsamic caramelized onions

Happy New Year! The holidays are now behind me and I’m back at work, feeling the post-vacation blues. Sorry I haven’t blogged in awhile but the past two weeks were a whirlwind of family, friends, many glasses of champagne (I’m actually taking a break from the bubbly as I think I may have just consumed too much of it!) and quite a few too many dinners out. As with 95% of the population, I feel the need to renew, refresh and eat most of my meals at home for the next few weeks. Also, apologies as always for the dark, blurry photos. I think “take better photos” is on my list of resolutions for ’09. Let’s just hope it’s possible.

Speaking of meals at home…..here’s one I made a little while back. It’s kind of a compilation of “greatest hits” and I just happened to have everything on hand to make all of the dishes. I think it was one of those nights where we contemplated going out…….wanting to eat restaurant-style food, but wanting to stay in our flannel PJ pants and soft hoodies while watching television. So I put two and two together and made a restaurant-style meal that could be eaten on the sofa, flannels and all!

First up, a hunk of our beloved Humboldt Fog goat cheese, served with some amazing Croatian fig jam I found at Whole Foods. Spread both on a slice of baguette, open mouth, eat, smile!

Tomato salad, the result of having more tomatoes than salad greens, ha. Tossed with a little homemade balsamic dressing and topped with lots of black pepper, which I love on tomatoes.

Cilantro-garlic shrimp: my sister made something like this awhile back and I’ve been copying it ever since. There’s no real recipe, and I use any combination of basil, mint and cilantro depending on what I have, then buzz it in a food processor with lots of fresh garlic, a touch of red wine vinegar, olive oil and salt/pepper to make a pesto. Put the pesto in a plastic bag with the shrimp, let it marinate and then bake it in a 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes.

Here’s what may possibly be my favorite way to eat steak- a skirt or flank steak, marinated in above mentioned cilantro/mint/basil pesto then grilled or seared in a pan, topped with loads of caramelized onions and served with extra pesto and cubes of either sweet potatoes of butternut squash. You get the beefy flavor from the steak, garlicy freshness from the pesto and the sweetness from the onions and butternut squash. The combination of flavors and textures is just absolute perfection and goes quite well with a nice, dry red.

Marinated flank steak with herb pesto and balsamic caramelized onions

Onions:
2 TBS olive oil
2 large sweet onions, sliced into ¼ inch thick half rounds (if you can’t find sweet specifically, use yellow onions)
1 TBS brown sugar, packed
2 TBS balsamic vinegar

Steak:
1.5- 2 pound flank steak (or skirt steak)
1 cup tightly packed cilantro
½ cup tightly packed basil (you can substitute mint if you like)
2 cloves garlic
3 TBS red wine vinegar
Olive oil
Salt & pepper

Put flank steak in a large Ziploc bag or non-reactive (glass) pie plate. Combine cilantro through red wine vinegar in a food processor; pulse to combine. Keeping the food processor on, slowly pour in the olive oil until the mixture is very well combined- you should be able to drizzle it onto something with a spoon. Add salt and pepper to taste. Save ¼ cup and set aside; pour the rest into the Ziploc bag with the steak and make sure the meat is well coated. Seal and put in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour but as long as overnight.

Before preparing the onions, take the steak out of the refrigerator so it can come to room temperature.

Heat the olive oil on medium-low heat in a large sauté pan and add onions. After a minute or so, add the brown sugar. Slowly sauté the onions until they are brown and caramelized, about 20-25 minutes, keeping the heat relatively low as to not burn them. Add the balsamic vinegar, stir to combine and take off the heat. Set aside.

Take the steak out of the Ziploc bag, brushing off excess marinade. Season both sides of the meat with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tsp of olive oil in a grill or large sauté pan until almost smoking and add the steak, letting one side sear about 5 minutes, then flip and let the other side sear for about 3 ½ for medium rare. Put the meat on a cutting board, tent with foil and let it rest for five minutes.

Cut the steak against the grain into ½ inch thick slices, drizzle pesto over it and top with the caramelized onions.

Serve with cubed, roasted butternut squash or sliced, baked sweet potatoes. Enjoy!

PS- the leftovers make a KILLER sandwich the next day……slightly toasted bread, slathered with Dijon mustard, some pesto, sliced steak, a mound of the caramelized onions, arugula…..oh yeah baby! You could even add a slice of swiss……..ok, now getting too hungry…………..!

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Posted in cilantro steak, healthy cooking, Steak recipe

Posted on December 22, 2008 by Anne| 2 Comments
Spaghetti and Meatballs

Sometimes, a photo can just jump out, grab you by the stomach and make your taste buds go bonkers. As a food blogger who reads TONS of food blogs, I’m constantly exposing myself to these types of photos. It’s a dangerous thing, but like any drug, the more I’m exposed to it the more I want. Gorgeous food photos are as addictive as crack- not that I know firsthand how addictive crack is…..but I watch Intervention so I have a good idea….! (Ok, that was meant to be a joke). Foodgawker exists for a reason- people love to see photos of delcious food.

Well, looky here at a perfect example of food porn/crack photo:

The minute I saw the gorgeous cover of January’s Gourmet Magazine, all plans to make gnocchi for supper went out the window and I knew I had to have spaghetti and meatballs. I mean, would you just LOOK at this?? How can anyone resist, especially with the chill outside (the Los Angeles chill, which I know you’re all laughing at but 45 F is bone chilling to us wimps)? I grabbed two containers of homemade marinara out of the freezer and dashed off to the store to buy everything I needed.

I did tweak the recipe a bit- instead of using veal, pork and beef I just used beef and turkey. Otherwise I was pretty faithful, cutting the recipe in half because the original recipe makes enough to feed a small army. It’s a classic recipe, and although I’d made similar versions in the past I had never added lemon zest to any meatball until this one.

I formed the meat into ¼ cup balls………

Browned them in a hot pan……………

Then drained the fat and poured my marinara into the same pan, loading it up with the browned meatballs and letting them simmer for 20 minutes………

OY, how good did the house smell?!?!?! SO GOOD!

I boiled up some whole wheat spaghetti and tossed it with some of the marinara that had been stewing with the meatballs, then topped the pile of pasta with a few of them and finished it all off with a grating of fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano and basil.

It was everything I’d hoped for and more. The meatballs were tender, juicy and flavorful, and the lemon zest really added something special. Eaten with some crusty bread, a salad and a glass of red, it was the perfect supper on a cold evening.

Happy Holidays everyone!

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Posted in Gourmet magazine, home cooking, Italian cooking, spaghetti and meatballs

Posted on December 15, 2008 by Anne| 3 Comments
Dinner At Home With Friends……..

Don’t get too excited by the excellent quality of these photos- they were not taken by me nor do they signal the beginning of any Gorgeous Photography Era of Tuna Toast. I wish I had an eye for beauty and composition but unfortunately I did not inherit my father’s sense for photography. These were all taken by my good friend and honorary little bro, Dylan, of the blog Eat, Drink & Be Merry and his beautiful lady, Jeni, of Oishii Eats.

Cory, creeping downstairs to join the party

We’d been wanting to get together with Dylan and Jeni for awhile and finally got the chance to last week when they came over to our house for dinner. I made oxtail ravioli while Dylan snapped away at my cat, Cory and our house. I wish I could shoot half as well as he and Jeni, and hope one day to learn how to see the world as they seem to see it. It’s amazing how lovely everything looks in well-composed photographs, isn’t it? We had lots of food, wine and great conversation and I think even the usually prissy Cory had a grand ol’ time.

Here’s the night as told by the amazing photography of Dylan and Jeni- enjoy!

Me, cooking away in the kitchen. Yes, I do realize that the bar needs to be cleared off so we can actually use it as a bar!

The food:

A little Prosciutto di Parma to nibble on…

My favorite pate from Nicole’s Gourmet Imports in South Pasadena

The ravioli ready for their hot water bath…

J sprinkles a classic gremolata (parsley, lemon zest and minced garlic) onto his ravioli

Oxtail ravioli served up.

A simple green salad always rounds out a meal at our house

The people:

Cory, sitting next to J’s beloved upright bass which he hasn’t named yet

Dylan and Jeni, in the one slightly unfocused and fuzzy photo because, you guessed it, I took it!

J and I, sitting in our backyard

After awhile we noticed that Cory wasn’t anywhere downstairs, so I took Dylan and Jeni up to our bedroom to show them Cory’s hideout….

…under the covers of our bed!

It was a wonderful night with good food, friends and now these lovely photographs – thanks Dylan and Jeni!

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Posted in fresh pasta, Italian cooking, Oxtail ravioli

Posted on December 8, 2008 by Anne| 6 Comments
Buenos Aires: Club Eros Restaurant- Sometimes Ya Just Gotta Go With the Flow


I’m what you’d call a research maniac/planner when it comes to travel. If I’m going to spend 6 days in France, I want to make sure I’ll eat the best baguette, the best foie gras; see the most gorgeous churches and sunsets and generally pack the time with as much good stuff as possible.

The upside of this is that I don’t miss out. The downside of this is that I miss out. Does that make sense? You see, I spend so much time trying to stuff in all of those places I’d read about that I may not leave enough breathing room to simply let a country show me what it has….organically. Exhaustion is also an unpleasant side effect of trying to shove multiple restaurants, parks and nightlife into a few short days.

Last month’s Buenos Aires trip was no different, and I went armed with my list of five tapas bars that I’d somehow deluded myself into thinking we’d hit during our very short, two-day visit. I’d never been to the gorgeous city and had fantasies of sitting at a wine bar, glass of Malbec in one hand and a croqueta de pollo in the other. As most of you already know, I have a fondness for small bar food, and Buenos Aires is known for tapas so I was as happy as a baked clam.

Well, sometimes things don’t go according to plan. In my old life, I would have been so frustrated but one of the biggest lessons I’ve learned from my go-with-the-flow husband is that sometimes spontaneous events end up being way more fun than all of the stuff that was meticulously planned in order to guarantee a good time. It’s very wise advice that has been proven to be completely true over and over again……even during our trip.

To be fair, we didn’t have much of a plan that night except to get a great dinner in Buenos Aires. Since we were in a group of seven friends, I didn’t want to chirp in and insist we go to this tapas bar or another; I wanted to get to Palermo (a neighborhood FILLED with great restaurants) and then innocently point to a few that fit my criteria for a good tapas bar. As we strolled around my eyes darted from one cute restaurant to the next, but just as I was going to meekly suggest a place, a local woman came up to our group and started speaking to us in Spanish. None of us speak the language but between my three years of high school Spanish and a few of the others’ knowledge of a few words and phrases, we managed to understand that she was telling us where to eat. She said she saw us and just had to tell us to stop, don’t go to any of these pretty places but instead to a place where all of the locals eat. She kept saying that it was “ugly” and not much to look and something about soccer being played there (!?!?) but that if we really want to experience good, local grub, that we must go. I have to admit a tiny part of me felt disappointed as I waved goodbye to the sparkly lights of a nearby tapas bar, but I was excited at the prospect of some awesome food.

Eros- the restaurant

We came upon Club Eros, the place the woman recommended, and it was part restaurant, part in-door soccer club. It was filled with locals and we were the only gringos in sight. There were tables set up inside the main restaurant, then even more in a sort of enclosed patio which also had the soccer stadium which was separated from the diners by a few iron gates. Every seat was filled and the owner/waiter was darting around trying to get everyone’s orders and get the food out as quickly as possible. He saw us and immediately set up a plastic picnic table and some plastic chairs- all of the restaurant’s tables were the same….Wal Marty white plastic sets. We had a great view of the soccer stadium where men and boys kicked the ball around. After taking our seats, we just told the owner that we’d love to eat the house specialties. He said, “Salad. Steak. Fries.” We nodded in agreement, ordered a few bottles of Malbec and waited eagerly for our food.

Mmmmm, yummy wine, and only $3 a bottle!

The wine was quickly brought out and we were just finished toasting when all of a sudden, I heard a loud CRACK and look to my right to see my friend Jess on the floor, broken plastic chair beneath him. All of the soccer-playing kids came running to the gate and started laughing and the entire restaurant broke into applause. It was quite a moment. Jesse stood up, took his bow and the owner quickly replaced his chair with a new one. It was hilarious, but I think we all sat in our chairs a little stiffer- after all, Jess is very thin and if he can bust a chair, any of us could!

Hey, sometimes chairs break in restaurants ok?

Hahahahah! Kids who were playing soccer run to see what the commotion is all about

Onto the food- the salad and fries were served family-style and both were simple and delicious. The fries were short little nubs that were perfectly fried, and the ketchup that accompanied them was rich and sweet. Our thick, grilled steaks came out and we all dug in……….holy cow (no pun intended). Juicy, medium rare, meaty deliciousness with the right amount of smoke…..it was, quite possibly, one of the best steaks I’d ever had. We pretty much sat in silence as every last one of us finished everything on our plates.

Big, juicy steak that was as good as it looks in this photo…..YUM.

Everyone chowin’ down

For dessert we shared a few things- a couple slices of insanely rich chocolate cake, two piles of dulce de leche and three servings of a thick, firm cheese served with a mango jelly. A few more bottles of wine later and everyone was floating on food coma clouds. Happy times!

Firm cheese and fruit paste for dessert

Ok, now the kicker- six steaks, 1 grilled chicken, fries, salad and dessert for the bunch, plus four bottles of Malbec, a couple of waters…………drum roll please….around $67 USD. YUP. Incredible. We were floored.

234 Argentina pesos = $67 USD

Thanks to the intervention of that lady, we had the best meal of the trip. The entire experience was perfect in every way, and would have been entirely impossible had I stuck to my plan to go eat tapas that night. So my New Years resolution is to improve my “go with the flow” ways and sometimes let the universe lead me….ok, that’s enough hippie talk as I don’t have hippie bone in my body!

Club Eros
Uriarte 1609, Palermo Soho, Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires
Tel. +(011.54.11) 4832-1313

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Posted in Argentina restaurants, Buenos Aires restaurants, Club Eros Palermo, Palermo restaurants, South America

Posted on December 1, 2008 by Anne| 2 Comments
Thanksgiving 2008

How was your Thanksgiving? Ours was a small yet lovely affair with my family (J’s family lives up north) at our house. I cooked, we ate and it was a nice, intimate holiday.

I started the prep one day in advance, and the whole process was so stress-free that I found myself standing around both Wednesday and Thanksgiving, wondering if I had forgotten something. I mean, I didn’t cook for an army but still managed to make a lot of food. It just didn’t feel like I did. Strange, but nice, I guess!

Wednesday: I made a simple brine for Herman (our 20 lbs turkey) by combining water, kosher salt, brown sugar, bay leaves and peppercorns:


Then I baked the cornbread for the stuffing:

Thanksgiving morning was just about getting Herman out of the brine, patted dry and into the oven, drying out the cornbread, steaming the potatoes and prepping the veggies:

SO Herman cooked up really quickly (brined, unstuffed birds tend to do that) so everything was ready a little early. Here’s the meal:

Turkey: Not sure why I bought such an enormous platter since I served the bird sliced, but I guess every holiday table needs a big ‘ol plate!

Mashed potatoes: I was thinking of doing roasted fingerlings instead but my sister said that it wouldn’t feel like Thanksgiving without mashed potatoes.

Cornbread stuffing: easily my favorite part of the meal. Slightly sweet, homemade cornbread studded with chewy bits of Spanish chorizo which I rendered and cooked the added veggies in. I could eat this everyday, but my waistline probably wouldn’t be too happy about it.

Gravy, Salad with Candied Pancetta & Roasted Butternut Squash and Green Beans with Lemon Zest. Yes, you read that right. Thick cut pancetta tossed with a mixture of brown sugar, crushed garlic, salt and olive oil cooked until crispy and carmelized. I just cooked the butternut squash in the rendered pancetta fat. C’mon, it’s a holiday!

Dessert was made by my sister but we didn’t take a photo- it was a lovely sweet potato pie with sweet sour cream. YUM.

After we ate we just sat on the sofa and watched back-to-back episodes of Three Sheets. Seriously, how on earth do I get that guy’s job? Travel the world and drink. Sounds good to me.

Hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving!

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Posted in chorizo, cornbread stuffing, Thanksgiving, turkey

Posted on November 24, 2008 by Anne| 4 Comments
Lil’ Parlor Pizzeria, South Pasadena

[Taking a short break from the South America posts for a minute as there are a million photos to sort through. I should have some more posts up soon!]

I’ll be totally honest and say I’ve never been a fan of Steven Arroyo’s restaurants. I never “got” Cobras & Matadors after several trips there, and my two visits to his South Pasadena wine bar 750 ml never did it for me either. I haven’t heard a lot of positive things about his downtown place, Church and State, so I thought maybe it best for me to stay away from that one as well.

So why did I try Lil’ Parlor Pizzeria, the new pizzeria opened in the old 750 ml space by this very same restaurateur? There is no real thin-crust, wood-fired pizza in my neighborhood, and the 7 minute drive from my door to the South Pasadena restaurant made it easy to at least give the place a shot. Other than sushi, Italian is my favorite food on the planet; thin crust, lightly dressed pizzas are near the top of that list along with a pile of al dente parpadelle clinging to some sort of slowly braised ragu.

J, my friend Ikea (not his real name but it’s a nod to his Swedish heritage) and I strolled in at around 7:30 PM on Friday night. We were warmly greeted and I immediately noticed the giant leg of prosciutto that sat on the counter, ready for me to dive into. Ok, maybe it wasn’t waiting for me but it was a good sign that maybe, just maybe Steven and I have a future together (as restaurateur and customer, of course).

We sat down, placed our orders and the wine was quickly brought to the table. Although J’s glass was filled well to the middle with his white wine, my glass was filled less than a third. Ikea suggested I take a sip, look at the waiter and say “Mmm, good, I’ll take this one!” and then give the glass back as if I was simply given a taste and that I wanted more. Although the idea was appealing, I figured I’d just sit this one out and hope that my next glass was more half full than half empty.

Appetizers: J ordered the heirloom tomatoes w/ burrata, and although I thought it a bit late in the year for the tomatoes I didn’t say anything. I should have. Look, you can spread burrata on a rusty iron and it’d still be divine. But even the rich creamy heavenliness that is burrata couldn’t save the grainy, bland heirlooms. We left most of it untouched.

Ikea fared far better with his baked ricotta w/ peppernata, aged balsamic and olive oil. The slab of baked ricotta was extremely mild and could have used some salt, and although J dubbed it as “tofu,” Ikea seemed happy with his choice.

I ordered the charcuterie plate – a nice selection of salami and prosciutto plus some pepperoncinis, olives and cheese. Very good, nice portion and nice selection.

Now for the pizzas:

Ikea went for the “Old School,” a pizza topped with pepperoni, tomato sauce, mozzarella and oregano. He deemed it delicious and thoroughly enjoyed every bite.

J was the real winner here- his “The Woods” pizza looked so bare upon first glance that I was worried, but powerful flavors coming out of the fresh chanterelles, smoked onions, fontina and rosemary were unbelievable. We kept looking at it, then tasting it, just wondering how such minimal toppings could pack such a punch. Truly delicious. I’m craving one as I type this actually.

I, unfortunately, lost the pizza battle with my Margherita pie. The “roasted tomato sauce” was bland and as grainy (oddly!) as those heirlooms and there was barely a smidge of mozzarella. Yeah, I know, I said I liked minimal toppings but, in the words of Oliver Twist, “Please sir, may I have some more cheese?” (minus the cheese part). Luckily I had some of the prosciutto and these incredibly sweet peppers left from my charcuterie plate so I doctored it up and it was fine.

I have to say, even though it was a hit and miss, I’d definitely go back to Lil’ Parlor Pizzeria. The crust is the key- it’s tasty, it’s perfectly thin, it’s beautifully crusty without being too hard and the yeasty flavor of good bread runs deep. As always, I’d take into consideration that the restaurant is still fine tuning since they’d been opened less than a week when we went. All things considered, the pies are good and that’s what I want- a good pizza place near my house. I hope the margherita gets a little better and they stop serving mealy tomatoes, but that mushroom pizza alone is worth making the seven minute drive for……….heck, it’s worth making an hour drive for. Oh, and my second glass of wine was indeed more of the “half-full” variety.


Lil’ Parlor Pizzeria
966 Mission St,
South Pasadena, CA
626.799.0711

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Posted in Lil' Parlor Pizzeria, Pizza, South Pasadena restaurants

Posted on November 19, 2008 by Anne| 2 Comments
Last snapshots of Bogota

A few last shots of Bogota, Colombia before I continue the posts on South America with the next destination of my recent trip: Buenos Aires. I truly loved Bogota and plan to return there to see more of it’s wonderful culture and people!

Casa Vieja – a restaurant offering traditional Colombian food……..

….like this bowl of ajiaco, a thick potato soup with chicken, potatoes, corn on the cob and garnished with cream and avocado.

The new face of Bogota. If you squint just a bit, you’d think you were on Rodeo Drive….

….and speaking of new faces of Bogota:


Hooters, the proud new addition to the city. My friend and guide Carolina said she was happy that Hooters had come to Bogota, since it’s a sign that other new American businesses will likely follow.

…….and the smiling new faces of Bogota Hooters?


Have you ever seen such gorgeous Hooters girls in your life? I haven’t, and these beautiful ladies were more than happy to strike a pose.

Girls making jewelry to sell……..

A trip to the Museo Botero…..

…where we saw works by both Botero, famous Colombian artist (here, in a self-portrait)

…in addition to Botero’s extensive personal collection of works by other artists…like this one by Salvador Dali…

…and speaking of art…this is just one of many sculptures around the city which are located high above the ground

A local fruit called lulu:

The church in the main plaza:

Messing around at the Presidential Palace…

View of the Andes from the plane…..on our way to Buenos Aires- posts coming up next!

Until then………..

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Posted in Bogota, Botero, Casa Vieja Bogota

Posted on November 17, 2008 by Anne| 3 Comments
Bogota, Colombia Part 2: Leo Cocina y Cava

I’d done a bit of research on restaurants before we left for our maiden voyage to Bogota and I had one place on the brain: Leo Cocina y Cava, a contemporary, Colombian-fusion restaurant owned and run by Leonor Espinosa- a groundbreaking female chef who has been a leader in ushering Colombia into the world of international fine dining. Although there were other restaurants that I’d heard good things about, I wanted to make sure to hit one high end restaurant that focused on Colombian food, not French or Italian, so I asked my new friend Carolina to make the reservations on our second night there.

A group of six of us sat down in the modern yet warm space and sipped on their signature cocktail (sorry- I can’t remember the name but it resembled a cosmopolitan) while perusing the extensive menu. There were multiple seafood offerings in addition to some lamb, beef and rice dishes, but I quickly decided on the Filete de Róbalo – a white fish (snook?) resembling grouper coated in a rich sauce and set on top of some black coconut rice and enclosed in a plantain leaf. I’d heard raves about the restaurant’s coconut rice so I wasn’t going to miss out.

I have to say that since Bogota was the first of three cities on our trip, I can’t remember the actual names of each dish but will describe them the best I can. Sorry! Taking notes while taking photos and drinking lots of wine just doesn’t work for me:).

We opted to order a few appetizers to share:

A whitefish ceviche that was absolutely perfect- just tart enough, the fish was tender and fresh.

Seafood empanadas: Crisp little discs filled with shredded seafood, these were one of my favorite appetizers.

Rabbit empanadas: need I say more? Crispy, tear-drop shaped dough filled with tender stewed rabbit.

Plate of mixed seafood. Whoa- this octopus was transcendent. Life-altering. It was so tender while still retaining a bite and we all scratched our heads in amazement wondering what cooking method the chef used.

Tartare with local avocado: Very good, although the local avocado is not as creamy as the Haas variety we’re used to here in SoCal.

Now for the main courses. Although everyone had their own, we all reached across the table numerous times tasting each other’s plates.

Mine: the aforementioned fish in plantain leaf. We declared this “the winner” of the night- the rich, slightly sweet sauce and tender fish was perfect with the black coconut rice. Not the best looking dish but the best tasting for sure!

The Carne Puyada – slow cooked beef over risotto…..I think the photo says it all.

Grilled prawns over cilantro risotto. The prawns were perfectly cooked but the real star was this risotto. It would never have occured to me to make a cilantro risotto (since I always use cilantro as a fresh, not cooked, garnish to dishes) but I’ll have to get in my kitchen and try to re-create this. WOW.

Another prawn dish swimming in a succulent broth, displayed by my friend Manny who seems to think you need to present your dishes with a hand gesture.

Grilled, pepper-encrusted tuna. Fresh, delcious.

We polished it all off and sat there, quite satisfied, when the waiters started bring out desserts we hadn’t ordered. Thinking it was a mistake, we tried to wave them away but they sat these right in front of us:

Miniature beignets filled with chocolate, served with Helado de kola Roman – an ice cream made from a popular pink cola. Yes, it really IS that pink. The ice cream has a heady, almost chemical-like flavor so you might love it if you’re 8 but I wasn’t too crazy about it.

Carrot cake with coconut ice cream- this was subtle and lovely.

Flan with crispy rice. Whoa. Not only was the flan creamy and rich but it sat on a bed of….cake? And was topped with crispy rice which I’d never think to do but went so well with all of the creamy elements. Note to self: top all flan with crispy rice!

So it turns out that the sous chef saw us from the kitchen and recognized Carolina, whom he used to work for at her family’s old restaurant. Thus the dessert parade which followed our main courses. He came out to introduce himself to the rest of us and I was amused to see that his first name was Disney. Seems his parents were fans of Walt Disney and bestowed the last name onto their son as a first name. We chatted with him for a bit, told him how remarkable the food was, and he said that it was unfortunate he hadn’t seen us earlier since he would have simply done a prix fixe of recommended dishes. He then said “Can you come tomorrow?” Hm, lemme think for a millisecond…..YES! So we all decided to return the next night, this time to experience Leo Cocina y Cava in the way that Chef Disney felt we should. Score!

The first night: friends with Chef Disney, minus me, who conveniently took the photo:)

The next night, our party of six turned into a party of nine (word spread fast among band and crew about our delicious eats from the night before) and we once again found ourselves in the cozy restaurant. First up? A bowl of Hormigas Culonas (big fried ants available only in the region known as Santander). Yup. Honestly, I had heard of these ants and expected to see little fried mini ants on a plate but the bowl of big, black balls totally threw me for a loop. It was a bowl of just the bottom third of the ant, and talk about big butts! I ate one and it was fine- crispy, tasted like protein……nothing gross yet nothing wonderful. Some of the guys had fun chomping away but I think once was enough for me. Glad I tried it though!

Hormigas Culonas – the “big assed ants”

Night two- awaiting our feast………..

Right then, we spotted Leonor Espinosa walking around, inspecting every flower, every wine glass, making sure everything was operating smoothly. We stopped her to tell her how much we enjoyed her food, and she was very kind and even let us snap a photo with her. I was oddly starstruck and didn’t say a whole lot but made sure to thank her for the delcious food!

The chef, Leonor Espinosa, and my left eye…..:)

Chef Disney started us off with sea snail ceviche drizzled with herb oil- it was so fresh, briny and the perfect way to start off our six course meal.


We had a few of the dishes we’d had the night before- prawns with the cilantro risotto, grilled langoustine, etc. Next up, we had a pile of tartare over which the waiter poured the richest, most succulent broth I’d ever had. It was slighly gamey and extremely savory.


The meat course was New Zealand baby rack of lamb cooked medium rare, piled on a knob of creamy mashed yucca and drizzled with au jus. It was divine.

We had several different desserts (including the flan which was asked for) and then had a chance to peek into the kitchen. It was quite small and I was amazed that the chefs could turn out so many dishes out of the tiny space.

We finished off the evening with an aperitif of Aguardiente, Colombia’s national alcoholic beverage. It has a strong, anise flavor which I normally hate but somehow the sweetness and warmth of this liquor sat quite well with me. I’d definitely have it again.

So – two nights of mindboggling food with great people in a city I’d never been, plus a surprise visit from the famous chef and a peek into the kitchen- wow! It was a fantastic experience and I would recommend Leo Cocina y Cava to anyone visiting Bogota.

Leo, Cocina y Cava:Ubicado en Bogotá ( Calle 27 B No 6-75)
Horario de atención: De lunes a sábado: 12 a 4:00 p.m. y 7:00 p.m. a 12:00 p.m.
Reservas: 286 7091 281 6267
leococinaycava@hotmail.com

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Posted in Bogota fine dining, Bogota restaurants, Cocina y Cava, Colombian restaurants, Hormigas Culonas, Leo

Posted on November 12, 2008 by Anne| 4 Comments
BOGOTA, COLUMBIA: Part 1

When I had decided that I’d tag along with J and his band on their South American tour, I figured that I would fall in love with the beautiful parks of Buenos Aires or the blue skies of Santiago in the springtime. Although I was excited to start the trip off in Bogota, Colombia, I wasn’t sure what to expect other than what little of the city I’d seen on Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations: Colombia episode since it focused mainly on Medellín, which was not on the itinerary for us.

However, the four days spent in Bogota became the star of the entire trip and I found myself falling in love with the green mountains, colorful buildings, warm people and fantastic coffee (thanks Juan Valdez!). The weather was cool but sunny for the most part (save for a sudden, torrential downpour that lasted about 10 minutes) and I made a lifelong friend in the form of one girl named Carolina, who ended up answering a post I put up on a Craigslist-like forum called Poor But Happy, asking for a bilingual guide to show me the city. With her in tow, we felt like we got the most out of our short time in the beautiful city.

A few things about Bogota I’d like to mention, in case you ever decide to go for a visit (and you should!). The traffic is crazy and the taxi drivers are even crazier. The city has lots of rules to try and control the traffic- for example, if your license plate ends in “0” or “1,” you must stay off the road between certain hours of certain days. All numbers have these assignments. Even if you are ON the road and your restricted time starts, you must pull over and sit there for the four or so hours that you can’t drive. We checked to see if people actually followed this rule and by all accounts, they do- we saw no license plates ending in “8” or “9” while on the road one day. There are streets that are closed to two-way traffic during certain times of the day to help prevent gridlock, so during those times the taxi would be forced to take the longer, more winding road. I’m not over exaggerating when I tell you the cab drivers would floor the gas when we were going DOWNHILL and race around the practically 90 degree curves. These guys make the taxi drives in Mexico City seem like a herd of turtles. We all hung on to each other for dear life but did appreciate that we’d reach whatever destination quickly.

Another constant around the city: armed guards and their Labradors. They’re posted up in front of hotels, grocery stores, office buildings, on cobblestone streets in front of churches…..pretty much everywhere. They seem very non-threatening (failing to witness one of our friends getting held up at knifepoint for an ipod right in front of our hotel!! Friend was fine and it wasn’t as scary as it sounds) and their Labradors are happy to play with you. I did see a few muzzled pit bulls though, so maybe they’re for more serious situations.

The altitude: Bogota is 2600 meters (roughly 8300 feet!) above sea level, so it takes awhile to adjust. I didn’t notice it when we landed, nor at our very late supper at a local bar (the promoter took us to some American-style bar that had awful Americanized pub food) but while lying in bed that first night, my heart was racing and I couldn’t get it to stop. J reminded me of the altitude and I was relieved that I wasn’t having some sort of heart attack, and the next day I was fine, save for a few winded hikes up hills.

Base of Cerro de Monserrate

On our second day, we met Carolina for the first time in the lobby and I was happy to see that she was just as warm and friendly in person as she had been in her emails. A group of us set out for Cerro de Monserrate, the white church overlooking the city from atop a high mountain. We took the crazy cabs to the base of the mountain, then bought tickets for the teleferico (gondola) which took us to the top within minutes. The view from the teleferico was amazing, and the higher we got the more I could see just how enormous the city of Bogota truly is.

Once we arrived at the top, we strolled around the beautifully landscaped grounds, peered at the variety of colorful flowers and stuck our heads inside the church, where mass was being held. The grounds of Cerro de Monserrate were already decorated for Christmas, but since we went during the day we didn’t get a chance to check it out with all of the lights turned on. I bet it’s a beautiful sight. There is a small street of vendors selling various souvenirs directly behind the church, in addition to snack stalls and a few picnic tables.

Looking up at Cerro de Monserrate…and we even got a rainbow!

We had wanted to eat lunch at the Colombian restaurant located near the church, but they were closed so we decided to skip the only other option (French) and wait until we made our descent and headed for another part of the city. When in Colombia, eat Colombian food, right?

Oh, how soon did I forget those very important words as we found ourselves in a small café located in an area called El Chorro de Quevedo. This charming little town center had colorful buildings and lots of college kids milling about since it is located near a large university. We ducked into the restaurant (of which I do not have the name….bad blogger!) and settled into the small space, ready to sample some local grub.

The small cafe was made up of many rooms on three floors…

So what did I order, you ask? Well, half of the menu was made up of crepes, which seem extremely popular in Bogota (there is a chain restaurant called Crepes y Waffles that is everywhere!) and the other half was made up of Colombian platos, or plates. Having had some of the greasiest food known to man the night before, I was skeptical of the large “meat platters for two” and decided to go the crepe route. A squid crepe, to be exact. One of the guys said “that doesn’t even SOUND good” but I turned up my nose, picturing a thin crepe covered in some sort of tomato-based seafood sauce which totally appealed to me at the time. J also ordered some seafood but the rest of the guys decided to get the platos to share.

Some of the guys had beer but I wanted to try a frozen coffee drink, which ended up being delicious and perfectly strong over the crushed ice and milk. J tried a juice made from a local fruit called lulu, which was incredibly refreshing and tart. My crepe arrived, practically invisible under a giant pool of chunky white sauce swimming with squid rings. I did take a photo but I’ll save you the pain, really. Then I looked on in envy as the platos came- one platter of beautiful cured meats alongside three different varieties of locally-made chorizo, and two platters of the same chorizo set among a lovely set of golden, deep fried specialties. As the guys dug into their spicy meats, cheese-stuffed fried potatoes, empanadas, arepas and crispy plantains, I just stared at my losing dish and wished that I had listened to them. Sigh. Luckily some of them took pity on me and let me try the chorizo which was the best I’d ever had. I also got a bite of a dessert crepe topped with rum raisin ice cream and chocolate sauce. Yum.

There were two cute girls playing with their tiny puppy just outside the restaurant, so we snapped some photos with them and then continued walking around the area. There were many sweets shops and bars for college kids, in addition to the oldest church in Bogota which sat right in the main square. We ran into the girls again when we noticed a small store selling homemade chicha, a non-alcoholic drink made from corn. I guess their mother was the proprietor and she was nice enough to let us try the juice-like drink, which was slightly sweet and a bit tart. It seems to be very popular in the area – we kept seeing signs that read “Chicha here!” in Spanish.

Bottles of homemade chica….

The tag reads “the water is for the people.”

I really loved this little town square but we were headed to the main plaza next, which I will write about in the next post. There’s lots more Bogota to come, plus Buenos Aires and Santiago!

To be continued………..

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Posted in Bogota, Cerro de Monserrate, chicha, Colombia, Colombian food, El Chorro de Quevedo