All photos by K.P. for The LA Beat
Here is a photo of the best food I’ve ever had in my life. The Mighty‘s agnolotti — butternut squash in freshly made pasta envelopes, tossed in maple brown butter with trevisio, pecan, mint, pomegranate and Parmesan. A perfect mix of flavors and textures.
Let me shout it from the rooftops- the very best meal I have ever had was at a new restaurant called The Mighty. I happened upon this restaurant while traipsing around downtown, but as usual, I was unaware that when this restaurant opened in September, it was “kind of a big deal”.
The space is open, bright and modern, without feeling hollow. The service was perfect- attentive but not stuffy. But really, it’s all about the food, and I would be willing to eat this stuff if it was served by a pack of evil clowns in the alley of a Chuck E Cheese.
I jumped ahead by bragging about the Butternut squash agnolotti, so let me back up and describe our romantic and casual meal.
I started with a simple Vanilla Latte- because I am basic like that. My date ordered a Saison called “Le Merle” from the North Coast Brewing Co which he said was so refreshing and delicious, I promised to locate some to keep at home.
We shared the warm garnet yam galette appetizer. The crust was delicate, paper thin layers of buttery flakes, topped with sweet savory caramelized onions and creamy goat cheese. The yams were earthy and sweet and the perfect texture.
For dinner we shared a rotisserie beef sandwich. Thin layers of brisket stacked with melted provolone, peppers and onions and a romesco sauce. I believe there were some carrots in there as well. The griddled bread was a masterpiece- crunchy on the outside and edges, but soft and buttery in the middle. This was served with a side of organic baby greens which had a light oil on them, but lacked flavor- and that is the only downside to anything we ate at the Mighty. In fact, when we finished our food, I took the baby greens from the sandwich plate and mixed them with the remaining maple brown butter sauce from the Agnolotti so as not to miss a drop. Have I mentioned how amazing the Agnolotti was?
We were full, and my meal was so perfect that I didn’t want to spoil it with dessert, which is a crazy idea, I know. So, I did what any sugar addicted gal would do- I took home THREE desserts to eat later. First to disappear was a statuesque four layer chocolate Nutella cake so moist it looked almost like jelly. Next I devoured the flour-less chocolate cake that resembled a gooey undercooked brownie- usually my favorite. Late in the evening, the Berry Crostata was calling my name. When boxing my selections, the gal behind the dessert case suggested I heat the crostata for 30 seconds in the microwave and add whipped cream. I think I did one better by adding a scoop of my favorite vanilla ice cream.
What can I say? I rarely write food reviews. There are so many people at The Beat who have far more sophisticated palates than I do, and so much more experience comparing and describing flavors. But this is exactly why I wanted to tell you all to get down to the Mighty and have a meal- it’s so damn good, even a basic gal like me can identify it as a masterpiece.
