Palate Food + Wine chef-owner Octavio Becerra and executive chef Jason Mattick have already set the standard for market-driven cuisine in Glendale. Last month, they continued to raise the stakes by introducing “Offal Good,” a three-item nose-to-tail menu that’s available Wednesday nights in the wine bar.

During my recent visit, Palate offered three tempting choices: chicken hearts with rosemary skewers and balsamic-red onion marmalade; grilled lamb liver with curry butter, arugula, pickled turnips and lentil hummus; and braised pork cheeks with Brussels sprouts, celery root and kumquat-bacon-pistachio relish. Of course, since this is Dose of Vitamin P, the choice was obvious.

The braised pork cheek ($9) rested in a pool of oil and delivered waves of flavor, with a generous chunk of fork-tender hog meat offering short rib-like consistency. Considering several bites involved shreds of cheek AND chunks of bacon, this was a seriously rich dish, but sliced kumquats and thin-shaved sprouts added enough acidity and bitterness to help tilt the see saw.

Dose of Vitamin P spotlights my favorite pork dish from the previous week.

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This entry is filed under Dose of Vitamin P.