Hermitage Bistro

Craving good french food, but at a price that won’t break your budget? Then head over to Hermitage in Culver City. I’ve been living in the area for over a year now and never really noticed this place even though I’ve walked by and driven passed by it many times. Its located on a triangle square, smack in the middle of the Kirk Douglas Theater and the Starbucks.

As luck would have it, I was giving a walking tour of the the area to a friend a few weeks ago and noticed it, along with Melt, but couldn’t locate either of them since I was looking o the other side of the triangle.

My ex and I made the visit over a Fall ’08 weekend and I am glad that we did. I thought there was going to be a long line since we got there close to noon, but there were many empty tables which I thought was odd. The waitress notified us that they were serving crepes, which was not on the menu. I love sweet crepes, but I was craving something more substantial. I ordered the french toast with house potatoes ($9.50) and he ordered the omelet special with 3 items ($11.00). He picked Swiss, bacon and onions. He initially was just going to order an omelet with Swiss for $9.00, but I pointed out to him in that just for $2 more, he could add two more items.

The waitress informed us that they couldn’t mix in the bacon into the omelet (it wouldn’t cook right) and so it would have to be served in the side. While we waited for our meals, we enjoyed the ambiance while reading the LA Times. I love plants and flowers, so this place was perfect for me. I normally don’t like eating outside on sidewalks, but the way this sidewalk is designed, there is plenty of room between the street and the tables. So I don’t feel the vibrations of cars as they zoom past by like they do in most sidewalk cafes.

I don’t like crowds while eating at restaurants and having to yell at my bf so that he can hear me in noisy and crowded places like Griddle Cafe or even Rush Street which is just down the street. Let the noisy party people at Rush Street, for the true food connoisseurs who enjoy the company of good food over people, then Hermitage is the better choice. Its also a lot more romantic if its just you and a date. I overheard a couple of the workers talking in French, so it really added to the ambiance. I felt like I was back in the French Riviera, eating at a cafe.

While you wait for your meals, they serve you a generous basket of white and date nut bread with jam, jellies, and butter. We devoured the contents of the basket before our meals arrived.

My french toast plate looked and tasted great. The bread they used was similar to chalah bread but sweeter. It was also very soft and fluffy, like Hawaiian bread. I didn’t need much syrup since the french toast was already on the sweet side which I like. The house potatoes were okay. Nothing outstanding, but I didn’t feel they needed the side of ketchup that they provided.

My ex’s omelet was a good sized portion and the bacon strips were all curled up but thick. I had a taste of his omelet and they really added a lot of onions into it, which my ex loves. It came with a salad which we didn’t expect along with the fruit bowl he ordered as a side. Next time, I will order the fruit salad instead of the house potatoes. The meals were delicious, filling and for the portions they served, very moderate in price. Usually my ex will get hungry in just a few hours, but later that day around 4 PM, he still wasn’t hungry.

Our bellies were filled, but as we waited to get check, I noticed a couple sharing a steamed artichoke and dipping it on clarified butter. I made a mental note to try that next time, because both my ex and I agreed that we will definitely visit again. I have visited again several times since that first visit, and the food and service have been consistently good.

Service is prompt and very friendly. There was only a delay towards the end when we were waiting for them to collect the check. So when you add good French food, great ambiance, good service, and no noisy crowds, you get Hermitage Bistro. So as Julia Child was fond of saying: Bon Appetit!

There is plenty of public and street parking available in the area.