Sunday Dish

I Won Something...

I wish I were, but I'm just not one of those people who wins things.

Take my BFF Vanessa, now she is one of those people.  I swear, we go to Las Vegas, she talks nice to the slot machine (she really does, she says:  "Hello slot machine, you and I, we're gonna have a relationship...) and apparently the slot machine listens, 'cause she always wins. Once she won to the tune of more than $1000!

Me, not so lucky.  I apparently don't speak slot machine.   I did win a raffle once, at a work function.  Guess what I got?  I giant glass container of beans.  What the f - - - ?   What am I supposed to do with that?  It sat on my kitchen shelf for years, a constant reminder that when I win, I win beans.

But today I woke up, checked my e-mail, and found I did win something.  How fun! 

In a post a while back I concocted a batch of  Basil, Sun Dried Tomato and Hazelnut Pesto for a little food blog competition. 

As I wrote in that post I'm trying to get more involved in the food blogging community.  This was a fun way to get started and we here at home really enjoyed the way the pesto turned out!   

If you guys haven't checked out  Tony Tahhan and his blog Olive Juice  then you don't know what you are missing.    It's a skillfully laid out blog (think lovely pictures of his mise en place for every recipe that have been artfully  photo-shopped) along with being well written and funny.      

He is running a monthly competition called A Taste of the Mediterranean. 

Last months was all about making pesto.

Well, I went for it and I won.  A lovely bottle of olive oil, some pine nuts and pasta will be arriving on my doorstep shortly.  Now, that's not $1000 bucks in Vegas, but it's something!

So there you have it!  Thanks Tony at Olive Juice...

The "Other" Side of the Hill

Like I've said all along, I'm a Valley girl and I'm okay with that.  I believe there are great restaurants, bars, markets and more all to be found right here in the neighborhood.

BUT...sometimes you just need to get to the other side of the hill.  Why?  Chinatown, the beach, a concert at the Bowl etc.  There are somethings that are just so quintessentially not of the Valley that you need to make the trek. 

First let me sing the praises of the Metro Orange Line.  It can link you up to the Red Line in North Hollywood and from there LA is your oyster.  It's a great alternative to driving.  It took many years for the city to even remotely link up the Valley with the rest of their brethren, I say let's take advantage of public transportation and maybe we'll get more!

Find Out Where The Metro Can Take You!

Another great reason to get my arse out of the SFV is my gal Jessica.  We've been friends for years and when her birthday rolled around we all got together for a little nosh, a little wine, and some good company. 
So, without further ado here is the first  the places I found worthy of getting my butt over the hill for.

Vinum Populi:
Update:  Since I went to Vinum, the owners of the place split.  The owner of Vinum sold his share to Ugo, the Italian restaurant next door.  They still have the Enomatic wine system, and continue to serve appetizers (which were always made by Ugo.)  I would gather this place is still worth a try even with the changes.

If you love to sip a little wine and have some seriously delicious "nosh" then I'm telling you, Vinum Populi (now known as Ugo) is worth the trip to Culver City.  But this isn't your average wine bar, no sir.  The place has dozens of wines to taste and  you taste them in a self service style using their enomatic wine system.

First you get an "atm" card of sorts and can put money on it, I started with $20.  Then you  peruse the wines, swipe your card and after the quick push of a button, serve yourself  a 1 oz.  pour.  The 1 oz taste will run you anywhere from a little under a dollar, up to $30 or more.  The price of course depends on the cost of a bottle.

The atmosphere is that of a cocktail party.  And what every good cocktail needs is some good snacks to go with it.  Vinum doesn't let you down.



We tried a cheese plate, pizza with hardboiled egg, olive medley and their pollo con pesto.  All were, hands down, delicious.

This is a terrific place for a fun date or girls night out.

Check out Vinum Populi's website by clicking here...
They haven't changed the website since the split...yet.

Sushi Hirosuke - Mom and Pop Sushi That Hits the Spot

Sushi joints are a dime a dozen in Los Angeles.  So I have to ask myself, what makes someone come back to the same spot time and again?   The freshest of fish, prepared by skilled hands is obviously first on the list, but what about service, or ambiance?  Sadly, in my opinion, this is often what is lacking when I sit down down for sushi.  But Sushi Hirosuke gets it right on at least two of these important ingredients.

While the decor ain't gonna knock your socks off, think very 80's, this place is always packed so there is a good energetic vibe when you eat here.  The service is also really friendly.  From the moment you enter you get the sense that these folks working here care about your time.  I always try to sit at the sushi bar, a gargantuan 25 seater.  But if you are dining with a larger party and want a chance to chat, they also have booths that seat six and a variety of tables.

On a recent night, we started off with the Ozeki Sake, a dry, cold sake that I thought was really good. I prefer cold sake to hot and I don't like it to be too sweet.   To go with that we had a Sapporo as well.   

We then munched on the Sunomono.

It's a simple salad made up of thinly sliced cucumbers, asparagus chunks, seaweed and sesame seeds topped with a simple vinegar based dressing.  It was simple and light and the perfect starter.

From there we ordered several items for the table, including Dynamite. 

It's a bit like a pot pie.  This dish was full of fish, onions and mushrooms and topped off with colorful smelt roe.  The scallops were perfectly cooked and the dish was creamy, but a little rich for my taste.

Much more to my liking was the clean lines of the Albacore Sashimi. 

The texture was velvety, the taste mild and buttery.  It was complemented perfectly by the crunchy fried onions that came with it.

Too bad they missed the mark on the Spicy Scallop Hand Roll. 

First off, it was not even close to being spicy and second, any flavor there might have been was completely masked by the mayonnaise they used to dress the fish.

The Special Tuna Roll was much better. 

There was pretty pink tuna on the outside and rice and vegetables on the inside.  This time the fish was complimented by the creamy, mayo based sauce, rather than overwhelmed by it.

Another dish we all loved was the Seared Tuna Sashimi. 

The fish was meaty and flavorful with excellent texture.  We enjoyed the simplicity of it so much we ordered a second round for the table.

The Spicy Octopus Salad was definitely a winner.  The portion was huge and loaded with lots of fish and fresh vegetables (unfortunately my picture turned out crappy...you'll have to trust me on this one!)

The Unagi, Japanese freshwater eel, wasn't bad at all.  The cute little parcels were prepared just right and dressed lightly.

We finished off with the Spicy Tuna Roll. 

I think of this as a good "beginners"  roll because there is nothing too adventurous about it.  While the spicy factor seemed to be missing, again, the tuna was, again, very fresh and flavorful.  It was a good capper to the meal.

If you go to Sushi Hirosuke for a "hip" dining environment or dishes that are overly exotic, you might leave feeling disappointed.  But at this friendly mom and pop place, where the sushi chefs are competent, the wait staff caring, you will get great service and fresh sushi that is, at the end of the day, really tasty.

Sushi Hirosuke
17237 Ventura Blvd.
Encino, CA
818.888.7548