8284 Melrose Ave
Los Angeles, CA
(323) 852-7174
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February 16, 2009
I had heard of the Dolce restaurant group, and thought I would try Dolce Enoteca out for the DineLA tasting menu. We came for dinner, got one tasting menu and one side item (also something that was offered on the tasty menu) and I have to say on every count, was disappointed.
First, the decor. Very dimly lit, I guess to give it atmosphere and romance, though the 2-person table they sat us at was too small to be romantic. Rather than intimate, it felt cramped, yet exposed to the rest of the restaurant. I did like the fire wall behind the bar.
The hostess: this may seem a bit off-topic for a restaurant review, but I think the hostess is an important member of a restaurant, because she is the public face of a place, a first impression. She was seemed very glamor LA, a bit cold and haughty, and looked, according to my boyfriend, like a Russian prostitute. I guess for some people, that is a sign of class or sophistication in a restaurant, but to me it is always a red flag of a place that is much more concerned with looks and image than warmth and welcoming, which I think should be the substance of a “greeter”.
Our waiter was nice enough, very attentive in the beginning of the meal and helpful with wine choices, though service petered out towards the end. It looked like they only had 2 waiters on for the night, understaffed for the crowd that DineLA brought, and we saw much more of our bus boy than our waiter.
The food reviews are below.
In the end, it was DEFINITELY not worth the prices they were charging for “ambiance”, and barely worth the discounted DineLA menu prices. I would not come back here again.
Not an ordered item, but I have to say, their bread basket was very tasty. I loved their olive bread, and I liked the complimentary meat and cheese sides and oil & balsamic for dipping. The best surprise of the meal.
Tasty enough for an appetizer, though rather standard. The wonton, rather than being light and crispy to enhance the light flavors of the tartar, was heavy and oily. It seemed to weigh down the dish and overpowered the subtle flavors in the tuna. I ended up eating the tartar by itself or with plain bread, though my boyfriend seemed to enjoy the wonton.
Again pretty standard. The shrimp were tasty, and the calamari was pretty straight forward. I would have liked more sweet potato spears, I think there were only 2, and the zucchini was good, but in contrast, the mountain of calamari was a little overwhelming. I was disappointed in the plain breading of all the items, no spices or even pepper, and no LEMON! It was begging for some zest of flavor. The marinara dipping sauce was blah too, I have had more flavorful sauce from Ragu.
The best executed dish, very flavorful and tasty, though not inspired. LOTS of butter, and who doesn’t like that? Of course it’s going to taste good with that as a main ingredient. I did enjoy the little cubes of pumpkin that were in the sauce, a nice sweet addition that complimented the heaviness of the dish. The ravioli were delicious, but overall, the dish would have been too heavy for me to eat on my own. Glad I had someone to help me.
Biggest disappointment of the night. I am a HUGE Tiramisu fan, and this dessert was one of the deciding factors for trying this menu. Unfortunately, this restaurant has no idea what a tiramisu is. I was expecting a dessert of lady fingers soaked in espresso, perhaps a liqueur, layered with sweet mascarpone cheese. Instead, it tasted like dry sponge cake with a hint of poorly brewed coffee, layered with whipped cream mixed with cheap cream cheese. Perhaps this was not the case, but it definitely was not the decadent, rich, flavorful, swoon-worthy dessert that I craved. The only saving grace was that I had ordered an Irish coffee, which helped cut the overly sweet cheese and comfort my broken dreams of a heavenly dessert.
February 6, 2009
I had a dinner date with my daughter last night and decided to take advantage of the DINE LA week and thought to try Dolce Enoteca. It was a Thursday night and the place literally had a lot of empty tables. $26 per person for a 3 course pre-fixe dinner is not a bad deal.
I’ve read and heard mixed reviews on this venue, so that prompted me to check it out. I’m leaning toward the “negative” reviews. Here is why.
Firstly, the front staff/hostess and one of the server’s attitudes. I still don’t understand why they need to be the way they are, being rude and dispassionate is not a “cool trend”anymore. With the economy the way it is, people are not going to spend their hard earned money to be treated like second citizens.
We did end up being served by a superb fella which did remedy our first server’s neglicence. By the way, I did not tell them we were for the DINE LA, which I thought that may be the reason why the hostess may have been discourteous.
Secondly, the food was just okay, nothing to write home about and luckily I only paid $26 per person to sample what I was told are the best and the most popular dishes.
Thirdly, Enoteca can’t decide if they are an elegant dining or a nightclub, The couple next to us commented on how they thought it was to be fine dining, but then realized that it was not as rap and electronic music is loudly blasting throughout the restaurant. My guess is they are better at attracting the after-work cocktail hangout who care less about the food and more of the “to be in the scene” crowd.
The restaurants under the Dolce Group have really gone downhill in the past few years and Enoteca is no exception.
Here are my dish ratings shared between the two of us.
Meh, skip it i couldn’t figure out what the filling was. I have had homemade cannoli made by an Italian grandmother and Dolce’s version is an insult.
It looked nice, double amounts of tuna but sadly, the taste fell flat. The tuna was heavily ldoused with oil, really bland taste, I realize the soy reduction, but leave a little bit please. Perhaps it may taste better with garlic aioli or a mild hint of something.
This was a better appetizer than the tuna tartar as it turns out, but then it’s the standard fried calamari one can order from Cheesecake Factory.
Since the daughter ordered all the dishes I wanted, had to take the second choices.
Again, nothing to write home about, the chicken was just okay, a bit on the dry side but still edible. Linguini with red sauce was ordinary, tasted like tomato sauce out of a can.
Slightly better than the Chicken Parm. The white sauce was a subtle taste which I do like, however the asparagus was chopped into tiny morsels? That is a waste of a savory vegetable, perhaps their way of economizing. So that was disappointing.
Good only because it was chocolate. Nothing more nothing less.
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