I missed this because we took my dad to Spago for his 92nd birthday.
When Spago on Sunset Strip was Puck’s only restaurant and he cooked with Mark Peel and Nancy Silverton at his side nightly, it was among my favorite LA restaurants ever.
Since the move to BH, Spago became a large hotel-like dining experience. And not a very good one, at that.
Pre-pandemic, my parents ate lunch at Spago every Sunday: they split a Jewish pizza with Osetra at ‘their’ table. My mom died from Covid, my dad became housebound for the most part, and I take him there because of the memories Spago holds for him. The staff are always happy to see him and take great care of us always.
But the foregoing cannot hide the fact that the cooking isn’t good and hasn’t been for some time. Last night, it was awful. My wife’s lamb chops were gray and tough, my Dover Sole was festooned with fruit and other weird garnishes, and it was inedible. We didn’t want to spoil the party by complaining last night. So we didn’t.
Fortunately, they still make a good schnitzel. My dad loved his. And I made the mistake of not ordering it. In my view, the only edible items on the menu are the sushi cones (although they have shrunk in size), Jewish pizza, schnitzel, and white truffle pasta/risotto in season, which nobody can screw up.
Anyway, your event looked great. Sorry for the drift.
Was one of the first great restaurant experiences I had and loved it. Love going there, Citrus, and then Lucques. None them were all that inventive (I guess Spago was initially), but they were all great dining experiences.
I had the tasting menu at Spago about 5 years ago and it was actually great. Shame to hear how horrible your food was. Really inexcusable for the price.
I feel there’s a mix of reasons not limited to just the pandemic or strikes. In the case of Tropical, it’s a landlord issue, which is not uncommon after a successful run. Kinn was not viable financially and the health of the chef came into play. Health also seems to be behind Neroni’s step back. LA was indeed hit hard this year.
BTW-I went to Budonoki for their industry night on Monday. I dig this place and will be going back for the regular menu.
Of course but LA seems to have been hit much harder with restaurant closures tha any other major city. In NYC we have seen a run of tasting menu restaurants close because that format is not popular. I have to think the strikes, which is unique to LA, was a major reason why so many restaurants are going under. Restaurants are almost always just barely making so it does not take much to push them over the edge.
strikes definitely haven’t helped. But New York is really different from here. San Francisco is suffering pretty hard too, probably even worse off than LA based on my discussion with a few of the larger restaurant groups.
But like @G_Greenbaum said - quite a few of those on the list closed driven by non economic factors.
Well hopefully when everyone in LA gets back to work it will get better. Majordomo was slammed on Saturday night and I have heard they have been quiet, it was Saturday though.
Plus, the LA dining scene is fickle as hell. I have seen numerous excellent restaurants close over the two decades I’ve lived here. I’m sure there is a laundry list of reasons behind the dynamic.
Restaurants are like bands. They get the early success and the hits, then they hit the dreaded follow up album and almost always flounder. Those who make it through get the elder statesman treatment eventually, but that can take 40 years of desert wandering. Takes a very dedicated owner to ride that storm out.
A friend of mine and I were going to split a bottle of wine over lunch today but our first two choices are closed because so many people have Covid they’re closing a few days early for the holidays.
I want to get the special pizza below from Pizzeria Sei, but there are so many different things going on that I’m stumped on the pairing. What kind of wine would you pair with pizza with:
Fior di latte, Pecorino romano, Parmigiano reggiano, cream, egg, prosciutto cotto, winter black truffle, Moliterno al tartufo, Bliss bourbon aged maple syrup (on the side I think), Wong farm basil, truffle oil, black pepper, sea salt
