Republique: Power to the (Food Loving) People

With the pedigree that comes from working in the kitchens of some of the world's greatest chefs, from Alain Ducasse to Ferran Adria, and rising to fame locally with Patina, Bastide, and Church & State, AND the longstanding community connection that comes with one of the most beloved, beautiful and historic venues in LA, Walter Manzke had the burden of great expectations riding on his shoulders in opening République.

The bistro with a focus on 'casual elegance', highlighting local ingredients elevated with a global approach, took over the space that once housed Charlie Chaplin's office, then the original La Brea Bakery, and Campanile: and we were glad to see that the breath-taking rustic grandeur of the space is preserved, with just the right amount of personal touches by the Manzke husband and wife team to make it their own (black and white floor tiles, furniture built by chef Manzke's father...).  They even kept the lovely fountain from the La Brea Bakery/Campanile era, but moved it appropriately outdoors.  A night out at Republique still feels like an intimate event, in some neighborhood gem of a restaurant in some off-the-beaten-path, yet ever so familiar venue that could just as well be in Italy/Spain/France.

Mims, not usually a fan of sea urchin, was so enthralled by the place that she agreed to check out the Eggs on Toast ($16) Santa Barbara uni, soft-scrambled eggs, with me.  Perfect tongues of fresh Santa Barbara sea urchin laid gently over fluffy chicken eggs scrambled with chives, which in turn sat atop crisp, freshly baked slices of baguette*.  The concept of egg on egg is not groundbreaking, but it's an absolute stroke of genius to pair uni (sea urchin gonads) with scrambled eggs - why didn't everyone do this?! Simple, yet brilliant. The dish also definitely turned Mims into a believer in one bite.

*Oh, don't miss out on Margarita Manzke's awesome bread - to avoid food waste Republique has a policy to only bring the complimentary bread to your table on request.  Whatever you do, if you're a lover of a good pre-dinner carb-loading - make sure you request this!

We can never resist a good beef tartare, and jumped when we saw one on the menu: Grass-Fed Beef Tartare ($18) tarragon aioli, pickled red onion, potato chips.  While this isn't the only place in LA to serve beef tartare with potato chips (Flores does it too), it's pretty much the best iteration we've tasted, with the crispy, fresh fried chips the perfect foil for the tender, velvety bites of beef - barely dressed to let the lovely natural flavors shine.  Also loved the plating: the way they stood the potato chips up made them look like some fantastical underwater forest.

Every dish so far had gotten our vote for some of the best things we've ever tasted...and then came the Charcuterie Board ($24) - which simply says "serves one to four" but with the generous portion sizes, we were convinced would actually feed 6 average sized adults.

We got pretty 'food-drunk' on the delirium-inducing deliciousness of every single element on this board - all house made - so much so that we couldn't even remember what the server said each item was - I only vaguely recall venison and liver somewhere in the charcuterie.  Trust me though, every single bite on this board was amazing.

If I had to choose a best of meal, however, my pick would be hands down the Duck Liver Mousse with pickled asian pear.  I don't think I've ever encountered this pairing - and it's absolute genius. This may be as close to the richness of foie that we can get in the city after the ban.  And loved how the soft juicy crunch of the asian pear balanced perfectly with the earthiness of the mousse - and how that ever so slight element of acidity helped to cut through it all without overwhelming the delicate flavors of the pear and duck liver.
 

We didn't want the charcuterie board to end, and seriously stuffed ourselves to the outer limits of human stomach capacity.

Yet we still had coming up: Risotto Nero ($19) with aquerello carnaroli, mediterrenean octopus, manila and razor clam.  This was a gorgeous presentation of vibrant pops of seafood against a stark backdrop of black rice.  The octopus, clams all tasted as if they were just recently plucked from the ocean.  Our only reservation about this one, was that it wasn't as full of flavor as we had expected - though it may have something to do with this being overshadowed by the flavors of the incredible charcuterie.  If we had had the risotto first it might have been possible that this would have also made our list of favorites.

All in all, République lived up to the hype for us: they have our vote as a great new place for 'special occasion dining' without the stuffiness. 

I also loved the bakery counter, where you can just get some of Margarita Manzke's pastries or delicious desserts (the ones that don't come with ice cream anyway) to go.  That's what I opted for one night when it became apparent that there wouldn't even be room for a single diner to slide up to the bar (but GM Christian was incredibly nice and apologetic about it, a rarity for a LA 'hotspot' - a manager who actually cares about every customer! After hearing that I'd driven from West LA in the rain, he did his best to accommodate, personally packing my dessert to go, and even throwing in a free baguette - and no, I absolutely never once mentioned the blog and never asked for anything extra.  This level of care made me even a bigger fan of Republique than I was after the first visit!).

***Much has been made about the 3% "Healthy LA" surcharge tagged onto every bill - which will go towards health care coverage for restaurant staff.  Whether it would have been more customer friendly to work that into food prices, versus bringing something that's usually 'behind the scenes' into front of house, will likely continue to be a topic for debate - but suffice to say here that you can, if you feel strongly about it, as stated by the restaurant take the 3% into account when calculating your tip (taking it out of your total tip).

On a 7 point scale:

Flavor - 6 bites  
Presentation - 6 bites
Originality - 6 bites
Ambience -  6.5 stars
Service - 6 stars
Overall experience - 6 bites
Price - $$$ (3 bite marks)
Probability of return visit - 100% 
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République

624 S La Brea Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90036

Ph:  323.938.1447

Website: republiquela.com

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Gorge: Fighting the Good (Food) Fight

A while back, Beauty Jones and I stopped by Gorge on Sunset.

It's got that perfect storm of elements that appeal to us: cozy, off the beaten path, unpretentious, stacking their investment where it really counts - in the kitchen, with owner/chefs of impressive pedigree - Elia Aboumrad (Joel Robuchon Paris & Las Vegas), and Uyen Nguyen (Guy Savoy, Le Cirque, Fleur de Lys). And it had a name with meaning: Gorge apparently comes from the old war expression, “A la gorge!”,  once an exclamation by French soldiers hurtling into battle, which literally means, “To the throat!”.  The expression was adopted by militant kitchen brigades preparing to give themselves to service. To us that read: thoughtful chefs in the kitchen, good food ahead!

As usual - I tried not to do too much more research beforehand so as to get an as unbiased experience as possible. So we were kind of surprised to step into a cozy little nook that felt in decor a bit like an Irish rural neighborhood pub meets mom & pop diner.  Loved it all the more for offering a casual, relaxed setting for the food that would not be out of place in the finest white-tableclothed, silver-utensiled, multi-award-winning restaurants in the city.

We were greeted by Master Sommelier Darius Allyn, who gave us a tour of the menu along with his recommendations, including wine pairings with each dish. I'm not usually into wine, but Beauty Jones takes annual trips to Italy's wine regions, was just about to leave for the Loire valley, and had just filled my head with visions of lush vineyards and liquid sun/ terroir captured in radiant bottles. And Darius made us feel at home right away, like we were his best customers here for our weekly meal, though it was really our first. There was none of the pretentiousness you may expect from other master sommeliers.  

So we started off with Chicken Liver Parfait ($10) accompanied by cornichons and country bread.  This was an incredibly light, smooth yet flavor rich spread that we didn't want to stop eating, ever.

This was paired (if memory serves correctly) perfectly with a pinot gris.

Then, because we couldn't, and didn't want to, limit our choices on charcuterie/cheese - we went for the platter: Saucisson Sec & Cheese ($29) House dried saucisson sec, Frommage de tete, House pickles, Country bread & GORGE Cheese selection

This was possibly the best charcuterie and cheese platter I've had in LA. Every bite was foodgasm inducing including the sides of pickled romanesco (a veggie that looks like some alien microbe lifeform under the magnifying lens of a microscope), almonds, and housemade strawberry preserves. And yes, you can tell our visit was a while ago, since we were able to get Mimolette on the board. 

For a change of pace, and honestly only because Beauty Jones wanted to try it:
Belgian Endives ($14) Poached in aromatic broth, Served warm, Vanilla bean sauce, Toasted almonds

This was food art - a gorgeous plate that tasted as great as it looks.  I didn't miss my proteins one bit.

Then a terrine for good measure (and because they had me at truffles): Pheasant Terrine ($25) Wild pheasant, Black truffles, Pecans, Potato puree, Organic baby kale salad

This also, like every bite we had before it, was perfect in flavor, texture, temperature, presentation. Taken to the next level with a pairing of Vouvray.

For dessert, there was a choice of different flavors of St. Honore. We went for the Pistachio St. Honore ($10) Pistachio pastry cream, Vanilla chantilly, Pistachio macaron

So deliciously light, with macarons in the true Parisian style - ones that have a crispy shell that yield to airy interiors, that do not collapse into a sticky mess on contact. And if we hadn't both been raised right, would have fought each other for the last bite. 

With the superstar team of women at its helm, it would be so easy and trite, to make this a 'Go Girls!' story - but that would be doing Gorge and its amazing team a disservice. Gorge is simply, the product of true passion and dedication by a trifecta of chefs and sommelier - an amazing still somewhat hidden gem that everyone who loves food and wine needs to experience, asap.

On a 7 point scale:
Flavor - 6.5 bites  
Presentation - 6 bites
Originality - 5.5 bites
Ambience -  5.5 stars
Service - 6.5 stars
Overall experience - 6 bites
Price - $$$ (3 bite marks)
Probability of return visit - 100% 

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Gorge

8917 West Sunset Boulevard, West Hollywood, CA 90069

Ph: 310.657.6328

Parking: Meters on Sunset Blvd.

Website: gorgela.com

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L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon: Culinary Jackpot with Chef of the Century

Vegas, pure and simple, revolves around money. Ways to make it (for the lucky few), and ways to be relieved of the 'burden' of a populated bank account (for the remaining majority).   The greatest part of that equation is the explosion of world class dining venues, as another (arguably better, from a food lover's perspective) way for visitors to draw enjoyment from carefree / conspicuous spending.

I am not one afflicted with an obese wallet - but having saved on meals and other areas throughout the year, I do allow myself to indulge in a spectacular meal or two on occasion...(cue Destiny's Child song) So, just before a business trip to Vegas, I threw out a call for recs to the Twitter hive mind, and was excited when fellow blogger sinosoul recommended L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon as good value for the fine dining meal.

As the chef with the most Michelin stars in the world (where others strive whole lifetimes for just one, Chef Robuchon holds 26), named "Chef of the Century" by a prestigious French dining guide, and awarded the infamously difficult to attain Meuilleurs Ouvrier de France (MOF) which translates to "Best Craftsman in France" Joel Robuchon it should go without saying is a legend in the culinary world.

For a chef so well decorated, I always assumed prices at his restaurants would be astronomical (a la Thomas Keller's French Laundry) and completely not affordable to the average food fan. But on closer inspection, L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon offered a prix fixe "Seasonal Discovery Menu" for 'just' $159! Still a splurge for me, but not where I'd have to win the lottery first!

L'Atelier is located at the MGM Grand, a sleek, modern looking but vibrant and fun space.  The concept revolves around a very open and inviting kitchen, that allows diners to see for themselves exactly how their food is prepared.  Dark fixtures were offset by colorful fruits and veggies and jewel-colored decorative pieces. Having decided rather last minute on the venue, I was lucky to even get a seat - but a little sad not to have been able to pull up to the counter with a view into the open kitchen.  I ended up parking myself at the back bar facing a wall of liquor and books, but was very happy to be at LDJR at all.

I knew dinner would be fabulous the minute L'Amuse-Bouche arrived - my bouche was definitely amused by the Foie gras parfait with port wine and parmesan foam. It was all kinds of earthy, creamy richness balanced by aerated parmesan.

Then came La Daurade - Snapper marinated with lime, tomato and virgin olive oil. The tomato based sauce was amazingly light and refreshing, while the lime lent a nice citrus layer that cut through the fish.  It was like a unique version of ceviche, topped by lovely crispy toasts for textural contrast.   

Next up: Les Huitres - regular readers know I am usually a purist with oysters - I love the unimitable taste of clean, deep ocean, but the Poached baby Kussi oysters with French <Echire > butter was a formidable rival - the clarified butter was luscious, but not heavy or overwhelming. Apparently Echire butter is 'the best in the world' and is so prized by the French that they have given it protected status, "AOC Beurre des Deux-Sevres" like they did with champagne - only the butter produced with milk from cows in that specific region of France can be labeled as Echire.  Upon subsequent research I learned that this butter is about 85% butterfat - no wonder it tastes so amazing!!! Small sprigs of thyme and chili salt lent a bit of savory and bit of heat - and everything worked in perfect balance to make for a sublime symphony of flavor in your mouth when you tipped back the half shells.  I wanted dozens more of these precious little bivalves and to hoard them like Gollum does The Ring.

After the levity of two starting dishes, we headed into more heavy hitting proteins with Le Homard Maine lobster in a spicy broth and shaved lime. This broth was incredible, with Asian flavors that my super friendly server explained came from ginger and lemongrass, and its pairing with lobster was another unexpected coupling that you wouldn't think would work - but the wonderfully fresh, sweet and tender bite of lobster shone through the deliciously flavorful broth, with delicate veggies - each piece perfectly cooked - offsetting the intensity. 

Then came what to me may have been a best of meal: La Cebette White onion tart with smoked bacon, quail egg "mirror" and green asparagus. This was a small disc of fragrant flatbread, served warm, topped by sweet / bitter white onion, addictively smokey bacon, lightly applied cheese to tie it all together, a perfect little golden quail egg at the heart of it all, flanked by lovely pops of green asparagus tops for crunch. I splurged on this one too and added black truffle.  All I can say about this one is: if I ever found The One, this is what I'd want to have for breakfast the morning after we got engaged (how's that for fantasy dining? :P Yeah I'm glad I got to experience the better and more realistic of the two).

For the fish course, there was La Lotte Monkfish cheek and baby leeks, buttery shellfish sauce with lime and ginger. A lovely, tender, sweet piece again influenced by Asian flavors -  could it be to appeal to the Asian contingent in Vegas? (Vegas is heaven for gambling and conspicuous consumption loving Asians)

Then came the piece de resistance - the one everyone who has dined here, raves about: La Caille Foie gras stuffed free-range quail with truffled-mashed potatoes. This plate essentially presents some of my favorite ingredients in the world all at once.  I know I'm way overusing the word perfect in this post, but this quail truly was perfectly cooked - and the sort of tongue-in-cheek - or, rather, liver-in-leg - playfulness of stuffing that rich, luscious bird organ inside the plump, juicy limb - was a stroke of genius.  I didn't care who might be looking - I picked up that bone and sucked off every last morsel, almost down to the marrow.  And the truffle-mashed potatoes were so impossibly creamy yet light at the same time...I was food-drunk on its intoxicating fragrance and texture.  Could have eaten 10 more of these.

For the sweet finish: the first of two desserts was Le Champagne Champagne gelee topped with a frozen raspberry mousse and rose scented meringue.  This was basically art in a glass - presented in beautiful layers, with a delicate sugar snowflake on top. The citrus and champagne light and refreshing after all those courses.

The second dessert hit it home - those who watched the Kings of Pastry documentary know that MOFs are awarded to pastry chefs at the top of their game - so small wonder that Chef Robuchon's desserts would be breath-taking.  Le Chocolat Baked chocolate ganache finished with an aerated devil's food cake and fresh mint ice cream. I loved every bite of this - it's nothing incredibly groundbreaking - but just very, very well executed and skillfully controlled portions so that all the elements work together.

I had been so excited by the amazing eats that I broke a rule and Instagrammed each course pretty much as they came (versus waiting until the meal is complete and I've left the premises).  Don't know if it was because LDJR's social media manager noticed the live tweets (they did start retweeting them!) or if my server was 500% incredible, but I wanted to note that the service was exemplary. Knowing I was dining by myself, my server went out of his way to make sure I was comfortable and enjoying myself, and came by to chat as much as I wanted, and discretely excused himself at just the right times to let me enjoy the art on a plate.  After dinner, he gave me one more treat - and let me duck into the kitchen real quick to get a behind the scenes look!!! 

All in all, an incredible meal - one of the best I've ever had in the U.S.  I don't often get to splurge that much on a meal, but every dish was amazing - and so worth the prix fixe to get the Robuchon experience.  And yes, I left stuffed and with a silly, starstruck grin on my face - without ever even meeting the chef!

On a 7 point scale:
Flavor - 6.5 bites
Presentation - 6 bites
Originality - 6 bites
Ambience - 6 stars
Service - 6.5 stars
Overall experience - 6 bites
Price - $$$$$ (5 bite marks)
Probability of return visit - 100%
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L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon
MGM Grand Las Vegas
3799 Las Vegas Blvd. South, Las Vegas, NV 89109
Ph: 702.891.7358
Twitter: @robuchonlv
Website: mgmgrand.com/restaurants

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Perch - Paris Meets Manhattan in DTLA

From the moment I heard about Perch, I had been dying to go check it out.  Something about rooftop dining, in a bloom of greenery amongst concrete/glass skyscrapers, sounded amazing to me.  It reminded me of Manhattan, or Sevva in Hong Kong, a little bit of home.  But with a French twist.  So basically perfection, towering high above Pershing Square. 

Last weekend, 'Designer' and I decided to head over on a whim after the Korean BBQ Cookoff.  We were in 'day wear' - jersey dress / shirt and shorts - and smelled like we just came from a BBQ, so drinks / dining outdoors in a chic but casual space - just minutes away from Ktown - sounded great to us. 

It was a fabulous adventure from the start - Perch is located at the top of the historic Pershing Square Building, which has an amazing vintage vibe, with a welcoming gold-gilded, glass chandeliered lobby.  We had to take two sets of elevators to get to the restaurant, both of which felt as vintage as the building itself.  The first one was marked with a gold bird silhouette plate next to the button for "13" - which launched our already overactive imaginations into overdrive - hardly any buildings have "13" anymore, thanks to longstanding superstition, and the combination of the unlucky number with the slow-moving vintage elevator triggered thoughts of Being John Malkovich.  We half expected the doors to open out to a 'half' floor, where we would have to crawl out through a low-ceilinged hallway to the second elevator bank.

But alas the 13th floor was full-sized, and we were greeted then escorted to our next ride to the 15th floor.  Perch, we learned, occupies two floors - the restaurant and bar is on the 15th, and a open-air rooftop bar with amazing 360 degree views of downtown LA was on the 16th. 

Our excitement to experience the space was deflated when our hostess let us know that the restaurant was booked full for the night, and the 16th floor reserved for a private party. 

Ever the optimists though, we decided to go for drinks at the bar, enjoy the ambiance of the space and go for a quick look around while putting our names on the waitlist in case of cancellations.


The bar/ lounge was beautiful, even tucked inside the building.  The designers definitely spared no expense with attention to even the smallest detail - everywhere you looked, there was some exquisite embossed wall panel, rustic table or chic amber chandelier that exuded Paris through and through.

We parked ourselves at the bar, where bartenders styled with a 20s/30s look greeted us warmly and asked about our drink preferences before proceeding to create delicious off-menu cocktails for us!  It was a hot day, so I wanted to start with something refreshing and light - and got a cucumber-mint gin drink - that I unfortunately can't remember the name of but that was fantastic.  Designer got an Aperol Spritz (with prosecco and aperol).

As we were finishing our drinks, the hostess came up to deliver great news - they had a table open up, but we could only have it for two hours, and did we want it?  Did we want it?  We practically leaped off our barstools.

They gave us an incredible table on the rooftop terrace that stretched along two sides of the bar/lounge area, with breathtaking views of the surrounding art deco / sleek glass structures.  We were in love with the place before the food ever arrived.

We noshed on baby baguettes, churned butter and olive tapenade while perusing the menu. 

Our eyes lit up while going down the list - though light in its first weeks, it had some unusual offerings that really fit the French theme.  I wanted to try more of the things that are hard to find elsewhere, so I went with a few small plates.  The first of these was the Shake N Bake Drumsticks ($10) which were buttermilk marinated frogs legs with lily root and garlic chips, and a Calvados honey glaze.

I was so excited to try this, as I grew up eating frogs legs cooked the Chinese way and love seeing how it's prepared in other cuisines (and of course the French are famous for theirs).  The Cantonese words for frog are 田雞, which if you take the words individually, translate literally to "field chicken" - and chicken is very much what the legs usually taste like, but with much more intense flavor, juice and a lot skinnier and more veiny. 

Perch's presentation of the dish with uniquely shaped lily root chips was great, and we loved the crispness of the batter coupled with the juicy, yieldy meat underneath - though we wanted the flavor of both the batter and frogs legs to be a bit more pronounced.  I think the flavor was intended to come from the honey glaze, but the small dots of it on the plate were so thick and sticky that they weren't really conducive to dipping.

To go with our meal, we ordered a second round of cocktails - this time I went for something on the menu, a Fancy Navel ($12) with Cognac, Creme de Peche, lemon, OJ and fresh muddled peaches, jalapenos.  This was slightly too syrupy and bitter at the same time, and I definitely liked the first off-menu cocktail much better.

 





Next up was Roasted Bone Marrow ($16) - I had been disappointed a few times with the way bone marrow was prepared at other restaurants (way too oily), but for some reason was in the mood to give it another try.  And Perch didn't disappoint - this was probably the best dish of the night, with the bone marrow nice and fatty but not oily, with a unique consistency that was not quite creamy but almost like softened butter.  This was great spread on the slabs of melba toast that came with the dish.  For accompaniments, there were braised plums, elephant garlic, fleur de sel and wild rocket.  The plums to me were much too thick, sticky and chewy, but designer liked it and thought it went well with the marrow, adding sweetness and a slight tang.

Apres, there was the Duck Duck Goose ($9) three mini clubs layered with seared duck breast, apple wood smoked duck bacon, gooseberry jam, mustard frills, roasted tomato on pain au miel (honey bread).  This was unfortunately one of the biggest disappointments of the night - should have been named, Duck, Duck, Sucker.  I was expecting juicy fatty pieces of duck with a nice char from the seared crust, and had looked forward to the taste of the duck bacon, where fat would again be key. 

I got a plate overrun by dry toast, with pieces of duck that verged on undetectable, except for the fact that it was almost drier tasting than the toast.  The duck bacon fared no better, but was denser in consistency and reminded us of jerky.  There were perhaps two small cherry-tomato sized roasted tomatoes that didn't really taste farm fresh.  I really wanted to love this dish, but could not bring myself to.  That said, I know it'd only been a bit over a week since opening, so have hope that the kitchen will work out the kinks soon.

The entrees on the menu were pretty much all slabs of meat - which suited Designer just fine.  She was torn between the filet and the short ribs dish - and at our super friendly and fantastic server's encouragement she decided to go with the Boeuf Bourguignon Deconstruit ($29) - braised short rib, thumb nail carrots, pork belly, candied garlic, potato lace & chives.  An uber-carnivore, it says a lot that Designer enjoyed the veggies on the plate far more than the meat.  This was the other big, and much more pricey, disappointment of the night.  Braised short rib is usually soaked in flavor, and so tender the meat should fall away with a light flick of the fork.  This was more like well-done steak that looked like it was rare (in color).  At least Designer really did enjoy the vegetables.  With so many places doing great short ribs around the city, in order to compete - especially at the hefty price tag of $29, Perch will really have to up its game with this one (unless they want to just trade entirely on the views from the terrace).

We decided to skip dessert due to the disappointment with some of the other dishes, and that the descriptions of the offerings from beignets to pot de creme to apple tart did not really inspire us. Also, we thought we could come back another time for just drinks and appetizers, or dessert if they step up their game as they get into their groove. And we loved that our server took the time to get our feedback on the meal, stating that the kitchen is really looking for honest opinions so that they can adjust accordingly, since they had just opened.

As we were getting ready to leave, we got our second piece of great news - the private party that was occupying the top floor (with 360 degree views) has mysteriously been cancelled, so we were free to visit upstairs!

The rooftop bar offered fantastic views of the DTLA buildings, and seemed like a great place to hang out with a date or with friends - especially at night with a symphony of lights in the distance, and firepits and heat lamps casting warm glows over the seating areas. A petit, cozy bar with two bartenders is tucked into one corner by the stairs.





All in all, an amazing space that to me seems to marry in the best way, iconic qualities of Paris and Manhattan, vintage and sleek, old world and modern.  It's instantly become one of my favorite scenic spots in LA. 

Also loved the all round fantastic staff and service as well.  Looking forward to returning next time I want to venture downtown for drinks, appetizers and perhaps even a full meal again further down the line, when the kitchen finds its groove.


On a 7 point scale:
Flavor - 5.5 bites
Presentation - 5.5 bites
Originality - 5 bites
Ambience - 6.5 stars
Service - 6.5 stars
Overall experience - 6 bites
Price - $$$$ (4 bite marks mains)
Probability of return visit - 100% (for drinks & appetizers)

[For more photos from Perch, check out the full album on my Facebook page]

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Perch
448 S Hill St, 15th & 16th Floors, Los Angeles, CA 90013
Ph: 213.802.1770
Parking: In open-air lot across street for $6
Website: perchla.com
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Delphine - Raw Bar Monday at the W Hollywood

Recently, the respected Oxford English Dictionary sparked a battery of headlines with its latest additions from "LOL" and "OMG" to slang like "muffin top".  If they are releasing the drawbridge to popular culture, I would propose they add "Raw Bar Mondays" at Delphine - with its definition as [n. a fool-proof way by which to induce an incessant grin with fruits de mer fans on the least 'Like'd day of the week].

Every Monday from 5pm-10:30pm, Delphine offers a raw bar menu featuring oysters on the half shell at great prices (East Coast for $1, West Coast for $2 each), as well as cooked foods from lobster bisque ($3) to many other seafood offerings at below street food prices.  The deals are pretty unbelievable, especially for a fancy hotel like the W.

This Monday, after attending a free movie screening at the Arclight Cinerama Dome (thanks MyCinemaAccess!), "Designer" and I decided we needed to head over to Delphine to fill up on our favorite bivalves.

The most fanta-bulous thing about Delphine's Raw Bar Monday is that it goes from 5pm-10:30pm.  I know Happy Hours were created to be close at hand, to service people in the immediate area as their decompression chamber after emerging from a long day at work.  But as a foodie on a budget, I appreciate places that offer good food with their happy hours - and are considerate enough to extend the time so that people who don't work right next door would have time to get there and enjoy their offerings.

On this Monday night it was great to be able to catch a movie and still have time to meander over for the Raw Bar specials.  Delphine was just a short drive from the Arclight, and since it was a 'school night,' we found free parking fairly easily on Argyle. 

The long, marble countered bar beckoned to us the minute we walked in - we were starving and thought service would be faster there.  We love the 'laid back Provencal' decor of the restaurant overall, but the bar lured us with promise of instant gratification. 

Getting right down to business, we defied the definition and raison d'etre of Happy Hour by skipping the alcohol (I know, how dare we call this happy hour without cocktails!) - kicking off our meal with a gigantic platter of West Coast Oysters ($2 each) and Seafood Ceviche ($3).

So, you might say, Monday is possibly one of the worst days of the week for seafood.  And our answer would be - that's when you'll get the special pricing... But at Delphine, the quality is still there.  The oysters were not the best we've ever had, but still very lovely and great for the price.  The ceviche was also a good deal - each portion was only $3, and I would roughly estimate the portion size to be about an ice cream scoop full!  Each bite was packed with a mix of fresh tasting mussel, squid, lobster and slivers of bell peppers.

Next up was the Lobster Bisque ($3 cup) - a soothing, tomato based soup with massive chunks of lobster.  Some pieces were so big I had to try to carve them into separate bits with my spoon before putting in my mouth!  We scarfed two bowls down.  And then ordered one more, each.

Just as we debated a third bowl, our friendly bartender let us know that next time we're back, we should try the Grilled Head-On Prawn ($2) dipped in the lobster bisque - apparently this is amazing! Other items on the Raw Bar menu that aren't actually raw include Chilled Shrimp ($1/ pc), New Zealand Mussels ($1), Beer Battered Cod Fish ($3).  The most expensive items were Garlic Shrimp in Olive Oil ($5), Fried Calamari ($6) and Steamed Clams in white wine or marinara ($6).

There are of course also drink specials (for $5) including "Delphine Fusion Cocktail", Sparkling Rose, Pinot Grigio, Red & White Sangria, or $4 for PBR Beer.  Will have to try these next time we're back, which should be soon!

In any case, we debated a third bowl of lobster bisque, but at that point my muffin top, which Oxford English Dictionary so politely defines as [n. a protuberance of flesh above the waistband of a tight pair of trousers], rudely reminded me that it was time to stop.

While waiting for the bill, we amused ourselves by playing 'oyster shell Rorscharch', and observing the way we stacked our oyster shells.  As we were not given the usual massive bowl for discarded shells, we tossed them in the bowls used for lobster bisque.  I wondered if the way you stack your oyster shells reveal something about your personality?  If so what would Designer's vs. my 'shell art' above say about us? ;P

The last thing to note about Delphine is that, according to the bartender, because the hotel/restaurant is built atop the subway or public property - there is some city ordinance to build in 15% gratuity to ensure that tips are accurately reported for tax purposes.  His point was then that most of that tip will go to the city, so that we could 'if we wanted' leave him extra gratuity on top of that. On one hand, I do feel badly that a portion of his tips are taken away for taxes, but on the other, don't we all have to pay taxes?  It was a bit awkward as instead of leaving more because we wanted to (usually 20% anyways), we felt like we had to leave more because he asked us to.

Regardless, all in all, a fun time at Delphine for under $25 a person (before tax + tip) and a great way to turn my least favorite day of the week into one to look forward to - hurrah for Raw Bar Mondays!!!


On a 7 point scale:
Flavor - 5.5 bites
Presentation - 5.5 bites
Originality - 5 bites
Ambience - 6 stars
Service - 6 stars
Overall experience - 6 bites
Price - $ (1 bite mark)
Probability of return visit - 100% 
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Delphine 
6250 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood, CA 90028  
Ph: 323.798.1355

Raw Bar Mondays:  5pm-10:30pm throughout restaurant
Happy Hour daily:  5-7pm at the bar

Website: restaurantdelphine.com
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Comme Ca - If Only There Were More Gourmet Happy Hours 'Like This'...

...at a lower price.  It's always exciting for me to find a happy hour that isn't all about the alcohol (though that's important too!) but also puts its best foot forward in terms of food.  Comme Ça's stated philosophy is that "food, wine, service and ambience must all be running at the same level" - and delivers on that promise.  Your first instinct upon seeing the name might be to immediately associate it with the french expression "comme ci, comme ca", a common response to "comment ca va?"  - which means "how are you?".  But it doesn't take long after setting foot in the place to know that it can't be further from English equivalent of that phrase: "so-so", but more to do with the direct translation of "Comme Ça", which means "Like This".  And indeed Happy Hour at the restaurant is exemplary on every level besides price. 

"Designer" and I decided to visit on a Monday, a first for us both - since we had the day off, we decided to have a last hurrah before returning to the daily grind the next day.  We immediately fell in love with the modern, clean, chic black & white color scheme and relaxed yet upscale vibe.  There was also a small counter housing the wet and raw bars (the oysters looked so gorgeous we would have been happy to perch at the counter like seals at SeaWorld, clapping our fins together, mouths open and ready to catch and slurp each bivalve as the bartender tossed them to us - but managed somehow to focus on the purpose of our visit, the special HH menu instead).  Happy Hour starts at 5pm daily, and we arrived just a few minutes before.  The bartendar, Uval, let us know we could either sit at the bar or pull up to any of the three high-top tables right next to it. 


Unlike many restaurants / bars, Happy Hour at Comme Ca means cocktails and food from a special menu (vs. discounted prices for existing items), plus deals on alcoholic beverages.  So first things first:  Though the food menu had us salivating, there were only three cocktails on the HH drink list.   Vodka Rose, El Diablo and Copper Fix ($6 each) - unfortunately, none of them really excited us - so defeating the whole purpose of Happy Hour for us in this arena (saving $$$) - we decided to go with more creative sounding drinks from the "18A" Cocktail menu instead.  Totally in love with the savory / spicy cocktail trend, we decided to try Hot Pepper Smash ($12) Bourbon, Thai chile, lemon wedges, honey, muddled, shaken, strained & topped with crushed ice and a sprig of mint.  Designer originally wanted another drink with vodka, but as vodka does not sit well with with her (she will literally get sick), we asked if Uval can replace it with another liquor - not knowing if anything else would work with that combo of ingredients.  Uval was very accommodating, and ran through a list with us - finally landing on rum.  But then designer decided to go for Hot Pepper Smash instead, though rum sounded appealing - so she ended up doing Hot Pepper Smash with rum instead of Bourbon. While discussing customizations (which I would normally never do, with food! I love tasting things as the chef intended) I think I mentioned that I am excited by really creative concoctions with unexpected ingredients (like Katsuya's burning Mandarin - with citrus and cranberry kicked up a notch with chili and jalapeno) and Uval offered to make a totally new drink for us if we're willing to experiment with him - an offer we couldn't refuse!  The product we ended up calling "Oasis" ($12) was made with agave nectar, vodka, thai chile, dill and bell pepper!  It was a sophisticated drink with nuanced layers of flavor, well balanced, just the right amount of sweet with a unique herbal tinge of dill, and just a bit of heat from the chile.   The Oasis turned out to be one of my favorite cocktails of all time!   And Uval said once people around us saw it, they also started to request it.  Even though the cocktails were $12 each, and it was technically a 'school night' - we had to go for second rounds of both!

Uval's warm, personal approach really made the experience for us - besides the custom drinks which really created a memorable experience, he circulated through the customers at the bar / tables like a PR pro (I mean that in a good way!) - and made sure everyone was enjoying their drinks and food.

So high scores on drinks, ambience and service - now on to the food.  After devouring the complementary warm, fresh-baked baby baguette - we did stick with the HH menu on that front - starting with the Peruvian Bay Scallops ($9) with parsnip puree, and caramelized fennel.  For some reason we were expecting seared scallops in a savory preparation - when the dish arrived it was nothing like what we envisioned, but actually, much better!  Not sure if they ended up replacing the dish as I didn't see any parsnip puree - but this was more like a scallop ceviche, raw scallops with citrus - the scallops were smooth and tender, counterbalanced by the clean taste and texture of the grapefruit and crunch of fennel.

Next up were the Dungeness Crab Croquettes ($8) with harissa aioli - these were Designer's favorite of the meal, crispy on the outside and warm, juicy and sweet chunks of crab inside. 

I really, really wanted their version of poutine - with its promise of liquid gold over crispy hearty goodness via a sunny side up egg topping a mound of pommes frites slathered with sausage gravy and white cheddar curds.  But unfortunately, they were out of it that day.  So our next small bites plate was Vegetable "A La Greque" with burrata ($9).  A great dish (though the burrata of course cannot top Osteria Mozza's, the ultimate for me in LA), with the creamy cheese balancing well with the crunchy, market fresh slivers / slices of legumes.

Of course, though this wasn't dinner proper - we couldn't leave without dessert.  We started with Uval's recommendation, a plate of  all that is good and right with the world.  It's what you would get if a buttery, fluffy chocolate bread pudding mated with a molten chocolate cake and produced a GENIUS child.  Its name?  Chocolate Brioche Bread Pudding ($9) served with vanilla bean ice cream.  The melty chocolate center flowed out on contact with our forks, and we didn't stop to take a breath (or notes) until every last morsel had been 'Hoovered' from the plate.

Because our stomachs are indeed bottomless, we debated whether to order a second serving of bread pudding.  But because it was so rare to see Marron Glacés (candied chestnuts slow cooked in sugar syrup) on the menu - I got Designer to agree to try it.  Marron Glacés at Comme Ça ($9) involves candied chestnuts, poached dried figs, caramelized walnuts, lemon-thyme ice cream.  I loved the idea of this dish, but in the end all the ingredients did not come together in a cohesive way for me, and I wished we'd gone as planned to order a second bread pudding.


All in all, we had a lovely time at Comme Ça, which would have been a role model in every regard from food, drinks, ambience to service - with the exception of price.  Granted we ate way more than normal people would at happy hour, and we had two rounds of full-priced cocktails, but our bill came out to $100 for two (half of it was in full priced cocktails), which is not what we set out for when heading to Happy Hour, at all.  At Waterloo & City, with its bigger portion sizes of heartier gastropub gourmet, we would have left stuffed and had four rounds of fun, original drinks at half the cost. 

If Comme Ça could just offer more selections of cockatils including some of the more exciting 18A ones at half price, and either offer larger portions of small plates or take down the price a bit, I would say everyone should have a Happy Hour 'like this'.  But in any case, next time I am feeling well-funded, I would definitely be back for several rounds of the "Oasis" drink and Chocolate Brioche Bread Pudding for starters!!!
 

On a 7 point scale:
Flavor - 6 bites
Presentation - 5.5 bites
Originality - 5.5 bites
Ambience - 6 stars
Service - 6.5 stars
Overall experience - 6 bites
Price - $$$ (3 bite marks)
Probability of return visit - 95%______________________________________________________________________

Comme Ça
8479 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Ph: 323.782.1104      
Website: commecarestaurant.com
OpenTable:  Look for reservations

Happy Hour:  Daily 5-7pm $6 cocktails (3 choices), $8-$9 small plates, $4-$7 beer, $5-$9 wine
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