Sometimes I have really good days in the water. I paddle somewhat fearlessly (for me) into waves (okay small ones) and even catch them. Often, I'm still pretty much a Kook, not paddling hard enough and missing the wave, or popping up too soon and stopping dead in my tracks. My last surf session was a combination of the two. I was going well on some tame little waves, but just as I was feeling good about myself, a fellow surfer came along and decided to give me some pointers. This happens a lot, and I don't really mind. Except by now, I pretty much can identify every mistake I make. So when he said, "One or two more paddles, and you'd have had that wave," I knew it already. Still, I told him thanks and we chatted a bit about this and that. Then, a short time later, as I was strapping the Greco back to the roof of the car and getting ready to leave, there was a car that had pulled up next to me, with two guys and a girl, maybe college age, and they were unloading boards and wetsuits. One of them asked me how it was out there. Without even missing a beat, I said "Oh, well, you know waves were kind of mushy, and a little hard to gauge but it was fun." And the girl said, "Looks like they're closing out," and I answered, "Yeah, yeah. Maybe better later on when the tide gets higher, though." As I was driving off it occurred to me that I sounded like I knew what I was talking about, even if I'm not quite sure what I said was perfectly correct. I've picked up some information over the last few years of my surf odyssey though, and it seems that I might be able to pass some information along.
Here's some more information to pass along, in case you haven't made it to Republique on La Brea, in the old Campanile space. My advice is go! I've been here for a couple of lunches. The first was to sample Chef Walter Manzke's version of the delicious, but ultra-simple sandwich, the Jambon Buerre, which is basically ham and butter on a baguette. Republique's version was excellent, and there's a picture on my Instagram if you want to see it so check that out. But this time I got the Kimchi Fried Rice, because it's another dish I just love (I've talked about my fondness for the Kimchi Spam Bowl at Chego too -- get that if you're downtown!). Instead of Spam, Republique's version has chunks of tender braised short rib, and a couple of very softly poached eggs on top. This makes for very good eating. I pretty much want to go back to Republique and sample just about every breakfast, lunch and dinner item on the menu. Here's the Fried rice:
But wait, there's more!! This was a business lunch, and consumed by my lunch partner was this bit of deliciousness you see here, a seriously good Belgian waffle with seasonal fruit (in this case cherries) and Vermont Maple Syrup. Take a look:
Can't go wrong there, can ya? So if you're looking for seriously good breakfast, lunch or dinner and you're anywhere near La Brea between Sixth and Wilshire, go to Republique. Only warning: it gets very, very crowded!
More info:
http://republiquela.com
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