Sunny Spot || 11/21/11

Anyone who's met me knows that I am a huge fan of Roy Choi, so I couldn't wait to check out his new Venice eatery Sunny Spot in the old Beechwood locale on Washington.  After tasting a few of his Caribbean inspired dishes at the Test Kitchen Reunion Dinner where he partnered with Chef Ricardo Zarate of Picca, I already knew that I was in for a treat.

My only failure?  Going with just one other person... we were full after 4 courses, so I don't think we did the menu justice.  Next time I'm gathering a big group, so who wants to come??

After perusing the menu for a little while, Loveonthego & I opted to skip the few dishes we'd tried before... but will absolutely be back to eat again.  First was the Papaya Guava Salad which Georgia from the lovely Alie & Georgia duo pretty much licked clean of any stray bits of decadent honey.  There was also a plate of the Red Bean Stew with the Roasted Pineapple Pork which was easily my favorite dish of the dinner, and a sampling of the Short Ribs with Chef Choi's Slaw, which rounded out the meal nicely.

So what did we get?

DIABLO PRAWNS rum glaze, garlic butter, herbs (13)

 Lit up with 2 heat bombs I was a little worried about the spice factor, but it wasn't that bad at all.  Slightly spicy and a little sweet, these jumbo prawns ended up being my favorite dish of the night & a must order for trip #2.  I could have eaten the plate by myself!

MUH-F*K*N MOFONGO overripe plantains, bacon, garlic, black pepper (5)

 Mushed plantains with bacon and garlic?  Why yes please, I'll certainly have a spoonful or twenty.  I do wish we had ordered a rice dish to go along with this, it was a little rich on it's own, but I'll just chalk that up to poor planning on our part. 

WHAT A JERK WINGS double coated, double fried (11)

 While delicious, these actually reminded me a little of the sweet & spicy Korean Fried Chicken wings at KyoChon mixed with a little island spices.  A little messy to eat, these needed to come with their own set of wet-naps.  And a few pickled daikon would have actually been nice.

slow roasted G.O.A.T. (Greatest Of All Time) pickled mango (15)

 So on Friday when Sunny Spot opened, I was leaving for Vegas.  I've never been so torn about going on vacay, what with all these amazing eateries opening in the city, so when my friend Sam inquired what I was up to on Sunny Spot opening night, I cursed him for making me even sadder about leaving the city & having to miss what I'm sure was their ordering every single thing on the menu.  Regardless the moment I got back I grilled him about what to order & he said the one MUST was the G.O.A.T. I can stand behind that statement, this was a delicious combination of sour & sweet, and the little goat, mango, lettuce wraps were a nice spice break from the other hot-hot-hot items. 

NOVEMBER PIE SWEET POTATO SOUFFLE with walnut crust, toasted marshmallow ice cream (6)

The other thing Sam told me, you MUST save room for dessert.  What with it being Thanksgiving and all I was certainly in the mood for some sweet potato and toasted marshmallow goodness & this dessert did not fail to impress.  However I think that the cookie sort of overwhelmed the dish & I wish there was a little more sweet potato to be found.  The ice cream was amazing however!

And onto the cocktails...

THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS white rum, brandy, maraschino, lemon, champagne (12)

 Don't you love the candle behind the cocktail look? I know I do!! I was a little disappointed, having spotted a jar of luxadoro's hiding behind the bar, I assumed this would be topped with a gusher of sweet cherry flavor, but it sort of ended up being a simple drink.  Nice, but nothing spectacular. 

WESTFALL tequila, mezcal, lime, falernum, apricot (12)

 The nice thing about having a bartender for a boyfriend is that I know what all of these ingredients are!  Decidedly complex with a nice fall flavor, I really enjoyed this cocktail.

CHILCANO BAY pisco, lime, ginger, lemongrass, fernet branca (12)

I've been on a Pisco kick for probably the last year, ever since I demanded said bartender boyfriend learn how to make me a delicious pisco sour, so I knew this was one I wanted to try.  I really enjoyed the hints of ginger & lemongrass, plus the presentation was very pleasing to the eye.

All in all I thoroughly enjoyed Chef Roy Choi's offerings & I can't wait to go back and try out the rest of the menu. Plus while we were there, we met Chefs Brian Dunsmoor and Kris Tominaga of Wolf In Sheep's Clothing, who's new permanent pop-up in Venice is due to open December 1st. Goodness, another reason to head back to Venice? Who would have thought I'd find myself there so often.

Sunny Spot
822 Washington Blvd
Venice, CA 90292
Open till Late, 7 days
310.448.8884
http://sunnyspotvenice.com/