SoCal Restaurant Show

Al Mancini is our always in-the-know guest with highlights of what’s new on the dynamic Las Vegas dining scene. Al joins us sharing some dining tidbits including the opening of the relocated Bazaar Meats by Jose Andres at The Venetian and the newly debuted High Steaks at the apex of the revitalized Rio helmed by local Las Vegas Celebrity Chef & Restaurateur James Trees.

Al also is the creator of the “Food & Loathing” weekly podcast highlighting the Las Vegas dining scene. A new assignment for Al is as a contributor to Las Vegas Insider

The 4th year anniversary of notable Las Vegas-based food and entertainment journalist Al Mancini’s ambitious Neon Feast dining app happens in February. Lots of new features have now been added to the updated App. “Available now on app stores for both Apple and Android (as well as neonfeast.com), Neon Feast solves the “where to eat” dilemma for both visitors and locals with listings curated by dozens of local and nationally prominent food & beverage experts, searchable through a unique combination of filters and capabilities.”

We pull Al away from a sumptuous Brunch to join us.

Al Mancini is our always in-the-know guest with highlights of what’s new on the dynamic Las Vegas dining scene. Al joins us sharing some dining tidbits including the opening of the relocated Bazaar Meats by Jose Andres at The Venetian and the newly debuted High Steaks at the apex of the revitalized Rio helmed by local Las Vegas Celebrity Chef & Restaurateur James Trees. Also a quick mention of the Bellagio’s ultra VIP Celebrity Chef lounge for the upcoming Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Al is the creator of the “Food & Loathing” weekly podcast highlighting the Las Vegas dining scene. A new assignment for Al is as a contributor to Las Vegas Insider.

The 4th year anniversary of notable Las Vegas-based food and entertainment journalist Al Mancini’s ambitious Neon Feast dining app happens in February. Lots of new features have now been added to the updated App. “Available now on app stores for both Apple and Android (as well as neonfeast.com), Neon Feast solves the “where to eat” dilemma for both visitors and locals with listings curated by dozens of local and nationally prominent food & beverage experts, searchable through a unique combination of filters and capabilities.”

Al Mancini stays with us.

“Ini Ristorante’s (Fountain Valley) culinary concept draws inspiration from the seasonality and simplicity of Japanese and Italian flavors and seeks to find the perfect harmony between the two. Chef-driven and culturally inspired, Ini Ristorante’s menu combines Japanese and Italian cuisine’s ingredients, tastes, and techniques to bring you an unmatched dining experience.” 

“Ini Ristorante features Japanese-inspired Italian cuisine produced by Kei Concepts’ Founder and Chef Viet Nguyen and his diversely talented culinary team.” Chef Viet and his team traveled to Tokyo and Kyoto, Japan to research the menu.

​“Ini Ristorante's interior design invokes a sense of comfort and familiarity by juxtaposing the layered textures of an outdoor home kitchen with natural elements and bright lights. The rustic concrete flooring, textural solids, and light warm woods transition into pops of bright blue and lush greenery, all centered around an open skylight showcasing the focal fig tree below. This approach pays homage to a gardening and outdoor cooking tradition that cultivates a space centered around fresh ingredients and good company.”

“Leave your assumptions at the door and come experience Ini’s Japanese-Italian interpretation through unique culinary offerings, hospitality, and fine-casual ambience.” Think Duck Ragu with confit duck, pappardelle, port wine reduction, arugula and lemon vinaigrette.

New from the Bar there is the Minoki Mai Tai with Minoki Japanese rum, Fernet, cinnamon, lemongrass, pistachio orgeat and citrus.

Founder and Chef Viet Nguyen joins us to unwrap all that is Ini Ristorante.

“Ini Ristorante’s (Fountain Valley) culinary concept draws inspiration from the seasonality and simplicity of Japanese and Italian flavors and seeks to find the perfect harmony between the two. Chef-driven and culturally inspired, Ini Ristorante’s menu combines Japanese and Italian cuisine’s ingredients, tastes, and techniques to bring you an unmatched dining experience.” 

“Ini Ristorante features Japanese-inspired Italian cuisine produced by Kei Concepts’ Chef Viet Nguyen and his diversely talented culinary team.” Chef Viet and his team traveled to Tokyo and Kyoto, Japan to research the menu.

“Ini Ristorante's interior design invokes a sense of comfort and familiarity by juxtaposing the layered textures of an outdoor home kitchen with natural elements and bright lights. The rustic concrete flooring, textural solids, and light warm woods transition into pops of bright blue and lush greenery, all centered around an open skylight showcasing the focal fig tree below. This approach pays homage to a gardening and outdoor cooking tradition that cultivates a space centered around fresh ingredients and good company.”

“Leave your assumptions at the door and come experience Ini’s Japanese-Italian interpretation through unique culinary offerings, hospitality, and fine-casual ambience.” Think Duck Ragu with confit duck, pappardelle, port wine reduction, arugula and lemon vinaigrette.

New from the Bar there is the Minoki Mai Tai with Minoki Japanese rum, Fernet, cinnamon, lemongrass, pistachio orgeat and citrus.

​Founder and Chef Viet Nguyen stays with us further unwrapping all that is Ini Ristorante.

Buying eggs is a bit of a challenge (cost aside.) What do all the labels actually mean? Is a brown egg actually better (perhaps more nutritious) than a white shell variety? Chef Andrew decodes the mysteries.

“Athens – Food Stories, Love: A Cookbook is New York Times bestselling author Diane Kochilas’s latest cookbook. It features 150 recipes and explores all of the greatest dishes from Greece’s most-visited city. Everyone’s favorite Greek chef, Diane Kochilas, is back with a cookbook dedicated to exploring the food of Athens. Diane has lived in Athens for thirty years and has been witness to the enormous social and culinary changes all around her. To navigate the city’s gastronomic scene today is to discover a city overflowing with new creative energy in its kitchens and myriad of international ingredients in its markets.” We catch Diane Kochilas stateside and she joins us.

“Known for shaping L.A.’s Italian dining scene through Alimento and Cosa Buona, acclaimed chef and restaurateur Zachary Pollack’s Cosetta in Santa Monica is spacious, airy and welcoming, reflecting the evolution of Pollack’s cooking. Subtle, evocative, and layered with dimension while celebrating vibrant Southern California seasonality within the restaurant’s versatile food and beverage menus, Cosetta is an Italian restaurant that is as thoughtful as it is approachable, wholly Californian and shining with Pollack’s culinary vision.” Restaurateur and Chef Zach Pollack takes a break from his busy kitchen to join us.

“Known for shaping L.A.’s Italian dining scene through Alimento and Cosa Buona, acclaimed chef and restaurateur Zachary Pollack’s Cosetta in Santa Monica is spacious, airy and welcoming, reflecting the evolution of Pollack’s cooking. Subtle, evocative, and layered with dimension while celebrating vibrant Southern California seasonality within the restaurant’s versatile food and beverage menus, Cosetta is an Italian restaurant that is as thoughtful as it is approachable, wholly Californian and shining with Pollack’s culinary vision.” Restaurateur and Chef Zach Pollack takes a break from his busy kitchen to join us.

“There’s just something about a new pair of jammies that says ‘cozy and safe’ to kids, and Huntington Meats is, once again, doing their part to make sure nightly bedtime rituals like fresh pajamas will provide a reassuring and peaceful good night to in-need children this holiday season. Huntington Meats sister shop Farmers Market Poultry will also be participating in the drive. The two shops offering quality products are coming together to participate in the 5th annual Holiday Kids Pajama Drive to take place the entire month of November organized by proprietor/organizer Jim Cascone. The goal is to collect 300 plus pairs of pajamas for distribution to the Union Rescue Mission in downtown Los Angeles.” Master Butcher Jim Cascone joins us with all the specifics.

“This year marks a decade of delicious Thanksgiving celebrations at Maple Block Meat Co., and the beloved Culver City smokehouse is once again serving up its signature 100% peach wood–smoked turkeys and all the classic sides that Angelenos have come to crave.

For 10 years, Maple Block has been at the heart of Los Angeles’ Thanksgiving tables—providing quality, wood-smoked holiday meals that bring friends and families together. From its signature whole turkeys to new Friendsgiving options for groups and offices, Maple Block continues to make Thanksgiving easy, authentic, and irresistibly good.”

Co-founder Daniel Weinstock joins us to carve the peach wood-smoked turkey.

For our concluding segment at 11:45 a.m. our own Chef Andrew Gruel, the menu-maker behind the full-service Calico Fish House (located in the Sunset Beach area of Huntington Beach) provides another timely and informative “Ask the Chef” segment where he responds to listeners’ thoughtful inquiries. As a paying guest you’re dining at a restaurant and something goes wrong. As a savvy diner what are the best ways to try and resolve the issue with as little hassle as possible? Chef Andrew has some informed thoughts…

“Athens – Food Stories, Love: A Cookbook is New York Times bestselling author Diane Kochilas’s latest cookbook. It features 150 recipes and explores all of the greatest dishes from Greece’s most-visited city. Everyone’s favorite Greek chef, Diane Kochilas, is back with a cookbook dedicated to exploring the food of Athens. Diane has lived in Athens for thirty years and has been witness to the enormous social and culinary changes all around her. To navigate the city’s gastronomic scene today is to discover a city overflowing with new creative energy in its kitchens and myriad of international ingredients in its markets.” We catch Diane Kochilas stateside and she joins us.

“Known for shaping L.A.’s Italian dining scene through Alimento and Cosa Buona, acclaimed chef and restaurateur Zachary Pollack’s Cosetta in Santa Monica is spacious, airy and welcoming, reflecting the evolution of Pollack’s cooking. Subtle, evocative, and layered with dimension while celebrating vibrant Southern California seasonality within the restaurant’s versatile food and beverage menus, Cosetta is an Italian restaurant that is as thoughtful as it is approachable, wholly Californian and shining with Pollack’s culinary vision.” Restaurateur and Chef Zach Pollack takes a break from his busy kitchen to join us.

“There’s just something about a new pair of jammies that says ‘cozy and safe’ to kids, and Huntington Meats is, once again, doing their part to make sure nightly bedtime rituals like fresh pajamas will provide a reassuring and peaceful good night to in-need children this holiday season. Huntington Meats sister shop Farmers Market Poultry will also be participating in the drive. The two shops offering quality products are coming together to participate in the 5th annual Holiday Kids Pajama Drive to take place the entire month of November organized by proprietor/organizer Jim Cascone. The goal is to collect 300 plus pairs of pajamas for distribution to the Union Rescue Mission in downtown Los Angeles.” Master Butcher Jim Cascone joins us with all the specifics.

“This year marks a decade of delicious Thanksgiving celebrations at Maple Block Meat Co., and the beloved Culver City smokehouse is once again serving up its signature 100% peach wood–smoked turkeys and all the classic sides that Angelenos have come to crave.

For 10 years, Maple Block has been at the heart of Los Angeles’ Thanksgiving tables—providing quality, wood-smoked holiday meals that bring friends and families together. From its signature whole turkeys to new Friendsgiving options for groups and offices, Maple Block continues to make Thanksgiving easy, authentic, and irresistibly good.”

Co-founder Daniel Weinstock joins us to carve the peach wood-smoked turkey.

For our concluding segment at 11:45 a.m. our own Chef Andrew Gruel, the menu-maker behind the full-service Calico Fish House (located in the Sunset Beach area of Huntington Beach) provides another timely and informative “Ask the Chef” segment where he responds to listeners’ thoughtful inquiries. As a paying guest you’re dining at a restaurant and something goes wrong. As a savvy diner what are the best ways to try and resolve the issue with as little hassle as possible? Chef Andrew has some informed thoughts…

All of this and heaping helpings of extra deliciousness on this week’s not-to-miss show!

“Athens – Food Stories, Love: A Cookbook is New York Times bestselling author Diane Kochilas’s latest cookbook. It features 150 recipes and explores all of the greatest dishes from Greece’s most-visited city.”

“Everyone’s favorite Greek chef, Diane Kochilas, is back with a cookbook dedicated to exploring the food of Athens. Diane has lived in Athens for thirty years and has been witness to the enormous social and culinary changes all around her. To navigate the city’s gastronomic scene today is to discover a city overflowing with new creative energy in its kitchens and myriad of international ingredients in its markets.”

“These new global influences on the Athenian table live side by side with Greece’s great gastronomic traditions. Souvlaki, hand pies, and the classic pasta casserole pastitsio are included here along with Athenian “fancy” dishes like Noua, a classic Athenian pot roast, and Chicken Milanese, combining chicken, rice, and a velvety cream sauce.”

“Giving readers a taste of the ways in which the culinary traditions of other countries are shaping the way Athens eats today, Diane offers a recipe for a French-influenced cross between a croissant and spanakopita, shares an Italian twist on a Greek classic with Shrimp Saganaki Risotto, updates a Greek bean dish with a Grec-Mex twist on gigantes, and much more. As with all of Diane’s other books, the recipes in Athens are home-cook friendly.”

“Diane Kochilas, celebrity chef, award-winning cookbook author, and cooking school owner, has been at the forefront of bringing healthy, delicious Greek cuisine to a wide international audience for many years. She is the host and co-executive producer of My Greek Table, a long-running cooking-travel series about Greece and Greek cuisine airing nationally on Public Television. Season 5 just launched in October. She runs the Glorious Greek Cooking School on her native island, Ikaria.”

Diane also publishes a Newsletter that’s free for the asking. It comes with a mini Spanakopita e-cookbook as a gift when you sign up.

We catch Diane Kochilas on a stateside visit and she now joins us.

“Athens – Food Stories, Love : A Cookbook is New York Times bestselling author Diane Kochilas’s latest cookbook. It features 150 recipes and explores all of the greatest dishes from Greece’s most-visited city.”

“Everyone’s favorite Greek chef, Diane Kochilas, is back with a cookbook dedicated to exploring the food of Athens. Diane has lived in Athens for thirty years and has been witness to the enormous social and culinary changes all around her. To navigate the city’s gastronomic scene today is to discover a city overflowing with new creative energy in its kitchens and myriad of international ingredients in its markets.”

“These new global influences on the Athenian table live side by side with Greece’s great gastronomic traditions. Souvlaki, hand pies, and the classic pasta casserole pastitsio are included here along with Athenian “fancy” dishes like Noua, a classic Athenian pot roast, and Chicken Milanese, combining chicken, rice, and a velvety cream sauce.”

“Giving readers a taste of the ways in which the culinary traditions of other countries are shaping the way Athens eats today, Diane offers a recipe for a French-influenced cross between a croissant and spanakopita, shares an Italian twist on a Greek classic with Shrimp Saganaki Risotto, updates a Greek bean dish with a Grec-Mex twist on gigantes, and much more. As with all of Diane’s other books, the recipes in Athens are home-cook friendly.”

Diane is the host and co-executive producer of My Greek Table, a long-running cooking-travel series about Greece and Greek cuisine airing nationally on Public Television. Season 5 just launched in October.

Diane publishes a Newsletter that’s free for the asking. It comes with a mini Spanakopita e-cookbook as a gift when you sign up.

We catch Diane Kochilas on a stateside visit and she now continues with us.