Culture Writer
I’ll start this restaurant review with a complaint. Blackbird Café needs a bigger sign.
Sitting just off the corner of Orange Avenue and Wardlow Road, Blackbird is very easy to miss, which is quite unfortunate, because all locals should know about this charming, friendly place that offers a menu full of slightly upscale, but affordable, comfort food.
I went there (for the seventh time since they opened on Aug. 22) last Saturday afternoon with my friend Eddie Saucedo. He and I love cooking. And we love eating! Many of our conversations easily gravitate toward all things edible, and we enjoy sharing the information we discover through personal experience in our kitchens, the cooking shows we watch, the cookbooks and food magazines we read, and the local eateries we frequent.
Eddie is Mexican, and I’m from the South. Eddie, having traveled down yonder to my neck o’ the woods, has a strong appreciation for Southern fare. And I, having visited Mexico and eaten Mexican food at least three times a week since I moved to California from New Orleans in 1995, certainly appreciate the food of his culture.
Despite our quite different backgrounds, what we have in common is a passion for food that is nourishing to the body and soul— meals that are strongly connected to the earth below us. Eddie cultivates his own garden; he grows ghost chili peppers (supposedly the hottest in the world), tends to his lemon tree, and makes his own bread and peanut butter (the best I’ve ever had). Though neither of my thumbs is close to being green, I’m fortunate to live behind my very sweet landlady who allows me to eat from her garden, which includes jalapeños, tomatoes, basil, and the largest zucchinis I’ve ever beheld, among other earth-y delights.
So, Eddie was the perfect companion to join me for a late lunch at Blackbird Café. Since I live in Bixby Knolls, we met at my place and walked there. The restaurant, as usual, had plenty of customers, despite the fact that it was 1:30. We opted for counter seating so that we could watch the cooks prepare the dishes. (I don’t usually like sitting at counters, but Blackbird’s is quite spacious and comfortable.)
Our waitress was Lydia Laplante, who has been my server several times. She consistently welcomes patrons with a warm, easy-going friendliness— just the right personality to complement a “comfort” meal.
Each time I’ve gone to Blackbird, I’ve ordered something different, so I chose to continue that approach by trying the Turkey and Swiss Melt sandwich, which has avocado and grilled mushrooms on sourdough bread. Their White Chicken Chili seemed like the ideal accompaniment. The sandwich was slightly buttery without being greasy, the sourdough had the right amount of crispy toastedness, and its filling was evenly distributed so that each bite included all of the four ingredients. As delicious as it was, the real winner in my meal was the chili. I make chili about 12 times a year, and I’m proud of how I’ve mastered the combinations of fresh tomatoes, peppers and beans. However, this one was altogether different. Savory rather than spicy-hot, and creamy instead of being tomato-based, this chunky-chicken chili raised the bar for me and inspired me, not only to order it again, but to try to replicate it at home. (However, something tells me mine won’t measure up to Blackbird’s.)
Eddie ordered what I’d eaten on my first visit to the restaurant— the Dos Caballeros. It’s Blackbird Café’s Mexican-influenced Benedict. The menu presents it this way: “We ditch the English muffin in favor of two Mexican corn sopes stacked with two poached eggs, spicy soy chorizo, grilled potatoes, and we top it all off with our spicy hollandaise, tomato and cilantro.” Eddie had it with a side of hash browns.
When I asked him to describe his meal, he had a lot to say about it.
“I am a huge fan of eggs Benedict,” he said. “Yet I tend not to order them when I see them on restaurant menus because I usually make them myself. The formula is pretty straightforward and difficult to mess up, however, the Dos Caballeros Benedict caught my attention because of the creative Mexican twist the cooks at Blackbird gave to the classic dish.”
Eddie said the fact that the toasted English muffin was replaced with a fried sope was what first caught his attention. “This was a creative change, and it did not disappoint. This handmade corn saucer was crispy on the outside and tender within, and it was just the right thickness for its unique toppings. Rather than Benedict’s typical ham or bacon, I found a spicy soy chorizo that had the perfect hint of sweetness. The poached egg atop this was cooked to a medium-well stage, which was a little overcooked for me. I prefer a runny yolk to mingle with the bread and meat foundation. The hollandaise sauce that was draped over the eggs had an uncommon dark mustard color. Upon asking, I was informed by the waitress that it had been seasoned with red chili powder. The taste was deep and just a bit smoky. Finishing the eggs’ presentation was a freshly prepared pico de gallo that added the perfect amount of freshness and acidity to the rich preparation. Every bite was perfect! It is dishes like this that help me retain my membership in the Clean Plate Club.”
I suppose what keeps me going back to Blackbird is that it provides consistently tasty dishes that offer something familiar, with dashes of the unexpected.
