Friday, July 31, 2009

Three Drunken Goats


Alekka’s lovely nona Aleka treated our daughter to a girl’s night out – the movie “Up” and dinner at Twohey’s restaurant in Alhambra – leaving Andreas and me free to enjoy the kind of dinner kids don’t like. Tapas sounded good, and after a little Internet research and discussion of our shared mutual aversion to dressing up (thus eliminating Vertical Wine Bistro in Pasadena) we settled on Three Drunken Goats in Montrose. Really, with a name like that, how could we pass it up?

Montrose is a cute little LA neighborhood that reminds me of Elmwood in Berkeley – not as hip as Elmwood, certainly, but home to a few browse-worthy shops and restaurants. On a Monday night the street was quiet except for the crowd of young locals socializing at Blue Fish’s outdoor tables. Three Drunken Goats itself has a pleasant ambiance with high ceilings, dark wood, and wine-red painted walls. The large dining room is not divided up at all: more suited to a noisy weekend crowd than an intimate dinner, really, but we were enjoying our date night regardless.
I’m not a fan of television in the bar (or anywhere else) and the nuevo-punk background music was a distraction, but the low light was nice and the seating comfortable.

Despite the dearth of custom, our waiter seemed a bit distracted; I suspect he might have been new on the job because our questions seemed to make him nervous and he kept wandering off. Andreas appreciated that he didn’t hover but I think the guy at least ought to have mentioned the evening wine flight offerings without us having to ask (flights are different every night and not listed on the menu).

We started with a sampling of three reds: 2007 Onix Priorat grenache; 2007 Carro Tinto Monastrell-syrah; and a 2006 Martin Berdugo tempranillo. As I’ve said before, I’m no wine expert, but I know what I like, and it’s only fair to mention that I don’t usually like Spanish wines very well. These were no exception. Too fruity, too simple. Of the three I preferred the Onix: less fruity, more complex (I’m pretty predictable that way).

We had decided on a tapas bar in part because neither of us thought we were very hungry, but once we saw the menu our appetites suddenly returned. We really went to town on the small plates, starting off with bacon-wrapped dates stuffed with chorizo and napped with a cream sauce; pulled pork and piquilla with thick country toast; and garlic prawns with pocha beans. The sweet-salty combination of the dates was great; the creamy French-style sauce, while tasty, seemed a little at odds with the oily pork flavors of the dish. That didn’t stop us from soaking up every last bit with some crusty bread (we had to ask for the bread). The pulled pork, alas, was plentiful but watery and bland – I wouldn’t recommend it. Andreas, a true seafood lover, was pleased with the prawns. The pocha beans were clearly from a jar, but I would have been very surprised to find fresh ones as they are a rarity in this country.

Round two… more wine… Andreas ordered a glass of the Martin Berdugo he had enjoyed. I switched to a white that I liked better, a Basque Tatai that was dry and slightly effervescent. We flagged our elusive waiter down and ordered two more items: the lamb chops with mint and the artichoke and goat cheese croquettes. These dishes were delivered to us by an enthusiastic kitchen worker who certainly knew more about the food than the waiter did. This guy would have been a much better salesperson for the menu, but it was pretty evident he likes working with the food. They ran out of the chickpea puree that was supposed to be served with the lamb chops but no matter – the socca cakes with a hint of honey that we had instead were delicious, and the tiny grilled rib chops themselves with the chopped mint sauce were the best thing we had all evening. The croquettes were okay, but the breading and goat cheese overwhelmed the delicate artichoke flavor, and the baby lettuce with bell pepper sauce and berry glaze they were served with were so American that the dish seemed out of place on the otherwise mostly Spanish menu.

For dessert we shared a Queen of Nuts cake (Reine de Saba, for anyone who’s worked their way through Mastering the Art of French Cooking) – very nice, not too sweet, with marmalade to make it more Spanish and a scoop of vanilla ice cream as well.

Prices were a little high for tapas: about 7 or 8 dollars a dish, and 14 or 15 for more substantial items like the lamb. The portions were a bit larger than you often find in a tapas bar but I don’t consider this necessarily a good thing; I would prefer smaller, cheaper plates, so I could order more different items.

If you want to check out Three Drunken Goats, I’d recommend visiting on a busy weekend night. For the best value you could stop in during Happy Hour: from 5 to 7 Monday through Friday, the dates, pulled pork, prawns, croquettes, and also a cheese plate and fried calamari are all on the $5 menu.

Three Drunken Goats 2256 Honolulu, Montrose

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