Here are links to some of the more interesting posts from L.A. food writers over the last week:

Caroline on Crack

On January 30, Caroline on Crack founder Caroline Pardilla provided a forecast for Roy Choi’s Sunny Spot in a review headlined It’s Always Sunny on Washington Blvd, adding “everything about the colorful Shabby Chic venue evokes a smile.”

Cool Hunting

On February 3, Cool Hunting contributor Julie Wolfson wrote about Sourcing fruits for Jessica Koslow’s line of boutique preserves, SQIRL jam, complete with a trip to Mud Creek Ranch in Santa Paula.

Eater LA

On February 1, Eater LA editor Kat Odell shared “new details” in a post titled Jet Tila Waxes Poetic on The Charleston.

On January 30, Eater LA editor Kat Odell reported IDG Opening Two Restos in Shuttered Hamburger Hamlet: Italian with Gino Angelini & Fine Dining Chinese.

Grub Street LA

On January 31, LA Mag staffer Jennifer Aceto wrote about the upcoming Food GPS Lamb Showdown in a post titled Sheep Showdown with Walter Manzke and the Sotto Chefs.

LA Mag Digest

On January 31, Grub Street LA editor Hadley Tomicki wrote about the upcoming Food GPS Lamb Showdown in a post titled Manzke and Sotto Slice a Little Lamb at The Inaugural Lamb Showdown.

LA Times Food

On January 31, LA Times deputy Food editor Betty Hallock wrote about the upcoming Food GPS Lamb Showdown in her 3 Events: Lamb Showdown; Common Grains; American Menu.

On January 31, LA Times restaurant critic S. Irene Virbila wrote about Chefly awards, including a big one for Mr. Puck. The “big one” is a lifetime achievement award from the James Beard Foundation.

LA Weekly

On February 3, Squid Ink contributor Jenn Garbee shared the Top 5 Reasons to Join a Homebrew Club including Club Meetings (Read: An excuse to drink beer), Road Trips (Read: An excuse to drink beer) and Parties (Read: An excuse to drink beer).

On February 2, LA Weekly restaurant critic Jonathan Gold reviewed Shanghai No. 1 Seafood Village in San Gabriel, calling it “the most ambitious Chinese restaurant to open in Los Angeles in a decade” before describing a number of dishes both oceanic and otherwise.

On January 31, Squid Ink editor Amy Scattergood wrote about the upcoming Food GPS Lamb Showdown in a post titled Food GPS’ Lamb Showdown: In Which Walter Manzke, Steve Samson & Zach Pollack Cook You a Lamb Dinner.

Taste Terminal

On February 3, Taste Terminal contributor Rachel Snyder reported on Haven’s Holy Trinity: brewery, craveable cuisine, and groovy gastropubm adding a video interview with host Jace Milstead, co-owner Wil Dee and brewmaster David Larsen.

On February 1, for his latest installment of The Dish, Taste Terminal founder Stan Lee posted about Monta Japanese Noodle House: Pork Belly Bowl.

We first became aware of Tim Zohn’s spirited exploits last April, when vaunted San Francisco bartender Neyah White praised him via Facebook. At that point, he was working for a number of the city’s better cocktail bars, including The Alembic Bar, Rickhouse, Bourbon & Branch and Mr. Lew’s Win-Win Bar and Grand Sazerac Emporium. He was also a member of the Cocktail Lab with Ethan Terry, Danny Louie and Brandon Josie. Since then, a one-time La Folie co-worker, chef Mark Liberman, returned to San Francisco and recruited Zohn to head the bar at his seasonally focused AQ Restaurant & Bar. He left all but The Alembic Bar to take the full-time job. At AQ, Zohn now employs a collaborative approach to constructing the market-driven cocktail menu. On February 1, we spoke by phone, and Zohn shared further insights.

Is your title at AQ bar manager?

We’re really trying to do something a little different. I was hired as bar manager and hired all the staff, but we’re really running it as collaborative. Three of the six bartenders work at Cocktail Lab, which we started a few years back, and we’re running the bar like we run Cocktail Lab. It’s not a top-down program. It’s very much team oriented. I guess bar manager, lead ninja, whatever. I’m not big on titles.

Where did you grow up?

Seattle, Washington, and my family moved out to the Bay Area when I was 10 and 11, so I’ve always had a love of San Francisco. I moved here six years ago haven’t really moved back since.

Were you already working in cocktails in Seattle?

I was working at neighborhood bars. I had 18 IPAs on draft and a Jagerator machine and it was basically shots and beers. It was called the Park Pub in Phinney Ridge, in Seattle. When I moved here in 2006. I got a job valet parking, since that got me into contact with restaurant managers. I got a job working at La Folie, a Michelin-rated French restaurant on Russian Hill. I saw they posted an ad for bartender on Craigslist and brought my resume to work and handed it to the manager. Three days later, I was bartending at La Folie. That’s when I got into the creative side of cocktails and good spirits versus bad spirits.

I worked with these kids who spent $80,000, $90,000, working 14-hour shifts for minimum wage, I was at the bar putting in a five-hour shift and had to find a way to get respect from the kitchen staff, so I started staging in the kitchen and realized I could use techniques from the kitchen. This was six months to a year before Alembic opened and Bourbon & Branch opened. The chefs took me to Ansinthe, where Jeff Hollinger and Jonny Raglin were bartending. I remember one of the first cocktails that blew me away was one of Jonny Raglin’s cocktails, the Peppermill, with black pepper simple syrup, which just kind of blew my mind. That was the beginning.

Do you have a first cocktail memory, good or bad?

The Peppermill and the Corpse Reviver #2. After that, I was hooked. The first Corpse Reviver #2 I had was at The Alembic Bar, which was right before I started working there.

Did you become interested in spirits or cocktails first?

I think it was cocktails that came first, but at the time, when I started getting interested in cocktails, I had to do all the buying and maintaining of bar for La Folie, so I would be meeting with spirit reps and got to taste amazing spirits. Cocktails led me to be more interested in spirits and I realized the potential. That’s when I started nerding out about spirits so I could get a better grasp on flavors to create cocktails.

Was it a given that you’d work with cocktails and spirits for a living, or did you consider other careers?

I still have a strong desire to go get an architecture degree, but Jeffrey Morgenthaler in Portland will probably never use it…It’s one of those things. I think everybody should go to school and get a degree. It pushes you to think differently.

How did the AQ opportunity come about?

It’s kind of interesting. Our head chef, Mark Lieberman, was chef de cuisine at La Folie for eight months. He’s one of my favorite people I ever worked with, and we stayed in touch over the years, even though he was on the East Coast. We’d see each other at chefs’ weddings. When he came back to San Francisco, me, him and our manager-sommelier, Kristen [Capella], said he was opening up a project, a new restaurant. At the time, I was working at Bourbon & Branch , Rickhouse, The Alembic and Mr. Lew’s all at the same time. It must have been the booze talking. I said, “I’ll work for you.” Three weeks later, I got a call from him and the owner, Matt [Semmelhack]. I stopped working everywhere else except for The Alembic.

Who’s one bartender you’ve never worked with that you would most like to work with, and how come?

Another good question. I’ve gotten to work with so many people. Let’s go with John Deragon. I like that guy’s style. He’s a genuinely nice guy. He doesn’t have to bartend as a career, he just genuinely likes bartending. He’s a really fun guy, always has a smile on his face, a witty comment, and a guy I could definitely learn a thing or two from.

What are the criteria for a cocktail that goes on the AQ menu?

It’s just got to be good, first off. Secondly, whatever we’re inspired by at the time. It’s a collaborative, so one of us was like, “It’s fall, so we should use this ingredient.” Another bartender will say, “I’ve been infusing pumpkin seeds in bourbon.”

The Mexican Piano was born out of “Huckleberries,” “Let’s light something on fire,” and “Let’s torch a bay leaf.” It has to be seasonal, but also fun. We like to make cocktails that are as fun to make as they are fun to drink.

What’s your top selling cocktail at AQ, and why do you think that’s the case?

To my total surprise and utter delight, it’s actually our old fashioned or our AQ Manhattan. Right now we’re doing orange peel infused bourbon, vermouth, and Angostura bitters with licorice root, nutmeg, vanilla, cinnamon, cloves, to bump up the spices and bring in fall flavors. The response has been great and we sell a ton of whiskey, and I love whiskey, so that makes me really, really happy.

As far as naming cocktails, what’s your approach?

I like things that sounds good together. Somebody asked me why I named it the Mexican Piano, and didn’t use the Spanish word for piano. I had to remind them that piano in Spanish was piano…I like the two words next to each other. Me and Trevor Easter, who is managing the bar at Heaven’s Dog, used to work at Rickhouse together. We used to to come up with names, and just with the way the words flow together, the cocktails will sell, just because customers like to say the words. We used to get into these fun cocktail battles. He is the master of the pun.

How are you able to maintain balance in your life, if you’re even able to?

There is no balance. It’s controlled chaos. I take my work ethic from back of house, from chefs, and I go until there’s no more hours in the day, and no more days in the week. I joke with my friends who aren’t bartenders, the only way to spend 15 minutes hanging out with me is to sit at a bar that I’m working at.

What’s a great simple cocktail that you would suggest people make at home?

Honestly, I would recommend that people get themselves some quality bourbon and drink it on the rocks at their house. Cocktails are great, but I enjoy the flavors that run the gamut in something like whiskey. If people want to taste a masterfully balanced piece of work, find your favorite distillery and taste a special bottle that they’re offering.

Which whiskey or bourbon are you really enjoying now?

Breaking & Entering from St. George Spirits. I think they did a great job with their blend. Eagle Rare 10 is one of my all time favorites. I can thank Daniel Hyatt for that. I like Cyrus Noble. Excellent, excellent stuff, and anything Jimmy Russell does. Their 6-year rye, 10-year bourbon, phenomenal.

If you could travel anywhere in the world right now, one city, primarily to drink cocktails and spirits, what would it be and why?

I heard Reykjavík in Iceland has great nightlife, but I’m going to Peru in a week. I’m going to go drink pisco and sit on the beach, so let’s go with Lima, Peru.

If you could only drink one more cocktail, what would be in the glass?

My deathbed, last cocktail? Probably something Scott Beattie made because I want to see something pretty before I die.

Where and what do you like to drink when you’re not working?

You’ll usually find me at what dive bars are left in this city. I drink at the Buck Shot a lot, and you’ll find me drinking whiskey, drinking whatever cold beer they have, listening to old school punk music and . They have a six-foot tall grizzly near the DJ booth. There are more dead things there than there are bottles at the bar.

The L.A. Beer Blast is designed to let Food GPS readers know what’s new at select L.A. bars and restaurants with great beer selections. You’ll also discover beer-related events in the area and meet industry leaders. The L.A. Beer Blast arrives every Thursday evening, in time for the weekend rush. Look in the left sidebar, Subscribe to Food GPS and you’ll receive the L.A. Beer Blast by e-mail. This week, we divide Beer Blast establishments geographically so it’s easier to navigate.

Brew & You

This week in Brew & You: A flurry of Bruery offerings, an order of Cocoa Mole and a new homework assignment to complete in a post titled A Bruery Flurry.

Q&A with Beachwood brewmaster Julian Shrago

Julian Shrago honed the craft as a member of the Long Beach Homebrewers and brewed several beers in professional fermenters, including Tovarish, an Imperial Stout brewed with espresso at Pizza Port Solana Beach; Warrior, an India black ale conceived at Pizza Port San Clemente; a Belgian quadrupel born at Pizza Port Carlsbad; and Laurel IPA, named for Laurel and Hardy and produced at Triple Rock Brewery. He teamed with Gabe Gordon and Gabe’s wife Lena on a multi-faceted spinoff of Seal Beach’s renowned Beachwood BBQ in downtown Long Beach. Shrago now fills 12 of 36 taps with house-made beers. Click Here to Learn More

Hollywood and its environs

Blue Palms Brewhouse

Blue Palms taps are temporarily (hopefully) closed currently. Track changes to Blue Palms Brewhouse’s 24-tap menu Here

The Golden State

Draught beers on Fairfax include Bruery Saison de Lente, Knee Deep Citra Pale ale, Moylan’s Hopsickle, Bruery Mischief, Port FNG, TAPS Roggen bier and Lost Abbey’s Serpent’s Stout.

Lucky Devils

On tap at Lucky Devils this week are Craftsman Scotch Isle Ale, Stone 15th Anniversary Imperial Black IPA, Stone 2011 Belgo Anise Imperial Russian Stout, Firestone Double Jack, Smog City XPA, Wandering Aengus Anthem Cherry Cider, Duvel Single, along with 7 other great drafts. And in bottle we got Alpines Pure Hoppiness, Pliney The Elder, Blind Pig, and lots of other great bottles to chose from.

The Surly Goat

From Andrew Kelley, “On tap – Midnight Sessions – Port (Black Lager), Angelino Weisse – Craftsman (Berlinerweissbier), TAPS Barleywine and Cask: Sculpin – Ballast Point (American IPA).

On deck – Winterbraun – Lost Coast (Winter Warmer), BeRazzled – The Bruery (American Wild Ale w/ Raspberries) and Rumpkin – Avery (Rum Barrel Aged Imperial Pumpkin Ale).”

Beaches – North

Larry’s in Venice Beach.

According to a rep, “New beers on draft are Smog City XPA and Port Brewing FNG Pale Ale. We have some new beers in cans for you including Oskar Blues Brewing G’Night Imperial Red Ale, Old Chub Scottish Strong Ale, The Gubna Imperial IPA and Golden Road Brewing Heffeweizen in a pint can. We also have Brouwerij West No.5 Blonde Ale on deck.”

Library Alehouse

According to Alex P. Davis, “This year, we wanted to allow our loyal customers to avoid the Pliny the Younger madness. When our friends down at Beachwood BBQ in Seal Beach and Long Beach announced that they were raffling the beer off for charity, we loved the idea. So, in cooperation with Beachwood, we’re getting in on it too. Come to the Alehouse between February 3rd and February 18th and purchase as many raffle tickets as you like for $5 each, cash only. Proceeds from the raffle will go to the Melanoma Research Foundation in Memory of Tony Carbone. Raffle winners will be guaranteed the right to purchase one of fifty glasses of Pliny the Younger at the Alehouse from February 21st through March 1st for every winning ticket they hold. (Purchase price being a mere 25 cents) Winners will be drawn on February 20th and notified by email. The only limit on how many times you can win is the amount of beer we have, so buying more tickets increases your chances and your donation to a worthy cause.” Check the Library Alehouse Facebook page for updates.

Simmzy’s

The latest from general manager Micah Schiesel: “Next Wednesday February 8th @5 pm we will be tapping a keg of the Victory at Sea!!! Drink well pirates…” Track changes to Simmzy’s tap list Here

Beaches – South

Beachwood BBQ – Seal Beach

Beachwood chef-owner Gabe Gordon currently features St. Bernardus ABT 12, Upright 5, Monkey Paw American stout, Bootlegger’s Doctor Tongue and Ballast Point Smoke Screen lager in Seal Beach. Track changes to Beachwood BBQ’s 24-tap menu via Hop Cam.

Naja’s Place

On February 9th Naja’s will be hosting a barrel night featuring The Bruery, Firestone-Walker, Alaskan, Deschutes, Russian River, Black Diamond, Ballast Point, New Belgium, Lost Abbey, Sierra Nevada, Allagash, Marin and more breweries.

Select Beer Store

Black Market Brewing Bavarian Style Heff, Steigl Golden Premium Pilsner, Prickly Passion Saison by New Belgium Brewing, Lost Abby Red Barn Saison, Humming Ale by Anchor Brewing, Celebration Ale by Sierra Nevada Brewery, Mongo IPA by Port Brewing, 24th st. Pale Ale by Strand Brewing, Seduction by Ommegang, Old Chub by Oskar Blues Brewery, Steelhead Scotch Porter by Mad River, Black’s Dawn Imperial Stout on Nitro by Cismontane Brewery. On deck: Atticus IPA and the Last Keg of New Belgium Grand Cru.

Also We Have Over 300 Bottles That are available to go, or can be opened and enjoyed on site.

Long Beach

Beachwood BBQ – Long Beach

The Long Beach location of Beachwood has Tool Black Ball Porter, Triple Rock Laurel IPA, Allagash Odyssey, Lost Abbey Deliverance and Craftsman Edgar’s ale. Track changes to Beachwood BBQ’s 24-tap menu via Hop Cam.

Congregation Ale House

On tap recently are Old Speckled Hen, Sierra Nevada Ruthless Rye, Cismontane Smokin’ Santiago and Heretic Shallow Grave.

The Factory

The latest info according to Eric Gutenkauf, “The Factory Gastrobar in Long Beach, is pulling out all the stops for Super Bowl weekend. Going into the weekend we are pouring: Port Wipeout IPA, Cismontane Oaked Dos Cone Es 2xIPA, Knee Deep Imperial Porter, Ballast Point Calico Amber, Beer Valley Judas Yeast, Drake’s 1500 Pale Ale, Green Flash Barleywine, Sudwerk Dopplebock, and Eagle Rock Manifesto Wit.

But we have a “Super” stash of awesome brews for our big plans for Super Sunday: Bootleggers Lupulin Thrill IPA, Ballast Point Big Eye IPA, Karl Strauss 23rd Anniversary Bourbon-Barrel Aged Old Ale, Knee Deep Simtra 3xIPA, Iron Fist Gauntlet 2x IPA, Bear Republic Red Rocket, Lost Abbey Deliverance, Deschutes Green Lakes Organic Amber, Bootleggers Golden Chaos, and Karl Strauss Full Suit Brown.

If that doesn’t make you “Super” thirsty maybe this will help! Doors open at 3:00 PM for the Super Bowl, $29.99 covers one entree, and all the draft beer, canned beer, cider, sangria, hurricanes and select wine, that you care to consume while maintaining some modicum of self-control–until the end of the game! The Factory post-game show will be brought to you by the legendary Doug Means Project–if you like Sublime, you will love Doug Means! Post game specials include 50% off all food after 8PM so don’t miss out. We are accepting reservations for the game.

Be on the lookout for more information regarding a visit to The Factory by Golden Road Brewery on Thursday, February 16.”

Downtown & Downtown adjacent

1642

According to Echo Park bar owner Elizabeth Fischbach, “Here’s what we are serving on tap this week: Victory Hop Wallop, Stone Levitation, The Lost Abbey Serpent Stout and Sudwerk Pilsner. Thursday is tamale happy hour, 6-8 pm, following by an old time open jam.”

Barbara’s at the Brewery

From Erik Huig at Barbara’s: Big Sky Moose Drool, Craftsman Heavenly Hefe, Marin Brewing IPA and Drake’s Black Robusto porter among other tap handles.

Beer Belly

On tap at Jimmy and Yume Han’s Koreatown establishment: The Bruery Saison de Lente, Smog City Groundwork Coffee Porter, Hangar 24 Chocolate Porter, New Belgium “Lips of Faith” Biere de Mars, TAPS Cream Ale, Surf Oil Piers Porter (nitro), Eagle Rock Manifesto, Smog City LA Saison, Cismontane The Citizen, Craftsman Heavenly Hef, and Craftsman 1903 Lager.

On Deck: Craftsman El Prieto, Beachwood Thrillseeker IPA, Eagle Rock Vanilla Solidarity (nitro), The Bruery Mischief, Cismontane Black’s Dawn, Blue House Pale Ale w/ Citra, and El Segundo White Dog IPA.

Far Bar

From Jimmy Smith at the Little Tokyo bar: “Highlights on tap at Far Bar this week are: Bruery Smoking Wood (amazing on draft!), Moylans Ryan Bourbon Barrel Aged Ryan Sullivan’s Stout, Beachwood Thrillseeker IPA, Ballast Point Sculpin, Ten Fidy, NB Lips of Faith Coco Mole Dogfish Head Chicory Stout, Oak Aged Yeti, Cismontane Black’s Dawn, Breury Saison De Lente, Smog City XPA, Firestone Walker Double Jack, Surf Bruery South Swell DIPA, Grand Teton Wake Up Call Imperial Porter, Eagle Rock Manifesto, Golden Road Hef and many others.

On Deck: Moylans Nor Cal IPA, Eagle Rock Vanilla Bean Solidarity, Moylans Heaven Hill Barrel-Aged Old Blarney Barleywine, Uinta Labyrinth, Pugachev’s Cobra (Wednesday) and many others.

We kicked of Bourbon on 1st Street yesterday and it will continue throughout the month. We have six bourbon and rye whiskey/Beer pairings that we carefully picked out after extensive tasting, they’ve been getting great reviews so far, those will rotate throughout the month. We’ll also always have at least two barrel aged goodies on tap that will rotate throughout the month as well as Cajun/Creole inspired food specials all month long.

Join us Sunday for Super Bowl, Happy Hour all day $1 off all Beer(except barrel-aged) and food/flight specials!”

Golden Gopher

Draft Highlights at this downtown spot include, for a limited time, “Sign up for the Gopher’s Beer Society. They meet the second Monday of every month. E-mail the GM at: Lauren@213downtown.LA to be added to the Society e-mail list! Upcoming host brewers: February is Bootlegger’s, and the RSVP list is already full. In March, Tom Kelley of El Segundo will be giving us a hops education! For a very limited time: Bootlegger’s Knuckle Sandwich DIPA is back on draft!

Currently on draught at this DTLA luxe lounge are Craftsman 1903, Brouwerij West 5 Blond, Cismontane Citizen Common, Cismontane Black’s Dawn, Cismontane Brut Du Sauvin, Golden Road Hefeweizen, Hangar 24 Orange Wheat, Allagash White, Allagash Black, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Eagle Rock Populist IPA, Ballast Point Pale Ale, Ballast Point Big Eye IPA, New Belgium Belgo IPA, Bootlegger’s Rustic Rye IPA, The Strand Atticus IPA, Moylan’s Dragoons Dry Irish Stout, Stone Smoked Porter, Anchor Brewing Porter and Lindeman’s Peche Lambic. Craft beer “to go” also available at the Beer Chicks 8th Street Bottle Shop inside the bar.”

Little Bear

On tap: Adoration – Ommegang (Belgian Dark Strong Ale), Avril – Dupont (Biere de Table), Blind Ambition – Ladyface (Belgian Amber Ale) and The Stoic – Deschutes (Quadrupel).

On deck: Duchesse de Bourgogne – Verhaeghe (Flanders Red Ale), Saisonniere – Urthel (Saison) and Allagash Dubbel.

Mohawk Bend

The latest on tap in Echo Park from Paige Reilly: “ Last few days of our Big Sky brews. This Month: Allagash is in the house! Also on tap, Almanac Farmhouse Pale w/ Plums, Midnight Expressions Black Lager, Golden Road Brewing Rye on the Palate and Marin Brewing Witty Monk Witbier. Look out for our Allagash Dinner details in the VERY near future.”

Sunset Beer Co.

From Alex Macy at Sunset: “We’re featuring El Segundo Brewing this Friday at 7pm, along with the Frysmith truck. And we’ve managed to get a pre-release keg of their Blue House Citra Pale Ale!

On tap now: Mission Blonde Kolsch, Golden Road Hefe, Brouwerij West Blond 5, Golden Road Point the Way IPA, Telegraph California Ale and Cismontane Black’s Dawn.

On deck: Great Divide Espresso Yeti, Ventura Surf Mondo’s Cream Ale and Ventura Surf County Line Rye.

New bottles: Allagash Odyssey, Hangar 24 Columbus IPA, Nogne-O Imperial Stout, Pretty Things Jack D’or, Pretty Things Baby Tree, Pretty Things Hedgerow Bitter, Pretty Things Babayaga and Pretty Things Our Finest Regards.

LEARN WHERE TO DRINK IN THE VALLEY(S) + THE WESTSIDE

It would be accurate to say that brewmaster Julian Shrago [SHRAY-go] engineered his beers for success. The UC Santa Barbara grad and longtime aerospace engineer started homebrewing after his parents gave him a homebrew kit for Christmas in 1996. He honed the craft as a member of the Long Beach Homebrewers and brewed several beers in professional fermenters, including Tovarish, an Imperial Stout brewed with espresso at Pizza Port Solana Beach; Warrior, an India black ale conceived at Pizza Port San Clemente; a Belgian quadrupel born at Pizza Port Carlsbad; and Laurel IPA, named for Laurel and Hardy and produced at Triple Rock Brewery. He teamed with Gabe Gordon and Gabe’s wife Lena on a multi-faceted spinoff of Seal Beach’s renowned Beachwood BBQ in downtown Long Beach. Shrago now fills 12 of 36 taps with house-made beers. We met at Library Alehouse on January 26, and Shrago shared personal and beer insights.

At what point did you know you’d work with beer professionally?

I wanted to work with beer professionally beginning, probably, five years ago. When I really got serious with homebrewing, I started competing in competitions and things were going very positively with that. At that same time, I started forming relationships with professional brewers. That led to a couple invitations to come brew at professional breweries. That was something that was a tremendous honor and huge opportunity. That’s when I really got the exposure to what it meant to be a professional brewer. That’s probably about five years ago.

Do you have a very first beer memory, good or bad?

I think my first beer memory was when I was 10 years old, somebody cracked open a Budweiser beer at a party that I was at. It was an adults party, and there were a lot of kids there. The person cracked open the beer, they walked away from it, and I picked it up and put the whole thing down. That was my first whole beer experience, but beyond that, one memorable experience I had was at Santa Barbara, first day of college, the first beer that somebody handed me was Natty Ice. Of course I’m going with the flow, so I drink it. It was horrible. I knew I wanted to drink beer, but I knew I didn’t want to have another one of those, so that night, I went into town and was able to find some local craft beer, and immediately got hooked on it.

What’s the criteria for a beer that you brew at Beachwood?

A lot of my beers, I think of flavor first when I construct a recipe. I don’t necessarily think, “I have to brew some huge Imperial stout. How am I going to get it to have 20% alcohol in it?” I think, “Okay, if I’m going to be drinking an Imperial stout, what kind of flavors would I want in that beer? What kind of mouth feel would I want in that beer? How am I going to go about creating those flavors?” So really, I aim for flavor first, and that’s how I construct my recipes.

In terms of what beers you end up going with, do you, Gabe and Lena discuss that beer, or are you pretty much given autonomy?

It totally depends on the situation. We absolutely collaborate on things. For example, the High Five Saison is a perfect example of us all collaborating. Gabe and Lena wanted an anniversary beer for Beachwood’s fifth anniversary in Seal Beach, and of course it’s an honor to brew a beer for an establishment like that, so we started throwing around ideas: “Do we want to do a double IPA? Do we want to do something like a big Imperial stout?” We wanted to do something memorable, and we arrived on saison. Gabe is a tremendous cook, and he’s very familiar with spices and he started throwing out spice combinations. He was like, “I’m a big fan of Chinese long pepper. Chinese long pepper goes well with saffron. Saffron has a really nice flavor, but it would be cool if the beer is orange or bright yellow. How are we going to get that color in the beer? Oh, annatto seed might add flavor and give us that kind of color.” Things like that, absolutely we do collaborate.

How does it work in terms of naming your beers?

That’s kind of a team effort. Whenever any one of us feels inspired, we throw out a name. Sometimes we’ve already got a beer brewed, and a name will come about. Other times, we’ve got a name in mind, and we’ll find a beer to fit the name. Gabe came up with a fantastic name a few months ago, Hoppa Smurf. That’s a fantastic name. Let’s find a beer to fit the bill. Well, Smurfs are Belgian, so let’s brew a Belgian IPA. We’ll call it Hoppa Smurf. There you go. It depends, but again, it’s a collaborative effort. And I’ve got a lot of creative freedom in the brewery. If I feel like brewing something new and different, I just go ahead and do that too.

What was the most recent beer that you brewed, and what was your inspiration and approach?

A beer that I brewed most recently is a beer called Rose Royce, and that was a recipe that I had done a few years ago, but Lena came up with the name. It’s a really light-bodied, rose petal saison. The recipe was something we just scaled up from my homebrewing days, but the name was Lena’s invention. It’s a fantastic name.

Does it make your job easier or harder to have so many other new breweries popping up in the area?

INTERVIEW CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE

Let’s start with the non-sour offering which is another collaboration ale. The Bruery looked local this time. Really local and teamed up with Bootlegger’s Brewery in next door Fullerton to create Chocosaurus Rye. So you know you will be getting a spicy rye kick and the richness of chocolate from the cacao nibs but the ingredient that will tie them together will be the vanilla beans. This beer is part of the Provisions series that is named and brewed for the store in Old Town Orange.

On to the sour! First up is Filmishmish. Say that five times fast. Which is a sour blonde ale that has two unique ingredients added to it: apricot jam and wood shavings. Which of those distinctive flavors will win out and can they play well together will be fun to find out. And at 5.8% ABV, this is one that you can continue to form an opinion on.

Next up is a returning favorite, Sour in the Rye. It is brewed with 40% rye malt and that is no easy task because rye creates all sorts of technical brewing headaches. This year’s model is aged in barrels for over a year to really let the sourness mature.

Lastly is another Provisions Series creation going by the name of Mother Funker. And who doesn’t love a pun-tastic name. Sour in the Rye was aged for over a year. Mother Funker has been contentedly sitting in chardonnay barrels for several years. And by all accounts, this is a seriously sour sour.

Yes, I have just recommended four beers to you. But here is one more: Cocoa Mole from New Belgium. It is a new entry from the Lips of Faith series with ancho, guajillo and chipotle peppers and blended with chocolate and put together into a beer. Then top it off with cinnamon to balance things out.

Your homework this week is to head over to the El Segundo – Blue House Ales tasting room this Saturday from Noon to 8pm to tast the Blue House Citra Pale. Brewmaster Rob Croxall whips up pale ales that really showcase the hop profile and for a limited window you can fill growlers for $15 which is a deal considering the scarcity of the hop or if you want an even better deal you can get a new growler fill and an ESBC t-shirt for a mere $28.

Find more of Sean Inman’s writing on his blog, Beer Search Party.

There’s seemingly a perpetual line to sit at the sushi bar, or in a dining room that’s visible through wood slats. We waited an hour to secure a table, then let Effing Dericious order, since he eats at Sushi Gen bi-weekly. Sushi Gen sells standard dishes like fried chicken, chicken teriyaki and California rolls, not that we saw any of them. Instead, Mr. Dericious proceeded to shower our table with prized sea creatures.

We started simple, with noodles in a bowl with gooey white mountain yam and nori strips.

Low quality monkfish liver has a crumbly texture and has been known to resemble sea feta. No such issue at Sushi Gen, which presented a firm, slightly creamy slab of Ankimo ($6) in a savory, scallion-sprinkled ponzu broth, topped with mashed radish and a shavings of a ginger variety called myoga.

My friends were quick to poke and prod the pair of broiled fish heads ($15). People valued the cheeks and eyes most, but the meat under blistered skin was still plenty juicy. Mashed daikon and pickled vegetables joined the heads.

A meal that started with relatively rustic preparations transitioned to deluxe sushi platters, two pieces of each, per person, including snow white hamachi toro, firm giant clam wrapped in nori belts, well-marbled, rosy-hued toro with wasabi between the fish and rice, and aji (mackerel) with silver skin, scallions and grated ginger, best dipped in savory ponzu.

Anago featured freshwater eel fillets that were lightly sauced, and not too sweet.

They swaddled cool, creamy uni in nori, which contributed texture and accentuated the urchin’s salinity.

One of the only dishes that would have worked better at the bar was an oily toro hand roll with wet nori paper, negi (green onion) and crunchy pickled daikon. At the bar, there wouldn’t have been a lapse, which allowed the seaweed to absorb the fish’s natural oils.

Amaebi (Sweet shrimp) began with sweet, melt in my mouth amaebi sushi treated with light wasabi.

Chefs used the remainder to produce crispy fried shrimp heads, which were overly burnt.

Murky miso soup hosted more of the shrimp heads, along with more negi.

To drink, we enjoyed a 720ml bottle of Wakatake “Onikoroshi” Sake, Junmai Daiginjo from Shizaoka Prefecture, a sake house that dates to 1832.

Matthew Kang is best known for running Scoops Westside, but he still got a complimentary scoop of green tea ice cream for dessert. How did he like it? Let’s just say that he’s spoiled at Scoops.

This was a blowout meal of epic proportions. The only luxury item we missed was live lobster, which we saw on the bar, but requires advanced ordering. That’s fine. We’ve got to save something special for when Kang turns 30.

Do you have a first coffee memory, good or bad?

I didn’t really like coffee for a long period of time. When I was a teenager, I started drinking coffee black, just for the affectation of it. For years, I just drank coffee, and I didn’t really care about the quality of it. I have to say, I didn’t really care about the quality of anything overall, but it wasn’t until I’d been working as a barista, probably for a little over a year – this is in New York – that I started going to a coffee shop in Lower Manhattan in Alphabet City called Ninth Street, which back in the day – that maybe six years ago, in New York, was the best in the city, and the only good shop anybody would ever tell me about. I started going there, and it was there that I really started enjoying espresso. I guess that would be my first coffee memory, in the way that I still look at coffee.

What brought you to New York?

I was 19 years old in a pretty culture-less, relatively conservative town in Colorado, and just wanted to move to the biggest city I could.

What was the town?

Colorado Springs.

That’s a college town?

More Air Force and mega-church.

Was it a given that you’d work with coffee for a living, or did you consider other careers?

No, it wasn’t until three years ago that I decided I wanted to do coffee for a living. It was a very firm decision. At that point I was working in Chicago for Intelligentsia, at the Monadnock store, and I didn’t know – I dropped out of high school to be a cook – I never liked high school – and worked in coffee shops, but at a certain point, I was interested in taking classes and going back to school. I always had an interest in Constitutional law that was just sort of a side interest, so reading cases and things like that. I had a job in Chicago covering some of the courts, court reporting, and was sort of thinking I wanted to do that and figure out a way to get more and more into law, and more into learning more about it, whether it was in a law school way or not. I was scaling back my hours at Intelligentsia, and then a position of Educator came up, a trainer position, and then I sort of had the decision, “Do I want to do this thing that’s sort of respectable, and people keep telling me to do, or should I do the thing that I love and where – more than anything – I get to do really interesting things that nobody else gets to do?” I’d get to have access to something really special and interesting, and I chose the thing that I loved, that I’d get to do special and interesting kind of things. That was the best decision I ever made.

What was your first coffee related job?

I was a barista in New York.

Where?

It was a shop on the Upper East Side called Sicafe. It wasn’t your Third Wave coffee shop, but they had great people, and I learned latte art there, and the basics of pulling a shot, although I never changed a grind setting until I started working at Intelligentsia. More or less everything I’ve learned about coffee, I’ve learned here.

How did the opportunity with Intelligentsia come about?

When I was in New York, and I told the barista at Ninth Street that I was moving to Chicago, he told me to apply to Intelligentsia. I said, “What’s Intelligentsia?” He explained that it was “the best in Chicago,” is what he said. So I got there, and I think three months later, they called me back. I applied to two of the locations, and the Monadnock location called me back.

Who hired you?

It was the manager of Monadnock at the time. His name was Luke Rodricks. When I started at Intelligentsia was right when Mike Phillips started working in coffee bars from the production floor. The first time I went to the Broadway store, he pulled the shot of espresso, and I still remember talking with him about coffee, that first week of work.

How was that shot that he pulled?

It was good. I actually went in and I was in the habit of every barista who was pulling me an espresso to pull it a little bit short, which now I would – maybe not roll my eyes at – but I thought I was getting better espresso. Now I think it’s kind of silly. He said, “Oh, absolutely. Do you work in coffee?” We had a conversation there, but I remember the espresso was good.

Would you consider anybody a coffee mentor?

Mike, to a great degree. The cool thing about Intelligentsia, and if I could name one thing about working here that I like more than anything else, is there’s been a lot of people at this company that love to share knowledge and they share it indiscriminately. Anybody who’s interested, they’re willing to share everything that they have. Mike was a person like that.

Geoff Watts is very, very generous like that. I remember the first time I built up the nerve to send Geoff a coffee question e-mail. Within the hour, he responded with like three pages. That’s what working at Intelligentsia is like. So many people are willing to share their experiences and share their knowledge. Some people, I’ve learned a lot from. Working with Mike, working with Geoff, Kyle Glanville out here, and Stephen Morrissey in Chicago, and that’s been part of this marvelous experience.

What is it that continues to inspire you about coffee?

Coffee is now the vocabulary with which I talk to people. I don’t even know how to have a conversation outside of it. On a foundational level, what’s exciting about coffee is that it’s delicious, it’s absolutely marvelous. If you’re seeking out coffees and tasting everything, you’re consistently excited, surprised and shocked by the qualities and flavors that come from this plant. That is – to be totally honest – the thing that drives it. But everything else, the fun thing about taking coffee seriously is that you get to reap the benefits of it. So what inspires me? Take Venice, for instance. There hasn’t been any cap on what we’ve been able to do here. The only limitation – the ones that are caused by the people – nobody is saying, “You can’t do the slow bar.” Or, you can’t do this, or you can’t do that. If we’re doing something that makes the coffee taste better, that showcases the coffee in an interesting light, we can do it. Just having that opportunity, and having that chance, that’s inspiring. It’s electrifying. It’s like, “Oh shit, I can do anything!” I’ve got to take advantage of that.

How much do you think being a cook helps you in what you’re doing with coffee?

I think I was a decent line cook, but I’m not a very good chef. And if anything, the coffee is a lot more my style just because I want to be able to focus on a single thing. Cooking taught me all of the basic manual skills of working in a fast-paced environment. That’s the main thing that I got out of it. I have to say, it didn’t prep me as much. The things that have been the hardest to learn in coffee – specifically things like customer service – something you never would have to deal with in a kitchen – are the things that I find the most rewarding.

Why was it important for you to compete in barista competitions, and would you do it again?

INTERVIEW CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE

The small space with an efficient layout could be considered a draw on its own, featuring frosted windows, white subway tiles on walls and columns, and Heath ceramic plates on wood butcher block tables. NorCal native Charlie Parker, who’s drawn interest from outlets like the LA Times and Taste Terminal, is offering twists on comfort food classics like chicken Parmesan and the Reuben, some of which work better than others. Friends who’ve already become regulars pointed me toward the Crispy Pig’s Ear and Fried Egg ($12), which is available on the late night menu after 10:30 PM. My favorite dish of the night involved a slice of buttery brioche topped with crispy bacon strips, spicy cilantro slaw, a single fried egg with a runny yolk, and crispy, slightly chewy hacks of fried pig’s ear.

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

What was the very first night like for you, working in the kitchen for the chef who didn’t report?

It was a nightmare. It was mostly filled with anger, and resentment, and distrust, and all these emotions that were all negative. The one saving grace, really, was that as soon as I went back and started cooking, everything started to be brighter. It calmed me down, it was therapeutic, and I’ve always used food, even in the home kitchen, as a vehicle to relax myself. I’ve always enjoyed doing it, but home cooking and professional cooking in the kitchen, are always very different. It took awhile for me to get used to cooking on a professional level, in a kitchen, but it’s still that same sort of therapeutic end result, where you can kind of lose yourself in the food. I think anybody who’s a home cook understands what that means. You get to that really safe, fun place, and everything that’s going on in your life, all that baggage that you carry around all the time, gets put to the side for that moment. It’s just utopia, those moments.

How did you come to own your first restaurant while you were working as an accountant?

Actually, I left. I was getting ready to go to law school, and started working as a waiter. As soon as I fell into the restaurant, I knew that this is what I wanted to do. Law school was going to be a distant memory very, very soon. It was as if I was home when I walked into the restaurant. It was bringing people food, making them happy. Serving them was just something that was conditioned in me from young. It was part of our home culture, having people over and feeding them was something that my mother and father both enjoyed doing. We did often, meaning all the time. Every weekend it was 30, 40 people at our house, easily. There were six of us in our family. Food was not only part of our daily life, but part of our souls and our being. There was an immediate kinship with restaurants and me. The irony is that many, many Greeks have restaurants, my father being one that didn’t. I never was in the restaurant industry. We really never went out to eat. My mother cooked at home every single night, and it was rare. I can’t count the number of times we went out to dinner with my family on one hand. It was literally that few, but it was an immediate love. When I went into the kitchen, it was, “Okay, this is what I was supposed to do.” People often ask me, “How do you do this?” And I tell them, “I just know how.” I don’t know why. I just do. It’s just something that came easy to me, very natural to me. It’s just something that made sense in my mind. When you coupled that with it being my place, my utopian place, I don’t know if there’s a better job in the world than that.

What was the first restaurant?

The first, first restaurant was a place out on Long Island called Café Angelica, and I worked with my wife there in the front of the house for many, many years, and when I jumped back into the kitchen, it remained Café Angelica for about a year, maybe a year-and-a-half. During that time, I really started to challenge myself culinarily, and I was cooking some really good food. We had an Italian trattoria, and the dishes I was making were a little bit above the restaurant that we had, so I closed the restaurant and reopened it as another restaurant called Ecco, which was a much more formal northern Italian restaurant, and there I was really fusing Greek and Italian, to be honest. It was taking flavors that my mother cooked with and I knew and recognized, and doing them with Italian ingredients. I was making Bolognese with cinnamon in it. People would ask, “What is that thing?” I would tell them cinnamon and they wouldn’t believe it because the use of cinnamon in the States was really delegated more toward sweet than savory. If you go back many years, Indian food and Greek food and ethnic food was not nearly as popular. Food Network did not exist. These blogs about food, they just weren’t around yet. People now, because of you guys, have become so much more educated about food, and so much more willing to try many things, that it’s allowed us in the kitchen to push the envelope and break new boundaries. In the early part of my career, it was harder. People were hesitant to try something new. When I opened my first restaurant in Manhattan, it was Onera, and it almost didn’t make it. It was probably a couple months from closing, because it just wasn’t making any money. If I hadn’t gotten reviewed by the Times when I did, I probably wouldn’t be sitting here with you today.

What do you look for when you’re hiring somebody to work in one of your kitchens?

Honestly, it’s always the same thing. I referenced here in my demo. Is this the one thing you really love? I don’t phrase it that way, but that’s the one thing I’m looking for. I ask them what they’re interested in doing, and if their response – and there’s only one correct response – is not cooking, then you shouldn’t go into the kitchen. It’s not going to be for you, at least my restaurants. You can have cooking as a profession, or you could have cooking as a love. Cooking as a profession, alone, is not enough to be great in a kitchen. You can make a living doing it, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to be good or great at it. You have to have some sort of intrinsic love or kinship to whatever it is that you’re doing to have greatness as a possibility. Another great chef that I know said, “We’re not training cooks. We’re training chefs in the kitchen.”

Do you see signature dishes as a positive?

It depends…No is the chef in me that wants to cook very articulate, cerebral food. Yes is the chef in me that wants people to come back and just experience the memories like I spoke about today. If you’re thinking about being a critically acclaimed chef where you’re cooking highly evolved food that’s breaking new boundaries, then the idea of a signature dish sort of goes against it. It’s an oxymoron, almost, because you’re saying that you’re giving up. You’re saying that this is the best that I can do with this scallop. When I was cooking that style of food – and I don’t do it anymore – I would take things off the menu and they would be angry. They’d be like, “How could you take this off the menu?” I would say to them, “Well, I don’t want you to come back and just eat that thing. That’s not what this restaurant is about. This restaurant is about what my mind is telling me. I can change, just like you. Think about music. Think about a musician like Sting. In the beginning of his career, he was a punk rock guy, and towards the end of his career, he was doing jazz. That’s the beauty of his evolution. We got to see how he interpreted his life and his memories and genius and imagination through his music. That was his vehicle. What was cool about that was as he grew, his likes and interests changed, and so did his music. I think the same thing is true of a chef. It’s the same vehicle, just different muses.

What are the top selling dishes at each of your restaurants, and why do you think that’s the case?

When people go to a Greek restaurant, they think lamb and they think fish. Grilled fish, very simple, olive oil, lemon juice, oregano. Always my top seller. Probably branzino, across the board, Mediterranean sea bass, simply grilled. We serve it with tomatoes that are slow roasted, olives and potatoes, just a little fresh olive oil, a squeeze of lemon juice and fresh herbs on top. We sell a lot of that dish. And then lamb shank, in the wintertime. Grilled lamb chops in the summertime. They’re second, but a distant second, to the real open flame wood-grilled fish. Just can’t beat it.

This is across the board for all your restaurants?

Right now, I have three restaurants in my portfolio. Kefi is a restaurant that is sort of the most traditional, even though the food we’re cooking is what I’d call first generation Greek. It’s taking my Greek background, my mother’s food, and incorporating my American nationality into it and creating dishes that are sort of a hybrid of those two things. It’s fusion Greek, ironically, but we’re fusing it with American cooking. Then I have a wine bar called Fishtag, and there the food is a little bit more involved, not nearly what I was cooking at Anthos, but just fun, 80 wines by the glass, 100 beers, a full back bar, just smaller plates that you eat and is meant to be paired with spirit. The menu’s even organized in a way where we’re grouping dishes based on flavor profiles and how well they pair with certain things, as opposed to any kind of traditional format. It’s just a laundry list of ingredients that are basically starting at the lightest – in terms of its flavor profile –and then in ascending order to the fullest, heaviest and boldest flavor profile. There are graphics that associate what kind of beverage you would drink in each one of these categories, which is pretty interesting if you like food and pairings.

If you could only cook with one more protein, what would it be and how come?

INTERVIEW CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE

January 23, 2012 – Persepolis Cafe opened last year in Westwood, filling Iranian sandwiches with ingredients like lamb brain and beef tongue. For my taste, their wackiest concoction involved a grilled hot dog and the potato and chicken salad called oliveh.

January 23, 2012 – Noted bartender, PDT bar owner and cocktail writer Jim Meehan was at The Spare Room to promote The PDT Cocktail Book, and he drew local bartenders in droves, who lined up for an autograph and to chat.

January 24, 2012 – Short Order‘s menu for dineLA Restaurant Week included Ida’s Old School Burger, featuring grass-fed beef, cheddar, pickles, tomato, griddled onion and iceberg lettuce. What burger would be complete without a “secret sauce”?

January 25, 2012 – My first meal at Lawry’s Prime Rib involved several tableside perparations, including carved-to-order Prime rib.

January 25, 2012 – The Roger Room bartender Jason Bran made cocktails using a blended Scotch called The Black Grouse. His Black Celebration was a variation on a Manhattan with sweet vermouth, Amaro Nonino, orange bitters, a touch of Fernet “to complelent the smoky flavor with something bitter,” and a flamed orange peel garnish.

January 26, 2012 – Il Covo is a new Italian “den of thieves” near Cedars-Sinai from hospitality veterans Sean MacPherson and Jared Meisler. Their dineLA Restaurant Week menu included a choice of any pasta, and my pick was a generous portion of cappellacci with braised veal.

January 27, 2012 – Mario Batali was at Mozza’s Scuola di Pizza to help promote his latest cookbook – Simple Family Meals – in a meet-and-greet sponsored by Gilt City and Crocs.

January 27, 2012 – Vito, an old school Italian restaurant in Santa Monica’s Ocean Park neighborhood, participated in dineLA Restaurant Week with a high-value menu that included spaghetti della casa with chopped shrimp sauteed with shallots, Cognac, cream and tomato sauce.

January 28, 2012 – We found ourselves at La Espanola Meats in Harbor City on Saturday. We missed that day’s paella by a couple hours, but still snagged some of their imported Spanish meats and cheeses. It’s worth the trip to an industrial area of the South Bay if you get the chance.

January 29, 2012 – Mercado Olympic is the “next street food star,” according to Street Gourmet LA founder Bill Esparza, and before the LA Times Travel Show, we joined him at a crawl that included a vendor who makes chicharrones and chorizo.