![]() This baby is a plain, perfectly cooked hard-boiled egg with none of that green tint between the yolk and the white, breaded lightly and dropped into hot oil to form a perma-crust of crunch. It's not a Scotch egg, which is a different beast. And because they did, it worked and I loved it.īut the true star of the dish was the deep-fried hard-boiled egg, which, believe it or not, is something this frequent diner has never seen before. My point is that the salad demonstrated an investment in effort than most chains would bother to put into a salad. There was a bundle of still crisp-tender grilled asparagus and a separate pile of whole Romaine lettuce leaves tossed in a oily dressing that was different from the one I used for the crab stack. It was as light as advertised, the dressing on the side in a soup bowl for dabbing onto any forkful that needed it. The crab, a bit bland and probably coming out from a can, was otherwise fine, molded atop a cylinder-stack of diced cucumber, avocado and sliced grape tomatoes. It was called the Southern Crab Salad, a dish that looked good when I decided to order it off their summer menu (translation: just a separate leaflet from the main one) for $15.95, and one that tasted exactly like I hoped it would. So that's why I'm writing about it now: because it's new to me and because it allows me to discuss a seasonal item that you might not have known about. The Z'Tejas chain, for example, has been a staple for South Coast Plaza shoppers for a while now, and was generally regarded among my co-workers for decent if not excellent food. If I don't often write about chains here, it's not because I don't occasionally go to them, it's because I figure there isn't much more for me to say that you won't already know. Still order the dish even if you see it being subbed out by broccolini-it's a worthy successor as Arnel Pineda is to Steve Perry. The asparagus, which is grilled to take on some char and bring out the sweetness, is perfectly cooked to crisp-tender-it still snaps and has smokiness seeped into each spear. Think of these components as the bassist, lead guitar, and drums. And the asiago and breadcrumbs glues the once disparate flavors and textures together. The prosciutto gets rendered to taste like a salty porcine potato chip. The egg is fried till the edges get crispy and lacy. The egg, asiago, prosciutto and breadcrumbs form the indelible quartet that is the engine and driving force behind the dish. ![]() The important thing is the rest are there to assist whatever's fresh, verdant and stalky. ![]() In fact, it's likely that the asparagus will be replaced by something else green. Doing that would set the expectation it'll be the same the next time when it's almost never isn't. Since they really do seem to cook with what's seasonal, it makes sense not to commit to a permanent name for a dish. The rest of the food menu is also nothing but a list of ingredients. ![]() It has no fanciful title or name (they save those for the drinks). Yes, it's described exactly like that on the menu. This is the asparagus, fried egg, prosciutto, asiago and breadcrumbs. Have you gone for the Sunday Socials at Three Seventy Common yet? If you haven't, you should but if you're still unsure about whether you can commit to the ever changing prix fixe before you've actually tried something here, just go on any other day of the week and order the dish you see above.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |