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Son of a Gun

17 Sep

After I ate at Animal (their meat heaven sister restaurant) and loved it, I had to try their seafood restaurant Son of a Gun. I will post later my heavenly experience…

I could not believe my luck this time I called the restaurant to check if they had anything available for that same wednesday night and the lady said “Yes, we have one opening at 6 and another at 10.” You do? What time did you say again? I wanted her to repeat what she just told me to make sure I was not hearing things. And finally, after trying for quite sometime, I had a reservation!

But do not despair! If you must go on a specific day and couldn’t get reservations, you can try lunch, or as a last resort,do what I did at Animal: go early and stand in line. When they open, you can seat at the bar or the communal table. I am sure their line is not as crazy as Animal’s where I stood in line for 1 and 1/2 hours, and almost didn’t get in because there was a line already at 4:30 pm!

Communal table

The restaurant does not have a sign, so you have to be careful not to miss it. Look for a gray restaurant with a red door. You can’t see the name painted on the glass from the street.
I suggest parking on the valet which is only $5, since it is very hard to find parking in the area.

The walls are bluish gray with a nautical theme decor. There are around 55 seats, including the comunal table and the bar.

The staff is extremely friendly, and the crowd is very cosmopolitan. The dress code is casual.

The menu changes daily, but some dishes keep coming back, so I already knew what I wanted to eat, from reading the menu online. I learned that they didn’t have the Brandade I was looking forward to try, but it will be back in the fall/winter.

They serve small plates, which I think is genius, because you have the chance to taste many different dishes, as opposed as being stuck with one large plate of the same thing. Some items are supposed to be bite size, so you might want to order more, such as the Lobster Roll.

I would say that 5 dishes are enough for two people, but you can always order more. No matter what, save some room for dessert. They are soooooo good!

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Shrimp Toast Sandwich

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Peel & Eat Shrimp Boil+ Pimenton Picante+ Rouille: Tasty and Spicy

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Linguini with Clams,Uni Aglio-Olio, Breadcrubms: Awesomeness

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Fried Chicken Sandwich, Pickles, Coleslaw: Best Sandwich of my life! Crispy Chicken+Crunchy Pickles+Soft Bun+Tangy Coleslaw

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Deconstructed Meringue Key Lime Pie with Lime Yogurt: Just like heaven

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Even the restroom is nautical

“Substitutions and modifications are politely declined.” says the menu. So,when the couple seated on the table right next to us ordered the Ribeye, the only meat dish on the menu, and asked if they could have it cooked well done, the server said she had to ask the chef. She came back and I don’t know what she told them, but they changed their order to a Fried Chicken Sandwich. After analyzing the menu for a while they agreed they didn’t like any seafood and ordered another chicken sandwich plus french fries! I am sorry if you don’t like what I am about to say, but what the heck are you doing at a Seafood restaurant, if you don’t like it? And why are taking up seats that could have been occupied by people that actually like seafood and are trying to get a reservation for ages? Some people …I just cannot understand!

The food is spectacular, extraordinarily exceptional! I will be coming back!

8370 West 3rd Street
Los Angeles, CA 90048

(323) 782-9033

Son of a Gun Restaurant on Urbanspoon

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Passion for Passion Fruit

12 Sep

Passion Fruit, Maracujá, Lilikoi,Maracuya,Grenadille, Fruit de la passion…I am crazy for Passion Fruit! There is something about its tart, refreshing flavor that always makes me crave it, and I never get tired of it.

You see, I was born and raised in Brazil, and Passion Fruit is abundant and a daily staple in every household. My parents never let us drink soda during the week, only on weekends, we always had fresh fruit juice instead. Some days was watermelon, other days limeade, but the one juice that was available everyday was passion fruit. Either fresh or from concentrate, it didn’t matter.

Passion fruit ice cream and mousse are also one of the most popular Brazilian desserts.  Passion Fruit is used in many ways, including as flour to increase fiber intake sprinkled in yogurt, fruits or drink; and as calming sedative in capsules or syrup.

So, I am always looking for anything Passion Fruit I can find, and when I do find it, I stock up on it, since I don’t know when I am going to be able to find it again.

I am lucky to live in California, the wonderful weather here makes it possible for almost anything to grow here. So I’ve been eagerly waiting for the end of the summer to get my passion fruit from a Farmer’s Market vendor. Well…how sad to find out that my favorite vendor is gone. I was already getting over it , and started to use concentrate again, when last week I ended up going to a different Farmer’s Market, and to my surprise….I see Passion Fruit!

I was so hysterically excited that the lady started laughing, just looking at my reaction. Needless to say, I bought a lot of it, and plan on buying even more, every week until they are gone. She promised me she has enough for a little over a month, so I will be freezing the pulp for later use. Just scoop out the juice and pulp and freeze it in ziplock bags.The seeds are great too! They are edible, and crunchy, so don’t throw them out. But if you must get rid of them, blend the juice with the seeds in a blender for 15 seconds, and strain it in a fine mesh strainer.

In Brazil, our most popular passion fruits are yellow, and bigger in size. Here they are purple and smaller. But the taste is the same.

There are some many amazing recipes with passion fruit, here is one of my favorites:

Salmon with Passion Fruit Sauce

  • 2 cups passion fruit juice
  • ½ cup parsley sprigs, chopped
  • 1 red onion, diced
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 2 tablespoon butter
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon pink peppercorn
  • salt to taste
  • sugar to taste to break acid
  • black pepper to taste
  • 1 ⅛ pounds salmon
1.Cut the passion fruit in half, and with a spoon scoop the seeds and pulp out.
Put it all in a blender, and blend for about 15 seconds. Strain trough a fine mesh strainer. Throw out the seeds and reserve 1 cup of the juice for this recipe.
2.In a small sauce pan melt the butter and sautee the red onions until translucent.
Add the parsley, and passion fruit juice and let it come to a boil.
Turn it down to simmer and add the honey, pink peppercorn, and salt.
Let it simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes, place a lid on the pan, remove from heat and let it rest.
3.While the sauce is simmering, fillet the salmon and season it with kosher salt and ground black pepper.
4.In a hot sautee pan, add the olive oil and place the salmon with the season side down. Wait 3 minutes and with the help of a fish spatula turn it. Now season the top side of the fish and wait another 3 minutes.
5.Remove from pan, place it on a plate and drizzle the hot passion fruit sauce on top. Serve

If you can’t find Passion Fruit anywhere, or it is not in season, you can always use the frozen pulp or concentrate juice in Brazilian or Latin markets. These are my favorite brands

Frozen Pulp by Goya and juice concentrate by Maguary

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