Gold Dig #66

On Jonathan Gold’s 101 Best Restaurant’s list, Kismet is referred to as a “neo-Middle Eastern bistro”. The all-day eatery (open 10am-11pm) has the sleek, modern feel recognizable in Jon and Vinny establishments. Located in Los Feliz, it was a long trek for me from the west side, but I talked a friend into making the journey.

The Dish

Kismet’s food is from the Sara and Sarah duo known for their Madcapra falafel stand in Grand Central Market. They call it Middle Eastern flavors reimagined for current-day California, and source as much of their ingredients as possible from small, responsible growers. The menu is vegetable-forward, mostly with small accents of meat rather than meat as the main attraction.

Lemony Chicken and Pine Nut Pies

As you probably know by now, I love pie – sweet and savory big and small. Naturally I was excited to try these lemony chicken and pine nut pies. They turned out to be decent, but nothing to write home about. The pastry was crisp, but not particularly flaky. There was very little chicken filling, though I did enjoy the lemon notes in the small amount that was there. For $12 I’d have hoped they’d be larger and more substantial. I found myself scraping up the tahini just to try to fill up.

Freekeh Polenta

The freekeh polenta was topped with lamb, green chili, charred cabbage, and a poached egg. The lamb was tender and the cabbage had great flavor from the charring. The polenta itself was a bit bland, but we asked for some salt, and with just a touch of salting the flavors of this dish were really enhanced and came together nicely.

Avocado

The avocado comes with greens, puffed wild rice, crispy lentils, and coconut vinaigrette. When they brought it to the table, I was distinctly underwhelmed. It looked like half an avocado and some greens on a plate, for the ridiculous price of $14! Upon closer inspection, you can see that there is a bed of rice and lentils hiding underneath the greens, and all of it is sitting on a pool of coconut vinaigrette that turned out to be a wonderful complement to the avocado. In terms of flavor, this dish ended up being my favorite, though at $14 I still think it’s overpriced.