Providence

Providence. Second time’s the charm. Cimurusti was in the kitchen, Drew the sommelier was in the house. All was so very very right with the world. The bartender was wonderful, she made an excellent cocktail. Did the 5 course tm this time, w/ wine pairings. Waiter remembered our several special food requests. Food was excellent, creative, well thought out and executed, beautiful flavors; wine pairings incredible as before. Service was top notch. You’re cocooned by everyone there.
I suppose sometimes they’ll have an off night, what restaurant doesn’t. But when they are at what I’m sure is their usual form, Providence is the best restaurant in L.A.
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First visit: Cimurusti on vacation, Paul Shoemaker was heading the kitchen.

Did the 9 course tasting menu with wine pairings. The food did not blow me away. However, the wine pairings did! They served a very big range of wines, each so perfectly matched to each course. Very impressive.

Cimarusti was not in the kitchen that night, he was on vacation—booo.

Here’s what we had:
1 amuse, can’t quite recall, but there was foam.
—Big eye tuna tartare
—Maine lobster with a beautiful round piece of lobster gelee balanced on top, and a bit of caviar
—bobby’s block island sea scallops: it was one scallop, singular, and a bit overcooked
—japanese medai: this did nothing for me
—wild troll-caught king salmon
—duck confit: we subbed this in for the veal that was on the menu, they made the substition on the spot for us, which I thought was very gracious and caring of their customer and their reputation
—cheese course: very nice
—kalamansi
—pineapple confit
Then, some after dinner sweets including a housemade caramel, that was so good.

The service went from wonderful to okay. The greeting upon our entry was very warm and welcoming. I felt like I could leave everything in their hands. I wanted to see the Chef’s table, and they graciously showed it to us. The table service started out very good and professional, and then all sorts of random people were bringing the food, and it was not smoothly done at all. There were two different people pouring my wine. What was really annoying was the bread crumbs we got on the table at the very beginning never got whisked off. I had to sweep them off myself.

Dinner took 3.5 hours. I left very full and glad I wasn’t driving. For $200 I do expect to be a little more blown away by the food. But I will go back. Next time I’ll order a la carte off the menu.

Have to say this is my favorite restaurant right now, yes its a little on the high end, fine dining, lots of suits and ties, silky dresses and a check to reflect but I think the meal is well worth it. Seafood, French inspired cuisine, fresh seafood, beautiful presentation, perfect portions (for me), scallops cooked to perfection, unusual and delicious cocktails, great service and amazing dessert. I would recommend going just for the cheese plate and amazing dessert paired with a nice glass of port if you want to get your feet wet before the dive to the whole experience. But if you can, I would get the tasting menu. It’s a special occasion place.

For people who love or want to try contemporary French cuisine featuring seafood and Asian inspiration.

My family and I were guests of good family friends of ours who are also regulars here, so the service was fantastic. The chef came and talked to most of the customers, which is always refreshing to see, not just because of the friendliness but also to see a chef actually cooking at his restaurant! That certainly hasn’t happened at most high end restaurants I’ve been to in LA.

Given the large group, I got to try a lot of different things – prawns, scallops, steak, lobster risotto, different cheeses, and a couple desserts. The risotto was my favorite dish – balanced, well-seasoned, good lobster and mushroom flavor. The prawns were very fresh and tasty, but a bit overcooked – perhaps the salt-roasting method of cooking made it harder to time it? Other salt-roasted seafood I’ve had in fine dining restaurants has been overcooked too. The steak, a prime NY cut, was not bad – cooked properly but not that flavorful.

The cheeses were all really good – we stuck with 4 or 5 of the milder cheeses they had – and there was a huge variety we didn’t even get to try. Desserts were probably the weak point – more clever and adventurous than satisfying.

Prices seem too high given the location and portions. No entree less than $40. Most appetizers in the $25-30 range.