Xoia: Keepin' it Local & Keepin' it Real

Xoia
1801 W Sunset Blvd
Echo Park, Ca 90026
213-413-3232
(corner of Sunset & Lemoyne)

 

I love the concept of Xoia.  Brightly lit, modern, super clean serving slightly fusioned Vietnamese food just a short walk from my front door.

 

During their soft opening I experienced some hits and misses. Above, the handicap friendly entryway.

 

Hit: Simple, an arty without being artsy interior with great bathrooms and very clean new surroundings. Not that clean and new is always what I look for in a restaurant. And I am sure some locals are saying in their minds, "there goes the neighborhood boho vibe" with what is surely the first of many businesses that will open in the neighborhood trying to attract some dollas with sleek concepts.  I welcome the new and different addition. Variety gives neighborhoods texture.

We arrived around 7 something-ish; the dining room was about 1/4 occupied.  By the time we left 8 something-ish and definitely dark outside the room was packed. Every table inside and outside was taken with a nice mix of people from the 'hood. Older folk, Latinos, quite a few people of varying Asian persuasions, and a lot of EP kiddos having a nosh before music at The Echo or simply enjoying our very street centered nightlife.

 

Miss:  The much bally-hooed Pho Beef Tacos.  Served on corn tortillas with cilantro, onions, radish and a housemade "salsa".

 

Maybe I am spoiled for the deliciously savory salty carnitas, puerco, carne asada, and birria from the many delicious taco trucks around our fair city. Honestly, no taco will ever top Taco Jeesy's in East LA. However, I found the meat on these pretty little tacos nowhere near flavorful enough.   Pat reviewed these tacos last week on Eating L.A.  She mentioned that the tacos simply needed some soy sauce and the salsa to bring them to life, which I heartily agree with.  But I want the beef to be flavorful enough to stand on its own.  I added a healthy dose of the brown chili sauce/salsa and lots of lime juice to bring these to life. They're sure pretty to look at though, and lots of orders of these puppies were being ferried out to tables all around me.

 

Hit: Chicken Curry Banh Mi with Lemongrass Infused Curry Chicken. This is a basic curry banh mi, pretty tasty with one potent jalapeno that my mouth enjoyed adventurously.

 

But dip your sandwich into this curry jus and you are taking it to another level altogether. This was phenomenal. D wasn't thrilled that the kitchen put mayo on the sandwich. Personally, I have never been served banh mi with mayo that I can recall.

However, after doing some research around the webs I find that mayo on banh mi is not unheard of.  He just hates mayo in general (I loves), so don't judge this by his bias. It was wonderful. Plenty of veg evenly distributed, a bounty of cilantro, and that super spicy jalapeno. If a jalapeno is hot enough to make me go "woohoo", it's a good one.  I will be returning for this, without a doubt.

 

Miss: Pho Tai: Rice noodle beef broth w/rare steak, fresh cilantro, sprouts, basil and jalapenos. Meh.  Certainly generous enough in size and beautifully presented. My regular pho joint, Pho 87, serves an equally large portion for less dough, but we are also paying for atmosphere and location at Xoia. Atmosphere and location, size and presentation notwithstanding, this was just not on. First off, it wasn't hot enough. Pho pas! We also had problems with the broth.

 

The broth in this bowl was seriously anemic. So lacking flavor we didn't come close to finishing it.  I asked our server if they use MSG.  Last summer I took a culinary tour of Little Saigon with Chef Robert Danhi. Despite the wealth of knowledge he shared with us that day, I still feel like I know very little about Vietnamese cooking practices, so I am not expressing expertise in any way. But I do remember very clearly Chef Danhi telling us that nearly every kitchen in Vietnam uses MSG. No one really trips out about it. MSG is a cheap and easy way to add extra savory umami-yumminess to broths and sauces. Curious about the lack of flavor in the bowl I inquired, our server told us sheepishly they do use MSG. So where's the flavor?


Possibly my disappointment in the dish is a matter of ordering wrong.  Xoia also offers a chicken curry noodle soup with rice noodles, carrots and potatoes. Many bowls of this strolled purposefully by headed to other tables. The air of the restaurant was fragrant with the curry-lemongrass scent.  If the flavors in that curry soup are even close in deliciousness to the curry jus of the banh mi, I will become a obsessive.


Hit: Service. Pleasant, efficient and happy. The night in question our server didn't know if the baguettes are made with rice or wheat flour (they aren't housemade), but I am sure they will know the next time we pop in.  And there will be a next time.  I need that chicken curry banh mi again, and the curry noodle soup has left a mouth watering question mark imprinted in my brain.


Now, can someone tell me how in hades to pronounce Xoia?


Addendum: Joshua from Food GPS tells me Xoia is pronounced "soo-ya".  Additionally, Jessica Gelt from the LATimes added her early review of Xoia in this morning's paper. Her food experience sounds to have been a little more satisfying. And because I really want Xoia to succeed, I think you should read her review too!

Dining at the Bar, Barbrix

Barbrix Restaurant & Wine Bar
2442 Hyperion Avenue
los angeles, CA 90027
(323) 662-2442


You couldn't ask for a more perfect post-Eclipse early summer supper. Driving through Los Angeles in the setting sun from the Arclight to Silver Lake, Barbrix beckoned with its tree and shrubbery filled patio, open front glass wall looking into the darkening bar and restaurant beyond.  We eschewed our reserved table and settle into the three seats left specifically (not) for us at the corner of the bar so we can look into each others' faces while we chat, plot, plan and share while eating.


D is late, as is often the case. But fortunately this time I am not riding side-car, so T and I get even more time to chat girl-talk, peruse the menu and order garlic fried sweet breads w/harissa aoili, burrata with eggplant tomato sauce from the e.e. cummings-esque menu. Our bartender allows me to taste the albarino and instead chooses for me a luscious viogner. Thank you.


Sweetbreads.  When Barbrix opened (just a year ago, really?), I had never eaten a sweetbread. I loved the sound of a garlic fried anything with harissa aoili, so I bravely jumped in feet first.  The were good. The very next day, strolling through 3rd Street Promenade across town, I stopped into Gaucho Grill for a glass of wine and ordered their grilled sweetbreads for comparative analysis. Now these were sweetbreads in a less adulterated state. A giant sweetbread on a plate grilled and not camouflaged by any breading or chopping whatsoever. Sweetbreads are the thymus or pancreas typically of a calf or lamb. I appreciated seeing the whole sweetbread grilled the way nature intended at Gaucho Grill. However, after both experiences that weekend a year+ ago, and a few more in between, I am sold on Barbrix's garlic fried sweetbreads. Now, I liked the grilled sweetbreads at Gaucho, with the beautiful looking grill marks and joyous tasting carcinogenic char. But the sweetbreads at Barbrix have the same underlying gaminess presented more subtly.  Smallish chunks of organ meat are breaded lightly and deep fried with plenty of salt.  The harissa aoili is tangy fatty goodness, and each piece of the beautiful dish only needs to be dipped a teeny tiny bit for a kick.


There is nothing wrong with the burrata and eggplant dish. In fact, it is delicious. The rich creaminess of the burrata is the perfect foil against the silky eggplant and smooth thick olive oil drizzled around the plate. The tomato sauce has a hint of smoke, I'm not sure if this is from grilling the eggplant or maybe some smoked paprika. We are too busy talking for me to ask, or even pull out my camera to sneak snaps in the fastly darkening bar.


D arrives and doubles the order for the burrata/eggplant and adds deviled eggs with cured sardines (marinated boquerones).  For a man raised on gelfilte fish, he is oddly suspicious of the beautiful salty and vinegared sardines laying across the top of each egg half. Yum. We hungrily share out the deviled eggs, T and I rescue his abandoned sardines from a garbage can fate. 


As we empty our first course plates and I drain my glass of viogner, I ask the bartender about the syrah v. petite syrah. I like something a little jammy, and she suggests I try the Syrah as the Petite Syrah has some earthier elements. This earthiness appeals to me and during a taste test I find it wonderful and full glass worthy. Everyone agreed.


T and I share the perfectly sized Caesar salad with plenty of garlic and hand torn croutons. Immediately afterward out marched the wild boar sausage with garlic peppers and pistachio rappini aioli.  The sausage is lovely, I would guess it was housemade. It seems extremely fresh in flavor and texture, the texture almost slightly crumbly, not as tightly packed as store bought sausage. The pesto is amazing, thick and substantial.  More a puree of rappini and pistachio nuts than a pesto. I think of pesto as having a little more oil. No complaints here, I would happily repeat this in my kitchen sometime soon. Maybe this weekend.


D orders the roasted cauliflower salad with chickpeas and charmoula dressing. This is a super generous small plate, and he cannot finish it. I know historically I love this dish, but I am too busy with my Caesar to help.  He also orders (every time we come he orders) the papardelle with ragu bolognese.  He loves a thick housemade noodle. He loves (like his brother) anything bolognese. This dark tomato based meat sauce just clings to the thick noodles in a small deep bowl, and cleaning the dish he is done and pronounces himself full. As are T and I, while in contrast my glass of Petite Syrah is empty.


We head out into the very dark night to pay our overpriced valet parker. T & D head to Yogurtland (where did they find the room, iono) and I head straight to bed. I barely have time to turn on the DVR before my head hits the pillow and my day is done. Was it the sweetbreads, the boar or the deviled eggs? I dreamt of vintage clothes, vinyl records and flying kites, the preoccupations of my twenties. I woke up happy.

Will Shill for Ludo: Ludobites 5.0

Ludobites 5.0
Gram & Papas
227 East 9th Street
Los Angeles 90015
(213) 624-7272

July 21-September 3, 2010

Reservations are a little complicated this time. 14 day advance for all reservations, lines opening July 7....

"Except for the first two weeks of reservations, reservations will open each day 14 days in advance of the selected date. On July 7th reservations for 7/21-8/3 will open. Reservations for 8/4 will open on 7/21, 8/5 on 7/22 8/6 for 7/23, etc…"

Link through here for reservations.

UrbanHike: Where I Went & What I Saw

The #urbanhike, inspired by my friend and super blogger H.C. of LA and OC Foodventures. Gotta give him props for style and adventure.

I saw the Thirsty Crow as I headed footbound away from Echo Park. Wanna hit this.

Past a sale at a junk shop on Sunset in the nether region between Echo Park and Silver Lake.

Mickey Mouse's doppelganger.

Wonder Woman!

And I don't know who this is but I saw him in Silver Lake and later, much much much later, in Santa Monica.

The living wall on the outside of the new hair salon that used to be a video store in Silver Lake. Video store? Wha dat?

I am in love enough with the concept of a living wall that I have been contemplating buying these planters from Woolly Pockets to plant an herb wall on my front yard facing stucco wall. My friend E is designing some made of wood, and I think I will buy hers instead. Please stay tuned.

And as we left Sunset Junction, the scooter brigade was out in full force.

'

As we headed east from lunch at BoHo (inefficient service from a very nice waitress, mediocre food...again) we started passing hotels. This particular hotel has always had a very Bates-Motel-I'm-going-to-get-murdered-in-the-shower-when-someone-enters-my-room-through-a-secret-panel-with-a Ginsu-knife kind of feel to it. Quaint, yanno?

The battered and broken down cottages do not lessen the feel at all.  I imagine someone buying this and doing a whole Standard Hotel kind of upgrade, but I don't think the facilities would support hordes of money spending fedora hat-wearing trendoids. No pool, no bar, etc. It will probably continue to haunt my dreams.

Psychiatry: An Industry of Death The Museum. We passed this museum on Sunset Blvd in the heart of Hollywood, intrigued by its semi-Museum of Tolerance feel and set up.  We entered. The idea that all psychiatry is a deception forced purposefully upon us by an evil group of humans has always made me stabby.  I think we have all known people who have legitimately suffered from depression, PPD, mental illness and severe anxiety. I personally know two people who feel their lives were saved through the use of appropriate medication.  The idea that these people could have been torn from my life due to treatable mental anguish that would be denied them if we all fell in line with this type of reasoning makes me Ginsu knife stabby.  Fortunately, I can smell a Scientologist a mile a way and the crazy unmedicated ladies behind the counter were unable to deny this is indeed a Scientology supported museum (of intolerance). In the end, we didn't get past the lobby. While I admit, I am still kind of curious, I won't give them the satisfaction of going back.

Do I sound crazy? Maybe I am.

As one progresses toward the more western side of Hollywood proper the hotel/motel/Holiday Inns get a little less shady. 

But really? Only a little.

I find Sunset Plaza to be one of two things. Completely anaesthetized or boarded up and closed for business altogether. One art gallery has a Warhol exhibit on, but they were closed on Sunday.

The Viper Room. Still holding shows. The River Phoenix sidewalk. Rest his soul.

Whiskey a Go-Go.  The facade is much more impressive after dark!

Steel Panther, live at Key Club every Monday.  From their website:

They were high school pals, hanging out and getting high to stick it to the man. When in the course of being rebellious young men, Satchel, Michael Starr and Stix discoveredLexxi’s penchant for wearing his mother’s make up. To shock him out of his nascent transvestitism, the three school chum decided to burst out of his closet in full make up, a graphic depiction of the error of his ways. Then in a twist of fate,Michael Starr caught sight of the foursome in the mirror, recognizing at once that this look belonged on stage. A quick trip to the guitar store later, the band that would become Steel Panther was born.

I know a couple of you are lemming. You know who you are.

Only in LA does Blackberry try to sell itself by trying to sell out your agent. I don't have an agent. I don't need one. People are lining up to sign me (with sharpies, it's happened twice).

As we headed south on Doheny, I became intrigued by the 1960's architecture circa Mrs. Robinson. Wishing I had brought a longer more intrusive lens, I only got off a few shots.  The busier streets of Beverly Hills/West Hollywood are lovely for a walk: tall trees, well manicured lawns, the occasional baby carriage pushed by nanny or toy dog walked by doyenne. 

Art deco doorway.

One of my now defunct favorite bands used to play here now and again. Smart Brown Handbag.

Dan Tana's. I hear rumors that this is still mafiaoso-esque, but I think that's a romanticism.

Giraffes of WeHo.

If you know what this is, then you know at some point we hopped in a taxi. #urbanhike fail.

Front patio at the Georgian in Santa Monica. I don't know how I managed a shot with so few people, the patio was pretty crowded with people-watchers sipping adult beverages.

Camera Obscura overlooking the Pacific. Definitely worth a look-see.

You know the street performer drill. Out in full force on a Sunday early evening.

Our urban hike ended on an upnote at The Lobster solely for the view.  

Sourdough bread, Beau Soleil oysters. Afterward the long ride home on the #4 bus.

Mahjongg in June

One of the things about blogging is that you are always most excited to post about your most recent adventure, even though there are dozens of adventures in the tank (the tank being the memory card of your dslr).  Almost most recently I played Saturday mahjongg with my ladies (and gent) with Miss J hosting the first mahjongg of summer.

Now, Miss J is often quoted as having said, when asked what kind of cocktail she would like, "anything vodka, with a little vodka in it".  Please see fourth video down in the posting linked here...for a laugh, if you want to hear the sound of 7 middle aged people getting progressively hammered at a holiday dinner party, just listen to all the videos in succession. Let the slurring commence!

ANYWAY! You know you are going to get a good cocktail at Casa J.  She started with fresh limes.

A bowl of mint leaves.

Vanilla vodka, fresh blueberries and a dash of curacao for color rounded out these summery glasses of blueberry/lime/mint perfection.

J can spin some tunes. She was working a summer 2010 playlist:

Katy Perry California Girls

Usher OMG

Jay-Z Young Forever 

Lady GaGa & Beyonce Telephone

Ke$ha Your Love is My Drug

Keiko is incredibly photogenic and a bit of a paparazzi whore.

A few of our mahjongg afternoons have had Asian themed food. J bought gyoza at Trader Joe's and fortunately they did not end up on the recent much commented upon list. You have probably read the list. If not, please click through to entertain yourself. Squid Ink's list of the 5 most disgusting things found in Trader Joe's frozen section. lulz.

We paired the gyoza with Mae Ploy chili sauce, yuzu puree (my personal favorite) and Chinese mustard. I was happy. I was drinking, playing a fun game and gossiping with some of my favorite people. I would have eaten shit-on-a-shingle and been chuffed. But I love anything with thematic continuity.

We also listened to:

La Roux Bulletproof

Jackson Derulo In My Head

Taio Cruz & Ludacris Break Your Heart

Jay-Z w/Alicia Keys Empire State of Mind

OMG!  Figs on a plate!  Don't tell David Chang.

One of our other favorite canines, Miss Moneypenny. Very camera shy. About 0.5 seconds after I shot this she bolted to get away from the press. I am pretty sure she wasn't wearing panties.

NEWS. If you know, you know. If you don't, well. This isn't the time or place.

This.was.delicious.  T brought homemade dessert. David Liebovitz' almond cake from a blog post last week. Not a dessert fan, however this is monstrously delicious. It needs to go into the file of successful recipes for regular rotation.  The cute story here is that while T was baking this she asked Mr. Liebovitz two questions in the blog comments section about the construction of said cake and he got back to her right away. We were both super impressed by how personally he takes his blog. David, the cake is fantastic.

Last mahjongg of the evening before I headed to Stevenson Ranch for dinner. I think this was T's "pointless pyramid".  

At a friend's house in Stevenson Ranch that night I got a schooling in real mahjongg from two Jewish ladies who have been playing mahjongg for years. They shouted out directions and rules out at me like I'm a shiksa making kishkas for an important bat mitzvah. Oy!  Turns out all these months we have been playing special ed mahjongg.  I love gaming, and T says she is OCD when it comes to rules and etiquette, so we feel completely compelled to do this thing right.  In the middle of the night Saturday night (insomnia, good times) I ordered four 2010 mahjongg hand cards from the National Mah Jongg League. Our mahjongg future is about to change dramatically. Bring it on!

Why? Just why?

While severely neglecting my blog during a recent extended fishing trip, I spent a lot of time thinking about what this blog is, what it isn't and what I would like it to be. Sometimes we get to the highest levels of understanding when we operate at our most deeply cognitive levels.  A little compare/contrast, if you will.


Food, She Thought is and should be my ramblings on food, in any place, style, situation or ethnic perspective I find intriguing, engaging or yummy. Full stop.


Food, She Thought is not a public relations tool, a special events driver. money making, or simply a luxury restaurant review site. I was saddened recently when a friend referred her cousin to my site, thinking her cousin (a cook) might be interested in blogging about her cooking adventures, and the sister commented, "I could never afford to do what she does." I don't eat fancifully that often, and I certainly don't want fanciness to be the goal (although I am god damned fancy on the inside, my desk at work is under a god damned sky light, FFS).  I don't want to shy away from writing about the challenges of home cooking and commentary about places as banal as Claim Jumper or the newest offerings at fast food restaurants (even if they disgust me on some many levels).


Virtual moments (nano-seconds) have been frittered away thinking about the lack of uniqueness of Food, She Thought. Do I have anything to say that other bloggers don't? Not really. Do I go places others don't? Nope. Is there a unique perspective? Have I, as J. Gold would suggest "codified" my ramblings to give focus and definition so readers know what they are getting when they come here, to develop an archetypal perspective on food/drink/experience? Sorry, no.


Whilst fishing, much time was spent ruminating on healthier eating eschewing anything with rouille, foie gras, copious amounts of butter and ridiculous amounts of booze (booze? really? not really). My body feels better and my mind feels more focused, which is amusing because if anything I feel like allowing my blog to be less focused.  


I think I enjoyed this blog the most during the early days of its inception, with very little readership save my husband, T and a few hawties out there around the country (you know who you are).  Back then I was completely unconcerned with commentary, which postings drew the most hits and any tendency toward repeating posting patterns that garnered the most interest.


Additionally, I had a good time before I felt it painful to pan something I didn't enjoy. We went, we ate, I commented truthfully.  There are many bloggers out there who follow the coda, "if it sucked, you won't read about it here". I totally get that rule of thumb.  But I don't think it's for me, I think I am just enough of a bitch to say so when I don't like something, and just sweet enough to be fair and diplomatic.


I am streamlining, people.  Follow, if you will. I still appreciate your readership and am continually humbled that anyone reads and comments at all. And that's why.

Awaiting the Return of Lot 1

Strolling Echo Park last night looking for the future address of an upcoming project, the three of us eyed the darkened and emptied Lot 1 as a possibility. The back end was open and connected to the junk store next door where kitschy bric-a-brac, macrame purses, mixmatched chairs and one overpriced brooch were being sold. D, his inquisitive nature couched much more charmingly than mine, inquired about Lot 1. Apparently a beer & wine license has been acquired recently and they are prepping to open again for more regular business hours (as opposed to the weird weekend brunch thing they have going right now).

Echo Park is waiting!!!!

Gone Fishin'.

image courtesy of Silent Sport Fly Fishing