Quick bite: Vito's Pizza

Oh Vito, why La Cienega? Why did you leave us? Los Feliz's loss is West Hollywood's gain as Vito's Pizza reopens shoehorned into a soul-less La Cienega mini-mall -- albeit with easy parking. I wasn't even that hungry when I had a minute to duck out of the office Friday, but I still hadn't gotten to Vito's since it re-opened. After getting a slice of the white pizza and a slice of Terra Firma (peppers, pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, etc.), I sank my teeth into the crust of the white pizza and immediately understood what all the buzz was about. It's not exactly like a John's New York pizza, but the crust just tastes better than anything in L.A. A nice chew, not very well-done -- no Mozza-esque char -- just a pure bready taste with the proper amount of salt. The white pie with blobs of ricotta is a lovely thing, but I think I'd like to get a whole pizza fresh out of the oven to really experience Vito's. The pies come only in large size, though, starting at $16.50 for a cheese and rising precipitously to $32.50 for one with arugula, proscuitto, gorgonzola and pine nuts. Vito's also has baked ziti, eggplant parmesan, calzones, etc., but why would you devitate from the pizza?
Vito's Pizza
846 N. La Cienega Blvd.
(310) 652-6859

What does Fred Eric eat for breakfast?

If you never caught photographer Jon Huck's Breakfast exhibit a few years ago, he's got the whole exhibit up on his website, and it's a lot of fun. Whether you recognize local luminaries like Barbara Bestor, Charles Phoenix and Miguel Arteta or you just want to see if your breakfast is normal, this was a very cool subject for a photo series. Apparently Jerry Stahl's daughter has Fruit Loops, just in case you were wondering. And restarateur Fred Eric? Some sort of healthyish cereal with berries.

More Northeast news: UPDATED

UPDATE: So the Wild Hare will become the York...partner Ryan Ballinger contacted Eating LA to tell us that the York will hopefully open in June. Ballinger says the menu will be simple and fresh, with a signature burger and a few uncomplicated entrees. The wine program will be eclectic and affordable. Ryan is also involved with yet another cocktail bar opening on York...not sure what it's called.

And lots of restaurants want to move into Eagle Rock...the L.A. Times featured the still-in-tastings-mode Larkin's, while the Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council recently heard plans for the Fat Dog Lounge at 1581 Colorado Blvd. with a full bar. Neighbors seem to be concerned about whether proposed restaurants will degenerate into nightclubs or remain the upscale restaurants that are originally pitched to the city. Looks like it's considerably easier to open something over on York.

Even the New York Times thinks NELA is hot...a recent article spoke glowingly of skyrocketing property values in the area, but didn't mention the lack of amenities such as quality grocery shopping, movie theaters or restaurants that aren't Mexican, especially in the Mt. Washington/Highland Park areas.

Marty's comes to Highland Park; still no news on Flor Morena

We heard that Mia Sushi owner Rudy Martinez might be taking over the Flor Morena space on Rowena, but Martinez says he wasn't able to seal a deal. Of course, since there's no liquor license, it would probably be a rough place to launch a sushi bar. So still Flor Morena sits unused, waiting for Famima, Clementine's or M Cafe de Chaya to take over...in my dreams.

However, Martinez did let us know that he'll be opening a new steaks 'n cocktails place in Highland Park in a few months. Marty's, named for his son (Mia is his daughter) will be on York a block or two from the Wild Hare. Carter let us know that it's the former El Chubasco bar location at 5137 York Blvd.

Peace to Cathy Seipp

From one Silver Lake blogging mom to another, rest in peace, Cathy Seipp. I've known Cathy for several years -- our kids went to camp together, and I loved her L.A. Times skewerings in Buzz magazine. Her friends have said it far more eloquently than I ever could, but whether we agreed with Cathy or not, we were always enriched by her wit and articulateness, her L.A. press club parties, and her amusing take on Silver Lake dads. I can't seem to link to the post, so I'll take the liberty of posting the description of Silver Lake she wrote for a faraway blog reader who was unfamilar with the neighborhood:

"Silver Lake is where some guys open a dog grooming parlor named Doggy Style across the street from an elementary school, where a 400-pound principal whistles a happy tune as he puts up new Priscilla curtains his first day on the job.
In the morning at Trader Joe's, you can sometimes hear the foul, peculiar mating call of local Jerry Stahl, trying to Permanent Midnightishly impress some girl by loudly describing how he's "getting fucking built, man" with all his fucking weight-lifting at the fucking gym...while I shop for potstickers and consider telling him to fucking shut-up.
And if you're very quiet, you might hear the ghost of Judy Garland -- who lived on my street when she was a teenager -- declaring, "I don't care if you DO think he's 'that way,' Mother! I'm marrying him!"
Silver Lake is where bossy Silver Lake moms guide their progeny down fabulously decorated Armstrong Ave. on Halloween, followed by helpful Silver Lake dads, who carry coolers full of gin and tonics. A couple of pirates -- set decorators in real life -- hand out candy at the most festively spooky house.
Silver Lake is right next door to Los Feliz, where James M. Cain wrote of the murderess's mansion in "Double Indemnity": 'It didn't look like a House of Death when I saw it. It was just a Spanish house, like all the rest of them in California, with white walls, red tile roof, and a patio out to one side. It was built cock-eyed. The garage was under the house, the first floor was over that, and the rest of it was spilled up the hill any way they could get it in.'
Lots of houses look like that in Silver Lake too, although we have an especially high concentration of Neutras. Get a good guidebook about L.A. architecture and you'll see." -- Cathy Seipp, 2003

Eater's Digest, 3/19

Just as the best Thai food seems to have migrated from Hollywood to North Hollywood, there also seem to be more choices for Middle Eastern specialties in the Valley these days. I had an itch for falafel, so Saturday we stopped by Top Falafel. This place is about as obscure as it gets, a foreboding cubbyhole tucked into a desolate parking lot in the nether regions of North Hollywood. But they turn out an excellent falafel sandwich, with torpedo-shaped falafels tucked into a jumbo-sized pita and plenty of veggies. Matt had a humongous kebab plate with lentil rice, hummus and yogurt/cucumber salad. It's at 6424 Coldwater Canyon Ave., a bit south of the Thai temple.
Sunday was devoted to cooking, but you guys probably don't care that I made salmon with lentils and spinach and goat cheesecake with blood orange caramel sauce. Anyway.
Today I had the honor of lunching with columnist Joel Stein, who seems to attract lots of supporters and detractors. He's writing a food column for Time and mulling what topics are sufficiently national in interest -- this week, it's going to be ethnic fast food, like Jollibee and Pollo Campero. And he delivered my horse prosciutto, yum!
We pretended to be les Eurotrash and ate at the Little Next Door. I had rabbit pate on a baguette, to be as French as humanly possible, while Joel had les petits sandwiches with salmon and tres adorable little pots of cornichons and cucumber salad. Merci pour le cheval, Joel!

Eating L.A. goes to a Throwdown

I'm not sure why I was asked to be a judge on Bobby Flay's Throwdown on the Food Network, but maybe the fact that I'm stuffing a big hot dog in my mouth in my blog picture has something to do with it.
Throwdown, where Bobby does a cookoff against a regional specialty -- chili, barbecue, etc. -- came to L.A. yesterday to tape an episode at Pink's Hot Dogs. It was kind of an odd idea for a Throwdown, since the dogs weren't made from scratch -- it was about the selection of ingredients, speed of assembly and how well the toppings worked together. Zagat editor and radio personality Merrill Shindler and I were the judges in the blind taste test and after several steamy hours sequestered on Pink's back patio watching the parade of teenage Japanese fashionistas, we were finally ushered to the front of the stand.
A lane of La Brea had been closed off for the taping, and a crowd of passers-by were given free hotdogs in exchange for cheering for their favorite contestants. I think originally the Pink's cooks and Bobby were supposed to assemble three types of hot dogs, but they must have run out of time, so we only judged a sort of Southwestern dog, which was fitting given Flay's Southwestern cooking pedigree.
Each dog bore a guacamole topping, but there the tubesteaks departed considerably. I'm not going to divulge the results of the "competition," but Pink's dog involved two rather flaccid weenies, a slice of American cheese, onions, some of their chili of inscrutable parentage and two juicy but unwieldy slices of bacon. Flay's started with a homemade-tasting roll brushed with butter and grilled, enveloping a thick, juicy hot dog with a clean, meaty flavor. In addition to the guac, it was topped with a liberal sprinkling of pickled jalapenos and a scatter of crumbled blue tortilla chips. You decide. The episode should air in a month or two, and I'll be sure to let you all know.

Guest post: Going head to head with S. Irene at Bar Marmont

"I would never send EatingLA to the Sunset Strip, knowing your aversion to heinous valet charges, restaurants with doormen and secret passwords and overpriced drinks," says Kathy, "but you may want to consider a visit to Bar Marmont."
She continues,"There's a new chef and menu; chef Carolynn Spence was hand-selected by the Chateau and Bar's owner Andre Balazs -- she worked at Mario Batali's famed gastro-pub Spotted Pig in the West Village. She's got a sure hand in the kitchen. We had the perfectly cooked, tender double cut pork chop with bourbon braised peaches and corn fritters (hush puppies to me). Best barfood I've had in L.A. in a long time. Dessert was a standout: warm, salty pistachio crumble topped with pistachio gelato. I'd go back to try the duck pastrami and the afogato, walnut nocello ice cream drowned in espresso. $8 Stella Artois and $6 single shot espresso are more euro-priced than usual. Main courses are $20/desserts $11 -- food prices are fair considering the ample portions and the fact that the food actually tastes like someone who knew what she was doing cooked it. I asked for a menu and the host wanted to know if I was S. Irene Virbila, I said 'yes, of course.'" -- Kathy McDonald

Restaurant updates: Vito's open, Zen to close?

Chowhounds have whipped themselves into a near-frenzy over the return of long-lost Vito's Pizza. Alas, Vito's has reclocated from Vermont to the feeding frenzy of La Cienega in West Hollywood, and I don't imagine they'll be delivering to Silver Lake! Let's hope Il Capriccio Pizzeria can take up the slack.

A less-lamented loss for the neighborhood is Zen Sushi, which has supposedly been sold, although there's no news as yet as to whether it will remain a teenager-infested club for no-name bands, an awful sushi bar, or none of the above. Big space, though, with upstairs and downstairs areas and liquor license.

Doughnut time with Kevin Smith!

Update as of 1/09: Fritelli's is now closed.

I stopped in at Fritelli's in Beverly Hills on Saturday just as director Kevin Smith was picking up several dozen peanut butter 'n jelly filled doughnuts. The display case was picked pretty clean after the carb-loving helmer left with his daughter, so I chose an espresso doughnut (far left), a Vermont maple cake doughnut, a chocolate with white chocolate curls ("like a normal chocolate doughnut, but classy," said Sophie) and a maple cruller. I'm not really a big doughnut person, but I liked how the espresso doughnut wasn't too sweet -- it's a very grown-up doughnut. They also pulled an excellent espresso made with a custom blend from Groundworks coffee, a nice complement to the espresso doughnut. (Yes, actually I prefer coffee to sweets.) I'm sure it wasn't all Kevin's fault, but I didn't see any sign of some of the more exotic flavors -- apricot-filled, green apple fritter, Meyer lemon zest glaze -- so I guess it had been a busy morning. This is the place if you like your sinkers not-too-sweet with no trans fats and ingredients like Callebaut chocolate. But if you're just looking for that pure sweet doughnut rush, you might be better off at Primo's or Stan's.

First impressions: Il Capriccio Pizza

Eating L.A. is nothing if not obedient. The commentor in the item below tipped me that Il Capriccio Pizzeria was finally open, so I called in an order on the way home from work. I didn't have a menu so I just got a sausage and mushroom, which seems kind of like the baseline pizza for judging purposes. Immediate points for having my order ready when I arrive and getting the order right, something Nicky D's and Hard Times sometimes fail to achieve after years of operation. The large 16" pie feels strangely light in the box, and indeed, when I get it home, it's not a lot of pizza for $17. I reheat it for the full effect. The toppings are not copious either, but once it's warmed up I find that the proportions of cheese to toppings to crust are nearly ideal, unlike at Mozza where the crust overwhelms. The crust, made in the wood-burning oven, has a nice tooth to it and a good flavor. There's lots of interesting sounding combo pizzas available -- a Spicy Mama Flora has rapini, sausage and garlic, while the Funghi di Bosco has shittake and porcini mushrooms and fontina cheese. Other toppings include pine nuts, mussels and bufala mozzarella.
I don't want to pass judgement until I've tried another pie, preferably consumed fresh out of the oven (there's a few tables available). But this pizza definitely has possibilities, if you don't mind paying the price. Delivery will be available in a week or so, and they're open until midnight on weekdays and 1 am on weekends.
Update: It's worth eating in the restaurant so you can get it fresh out of the oven, and the rapini topping is excellent. However, I still think the crust is too thin in the middle, which promotes sogginess, and it's still kind of pricey for a large that barely feeds two. B plus for effort.
Update #2: The third time was the charm, I guess -- I hit on a winner with a Paesana, pictured above, with red pepper and eggplant. Crust was thicker, the medium was as big as the first two larges, and it was just $13. On another visit, the Funghi di Bosco with shitake and pornini mushrooms was delicious also.
Il Capriccio Pizzeria
4518 Hollywood Blvd.
323-644-9760

L.A. restaurant haikus

I don't know if Chowhound will keep up this post from hound PaulF, so I thought I'd immortalize it here for y'alls pleasure. Keep 'em coming, Paul!

Los Angeles Restaurant Haikus
Tacomiendo
Great burritos,
but they may
Fall apart on you

In and Out Burger
Double Meat,
with grilled onions
Try Animal Style

Want Omakase?
Urasawa is top choice
Must bring big wallet

Crave great pastrami?
Number nineteen at Langers
Is the only choice

Taste test: Green Village, home of Eel Crack

Debating between Hunan and Shanghai cuisine Sunday night, we decided to try the new location of Green Village in San Gabriel. It's in the old King's Palace spot and seems to be even more nicely decorated, with hanging lanterns and hostesses in cheongsams.
Wuxi eel, pictured, otherwise known as eel crack
The best part is that the prices don't really reflect the atmosphere -- they're still pretty reasonable, and our dinner ends up costing just $32 for three large and flavorful dishes.
A large poster at the entrance pictures some of the specialties, a helpful touch if you're not familiar with Shanghai dishes. The huge, junior high yearbook-sized menu also features (untranslated) Taiwain specialties and two pages of Szechwan dishes, but it's probably best to stick with the Shanghai region. We tried the shredded pork with yellow chives and bean curd, a simple eggplant and green bean stir-fry and the Wuxi crispy eel, which we had ordered at the old Green Village (don't know if it's the exact same ownership or not). This dish is like eel crack -- candy-sweet, fried to a crisp, you'd never know there was eel in that crunchy batter, but hard to stop eating. It's way too rich for two people though, best consumed as a snack for many more. Of course, it's folly to go to a Chinese restaurant as a couple, so we'll have to return soon with a larger group.The pork and eggplant dishes are both nicely-cooked dishes without any particularly stong flavors, but still completely satisfying -- the kind of simple dishes that shouldn't be hard to cook, and yet are completely unavailable anywhere west of the San Gabriel Valley. The specials poster, with its pork in a bamboo pipe and Wuxi spareribs, looks terribly intriguing, as does the pork with gluten puffs on the table next to us. Most tables seem to be ordering the deep-fried crab, which I think we had at the old King's Palace.
Green Village takes real Shanghai cooking at reasonable prices, and puts it in a pleasant, non-fluorescent atmosphere that won't scare your non-adventurous friends, plus there's beer and wine and they accept credit cards. Don't miss the fried croaker with liver moss -- sounds odd, but really just a tasty Chinese take on batter-coated fish.
Green Village Restaurant
250 W Valley Blvd.
San Gabriel
(626) 576-2228

Jay's Jayburger to be Sean's Burger

Mike at Franklin Ave. beat me to it...the former Jay's Jayburger location at Virgil and Santa Monica will become Sean's Burger. It's not open yet, but I'm sure Matt will volunteer for tasting duties once it opens.

Opus: a work in several courses

My review of Opus, both the tasting menu and the Baco night, is up at the Los Feliz Ledger site. (Scroll down past the dog therapy article).
Here's an excerpt from the review:
"Our series of dishes included lots of unexpected touches: celery root panna cotta topped with juniper seeds; clear red balls on top of sashimi impersonated salmon caviar, but were made of red pepper juice. A milky hazelnut soup harbored a lobster ravioli; other tasting menus pair the nut-based soup with foie gras. A seared scallop is a bit overcooked, but it’s resting on top a light and eggy pancake surrounded by a moat of luscious truffle butter—so all is forgiven. We finish with a milk-fed poussin—according to Centeno, the baby chicken is a rare limited edition, but although the green Szechwan peppercorns add a nice tingle, it’s still just chicken. Dessert is a fun take on PB & J, with a peanut butter brulee tart paired with little cubes of fruit gelee."
As many Chowhound posters have pointed out, the $30 tasting menu is an incredible value, and definitely worth a try.

Downtown is disappointing!

I feel like it's my duty to check out all the activity going on in Downtown L.A., but for now, color me underwhelmed. A few weeks ago we stopped by Royal Clayton's for a drink -- nice beer list, but the "urban gothic" interior is a little cold and cavernous -- not at all the cozy pub I had been hoping for. Friday night we tried J Restaurant, near the Staples Center. Even a good-quality burger and some tasty fries weren't enough to make me like this place. There are few seats in the bar upstairs, and you can't get draft beer upstairs -- only downstairs where the restaurant is. But wouldn't the bar patrons want draft beer more than the restaurant diners? The basketball game plays on endlessly as the Downtown functionaries drain their first weekend beers...I don't know, for some reason it all seemed grim and soulless, not to mention even more cavernous than Royal Clayton's. Someone mentioned they recently had a party for 700...so clearly, not really the intimate kind of place I'll return to. And don't even get me started on the fratboy traffic jam at the Broadway Bar. Next on my list: The Redwood Room.

The Little Next Door: Could Anything be cuter?

The Little Next Door is like a little French poodle puppy - you just want to hug it and gobble it up. When I stopped by for a quick lunch the other day, I couldn't believe masses of Third Street dilettantes and boulevardiers were waiting for tables at Doughboys and yet there were empty seats on the perfectly sympa patio at the Little Next Door. Offspring of The Little Door restaurant, the Little Next Door is one-stop Gallic shopping with a boulangerie, patisserie, epicerie fine, charcuterie and cafe in one tres charmant package. I tried a mushroom chausson pastry, a slice of parmesan garlic tart and some lentil salad -- everything seemed solid but I think they would have been even tastier sitting with the handsome folk on the patio then eaten in front of my computer. There's also foie gras sandwiches (ooh la la!), grilled vegetables and beet salads that look like little jewels in their glass cases, pates, some good beers and wines and a whole range of housemade jams and conserves. It's all just slightly less expensive than a trip to Paris, but the store is beautifully designed and it's hard to go wrong with an array of French classics. Get there before the Doughboys customers figure it out. Bon apetit!

Tarantino: Better than My Favorite Weekend

The L.A. Times did a little better today -- the actor from "24" in My Favorite Weekend sounds like a decent sort of fellow. But the little sidebar on where Quentin Tarantino hangs out in the big Tarantino story was what My Favorite Weekend should really be like. It's not that Tarantino has such great taste -- sorry, but Toi on Sunset doesn't have "great" Thai food, and Barney's Beanery is kind of disgusting -- but the little piece manages to actually give you a feel of what it's like to hang out with Tarantino, bouncing from Toi to the Coach & Horses to the video store. (There's no direct link to the sidebar, because that would be too much to ask, I guess, but you can find it under the Photo Gallery in the story.) It seems like bloggers pretty much ignore anything in print, but sometimes, the presentation in print works much better than viewing a multi-part feature onscreen.