Small Bites: 'Seafood for the Future' at Providence; Sona's 7th anniversary menu; Palmina wine dinner at Craft

For the love of seafood: Providence is partnering with the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach to host a "Seafood for the Future Dinner" on Nov. 18. The aquarium's Seafood for the Future program encourages people to make environmentally responsible choices when buying and preparing seafood. Dinner will feature six courses from Providence chef-owner Michael Cimarusti. On the menu: kona kampachi tartare, Alaskan king crab, a niçoise salad with grilled sardines, wild king salmon, wild local swordfish, and dessert. The cost is $115 per person, $160 with wine pairings. Seafood for the Future program manager Andrew Gruel and marine biologist Dave Anderson will be discussing the program with guests, and each guest will receive one complimentary pass to the aquarium. 5955 Melrose Ave., Hollywood, (323) 460-4170.

Happy seventh birthday: Chef David Myers is celebrating Sona's seventh anniversary with a seven-course tasting menu that features guests'  favorite dishes throughout the years. On Tuesday through Thursday evenings through November, the following menu will be available for $77: hamachi with edamame puree, spicy grapefruit, preserved turmeric; Tahitian squash soup with chai foam, anago, pearl tapioca; Maine lobster risotto with kaffir lime leaf; roasted duck with celery root-shiso salad; red wine-braised short rib; baba with quince, pear, grains of paradise sabayon; and chocolate beignets. 401 N. La Cienega Blvd., West Hollywood, (310) 659-7708.

Wine with everything: Craft chef de cuisine Anthony Zappola and pastry chef Shannon Swindle are planning a California-meets-Italy five-course dinner to pair with wines from Palmina winery on Nov. 11. Winemaker Chrystal Clifton will attend to talk with guests and answer any questions. It's $125 per person including wine pairings. Here's the menu: hors d'oeuvres; fluke crudo with citrus and wild fennel; braised Maine lobster with smoked bacon and porcini; roasted California squab with leg ravioli; venison saddle; and almond praline panna cotta with roasted Warren pear. A few wine examples: 2008 Honea Vineyard Tocai Friulano Santa Ynez Valley, 2007 Barbera Santa Barbara County and the 2006 Undici. 10100 Constellation Blvd., Century City, call Tobie Cancino at (424) 204-7485 for reservations or e-mail tcancino@craftlosangeles.com. 

-- Betty Hallock

Photo: Aquarium of the Pacific

What's behind the clash of red wine and some fish?

Japanese scientists have figured out why eating seafood with red wine can leave an unpleasant aftertaste.

There's something behind that frequently discredited rule that only white wine goes with fish, the researchers say. The flavor clash is caused by naturally occurring iron in red wine, Takayuki Tamura and colleagues report in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

Now here's a tough job: The scientists had tasters -- all of them with wine-tasting experience -- try 38 red wines and 26 white wines while eating dried scallops. The wines came from several countries.

The tasters ate a bit of scallop, tasted some wine and evaluated the aftertaste on a scale of 1 to 4. The diners found the unpleasant aftertaste was more intense with wines that had a higher iron content, the researchers say. The amount of iron in the wine varied depending on variety, vintage and country of origin.

Read the scientists' report here.

Of course, plain dried scallops are no diner's dream, and how the fish is prepared is among other factors in pairing food and wine. Plain, fried, sauced, the herbs and spices used all play a role. In their book "Wine and Food Pairing," Tony DiDio and Amy Zavatto suggest red wine can work with tuna, cod, lobster and other seafoods.

For more detailed suggestions for figuring out the terrain, there's a book by Andrew Dornenburg and Karen Page, "What to Drink With What You Eat," which The Times recommends.

-- Mary MacVean

Photo: Mike Farwell pours a glass at Noir Food and Wine in Pasadena. Credit: Christine Cotter / Los Angeles Times

Sampler Platter: A rave review from Oprah, insane recipes from the Futurist Cookbook and cow brain curry

The most insane cookbook you will ever read, news about Doughboys and cow brains top today's food news roundup.

-- L.A.-based vegan chef Tal Ronnen, author of "The Conscious Cook," makes an appearance on "Oprah" today -- and The O calls him the best vegan chef in America.
-- Welcome to the Futurist Cookbook, featuring battered and deep-fried roses, a chicken stuffed with ball bearings, salami cooked in espresso and then flavored with eau de Cologne. And then it gets weird. “I’m dazzled! Your genius frightens me!” The Smart Set
-- Recipe: butterscotch cashew bars. Why? Because they sound amazing. James Beard Foundation
-- Cow brain curry at Raso Minang in West Covina. Why? Because it sounds amazing. Gourmet Pigs
-- The 99-Cent Chef visits the cornucopia of carts in MacArthur Park.
-- Is your seafood hurting the planet? Greenspace
-- Want to keep up with the latest food recalls? Sign up for Safe Tables' e-alerts.
-- Irvine local Hai Vo wins Brower Youth Award for his efforts to get the UC system to commit to 20% real food procurement by 2020.
-- Per property owner Charlie Jacob, Doughboys is shooting for a Dec. 1 opening. Blackburn + Sweetzer
-- New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg wades into the bagel wars. New York Daily News
-- Just in time for Halloween: Witches' Fingers -- sugar cookies with raspberry jam for cuticles and sliced almonds for fingernails -- from the recently opened Village Bakery and Cafe in Atwater Village.

-- Elina Shatkin

Photo credit: Sue Sawyer

Ceviche shows off seafood at science center

Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken made ceviche Tuesday morning for a gathering at the California Science Center in Exposition Park to mark the release of a report on the state of the oceans from the Monterey Bay Aquarium. The aquarium also issued a list of "Super Green" seafood choices -- those that are healthy for people and the planet.

Feniger and Milliken are among about two dozen chefs from around the country who pledged to serve only sustainable seafood in their restaurants and to recruit colleagues to the cause. Milliken says they sometimes consult with the aquarium to make sure the choices are sustainable.

The following recipe, provided by chefs, was not tested in The Times test kitchen.

Chefs, companies promise to use sustainable seafood; 'Super Green' list issued

Alton Brown is voting with his taste buds.

He is among more than two dozen chefs -- who also include Suzanne Goin of Lucques, Susan Feniger and Mary Sue Milliken of Border Grill and Rick Moonen of rm seafood in Las Vegas --  from around the country who are pledging today to serve only sustainable seafood and to recruit their colleagues and customers to join them.

Their effort is organized by the Monterey Bay Aquarium, which is releasing a report today on the state of the oceans as well as a "Super Green" list of seafood that is healthy for people and the planet. On the list are some albacore tuna caught in the U.S. or British Columbia, wild-caught salmon from Alaska and pink shrimp from Oregon, among others.

"Every bite you take is like a vote ... a statement of values," says Brown, of Food Network fame. "I value healthy oceans, oceans that have cared well for mankind through the ages. It's high time we took better care of our seas and the bounty they produce."

The chefs are committing not to serve fish from the aquarium's "avoid" list -- rated by scientists as destructive to the oceans.

Other chefs include Rick Bayless of Topolobampo in Chicago, Susan Spicer of Bayona in New Orleans, and Michel Nischan of the Dressing Room in Westport, Conn. In addition to the chefs, the aquarium noted that food companies are also making changes. Compass Group and Aramark, the two largest food services companies in North America, have partnered with the aquarium to shift to sustainable seafood sources. The report cites the efforts of other companies, including a commitment Wal-Mart made in 2006 to, within five years, source all its wild-caught seafood from fisheries certified by the Marine Stewardship Council, which was established by the World Wildlife Fund and Unilever.

The aquarium's report says that prospects for the oceans are improving with a growing consensus to manage wild and farm fishing. But it also sets out significant problems that remain for the oceans and cites the human demand for seafood as the primary factor in the oceans' decline.

The report says that the world seafood supply was 110 million tons in 2006 -- eight times what it was in 1950, with Asia accounting for more than half the global catch. And in the next year, it says, people will eat more farmed seafood than wild for the first time.

The "Super Green" list was developed in conjunction with the Harvard School of Public Health and the Environmental Defense Fund.

This year is the 25th anniversary of the aquarium and the 10th anniversary of its Seafood Watch program, which advised people on what fish to buy and to avoid for their health and that of the oceans. The aquarium says it has distributed 32 million Seafood Watch pocket brochures.

-- Mary MacVean

Photo: Monterey Bay Aquarium

Spiny lobster season starts!

Spiny lobster season in Southern California opened last week, and that means hungry shoppers were lined up at Pearson’s Port this weekend. Located in the harbor at Newport Beach, Pearson’s is a second-generation dream come true for local lovers of seafood. Tommy Pearson is a fisherman who specializes in spot prawns during the summer and spiny lobsters during the winter. He’ll also bring in whatever fish he happens to catch while he’s out on the water tending his traps. His wife, Terese, runs the store, which is really just a shack housing a dozen or so live tanks.

The place can be a little hard to find -- it’s literally in Newport harbor, at the end of a short pier just underneath the Pacific Coast Highway bridge (I rent kayaks right next door). Turn in just before the trailer park and drive down to the water.

Prices this year are the same as last -- $17.99 a pound. And Terese says early fishing has been good, so supplies are plentiful. Spiny lobsters seem to me a bit leaner and more minerally than their Maine cousins (plus they don’t have front claws). My favorite way to fix them is to split them, brush them with herb butter and grill them -- flesh-side down for a couple of minutes, just long enough to firm the meat -- and then turn them over. They’re done when the meat begins to pull away from the shell. Don’t overcook them or they’ll dry out.

If you can’t make it to Newport, you can also find spinys at good local fish markets, including Quality Seafood in Redondo Beach, Los Angeles Fish Co. downtown, Malibu Seafood, Fish King in Glendale and the various Santa Monica Seafood stores. Call first to make sure they’re in stock.

Pearson’s Port, 100 E. Coast Highway, Newport Beach, (949) 675-6771.

-- Russ Parsons

Photo of Terese Pearson by Karen Tapia-Anderson / Los Angeles Times

Sampler Platter: Agura sushi soft-opens, absinthe in Rome, Halloween cupcakes

A cupcake so cute it's scary, a Roman milk bar and a new sushi restaurant on La Cienega lead our food news roundup.

-- Teetotalers may be more depressed than drinkers. Time
-- Absinthe in a chocolate shake? Welcome to Latte Piu, a milk bar in Rome that’s patterned after "Clockwork Orange's" Korova. Los Angeles Times
-- Agura sushi on La Cienega soft-opens. Blackburn + Sweetzer
-- Figs, cupcakes, Guy Fieri and seven more things David Chang and Anthony Bourdain hate. Grub Street LA
-- San Diego Meat Co. recalls 925 pounds of beef products due to E. coli threat. Los Angeles Times
-- Red Mango has a new seasonal flavor: pumpkin spice.
-- Most adorable Halloween cupcake ever? We Love You So

-- Elina Shatkin

Photo: It looks innocuous, but the Diavaolo, a chocolate milkshake with 80-proof absinthe, packs a big punch. It's served at Latte Piu, a milk bar in Rome. Credit: Baxter Holmes / For The Times

Sustainable seafood lecture at the Aquarium of the Pacific

Join Andrew Gruel and Dave Anderson (Gruel is the manager and Anderson is the sustainable seafood officer for the Aquarium of the Pacific's Seafood for the Future program) for an enlightening discussion called "Sustainable seafood: good for your health and good for the planet."

The two will be joined by a panel of experts, including Times Food columnist and editor Russ Parsons and Providence chef Michael Cimarusti, to talk about how to make the correct decisions when it comes to eating from the sea. The talk will revolve around subjects crucial to the future of the planet (and your access to tasty seafood), including the impact of overfishing and the carbon footprint left by the fishing industry. The role of aquaculture in meeting the increasing demand for seafood will also be discussed.

Most importantly, you'll learn about what you can do to shop and eat with sustainability in mind.

Aquarium of the Pacific, 100 Aquarium Way, Long Beach, 7 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 24. $8. (562) 590-3100, ext. 0. www.aquariumofpacific.org.

--Jessica Gelt

Photo: Crabs are weighed at a wholesale dealer in the main fish market in Beijing. China is the world's largest producer and consumer of fish and seafood. Credit: EPA / Adrian Bradshaw

Eat fish, get into Long Beach aquarium free

Eat the environmentally correct fish, get a free ticket to the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach.

A group of local seafood restaurants has teamed with the aquarium on a program that encourages people to pick fish and seafood entrees that don't threaten the world's already depleted fisheries.

Click here for more information.

Photo: A 4-foot zebra shark -- called that despite its spots -- cruises the Shark Lagoon exhibit at the Aquarium of the Pacific. Credit: Allen J. Schaben  / Los Angeles Times

Scene Setter: Blue Plate Oysterette in Santa Monica

When a littleneck clam is unearthed from its sandy abode and placed into a bucket of water that has been sprinkled with cornmeal, its vulnerable body will stretch to great lengths to reach the food. It's a touching sight, the way it strives to eat what will ultimately speed its demise.

Such is the way with the steamers served at Santa Monica's new seafood restaurant, Blue Plate Oysterette. They feed and purge themselves of grit before they are served in a large bowl with a smooth, buttered broth and thick slices of grilled bread, perfect for sopping up that delicious juice. (Apologies to poetically tragic mollusks everywhere.)

BP, as the restaurant is called for short, is owner Jenny Morton's second restaurant (she also owns Blue Plate on Montana Avenue). She says her inspiration for BP was twofold: First, she doesn't eat meat but loves shellfish; and second, she found herself wondering why there isn't a "place in Santa Monica to get informal, small plates of seafood at reasonable prices?"

From the look of the 50-seat restaurant on Ocean Avenue, just a few blocks from the pier, lots of people have been wondering the same thing. BP has been open less than two weeks, but it is already reeling in plenty of customers. On a recent Thursday night, the shotgun-shack-shaped room was packed with diners seated side by side at a long row of horizontal tables, much like gourmet sardines in an attractive, beachy tin.

To read the rest of Jessica Gelt's story (and to see a tasty photo gallery), click here.

Photo: Lobster roll on brioche with homemade sweet potato chips. Credit: Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times