WHY It’s a gem among the mediocre Italian restaurants littering Old Pasadena. WHAT This romantic little cottage on Green Street features a dining room decorated like someone’s (tasteful) home, a kind Italian staff and often-extraordinary seafood-focused dishes from Venice, Friuli and the rest of northeastern Italy. Bring your Gold Card, and savor a superb caprese [...]
October 28, 2011 | Posted in
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WHY Belgian endive salad with Roquefort, whitefish fillet with brandade and a great roast chicken with frites, all served in a place right out of the 8th arrondissement. WHAT Pinot Bistro is the oldest and most reliable of Joachim Splichal’s Patina spinoffs. Avant-garde when it opened, this handsome, artfully lit bistro has evolved into a [...]
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WHY Charm, consistently good rustic Italian cooking, and the chance that you might run into that producer who hasn’t been returning your calls. WHAT Although it’s full of showbiz people, Ca’ Del Sole is not a scene—most people come here because they want to eat well and have a good conversation with their companions, whether [...]
October 28, 2011 | Posted in
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WHY Charm and intelligent food in an old Spanish-style house—in a neighborhood that needed a good restaurant. WHAT At first, this newish place looked like it was angling to become the romantic spot in Toluca Lake, and it sort of is, but in a noisy way, with live flamenco music and even dancing on weekends. [...]
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WHY For good-value French classics: endive salads, roast chicken with garlic fries, beef bourguignon, crème brûlée. WHAT Patina alum Miki Zivkovic has created a welcoming neighborhood restaurant in an unattractive strip mall next to a Starbucks. Inside it’s romantic and warm, filled with regulars who’ve found a little bit of Paris in frumpy Burbank. WHO [...]
October 28, 2011 | Posted in
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WHY Personal service and cooking in an intimate, romantic, special-occasion setting. WHAT In a twist on the old French standard, at Brandywine the wife does the cooking and the husband runs the front, and it’s clearly a harmonious relationship. This tiny place is romantic as all get-out, and chef Peggy McWilliams makes the kind of [...]
October 28, 2011 | Posted in
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WHY The country-rustic, ultra-atmospheric setting, not to mention the seared foie gras, elk tenderloin and a wine list bulging with trophy cabs. WHAT Decorated like a rustic hunting lodge and set in the spectacular mountains that divide Malibu from the Valley, Saddle Peak is that rarest of birds: a special-occasion restaurant that has remained special [...]
October 28, 2011 | Posted in
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WHY For the newish Vin Bar, a more casual and affordable spot situated rather awkwardly within the restaurant. WHAT This groundbreaking Italian restaurant has impeccable silver and service, the atmosphere exudes self-satisfied wealth, and the kitchen is accomplished, turning out such delicacies as truffle-topped risotto, agnolotti with braised Sonoma lamb, and a garlic-rubbed veal chop [...]
October 28, 2011 | Posted in
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WHY An only-in-L.A. combo: creative Cal-Mediterranean dishes meet Justin Timberlake—worthy poolside dining. WHAT Mega-style meets better-than-the-norm hotel dining at this too-hip-for-most beach hotel. You can dine out on the green patio, in your own private tent or in the glam dining room; while it’s more romantic at night, it’s pricier, too, so we like coming [...]
October 28, 2011 | Posted in
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WHY With its California-dream patio and organic, market food, Wilshire is bucking to be the Michael’s for the new millennium. It’s not that, but we appreciate the effort. WHAT Wilshire has a too-cool country-club vibe, complete with leather club chairs and a cover-charge scene at the bar after 9:30, but it’s not just the latest [...]
Type: Restaurant
Region: West of the 405
Neighborhood: Santa Monica
Features: A Scene, Cocktails, Dinner, Essentially L.A., Lunch, Patio Dining, Private Room, Romantic, Sustainable
Price Range: $25-$33, $34-up
Cuisine Type: Modern American, Steakhouse
October 28, 2011 | Posted in
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