Revamped Menu and Patio at Sadie Kitchen and Lounge

Sadie Kitchen and Lounge has gone through many chef changes since its opening, and most recently they also revamped their patio dining area to be more lounge-like, although dining tables for larger parties still remain. The lights adorning the walls and trees make this a romantic dining spot at night.

The current chef is Jonathan Moulton, who most recently was at Early Bird in Orange County. He brings many Southern comfort food to Sadie, like these decadent buttermilk biscuits with "red eye butter" ($3)

What is red eye butter, you ask? It has what you love most in the mornings: coffee and bacon!

While many chefs have come and go, mixologist Giovanni Martinez has always remained. Much of the drinks menu remains the same, but there are also many new and seasonal drinks - and they're all excellent. I loved the Negroni Sour (gin, vermouth, campari, nettle cordial, lemon)

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Wood and Vine (Hollywood, CA): Monday Market Dinners and ChickenandWaffles

Fact: Wood and Vine has one of the best al fresco dining area in Hollywood. Insist on a table here as long as the nights aren't too cold. It's a quiet escape from the craziness of Hollywood Blvd.

When Wood and Vine first opened, the executive chef Gavin Mills had to figure out how to work with the tiny kitchen and now he's got it down. The kitchen is so small it has no walk-in fridge! But that just means Chef Gavin goes to the market every morning for fresh ingredients.

At a recent dinner, I started my night with a Chai Gold Rush (chai and vanilla infused bourbon, lemon, honey, $12). This was a great cocktail, probably my favorite of the night! It's not overwhelmingly "chai"-like, just notes of spices. I hope they keep this one on the menu for a while!

Mondays are good to give Wood and Vine a try with their Monday Market Prix Fixe menu, $18 for 3 courses. There were three of us dining, so we tried one of the prix fixe menu while ordering other items to try.


The first course was a Melon consomme with basil.
This was a rather interesting first course. It was cold (good for the summer) but since it's also sweet, it was more like drinking melon juice rather than a consomme.

The entree that night was Shrimp and Grips with Anson Mills grits and house andouille sausage

The current menu has plenty of Southern items (as you'll see more below, chicken and waffles being one) and he's also doing a Southern Sunday suppers. I lived in South Carolina for high school and developed a liking to grits. I liked the shrimp and grits here, especially the texture of the grits and the addition of the housemade sausage.

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Ra Pour, Take Two: Brunch (Rancho Cucamonga)

After our dinner at Ra Pour, we stayed at a nearby hotel and came back for brunch.

Since seeing it on the menu the night before, I had been eyeing the Chicken and Waffles: fried tenders, malted waffle, tabasco reduction, candied jalapeno, maple ($14). This was no doubt everyone's favorite. The chicken, despite being breast meat, was tender and the tabasco reduction gave the dish a nice little kick.

I liked how they did this as an appetizer. I'm always tempted to get chicken and waffles yet still want to try other things. With these small bites, I can happily eat them and still order an entree.

Overall, the prices at brunch are lower, although a couple dishes still seemed expensive, like the Fresh fruit of the season: melons, pineapple, papaya, mango, "local favorites", champagne, mint ($9)

Fresh fruits aren't cheap, they were good and the use of mint gave me ideas, but it still seems steep to be paying $9 for a plate of fruits.

The fruit plate and items like Yogurt Parfait with blueberry compote, fresh mixed berries, yogurt, granola ($7) make up the lighter options.

Entrees included things like eggs benedict and fried chicken, but I went with one of the more interesting options.

Duck Confit Hash: duck confit, beets, potato, bacon, soft herbs, poached eggs ($16)

The waiter described this as "like a confetti" and when it came, I can certainly see where he was coming from, especially with the thinly shredded, crispy beets adorning the top. This was the best out of the entrees I tried with interesting flavor combinations, although there were parts of the duck confit that were a little tough.

Ra Pour
7900 Kew Avenue
Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91739
(909) 899-7999
rapourrestaurant.com

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