Los Angeles Time - 08.08.2019

LATIMES.COM/FOOD THURSDAY, AUGUST 8, 2019F3

WHAT WE’RE INTO

Panda Express

gets it right with

hot chicken tenders

Panda Express

Imagine a giant, fire-breathing Godzilla

chicken stomping all over Los Angeles and

you’ll get a sense of the impact that hot chicken

is having on the city. It’s everywhere, including

restaurants, pop-ups, food trucks and roadside

stands.

Major fast-food and fast-casual chains have

taken notice. KFC recently had a version. And

now, Panda Express has released its own take

on the dish with Sichuan hot chicken tenders.

According to Panda Express, the Rosemead

company’s chefs visited the Chengdu region of

China and were inspired by the Sichuan food

there. They decided to apply the ma la heat to

the current Nashville hot chicken craze, and

the Sichuan chicken tenders were born.

They are made with white meat chicken and

an orange Sichuan peppercorn oil glaze. If you

ask for it extra spicy (the sign on the sneeze

guard encourages you to do so) they’ll shake an

extra bit of brick-red spice on the chicken.

While the tenders aren’t technically

Sichuan food or anything close to Nashville hot

chicken, they were right up there with the rest

of the hot chicken restaurants in Los Angeles.

The chicken was moist, with a crisp crust, and

there was the tiniest hint of a numbing sensa-

tion from the Sichuan peppercorns. It’s a com-

pression of flavors similar to the Whole She-

bang sauce at the Boiling Crab chain, with a

kick of paprika and cayenne. And it tasted like

there was some sugar in the mix too.

If you’re looking for some real heat, though,

you’ll need to ask for it extra spicy — and then

you’ll have to ask for some packets of chile

sauce. It’s a heat level that would be considered

hot only at the retirement home down the

block, even with the extra shake.

— Jenn Harris

From Cambodian and Central

American spots to blue-collar coffee

shops to brunch palaces, Long

Beach’s food scene is one that the

rest of Southern California doesn’t

pay enough attention to — and that

usually suits residents just fine.

But something different is hap-

pening with Ellie’s. Beloved local

reporter Sarah Bennett deemed it

Long Beach’s “first L.A. restaurant,”

meaning a place in the LBC that

Angelenos might actually drive to

besides the cool airport and Finger-

prints Music.

The online-only Long Beach Post

applauded chef-owner Jason Witzl

for inspiring the local hoity-toities —

the homeless-hatin’ wannabe New-

porters of Belmont Shores, the blue

hairs of College Estates, Naples’

nouveau riche — to step “out of their

insular existence” in a way no restau-

rant has done in a while.

Ellie’s has become such a point of

pride for Long Beach boosters that

Witzl recently announced a tasting-

menu-only spot next door, to open in

the fall — and it’s already booked

solid for four months.

Good for Strong Beach. But

should the rest of us brave the city’s

notoriously bad traffic and parking

for a visit?

The bistro, with a cute patio, a

split dining room and a playlist that

cuts the difference between KCRW

and KROQ, is in Alamitos Beach, a

charming, largely gay neighborhood

chockablock with pre-World War II

two-story houses and apartment

complexes. The nightlife is good, the

sidewalks filled with beautiful people

walking their dogs at all hours.

Witzl, a Whittier boy who has

worked at restaurants from Spain to

L.A. (Campanile), delivers in the

elegance and flavor department. His

farm-to-table approach uses Asian

and Latin American flavors to enliv-

en its Italian foundation; the result

comes off like a multicultural update

of Evan Kleiman’s late, great Angeli

Caffe.

The draw here isn’t the entrees

per se but the sauces, spices and

accouterments Witzl splashes and

sprinkles on dishes with gusto, to the

point that he has unfortunately

referred to himself as a “condiment

whore.”

More brilliant is how he reflects

the way we now eat in Southern

California, where we bathe our left-

overs in Sriracha, Tapatío, Trader

Joe’s zhougor Saddaf-brand harissa,

depending on our mood.

The fermented Japanese citrus-

pepper paste yuzu koshoserves as

the spicy-tart base for Witzl’s most

recent seasonal crudo, made of

scallops and blood orange slices; it’s

refreshing like an Aperol spritz.

Egyptian dukkah— a pistachio dip

— imparts nuttiness to roasted

cauliflower; a fine salsa verde adds

heat to his cavatelli and cuts the

richness of the mixed-in chicken

confit and guanciale. He smears a

pear mustardo on a hefty, succulent

pork chop, a bohemian lift for a

workingman’s feast.

There is not a bad order at Ellie’s.

The meatballs are airy despite being

as large as a croquet ball; the dehy-

drated strawberries in his peppy

burrata seem like a gimmick until

they come to life, Pop Rocks-like, in

your mouth. And in a city that

swears by brunches, Ellie’s already

offers one of the best, with twists on

baked eggs and beans, chilaquiles,

and avocado toast seasoned with

pecorino.

If there’s a disappointment about

Ellie’s, it’s that Witzl has the talent

but ultimately offers no real step

forward in the Southern California

food scene. The menu, packed with

pastas, salads and grilled vegetables,

seems geared toward locals who

want to eat in their comfort zone.

He shows flashes of originality in

dessert via corn cakes smothered in

vanilla and chocolate gelatos and

fermented strawberries, baptized

with a dulce de leche drizzle — like a

mestizo strawberry shortcake. Witzl

should do more of this, instead of just

tweaking the tried-and-true that

dominates the rest of the menu.

Any reticence on Witzl’s part to

flex makes sense — Long Beach’s

high-end dining scene is still embry-

onic. Only in this decade have places

like Michael’s on Naples, Thomas

Ortega’s Playa restaurants and

Panxa Cocina opened to offer a

buzzy reason to eat in the city.

Maybe Witzl’s tasting concept will

reveal his real game.

In the meantime, the best time to

visit Ellie’s is right at 11 on a weekday

morning, when it opens for lunch and

Alamitos Beach is off to work. The

menu features all the greatest hits of

dinner, along with a sturdy burger

and an even better eggplant sand-

wich that shines with mint pesto and

pickled onions. It’s usually empty;

you can dine with ease.

Otherwise, parking around Ellie’s

is worse than L.A.’s Koreatown.

Can’t the city give Witzl a valet sub-

sidy instead of trying to court the

Anaheim Angels?

The seasonal crudo, top, and the spring roots are recommended dishes to order at Ellie’s in Long Beach.

Mariah TaugerLos Angeles Times

RESTAURANT REVIEW

There isn’t a bad order

at Long Beach’s Ellie’s

GUSTAVO ARELLANO

GUEST CRITIC

Ellie’s

A neighborhood spot serving

Cal-Italian pastas and meats and

hefty brunches.

LOCATION

204 Orange Ave., Long Beach;

(562) 437-4837, ellieslbc.com

PRICES

Appetizers, $9-$15; tacos

$2.50-$4; pastas, $15-$19;

entrees, $24-$36

DETAILS

Credit cards accepted. Beer and

wine. Horrible parking. Dining

room and restroom are

wheelchair accessible.

RECOMMENDED DISHES

Seasonal crudo; any pastas;

corn cakes for dessert

From Our Café

to Your Everyday

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