A.O.C. - as good as ever

Everyone I know in Los Angeles has been to A.O.C. by now, which was my favorite restaurant for 3 years running. (I may have made them go there, come to think of it...) However, of late, I started to think it had been falling off a bit - perhaps due to the opening of a 4th restaurant by Suzanne Goin (and her husband David), the Hungry Cat in Santa Barbara. We therefore had started to go less frequently in the last 6 mos. I went in May though, and discovered it is just as good as ever.

We started the evening with a couple glasses of rose, while we waited to be seated at the charcuterie bar, which is by far my favorite way to dine at AOC. Because it was a holiday weekend, we only had to wait a few minutes (unheard of on a Sat. night). Once we were seated, we were served some bread, olives and romesco sauce.

I find that Suzanne makes very simple dishes taste exceptionally good, so I tend to order 1-2 salads and 1-2 fish dishes each time I am there.

Schaner farm citrus, avocado and green olives
I fell in love with this simple salad a few months ago, and sadly, the two previous times I have ordered it, it was not as good as the prior visits. The last time the kitchen forgot the green olives, so that explains that. This time, I felt the proportions were off - too much citrus, not enough avocado and olives. When I ate the proper quantity of each, it made for a great bite. However, the overuse of the citrus left me feeling like I was eating a fruit salad, which was definitely not the case before. If the kitchen prepares this correctly, it can be wonderful.

Fava fattoush with fried pita and labneh

Santorini on a plate! Seriously, eating this dish transported me to the shores of Greece. Suzanne's bread-and-butter is Mediterranean food, and you are reminded of that in eating this dish. The fava beans were perfectly cooked, and the yogurt balls along with bits of fried pita made for a wonderful combination of textures as well as flavors. I hope this stays on the menu for a while.

Squid salad, white beans and green harissa

One of my new favorites - we have had this a few times though the presentation differs. It just seems to get better and better if that is possible. The beans were lovely, but the squid is definitely the star here. One of the best squid preparations (this is served cold) I have had in recent memory--very tender. A don't miss dish.

Fried oysters, celery root and cayenne aïoli
Also a dish I have had a couple of times before but really enjoy. Being a huge oyster lover, I find sometimes when restaurants fry them, the taste of each oyster is lost and overwhelmed by their preparation. Not these - the accompaniments complement the flavors nicely but do not in any way overshadow the main attraction--the oyster itself of course. These were perfectly prepared. We had a Sancerre with these.

Chicken liver crostini

We get this almost every time we go, and I always love it. The crostini on this visit was not quite as good as usual - the kitchen was a tad stingy with the pate and it didn't taste as fresh as usual, but it was still very good.

12-hour pork belly, mojo criollo and avocado
oh WOW. I have never had pork belly that was so meaty (as opposed to fatty). Probably the best pork belly - just in terms of the meat itself - I have had the pleasure of eating. The beans and avocado gave it a Cuban feel but not overly so. I hope this stays around for a bit. We paired this with a Petit Meuniere and the Flowers Pinot/Syrah. Both very good.

For dessert, we tried the lemon pot de creme (?) with blueberries.

It was creamy and not overly heavy. We enjoyed it - simple but not boring. Not the best dessert I have had recently, but definitely very good.

We finished with cappuccinos and left extremely happy that AOC remains the way we remembered it - fabulous. I remain convinced that you have a better dining experience at the charcuterie bar than at a regular table. Despite the fact the menu is all small plates, I also prefer to go just with one person. If I go w/ another couple, we rarely order 2 of each dish, and then no one has more than a bite of each. (The obvious way to remedy that is to order 2 of most all dishes - the amazingly decadent brioche w/ proscuitto, gruyere and egg being the exception).

Location: AOC is on W 3rd St. between Crescent Heights and Fairfax.
Website: www.aocwinebar.com