Caroline on Crack | March 2010

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Monthly Archives: March 2010

March 9, 2010

CoC’s Giving Up Booze for Lent

I'm so thirsty.

For Lent, I decided to give up booze. Now, I’m not religious or anything, I just figured it would be cool to see if I can actually give up my most favorite thing (next to gummy bears, salted caramel, dark chocolate and bacon) for 40 days. That, and I felt like my liver could use the break.

It’s only 40-something days, right?

I started on February 17 and since this isn’t really for Lent, my booze fast will end on April 1 (see countdown clock on the right) when I’m considering doing up a happy hour somewhere to celebrate cuz I’m going to want to. Perhaps Copa d’Oro? Maybe Bar Food? I’ll keep you posted.

So 21 days into it and I’ve managed to survive Radio Room, post-race celebration (my Lemons team’s third victory) and an absinthe party at First & Hope with nary a drink. I’ve had dreams of drinking and have suffered bouts of dry mouth but I will stick to this fast dammit!

In the meantime, I’m compiling a list of things I like to drink as soon as it’s April 1*. Sigh. I’m so thirsty.

1. Maker’s Manhattan

2. Sazerac

3. Eleven Madison’s Dukes Martini (in NYC)

4. 8 oz. Requiem Espresso Stout Float

5. Milkshake Madness at BLD

6. Rickhouse’s Kentucky Buck (in San Francisco)

7. Ice cream with bourbon at the Mercantile

8. Sam Adams’ Utopias

9. Drago Centro‘s Pikesville Rye Manhattan (only $5!)

10. LAMill’s Black & Black

11. ’95 Knappogue Castle single malt

12. Rivera’s The Dude Abides: “A deconstructed White Russian” with pecan tincture and cinnamon

This list will no doubt continue to grow as the days progress.

And if you think this blog will be booze free, you’re wrong. I’ll still post drinking events and such but I won’t review cocktails unless I can get a taste tester to do it in my place. And I’ll definitely review options for those who don’t drink, like tasty mocktails. FYI, ginger beer is definitely the most satisfying way to go. It’s heartier and more flavorful than cola or gingerale. Anyway, at least my friends are happy cuz now they have a designated driver.

UPDATE: I moved my end-of-booze-fast date to March 28 since I got invited to a scotch lunch that I just can’t turn down. I don’t feel too guilty about it since 1) this was supposed to be Lent lite where I was going to allow myself some alcohol anyway and 2) I had originally said I’d end this on the 29th (actual 40 days) and then pushed it to April to round it out.

Categories: Cocktails, Los Angeles

13 Comments

March 4, 2010

Blog Bite: Oysters, $1 Cocktail & Free Champagne at the Edison

Want to feel oh-so elegant? This Thursday night at the Edison, you can get a free glass of champagne when you purchase a half dozen oysters (or spend $5 or more) and bring in a copy of the email the Edison sent you when you subscribed to their emailing list. But don’t fret if you forget the email. Each guest can get one sample of the tasty oysters if you ask nicely. Maitre Ecailler/Chef Christophe Happillon, of Joe’s and Saint Amour, is a darling.

Cocktail lovers can enjoy the night’s featured cocktail for only “100 cents.” The Black Tea Collins is made of tea-infused gin, lemon, sugar and soda. Both specials are only one per person.

BTW, the special offer changes every week so be sure to sign up on their emailing list.

EVENT: THURSDAYS from 5 to 7pm

The Edison
108 W. 2nd Street #101
Los Angeles, California 90012 (map)
(213) 613-0000

Categories: Blog Bites

This Weekend: Wonderland High Tea, Bourbon Night, Young Directors

I’m outtie again this weekend. Yet another 24 Hours of Lemons race I gotta go to. This one up in Sonoma. Sucks considering there are all these fun things going on in L.A. Anyway, have fun.

Friday, March 5

CorkBar 1-Year Anniversary
Downtown wine bar celebrates its one-year anniversary with a special Founder’s Flight ($18) — a selection of five wines that helped inspire the owner to create Corkbar. Includes Brander Sauvignon Blanc, Keenan Chardonnay, Melville Syrah, Terra Valentine Cabernet Sauvignon & Frank Family Zinfandel. They’ll also be pouring some by-the-bottle-only wines by the glass!

Corkbar, 403 West 12th Street, Los Angeles (map).

Royal/T’s Alice in Wonderland High Tea
Seems L.A. is going mad as a hatter for Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland as evidence by all the high tea events. But Royal/T’s is sure to stand out, not only for its Japanese cosplay servers but the $25 high tea of playing cards tea sandwiches, a vanilla “Eat Me” cupcake, kobe beef slider, a cup of “Drink Me” Royal/T Green Milk Tea blend, blue mushroom-shaped meringues and Cheshire Cat macaroons with Earl Grey tea filling (both by BakeLab). Be sure to swing by on Saturday for the Wonderland-themed fashion show and to check out the newest exhibit, �The Never Ending Story: Fairytale, Fantasy and Obsession.”

Royal/T, 8910 Washington Boulevard, Culver City (map). (310) 559-6300

Provence Wine Council Tasting Event
Explore the wines from the Provence Region of France at this delicious wine event which is held in conjunction with the Provence Wine Council, a gathering of the largest selection of winemakers from Provence ever assembled on the West Coast. Oenophiles can enjoy 35 not-yet-available labels, winemaker discussions and Provincial French food.

6pm-1am. $55 (plus $4.02 transaction fee). Vinoteque on Melrose, 7469 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles (map).

Friday Night Spirits — Bourbon
What better way to kick off the weekend than with a series of bourbons? The Wine House in West L.A. hosts a bourbon tasting where guests will get to sample all types and styles of my fave booze at a variety of price ranges. Find out which bourbon is your new favorite.

7:30pm. $50. The Wine House, 2311 Cotner Avenue, Los Angeles (map). Reservations: 310-479-3731, Ext. 0.

Saturday, March 6

LACMA’s Young Directors’ Night
Celebrate L.A.’s new talent at LACMA’s Young Directors Night. Six short films will be screened and there will be a panel discussion with the directors afterward. But, definitely stay for the after-party across the street at A+D Museum where you can peruse the galleries and video installations and partake of the open bar featuring Maker’s Mark and Malibu Family Wines as well as Sprinkles Cupcakes! If you want to go to the OK Go release party on Friday, you can purchase tickets to that event plus this one for only $40 and save $10.

8pm-12am. $30. LACMA�s Bing Theater and A+D Museum, 5905 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles (map).

Sunday, March 7

Beefsteak Sundays at Bacaro LA
Apparently these Beefsteak Sundays are uber popular and there are only 32 seats so chances are it’s already booked up but give it a shot. Sorry! I just found out about this yesterday. If you are SOL, just make your ressies for next month’s event where it’s all-you-can-consume-beer/wine-and steak for only $25! There are two seatings, 5:30pm and 8pm, every first Sunday of the month.

5:30pm and 8pm. $25. Bacaro LA, 2308 S Union Avenue, Los Angeles (map). RSVP: Call (213) 748-7205 or email bacaro_la [at] yahoo.com.

Rustic Canyon’s Spring Beer Bash Dinner with the Beer Chick
But I will give you the heads-up to this tasty event on March 23 at the Santa Monica restaurant where, for $75, you get to enjoy five courses of fresh spring fare paired with five beers provided by Beer Chick, Christina Perozzi and featuring local breweries, The Bruery, Craftsman and Skyscraper Brewing Co.

Event date: Tuesday, March 23. $75 (includes beer). Rustic Canyon, 1119 Wilshire Boulevard, Santa Monica (map). Reservations: (310) 393-7050.

Categories: Art, Dining, Lists, Los Angeles, Movies, Nightlife

Huckleberry Cafe’s Salted Caramel Bar

Huckleberry Cafe's Salted Caramel Bar

Dropped by Huckleberry Cafe in Santa Monica after being inspired to do so from my Tweeps @dianatakesabite and @laocfoodie who had been discussing the cafe’s pizza of the day — purple sprouting broccoli, roasted potatoes, caramelized onions & goat cheese. So I was in line about to close out my bill when I spotted a tray of salted caramel bars in the refrigerated case conveniently located right by the cash register.

They’re the biggest slabs of caramel I’ve ever seen; brownie square size. They look like lemon bars in that the sweet part sits atop a shortbread layer. “Are those too sweet?” I asked the lady behind the counter. “They are pretty rich but you can cut them in squares…they’re my absolute favorite thing ever,” she said. Sold!

The thing is I knew I wouldn’t be able to eat the bar in one sitting. I mean, it’s a huge piece of caramel. But the lady gave me a little plastic container to store it in the fridge between bites.

When I got the bar back to my desk, I cut off a sliver. At this point the caramel was already soft and sticky. I licked my fingers clean of the remnants of the caramel left behind when I picked it up. It was so sweet, brown sugary with that hint of saltiness that hooks you and tricks you into eating more. Reminded me of the fleur de sel caramels I used to make. The hard cookie crust was buttery and crumbled when I cut the bar in pieces. After the first bite I felt a little dizzy from that shot of sugar hitting my bloodstream. OK, one more tiny square and this goes in the fridge.

Thing is, it never made it to the fridge. I kept it on my desk and watched the edges of the caramel square start to round out as it warmed up in the room temperature. The bar got smaller and smaller and then disappeared into my happy belly.

Definitely the best $2.50 I ever spent. Yup! It was only $2.50 for that bar. An awesome deal considering brownie bars at Starbucks usually cost $3+.

Huckleberry Cafe
1014 Wilshire Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90401 (map)
(310) 451-2311

Categories: Dining, Los Angeles, Sweets

10 Comments

March 2, 2010

Blog Bite: BLT’s $3.03 Cocktails, $33.04 Steak

Braised Short Ribs

BLT Restaurants are celebrating the sixth anniversary of the original BLT Steak restaurant in Manhattan and, yay for us, we all benefit! Yup, for one day only — tomorrow, March 3 — patrons can enjoy lunch and dinner for cheap-for-BLT prices.

Executive Chef and Partner Laurent Tourondel says, �Thank you to all of our customers and friends who have supported BLT Restaurants over the last six years. We are grateful for a fantastic run and look forward to celebrating many future birthdays together.�

We’re talking main courses like New York strip steaks, Dover Sole and rib eye for $33.04. Representing BLT Steak�s birth date, March 3, 2004. Normally the strip steak is $37, Dover Sole is $50 and a bone-in rib eye is $36.

Sides like the jalapeno mashed potatoes and Hen of the Woods mushrooms will also be priced down from $8-$10 to only $3.03.

However, I’m most excited about the desserts and cocktails, which will also be priced at only $3.03! Desserts are usually 10 bucks while signature BLT cocktails run for $14-$15.

Cocktails include:

BLT Punch: Captain Morgan, Grand Marnier, lime juice and ginger beer
Agua Fresca: P.I.N.K vodka, agave nectar, lime cucumber and cilantro
Gin-ne Sais Quoi: Bombay gin, Domaine de Canton and lemon juice

True, cocktails sound m’OK but, hey, they’re only $3.03. That means five of those equal about one drink at most schmancy L.A. bars. Perfect if all you want to do is get buzzed.

BTW, this is the only fine print I could find on the press release about this deal:

Birthday specials are valid at lunch and dinner on Wednesday, March 3, 2010 at all BLT Steak and BLT Prime locations in the U.S. Certain exclusions apply. Reservations recommended.

Apparently you don’t have to go here for a whole meal to enjoy the deal. Discounted drinks and desserts can be enjoyed a la carte.

BLT Steak
8720 West Sunset Boulevard
West Hollywood, California 90069 (map)
(310) 360-1950

Categories: Blog Bites, Dining, Los Angeles

3 Comments

March 2, 2010

10 Things I Learned From Master Sake Sommelier Yuji Matsumoto

Sake Sommelier Yuji Matsumoto

I was scarred by Tokyo Delve‘s so admittedly wasn’t all that thrilled about doing sake and sushi at a Hollywood Japanese chain restaurant. Little did I know that it wasn’t to be an evening of sake bombs, too-sweet teriyaki and the chicken dance. Rather, an upscale evening with great quality food and the only master sake sommelier in North America, Yuji Matsumoto.

Yup, blogger H.C. and I were given our very own private lesson on the finer points of sake at Kabuki Hollywood, a sushi restaurant located next door to Ivan Kane’s Cafe Was on Vine Street. There, Yuji Matsumoto guided us through different types of sake and how to pair them with food, ranging from tempura vegetables to specialty rolls.

Here are just some of the things I learned from this very knowledgeable boozer.

1. Sake, like wine, can be paired with food, thanks to Yuji-san’s handy-dandy patented sake food pairing chart. He actually had to taste over 800 sake to develop this chart. I know, violins.

Spring type: Citrus-floral flavors and light to medium body that pairs with lighter fare like white fish, oyster and shell fish
Summer type: Floral-fruity flavors and more medium to full body that pairs with tempura, sashimi and grilled fish
Fall type: Fruity-sour flavors and medium to more full body that pairs with chicken, stew and marinated fish
Winter type: Sour-aged flavors and full body that pairs with rich foods like beef, cheese, lamb and pork

2. At Kabuki, they have an array of sake-based cocktails. I assumed that the sake sommelier would look upon this with disdain but he said that sake cocktails are a great way to introduce the uninitiated to sake and that the cocktails were actually created to showcase the sake flavors. The Tokyo Mojito, made with both shochu (“Asian vodka”) and sake and available in a variety of flavors, is his favorite.

3. The term “sake” is actually a generic word for alcohol, and is used for the rice wine outside of Japan. The correct word is “nihonshu.”

4. Drinking sake warm is not only better for your health but a great way to get instantly drunk.

5. It’s a misconception to serve bad sake hot to mask the flavor. Yuji-san says you should chill it.

6. Despite what teetotalers say, sake has many health benefits, including preventing cancer and cirrhosis because of its amino acids, preventing senility because of peptide which is effective in preventing forgetfulness and preventing osteoprosis in women as sake is found to increase hormones in women when drunk in moderation (three to six glasses a week).

7. Opt to enjoy sake in a wine glass as it allows its fragrance to blossom fully.

8. Best places to buy good sake in Los Angeles are Marukai Supermarket and Mitsuwa Market Place as they know how to store sake. Yuji-san also lists Whole Foods, Bristol Farms and Trader Joe’s as options but didn’t seem as enthused about them as the first two.

9. Always buy sake chilled.

10. And since I’m not a big sake drinker, I had no idea it had about as much alcohol as wine. I know, I know duh.

BTW, Kabuki Hollywood has a specialty cocktail menu that basically consists of saketinis and chu-his (shochu with fruit flavors) as well as tropical “classic cocktails” like Mai Tai and Chi Chi. Yeah. Eh. But the night H.C. and I went, Yuji-san had to leave our table to meet up with none other than cocktail consultants Steve Livigni and Daniel Nelson of Top Notch Beverage Consulting. Could that mean Kabuki will get a cocktail revamping? Fingers crossed!

Kabuki Hollywood
1545 Vine Street
Los Angeles, California 90028 (map)
(323) 464-6003
Yuji’s Twitter: @SakeRonin

Categories: Cocktails, Los Angeles

2 Comments

March 1, 2010

A Q&A With Joseph Brooke of The Edison

Joseph Brooke, The Edison's new director of spirits

I was bummed that I couldn’t get anywhere near the dreamy and very much in demand Joseph Brooke, the Edison’s new director of spirits, when he was mixing cocktails at the packed Radio Room last week. But was thrilled when I got the chance to interview him for LA Weekly‘s Squid Ink. For that, Joe gave me 40 minutes of great stories, insights and even cocktail recipes.

I thought for sure my editor wouldn’t want to use the whole Q&A. Although damn interesting, it was pretty long for a Squid Ink blog post. But I figured I’d just take whatever questions she didn’t want to use and post them on my blog. Turns out she liked ‘em all. Yay!

It’s long but if you’re so inclined and have any interest about where the Edison is heading under Joe’s command, what’s going to be the next It cocktail and who’s his bartender idol, you might want to give it a look-see. He’s a pretty funny and interesting guy so you won’t get bored.

And I’m happy to say that Joe was also good enough to give me a couple of cocktail recipes that he’s going to add to the Edison’s menu. His Porco Rosso debuted at the Radio Room last week and his tentatively named Jack Doe is an aromatic that he created for a quick shake and dump. But I’m especially excited that he gave me a mocktail recipe, too, since I’m on my booze fast til April. Anyway, enjoy.

Although it’s pretty dark, here’s a video of Joe shaking up a cocktail.

Categories: Cocktails, Los Angeles

5 Comments