3 food events you should know about: Mexico's bicentennial at Test Kitchen; 'Tampopo' at Royal/T; '13 Days of Halloween' at Village Bakery

 

Mexico 2010: The Test Kitchen this week celebrates Mexico's bicentennial by hosting Baja chefs Diego Hernandez, formerly of Restaurante Uno in Tijuana; Ismene Venegas of Restaurante La Contra del Parque in Ensenada; and Guillermo Barreto of El Sarmiento restaurant in Ensenada. On Wednesday and Thursday, the three will prepare a spontaneous six-course menu; $50 per person. On Friday and Saturday, Joshua Gil of Mitla, the modern Oaxacan restaurant that he and Bricia Lopez plan to open next month, is offering a five-course menu for $55: sopa de guias with squash vines, chepil, zucchini stems, blossoms, chochoyote and chinicuil sauce; tlayuda of white white beans, mole coloradito, avocado leaves, cactuses and shrimp; braised turkey with hoja santa, black beans, poleo and bean masa tortillas; venison with yellow mole; and guava sponge cake with Oaxacan chocolate and goat milk caramel. 9575 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, (310) 277-0133, testkitchenla.com

Ramen and a movie: Royal/T starts its fall entertainment line-up for "Nighttime @ Royal/T" on Wednesday with a screening of Juzo Itami's "Tampopo," the classic cult film about ramen culture in Japan. Before the screening in Royal/T's back lounge space, Jordan A. Yamaji Smith, a lecturer in Japanese studies and comparative literature at UCLA and Long Beach State, will discuss "Food, Sex, Satire in Modern Japan." A special ramen menu will be available in the cafe starting at 6 p.m. The film starts at 7:30 p.m.  8910 Washington Blvd., Culver City, (310) 559-6300, www.royal-t.org.

Countdown to Halloween: There are still a few days left of "13 Days of Halloween." Until Sunday, the Village Bakery in Atwater Village is featuring a different Halloween treat each day. Peanut butter and dark chocolate "monster eyeballs," bandaged Rice Krispie treat mummy heads, green marshmallow witches' fingers, and meringue ghosts dipped in chocolate and toasted coconut have been a few of the featured baked goods that baker-owner Barbara Monderine has dreamed up. 3119 Los Feliz Blvd., (323) 662-8600, www.thevillagebakeryandcafe.com. 

 -- Betty Hallock

Photo: Balloons over the Angel of Independence in Mexico City in celebration of Mexico's bicentennial. Credit: Marco Ugarte / Associated Press. 

Sang Yoon's Lukshon to open this fall in Culver City

 

Details of Sang Yoon's long-awaited Culver City restaurant Lukshon are starting to surface. Chef-owner Yoon says he and his partner, James Bygrave, expect to open Lukshon "in a few months," featuring a creative, modern menu based on Southeast Asian flavors. 

It sounds ambitious: contemporary dishes that showcase Southeast Asian cuisine and its multicultural culinary influences stamped by French, Dutch and Portuguese colonization. (Yoon isn't forthcoming with details about specific dishes yet.) Despite the name's play on the Yiddish word for noodle (luchen or lucksh), it's not a noodle shop. From the man who imported water from Scotland to mix with his Scotch whiskey at Father's Office and has an experimental test kitchen, expect obsessive inspiration from niche Asian ingredients. He will be making his own sambals and sriracha.

Plan to arrive hungry at Waterloo & City in Culver City

Our restaurant critic, S. Irene Virbila, says there's nothing else quite like Waterloo & City in Culver City, in part because of their charcuterie: "OK, a lot of places make their own charcuterie. But the terrines, pates and cured meats here are the real thing — gutsy and irresistible. Check out the pigs' trotters and sweetbreads with salsa verde or the luxurious chicken liver and foie gras mousse, both, like everything here, served up in generous portions. Order the charcuterie individually or in platters from commoner to king. The king's selection at $26 will feed four to six."

Photo: The bar area at new gastropub Waterloo & City is packed with customers enjoying happy hour. The Culver City spot on Washington Boulevard is not a particularly beautiful space, but it is fun and full of life. Credit: Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times

Taste of the Nation; L.A. Wine Fest; going Italian, the prix fixe way

Foodie fundraiser: Share Our Strength's Taste of the Nation culinary benefit takes place this weekend at Media Park in Culver City to raise money to help end childhood hunger. Participating chefs at this year's Los Angeles event include Jose Andres of the Bazaar, Quinn Hatfield of Hatfield's, Michael Mina of XIV, Ben Ford of Ford's Filling Station and Mark Gold of Eva. An auction will include a one-hour private party for up to 30 people with Ludo Lefebvre's Ludo Fried Chicken Truck. For the full list of participants and to buy tickets, go to www.tasteofthenationla.org. Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m. Tickets are $100 to $150 ($25 for children 12 to 18; kids under 12 are free). Media Park, 9070 Venice Blvd., Culver City.

Wine weekend: The fifth annual L.A. Wine Fest will be held this weekend at Raleigh Studios in Hollywood. The list of featured wineries is heavy on the Central Coast, but also participating this year is an importer of wines from Israel and a distributor of tequila (with 14 tequilas on the tasting roster). Sake and Scotch tastings are on the schedule too. Border Grill Truck and the Let's Be Frank hot dog cart are among the food options. Saturday and Sunday, 2 to 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $100; go to www.lawinefest.com or call (818) 994-4661. Raleigh Studios, 5300 Melrose Ave., Hollywood.

Eating Italia: Starting Saturday and continuing through June 20, six L.A. Italian restaurants are offering special prix fixe menus featuring ingredients from Italy in collaboration with the Italy-America Chamber of Commerce West and the Italian Trade Commission. Drago, Caffe Roma, Il Grano, Il Moro, Locanda del Lago and Valentino will be offering dishes such as fava panna cotta with Dungeness crab, English peas, favas and asparagus (Il Grano); risotto al Gorgonzola "dolce latte" with market red and gold beets (Locanda del Lago); and Sicilian ricotta cassata with prickly pear sorbet (Valentino). Caffe Roma, 350 N. Canon Drive, Beverly Hills, (310) 274-7834, www.cafferomabeverlyhills.com; Drago, 2628 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica, (310) 828-1585, www.celestinodrago.com; Il Grano, 11359 Santa Monica Blvd., www.ilgrano.com; Il Moro, 11400 W. Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles, (310) 575-3530, www.ilmoro.com; Locanda del Lago, 231 Arizona Ave., Santa Monica, (310) 451-3525, www.lagosantamonica.com; Valentino, 3115 Pico Blvd., Santa Monica, (310) 829-4313, www.valentinosm.com.

-- Betty Hallock

Photo credit: Share Our Strength/Taste of the Nation Los Angeles

Chefs discuss L.A.'s dining scene; Anisette does quickie lunch; $5 menu at M Cafe

Chefs of the roundtable: The DineLA Chef Roundtable is scheduled to take place June 8 at the REDCAT theater downtown. The forum will feature chefs Wolfgang Puck, Josiah Citrin, Susan Feniger, Karen Hatfield, Mark Peel and Joachim Splichal in a moderated panel discussion about the evolution and future of the L.A. dining scene. The panel will be followed by a reception hosted by downtown’s Starry Kitchen. 7 to 8 p.m. June 8, REDCAT theater, 631 W. 2nd St., Los Angeles. Reservations required; go to dineLA.com/roundtable. Seating is limited.

Quickie lunch: Chef Alain Giraud at Anisette Brasserie in Santa Monica has created a l'Express lunch menu for the summer. The two-item menu includes soup of the day or salad and either the grilled steak sandwich or the grilled fish brochettes (three different cuts of skewered and grilled fish served with ratatouille), for $18. For $21, you get the dessert du jour. Anisette Brasserie, 225 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica, (310) 395-3200, anisettebrasserie.com.

$5 menu specials: To celebrate its fifth anniversary, M Cafe will offer specials next month, including a $5 menu on June 5 from 5 to 7 p.m. At all three M Cafe locations (the original is on Melrose Avenue, and the other two are in Culver City and Beverly Hills), everything on the menu will be just $5 (items that are less than $5 will be regular price). Yes, that means the Big Macro Burger, normally $9.75, and the M Chopped Salad, normally $11.45, will be five bucks. There also will be rotating $5 specials throughout June. Green tea roll cake made with green tea sponge cake and green tea tofu cream is $5 all month long. 9433 Brighton Way, Beverly Hills, (310) 838-8459; 9343 Culver Blvd., Culver City, (310) 838-4300; 7119 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, (323) 525-0588; www.mcafedechaya.com. 

-- Betty Hallock

Photo: Anisette Brasserie. Credit: Liz O. Bayley / Los Angeles Times.

Openings: Bella Vista and Waterloo & City in Culver City

Bella Vista: This Brazilian pizza place was first brought to our attention thanks to Thrillist, which also attached the menu. I have to admit, I kind of freaked out when I saw the write-up. Having spent some time in Brazil, I became intimate with the country's oddball style of pizza, which can be both sweet and savory and is generously piled with all kinds of unconventional ingredients (by American standards, at least). Now, Bella Vista, owned by a Brazilian expat, is bringing that same brand of pizza -- all-you-can-eat-style -- to Culver City.

Toppings include chicken, corn, tuna fish, green peas, beef stroganoff (yes!), potato sticks, green olives, hearts of palm and fried garlic. Just don't ask for them on the same pie, please. OK, maybe put the green peas and tuna fish together just to get freaky.

Bella Vista, 10826 Venice Blvd; Culver City; (310) 558-2374.

Waterloo & City: Culver City will never resemble London, but with the new Waterloo & City, which opened earlier this week, it is getting a bit of British flavor. The upscale but whimsical gastropub is helmed by executive chef Brendan Collins, who has worked at both Melisse and Palihouse. While at Palihouse, he met his partner in the venture, general manager Carolos Tomazos.

The restaurant is located in the old Crest House Family Restaurant and features recycled church pews painted pink, brown and orange; suede banquettes; high-backed wooden chairs; and a 30-foot copper-topped bar. There is also an 800-square-foot front patio.

On the menu: Manchester quail with chopped liver on toast; gnocchi with shrimp and veal ragù; corn soup with Parmesan ravioli; whole roast chicken with wild mushroom pot pie; as well as a variety of cured meats, terrines and pâtes, including pig trotter with sweetbreads and salsa verde; and chicken liver and foie gras mousse. Twenty-five white and 25 red wines, 10 craft beers on tap and a seasonal cocktail list are also available.

Waterloo & City, 12517 Washington Blvd., Culver City. (310) 391-4222; www.waterlooandcity.com.

-- Jessica Gelt

Photo: A shrimp dish at Waterloo & City. Credit: Waterloo & City.

Celadon Thai Kitchen: A strip mall treasure for your list

Finding the culinary treasures hidden in the concrete quilt of Los Angeles' strip malls is one of this city's hallmark traditions. Given the wealth of options, it's especially satisfying when you get in on the ground floor of a discovery. Which is why you might want to pilot yourself to an odd corner of our metropolis where Marina del Rey, Venice and Culver City rub noses to a new restaurant called Celadon Thai Kitchen.

Opened by lifelong friends Joey Tate and Santi Boonleerawath, Celadon celebrates simplicity and consistency with attention to detail. "We try to stick to the basics," Tate says. "I've seen Thai fusion, and personally, it just turns me off. I want people to know that we're focused on Thai food, and it's what we do best."

To that end, you'll find the usual stars on the menu: pad thai in a tangy peanut sauce; juicy chicken satay; rich tom kha gai soup in a peppery-red coconut broth; tongue-tingling panang curry; tender beef with chili and mint leaves; and the attendant Thai iced tea (a beer and wine license is pending).

To read the rest of Jessica Gelt's story, click here.

Photo: Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times

Foie gras beignets as LudoBites 3.0 debuts at Royal/T

Chef Ludovic Lefebvre built his reputation at fine dining palaces L'Orangerie and Bastide* and cemented it on Top Chef Masters, but he's made his cooking accessible to the rest of us with LudoBites, his pop-up restaurants. These experiments in temporal dining have allowed Lefebvre to innovate in the kitchen while adding an air of exclusivity to dinner. It's all the intensity of an affair without the day-to-day torpor of a marriage.

After a widely acclaimed three-month stint behind the stoves at Breadbar this past summer, Lefebvre on Tuesday night launched LudoBites 3.0 at Japanese maid cafe/art gallery Royal/T. It's a much shorter stint and a much smaller kitchen, but once again, the tattooed French expatriate mixes classic culinary technique with a slew of global influences and ingredients.

Sampler Platter: LudoBites debuts at Royal/T, Padma poses nude, the strongest beer in the world

Ludovic Lefebvre is the man of the hour as his latest pop-up restaurant debuts tonight in Culver City, plus other non-Ludo food news.

-- Kevin Eats previews LudoBites 3.0, which debuts tonight at Royal/T with a wine list curated by Domaine LA.
-- Teenage Gluster and his mom teach chef Ludo to make a mole.
-- A Cadbury descendant crusades against Kraft's potential takeover. Wall Street Journal
-- Street Gourmet LA tastes Samuel Adams' Utopias, the strongest beer in the world.
-- Thieves steal $100,000 of donated food, toys in Orange County. NBC Los Angeles
-- Louisiana restaurants sue vendors after point-of-sale hack. PC World
-- Pregnant "Top Chef" host Padma Lakshmi poses nude for magazine. Hindustan Times
-- Potatomato pops into Mercantile.
-- China welcomes back Canadian bacon. AFP
-- J&D's, the folks who make bacon salt, bring you these new bacon products: BaconPOP popcorn, bacon ranch dressing and bacon-flavored envelopes.
-- Tacos El Fenix: The real Baja fish taco. Gourmet Pigs
-- Some Premium Edge cat foods recalled due to thiamine deficiency. L.A. Unleashed

-- Elina Shatkin

Photo: Chef Kris Morningstar, middle, chats with a customer at Mercantile in Hollywood. Credit: Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times.

Coming soon? Waterloo & City to open in Culver City

Thierry Perez, former co-owner of Fraiche, says he is planning to open Waterloo & City in Culver City by the end of this month or the beginning of 2010. Perez says he has partnered with Carlos Tomazos, who had been manager at Gilt and had worked at Per Se, both in New York.

The third partner and chef, who asked not to be named because he hasn't notified his current employer, describes it as a British-style gastropub with a predominantly Italian and French menu. "He's English and I'm French," Perez says, by way of explaining the menu. The restaurant is named after London's shortest Underground line; until a couple of years ago, Waterloo station also was the terminus for the Eurostar trains that run underneath the English Channel between London and Paris (connecting the dots ... ). The chef formerly worked at Quo Vadis in London, as well as prominent restaurants in L.A. Waterloo & City is not the first concept to be attributed to Perez in the same Washington Boulevard location (the erstwhile Crest House Family Restaurant); things change.

A preliminary menu runs the Ital-Franco-Brit gamut: smoked salmon terrine with toasted brioche; fluke crudo; potted duck confit; grilled quail with chopped liver on toast; trotter and ham sausage; spaghetti alla Bolognese. It doesn't overlook dishes that are particularly beloved in L.A.: beets with goat cheese (and romesco, a Spanish sauce); triple-cooked fries; a burger (maybe made with lamb and served on focaccia). I'm curious about the provenance of ahi tuna and piquillo pepper beignets with avocado and grapefruit.

"There's something for everybody," Perez says. "Maybe fish and chips."

Waterloo & City,12517 Washington Blvd.,Culver City.

-- Betty Hallock

Illustration of Underground roundel / London Passenger Transport Board