dineLA - Grace...fabulous meal with an appearance made by Neal Fraser

[attran99]

My third (and final) dineLA dinner in four days was at Grace in L.A. last night. I met up with a friend for our 6:15PM reservation. There's one thing to be said about Grace's location, it's a bit hard to find at night...even when you're looking for it. I drove by it once because it didn't have a lit up sign. But once we were in the restaurant, it was the antithesis of the crazy traffic and noise on Beverly Blvd. Decorated in whites, light greens, and dark woods, the restaurant was lit by candlelights and strategically dim lights. We were seated immediately.
I had already decided that I was going to go five courses with the wine pairing, so there would be no pre-dinner cocktail for me. My friend had a glass of pinot gris that was quite nice, and had decided to do the dineLA three-course menu. I appreciated the fact that we weren't rushed into ordering anything. Scott, our waiter, gave us ample time to chat and review the menu.
My friend picked Spinach & Arugula Salad with candied pecans, poached pears, and ricotta salata. It arrived at our table as a huge green mountain with a healthy sprinking of white ricotta. I didn't get to try it, but she said it was dressed just right and was delicious. I had Dungeness Crab Salad with apple, celery root, potato crisps, and curry aioli (NV Drusian Prosecco di Valdobbiadene, Veneto, Italy). The salad was light and refreshing. I loved the contrast of the textures: soft crab, crispy potato chip, crunchy apple and celery root slaw, and creamy aioli. My only complaint that while the crab was fresh, it had a slight fishy aroma to it...that threw me off a bit. I also had the Sautéed La Belle Farms Foie Gras with pears, pistachios, quince, and ras el hanout (2000 Bert Simon "Serrig Herrenberg" Riesling Spätlese, Mosel-Sarr-Ruwer, Germany). I was slightly concerned about this dish being overtly sweet because I hear that fried/pan-seared foie can be sweet, but this was so good. The foie was rich, creamy, earthy, and savory...and there was a slight crispness because of the charring. It paired so well with the eas el hanout sauce and the pears and quince. I loved the extra crunch that the pastachios provided.
For the entrees, my friend had Sautéed Day Boat Scallops with roasted apple thyme risotto, beet greens, and roasted carrot nage. These scallops were huge...and were seared so beautifully. They were perfectly cooked, and she loved it....easily her favotite dish of the night. I had the Sautéed Mediterranean Branzino with celery root purée, black trumpet mushrooms, white wine nage (2007 Molnar Family “Poseidon’s Vineyard” Chardonnay, Carneros, California). This was easily one of the best fish dishes I've ever had. The skin was crispy and crunchy, while the flesh was tender, moist, and flaky. It's a delicate fish, so the pairing with the celery root puree was quite genius. My friend had a bite of mine, and mistook the celery root puree as mashed potatoes because it was so creamy and rich. I loved the white wine nage sauce...nice bit of acid to jolt the palate. My other entree was Grilled Broken Arrow Venison with black garlic flan, pork belly savoy cabbage, and szechwan huckleberry sauce (2005 Chryseia “Post Scriptum” Touriga Nacional, Douro, Portugal). Cooked to a perfect rare, this was my first time trying venison. It was lean and the texture reminded me more of pork than anything else. I liked the pork belly savoy cabbage, but didn't get a whole lot of pork belly flavor out of it. I LOVED the black garlic flan and the huckleberry sauce...I might have licked the plate clean if I could. The entire dish as whole was a complete flavor and textural package...salty, sweet, creamy, crunchy, sour, rich...it was also comforting and felt like a winter dish.
For dessert, my friend had Sticky Toffee Pudding with brûléed bananas, toffee sauce, and hazelnut gelato. She said it was perfect, as she's had sticky toffee pudding before in England. She loved how the bananas were a nice contrast to the pudding. It was doughnut night at Grace, so I naturally selected the Chef’s Selection Doughnut Flight three doughnuts paired with three ice creams (1989 L’Etoile “Cuvée Réservée,” Banyuls Grand Cru, Roussillon, France). Last night's selection was salted caramel doughnut with walnut ice cream (my personal favorite paring of the night), dark chocolate doughnut with chocolate ice cream (my friend is a chocolate fiend and LOVED this pairing), and a buttermilk doughnut with vanilla ice cream. There was something magical about that salted caramel doughnut. It's a fresh-fried yeast doughnut glazed with a salted caramel sauce that was so good. It was a rich, sweet, creamy, slightly bitter caramel with hints of sea salt...so good that I had to take some home to my husband who loves doughnuts...and loved this doughnut.
Service for the night was excellent. Scott did a great job taking care of us, and making suggestions regarding the menu when we had questions. My wine pairings were brought out a few minutes before each course arrived. The waitstaff carefully monitored our water glasses, and managed to keep them filled effortlessly throughout the night. Chef Fraser came out of the kitchen at least four times during our three and a half-hour dinner to talk to guests and make sure that service was going well. We got to meet him and tell him that his restaurant was fabulous. As a souvenir, I got to take home a copy of the menu signed by Chef Fraser. Easily, my best dineLA dinner from this go around, and I look forward to coming back soon.

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Grace Restaurant
7360 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90036