taking a bite out of ludo

Ludo Bites @ The Breadbar
8718 W 3rd St.
Los Angeles, CA 90048
(310) 205-0124
www.ludolefebvre.com/ludo-bites/

price: $$$
verdict: omg, i love it!

when i took a bite out of ludo lefebvre at ludo bites this past saturday, i found him a tad stringy without much meat on his bones. the hairs on his arms tickled my throat as it went down towards my digestive tract, but this french talking entree was a bit saucy so i liked him a lot. hi ludo! sign my left booby!

oh boy was i excited to try ludo bites! i've seen ludo on top chef masters and expected a tempermental frenchie, but he was a rather gracious host. i also expected a menu full of delicious bites because sook of yutjangsah sells him like crack and it was pretty crack-like. what an adventure for my belly! my three friends and i couldn't stop eating and wished some of the bites were more like ludo shovels-of-food. perhaps ludo needs to consider this "shovel" option for his heifer-like patrons.

the happy belly journey started with bread and a lavender honey butter. um, delicious. the butter lacked the soapy taste that one usually gets from lavender inspired foods. i can probably smear this on YOU sexy and happily lick it off. it was goot.

we started our first real bites with the hawaiian tuna, with white chocolate, and thai jalapenos ($15 + $5 so our fourth friend can get a bite too). WOW. what a wonderfully soft piece of tuna that was and the chocolate slivers on top provided a wonderful sweet contrast to the pungent sesame oil.

the green beans salad, with peach, young coconut, apple, horseradish and lemongrass ($9). FREAKIN' WOW. one of my favorite dishes of the night. i LOVE the taste of "greeness" in the green beans because this dish celebrated what mother nature has to offer without molesting its birth right. the horseradish dallop on top was subtle and the sweetness from the peach and apple slices gave a sweet contrast to the savoriness of the dressing.

lobster tart with vadouvan butter ($14). lovely lobster meat in a puff pastry shell. i'm quite sure this dish alone was responsible for popping a button off my shirt.

boudin noir ($10) which is creamy blood pudding with a side of potato puree. i thought the dish was very subtle in taste because you did not taste the tinniness that usually comes from animal blood. i know my blood alright, being asian and part vampire. i cannot tell this was a blood pudding at all but my other three friends were not wild about it. it was aight.

roadkill. where's the body?

grilled duck breast with a leeks salad, ginger, capers, and truffle slivers ($22). HOLY SHIT. there is something undeniably righteous about duck fat and this duck sure had some junk in its trunk. although i am sad that it's dead and on my plate, its life was well honored by ludo. i loved the tartness from the sauce as well and this dish was easily the superstar of the night.

beef short ribs with smoked eggplant and goat cheese ($18). wonderfully cooked short ribs that fell apart when you forked it. though the goat cheese side was meant to only be the bridesmaid at this ceremonious occasion on my dish, it clearly was my favorite part. there was a nice creaminess to the cheese with slivers of raw cauliflower on top to add textural contrast. i could have eaten that forever.

creamy oxtail polenta with cantal cheese and black truffle ($14). my second favorite dish of the night. it's reminiscent of a savory, cheesy cream of wheat with a lovely hidden suprise of oxtail meat at the bottom. although this bowl alone may clog your arteries, how lovely would it be to have a bowlful on a cold winter day. lovely.

then we wrapped dinner up with two desserts. creme fraiche panna cotta with a caramel sauce and caviar ($15). suprisingly tasty since i don't normally enjoy caviar. i think the dark caramel with its almost burnt-like taste masked the otherwise fishiness of the caviar. it is an awfully small dessert but it packed a punch. a taste was all i really needed.

and last but not least, the peach in curry and mascarpone foam ($10). this dish was suprisingly good even though you can clearly taste the curry in it. the only sweet aspect is the ripe peach slices so in many ways, it was a savory dish masquerading as a dessert. everybody at the table enjoyed this as well.

lovely. a curry mascarpone lava erupting from the peach slice.

this belly journey hosted by ludo was indeed delicious and full of suprises for my tongue. thanks ludo for your delicious bites and although you will bid farewell to the breadbar at the end of august, i'm pretty confident you will pop up somewhere soon. i will be on the lookout for you and your french looking roosters.