Looking Back at Looking Forward

Plus: Vintage LA Menu. Where I've Been Eating.

Looking back at these old pieces, I’m constantly amazed by how self-conscious we were about this new food movement. Being in LA at the moment, I found this article especially interesting.

A few highlights from this week. First up, Yang’s Kitchen in Alhambra, which has one of the most fascinating menus I’ve seen in quite a while. I absolutely loved this tofu with salmon roe, soy and avocado.

These mochi pancakes were superb.

Green tea tarts with strawberries….H

Had an absolutely fantastic dinner at Chi Spacca. I loved this cured tongue

Was wild about the beef and marrow pie.

But my favorite…. these grilled Santa Barbara prawns. More please!

Last night I had dinner at Antico Nuovo. It began with this duck liver pate.

Followed by these incredibly delicious agnolotti di plin

Went on to these Tuscan pork ribs dusted with fennel pollen…

But the dish I couldn’t stop eating was this potato cake - an homage to the potatoes at L’Ami Louis in Paris but in my opinion, better.

Eating at Yang’s Kitchen reminded me a bit of Yujean Kang’s which was one of the first Chinese-fusion restaurants. At Yang’s you have a combination of Asian and American ideas that leans to the American side; at Yujean Kang’s it was the opposite: a French-trained Chinese chef using the techniques he’d learned to tweak Chinese cooking. The restaurant no longer exists: this menu is from 1991.