Chinois On Main

I've been going to this place for special occasions over the past couple of decades and have always been totally pleased with the food and service. I'd not been for several years and went for a birthday celebration. We were so very disappointed. The signature lobster dish was just ok and had only four very small pieces of lobster that were not particularly tasty. For the price, it was just crazy. We also had a scallop dish for the second entre. It was good but not even close to exceptional which is what we'd expected based on previous visits and the price. The best dish we had was a crab cake and shrimp appetizer. The sides were ok but again, not particularly special. We had a small dish of berries for dessert to celebrate the birthday. It was a nice presentation, but at $15.00, this dish was downright disgraceful. We both tasted the berries and looked at each other in disgust. We'd both had about enough of Chinois at this point and decided to leave the berries and call it a night. \r \r The service has always be exceptional and personalized, until this last visit. It was ordinary and in some cases below standard. When the wait staff finally cleaned the table for dessert, he wiped the crumbs onto the floor, leaving the mess to step in. I felt like we were in a dive.\r \r Sadly, I'll not be returning to this place. It had always been one of my favorite high-end restaurants but I've had better dining experiences at chain restaurants. It feels like I've lost an old friend. \r more

Wow, this place has seriously gone downhill. I would write a review of the Library Alehouse just down the street in a more favorable manner than this now old, and defunct joint. If you're over 60 years old maybe you'd still like coming here. In fact, maybe that's the specific old money crowd they're after at this place. Can you say too much salt? Ew. That's all I can say about even the most tried and true dishes that we've had many times in the past. Ew. more

We really liked this place, mostly because the food was very tasty and there was a lot of it. In fact, we should have brought more people, because we couldn't finish it all. Let's call the place sophisticated casual, sophisticated food, casual room. Solid service and value. Worth checking out. Pros: Good, inventive food Cons: It looks like a casual mexican restaurant more

This restaurant came very highly recommended and my girlfriend and I were very very excited to try it on date night. Unfortunately from the beginning this was an awful experience that made us wish for a hinano burger. We go out often and try new restaurants all the time. The evening began with coming in to the most awful layout of a restaurant I have ever seen. We were seated in the middle facing the bar/waiters station in the most awful decor. There were two large flamingos on both sides of us for some unearthly reason someone thought this was tasteful. The waiter immediately came to our table and did nothing short of demand we order drinks when we had not even pushed in our chairs. After we asked for more time we were glared and pointed at and when we were ready to order and gave the ""we're ready now"" nod the waiter walked by twice. We ordered the chicken salad and scallops for dinner which seemed like a great bet. We were fully planning on a appetizer, dinner, desert, drinks and wine meal which would have pushed over the $250 mark with out a doubt. Unfortunately the entire experience left us with nothing but a case of the number 3s. The only saving grace was gift cards from a client that took care of the $87 bill + tip for $100. If anyone is thinking or stepping foot in this restaurant I will email you a list of amazing restaurants that have everything this offers with better ambiance, service, and FOOD. Did I mention that my girlfriend and I were starred at while getting our car from valet by every member of the wait staff until my girlfriend pointed at them to show me and they all ran. I guess the staff has never seen attractive les bian's (THE SPACE IN BETWEEN IS FOR THIS SITE BECAUSE APPARENTLY LES BIANS IS A INAPPROPRIATE WORD) before and I hope we are their last victims. Pros: The valet man was lovely Cons: Wait staff, food, ambiance, over rated!!! more

This place has an aging, once-hip clientele who still clings to the outmoded notion that Chinois on Main is... more

This place has an aging, once-hip clientele who still clings to the outmoded notion that Chinois on Main is a cool, trendy, see and be seen kind of... more

Very nice, relaxed atmosphere. Food was a little pricey, but well worth it. Our server, Lisa, was exceptional nd on top of everything, from the menu to our wine need. She made our experience worth going back for! Pros: Ambience, Service more

I took a friend here about 2 weeks ago, and was underwhelmed to say the least. The food was good, but not worth the price. We had the pineapple glazed quail, which was excellent, and the salmon, which was dry and tasteless. The fried asparagus was just ok, as was the fried rice. The service was average - I've had better and I've had worse at restaurants of this caliber. For two people with entrees, one glass of wine each, and dessert, we spent about $175. The meal was enjoyable, but frankly, even if they cost the same amount, I'd probably go to P.F. Chang first. Oh, and THE WINE WAS SERVED IN PLASTIC WINE GLASSES. I'm sorry, but that's just embarrassing and unacceptable at a place like this. If you have the money and don't care if you're paying too much for your meal, this place is ok, but you're better off spending it elsewhere. Pros: Quail, Dessert Cons: Price, Plastic Wine Glasses, Noise more

My wife and I were anticipating an extraordinary meal for our lunch and one of Mr. Puck's eateries and were let down, maybe our expectations were to high. I had anticipated eating at one LA's great restraunts all week long as we were winding down our vacation in the LA area. We chose Wolfgang's place based on name only. We had the fried soft shell crab and sichuan grilled beef dish. The soft shell crab looked and tasted good but thats all there was to the dish, no vegetables, no rice, just two crabs cut in two with some sauce plated on top of some fried spinach. The beef was great with the salad that came with it, we requested some steamed rice with this one after we found out it came out without it. Service was top shelf and I think maybe it would be better to fo there for dinner. Pros: Service Cons: Overpriced lunch more

So everyone has different levels of expectations. I will be the first to say that when i go out to eat, i want to be wowed. Weather i am at Urth cafe, Chaya, or Chinois on Main, I want my food to be awesome! I understand that when you are at a nice restaurant you want everything to be perfect, truth is, servers have bad days too, just like I do. Everytime i go to Chinois, everything is amazing. Yeah it is loud, yeah it is busy, sometimes it takes longer than others.......welcome to life! I am and will always be a loyal customer. I do not know of anywhere else that I can get a Lobster that tastes that good or calamari so light and crunchy and amazing or seczhuan beef.......so good, and do not even get me going on their lamb chops. When it comes down to it, they never cease to impress me. I will keep going until wolfgang and Bella decide to call it finie! Until then, Happy eating and enjoy your meal. Honestly, if you are not enjoying what you are eating, wherever you are, send it back and either remake it or get something else. I would rather enjoy myself rather than not and write some lame comment about it later. Live well, eat great and drink wine. Happy eating! I mean what i say.............wow..... everytime! more

Being a Wolfgang Puck owned restaurant you would think the food would be high quality. Not at Chinois! I have been to many restaurants owned by WGP and all have exceeded my expectations! \r My Husband and I went to Chinois one Thurs night as a spare of the moment decision. We were seated immediately which was great and I must admit the actual restaurant has a great atmosphere. The server was pleasant and seemed to know the menu; however, that is where the positives end......\r I ordered the ""famous"" chicken salad and my husband ordered a seafood dish - both highly recommeded by the server. \r Both the dishes game out in less than 10 minutes. I like fast service, but this was a bit ridiculous! We barely had time to settle in. My chicken salad had about 6 slivers of the strangest looking ""chicken"" I had ever seen which was made up of mostly skin and fat. The rest of the salad was weedy looking lettuce and barely any dressing. It tasted as bad as it looked. \r My husbands seafood dish was not fresh at all. The shrimps tasted awful - as if they had been sitting out all day. Not good! \r What made the whole experience worse, was the fact that this restaurant is not cheap!!! I don't mind paying high prices for high quality, but what Chinois provided in terms of quality, was terrible.\r \r I don't often feel compelled to write reviews on here; however, after my experience with Chinois I felt the need to share! If you want to experience a great WGP restaurant try Spago's - AMAZING! Or, if you are after something with more quality in that area go to Chaya Venice - just down the road. Pros: Good Atmosphere Cons: Bad food, high prices more

Superb food and service. The atomsphere is pleasant and the tables are close to one another so you may get the opportunity to know your neighbors! The catfish is not to be missed. The vegetarian dishes are tantilizing to your taste buds!!! Not to be missed!!! more

Out of this world! more

Out of this world! more

There have been many occasions when I've canceled previous plans in order to eat at this restaurant. The decor is a bit over the top mid 90s design style, but fun. The food is awe-inspiring. One of the times I went with family and business colleagues, we ordered the foie gras about 3 times because people couldn't get enough. The last visit, I had the lamb. From a bad experience at another restaurant in vegas, this made up for it. Of course, the price makes up for the other restaurant as well, but completely worth it. From the most recent visit, Wolfgang was there and came around to our table and said hello to everyone which was a good treat. The service is usually very good. if anything just slightly slow, but all you need to do is get them to look at you and they waste no time in asking if they can do anything. Definitely eat here if you want to impress a group of people or if you want to have a fun good and relaxing environment with amazing food. more

Went on a girl's night out and didn't have to wait long for a table, which was a nice change in LA. We had just enough time to order drinks at the very crowded bar before we were seated at our table. The staff was extremely courteous and professional, from the hostess to the bus boys. The main dining area is small and crowded, in fact too much so. Expect a social, boisterous atmosphere so I would not recommend for a romantic date. The appetizers are expensive but large portions and a wide selection. Overll, the food was delectable, and served family style. Pros: Food, fun, service Cons: Crowded, lack of decor more

We just went to Chinois on Main last night. The food was amazing. We recommend the braised short ribs and the won ton wrapped sea bass. The wait staff had practical tips for ordering and was so friendly and helpful. The wonderful dinner was topped off with the scrumptous peanut butter chocolate dessert. And the best part of the night for us was getting to meet Wolfgang himself. This restaurant is going to be on regular rotation for my boyfriend and me. Pros: Food, wait staff Cons: A bit loud more

There are so many other places where you can pay a lot of money and be really well taken care of. For the money, a place should be confortable and relaxed. I guess some people get all excited when a restaurant is crowded and loud. They think they are where its hot! They obviously arent there for fine dining. Im not cheap, but price is a fair way to judge restaurants. Their prices arent insulting to my wallet, they insult my intelligence. Unless you are just trying to fit into a crowd, literaly and figuratively, this place doesn't cut it. Make the restaurant earn your business. Respect yourself. Pros: food is nice Cons: loud, small, bad service more

I have to agree with many previous reviews, Chinois has continue to go downhill over the years. The food is still good but overpriced, and I was amazed at the wine's markup. Expected better service with such a high notoriety restaurant and was disappointed. I noticed majority of the servers milled around the front entry, chitchatting and paying little attention to the customers. When we were seated it was over five minutes before we were acknowleded with a glass of water, although we were near the front, in plain sight of all the chatty servers. It was another 10 minutes before a server barely acknowledge we were there and took our order. The food came at a consistent pace, however, once we were through, it took another 15 minutes to flag the server down for the check. No, we won't be coming back, but they won't miss us. Pros: Good Food Cons: Indifference, High Wine Markup, Overpriced more

I first went to Chinois many years ago and have been back 4-5 times since. However, it slowly and surely reminded me of the fable about the Emperor With No Clothes. It's reputation was earned a long time ago, and it kinda rested on its laurels since then. I gradually got it that the hype is bigger than the reality. The interior design isn't just funky, it's positively ancient. The acoustics are tinny and the bar is tiny (tinny and tiny... how about that!). The food and service is ok, but doesn't compare to many other restaurants with similar price points. They need to reinvent themselves before the hype fades away... Pros: Great location, Busy atmosphere Cons: Long in the tooth, Unpleasantly noisy more