Brad A. Johnson
  • Blog
  • About
  • Photography
    • Food Photography
    • Travel Photography
    • Restaurant Photography
    • Hotel & Resort Photography
  • Writing
  • Contact
Brad A. Johnson

Food & Travel

Brad A. Johnson
  • Blog
  • About
  • Photography
    • Food Photography
    • Travel Photography
    • Restaurant Photography
    • Hotel & Resort Photography
  • Writing
  • Contact

Short Order: Son of a Gun, Los Angeles

  • July 9, 2014
  • Brad A. Johnson
Country ham and hush puppies at Son of a Gun, Los Angeles (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Salmon crudo at Son of a Gun, Los Angeles (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Burrata and uni at Son of a Gun, Los Angeles (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)
Son of a Gun, Los Angeles (Photo by Brad A. Johnson)

Chefs Jon Shook and Vinny Dotolo opened Animal in 2008. They struck gold with pig fat and innards. They followed up with the slightly more ambitious, seafood-oriented Son of a Gun in 2011. Then last year they made the leap from chefs to rather-rockstar-ish culinary enablers. They’re the behind-the-scenes partners at celebrity chef Ludo Lefebvre’s wildly successful Trois Mec, and the imminent Petit Trois. And now they’ve got another project in the works – a wine shop and eventually a cafe – in the old Damiano Pizza space just up the street from Animal. I figured this was as good of a time as any to check with Son of a Gun to see how everything is going there.

The kitchen welcomed a new chef de cuisine in June, Dave Sykes, a protégé who rose through the ranks at Animal before being anointed to run Son of a Gun. And remember that big, annoying communal table that took up nearly half the restaurant? They recently got rid of it.

It’s much easier to get a reservation now, or at least that’s the case during the week and at lunch. The restaurant feels refreshingly more grown-up with proper tables. And the cooking? I think it’s better than ever.

Sykes clearly has a knack for raw fish. The Scottish salmon crudo is incredible. The sushi-grade fish is lightly dusted with some sort of habanero-laced jerk spice and decorated with kiwi and mint. I can’t think of a better way to start a meal on a hot summer day than this. Except for maybe the burrata with uni.

Overall, the menu doesn’t appear to have changed much since the early days. Everything simply feels more refined, more finessed. The world’s tiniest lobster roll is still offered here, and it’s a powerful little bite – plan on ordering one of these for every person at the table.

And I know this is a fish place, but one of my favorite dishes here is still the hush puppies served with shaved American ham from Kentucky, which holds its own against the best prosciutto from Italy or Jamon Iberico from Spain. They serve it with whipped honey butter. Grab a piece of ham, wrap it around a hush puppy, and drag it through the butter. Dang, that’s good stuff.

Son of a Gun
Where: 8370 W. 3rd St., Los Angeles
When: Dinner nightly; lunch, Mondays-Fridays.
Phone: 323-782-9033
Online: sonofagunrestaurant.com

UPDATE: An earlier version of this story stated that the new chef as of March was Jeffrey Yoguchi. Yoguchi indeed took over the kitchen in March, but then in June, Dave Sykes took over.

This article originally appeared in the Los Angeles Register. To view more of my work for the Register, check out the archives. For more dining and travel inspiration, I invite you to follow me and join the conversation on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. 

 

Share
Tweet
Brad A. Johnson

Brad A. Johnson is a writer and photographer specializing in food and travel. His work has been honored repeatedly by the James Beard Awards, the Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Awards, the pdn Food Photography Awards and many others. Based in Southern California, Brad currently serves as restaurant critic for the Orange County Register.

Previous Article

Short Order: Ahgassi Gopchang, Los Angeles

  • July 2, 2014
  • Brad A. Johnson
View Post
Next Article

Quick Review: Hotel Normandie, Los Angeles (Koreatown)

  • July 20, 2014
  • Brad A. Johnson
View Post
You May Also Like
View Post

Dish of the Week: Pancakes at Sibling Rival, Los Angeles

  • December 8, 2019
  • Brad A. Johnson
View Post

Dish of the Week: Bistec Encebollado at Isla, La Palma

  • October 5, 2019
  • Brad A. Johnson
Mushroom meringue at Journeyman's Food & Drink
View Post

Just Announced: Society for Features Journalism Awards!

  • June 27, 2019
  • Brad A. Johnson
View Post

Quick Look: Firehouse Hotel Restaurant, DTLA

  • June 22, 2019
  • Brad A. Johnson
View Post

10-Second Review: Belcampo Meat Co., Santa Monica

  • April 6, 2019
  • Brad A. Johnson
View Post

Dish of the Week: Laksa at Uncle Fung, Buena Park

  • February 16, 2019
  • Brad A. Johnson
View Post

Dish of the Week: Oxtail pho at Pho 101

  • November 9, 2018
  • Brad A. Johnson
View Post

Dish of the Week: Torta at Playa Mesa, Costa Mesa

  • October 29, 2018
  • Brad A. Johnson
View from The Hoxton Los Angeles. ⁠⠀ 39 0
Breakfast. Sibling Rival at The Hoxton DTLA. ⁠⠀ 80 4
The Hoxton Los Angeles. Charming and affordable. Fresh review on the blog. ⁠⠀ 49 0
I’ve been haunted by a number of dishes over the years, dishes around the world that I can’t get out of my head, dishes against which I compare everything else I eat in that particular genre. This is one of those dishes. This is a Peranakan prawn curry at @candlenutsg in Singapore. Beautiful shell-on prawns, coconut milk, clusters of whole black peppercorns, astoundingly hot green chilies, fried shallots... Absolutely extraordinary. This is one of those dishes that makes me buy another plane ticket. This restaurant has grown from a tiny, sleepy storefront into a splashy, trend-setting see-and-be-seen affair, one of the first of its kind to celebrate modern Peranakan cuisine. When I ate this dish at Candlenut, they were in their second location, and now they have moved into an even bigger, livelier space (I dined at the storefront on previous visits). I dream of going back. ⠀ 63 3
Hard to believe what's been happening in Hong Kong lately. Stay safe, HK friends. ⁠⠀ 60 0
Happy Taco Tuesday! ⁠⠀ 77 6
Brad A. Johnson
  • Blog
  • About
  • Photography
  • Writing
  • Contact
Writer. Photographer. Traveler. Restaurant Critic.

Input your search keywords and press Enter.