TestKitchen--Ricardo Zarate

Finally, a trip to the TestKitchen that warrants a blog post!

Ever since I had Ricardo Zarate's cooking at the BreadBar last year, I've been thinking about him. Not in a weird, creepy way, but in an admiring, appreciative way. First of all, he not only introduced me to Peruvian cuisine, but also made me love it. Secondly, the man is just the nicest man I've ever met in a kitchen, not to mention extremely talented--obviously.

This past year I kept mentally willing Mo-Chica, Ricardo's contemporary Peruvian restaurant, to be closer to the Westwide. Obviously it didn't happen, and I still haven't made it over there. However, the TestKitchen is about as close to where I live as one could hope for, and the upper floor of the building is about to be Zarate's permanent home--a restaurant focusing on Peruvian skewed meat to be named Anticucho. Let's just say I'm pretty excited for some skewered meat.

TestKitchen

9575 West Pico Boulevard

Los Angeles, CA 90035

tel: 310-277-0133

Don't know what TestKitchen is? Check this out.

BAR BITES

Ceviche Shot

Uni, Scallop, Pisco, Leche de Tigre

A skewer of perfectly "ceviched" scallops were hidden in the briny leche de tigre--the liquid from the ceviche. After getting the scallops off the skewer, I chased it with the rest of the liquid in the little shot glass. This is a shot I'd like to do over and over again.

Santa Barbara Spot Prawns

with Yuzu Kosho

I've yet to meet a spot prawn I didn't like. I'd like to meet this spot prawn over and over again. From the head, to the tail, to the roe, the entire thing was delicious. The yuzu kosho added a spicy heat to the sweet meat and roe.

Anticucho de Corazon

Rocotto sauce

There was a nice bite and meatiness to each slice of skewered beef heart grilled to a smokey perfection over an open Japanese charcoal grill. The rocotto sauce, bright crimson red, added a dimension of freshness to the typical beef heart anticucho.

Chicharron

Crispy Pork Belly, Feta Cheese Sauce, Sarsa

Smokey, crispy bits of fatty pork grace the top of a rustic slice of bread, and although tasty, it was a little too filling for me as a bar bite. There was too much bread to it for me. Thankfully, this was the last of the bar bites.

ABREBOCA

purple corn bread/foie gras/aji amarillo marmalade/fig compote

These smelled a lot sweeter than they ended up being. Thank god for the awesome buttery foie gras and sweet marmalade/compotes because these little balls of bread were a little dry. However, the accompaniments were very good. I detected a hint of cinnamon to the fig compote that I really enjoyed.

SOPA DE ROCOTO

peruvian red pepper soup/queso fresco sauce/croutons

The soup was rather unremarkable to me. Granted it had a velvety smooth mouth feel, but taste-wise it was like a little one-dimensional for me. Even the little sprinkling of chorizo on the crouton didn't add much. It just tasted like red bell peppers blended with chicken stock.

CAUSA DE SALMON AHUMADO

smoked salmon causa/aji amarillo yogurt/crispy quinoa

I've had Ricardo's causa at his Hatchi dinner, and I remember absolutely loving them. This time around, it was even better than I remembered. The causa was not only plated so much more sophistically (I thought those colors were gorgeous together in that stark white plate), but also more complex in flavors and textures. The small cubes of salmon were lightly smoked, and a sprinkling of crispy quinoa added a crunchy texture to the smooth, rich potatoes.

TIRADITO DE JUREL

japanese aji carpaccio/garlic/ginger lemon sauce

The mackerel, without doubt, was very fresh, but it was the raw red onions, crispy garlic bits, and cilantro sprinkled on top combined with the sauce of aji amarillo, ginger, and sesame oil that really took the fish to another level.

ANTICUCHO DE PULPO

grilled octopus/roasted potatoes/tofu jalapeno chili sauce

The octopus was also grilled on the Japanese grill, therefore it had that same lovely smokey flavor. Unfortunately, I wasn't a big fan of the texture of it. It was kind of dense, though tender, and without any kind of chewiness I like to associate with octopus. The tofu jalapeno chili sauce, however, was very interesting. I thought it was a little on the acidic side, but the dish definitely grew on me as I ate it.

ASADO DE COSTILLA

lamb ribs/huancaina sauce/peruvian risotto

To me, this was upscale, stick-to-your-ribs, comfort food. It something that I could crave on a cold, rainy day. The lamb rib literally fell off the bone the second I barely touched it with my fork. Glazed in a slightly sweet sauce, the shreds of meat blended into the creamy peruvian risotto. Each forkful was a delight.

PICARONES

sweet potato & pumpkin donuts/chancaca sauce/vanilla ice cream

Dessert consisted of two warm, perfectly-fried nuggets of dough. The subtly sweet fritters were tastiest when eaten with the ridiculously rich, house-made vanilla ice cream.

Definitely my favorite meal at the TestKitchen thus far.

Peru, Mucho Gusto!

Translation: Peru, nice to meet you!

Thursday night I met chef Ricardo Zarate. He introduced me to Peruvian food for the first time, and it was a very nice meeting indeed.

This meeting took place at the BreadBar in Century City during one of their Hatchi events. "Hatchi" which translates to the number eight in Japanese, refers to the six savory dishes and two sweet creations in an original, one-night only suite of plates that a different guest chef prepares at the BreadBar every month. Usually serving "good-enough-to-be-gourmet" Peruvian dishes at his restaurant Mo-Chica in downtown L.A., this was his night at the BreadBar. I'm so glad I got to experience it.

After getting the last 10PM reservation on the day of and after finding a willing dinner companion to eat dinner at 10PM, we made my way down to the BreadBar in Century City to experience Ricardo Zarate's creations. The restaurant itself is located inside a nice mall, which at 10 pm is completely dead. We had no idea where exactly the BreadBar was located so we just followed our ears towards the only sound in the entire complex. We made our way there and realized that the place was still packed, with live music and lively chatter. The ambiance was lovely and I realized I was almost giddy with excitement. I think I vainly tried to conceal this giddiness since my dining companion was nowhere near the level of obsessed foodie that I am. I couldn't conceal it.

We sat down and were handed menus and cute keepsake Mo-Chica keychains. I hungrily read the menu (even though I admit I had already read it numerous times online beforehand) and we decided to share all 8 courses between the two of us. I then saw the chef in his white and red-striped track jacket, emblazoned with Peru on the back, chattering with his happy customers. He stopped by and talk to us for a few minutes, inviting us to visit his restaurant in downtown LA. Chef Zarate was completely unpretentious and incredibly warm and welcoming as he wished us a nice dinner.

Ricardo Zarate of Mo-Chica

@ the BreadBar Hatchi Series

10250 Santa Monica Boulevard

Los Angeles, CA 90067

(310)277-3770

SOPA DE COLIFLOR

cauliflower soup, crispy pancetta, croutons, feta cheese dressing

This soup was a beautiful purple color, warm, thick, and rich, but slightly too salty for my tastes. The feta cheese dressing was nice and tangy but I feel like the salty bits of prosciutto would've been better appreciated if the soup itself was less salty. I also felt like I wanted something other than the crunchy croutons to dip in the soup but I couldn't tell you what...

CAUSA TRIO

trio of peruvian potato salad: (from left to right) spicy blue fin tuna, rocoto aioli; blue crab, mayo, huancaina sauce; scallops, menatiko sauce

Easily my favorite dish of the night, and not just because of how pretty it looks. My favorite within my favorite was the middle salad. The deliciously creamy yellow potatoes contrasted so well with the sweet blue crab meat. YUM. I wish I could have more without having to go all the way downtown!

CEVICHE MIXTO

tairagai, uni, sea bass, aji amarillo leche de tigre sauce

There could not have been a more perfect ceviche for me. I love anything that comes in a shell, I love sea bass, and I LOVE uni. All three together was just perfection. The uni coated the tairagai and sea bass pieces in a lovely dressing of the sea and I even found a few surprise pieces of whole uni. Even my dining companion--who does not like uni--liked this dish. Chef Zarate came by and told us that he had found these clams at the last minute that morning. They were freshly flown in from Japan. Simply delicious. Last but not least, the presentation was beautiful--with the ceviche served in the shell of the tairagai.

TIRADITO DE PESCADO

yellow tail tiradito, sundried tomato yuzu dressing

This dish was light and refreshing. I loved the dressing. He said lemons. I said limes. Turns out it was yuzu! Figures. The yellowtail, sliced sashimi-style reflects Japanese influences on the tradition ceviche.

CARAPULCRA

peruvian sun dried potatoes, pancetta, roasted black cod, chimichurri sauce

This dish was also perfect. We both love black cod. In fact, I don't think I would ever be able to resist black cod. The fish was perfection--not overcooked so it was still moist. The slightly fatty cod went so well with the intensely savory potatoes underneath and fresh chimichurri sauce on top. I have no idea how Chef Zarate cooked those potatoes but they were amazing.

SECO DE CORDERO

stew lamb shoulder in black beer and cilantro sauce, canario beans, red onion salsa

This was the filling, warm, dish we had been waiting for. The beautiful wooden bowl it was served in added to the earthiness of the lamb dish. It was rich and flavorful with nice creamy beans.

SELVA NEGRA

flourless chocolate cake, lucuma ice cream, tamarillo sauce

This dessert course was okay. The cake was a little dry--nothing spectacular. However, I loved the ice cream. Lucuma is a flavor that I have never encountered because so it was interesting trying to figure out what it tasted like. We came to the conclusion that, despite being a fruit, the lucuma ice cream almost had a maple syrup-like flavor. I could've eaten another bowl of just the ice cream.

KIWICHA CON LECHE Y ESENCIA DE MAZAMORRA

kiwicha coconut pudding, purple corn essence, mixed nuts

I'm always a little nervous when I invite people to eat out with me. I always worry that they won't enjoy the food. However, when my friend took his first bite of this dessert and I saw the delight on his face, I knew this dinner was successful. Neither of us knew what to expect when we took our first bites, but after that first bite, our spoons kept going back for more. I loved this dessert mainly because it was not overly sweet. The texture of the mini quinoa-like grains of kiwicha in the subtly sweet coconut milk was perfect. It was a great way to end the meal.

Thank you Ricardo Zarate! I love Peru! I can't wait to visit Mo-Chica soon!