Radio Room @ The Edison, Red Rover @ First & Hope Supper Club, Lazy Ox Canteen

Radio Room
Since Gourmet Pigs posted so quickly about the Radio Room Press Preview, I guess I should also give a quick rundown. 

My favorite drinks at Radio Room were:

Wild Orchid

WILD ORCHID - Straight from the mind of New York’s Giuseppe Gonzalez, this is a delicate gin cocktail with notes of almond and elderflower, kissed with red wine. The Edison might be indoors, but the first flower of spring happens to be this cocktail.

GLOBO ROJO #2 - An intensely aromatic yet refined blend of strawberries, mezcal, tawny port and bitters, fruit, smoke and tannin in perfect harmony, courtesy of Zane Harris.

GOOD MORNING, VIETNAM - An eye-opening blend of gin and ginger with a dollop of orange marmalade. From Simon Ford, this is clearly his breakfast of champions.

Runner Up (because I would only have this if I'm in the mood for something strong):  

VIEUX CERDE - Another aromatic creation by Seattle’s Zane Harris. 12-year Irish Whisky mingles with VSOP Cognac with a light drizzling of Elisir M.P. Roux and bitters. Good enough to make the Hotel Monteleone jealous.

Absinthe shots

I couldn't resist trying a shot of absinthe since they came in such cute little souvenir bottles.  I have to say that I'm not really a fan of absinthe, so I preferred the pineapple flavored shot.  If you love absinthe then go for the pomegranate. 

I'm glad it was a press preview night because there were less people, the atmosphere was much more relaxed, and the lighting was brighter for better photography.  I also feel like the bartenders (Simon Ford - Pernod Ricard / London & NYC, Giuseppe Gonzalez - Dutch Kills & Painkiller / NYC, Zane Harris - Rob Roy / Seattle, Don Lee - Momofuku Restaurants / NYC) were more at ease and having much more fun.  It was kind of like they were hanging out together and happen to be making drinks for a few people at the same time.  They were really friendly and it was nice to actually get a chance to converse with them in a quieter environment.  I also really liked that they all solely made their own cocktails, so the drinks were always made consistently well.

We were also treated to crab claws and deliciously fresh British Columbia Fanny Bay oysters personally shucked by Maitre Ecailler, Chef Christophe Happillon. 

For tonight's Radio Room, look out for the band March Fourth marching band.  I listened to some of their stuff on mySpace and I liked the mix of gypsy, jazz, swing put to a marching band beat. 

More:

Q&A with Simon Ford - FoodGPS
Q&A with Zane Harris - FoodGPS
Cocktail descriptions - FoodGPS
Radio Room recap -

• Thirsty in LA  
• Estar*LA  
• LA & OC Foodventures   
• ShopEatSleep

Red Rover
My favorite drinks at Red Rover were:

EASY LIVING - “This drink recipe is a modern twist on the classic combination of rum, sugar and lime juice – the ‘island trinity’ – The Modern Mixologist. STRAIGHT FROM HIS NEW BOOK, CREATED BY THE MAN, THE MYTH, THE LEGEND…TONY ABU-GANIM! Rhum Clement VSOP, Ginger Liqueur, Fresh Pineapple and Lime Juices

LITTLE MONSTER’S EXOTIC PUNCH - From the depths of the Caribbean comes this spicy and flavorsome punch that is said to be the boon of sinful pleasures and visceral delights. Yet, who are we to pass judgement on the lustful hearts of others? WICKED FUN BY MIXOLOGIST EXTRAORDINAIRE, ERICK CASTRO! Clement VSOP Rum, Dry Sack Oloroso 15 year Sherry, Allspice Dram, Fresh Lime Juice, Organic Cane Sugar, Fresh Grated Nutmeg and Sparkling Water

Xante - I loved the flavor of this pear-blended cognac I sampled   

More: 
Cocktail descriptions - FoodGPS


Lazy Ox Canteen
H.C. and I FINALLY got to check out the mythical Lazy Ox Canteen (that once told me I had to make reservations a week in advance) thanks to Sam Kim.  I have to say, it lived up to all the hype.  Here's what we tried:

• Yellow Beet and Wild Arugula Salad with satsuma orange, radicchio & yogurt dressing - for a salad, it was heavier than I thought it would be, but I enjoyed the beets and dressing
• Dashi Marinated Yellowtail with avocado, hash brown & creme fraiche - I thought the crispiness of the hash brown went really well with the very fresh fish
• Hand-Torn Egg Pasta with sunny-side egg, brown butter & fine herbs
•  Brick-Roasted Mussels with white wine, house made siracha and French feta - the broth was delicious.  I would have eaten all of the leftover broth if I had had bread to soak it all up
• Burger with fries - those fries were awesome and the burger, I'd have to try a whole one to fully judge what Sam calls the best burger in LA
• Lamb Hash - was delicious.  I would definitely order it again
• Veal with potato salad - I was expecting hot mashed potatoes to go with the veal, so I'm not sure how I feel about the dish overall.  The veal was very tasty though
• Chilled Rice Pudding with caramel and hazelnut brittle - it tasted good, but the thick, heavy texture of it kept throwing me off, so I couldn't really eat too much of it
• Strawberries and Butter Biscuit with peppercorn ice cream - I liked the way the butter biscuit tasted with everything else.  I never would have expected to see a biscuit with something other than fried chicken 

I don't know if this is restaurant policy or not, but the waiter gave us a 10% discount because we had a downtown LA resident with us.