Bone Kettle Awards

Bone Kettle Restaurant Review:

About the restaurant: The signature dish at this charming, stylish Old Town Pasadena spot just off Colorado is an ethereal, nuanced and haute bone broth. The place is casually chic, with clean modern lines, plenty of light, blond wood, and a few artsy touches like a huge mural of stylized Indonesian sword fighters in the main dining room. The front glass-walled storefront area has a lively communal table that’s good for people watching, or a small party; grab a seat at the bar for grazing with drinks, or a quick noodle bowl.

Likes: topnotch noodles unlike anywhere else in LA; authentic Indonesian dishes.
Dislikes: broth with noodles is filling and could really be a complete meal, so be careful small plates don’t dull your appetite.

Food & Drinks: Chef Erwin Tjahyadi's (Komodo) long-simmering recipe uses beef tendon, knuckles and marrow along with spices, cooked for 36 hours. It's served with Temoni ramen noodles and a choice of elevated proteins: standout fatty brisket (cooked sous vide), savory braised oxtails, Jidori chicken breast, ribs or prime filet. Broth purists may prefer to savor the soup alone, and it's quite fine just with noodles too. Small plates, ideal for sharing, offer tastes from Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. Look for an authentic gado gado, ube gnocchi with duck confit, and citrus-brine fried Jidori chicken wings. Despite the restaurant's moniker, vegetarians also have good choices in Indonesian corn hush puppies with coconut chili sauce, four-spice roasted cauliflower and sesame-hoisin charred broccolini. Save room for warm cassava cake with a lovely, smooth avocado ice cream. To drink, there's barley calamansi tea or fresh coconut juice. Find a trendy selection of craft beer on tap and in bottles, and an interesting, short, curated list of boutique wines.