Show 310, February 9, 2019: Jordan Ogron, Managing Partner, Tesse, Tesse Café & Bakery, Boutellier, Sunset Strip, West Hollywood

Jordan OgronThe Tesse West Hollywood creative team has rebranded and transformed the adjacent Fred Segal Café on the Sunset Strip as the more casual Tesse Café & Bakery with weekday lunch service. Distinctive desserts from partner Sally Camacho Mueller, pastry chef extraordinaire.

“After opening Tesse Restaurant last summer, and introducing Weekend Brunch last Fall, chefs Raphael Francois and Sally Camacho Mueller are excited to introduce an all new Lunch Menu and debut Tesse Café & Bakery. (formerly Fred Segal Café) Open daily from 8am to 6pm, there will be a selection of housemade pastries, coffee, tea, wine and beer available to order at the counter. Monday through Friday, a full lunch menu will be offered from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. including salads, hot sandwiches, pastas and entrees as well as plated desserts.”

“Chef Raphael has developed a menu with lighter fare such as a Shaved Fennel Salad with Citrus, Spinach and Chickpeas and Local Seabass Ceviche with Passion Fruit, Cucumber, Mirin & Celery, to heartier dishes like Croque Monsieur Classique, or Steak Frites with Skirt Steak, Pesto, Watercress and Duck Fat Fries. Desserts include Chocolate Hazelnut Profiteroles and Lemon Meringue Tart.”

Managing Partner & wine guru Jordan Ogron (Boutellier) has all the tasty details.

Show 304, December 29, 2018: Restaurateur Trisha Langer, Daughter’s Deli – A Family Tradition, West Hollywood

Tricia LangerLanger’s Deli’s pastrami is legendary in Jewish deli appreciators’ circles. In 2001 Langer’s was awarded the distinction of “America’s Classics” by The James Beard Foundation, a prestigious honor for an independent, family-owned restaurant. Trisha Langer is the granddaughter of Al Langer, the founder of Langer’s Deli located across the street from MacArthur Park in Los Angeles.

After many years learning the deli trade at Langer’s from her Grandparents and Father (Al) she has branched off on her own (with her husband) to found Daughter’s Deli – A Family Tradition in the heart of The Sunset Strip in West Hollywood.

It’s a more modest establishment in size than Langer’s but the pastrami is still outstanding and hand carved. You order at the counter and your food is delivered to your table. There is also comfortable covered patio seating with a view of the action on the Sunset Strip. It’s breakfast and lunch, 7-days.

“Growing up with a family in the Deli business exposed me to a world of tastes, smells, stories, and experiences I wouldn’t have had otherwise. My first job as a little girl was rolling swiss cheese under the supervision of my Nana because I wasn’t old or tall enough to make my own catering tray for the holidays. Years later after graduating college and realizing the restaurant business was in my blood, I went to work with my family as they taught me some of the tricks and trades of the business. I spent fourteen years being mentored by my father bonding over Family traditions and recipes created by my Nana, Papa, and himself over the years.”

“In 2015, I married a family man who had passion for the restaurant business. He insists the moment he fell in love with me is when he asked how my day was, and I told him I had to pull my hair back and hand cut pastrami that day with my dad because we were busy. Three years later after having two sons, I decided to begin a new venture with him to create something like my family had created for me. Daughter’s Deli is a place we hope will emulate the feeling of A Family Tradition while serving quality food.” – Trisha Langer

We pull Trisha away from skillfully hand-slicing the ethereal pastrami for a visit.

Show 286, August 18, 2018: Sally Camacho-Mueller, Executive Pastry Chef / Partner, Tesse, West Hollywood

Sally Camacho MuellerSally Camacho-Mueller (ex-Jonathan Club and Hotel Bel-Air) is Executive Pastry Chef / Partner of Tesse on the Sunset Strip at La Cienega Blvd. It is modern French cooking using California ingredients under the direction of Executive Chef Raphael Francois.

“Sally Camacho Mueller graduated with honors from both the Culinary and Baking & Pastry Programs at the California Culinary Academy in San Francisco. She returned to her home in Los Angeles, to work with Donald Wressell at The Four Seasons Beverly Hills and from there went on to work at numerous award-winning resorts and fine dining restaurants including The Wynn Las Vegas, Bradley Ogden at Caesars Palace, the Fairmont Turnberry Isle Resort in FL, Wolfgang Puck‘s WP24, the Hotel Bel-Air, and the Jonathan Club. In 2015 she joined as the Culinary Institute of America Greystone in Napa Valley as pastry chef and baker instructor.”

Her work has been featured in numerous publications and in 2011 she was a cheftestant on Bravo‘s Top Chef: Just Desserts where she came away as a finalist and runner-up.

We’ll meet her.

Show 223, May 13, 2017: Remembering Harry & Marilyn Lewis’ The Hamburger Hamlet

Vintagfe Sunset Strip Hamburger Hamlet“The Better Burger” is all the buzz right now on restaurant menus but it’s not actually a new innovation. It started in Los Angeles in 1950 on The Sunset Strip with the founding of Harry & Marilyn Lewis’s Hamburger Hamlet.

By the time the Lewis’ sold the prominent enterprise in 1987 they were some 30 very busy company-owned units in California, Arizona, Chicago and the Washington, D.C. area.

The Hamlets were so popular at their height that in Beverly Hills (where the Lewis’ lived) there was a flagship Hamburger Hamlet on N. Bedford Dr. and another on S. Beverly Drive just below Wilshire within a short walk of each other. The popular Sunset Strip location (near the original Hamlet) was less than a mile away!

Marilyn passed away on May 3rd and we reminisce about the pioneering legacy of Hamburger Hamlet – “Known for Simply Marvelous Food & Drink.”

 

Show 205, January 7, 2017: Raimondo Boggia, CEO & Sommelier, Obica Group

Raimondo BoggiaObica, the world’s first mozzarella bar, was founded in Rome in 2004. There are now more than 16 contemporary Italian restaurants worldwide including two in Los Angeles (Sunset Strip and Century City) and one in Santa Monica.

Obicà is the only restaurant in Los Angeles to directly import Mozzarella di Bufala DOP (Denomination of Protected Origin) twice a week from cheese makers in Campania, southern Italy, ensuring the utmost freshness and quality. Obicà offers four kinds of mozzarella: a traditional Bufala ClassicaBufala Affumicata, which is smoked on iron nets over a hay fire, Burrata, which is sweet and creamy, and Burrata al Tartufo with black truffle.

Obicà also serves its signature pizza, prepared with a blend of stone-ground white flour and whole wheat organic flour, cooked in the restaurant’s stone pizza oven. Obicà’s pizza dough is left to rise for a minimum of 48 hours, with no chemical yeasts, resulting in an airy and lighter texture.

All the fresh pasta is homemade and the ingredients are organic. The wine list includes an extensive array of Italian indigenous grown grapes. The design is casual with a contemporary and elegant touch. Founded in 2004 by Silvio Ursini, all of Obicà’s locations and concepts follow a straightforward philosophy of serving food that is good, clean and fair.

There is also a stylish Obica cookbook available. It’s Obica – Mozzarella Bar – Pizza E Cucina – A contemporary attitude to authentic Italian food.

Sommelier and CEO of Obica group, Raimondo Boggia, joins us for a spirited discussion of Italian cuisine.

Show 74, May 31, 2014: Chef Wolfgang Puck

Wolfgang PuckWhat is now known as California Cuisine never had a better day than when Celebrity Chef Wolfgang Puck opened the original Spago on The Sunset Strip in 1982. Its ambitions were modest…

Now the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group has restaurants around the world with a second stronghold in Las Vegas.

Chef Puck was the first Chef to cook a meal at New York’s famed James Beard House. He is also the recipient of multiple James Beard Foundation Awards.

Another high-profile division, Wolfgang Puck Catering, provides the food for the annual Governors Ball for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Wolfgang is better known internationally than many of the celebrities who he graciously serves!

Finally, Wolfgang Puck Worldwide, Inc. franchises casual Wolfgang Puck restaurants, licenses consumer products, is involved in book publishing, television and internet programming, and other licensing and merchandising efforts.

Wolfgang Puck’s most recent book, Wolfgang Puck Makes It Healthy – Light, Delicious Recipes and Easy Exercises for a Better Life is a personal project for him.

In the words of Chef Wolfgang Puck :

“I never, ever expected to write this book. If you had suggested to me ten years ago, or even five, that my next book would focus on healthy recipes and fitness, I would’ve said you didn’t know me very well.

I have figured out where I can modify ingredients to make a healthier dish. And today I can eat all my favorite foods without overeating anything.

I feel good because of the combination of eating well and exercising I’ve developed. Now I want to help you achieve the same goal, to feel healthy and happy, with plenty of energy to do the things you love to do.”

Chef Wolfgang’s practical advice is to cut down on the consumption of processed foods. Work more fresh fruit and vegetables into your diet along with more fish and chicken. It’s really worked for him! He proudly keeps up with his older boys now on their skiing adventures.

May 31: Wolfgang Puck, Cathy Thomas, Coffee Bean, Fireside Tavern, Joan’s on Third,

Podcasts

Segment One: Host Jet Tila and Producer Andy Harris
Segment Two: Cathy Thomas, food journalist, Orange County Register and Los Angeles Register
Segment Three: Jay Isais, Senior Director, Coffee Roasting and Manufacturing, Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf
Segment Four: Chef Wolfgang Puck
Segment Five: Executive Chef Scott Brandon, Fireside Tavern, Costa Mesa
Segment Six: Chester Hastings, Cheesemonger and Chef, Joan’s on Third, Los Angeles
Segment Seven: Bill Esparza, “The Street Gourmet” & Curator for Tacolandia Part One
Segment Eight: Bill Esparza, “The Street Gourmet” & Curator for Tacolandia Part Two

Chef Jet and Producer Andy preview the show.

Pioneering California Celebrity Chef Wolfgang Puck with destination restaurants around the globe really needs no introduction. Among many accomplishments he cooks for the VIP guests at the Oscars every year. His new book, Wolfgang Puck Makes it Healthy : Light, Delicious Recipes and Easy Exercises for a Better Life is a true labor of love.

The Orange County Register’s award-winning food writer, Cathy Thomas, has just returned from a cruise on Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth. She shares her travel and food adventures in India and Singapore.

What’s the most exotic coffee bean in the world ? Our resident coffee expert from the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf has the unexpected answer. It’s unusual…

The 2nd Annual Tacolandia (“Where All Your Taco Dreams Come True”) is coming up June 28th. The Taco in Chief (a.k.a. “The Street Gourmet,”) Bill Esparza, serves it up.

Understanding and selecting specialty cheese can be a bit intimidating. Cheesemonger extraordinaire, Chester Hastings, to the rescue!

Fireside Tavern is an undiscovered gem of a new destination restaurant in the unlikely location of the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Costa Mesa just off the 405 Freeway. The secret is Executive Chef Scott Brandon.

All of this and lots more absolutely incredible deliciousness on Saturday’s show!

Special Note:
Michael Puglisi
You’ve heard Chef Michael Puglisi (ex-Bouchon Beverly Hills) of the soon-to-be Electric City Butcher in The (upcoming) 4th Street Market in Santa Ana on the show.

On Monday, June 2nd Chef Puglisi is part of a special Chef’s Dinner at 320 Main – New American Eatery in Seal Beach.

The 6-course menu is from Chef Puglisi, Chef Jaime Carrano of 320 Main, and Chef Eddie Ruiz of Corazon y Miel. Corazon y Miel in Bell was just included in Jonathan Gold’s 101 Best Restaurants 2014 as presented in the Los Angeles Times.

Chefs Michael and Eddie also work together at the recently opened PICNIK in Old Pasadena. “These three friends are pleased to bring an amazing menu and incredible dining experience for the latest in 320 Main’s Chef’s Dinner series.”

$95 per guest including tax and gratuity.

Reservations & Information: 562.799.6246.

Cathy ThomasCathy Thomas is the long-established food writer and former Food Editor at The Orange County Register. She has won numerous well-deserved awards for her journalism and is a good friend of chefs and restaurateurs.

Cathy Thomas was just on a short leg (12 days) of Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth’s World Cruise. She left the ship for four days on land in India traveling to the Taj Mahal. Cathy will enlighten us on luxury cruising, Indian street food, and dining at Ku De Ta, a hot restaurant in Singapore with an incredible view.

Look for Cathy’s piece on Indian Street Food in an upcoming Wednesday Food Section in the Orange County Register.

Jay Isais of the Coffee Bean and Tea LeafJay (“Eye-Zay-Us”) Isais is the Senior Director, Coffee Roasting and Manufacturing, for the Coffee Bean and Teal Leaf.

The rarest coffee beans in the world (from Sumatra) must be the Kopi Luwak beans. They are “harvested” in an unusual way.

Jay explains this highly sought-after coffee oddity…

Wolfgang PuckWhat is now known as California Cuisine never had a better day than when Celebrity Chef Wolfgang Puck opened the original Spago on The Sunset Strip in 1982. Its ambitions were modest…

Now the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group has restaurants around the world with a second stronghold in Las Vegas.

Chef Puck was the first Chef to cook a meal at New York’s famed James Beard House. He is also the recipient of multiple James Beard Foundation Awards.

Another high-profile division, Wolfgang Puck Catering, provides the food for the Annual Governors Ball for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Wolfgang is better known internationally than many of the celebrities who he graciously serves !

Another unit, Wolfgang Puck Worldwide, Inc. franchises casual Wolfgang Puck restaurants, licenses consumer products, is involved in book publishing, television and internet programming, and other licensing and merchandising efforts.

Wolfgang Puck’s most recent book, Wolfgang Puck Makes It Healthy – Light, Delicious Recipes and Easy Exercises for a Better Life is a personal project for him.
In the words of Chef Wolfgang Puck :

“I never, ever expected to write this book. If you had suggested to me ten years ago, or even five, that my next book would focus on healthy recipes and fitness, I would’ve said you didn’t know me very well.

I have figured out where I can modify ingredients to make a healthier dish. And today I can eat all my favorite foods without overeating anything.

I feel good because of the combination of eating well and exercising I’ve developed. Now I want to help you achieve the same goal, to feel healthy and happy, with plenty of energy to do the things you love to do.”

Scott Brandon of Fireside TavernFireside Tavern is an undiscovered gem of a new destination restaurant in the unlikely location of the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Costa Mesa just off the 405 Freeway. The secret is Executive Chef Scott Brandon.

Chef Scott’s credits include Oysters in Corona del Mar, Crow Bar and Kitchen in Corona del Mar, and LinX in Old Towne Orange.

It’s located just South of South Coast Plaza.

The space is inviting and there is an outside patio with lots of shade.

There is a great Happy Hour menu served daily from 3 to 6:00 p.m. and then again from 10 to midnight. Lots of fun & appealing food selections and libations priced at a good value.

“Fireside is an American gastropub, offering a contemporary menu of upscale tavern fare for lunch and dinner. Fireside features a menu of freshly sourced meat, seafood and cheese, along with a bar menu of small plates. The bar serves an array of American wines, craft draft beer, and signature cocktails.”

Chester HastingsCheesemonger (and Chef) Chester Hastings of Joan’s on Third in Los Angeles literally wrote the book on enjoying cheese. His latest title is The Cheesemonger’s Seasons – Recipes for Enjoying Cheese with Ripe Fruits and Vegetables. His first cheese book was the well-reviewed, The Cheesemonger’s Kitchen.

The Cheesemonger’s Season contains ninety amazing cheese-centric recipes, from appetizers to desserts, all of them simple, and each one showcasing the absolute best of what the season has to offer.

When Chester started at Joan’s over 12 years ago they carried seven varieties of cheese. Today they stock over 100 varieties of domestic and imported cheeses.

Bill EsparzaThe 2nd Annual Tacolandia (“Where All Your Taco Dreams Come True”) is coming up June 28th at El Pueblo De Los Angeles. The hours are 3 to 7:00 p.m.

The Taco in Chief, Bill Esparza (a.k.a. “The Street Gourmet,”) serves it up.

It’s 40 plus taco vendors, the Tequila Tasting Experience, and live Mariachi entertainment.

Bill previews the incredible taco creations of a number of the chefs participating in LA Weekly’s Tacolandia. The best tacos on food trucks, too…

The 2nd Annual Tacolandia (“Where All Your Taco Dreams Come True”) is coming up June 28th at El Pueblo De Los Angeles. The hours are 3 to 7:00 p.m.

Podcasts

Segment One: Host Jet Tila and Producer Andy Harris
Segment Two: Cathy Thomas, food journalist, Orange County Register and Los Angeles Register
Segment Three: Jay Isais, Senior Director, Coffee Roasting and Manufacturing, Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf
Segment Four: Chef Wolfgang Puck
Segment Five: Executive Chef Scott Brandon, Fireside Tavern, Costa Mesa
Segment Six: Chester Hastings, Cheesemonger and Chef, Joan’s on Third, Los Angeles
Segment Seven: Bill Esparza, “The Street Gourmet” & Curator for Tacolandia Part One
Segment Eight: Bill Esparza, “The Street Gourmet” & Curator for Tacolandia Part Two

Show 53, December 21, 2013: Host Jet Tila and Producer Andy Harris

What's Cooking with Jet Tila and Travis RodgersThanks for all the supportive words about “What’s Cooking with Travis and Chef Jet Tila” heard just after 7:50 a.m. on Friday morning on AM 830 KLAA as part of “The Travis Rodgers Show.” Travis is taking a well-earned Holiday break. The segment will return just after 7:50 a.m. on Friday, January 4th. The previous features are all available for your listening pleasure within the “Media” area of the “SoCal Restaurant Show” Website.

Chef Jet and Producer Andy preview the show. Highlights are Susan Feniger talking about her new Mud Hen Tavern on the site of the former Street in Hollywood, Troy Johnson, the Food Critic of San Diego Magazine, and Celebrity Chef Brian Malarkey (from San Diego) who is opening an ambitious restaurant on The Sunset Strip.

Show 53, December 21, 2013: Troy Johnson, Editor-at-Large & Food Critic of San Diego Magazine

Troy JohnsonTroy Johnson, the Food Critic of San Diego Magazine, represents the enthusiastic new breed of youthful restaurant journalists with a point-of-view.

You perhaps remember him on Food TV from his Cooking Channel series, “Crave.” He’s also one of the regular judges on Food Network’s new Sunday evening “Guy’s (Fieri) Grocery Games.”

There is a lot happening on the San Diego restaurant scene. The big noise is that chef and restaurateur Richard Blais is leaving his base in Atlanta to open Juniper & Ivy in the Little Italy area of San Diego. It will seat 200 when open so this is an ambitious project! Chef Blais is probably best known nationally for his multiple seasons on Bravo’s “Top Chef.”

In addition to his reviews in San Diego Magazine, Troy also writes about restaurant comings and goings in San Diego County.

Show 53, December 21, 2013: Executive Chef Brian Malarkey of Enlightened Hospitality Group, San Diego

Brian MalarkeyYou know Chef Brian Malarkey from “Top Chef: Season 3, Miami” on Bravo and Season 1 of ABC’s “The Taste.” In real life he’s also a highly successful restaurateur in San Diego (and Scottsdale and Austin) with major financial backing.

In a bold move he’s bringing an expanded Herringbone (La Jolla) to The Mondrian on the fabled Sunset Strip in January. After a major gut-rehab it’s replacing the pricey Asia de Cuba at this hip & happening boutique luxury hotel. The panoramic 180 degree view from the restaurant toward the coast, now improved, is pretty spectacular. He’s responsible for all foodservice at The Hotel including in-room dining and functions.

The food is Herringbone’s own “Fish Meats Field” cuisine. A favorite is Pork Belly with wood roasted sunchokes, manila clams, and calvados and green apple jus.

A signature wood-burning oven is being added to the totally revamped kitchen.