Short Pours at the Pen
One of our pet peeves about dining and drinking out is the insanely short pours served at some restaurants, especially when you’re paying a pretty penny for a glass of wine. This latest example was especially egregious. It happened at the Peninsula Hotel in Beverly Hills on New Year’s night. And what else were we drinking, but champagne? The first clue that something was amiss were the flutes set down at the lobby bar...
Chow Bella, Scarpetta
Chef Scott Conant brings his take on Italian cuisine to a beautiful space in Beverly Hills’ Montage Hotel with Scarpetta. If you haven’t been to the locations in New York or Miami, opened in 2008, you’re in for a treat from this talented maestro. Specialties prepared with the finest seasonal ingredients are served in a Mediterranean atmosphere that also evokes Hollywood glamour. Custom cabinetry showcases the...
The Den of Hollywood
It’s Sunset Boulevard without the drama, hassles or high prices of the neighboring establishments. The Den, situated directly across the street from the Château Marmont–and ahem, that’s exactly what we’re talking about, much as we love that place–is packing them in with drink specials, a seasonal and quite reasonable menu and a fun late-night party atmosphere on the patio. This is the kind of place that...
How Do You Say Abbot Kinney in French?
You don’t need to be wearing a beret, but if you did you’d fit right in at Lilly’s French Café in the heart of the Abbot Kinney dining district. If rustic French bistro fare tempts your palate, this could be your new favorite place. Deceptively larger than it looks from its charming front entrance and warm wood-toned bar, Lilly’s boasts a lively dining room with a modern art display and a quieter rear candlelit...
Skybox Sushi
Once we stepped behind 100-year-old wooden gates into a tranquil Japanese garden and were greeted warmly at Gonpachi, we looked up and were suddenly and somewhat explicably reminded of being at Staples Center. No, it wasn’t a Pau Gasol sighting, and more on that in a moment. Gonpachi is a gem that stands out from the old school vibe (Lawry’s, Benihana, anyone?) on La Cienega’s established restaurant row, just north of Wilshire....
Follow The Atkin Report
