Ambitious new restaurant group aims to bring savvy dining to underserved areas, beginning with 1321 in Torrance

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Next month a shiny new restaurant and bar called 1321 will open in downtown Torrance, an area with nary a Starbucks let alone a fine dining establishment. The folks behind 1321 are part of a new restaurant development group called MOD (manage/operate/develop) Restaurant Group, headed up by Max Schlutz, formerly of Domaine Restaurant Group, which launched the successful 25 Degrees restaurant inside Hollywood’s Roosevelt Hotel.

1321 is just the beginning for MOD, the group has big plans to open a series of restaurants in what they are calling ‘sleeper neighborhoods,’ with the aim of bringing quality dining to areas long ingnored by the big names in the L.A. restaurant scene. In this way, MOD’s modus operandi looks a lot like that of Joachim Splichal when he opened Patina Bistro in downtown L.A. in 1994, when the area was still considered a culinary no-man’s land.

1321’s executive chef Greg Paul (The Oaks Gourmet, Boa on Sunset, The Belmont) is trained in French technique and has crafted an intriguing bistro menu, including grilled flatbreads with truffled goat cheese, leeks, crispy potatoes and spring onions; basil-pistachio chicken paillard with roasted baby Yukon potatoes; a 1321 burger, with house-ground prime chuck, brisket, short rib, pub cheese, stout onions and half-inch slabs of bacon; spatchcock chicken, a marinated half-bird roasted with green chile potato gratin; braised oxtail enchiladas with dirty rice, salsa roja and poblano crema; and chicken and waffles with blue corn, truffled horseradish honey and goat’s milk butter.

For now 1321 is slated to open on April 22, but these things can change, so stay tuned at the Dish for updates.

1321, 132 Sartori Ave., Torrance. (310) 328-1321; www.1321downtown.com.

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--Jessica Gelt

Renderings of 1321 courtesy of EB Design and Dmar Interiors