Jason Mattick has taken over as executive chef of Milo and Olive and he is terrific. He was executive chef at Palate and in addition he has done stages at Fat Duck, Quince, Ortolon, Sona and Ritz Carlton, Laguna Nigel. That is one impressive resume. He is passionate about cuisine and ingredient quality. Every Wednesday he is at the Farmer’s Market in Santa Monica and the “goodies” he finds are extraordinary.
We like to go early so we can sit at the bar and chat with Jason and their wonderful staff before the crush of people.
Jason
BYO Wine
Marinated white anchovies on a bed of pickled jardiniere, nicoise olives – perfect dice on the jardiniere, full of flavor anchovies and the whole seasoned with a deft hand
Musk melon, burrata, American proscuitto, opal basil seasoned with fleur de sel, pepper and Saba – grape sweet syrup. Jason had picked up the melons that morning at the farmer’s market. The combination of ingredients was a perfect marriage and the addition of the saba was extraordinary. I intend to buy Saba ASAP!
Saba from Milo and Olive
I did buy Saba from Bay Cities
BYO Wine
Charcoal roasted squash (again chosen from the farmer’s market that morning), scallions, French feta, garlic, Tzatziki – John is fast becoming a “veggie” person.
Deep Fried Soft Shells that had been tempura battered with beer with a sauce of wholegrain and dijon mustard, mayonnaise, lemon and red wine vinegar
Soft Shells – up close – you can see that the soft shells were fried to perfection and the sauce a perfect accompaniment
BYO Wine
Red Rose potatoes, artichokes, Fontina, Black Truffles – this was in a word decadent although the addition of eggs did cross my mind.
Bentagliati Pasta with Lamb Ragu, Nicoise olives, mint, mirepoix, parmesan – the ragu was perfectly seasoned. This is a staff that actually tastes the food continually to check for seasoning and it shows in the final product.
To say I am impressed with Chef Jason Mattick is a huge understatement. He is definitely a chef to watch. I would label him a rising star chef.
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