Cafe Stella, Silverlake

Cafe Stella ($$$$$)
French

3932 W Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles 90029
Btwn Sanborn Ave & Hyperion Ave

Phone: 323-666-0265

I took my friend Blondie for a birthday dinner last night. While I've read a lot of people's reviews (many of them not so flattering, mind you) of Cafe Stella in Silverlake, I had to try it for myself. Since we were already at Birdy Bar close by, we walked the couple blocks between drinks to get a meal.

It was about 7:30 on a Sunday night. We walked in and the hostess asked us if we had a reservation. Said, no, and she said that they really were booked and a table may take upwards of an hour. But, they do have a no res bar section that we were welcome to where they did serve the entire menu. Ok, no prob. I like sitting at the bar anyways. Belly up to the corner of the bar, and a very nice lady said that her friend's late, so we could borrow the extra stool we had until she got there. Actually, not too bad a start.

A couple glasses of wine (Zin for me... Pinot for Blondie), and an order of Steak Tartare go in. While it took forever for even the appetizer to come (I counted over an hour), the ambiance was fine, and I was with good company, so I didn't really mind. Definitely not somewhere you want to go if you're in a rush.

When the tartare finally came, I tried it, and was definitely pleasantly surprised. It was creamy and not too overly spiced, and I could actually taste the quality of the meat itself. It was simple and delicious. Second only to the Kobe Tartare I had at Tom Colicchio's craftSteak a while back. So far, I was enjoying good company and the food was fine.

Again, the wait was long, but when the entrées came, I was definitely pleasantly surprised. I had Skate served in an olive brown butter, and Blondie had pork chops with a dijon dipping sauce. Both dishes were simple but extremely competently executed. The skate was crispy on the outside and moist on the inside, and flaked perfectly. The pork chop was well rested, juicy, and hot all the way through. Wonderful.

We had another couple glasses of wine and chatted with the bartender (very nice guy), and paid up and left. Cafe Stella is definitely not an "everyday" restaurant given the rather high prices (two glasses of wine each, one app, two entrees, 130 +tax/tip), but I'd definitely recommend it for a date or an occasion. I've eaten at many bistros in the States, and it stacks up as a good authentic recreation thereof. It's got a sort of "gathering house" feeling which is nice, and unlike the experiences of others who've posted reviews on Zagat's and Yelp, I found the service to be good, and not at all "rude." The only complaint I had was again, the time it took for our food to come out. Still, the staff was accommodating enough to make sure that we had enough bread to keep up happy, and even let us try a taste of wine before ordering the glass. If you decide to go, make sure to make a reservation -- I bet that the service would be quicker at a table rather than at the bar.

I'm trying something new with my reviews. I'm going to start posting "inspired by" recipes. This may be my take on something I had, or just something that I was inspired to create on my own with the theme of the restaurant in mind. It's sort of a mini-game for me to play, and you guys to be able to play along with if you want.

So... Café Stella inspired me to make...

Rib Eye Steak with Porcini Bordelaise and Frites Trufées

2 Servings

One Rib Eye Steak per person, cut 1.5 inches thick
1 8oz. tub duck fat (available at gourmet markets including Whole Foods)

Sauce:
1/2 bottle good bold red wine such as a Cabernet, Shiraz/Syrah, or Zinfandel
1 oz. dried porcini mushrooms reconstituted in 1 cup warmed red wine and chopped fine
2 medium shallots, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 Tbls prepared beef or veal demi-glace
1 small handful of chopped Italian Parsley
1 Tbls unsalted butter, room temperature
salt and black pepper to taste

Potatoes:
2 large Russet potatoes, cut into steak fries, and then soaked in water for 30 minutes
3 Tbls unsalted butter
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Drizzle black truffle oil

Remove steaks from fridge and pat dry, and let come up to room temperature, about an hour.

Preheat a heavy skillet on high heat to sear the steaks well. I like to heat an oven to 500º F and place a heavy cast iron skillet in there for 10 minutes, then blast it for another 5 on high heat on the stove top. This will make a huge difference in the crust that forms.

Meanwhile, melt the entire tub of duck fat in a pot wide enough to hold both steaks but not too wide that they'll be sitting in shallow fat. Once the entire tub is rendered down, leave on very low heat... you should just see a bubble every now and then.

Salt and Pepper the steaks, then add fat to the pan and sear 2-3 minutes per side without moving so a good crust forms. Take the seared steaks out of the pan and submerge in the warm duck fat. Remove fat from heat, and let steaks rest there. About 25 minutes will give you a rare steak (for a 1.5 inch thick cut), and 35 will be closer to medium. To ensure correct temperature, just use an instant read thermometer -- 120º for rare, 125º for medium-rare. Because the meat is resting in warmed fat, it will forgive a little more than if you were heating the meat directly. Just let the meat sit for a couple minutes before serving.

While the steaks are resting, prepare the sauce. In a sauce pan, melt 1 Tbls butter and add the shallots and garlic. Sweat them over medium heat until translucent. Add in the wine, the reconstituted porcinis and their soaking liquid as well as the demi-glace. Reduce by about half, and adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper. Finally, mount the sauce with the remaining butter until shiny. Add in the chopped parsley just before serving.

Frites:

Dry the soaking potatoes very well. Heat oil to 325º F and fry until cooked through. They should be a pale color at this point. Remove frites from the oil and raise the temperature to 375-400º F and fry a second time to get a crispy crust. Drain, then toss in a pan with melted butter and drizzle of truffle oil. Salt to taste.

Serve the steak and fries with the sauce.

Happy Eating!