this is not a pop – up

New Change of Venue:
Came to Villains Tavern for a special event sponsored by «this is not a pop-​up» which specializes in getting leading edge chefs around Southern California to cook for a short length of time to show off their culinary skills & imagination. The theme of the AYCE was Louisiana Crawfish Boil with sides such as sweet corn bread, dirty rice, grits with sauteed mushrooms, red beans with pork belly, French fries with Cajun seasoning. The boiled crawfish & sweet corn boil in the spice mix were great… very close to what you would find in West Feliciana Parrish in Southern Louisiana.
The Louisiana style Crawfish Boil spice mix is full of powdered spicy hot red chiles, garlic, probably allspice, cloves, cinnamon, etc which creates a complex, totally satisfying complement to the crawfish as well as accentuating the contrast of the sweet, fresh corn to the heat of the chiles. Mexicans, I’m sure, can relate to this by sprinkling on dried chile powder called «Pico de Gallo» on their boiled corn cob.
To pair with this feast, I decided to get a truly exotic concoction which I saw previously being made for another customer. The drink, I found out, was named after Loki, the God of Mischief in the pantheon of Germanic/​Nordic Gods. Loki was a trouble maker and could sometimes fool even Odin/​Wodin, the King of the Gods, into doing something that could adversely affect mortals as well as the Gods.
Loki was a mixture of various infusions such as honey peach, various citrus flavours, liquers, angostura bitters as a finishing touch. Of course, the bartender was rather vague about the ingredients since some of these cocktails are proprietary secrets of the house. The Bar-​T put a snow come of crushed ice so it looked like a cold volcano & added more Angostura Bitters as a coloring on top. He garnished with a single grey-​green leaf of Sage.
Loki was more like an herbal, citrus fruit driven tonic with sweet bitterness. It is certainly a thirst quencher for a hot summer, early fall afternoon. To top it off, it was happy hour prices so I got $ 2 taken off so that it cost $ 11. Not cheap, but with all the work needed to make the infusions, the price was justified. It was perfect in putting out the heat of the chiles in the Louisiana Spice Mix, and it was a good palate cleanser between bites of the spicy Cajun/​Creole Louisiana cuisine.
The mood at Villains Tavern is noir, lugubrious, brooding even on a bright afternoon, warm sunny day. In the dead of night, it would seem to be the ideal venue for the nosferatu’s, vampires, & the undead to congregate into the wee hours of the dark, dark night. Be sure to wear a garland of garlic around your neck & carry a gun with only silver bullets, and that may still not be enough.

great concept, reasonable prices, interesting and delicious food, no corkage fee – how could you go wrong?

Went when chefs from Seoul Kitchen and Phorage were cooking. Food was excellent. Atmosphere in the espresso bar was too bright, but otherwise enjoyed it.

Great experience in a café setting. I went when CJ was cooking and the food was delicious and adventurous without being strange. Overall this was a mellow evening. Recommended.

I absolutely love the concept behind This Is Not A Pop-​Up and it’s so great that Helen and Helena are out there making it happen!
There are so many chefs out there with fantastic ideas and menus that they’re not able to create in their current kitchens and it’s refreshing that they have a chance to dream up their wildest dreams in this forum. While there are things that sometimes work and sometimes don’t, it’s that challenge of creating something new and experimenting with flavors and combinations that is the birthplace of the extraordinary…
I applaud what these girls are trying to do and I have to say I’ve already had some fantastic meals come out of their kitchen!

This Is Not A Pop-​Up makes me feel like I’m on Iron Chef or something, being served awesome, magical combinations of food.
Came to this location for Chef CJ Jacobson «Sea Change». Phenomenal! I also tried ft. Chef Bruce Kalman (another location)
– Bruce Kalman’s:
*Amuse (House Cured Meats, Pickles & Mostarda): Such a fancy assortment! The mostarda and pickled cauliflower were amazing
*Tortelloni en Brodo (wild mushroom, chestnuts, smoked ricotta, parmesan broth): THAT PARMESAN BROTH. AND THEM MUSHROOMS. Goodness… delicious, earthy goodness.
*Egg Yolk Tortelli (Maggie’s Farm greens, lamb bacon, baby arthicoke, goat feta): I loved the presentation and experience of eating this dish! The one giant tortellini was served by itself like an egg and when you broke into the filled-​center yolky goodness. it was like the tortellini was the egg. meta. haha
*Squid Ink Garganelli (Maine Lobster, confit of leeks & fennel, Marco’s black truffle butter): This was probably my favorite. I LOVE lobster and the depth of the black truffle butter. oh baby! But I think the confit of leeks & fennel is the secret sauce to this dish. Yum
*Gnocchi Alla Romana: mosefund farms Mangalista pork belly, clams, pea tendrils: Loved the seasoning on the pork belly. slighty sweet, smoky and salty all at the same time.
*Apple Bacon Upside Down Cake (bourbon glaze, sage, smoked almond brittle): One of the top 3 desserts I’ve ever had in my life. Even the whipped cream was phenomenal! The Smoked Almond Brittle, that is all! This dessert was a balance of sweet & salty.
–Sea Change: So innovative. While the food wasn’t as «tasty» and «filling» but delicious in a unique-​tastebud-​rollercoaster way.
*Amuse: It was something crazy delicious with cheese… it really set the tone for the rest of the meal.
*Savory Kumquat Pudding (english peas & tendrils, black olive, chamomile): I never thought Kumquat could be A) Good B) Savory. Amazing especially with the bits of black olive.
*Fried Beets (caramelized green garlic, spicy cress, wood sorrel): It was like tempura’d beet cubes! Never thought I’d actually like beets.
*Spring Radish A La Plancha (bread & butter porridge, cacao bean butter): WHATEVER BREAD & BUTTER PORRIDGE IS, IT’S AMAZING.
*Beef and Smoke Almond Stew (spring onion, mustard greens, citrus wood): I got the vegetarian version of this with mushrooms. The almonds a great textural and smokey addition. Favorite dish! Some of the other members of the party did say the meat was a little tough though
*Chocolate Custard (pine nut hushpuppies, raisins, tamarind): PINE NUT HUSH PUPPIES. YES. The texture itself was intriguing — not too cake-​y & perfectly crumbly. And the chocolate. Oh man… Like Chef Bruce Kalman’s, it was a great balance of salty from the pine nut hush puppy & rich sweetness from the chocolate.
*Long-​cooked Greens (Stilton, Gooseberries): Ordered for an extra $ 7. Tasty as well. Never had a gooseberries before.
*Grassfed Charred Beef Heart (raw milk butter, fried sage): — extra $ 22 I didn’t expect the beef heart to come in slices but it wasn’t «warm» and you had to dip it in raw milk butter. I didn’t try it because it was bloody as heck! The table tried it and general consensus was that it was a little chewy (it is a muscle after all!). But I think this dish was the biggest meh of the night :(
*Fried Side of Barramundi (quinoa & millet, squid ink): extra $ 28. Fried perfectly — not too oily. Barramundi itself is a little bland but went well with the quinoa & millet.
I also ordered the tea from Tiago. Really cute individual tea cup/​pot!
«This Is Not A Pop-​Up» really affordable if your’e looking to change up dining in LA. This is truly about the experience! Props to Helen and Helena — inspirational!

Okay food at really outrageous prices. BYOB. Unprofessional wait staff. Not a great experience.

An affordable (5 courses for $ 50, BYOB with no corkage) way to experience some of the best cooking in LA. Super friendly staff and a fun vibe that can be as intimate or party-​ready as you want. Bonus: every time I’ve been, there’s been some crazy table that made for a great story to take home with me.