Shiro South Pasadena

Everyone at Shiro


Last week for my friend Claire’s birthday, her parents took her to Shiro in South Pasadena. I was lucky enough to be on the invite list. I had never even heard of this gem, right in the same plaza as Lucha’s Comfort Shoes, a store I frequent because I’m a granola eating hippie when it comes to shoes. I started out with the Chinese Ravioli. They are stuffed with shrimp mousse and come in a shitake mushroom cream sauce. They were divine. I ordered them because Ruth Reichl adored them. She is my idol. I <3 Ruth Reichl. I wish I could BE Ruth Reichl. For those of you who *gasp* don’t know who she is, she’s the editor of Gourmet Magazine (of which I am a subscriber) and she used to be the NY Times food critic. I have several of her books. We share our knack for food memory. But I digress... back to these divine ravioli. Now, the pasta part was a little more reminiscent of a won ton wrapper (although made with wheat durum flour), but the filling was absolutely divine. Flavorful and light all at the same time. There was a generous heaping of shitake mushrooms which were just a tad bit firm for my taste, but very fresh. The sauce was made with about 2 cups of heavy cream, so it was tasty. They even serve it with a spoon so you can savor every last drop. However, I figured by not licking up the sauce I saved myself about 600 calories. Claire ordered the tuna sashimi, which looked really fresh. Apparently the chef goes to the fresh fish market every morning to pick out the evening’s catch (although the fish market is not open on Sunday... so this was not morning fresh. But still good.)



The most amazing catfish you have ever tasted


Apparently for the main course the thing to get is the whole sizzling catfish. Our friend Jason ordered it and let me have a bite. Oh mi god. HEAVEN. Even the little pieces of crispy ginger accenting the cuts in the fish were tasty. It just melted in my mouth but still packed that big catfish flavor. And there were crunchy cornmeal bits. I was so jealous. They serve the fish whole, with head and all, but they kind of artfully cut it up so it’s easy to eat. And they kind of cover up the head with parsley if you’re weird about that stuff. (See, the picture above is not that bad!) I would definitely order it the next time I go (and there will be a next time!) I ordered the Australian John Dory (a flaky white fish) which came in a champagne curry sauce with divine prawns. I was so full, but I still ate it all. And when Claire couldn’t finish her lobster, well, I had to oblige. It was fabulous. Succulent, just a smidge undercooked to make sure it didn’t get tough. So good. And Jason’s fish came with au gratin scalloped potatoes which must have come from heaven. The best I’ve ever had, hands down. No weird congealed milky cheesy bits (which I can never seem to avoid when I make them myself... anyone have tips?), and the potatoes were perfectly cooked, they were firm enough not to fall apart, but cut easily with the edge of a fork. The potatoes, like the shitake sauce, had about 2 cups of heavy cream... but I would have licked the sauce if they were mine. ;-)



Claire and her Momma

Now, I know I said I was full. And I was. But the dessert menu was just too tempting and everyone else was ordering... so I bowed to peer pressure. Not like they had to twist my arm or anything! I ordered the Grand Marnier Baked Peach with Vanilla Ice Cream & Caramel Sauce. WOW. The peach still had the skin on it, but since it was poached in Grand Marnier it actually ADDED to the flavor of the peach without the weird texture ramifications I expected. And the ice cream. MMMMM. Vanilla bean. I bet from Madagascar. :-) Although I hear Kenyan vanilla is making waves lately... once again I digress. Even though I was ridiculously full I ate the whole dang thing. Alona ordered the chocolate torte soufflé which was not a soufflé at all but a poorly executed flourless chocolate cake. Booo! At least the waiter explained it wasn’t really a soufflé when she ordered it. I swear, no place makes good flourless chocolate cake anymore! The restaurant I used to work at in San Diego, Trattoria Positano, had amazing flourless chocolate cake. I guess Amalia should sell her recipe or something. Anyway, bottom line is Shiro is amazing. It’s not cheap, but anything worth eating is worth paying for in my book. :-) Luckily Claire’s parents thought so too, so I had one of the best free-to-me dinners EVER. I only wish Claire had birthdays more often!






Claire and Jason as she makes a wish

Kabuki Sushi

Wow, this has to be the best kept sushi secret in Los Angeles. Every day, they offer half-off sushi and rolls. The only catch is that if you're eating at dinner, each person has to order 3 things (for lunch it's only 2). So my friend and I ordered 3 rolls and 3 nigiri sushi to share. All this plus a large Sapporo (which was $6.95) brought our bill to about $27. So we spent $10 each on really yummy sushi. A good deal to say the least. There are several locations in the greater Los Angeles area, and we went to the one in Old Pasadena on Colorado.

Now, I know you're going to be kind of skeptical. I mean, if it's half-off, is it still GOOD? Yes, yes it is.

They start you off with free edamame, which were adequately salted, and kept us nibbling before our sushi arrived. And let's face it, nibbling on edamame is much better than wolfing down three pieces of bread with butter.

Then, the sushi came. We ordered three nigiri sushi: albacore, maguro (tuna), and shrimp. The albacore was amazing. It came with this ponzu dipping sauce which made it extra tasty, but the quality of the fish was excellent. It was perfectly seared on one side, and the fish was flaky and melted in our mouths. The maguro was also excellent. It wasn't previously frozen (you can tell from the texture and color) and also was a generous portion of flaky melty goodness. The shrimp was crap, but what do you expect? Shrimp is always frozen, and it's cooked. (Other than sweet shrimp sushi which is just seared, but still raw in the middle. And often comes with fried shrimp heads. Mmm. Crispy.) In retrospect we should have ordered something else. Oh well.

The rolls we ordered were spicy tuna, philadelphia, and shrimp. The spicy tuna was AWESOME. Now, I personally can't handle a whole lot of spice and heat, so this was just right. (I suppose die hards will expect a more spicy roll, but I could not handle it.) It was spicy with a mild heat, just enough to be tasty without overpowering the actual flavor of the roll. I also liked the phildelphia. Something about the texture of the cream chesse with the fresh fish just makes an excellent combination in the mouth. And I don't even like salmon. :-) The shrimp roll was okay. It had thinly sliced cucumber, which added a nice coolness and crunch, but the shrimp just wasn't that good.

The only catch of this great deal is you have to order a minimum amount of sushi, and your choices are limited. The menu has some very interesting rolls on it, but they are not included in the half-off deal. (For example, the lotus roll has baked baby lobster on top of a california roll with eel sauce.) One of these days when I'm flush with cash, I might try one of those full-priced rolls. But, I'll probably just order more albacore. :-)

Brunch at the Ritz

Oysters. Caviar. Omelet Bar. Sushi bar. Lobster claws already shucked. Seared ahi with more caivar. Crab cakes. Lemon custard tart. Sausage. Stinky cheeses. Jumbo shrimp. Cheese blintz. Chocolate croissant (not worth it). Prime rib. Champagne. MMMMM. It's not every day my Gma turns 88. I thought it was a much deserved study break. Would... write... more... but... too ... full.