07.11.19

PW OPINION PW NEWS PW LIFE PW ARTS
New York Loin
dining & nitelife
directory
Average price per entree
$ up to $10 $$$ $16-25
$$ $11–15 $$$$ $25+
EL PORTAL
695 E. Green St., Pasadena
(626)795-8553
Elportalrestaurant.com $$
Pasadena Weekly readers have been
rewarding El Portal with the title of Best
Mexican Food in the city for years. This
charming little hacienda with brick walls,
festive colors, fine art and a California
elegant courtyard brings the authentic
cuisine of Mexico and the Yucatan region
to your table.
HILL STREET CAFÉ
1004 Foothill Blvd., La Canada Flintridge
818-952-1019 hillstreetcafelacanada.com $$
Hill Street Café is celebrating over 25 years of
serving the community quality meals made of
quality ingridients. we want to thank all of you
who stuck with us during the remodeling process
and we want to welcome back everyone else. in
our recent remodel, we have added an outdoor
patio, a bar and more dining area, we have created
a relaxed ambience with a touch of modern but
still retaining our extensive menu, our friendly
service and most important a family atmosphere.
KABUKI JAPANESE RESTAURANTS
88 W. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena,
(626) 568-9310
3539 E. Foothill Blvd., Pasadena,
(626) 351-8963 kabukirestaurants.com $$
When you walk into a Kabuki you won’t be overwhelmed
with Asian decor and music. What you will
encounter is a casual atmosphere with today’s hottest
music playing, people smiling and our friendly staff
welcoming you through the doors. Look for the Red
Mask. Come eat, drink and have fun!
TOPS WALNUT
1792 E. Walnut St., Pasadena
(626) 584-0244 topsburger.com $
At TOPS on Walnut & Allen, we maintain the original
taste from 60 years ago. My father wanted to create
food as close to homemade as possible. Our primary
goal and focus is on taste, quality, freshness, cleanliness
in our service and experienced staff. Most of
our staff have been with us for more than twenty
years. We invite you to come to TOPS on the corner
of Walnut & Allen and taste the difference! Meet our
staff and experience what quality service should be.
The same quality service that has made us #1.
MARGARITA’S
155 S. Rosemead Blvd., Pasadena
(626) 449-4193 margaritaspasadena.com $$
At Margaritas Mexican Restaurant, our family
has been sharing our authentic Mexican dishes
with the wonderful people of Pasadena since
1977. Guests enter our warm, inviting space and
leave as family -- with plenty of burritos, tortas,
tostadas, fajitas, and more to be had in between!
Our dishes incorporate and pay homage to
the rich flavors of bustling mercados, corner
taquerias, and seaside palapas. So visit us, eat
to your heart's content at our mouthwatering
lunch buffet, sip on a refreshing margarita, and
feel at home.
SHANDONG DUMPLINGS
80 N. Fair Oaks Ave. Pasadena
626-578-9777
227 W. Valley Blvd, 168 A, San Gabriel
626-308-3777 $
Shandong Dumplings is your Reader Recommended
Winner for BEST DUMPLINGS in the
2018 Reader’s Poll! We have been a cornerstone
in the greater Pasadena community and are well
known for our outstanding cuisine, excellent
service and friendly staff. Recognized for our
modern interpretation of classic dishes and
insistence on using only the highest quality,
freshest ingredients. Open for Lunch and Dinner
daily and until 2am Wed-Sat.
TOM'S FAMOUS FAMILY
RESTAURANT
1130 E. Walnut St. Pasadena
626-577-7717 tomsfamous.com $
Please come and enjoy homemade breakfast
lunch and dinner all made from scratch and
FRESH. Nothing is ever served or made from a
can. We pride ourselves as being the cleanest
store with the best quality food and BEST
service in town. Thank you PASADENA!!!!!
ZELO GOURMET PIZZAS
328 E. Foothill Blvd.Arcadia
626-358-8298 myzelopizza.info $$
It’s the cornmeal crust that makes this pizzeria stand
out from the rest. This locally owned establishment’s
signature dish is the fresh, corn, balsamic-marinated,
oven-roasted red onion pie. Zelo Pizzeria has expanded
the dining room to better serve you, so come
in and give Zelo Pizzeria a try.
BRAZILIAN BLOWOUT
stomach. My recommendation: put it on the meat Yoo
takes such pride in. Maybe a dollop on your eggs if
you’re having brunch. Absolutely dip your bread. But
please, eat your beans and rice the way God intended
(which, here, is the way the chef intended): naked.
It being early afternoon during my visit, both
brunch and lunch options were fair game. I opted
for the lunch platter special with Scottish salmon
prepared with Brazilian rub and Gouda cheese.
Though the Gouda’s location on my plate remains
a mystery to me, the salmon arrived piping hot and
expertly prepared. The rub had a subtle sweetness to it
that complimented the fish nicely and offered a mellow
companionship to the almost spicy garlic punch of the
chimichurri. However good it was, though, the fish
was far from being the star of the dish.
Feijoda. Brazilian black beans. The best beans
I have experienced in recent memory. Perhaps
ever. Every bite had a hefty piece of bacon or
hunk of Brazilian sausage and was absolutely
brimming with a whirlwind of spices all dancing
together with sex appeal to rival samba. Really,
these beans are more like a complex stew all their
own than just a side. And you can order them on
their own. And you should. There are actually
tons of delectable add-ons at a diner’s fingertips
here. Golden beets in goat cheese and citrusy
balsamic reduction, seasoned chicken hearts for
the adventurous, hearts of palm modestly dressed
in olive oil and pepper, grilled avocado with
chimichurri to name a few — it would be easy to
build a diverse, flavorful, affordable smorgasbord.
Still, the self-contained balance on my lunch
platter was admirable; each component had
something unique to offer. The salmon was a home
base: safe and succulent and good. The beans (we
covered this) and rice (flavorful from high quality
water, salt, onion, garlic and olive oil) and farofa (a
sort of seasoned, very fine bread crumb) all together
brought a little more excitement and texture. The
collared greens — sauteed just right and bursting
with oniony, garlicky, invitingly bitter flavors — were
there to snap you back from your comfort food
vacation and cleanse the palate for another round.
My date chose from the brunch menu the
picanha steak and eggs, which came with
“buttered home fries,” which sounds unassuming,
but wow was that the undersell of the century.
These potatoes, more scalloped than home-frylike
to me, were intensely delicious. Though they
had the equivalent decadence of pounds upon
pounds of cheese and cream, our waiter assured
us that the indulgent flavors came only from
clarified butter and two varieties of high-quality
salt. People often say they like lobster when, really,
they just like dipping stuff in butter. To me, this
is disrespectful to both butter and lobster. On
the opposite end of the spectrum, these humble
tubers somehow offer up the greatest reverence
to both potatoes and butter. It’s easy to make
fine foods taste good, but it’s hard to make the
common potato a fine food. Cafe Chimichurri did
it and then shrugged it off like it was nothing. Oh,
and the steak and eggs were, of course, excellent,
especially with the chimichurri.
Not only is the food incredible and the staff oh so
friendly and attentive — the prices here are very fair.
It is easy to tell that the ingredients are of very high
quality and the kitchen staff is expert, yet, a couple
mimosas, two meals, lots of pão de queijo (Brazilian
cheesy bread balls) and crostini with chimichurri
only set me back 35 bucks. Plus, we had leftovers.
Speaking of mimosas, never in my life have I seen a
deal as good as Cafe Chimichurri’s $9.95 bottomless
mimosa (classic orange juice or Brazilian style
with pineapple juice). Get there before 1:30 to take
advantage of it.
On my next visit — and there will be a next
visit as I have yet to work my way through the
menu — I will be bringing plenty of friends. We
will require one order of every side dish, maybe a
few extra orders of potatoes and feijoda, perhaps
some Rabanada (Brazilian French toast made
with brioche) and fresh fruit to share. There will
be bottomless mimosas all around: Brazilian or
traditional, I won’t discriminate. I will break the
record for most pão de queijo eaten in one sitting. I
will befriend the wait staff so that when they cater
my wedding, we will all be old chums. In short, I’m
comin’ for ya, Cafe Chimichurri.
A version of this story first appeared in our
June, 14, 2018 edition.
07.11.19 | PASADENA WEEKLY 35