Confessions of an Executive Producer

what to do on xmas

I have two more guest bloggers scheduled this week but I had to interrupt the scheduled programming to address the age old question, what do Jews do on Christmas Day? We don't have trees to gather around or presents to open up or family coming over for a giant meal. So with nothing to celebrate or nowhere to go we did what all good Jews should do, we traveled to Monterey Park.

Monterey Park is a neighborhood East of downtown Los Angeles with a very large Chinese population. On Christmas morning it took us 18 minutes to get there from Venice. With normal LA traffic it's somewhere between one and two days. 

We made the trek along with three other families to eat dim sum. My wife organized the outing. After doing much research she determined that the Elite Restaurant had the best dim sum in all of LA. I haven't tried all the dim sum in LA so I can't say with the utmost certainty if this is true but I have to imagine Elite is hard to beat. I know this because I don't even like dim sum and this was awesome. 

 

The place was jammed pack with mostly Chinese and a few non-assimilated Jews. Unlike other dim sum places, they don't walk around with trays of food to pick from, you have to actually order. They provide a very detailed menu describing all the options and accompanied by pictures. We ate tons and tons of stuff. I'd love to tell you everything we had but it was all in Chinese. 

 

It was a terrific experience and the start of a new Solomon Family Christmas Tradition. Now here's the best part. Four families. Fifteen People. An endless amount of servings and a few beers thrown in for good measure. Total bill sans tip, $178. If that isn't a great Jewish Christmas than what is?

 

Of course, we followed up the meal with an afternoon matinee. We went to see "Sherlock Holmes". My suggestion, skip "Sherlock Holmes" and go right to the dim sum. Much more tasty and ten times more entertaining. 

 

a chicken in every pot

In a meeting a couple weeks back someone mentioned they were a reader. They made my rib recipe and went to Peter Luger all based on my blog postings. They wanted to know why I didn't write more about food. It was their favorite topic of mine. I don't know what that says about my industry posts but I thought it was time to take a break from my usual fare.  

Last week, we had another family over for an early Sunday dinner. It was the day after the clocks changed back. Despite living in LA, this feels like the time of the year for some slow cooked comfort food. I decided to serve a family favorite, Chicken in a Pot. 

Here's what you need. Start with a dutch oven or just a large pot. Anything you'd use for a stew or braising. The ingredients are:

1 Whole Chicken seasoned with salt, peppers, paprika

2 Onions Diced

1 Bag of Small Carrots

2 Cups Dry White Wine

1 1/2 Cups Chicken Broth

Herbs Wrapped and Tied in a cheese cloth - 2 bay leaves, thyme, peppercorn

2 cups Rice

Canola Oil

Turn the stove on high heat. Place a small amount of oil in the pot. Brown the chicken. Only a few minutes on each side. Take the chicken out of a pot. Throw in the onions and the carrots. Saute until carrots are soft and onions translucent. Put the chicken back in the pot and add wine, broth and the herbs. Bring liquid to a boil. Once boiling turn down heat to a simmer and put on the lid. Let chicken simmer for about an hour. 

After the hour add the rice in the liquid areas. Put lid back on and let simmer for another 20 to 30 minutes or until the rice is soft. Only word of caution, if the rice isn't soft and the liquid is dried up just add a little more broth or water. Other than that it's a no brainer. The chicken is good but the rice is great. 

 

To offset the heavy dish I made a light seasonal salad. Very simple. Frisee, Mixed greens, sliced red onions, dried cranberries and pine nuts. For the dressing, I made 3 parts olive oil, 1 part red wine vinegar, a pinch of salt, a little bit of sugar and some fresh lemon juice. 

 

I hope you like this little snack break in the action. Next week I'll to return to my regular scheduled programming unless this weekend I make something worth writing about.

world's greatest steakhouse

Yesterday my father turned 70 years old. He lives in Maryland where I grew up. He and his wife came to NY for the day to celebrate. Fortunately I was able to be in town to join in the festivities. My oldest sister, Joanne, took the reins and made the plans. My other sister Susan is traveling the world so she couldn't be with us. As an aside, check out her blog. She's on quite an adventure.

My dad's not a big believer in birthdays. Or even any type of celebration. Whatever the opposite of sentimentality is, that's my dad. Although on this particular evening I think even he was touched. How could he not be. We took him to Peter Luger in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

It's been in the same place in Brooklyn for 110 years. It's looks like an old German putsch hall. It's a place that screams for scotch, steak and cigars. A man's place. You can only pay in cash or the Peter Luger's credit card. Having been there many times, I ordered for the table. We started with the sliced tomato and onion salad. You pour the Luger's steak sauce over for full effect. After the salad, everyone had a slice of the Canadian Bacon. This is a must.

 

After that we ordered the porterhouse steak for 5, medium rare. The cream spinanch and the onion rings/potato fries mix as the sides. Barely a morsel of food remained. My dad and I unashamedly gnawed on the bones until they were bare.

To top it off, we ordered the ice cream sundae and the warm pecan pie with schlag for dessert. It was a classic unbelievable meal. It never disappoints.

We then drove back over the bridge. Parked the car and took my sister's dog out along the Westside highway in an attempt to walk off the meal. I then went back to my hotel room. Lied on my bed with a smile of satisfaction and waited patiently for my coronary. The only thing that stopped short of it  being a perfect evening was if my wife, Dana, was with me. This is her kinda meal.

Happy 70th, Lou.

starbucks stories

I have to admit I love Starbucks coffee. I know it’s the biggest coffee brand out there so it’s a bit obvious. Forgive me, it's my preferred cup, burnt taste and all. I also get off on the very strange culture. Random people congregating yet not connecting. They’re mostly on their computers or reading newspapers. And, occasionally drinking coffee.

Like all chains, each store resembles one another creating a secure homogenized world. I guess there is comfort knowing that wherever you go there is familiarity. What makes Starbucks different from other chains is it does strangely reflect the community. There is actually store individuality. Not in the esthetics as much as in the culture. I don't know why but this fascinates me.

There are three Starbucks I frequent depending on if I'm driving the school carpool, heading right to work or going to the gym. Just the other day I hit the one right after working out. It's on Santa Monica Blvd and Bundy, a weird commercial no man's land in West Los Angeles. University High School is nearby so there are a lot of students mixed with store clerks and other local workers. As with many Starbucks, most or all of the seats are taken with people doing Lord knows what.

As I waited patiently in line, there was a woman in front of me. She was in her late 40's. Wasn't dressed for work. Looked more stay at home-ish. She unexpectedly ran into a young high school girl she knew. They started chatting about what college she was accepted to. The woman shared where her daughter was going. Very pleasant. Noticing she was one person away from placing her order and not wanting to stall traffic, the woman politely ended the conversation. Good Starbucks etiquette.

When at the front of the line, the woman placed her order with a boy around 20 years old. He had dyed platinum hair parted to the side slightly covering his right eye. Kind of a glam emo look. I recognized him. He's hard to forget. He's there most mornings when I stop in. The woman orders some low fat latte with steamed something or other and then pauses. She turns to the kid and says in a very friendly tone, "I'm here everyday and I've never seen you smile."

He looks at her very stoically and without missing a beat and replies "I'm not a very happy person." There is an awkward pause. The woman is no longer smiling. "That'll be three dollars and twenty-five cents...please".

She hands him a five. He counts the change from the registar. As he places it in her hand he looks directly into her eyes and says, "Have a nice day", then let's out an enormous grin.

He returns immediately to his normal dour demeanor asks for my order. "Small black". I never use the special Starbucks cup size language. It annoys me. He looks right at me as if to say you better not be asking for a smile. For some odd reason I found that small anecdote of reality life affirming. Nice way to start a morning.

the agency dinner

 

EPOCH'S FIRST AGENCY DINNER CIRCA 1956

(that's David Ogilvy in the back with the Eraserhead hairdo)

There is a long tradition on nearly every commercial project of the production company inviting the agency out for a fancy schmancy dinner. I'm not that sociable so it's always a bit awkward. Sometimes I don't even think the agency wants to spend any more time with us than necessary. Other times, it can be a nice bonding experience before shooting. Truth is, we want to schmooze them and they want to be schmoozed. And, all over a very expensive meal. 

Rather than using this post to dissect the psychology behind the ritual or share old war stories, I decided to spare anyone embarrassment and keep it simple. My top 5 agency dinner spots in Los Angeles.

I have compiled this list based on a few specific categories:  quality of food, atmosphere and most importantly location. If you live in LA, you understand the value of geographical convenience. All the restaurants on my list are within a 10 minute drive from either my office (Beverly Hills ) or home (Venice).

5. Gjelina - This new spot is right on Abbott Kinney and Millwood. Walking distance from my house. There is a great outdoor space in the back where they can accommodate tables of 8 or more. The menu is nouve Italian tapas with small plates, pizzas and interesting salads. Great for sharing especially with a large group. Also, its a hot spot for Venice hipsters.

4. Mr Chows - A Beverly Hills institution. There are two reasons this makes the list. You don't have to order. Ask the waiter to bring out all the classic dishes for the table and keep them coming until everyone is full. The other reason. Guaranteed star sighting. High marks when there are young creatives who are virgins to the LA shooting experience.

3. Wolfgangs - This steak place opened up about a year ago in downtown BH. Do not confuse it with Wolfgang Puck. It is actually named after Wolfgang Zweiner, former maitre d' at Peter Luger's in Brooklyn. It's the same formula as Luger's just cleaner. Start with martini's and scotch. Get the sliced tomato and onion salad. Porterhouse for the table along with all the classic sides. The pecan pie for dessert is a must. Everyone leaves happy except the weirdo vegan art director. 

2. Via Venetto - This is a small Italian restaurant on Main Street in Santa Monica. The food is excellent. They also have an amazing wine list. What I really like is there is separate loft room for big parties. It's intimate and feels like a private party.

1. Jar -This is right on the edge of my agency dinner zone. Just a classic LA restaurant. Good vibe. Good food. You can have a conversation. They have round tables that fit groups of 8. Never had a bad meal there. Get there early for a cocktail and the homemade potato chips.

A couple of special mentions. Campanile is outside my location parameters for this list but grilled cheese night is fun for the whole family. For my friends at Media Arts Lab, we love Sushi Zo. Omakase menu. The place has about 7 tables so it's for the under 5 person meal. Good for the repeat business. 

I have to throw in some wisdom from my esteemed colleague, John Duffin. Get their early before anyone else shows up. Pre-order some appetizers for the table so when everyone sits down food is available. Crack open a few bottles of select red wine to let them breathe. And, keep the conversation going. Know one does that better than Chiefy, the master of the agency dinner.

What are your favorites? I need to expand my horizons. I may even be willing to go as far East as La Brea.

for tina

Tina Bianchini, a stellar member of the Epoch production staff, knows I love to cook. She has asked a few times for me to post recipes. I never have. I like to stay on point. But, in honor of Tina's persistence and Memorial Day, I figured what the hell.

Yesterday, we had 25 people over for a BBQ. I originally had a very ambitious menu but my wife, being much smarter than myself, said we had to pare it down. We simplified it to making only three things: bbq spare ribs, a grilled vegetable salad and homemade ice cream sandwiches. To supplement my wife suggested we order fried chicken from Honey's Kettle in Culver City. If you find yourself around Culver and have no health or weight concerns go there. It won't disappoint. And, don't forget to order the biscuits.

There is nothing that says summer more than bbq ribs. My method is a combination of dry rub and BBQ sauce. Since we were feeding a big crowd, I figured I'd mix it up by preparing both spare ribs and baby backs.

The dry rub consists of the following:

2 tablespoons salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons cumin
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons black pepper
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
4 tablespoons paprika

 

Mix all the above ingredients together. Wash the ribs and pat dry. Afterward, rub the dry rub all over the ribs. Not too heavy just enough to cover. Place the ribs in a ziploc bag and put in the fridge over night. Pre-heat the oven to 250 degrees. Place ribs in the oven and wait. Depending on the heat of your oven it could be about 3 to 3 1/2 hours. You'll know they're done when the bones are loose. Take ribs out of the oven and let sit for about 10 minutes.

In the meantime, fire up the grill to about medium high. Brush bbq sauce on the ribs and place on grill. You only want to cook them for a few minutes on each side. When the sauce carmelizes remove from the grill and let sit for a few minutes, then cut and serve. For bbq sauce, use whatever is your favorite. I've made sauces from scratch but I actually prefer mixing together equal parts Masterpiece BBQ and Veri Veri Teryaki. It's like traditional bbq with a hint of Chinese.

The grilled vegetable salad is a "figure it out as you go" receipe. Grill asparagus, red peppers, green peppers, white corn and red onions. Coat them in an olive oil and fresh lemon juice mixture before placing on grill. Make sure fire is medium to medium high so not to burn veggies. Once finished, cut the kernels off the corn and chopped the other veggies into bite size pieces. Pour some aged balsamic over the veggies and mix before putting into salad.

Place whatever greens you like in a big bowl. I used mixed baby greens. Put the veggies on top of the greens. Add crumbled feta cheese, sprinkle in salt, throw in dressing and toss. For the dressing, it's something I also winged. Slice basil, chopped garlic, olive oil, dijon mustard, salt and pepper. Play chemist and experiment until you find the taste you like.

For the homemade ice cream sandwiches, I used a recipe for chocolate cookies I found online from Joyofbaking.com. It was pretty simple. 10 minutes to make the batter. 10 minutes to cook. After they cool put ice cream in between the cookies. I made them the day before and wrapped the sandwiches in saran wrap then put in the freezer. I used vanilla, coffee and chocolate Hagen Daz. A big crowd pleaser. What's not to like?

That's it. Plenty of beer and wine. Made a good itunes mix sticking with a summer and sun theme. No matter how many times I try to find a replacement, Jonathan Richman's "Summer Feeling" is stil the quintessential summer song although T. Rex "Celebrate Summer" is pretty classic.

Tomorrow, back to the reguarly scheduled programming.