Cassia

(buttery nodoguro, silky hotate, mild kanpachi) or a sashimi plate like halibut and cucumber dressed in yuzu vinegar and shiso oil. Pickup only. 21418 Ventura Blvd., Woodland Hills, (818) 456-4509, thebrotherssushi.com Cassia The crunch and herbaceous nip

of Bryant Ng’s green papaya salad tastes especially vitalizing right now, as does his beef rendang electric with lime and sambal. Cassia’s menu has narrowed, but the singular merge of cultures (Vietnamese, Malaysian, Singaporean and Southern

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Maggie Ho (the pair met in high school and later worked together at Cassia in Santa Monica) stabilized the business by focusing on brunch hours. The menu organically covered both breakfast and lunch vibes. A platter of eggs, hash browns and market greens

Europe, the South, the Midwest and California. The side-street location in a former Santa Monica train depot turned out to be the ideal place for an inviting patio lined with young palm trees and other greenery. birdiegsla.com Cassia There is no other

Santa Monica dining room has returned to punishing decibels, though plenty of well-heated outdoor space provides a quieter option. cassiala.com Raw spicy scallops at Cassia (Annie Noelker / For The Times) Crossroads Kitchen Sometimes it is boggling how

at Bryant Ng’s Cassia in Santa Monica, where 20% of the dishes are cooked using a wok or a tandoor oven, both powered by gas. “With the wok … it’s not just the high heat that makes it unique and gives the food that ‘wok hei,’ it’s also the natural

, which is fundamental to many (not all) dishes cooked in the wok.” While it would be hard to make the switch to electric or induction, Ng does think it is possible. A cook sears gai lan at Cassia. (Silvia Razgova) Condie is hoping for an exemption for L.A

, nourishing broth, tender meats and vegetables each cooked to its turn — requires a remarkable attention to detail and a good deal of time. So if you were going to tease out the ambitions of Cassia, Bryant Ng’s sprawling Santa Monica restaurant, you should

; colonizing the colonizers. Cassia is not a gastropub. Occupying a big, barn-like ground floor in a corner of Santa Monica now occupied by sleek condos and post-production houses, Cassia, run in collaboration with Zoe Nathan and Joshua Loeb of Rustic Canyon

myself to a solo birthday dinner at Burmese-inspired the Dutchess, from the same restaurant group that includes Rustic Canyon and Cassia in Los Angeles. While there are pastries and counter service for breakfast and lunch, it’s a full-service, sit-down

essences of Chinese, Singaporean and Vietnamese cuisines to create his own culinary language at Cassia in Santa Monica. A bowl of his cold noodles with blue crab is an ideal uplift during our stretch of June gloom. Angry Egret Dinette was a contender for

The Rustic Canyon Family, which includes some of the city’s top spots like Cassia and Birdie G’s, announced a slew of new delivery, take-out, and curbside-pickup options. (Its namesake restaurant, Rustic Canyon, has closed temporarily.) Highlights

include Birdie G’s gorgeous, jiggling “World Famous” Rose Petal Pie and amazingly comforting matzo ball soup; flavorful Laksa from Cassia, assorted breads from Milo & Olive; and a haute grilled cheese and wine from Ester’s Wine Shop & Bar. For those

year Bryant Ng, chef-partner at Cassia, part of the Rustic Canyon Family restaurant group, started a virtual kitchen, Cassia Rice & Noodle Kitchen, within the original Santa Monica restaurant, specifically for takeout and delivery. He offers a short

menu of rice- and noodle-based dishes, all tested for durability. “People may not treat the food the way you’d like,” Ng says good-naturedly. “So we made sure it all had staying power.” And just as important is pricing. “Cassia can be a special-occasion

Molina of Hippo (previously executive chef of Mozza), Bryant Ng of Cassia and Suzanne Tracht of Jar are among them. He never opened another restaurant with the seismic impact of Campanile, but he found a way to remain in the center of Los Angeles