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  so the michelin star gazing continues ... dineLA at valentino in santa monica ... this is quite possibly the best restaurant of restaurant week based on food alone ... better than even gordon ramsey in a way ... let's start w/ the magic ...
appetizers - a cream of mushroom mould ... dense enough to stand on its own with a great savory mushroom taste, cold roasted veal in a tuna sauce, a savory crepe filled w/ duck and tomato, and shrimp w/ tomato and basil ...
i was a big fan of ivy's savory crepe ... considering our penchant for crepes when we were back in the bay area ... the duck was rich and flavorful ...
  entrees - i got the seared beef tenderloin with fontina cheese and ox-tail sauce ... accompanied by roasted potato ... delicious, moist, and tender ...
jik got the osso buco - the super-traditional super-soft veal shank w/ gnocchi (though it seemed they substituted polenta) ... about as fork tender as a piece of baby cow leg can possibly be ...
ivy ordered veal cheek, but the server heard "gnocchi" ... so we got wheat/cheese dumplings w/ mushrooms, peas, and ham ... a quasi-throw back to pot pie or shepherd's pie, but we didn't order it ... the server apologized profusely and comp'd the entree and brought out the veal cheek shortly thereafter ... totally awesome service ... the veal cheek, if you can believe it, was both more tender AND more flavorful than gordon ramsey's ox cheek ... but i suppose that's to be expected when dealing with baby cow ... ivy said she would have been happy w/ the gnocchi regardless ... it was really tasty and comfort food-y ...
jq rolled with the super well-seasoned garlic-scented veal chops ... great flavor ... a little salty, but that's how i loves my chops ...
one of the reasons valentino rocked my socks off was the option to substitute any entree on the dineLA menu with one from their standard menu (for a small additional fee) ... infinite possibilities w/ regards to three-course combinations ... especially considering the entrees typically cost 40 bucks ... the option to slash the price as part of a fixed menu is the best option for those looking to pick and choose from their dozen super-great entrees ... why be forced to choose from veggie lasagna (though i'm pretty sure it's rad) when you want a large tender chunk of beef? major major points for that ...
  dessert - almond panna cotta which was creamy ... should probably order a warm amaretto w/ this one, ultra-coffee espresso mousse complete w/ coffee crunchies throughout and an ultra-thin velvet-y chocolate shell, and old-school sicilian cannoli w/ a rich cinnamon-y taste to it ... the accompanying sorbet(?) was an ultra-light and refreshingly sweet ... um ... sweet ... it didn't have a specific flavor at all ... it was just lightly sweet ... kind of like those commercials for crystal light? i've never had it, but it always made me think that i would be refreshed after drinking it ... just imagine that commercial, frozen and scooped onto the plate ...
andy
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| | Posted 2/3/2009 11:17 PM - 29 Views - 2 eProps - 1 Comment
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