Counter: the East Coast Edition

I've been watching the construction of Counter in West Hartford's Blue Back Square for awhile now and the same question kept crossing my mind. Was this the same Counter that I enjoyed in Los Angeles a few years back?

The answer was "yes".

I stopped in yesterday for a late lunch and the place was bustling. The hostess initially tried to seat me at the counter (literally) as one is apt to do when a patron dines solo but with a lack of counter seating, I wound up at a four top in the middle of the dining room.

I decided to build my own burger instead of choosing one off their regular menu. Looking back to my former post on Counter, I pretty much built the same burger this time around. What can I say? I'm a creature of habit.

My choice was a 1/3 lb turkey burger with Gruyere cheese, sauteed mushrooms, grilled onions, and baby greens on a honey wheat bun. I also opted for a side of the peppercorn steak sauce which was basically an au jus. On the fry-side, I chose to go "fifty-fifty": a smart combo of sweet potato and regular fries.

The fries were excellent. Crispy and well-seasoned with the sweet potato version having a slight edge over the Idaho's. The burger was a tad overdone but nothing that a dip in the au jus didn't help remedy. (Next time I'll request medium rare) The mushrooms were pretty good and the onions were tasty, although a few raw onions slipped into the mix.

This burger creation, fries and a diet soda ran me just under 20 bucks, not cheap. The food was quality but a bit overpriced, a trend of most establishments in this new "hip" part of West Hartford.

More LA Stories

So it wasn't all about craft services and catered meals during my week in LA. While I never feel like I do the LA dining scene justice, I did manage to hit a few spots and have a few notable meals during my busy week.

Fat Fish: A few of us met there before going to The Troubador to see Sundown, an amazing band featuring Mr. Moustache and to catch up with Langy, who we recently said 'see you in a bit' to at Pianos a few weeks back. LA traffic being what it is, we had about 30 seconds to order our meal so we wouldn't meet the show.

I quickly went with two appetizers; the first being an order of vegetable tempura. The tempura included sweet potatoes, kabocha, shitake mushrooms, asparagus and oyster mushrooms. I don't normally do tempura and I was pleased with how light the batter was and how well the veggies held up against the coating. The sweet potatoes and kabocha were especially good; their starchy goodness enhanced by the batter. I would have like a bit more substance in the dipping sauce which was a bit bland despite the few scallions thrown in as an afterthought, but luckily the tempura didn't need any help from the sauce.

I also chose the filet mignon salad which came with grilled scallions, crumbled blue cheese, chopped egg, tomato, and curry vinaigrette. The beef was well seasoned and the rich sauce that coated it was extremely tasty. The meat was also super tender and buttery, cooked just the way I like it.

I would definitely return to this restaurant and would hope to have more time to relax and enjoy my meal. The laid back atmosphere and cool vibe of the restaurant were a bit of a surprise for this part of West Hollywood.

Counter: As word of my food blog spread around the LA office, Sir Lawrence told me that I haven't had a burger until I have had one from Counter. Counter's thing is that you basically decide every ingredient that goes into your burger from the meat (or not), veggies, cheese, bread, etc., etc. using their lovely and extensive "build your own burger" menu.

I went semi-traditional and chose beef with sauteed mushrooms, Gruyere cheese, and baby greens on a honey wheat bun. I decided to "all out" and order a side of sweet potato fries which I shared (just a handful) with Apropos in exchange for some of his crispy fried onion strings. The hamburger was fresh and juicy and the fries were fantastic! Crispy, salty and delicious! Thank you Sir Lawrence, nicely done!

Pane e vino: After a late night at the office, a group of us met at Pane e vino for dinner, or I should say I EVENTUALLY met them since I have absolutely no sense of direction in LA and wound up five miles out of the way and about twenty minutes late.

Regardless, we had a great meal at Pane e vino which again was a much more relaxed and unpretentious atmosphere than I expected. We began our meal with a few appetizers including the obligatory antipasto, mozzarella e pomodori, carciofo ripieno, freddo (stuffed artichoke). The antipasto was surprisingly interesting with a great presentation of various Italian meats, roasted veggies and decorated with prosciutto wrapped bread sticks. I would have been satisfied if the meal ended there and had to control myself from commandeering the plate from my dinner companions.

For the main course, I chose bucatini, a dish I enjoy but normally do not order out. The pasta was fresh and al dente and the smoky pancetta and caramelized onions added some depth and texture to the hearty tomato sauce which if I am not mistaken was finished with a bit of butter.

Basix Cafe: For my last night (and meal) in LA, I met up with some former co-workers, Cortez and Mija. It was Mojito Monday at Basix and they make a pretty good one. Unfortunately for me, it was just one since you have to drive everywhere in LA.

I was eating like a champ all week and decided not to make my last night an exception so I ordered an appetizer and an entree. I started with a "pizzatini" - their appetizer portion of their thin-crust wood grilled pizzas. I chose the grilled vegetable pizza which came with Wood grilled eggplant and zucchini, sun dried tomatoes, black olive tapenade, caramelized onion, roasted red peppers and tomato sauce. It was pretty good but nothing like the pizza here; sorry I'm biased!

For my main course I had skirt steak with chimichurri sauce which came with jasmine rice, fried plantains and black beans. The steak was cooked medium rare and was well-seasoned. I particularly enjoyed the plantains and the jasmine rice was nice and sticky. Not too shabby for a casual eatery...

Hopefully on the next trip out, I can squeeze in a few more culinary adventures!