Five Year Anniversary of Food Woolf

Food woolf anniversary of five yearsOn November 29, 2007, I made a decision that would start a chain reaction of transformation and change. I wrote a recipe for a dish I developed and clicked the “Publish” button for the first time on. Five years ago today, I staked a place for my little blog, Food Woolf.

Even the smallest action can result in big change. Just ask a ship captain how a simple adjustment of just one degree–sustained over time–can seriously alter a boat’s final destination.

A life changing meal in Panicale, Italy brought me the awakening I needed to wake me up to the need to enjoy my life as an artist. I was an isolated, frustrated screenwriter with few film credits to her name and no Hollywood sale to pay the bills. I was constrained by my art form. The act of screenwriting felt far too futile and dedicated to the constant practice of living in fantasy.

The decision to start my blog was the result of a resolution to try something different. Food Woolf would be my place to offer up weekly literary homage to food, cooking, and my life as a restaurant professional. I would use the blog to motivate me to leave my home and document my life in the world.

It took me a while to sand down the edges to get to the core of what this blog was about. My first post began as a kind of love letter to Nancy Silverton and a conversation we had about a recipe I developed. Over the years I dabbled in restaurant reviews, food profiles, and even did the occasional food news round up. I charted my irrational fear of baking, and spoke about the challenges of being a waiter.

Along the way I found my voice.

Continue reading “Five Year Anniversary of Food Woolf”

Service 101: Slow Down and Vision Your Life (or Business)

Brooke Burton Service Leadership Visioning workshop
Leading a Visioning and Branding Workshop with the Ra Pour leadership team

The faster our society gets, the looser we get with our systems. We cut corners. We text and walk. We don’t read the recipe through to the end before we start cooking. We go to the grocery store without a shopping list. We show up to popular restaurants without a reservation. We don’t prof proof read. We start a blog without knowing what we’re really blogging about.

We let the sparkly light-show of the PROMISE OF SUCCESS blind us to the realities of the work required to achieve victory. We get distracted by the siren song of PROFIT and FAVORABLE OUTCOME and forget to create a set of guidelines or a structured plan to get us where we want to go.

The famous movie tagline “Build it and they will come,” is a great first act twist, but it isn’t what you’d call a solid business plan.

Look, most people don’t find the words “actionable objectives” and “sustainable culture” sexy. But I do. Because if you want to be successful in life or business, you have to know the steps that are required to get you where you want to go.

Not planning, organizing, creating a set of guidelines, or charting a course for success is why many great people and wonderful ideas fail. Businesses collapse. Movies with great first acts fall apart by the end of the second act. Restaurants shutter after a year. Overnight successes crash and burn under the pressure. Blogs are born, go strong for months with an unending steam of daily posts, and then spontaneously die. Continue reading “Service 101: Slow Down and Vision Your Life (or Business)”

Where To Buy Turkey in Los Angeles

thanksgiving dinner 2008

I’m not sure how it happened, but I completely forgot to order my Thanksgiving turkey. My husband snapped me out of my ignorance of current calendar dates last night. He was gentle, but pointed.

Chef Quinn ordered his turkey from Harvey Gus,” he said. “Maybe you should see if it isn’t too late to get a turkey.”

I gave him a blank stare. Wait. Get a turkey? How many days do I have before Thanksgiving?

That’s when I realized I was in trouble. As I scrambled to do research on where to find a bird, I realized I was in one of those concurrent life/food blog  moments. If I were to get anything out of this potential debacle, I would have to write about it.  Fast.

Based on my research, I offer you this roundup of Where to Buy Turkey in LA (Last Minute).

To get the Inside Scoop on Where To Buy a Turkey in LA »

A Seafood Recipe–Inspired by an International Fish Market

fish at IMP, Los Angeles

The alarm went off at 6 AM—an uncharacteristically early wake up call for someone who waits tables past midnight. Eyes hazy from a lack of sleep, I stepped into the warm shower with dreamy thoughts of an early visit to an unfamiliar downtown market. Soon there would be coffee. And fish. Lots of fish.

International Marine Products

The day started early at International Marine Products (IMP), a small but world-class fish market open to restaurant professionals only. On the fringe of downtown Los Angeles, chefs from LA restaurants don hairnets or baseball hats while perusing the diverse selection of ice packed fish, mollusks, and shellfish.

brian and bass

Continue Razor Clam recipe »

Border Grill Taco Truck vs. Kogi

Mozza Fourth of July Party

Since the beginning of the Mozza’s, Nancy Silverton has celebrated this nation’s independence day with her employees. Naturally gracious and generous, Nancy has opened her home to her dedicated kitchen staff (the chefs, prep cooks, dishwashers) and gregarious front of house employees (servers, bussers, bartenders) and invited them to eat, drink and be merry.

Every year a new challenge

The first annual Fourth of July Mozza party Nancy served trays of food from Marouch, the second year employees gobbled up burgers from an In-n-Out truck for hours and on the third annual Fourth of July party Nancy decided it was time for a culinary showdown.

Mozza 4th of July Party

I got a message from Nancy on my voicemail, late Friday night.

“Brooke. It’s Nancy. Nancy Silverton. Call me.”

Granted, Nancy doesn’t call me every day—or ever, to be honest—but the fact that my name and number lives in her phone at all makes me very, very happy. “I’ve got the Kogi truck and the Border Grill girls coming.” She told me early Saturday morning. “It’s going to be a taco truck showdown.”

Mozza Fourth of July PartyThe showdown

Kogi was the first to arrive. When the truck pulled into Nancy’s driveway, Mozza employees quickly began lining up for a chance to try Kogi. Kogi + a short line + free meal = happy employees. With plastic cups filled with beer and Italian wine, the party guests happily chit-chatted as they waited for their Korean tacos.

When asked if most people had tried Kogi before, many admitted they hadn’t. A few taco truck afficionados admitted they had and added, “It’s not waiting in one of those lines, though.”

Mozza Fourth of July Party

Granted, the people that work at Mozza have very high standards when it comes to the food they eat, serve, and cook. But overall, the general consensus was that the Kogi truck offered good flavors but nothing that was worth waiting for in an hour line.

We all sampled the dishes before passing judgment*. The rich short rib slider was sweet and savory and offered the a perfect textural interplay between the chewy meat and the soft bun. But as we progressed though the spicy pork and chicken tacos we found the flavors to be too similar –everything is sugary sweet and red chili spicy–and the tacos didn’t offer any diversity in taste. Updating a classic street food can offer all sorts of great culinary discoveries, but unfortunately, the Kogi truck’s hand-held dishes all tasted the same. Hitting the same flavor note over and over again is monotonous.

It was about the time when most people were considering what to eat next when the Border Grill truck pulled up curbside. Within seconds of parking outside of Nancy’s beautiful ivy covered home, a line spontaneously formed.

With Kogi truck chef, Roy Choi, near the front of the line to sample the competition, we were all excited to see what the Border Grill girls had cooked up for us. Mozza guests ooohed and aaahed as co-workers at the front of the line offered views of their trio of tacos. The three Border Grill tacos were a bright rainbow of colors: Purple/red pickled onions, green guacamole, bright white sour cream excited hunger and signaled palates to be prepared for some taco diversity.

Mozza Fourth of July Party

The sweet, crunchy acidity of the red onions gave a wonderful textural counterpoint to the soft and flavorful meat of the cochinita pibls pork taco. The squared cubes of potato in the potato rajas taco were cooling morsels between bites of the spicy meats. The guacamole had people licking their fingers and stealing mouthfuls from their distracted co-workers. The roasted poblano quesadilla with cheese was a mild choice good for a large party, but had big pieces of pickled jalepeno on the side for those that like to spice things up.

Two taco trucks rolled up. Only one wheeled-kitchen would win.

Based on the unabated line at the Border Grill truck, the tossed trays of half-eaten Kogi, and sophisticated discussion (and drunken banter) about the merits of the Korean tacos and the appreciation of classic Mexican cuisine– it very quickly became clear who the winner was.

Border Grill wheels away with bragging rights

As the trucks pulled away and inebriated–I mean satiated–party guests gathered their things, we gathered around our generous host to thank her for opening her home (and pool) to each and every one of us culinary misfits. We look forward to seeing what’s in store for next year’s party!

*I have had Kogi three times–once at the Alibi room (I waited 45 minutes for my trio of tacos), once at Nancy’s party (the tacos were free) and once at a food event (also free).

Food Woolf on Edible Los Angeles’ Blog


The day I met Nathan Dadouk, the artisan baker of Tavern Restaurant, I was blown away. Beyond the immediate flavors of his rustic breads, I was moved by his passion for the ancient art of bread making. I found myself fighting back tears as he told the story of how, at the tender age of eleven, he came to learn the art of bread making from a monk and master baker while attending a boarding school in Venezuela.

Nathan’s passion for dough and his study of bread making made such a compelling story, I found myself gushing to LA friends about my new favorite food artisan. Had they ever heard of Nathan? Had they visited Tavern for dinner or gone to the Larder to order a loaf (or ten) of bread? Eventually, I realized, it was time for me to stop gushing, collect my thoughts and write a story about Nathan.

But first, research!

I took a loaf of Nathan’s multigrain bread home with me to experiment with. In just one week, his whole grain boule inspired thick pieces of toast with butter and jelly for breakfast, open-faced burgers for lunch, and marinated mussels in olive oil and vinegar for maximum bread dipp-age. Nathan’s passion for the look of the bread’s interior, the feel of the crust and the acidity level of the dough will most certainly inspire many more meals.

Several loaves of bread later, I had the incredible good fortune to meet the super-talented Lucy Lean, Edible Los Angeles‘ new editor (thanks T&D!). As a huge fan of the Edible publications, I was thrilled to meet Lucy.

Like Nathan, Lucy is a true artist and visionary. Since joining the magazine she has worked incredibly hard to update the look and feel of Edible LA. The spectacular results can be seen both on the quarterly’s pages and on the magazine’s website (which includes an amazing video of Chef Michael Cimarusti made by my friends White on Rice!)

Within minutes of meeting, I couldn’t help but gush about Nathan to Lucy. Luckily, Lucy loved the story and asked me to write about Nathan for Edible’s new blog which features posts from noted bloggers (like Spicy Salty Sweet, White on Rice and…me!)

Please swing by the website to read honest stories about our region’s culinary culture, chefs, local farmers and the food artisans that make eating in southern California so amazing. And if you have the chance, check out my profile of Nathan.

Want a copy of the summer issue of Edible LA? Pick up a copy at Whole Foods, your local farmers’ market or any of these locations!

Christmas Cookies in Los Angeles

xmas in la

Christmas in Los Angeles is a strange thing for an East Coast girl like me. As religious holidays go, Christmas in LA has been, more or less, a disjointed and soulless affair.

Christmas in my hometown was a quiet, snowy thing. Far from the reaches of a noisy city, our snow-draped village was so quiet you could hear the poetic sound of snow falling outside the window. The days leading up to Christmas meant we spent a lot of time thinking about putting on multiple layers of clothing, sturdy hats, thick gloves, weather-proof boots, and using ice scrapers and collapsible shovels in the trunk of our car so that we could venture out into the world an find presents for our loved ones.

barbie

Out here in Los Angeles, it’s hard to connect to winter celebrations when flowers continue to bloom and lush palm trees go on swaying in sunny Southern California. LA’s climate makes eggnog too rich and hot apple cider seem frivolous.Without the snow and the chill in the air, Christmas in LA seemed like a hectic, commerce-driven affair. I worked in restaurants through the twelve days of Christmas, serving people that talked about “re-gifting”, casually abused me with aggressive waving or cool comments.  I bit my lip when people paid for their expensive dinner and then skimped on the a tip.

But with the global and financial climate changing things for everyone, I see a different kind of Christmas unfolding in LA—one where friendships and family are celebrated with simple gestures. Parking lots of consignment and charity shops are packed with customers looking for simple gifts. Spontaneous craftiness has taken over as homemade gifts top the list of things to give. Suddenly, homemade gifts aren’t frowned upon. Friends all over town give music mixes, tins of cookies and chocolate, and homemade jams and jellies.

This year, I celebrate Christmas with a warm stove, a full glass, a happy heart, and my family of friends around me.

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Lexi’s favorite chocolate chip cookies
From the Martha Stewart Cookbook: Collected Recipes for Every day

Martha's favorite chocolate chip cookies

1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 ½-2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda
1 ½ cups semisweet chocolate chips
* Parchment paper (this makes for easy removal and perfect bottomed cookies!)Preheat oven to 375° F. Cream the butter in a large bowl until smooth; add the brown and granulated sugars. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until well blended. In another large bowl, sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda. Beat this into the butter mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Drop 2 to 3 tablespoons of batter onto the paper covered baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Bake for 8 minutes until golden brown.

Remove the cookies from the baking sheets and cool on a rack.

Happy holidays!

Cork Sculptures with Francesco Ferrario


Cork. Nature’s stopper.

If you’re a wine lover or work in restaurants, you’ve plucked plenty of wine corks from bottles. Some, you’ve tossed. Other corks, you’ve held onto.

There are plenty of people that collect corks for sentimental reasons. Some get crafty and make homemade wine cork-boards, coasters, or trivets. And then there are the artists–people like my friend Francesco Ferrario–who see another kind of potential in wine corks.

I invited Francesco Ferrario to display some of his wonderful cork-inspired characters and answer a few questions about what motivated his newest art from.


What inspired your cork sculptures?

I have a lot of corks laying around the house, because wine is an integral part of all our meals. One night I was trying to find something funny to leave for my son to find when he woke up and I made up a little cork airplane…

What are they typically made from?

Corks are the main matter, and everything else I can find around the house; toothpicks, lentils, pieces of t-shirts…

You told me you started making the sculptures for your son, Luca. Have you made the sculptures for anyone else?

After I told and show some friends about the little dolls, they started asking me about making some for them; elephants, cats, lions, and I made a couple of cooks for some chef friends…

Do you have a background in art? Anyone else in your family have your talent for the arts? Where did you study? What was the focus of your studies?

Not at all. My son is always trying to build and design new things out of anything available, and give me the idea to do the same. 7-year-old’s can be very inspiring…


Where are you originally from?

I was born and raised in Milan Italy, until I moved in the States when I was 21- years-old.

You work in the restaurant business. Where do you work and what do you do?

I am a manager. I run the beverage program of The Lobster in Santa Monica

Do you have plans for your little cork brigade?
Not really

Beyond cork sculptures, what are you working on/creating right now?

Wine lists and homemade games for my son

What was the best meal you’ve had/cooked in the past week or so?

After a visit to the Wednesday Santa Monica farmer’s market I roasted some orange and yellow carrots and some softball-sized cauliflowers with olive oil and lemon zests. I roasted chicken breasts with a parsley pesto and sautéed tiny (4-inch long) corn husks with a little white wine and lemon juice. I served it with Jasmine rice and a nice bottle of Sancerre.

If someone was interested in buying a sculpture, how could they do so?
For now I have made them only for fun…

Thank you Francesco! We look forward to seeing more of your charming wine-cork sculptures.

Thanksgiving dinner countdown

Thanksgiving plate

It’s just three days before Thanksgiving and I have a long list of things to do. My guest list of twelve includes food and wine aficionados from Michelin starred Los Angeles restaurants, two respected wine retailers, and a wine-collecting rock star. With an attendee’s list like this, I have to stay organized, not get overwhelmed (or intimidated), and bring my A game.

After three years of hosting Thanksgiving dinner for restaurant orphans—a term I coined for restaurant professionals that are unable to go home to their families because they are expected work through the holidays–I’ve learned a lot. When serving Thanksgiving dinner to a table of restaurant pro’s you’ve got to share the work load, buy more wine than you think is needed, and most importantly, stay organized. For Thanksgiving dinner 2008 I will rely on my guests’ strengths—be it in the kitchen or in the wine cellar—to contribute dishes that showcase their talents and passions.

I’m excited to announce that Food Woolf will be one of 24 food blogs featured in Foodbuzz.com‘s first annual Thanksgiving Dinner event. As a featured publisher on Foodbuzz, I’ll be blogging about my Thanksgiving dinner within 24-hours of the day. It’s an exciting opportunity to share recipes, photos of what promises to be a wonderful meal, and insights into what happens when the people that make food and wine happen in Los Angeles have a day off to celebrate.

This year, I’ve planned out the three days leading up to Thanksgiving. Each day has its own shopping list, cleaning schedule, kitchen prep, and cooking needs.

It’s all about the Mise en Place

As it is in restaurant dining rooms and kitchens, everything must be organized and in its correct place in order for a successful dinner service to occur. And so it will be in my home.

Sunday

buy the turkey from Healthy Family Farms at the Hollywood Farmer’s Market. Prep and dry brine my 24.5 pound turkey.

Healthy Family Farms Turkeys

Decorate: Buy Satsuma oranges and arrange for an edible table display

Thanksgiving Dinner 2008 prep

Monday

Buy an extra large roasting pan for the turkey

Thanksgiving Dinner 2008 prep

Buy some wine and digestivos for the dinner

Thanksgiving Dinner 2008 prep

Tomorrow: turn our Los Angeles apartment into 12 seat restaurant and lounge!

Los Angeles Original Farmers' Market Celebrates 75 years

farmers' market postcard

The Original Farmers’ Market at Third and Fairfax celebrates 75 years of business. In response to their call for recollections of this historic culinary landmark, I submit this memory.

Love letter to the Farmers Market

Ten years ago, I moved to Los Angeles after a lifetime of residency in small towns across Massachusetts. Though I had uprooted myself several times to live in different towns within my hometown state, the cross-country move was, by far, the grandest uprooting of my life.

In Los Angeles, when I wasn’t in class studying screenwriting, I would travel 3rd Street in my little Volkswagon, in hopes of collecting a mental database of familiar landmarks. I was often lost within the sprawling landscape of LA’s streets, with the Atlantic Ocean as a forsaken compass point. I went west when I thought I was traveling east. I followed Wilshire for hours, searching for its end. One of the first markers of my new city was the Original Farmers’ Market on the corner of Third and Fairfax. Though I knew nothing about the history of the farmers’ market, the buildings proved to me that LA was once a simple village, that shared traditions like the one I came from.

I’d park my car in the sprawling lot speckled with sports cars and tour busses and meander through the market. I marveled at the shelves always lined with precise piles of fruits and vegetables–a site I had only seen during the summer months of Massachusetts. I admired the impracticality of laminated photos of dead movie stars and Hollywood street signs as souvenirs. I was soothed by the white clock tower as it marked the passing of time. The friendly French man behind the cheese counter and the smiling butcher that offered to help find the best deal surprised me with their kindness. The Farmers’ market, regardless of whether or not I stopped by, gave me a sense of calm.

Loteria

Thee's contentail pasteries

Looking back now, it is no wonder that I chose to live just one block from the Original Farmers’ Market. The neighborhood is my own little village where I can walk to shops, enjoy the park, and eat out at my favorite restaurants. I am a regular, a local, a fixture at the market.

After many years of feeling lost, I have finally found a home in this big city, thanks in part to the Original Farmers Market.

marsala chai vendor, hollywood farmers' market

It's fall at Dupars

Hollywood farmers' market

Hollywood farmers' market

marconda's meat

Happy Anniversary.

LA's best kept wine secret: The Wine Hotel

The Wine Hotel
If you find a hidden gem or an amazing bargain, do you tell the world or keep the information to yourself? For some, keeping the inexpensive getaway, a cheap ethnic market or clothing sale under wraps is essential in maintaining their front of the line status as well as keeping the hidden spot’s prices low.

For others, there is no such thing as a secret spot. These sorts of people tell anyone that will listen their “insider information” until that secret spot becomes so popular it’s ruined. Then there are people like me, a half-breed of secretive local and flamboyant big mouth, who believes there’s a happy medium to the Secret vs. Success issue. When I find a secret spot, I feel obligated to share my newfound information with trusted friends.

Which is why I thought I should come out and tell you, my trusted readers, about the amazing little wine store that almost no one in LA knows about. If you don’t live in LA, stop reading. But if you live anywhere near the 3rd and Fairfax area, you really ought to know that there’s an amazing wine store just around the corner. And it’s hiding from you.

The Wine Hotel

Located on the corner of Third and Cochran, this windowless (and seemingly door-less) yellow building is easy to miss. Other than the hand-lettered sign that simply reads “The Wine Hotel” outside, there is nothing to tell potential customers that there is a wine store located somewhere inside. But there is. Trust me.

Things to know before you go:

The first thing you should know before you visit the current incarnation of The Wine Hotel is that it is a wine store and wine storage facility in transition. Recently purchased by world renown wine specialists and wine collectors Rudy Kurniawan and Paul Wasserman, the pair plan to turn this once unsuccessful wine storage facility into Terroir: a wine buyer’s and wine collector’s Mecca.

Going against all feng shui laws, the front door is located in the back of the building. The only way to access the door, requires you to take a walk down the battered back alleyway. The door, once you locate it, looks like this:
The Wine Hotel

Though this pretty, windowed, wood door may appear to be locked, it probably isn’t. Push, pull and when all else fails, knock. Once inside, Dan, the store’s friendly wine expert and only employee, will most likely be the face that greets you.

The Wine Hotel
Dan is an agreeable guy that reminds me of a brainy Simpson’s character, who will always greet you with a nod or a grin and is always ready to share with you his incredible wealth of wine history and tasting notes. Tell him what you like and what you want to spend and get ready for a wonderful wine education. Take notes if you are fast of hand, because Dan has a lot to of great information to share. Want a show stopping Rioja for under 20? Dan recommends the R. Lopez de Heredia, “Vin Cubillo” Crianza, 2002. How about a tasty white from the Alto Adige? Dan might suggest the 2006 Garlider “Valle Isarco” Muller Thurgau, for less than 10 bucks. Dan’s fast and furious suggestions are punctuated with excited information, intriguing names, tid-bits on little known grapes and funny stories. Most surprising, even the rare and collectable bottles sport reasonable price tags.

The Wine Hotel

Be warned, there’s nothing fancy about the current incarnation of The Wine Hotel. The space has an office in transition, rough around the edges feel–but not for long. Extensive renovations will soon be undertaken which will transform the space into a sleek and modern retail space, wine storage facility and tasting room.

The Wine Hotel

In the meantime, I suggest spending a some time to talk with the highly educated wine sellers and follow their suggestions as you decide just how much well-priced wine you can afford to buy RIGHT NOW–before it becomes the popular wine destination it plans to be.

The Wine Hotel (soon to be Terroir)
5800 West Third Street
Los Angeles, CA 90036
323-937-9463

Hours:
Monday- Friday 11:am to 7:00pm
Saturday 11:am to 7:00pm
Sunday closed