The Peninsula Beverly Hills opened its doors today following an extensive four-month remodel, unveiling striking new interiors and full transformation of the menu.
Building on a rich, 20-year history of exceptional cuisine, the re-imagined menu, under the direction of Executive Chef David Codney, now features Mediterranean-inspired dishes with a focus on locally sourced ingredients and wild-caught seafood.
Designed in partnership with leading San Francisco-based hospitality design firm EDG, the restaurant’s bright and spacious interior is now the backdrop for a breathtaking art collection, worth several million dollars, featuring some of the world’s most renowned contemporary artists. Without a doubt, a defining feature of the new Belvedere will be the outdoor dining experience which will open late-January. Accounting for nearly half the restaurant’s space, lush, leafy foliage set alongside water and fire features create the ambiance of a lively urban garden in the heart of Beverly Hills.
You’ll find a Mediterranean-inspired menu with a strong focus on locally sourced ingredients of the highest quality—some of which are harvested directly from the hotel’s rooftop garden—as well as sustainably caught seafood, sourced from local fishermen and purveyors.
Breakfast dishes range from comfort-food classics such as Eggs Benedict and Buttermilk-Blueberry Pancakes to spicy Shakshuka Baked Eggs and house-made Sujuk with confit tomatoes. Standout lunch dishes include a variety of house-made flatbreads alongside healthful salad options such as mezze staple Fattoush. The dinner menu features shareable appetizers, Mediterranean-inspired entrees and fresh, house-made pasta.
Dessert includes dishes like Pear Flaugnarde and Inspired Baklava draw inspiration from old world classics but with a contemporary twist.
Led by Food & Beverage Director Michael Ploetz, The Belvedere’s beverage program features an extensive selection of limited production wines, craft beers and cocktails. Utilizing the Coravin technology, a carefully curated list of over 50 wines, many typically available only by the bottle, are offered by the carafe or glass. Wines by the bottle include rare finds from Spain, France and Italy, with additions from lesser known regions such as Croatia, along with a number of “new school” California producers known to pair with Mediterranean flavors. Seasonal cocktails are hand-crafted using house-made syrups and infusions and include creative concoctions such as the vibrant Garden Gin & Tonic, prepared with seasonally rotating aromatics from the hotel’s own garden. Ultra-craft beers from California’s finest microbreweries round off the exceptional drinks offering alongside bespoke coffee service with locally roasted, single-origin coffee served tableside and expertly crafted by a barista.
You’ll also find a newly updated design at The Belvedere; a ransitional style that blends The Peninsula’s signature French-country look with updated, contemporary accents. Deep-tufted booths and banquettes offer sumptuous seating and dining tables are dressed with Parisian-inspired blue and white Toile de Jouy table skirts topped with crisp white linen. Luxurious natural white oak floors are the canvas for a delicate interlacing geometric pattern, an exquisite accent to the new space. The dramatic new look culminates in a collection of contemporary artwork featuring international artists such as Yayoi Kusama, Robert Indiana, Alex Katz and Sean Scully. The defining piece is a spectacular polyptych created by French painter Fabienne Verdier by special commission for The Peninsula Beverly Hills. Split into five panels, the eye-catching work hangs on both sides of the restaurant’s entryway to create the sensation of an endless, or “all over” painting.
Opening at the end of the month is the restaurant’s spectacular outdoor terrace, which has nearly doubled in size. Framing the vista of the new terrace are blackened-steel French doors and windows which open onto the charming, garden-inspired space. Classic French-style, hammered-finished banquettes and tables are set around the focal point: a magnificent Podocarpus tree.
