New Restaurants
| Name |
Address |
City |
Phone |
| 3rd Stop |
8636 W. Third St. |
West Hollywood |
310-273-3605 |
| Ackee Bamboo |
4305 Degnan Blvd. |
Leimert Park |
323-295-7275 |
| Aphrodisiac |
10351 Santa Monica Blvd. |
Century City |
310-282-8870 |
| Emle's |
9250 Reseda Blvd. |
Northridge |
818-772-2203 |
| Izayoi |
132 S. Central Ave. |
Los Angeles |
213-613-9554 |
| Mia Sushi |
4741 Eagle Rock Blvd. |
Los Angeles |
323-256-2562 |
| Republic |
650 N. La Cienega Blvd. |
West Hollywood |
310-360-7070 |
| S Vietnamese Fine Dining |
545 Westminster Mall Dr. |
Westminster |
714-898-5092 |
New Nightspots
| Name |
Address |
City |
Phone |
| Air Conditioned |
2819 Pico Blvd. |
Santa Monica |
310-829-3700 |
Coming Soon
BLD
Chef Neal Fraser (Grace) is heading several blocks west to open this casual New American in the space that last held Cafe Capo (7450 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles). Its name is an acronym for breakfast, lunch and dinner, all meals it will serve when it opens by summer.
Sea
The less than chic Toppers Mexican Restaurant on the 18th floor of the Huntley Santa Monica Beach Hotel (1111 Second St.) is being turned into this stylish Cal-Asian, with cutting-edge design by the ubiquitous Thomas Schoos (Citizen Smith, Wilshire) and food by Rodelio Aglibot (formerly of Yi Cuisine); due to open by late summer.
Simon LA
As announced last year, chef Kerry Simon (Simon Kitchen & Bar at the Las Vegas Hard Rock) is coming to the Sofitel Los Angeles Hotel (8555 Beverly Blvd., West Hollywood) next month as part of the French-run chain's $35 million renovation; his casually elegant New American will offer many of the dishes that have made his LV eatery a popular destination, including sea bass with quinoa and currants, and roasted young beets with Laura Chenel goat cheese. Small irony: the Hard Rock Cafe is directly across the street in the Beverly Center.
Social Hollywood
New York restaurateur Jeffrey Chodorow now expects this modern Eclectic in the landmark Hollywood Athletic Club (6525 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood) to open in early May; in the kitchen will be Joe Ojeda (ex Asia de Cuba), with pastries by Sam Christopher (ex Norman's). There will also be a screening room and the inevitable VIP party space.
Tender Greens
The Downtown Culver City restaurant scene continues to thrive. This summer, chefs Erik Oberholtzer (formerly of Shutters on the Beach) and Matt Lyman (formerly of Hotel Casa Del Mar) are teaming with Scarborough Farms of Oxnard to create this veggie-intensive newcomer (9523 Culver Blvd.) with a menu built around organic produce, fish and poultry. Also slated for summer openings in Culver City: Ugo Italian Cafe (3865 Cardiff Ave.) and Wilson, a small-plates restaurant and wine bar from chef Michael Wilson (formerly of 5 Dudley) residing in the MODAA Lofts development (8631 Washington Blvd.).
Good Deals and Other News
The Club Bar adjacent to Belvedere now features live jazz Thursdays through Saturdays (8 PM–close), along with a bar menu of dishes prepared in their shared kitchen, including what some are calling the best hamburger in town.
A Brazilian churrascaria may seem like an odd place to go for salad, but the local branch of this all-you-can-eat meat chain offers a salad bar with more than 30 dishes, which can be had for half the price of the full meal ($25 for the salad bar alone, $50 for the salad bar plus unlimited meat). And with a selection that includes smoked salmon, prosciutto, salami, mozzarella, hearts of palm, marinated mushrooms, roasted peppers and jumbo asparagus, the question of where's the beef may be moot.
Chef Suzanne Tracht is offering a new à la carte Sunday brunch menu (10 AM–2 PM); dishes include chilaquiles with shredded roast pork, scrambled eggs with Spanish chorizo and chives, lobster Benedict with char sui pork and pea tendrils and a grilled Gruyère sandwich with homemade pickles.
This Californian in the same building as the venerable Wiltern Theatre has a new chef in Jacob Ramos (formerly of Patina), who's brought along Luis Perez, his dessert chef from Patina; expect new dishes like braised short ribs flavored with chipotle chiles, and foie gras with persimmon chips.
Chef David Myers has jumped on the eccentric ice cream bandwagon, with flavors such as shiso, white beer, mustard, fennel and parsnip accompanying first courses like foie gras, shrimp and lobster – and we always thought pistachio was as wild as it got.
You know you've made it when Hollywood asks you to cook insects! Head chef Suphaptra "Eid" Kortrakul recently worked as a technical consultant for an episode of CSI: New York, in which a dead woman's final steps are traced to an exotic cuisine event where the main course included live centipedes, Brazilian cockroaches, live octopus and fried tarantulas. Chef Eid serves insects – grasshoppers, ants, sea worms – as part of his regular menu at Typhoon.
This Korean-run sushi spot has a new branch in the Crossings at Corona Mall (2560 Tuscany St., Corona; 951-272-2177), where it's bringing the gospel of sushi rolls strange and stranger to the hungry denizens of the Inland Empire.