The Art of Eat

XOX Truffles
754 Columbus Avenue
(between Filbert & Greenwich)
San Francisco, CA 94133
415.421.4814

I thought I had a pretty good grasp of how a great chocolate is supposed to taste but I am pleased to announce that my world was turned upside down a few days ago by a sweet little chocolatier by the name XOX Truffles. I’ve tried chocolates all over the world in Paris, Bavaria, New York, and Los Angeles at names like Vosges, Maison, Payard, and Ricard and many of the chocolatiers to be fair were sinfully good. Undoubtedly the quality of Maison and Payard are amongst the best the world has to offer, but there is another. Nestled at the end of the Columbus drag in North Beach, San Francisco is a little wedge of a shop that serves the best chocolate I have ever tasted at a price that I couldn’t and wouldn’t believe.

XOX Truffles is a mom and pop operation started about 12 years ago by chef Jean Marc Gorce following a heart attack. His days as a French restaurant chef were over, but thank god we weren’t robbed of Gorce’s talent. Like a phoenix Gorce has soared far beyond the limits of chocolate making known to normal men and I guiltily admit I’m a little happy he is now making his delectible chocolates. In the little shop in North Beach you can meet Gorce and watch him prepare his wonderful truffles and I swear there isn’t a humbler person.

For the most part XOX Truffles come in a variety of traditional liquered and non-liquered flavours. The truffles’ appearance is classic, deep in colour, and looks as rich as it tastes. You can tell right away that the truffles were made that morning and it doesn’t take watching Gorce make them behind the counter to believe it. My favourite of the flavours is the Tequila Chipotle truffle, but I have to admit the Earl Gray and Champagne were just as good. Even the plain old Dark Chocolate was delectable in its simplicity. Of the five or so flavours I tried my least favourite was the Green Tea which was a bit too strongly powdered for me but once the flavours mixed together it was still good.

My last favourite chocolatier has been Vosges for a long time, not so much for the quality of their chocolate but their sinful exotic choclate concoctions with ingredients like Tallegio cheese, Balsamic Vinegar, Sweet Indian Curry, and Hungarian Paprika, and I never would have thought that a traditionally flavoured chocolate could surpass my taste for the exotic but I was very wrong. In comparison to other excellent traditional choclatiers with premium quality truffles XOX surpasses them for two reasons, freshness and price. Every other great chocolatier knows their skill and charges like they know it and then double that, but XOX is unbelievably well priced. Gorce even goes so far as to throw in complementary tasters on small orders like $20 which in the store will get you 4o truffles. Secondly the truffles are just so fresh and so tasty that I still truly believe they are the best I’ve had. Maybe it was being able to meet Gorce or maybe there’s some other secret magic in the truffles but after just one visit I am completely sure that XOX is the best chocolate I’ve ever eaten.

The Cakery
773 E Foothill Blvd
San Luis Obispo, CA‎
(805) 545-7777‎

There are a whole lot of sandwich shops in San Luis Obispo and the Cakery is my second choice for a quick bite just following Lincoln Deli. While Lincoln Deli has a larger menu and a slightly better ambiance, the Cakery has a wonderful cookie and baked goods selection and their cakes are not only delicious but look like works of art. The Cakery also has better bread choices and their soups are consistently the best in town.

My favourite sandwich choice has to be the Turkey and Brie toasted on Herbed Foccacia if it’s available. The sandwich can also have a selection of mayo spreads including roast red pepper and basil pesto, the latter I recommend for that sandwich. It’s a delightful taste bud go getter with fresh cranberries and spring mix to top off the mix and there’s very few better tasting sandwiches anywhere. My second choice would most likely be the Caprese, mozzarella, whole leaf basil, and a balsamic and olive oil blend. Depending on who makes the sandwich it can be a little dry sometimes, but when it’s done right it’s stupendous. Again the bread makes a big difference and I like it on either the Herb Foccacia or Ciabbata.

To accompany a sandwich or just as a snack the cookies are worth trying. I am partial to Mexican Wedding cookies because they’re never too sweet and have a wonderful little almond taste to them but the Ginger Chocolate Chip gives a lot of flavour to an otherwise ordinary selection and if you’re a fan of candied ginger you won’t want to pass it up.

Unfortunately the Cakery is a little more expensive than most of the other sandwich shops in SLO including Lincoln Deli and for a sandwich, soup, and drink it’ll cost about $12. The quantity of the sandwiches are also a little smaller than most of the other delis but since the taste is so much better I’d still recommend it. The Cakery gets past up a lot due to its location in a shopping mall and it’s name which doesn’t do much to  advertise it as a lunch place, but it is the second closest deli to CalPoly and deserves better patronage due to that fact. So next time you’re hungry and don’t feel like having to drive to get a quick bite, try out the Cakery and you’ll be surprised by this little bakery.

Bozzano Olive Ranch
Stockton, CA

a2 07/08 LA Intl. Gold; Yolo County Gold
Toscana 07/08 Yolo County Gold

Bozzano Olive Ranch is situated in the San Joaquin Valley of California and produces a variety of olive oils of which I have tried their a2 and Toscana. Multiple award winners, their oils have a good mix of flavour, consistency, and pungency. The a2 is by far one of my favourite oils and I would recommend any olive oil fan to get a hold of a bottle. Since it’s not quite season for the new 08/09 oils, I unfortunately haven’t been able to taste their newest oils, but the 07/08 vintage will still remain good for another 6-8 months and is still worth looking for.

First and foremost is the a2, Bozzano’s Arbequina and Ascolano blend. I would say it is the oil I would most likely pick if I could only use one olive oil for the rest of my life, that or Olea Farm’s Crescendo. The first time I ever tasted the a2 I simply stated that it was “liquid gold” and I still am adamant that it is a fantastic oil with little rivals in its class. The a2 has an initial sweetness of peaches and a tomato on the nose with the tomato becoming more pronounced with age. The consistency of the oil is smooth and slightly cooling, but warms up quickly and coats the mouth with a luscious sweet flavour of peaches and very ripe olives. The aftertaste only has a hint of pungency, almost a rasping peppery sensation that lasts for just a few seconds while the whole oil warms up at the back of the throat. If there was one oil that I would drink by itself this would be it. What I most like about the a2 is its seeming versatility. With a sweeter taste I would pair it with bitter greens and a sweet aged balsamic for a salad, or saute it with light vegetables such as zucchini or broccoli. The a2 would pair well with a large number of hard or semi hard cheeses, especially nutty cheddars or swiss gruyere.

The Toscana in contrast to the a2 is a Tuscan varietal blended oil and I can’t say I like it much. The Toscana is a late harvest tuscan blend and when it comes to Italian flavoured oils I much prefer a strong green olive taste of early or prime harvest oils. The nose of the Toscana is mildly vegetal and floral. The taste is much milder than the a2 with a buttery smooth consistency and almost no initial flavour. Like most Late Harvest, the pungency of the oil also diminished and the late taste and after taste are almost impersonal, with just a hint of bitter and peppery notes. The Toscana would pair well with white wine based pasta dishes and light cheeses flavoured medium soft cheeses.

Bozzano’s a2 is an amazing oil and well worth the higher price tag of about $25-30 per 500ml bottle. It’s versatility and unusual flavour due to the Ascolano and Arbequina blend put it in a class of its own.

Recently I have had the opportunity to meet the founders of SanTasti, the world’s first and only palette cleansing beverage, and try out their new drink. Obviously my first question I had to ask was “Does it work?” and I’m happy to report that it does. A couple ounces of SanTasti completely clears the palette of any residual flavours from the last drink, taste, or bite whether it’s at a wine bar, olive oil tasting, or with a meal. I was pretty skeptical when I first heard about it considering the idea is so simple and so absolutely necessary and no one had done it yet. Especially when it came to olive oil which I have the most experience in tasting, I was doubtful that a liquid with the same viscosity as sparkling water would be sufficient to clear out the lingering flavour of a flavoured Tuscan varietal olive oil but somehow it goes way beyond my expectations.

SanTasti is still a very small company less than two years since their founding, but their product is as amazing as it sounds and I can foresee them replacing Perrier in every restaurant if they can get their formula to taste just a hint more neutral. With Santasti every single taste is as concise as the first and its implementation is pretty much limitless. As a restaurateur and taster I can see myself carrying around a bottle every time I plan on eating or drinking something. I’m lucky enough not to get palette fatigue from trying six or seven oils in a tasting, but with the added accuracy and precision of having a clear palette before each taste I could see easily doubling that figure and that goes for any time when my senses need to be their keenest.

SanTasti comes in three flavours - classic, peppermint, and cinnamint. The Classic flavour tastes much like a regular sparkling water but with a hint of sweetness to counter the strong flavour of the citric acid which is a primary ingredient in the neutralization of flavours on the palette. The Classic flavour was designed specifically for the purpose of wine tasting and when paired with food or drink the sweetness is almost completely negligible. If it wasn’t sweet at all I’d have to say nothing could compare to it and hopefully soon their formula will be completely neutral. The other two flavours were geared more for coffee drinkers where the strong lingering taste of coffee needs a stronger flavour to neturalize the after taste. What surprises me most is whether it’s the classic or stronger flavoured SanTastis the flavour of the drink disappears almost entirely after a couple seconds leaving the palette refreshed and ready for the next taste.

Of all the palette cleansers I’ve tried at restaurants and tasting rooms, SanTasti does the best job of clearing the palette without masking flavours or adding flavours as all the other palette cleansers do. What I hope to see soon is SanTasti available in large bottle sizes at restaurants so it can be shared much the same way as a big bottle of Perrier. Once they get there it should be apparent to every diner that SanTasti is the best choice to accompany a meal. The idea of taking every bite and it tasting like the first is beyond enticing. For now I’m sure I’ll be carrying a bottle everywhere. Since I’m also an avid supporter of small business with brilliant ideas SanTasti will be my biggest plug wherever I go. So the next time you plan on going wine tasting or out for a fancy meal pick up a bottle of SanTasti first. Trust me when I say it’ll change your tasting experience forever.

Jaya Malaysian
90 Baxter St
New York, NY 10013
(212) 219-3331‎

Finding a good Chinese or South East Asian restaurant is the most difficult thing a person can do in America and I’m not kidding one bit. Besides the obvious Thai and Japanese Sushi restaurants which are plentiful in quantity and quality, a good Chinese, Malay, or Vietnamese restaurant is hard to come by. Even in areas where Asians predominate the neighboorhood like the Chinatowns in most major American cities, the restaurants have pitiful flavour, lack in authenticity, and rely heavily on MSG to spice things up. To find great, authentic Asian food one must travel into the non-touristy areas of the major cities where Asians predominate such as Monterey Park in Los Angeles or Flushing in New York and avoid the Chinatowns almost completely. But once in a while a good restaurant will sneak into the touristy areas and desperately deserves some good recognition.

Jaya is one such restaurant located on a back street in Chinatown a little ways off the beaten tourist track, but it is well worth discovering. Jaya has some of the most authentic food I’ve ever tasted outside of Malaysia, excellent service, and a nice ambiance to boot. Unlike most of the Chinatown restaurants which look like they were decorated by a moving company in a hurry and the floor hasn’t been swept since opening day, Jaya is filled with old antiques from South East Asia and is clean and tidy. The staff and service has always been particularly exceptional at Jaya, again unlike most other Chinatown restaurants.

The food at Jaya is by far the best thing going for it and is amazingly authentic. My last visit was a smorgasbord of appetizers and entrees of all the classics. For those unfamiliar with Malaysian cuisine, the food is a blend of South East Asian ingredients with Chinese, Middle Eastern, and South Asian accents. Malaysia’s religious population is comprised of 60% Muslims and the Western influence is apparent in the flavours and spices used in the cooking. For appetizers we feasted on Roti Chani, an Indian style flatbread, Martabak Mamak, a beef filled pancake with a sweet spicy curry sauce, and pork belly pepper soup which was to die for. For the entrees we started with the quintessential Malaysian dish Laksa, a spicy curry noodle dish with roots in both Chinese and Indian/Malay cultures. Following the rather excellent Laksa we moved on to Hainanese Chicken, Penang Chow Kueh Teow, Eggplant with Belachan, and Water Spinach prepared Malaysian style. Everything was done just right with as authentic flavours as you could get only in Malaysia. It was fantastic and I loved it all except the Belachan which I’ve never become accustomed to even after years of living in South East Asia.

So despite its location in a Chinatown, Jaya is really one of the best restaurants in New York. And a major plus to its location is the prices which are on par with Chinese or Thai restaurants in the city. If you’re looking for something authentic, exotic, and a hidden gem amongst armies of mundane Chinese dives, Jaya is the place.

Novo Restaurant and Lounge
726 Higuera St.
San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
(805) 543-3986‎

So finally I am reviewing what I consider the best restaurant in San Luis Obispo. I’ve been countless times, and every time, excluding my first meal at Novo under the old management, I loved the food, the ambiance, the wine, and the service. Unfortunately to be the best in San Luis Obispo means competition with the poor likes of Firestone, Thai Palace, and Buona Tavola, and so Novo even with its flaws is still my top choice. I would venture to say that when it comes to preparation of the meal the only restaurant with equally good food is Native Lounge and Restaurant but only when chef Charles A. is preparing which is not a guarantee. But enough about the competition.

Novo is the best restaurant in San Luis Obispo for a number of reasons. In large part, the ambiance is brilliant. The outdoor patio in the back overhangs the creek making it one of the most romantic places to dine in all of San Luis Obispo and only the closed Grappolo had a patio worth comparing. Novo’s interior dining room is chic and trendy with a wine bar at both front and back and late at night fills with better dressed patrons than the usual San Luis haunt although I’ve never considered Novo a lounge like its name would lead you to believe. The service at Novo is hands down the best in San Luis Obispo with the best service coming usually from the male waiters who are perky, attentive, and chatty.

Where Novo falls down a little is the menu. A little more than half of Novo’s food is fantastic and, besides Native, is unparalleled in San Luis Obispo. Half the menu is a selection of traditional tapas dishes including meats and cheeses which are amazingly well done, but the other half of the menu is a selection of Pan-Asian inspired fusion dishes which are lacking in flavour and skill in preparation. The dishes are of the trendy small plate variety, with a couple daily specials and a soup du jour, although I’ve never ordered one of the entree dishes since I love a good variety. Almost everyone I know that’s eaten at Novo loves their Lobster Bisque although it’s a bit too thin for my liking. My personal favourites include their Roast Quail, Lavender Lamb Chops, Moroccan Lamb Mechoui, Chevre, and Shepherd’s Plate, and the best special I’ve ever ordered was a tuna tartar taco salad that was literally a small mountain - unusual since their usual dishes are very small. Of the dishes I didn’t like the ones that stood out the most are the Spring Rolls, Singapore Chicken Satay, Lettuce Wraps, and Roast Duck Breast which had no flavour at all and was only saved by the Penang curry accompanying.

What Novo misses in lounge ambiance, mainly a dj, loud music, dark lighting, and lounge chairs, it makes up in sheer variety of alcoholic beverages. Novo doesn’t have a fancy bartender that makes tropical concoctions that’ll knock you off your feet like Blue, but Novo has a wine list that’ll take a half hour to read through and a beer menu as large as Spike’s, the beer bar down the street. Novo stays open Friday and Saturday nights till midnight as a Wine and Beer bar and is one of the better places to go if you’re fashionable and have money to burn. Of the wine’s I’ve tried at Novo all were excellent with a wide variety from the Central Coast and almost equally wide variety from all over the world. Novo’s beer prices are pretty reasonable, but the wine prices are a bit high with a $10-15 markup per bottle from retail price and almost nothing in the upper $20s. A word of advice though, with such a large wine selection to choose from perhaps check out the bottle you’d like to try before going since the staff generally haven’t tried all the selection and may not be very helpful in recommendations.

As I mentioned countless times, Novo is the best restaurant in San Luis Obispo in terms of food, drink, ambiance, and service. The biggest draw backs are the cost and Asian menu selections, but if you’re willing to spend and know what to order it’s a very rewarding experience. If you’re a big drinker expect the tab to be in the $50-60 range after a meal, but I’ll say for the last time, it’s a price that’s worth it in this town.

Celadon
500 Main St # G
Napa, CA‎
(707) 254-9690

Don’t be discouraged by the difficult to find front door to Celadon because this restaurant in Napa Valley is absolutely stunning and well worth the hunt. When I first picked out Celadon as a stop on my Napa trip last year I didn’t expect the entire front of the hotel it was adjacent to to be under construction with no sign postage explaining that the restaurant was located on the side of the hotel, but after parking and looking around for a little while we finally found our way into the dining room and were on our way to wine and dining in true Napa style.

Celadon is located right along the river front in a very scenic spot although with the construction going on we decided to sit inside. The interior dining area is a roofed off courtyard with a large open four sided fireplace right in the middle. Since we were grabbing a late lunch around 2pm there was no one there, literally, so we got the entire restaurant to ourselves. The decor had a rugged elegance to it and fit everything just right. Celadon is a contemporary fusion restaurant with overtones of Chinese, Italian, and French cuisines, blended and created with California ingredients to create its own style. Let me just say that I generally hate trendy fusion restaurants but Celadon changed my mind. The food was excellent!

To start we had a bottle of Beringer Private Reserve Chardonnay that was excellent, with beautiful oak tones and a smooth, buttery mouth feel. I’m a big fan of buttery Chardonnay’s and Beringer’s maintained a lot of the oak and wasn’t as fruit forward as many newer styled Chards. To go with the Chardonnay we ordered an appetizer of Pork Belly with Watermelon. I can’t imagine that Pork Belly is a top selling choice on the menu, but being Asian I understand that Pork Belly is a specialty and the appetizer was stunning and possibly the best choice in terms of simplicity and originality. The two counterparts of pork belly and watermelon were a perfect match with the watermelon providing a cool crisp cut to the richness of the pork. Paired with the Chardonnay, it was nothing but excellent.

For my entree I continued with the pork belly since it was so excellent on the appetizer and I ordered the Pappardelle with pork belly, spinach, mushrooms, and truffles. At first I didn’t think the appetizer could be topped, but the entree was even better. Pappardelle, a wide linguine type noodle, is traditionally paired with rich sauces of hare and wild boar and the pork belly, although nontraditional, made a good alternative to more European choices. The richness of the truffles also added to the flavour and it was one of the richest meals I have ever eaten. Somehow I managed to finish my plate helped down with the increasingly more buttery Chardonnay and finished completely satisfied.

Celadon was the last stop on my way out of Napa and it left an impression that even if the wines were overly challenging and over priced, the food was still spectacular and made the trip well worth it. Hopefully someday I’ll return to Celadon and be able to sit on the scenic terrace over looking the river, but until then I will look fondly on the best tasting fusion restaurant I have ever eaten at.

An interesting food article about yesterday’s historic day. Excerpted from SoGoodBlog.

Now The President Must Eat!

by JT · January 20th, 2009

I’m sure many of you were closely following the Inauguration this morning, as I was, knowing the historical impact of this incredible event. Then, like me, once the event was over, you probably thought, what will President Obama’s first meal be? Like everything else on this day, these details have been planned for a long time, and the theme of the luncheon is ‘A New Birth of Freedom’ (honoring the 200th anniversary of President Lincoln’s birth).

Therefore, the menu features some of Lincoln’s favorite foods, which is actually pretty cool.

First Course: Seafood Stew

(Paired with Duckhorn Vineyards 2007 Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley)

Second Course: A Brace of American Birds (pheasant and duck), served with Sour Cherry Chutney and Molasses Sweet Potatoes

(Paired with Goldeneye 2005 Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley)

Third Course:

Apple Cinnamon Sponge Cake and Sweet Cream Glace

(Paired with Korbel International “Special Inaugural Cuvee,” California Champagne)

I hope the afternoon schedule is light, because there are lots of glasses of wine going around!

H/T to
NY Daily News
for pict.

Jaffa Cafe
1212 Higuera St, San Luis Obispo, CA‎
(805) 543-2449‎

In the middle of the incredibly white town of San Luis Obispo is a little bit of life disguised as a resturant. Jaffa Cafe is a family owned Mediterranean restaurant and serves some of the best tasting and most authentic Mediterranean and Near Eastern food I’ve ever tried. What’s really charming about Jaffa is the staff which always are up for a chat about business, life, and anything else you can think of. Most days the owner works the register and if you come even once a month he’s sure to remember your face, name, and probably life story if you are willing to share it.

Jaffa doesn’t have any pretensions about what it is and what it does. The restaurant is as laid back as restaurants come and fits perfectly with the San Luis lifestyle. Upon entering there’s a handful of tables strewn about with a big deli counter at the back. Like most other delis in the town, ordering takes place on a simple paper menu that is handed to the cooks and it’s a great way to ask what’s the best to get from the people making the food. After ordering it’s just a few minutes before it’s ready to enjoy. The whole tedious business of paying is taken care of after the meal so you get to eat relaxed, while thinking about how much to tip the great staff over whatever great dish you ordered.

Every visit I’ve enjoyed and I’ve tried quite a few things on the menu. My immediate favourites are the Lamb Shwarma, gyro, and kebab. All the meats are prepared just as they should be, full of flavour, soft, and tender. I don’t know how they do it, but it’s always amazing how great tasting such simple foods can be. I usually get some humus and pita or lentil soup to bolster the meal since the portions are relatively small. The humus and soups can be spotty since they are homemade and depending on the day can be amazing or rather bland. If you’re not sure whether you want a side or not I don’t recommend it due to their price, but if you’re definitely hungry give it a try and it might be a great choice. The pita is always great though and makes the best gyros and wraps. If it weren’t for the meats and falafel Jaffa would be just another average restaurant in a town already too full of them, but it truly is some of the best Mediterranean food I have ever tasted.

The one draw back to Jaffa is the cost. Probably due to the distance of San Luis Obispo to any major city, the ingredients are most likely a little more expensive than most similar Mediterranean restaurants and it’s difficult to get a full lunch for under $10. Some slightly better sides would help justify the extra costs and hopefully those will increase since business has picked up in recent years and Jaffa’s owners are expanding into more restaurants. As I said before, the meats, gyro, and falafel are really amazing and bring much needed spice to a town devoid of variety.

El Rincon Criollo
4361 Sepulveda Blvd
Culver City, CA‎
(310) 391-4478‎

El Rincon Criollo is the quintessential hole in the wall Cuban restaurant serving up some of the best Cuban food on the West Coast. It’s been quite a while since my last visit (I just don’t have enough time on my visits to LA to eat everywhere I want to), but El Rincon Criollo is high on my lists for a repeat. Something about hole in the wall Latino and Hispanic restaurants shout out good food as though “the worse the ambiance, the better the flavour” is a secret to their cuisine.

I first heard about El Rincon Criollo while randomly looking for something different to eat on some internet search site like CitySearch and it was pretty highly reviewed so I gave it a try. Before then I had usually gone up to Mercedes Grill in South Venice when I had an itch for Cuban but I had started turning cold on them after a couple of pretty terrible meals of over overdone Stuffed Chicken Breast and super salty Ropas Viejas. Finding El Rincon Criollo wasn’t too difficult to find and parking was way better than trying to get a spot in Venice although the neighbourhood wasn’t quite as nice. Culver does have some charming streets full of LA salt boxes and California Bungalows and some of the oldest standing trees in LA if you have some time to drive around. El Rincon Criollo looks like the stereotypical family owned Cuban restaurant and it just felt right to be eating there. The staff working were really friendly and gave some excellent recommendations from the hilarious menu.

And what a menu it was. A whole bunch of Spanish words I didn’t understand was the first good sign and the awful translations of the Spanish cemented the deal. I came to the right place. I started with Deep Fried Yucca served as one big crispy chunk and accompanied with a big bowl of sour garlic dipping sauce. Delicious! For such a simple dish it can hold its own with appetizers twice as complex and three times more expensive. The sauce was the best part and if I knew the recipe I’d use it on absolutely everything. For those that haven’t had the chance to try Yucca, Cuban cuisine has the best preparation deep frying it in large chunks and there’s not much that tastes better than that. For my entree I had the well translated “Fried Chunks of Pork” which came out sizzling, a little crispy, and bursting with flavour. Somehow American’s forgot how great pork can taste, probably after breeding all the delicious fat out of the suckers. When will Americans learn that fat isn’t what’s making them fat? But I’m happy to report that Cubans did not forget one bit and the Fried Chunks of Pork was fabulous. To wash it all down I had a tall glass of Guanabana Juice, my favourite of the Cuban drinks from the giant list of fruit sodas, smoothies, and juices at the bottom of the menu.

Cuban food is a simple cuisine with a lot of rice, beans, plantains, and pork and like all simple cuisines the most important factor to a good meal is the soul of the cook. Most South American, South East Asian, and African food revolves around poor ingredients and it comes down to the family recipe and care of the cook to produce fantastic food. El Rincon Criollo excelled in its preparation and I loved every bite. It was also a good deal and I left completely satisfied. I have to admit I haven’t eaten at a huge amount of Cuban restaurants in California, but of the ones I have tried El Rincon Criollo is easily my favourite. Next time I’m in LA hit me up and let’s make a comeback.