ink.

After Chef Michael Voltaggio won the Top Chef crown, we quickly made our way to The Dining Room at the Langham Hotel in Pasadena to sample his food. Between four diners, we managed to order everything on the menu. The feeling leaving the place, was that there were some interesting creations and a few highlights, but the meal, as a whole, wass a bit of a disappointment. However, those few highlights were enough to peek our interest in his new restaurant venture. Perhaps within the confines of his own restaurant, he'd have more freedom to do as he really wanted. That is why we were quick to make reservations for the opening week at Ink (this post is significantly delayed).

The concept reminded us a bit of Animal; small plates, easily shared.  However, Ink's dishes were less rustic, more refined, with a greater emphasis on gastromonic techiques.

1. Blue prawns - green papaya, finger lime, coconut - Prawns were lightly cooked through just enough. The papaya, lime and coconut offered a mix of sweetness and acidity as well as a bit of textural contrast but still helped accentuate the flavors of the shrimp. A light and refreshing dish.



2. Dungeness crab - toast, smoked mayo, housemade hot sauce, avocado - A bit of a contrast from the first crustacean dish. The crab-wrapped toast had a natural sweetness that was balanced by the creaminess of the mayo and avocado. There was just the slightest bit of heat from the hot sauce.


3. Hamachi - parsnip cream, grapefruit, jalepeno, sesame - The hamachi and grapefruit is a combination that we're seeing more and more with crudo-like dishes. Citrus and raw fish tend to work well together - as was the case with this dish. The grapefruit was relatively mild as was the hamachi. Although this wasn't the fattiest of amber jack, it held up nicely to the jalapeno and sesame.


4. Beef tartare - horseradish, hearts of palm, sea bean chimichurri - One of the better tartares we've had and our favorite dish of the night. The horseradish was mild and played wasabi to the tartare's sashimi. The hearts of palm and crispy wafer helped carry the weight of the delicate meat.

5. Sea bass - lemon, caper, brown butter, romanesco, anchovy - The buttery, white flesh of the bass was covered in a lightly crisp skin. The lemon, brown butter and anchovy helped emphasize the flavors of the fish.


6. Bay scallops - cream of dehydrated potato, potato skins, buttermilk-shellfish broth - The little morsels of scallops were tasty. The potatos were infused nicely with the flavor of the shellfish broth. There wasn't enough of this dish to share amongst the four of us - everyone wanted just one more bite.


7. Black cod - red pepper dashi, shishito peppers, kelp pasta - One of our least favorite dishes of the night. The kelp pasta felt out of place and didn't pair well with the cod. Perhaps it was the cosmetics of the dish affecting our palates, but a disappointing dish overall.


8. Veal cheek - red curry, nante carrots baked in salt, fried sticky rice - Both the cheeks and the carrots were incredibly tender. The richness of the veal was accentuated by the curry and balanced the mild sweetness from the carrots and the slightly crisp, sticky rice.


9. Octopus - buttered popcorn, piquillo peppers, spinach - These tentacles were incredibly tender. The buttered popcorn flavor was clearly present but didn't necessarily compliment the octopus. The pepper was mild without much heat.


10. Spaghetti - giant squid, squash, hazelnut-ink pesto - "Noodles" made from strands of squid. The consistency was pleasant but the flavor combination with the squash and pesto didn't leave a good impression. Interesting, but not quite tasty.


11. Iberian pork - saffron-pear, salsify, black olive oil - The pork has a nice amount of fat and hints of nuttiness. Pear and salsify added a dimension of sweetness and aromatics to the fatty pork that we love.


12. Quail - charred orange and onion, sorrel cream - The quail was extremely tender and juicy. The onions and sorrel cream helped liven up the dish with a bit of acidity and sweetness. One thing I love about Voltaggio's cooking - he adopts an Asian-like approach with great balances of sweet, savory and acidity.


13. Beef short rib - sweet and sour mushrooms, black garlic - The short ribs were fat and juicy. The sweet and sour mushrooms added a bit of earthiness, texture and acidity. The flavor of the black garlic wasn't very appearant though its umami came through a bit. Black garlic is definitely becoming more popular and it frequently used in Korean cooking.


14. Apple - creme caramel, burnt wood sabayon, walnut - A deconstructed apple pie a-la mode. The green apples were a bit tart which was offset by a bit of caramel creme. The walnuts played the role of the pie crust. The shining star of the dish was the burnt wood sabayon. Apparently, the cream is smoked on an open wood burner for hours prior to its transformation into ice cream. The smokiness really comes through with every bite. Quite unique and wonderfully delicious. Loved this dessert!

After our disappointing experience at the Langham, we didn't come into Ink with sky-high expectations. However, we were presently suprised by the creations that Chef Voltaggio presented at his new flagship eatery. Overall, a very pleasant dining experience. A couple minor gripes would be that the restaurant is very dark. Chef Voltaggio and his crew put a great deal of effort into their plating and it's a shame that the restaurant's lighting fails to do the dishes justice. Our server was very pleasant and knowledgable about the food. Their omakase option is available now too so you can be sure we will be returning to Ink very soon in the near future to see how the menu and dishes have developed since it's opening back in 2011.