Where to dine out in Los Angeles this fall.
BICYCLETTE BISTRO
Photo Credit: Anne Fishbein
République owners Walter and Margarita Manzke and chef/owner Joe Garcia have brought a true Parisian vibe to west L.A. with Bicyclette, a beautiful bistro housed in the former Sotto space. Dining here is a must for Francophiles, who will be charmed by the love letter to Paris décor: vintage church pews, walls adorned with eclectic art, ornate bronze sconces, oversize armoires and unique wood furniture. In the Manzkes’ capable hands, Bicyclette is a total triumph. The menu is distinctly French, with items like Burgundy escargot en croute with garlic butter; duck leg confit with chanterelle mushrooms, baby turnips and oven-dried peaches; and the heavenly soft egg in the shell with smoked sturgeon and Kaluga caviar. Led by bar director Shawn Lickliter, the inspired cocktail and mocktail menu is rife with aperitifs, Collinses and cobblers. Standouts include the Le Marais with Floc de Gascogne, absinthe, almond, cucumber, lime and celery and the Latin Quarter, made with Byrrh manzanilla, Campari, strawberry and Peychaud. There’s also a curated collection of spirits and an all-French wine list. Plus: a swankier restaurant will join the bistro soon.
Photo Credit: Anne Fishbein
9575 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles; bicyclettela.com
A.O.C. BRENTWOOD
Photo Credit:Amy Neunsinger
James Beard-winning business partners Suzanne Goin and Caroline Styne, owners and operators of the Lucques Group, took the winning formula of their first A.O.C. on West 3rd Street and applied it to their newly opened Brentwood outpost. The aesthetic here is in line with the original as well. Designed by L.A.-based firm Nickey Kehoe, the new space is just as charming and warm, still SoCal but with an Aix-en-Provence outdoor café vibe. It is undeniably elegant, with an airy ambiance throughout the main bar room, which features beautifully textured fabrics, cozy velvet booths and banquettes, a long, rough-hewn communal table and a charcoal-wood back bar with a mirror detail and lovely lighting. There is second dining room in gorgeous hues of green, as well as a private dining room for gatherings of up to 40. Like the OG location, the newly opened wine bar features a small-plates menu format with seasonally rotating fare sourced directly from local farmers markets, a wine list that highlights small-production labels that are either sustainably, organically or biodynamically grown and a beverage program of market-driven cocktails.
Photo Credit: AOC Brentwood/Anne Fishbein
11648 San Vicente Blvd, Los Angeles; aocwinebar.com
THE BARISH
Photo Credit: Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
Four-time James Beard award-winning chef Nancy Silverton is throwing it back to a classic era with her vintage-style, old-Hollywood eatery The Barish, located in the iconic Hollywood Roosevelt hotel. With her first opening in eight years, Silverton, cofounder of the Mozza Group, has created an Italian steakhouse inflected with the bold California-Italian flavors she’s renowned for. Everything here is personal: the menu is inspired by Silverton’s summers spent cooking over open fires in Italy. Dishes include a variety of pasta al forno and meats; additional standouts are grilled abalone mushrooms with porcini butter, an iceberg wedge with trufflebert hazelnuts, and a 40-day dry-aged porterhouse steak. The restaurant takes its name from that of Silverton’s paternal grandmother’s family, Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe who settled in Canada and raised Angus cattle and Hampshire sheep on a homestead called the Barish Farm. As such, authentic sepia photographs and cherished family heirlooms are essential to the eatery’s décor, as are elements of the hotel’s original Spanish Colonial Revival, such as custom-designed banquettes with a blackened finish and tapestry-like upholstery, mirrored columns and vintage-inspired furnishings reminiscent of the Italian countryside where Silverton summers. (She sourced some tabletop pieces herself at flea markets throughout Europe, including hand-painted plates by a Tuscan ceramicist.) As designed by L.A.-based firm Nickey Kehoe, the 110-seat dining room is additionally anchored by a wood-fire hearth and open-kitchen setup.
Photo Credit: The Hollywood Roosevelt
Hollywood Roosevelt, 7000 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles; thehollywoodroosevelt.com/about/food-drink/the-barish
MATU
Photo Credit: Matu/virtuallyherestudios.com-1
Matū is the first steak restaurant in America to exclusively serve 100 percent grass-fed Wagyu — specifically, award-winning beef produced in New Zealand by First Light Farms. Indeed, matū, in the indigenous Māori, means “the essence of, the gist of or richness,” which is what cofounders Jerry A. Greenberg, Michael Odell, Ryan Gianola, Scott Linder, Lowell Sharron and Mark Schatzker (all of whom are part of the extended restaurant group that includes Sushi Nozawa Group, UOVO and HiHo) have set out to achieve with their new Beverly Hills omakase-inspired hot spot. Matū’s daily-rotating Wagyu Dinner is at the heart of the menu. It begins with a bone broth, cooked for 24 hours, and progresses through four additional courses created with a variety of cooking methods and cuts of beef, including ribeye, New York, picanha, filet and beef cheek. Guests will also find à la carte items including Maine lobster tails, broccolini, maitake mushrooms, caulilini, tenderloin carpaccio, a braised beef pasta and two signature desserts on the menu. All fare is enjoyed in an earthy, 2,800-square-foot space anchored by five native Kiwi trees and an open kitchen with a wood-fire grill.
Photo Credit: The Ingalls
239 S Beverly Dr Suite 100, Beverly Hills; matusteak.com
BACARI SILVER LAKE
Photo Credit: Jakob Layman
For those wandering up Sunset Boulevard in search of Cliff’s Edge, there’s no need to be disappointed that the Silver Lake staple has changed hands and transformed into something new. Its reincarnation, Bacari Silver Lake, is, quite simply, a delight. Here, each dish is more outstanding than the last. As conceived by Israeli-born executive chef and co-owner Lior Hillel alongside Danny and Robert Kronfli, the Mediterranean-meets-Israel cicchetti-style menu of small plates is a total win. Standouts include the salatim, served with a vegan cashew pate, green chickpea hummus, hazelnut beet muhammara and piping hot, straight-out-of-the-oven pita bread; Prince Edward Island mussels; the pistachio lamb kabob; perfect small-but-mighty pizzas; and a vegan double chocolate cake that’s to die for. The cocktail program is also a winner, thanks to beverage director Erin Earl’s classic and specialty cocktails that utilize house-made syrups and bitters, like the Sinners Nectar — bourbon, blood orange, pomegranate, molasses and lime — and the Mr. and Mrs. Smith, made with Smith & Cross rum, Granny Smith apple, juiced fennel, lime and demerara. That these winning offerings are set within a magical, romantic and much-revered space (renovated by M. Winter Design) that boasts an expansive tree-shaded multiple-deck patio with luscious landscaping, low lighting and two firepits all of which adds to Bacari’s appeal.
Photo Credit: Jakob Layman
3626 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles; eatwithbacari.com
GIRL & THE GOAT
Photo Credit: ANTHONY TAHLIER
In July, James Beard award-winning chef Stephanie Izard and James Beard award-winning restaurateurs Rob Katz and Kevin Boehm of BoKa Restaurant Group brought the long-awaited outpost of their feted Chicago eatery Girl & the Goat to downtown Los Angeles. Fans should expect something slightly different from the West Coast menu, which focuses on seasonal California-specific produce. Chi-Town staples like chickpea fritters and goat empanadas live on here, though new dishes exclusive to L.A., including pork belly salad and pan-seared opah, shouldn’t be missed (and that goes for brunch items like potato “banh xeo” and PB&J pancakes, too). There are seasonally inspired cocktails, as well as a handpicked selection of sustainable and organically focused wines. Those who love the original Midwest location will see some commonalities in the design, as Izard’s longtime design partner, Karen Herold of Chicago’s Studio K, came out west to play. The result is an approachable, unpretentious, light-filled 200-seat restaurant with floor-to-ceiling windows and generous use of greenery, as well as a fun, L-shaped open kitchen.
Photo Credit: ANTHONY TAHLIER
8555-3 Mateo St, Los Angeles; girlandthegoat.com/los-angeles
