Mia Cucina Su Cucina » Church and State Bistro

Tasty Tuesday

Mia — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 07:21:47 +0000

Church and State Bistro (213) 405-1434
1850 Industrial St., Los Angeles, CA 90021

This evening we went to Church and State Bistro for dinner. Walter Manzke is the head chef and the following pictures are a few of the delicious dishes that we sampled tonight. (The pictures are quick snap shots with poor lighting. Not the best pictures.)

Tarte aux Peaches Blancs
White peaches, brie cheese, arugula

Bouillabaisse
Provencal fish soup, prawns, mussels, clams

Confit de Canard
Duck leg, potatoes Sarladaise, pickled cherries

Onions, Carrots, Church & State & Pizza

Mia — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 07:04:28 +0000

Now that you have read the title of my blog, let me explain. I have a bunch of post started and I have not finished. I am really good at carrying around a bunch of posts that I write in my head and then struggle to get them out on paper. They sound so good in my head & then sound really corny on paper. Any way on that note let me start with onions.
I was going to write a post on onions because I love the history behind them & I will finish it sometime soon. But for now this is my favorite line that motivated me to do a post. In ancient Egypt, an onion was placed in the right hand upon taking an oath. Its round shape and layers were a symbol of eternity. Ok, moving right along to carrots.

I have been on a special diet the last 3 weeks. I am not eating carbs, sugar (includes fruit) & dairy. When you are a chef and have to eat this way, it really stretches you to keep your interest in food and still stay true to the diet. On a side note, it will go another 3 weeks, but I am adding in brown rice & red skin potatoes. Now, I need to explain carrots. I found a recipe that fits the diet and tastes so good. It’s colorful, tasty and light. I have been eating it as a main course, but it was label as a appetizer.

Carrot Pillows
(about 12)
Mix together in a medium bowl
5 carrots (medium) peeled & shredded
1 tsp fresh lemon juice or balsamic vinegar (to taste)
a pinch of salt
a few grinds of pepper

Slice 6 slices of prosciutto in half (vertical)
12 fresh basil leaves, washed

Take a piece of prosciutto; place a liberal tablespoon of carrots in the middle, place a basil leaf on top. Starting on a side roll them up and insert a toothpick to hold. They look so bright & pretty.

Enjoy!

Now on to Church & State Bistro,

Church and State Bistro

(213) 405-14341850 Industrial St., Los Angeles, CA 90021

Friday night, Sweet heart and I went to dinner at Church and State Bistro. It opened in September 2008. In December they hired a new chef, Walter Manzke, from the now defunked Bastide . There are many things on the menu: oysters on the half shell, house-made charcuterie, cheese plates and salads. The menu mostly concentrates on the classics — tartes, onion soup, escargot, steak tartare, pommes frites.

We went down for dinner and parked in the secure parking lot. We walk over to the restaurant and were seated at table 44, our favorite, right away. We were warmly greeted by one of the owners, Yassmin Sarmadi (the other owner is Steven Arroyo), and the house manager, Josh. To be continued…………

The food is amazing, atmosphere is fun and the whole experience is so worth it. I will finish this post and give you more details about the food in the very near future. They are doing a wine dinner, Thursday (3-19-09) night, which sounds out of this world. Give them a shout & go on down. It is so worth the drive.

Ok, moving right along to pizza.
I went to Sur La Table the other day and finally got my hands on a Mario Batali cast iron pizza pan. I love it! I washed and oiled it, rolled out the pizza crust & placed it on the pan. I placed on the toppings & popped it in to a 450 degree oven. I baked it for 14 minutes and got the most beautiful pizza. It was a golden brown on top & the bottom was the same way. The pizza came off the pan with zero stick. I have since used it twice and the results have been the same. I am sure the pan could be used to bake free form bread. I love it, but one word of caution, it is extremely heavy as is any cast iron piece. It retail for about $69.95 and is worth every dime. Give the pan a try and let me know what you think.

Whew, I got it all out on paper and now I will go back & make an honest effort to do a post for each topic because, I have a lot more to say & hope you don’t mind reading it.

Support your favorite restaurants…please

Mia — Thu, 05 Feb 2009 05:26:53 +0000

I wrote a post about this subject a couple month back, but it has once again been brought to my attention, that people need to do their part so that when the good times are back again we will have our favorite restaurants to go to. I know of one restaurant that recently had to cut their payroll by a good size chunk to continue to keep the doors open, mind you, this location has a huge following. Think of the new locations that are still struggling to get on their feet and do them a favor and be a regular.

Here are some suggestions to cut back on the total of your bill: Order a few appetizers (you get to taste more of the menu too) and share a main course. Have a drink before you go to dinner and skip the mix drink. Order a bottle of moderately price wine and forgo the wine by the glass. Skip dessert or share one. Go out for dessert and a drink after eating dinner at home. Some restaurants have a “stimulus” menu. (Joe’s has a Prix Fixe Menu for $45. JiRaffe has Monday Night Bistro, 3 courses, $38.) Savor every bite. Go to more than one restaurant in an evening. (I will first go to one and have my meal and then go to the next one for coffee and dessert.) Tip generously and let the chef or restaurateur know how much you appreciate what they’re doing.

You cannot keep the entire restaurant scene alive by yourself, but you can support the restaurants that have meant something to you over the years. Show your face: Don’t just disappear. It’s better to come in more often for a bite at the bar than once in a blue moon for a big blowout dinner.

If we don’t support our restaurants now, they may not be still serving when things turn around and we really have something to celebrate. (I don’t mean to scare you, but do think about it.) My boyfriend and I go to our favorite restaurants; BarPintxo , Joe’s , Josie , Church and State Bistro (213) 405-1434, Piccolo ,Beacon , Melisse , Jiraffe and Casa, because we want to see them through a “tough” time. Please do the same for your favorites and we will all get through this together.
P.S. Valentine’s Day is Saturday Febuary 14th. Don’t forget to make reservations.

Support your local restaurants

Mia — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 18:24:43 +0000

S. Irene Virbila, LA Times restaurant critic, wrote a wonderful article about supporting your local restaurants. I so enjoyed it that I wanted to pass on the article to my readers and include my take on the subject.

With everyone focusing on the “tough” economic times, everyone seems to be staying home and not eating out much. I understand, I have been doing it too. But, we have to remember that when the good times are back again we want our favorite places to be here. My boyfriend and I go to our favorite restaurants; Bar Pintxo , Joe’s , Josie , Church and State Bistro (213) 405-1434, Piccolo , Beacon , Melisse , Jiraffe, Casa – this restaurant is not open yet, because we want to see them through a “tough” time. Please do the same for your favorites and we will all get through this together.

By S. IRENE VIRBILA, Restaurant Critic

November 19, 2008

Mimi Sheraton, the former New York Times restaurant critic, told me that when she gave up reviewing restaurants, she couldn’t wait to cook — and stay — at home again. She relished the thought of not having to go out every night. But on her third or fourth night at home, she and her husband sat down at the dinner table, looked at each other, put down their napkins — and acknowledged the inevitable. “Let’s go out,” she said. And they did.

Cabin fever had set in. And it can happen to any of us. Now that broad swaths of folks across the country are tightening their belts, negotiating a budget (sometimes for the first time) and deciding where to cut expenses, dining out might be getting the ax. Never did staying home and cooking your way through that stack of cookbooks gathering dust by the bed ever look so, well, virtuous. Why go out when we can cook just as well as most restaurants for less than half the price?

Actually, there is a very good reason. If everyone suddenly gives up restaurant-going when times are tough, those favorite restaurants may no longer be around when times get better. Which means it’s a good thing, every once in a while at least, to give in to that cabin fever and go out for dinner.

Oh, eating in every night is fun for a while. Cozy family meals on weeknights, dinner parties or potlucks on the weekends, pancakes Sunday morning. But then there’s the shopping, the cleaning up — the claustrophobia. Only you and your dear ones. And piles of dishes to wash up.

Lately, I seem to be hearing more often from friends who have adopted the stay-at-home diet with a vengeance. “What’s new? What’s hot?” They plague me with questions about the restaurant scene without the least intention of going to any of these places. Kind of like my father, who read every movie review yet never went to a movie.

A place like Palate Food + Wine, where everything is miraculously below $20, may get their attention. But it’s so far, they’ll say. Or they’ll complain that you can’t just waltz in on a Friday night.

Easier reservations

And I have to point out that while your modest neighborhood restaurant may be doing good business, other restaurants are languishing, especially during the week. These days it is possible to walk into Pizzeria Mozza and maybe find a spot at the bar or occasionally nab a reservation at Osteria Mozza later than 5 p.m. and earlier than 10. Need I say more? A table at Cut may still require some lead time, but not as much as before the economic meltdown. Last week, with only a couple of hours’ notice, I got a table at XIV, the new Michael Mina restaurant in West Hollywood.

And what about places that are less well known? The restaurateurs and chefs eager to make their mark on the culinary landscape but without the bank accounts to see them through the slowdown? They need customers — and now.

I can’t help but think that if everybody suddenly becomes incredibly disciplined stay-at-home cooks, when things turn around, which of your favorite restaurants will still be around? Will you be able to indulge in older Barolo and Sangiovese at Valentino or try a bottle from a new producer Piero Selvaggio ferreted out on his last trip to Italy? Will you be able to slip onto the bar stool at Lucques for steak frites with made-to-order béarnaise sauce or dig into a plate of Gino Angelini’s bucatini all’ Amatriciana at Angelini Osteria any time you get the urge? Will Michael Cimarusti still be turning out his astonishing tasting menus at Providence or Pieter Verheyde be pouring some wonderful find from Croatia or Friuli in the garden at Bastide (323-651-5950)? Will you be able to feast on the ham of hams – jamón ibérico – at Bar Pintxo late at night or a towering chilled seafood platter at Anisette?

OK, OK. I don’t mean to scare anybody. Just please, don’t entirely give up on going out to your favorite restaurants. They need your support. Now, more than ever, it’s important to be a regular.

You don’t have to go overboard. Maybe cut back on the pricey cocktails or the glass of Champagne. Order a modest bottle of wine instead of wines by the glass: It’s always a better deal, and you’ll drink better too. Instead of zeroing in on that stupendousbistecca for two or that pasta lavished with truffles, see what else the menu has to offer.

Less costly options

I think you’ll find that restaurateurs share your pain and have added some less-pricey items, or modestly priced prix-fixe meals. You certainly don’t have to feel deprived. There are lots of ways to eat well without going crazy. Share an appetizer or a main course. Skip dessert. But do savor every bite. Tip generously and let the chef or restaurateur know how much you appreciate what they’re doing.

Because if we don’t support our restaurants now, they may not be still serving when things turn around and we really have something to celebrate.

irene.virbila@latimes.com