Some LA chefs must think that diners need to wake up, because lately it seems that coffee has been showing up as a key ingredient. At the newly opened LAMILL Coffee Boutique in Silver Lake, chef Michael Cimarusti has come up with the notion of a frisee au lardon salad with a coffee-flavored vinaigrette. D'Cache, a new restaurant in Toluca Lake, is serving salmon coated with coffee.
Although Angelenos' adoration of coffee may be what inspired these dishes, it's important to pay homage to Emeril Lagasse, who has done much to popularize the notion with creations like his baby back ribs with coffee-bourbon barbecue sauce and his coffee-glazed duck. And, in Latin America, coffee-crusted beef is a well-known dish. Sonora Cafe in La Brea puts its own twist on its coffee-crusted filet by adding a sage-flavored aioli. It goes for $34 – a serious price for java-on-a-plate.
- Merrill Shindler