Author Archives: foodgal

Italian Venchi Chocolates Debut Two New Flavors

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Sampler box of Venchi Cocovair bonbons.
Sampler box of Venchi Cocovair bonbons.

Just in time for the start of the major holidays, Italian chocolate maker, Venchi, has added two new flavors to its popular line of individually wrapped Chocoviar bonbons.

This company has been in business since 1878, when founder Silviano Venchi bought two bronze cauldrons and started crafting chocolates to sell in his small shop in Turin when he was all of 20 years old.

Venchi has since expanded into gelato, too. It sports shops worldwide, including in New York, London, Hong Kong, Buenos Aires, and Dubai. There’s even one at Westfield Valley Fair in Santa Clara.

Unwrapping the Chocovair chocolates.
Unwrapping the Chocovair chocolates.

I had a chance to try samples of the staple Chocoviar flavors, as well as the two new ones. Wrapped in foil, each one is enrobed in both a chocolate shell and either fine chocolate grains or toffee pieces.

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Kat Lieu’s Bodacious Black Sesame-White Chocolate Cookies

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Black sesame paste plus black sesame seeds give these cookies a deep nutty taste.
Black sesame paste plus black sesame seeds give these cookies a deep nutty taste.

What’s black and white — and delicious all over?

These “Black Sesame-White Chocolate Cookies” by Kat Lieu.

It’s from her new “108 Asian Cookies” (Little, Brown & Company), of which I received a review copy. Based in Washington State, Lieu is a food writer, recipe developer, and founder of Subtle Asian Baking, the global online group focused on spreading the deliciousness of Asian baking, and fundraising for Asian American and Pacific Islander communities.

Born in Canada to a Chinese mother from Hong Kong and a Chinese Vietnamese father from Vietnam, she readily admits that she didn’t even baker her first cookie from scratch until 5 years ago. The former doctor of physical therapy found herself embarking on a baking spree that year as a way to heal from the sorrow of her father’s death.

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Eva Longoria’s Comforting Tex-Mex Chili Enchiladas

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Cheesy, beefy, soul-satisfying enchiladas.
Cheesy, beefy, soul-satisfying enchiladas.

It would be impossible to completely fill the void that the late-great Anthony Bourdain left, but I will say that I am a huge fan of Eva Longoria’s CNN series, “Searching for Mexico” and “Searching for Spain.”

She may lack his unbridled snark and bravado, but she brings warmth, compassion, and enthusiasm in spades. And no shade to Stanley Tucci in his Italy series on CNN and National Geographic, but Longoria does a far better job of actually describing the food on her shows that she’s lucky enough to enjoy.

It’s that same type of exuberance and down-to-earth charm that permeates her cookbook, “My Mexican Kitchen” (Clarkson Potter, 2024), of which I received a review copy.

The actor, director, and producer of Mexican heritage grew up in Corpus Christi, Texas. In fact, she often identifies herself as “Texican.” She now splits her time between Mexico and Spain.

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Dining in Los Angeles, Part II: The Astonishing Michelin Three-Starred Somni

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A pizza Margherita that will leave you dumbstruck at Somni.
A pizza Margherita that will leave you dumbstruck at Somni.

The first time I ever dined at the French Laundry in Yountville was a seminal experience, one punctuated by a whirlwind of wee dishes that somehow possessed such outsized, intense flavors that they left me feeling as if I were tasting food for the very first time.

Earlier this month at Somni, I relived that same type of vivid, jolting excitement — but with even more whimsy, humor, and daring.

No wonder this Los Angeles restaurant garnered three Michelin stars this year practically right out of the gate after opening in November 2024.

To be fair, Somni’s original incarnation that opened in Beverly Hills in 2018 had already earned two Michelin stars before it was forced to close when the pandemic hit, the same week it would have celebrated not only its second anniversary, but Chef-Owner Aitor Zabala’s birthday.

The unassuming entrance.
The unassuming entrance.
The courtyard behind the gate, where the meal begins.
The courtyard behind the gate, where the meal begins.
The giraffe sculpture at the front.
The giraffe sculpture at the front.
A welcome note.
A welcome note.

After hunting high and low, he found the ideal space in West Hollywood to relocate in what was previously a Donna Karan store and a former music studio frequented by Jennifer Lopez.

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Dining in Los Angeles, Part I: Splendid Italian Cuisine at Bestia

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The fantastic Margherita at Bestia.
The fantastic Margherita at Bestia.

A server who traded Southern California for Northern California recently remarked to me that they like their restaurants loud in Los Angeles.

He wasn’t kidding.

Having dined at Bavel in Los Angeles two years ago, and its sister restaurant Bestia in Los Angeles a couple weeks ago, I can concur, as these are among the noisiest restaurants where I’ve ever dined. We’re talking a volume where you need to practically shout at your dining companion across the table to be heard. Dine outside at either establishment though, and you will fare a bit better, as the clamor will still be high, but more manageable.

Even so, I will gladly put up with the din to enjoy the superlative Middle Eastern specialties at Bavel, and the exceptional Italian fare at Bestia.

It's always loud and crowded at Bestia.
It’s always loud and crowded at Bestia.

Both restaurants are owned by Chef Ori Menashe and his Pastry Chef wife Genevieve Gergis. They opened Bestia in 2012, followed by Bavel in 2018, and their very casual Saffy’s in 2022.

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