Peru to Malaysia Test Kitchen at Zengo

Richard Sandoval's Zengo at the Santa Monica Place does a different "Test Kitchen" menu every once in a while, and the latest is a Peruvian Malaysian take. Malaysian food is very similar to Indonesian so I wanted to check this out! The Test Kitchen items are indicated with a "TK" to the left of the item's name on the menu.

I like the entrees on this TK menu. Try the Char roasted halibut, ginger chile marinade, crispy lentil rice cake, sambal butter sauce, charred banana leaf ($25)

The halibut was nicely cooked, sitting atop the aromatic banana leaf, and I liked that sambal butter! It's not that spicy as far as sambal goes but definitely packed some spices.

I also enjoyed the Arroz con Mariscos, mussels, scallops, calamari, shrimp, yellow curry, Malay rice, Thai basil ($14)

This seemed more Thai than Malaysian with the curry broth, but nonetheless it's a flavorful and comforting dish for the cold weather. The two dishes above are probably my favorites of the TK menu.
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Mo-Chica's $27 Tuesday OG Tasting Menu

When Mo-Chica was just a stall at the Mercado La Paloma, Ricardo Zarate would do special tasting menus on Tuesdays. They've no revived the Tuesday tastings at the downtown Mo-Chica. The "OG Tasting Menu" offers 5 courses for just $27! A good deal, right?

The menu changes but when I went the 5 courses started with an Heirloom tomato salad, crispy red quinoa, fresh mozzarella, huacatay pesto

A fun Peruvian twist on the cliche tomato mozzarella with pesto

The next course is a Ceviche trio:
tuna sashimi, yuzu miso, green shiso, mountain yam
Diver scallop, aji amarillo aioli, wasabi, tobiko
Hamachi, jalapeno ponzu, nori lettuce, garlic crisp

I'm glad they included a ceviche course in the tasting menu, because what's a visit to Mo Chica without some? Because it was more unusual to find, my favorite here was the scallop.

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Paiche (Marina del Rey)

After Picca and Mo Chica, Ricardo Zarate is moving further south with Paiche in Marina del Rey.
The name Paiche comes from a type of fish from the Amazon, but you can't just use the name without serving it, so Paiche does indeed serve paiche. Of course, I had to try some and went for the Paiche tiradito (Amazonian fish, aji amarillo lemon vinaigrette, tamari, sweet potato mousse - $10)

In keeping with their other restaurants, the cocktails here are worth trying. The cocktail program is helmed Deysi Alvarez who has been working with Zarate and Stephane Bombet at the previous restaurants. One of my favorites is The Last Ice Age (Pisco Porton, Hakushu whiskey 12yr, egg white, lime, lemon, evaporated simple syrup, Fernet Branca drops - $13)

It's frothy without being too sweet or rich, this will be nice for the summer nights ahead.

For appetizers, I suggest the Yuquitas (stuffed yucca beignets, Manchego cheese, grated parmesan - $8)

These beignets are quite unique. They're pretty light, chewy, and the combination of fried yucca and creamy cheese is delicious.
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La Mar Cebicheria (New York)

The first time I visited La Mar in Lima, Peru, I fell in love. With ceviche, with causa, with Peruvian rice. We loved it so much we went back for a last meal before we left Peru. I was very excited when La Mar in San Francisco opened. Alas, I was disappointed - I think the service (and lack thereof) contributed to my bad impression (I received the wrong ceviche and when I told his waiter, his response was "ok". No apology and no correction was made).

I gave La Mar in the US another try with the New York location, where the kitchen is managed by executive chef Victoriano Lopez who was Gaston Acurio's right hand man for almost twenty years. Unlike the casual, outdoor Lima location, the New York La Mar is lavish and posh.

We started with the Cebiche tasting, pre-set to consist of three types: elegance, popular, and nikei cebiche) - $28

The "elegance" was a cebiche with warm water fluke, red onions, Peruvian corn, and yam in a "leche de tigre of five elements" - whatever the five elements are. The "popular" had salmon, shrimp, and Spanish day-boat octopus in a green leche de tigre with crispy calamari. The "nikei" is reminiscent of an ahi poke, made with yellowfin tuna, red onion, cucumber, daikon, avocado, and nori in a tamarind leche de tigre.

All three of the ceviches were very good, with all of us having different favorites (mine was the "popular"). On the other hand, for the price the portions were really small. Since there were four of us, it was definitely not enough and we had to get a full order. I wanted to try something different so we ordered the Limeno cebiche (fluke, Spanish day boat octopus, calamari, scallops, blue shrimp, in aji limo leche de tigre) - $19

The seafood used was really fresh and unlike many ceviches I had in LA where the leche de tigre is so tart, we even drank the ones here by the spoonfuls even when the fish was finished.

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Last Day for Chimu. Go!!

Today is the last opening day of Chef Mario Orellana's beloved Chimu, a takeout window next to the Grand Central Market offering "Peruvian soul food". His new restaurant, Red Hill, will be opening in December but he plans on serving "Neo-American" food, which means that today may very well be the last day you can have his Peruvian dishes. So, if you haven't gone yet, change your lunch plans and go!

After hearing the closing news, I myself jetted to try it for the first time yesterday. The Lomo Saltado ($12) may well be the best version I've ever had. The beef was so tender and the tomato slices surprisingly juicy.

The Seco de Cordero ($11) made with lamb belly, canario beans, and black beer sauce gives a very different flavor profile that is equally great. Again, the lamb belly was very tender with lightly crisped edges, the crunchy corn provided a nice texture contrast. The sauce was rich and slightly spicy. Soul food, indeed.

Try the traditional Peruvian drinks, too, like the Chicha Morada (purple corn), green barley tea (I believe this was called Emolliente?), and Maracuya (passionfruit).

I regretted not ordering the Chancho (pork belly) - I heard that's great too. Really, I should've ordered the whole menu. Maybe I'll see you there today.

Chimu
324 S Hill St
Los Angeles, CA 90013
(213) 625-1097

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