Tag Archives: fusion food

New Opening: Prova Pizzeria + DineLA Week

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Lorenzo shows us the top pies created at the newly opened Prova Pizzeria.

VIDEO: Lorenzo shows us some of his favorite pies at the newly opened Prova Pizzeria.

During dineL.A. Restaurant Week, we were invited to go behind the counter at Prova Pizzeria and taste West Hollywood’s newest authentic Italian pizzeria.

Upon walking in, there was already a sense of warmth and welcoming. Once I learned the story behind the passionate owners, it made even more sense. Chef Vito and his brother Lorenzo are from Italy, and their passion shows in their warm and welcoming attitude, as well as in their third-generation, 100-year-old family dough recipe.

The dough is a fusion creation, with influences from Sicily, Bari and Naples. As a result, the dough is thin, yet has a nice rise and chew around the edges of the crust:

20150122_145040Lorenzo was on hand to personally show us the ropes behind their mouthwatering pizzas with unique toppings, such as the “La Vito” (pictured) which consists of savory mortadella ham, creamy stracciatella cheese and crunchy pistachios. It was definitely my favorite pie, although the “Margherita D.O.P.” that we also tried — which is on the DineLA menu — was also outstanding.

We also had appetizers such as the Assorted Olives & Taralli (an imported Italian pretzel) and the Speck (smoked prosciutto) & Mozzarella, as well as the Carciofi salad, which had artichokes, arugula and pine nuts. All had a great acidity and tartness to them to balance out the delectable pizzas.

As you can see in the video above, I even got to fire my own pizza in their wood burning oven! Prova is a fast-casual concept, so it’s perfect for lunch, dinner or even a post-night out quality bite.

20150122_145053DineL.A. runs through this weekend (Feb 1, to be exact), so I highly recommend getting yourself over to your favorite restaurant on the list for a special three-course menu at a special price.

However, even if you miss dineL.A., just know that it will be back… and that there is no wrong time to get a taste of Prova Pizzeria. Service, efficiency, authenticity and quality… this place really does have it all, and it made me miss my days in Italy! Lorenzo’s hospitality and jovial spirit really made me feel part of the Prova family, and I can’t wait to get back for another slice — or two — of that “La Vito” pizza!

20150122_145043You can check out Prova Pizzeria’s website for the menu, as well as for more information on visiting the new West Hollywood eatery. Ciao!

 

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VIDEO: Inside Koala Tapioca, Westwood’s Newest Eatery + Boba Spot

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TT Koala Tapioca Jasmine Sea Salt Green Tea Boba

The Taiwanese-Vietnamese fusion café concept that started as a food truck just opened in brick and mortar form, right in Westwood.

I decided to take my fellow Bruin friend Anshu along with me to our old stomping grounds to check out the media preview event for the new joint, Koala Tapioca.

Looking back on our four years at UCLA (and plenty of excursions in Westwood), it’s crazy to think how much has changed in the area. However, with the addition of Koala Tapioca to the Westwood Village scene, it’s safe to say that this place is a valuable addition.

Check out the one-minute video for the inside scoop (and sip!) on the hottest new cafe in Westwood.

Check out the one-minute video for the inside scoop (and sip!) on the hottest new cafe in Westwood.

Koala Tapioca was founded by recent UCLA graduates David and Vincent, who had a solid business strategy coming straight out of college.

While their brick and mortar location was in the works with construction and permits, the duo used that time to get a food truck going to do some market testing with their product.

TT Koala Tapioca Popcorn Chicken

Popcorn Chicken with Fried Sweet Basil

They perfected their food with low overhead costs, while also building a solid social media following in the meantime.

The truck, previously called Koala Tea, was a hit… and now they’re ready to open their doors, with great momentum behind them in the form of loyal foodie fans and Twitter followers.

Banh Mi

Banh Mi

Koala Tapioca offers a variety of unique and traditional coffee and tea drinks (with boba, if you’d like!) as well as Taiwanese and Vietnamese food. The fact that they have free Wi-Fi and board games is just the cherry on top! All I can say is I wish we had this place when I was at UCLA.

Check out the video above for a peek at the tasty snacks and drinks that this awesome little spot in the heart of Westwood has to offer.

TT Koala Tapioca Snacks Drinks Spread

You can find more information on visiting Koala Tapioca here. Stay tuned for a Dine LA Restaurant Week new opening post coming soon. Cheers 🙂

Recipe: Bourbon Pecan Pie Cookies For The Food Blogger Cookie Swap

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Tanayas Table Bourbon Pecan Pie Cookies 1

What’s better than cookies and pie? How about cookies AND pie, wrapped into one delicious and decadent holiday cookie?

Pecan pie is a favorite with my family during the holidays… so I thought, why not blend our favorite pie into cookie form for my first year participating in The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap for a great cause?

Official Food Blogger FB Cookie Swap 2014 Badge Tanaya's Table

These Bourbon Pecan Pie Cookies are gooey, sticky and nutty with a hint of chocolate and the aroma of vanilla and bourbon to bring it all together. I thought they would make great batches to send to three of my fellow food bloggers to whom I was assigned to send holiday cheer… in the form of cookies, of course.

I also baked some more of these cookies to share with my fellow Los Angeles-based food bloggers at our annual holiday cookie swap. Last year I made red velvet gooey butter cookies, and these pecan pie cookies seemed to be just as big a hit! In fact, all my fellow food blogger friends brought something irresistible to the table.

Check out this one-minute Tastemade video for an overview!

The most delectable cookies made in L.A. all crammed into a 1-minute video!

The most delectable cookies made in L.A. all crammed into a 1-minute video!

Being especially short on time this year due to family circumstances, instead starting from scratch in formulating this cookie-pie mashup recipe, I decided to do a little background research first. After all, reinventing the wheel is not the greatest use of time, right?

Thank goodness for this Spend With Pennies recipe, because it provided me with a solid base and allowed me more time to adapt the recipe to my taste… and to dress it up with a little bourbon love!

You can definitely modify the recipe below however you would like, depending on how much time you’ve got to do your holiday baking this year. Hope you enjoy these as much as we did. Perhaps you can even start your own cookie swap tradition!

Tanayas Table Bourbon Pecan Pie Cookies 2

Bourbon Pecan Pie Cookies

Ingredients

    • 1 prepared pie crust (check out Crazy for Crust’s all butter from-scratch recipe here)
    • 2 tablespoons butter, melted
    • 1/2 cup pecans, lightly toasted & chopped
    • 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
    • 1/4 cup corn syrup
    • 2 tablespoons maple syrup
    • 2 large eggs, beaten (set aside 2 tablespoons for egg wash)
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • 1 teaspoon vanilla
    • 1/4 cup bourbon (or more, if desired!)
    • 1/4 cup semi sweet or milk chocolate chips (optional)
    • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar (optional)

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
  2. In a large non-stick pan, combine butter, pecans, brown sugar, corn syrup, maple syrup, bourbon and salt. Over low heat, slowly stir in eggs (minus the 2 tablespoons for egg wash). Continue to slowly stir on stove over medium-low heat just until slightly thickened (just about the consistency of pudding). Stir in vanilla, remove from heat and set aside.
  3. Roll out dough and use a 3″ cookie cutter (I used the rim of a glass) to cut out circles. Gently fold the edges in, about 1/8-1/4″
  4. Brush the egg wash around the pie crust edges for a glossy finish. Sprinkle with granulated sugar for a golden brown crust, if desired.
  5. Spoon about 1 heaping teaspoon of the pecan pie filling into each circle. Top with chocolate chips, if desired.
  6. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes or until filling is just set and crust is lightly golden brown. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.
  7. Enjoy!

Speaking of cookies, the L.A. Cookie Con & Sweets Show is coming in January! Stay tuned to receive a discount code for Tanaya’s Table followers, plus a behind-the-scenes video of the newest bakery to open in Hollywood serving unique, internationally inspired baked goods!

L.A. Cookie Con Official Blogger Badge Tanaya's Table

Copyright Tanaya Ghosh 2014

VIDEO: How Chicken And Waffle Cones Are Made – Behind The Scenes Of A Food Truck Pop-Up

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So here it is, the insider coverage + video exclusive on this highly anticipated chicken & waffle cone pop-up event!

Update to the previous post alerting you to the amazing chicken & waffle cones pop-up from Carb & Nation: Due to such high demand and continuous long lines, Carb & Nation will be serving both versions of their savory chicken & waffle cones for one more night– next Saturday night (10/4/14) to be exact, on the second night of their Tested LA Saturday night residency!

A common question that may come to mind is, how does one eat a savory waffle cone full of chicken and layers of other good stuff? Well, the guys offer forks with the cones, but from our experience we could just bite into the cone without it breaking apart.

The cone is sturdier and less sweet than your traditional waffle cone, as a result of the chefs’ unique recipe to cut the sugar in half without losing the crispiness of the cone. It’s amazing, actually!

So nope, no problems eating it straight out of the cone, and it’s actually quite delicious as you bite it and get layer by layer of complementary flavor. You can see the layers detailed in the photos below.

Check out the one-minute pre-opening video of their first (and epic) chicken and waffles pop-up yesterday. We even got to get a sneak peek of how they make their chicken & waffle cones (both American & Indonesian versions!) thanks to Chefs Fata Wijaya and Kevin Micheli.

Reporting straight from inside the food truck as they prepped to serve the gigantic line outside, Tanaya’s Table brings you the scoop on a new kind of food in a cone!

Copyright Tanaya Ghosh 2014

Tanaya’s Table brings you an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at how these innovative chefs make their savory cones… right from inside the food truck!

Here’s a photo of the American Cone, which has figs three ways. Fresh, dried… and in a Guinness beer reduction. Oh yes:

Copyright Tanaya Ghosh 2014

The American Cone, right before we devoured it.

And as promised, here is a breakdown of each cone and its layers of flavor and textures that all work so well together:

Copyright Tanaya Ghosh 2014

The Chicken and Waffle Cone Pop-Up Menu: The American Cone and Indonesian Cone

I highly recommend checking them out at Tested LA next weekend, as Oct. 4 will be your last chance to get your hands on these special cones! You can go anytime between 5-11 p.m. but I would suggest going early, as they ran out due to such large crowds on their first (and only, as originally planned) day of cone service.

One cone is definitely a meal in itself, costs $9 each and is totally worth the wait in line, judging from the reaction of the people I spoke with. We were fortunate to get the first cones of the day, as a result of filming them being built (woo hoo!), and I felt just a wee bit guilty walking by, biting into my cone while people in line fawned over it.

I assured them the wait was worth it, though… and it definitely was.

More photos and location details can be found in the preview post. Go get ’em while you can!

Food Protip: Chicken And Waffles. In A Cone. One Night Only!

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Fried chicken cone indonesian

UPDATE 9/27: Due to such high demand and continuous long lines, Carb & Nation will be serving both versions of their savory chicken & waffle cones next Saturday night (10/4/14) on the second night of their Tested LA residency!

Fried chicken nestled in a waffle cone, in two globally inspired flavors. Who could possibly be the mastermind behind this fascinating food creation coming to Los Angeles this weekend?

That would be chef innovators Fata Wijaya and Kevin Micheli of the Carb & Nation food truck. The event will mark the kickoff to their Saturday night residency at Tested LA, and therefore although the chicken & waffle cones will be a pop-up event, Carb & Nation will actually be back with new goodies every Saturday night.

Here are all the details you need to get your hands on this extremely limited time– and extremely delicious– fusion fare:

Who: Carb & Nation

Where: Tested LA – 3329 Division St. Los Angeles 90065

When: Saturday, Sept. 27 ~ 5 p.m. – 11 p.m.

I had the pleasure of meeting Carb & Nation chef Kevin Micheli at the ROAM Food Truck Academy seminar as part of the Western Foodservice Expo last month, and I’m excited to say that if you are unable to make it to the Glassell Park location, you can still partake in the hype via exclusive coverage right here, as I will be doing a pre-event collaboration with the chefs prior to their opening!

Stay tuned for the post, along with behind-the-scenes video coverage. I will also be posting live updates along with other foodie news as usual, on the Tanaya’s Table Twitter (@TanayaG) & Instagram accounts (@MsTanayaG). Connect with me on those social media handles to get the scoop firsthand, as always. On each platform I share exclusive food tips and content, and love having foodie conversations with all of you!

In the meantime, I present you with a visual sneak peek to get your tastebuds primed and ready for this Saturday night:

The American Waffle Cone

fried chicken cone modern american

Fried chicken, roasted sweet potatoes, goat cheese fondue, fig syrup and an apple slaw with lemon-coriander dressing. Tip: ask to add the housemade buttery habanero hot sauce if you like heat! (source: Carb & Nation)

 

The Indonesian Style Waffle Cone

Fried chicken cone indonesian

Indonesian fried chicken, coconut rice, pickled vegetables, coconut-kaffir lime syrup and sambal chili sauce. (source: Carb & Nation)

Other cities, be jealous. Or, just stay tuned for the Tanaya’s Table exclusive inside Carb & Nation’s chicken & waffle cone pop-up! 😉