Holiday Bites 2017 - Gift Ideas for Your Favorite Food and Travel Lover

The holidays are upon us once again, and this year there are so many creative food themed gifts for the foodie / travel lover in your life! 

1.  For the Lover of Seafood to Wear Heart on Sleeve Chain / Finger 

Amazing artists who are also ocean lovers have poured their passion into incredible handcrafted jewelry pieces so that your favorite seafood lover can literally wear their love of marine creatures around their necks, fingers etc.

Here are some of my personal favorites - and yes I snagged these for my collection already:

Sea urchin ring with exquisite level of detail:

Buy from: Cirer on Etsy  $121.08 (currently on sale for $102.92)

Oysters (and Scallops and Mussels) sterling silver / 14K Gold pendants inspired by real life beauty of foodie favorites.

The oyster pendant shown is made from a real seed oyster from Cuttyhunk Shellfish Farm in Cuttyhunk, MA. Flip the shell over to reveal a hidden freshwater pearl! Also available in a larger size, and with the second half of the shell.

Buy from: Laura Blanc Jewelry from $100







2.  For the Fashionista and Haute Cuisine Enthusiast

Love this metallic, fun glittery Finer Things Caviar Coin Purse from Kate Spade, with a spoon zipper pull!

Buy from:  Kate Spade $98

[Deal alert: get 3% cash back by going through eBates first (free to sign up)]





3.  For Pun Lovin' Sushi Lovers

Edible: For LA locals:  California Roll cake inspired by Dominique Ansel's newest bakery location that just opened at The Grove LA!  Made with avocado mousse, vanilla lime mousse, honey gelee and almond biscuit.

Buy from: Dominique Ansel Bakery (LA location only @ The Grove)

For some, anytime is sushi time.

Buy from: eBay $154

[Deal alert: go through eBates first to get up to 2% cash back]

Non-edibles:
Socks.  Printed and shaped like sushi - not just sushi print, but they roll up to look like an actual sushi roll.

Buy from: The Grommet $12.95 per pair

Sushi gummy candy bento box

Buy from: Amazon $11.25 or Tokyo Central


4.  For Jetsetters / Wanderlusters

Travel lovers know what it's like to be caught without Wifi  / cell service in a place where you don't speak the language and need to find your way around.  The brilliant minds at Iconspeak have created awesome wearable solutions: tees and tote bags pre-printed with easily recognizable icons customized to popular travel destinations.  Need to find the Colosseum, or the nearest glass of wine, or the closest WiFi hotspot, while in Rome?  No problem, just find a friendly face, point to the appropriate icon and commence local engagement/ travel memories, a semi-lost art in the age of tech addiction.

Buy from: Iconspeak $22 for tote bag



5.  For the Home Chef and Lover of Puns

Have a little fun especially for Italian food lovers, gift them kitchen accessories shaped like their favorite pasta shapes so that they can have literally every aspect of their kitchen infused with their favorite food while creating their  masterpiece meals!  Set includes silicon Farfalloni pot grips (2 units), 1 Ravioli spoon rest, 1 Penneli garlic peeler, &3 Mafaldine elastic bands.


Buy from: Monkey Business  $39.99 (or from Eataly where you can also pick up fresh or gourmet dried pasta to go with the pun pasta accessories :))

Then go full-pun and pair the gift with a greeting card from Etsy.

Buy from: Etsy $4.50+

6.  For the Wine / Cocktail / Sweets Enthusiast 

Serious drinkers and DIYers: let them age their own spirits in mini oak barrels that add instant klout to any desktop. Size matters too: not just about the fun look, the smaller sized barrel accelerates the aging process, so that your recipient's choice of spirit will age up to 10 times faster. Oak is beloved of distillers because it imparts flavor to spirits through three main compounds resulting in vanilla and marzipan-like flavors, buttery, coconut notes, and astringency and spice.  Handmade by coopers in Manassas, Virginia. Ages 21+.


Buy from: Uncommon Goods $130 for 2L barrel with rum & whiskey making kit and personalization

Up the game even more with glasses beautifully etched with maps of their favorite (drinking?) cities from Chicago to NYC to LA (~24 city options at last check!). 

Buy from: Uncommon Goods $14

Novelty options: Get them in an island state of mind whether they are spending the holidays in the depths of northern winter or somewhere with lots of sun, sand and sea.  The Pineapple Lover set includes a cocktail shaker, 12 oz. tumbler, set of shot glasses, bottle opener all in pineapple shapes (gold, silver or copper options) and metal straws.

Buy from: WP Design $160

[Deal alert: save 25% sitewide with code: HOTPOTATO]

Fun themed chocolates handcrafted in Texas:

• (2) Martini Glasses in dark chocolate filled with salted caramel
• (2) Caviar Canapés in solid milk chocolate
• (2) Olives in milk chocolate filled with chocolate nougat
• (1) Vodka Bottle in white chocolate filled with chocolate caramel + sea salt
• (1) Lemon Slice in solid white chocolate
• (1) Word Tile in solid white chocolate

 Buy from: Maggie Louise $38

Or for a sleeker boxed set gift, check out Sugarfina's "But First, Cocktails" candy bento box including eight fun flavors in beautiful packaging:

• Brut & Rosé Champagne Bears® 
• Peach Bellini
• Champagne Bubbles
• Jamaican Rum Snowballs
• Paloma Sours 
• But First Rosé Roses
• Bubbly Bears®
• Martini Olive Almonds

Buy from: Sugarfina $65

If they are more solely devoted to bubbly: gummy bears made with Dom Pérignon Vintage Champagne in two beautiful flavors: classic Brut and fashionable Rose would be a fun twist gift. Named "the perfect party favor" by Cosmopolitan magazine. Non-alcoholic.

Buy from:  Sugarfina starting at $8.50 for small cube to $45 for 2.5lb bulk bag that you can pick into your own gift packaging

Or step it up with a Sugarfina x WP collab Champagne Bears Cocktail Kit so that your favorite jetsetter can get their dose of bubbly up in the air first class style no matter if they're actually in coach.

Kit includes:
• Small-batch elderflower syrup
• Sugarfina Champagne gummy bears
• 0.5-oz. jigger
• Bar spoon
• Linen napkin
• Recipe card
• Stainless steel storage tin

Just add alcohol (not included - maybe hit up duty free at the airport before boarding)?

Buy from: Sugarfina $24 or Sur La Table $25
 

[Deal alert: sign up for eBates (free) and click through their Sugarfina links first to get 2.5%-5% cash back on your purchase] 

Stocking stuffer option: Cocktail lip balm Stewart & Claire, a trio of tasty cocktails to kickoff the holiday season:

Negroni: originally created as a limited edition for Campari: spiced orange and juniper-scented lip balm that does the Negroni justice.

Old Fashioned: cedar, bitter orange and a touch of vanilla, cinnamon and black pepper

Tiki: virgin coconut oil with a little mandarin essential oil: vacation in a tube.

Buy from: Stewart & Claire  $23 (or find at Paper Source stores)


7.  For Fruit Lovers

Serious gift: taste the sunshine in each handcrafted bite of pate de fruit made from all natural fruits from amazing chocolate and confections master Christopher Elbow. Flavors are seasonal but may include:  raspberry, apricot, blood orange, strawberry, black currant, blueberry, passion fruit, mango, morello cherry, green apple, white peach, pear, coconut, kiwi, and pineapple.

Buy from: Christopher Elbow $24

Novelty gift: Get through the winter with fruit scented lotions / skincare and lip products that are housed in fun fruit shaped containers like this mango butter (they also have banana, apple, peach etc.)

Buy from: Tonymoly $12 for hands & feet mango butter







8.  For People Who Literally Live for Tea Time

For tea lovers who are so serious they need to jetset with their own accesssories: travel tea set with bamboo tray, gaiwan, server, and four tasting cups and stainless steel tongs plus padded zipper pouch for easy carry during travel.

Buy from: Red Blossom Tea $120

For tea drinkers of the more punny variety: Pair tea with literature in the punniest way with book shaped tea tins emblazoned with titles from Anise in Wonderland to Matcha Do About Nothing to The Picture of Earl Grey!

Buy from: NovelTeas $29 













Lovepop Cards

https://www.lovepopcards.com/products/gingerbread-house-christmas-card


Felt Toys dim sum




World Power Adaptor Tumi
Buy from: Tumi $

Petrossian - dineLA Caviar, Crab, Caramel Pot de Creme Trifecta

Every dish I've ever had at Petrossian, I've fallen in love with, and end up dreaming of until the next time I am fortunate enough to re-encounter its perfection.

Perhaps I am a little biased, as Petrossian happens to offer EVERY ingredient that I love most in the world:  caviar (and more caviar), foie gras, truffle (both fungal and chocolate varieties), all kinds of shellfish, and lots of cream.

"Foodie mentor" introduced me to the place a while ago, during another dineLA restaurant week - and I had a Foie Gras with Haricots Verts Salad soaked in truffle vinaigrette that I will never forget, Handcut Steak Tartare layered with caviar, and the creamiest panna cotta for dessert.  It was one of the most amazing meals I had ever had in LA, and definitely the best dineLA deal by far that year.

Petrossian again offered perhaps the most exciting menu on the dineLA list this year, and we were excited to see Steak Tartare as an appetizer - the amazing texture and tastes still lingered in our minds and palates from the last time we had this dish. I couldn't wait to break my rule of maximizing my limited resources on new experiences - I absolutely had to have this dish again.

Chips and Dip - caviar dip
and sweet & purple potato chips ($16)

Throwing all thoughts of calories out the window (one reason I love eating with Foodie Mentor so much!!!) we choose to 'prep' for our meal with an additional 'pre-starter' off the regular menu, thanks to our server's irresistible description:  listed simply as "Chips and Dip - caviar dip and sweet & purple potato chips" on the menu, she explained that the dip was made of creme fraiche and mascarpone cheese, topped with clusters of caviar and strewn with finely diced red onion.  It was every bit as amazing as it sounded, with the rich but not overly dense creaminess of the ever so slightly sweet dip tempered by the subtly salty orbs of caviar, which is then counterbalanced by the crunch and blasts of intense flavor from the red onion.  The dip was amazing with the sweet and purple potato chips - which tasted fresh and were at the perfect thickness / crispiness.  If only the chips could have been bigger in size to provide more real estate on which to pile on the dip.  Otherwise, perfection.

Caviartini ($18)

Of course, I also had to try the latest and much talked about Petrossian invention, the Caviar-tini ($18).  Basically an ice-cold martini served with a skewer of olives stuffed with caviar, and a pickled pearl onion.  Utter decadence in concept, and the caviar did add an interesting burst of saltiness to the briny olives. Though it was good, I confess I am not the most sophisticated drinker (normally a fan of cocktails with more pronounced layers of flavor - e.g. Burning Mandarin at Katsuya!) - so this martini was not a personal favorite, especially not with the $18 price tag which was nearly half of the cost of the meal!

Steak Tartare with Caviar, Quail Egg and Herb Salad

Onto our 'real' first course from the dineLA menu then.  Aside from the steak tartare, the other starters looked good but not life altering - and if you're going to Petrossian, of course go for the dish with caviar or seafood, which is what they are famous for - not the salads (unless there is some amazing ingredient involved - though the Frisee aux Lardons tempted me with bacon and Fourme D'Ambert cheese).

The Steak Tartare this year was cut down to first course portion size, and served with a spread of caviar, topped by a fried quail egg.  It wasn't what I remembered from last time, as the pieces were not as perfectly sized - everything seemed scaled down - but the texture of the steak was still incredibly smooth and richly infused with flavor.  We both went for the same starter - and there wasn't a single piece of meat or solitary egg left on either of our plates.

Caviar Pizza with Creme Fraiche, Chopped Egg,
Red Onion, Capers and Chives

For the main course, Foodie Mentor choose the Caviar Pizza with Creme Fraiche, Chopped Egg, Red Onion, Capers and Chives.  That was the first to catch my eye as well, but since we already had the pre-starter with a very similar combination of ingredients, and I knew we could have bites off each other's plate in order to sample more dishes, I considered the remaining choices.  

Usually a big fan of Pork Belly, that main course looked tempting to me as well - however, keeping in mind Petrossian's signature offering is seafood - and taking a slight risk that the Crab Risotto with Sweet Corn, Mascarpone and Trout Roe might be too sweet, I went with the latter (I do love crab, ikura and mascarpone!).  

Crab Risotto with Sweet Corn, Mascarpone and Trout Roe

The Crab Risotto turned out to be AMAZING - very creamy, at perfect density, temperature, and evenly infused with flavor.  The sweet corn added a slight crunch to break up the creaminess, and the trout roe added bubbles of liquid saltiness that popped pleasantly over the mix and on the palate.

Caramel Pot de Creme



Pistachio Creme Brulee

I did not want this fantastic meal to end, but alas, we arrived at our last course.  Though I knew I would love the Panna Cotta again, I went for the Caramel Pot de Creme, as this is not usually available on the regular menu.  And I couldn't resist another course involving mascarpone, which seemed to be the theme of the evening for me!  I loved this dessert, as it was the perfect amount of sweetness, kept skillfully light and served at the ideal portion size, in a cute jam jar with a dollop of mascarpone.  The only tiny glitch was there was just a pinch too much sea salt over the top, so that I had one very salty bite.  Otherwise, fantastic.

Foodie Mentor went with the Pistachio Creme Brulee and liked the new take on the classic French dessert, and that the sugar crust was fairly even.

Beyond all the raving about the food, I do want to note that Petrossian is also great for three reasons:

• Chic but unpretentious decor - upscale yet laid back cafe ambience in a small, cozy and unintimidating dining room (or choose to eat at either the communal table in the attached store, or outdoor patio seating facing Robertson).

• No stress parking - though in a central location, close to the Beverly Center, spots are amazingly available for free at meters on the street after 6pm.  I found one easily within minutes and just a half block away from the restaurant!

• Nice after dinner entertainment - checking out all the delicious looking bottles and jars of caviar, tins of foie, packets of smoked salmon and rows of chocolate truffles in the attached store after dinner!

Petrossian is definitely one of my favorite places in LA - especially for the awesome deal during dineLA Restaurant Weeks!  You have three more days left in this one - GO, maintenant, vite!


On a 7 point scale:
Flavor - 6.5 bites
Presentation - 6 bites
Originality - 6 bites
Ambience - 5 stars
Service - 6 stars
Overall experience - 6 bites
Price - $$ (2 bite marks)
Probability of return visit - 100%

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Petrossian
321 N Robertson Blvd
West Hollywood, CA 90048
Ph: 310.271.6300
Website: petrossian.com
Twitter: twitter.com/Petrossian_US
OpenTable: Look for reservations
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