Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey, it's Neil Savedre.
Speaker 2 (00:01):
You're listening to kfi EM six forty the four Report
on demand on the iHeartRadio app. Heybody, it's the four Report,
all Things Food, beverage and beyond.
Speaker 1 (00:11):
I am your well fed host, Neil Spader. How do
you do?
Speaker 2 (00:15):
And speaking of good food, I'm very excited about this opening.
It happened on January twenty thirty, so we wanted to
have Rob Ariano come on from Desconso and talk about
their newest location.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
Rob how are you, my friend?
Speaker 3 (00:32):
I'm doing good? Neil, how are you?
Speaker 1 (00:34):
I bet you're busy?
Speaker 3 (00:35):
I am And did I just hear you on the
radio thing for people to stay home, you know, in
the rain. I'm really you know, I need the encouragement
to get people out. I'm still go dining, you know.
Speaker 1 (00:44):
You know what. I'm a little selfish and I'm going
to tell you something.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
You are now in the delivery area for me, so
I can finally have your food delivered to my house.
Oh I love it so to me it's same same,
But I will tell you going out enjoying yourself.
Speaker 1 (01:04):
I want you to break down.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
Your first location is in Coasta Mesas So a lot
of people are familiar with it there. We've had you
on the show many times. I'm a big fan of
your food and your attitude towards super serving those that
come into the restaurant. This is not just as much
as I joke about, yeah, I get to order your
food at home. You're actually creating an experience for people
(01:30):
to say, hey, when you come out, you're going to
get more than just great food, You're gonna get a
great environment. So take us rob to the beginning of
your vision for Disconso and what you've brought now here
on Wilshire Boulevard, right next to the tar pits. Talk
(01:50):
about that vibe and the energy the colors of Disconso restaurant.
Speaker 3 (01:57):
Well, thanks for that intro. I love it, and yeah, definitely,
you know you get the essence of Wisconsin. I really
appreciate you. You know, Disconso is really built off the Mexican
street vendor. When I was a kid, my father had
the vicinity to find always the perfect taco and he
(02:20):
was so good at really digging out some of the
you know, most just exclusive you know back alley taco stands,
food trucks, carts, you name it, with the most exceptional
street food, and I just love the experience. And it's
really not all about the food, although the food is fantastic,
(02:42):
coming right off the grill on the stand and with
fresh flavors, homemade recipes and everything, but it really is
more than that. There's the the sounds, you know, they
have music playing, the sizzle on the grill obviously, the aromas,
the interaction with the chef, you know, using your hands,
and of course the flavor and taste. I mean it's
(03:05):
really a full sensory experience and I love it. I
love it. As a kid, my dad, without even knowing,
you know, gave me this passion for street food and
the ultimate taco and it just it's been a fire
in me ever since. And when I was getting into
my professional hospitality career my twenties, I always knew I
(03:25):
wanted to bring that experience into a full service restaurant.
It was always how do I do it? What are
the elements that I'm going to need to replicate that
experience and bring it into a full service restaurant. That's
really how it was fawned, and our Coast Mesa was
built off of that notion. That is our mission is
to really create and elevate and bring in some you know,
(03:49):
new flavors mixed with traditional flavors, always keeping the base
and authentic recipes mainly that we pull from the sin
oh On Mutual Kan the central western Mexican region, and
that's really our mission. And with that we have our
Planta dining, which you mentioned our open cook tops where
(04:12):
our planches chefs cook at your table and you go
through a dining journey with them and learn about the food,
the history, cooking techniques. They bring you into the food
personally and cook you a multi course meal and that
it really is our signature experience at Wisconso. And of
(04:33):
course we have standard dining as well with a full
all of cart menu, and here in La that concept
is very much alive and well and on even grander scale.
You know, we went from thirty eight hundred square feet
in Costa Mesa to nine thousand square feet here in
(04:54):
this space on Wilshire, the old Calendar space, and in
that we have a taco stand which we refer to
as our Taco bar, and moral a cart driven our
Planta tables. And something really unique to this location is
our private plant of room where you can get up
close and personal in the private setting in sort of
a villa style room, and have a chef dinner if
(05:16):
you will, with our Planchetto chef with a real exclusive menu,
and it's just a real sort of another element and
elevated experience that's unique to our La location.
Speaker 2 (05:27):
That's the voice of Rob Ariano from Desconso we're lucky
enough to have it in Los Angeles now. I cannot
recommend it enough. Rob has been a guest many many
times on the show, and it's not blowing smoke. I
just love their food. I love his attitude towards hospitality.
He has the right vibe and attitude towards serving people
(05:50):
and making an experience, and I think we are incredibly
lucky to have this location. When we come back, Rob,
I want to get into the history of the location
a little bit, some more about the Planchet dining and
to help people really understand that experience, because not only
is that great for parties or special nights or whatever,
but getting groups of friends or meeting new people at
(06:13):
a Planchet table is exciting as well as the other
opportunities for a more traditional dining environment. We'll talk about
that color scheme, vibe everything. When we come back. You
got to check them out at Desconso Restaurant la dot com.
Desconso Restaurant la dot com. Look at the menu. We're
(06:36):
going to talk about that as well as we discuss
all these things. And you know what it takes to
get a second location and to have one in Orange
County now in LA and what that means.
Speaker 1 (06:47):
For Rob as well. So go know where We've got
more to come.
Speaker 4 (06:51):
You're listening to The Fork Report with Nils Adra on
demand from KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
Neils Avad with you today in the Fork Report, and
what a wonderful day for some warm food in your belly.
Talking about Desconso Restaurant here in Los Angeles. Those in
Orange County know it well because of the Coasta mesa
location that has been hugely popular. You know, I love
(07:18):
the food. I've talked to Rob on the show many
times before and eating the food, and it has been
one of the standout foods I've had through my whole
career doing the Fork Report. Stuff that always tends to
stop me in my track and let my tongue kind
of go through the layering of flavors and the textures,
(07:39):
the freshness of the ingredients. And so when Rob was
on and said that he was going to be bringing
a place, I'm like, oh man, here in La we
got to do live remote. We're going to try and
put something together. You know, things have been crazy here
at the station. I do want to do something with listeners.
Rob rob Ariano is here talking about it. I would
(08:01):
love to bring listeners in and do something at the plancha.
Explain the plancha dining again. So the closest thing that
people are you know, even though it's different, is that
is like a tepanyaki or something where you're watching Betty
Hana or something. You're watching the food made in front
of you. It's part theater, part culinary experience, all of
(08:24):
those things.
Speaker 5 (08:25):
Would that be correct in saying yeah, I mean it
definitely is, although we hesitate in using that word because
we try not to give.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
The preconceived notion of that it's going to be a
similar experience. So the set of the same I know
I was saying before that, when you know, I was
really trying to think about how to bring the taco
stand into a full service restaurant. You know, it is
really hard to sort of conceptualize the implementation of that.
And you know, there's health guidelines and all these other
things you know that go into cooking food in a restaurant.
(08:59):
And you know, when I was sitting at a tap
on table one day and I'm like, you know, light
bull went off. You know, the Japanese have been doing
this forever, and you know, so I took some things
in terms of the setup style, so that's very similar,
but of course we make it our own experience.
Speaker 2 (09:17):
Yeah, and it really, I mean it literally is a
flat top of plancha table that is you know, rimmed
with the sitting experience. The complexity of the food is impressive.
To see these things being made in front of you,
the flavors, the proteins, all of these things coming together.
(09:37):
I'm a at a bit of a handicap because of
the fact that we're on radio and don't have those pictures.
So I wanted people to kind of get a jump
on that experience. Now that's not throughout the whole you know,
the whole restaurant. You do have regular seating and traditional
style seating and the light and the I'm going to
(09:59):
say this with no disrespect to other you know, to
chain restaurants in the life, the experience is much more elevated.
Speaker 3 (10:08):
Yes, and we try to do that, and not elevated
in the sense, you know, just to charge more by
any means. But we're really sort of you know, that's
that's not our definition of it by it, but it's
really just you know, really paying attention to the cuisine
because like you said, you know, you know, people are
not only looking for a good meal, but an experience,
and it was really important to us it just not
(10:29):
be an experiential type of dining, but that I was
also embedded in really good quality food and ingredients, and
like you say, the freshness of our ingredients is really
what we pay homage to, and that we're looking for
flavors from ingredients and not you know, substitute elements you know,
such as lart and other things that don't get me wrong,
(10:50):
make great attitudes, especially to Mexican food. But we're really
honing in on that sort of culinary process and you
see it right in front of you on the girl
and you know, get to you know, get that personal
interaction and you know even you know, will modify things,
you know, because of for me culturally to dining and
(11:10):
Mexican culture. Dining is it's not just about, you know,
when the food is served, it's also the process of
making it and everybody's kind of involved in that, and
so we're really trying to foster that here at the
at the grill as well.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
You know, the energy difference between half two and one
two I think is powerful in food. And you described
when we talked, you know, earlier when you came on
about your experience with your father about getting the perfect
taco from a taco standin street tacos, because that is
a want to experience people wanting to share their flavors
(11:45):
and to be able to bring that inside to you know,
a large footprint, like your newest location here in Los Angeles.
For those who don't know, the new location is out
here on Wilshire It's five seven seven three Wilshire Boulevard.
You may recognize that because it used to be Marie
Calendars for forty years and then turn to Calendars, but
(12:06):
for forty years it was in that location right next
to it's a great area there and right next to
the tar pits and they're shopping in the area. It
really is a destination location to where you can spend
the day doing some shopping and all kinds of other
things there, go to the museum and then get some food.
Rob I know you got a lot going on, but
(12:26):
I'd love to keep talking to you. Can you stick around? Okay,
when we come back, let's talk a little bit about
that menu, because just the description of these things. Now,
if you want to see some pictures, go to Disconso
Restaurant La dot com. Disconso Restaurant La dot com. You'll
see all these things that we're talking about. You'll see
(12:47):
the freshness of those ingredients, the bright greens and the chilis,
the warm brown and red coming from those proteins, and
you'll see why it's set apart. I love the color choice.
This is by the way, for the dining room, and
I'm looking very forward to popping in soon. Rob So,
stick around, rob Ariano from Desconso Restaurant here now in
(13:11):
La from coast to Mesa. We're very lucky to have it.
And I got to tell you, whether it's group dining,
in parties, events, whatever, or just going for a warm, inviting,
but vibrant and experience, Desconso is going to be your jam.
Trust me and this new location has plenty of space
(13:31):
and private areas as well to enjoy. So go nowhere
the food talk when we come back.
Speaker 4 (13:37):
You're listening to the Fork Report with Nil Savedra on
demand from KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
Hey everybody, it's the Fork Report on Neil Savedra. We're
hanging out and talking with Rob Ariano right now.
Speaker 1 (13:49):
And are you at the restaurant right now? Rob Hi?
I am, yes, you at there all night tonight?
Speaker 3 (13:55):
I am, oh, yeah, absolutely. I've been paying extra attention
to the restaurant this weekend.
Speaker 2 (14:00):
So what we're talking about is Disconzo Restaurant now in
La Those listening in Orange County go oh, I know Disconso.
Speaker 1 (14:09):
In Costa Mesa.
Speaker 2 (14:11):
Rob told me some time ago that he was going
to be bringing it to Los Angeles, and I'm very
excited because I really love the food and found out
that I can have it delivered to my house now
because it's close enough, which is fantastic. But really this
is a marriage between food and vibe and experience, great
cocktails all of the like, and I wanted to get
(14:33):
into some of the menu as well, So let me
let me go through this. I mean, just mind tastes.
Some of this list on the menu dealing with the tacos.
The gornito is a pork belly taco braised in Mexican
coca cola with himalay and salt, garlic and herbs, chiputle,
peach syrup, Oh my god, avocado, salsa, meridated, red cabbage,
(14:55):
micro cilantro, and a blue on a blue horn tortilla.
Speaker 3 (15:01):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
You making the tortillas in the.
Speaker 3 (15:03):
House, We sure are. And the beautiful thing about this
location being that's much bigger. We have room to set
up our little tortilleria and yes we make them, put
them on the camal, make them fresh, so much better.
Speaker 1 (15:18):
Taco deviria. You've got the short rib, oh.
Speaker 2 (15:21):
Man's, that's such a great combination. Got the walkamle, You've
got onions, salsa verde, you've got the three cheeses on there,
the micro cilantro, the consomme of the beria consume, and
that handmade tortilla that is I mean, this is what
you want when you go.
Speaker 1 (15:42):
Out to eat. Oh, I bet it's like, wow, I
went straightforward. Now you know.
Speaker 2 (15:48):
I have some of my favorites as well, and one
of my favorites there to get a chance is the Elumbre.
And this is a fantastic dish that when Rob was
on and brought it to me one time on the air,
it just kind of stopped me in my tracks to
the point where you were telling me Rob that people
(16:09):
still come in and say, what's the dish that Neil
had that he talked about?
Speaker 3 (16:13):
Oh yeah, the whatever Neil ate that day, that's what
I want. I love that.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
So tell us about this menu because all of it
is bright and it looks fulfilling and robust, but it's
really gorgeous to look at the combinations and colors and
everything else that you're putting on there. How do you
and your chef work through these recipes and go, okay,
(16:40):
this is becoming a permanent one on our menu.
Speaker 3 (16:46):
Well that's the most fun process of being a restaurant
tour is really going through conceptual dishes to tastings. I mean,
the tasting is my favorite part. So I'm not a
clary train, I'm not a chef trained restaurant tour, but
I am definitely a self proclaimed food and love to
(17:09):
eat more than anything on this planet. So that's where
I spend my expertise is tasting, and so I really
try to put people around me that have the creativity
and the you know, they really sort of you know,
culinary passion wherewithal to dive into a conceptual dish. And
like I said, everything is sort of inspired by street food.
(17:31):
So I'll usually kind of drive through different you know,
street food options and then present it to my chef.
You know, how can we now bring this in and
elevate it? And like I said, visually is important because
it's not you know, you eat with your eyes first,
and I firmly believe that. So that's a great natural
thing about Mexican food is there's always so many beautiful colors,
(17:53):
you know, right at the bath from you know, beautiful
tomatoes and obviously we use blue corn, and a big
part of that you know, flavors better, but also presents
better such a beautiful looking tortilla. I'll present conceptuals and
then my chef goes through and digs through you know,
recipes and you know, brings in other influences and we
(18:17):
set up our tastings and go through each one and
really have deep discussions on each. So that's my favorite
part of this whole process.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
Looking through some of the appetizers and the starters here.
That ria Inmpanada sounds great. So imagine there's two corn
masa Infanadas stuffed with four hour braized short rib, Beeria,
the three cheeses, the onion, the crama pickled red onions,
(18:47):
and the beria. Consumme, Holy smokes, that sounds delicious.
Speaker 3 (18:53):
I actually just had a customer last night come up
to me and tell me. He said, I just thought
me in my track, didn't really know who he was,
and said, I just want to let you know that
was the best or impinat I've ever had. On was
some great feedback.
Speaker 2 (19:05):
Well, it's obviously got similar textures and flavors to the
taco and this sealed up. But you could imagine that thick,
fresh corn massa with its tiny bit of sweetness and
then stuffed with that long braized short rib. I mean,
how can that go wrong?
Speaker 1 (19:25):
What are some of the Oh?
Speaker 2 (19:27):
Because I'm hungry as hell and you have no idea
how thrilled I am. That Desconzo restaurant is now here
in Los Angeles again easy to find. It's the old
location of the Marie calendars. Now this was not just
your average Marie Calendars. This was a forty year old
flagship location, done in brick, stunning well appointed on the inside. Yeah, right,
(19:54):
you know, it's a I think it's across the street
from Golden Voice too.
Speaker 1 (19:57):
I think they're up in the building across the street. Oh,
SAG headquarters, our Union is there.
Speaker 3 (20:02):
Every time I have to go do business down there,
I would go get lunch at Calendars.
Speaker 1 (20:06):
It's a beautiful building.
Speaker 2 (20:08):
Yeah, it's gorgeous, right next there to the tar pits.
So it's really a destination location to get.
Speaker 1 (20:15):
Out to and enjoy.
Speaker 2 (20:18):
I really want to encourage people listening in Los Angeles
to check this out tonight.
Speaker 1 (20:23):
You're looking for something different. It is the opening weekend.
Speaker 2 (20:27):
Now you've tied some things and you've got some some
stuff going on. Is there a charity aspect this weekend
or something going on that I have in the back
of my mind somewhere.
Speaker 3 (20:39):
Of course there is. And this has always been my
mantra as a restaurant operator, A smarter and more successful
restaurant tour than myself, who at just over thirty restaurants, said, look, Rob,
as you're diving in, you know, headperson of this industry,
you've like make sure. You know you're always community minded
to take care of your community, because you cannot for
(21:00):
with out a you know, as a restaurant without a
good strong community not only functioning on their own, but
you know, in supporting you. And I was like, I've
always taken that to heart.
Speaker 2 (21:12):
Another great excuse to get out there. All right, can
you hang on for one more segment?
Speaker 3 (21:16):
Rob? Sure?
Speaker 1 (21:17):
All right, well we'll come back.
Speaker 2 (21:18):
We're gonna talk more with Rob Ariano from Disconso Restaurant.
It's now here in La Disconso Restaurant la dot com.
Disconso Restaurant, la dot com. I highly encourage you looking
for something special this weekend. You just heard another excuse
to get over there on Wilshire Boulevard have a great meal.
You've been listening to the Fork Report. You can always
(21:40):
hear us live on KFI AM six forty two to
five pm on Saturday and anytime on demand on the
iHeartRadio app. Happy Saturday to you. We're talking with Rob
Ariano from Disconso Restaurant in Coasta, Mesa. You may know
them well. Now we have one here in Los Angeles
on Wilshire Boulevard at the Old Maria Marie Calendar building,
(22:02):
so well known building there at five seven seven three
Wilshire Boulevard, gorgeous structure, now the home of Disconso. Find
out more Disconso Restaurant La Desconso Restaurant La Rob Your
last thoughts, what do you want people to know about
the restaurant so much?
Speaker 3 (22:21):
Where should I start? You know, we're happy to be
here in this neighborhood. I'm so honored to be on
the Miracle Mile and this great neighborhood just all you
know the history of the culture, of the art scene.
We're really trying to emulate that here in the restaurant.
You know, like you said, we're definitely experiential dining. You know,
we really do love when people come in celebrate birthdays.
(22:44):
Plant a dining where we cook in front of you
and we have a chef, I'll punch a host. Chefs
cook a multi course meal to order right at your
table and a plant of grill, and of course we
have our standard dining. We do brunch on the weekends,
so we're doing brunch from eleven to three Saturday, and
so delicious brunch, chili chilas, and you can also do
brunches very neat way of doing brunch. This brunch on
(23:06):
the planter grills where they're cooking your eggs or rebelsonceros
or chili chills right on the flat girl, right in
front of you, which is a very cool, interactive experience.
And of course we've bottomless mimosas, which also really do
help that brunch aspect. I believe in having music too,
so we have live musicians on the weekends Friday and
(23:27):
Saturday nights. It's a lot of fun, a lot of energy,
you know, of course, a lot of good food and
fantastic margaritas.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
Well, I will tell you this has the four Report
Seal of approval most certainly. And if you heard us
talking with Rob Ariano today and you're curious about Wisconsin
Restaurant now in La on Wilshaw Boulevard and the Miracle
Mile there near the tar pits, go in and say hello,
go visit today. You know, starting a new restaurant is
(23:55):
always a nail biter. Why don't you kease things up
by going in and enjoying the food and saying hi
to Rob and all the people going to work there
in this new beautiful three times larger almost than the
location in Coasta Mesa and enjoy it and start booking
those rooms up for special events, whether it's for work
(24:17):
or player or these types of things. And of course
with it being a weekend, definitely get in on that
brunch as well.
Speaker 1 (24:24):
Rob. Always great to talk to you, my friend.
Speaker 2 (24:26):
I want, I wish you nothing but success in that
location and I'm thrilled to have you here in La Neil.
Speaker 3 (24:32):
Thank you so much. Appreciate you having.
Speaker 2 (24:33):
Us of course, so Disconzo Restaurant la dot com. Disconso
Restaurant La dot com. Check out the menus and tell
me I'm not telling you the truth. Go out there,
say hi to Rob and get yourself some good food.
I'm gonna try and get out there this week and
myself and say hi, shake his hand and congratulate him
(24:54):
for the new location, and get some of that good food.
Speaker 1 (24:56):
All right, We'll be back with more, So go know where.
Speaker 4 (24:59):
Listening to The Fork Report with Nil Savedra on demand
from KFI a M six forty
Speaker 3 (25:12):
Mm
Hey, it's Neil Savedre.
Speaker 2 (00:01):
You're listening to kfi EM six forty the four Report
on demand on the iHeartRadio app. Heybody, it's the four Report,
all Things Food, beverage and beyond.
Speaker 1 (00:11):
I am your well fed host, Neil Spader. How do
you do?
Speaker 2 (00:15):
And speaking of good food, I'm very excited about this opening.
It happened on January twenty thirty, so we wanted to
have Rob Ariano come on from Desconso and talk about
their newest location.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
Rob how are you, my friend?
Speaker 3 (00:32):
I'm doing good? Neil, how are you?
Speaker 1 (00:34):
I bet you're busy?
Speaker 3 (00:35):
I am And did I just hear you on the
radio thing for people to stay home, you know, in
the rain. I'm really you know, I need the encouragement
to get people out. I'm still go dining, you know.
Speaker 1 (00:44):
You know what. I'm a little selfish and I'm going
to tell you something.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
You are now in the delivery area for me, so
I can finally have your food delivered to my house.
Oh I love it so to me it's same same,
But I will tell you going out enjoying yourself.
Speaker 1 (01:04):
I want you to break down.
Speaker 2 (01:06):
Your first location is in Coasta Mesas So a lot
of people are familiar with it there. We've had you
on the show many times. I'm a big fan of
your food and your attitude towards super serving those that
come into the restaurant. This is not just as much
as I joke about, yeah, I get to order your
food at home. You're actually creating an experience for people
(01:30):
to say, hey, when you come out, you're going to
get more than just great food, You're gonna get a
great environment. So take us rob to the beginning of
your vision for Disconso and what you've brought now here
on Wilshire Boulevard, right next to the tar pits. Talk
(01:50):
about that vibe and the energy the colors of Disconso restaurant.
Speaker 3 (01:57):
Well, thanks for that intro. I love it, and yeah, definitely,
you know you get the essence of Wisconsin. I really
appreciate you. You know, Disconso is really built off the Mexican
street vendor. When I was a kid, my father had
the vicinity to find always the perfect taco and he
(02:20):
was so good at really digging out some of the
you know, most just exclusive you know back alley taco stands,
food trucks, carts, you name it, with the most exceptional
street food, and I just love the experience. And it's
really not all about the food, although the food is fantastic,
(02:42):
coming right off the grill on the stand and with
fresh flavors, homemade recipes and everything, but it really is
more than that. There's the the sounds, you know, they
have music playing, the sizzle on the grill obviously, the aromas,
the interaction with the chef, you know, using your hands,
and of course the flavor and taste. I mean it's
(03:05):
really a full sensory experience and I love it. I
love it. As a kid, my dad, without even knowing,
you know, gave me this passion for street food and
the ultimate taco and it just it's been a fire
in me ever since. And when I was getting into
my professional hospitality career my twenties, I always knew I
(03:25):
wanted to bring that experience into a full service restaurant.
It was always how do I do it? What are
the elements that I'm going to need to replicate that
experience and bring it into a full service restaurant. That's
really how it was fawned, and our Coast Mesa was
built off of that notion. That is our mission is
to really create and elevate and bring in some you know,
(03:49):
new flavors mixed with traditional flavors, always keeping the base
and authentic recipes mainly that we pull from the sin
oh On Mutual Kan the central western Mexican region, and
that's really our mission. And with that we have our
Planta dining, which you mentioned our open cook tops where
(04:12):
our planches chefs cook at your table and you go
through a dining journey with them and learn about the food,
the history, cooking techniques. They bring you into the food
personally and cook you a multi course meal and that
it really is our signature experience at Wisconso. And of
(04:33):
course we have standard dining as well with a full
all of cart menu, and here in La that concept
is very much alive and well and on even grander scale.
You know, we went from thirty eight hundred square feet
in Costa Mesa to nine thousand square feet here in
(04:54):
this space on Wilshire, the old Calendar space, and in
that we have a taco stand which we refer to
as our Taco bar, and moral a cart driven our
Planta tables. And something really unique to this location is
our private plant of room where you can get up
close and personal in the private setting in sort of
a villa style room, and have a chef dinner if
(05:16):
you will, with our Planchetto chef with a real exclusive menu,
and it's just a real sort of another element and
elevated experience that's unique to our La location.
Speaker 2 (05:27):
That's the voice of Rob Ariano from Desconso we're lucky
enough to have it in Los Angeles now. I cannot
recommend it enough. Rob has been a guest many many
times on the show, and it's not blowing smoke. I
just love their food. I love his attitude towards hospitality.
He has the right vibe and attitude towards serving people
(05:50):
and making an experience, and I think we are incredibly
lucky to have this location. When we come back, Rob,
I want to get into the history of the location
a little bit, some more about the Planchet dining and
to help people really understand that experience, because not only
is that great for parties or special nights or whatever,
but getting groups of friends or meeting new people at
(06:13):
a Planchet table is exciting as well as the other
opportunities for a more traditional dining environment. We'll talk about
that color scheme, vibe everything. When we come back. You
got to check them out at Desconso Restaurant la dot com.
Desconso Restaurant la dot com. Look at the menu. We're
(06:36):
going to talk about that as well as we discuss
all these things. And you know what it takes to
get a second location and to have one in Orange
County now in LA and what that means.
Speaker 1 (06:47):
For Rob as well. So go know where We've got
more to come.
Speaker 4 (06:51):
You're listening to The Fork Report with Nils Adra on
demand from KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
Neils Avad with you today in the Fork Report, and
what a wonderful day for some warm food in your belly.
Talking about Desconso Restaurant here in Los Angeles. Those in
Orange County know it well because of the Coasta mesa
location that has been hugely popular. You know, I love
(07:18):
the food. I've talked to Rob on the show many
times before and eating the food, and it has been
one of the standout foods I've had through my whole
career doing the Fork Report. Stuff that always tends to
stop me in my track and let my tongue kind
of go through the layering of flavors and the textures,
(07:39):
the freshness of the ingredients. And so when Rob was
on and said that he was going to be bringing
a place, I'm like, oh man, here in La we
got to do live remote. We're going to try and
put something together. You know, things have been crazy here
at the station. I do want to do something with listeners.
Rob rob Ariano is here talking about it. I would
(08:01):
love to bring listeners in and do something at the plancha.
Explain the plancha dining again. So the closest thing that
people are you know, even though it's different, is that
is like a tepanyaki or something where you're watching Betty
Hana or something. You're watching the food made in front
of you. It's part theater, part culinary experience, all of
(08:24):
those things.
Speaker 5 (08:25):
Would that be correct in saying yeah, I mean it
definitely is, although we hesitate in using that word because
we try not to give.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
The preconceived notion of that it's going to be a
similar experience. So the set of the same I know
I was saying before that, when you know, I was
really trying to think about how to bring the taco
stand into a full service restaurant. You know, it is
really hard to sort of conceptualize the implementation of that.
And you know, there's health guidelines and all these other
things you know that go into cooking food in a restaurant.
(08:59):
And you know, when I was sitting at a tap
on table one day and I'm like, you know, light
bull went off. You know, the Japanese have been doing
this forever, and you know, so I took some things
in terms of the setup style, so that's very similar,
but of course we make it our own experience.
Speaker 2 (09:17):
Yeah, and it really, I mean it literally is a
flat top of plancha table that is you know, rimmed
with the sitting experience. The complexity of the food is impressive.
To see these things being made in front of you,
the flavors, the proteins, all of these things coming together.
(09:37):
I'm a at a bit of a handicap because of
the fact that we're on radio and don't have those pictures.
So I wanted people to kind of get a jump
on that experience. Now that's not throughout the whole you know,
the whole restaurant. You do have regular seating and traditional
style seating and the light and the I'm going to
(09:59):
say this with no disrespect to other you know, to
chain restaurants in the life, the experience is much more elevated.
Speaker 3 (10:08):
Yes, and we try to do that, and not elevated
in the sense, you know, just to charge more by
any means. But we're really sort of you know, that's
that's not our definition of it by it, but it's
really just you know, really paying attention to the cuisine
because like you said, you know, you know, people are
not only looking for a good meal, but an experience,
and it was really important to us it just not
(10:29):
be an experiential type of dining, but that I was
also embedded in really good quality food and ingredients, and
like you say, the freshness of our ingredients is really
what we pay homage to, and that we're looking for
flavors from ingredients and not you know, substitute elements you know,
such as lart and other things that don't get me wrong,
(10:50):
make great attitudes, especially to Mexican food. But we're really
honing in on that sort of culinary process and you
see it right in front of you on the girl
and you know, get to you know, get that personal
interaction and you know even you know, will modify things,
you know, because of for me culturally to dining and
(11:10):
Mexican culture. Dining is it's not just about, you know,
when the food is served, it's also the process of
making it and everybody's kind of involved in that, and
so we're really trying to foster that here at the
at the grill as well.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
You know, the energy difference between half two and one
two I think is powerful in food. And you described
when we talked, you know, earlier when you came on
about your experience with your father about getting the perfect
taco from a taco standin street tacos, because that is
a want to experience people wanting to share their flavors
(11:45):
and to be able to bring that inside to you know,
a large footprint, like your newest location here in Los Angeles.
For those who don't know, the new location is out
here on Wilshire It's five seven seven three Wilshire Boulevard.
You may recognize that because it used to be Marie
Calendars for forty years and then turn to Calendars, but
(12:06):
for forty years it was in that location right next
to it's a great area there and right next to
the tar pits and they're shopping in the area. It
really is a destination location to where you can spend
the day doing some shopping and all kinds of other
things there, go to the museum and then get some food.
Rob I know you got a lot going on, but
(12:26):
I'd love to keep talking to you. Can you stick around? Okay,
when we come back, let's talk a little bit about
that menu, because just the description of these things. Now,
if you want to see some pictures, go to Disconso
Restaurant La dot com. Disconso Restaurant La dot com. You'll
see all these things that we're talking about. You'll see
(12:47):
the freshness of those ingredients, the bright greens and the chilis,
the warm brown and red coming from those proteins, and
you'll see why it's set apart. I love the color choice.
This is by the way, for the dining room, and
I'm looking very forward to popping in soon. Rob So,
stick around, rob Ariano from Desconso Restaurant here now in
(13:11):
La from coast to Mesa. We're very lucky to have it.
And I got to tell you, whether it's group dining,
in parties, events, whatever, or just going for a warm, inviting,
but vibrant and experience, Desconso is going to be your jam.
Trust me and this new location has plenty of space
(13:31):
and private areas as well to enjoy. So go nowhere
the food talk when we come back.
Speaker 4 (13:37):
You're listening to the Fork Report with Nil Savedra on
demand from KFI AM six forty.
Speaker 2 (13:43):
Hey everybody, it's the Fork Report on Neil Savedra. We're
hanging out and talking with Rob Ariano right now.
Speaker 1 (13:49):
And are you at the restaurant right now? Rob Hi?
I am, yes, you at there all night tonight?
Speaker 3 (13:55):
I am, oh, yeah, absolutely. I've been paying extra attention
to the restaurant this weekend.
Speaker 2 (14:00):
So what we're talking about is Disconzo Restaurant now in
La Those listening in Orange County go oh, I know Disconso.
Speaker 1 (14:09):
In Costa Mesa.
Speaker 2 (14:11):
Rob told me some time ago that he was going
to be bringing it to Los Angeles, and I'm very
excited because I really love the food and found out
that I can have it delivered to my house now
because it's close enough, which is fantastic. But really this
is a marriage between food and vibe and experience, great
cocktails all of the like, and I wanted to get
(14:33):
into some of the menu as well, So let me
let me go through this. I mean, just mind tastes.
Some of this list on the menu dealing with the tacos.
The gornito is a pork belly taco braised in Mexican
coca cola with himalay and salt, garlic and herbs, chiputle,
peach syrup, Oh my god, avocado, salsa, meridated, red cabbage,
(14:55):
micro cilantro, and a blue on a blue horn tortilla.
Speaker 3 (15:01):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (15:01):
You making the tortillas in the.
Speaker 3 (15:03):
House, We sure are. And the beautiful thing about this
location being that's much bigger. We have room to set
up our little tortilleria and yes we make them, put
them on the camal, make them fresh, so much better.
Speaker 1 (15:18):
Taco deviria. You've got the short rib, oh.
Speaker 2 (15:21):
Man's, that's such a great combination. Got the walkamle, You've
got onions, salsa verde, you've got the three cheeses on there,
the micro cilantro, the consomme of the beria consume, and
that handmade tortilla that is I mean, this is what
you want when you go.
Speaker 1 (15:42):
Out to eat. Oh, I bet it's like, wow, I
went straightforward. Now you know.
Speaker 2 (15:48):
I have some of my favorites as well, and one
of my favorites there to get a chance is the Elumbre.
And this is a fantastic dish that when Rob was
on and brought it to me one time on the air,
it just kind of stopped me in my tracks to
the point where you were telling me Rob that people
(16:09):
still come in and say, what's the dish that Neil
had that he talked about?
Speaker 3 (16:13):
Oh yeah, the whatever Neil ate that day, that's what
I want. I love that.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
So tell us about this menu because all of it
is bright and it looks fulfilling and robust, but it's
really gorgeous to look at the combinations and colors and
everything else that you're putting on there. How do you
and your chef work through these recipes and go, okay,
(16:40):
this is becoming a permanent one on our menu.
Speaker 3 (16:46):
Well that's the most fun process of being a restaurant
tour is really going through conceptual dishes to tastings. I mean,
the tasting is my favorite part. So I'm not a
clary train, I'm not a chef trained restaurant tour, but
I am definitely a self proclaimed food and love to
(17:09):
eat more than anything on this planet. So that's where
I spend my expertise is tasting, and so I really
try to put people around me that have the creativity
and the you know, they really sort of you know,
culinary passion wherewithal to dive into a conceptual dish. And
like I said, everything is sort of inspired by street food.
(17:31):
So I'll usually kind of drive through different you know,
street food options and then present it to my chef.
You know, how can we now bring this in and
elevate it? And like I said, visually is important because
it's not you know, you eat with your eyes first,
and I firmly believe that. So that's a great natural
thing about Mexican food is there's always so many beautiful colors,
(17:53):
you know, right at the bath from you know, beautiful
tomatoes and obviously we use blue corn, and a big
part of that you know, flavors better, but also presents
better such a beautiful looking tortilla. I'll present conceptuals and
then my chef goes through and digs through you know,
recipes and you know, brings in other influences and we
(18:17):
set up our tastings and go through each one and
really have deep discussions on each. So that's my favorite
part of this whole process.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
Looking through some of the appetizers and the starters here.
That ria Inmpanada sounds great. So imagine there's two corn
masa Infanadas stuffed with four hour braized short rib, Beeria,
the three cheeses, the onion, the crama pickled red onions,
(18:47):
and the beria. Consumme, Holy smokes, that sounds delicious.
Speaker 3 (18:53):
I actually just had a customer last night come up
to me and tell me. He said, I just thought
me in my track, didn't really know who he was,
and said, I just want to let you know that
was the best or impinat I've ever had. On was
some great feedback.
Speaker 2 (19:05):
Well, it's obviously got similar textures and flavors to the
taco and this sealed up. But you could imagine that thick,
fresh corn massa with its tiny bit of sweetness and
then stuffed with that long braized short rib. I mean,
how can that go wrong?
Speaker 1 (19:25):
What are some of the Oh?
Speaker 2 (19:27):
Because I'm hungry as hell and you have no idea
how thrilled I am. That Desconzo restaurant is now here
in Los Angeles again easy to find. It's the old
location of the Marie calendars. Now this was not just
your average Marie Calendars. This was a forty year old
flagship location, done in brick, stunning well appointed on the inside. Yeah, right,
(19:54):
you know, it's a I think it's across the street
from Golden Voice too.
Speaker 1 (19:57):
I think they're up in the building across the street. Oh,
SAG headquarters, our Union is there.
Speaker 3 (20:02):
Every time I have to go do business down there,
I would go get lunch at Calendars.
Speaker 1 (20:06):
It's a beautiful building.
Speaker 2 (20:08):
Yeah, it's gorgeous, right next there to the tar pits.
So it's really a destination location to get.
Speaker 1 (20:15):
Out to and enjoy.
Speaker 2 (20:18):
I really want to encourage people listening in Los Angeles
to check this out tonight.
Speaker 1 (20:23):
You're looking for something different. It is the opening weekend.
Speaker 2 (20:27):
Now you've tied some things and you've got some some
stuff going on. Is there a charity aspect this weekend
or something going on that I have in the back
of my mind somewhere.
Speaker 3 (20:39):
Of course there is. And this has always been my
mantra as a restaurant operator, A smarter and more successful
restaurant tour than myself, who at just over thirty restaurants, said, look, Rob,
as you're diving in, you know, headperson of this industry,
you've like make sure. You know you're always community minded
to take care of your community, because you cannot for
(21:00):
with out a you know, as a restaurant without a
good strong community not only functioning on their own, but
you know, in supporting you. And I was like, I've
always taken that to heart.
Speaker 2 (21:12):
Another great excuse to get out there. All right, can
you hang on for one more segment?
Speaker 3 (21:16):
Rob? Sure?
Speaker 1 (21:17):
All right, well we'll come back.
Speaker 2 (21:18):
We're gonna talk more with Rob Ariano from Disconso Restaurant.
It's now here in La Disconso Restaurant la dot com.
Disconso Restaurant, la dot com. I highly encourage you looking
for something special this weekend. You just heard another excuse
to get over there on Wilshire Boulevard have a great meal.
You've been listening to the Fork Report. You can always
(21:40):
hear us live on KFI AM six forty two to
five pm on Saturday and anytime on demand on the
iHeartRadio app. Happy Saturday to you. We're talking with Rob
Ariano from Disconso Restaurant in Coasta, Mesa. You may know
them well. Now we have one here in Los Angeles
on Wilshire Boulevard at the Old Maria Marie Calendar building,
(22:02):
so well known building there at five seven seven three
Wilshire Boulevard, gorgeous structure, now the home of Disconso. Find
out more Disconso Restaurant La Desconso Restaurant La Rob Your
last thoughts, what do you want people to know about
the restaurant so much?
Speaker 3 (22:21):
Where should I start? You know, we're happy to be
here in this neighborhood. I'm so honored to be on
the Miracle Mile and this great neighborhood just all you
know the history of the culture, of the art scene.
We're really trying to emulate that here in the restaurant.
You know, like you said, we're definitely experiential dining. You know,
we really do love when people come in celebrate birthdays.
(22:44):
Plant a dining where we cook in front of you
and we have a chef, I'll punch a host. Chefs
cook a multi course meal to order right at your
table and a plant of grill, and of course we
have our standard dining. We do brunch on the weekends,
so we're doing brunch from eleven to three Saturday, and
so delicious brunch, chili chilas, and you can also do
brunches very neat way of doing brunch. This brunch on
(23:06):
the planter grills where they're cooking your eggs or rebelsonceros
or chili chills right on the flat girl, right in
front of you, which is a very cool, interactive experience.
And of course we've bottomless mimosas, which also really do
help that brunch aspect. I believe in having music too,
so we have live musicians on the weekends Friday and
(23:27):
Saturday nights. It's a lot of fun, a lot of energy,
you know, of course, a lot of good food and
fantastic margaritas.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
Well, I will tell you this has the four Report
Seal of approval most certainly. And if you heard us
talking with Rob Ariano today and you're curious about Wisconsin
Restaurant now in La on Wilshaw Boulevard and the Miracle
Mile there near the tar pits, go in and say hello,
go visit today. You know, starting a new restaurant is
(23:55):
always a nail biter. Why don't you kease things up
by going in and enjoying the food and saying hi
to Rob and all the people going to work there
in this new beautiful three times larger almost than the
location in Coasta Mesa and enjoy it and start booking
those rooms up for special events, whether it's for work
(24:17):
or player or these types of things. And of course
with it being a weekend, definitely get in on that
brunch as well.
Speaker 1 (24:24):
Rob. Always great to talk to you, my friend.
Speaker 2 (24:26):
I want, I wish you nothing but success in that
location and I'm thrilled to have you here in La Neil.
Speaker 3 (24:32):
Thank you so much. Appreciate you having.
Speaker 2 (24:33):
Us of course, so Disconzo Restaurant la dot com. Disconso
Restaurant La dot com. Check out the menus and tell
me I'm not telling you the truth. Go out there,
say hi to Rob and get yourself some good food.
I'm gonna try and get out there this week and
myself and say hi, shake his hand and congratulate him
(24:54):
for the new location, and get some of that good food.
Speaker 1 (24:56):
All right, We'll be back with more, So go know where.
Speaker 4 (24:59):
Listening to The Fork Report with Nil Savedra on demand
from KFI a M six forty
Speaker 3 (25:12):
Mm
The Fork Report w Neil Saavedra News
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