union

old pasadena really needed an upgrade. now i have a reason to drive out there! the spaghetti and cauliflower were the highlights of the evening. i don't really remember the rest, but need to go back and try the rest of the menu!

union is a small, farmer's market to table style restaurant in old town pasadena, california. chef bruce kalman was the winner of chopped (season 13) on the food network. he is an expert with charcuterie, pickled/ fermented foods, and fresh pasta. his cuisine is diverse but generally northern italian and mediterranean.

the food was generally good and flavorful. the portions were small. 5 tortililins for 24 bucks. you need to order two dishes each to fill up so that is $55 each. noisy and tight. waiters were good.

wild mushroom with polenta and truffle butter - must have!

it is a quaint small place with the nicest food ever! the wild mushroom with truffle and polenta is decadent. we ordered one and then ordered one more, just because it is that good. great wine list. can get quite crowded, even on a weeknight.

i had expressed to duc one day that it had been years since i had ventured to downtown pasadena so in an effort to re-expose me to the wonder that is the street of colorado blvd and its offerings, he set aside a walking plan for us both which included an early dinner stop at a restaurant whose name he didn't want to reveal to me. that restaurant turned out to be union which is a sweet 50-seat modern take on northern italian cuisine combined with the power of sourcing ingredients locally and responsibly. the seasonality of the menu reflected the nuances of californian cuisine and produce as transposed on what would be classically northern italian food. i for one am a big fan of both styles so was pleasantly surprised not only with the intimate but chic decor inside but also the food and service.

following bruce kalman on twitter and facebook for months while watching the menu at union evolve each week to accommodate whatever was found fresh amongst southern california’s bounty of farmer’s markets it was finally on a monday evening that three of us sat down at the end of the bar in pasadena, the chef himself in house overseeing the kitchen amidst a travel schedule that had recently seen him bounce from coast to coast.

impossible to get into unless you are "somebody

walking in, it’s a causal atmosphere, but nice. union is an ideal first date kind of a restaurant. you can saunter off to the side, and have a seat by the window, overlooking — you guessed it, union street — or you can slide up to the bar, and watch the crew do their thing.

and the crew, let me tell you about the crew. they’re friendly. they’re dedicated. they’re...

...they’re really into alice waters.

sigh. really?

seriously, look at the walls. i counted at least two tributes to alice waters in the display on the wall. that’s two more than most restaurants.

they recently launched their lunch menu … …which you can take to go… …but once i saw their adorable space, i decided to stay/eat at the bar.

juli land. amazing, delightful, important, & fun!