Photo Credit: Giada Paoloni
Our top picks for the hottest new high-end hotel bars and restaurants in Los Angeles.
DANTE BEVERLY HILLS
THE MAYBOURNE BEVERLY HILLS
Photo Credit: Giada Paoloni
Beverly Hills needed a late-night destination like the jet set need Rodeo Drive, and now, that need has finally been fulfilled at Dante Beverly Hills, an outpost of this NY-based 50 World’s Best Bars winner. Set on the hotel’s recently-renovated rooftop, Dante offers signature cocktails paired with an Italian and Mediterranean-inspired menu centered around wood-fired oven entrées. The fare perfectly accompanies its cocktail program — apertivo-style drinks like a Negroni or Aperol Spritz, from small, local brands and producers; there is also a menu exclusive to Beverly Hills, celebrating Californian cocktail culture with a focus on agave-forward drinks. The space is every bit as stylish as the menu, seamlessly blending European elegance with light and fresh touches, with a colorful alfresco ceiling, plush blue banquets, and white-marble tables. The poolside “Hopes & Dreams” installation by Joel Mesler makes this establishment the place to beat. 225 N. Canon Drive, Beverly Hills, 90210
THE GEORGIAN ROOM
THE GEORGIAN HOTEL
Photo Credit: Maxime Lemoine
Those who love the allure and glamour of Hollywood’s Golden Age are in luck now that The Georgian Room has reemerged after a 60-year hiatus at the newly renovated Georgian Hotel in Santa Monica. Under the careful eye of chef David Almany, who trained under award-winning chef Nancy Silverton for over a decade, the renowned restaurant emulates the traditional chophouses of Tuscany with classic steakhouse accoutrements and Italian flair. Highlights include a 48-ounce, TGR dry-aged tomahawk ribeye; doppio ravioli; rigatoni alla vodka; and veal Parmigiana — via collaborations with renowned meat purveyor Pat La Frieda and caviar courtesy of Thomas Keller’s Regiis Ova. Cocktails center on the classic, while the wine list favors Italian varietals, with exclusive offerings from esteemed vintners like Bartolo Mascarello and Emidio Pepe. Thanks to a carefully curated design aesthetic, the eatery echoes its prior heyday, with old-school touches like a 1918 ebony-finished Steinway & Sons piano built into an Italian quartzite-topped bar; green leather booths; and a custom-designed carpet showcasing a mermaid sipping a martini. Best of all, the venue frowns on cell phones and photography, making it less of a see-and-be-seen destination and more of a “privacy is key” getaway. 1415 Ocean Ave., Santa Monica, 90401
PLANT FOOD & WINE
FOUR SEASONS HOTEL LOS ANGELES AT BEVERLY HILLS
Photo Credit: Four Seasons Los Angeles at Beverly Hills
After creating a Folia plant-based menu for its wellness floor, celebrated chef Matthew Kenney has finally brought his lauded plant-based fare to the Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills in a proper brick-and-mortar restaurant with his high-end vegan concept, Plant Food & Wine. Minimalist design elements such as lush plants, white marble, and natural wood finishes are the perfect accompaniment to the sun-drenched outdoor eatery, which has taken over the existing fourth-floor poolside space. Entrées like vegan brioche French toast with coconut whip and hibiscus syrup are just as decadent as evening offerings such as butternut cashew fundido with charred broccoli and blue corn tostada and tajin. Desserts run the gamut from a vegan banana cream pie to a stone fruit creamsicle with vanilla gelato and peach granita. And for those who are wondering what the difference is between his Beverly Hills and Venice Beach locations, the answer is everything. Fans should expect an entirely different, seasonally-focused menu in Beverly Hills. 300 South Doheny Drive, Los Angeles, 90048
LEÑA
THE RITZ-CARLTON, LOS ANGELES
Photo Credit: Don Riddle
Chef Kevin Luzande has not one but four independent dining concepts at The Ritz-Carlton, Los Angeles — all operating under the name Sendero and highlighting some of the Central and South American countries that span the southern stretch of the Pan-American Highway.Here, we’re focusing on Leña, an Argentine-inspired steakhouse featuring wagyu and dry-aged beef, alongside lavish seafood platters and classic Latin dishes. Chef Luzande and sous chef Pedro Passalacqua create both traditional and modern dishes from Argentina, including provoleta, a grilled provolone-style cheese, and ojo de bife, a tableside carving of wagyu double tomahawk. At the heart of the menu is a selection of prime cuts of beef, from wagyu bone-in ribeye to prime porterhouse. The restaurant’s gaucho-inspired approach to steakhouse décor features charcoal walls, dark walnut ceilings, and floor-to-ceiling windows that offer majestic views of the city and beyond. 900 Olympic Blvd., Los Angeles, 90015
DAHLIA
DOWNTOWN LA PROPER HOTEL
Photo Credit: The Ingalls
Dahlia, helmed by James Beard Award-winning chef Suzanne Goin and restaurateur Caroline Styne of The Lucques Group, is hands down one of the hottest new cocktail spots in Downtown LA. The upscale lounge, named after the official national flower of Mexico, offers a space to enjoy elevated classic and non-alcoholic cocktails, focusing on traditional mixology techniques but using high-end, rare, and small-batch liquors. There’s a sense of theater here: drinks are prepared tableside from a roving bar cart, resulting in cocktails like The Sour, featuring single harvest tequila, fresh lime, egg white, and orange bitters, or an old-fashioned with barrel-strength Japanese whiskey and house-smoked cherries. The bespoke experience is highlighted by an equally magnificent setting: a Kelly Wearstler-designed space with textural Roman clay plaster walls, Moroccan cement tiles, a dramatic pair of silk ceiling fixtures, and custom stained-glass doors. 1100 S. Broadway, Los Angeles, 90015
