grace

If you don't want to read past this sentence, one word could sum up my culinary experience here ... underwhelming.

We ended up here the other night after a tequila tasting in serious need of nourishment. The first thing that struck me was the crowd. The restaurant had a surprising number of tables available and it seemed as if the last of the hollywoodites had long since departed giving way to a bizarre mix of out of towner's and grandparents. I'll start off with saying, the space is beautiful - clean design in a palette of natural earth tones with beautiful shell light fixtures that dot the space like chandelier earrings. Simple, chic and inviting.

Another positive was the stellar service. It was prompt, attentive, pleasant, and we had nary a complaint about our waitress. Non sequitor side note - there are two restrooms; one for women and one that's unisex. As bizarre as it is to have a waz while staring at a urinal, it was remarkably clean.

The fact that I'm more compelled to write about the loo than the food speaks for itself, so without further ado.. the review.

We started off with oysters and the trio of seafood. The oysters were beautifully presented but on the small side. Out of a dozen, a few were gritty. The accompaniments were creative, but more cloying than complimentary. The trio of seafood consisted of three tiny bowls of minced fish. Literally, about 1/8c of each. I appreciate having a taste of this and that, but with a price tag upwards of $20, come on.

After being torn between the scallops and the rabbit, our server convinced me the rabbit was the better choice. Other dishes at our table included the salmon and the wild boar. Aside from from being beautifully plated, each of our mains had one thing in common - someone seriously heavy handed with the salt. After a few bites it went from 'gee, this tastes awfully salty' to 'the roof of my mouth is stinging and I need more water'. Beyond the salt, the rabbit was well thought out and a solid dish. The salmon was dry, dreadful and nearly inedible. Hands down, the best entree of the bunch was the boar. The roasted Brussels sprouts were perfect, but it would have been better with a simple mash in lieu of the dry spaetzle, which again, was unnecessarily fussy. When our server came by to check on our hardly eaten entrees we were honest about the salt, and she offered immediately to bring something else, but at that point, we were both over it and declined.

Moving on, it seemed something sweet was in order. We went with the butterscotch donuts and the meringue topped lemon granita. The donuts were perfect, not overly sweet, and the lemon was light and refreshing.

Even with the sweet finish, overall it was a disappointment and we all agreed, we likely wouldn't be back. When our (nearly $300) tab arrived, we noticed not even our desserts had been comped (which, at a restaurant like this, I would have expected), after two of our entrees returning to the kitchen hardly touched. C'est la vie. Given the price of admission, I'd probably take my dining dollars elsewhere next time - unless it was donut night!

7360 Beverly Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323) 934-4400