Featured Articles in This Edition
Danielle AccovelliLeading the charge in au courant dining establishments is Santa Monica, with a record number of openings in 2015. Sprinkled throughout the city and offering something for every taste, there’s Montana Avenue’s Forma, offering creamy cheese, pasta, and Italian fare in a modern trattoria setting. From the owners of Tar & Roses comes Santa Monica Yacht Club, serving up fish, crustaceans, and craft cocktails on Santa Monica Blvd at 6th Street. Belcampo Meat Company (Wilshire & 10th) is a transplant from Northern California and combines a luxury butcher shop with an 86 seat meat-driven restaurant to satisfy the carnivore in all of us.
Probably the most anticipated opening in the city this year is Santa Monica’s Cassia, the long-awaited collaboration between Bryant and Kim Ng of Spice Table fame, and Zoe Nathan and Joshua Loeb, the team behind such favorites as Rustic Canyon, Milo & Olive, Sweet Rose Creamery and Huckleberry. Cassia will cover over 5500 square feet of dining space, incorporating Ng’s signature South-East Asian flavors with a California farm-to-table sensibility and a brasserie feel. Delayed for over a year due to earthquake retrofitting in the gorgeous art deco building on 7th at Arizona, Cassia will be the hottest reservation in town for months to come. Alongside Cassia will be Esters, a separate wine bar from the Rustic Canyon team, offering small plates, wine, and champagne by the glass, and a retail component for those who want to take the party home.
Not to be overlooked are new dining options in Marina del Rey, Venice, and Malibu. Catch & Release in the Marina features indulgent paella, bouillabaisse, and a mouth-watering seafood tower. The latest buzz in Venice is chef Jesse Barber’s takeover of Dudley Market just off the boardwalk. Barber has hosted a series of five 30-seat “ticket-only” pop-up dinners in a private Venice residence to build anticipation for the soon-to-re-open eatery. And in Malibu, Helene Henderson of Malibu Farms has taken over both ends of the pier, to bring her farm-fresh fare to both locals and tourists alike.
To continue the dining theme, this week’s issue features more information on breakfast at Huckleberry within our City Guide pages, as well as a Q&A with Australian chef Louis Tikaram of the modern, multi-level E.P & L.P. in West Hollywood. Finally, in our reading corner, we feature Near & Far, Heidi Swanson’s written tribute to recipes created in her own kitchen, as well as those she’s come across in her travels across the globe. It’s a good time to be hungry in L.A.! I hope this issue of DIGS has inspired you to challenge your taste buds and try one of these tempting new eateries.
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