Gadding About In Search Of Superstar Food.

[title type="h3"]Sunset Training: New Orleans-Los Angeles-San Francisco[/title] June 21-28, 2017. During two recent weeks I was on vacation in Los Angeles and San Francisco. To and from home, I traveled by rail on Amtrak's trains #1 and #2, the Sunset Limited, whose route passed through the heart of the American Southwest. I kept my Dining Diary rigorously while on the road, which explains why subscribers didn't receive the New Orleans Menu Daily fpr those two weeks. I was writing like crazy, but couldn't put it out on the web until now. Thursday, June 22, 2017. For a change, MA and I stay in JS&J's guest room instead of checking into a hotel. MA will wind up staying here for about a week, after which she flies back to New Orleans to guest-host the radio show during most of next Tuesday. She knows the rules of the house, especially as regards Jackson's quiet hours. Breakfast is a big deal for Jude and Jackson. Jude makes perfect omelettes and oatmeal with berries for all who want them, with Jackson being the most avid taker. The main difference in Jackson's behavior since I last hung out with him six months ago is that he eats with gusto, devouring almost everything put in front of him. He's a much more enthusiastic eater than either his father or grandfather were. 1:43 p.m.--Jean-Georges Vongerichten is among the most celebrated restauteurs in America, with twenty-four establishments scattered in major cities around the country. They range from casual, alfresco dining to the most ambitious. Mary Ann heard that JG recently opened two restaurants in the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Beverly Hills. It wouldn't be a trip to LA for MA without at least a little gadding about in Beverly Hills. This location includes not only a serious gourmet room with a casual garden adjacent to it, but The Rooftop By JG, exactly where it said it was. We went up to take a look. It's quite a view from up there, but also very, very hot on this sunny day. We returned downstairs, where it took us awhile to get a seat. As always, I found that I can accelerate the opening of a table by sitting down at a table (not a mere barstool) in the lounge. where I have a serious cocktail, while seemingly interested in the restaurant. The hour wait they at first offered shrank down by thirty-five minutes. We started with a steamed artichoke, to which a mustardy sauce had been applied and a bouquet of frisee with a vinaigrette. MA sez: "A lovely, polished dish." I was intrigued by the pea soup, brilliant in enough color and vivid flavor that any association with the standard split-pea soup might as well have suggested porridge. That was followed by black code, a fish we see most often in Japanese restaurant. This also involved a sauce with the same sort of brilliant green sauce that came with the pea soup. MA waited that out long enough for her to get the chocolate cake for dessert. Most important, the place was beautiful. This semi-outdoor feeling is what MA most likes in her restaurants. And she liked being in the eatery of one of the superstar chefs. (Who, if he was there at all, was out of my sight.) Let's do the numbers: $150, with the tip and tax. Worth it for my bride's full enjoyment of her kind of dining environment. Afterwards, we went on a labyrinthine search for Ronald Reagan's house. Not my idea of a fine afternoon, but I just sit back and listen. 6:14 p.m.-- Sushi is a big deal in Los Angeles, and it's regularly on the menu for Jude and Suzanne. Their favorite place is Kabosu, a jammed little café in the Toluca Lake neighborhood. It's perfect for testing my standards for Japanese restaurants. These begin by going through the menu of chef's rolls. The less fake crabmeat in it, the better the restaurant. Kabosu had none. Zero. This test showed its validity when the sushi rolls came out. This was real wasabi, something we don't see a lot. I could tell this authenticity with my first bite, which all but blew me against the wall, as it should. Jude suggests the lime roll, with a few different fish wrapped up with avocado, and the ends capped off by thin slices of the namesake citrus. I can't remember having encountered anything quite like this. I will have a couple of variations by the time I departed California. Kabosu is Jude's and Suzanne's regular sushi place. Also on the menu here and elsewhere are excellent dumplings. Jude is a lover of dumplings, with a thing for them since he was a kid. I thought he food excellent, the service less so. The place was loaded with people, is why. Kabosu. Toluca Lake (Los Angeles) CA. 818-623-4425.