Atlanta has a pretty decent dining scene. And, when I breifly lived in Manhattan, I thought I saw the coolest of the cool restaurants in the world (it was Manhattan after all!). But, I hadn't seen anything. On a recent trip to LA, L & I went to a restaurant that blew all of the others out of the water with its cool factor.
The restaurant was The Bazaar by Jose Andres (yes, that's the full name), located in the uber-swank SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills. Paul, my cool Hollywood friend who took me to the Oscars, recommended the Bazaar. He said it was the coolest place in a town full of cool restaurants. And he's a man whose opinion I trust.
When we arrived for our 8:30 reservation, it was still light out, but when we entered the restaurant, it was like it was midnight...and we were in a nightclub. I immediately felt a little disoriented because I couldn't quite process how this was a restaurant and not a nightclub. I didn't immediately see an obvious dining area. What I saw was a very dark open space with a long center high top table and lounge chairs scattered about. Everything was white or black. At the far end, was an illuminated bar. Lots of people were milling about with drinks in hand. We checked in with the hostess and were advised to get a drink a bar.
No problem. At the bar, quite a scene was going on. I noticed what looked like an interesting cocktail in the hand of the beautiful and beautifully-dressed woman next to me. I asked the bartender what it was and he proceeded to tell me it was a specialty cocktail that included a berry grown only in Japan and sold nowhere else in the world because The Bazaar purchased the entire crop. (Note to self: go to Japan and verify this story!) Each berry was marinated in vodka for some ridiculous length of time and then used to make this exquisite martini. So I ordered one of those.
I don't know if L & I actually talked to each other while we hung out in the lounge area. I think we were both too bedazzled by the spectacle unfolding in front of us. I was particularly taken with the roaming bartender who moved about the restaurant with a cart, featuring yet another specialty drink that had some kind of dry ice. Alas, he did not stop near us.
At the perfect time (just as we were finishing our drinks), the hostess appeared to let us know our table was ready. At this point, I still was not entirely clear where the tables exactly were. She led us out of the bar area and around a sort of room divider and there were the tables! Lots of them. And they all seemed to be different looking. We saw all sorts of diners, young, old, families, kids (we could have brought A!), the impossibly rich and the impossibly beautiful. And they all looked to be having the time of their lives.
The two of us were seated at a long table suited for eight. Another couple sat at the far end. This is a restaurant designed for big groups. Slowly, over the course of our dinner, other couples were seated with us. Before we could order food, the roaming bartender appeared and I was finally able to order one of his special drinks. A frozen caipirinha. My favorite drink from Portugal (via Brazil.) It seemed very serendipitous!
And then we got to the issue at hand. Food. It has been my experience that uber cool, trendy restaurants often disappoint in the food area. Not so with The Bazaar. Everything we had was excellent. The menu was all tapas and small plates, divided into traditional tapas and modern tapas. Stand outs were the Iberian serrano, a hard to find (and very expensive) type of Spanish ham, the beet salad, and most importantly the cotton candy wrapped, foie gras lollipops. Sounds weird, doesn't it? Trust me. They were awesome. I don't even like foie gras! This dish was so awesome, in fact, that in the kitchen (which had an army of staff), one person was assigned the sole task of preparing the foie gras lollipops. And she was an expert.
After dinner (and wine), our server asked if we would like dessert. Of course, we replied. She then led us to yet another area of the gigantic restaurant on the other side of the bar (that somehow I hadn't seen at all until that moment!) We were seated and presented with dessert menus. The dessert area was like its own confectionary. We ordered an array of exquisite, house-made truffles.
What a night! What an experience! Next time your in LA, do not miss The Bazaar by Jose Andres.
