MEET ME AT 'THE HALL'

West Hollywood is certainly known for being an interesting place. It's kind of that 'middle ground' between gritty Hollywood and the more relaxed Westside, making it a perfect place for clubs, lounges, bars and restaurants. It is home to the Sunset Strip, as well as La Cienega Boulevard's Restaurant Row. You'll find cool dives like Barney's Beanery (the original), and uber chic spots like Bar 1200 at the Sunset Marquis Hotel. It's also home to some of Los Angeles' infamous nightlife: Area, Sky Bar, Bar Marmont to name a few. And it also boasts super-hot restaurants like Koi, Asia de Cuba, and NYC-transplants STK and BLT Steak.

Smack dab in the middle of where Santa Monica Boulevard meets La Cienega is a nice little "getaway" called Palihouse. It proudly refers to itself as a place that offers the best of a boutique hotel and a luxury residence. Their main draw is their huge lounge area, whose theme is a well-mixed concoction of bohemian-chic and Euro-hipster zip. Unlike other Hollywood and WeHo spots, the Palihouse doesn't give off any hints of pretentiousness. While the clientele is an obvious fusion of folks from nearby Beverly Hills and the hipster WeHo crowd, there seems to be nothing but smiles and good times happening here. The staff is attentive and friendly, the hosts --with their heavy French accents-- are welcoming and hospitable, and the vibe of the place is chill, yet substantial. Kitschy photographs line parts of the walls, while sexy couches and chairs of all shapes and sizes are scattered around the dimly lit room. And there are even turntables at an old-school desk-turned-swank-DJ-stand. (Oh, and there's an oyster bar, too... Score!)

While the lounge earns kudos, their restaurant is the real star. The Hall Courtyard Brasserie is situated in the middle of the property's quad. It boasts an open ceiling, with sweeping views of the condotel's upper floor windows and terraces. Heat-lamps (which are a must for most L.A. evenings) help to warm the area on cooler nights, but ladies are also offered woolen throws to wrap around to keep toasty. Stringed lights swash across the air, giving off the feeling that you're dining in a Mediterranean courtyard.

What drew me here was the menu; a delicate offering of "traditional bistro cuisine" with a "market-driven modern edge." Chef Brendan Collins, whose experience has seen him through London's Cafe Royale and Pied-A-Terre, brings vibrancy, color and flavor to the impressive menu.

My friends, who are probably some of my favorite 'restaurant' people in L.A., and I tried plenty of things off the menu. We originally were feeling cheese and a charcuterie plate after having a few drinks. But our waitress advised that the cheese could leave us feeling "full," and she wanted us to really experience what The Hall had to offer. Noted.

We started off with a Braised Pork Shank Raviolo, which I can only describe as "prodigious." The pork filling was thick and oozing with flavor against a pommery mustard sheen. And to add to the sweetness of the dish was a caramelized apple slice. This was followed by a Yellowtail Crudo (with avocado, red grapefruit, and herb salad), which was fresh and just as flavorful; the citrus working as a nice palate cleanser. The third appetizer was a Roast Beet Salad made of goat cheese, blood oranges, walnuts and beet romesco; light and fresh.

A few swigs of beer and wine later, our main dishes made their way to our table much to our delectation. Jess ordered the Black Cod with cuit a la viennoise and creamed spinach. The fish was delicately prepared, and imbued with gusto. Tracey ordered the Roast Halibut, with seafood ragout, spring veggies and basil; another amazingly prepared fish. Tracey's husband, Chris, ordered a special: Kansas City Fillet, which was definitely one of the most flavorful steaks I have ever tasted in these past few years in L.A. My dish: Moules et Frites - my all-time favorite. If I see this on the menu of a French or Belgian-esque restaurant, I will try it. This dish usually makes or breaks its respective restaurant in my eyes. The Palihouse's version, made with a saffron curry sauce, was light, yet savory... effortless, yet gratifying; a sure hit for me. Oh, and those truffle shoestring fries weren't so bad either... (!) The experience was topped-off with a Chocolate Muffin, which ended up not being an actual "muffin" at all, but a warm serving of chocolate with dulce de leche ice cream and caramelized bananas.

Jess' Black Cod

My Moules in saffron curry

Truffled Frites (how i love thee...)

Stuffed as we were, we continued the night back in the lounge for one more round of drinks. Conversation was endless, laughs were rampant... an ideal end to a nice night of fun, friends, and food. Oh-so-good food.
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The Hall Courtyard Brasserie @ Palihouse Holloway, 8465 Holloway Drive, West Hollywood, CA 9006, 323.656.4020

COMME CI... COMME CA...

French food, through the ages, is known to have evolved into one of the world's trendiest (and, in a way, pompous) cuisines. Its reputation as haute cuisine is one that transcends all sides of the foodie spectrum; it is viewed as artful by connoisseurs, and minimalist/insatiable by the less-discerning. No matter what side of the fence you're on, one thing is certain: French cuisine has truly evolved through the generations. Due in part to the various socio-political movements, as well as the collaboration of great French cooks and chefs, the cuisine of France has become an artform; an esteemed contribution to the culture of L'Hexagone.

Los Angeles has, through the years, welcomed French cuisine with open arms often times relishing in the chic meshing of haute cuisine and haute society. Award-winning chef David Myers (Sona, Boule) has a masterpiece in West Hollywood in the form of Comme Ca. Barely a year old, Comme Ca captures that fine marriage between all things trendy and classic with regard to French food, and the ever-moving social landscape of L.A. The brasserie itself is dark and cozy, with three separate dining areas. The colors (grays, whites, and blacks) are drab, but are reminiscent of a 1940s/1950s film noir. The restaurant has a small bar area, perhaps to keep it from having that loungey feel at night, but that doesn't stop visitors from crowding around, sipping on $13-cocktails until their tables are set. At dinnertime, the restaurant is packed, and loud. I'm not sure I even recall music playing in the background. What I do remember was the staccato of different conversations bouncing off the walls of the space. I had read reviews condemning Comme Ca for its louder-than-life "noise," but oddly enough I found much to love about it. It reminded me of being in one of those "power" restaurants that I often frequented back in D.C.

The dinner menu offered all of the usual suspects in French cuisine: fruits de mer, fromage, charcuterie et vin. Plenty of vin, in fact. The hors d'oeuvres menu included tuna nicoise, steak tartare, escargots, moules frites - which I had been craving for days before. The moules frites was our instant choice, and we reveled in the perfectly-cooked mussels and fries.

Main courses included bouillabaisse, sole meuniere, and the ever-French coq au vin. Between my friends and I, an array of dishes graced our table: roasted pork chop (with a Swiss chard gratin), salmon with gnocchi Parisienne, steak frites, and paleron of beef bourguignon - which was divine. I dove into my dish not knowing what to expect. What I experienced was sure bliss; the beef was so tender and flavorful that it melted in my mouth just as decadently as ice cream. My dining company similarly enjoyed their dishes, and we had to think twice about dessert... sort of.

Before dessert we ordered off the restaurant's "9:58" menu --which is sort of like a "happy hour" menu that offers a list of specialty drinks and Comme Ca's lunch-time burger starting at 9:58PM. One of my friends and I decided to partake in the libations, and each came away with a negroni cocktail (made with Campari) and a White Russian - each for $9.58. This paved the way for our final taste of the evening: a brioche pudding & ice cream - a perfect fusion of freshly baked, chocolatey goodness with cool, vanilla ice cream.

The night could've gone on and on, but the experience sent us ready and willing for bed-time... with many sweet dreams sure to linger in our heads. Each dish was well-executed. The place, itself, was a beautiful hybrid of casual chic and classiness. And the experience -- priceless.

Comme Ca is officially one of my favorite things.
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Comme Ca, 8479 Melrose Avenue (cross street: La Cienega), Los Angeles, CA 90069, 323.782.1104

FOODFEST AFTERMATH

I don’t want to post about how fat I’ve become since this past Thanksgiving holiday. It’s pretty obvious that I am not the lone soldier feeling that post-holiday poundage piling on. The last time I worked out was last Friday, and I am still teetering between going to the gym after work today… or not. At first I was resigned to call this a ‘fat’ week, but I’m thinking maybe I shouldn’t be so lazy. Eh. We’ll see how I feel later.

So. Knock out the feelings of fat, and substitute with feelings of stress. Part of me feels super anxious to get my gifts all packed-up and sent off to wherever they’re supposed to go. But another part of me feels like I have at least till the beginning of the second week of December. Hmmm. Part of me feels the angst of the holiday food situation. But another part of me says “eff it.” Still, part of me is stressin’ over finding a new pair of pants, even if the ones that I want cost like $145+. Eh. I already tried going for the $40- pair, but I had to send those back. Grrr. As you can see, I can be phased by stupid things.

Whatever.

So this past weekend, I had two nights of serious dining. Leah came through L.A., so you know the foodie-fest was imminent. Saturday night we had dinner at Morel’s at The Grove. Instead of dining casually at the café, we went upstairs for the “real deal” dinner. We dined on kobe beef, a tuna steak, and some other fish dish. It was pretty yum – even after I spent $80 on my portion of dinner. Ha! Eighty-shmeighty. It was a YUM meal, and I hadn’t dined like that in a long time. Sunday night we went to Hollywood, of course forgetting that the Hollywood Christmas Parade was being taped that evening. Boo. We ran into a bit of a traffic issue, but it was very short-lived (thank goodness). We finally found our way to Sunset and Vine, and we had dinner at Charcoal – an Adolfo Sauya project. It was actually very yum, and we hearted it ALL! Leah got the sea bass, Ning got the ahi steak, and I had the gaucho skirt steak with chimichurri sauce. Uh, yum. That, a couple rounds of drinks, and a funnel cake to end things --- all made-up a very yummable dining experience. (Yummable. That’s my new word.) We went home happy, but not overly stuffed. It was perfect. Def would go again.

Anyway. Soon enough, the real world came back to bite me in the ass. So now Holiday 2007 Phase I has ended. I am eagerly awaiting Phase II. I need to crack the whip and get all my presents boxed, wrapped, and sent. Christmas will be here before we know it.

Pass the bottle… OF LAXATIVES.