February 29, 2008

"you oughta be in pictures"

http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifoh yeah, and Reality TV wants me again. http://snipr.com/20p1c I like you, Chef Ramsey, i do... but i'm not going on THIS show either, ok?

Last thing I ate or drank: kurobuta pork sandwich from Violet. MOAN nom nom nom

Technorati Tags: in

February 04, 2008

DineLA review: Minx Restaurant and Lounge in Glendale, CA

Just got home from the most amazing dinner of my DineLA experiences yet: MINX in Glendale! OMG who knew? Everything was PERFECT! Amazing food. Just WOW.

Since the place is all colored lights and triangles of "sails" over the patio, I wasn't sure what to expect. My husband even said he thought it looked like it might be like an upscale version of Chili's.

Boy was he wrong. It was plainly the best meal I've had so far from the DineLA program.

First off, I might mention: the best part of taking my husband with me on these meals is that neither of us is squeamish about eating half of the food and then trading plates. You can never get the full impression of someone else's dish by one bite ferried over on a fork.

We started with an order of crabcakes and an order of ahi tartare. Devoured. Surprise of the appetizer course: onion sprouts! (since the seeds were still attached, I think you call them sprouts as opposed to microgreens?)

Then the entrée. Oh My God. We got the Truffle-crusted New Zealand Lamb Loin with Creamy Polenta, Wild Mushrooms and Truffle Jus;, as well as the Petit Filet Mignon with Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Sautéed Spinach and Beer Battered Onion Rings. Both were amazing... and I have to confess, I had a hard time stopping at half of the lamb so I could pass it to my husband. It was cooked perfectly. The crust was delicious. the mushrooms, veggie puree, the sautéed greens, all of it. YUM. The filet mignon came with a very generous portion of garlic mashed potatoes and sautéed spinach (flavored differently from the lamb's greens) and two enormous onion rings. Someone must have put out a memo and declared all fancy onion rings shall be made from red onion.

By the way, the platings were gorgeous. Everything was arranged just right: sauces, height, colors, balance, all of it. lovely.

My favorite thing about these DineLA menus is that you get dessert. Period. You don't have to ponder and fret over whether or not you should get something, because it's included. He chose the Fiji Apple Tartlet with Cinnamon Crumble and Butter-Pecan Gelato, I got the Chocolate-Hazelnut Pot de Creme with Bourbon Chantilly. He loved his apple dessert, and I think I died and went to heaven with mine. He's not a fan of chocolate, and I'm glad, because I nearly finished the thing! I'm a sucker for hazelnut-praline.

I've got to counter all the negative reviews I'd just seen when looking up the chef's name. I know that this place has been having trouble with finding a good manager, because they're posting ads all the time. The people who complain about the food offered on the menu must not be accustomed to this type of cuisine. Maybe they were also expecting something like Chili's? Also, we were there on a Monday, so there wasn't a huge crowd and there wasn't much of a bar scene at the time, so maybe we were spoiled by the calm environment.

I'm a very harsh critic, I admit, but I've got to say, I couldn't find a single fault with Minx.
service = attentive (<3 again="" p="">atmosphere= very nice
belly= very full

Last thing I ate or drank: I couldn't finish the chocolate pot de crème. ME. Not finishing dessert. Does that convey exactly how rich that thing was? Mmmmmmm!!!

Technorati Tags: in