 It's hard not to notice a press release that begins with "Oops!" -- as in "Oops! Chef Mirko Paderno will NOT be joining Caffe Roma."
The missive followed a release last week that said Paderno would be helming the kitchen when chef-restaurateur Agostino Sciandri's Beverly Hills ristorante reopened later this summer. Paderno most recently was at Cecconi's, the Italian-by-way-of-London restaurant that opened in the former Morton's spot on Melrose, but left after just a few months (oops). Before that he was at All'Angelo, the erstwhile Bridge, Dolce, Trio, Ago, Drago, Primi and Valentino.
According to today's release, Sciandri himself will be cooking at Caffe Roma.
-- Betty Hallock
Photo: Caffe Roma. Credit: Ricardo DeAratanha/Los Angeles Times
The four guys behind South in Santa Monica are getting ready
to strike again with another Westside spot. This time, instead of paying homage
to comforts of Southern culture with mint juleps served in Mason jars, they’re
embracing the pizza cultures of both New York and Chicago in the former Toi
space at 1120 Wilshire Blvd. “We took the space and split it in the middle,” says
co-owner Adam Milstein. The right side looks like New York, with tabletops
covered and varnished with New York Times pages dating back 40 years. The left side
captures the spirit of Chicago, complete with photos of the Sears Tower and Wrigley
Field. They’re calling it N.Y. & C.
The pizzeria, which will stay open until 3:30 a.m. Thursdays
through Saturdays, goes beyond a clever design scheme and a cute name. Milstein
says his partners went all over New York to research pizzerias – some went further
and even got jobs in kitchens for some hands-on learning. For the inside track
on Chicago-style deep dish, Milstein hit up his grandfather’s best friend,
owner of Wapaghetti's in Illinois. “He sent me ingredients and secret family
recipes,” says Milstein.
The results? The New York menu will offer thin(ner) crust
pizzas such as the “Central Park” made with sausage, pepperoni, meatballs and
extra cheese and the “Empire State,” which is similar to a Margherita with mozzarella,
marinara and fresh basil. The Chicago options include the meaty deep dish
“Windy City” topped with sausage, pepperoni, sliced beef, mushroom and extra
cheese. And to wash it down: about 45 kinds of beer, 14 of them bottled.
N.Y. & C. is targeted to open at the end of July or early
August and will also offer delivery. -- Alexandra Le Tellier
Photo: Brian VanderBrug / Los
Angeles Times
Gjelina chef Travis Lett is working on a new project -- a vegetable-based restaurant above the Venice favorite that he's planning on opening in a couple months. "I'm not a vegetarian," Lett says. "It's a place where any carnivore would enjoy eating, but it just happens to be a vegetable-based menu. I don't want to label it as vegetarian.
"It's rustic and earthy and wholesome, the same way cooking at Gjelina is," he adds.
Lett describes the intimate upstairs space (a 20- to 25-seater) as "very tranquil and airy, a nice change from downstairs, where it's more like a bustling bistro."
There's no name yet, and the entrance may be through Gjelina or via a side door.
Meanwhile, Lett has been working on his rooftop garden. "We buy everything at the farmers market for Gjelina.... I'm trying to go the next step and grow our own vegetables. Lately, I'm more inspired by a piece of cauliflower than a lobe of foie gras or pile of truffles."
-- Betty Hallock
Photo of Travis Lett at Gjelina by Michael Robinson Chavez / Los Angeles Times
 It's a battle of the Chows, or Chow v. Chau, depending on who you ask.
Restaurateur and art collector Michael Chow, a.k.a. Mr. Chow, filed a lawsuit against Philippe restaurants this week in U.S. District Court in Miami that lists claims of "misappropriation of trade secrets, unfair competition and trademark infringement," among others. The lawsuit states that Philippe Chow (formerly Chak Yam Chau), chef and partner of Philippe restaurants, willfully caused brand confusion partly by changing his name.
Philippe Chow and partner Stratis Morfogen have opened Philippe restaurants in New York, Mexico and Miami, with one in Las Vegas in the works. Another is scheduled to open in West Hollywood this fall in the former Dolce space on Melrose Avenue. Michael Chow has Mr. Chow restaurants in New York, Beverly Hills, London and soon Las Vegas and Miami.
Philippe Chow worked at Mr. Chow in Manhattan from 1980 to 2005. According to the lawsuit, Philippe went by the last name "Chau" until 2005 before switching to "Chow." Defendants say he changed his name in 1977 when he arrived in the U.S. from Hong Kong.
Morfogen called the lawsuit meritless and without substance.
"It’s unfortunate that we have to take this action,” said Michael Chow. “Philippe has aggressively and shamelessly worked to confuse people into thinking our restaurants are connected, even to the point of referring to himself as 'Mr. Chow.' "
The lawsuit recalls the brouhaha dubbed "battle of the Wolfgangs," when Wolfgang Puck unsuccessfully pursued a suit last year against Wolfgang Zwiener after Zwiener opened a steakhouse called Wolfgang's Steakhouse in the same Beverly Hills turf as Puck's Cut steakhouse.
“I specifically chose to name my restaurant Philippe to alleviate any confusion with Mr. Chow," said Philippe Chow in a statement. "I have nothing but respect for Michael Chow, and the fact that we have the same last name is pure coincidence."
Updated at 6:49 p.m.: Comment from Michael Chow was added to this post.
-- Betty Hallock
Photo: Michael Chow Credit: Roger Karnbad/Celebrity Photo Agency
The Tasting Kitchen is open in the space that housed the very-recently-defunct AK. Instead of closing to retool, the restaurant is embracing the transition. The restaurateurs are calling it "a transparent culinary case study" (what others might call quick-change artistry).
Over the next eight weeks, as new chef Casey Lane (a veteran of Clarklewis restaurant in Portland, Ore.) trains staff and tweaks the menu and the restaurant undergoes design "modifications," the kitchen and dining room will remain open. An interim menu of eight to 10 choices will change daily. The restaurant will emerge with a new menu, new look and new name in the fall. 1633 Abbott Kinney Blvd., Venice, (310) 392-6644, www.thetastingkitchen.com
-- Betty Hallock
Photo of AK by Ken Hively / Los Angeles Times
New chef at Shangri-La: The Hotel Shangri-La has tapped Dakota Weiss as the new chef at its restaurant, replacing Noah Rosen (you might recall him tweeting about the fact that he had been fired earlier this month). Weiss started Monday, the same day she moved back to L.A. from Philadelphia, where she had helped restaurateur Stephen Starr (Buddakan, Morimoto) open Parc. Weiss previously was chef at the Tower Bar at the Sunset Tower Hotel in Hollywood. Weiss says she is slowly rolling out her menu, starting with a couple of new items Friday. "Very fresh, very simple, no foams," Weiss says. "Lots of seafood, a big raw bar menu." Plus, look for her "thousand-dollar pretzels." 1301 Ocean Ave., Santa Monica, (310) 394-2791, www.shangrila-hotel.com.
Recent changes at the Bazaar: Michael Voltaggio quietly exited Jose Andres' Bazaar at the SLS Hotel at the end of April as chef de cuisine, succeeded by Jorge Chicas, who has long been part of Andres' core culinary team and also helped open the Bazaar. Look for Voltaggio as a guest chef at Noriyuki Sugie's "Hatchi" dinner series at Breadbar next month. Meanwhile, according to @SLSHotel: "Chef Jose Andres is in town today ... getting ready for a busy weekend!" 465 S. La Cienga Blvd., Los Angeles, (310) 246-5555, www.thebazaar.com.
Top Cheffer takes over restaurant: Former "Top Chef" contestant Stefan Richter is opening a restaurant in Santa Monica; he's partnering with the owner of L.A. Farm on Olympic Boulevard. According to a news release, "Stefan's at L.A. Farm will bring a cosmopolitan classiness to the Santa Monica dining scene," because, of course, Richter is known for being classy. The menu will feature "light California cuisine," including tapas at dinner. There will be cocktails too, along with Milwaukee's Best and Pabst Blue Ribbon. An August opening is scheduled. 3000 Olympic Blvd., Santa Monica, (310) 449-4000, www.lafarmrestaurant.com.
-- Betty Hallock
Photo: Hotel Shangri-La. Credit: Hotel Shangri-La
Michelin is ditching Los Angeles, at least for now. You won't be seeing a 2010 Michelin guide for L.A. or Las Vegas this year.
The move represents a step back for the Michelin guide, published by the French tire company, which had been expanding the number of cities it covered in an attempt to become the preeminent arbiter of global dining.
"We're taking a temporary suspension of those two cities for 2010," a spokeswoman for Michelin North America said, "due to the economic environment."
The first North American guide, "Michelin Guide New York City 2006," was published in 2005. And the first Los Angeles guide followed two years later, "Michelin Guide Los Angeles 2008" (criticized by the likes of former Times Food section editor Leslie Brenner and LA Weekly's Jonathan Gold). Michelin will publish 2010 guides for New York and San Francisco.
Michelin continues to pursue its development in Asia and will be publishing a Kyoto/Osaka guide for the first time this year (following Tokyo, Hong Kong and Macau).
Asked whether there would be a 2011 Los Angeles guide, the Michelin spokeswoman answered: "I don't know about 2011, but we were told the suspension is temporary."
See a list of L.A.'s 2009 Michelin-starred restaurants after the jump. Do those stars seem a little dimmer now?
-- Betty Hallock
Photo: Cover of "Michelin Los Angeles 2009". Credit: Michelin
Read on »
AK no longer: Chef Conny Andersson announced that AK Restaurant + Bar will be closing Saturday, June 20, because of "creative differences" with his financial partners. The Swedish-inflected Venice restaurant opened last November. It will continue to operate under a different name and menu, according to a release from Andersson, who says he is currently searching for a new L.A. location for AK (but didn't it stand for Abbot Kinney?). 1633 Abbot Kinney Blvd., Venice, (310) 392-6644, www.akinvenice.com.
No Giraud at Social Hollywood: Jeffrey Chodorow's China Grill Management says Alain Giraud, chef-partner at Anisette in Santa Monica, will not be involved in the restaurant at Social Hollywood. When chef Michel Richard left the location, he had asked Giraud to take over the restaurant as a consulting chef. At the time, Giraud said he was negotiating an agreement with China Grill Management (which also operates Asia de Cuba among other restaurants) and was planning on designing new menus. Apparently, those negotiations fell through (Squid Ink reports that "Giraud's stress level went up"). “While we believed that Alain Giraud was an ideal match for the banquet side of Social Hollywood, this was not the time for this collaboration," said general manager Joseph Ojeda. Social Hollywood is exploring "a number of other options." Meanwhile, the Bar at Social Hollywood is open Thursday to Saturday. 6525 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood, (323) 337-9797, www.citrusatsocial.com
Vermont taps OG chef: Now that restaurateurs Wayne Elias and Chris Diamond have closed Mark's in West Hollywood and moved to Vermont restaurant in Los Feliz, expect menu changes on June 29, when executive chef Stephane Beaucamp returns to the kitchen. Beaucamp was formerly Vermont’s executive chef; the restaurant's most recent chef, Laurent Quenioux, is setting up Bistro LQ in the old Mimosa space on Beverly Boulevard. Beaucamp already has rolled out "Lobster Bake" on Wednesdays. He'll also continue “Dish It Out Mondays,” a specially priced menu that was a Mark’s tradition. 1714 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, (323) 661-6163, www.vermontrestaurantonline.com
Valentino in Houston: Restaurateur Piero Selvaggio plans to open PS Valentino Vin Bar at the Hotel Derek in Houston this fall. It's an expansion of the primi concept he installed at his flagship Santa Monica restaurant Valentino -- small plates with an extensive list of wines by the glass.
-- Betty Hallock
Photo courtesy of Vermont restaurant
 The Pharmacie, a series of roving, invite-only cocktail parties (more underground than even the Roger Room?), kicked off last Sunday evening. Each soiree focuses on a different spirit featured in a few cocktails. This time, after an aperitif of Carpano Antica sweet vermouth, a couple of bourbon tinctures were served -- a New-Fashioned (bourbon, kumquat and cherry syrups, and bitters) and a Blackberry Julep (bourbon, blackberries and mint) -- with one rye sour cocktail thrown into the mix. And that's the one that slayed me. It's called the Buster Brown, with rye whiskey, house-made sour mix, a few dashes of bitters and one (or two) of those Luxardo cherries slightly candied with Marasca syrup (which will cost you about $16 a jar -- worth it as long as you don't eat the whole jar at once).
The Pharmacie was willing to part with the recipe. Please see the jump.
-- Betty Hallock
Photo: Pornchai Mittongtare / For The Times
Read on »
 BLD for Pasadena: Co-owner Amy Fraser confirms reports (via Eater) that BLD will open a second location in Pasadena in the newly built Raymond Renaissance building at the corner of Raymond and Holly Streets, next to the Raymond Theatre. Fraser and her husband, chef Neal Fraser (also the proprietors of Grace restaurant), expect to open by the end of the year. It's the same concept -- breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week -- with a similar design (the designer is Robert Weimer) and menu (no chef picked for the new spot yet). "But certainly, we want to cater to our audience," Amy Fraser says. "Pasadena is really starving for restaurants. [Amen.] So at dinner, it will be more restaurant than bistro or cafe."
Breadbar's hatches 'Hatchi': Breadbar, always coming up with new ideas, now introduces chef Noriyuki Sugie's once-a-month "Hatchi" menu. "Hatchi" means "eight" in Japanese, hence the rotating menu will feature eight dishes priced at $8, created by a guest chef. The inaugural "Hatchi" dinner -- June 25 -- will feature Debbie Lee, a finalist on "The Next Food Network Star," and her Korean- and Southern-inspired small plates (crab and corn fritters with kimchi aioli and pickled watermelon rind, for example). Breadbar Century City, Westfield Shopping Center, 10250 Santa Monica Blvd., No. R-2, Los Angeles, (310) 277-3770, www.breadbar.net.
-- Betty Hallock
Photo of BLD on Beverly Boulevard in Los Angeles, by Carlos Chavez/Los Angeles Times
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