Beacon: Or Kimchi Goes on Everything

I went to Beacon last night for a friend’s birthday.  Although my friend and I had decided on what we were going to order a week ago, when we saw these lamb sliders, we knew we had to try them.

She had rejected my request to try the kimchi fried rice (Beacon makes theirs with brown rice and she thought it was blasphemous). So, I got my litle bit of kimchi fix in these sliders.

They were good though perhaps a bit dry. They are even smaller than regular sliders so I can see how hard it would be to control how well they’re cooked.

 

The fried oysters (kaki fry) were very good. Were they better than Tar Pit‘s? Well, they were pretty close. I suppose the sauce is better at Tar Pit and of course, presenting them in the shell is an automatic upgrade (and spike in price).

There are a few things in life that are certain. Minty will order short ribs.

The birthday girl originally wanted pad thai but saw they had this great mushroom-y angel hair pasta dish. I loved the pine nuts in it.

Why is miso so good? Well, it’s an umami flavor bomb. Paired with the flaky cod, it’s almost always a safe bet at any Japanese/ Japanese inspired/ Japanese fusion restaurant.

And no birthday is complete without birthday cake! Although I wanted to try the budino (well, Beacon called it the butterscotch pudding), I of course had to go with the birthday girl wishes. She made an excellent choice. The chocolate was was light and fluffy and I really liked the ice cream.

It was a bit surreal to be sitting in Beacon last night when I remember years ago they had rejected my walk-in. They were a hot, hot, hot restaurant back in the day and last night sitting in a half-empty restaurant (and I did actually make reservations), it made me realize how fickle the LA dining scene is.

Overall, I’d go back again though in this Helms complex, I prefer the French restaurant, La Dijonaise and if I had time to spare, Father’s Office.

Beacon – 3280 Helms Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90034-3210 – (310) 838-7500