Bon Appetito

So the trip to Los Angeles was really good. My class, although more general than technical, provided some good information that should help my company be better positioned to capture future business. But enough about that boring stuff. The UCLA campus was absolutely beautiful. The hotel that I stayed at was really nice. And best of all, I was able to eat some really delicious food.

I only had a little less than an hour for lunch everyday, so I was pretty much relegated to eating in Westwood Village. This is far from a bad thing as there was a huge array of options. For lunch I ate burgers, thai, jewish delicatessen fare, and asian fusion. All of it was pretty good if somewhat unremarkable.

Dinner on the other hand, I had been planning for weeks. Ever since reading Heat I have had a huge amount of respect for Mario Batali and I knew that if had an opportunity to go to one of his restaurants I would jump at it. Turns out Mario and some partners opened a pair of restaurants in Los Angeles last year, Osteria Mozza and Pizzeria Mozza. Osteria Mozza I knew would be out of my price range, even on an expense account, so I focused on Pizzeria Mozza. But everything I had read indicated that even a spot at the bar would be a tough get. However, I discovered that traveling alone does have some advantages. I showed up on Monday night and was seated at the bar within five minutes while others waited for hours. Everything on the menu looked great, so I allowed my waitress to offer some advice. I ended up getting the roasted olives and the salame, mozzarella, tomato & fresno chiles pizza. Absolutely the best pizza I have ever had. The crust was perfection, and the chiles added just the right amount of kick. I was too self-conscious to bring my camera into the restaurant, but some pictures (and video!) can be found here.

That's enough for one post. I leave you with the view of Westwood Village from my hotel room balcony.