With breakfast this good, who needs the L & D?

I’ve heard people raving about BLD for some time now, particularly about their incredible ricotta blueberry pancakes. The restaurant has been featured on Food Network and in Food and Wine, not to mention the word of mouth buzz throughout Los Angeles. I’ve meant to visit to try their food myself—okay, mainly to try these pancakes I’ve heard so much about—but it seems like every opportunity I’ve had has been after 5pm, which is when they switch from their ‘Supper’ menu that still includes the pancakes to the ‘Dinner’ menu which omits them.

Finally, this past Sunday, I had the chance to visit for brunch with a few friends. However, after seeing the variety of breakfast and lunch options on all of the surrounding tables, pancakes was the last thing on my mind. Everything looked tasty. Fortunately, my companions all had the same dilemma. With a little collaboration, we decided to go family style and order a bunch of plates for the whole table to sample.

We ordered four items, but unfortunately I can only recall three of the four. If I were a real journalist, I’d admit this memory lapse is unforgivable. Fortunately, I’m not a journalist. However, I’d much rather place the blame on my friends who ferociously guarded this fourth plate.

The other three items that I can recall included Spanish scramble, eggs Florentine and, of course, the ricotta blueberry pancakes. The pancakes, as expected, were incredible. The portion was generous and they tasted great. I think there’s enough hype that not much more needs to be said.

The egg entrees were given a choice of potatoes. Whether the Spanish chorizo home fries, fingerling potatoes or french fries, you can’t go wrong no matter which you choose.

What really made the Florentine was the hollandaise. A great hollandaise is a must for any solid breakfast menu, and I would be confident ordering any item on the menu that includes the sauce, whether the Florentine or any of the Benedict variations.

As for the Spanish-inspired dish we shared, diners have the option of ordering it as a frittata or scramble. We opted for the scramble, however, either is likely to offer the same colorful punch of flavor. Such a large plate on it’s own might have been a bit overwhelming though, but it made a great dish to share.

The problem with BLD is that everything looks so tasty. By the time you sit down and look at your menu, you’ve probably seen at least four or five dishes at other tables that you really want to sample. Hopefully you won’t be quite as indecisive as us and will be able to settle on just one. From our experience, I’d imagine whatever you do end up choosing will not disappoint.

BLD is located at 7450 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90036-2701
Visit their website at www.bldrestaurant.com

Great 'South of the Border' flavor, well worth the 2,000 mile trip!

If the name hasn't yet given it away, this blog is meant to cover restaurants and food related events in Southern California. While the contributors have wrestled with the range of the geographical coverage, we're pretty firm on it not going beyond Southern California. Well, with only a month in operation, I'm already breaking the rules.

This past week I spent a few days in Chicago on a mini vacation. Along with my first Cubs game, I got to eat some great food, including some incredible pizza and a classic Chicago dog--clearly, healthy eating was not very high on my list of priorities during this trip. One of the goals I did have on this trip though was to eat at Rick Bayless' restaurant, Frontera Grill.

Most will know Rick Bayless from his television show, “Mexico--One Plate at a Time,” or his recent win on Top Chef Masters. Bayless has a longstanding reputation in Chicago for his Mexican-inspired and award winning restaurants Frontera Grill, which opened in 1987, and Topolobampo, which followed two years later.

Despite being honored by the James Beard Foundation and numerous other publications and organizations, Bayless seems to be as equally concerned with those who help make his restaurants a success as those who enjoy the food. In 2003, Rick and his wife, Deann, founded the Frontera Farmer Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting local, small farms that supply restaurants in the Chicago area.

Along with his longstanding traditional restaurants, Bayless recently introduced his newest eatery, XOCO. Located on the same block as Frontera and Topolo, at the corner of Clark and Illinois, the area could appropriately be dubbed "Rick's Row" or “The Bayless Block.” Unlike it's two neighbors, XOCO is a quick-serve restaurant offering a selection of tortas (Mexican sandwiches), salads, soups (after 3pm) and freshly made pastries.

I initially wasn't going to have the opportunity to eat at XOCO due to the duration of my visit; with just enough time to visit one Bayless restaurant, I elected to eat at his first Chicago location, Frontera. I had an incredible gazpacho to start followed by a “grilled, garlic-marinated...duck breast with Queretaro-style green mole” as my main entree. Both worth raving about if I had been in Southern California.

After a great dinner the night before, I headed to O'Hare the next day to return to California. After learning my flight would be delayed for five hours I decided to return to the city to kill some time. With nothing more than a plan to wander for a while, I ended up exiting the train only a few blocks from XOCO right at lunchtime. What seemed to be an inconvenient setback turned out to be a fortuitous diversion that ultimately led to the chance to enjoy one of the best lunches I’ve had in a very long time.

I arrived just a few minutes before the main lunch rush, which was a good thing since from what I saw during my two trips to the area, the restaurant usually has a very long line and very few places to sit. Fortunately, I placed my order with a very kind and helpful young woman who highly recommended the ahogada torta.

The sandwich itself, which included pork carnitas and pickled onions, was very tasty, but what put it over the top was the tomato broth it was served with, or more appropriately, in. Both halves of the sandwich come face down in a sauce of tomato, arbol chile and other spices that was an incredible mix of spice and citrus tanginess.

I left with a to go box of some freshly made churros and other pastries, which were terrific, but that sandwich is what really made an impression. It didn’t matter that I was full, I could have continued to eat more. The only thing stopping me from ordering another sandwich was the line that now ran outside the door.

While there seems little point in writing about a restaurant halfway across the country that those of us in Southern California will seldom get the opportunity to visit, I offer this article to those who may have the opportunity to visit Chicago in the near future. Whether you’ve got a free evening and want a nice sit down dinner or are looking for a quick afternoon bite, you must add a stop at Clark and Illinois to your itinerary. I will warn you though, it's a very sad flight back home when you realize you won’t get to come back and eat this incredible food again for a long time.

Frontera Grill, Topolobampo and XOCO are all located at the corner of Clark and Illinois in Chicago, IL
For more information, visit Rick Bayless' website: www.rickbayless.com