Review - Seoul Town Tapas at Breadbar

Grilled Nutella Sammie w/ Pain de Mie and Blueberries

Last Saturday night, the Mister and I wandered over to Breadbar on west 3rd, to dine at chef Debbie Lee's pop-up restaurant, Seoul Town Tapas, a modern take on Korean Pub Grub. Oddly enough I haven't seen/read any reviews, considering how much coverage Ludovic Lefebvre received at the same location, twice.

Here are my thoughts:

1. This type of venue/menu would be a nice permanent addition to the neighborhood, but it isn't "destination" food that draws "foodies", hence the lack of buzz. Everything we ate was simple and enjoyable, but not necessarily worth driving across town for. Chef Lee needs to make sure that wherever she plans her permanent location should have heavy foot traffic.
2. Her menu would actually work really well as a food-truck concept.
3. My faves were the daikon kimchee amuse bouche, the curry hummus w/wonton crostini, the chicken meatball (tasted like sweet/sour chicken) and the ultra-yummy (soon to be recreated at home) grilled nutella w/ blueberries sandwich (pic above).
4. Prices were good, but I thought $16 was a bit much for the Korean Fried Chicken. I have a very high bar when it comes to fried chicken, and I only enjoyed it $10's worth.
5. Chef Lee would benefit from coming out of the kitchen from time to time. I like it when chefs connect with their diners, even if it's minimal.
6. Am planning on returning before this ends on April 10th, since it's an easy and walkable few blocks away. Will definitely try another dessert and forgo the fried chicken.

Until next time... Miss Absinthe

Sunday Strawberry Sweet

Sweetie-pie surprised me today with a strawberry macaroon from Breadbar and it was large enough for us to share.

Though a larger and bit denser interpretation from traditional macaroons (I miss Boule), I enjoyed this pretty pink perfection and look forward to trying their vanilla and coffee flavors.

Until next time... Miss Absinthe

Cause Three Out of Four Ain't Bad...

1. Saw Star Trek again - check (first time I've been to a movie twice since I was a kid and still loved it!)
2. Ate two fried shrimp taco's at Best Fish Taco in Ensenada - check (and the owner was soo charming)
3. Took three pics - check
4. and BH Farmer's Market - yeah well... felt like sleeping in, so next week for sure - uh huh. ;)
5. BUT I did spend two hours today in the back yard removing more dirt, planting some mint, lavender and spider plants, and one of my neighbors' threw out a small particle-board bistro table that will be perfect for having my morning coffee at, so I took it and moved it to our side of the yard, having to feng shui/re-arrange yet again the motley crew of old furniture. I've scored so much from what my neighbors throw out!
6. Did I mention the pain au chocolat from Breadbar? Simple pastry heaven.

Was sitting in the living room today, watching Born Yesterday w/ Judy Holliday & William Holden (major crush), feet up on coffee table and afternoon sunlight streaming though the windows and vintage wood screen, casting shadows on my toes, so I asked Sweetie-pie to take a pic...

It turned out better that I had anticipated!!! My toes look like candy and my feet are bird-esque, perhaps a peacock's pedicure?

Five points to anyone who gets what today's blog-title is a reference to. Prizes to be determined... uh huh.

Until next time... Miss Absinthe

1st Self Portrait with Diana F+

Wondering what adventures are on the horizon...

Until next time... Miss Absinthe

My First Ever Diana F+ Pic!

Birthday lunch at Breadbar (addicted, oui!) and the manager was so sweet and created an incredible mini-dessert sampler (chocolate souffle, creme brulee and bread pudding) for me to share.

As you can see, I had difficulty advancing the frame and a double exposure occurred. That's what I love about this camera, a marriage of creativity and chaos.

I just finished shooting the second roll today, mainly in my neighborhood alleyways and keeping fingers crossed, will have something groovy to post next week!

Until next time... Miss Absinthe

Passionfruit/Mango Mousse at Breadbar on 3rd

Happiness is this divine passionfruit/mango mousse garnished with chocolate stripes and topped with a beautifully mysterious fruit. The mousse was quickly devoured and I was so intrigued with the fruit, I took it home where it now resides perfectly preserved in my freezer. Yes, I'm strange like that.

Until next time... Miss Absinthe

Fondue Night at Breadbar

Last Friday night was Fondue Night at Breadbar and so my man and I walked the few blocks in cheesy anticipation... Breadbar partners with The Bev Hills Cheese shop from time to time, so while all the food was good, it was a strangely chaotic affair. There was one fondue pot per communal table (which seated 10 people) and two fondue "stations" inside and one outside. At the stations were BH Cheese people making fondue and I think they were supposedly giving some sort of demonstration, but it was so noisy in that small space that any communication was hard to hear and understand and what I thought would be a "dinner" turned out to be well... I'm not too sure. There were three different fondues made that were brought to the tables at different times, but we were never clearly told which one was which and honestly, they tasted very similarly (not bad, just similar). It didn't appear that the Cheese people and the Restaurant people were coordinated in any way and so I observed several frustrated people who wanted to know some basic info on their meal and nobody knew what to tell them. Also, the accompaniments were sparse and low in variety AND NO DESSERT! After all that savoriness, a little sweet would have gone a long way.

On the positive side, I enjoyed the communal seating and the conversations and... a celebrity siting... CLORIS LEACHMAN! which is funny considering she made news today about her EPIC trist with Gene Hackman in the early 70's...

So, what I think is an excellent idea needs some refinement and organization...

On a side note, Breadbar is slightly changing it's menu beginning in April and subsequently removing two of the items I go there for... the jambon sandwich and the French Market salad. Alas...

Until next time... Miss Absinthe