LEISURE^27
Food & Drink
Auburn Los Angeles
Forgive me if I sound overexcited; I
have found “the most exhilarating,
splurge-worthy restaurant to open so far
this year,” said Bill Addison in the Los
Angeles Times. The space combines “the
most soothing, clean-lined aspects of
Scandinavian and Japanese design”—vast
pale walls, white-oak beams, and a raised
central garden that sits under a retract-
able roof. “It looks,” in fact, “like the
house of the friends you most envy.” But
what makes the first solo venture of chef
Eric Bost so special is the way the food
and setting balance casualness and for-
mality, establishing “an inspiring direction
forward for luxe dining in Los Angeles.”
Bost’s food “ripples with restless creativ-
ity.” He focuses on visual impact, yet “his
flavors come together with a heartening
warmth,” and he lets diners decide how
to assemble a meal of four, six, or nine
courses from a 12-dish menu. Perhaps,
then, you will enjoy Koshi oysters enriched
with bone marrow before the duck with
roasted cherries, and finish with a gorgeous
frozen rose parfait. These are dishes that
“equally rouse emotions and the intellect.”
6703 Melrose Ave., (323) 486-6703Lazy Betty Atlanta
Maybe it shouldn’t be a surprise to see
shorts and flip-flops on diners at Ron Hsu’s
new restaurant, said Christiane LauterbachCritics’ choice: The tasting-menu set learns to loosen up
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A decade into America’s craft distillery
boom, “it is a great time to be a whiskey
fan,” said Clay Risen in the online maga-
zine Punch. The nation’s distillery count
has jumped from about 250 to 1,700,
goosed in part by the 2008 fi nancial
crash and the creative folks it put out
of work. Below, three variations on the
whiskey theme from that generation.
New Southern Revival Sorghum Whiskey
($57). Sorghum gives this South Carolina
whiskey “a nose of banana candy and
a creamy palate.” It balances “earthy
graininess” with a cake-batter note.
Dad’s Hat Rye ($48). The mid-
Atlantic has gone big on rye, led
by products like this throwback.
“It tastes of peppers and cherries,
with a soulful herbal note.”
Buggy Whip Wheat Whiskey ($46).
Wheat whiskeys remain rare, but
here’s one from Michigan worth
fi nding. “On the palate it resem-
bles a delicate rum.”Whiskey: The crash boom
The words “pasta” and “salad,” when paired side by side, “always sound like a sad
trombone,” said Alison Roman in The New York Times. But this pasta salad will make
you forget all the bland stuff you’ve encountered at subpar picnic tables.
It’s lemony, savory, and “insanely herby.”Recipe of the week
- Cook pasta in a large pot of salted
boiling water until al dente. Drain and
rinse with cool water. Toss with a drizzle
of oil and set aside. Heat ¼ cup oil in
a large skillet over medium-high heat.
Add walnuts and toss to coat.
Cook, stirring occasionally,
until toasted, 3 to 4 minutes.
Using a slotted spoon, trans-
fer walnuts to a small bowl
and season with salt. - Add shallots and lemon to
oil left in pan. Season with
salt and pepper. Cook, stirring
occasionally, until both begin to caramel-
ize, 5 to 8 minutes. Add capers and stir,
letting them sizzle a minute or two.- Add zucchini. Season with salt and pep-
per. Cook, stirring occasionally, until zuc-
chini becomes translucent,
edges slightly browned,
10 to 15 minutes. Remove
from heat. Add pasta, toss-
ing to coat. Season to taste.
Transfer to a serving bowl.
Top with toasted walnuts,
feta, herbs, and a drizzle of
olive oil. Serves 4.
Pasta with zucchini, feta, and fried lemon- 8 oz spaghetti or bucatini • kosher salt • olive oil • ½ cup walnut pieces • 2 large
shallots, thinly sliced • 1 lemon, thinly sliced, seeds removed • freshly ground black
pepper • 2 tbsp capers • 1¼ lbs zucchini, sliced in thin rounds • 2 oz feta, crumbled - 1 cup fresh parsley and/or dill, coarsely chopped • 2 tbsp fresh oregano leaves
in Atlanta magazine. “Informality rules
in today’s temples of high gastronomy,”
and even the $165-a-head price on Hsu’s
10-course tasting menu can’t squelch
Candler Park’s hippie vibe. But Hsu, a local
kid who mastered his craft during nearly a
decade at New York City’s storied Le Ber-
nar din, is one of the best reasons to spend
at that level on a dinner in Atlanta. Nearly
every dish he serves is an expression of
modernist invention that tastes as good as
it looks. Park outside Lazy Betty, the res-
taurant named after his hardworking immi-
grant mother, and you might not expect the
“casual opulence” waiting inside. Beyond
the seats at the chef’s counter lies a dining
room where meals are slightly less costly
but the staff just as enthusiastic. They
might deliver Madras-spiced duck rillettesor charred octopus with fermented
black beans before Hsu’s witty “steak
and eggs,” featuring a slow-cooked yolk
wrapped in a collard leaf. That little
stunt “made me gasp in admiration.”
1530 Dekalb Ave., (404) 975-3692Call and Beckon Denver
The sister restaurants Call and Beckon
are “two parts of an intriguing whole,”
said Scott Mowbray in Denver’s 5280
magazine. Set side by side in small,
gabled houses, both operations are “low
on pomp, fair in price, well-designed,
and friendly,” and one of them is a
Denver first: a tasting-menu spot where
diners buy tickets in advance. Chef Duncan
Holmes orchestrates each $115 eight- to
nine-course meal, and though he’s good
and the dinners spirited, “he needs to
deliver more wonder.” He’s as likely to
produce rote venison as he is the best
sweetbreads in town. But he deserves high
marks for his langoustines and a chicory
salad with Indian curry spices and roasted
coffee notes. Besides, you want to root for
the guy who created Call, the breakfast-
lunch place next door. Everything served at
Call is “dead simple and well made,” from
the chicken soup to the egg sandwich with
house-smoked pork. Thanks to the inven-
tive cocktails, Call is also “one of the most
propitious places in Denver for day drink-
ing.” 2843 Larimer St., (303) 749-0020Auburn: The new look of luxe dining in L.A.