Photo by Caitlin Abrams
Ann Kim at Young Joni
This morning Ann Kim's restaurant group, Vestalia Hospitality (Young Joni, Pizzeria Lola, Hello Pizza) announced that they would be launching a Mexican-inspired restaurant in the dormant Lucia's space in Uptown.
In the presser, Kim mentions how smitten she is with fresh and well-made tortillas:
Eight years ago, when dismayed at how difficult it was to find exactly what she craved in a pizza crust, she studied the craft of pizza and opened Pizzeria Lola. Now, it is her love of fresh, handmade nixtamal tortillas that has inspired her to study the techniques of traditional tortilla making, a cornerstone of the new restaurant. “The first time I tried a corn tortilla made with heirloom blue corn was in Valle de Guadalupe. I almost cried because it was unlike anything I had ever tasted,” recalls Kim. “How could this be a corn tortilla? I had an epiphany: The difference between fresh, traditionally made tortillas and what most of us wrap around our tacos is the difference between a frozen pizza crust and the blistered, airy, charred, imperfectly round pizza crust, fragrant with hardwood smoke from a wood burning pizza oven. That’s when I decided my next mission is to re-create this tortilla experience.”
“We’re deep into the research and development phase and exploring many exciting possibilities,” says Kim. “There is a lot yet to be defined, but some things are clear. It will be inspired by my love for Mexican flavors that go beyond chips and salsa. There will be chile heat and a cooking fire. There will be experimentation with equatorial ingredients, not necessarily limited to the Americas. There will be an emphasis on the craft behind deceptively simple foods which are fairly complex to make correctly. You might even see a little hint of my signature Korean influence here and there.”
The entire complex, the bakery and wine bar, will be overhauled within the next year, with the help of LA-based Studio MAI. No word on the name, but you can expect fresh tortillas by next summer! Happy Monday, Uptown!
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