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But “Dining” is neither about just eating or feeding. It is a totally different and hopefully exciting sensual experience; and that is about which I write. True dining has many elements. It should be first of all an adventure. When done properly, you enter an environment that is different than what you have been in all day. The lighting is different. The room should create a mood; you are enthusiastically greeted by a mature, sophisticated adult. Reading the menu will be entertaining and contain some surprises; perhaps with some of your old favorites. Then the food should be thrilling. All of that requires true passion. I have never seen a shred of passion on display at any of the above eating joints unless you consider that a Hooter’s or TGIF server’s announcement that “My name is Tiffany and I am here to serve you” is an indication of some thing else to contemplate. But that usually deals with lust rather than passion. There IS a difference. A truly subtle, delicate and passionate environment
requires a totally committed staff. That means that it can only be
accomplished if the owner is managing the front room or is supervising in
the kitchen. In recent years some great chefs have been able to operate
more than one restaurant but in almost every case, the secondary
management has been given some sort of an ownership position. In
The Kramer's years of experience have been primarily with upscale caterers like Joaquin Splichal’s Patina Catering division and Along Came Mary, both fixtures in an area of the film industry that demands the satisfaction of stars and other celebrities. Further, Claudine is a graduate of the esteemed Pasadena Culinary Institute. In a scene with a developing plot from an art film at the tiny Westlake Theater (Think “Sideways”) they met in the bread aisle (the bread aisle ???) of a local Smart & Final, fell in love and got married. Soon after they embarked on creating Café 14…. from scratch, working on it 85 hours a week. Thus they became “Sleepless in Agoura”. That clearly took the “Passion” mentioned previously. You see, the location had previously been a morbid Indian restaurant followed by an even more morbid Glatt Kosher Jewish eatery (???)…..and that’s the truth. With limited assistance, they transformed this difficult room into an environment that transports you 7,000 miles from that prosaic strip center at Reyes Adobe and Canwood to a pleasant, warm and romantic Mediterranean café.
The menu is modest in size.
There are 9 Starters and 11 Entrees. But all the choices have
interest and originality. My wife and I split a wonderful Roasted Red and
Gold Beet Salad ($8) with mixed greens, gorgonzola cheese and candied
pecans. The ample portion made splitting the right choice. Other
possibilities are Panko Crusted Crab Cakes with a classic remoulade
($13)or soup of the day ($5) and mixed green salad ($4).
The better half (especially palatewise) then chose Seared Halibut Filet ($22) served with a warm lentil salad, sautéed spinach and a roasted red pepper veloute topped with fried leeks. She loved it and the portion was so generous that we wound up taking ½ of it home.
I am a fowl person (at least that is what many say), so I chose a sophisticated take called Moroccan Chicken ($18) which turned out to be ½ of a good sized chicken braised in aromatic spices, green olives, prunes and preserved lemon serve' over couscous. It was cooked perfectly moist and loaded with interesting flavors. I thought it was great. Other appealing choices are Penne Pasta ($14) with grilled chicken breast, asparagus and sun-dried tomatoes and the now ubiquitous and classic comfort food: Meat Loaf ($16). This, however, is prepared from Roasted Turkey with mashed potatoes, French Beans and pan mushroom gravy. There is also a Salmon Dish ($19) a Sesame Crusted Ahi Tuna ($22). For the red meat eaters you can select a Double Thick Pork Chop ($22) or a Grilled Filet Mignon ($26) topped with wild mushroom demi-glace. Finally there is a 7 Vegetable Lasagna ($14). We split a Flourless Chocolate Roulade ($6) which was a dense dark rolled up cake that was a perfect ending to the meal. Other desserts include Crème Brulee ($6) and Fresh Sorbet ($4) The wine list is also somewhat modest with fairly priced offerings of both reds and white ranging from $20 a bottle for a Matua Valley New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc with a Marlborough Appellation, (We found it to be dry yet full of fruit flavor) to a Caymus 202 Napa Cabernet Sauvignon for $98. Many of the wines are also offered at fair prices by the glass. Café 14 however should consider adding some Australian Shiraz to their list. Many wine rating programs consider them to be the best medium priced red wine values in the world. They are right. Café 14
Gifts for the Gourmet"Sharp Stuff"The very skillful feature food writer for the Los Angeles "Times" did a review recently on the influx of "new" thin blade ultra sharp Japanese knives that have hit the "Gourmet" market. As expected he competently pointed out that the single most needed and rational gift for a serious cook is a high quality chef's knife which is available in sizes from 6" up to 10" and should be chosen based on skills. 8" is probably the choice for most. His analysis is very accurate and worthwhile but as is typical, he deals with the subject from a personal professional's experience and perhaps misses points of usage, availability, maintenance and value that are crucial to an intelligent decision for us non-professionals.
Aside from the political issues, avoid the French Sabatier knives. There is no one specific brand and quality is all over the place. If you must be "au courant" , check the internet for cutlery sites that offer those Japanese knives. Look for one with a shoulder that is set back from the blade by at least 1/2". In general these knives are not discounted; and that's the rub. Henckels and Wusthof are both highly discounted and available in retail stores throughout the Southland and at perhaps even slightly better prices on the internet. They carry lifetime guarantees and if you chip the tip, you just take it back to the store and they will give you a new knife. That has been my experience. For the reasonably serious home chef, they certainly provide an edge that is acceptable. Further that edge lasts longer and requires less maintenance than the Japanese "Thin" blade. They are less expensive (in the $60-80 area) as opposed to the $100 plus prox price for the Japanese. With the money you save, you can add a basic but very practical knife sharpener that will provide a complete gift package for about that now vaunted $100 price point. Here's the story on knife
sharpeners.
If you are that serious then perhaps you should also get a handled honing rod of steel or ceramic that you see the butchers use. That "Steel" as it is called does not actually sharpen as much as it realigns the blade which becomes slightly out of line after each usage. I do have both and strop my knife with the steel before each using and sharpen when the blade seems to have become dull. This system has worked perfectly for me for 2 decades and with very limited bloodshed. If you need any further information, feel free to contact me via the hyperlink on the home page. But be sure to include your e-mail address so that I can respond.
Frankly Noted – Dining Gossip of the Conejo
High energy Cafe Provencal's Serge Bonnet again announces that he will serve a full Christmas Eve ( too late now) and follow up with his usually sold out New Year's Gala. All subscribers that have attended Cafe Provencal special events report that Serge really knows how to throw a party and rave about the fun they have at a reasonable price. Call for details including menus. Tommaso Barletta has finally opened his new restaurant in Calabasas. It may be one of the most attractive in Northwest Los Angeles. Riviera is a wine bar and a restaurant featuring the new trend of small plates from Spain, France and Italy served in the bar area and full dining in the main rooms. Riviera will have a full scale New Years Eve with dining and dancing. Barletta's Tuscany will have a New Year's Eve party but Rustico will have a regular menu. Joannafina's is again offering their famous take home Tamales for the Holidays along with a class at their Thousand Oaks location. They sold 10,000 last year for the gala Winter season. Chef Robin Nishizaki who showed his stuff at Le Cafe and then moved to the glitter of Las Vegas has returned to become executive chef at Eric's in Newbury Park . We will do a review after Robin has settled in. 2087 recently closed its doors after a multi-year struggle with consistency and attitude as noted in our review about a year ago. They joined La Cupola, Coco's, Cravings, Cap'n Paul, Ritrovo, Thai Ranch, Kosher Glatt and Agave Azul along with a couple of unnamed fake sushi bars in losing the tough dining battle. The 2087 property had been for sale since that time with no takers. A high price and the threat of competition in the new center at The Civic Plaza certainly does not improve the chances for a new dining spot to take over. However at least 6 new restaurants have opened in the last few months in the Conejo to take their place. It is amazing. But now the Agoura, Thousand Oaks, Westlake, Newbury Park dining zone offers quality choices well above most of the San Fernando Valley and almost the equal of Westside Los Angeles especially in the Italian, Continental and Sushi area. It is amazing.
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