Stolen Avocados

The other day I'm out somewhere and I get a call from my mom saying that all of our avocados from the 3 trees in the backyard are all gone. Even the ones way at the top of the trees. We have no idea when they went missing or who it could have been. I speculate that whoever it was, they came in the middle of the night and patiently took every single avocado.

It really is mind boggling. I could understand if they took all of the ones lower to the ground, but they took their time to get the ones at the top. So I'm talking abou hundreds and hundreds of avocados. And it's not like the trees are in the front yard or on the side of the house to make them somewhat accessible. They're all in the backyard where you wouldn't be ale to see them unless you've been in our backyard. We absolutely hav no idea who would do such a thing. My brother suggested my mom call the police, which she did and was told this is a crime, so they took a report and got the names and numbers of everybody who has access and reason to be in our backyard: our gardener, our contractors, and maybe our termite guy. At this point, there's nothing we can do really.

What upset my mom that she didn't realize until today when we were out there talking to our contractors about the next project is that whoever stole our avocados stood up on her expensive natural jade table which ended up having a hairline fracture across the top, as well as a couple of smaller cracks and scuffs.

Honestly, I wasn't so upset about the avocados, but I'm pretty pissed about the table. Those F*CKING bastards. I hope whoever it is gets what's coming to them. I normally don't wish misfortune on people, but when you do something like this that especially upsets my mom, I sure hope they get what they deserve.

Catering

It's technically been 3 years since I started my catering business. Business has been slow, especially with the way our economy is right now. But I have been fortunate to have done a few jobs here and there.

Most recently I did a dessert demonstration for a group of Yelpers. As an actve member of yelp myself, I was happy to do it and it was great to see some familiar faces and meet new ones.

Thanks to David K for taking some awesome photos of the event.





I demo-ed 3 desserts. A Nutella creme brulee, my signature Chocobanana parfait, and a warm chocolate souffle cake. They didn't come out 100% the way I would've liked them to, but I was still happy with them and everybody loved all 3 desserts.

This is the Nutella Creme Brulee. I shot this the day after the demo.

Fine Dining Part II

I had a FABULOUS time at Cut after a small hiccup with a bitchy hostess

an excerpt:

"OH....MY... F********CKING GAAAWD!!!!!! Both appetizers were probably the best thing EVER!! I swear once it hit my tongue, my tastebuds were doing the happy dance while on steroids!!!!! The bone marrow was so soft, flavorful and was so good with the mushroom "marmalade". And the pork belly? So soft and succulent it just melted. It was told by the bread lady that it's cooked in duck fat for 3 days. SAY WHAT NOW???? Duck fat? 3 days? Fat cooked in fat (confit style), how can you go wrong with that????"

you can read the full review here:
http://www.yelp.com/user_details_review_search?userid=NBJVYt7sO-2WDg3bPwBT0Q&q=wagyu

Fine Dining

Over the Years, both before and after attending culinary school (but mostly after), I've had the privilege to dine at some very nice restaurants throughout Southern California.

Places like the French Laundry, Guy Savoy, and Le Cirque, and Craft will always be among my list of restaurants to eat at in some point of my life, but until then I will have to stick to the ones LA has to offer. Now don't get me wrong, LA has A TON of higher end restaurants that have helped shape LA's reputation for fine cuisine, but New York still is the food Mecca of this country.

Of the restaurants that I've been to that have been higher end meals: Delmonico's (Las Vegas), BOA Steakhouse, Ruth's Chris, Roy's, Napa Rose, and... that's all I can think of so far.

In terms of LA restaurants that I want to try, there's Hatfields, Providence, Craft, Table 8, and many others.

I suppose this is all a warmup to my dinner this Saturday. I will be dining at Cut Steakhouse in Beverly Hills. I will be dining with my cousin and a couple friends. I am a huge carnivore and I love a very good steak and I will be looking forward to this meal. I try not to overhype or expect too much out of a restaurant because I've found that contributes to ruining your overall dining experience. I of course will be expecting a good dinner, but I will not set specific standards for the food or the service.

I'll post a picture... that's if I remember to take a picture.

Website

I apologize to my maybe 3 readers that I haven't updated my site in awhile. Honestly, I sometimes forget about it.

Anyway, I just want to let you guys know that my website is still under construction. I know, I know, it's been taking a long time but please be patient. In the meantime, please visit my flickr site for some samples

www.flickr.com/photos/austios

And please check back often for the launching of my site!!

-A.