Fifth Anniversary: Top 5 Meals of the Blog Year

11/28/14

Today makes five years that this blog’s been active. Woot! Time has really flown by; five years feels like something of an accomplishment and I’m happy to cross this mark.

This past year saw me traveling abroad twice after staying in the country in 2013. Trips to Taiwan and Europe made for some of the most memorable experiences and meals and will surely make an appearance on this post. However, I did have some great meals in LA and some of those experiences will make the list too.

As for I’ve done for each of the last four anniversaries, I’ll recount the top 5 meals of the past 365 days.

5. Carnevino (Las Vegas, NV) – 6/28/14

bistecca fiorentina

When it comes to really pigging out, I’m a meat and potatoes guy at heart. Carnevino was the best steakhouse meal I had in the past year (by far) and ranks in the top echelons of steakhouses that I’ve been to. The 90-day aged Florentine steak (above) and ribeye were fantastic cuts, with starters and side dishes to match.

4. L’Arpege (Paris, France) – 10/27/14

beet tartare, horseradish, quail egg

This will undoubtedly be one of the most memorable meals of the past year due to the history and prominence of the restaurant and the fact that I’ve been wanting to try it for so damn long. L’Arpege put together some of the most interesting and unique vegetable-focused dishes I’ve ever had.

3. Yamakase (Los Angeles, CA) – 4/8/14

japanese hairy crab

Yamakase presented as much of a show as a meal, watching one man almost single-handedly put together our 20+ course meal. The dinner was delicious, almost overloading on uni, toro, crab and truffle…as if it was possible.

2. L’Astrance (Paris, France) – 10/28/14

langoustine in its broth with seasonal vegetables

I had some of the best food on our European trip here with flawlessly executed modern French cuisine accented by a number of Asian flavors. Probably gets some extra sentimental value also being the last real meal in Europe.

1. Restaurant Gordon Ramsay (London, UK) – 10/17/14

ravioli of lobster, langoustine and salmon

From the delicious food to strong service to the kitchen tour, this meal was the complete package. The above raviolo made for some of the best bites of the trip, let alone the year.

Thank you to everyone that’s stopped by in the past year! Here’s to an even better next year. Below, some of the meals that just missed the cut.

Honorable mention (in chronological order):
Providence (Los Angeles, CA) – 1/16/14
Melisse (Santa Monica, CA) – 1/24/14
Din Tai Fung (Taipei, Taiwan) – 2/6/14, 2/10/14
Bestia (Los Angeles, CA) – 6/21/14, 8/1/14 and 10/10/14
n/naka (Los Angeles, CA) – 7/15/14
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal (London, UK) – 10/16/14
L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon (Paris, France) – 10/28/14

Previous Anniversary Posts:

First Anniversary | Second Anniversary | Third Anniversary | Fourth Anniversary