Eat, Drink And Be Merry

Posted on October 25, 2010 by Val

Drunk Food

The Yard – Santa Monica, California

Chef CJ Jacobson describes one of the dishes

Chef CJ Jacobson describes one of the dishes

Dean Vernon Wormer once advised, “Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life”, but if you have made this your personal goal, then stagger over to The Yard in Santa Monica. Top Chef participant Chef Chris “CJ” Jacobson has recently launched a late night menu that quietly mumbles, “I’m drunk and I need some alcohol-absorbing carbs”; unfortunately, a great deal of it is wasted on the wasted. If you show up stone-cold sober, don’t fret – The Yard’s high-octane drinks will take you from zero to stupid faster than you can touch your nose with your outstretched finger. As soon as I cleared the doorway at the media and “foodie” event, I was asked if I cared for a drink. Fruit drinks were plentiful, and I liked the sound of the Blood Orange Fizz (the name, not the fizz) and so I ordered one, watching the bartender pulverize a wedge of blood orange in the bottom of a glass with a pestle. In order to ensure that the orange was dead, she drowned it with multiple streams of liquids (I lost count, but there had to be six or seven) most of which I’m willing to bet contained enough alcohol to warrant a finger-wagging from the Surgeon General. My first sip confirmed this – I actually saw her put the orange in, but somehow all I could taste was alcohol.

Risotto balls and mini-poutine

Risotto balls and mini-poutine

Being the lightweight that I am, my brain was doing acrobatics when the food began arriving. The portions are perfect for booze hounds and barflies – no anxiety over whether you’re going to be painting Officer Krupke’s shoes in the wee hours of the morning. The first tidbits to arrive were the pulled pork sloppy joe sliders, which tasted remarkably like their ground beef cousins but with the unmistakable savory tang of the pork. These were garnished with pickled carrots but there wasn’t enough to affect the taste. Although the mini-sandwiches were tasty, I was pacing myself since the hits just kept on coming. The next item to arrive was the grilled cheese sandwiches. I will sleep soundly at night if grilled cheese sandwiches disappear of the face of the earth – they’ve become so much of an “in” thing that I’m waiting for Baskin-Robbins to start hawking grilled cheese ice cream. I took a reluctant bite, and as hard as I tried to hate it, I couldn’t – the outside was grilled dark and crispy without the soggy and greasy mess that too frequently accompanies the sandwich. The guts were simply cheese, with no meat, onions, tomato or other substance to take away from the flavor; and oh, what flavor. Gruyere, mozzarella, asiago and bleu cheeses were blended to where they ceased to exist individually and morphed into an “uber-cheese”. The Gruyere and mozz were the most prevalent, but the bleu subtly brought up the rear – I decided that this is the last grilled cheese I’ll eat so I can remember the dish with fond memories.

Yes, that is MY Pabst Blue Ribbon

Yes, that is MY Pabst Blue Ribbon

Although we had a very attentive waitperson, Chef Jacobson himself slung many of the dishes out. Sadly, he made an effort to describe the dishes and their ingredients, but being halfway through my Pabst Blue Ribbon in the crowded and noisy bar his oratory sounded like the teacher on the Charlie Brown cartoons.  A nicely plated row of veal meatballs sprinkled with raisins and walnuts appeared next – I couldn’t detect much (if any) grain filler in them, and they were moist, hot and delicious. These were followed by some starchy fried risotto balls (crispy on the outside, creamy on the inside) and a dish of mini-poutine. I can’t fault them for trying to be creative with the poutine (they used shoestring potatoes that almost tasted like French’s potato sticks and a thinner brown sauce), but my heart will always be with the more traditional Montreal-style presentation. A plate of paprika-dusted calamari arrived which looked deceptively spicy; the mollusk was lightly battered and golden brown without much taste from added ingredients. Some of the dishes showed up for return engagements, and when the grilled cheese made its rounds again, I commented that at least we weren’t besieged by its evil twin, macaroni and cheese. I really have to learn to shut my pie hole and stop tempting fate, as immediately after the words left my lips a casserole dish filled with said mac and cheese arrived at the table. At least this version was somewhat of a departure – there was a crumbly crust on the top, and the dish was made with shells and king crab (although I think it may have been prince crab since its royal presence was somewhat scarce).

With a menu of dishes engineered to go easy on a stomach filled with booze, The Yard offers a creative late-night alternative to In-N-Out, but if you find yourself ordering any of the menu items from their drive-up window, you may have had a bit too much to drink and should probably move your vehicle off the sidewalk as quickly and quietly as possible.

The Yard
119 Broadway
Santa Monica, California 90401
GPS Coordinates: 34°0’47.91″N 118°29’45.32″W

GALLERY: See images from The Yard’s late night menu launch

NOTE: This cost for this meal was provided by the restaurant. The content provided in this article was not influenced whatsoever by the organizer of the event.

Posted in Trippy Food (Tasty flora and fauna), USA | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Throwing Hedgehogs

Posted on October 21, 2010 by Val

Sea urchin

Worldwide

Five points of golden joy

Five points of golden joy

I’ve mentioned uni previously, but recently eating it from the animal that seconds before was a living creature demanded a separate article. Sushi lovers will easily recognize uni as the familiar and well-loved mustard-yellow strips of sea flesh, but very few would recognize the animal it is extracted from. Uni is derived from the sea urchin, a formidable creature that looks like an industrial pin cushion. It is often called the sea hedgehog because of its similarity to the loveable (but definitely not cuddly) mammal; in fact the scientific name of the sea urchin comes from the Latin word applied to the hedgehog, spiny anteater and several other similar looking spiked animals, and the name “urchin” is the hedgehog’s Old English name. Fortunately for the sea urchin it has a thick skin (actually an exoskeleton called the “test” covered with a multitude of spines), since when they were found off the coast of Maine during colonial days they were referred to as “whores’ eggs”. Anyone who has endured a painful encounter with the animal (usually as a result of stepping on one in shallow water) can recognize one immediately. Not all sea urchins are edible; the green, short-spined variety off the Atlantic coast of the U.S is, as well as several varieties in the Pacific. Like frog legs and stone crab, only a small part of the animal is eaten – the female sexual organs. Sushi bars usually carry it previously extracted, but if you’re lucky and can find a place that will dispatch the creature on-site, you are in for a fresh treat.

Tanks of live sea urchins (note the suckers on the side)

Tanks of live sea urchins (note the suckers on the side)

Just such a place can be found in Redondo Beach, California. Quality Seafood has been located on the pier for over 40 years offering a variety of live seafood, most of which they will steam or fry for you at the time of purchase. At the end of a long row of tanks containing an incredible variety of shellfish (including blue, Dungeness and spider crab, a plethora of different oyster species, periwinkles, steamer clams and quahogs and mussels) are two plastic tanks filled with live purple-black sea urchins. The tank has what appears to be miniscule black leeches attached to the side; I asked what they were and discovered that the sea urchin has hundreds of tiny sucker feet on the bottom (similar to starfish), some of which stay attached when the urchins get pulled off the surface. On a recent visit with Deep End Dining‘s Eddie Lin, Quality Seafood was doing a brisk business serving the sea urchin. The staff fishing them out of the tank didn’t seem intimidated by the urchin’s weaponry; in fact, our server was tossing it slightly in his ungloved hand like a softball. I assumed the spines weren’t sharp, but he confided that he’s had to work many a broken-off needle out of his hand. The urchin also appeared to stain our server’s hands with its dark color, which can take multiple hand washings to remove.

Picking out the urchin nasty bits

Picking out the urchin nasty bits

Unless you know what you’re doing, I would advise against cracking open one of these bad boys at home. Our server turned the urchin on its back, exposing the flat bottom where the mouth is located and methodically delivered several sharp, glancing blows in a circle around the bottom with a heavy flat metal spoon. I was a little surprised that he wasn’t wearing protective eyewear since urchin spine shrapnel was flying around in tiny shards. Once he had made his way all the way around, he flipped the urchin over and the bottom popped out in his hand, connected to a gooey mess of urchin guts. He then deftly removed any non-uni soft bits and shell fragments with his fingers and presented it on a Styrofoam plate as a spiky calcium bowl with the five ovaries lining the inside like a star. I felt a little strange scooping the creamy, luscious organs out with a plastic spoon, but when it Redondo Beach, do as the Redondoans do. It was a little unsettling seeing the spines move a little after the urchin was served, but it was easier to handle than the “live” lobster sashimi that seemed to ask if I was enjoying my meal. As for the taste, it was slightly saltier than sushi-grade uni, but it dissolved on the tongue like fresh, cool sea butter with a taste like sunset over a jetty on a cool evening.

The amazing Lobster Zone

The amazing Lobster Zone

After the live uni bowl, a walk around the pier was in order. One gift shop advertised itself as the “home of the great white shark exhibit”, but $1.50 to check out whatever was in the closet-sized room guarded by a pirate mannequin didn’t seem like much of a bang for the buck. A better waste of $2.00 can be found at a bar near Quality Seafood; near the tiny stage is a claw machine (like the ones at the arcade where you can win a stuffed Buzz Lightyear). Before you shrug this off as a diversion worthy of Chuck E. Cheese, consider the machine’s name:  Lobster Zone. That’s right, the lucky sucker who plunks down his $2 maneuvers the claw over a tank of live Maine lobsters, which the staff will graciously cook for you if you can manage to hang on to the unwary crustacean long enough to get him into the awaiting maw of the Lobster Zone’s hopper. We actually snagged two lobsters that looked to be about a pound and a half each, but they didn’t like the idea of being taken up by the mothership and managed to gyrate their way free. I’m willing to bet it has a higher entertainment value than the great white shark exhibit.

Eating recently live sea urchin is not for the squeamish; you might want to start off slow with uni sushi at your friendly neighborhood sushi bar, but when you’re ready for the full tilt boogie fresh taste of the sea hedgehog it’s worth every bite. I don’t mind telling you, I’m on pins and needles anticipating my next serving.

Quality Seafood
130 International Boardwalk
Redondo Beach, CA‎ 90277
GPS coordinates: 33°50’26.22″N 118°23’27.28″W

GALLERY: See images of Val’s visit to Redondo Beach Pier for live sea urchin

See video of Eddie Lin playing Lobster Zone

Experience the multimedia podcast of Val eating live sea urchin with Deep End Dining’s Eddie Lin

Posted in Trippy Food (Tasty flora and fauna), USA | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Bohemian Rhapsody

Posted on October 18, 2010 by Val

Czech cuisine

The Bohemian Café – Omaha, Nebraska

The Bohemian Café in Omaha, Nebraska

The Bohemian Café in Omaha, Nebraska

I’ll always remember that cool autumn night in Prague when the rain-slicked street glowed a soft red from the Bohemian Café’s neon sign. I knew I’d feel better once I’d had my fill of the warm, heavy Czech fare awaiting inside… wait, scratch that, it was Omaha, Nebraska, not Prague, but that’s just a technicality. The Bohemian Café has been warming the hearts and stomachs of Omahans in one semblance or another since 1924. The café was originally owned and operated by chef Louie Marcala and sold to the Libor family in 1947, then moved to the current location in 1959 in Little Bohemia (next door to the historic 1898 Prague Hotel). As soon as you pass through the front door, the first thing that catches your eye is the curved wood and glass cabinet that shows off the café’s massive collection of whiskey decanters stretching up to the ceiling. Not having been to the Czech Republic, I couldn’t tell you if the decor was typical, but it definitely bore the appearance of a family-style restaurant – tables covered with vinyl red-and-white gingham check (not Czech) tablecloths and paper placemats; condiments provided in commercial style packets. I’m not sure if it was because it was a rainy night or that the room was dimly lit, but it would almost have been romantic if I weren’t there alone. Most of the pictures on the walls depicted Central European scenery, except for a large portrait hung front and center that featured Josef and Ann Libor.

Liver dumpling soup (polevka z jatrove knedlicky)

Liver dumpling soup (polevka z jatrove knedlicky)

The Bohemian Café was recommended as an Omahan favorite, and I was looking forward to trying their Czech cuisine. I brushed past the standard fare of steaks, chicken and seafood as I scoured the menu looking for the real deal. As soon as I saw “liver dumpling or soup of the day”, I wondered how anyone could choose Door Number 2. The soup featured a strong, slightly salty beef broth with several cubed beef liver dumplings swimming inside; each bite of the dumplings was savory heaven. As a main course, I selected the only logical choice – breaded sweetbreads (which probably sounds redundant to those picturing baked goods). The sweetbreads came with a choice of one from Column A (vegetables, sauerkraut or sweet and sour cabbage) and one from Column B (Czech dumplings, whipped potatoes or French fries) again with the Trippy Food choices being obvious (we’ll see if you guessed correctly). The entree arrived on a patterned china plate that would probably have looked comfortable in a Prague café; neatly arranged in thirds was the sweet and sour cabbage, followed by the breaded and fried sweetbreads, and then flanked by a palm-sized Czech dumpling smothered in a brown sauce.

Fried sweetbreads with cabbage and Czech dumplings

Fried sweetbreads with cabbage and Czech dumplings

Although the cabbage was cooked down to mush, it was neither too sour nor too sweet and maintained a strong cabbage taste. The dumpling was bready and moist; it was the perfect substitute for potatoes. The tangy brown sauce complemented the dumpling well and added flavor to the cabbage and sweetbreads, which is a good thing since it appeared as though the sauce levy had broken open on the plate. The sweetbreads themselves were delightful; the centers were still a little pink, but hot and not too chewy. The breading was crunchy and golden brown, neither soggy nor overdone and mopping the sauce with them only enhanced their flavor. I considered a Bohemian dessert, but after engorging myself on the plate of rich food I had only enough room left for a cup of coffee (which, with the hot, hearty food was the perfect antidote for the rainy October evening). There were very few people dining that evening and I wondered if that was common; Omaha is a rapidly growing city and it wouldn’t surprise me to find that people are flocking to the newer trendy restaurants and clubs that are popping up like dandelions.

The Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge by day

The Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge by day

After the rich meal I decided to head downtown and walk some of it off between Nebraska and Iowa, an easy task now that the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge crossing the Missouri River has been completed. I put on my jacket, braced myself for the brisk fall air and simply said to the waitress, “Czech, please!”

Bohemian Café
1406 S 13th St
Omaha, NE 68108-3504
GPS Coordinates:  41°14’42.96″N  95°56’0.53″W

GALLERY: See images from Val’s visit to the Bohemian Café and Omaha, Nebraska

Posted in Trippy Food (Tasty flora and fauna), USA | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Holy Guacamole!

Posted on October 14, 2010 by Val

24th Annual California Avocado Festival

Carpinteria, California

A face only a urologist could love (his, not mine)

A face only a urologist could love (his, not mine)

The ever-popular avocado originated in Puebla, Mexico, where the family patriarch can still be found locally in the form of the small, black, gourd-shaped fruit called “criollo”. The Spanish were the first to introduce the “alligator pear” to other temperate and tropical regions of the world, with its now familiar English name appearing sometime in the 1600s. The original name “ahuacatl” comes from the Nahuatl word for testicle (as a result of the fruit’s shape and hopefully not its size or taste); it was originally eaten as a fertility food. The Nahuatl word for “avocado sauce” was ahuacamolli, the word from which “guacamole” was derived. The Spanish still refer to the avocado as “aguacate”, which is also the sound my alarm clock makes whenever I visit Bogotá, Colombia (actually  the street vendor with the avocado cart shouting out his product at 7 AM). Avocado has been cultivated and bred into a wide variety of shapes, sizes, colors, textures and tastes, with the Hass being the most popular (because of its high yield and year-round productivity). The source of the Hass avocado was a tree patented in 1935 that was cultivated by Rudolph Hass of La Habra Heights, California, outliving its cultivator by 50 years only to be cut down in 2002.

More varieties of avocado than you can shake a stick at

More varieties of avocado than you can shake a stick at

Today, approximately ninety-five percent of the avocados grown in the U.S. come from Southern California, with Fallbrook (in San Diego County) being the undisputed “Avocado Capital of the World”. Santa Barbara County is the third largest producer, and so not to be outdone by Fallbrook they’ve hosted their own Avocado Festival in Carpinteria since 1986. The annual festival draws close to 100,000 people over three days at the end of September each year and takes up most of Carpinteria’s main downtown street (Linden Avenue). In addition to the shops featuring avocado themed items, there are three stages set up along the street where bands perform a variety of genres from Latin salsa to punk and tented booths in the street selling the typical items you’d expect to find at one of California’s larger food festivals (akin to the Gilroy Garlic Festival, Castroville Artichoke Festival and Paso Robles Olive Festival). The “must-see” of the event is what is billed as “The World’s Largest Bowl of Guacamole”; this plastic vat holds the rich, green glop made from over 2,000 avocados. The guacamole is sold as a fundraiser for the Carpinteria High School Warriors football team and although when pressed they will readily admit that they no longer hold the record, there is no denying that having that mother lode of dip at your party will require a dump truck full of chips. At the time they actually held the official title in Guinness Book of World’s Records, they qualified with a respectable tub weighing in at 4,011 pounds, 12 ounces. The most recent record holders are culinary students from four Miami-area high schools who broke the record in 2009 with a vat containing 4,114 pounds of guacamole. Since bobbing for avocados seemed out of the question, I started thinking about finding some unique culinary treat that would be a departure from mundane chips and guacamole. My prayers were answered when I saw a sandwich board outside Pacific Health Foods advertising avocado smoothies. The preparation area for Pacific Health Food’s beverages is located at the back of the store – out front the sign said “smoothie” but in the back it read “shake”. I was beginning to think I was falling victim to the old “bait-and-switch”, but discovered that like the avocado itself, the drink goes by many names. The pale green smoothie was thick enough to stand the straw up – it was neatly blended with avocado, buttermilk and vanilla ice cream. The buttermilk gave the drink a slightly sour taste, but it was still refreshing and filling.

No longer a record holder, but still one big vat of guac

No longer a record holder, but still one big vat of guac

The obvious avocado offering of choice by many of the food vendors present was “insert name of common food item here” topped with guacamole. We walked around awhile looking for something else substantial yet unusual, but settled on the tri-tip sandwich with guacamole being sold by the Lions Club after seeing diners walk by with the mouth-watering dish. The tri-tip was tender and smoky, and was complemented by the avocado, fresh salsa and the soft, ample roll. Although Yankee Doodle Bakery’s tent featured a large sign advertising their avocado teacake (a popular specialty made only for the avocado festival), each time we swung by they stated they’d have samples “within an hour”. Both Cold Stone Creamery’s booth and local ice cream shop Rainbow Ice Cream and Yogurt were offering avocado ice cream; the long line and price of Cold Stone’s ice cream was prohibitive so we got a small cup from Rainbow. In sharp contrast to the avocado smoothie, the ice cream had more of the taste of sugar and cream than avocado; it wasn’t offensive but I wish it had somehow better represented the flavor of the fruit. After hitting Rainbow we walked next door to CJ Produce, a tiny grocery that had fresh, locally grown avocado in addition to fresh nopales (cactus pads), guava, chayote and baby bananas.

The three largest avocados with the variety on the card

The three largest avocados with the variety on the card

I was somewhat disappointed that avocado was not featured more prominently at the vendors’ booths although the 50-foot tall, fruit-bearing avocado trees that lined the city streets were a constant reminder of the festival’s theme. A huge tent labeled “Avo Exposition Center” blocked the northern end of Linden Avenue; it was guarded by what looked like an inflatable testicle with sunglasses and housed a mini-museum with experts on hand to talk about the cultivation and production of avocados. One table displayed the winner and runners-up of an avocado contest in which size mattered – the first prize went to a mammoth 3-1/2 pounder. The back wall was covered in “avo art” with decorated avocado skins and shoebox dioramas featuring what appeared to be fresh “Mr. Avocadoheads”. A group of avocado growers sat at a table covered with every imaginable variety of avocado, conveniently labeled in Wite-out for easy identification and they answered questions regarding all things avocado (for instance, does the Bacon variety taste like bacon?). Various stands along Linden Avenue sold fresh, locally grown fruit, and it was difficult trying to decide which variety to buy (although one basket labeled “Experimental – $.75 Each” just seemed to invite trouble).

I was skeptical about the attendance estimates of the festival, but as dusk approached the streets were packed with wall-to-wall festival attendees who had come to enjoy the food and music that has come to be a popular destination for the past 24 years. I highly recommend the free event at least once, where you can introduce yourself to the variety of texture and taste of the different avocado breeds and sample avocado-enhanced foods; just pace yourself so you don’t end up going home with Carpinteria.

California Avocado Festival
Linden Avenue
Carpinteria, CA 93013
GPS Coordinates: 34°23’53.52″N 119°31’9.10″W

Pacific Health Foods
944 Linden Ave,
Carpinteria, CA 93013
GPS Coordinates: 34°23’54.55″N 119°31’7.30″W

Rainbow Ice Cream & Yogurt
751 Linden Ave
Carpinteria, CA 93013-2041
GPS Coordinates: 34°23’50.34″N 119°31’13.74″W

GALLERY: See images from Val’s trip to the 24th Annual 2010 California Avocado Festival in Carpinteria CA

Posted in Mexico, Trippy Food (Tasty flora and fauna), Trippy Happenings (Events), USA | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Fair and Sunny

Posted on October 11, 2010 by Val

The 2010 Los Angeles County Fair

Pomona, California

Part of the sprawling grounds of the Fairplex in Pomona

Part of the sprawling grounds of the Fairplex in Pomona

As it has for generations before us, the thought of the county fair evokes images of crisp fall air, candy apples and cotton candy, midway games and admiring the results of agricultural progress. It had been years since I took in a fair, having made regular visits to the Topsfield Fair in Massachusetts. In addition to rekindling an autumn tradition, I looked forward to enjoying the benefits of the food vendors’ penchant for devising more unusual and diabolical ways to transform junk food into deep-fried delights of Frankensteinian proportions. I agreed to meet friend Eddie Lin of Deep End Dining for an adventure of the senses which would undoubtedly include finding the most unusual food the fair had to offer. If you decide to attend, comfortable shoes are in order since the square footage of the fair is astounding – there were still areas I didn’t get to in the six hours I was there. As with most county or state fairs, there are multiple aspects to take in: the midway, where you can drop $20 to pop some balloons and win a stuffed bear; animal-based entertainment such as pig races and riding the mechanical bull; food to sample that makes the corn dog seem like haute cuisine; amusement park rides that while smaller in stature than the mighty steel and wooden track rollercoasters still aspire to free you of your equilibrium and your lunch; and, the traditional agricultural barns where you can gape at livestock and blue ribbon produce.

A cow eats her placenta after birthing the calf pictured

A cow eats her placenta after birthing the calf pictured

We decided to start at the livestock barn in order to work up an appetite and maybe pick out an animal or two to eat. In my personal and humble opinion, I believe that as carnivores we should have to look the source of our beef carpaccio or samgyeopsal in the face to truly appreciate where it comes from. The barn featured animal families, with pigs, oxen, sheep, chicken, goats and even yak birthing and caring for their young. In the center pen was a group of cows that had very recently calved – in fact, one of the cows whose infant was still struggling to stand on its wobbly legs was trailing a bloody, liver-colored placenta which plopped like a jellyfish from hell onto the dirt floor. What happened next astounded me – Elsie started chowing down on the brown blob. I knew that animals such as dogs and cats ate their afterbirth, but it never occurred to me that herbivores did as well. As bizarre and somewhat disgusting that was to watch, hunger was setting in and we wandered off to find fair food, making a point to bypass the McDonalds conveniently located just outside the barn.

Soy sauce ice cream, sweet, slightly salty and delicious

Soy sauce ice cream, sweet, slightly salty and delicious

Our first stop was Dr. Bob’s Handcrafted Ice Creams, whose manufacturing and retail facilities are conveniently located on the fairgrounds in a red Western frontier-style building. I admit that I had never heard of Dr. Bob’s (started by California State Polytechnic University professor Dr. Robert Small in 1999) – Dr. Bob’s specializes in small batch, handmade ice cream using fresh and flavorful ingredients. I wasn’t cruising for the best strawberry, chocolate or vanilla ice cream I could find – I wanted something more on the trippy side.  I was ready to turn on my heels and look elsewhere when I saw the paper sign taped onto the menu of flavors that simply read, “soy sauce”. The thought of a creamy mouthful of salty soy both frightened and intrigued me, resulting in ordering a “small” scoop that turned out to be about the size of an average human head. The taste was unmistakable, yet the saltiness was toned-down by the high butterfat content of the cream. Tamed by the sweetness, I was able to enjoy the flavor of the soy sauce, but I had to pace myself since I knew I would be encountering other delights that I had to try.

Fried avocado, Twinkie and Krispy Kreme chicken sandwich

Fried avocado, Twinkie and Krispy Kreme chicken sandwich

Fighting off my carnivorous instinct, I forced myself past the vendors smoking and grilling armies of turkey legs, kielbasa and sausages, all of which looked and smelled amazing. We wound through a labyrinth of carnival games, rides and hot dog and burger booths until we happened upon a stand that had the appearance of a sideshow – Chicken Charlie. Huge signs advertised the deep-fried delights being offered below: s’mores, Twinkies, frog legs, White Castle burgers, Oreos, Klondike Bars, avocados, and the frightening-sounding Krispy Kreme chicken sandwich. Charlie Boghosian’s has been clogging fairgoers’ arteries since about 1983, and I was having a difficult time figuring out what I wanted for a last meal before being rushed to the cardiologist. I settled on the avocado, since I was deprived of the fried fruit offering which was somehow overlooked at the previous day’s visit to the California Avocado Festival; Eddie chose the fried Twinkie and walked on the wild side with the Krispy Kreme chicken sandwich. The fried avocado was absolutely delicious – the perfectly-ripe fruit was soft, creamy and warm, surrounded by a crunchy outer crust of fried batter that sealed in the flavor without taking away from it. I had a bite of Eddie’s Twinkie (I am now regretting not re-phrasing that) which was crispy on the outside, but had a thinner outer layer than the The Dessert Factory’s. Chicken Charlie preps their fried Twinkie an egg dip with a roll in flour before frying, as opposed to coating it in funnel cake batter as they do at The Dessert Factory; in either case, the result is similar – the sugary core melts into warm confectionary goo that drastically improves the Twinkie’s taste. The KKCS was a frightening abomination that Luther Vandross would have been proud of – a deep fried, breaded patty of white meat chicken, nestled between the bisected halves of a Krispy Kreme jelly donut. The chicken was less than spectacular yet satisfactory for county fair fare, but the sugar from the donut’s glaze and jelly filling put my head in a glucose-induced tailspin, and I only had one bite.

Crawfish etouffee and jambalaya from Harold and Belles

Crawfish etouffee and jambalaya from Harold and Belles

As stomach churning as the Tilt-A-Whirl was for previous generations, the rides at the LA County Fair seemed to have escalated brain scrambling and vomit-inducing to a higher level. Mechanical arms lifted clusters of chairs to a dizzying height where they are then rotated rapidly in every possible direction, a recipe for quick fried avocado removal to be sure. We were satisfied to watch the torture from a safe distance, but then set out in search for additional food. We hit an area of the fairgrounds called Pirate’s Life that was set aside as a pirate cove featuring performances by members of the group Pirates For Hire (included an all-pirate band playing shanty songs on acoustic instruments). On Captains Jack Sparrow and Hook’s recommendation we ended the day’s food consumption with some crawfish etouffee and jambalaya being served at Harold and Belle’s mobile restaurant. The etouffee was a little short on mud bugs, and the rice in the jambalaya was slightly overcooked, but the food was tasty and had the perfect level of spice to make it flavorful without being uncomfortable.

I left with a renewed appreciation and love for the traditional rite of autumn that is a visit to the county fair. There’s something for everyone, and you will almost certainly be surprised by something you’ve never experienced before (or thought you would). There are things that will intrigue you, and things that will make you shake our head in disbelief, but in the end it works out to be pretty fair.

The Los Angeles County Fair
Fairplex
1101 W. McKinley Ave
Pomona, CA 91768
GPS Coordinates:  34°5’4.45″N 117°45’41.52″W

GALLERY: See images from the 2010 Los Angeles County Fair in Pomona, California

Experience the multimedia podcast of Val’s visit to the L.A. County Fair with Deep End Dining’s Eddie Lin

Posted in Trippy Happenings (Events) | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments