Returning to downtown L.A. restaurants after the curfew. The spirituality of red Fanta. \u201cThe most exciting place to eat in the South Bay in recent memory.\u201d And a Crunchwrap Supreme plot twist. I\u2019m Laurie Ochoa, general manager of L.A. Times Food, with this week\u2019s Tasting Notes.<\/p>\n
In the sunshine of our L.A. love <\/p>\n
Chicken with radishes, tarragon mayonnaise and toasted milk bread at Cafe 2001 in downtown Los Angeles.<\/p>\n
(Laurie Ochoa \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n
I was happily eating a light lunch of poached chicken with an array of radishes, tarragon mayonnaise and buttered milk bread toast dusted with sea salt when our friendly and attentive waiter, just four days on the job, walked up holding a plate of sunshine: three beautifully fried corn fritters with flash-fried basil, a wedge of lime and a mound of salt for dipping. There was a dish of chile sauce too, but the corn\u2019s sweetness, salt and herbs were all I needed on the day before the official start of summer. <\/p>\n
I was at chef Giles Clark<\/b>\u2018s Cafe 2001<\/b> with the editor of L.A. Times Food, Daniel Hernandez<\/b>, and every table in the place was filled. The cafe\u2019s big brother restaurant, Yess<\/b>, from chef Junya Yamasaki<\/b>, was boarded up at the front entrance facing 7th Street \u2014 the dinner-only spot closed during the recent downtown L.A. curfew \u2014 but we saw activity in the kitchen when we peeked through the glass blocks on the side of the restaurant and were hopeful that Yess would reopen that night.<\/p>\n
As columnist Jenn Harris<\/b> wrote this week<\/a>, the seven-night curfew left downtown L.A. streets empty: \u201cAll along 2nd Street, the windows and doors were hidden behind plywood. … The frequently bustling Japanese Village Plaza<\/b>, where shoppers dine at a revolving sushi bar and stop for cheese-filled corn dogs, was desolate.\u201d<\/p>\n Now there are tentative signs of recovery. <\/p>\n Diners eat dinner at Kura Sushi in Little Tokyo on the evening the city\u2019s curfew was lifted. The restaurant\u2019s glass doors were covered in plywood, but open.<\/p>\n (Jason Armond \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n \u201cHours after the curfew was lifted Tuesday, downtown started to show signs of coming to life again,\u201d Harris wrote. \u201cJust before 7 p.m., a line began to form at Daikokuya<\/b> in Little Tokyo … known as much for the perpetual wait as it is for its steaming bowls of tonkotsu ramen. It was a hopeful sight.\u201d<\/p>\n Yet, as Harris also reported, Kato<\/b>, the three-time No. 1 restaurant<\/a> on the L.A. Times 101<\/b> list, whose chef, Jon Yao<\/b>, was named the best chef in California at this week\u2019s<\/a> James Beard Awards,<\/b> \u201cwas still looking at a 70% drop in reservations for the upcoming week\u201d after the curfew\u2019s end.<\/p>\n Kato chef-owner Jon Yao was named the best chef in California at this week\u2019s James Beard Awards.<\/p>\n (Mariah Tauger \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n \u201cThe direct impact of the media\u2019s portrayal of DTLA being unsafe, which it is not, has impacted Kato,\u201d Ryan Bailey<\/b>, a partner in the restaurant told Harris. <\/p>\n Certainly downtown is frequently portrayed, \u201cas a sometimes dodgy place to live and work.\u201d But \u201cdespite myriad challenges,\u201d reported real estate specialist Roger Vincent <\/b>this week<\/a>, \u201cdowntown L.A. is staging a comeback. … Occupancy in downtown apartments has remained about 90% for more than a year … slightly higher than the level before the pandemic. … In fact, the downtown population has more than tripled since 2000, reflecting a dynamic shift in the city center\u2019s character toward a 24-hour lifestyle.\u201d<\/p>\n On Tuesday night, I met reporter Stephanie Breijo<\/b> at Hama Sushi<\/b>, another Little Tokyo spot where the wait is usually lengthy, and was able to get a spot at the sushi bar by arriving before 6 p.m. The place quickly filled up behind us. <\/p>\n Funeral wreaths outside Hama Sushi in downtown L.A.\u2019s Little Tokyo to honor the memory of longtime owner Tsutomu Iyama, who has passed away. Plywood was still covering some of the restaurant\u2019s windows from the curfew that had been imposed by Mayor Karen Bass.<\/p>\n (Laurie Ochoa \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n Though some were at Hama to support downtown, many came to pay their respects to the memory of recently deceased owner Tsutomu Iyama<\/b>. Breijo will be reporting on the life and legacy of Iyama in the coming days, but on Tuesday night the longtime staff was on top of its game, serving affordable but excellent sushi, without gimmicks as Iyama intended.<\/p>\n The counter scene at Hama Sushi in downtown L.A.\u2019s Little Tokyo.<\/p>\n (Laurie Ochoa \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n Fried shrimp heads served with sweet shrimp at Hama Sushi in downtown L.A.\u2019s Little Tokyo.<\/p>\n (Laurie Ochoa \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n Two days later I was at Cafe 2001, which has become one of my favorite \u2014 and most useful \u2014 restaurants in the city, open all day and into the evening on weekends. In our recent brunch guide, I wrote about Clark\u2019s red-wine-poached egg<\/a>, my partner, John, swears by Clark\u2019s caponata, and deputy food editor Betty Hallock<\/b> loves \u201chis versions of a quintessential yoshoku icon, the Japanese potato salad<\/a> … [sometimes] kabocha pumpkin and puntarelle with blood orange and fermented chiles [or] a verdant pea and potato salad with lemon-y pea tendrils.\u201d<\/p>\n But my current favorite Clark dish? Those light and crisp corn fritters. They were the perfect welcome back downtown gift after a tense week of closed restaurants.<\/p>\n Looking for the American dream Employees of the Vallarta Supermarket in Carson serve aguas frescas and ice cream to customers on June 13.<\/p>\n (Lauren Ng \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve … had customers come in and tell me, \u2018The American dream doesn\u2019t exist anymore.\u2019\u201d That\u2019s Evelin Gomez<\/b>, a juice bar worker at the Carson location of Vallarta Supermarket<\/b>, speaking with reporter Lauren Ng.<\/b> Ng checked social media accounts and conducted interviews with people in grocery stores and restaurants<\/a> founded by immigrants and the children of immigrants about what they are witnessing with the recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) enforcement actions in Southern California. <\/p>\n Christy Vega, owner of Casa Vega in Sherman Oaks.<\/p>\n (Mariah Tauger \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n The independent-minded Casa Vega<\/b> owner Christy Vega<\/b>, who supported Rick Caruso over Karen Bass for mayor in the most recent election, \u201chas been an outspoken critic of ICE,\u201d Ng wrote. <\/p>\n \u201cI protested in honor of my Mexican immigrant father, Rafael Evaristo<\/b> Vega<\/b>, and the very people Casa Vega was built on since 1956,\u201d Vega wrote on Instagram of her attendance at a \u201cNo Kings\u201d protest. \u201cI will always remember my roots and ALWAYS fight for the voiceless immigrant community.\u201d<\/p>\n Some restaurateurs, as Stephanie Breijo reported<\/a>, have been coordinating grocery handouts and deliveries for those fearing being swept up in ICE raids. <\/p>\n \u201cWe understand the feelings that are happening in our community right now, even if we are legal,\u201d said Xochitl Flores-Marcial<\/b>, a partner in Boyle Heights\u2019 X\u2019tiosu<\/b> with its chef-founders, Felipe and Ignacio Santiago<\/b>. \u201cEven if we have documents, that doesn\u2019t exempt us from the danger that so many people are facing right now and in our culture.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, assistant food editor Danielle Dorsey<\/b>, put together a guide to 15 different food fundraisers and events <\/a>to support those affected by ICE actions. Many are happening this weekend.<\/p>\n South Bay hot spot Co-chefs Kevin de los Santos and Katya Shastova in the kitchen at Vin Folk in Hermosa Beach.<\/p>\n (Ron De Angelis \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n The young and ambitious staff at Vin Folk<\/b> \u2014 with two alums of Aitor Zabala<\/b>\u2019s Somni<\/b> leading the team of chef-servers \u2014 charmed columnist Jenn Harris<\/b> during her visits to the Hermosa Beach restaurant created by chefs Kevin de los Santos<\/b> and Katya Shastova<\/b>. <\/p>\n \u201cThe dining room crackles with the hopeful, earnest energy of a start-up company, ripe with possibility,\u201d she writes in her restaurant review published this week<\/a>. \u201cAnd with food that has all the technique and precision of a tasting menu restaurant with less of the fuss, it is without a doubt the most exciting place to eat in the South Bay in recent memory.\u201d Some of the dishes she highlights: a savory tart that could be \u201ca love child of mussels in escabeche and pot pie\u201d; headcheese toast, \u201ca loose interpretation of the patty melt at Langer\u2019s Deli\u201d; pritto, \u201ca take on Taiwanese popcorn chicken\u201d; \u201cexceptionally tender\u201d beef tongue, \u201can homage to Shastova\u2019s childhood in rural southern Russia,\u201d and a risotto-style interpretation of Singapore chili crab.<\/p>\n Vin Folk is also nurturing a new generation of chefs and restaurateurs: \u201cStaff are trained in multiple positions, both in and out of the kitchen,\u201d Harris writes. \u201cEveryone helps with prep, then De los Santos and Shastova [place] members in positions where they may be strongest.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe are teaching them,\u201d Shastova tells Harris. \u201cYou go through everything because we believe it\u2019s important to learn every single detail of the restaurant if you want to have your own one day.\u201d<\/p>\n Seeing red Red Fanta presented as an offering at the spirit houses at Silom Supermarket in Thai Town.<\/p>\n (Emil Ravelo \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n In her latest Grocery Goblin<\/b> dispatch, correspondent Vanessa Anderson<\/b> examines why strawberry red Fanta<\/b> \u2014 \u201cknown as Fanta nam daeng, or \u2018Fanta red water\u2019\u201d \u2014 is seen in so many Thai shrines or spirit houses, many of which are set up at local grocery stores and restaurants. \u201cMuch like those on this earthly plane, the way to a spirit\u2019s heart is through his or her stomach,\u201d Anderson reports<\/a>. <\/p>\n \u201cIn the past when we would do offerings to ghosts, it would be an offering of blood,\u201d Pip Paganelli<\/b> at Thai dessert shop Banh Kanom Thai<\/b>, tells Anderson, who concludes that \u201cthe bubbly strawberry nectar has since replaced animal sacrifice.\u201d<\/p>\n Paganelli, Anderson adds, also posits that red Fanta\u2019s \u201csickly sweetness … is beloved by ghosts because of just that. Most spirits have a sweet tooth.\u201d<\/p>\n Crunchwrapped The shark from \u201cJaws\u201d looking for a good bite in the 1975 film. <\/p>\n (Universal)<\/p>\n The anniversary none of our social media feeds or TV news anchors will let us forget this week is the release 50 years ago of Steven Spielberg<\/b>\u2018s \u201ceating machine\u201d blockbuster \u201cJaws.\u201d<\/b> But columnist Gustavo Arellano<\/b> has another anniversary on this mind this week \u2014 the debut 20 years ago of Taco Bell<\/b>\u2019s Crunchwrap Supreme<\/b>. <\/p>\n \u201cThe item has become essential for American consumers who like their Mexican food cheap and gimmicky,\u201d he wrote this week, \u201cwhich is to say, basically everyone (birria ramen, anybody?)\u201d The plot twist is that Arellano, author of \u201cTaco USA: How Mexican Food Conquered America,\u201d<\/b> had never actually eaten a Crunchwrap Supreme until this month. And when he finally did try it? Let\u2019s just say it lacked the crunch he was looking for. I\u2019ll let you read his column to find out why<\/a> he prefers the bean-and-cheese burritos and Del Taco<\/b>.<\/p>\n Bonus: Arellano references Jenn Harris\u2019 2015 story and recipe for a homemade Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme<\/a>, to be enjoyed in the comfort of your home, without the \u201cbad playlists, scratchy paper napkins and fluorescent lighting\u201d of a fast food restaurant. I think hers would have the crunch Arellano seeks.<\/p>\n Also …<\/p>\n Newsletter <\/p>\n Eat your way across L.A.<\/p>\n Like what you’re reading? Sign up to get it in your inbox every week.<\/p>\n Enter email address <\/p>\n Sign Me Up <\/p>\n You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n
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