George Laguerre (above), the owner of Haitian restaurant TiGeorges Chicken, which closed due to a fire and has yet to reopen, began working at Caveman Kitchen yesterday. Caveman is owned by a former protege of Laguerre and is his temporary base of operations. As of today he was cooking his goat, just like he used to, and can prepare his traditional chicken with 24 hours notice.
Based on Josh Lurie's report in Feast LA, I made my way today to Vermont Avenue, immediately South of the 10 freeway to try some of Laguerre's famous food.
I had the goat plate ($12), which included stewed goat, rice and beans (mixed together), plantain chips, a slaw and a salad. The goat was surprisingly tender, though not as soft as brisket. It was flavorful and was a mix of meat on and off of the bone. The juices also gave a nice element to the rice and beans. The slaw had a tremendous spicy kick to it, that I was not expecting. It was a large plate of food, a more than ample lunch (see below).
I will return (with notice) to try his chicken. For those of you who don't want to travel to Vermont & 22nd St to sample his Haitian delicacies, he will be cooking at Test Kitchen on September 5th & 6th, this coming Sunday and Monday evenings. Reservations on Open Table.
Caveman Kitchen is located in a stripmall immediately south of the Santa Monica freeway at 2215 South Vermont Avenue @ W 22nd Place. Phone: (323) 737-3717
Very cool that you already had a chance to try George's food at Caveman. His tenure at Test Kitchen should be a good one.
ReplyDelete