Small Bites: Capriotti's Sandwich Shop to open in Beverly Hills; Water Grill expands its raw bar

Stuffed with goodness: The gourmet sandwich chain Capriotti's, which began as a family business in Delaware 33 years ago, is opening its first West Coast location in Beverly Hills on Monday. Originally conceived with the goal of creating a new sandwich concept in the Little Italy area of Wilmington (by roasting fresh, whole turkeys overnight), Capriotti's began franchising in the '80s. A colleague here at the office says Capriotti's broke into the Las Vegas market partly after the original owner and co-founder, Lois Margolet, brought subs on the plane to Vegas and hungry passengers would clamor for bites. Margolet also handed out samples to pit bosses with great success. Now, there are nearly 20 locations in Sin City. The Beverly Hills location will serve the traditional Capriotti's menu, including signature sandwiches such as the Bobbie (fresh roasted, pulled turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce and mayonnaise) and the Capastrami (hot pastrami, melted Swiss cheese, Russian dressing and coleslaw). 9683 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills. www.capriottis.com.

A raw deal: Downtown's fresh seafood mecca, Water Grill, just expanded its already satisfying raw bar offerings to include at least eight varieties of oysters from regions such as Mexico; British Columbia, Canada; New Zealand; and Connecticut. Also on offer: a bunch of new chilled seafood selections, including Channel Island purple sea urchin, Alaskan king crab “nuggets” and Oregon Dungeness crab. Most exciting to me are three new shellfish platters (I freak for shellfish platters) loaded with oysters, clams, king crab, shrimp, mussels, lobster, Dungeness crab, sea urchin and steamed periwinkles. Platters come in three sizes: “the Grand," $35; “the Deluxe," $70; and “the King," $135. 544 S. Grand Ave., L.A. (213) 891-0900; www.watergrill.com.  

-- Jessica Gelt

Photo: A new shellfish platter at Water Grill / Water Grill

Comments

[Tory]

It's great to hear that Capriotti's is opening in Beverly Hills. I've eaten at many of their locations in Las Vegas and Delaware. My wife's from DE so we stop at one whenever we can. One correction though, this is not their first location on the West Coast. A couple years ago, there was location in the Hillcrest neighborhood in San Diego. I was bummed when they closed and hopefully they will catch on here like they did in Las Vegas.