LA Ritz
Recent Restaurant Roundup

New and exciting in the 'hood is the very recently opened Gingergrass on Glendale Boulevard, across the street from Silver Lake Wine. The latter establishment is a most welcome addition to the neighborhood with a great vibe and modest yet careful selection. Best of all, I don't have to drive across town Du Vin to buy Prosecco anymore! Nevertheless, Du Vin always merits a special trip for our favorite Quincy white and all sorts of French labels and different offerings, especially for when Trader Joe's burn-out sets in. Gingergrass is far from authentic Vietnamese, and yet again enables my laziness. We're long overdue for a SGV trip to hit up some Golden Deli for their famous cha giò and do some other food explorations.

I'll offer my compliments to Gingergrass while I'm in a provincial mindset. The staff was extremely accommodating to the increasingly active Charlotte Pearl, who wreaked havoc and made many friends both inside and outside the restaurant. Kudos to them for running a relatively smooth operation on the first Saturday night when they were slammed with customers. We also serendipitously ran into family friends and all had dinner together, which was a great surprise. This not being Westminster and the decor being more along the lines of Pottery Barn simple composite Asian chic, food expectations must be adjusted. Gingergrass' menu takes somewhat of the pan-Asian route, opting for all-English instead of any use of Vietnamese whatsoever. Perhaps this approach is more honest, given the presence of items such as avocado and modified aioli as well as the lack of adherence to a strict culinary tradition. The "noodle bowl" with beef (AKA Bun) and variations on Goi cuôn were fresh and flavorful

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