This was my first time hitting the Dim Sum brunch at Soji, and it was very good. Also very reasonable, six dollars a plate. I went with the dumplings, the bao, and the rice noodle wrapped Wagyu beef. Delicious. I like to get over to Soji early and sit at the raw bar so I can shoot the shit with whoever’s prepping there. Heard a disturbing rumor that Dim Sum Restaurant on Airline has shut down, but I haven’t been able to verify that yet since they are only open Thursday-Sunday. I sure hope they haven’t closed. I also learned that the executive chef and several line cooks at Solera were once Soji employees. Interesting, and it definitely shows since both stores share a superb attention to detail, both in execution and presentation. Shared a bunch of war stories with the sushi chef of the day. Even dug deep to the Christmas Eve shift at the Famous Enterprise Fish Co in Santa Monica when the manager shut down the other exhibition mesquite grill station prematurely and I ended up doing seven hundred covers myself that night. It’s fun to talk to the youngsters, especially the ones that are really into it and get excited about getting in a great slab of toro or fresh salmon. Here’s a few more food porn shots from the Dim Sum brunch outing.
