Pastry chef tracker

Pastry chef Danielle Keene has left BLT Steak, Laurent Tourondel's Sunset Boulevard steakhouse, for the joint kitchens of the Little Door and Little Next Door, on Beverly.  Keene, who changed toques a month ago, was previously at Wilshire, in Santa Monica, where she started Ice Cream Shoppe Night.  The Culver City-born, Sherman Oaks-bred chef says she wanted more menu flexibility — but that what she really wants is, unsurprisingly, an ice cream shop of her own. All in good time.  Meanwhile, Keene, whose resume includes Water Grill, Campanile, AOC and Blair's, is busy making exquisite macarons (yesterday's included blueberry, raspberry, lavender and coconut-caramel), fig and hazelnut poundcake, strawberry-hazelnut Linzer cookies — and pistachio-lemon semifreddo, since the restaurant doesn't have an ice cream machine.  Yet.  When Nicolas Peter, chef at both the Little Door and Little Next Door, got back in town after a week on the East Coast, Keene said she greeted him warmly: "How was your vacation?  When are we getting the ice cream maker?" 

The Little Door, 8164 W. 3rd St., Los Angeles.  (323) 951-1210; Little Next Door, 8142 W. 3rd St., Los Angeles.  (323) 951-1010.

— Amy Scattergood

Photo by Amy Scattergood