With the plethora of high-profile restaurant openings in L.A. the past year (most within a concentrated area of Southern California), one had to wonder if it might've been better to spread out some of the culinary love. To kick off the new year, Chef David Myers (of Sona and Comme Ca fame) has decided to do just that, opening his new Pizzeria [...]
Drago is one of those long-standing L.A. Italian eateries that I've heard some mention of, but have never had a chance to try. Opened in Santa Monica in 1991 by Chef Celestino Drago, the fact that it's been around this long must mean something.When we arrived in front of Drago on our first visit, I realized I must've passed by Drago countless [...]
The Westside has been blessed with quite a few Italian eateries that have gotten a fair amount of praise over the years. While most of them are conveniently located, I've just never gotten around to visiting them for one reason or another. One such place has been La Botte in Santa Monica.La Botte occupies an understated corner space along Santa [...]
The first time I had heard about all things "Mozza," was when Pizzeria Mozza was just about to open. I remember hearing about the Mozza plan being a multi-restaurant project, with Nancy Silverton (of La Brea Bakery fame), and the always charismatic Mario Batali (of Food Network's Molto Mario and Iron Chef America fame) partnering to bring some [...]
In the City of Angels, new restaurant openings seem to happen every few weeks. This past year alone has seen quite a few "big name" projects open, ranging from wine bars to brasseries to molecular cuisine amongst many other projects. While I was just about inundated with big, new openings, the one last, new restaurant for 2008 that has caught my [...]
"Great Pizza." Utter those two words and you can get a non-stop debate for weeks, if not months, on what "Great Pizza" really means. Pizza is one of the most divisive, passionate topics amongst food lovers today. Part of the reason has to do with all the regional variations of Pizza: What "Pizza" means in Italy is far different than what it means [...]
Three weeks ago, Chef-Owner David Myers (of Sona and Comme Ca fame) quietly opened up Pizzeria Ortica, serving a Lunch-Only menu during its soft opening phase. During this time, their Pizzas showed all the signs of a work-in-progress, with inconsistent results between visits, but it was understandable for a restaurant in its first week of [...]
Spago is perhaps one of the most well-known L.A. restaurants, particularly to those living outside of L.A. It's been home to so many Oscar Parties and Hollywood movie star sightings that when one mentions "Spago" you almost expect it to be about a star sighting or big Hollywood party of some type. For 26 years, the name "Spago" has been the [...]
Valentino is one restaurant that I've always meant to try, but circumstances have come up again and again to prevent me from a visit until recently. The fact that Valentino was awarded a Michelin Star last year, raised my curiosity and expectations even more.Located in a simple stretch of Pico Boulevard with a partially enclosed courtyard for [...]
Update: All' Angelo is now closed.I'm always on the lookout for a nice, neighborhood Italian eatery. A place where you can slip in after a long day, and relax with some good Italian food and wine. After hearing many positive thoughts about All' Angelo on Melrose, I finally had a chance to try it out last week.Upon entering, it was nice to see a [...]
