ENTERTAINMENT On the Menu

from LC Section One 07 2021

See On the Blvd

Even though Los Angeles is ostensibly back to normal, and the city is allowing indoor dining at maximum capacity, outdoor eating is still my preference. The front patio of Oste, with its gold gates and wall of plants, is a lovely space for an al fresco repast. The simple Roman-style café, whose name is short for osteria, was born during the pandemic in the former Little Next Door spot. Owners Jocelyn Bulow and Alessandro Iacobelli came to the southland from San Franciso’s acclaimed food scene to bring us pinsa, a pressed dough pizza made from a blend of rice, soy and wheat fl ours. They claim this grain cocktail makes it lower in sugar, fat and calories than the usual wheat crust. Do we care? Only if the taste holds its own, and Oste’s free-form crispy oval discs are very, very good. There are a dozen different pinsas, $17-$25 a pie, including patate with roasted potatoes, raclette cheese and rosemary and an earthy carbonara smothered with guanciale and bacon and topped with a fried egg. The funghi pinsa was covered in salty scamorza cheese and shaved parmesan, garlic, a tangle of mushrooms and drizzled with truffl e oil. We added

(323) 933-8446 • (323) 933-8447 Bakery line Frances@dupars-psr.com In the Original Farmers Market • 3rd & Fairfax Open for Take Out & Delivery

©LC0721 a ball of burrata for $6 because who can resist the offer of burrata? The pie was delicious, the crust just chewy enough and the toppings garlicky with that great forest fl avor mushrooms and truffl e bring. We tried to resist overloading on carbs, but the call of pasta was too strong, and $16 cacio e pepe ended up on our table. This was a very creamy version, but lacked the bite that the very best versions display. Perhaps next time I’ll try the $22 casarecce (short twists of pasta) with bone marrow and mushroom sauce. Oste offers three differently-brothed steamed mussels, featuring tomatoes and olives, garlic and white wine or bacon and shallots, $20-21. Be sure to get extra bread to soak up the savory broths. One of my favorite bites was the $11 fried risotto ball, three to an order, with cheese, black truffl es and truffl e oil. Oozy inside, crunchy outside, heady with truffl es, this might be my favorite appetizer ever. A $14 beet and goat cheese plate was presented as separate piles of the cubed root on dollops of creamy cheese in aged balsamic. Excellent. A simple $14 arugula and cherry tomato salad in white balsamic vinaigrette was unexpectedly satisfying, and it made us feel as though we had a healthy, balanced meal after all.

Oste, 8142 W. 3rd St., 323413-2372.

• • • Although Bludso’s Bar & Que has quality ’cue, I’ve always found it too smoky for my taste — therefore I’m always interested in trying other

On the Menu

by Helene Seifer

joints around town. Recently when a hankering for ribs hit, we headed to Oste’s neighbor, Slab, a small dark restaurant with very limited outdoor seating. Their menu is much scanter than Bludso’s. Beef ribs are only available on Saturday and Sunday, for example, and they lack a vegetarian option or cocktails (they do carry beer), but barbecue basics are covered. They were out of baby back ribs when we went, but the pork ribs satisfi ed. Tender, but with some bite, slathered with a mild tomato-vinegar sauce, I enjoyed my $17 half rack. My husband is more of a brisket guy, so he opted for “The Ooh,” a self-proclaimed amazing roll stuffed with sliced brisket, coleslaw, molten cheese and pickled onions, $16. This smaller-than-expected sandwich was tasty, but did not elicit the expected oohs and aahs. Sides, which ran $5-$8 for the small size, were good. Collard greens were delicious and not too vinegary, an issue with many barbecue restaurants. Coleslaw provided crunch without being drowned in mayonnaise. Potato salad looked like lumpy mashed spuds, but brought the cool, pickle-tinged taste (Please turn to page 22)