Bite by Bite

Restaurant Review : Cleo (Mediterranean) $$$ *6.5 out of 10*

Located within the Redbury Hotel and SBE’s latest creation…I’m sorry Cleo, I wanted to like you…I really did expect more from you!  Aside from the wobbly table and the broken chair that I had to switch out, I found the food boring, uninspired and frankly, not that good.   

We really did give it a shot and ordered a fair share of food.  What we ate and drank…

$14 Specialty Cocktails…served in martini glasses
-Clementina… Clementine vodka, crushed basil, Serrano chili, orange, juice, lemon juice.
-Vinebury…Stoli, Elderflower liqueur, basil, cucumber, Serrano, lemon juice.
-Honey Citrus Sidecar… Jack Daniels Whiskey, Cointreau, mint, yuzu juice, agave nectar.
These cocktails were way too sugary and…I can’t believe I’m saying this…needed more alcohol!  After the first round, we decided to change our drinks to something more standard (scotch on the rocks).

Mezzes… served in teeny tiny little ramekins upon a wooden board. 
-$6 Cauliflower with Cashews…Pretty good.  Tasty.
-$6 Cucumbers with Yogurt…decent yogurt, exactly what you think it is but in a very small portion.
-$6 Shishito Peppers…very average… 

Dinner
-$9 Brussel Sprouts w/capers and almonds… These were served on a coffee filter for a bowl.  The brussel sprout leaves were pulled apart from each other and fried leaving it tasting simply like something indeterminate, fried and salted.
-$12 Garlic Shrimp… The shrimps were fresh.  Really nothing much more to say.
-$13 Grilled Octopus…More potatoes than octopus on this dish.  The octopus was yummy but there was so darn little of it. 
-$14 Mushroom Flatbread…This was better than average but far from the best I’ve had. 
-$6 Lamb Kebab…Tasty.  But a bit overcooked.
-$6 Sausage…good and flavorful.
$10 Seasonal Mushrooms…this dish came out so charred and bitter that we had to send it back.  The second time around, it was pretty good. 

The space was to our liking; classic, yet modern, and bubbling with the energy of the diners.  Too bad the food couldn’t match up.

Cleo
1717 Vine St
Los Angeles, CA 90028
Neighborhood: Hollywood
(323) 962-1711
www.cleorestaurant.com

Restaurant Review : Rivera (Latin) $$$ *7.5 out of 10*

Rivera offers up modern Latin food that’s small and pricey, but good.  In my opinion, the plates are a bit too over-presented which results in a lack of substance.  More than likely the meal will make a dent in your wallet but will still leave you slightly hungry.  

But the food is not why I find myself coming back here time and time again.  I come back here for the amazing, absolutely perfect cocktails.  Fresh fruits, herbs and fresh juices squeezed in-house garnish, complement, adorn these hand-crafted works of art. The ice is perfect and the drinks are never diluted, perfectly chilled and tasty.  The first sip sends chills of contentment that runs down my spine in happy tremors.  

Rivera has a cool, trendy, yet intimate atmosphere and is minutes away from the Staples Center making it a perfect watering hole for a pre-event drink.

Rivera
1050 S Flower St
Los Angeles, CA 90015
Neighborhood: Downtown
(213) 749-1460
www.riverarestaurant.com

Restaurant Review : Wood & Vine (American, tapas) $$$ *6 out of 10*

The first time I came here, I absolutely loved it.  The space was amazing, the interior was nice and cozy, and I immediately fell in love with the outdoor patio.  I felt like I was lost in a secluded little wonderland on Hollywood Boulevard…huh? 

The Chicken and Waffles were sweet and delicious, the service was great, the drinks were good, and they had this 3-course menu for $20 that consisted of a carrot and ginger soup, sausage linguine with fava beans in a lemon butter sauce, and a farmer’s market cobbler.  Aside from the bland linguine, the two other dishes made me a very happy girl…well, that and the drinks of course. 

If it weren’t for our return trip a month later, I would’ve given this place 8 or 9 stars for sure. 

The second time around, the drinks were horrible…really horrible. The five of us came in happy, and the five of us left very unsatisfied. The drinks weren’t mixed right and the glasses even had a smell of dirty rags.  My friend (who bartends down the street) told me that the good bartender was not working that day.  The replacement obviously did not know what he was doing.

Daily Happy Hour (11pm to 2am):  $4 California Beers and $8 Specialty Cocktails.  

Monday Night Farmers Market Dinner:  3 courses for $18

Wood & Vine
6280 Hollywood Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90028
Neighborhood: Hollywood
(323) 334-3360
http://www.woodandvine.com

Restaurant Review : House Without A Key (food&drinks, breakfast, brunch) $$$ *8 out of 10*

House Without A Key located in the Halekulani Hotel is clean & beautiful with warm, attentive, friendly service.  If I have to pay inflated Waikiki prices for food and drinks, this is where I want to have it. 

Can you picture yourself sipping on a delicious cocktail while soaking in the sights and sounds of the ocean?  I sure can. 

The best time to go is at sunset to check out the views of Diamond Head to your left and the perfect sunset to your right.  Adding to your experience will be some live Hawaiian music to lull you into tropical heaven. 

Or perhaps you may want to go for their breakfast buffet complete with fresh fruit, an omelet station, bacon, fresh squeezed OJ…and banana pancakes with coconut syrup?

House Without A Key
2199 Kalia Rd
Honolulu, HI 96815
Neighborhood: Waikiki
(808) 923-2311
http://www.halekulani.com/dining/house_without_a_key/

Restaurant Review : Chaya Downtown (Japanese, Asian Fusion) *6 out of 10* DTLA

The $1 oysters at Chaya save the day!  No one seems to know how long they’re going to have this special but it’s here right now so take advantage of it.  They’re fresh and tasty; a perfect way to round up your stressful workday.  Pair them with a beautiful outdoor patio, a cool city skyline and some cocktails and you’ll see a huge smile on my face. 

Aside from the oysters the food needs major help.  Every time I order real food here, I cringe.  On my last trip I ordered “grilled” octopus $8, a spicy tuna hand roll $4, and an ume shiso maki (plum, shiso leaf, cut roll) $5 along with the oysters.  The “grilled” octopus was actually fried, not grilled.  It was greasy, tasteless and tough and had about 5 measly dried-out octopus pieces in it that was drowning in mayo.  

The spicy tuna was food-processored into a tuna mush that didn’t look appetizing at all.  Although the tuna wasn’t of the best quality it did taste better than it looked, thank goodness.  

And how can you mess up an ume shiso roll?  I mean, it’s so simple right?  It turns out that you can mess it up especially if you don’t know how salty your ume is and you put way too much into the roll so that you cure your diner’s mouth and have them desperately reaching for water.

8 stars for the patio/restaurant space
8 stars for the oysters…until they last
3 stars for the food 

PS Free validated parking underground for 4 hours in the City National Bank Plaza
PPS Happy Hour is 7 days a week all night until closing. Includes half price drinks & HH menu.

Restaurant Review : Copa d’Oro in Santa Monica *8 out of 10*

Classic bar and classic cocktails with a modern approach. Go during Happy Hour which is EVERYDAY (except Sunday when they’re closed) from 5:30-8PM and all day on Mondays!

$5 Tasty, hand-crafted, happy hour cocktails—hell yeah!  Really, who cares about the food at this point?  Okay, okay, I do.  I ALWAYS care about the food.  But the quite ordinary food definitely takes back seat to the cocktails here.

I like whiskey cocktails so The Gold Rush, Manhattan, Affinity and Whiskey Sour, are my favorites.  The Buck Fizz is really good too. The Mojitos are a bit too sweet for me.  The Dark and Stormy is a little too…gingery?…but it’s good.

It’s definitely worth a stop-by.  It’s the perfect break from all the shopping.