Los Angeles, take-out guide part two

Continuing on with my Los Angeles, Safer at Home take-out guide I start a little in reverse. I begin my recommendations where the meal ends, with dessert. I continue with drinks and then get into tasting menus. Again, don’t read when hungry.

NOTE: Many of these places are open again after the initial stage of the pandemic. I am leaving this post up as take-out is still available and these restaurants are great.  As of the update of this post, 12/11/2021, COVID-19 regulations are still in place for Los Angeles County. You can find a cheat sheet here.

These recommendations are more for special occasions and the price points reflect that. I know that with my husband and I still being employed we are able to do this type of meal more often. More economical options are in part one.

My favorite dessert of Los Angeles, Safer at Home (L.A., SAH.)

I am not usually a dessert person. My preference is a bag of chips over a piece of chocolate cake. I think that something switched in me during Los Angeles, Safer at Home. The topsy-turvy nature of the pandemic has made me crave sweetness. Have you been eating more desserts too?

Fat & Flour

Nicole Rucker’s pie-focused pop-up opened in the Grand Central Market shortly before the pandemic hit.  She is offering pick-up for her famous desserts now that the market is closed. The list of desserts changes weekly with her famous key lime, chocolate chess, sour apple pie always on the menu as well as a featured pie of the week. Non-pie items like cookies and brownies round out the dessert-only menu.

My birthday is in June and that is my most homesick time in Los Angeles. I would always get a birthday pie instead of cake, my family knowing me as they do. I miss the flavors of the midwest in spring. Ramps, Morrell mushrooms, blueberries, fiddlehead ferns, and rhubarb. My favorite pie highlights that time of year, blueberry rhubarb pie. This isn’t a very common combination I have learned. We had tried to get the bakery that catered our wedding dessert table to make one for us as they had both blueberry pies and rhubarb pies. For some reason, they couldn’t do a blueberry rhubarb pie. A message to Nicole Rucker at Fat + Flour made my pie dream come true.

For my birthday week, the special was Blueberry Rhubarb pie. I don’t know if it was a big seller, but for me, it meant the world. It is stellar service like that in Los Angeles that is hard to come by and means everything.

Hours, cost, and other information

• Website: https://www.fatandflourla.com/
• Location: Grand Central Market-317 South Broadway. Available for pick-up only. Use the Hill Street side of the market for pick-up
• Cost: Mini-pies are $12 and large pies are around $45. Pies sell out quickly.
• Order: The chocolate chess pie and anything that is seasonal
• COVID-19 INFORMATION: Pick up only

Haven’t we all just needed a drink?

Is anyone else drinking more? I know I am. Stress and not having to commute or shower right away in the morning has made my evening glass of wine or two habit more than a weekend-only thing. 

Stanley’s Wet Goods

• 

• 

• 

Stanley’s Wet Goods is a wine and craft beer-focused liquor shop that has become a favorite since it opened in the neighborhood three years ago. Their selection is really easy to navigate both in the store and online. A good part of their wine list is $20 or less giving you the opportunity to try things without breaking the bank. We definitely have been trying a lot of things. 

Every week Stanley’s does an Instagram Live wine tasting. You have the chance to order the selection in advance and watch the owner with special guests talk about the wines while you sip away. The staff are super knowledgeable and have helped indecisive me pick out wines that have ended up being favorites.

They do have a small selection of conservas, snacks, and chocolates for you to eat while drinking. 

Hours, cost, and other information

• Website: https://stanleys.la/
• Location: 9620 Venice in Culver City. Pick-up or delivery
• Cost: There is quite a range that is $20 dollars or less.
• Order: My favorite picks are above and will be on Instagram
• COVID-19 INFORMATION: In-store shopping now available. You can also order online to pick up. If you have spent over a certain amount and you live close by, they will deliver.

Cocktails delivered to my house, yes, please!

In addition, restaurants have been able to serve their batched cocktails for pick-up and delivery during this time. My favorite is the Walled Garden from Kali. It is St. George chile vodka, gin, green tomato, Chareau, and lime.

Fine dining at home

I continue my Los Angeles, Safer at Home take-out guide with those restaurants that have flipped their epic tasting menus to more eat-at-home-friendly experiences.

Vespertine (5 times)

I have a confession. I did not like Vespertine when I tried it the summer of its opening year. There is a story that I relay to people when they ask about Vespertine. It is comical, there are faces I make, and I may mention more than a few times during my re-telling that the bill came out to more than our rent. That being said, I know what a talented chef, Jordan Kahn is. I have loved his food several times over during L.A., SAH. 

Each menu has been a journey through memory and each was very different from the other showing his multi-cuisine talent.

Menu one: An homage to Red Medine

Red Medicine was Chef Kahn’s restaurant in Mid-City focusing on Vietnamese flavors. This place holds a special place in my heart as it was the site of my husband and my first date. I loved this restaurant and when it closed it felt like a chapter in my life was ending. When we heard that Vespertine was doing an homage to Red Medicine we jumped at the chance to taste the food again. The dishes were all fresh, herby, sour, and funky. 

Menu two: A pre-contact meal from the Yucatan

There is so much that the Yucatan peninsula has contributed to the food world. Tomatoes, avocados, peppers, and so much more. People have written complete dissertations on the subject so I won’t pretend that I am an expert on this. Vespertine’s multi-course menu came with cards for each dish that gave its name in the language native to the area, how it was prepared, and the chef’s memories of having the dish for the first time. The dishes were earthy, hearty, and completely new to me–which I am thankful for.

Menu three: Cuba

This meal was very personal to the chef as the recipes came from his grandmother. We jumped at the chance because good Cuban food is hard to come by on this side of the city. I love Cuban food and I remember eating similar dishes when I was growing up near Chicago at my neighbor’s house. Dishes I haven’t had as good since. Well, until now. The ropa vieja gave me the happy food cries-Does anyone else have this condition? He made me change my mind about dishes I don’t like all that much, like yucca. I think I told everyone I knew about this menu as soon as I put the last of the leftovers in the fridge. The dishes felt like a hug, which is all something we need right now.

Each meal at Vespertine left me burstingly full and with leftovers the next day.

Hours, cost, and other information

• Website: https://www.exploretock.com/vespertine/
• Location: 3599 Hayden. Pick-up only
• Cost: It really varies. Also, there are additional fees.
• Order: Anything and all of it
• COVID-19 INFORMATION: Menus available only on Tock for pick-up

Both of these experiences, at Dialogue and Vespertine, makes me hope that they might integrate these more affordable nights into their calendars once operations go back towards normal. It is a shame to not be able to taste their food because of money.

Rossoblu (4 times)

Rossoblu before L.A., SAH was a pretty hard reservation to get. Always packed from its extensive patio to muraled walls. There is a good reason why the food is great. Fresh California farmer’s market finds lend well to the Italian-focused menu. 

What I have loved about this menu is its presentation. It comes in a twelve by eighteen box stamped with its logo. You lift the lid to find a menu sheet that is divided into areas. Each name of the dish and its ingredients are fit directly over the course you will eat. Here is a photo for a better understanding. 

• 

• 

Once you pick up the menu, the individual dishes are separated into their own containers. The vegetables are fresh, the handmade pasta is so good, and the mains are filling. I usually eat the dessert for breakfast the next day.

Hours, cost, and other information

• Website: https://www.rossoblula.com
• Location: 1124 San Julian
• Cost: 7 course is $49 per person
• Order: We haven’t had a bad meal so order any of the 7 course at home
• COVID-19 INFORMATION: Take-out only. Now offering their a la carte menu for take out. (NEW information as of the original publication.

Fine dining from the archives

Other options that I have written about in previous This Ugly Beautiful City posts that make great fine dining take-out are Shunji and Chi Spacca.

So, there you have it, my Los Angeles, Safer at Home take-out guide. As some of these restaurants are returning to patio-only dining, you should jump on these as soon as you can. Getting in the car and picking up these meals have been a highlight of my week.

I know that it has been hard for restaurants and not a model that can sustain them forever. Three of my favorite restaurants have already succumbed Auburn, Here’s Looking at You, and Dialogue. Dialogue was originally part of this post. They closed on November 7, 2020.

What have you been eating during safer at home? Any restaurants you have on speed dial? Please add them in the comments.