Thanksgiving Dilemma - To Serve or Be Served?

As my parents live overseas, in Thanksgivings past I have been graciously hosted by families of some amazing friends, who were kind enough to take in a stray for the day.  This year, my brother and his wife will be visiting from Montreal and staying with me for a month (starting mere days after I move!) so I'll be playing hostess for once during a hectic time. 

And so I have a confession to make: I've never cooked a whole turkey in my life - and have no idea what to do with a bird that size!  Though it could be an exciting culinary adventure, and possibly a fun day-long activity for all of us - whipping up all kinds of sides in the kitchen together while the turkey's in the oven - it could also be a DIY disaster.  The planner in me went immediately to work looking for backup dine-out options that I suspect will quickly turn into our preferred choice.

I was pleasantly surprised by all the restaurants (aka lifesavers / my personal heroes) that will be open Thanksgiving day - and some of the very creative interpretations of the traditional holiday meal, that they will be offering. 

Here are a few highlights of the most exciting menus for those who may also find themselves looking to dine out this holiday:

Molecular Gastronomy Thanksgiving:
The Bazaar by José Andrés is offering a five course prix fixe menu for $65 including their take on Turkey, Brussel Sprouts with 'lemon air', Papas Canarias, a spinach dish, and a sweet potato dessert.  The SLS Hotel is also offering a prix fixe brunch 11am-3pm for $59, a tasting menu for $65 and carving station with traditional turkey and trimmings for $49 November 25-28 starting at 5pm.

Vampires Beware Thanksgiving:
The Stinking Rose's $29.95 prix fixe dinner is not for the faint of heart! The three-course meal starts with a House Salad, then moves onto a 400 Clove Garlic Roasted Turkey With All The Trimmings, and finishes with Pumpkin Pie Ala Mode.  You can get a child's portion of the same menu at $19.95.

Land and Sea:
Trader Vic's Polynesian four-course dinner for $45 - Lobster Stuffed & Shrimp with kaffir lime bearnaise Asian pesto, Mixed Green Salad, Choice Of Stuffed Drunken Turkey Or Trio Of Squash, and choice of Pumpkin Tart or Apple Pecan Bread Pudding.

Patina Chef Tony Esnault's $70 prix fixe four-course Thanksgiving menu features two choices within each course - including Maine Lobster & Chestnut Velouté, Butternut Squash Risotto, Roasted Organic Turkey or Seared Day Boat Scallops, and Piedmont Hazelnut Sponge, Whole Wheat Tuile with Ovaltine Rum Ice Cream!


AYCE - Get Stuffed the Gourmet Way Thanksgiving:
By the Beach:  Whist at the Viceroy in Santa Monica is offering a gourmet Thanksgiving Buffet From 1pm-7pm. Chef Tony Disalvo Is Preparing A Special Feast!

Beverly Hills:  The Restaurant at L'Ermitage will be presenting "Thanksgiving Buffet To Satisfy Even The Most Discriminating Palates" for brunch - cost is $80 per adult, $45 for children 10 and under.  They had me at 'Caviar Station'!!! (Oysters, shrimp, smoked & shell fish are also involved, in addition to the requisite turkey and ham)

Religieuse Experience?:
Pinot Bistro's $45 three course Thanksgiving menu offers choices of first, main and dessert including Roasted Pumpkin Soup with spiced creme fraiche, or Smoked Salmon with buckwheat blini, egg mimosa, chives, and citrus; Roasted Turkey With Sweet Potato Gratin; and the dessert with the most awesome name so far - "Pumpkin and Hazelnut Religieuse".

And if you make your reservations through OpenTable, you can also earn points towards an OpenTable gift certificate when you check in at the restaurant, depending on your selected venue, date and time.  There is truly SO much to be thankful for this season! :)

So after perusing all the incredible menus, I think I've pretty much decided we're eating out.  Especially since my brother and his wife are considering moving to much sunnier SoCal, this might be a great time to add 'good eats' as another 'plus' to their list of reasons why they should.

*For those who feel like having restaurant fare at home - Susan Feniger's STREET is offering Tandoori turkey breast, lobster, lamb roast or jackfruit with an eclectic list of mouth-watering sides like Pandan and Coconut Creamed Corn and Spaghetti Squash with Chipotle Honey Butter.  Tandoori dishes run $15-$25 per person, and side dishes are 3 for $40, 5 for $55, and 7 for $65 (most sides serve up to four people).  Order at least 3 days in advance - last day for pickup is Wednesday, November 24th. See menu via link above for details.

A great take home dessert option is of course Tartist, whose apple tart was so amazing that I still remember the taste from Artisanal LA a couple weeks back.  They have a 'Special Pumpkin' pie on ginger crust that I can't wait to try, and of course, I have already ordered an Apple tart with apple slices, rosewater, persian-honey-vinegar glaze, and crushed pistachios on mascarpone and a french crust!  Even if I'm eating out, I just want to have these tarts around over the holidays for the fam to discover and enjoy :)  Bringing a Tartist creation to Thanksgiving (if you have any foodies in your midst) *will* make you a rock star at dinner.  Orders close November 14th for pick up Wednesday or Thursday 11/24 or 11/25.

Meet for Moules Ten Ways

I'm a sucker for packaging, even of the virtual sort - so after perusing the photos on Meet's website, I was eager to test drive the dishes in person.  I also happened to have $25 worth of Dining Dough for the place, so with gift certificate in hand, my friend and I had our rendez vous at Meet for early dinner on a Sunday night. 

Based on the look and feel of the website, I was expecting a small, intimate yet sophisticated bistro.  What I saw when we arrived was 'cozy', alright - but at first I thought I had mistakenly gone to a pizzeria, or a mom & pop Italian eatery - with the restaurant's red and white checkered tablecloths and wooden chairs, and brick-focused decor.  We decided to sit in the outdoor patio, the better for people watching and less claustrophobic, for a balmy summer night in California (though the tables on the patio are still fairly close to each other - so that you can hear conversations at the tables next to you).  Brushing off first impressions of the decor, we were excited to see what savory treats the night would hold for us.

Having developed an addiction to beet salad after my recent euphoric experience at Magnolia, I decided to give Meet's Beets salad ($11.95) a try to see if it would give Magnolia's version a run for its money.  The description was straightforward, and lead to an expectation of a simple yet elegant and clean dish - "frisée, candied walnuts, warm goat cheese with honey champagne vinaigrette".  When the plate arrived, I must admit the presentation was not of the caliber advertised on the website - a tower of crudely stacked slabs of beets, two different colors, were topped by a pool of goat cheese (which congealed after sitting a few minutes untouched, since I was busy catching up with my friend).

For our entrees, we were both instantly captivated by the description of the Moulieres Meet ($18), mussels served in saffron broth with crab AND bacon.  Sounds like heaven, right?  This dish did not disappoint, arriving in a gigantic white ceramic bowl, with the mussels at just the right texture - soft, smooth and just slightly chewy, without any hard ridges - and a flavorful broth, with generous piles of crab and bacon that made it a very tasty and filling dish.  We were actually too full after this to get dessert (though the trio of profiteroles was tempting!)

My only other complaint about Meet is the service - while the waiters were very nice and friendly, and seemed to mean well - I asked for an Arnold Palmer when we sat down, and had to remind the waiter three times before they brought the drink over, which arrived halfway through my entree.  The place was small and definitely not at capacity, so it was a little disappointing that he simply forgot my drink order many times over.

All-in-all, not quite what I expected from a french bistro in the up and coming neighborhood of downtown Culver City - but not a bad deal for mussel lovers who want to explore variations on the classic Moulieres Marineres, and of course be sure to get your discount certificate from Restaurant.com first for an even better bargain!

Update Aug 2011: All-You-Can-Eat Moules Frites - Wednesdays for $23.95!  All the delectable mussels you can eat in any or all of the different styles - now there are 12 (they added two). My favs are: Bisque (in lobster broth), Thai (curry broth that sounds questionable on the menu but is not spicy at all and incredibly flavorful), and Provencale - all of these are so delicious I could pick up the entire bowl to slurp the broth after the mussels are done.  You wouldn't see my face at all for 10 minutes.  One serving of fries per order. 

On a 7 point scale:
Flavor - 5 bites
Presentation - 4.5 bites
Originality - 4 bites
Ambience - 3 stars
Service - 4 stars
Overall experience - 4.5 bites
Price - $$ (2 bite marks)
Probability of return visit - 70%

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Meet
9727 Culver Blvd., Culver City, CA 90232
Ph: 310.815.8222
Website: meetrestaurantla.com
Twitter: twitter.com/meet_culvercity
OpenTable: Look for reservations
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