sooo finally getting around to sharing some meals i had in LA. here it goes -
i'll give it to them. food in LA is pretty awesome. i really wanted to just think the food scene would be like most things in LA -- pretty superficial and all about the showiness with very little legit substance. while famous names and huge restaurant groups are huge part in LA's food scene, there's are a ton of smaller places with really good food (and prices!!). one of the best examples of this was
tender greens.
matthew and i randomly found this place were aimlessly driving around wanting a salad.
the decor was clean and modern, with light wood floors and booths and windows everywhere. but honestly, after being in LA for a few days I wasn't that impressed. i mean, c'mon this is the area where even the
convenience stores have cute logos interiors.
after reading through the confusing menu board, i chose the salmon nicoise (it was supposed to be tuna but they were having issues with their local tuna supplier so they were substituting salmon in the meantime. yeah, for reals. LA's consciousness about food is redonk.) the reason i say the menu board was confusing is because as we walked down the line from to go and pay, we saw all of theses crazy delicious-looking goodies we missed out on - a kobe beef sandwich , mashed potatoes, roasted root veggies, breads, lemon and thyme chicken soup, and more. the board wasn't organized well for us to really know what they had. sadness
but with that said, the salmon nicoise was a great choice. my only semi-complaint i had was my salmon was grilled-to-order, which made me wait a little longer. that kind of sucked because i had to wait in the front, super-hungry, and checking out everybody else's amazing orders and the dessert case. (and i think they were conspiring to get me to buy 5 cupcakes haha.)
but all joking aside, it was seriously okay. i'd rather have a freshly cooked piece of fish than save a few minutes of awkwardness and have a gross overcooked piece.
so this is what i finally got --
(my camera being semi-decent. woooot)i love nicoise salads because there is so much going on. salty capers and olives, sweet sherry vinegarette, crisp/fresh green beans and tomatoes, tender greens (hehe), and rich roasted potatoes. and like i said earlier-- they added everything to-order so the potatoes and fish were warm while the greens were room temp and the veggies were cold. it added another layer of complexity to the dish. me, temperature and texture freak really appreciated it. and the quail egg and toast were just some more yummy bonuses.
there's not really much more to say about the culinary aspect of this because nicoise salads are pretty standard and this wasn't much a huge variation on it. but what was extremely great was how well this was done and how reasonable the price was. it really shows how important good quality local ingredients are to a meal.
this salad and a hibiscus tea was $13 and some change. pretty amazing. too bad i can't try other items on their menu. if you're in the LA area def check it out and lemme know :)
