Joe Jonas + Demi Lovato

We went to SAAM at The Bazaar by Jose Andres last night to celebrate Ms. Cruiser's birthday. Upon our departure from the semi-secret back room housing SAAM, Mr. Cruiser whispered to me that he spotted a Jonas brother enjoying dessert while we perused the neighboring Moss section.

I snapped this shot of the Patisserie area.

Cool in its own right, no? I heart The Bazaar.

I cropped and blew this up for those of you with teenybopper tendencies.

It's breaking news, folks. It seems I unwittingly caught Joe Jonas and Demi Lovato before the official public announcement this morning of their relationship.

And, honestly, had it not been for Mr. Cruiser (and Wan and her questionable taste in pop music), I would've had no idea who these kids were because I am old and childfree. Actually, I still don't know who Demi Lovato is.

Hatfield's Is the Real McCoy

I never made it to Hatfield's when it was at its tiny Beverly Boulevard location.

But, having been to Eva Restaurant at Hatfield's old location, I can confidently say that the move to Melrose Avenue was an excellent decision.

The new space is modern and airy and serves as a superb understated background for the elegant but comforting Michelin-starred food.


The expansive window to the kitchen provides a glorious unobstructed view of all the action that goes into your meal.

BPLJ treated Kerfuffle and me to a night of deliciousness. Thank you, BPLJ! So happy to see both of my good friends from my first firm, especially Kerfuffle, who lives up north now! Thrilled she's back in California!

Amuse bouche -- yellowfin tuna, squash, lime, curry.

As OutKast would say, so fresh and so clean.

BPLJ's beer. Kerfuffle's mojito.

Warm bread and butter.

BPLJ and I tried the four-course seasonal prix fixe ($59), and Kerfuffle rounded out our meal with some stand-alone dishes. As my best friends always do, we shared everything, literally clearing a third of each plate and passing it along. Really, this is the only way to eat!

Pan-roasted diver scallops, braised celery, salsify, apple broth.

Simple but refined with a gentle sweetness and a beautiful searing.

Charred Japanese mackerel, oven-dried pineapple, avocado, fried shallots, nori-infused salsa verde.

Fantastically crunchy, salty, and tangy.

Agnolotti stuffed with ricotta, mustard greens, parsnip, cinnamon banyuls ($11).

Perfect pasta. Fresh, springy, creamy, dreamy.

Pan-seared dorade, carrot puree, Chinese broccoli, mushroom ragout.

Crispy skin + robust vegetables = awesome fish dish.

Prawns a la plancha espelette, creamy crab rice, roasted peanuts, preserved lemon, mint.

Crazy for crustaceans! Loved the contrast of the smokiness and the creaminess.

Horseradish-dusted short ribs and hanger steak, spring onion confit, smoked potato puree.


Exquisite. Red meat lovers, this one's for you.

Kurobuta pork loin, creamy Swiss chard, ruby grapefruit salad, celery root mustard ($26).

Somewhat plain but nice and moist.

Long Island duck breast, whisky prune smear, butternut squash, quinoa porridge.

My favorite! No surprise, of course. It is duck after all. Sugary enough without being too sweet. Tender. Juicy. Mmm.

Sugar and spice beignets, Venezuelan chocolate fondue, preserved ginger milkshake shot.

Warm and pillowy with delightful accompaniments -- the ginger was strong!

Cinnamon swirl brioche pudding, pear confit, maple syrup ice cream, cinnamon toast chip.

As a big fan of cinnamon, total thumbs up.

Chocolate Nutella ganache cake, butterscotch rosemary ice cream, hazelnut toffee.

My one bite was freaking incredible. You must get this if you come. Unbelievably rich and marvelous.

Mignardise.

Tiny chocolate cakes! Criminally cute crumbs of cocoa cheer.

Unpretentious quality food. Go to Hatfield's for it.

Bonus: Can you spot the celeb who sat next to us in this post? Hint: He's on SNL. He was so nice.

I Can Spot D-Celebs Anywhere

We're in New Orleans! In L.A., I spot celebs of varying degree everywhere we go. Well, my talent continues in the Dirty South. Do you know who this guy is?

Maybe you've seen him in Friday After Next, White Chicks, or Norbit. More likely, you may know him as Julius, the dad from Everybody Hates Chris.

But why did I recognize him at the baggage claim immediately?

He's President Camacho from Idiocracy!

To me, this is a great start to the weekend. I think maybe two of you out there agree.

Stars! They're Just Like Us!

I got 898 hits yesterday, and I thought, "Huh? People are that interested in BLT Steak?"

Nope.

Apparently, my quick shot of Jared Padalecki as we left the restaurant has caused quite the furor on Television Without Pity and Supernatural message boards and fan blogs. Namely, there is a debate as to the identity of the woman in the photo. Is she or is she not Genevieve Cortese, his co-star? There is also speculation about who the guy in the white shirt is in front. Some proffer it is Jensen Ackles.

Um, no. If it were Jensen Ackles, I would've identified him as Jensen Ackles, and there would've been swooning. I love me some Dean Winchester. I even loved him way back on Smallville.

Who knew there were so many Supernatural viewers? Mr. Monkey and I are the only people I know who watch the show. Maybe we're the only two old people.

To my usual readers, I'm sure this post makes zero sense, but (1) it's almost 1 a.m., (2) I'm too tired to blog for real right now, and (3) I need to go to bed because I have an early conference call.

xoxo,
Faux Paparazzi Monkey

Stupid Name, Great Restaurant

********THIS RESTAURANT IS NOW CLOSED.********

BLT Steak has nothing to do with bacon, lettuce, or tomato.

But the steak part is for real.

And, yes, I know what "BLT" means here. See picture above.

The ambiance is "typical modern steakhouse." Tastefully dim, warm, and chic.

Bread and chicken pâté appear on your table almost immediately.

If you think free pâté is impressive, wait until you see the popovers.

Oh, popover! Big as my head! Laced with Gruyère! Warm! Crusty! Yum!

Perfect with butter!

And we didn't even start our actual meal yet!

Mr. Monkey, Brother Monkey, and I all had the dineLA set ($44 for starter, entree, and dessert), which was a steal at BLT Steak. Normally, our dinners would've cost about $60 each.

Wild mushroom risotto and mushroom cappuccino. Perfect texture. Good flavor. That's saying a lot, as I'm not a mushroom fan. BroMo said he was pretty full just after this starter. Huge portion!

Chestnut, apple, and celery soup with sage croutons. Smooth and rich. A lovely mix of savory and sweet. Loved this. Mr. Monkey let me eat most of it. Yay!

BLT wedge salad with crisped bacon and bleu cheese dressing. Obviously the least impressive of the three starters, but still damn good for a simple salad.

Grilled hanger steak with shallot marmalade and pommes lyonaise. Both Mr. Monkey and BroMo got this with peppercorn and red wine sauce, respectively.

Thickest hanger steaks ever! Charred on the outside, juicy on the inside, delicious on the everywhere-side. The accompanying roasted garlic was fabulous. You could spread it like butter.

Pan-seared skate wing with crunchy fava bean tabbouleh. An elegant marine surprise at a steakhouse! Lightly crunchy on the surface, moist, and flaky. Fish done right. I must admit, however, that the tabbouleh did nothing for me. Bleh.

Warm chocolate pudding cake with amaretto whipped cream. I had one bite. Rich, rich, rich. BroMo couldn't finish it. That's how rich. Chocoholic dream.

Doughnuts with coconut cream and caramelized pineapple. Warm, airy, and not too sweet. Very good.

Lemon panna cotta with grapefruit and pomegranate. My surprise favorite! I thought I'd be on Team Doughnuts for sure, but the panna cotta stole my heart. Light and tart, this was my ideal ending to the meal. Very very happy.

A cute little petit four for each of us.

As I was taking photos of the outside of the restaurant after our meal, we ran right into Jared Padalecki (Sam on Supernatural, Dean on Gilmore Girls). I snapped this quickly as we left.

Good meal? You bet. Good service? Absolutely. Our server Mark was super. Excellent choice for dineLA. Get thee to BLT Steak!

A special bonus for my friends who like to bake -- the BLT Steak Popover Recipe:

Serves six (approximately twelve popovers)

Ingredients
4 c. milk, warmed
8 eggs
4 c. flour
1 ½ heaping tbsp. salt
2 ¼ c. grated Gruyère
1. Place the popover pan in the oven. Heat the oven and pan to 350º.
2. Gently warm the milk over low heat and set aside.
3. Whisk the eggs until frothy and slowly whisk in the milk (so as not to cook the eggs). Set the mixture aside.
4. Sift the flour with the salt. Slowly add this dry mixture to the egg mixture and gently combine until mostly smooth.
5. Remove the popover pan from the oven and spray with nonstick vegetable spray.
6. While the batter is still slightly warm, fill each popover cup three-fourths full.
7. Top each popover with approximately 2 ½ tbsps. of the grated cheese.
8. Bake at 350º for 50 minutes, rotating pan half a turn after fifteen minutes, until the popovers are golden brown.
9. Take out of oven, remove from pan, and serve immediately.

Enjoy!

From D-List to A-List

I met starlily313, cheapbeachbride, and insomniac at bld yesterday for brunch.

Upon arriving, I was excited to spot a lesser-known actor, Nicholas Cage's dorky sidekick in the National Treasure movies. Despite having lived in Los Angeles for the past seven years, I still get incredibly starstruck. To my credit, I am very polite and never take photos unless I'm far enough away not to disturb.

Sadly, my cohorts did not recognize the not-so-famous Mr. Bartha and were not as excited. They did get more excited about the food, though.

starlily and I got a mimosa and fresh-squeezed orange juice, respectively.

insomniac chose the Eggs as You Like Them ($10). She liked her eggs scrambled and accompanied by thick cut bacon.

starlily's brioche french toast ($12) came with fresh berry compote, creme fraiche, and maple syrup. The few bites I had were quite tasty, although I was hoping the brioche would be a bit fluffier.

Check out that maple syrup container!

starlily also had a side of merguez chicken sausage ($4.50). It was well-seasoned, but the bite I had was a tad crumbly and dry. Maybe it was because it was an end-cut.

cheapbeachbride's braised pork shank and poached eggs with citrus hollandaise and grilled country bread ($14) was delicious. I savored my little taste.

I ordered the Spanish frittata with chorizo, smoked paprika, fingerling potatoes, roasted piquillo peppers, and manchego cheese ($14). Muy sabroso! I was pleased.

The cream cheese and chive biscuit that came with my meal was awesome. The chives really made it special. Love.

We ended with a nectarine blueberry crisp with nut crumble and vanilla ice cream ($7). Perfect combination of hot, cold, sweetness, and tang.

During brunch, we all admired insomniac's new hard-earned iPhone.

It turns out that insomniac is a fan of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series, as evidenced by her texting with her friend. This made cheapbeachbride, starlily, and me laugh quite heartily. Twilight is all the rage and obsession of a number of our cyberfriends.

Toward the end of our meal, my dear little D-list actor left, and someone much bigger sat down -- Oscar winner Forest Whitaker! He dined just five or six feet away from us.

I love L.A.