To Live and Eat in L.A.

This is a very tasty seasonal item currently on the specials menu at Hugo’s in Studio City.

The “Blood Orange Salad” is made with “a blend of Napa cabbage, organic mixed greens, strawberries, slivered fennel, roasted baby beets, blood oranges and California pistachio nuts. Accented with a dressing made from balsamic vinegar and blood orange juice reduction”. It comes with a choice of protein, I had their grilled tofu which is always reliably good.

The salad was great, what with all it’s different flavors going on… it’s got your sweetness coming from the blood oranges, strawberries and beets, and it’s also got the unexpected licorice flavor of the crunchy, raw fennel (and carrots too), and all this is backup by the powerful underhanded punch coming from the balsamic vinegar. It makes for a unique and delightful (and not cheap) combination.

Another “Create a Plate” at Hugo’s. I stuck with my favorite roasted beets, roasted yams & sweet potatoes and black bean cakes. I also got their new menu addition of leafy greens with garlic and olive oil.

Super filling and super yum. Ate half and had a whole other meal left over for later.

Oh, and guess who was sitting across the way from me while I was eating this lunch. Go ahead, just guess.

Wrong, it was Fabio. I kid you not. It was the funniest thing, sitting there eating next to Fabio of all people, a mere table away. How ridiculous my life is sometimes! Seeing him made me want to laugh out loud. It also made me want to go wash my hair in luxurious shampoo for some reason, an involuntary reaction which from here on out I shall refer to simply as “The Fabio Effect”.