on a happier note, let's talk about food! southern food. in los angeles. and it's delicious! several weeks back, we ventured over to the palihotel to enjoy a meal at the hart and the hunter. it was very dark in the dining room itself, so i apologize now for some how dark some of the food photos turned out (plus, i was far too lazy to do any editing).
we went with a crisp 2011 chenin blanc to go with all the southern goodness, and it was a great pairing. first up were some chicken cracklins with hot pepper vinegar (above, right) and their highly recommended smoked trout (in a mason jar) with sliced boiled egg, pickled onion and avocado toast (below). putting a good pile of the trout on the toast and topping it further with the other accouterments made for a really amazing mouthful. the cracklins were perfect, very thin and perfectly fried; crisp and salty, plus the spicy sourness of the hot pepper vinegar.
next was fried green tomatoes with chow chow (a pickled relish, now the dog!), herbs, goat and buttermilk dressing (above). i've never had fried green tomatoes before, and these were SO good. the tangy chow chow balanced really well the the rick dressing, and both were a great with the fried tomatoes themselves. below is an order of the butter biscuits, which came with honey butter, pimiento cheese and a bit of very ripe hachiya persimmon. honey butter and persimmon - a match made in heaven on a biscuit - who freaking knew?! i didn't. it was amazing. the biscuits were really good too - i know james really misses being able to get a good biscuit here in LA and he really enjoyed them. so many flaky layers, and not too heavy.
next up, the fried chicken livers with arugula, radish, apple and onion jam and hazelnuts. i have always love fried chicken livers, but these are by far the best i've had. and james, who doesn't like fried chicken livers, said that if these were the first fried chicken livers he'd ever eaten, then he would probably love them too. awesome with the sweet and tart jam, peppery arugula and the crunchy hazelnuts. the hangar steak with soft grits, mushrooms, snail and herb butter (below) was good, but to be honest, i'm not recalling much about it. we also had brussels sprouts and collard greens, which were too salty for me but they reminded james of his days from working at the lady and sons back in savannah and he "ate the shit out of" the greens. (=
and last but not least, they had a very delightful lemon ice box pie. it was perfection. well, it's only the second one i've ever had, the first being in alabama. all in all it was an awesome meal, and its great to have some more access to southern flavors here in LA.
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the hart and the hunter at the palihotel
7950 melrose avenue, los angeles
http://www.thehartandthehunter.com/
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