Lazy Ox Canteen

Every Thursday (and sometimes Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday too), I read the Los Angeles Times food column for restaurant ideas.  I've rarely gotten the 'Oh My Gosh I Have to Go There' feeling from these reviews, however my mind seems to absorb most of the details (this only happens with regard to food, by the way), such that when I need a restaurant idea for a special occasion, I can pull from my gastro-database and remember reading something about some restaurant that was good for such an occasion.

This is precisely how we chose The Lazy Ox Canteen to celebrate a birthday with a small group of friends.  I'd remembered reading about a place that was popular amongst the "locals" for the eclectic, delicious food, a variety of craft brews and wonderful wines, and a cool gastro pub-like atmosphere...sounded perfect for us laid-back foodies.  A word to the wise, though, make reservations early, because the word has gotten out about this place, likely thanks to that LA Times review.  Three days advanced notice got us a table for six at 8:30pm, with a bit of a fiasco once we got there regarding the reservation and the seventh person that showed up with us.  But the staff was perfectly pleasant and accommodating.

The selection of craft beers is quite intriguing and the perfect place to start for a quick drink while you wait for a table.  I started with a St Louis framboise, a Belgian raspberry flavored beer, which I find quite easy to drink.  I think of it as a combination of fruity cocktail without the excessive sweetness, and a light and cool beer without the excessive bitterness.  The more 'manly' Belgian beers that I stole a few sips of are equally tasty and refreshing.  We opted for wine at the table, and our waiter was happy to recommend some off-list wine bottles...and recommend a really fantastic wine, he did!  He also brought us wonderful munchies to satisfy our rumbling tummies (830 is late for some of us!) in the form of homemade corn nuts spiced with cayenne, paprika, and lemon juice, which I couldn't stop eating, even when there was plated food in front of me.

The Lazy Ox food menu...the published menu that is...is somewhat limited.  But every day the chef pops out an assortment of 'specials' which are written in chalk on boards around the restaurant.  Picking up on the small plates trend, Lazy Ox begs you to order as much as possible off the chalkboard menu, simply by appealing to your 'dangerous' side, or willingness to try something new.

***Disclaimer: The following comment is not PETA-friendly***

It would seem that the chef picks up a pig or two, chops 'em up, and uses every single part of the animal he can to create his wild and crazy menu. However, what comes out is not just a plate of pig-meat, but a creation that somehow makes it okay to be eating the same things the thoughts of which would previously have made you gag a bit.  Pig ear 'chicharones' are the mildest example, deep fried and served with a sharp aioli, which go down as easy as crispy, fatty french fries.  Pork trotter meat is shredded and shaped into a round, breaded, and served atop creamy mashed potatoes.  A surprisingly delicious dish that doesn't at all scream "danger" when eaten.  The pig head cheese was one dish I just couldn't get my head around (pun intended).  In case you're wondering what head cheese is, it's not cheese.  Please 'google' it (after you read my blog!) because I prefer not to lose my appetite and yours by describing it here.  They serve the head cheese with a salad similar to coleslaw with a creamy sweet sauce that, perhaps, covers the uncomfortable (to some) texture of the head cheese.

On the 'tamer' side, the lamb hash, topped with a fried egg, carries the flavors of sausage which makes its pairing with the smooth egg yolk work very nicely.  Dashi marinated yellowtail (from the published menu) is light and fresh, and much more delicate than the other meaty dishes.  The dashi flavor is a unique surprise and allows this dish a fresh departure from typical raw fish preparations.  The yellowtail is served with hash browns, fancy tater-tots really, and I'm still not sure I really get this pairing, but I'm not one to turn my nose up at fried potatoes!

Possibly my favorite dish of the evening was an uber-simple, but scrumptious dish of whipped Jersey cow ricotta served with grilled bread.  Sounds boring, right?  Maybe so if you're into head cheese!  But the super-smooth and creamy cheese spread tastes divine on a perfectly charred buttery piece of toast.  It's comforting and interesting at the same time, with very subtle but distinct flavors.  If I could, I'd eat some every day...for breakfast...or lunch...or...dinner...or dessert topped with strawberries. I digress... Another favorite was the dish of brick roasted mussels, which are prepared with basil, white wine, house-made sriracha, and topped with french feta cheese.  The sriracha provided just enough kick and a uniqueness to the mussels, a nice twist on the classic white wine sauce. All I needed was another order of fried pig ear chicarones and I was on my way to a Lazy Ox Moules Frites of sorts!

I left at the end of the evening feeling proud of my bravery and willingness to eat random pig parts, which I learned is much easier to do given creative preparation that essentially disguises the fearful "parts" aspect under a cover of bold flavor combinations that make you go "hmm"...and then "mmm".

Wurstkuche

When my boyfriend asked if I wanted to go to Wurstkuche, I was slightly offended. "What the heck are you talking about?"  As it turns out, Wurstkuche is the place he'd just gone with his friends for beer, fries, and sausages.  Sounded like a guy place to me, but then he showed me the menu (he sure does know how to sway me with food), and I was, at the very least, intrigued.  Actually, the menu is quite simple - sausage, beer, fries.  The list of sausages is huge, full of unusual combinations of meats and vegetables (rattlesnake and rabbit...if that even sounds good to you), and a few regulars that we know and love (good ol' bratwurst).  Equally astounding is the extensive list of German and Belgian beers ON TAP.  But it wasn't really the sausages or the beer that caught my attention, it was the fries...more specifically, it was the description I got of the thick, crunchy, salty Belgian twice-fried fries and a mouth-watering blue cheese walnut and bacon dipping sauce.  "Mmm...when can we go?"

Saturday for lunch!  Lunch is an interesting time for sausage, fries, and beer, but I've heard that at any other time (namely dinner time), Wurstkuche is jam-packed.  After all, where else do people go for sausage and beer?  The restaurant is situated in the heart of downtown Los Angeles, so a daytime trip is certainly easier for parking purposes, and less scary for me.  I'll admit that I was somewhat skeptical walking into Wurstkuche and really for the first two thirds of the way in.  The entrance is a bit like a deli, you walk in and are greeted by a glass case full of uncooked sausage...every girl's dream, right?  You order at the front counter, take a number, and then walk through a long, dark, scary hallway to get to the place with the tables, where the light finally shines! 

In hindsight, yes, 'dark and scary' seems overly drammatic, but really, you never know what to expect from a downtown LA sausage place.  And it really is a quite drammatic change in atmosphere once you enter the great dining room, which is bright and cheery, and filled with long wooden tables with benches and little cafe tables with sitting stools.  Having never been to Germany myself, I took the liberty of imagining this is what it must be like to be in a restaurant/bar in Germany.

We picked a small table on the outskirts of the restaurant, and I promtly kicked my feet up on a stool (because it's that kind of place), and took a big sigh and bigger sip of my giant $5 Franziskaner beer, which was actually quite delicious, especially since it's rare to find such an inexpensive beer that's not served in a can in Los Angeles (happy hour excluded from this generalization).

I was completely happy before our food even arrived (ok...maybe tipsy), but the addition of some sausages and fries to our table was very warmly welcomed.  We ended up with three different sausages to try, and an order of THE fries with blue cheese walnut bacon dipping sauce.  My immediate reaction was something to the effect of "Yeah...we're gonna need some more of that blue cheese bacon stuff"...

I like to save the best for last, so I'll start with the sausages.  I forgot to mention the fact that ordering these sausages was incredibly difficult...you don't just decide on the type of sausage, you have to also decide on which two toppings (choice of caramelized onions, sweet peppers, spicy peppers, saurkraut) should be on top.  If you're not a sausage aficionado, this is a difficult task.  In any case, for us, Sausage #1 was duck and bacon with jalapenos topped with caramelized onions and sweet peppers; Sausage #2 was alligator and pork smoked andouille also topped with caramelized onions and sweet peppers; and Sausage #3 was kielbasa with saurkraut which we ordered specifically for the saurkraut pairing.

Sausage Observation #1: Those aren't caramelized onions, they're sauteed onions.  Yes, there's a difference.  Caramelized onions are caramel colored and oh-so-sweet.  I don't necessarily mind sauteed onions, but please don't tease me with a caramelized option if it's not actually thoroughly caramelized.  And the onions and peppers overpower the sausage just a bit.  Not that the sausages aren't completely flavorful, because they are, but there's a bit too much going on with the onions and peppers.  Simple might be better in this case.

Sausage Observation #2: Great buns (that's what she said?).  They're ever-so-slightly grilled on the outside, but not to the point that they're super crispy and scratch the top of your mouth like a Quiznos sandwich.  Also impeccably executed is the proportion of bun to sausage.  Too often, the buns are way too big or way too thick; in this case, the buns are appropriately sized with a thickness that serves the purpose of holding the sausage and adding a nice bready taste, rather than smothering the sausage and forcing a giant mouthful of bread.

The sausages themselves were quite good too.  They do a nice job of preserving the flavor of the unique meats while ensuring the typical burst of spice and flavor you expect from your sausages.  The duck, bacon, and jalapeno sausage has a very unique fresh flavor, likely from the jalapenos themselves, but the flavor of the duck meat is still distinct.  The alligator and pork andouille is hot and spicy and tastes just like your typical andouille, but there's an obvious and interesting twist provided by the gator meat. 

The kielbasa was our safety net sausage and, after the wild-and-craziness of the "exotic" sausages, was much appreciated.  This perfectly executed classic turned out to be my absolute favorite of the sausages.  The balance of bun to meat to saurkraut is so nearly perfect it almost made me want to put mustard on it (which I never in a million years would expect to do).

Now, as I said, best for last - Belgian Fries. Wow.  I might never care to eat another McDonald's french fry again.  I'd never seen a fry crisped quite as dark as these (not burned, twice fried), but that's where all of the flavor is.  Well, that and the sea salt crystals that appear to be hand-placed on each fry (and gravity-defiant) in a way that provides the perfect amount of salt in each bite.  There is no need for ketchup here.  But, since we had it, we happily dipped into (and by that I mean fought over) the delectable blue cheese walnut bacon dipping sauce.  Scrumptious!  I'd go all the way downtown again just for the fries...and maybe the Franziskaner so I don't get thirsty!

Overall experience: great!  I left my Saturday afternoon lunch ready to plan a trip to Europe for similar but authentic (non-LA-fabricated) experiences.  For now, though, it's certainly cheaper and much more convenient to pop over to Wurstkuche for a pretend escape from the daily LA grind.