Linni Eats L.A.: Malagueta

Colorado Blvd. zips through Old Town Pasadena in a flourish of magicians and overpriced boutiques, of diagonal crosswalks and captivating cafes. There are restaurants on top of restaurants, literally in the case of J.J.’s Steakhouse, which sits atop Melting Pot, which sits atop Kabuki. Amid all of this bustle, it’s hard to find a truly stellar, mind-blowing dining experience every time. This is where Malagueta steps in.

In the grand tradition of Pasadena cuisine, it combines exotic cooking styles for a Brazilian-meets-Mediterranean festival of delicious. There is prime people-watching to be had, so sit outside if you can. Inside, the restaurant’s wood-burning oven casts a glow on the happy diners. The pile of logs next to it provides a cozy juxtaposition with the contemporary bar’s vividly illuminated bottles.

The menu of Homer-esque proportions has small pictures in the back to serve as a guide to the laundry list of foreign dishes. Take a risk and share the Brazilian or Mediterranean Sampler, both of which feature a large selection of traditional finger foods with names you might not recognize. We ordered the Brazilian variety, which included Bossa Nova bread that resembled cheese puffs, plantains, hearts of palm, calabresa sausage and fried yucca with their signature salsa that is more like a choppy chutney. Yucca is a root not unlike a potatoe and at Malagueta, they slice it thinly and serve it like French fries;. Calabresa is a Brazilian take on pepperoni that is sliced smoothly and has an addictively sweet taste. The plantains, a fruit similar to the banana, are grilled with an aptness that leaves them neither greasy nor mushy.

Our pleasant waiter was attentive despite the fact that we were his only outdoor table, and brought water refills and drinks, like the Guarana soda, promptly. Half the meal may be spent deciding on an entrée from the extensive, multi-page and multi-meat list. They offer the Brazilian Barbecue craze, Churrasco, as well as pizzas from the wood-burning oven. Pizzas can be topped with virtually anything, from banana to smoked gouda and from shrimp to calabresa sausage.


The Northern Brazilian specialty Moqueca de Camaro involved ample chunks of silky shrimp sautéed in cilantro, onions, tomatoes, pepper, dende oil and coconut milk. It was served with more of the plantains, as was the Bife Acebolado. This abundant serving of skirt steak was also topped with onions, garlic and parsley and was accompanied by black beans and rice, which all blended together in a jumble of juices and spices that I could not stop eating, long after I was full. If you’re feeling really hungry, the Gaucho ribs offer a thicker cut of beef and additional yucca French fries with the entrée.


The menu also has pastas, salads and more Mediterranean fare, including the Mediterranean Sampler, which features falafel, grape leaves, hummus, yogurt and cucumber dip, taboule and pita bread. They do offer some simple desserts such as flan and chocolate cake, as well as myriad inventive cocktails if you’re of age. The proximity to 21 Choices ultimately kept me from tasting any of these treats, however, and I went on to stuff myself full of fro yo. There is always next time—I will definitely be returning to Malagueta, which is a huge compliment to any eatery on the dizzying Colorado strip.

Linni Eats L.A.: Cafe Cordiale

We can all appreciate the age-old pastime of going out to dinner with friends, but occasionally an evening needs more substance than the simple pleasures of a good meal. Look no further than Café Cordiale, a charming late-night spot in Sherman Oaks that is also open for lunch during the week and brunch on the weekends.


Café Cordiale features aspiring musicians that perform while you dine every Thursday-Saturday night. The acts stand in front of a red velvet curtain, separating them from the bustling kitchen. The restaurant is divided into two rooms by sliding glass doors that are pulled open to include all diners in the private concert. The candlelit tables and exposed brick walls are charmed by the assortment of wooden chairs and upholstered benches.

Waiters in formal wear brought out the first course, which consisted of Salmon and Lobster cakes and Appetizer Pizza. The cakes were served with deliciously fresh mixed greens and a light mustard sauce and offered an interesting new take on your average crab cake. The pizza, which had a flashy menu description, arrived on a boring circular plate looking like it came from Domino’s. The breadbasket was equally uninspired, making it evident that they must not have a baker on staff.


I waited patiently for my cup of the daily soup special, Carrot Ginger, and had forgotten about it by the time our entrees arrived. The Butter Lettuce Salad featured asparagus, avocado, bleu cheese, tomatoes and pine nuts and the chef was kind enough to add a salmon filet for me. This all went together beautifully, and the salmon was equally outstanding when served alone with a delicate dill and shallot cream sauce. The Grilled Orange Roughy made me do a double-take, cooked to some sweet perfection I had never before experienced in a white fish. The daily special Filet Mignon, as well as all other meat and seafood entrees, were served with a refreshing combination of squash, zucchini and broccoli, cooked without the excess butter that often weighs veggies down.

Our waitress must have gone on break when I remembered my absent soup. By the time she resurfaced, I was full and the first musician of the night had begun to perform in the tri-weekly Acoustic Cordiale act. The volume was just loud enough to demand your attention, while still allowing for some side conversation about what desserts to order.


We settled on the Black & White Chocolate Mousse cake and Crème Brulee, sadly saving the Bread Pudding with dried apricots and French Apple Tarte Tatin for next time. The mousse resembled cheesecake with its double-decker white-and-dark chocolate creams stacked atop an Oreo cookie crust. The chef had achieved the perfect texture for the crème brulee crust, which had no burnt spots and was joined by a generous piling of strawberries.


It was probably the slowest I have ever eaten a crème brulee, but it is worth post-poning the meal as long as you can to hear the music, even on amateur acoustic night. The café usually features R&B/Jazz groups on Thursdays and Saturdays, R&B on Fridays, and Rock or Acoustic on Wednesdays. Their schedule is available online at http://www.cafecordiale.com. The menu can be a bit of a gamble, but the stirring atmosphere and quality of certain dishes makes it worth the drive.

Linni Eats L.A.: Gingergrass

The Los Angeles area is saturated with Vietnamese restaurants, and it seems like stumbling into any of them could satisfy a quick pho fix. Gingergrass, however, shines brighter than the rest on its quiet corner in Silver Lake. The modern American interior and matching clientele could have indicated low food quality, but I decided to give it a shot.

The inter-workings of the kitchen are on full display behind a casual take-out counter. This is an interesting juxtaposition next to the swanky dining room, warmly lit by giant canvas orbs that hang from the ceiling’s wooden rafters. The day’s specials are displayed on a fuss-free chalkboard, bragging of dishes from clay-pot vegetables to whole crab. My table decided to start with the appetizer special, Shrimp Yam Fritters, which came out deeply orange, fried and delicious at the ridiculously affordable price of 4.95. We munched on irresistible, light shrimp chips while waiting for this and the next course.


One of the restaurant’s most popular dishes, the Banana Leaf Fish, featured a tilapia filet steamed to flakey, fork-tender perfection in banana leaves with lemongrass and ginger and topped with a tomato whose zing complemented the other flavors well. Strips of flank steak had also been cooked in the eatery’s namesake combination of ginger and lemongrass, and served cold atop cabbage, red peppers and jicama in the Mako salad. The beef was a little tough and chilled for my taste, but made a palate-pleasing turn when it showed up in the beef noodle bowl. This dish was accidentally sent to the wrong table, but showed up under 10 minutes later and was free due to the error.


Our waiter joined in our dessert vacillations, agreeing to surprise one of my companions with his favorite dish and talking up another about a shared obsession with the TV show Lost. The desserts came to our table in a flourish of balanced, artful plates. Taro flavored ice cream arrived in a small bowl garnished with mint leaves, while fried Banana Spring Rolls descended on a plate criss-crossed with chocolate sauce. The Coconut Lime Bars consisted of four squares, all refreshingly cool and silky. Horchata ice cream was also quite pleasurable, though heavy on cinnamon and too light on that ricey sweetness characteristic of the Mexican drink.

It is evident from the variation in their ice cream flavors that Gingergrass is attempting to marry two L.A. standards. They toss in local flavors while remaining true to the authentic Asian cuisine so many people look for in southern California, while pulling off a high-class interior that is also laidback. Dark wood tables and beige runners are surrounded by Vietnamese families and local students alike at this appeasing, affordable Silver Lake secret.