food hound: tidbits - left coast kitchen (merrick, new york). food hounds... if i died tomorrow; it could be said in my obituary that i saw the light at this unbelievable gastro-pub in merrick, new york called left coast kitchen! seriously, i couldn't express in words how fantastic of an experience this place was. since this tidbit was taking place on 'national take your daughter to work day,' my daughter came along for the ride with ole' brim, etan wish and luscious! never before have i witnessed a restaurant that every platter is more over-the-top than the last... don't worry though; we wanted it that way. to be quite honest, lck has a wide variety of different meals for any appetite, so don't be frightened by the delectable pieces of art of which i am going to speak of in this review. first thoughts walking through the door is it is similar to that of a small english pub; old school and modern all in one with a bar that spans the entire length of the room. very warm and inviting, you could easily pop in for a drink after a long day, or enjoy an epic bar crawl with a group of friends without actually leaving your seat! stepping further into the back you'll find the restaurant area which is actually a very quaint, comfortable eatery with a fantastic vibe. the staff is very hospitable as we literally had drinks in our hands as we sat down. creative and interesting to say the least, the food hounds embarked on a journey into the unbelievably awesome... a spot that after this experience launched its way into the top ten list in hound history... a feat that isn't easy to do!
as mentioned earlier, we sampled a few of their specialty drinks including the wu tang cran which boasted the taste somewhat of a cranberry soda as it was fruity; however be careful how many chambers you go through - this is certainly a drink where the alcohol creeps up on you! the bloody barcelona, a tall drink with a stalk of celery in it happened to be very refreshing. a daytime drink with cucumber vodka was like drinking an alcohol based salad. the curiosity of the boys brought us to the fruli, a very fruity, crisp and refreshing strawberry ale that was beyond tasty! it is a belgium white ale brewed with various spices that has become so popular that fan sites have been popping up from around the world in support of this stuff. another something different about lck is that they bring you a small metal pail of quite possibly the best popcorn that i've ever tasted... a cinnamon popcorn with white truffle oil and butter -yum! kudos in keeping it extraordinary people - loving it! now i must say, the theme of our meal should have been eat big or go home; because everything is portioned to feed an army!
the food... as george takei would say, "oh my..." chef chris has gone above and beyond to create some of the incomparable staples. many of the dishes actually utilize one of his personal favorites, apple cider which is apparent in some; but only hinted in others. one example is the coleslaw (which he admitted was his mother-in-law's recipe) - included a blend of apple cider vinegar, shredded onions and all the other little goodies that lay within this new twist on slaw. as for the french onion chowder... pure stroke of genius! i broke into the small crock-pot that was set in front of me in order to taste what i thought was french onion soup; i was taken by the aroma, flavor and what seemed... simplicity in this soup. looks can be deceiving; i didn't realize that this special bowl of soup was actually layered and what lay below was uber-incredible bacon potato chowder! separate they were intense; but together... orgasmic. the chowder was chunky and bursting with the blend of bacon and potato that is oh so good, while the french onion was sweet, tasty and remained steaming hot under the blanket of fresh mozzarella. win.
ok, so before i continue, i want to ensure the readers that the menu is subject to change at any time; except for the staple dishes that the repeat offenders know and love. also, keep in mind; just because they utilize bacon in a lot of the stuff we may be reviewing… they certainly do not use our friend the pig as a crutch – trust me, this chef has more tricks up his sleeve than harry houdini! let us describe the buffalo turkey wings… no, not chicken… turkey! i’ve got to admit that we had our reservations, until that is we bit into them. wow… aside from the familiar aroma of the sauce de la buffalo; these suckers put the largest of the chicken wings we’ve had to shame. these babies are glazed and braised for twelve hours until ready to be devoured. the skin is crispy and insanely tasty while the turkey is succulent and spicy – fantastic flavor! once and awhile sauce isn’t needed; however an honorable mention goes out to the home made bleu cheese that was chunky and delish!
the classic lobster roll was huge, sporting hefty chunks of fresh lobster tossed with herbs and spices on a toasted brioche bun. it was hard to figure out the best way to attack this baby as the portion was meant for a giant! we enjoyed this item thoroughly and wanted to note that the old bay mayo accentuated the natural flavor of the lobster as opposed to hindering it. to make this dish even better, it came with that awesome slaw and none other than homemade potato chips that were crispy and yummy! our curiosity again got the better of us and we asked to sample something off their breakfast menu (yes, they serve breakfast as well). maple mesquite sweet potato tots (yes please) which were like a full breakfast in one bite - delish! the lck burger was ridiculously impressive… two four ounce angus burgers (eight ounces in total) laid side to side and nestled on an onion brioche slathered in a comfy bed of that awesome slaw and caramelized onions! wait… there’s more! bacon… who could ever forget bacon?!? the description is spot on and i refuse to change it as its perfect, “beefy, oniony, cheesy, bacony and such.” accompanying this masterpiece (enter applause here) were the slammin’ hand cut fries; thick, seasoned, crispy and unbelievable.
here it is, the big daddy of them all... ‘more long than short rib.’ i damn near almost cried… braised for twelve hours to create the most beautiful win ever. mind you, this rib is about a foot and a half long with fall off the bone meat that literally melts in your mouth! just picture yourself sitting down for a meal with fred and wilma as this looks like something right out of the flinstones. this thing is so huge and so amazing that i could gush about it for hours… tender and plentiful, the meat was unreal and the gravy was light and flavorful. they couldn’t leave well enough alone… this epic meal is served with loaded deep fried potatoes… crispy full potato halves, fried on the outside, moist on the inside and insanely good! cheese, real bacon, chives and sour cream. unexplainable how happy this platter made me. i’ll be thinking about it for a long time to come.
then there was dessert. the ‘tower of power’ as described is a death defying stack of sweets and baked goods featuring ny cupcakery cupcakes. holy cow! let’s just say a two foot skewer, mounted on a base and then bombarded with more sugar than you could shake a stick at! there was so much on this gem that i’ll give you a rundown of some favorites… the red velvet cupcake was moist and incredible, the oreo cupcake love was unreal - moist and chocolaty, soft and chewy (the way i love them) oatmeal raisin and chocolate chip cookies, fresh and juicy strawberries, fluffy pound cake, and the brownie… decadent – chocolaty, chewy and rich with flavor! what an amazing experience had at the left coast kitchen; we were left very impressed and very full! we highly recommended lck for anyone looking for a new favorite place.