Doma Kitchen Debuts New Eastern European Wine Menu

I was invited to the exclusive preview dinner of Doma Kitchen‘s new wine menu. Doma Kitchen has been open for just 8 weeks, moving into its new location in Manhattan Beach after outgrowing their first location in Redondo Beach. Executive Chef Kristina Miksyte served us a delightful meal with an emphasis on Eastern European and Central Asian techniques along with unique, handpicked Eastern European wines from sommelier Courtney Walsh. I had never tasted many of these flavors and it was a really exciting and memorable treat! A special thanks to LocaliteLA!

Cheese Board featuring Manchego (sheep), Humboldt Fog (goat), Taleggio (cow), fig jam, crispy crostini paired with Szoke Matyas, Kiralyleanka, 2014, Hungary

What about that cheese though! Chef Miksyte recommended the Humboldt Fog and I finished four slices if that meltingly soft, richly creamy cheese all by myself. Although the cheeses were a standout I fell head over heels for the fig jam, similar in taste and texture to honey, with big lusciously sweet pieces of fig within the jam. I had to be careful not to get full on the cheese plate alone!

Borscht Ukrainian style soup with Beets, Cabbage, and served with Bavarian Dark Bread Paired with Bernreiter, Gruner Veltliner, 2014, Austria

The Borscht was tasty, especially with the sour cream. I had nothing to compare it to, but the journalist next to me had a Lithuanian ex-husband and she was raving about how good this Borscht was!

Emily Tangerine should know a thing or two about Borscht, her man is Lithuanian!

Kasha and Bratwurst with Buckwheat, Farmer’s Sauteed veggies, and Bratwurst from El Segundo’s J. Joseph Family Sausage Company paired with Geyerhof, Familie Maier Zweigelt, 2014, Austria

The brats were my favorite of the night! It was more tender and juicier than the average sausage, it was mild but deeply meaty somehow at the same time. There was also a selection of two different mustard dipping sauces, not that the sausage needed any sauces!

Chef Kristina Miksyte recommended the Kasha as the new Quinoa! I personally hate quinoa but I found the Kasha very soft and rustic. It consists of buckwheat, onions, garlic, and diced tomatos

Plov Veggies and Herbs with Uzbek origins, Simmered Rice with Natural Grass Fed Lamb paired with Vinoterra, Kisi, 2012, Georgia

Its so much fun to say Plov! Plov is a very old world dish, it was served by the merchants on the silk road and we were told about how the Plov was influenced by its surroundings. For example, merchants often walked around with their lamb, therefore lamb meat is commonly added to plov as are various spices from India and China. What really put the Plov the next level was the tangy, pickled tomatoes that you could top the plov with.

Vareniki Potato Dumplings topped with Caramelized Onions, Shiitake Mushrooms and a side of Sour Cream paired with Stoka rose, 2014 Slovenia

These Pierogis were made from scratch, I loved that they were filled with mashed potatoes!

Lamb Stroganoff with Local Natural Grass Fed Lamb, Hand Cut Potatoes, and French Beans paired with Dobrovacki Crljenak 2012, Croatia

The Lamb Stroganoff sauce was to die for! I was bursting at the seams by this time but I soaked up those crunchy french fries with all of that creamy, sour cream infused meat sauce.

Zeppole an Italian fritter with ricotta cheese, housemade chocolate & raspberry sauce. Paired with Rosenhof Orion, Eiswein 2010 Austria.

A perfect end to the dinner, I was so full but I could’ve eaten five of these crispy, custardy little balls of delight. Very reminiscent of funnel cake with the strawberry sauce topping and dustings of delicately sweet powdered sugar