As my husband and I were driving home with our sandy, hungry kids from the beach we had a typical back and forth banter of, "where do you want to eat" , "i don't know, where do you want to go". We were were a hair away from a medocre sushi meal, when typical of my husband he pulled LA Farm out of his bag of tricks. It was a place that we drove by a few weeks prior and told ourselves that we wanted to try it out.
We drove up to the valet and I quickly pulled my baseball cap off my head, hoping no one could tell that we weren't exactly prepared for a nice meal. As we walked up to (a very sweet) hostess I recognized someone who i couldn't tell if I went to college with or if I saw her on TV, typical LA moment. It was when I saw Stefan with her that I realized she was on Top Chef and that we walked into a Top Chef contestant's restuarant, this instantly sparked my interest. I spent many moments drooling over top chef food on TV. It did not disappoint! It was amazing, actually!
We started with some small plates, which were perfect little starters for the kids. Granted, it's not the most kid friendly place, if you are looking for a high chair, or crayons, but I knew my little ones were hungry and my little 2 year old will only sit on her knees anyway. We got the pistachios (which they kindly offered to seperate the spicy ones) for my son, who loves them. We got the little burger, the Thai lobster bisque, beef tartare, and fingerling potatoes. All were just a tiny but delicious amuse bouche which really got our palates going.
Then we got the beef carpaccio to share as an appetizer, which just melted in your mouth.
For our main course my husband got the steak frites (typical irish guy!) and I got the braised beef. The braised beef WAS AMAZING!!! Whatever it was served with I would love to know, it was so good. It was some sort of farro and arugula something or other, delicious! Both were at a really great price point and just enough for us to give a few bites to our kids, who also loved the farro! To specify my "cons" section...My kids eat whatever we are eating so it's easy to take them out, but if you are looking for chicken fingers or "kid food" it might not be a good place to take them to, since there isn't a kids meal (which is usually kinda gross anyway) Also, they were so well behaved tonight, thank god, because it didn't really feel like a place that would be very forgiving to a screaming or rambunctous child.
Stefan made a round around the dining room and was really friendly. I haven't had a chef come out and say hello since I lived in NJ, where the chef was practically a part of the family they knew you so well. So it was really nice to see him come out and have a nice chat and a laugh. I saw the sleep creep over the kids eyes so we had a quick medly of homemade ice cream, yummy, which my daughter actually tried to lick the bowl.
The server, Gabriel was so friendly and really attentive. My son adored him and wants to draw him a picture and bring it over to him tomorrow.
Also the music was great. It set the tone for more of a casual setting. I can't remember any of the songs that actually played, but it was songs you would recognize.
It was such a great dining experience and it's a place that you just really want to see do well! He's hiit the home run, now he just has to run the bases!
Pros: Delicious and not pretentious
Cons: Not for picky kiddos
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