Dining Suite
Eveleigh
8752 W Sunset Blvd
West Hollywood, CA 90069
424/239.1630
theeveleigh.com
CSQ Contact
Michelle Leonard
michelle@theeveleigh.com
Hours
Mon 5p to 1am
Tue - Wed 5p to 1:30p
Sat 10a to 2a
Sun 10a to 12a
The Los Angeles restaurant scene may be a melting pot for the cuisines of the world, but it has also been a hub for the “Farm to Table” movement that has captured the imaginations of chefs and diners from coast to coast. With so many options at our feet, where can a discerning foodie go from there?
According to Australian restaurateur transplants Nick Mathers, Lincoln Pilcher, and Nick Hatsatouris, to a destination that is at once familiar and otherworldly. While the trio planted seeds for success in New York City with Kingswood and Ruby’s, they felt the best way to create a full-blown harvest with a restaurant that not only changes with the season but also the time of day.
Eveleigh’s ambiance on weekday lunch hours is both disarmingly homey yet ideal for leisurely business meetings when comfort, natural sunlight, and relative quiet are all at a premium and essential for connecting with colleagues. The iconic Texas-based sportswear brand Dickies took full advantage of this setting when debuting their 2011 collections to journalists and fashion industry professionals, as the unpretentious but well-curated collection of curios provided the perfect backdrop for its business talk and its lunch.
Daytime fare includes pulled pork and chicken schnitzel sandwiches, loaded flatbread pizzas and heavenly chocolate chip cookies. The pork’s flavors play a little like New Orleans-style cooking at first bite. It is fascinating to learn directly from chef Jordon Toft, however, that the popular schnitzel slider is inspired by well-loved Australian comfort food. The simple but seasonal salads provide a nice, crisp counter balance to the substantial proteins coming out of the kitchen.
When the sun sets, Eveleigh’s Australian roots come alive, down to the music mix. Thanks to a community table element built into the decor (also prevalent in several of Sydney and Melbourne’s most popular restaurants), the mood transitions from country home luncheon to a well-planned vacation house patio party. The dinner menu, set off with breezy-but-complex cocktails (including their outstanding signature lemonade, which can be batched for a group outing), features a small but striking mix of playful shared appetizers and main courses.
Examples of Eveleigh’s more distinctive night time offerings include the crushed peas and burrata cheese appetizer (replacing the familiar tomatoes with a velvety spread spiked with hazelnuts), grilled Boulder Valley natural hangar steak with a crisp potato crust, and the moist half-Jidori chicken with a perfect sauce and balance of olives, pearl onions, and other seasonal add-ons. End the meal with an ice cream sandwich made with those divine aforementioned chocolate chip cookies or a chocolate cake with the very Australian taste of honeycomb on the top.
Deck 33 Bar and Restaurant
Deck 33 Bar and Restaurant
8639 Lincoln Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90045
310/645.0400
jdvhotels.com/dining/deck33
While there’s no shortage of hotel steakhouses, visitors, area businesses, and local residents now have a smart alternative in Deck 33, which came in for a landing at the just-unveiled Custom Hotel near LAX. This multi-level establishment encapsulates everything we like about L.A. dining, from its pool lounge area, to its seasonal and Asian-inspired cuisine, to adventurous cocktails made with house-infused spirits. With a breezy aesthetic that’s a nod to a mid-60s airport VIP lounge, why wait until 2012 to get your Mad Men fix? The menu and crew are fully equipped to take local executives, out-of-town guests, and casual diners for a highly enjoyable ride right here and now.
Chef Naga, whose past flight route included Le Petit Chaya, Bistango, and Cafe Del Rey in Los Angeles, demonstrates a captain’s command with his spot-on concept menu. The food destination is Pacific Rim with sly detours through Europe and North America. Highlights include light but richly flavorful desserts and signature dishes (i.e. shellfish cigars dressed up with yuzu pepper and green curry and Vietnamese summer rolls with fresh tuna). Familiar dishes like calamari, Caesar salad and Penne Bolognese surprise with subtle but definitive Asian twists from Kobe beefs to unexpected blends of spices and seasoning in the condiments.
La Cachette Bistro
Though the little cottage tucked behind Century City Mall was charming, the new location and layout transforms chef/owner Jean Francois Meteigner’s institution into a destination—an authentic taste of Paris sidewalk café culture a stone’s throw away from the beach and Third Street Promenade, yet far from the crowds. The bistro’s joie-de-vivre peaks every Wednesday night when master crepe chef Pierre Lo brings oo-la-la showmanship and his crisp-edged packets of joy to the sidewalk patio. Meteigner keeps the gastronomic party going all week long with lingering happy hour menus with an eclectic mix of French tapas and cocktails so explosively flavorful you can just tell the ingredients made a beeline from the Farmer’s Market to the bar.
Inn of the Seventh Ray
Inn of the Seventh Ray
128 Old Topanga Canyon Rd
Topanga, CA 90290
310/455.1311
innoftheseventhray.com
While the Garden of Eden is a folkloric ideal that burns bright in many cultures, Inn of the Seventh Ray built its cache transmuting that mythology into an accessible reality from both a visual and culinary standpoint. While it remains one of L.A.’s best kept secret for outdoor dream weddings, it provides a wonderful escape for weekend diners as well as savvy executives who find themselves with a client who want to experience all sensory aspects of “The Real California.” These days, executive Chef Bradley Miller tends to the food aspects of the “garden,” using tools he picked up through his stint at the Arizona Biltmore and as a competitor on Gordon Ramsey’s U.S. show, Hell’s Kitchen. What grows from his vision is food that is equal parts elegant and earthy.
La Seine
La Seine surprises on many levels. Rather than gutting the former Lodge, the management opened it up so it flows into a charming outdoor area framing one of the most unusual restaurant concepts in Los Angeles—an amalgam of steakhouse, sushi bar, Tunisian, and kosher. Helmed by executive chef Alex Reznik (who came to national attention on “Top Chef”) and Paris-born restaurateur Laurent Masliah, what could be a precarious mix of influences instead resonates as an unforgettable dining experience, with appetizers, mains, desserts, and cocktails that will not only have some people rethinking their definition of kosher (and dairy-free) fare, but also their first choice of the perfect date night or business dinner restaurant. This fall, lunch service begins, expanding horizons and possibilities.
| These recently “decked out” spots are ideal for post-workday R&R |
Eva Restaurant
Chef Mark Gold revitalizes the old Hatfield’s space on Beverly Boulevard with a look, a deck, and a menu that is as comfortable as your dream vacation home. Elegance without pretention, and strong, modern and painstakingly crafted cocktails. |
Lola’s
One of L.A.’s first go-to spots for swanked-up artisanal Martinis now goes one better with its new outdoor space. It’s also the perfect environment for the restaurant’s seasonal comfort food. |