Went To Venice Beach To Figure Out What I Was Missing

Several years ago I was gifted the cookbook from Venice Beach's Gjelina. I remember thumbing through the book and eyeing the gorgeous photos of veggies galore and pizzas a plenty.

Today, I had the opportunity to visit the spot for lunch. It was glorious -- from the Grilled Trumpet Mushrooms with Tarragon Butter, seen above, to the Grilled Pork Neck with Salsa Verde, seen below...

And, brilliantly bringing up the rear was a gorgeous dish of Grilled Peaches with Burrata, Prosciutto, Arugula, and Aged Balsamic...

Now, this was my kind of dessert!

The food was truly delicious.

So, why hadn't I ever cracked open the cookbook to actually test out some of the recipes at home?

Good question and I have a good answer.

Every single one of these dishes was made on a wood-burning grill.

I know you're shocked, but my Brooklyn apartment doesn't come equipped with one. It clearly was a major 'miss' in my kitchen renovation.

One consolation? Open flame isn't completely off the table. I was recently gifted a mini Butane torch. It won't do the job on the pork, but maybe Brûléed Peaches will be on the menu at the next dinner party.