Paris in Your Backyard: Little Next Door April 3, 2008

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When I walked into Little Next Door for desserts and a cup of warm cappuccino the other night, I felt like I was suddenly back in Paris. The smell of freshly ground coffee beans, the menu written on a chalkboard, and the colorful macarons in the glass showcase took me back to a neighborhood café in Paris, where I spent hours writing postcards to friends back home.
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Little Next Door is a little sister of the lovely The Little Door located … well, you guessed it, next door, and although it’s more of a café than a restaurant, its charm is undeniable. Just like the cafe in Paris, Little Next Door is one of those alluring places where you can sit for hours with friends – and that’s frankly what we did that night, while enjoying late night desserts of Madame Framboise, Macaronade, Éclair, a colorful arrays of delicious French Macarons … with a side of laughter.
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Madame Framboise, chocolate genoise, chocolate mousse, & raspberries
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Macaronade, almond dequoise with pastry cream and raspberries
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Eclair, choux puff filled with vanilla or chocolate pastry cream
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Little Next Door
8164 West Third Street
Los Angeles, CA 90048
★★★★★

French Cafe for the Young at Heart: French 75 Bistro January 30, 2008

As a kid, I always hated getting stuck in the “kid’s table” at parties. You remember those tables, don’t you?  They were the ones in the dark corner where your parents stick you in with other smelly kids while they and other grown-ups indulged in good conversation and way better food than what we kids got.  While sitting on a cheap plastic chair and enduring annoying brats pulling my pigtails from each direction, I promised myself that I too will sit at the grown-ups’ table someday and enjoy a party with dignity.

Twenty-some years later, equipped with maturity (although questionable at times) and a bank account (if you can call it that), I now had the luxury to seat myself at a grown-up’s table with my grown-up friends.

The table we grown-ups selected tonight was in French 75 Bistro, a little French restaurant tucked away in the lobby of an office building in Burbank. We sat ourselves at the (fake) candle-lit bar and ordered fancy champagnes and cocktails, along with fancy appetizers. As I took a sip of Pomegranate Kir (a bubbly with pomegranate juice … yum), I realized that I had finally made it. I was not a kid anymore! I was da shit, ya’ll!  I was all GROWN UP! Hooray!

Then, on the way to the ladies room located in the back of the restaurant, all my beliefs came to a shatter. On the other side of the bar was a REAL French restaurant – an elegant, sophisticated, upper-class dining room where they served dishes like Filet au Roquefort and “Luxe,” (filet mignon and lobster beignet with béarnaise sauce) to people dressed up in fancy dresses – a far cry from the order of happy hour French Fries we were sharing at the bar. Here, in a pair of beat up jeans and raggedy sweater, I was once again back in the dark corner of the room.  I never felt more like a kid. 

But when I returned to the table and looked at my friends, I realized that this was where I belonged — at the kids’ table — and there was nowhere else I’d rather be. We were crazy, loud, playful, happy, carefree and completely childlike, and I loved everything about it. Maybe I’ll never become one those elegant, sophisticated, mature women that I always wanted to be, but that’s okay because the kid’s table is where the real fun is.

Check out what the kids ordered: 

Lobster Bisque with Sweet Paprika Cream

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Dungeness Crab Cake with Corn-Pepper Sauté, Spicy Provencale Aioli

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Spicy Tuna Tartare with Avocado, Crispy Sesame Wafers, Chile Sauce

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‘Bistro Burger’ — 8 oz. Ground Angus Sirloin on Toasted Brioche Bun with French Secret Sauce and Roquefort, Cheddar or Gruyere Applewood Smoked Bacon upon request

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Crepe

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Bread Pudding

 

French 75 Bistro
3400 W. Olive Avenue, Burbank, CA 91505
★★★★☆

Best Friends Forever: La Frite December 18, 2007

My best friend and her family recently relocated to a place far, far away, and although I’m really happy for her and her new life, the move has left a tremendous void in my heart … and my stomach. Not only was she my best friend, she was also my epicurean soul sister, and there was nothing we cherished more than spending time together over a glass of wine and fabulous food. And boy, did we eat over the years (but she never gained weight whereas I gained at least 20 pounds from hanging out with her! Man, what I do in the name of friendship! : - P ).
One of the places we frequented was a little French cafe called La Frite in our neck of the wood because we both loved affordable, friendly, low-key places. The restaurant offered good food and relaxing atmosphere, and although I never thought it offered the best French food in town by any means, the experience certainly hit the spot whenever we were looking for a place to unwind after a long day at work.
The last time we were at La Frite, we spotted a lady eating a cheesy, casserole dish at a table next to us and I had to have whatever it was that she was having. The casserole turned out to be a Ratatouille Crepe. I ordered it out of curiosity and while the idea of having a ratatouille on top of a crepe and baked in cheese sounded heavenly, the whole thing was just a little tad too much for me. But it sure was interesting and I’m glad I tried it (I’m sure Remy will be proud of me). 

Crepe Ratatouille

On the other hand, what my best friend ordered, I thought, was out of this world. It was a daily special of lamb smothered in garlic sauce. I though the meat was cooked to perfection (a little on the rare side which I prefer) and the garlic sauce made my eyes roll backward.

Rack of lamb with garlic sauce

And of course, what’s a French café experience without a platefull of perfectly golden French fries and …

…. cream burle to share?

I guess the reason why La Frite holds such a special place in my heart is because this was (along with other places all over town) our place where we shared laughter and, of course, food coma, together. 

La Frite
22616 Ventura Blvd., Woodland Hills, CA 91364
★★★★☆

Shabby and Chic: Riverside Cafe October 8, 2007

One of the commercials on television today is Sour Patch Kids candy, where a chewy, sugar coated sour candy figure plays terrible pranks on people, only to get away with it because, “first they’re sour, then they’re sweet.” I don’t know anyone who’s charm is so big that they can actually get away with chopping off someone’s hair, throwing eggs with intent to hurt, and allowing a cheerleader to fall on her butt, but if that happens to be the case for you, good for you, you lucky bastard.

When it comes to a restaurant, however, there is a place that is so lovely and charming that it can get away with pretty much anything – even tables and chairs made out of cheap plastic straight from Home Depot. 

Tucked away in the residential neighborhood of Burbank is Riverside Café, a roadside French bistro so tiny that you can drive by it and never realize that you just passed a little gem of a place. The restaurant serves selections from an authentic French menu, from French Onion Soup to lamb – a little difficult to believe from the extremely humble, bungalow-like exterior.

I ordered a medium rare Maitre’d (top), a 12 oz. steak smothered in rich and flavorful garlic butter mixed with a generous portion of chopped Italian parsley. The meat was a little on a tough side but a full juicy flavor burst in my mouth at every bite. My boyfriend ordered the Shepard Pie (above), a layer of seasoned, slow-cooked ground beef resting nicely between a bed of mashed potatoes from the chef’s daily offerings, with a side of crisp French fries (which I devoured most of, as usual).

A dining experience at Riverside Café is like having an intimate dinner at friend’s — a friend who has absolutely no sense of style with her not-so-chic-but-very-shabby floral table cloth and plastic furniture but can cook up a wonderful and cozy meal that will compensate for all the shortcomings.

Riverside Café: 1221 W. Riverside Drive, Burbank, CA 91506

★★★★☆