I’ve only been here for the happy hour. As for the drinks, the prices and selection aren’t that great. I mean $ 5 for a beer and the only beer available is a Paulaner Hefeweizen? The house wines at $ 6 is hardly any better. For drinks alone, this place would be earn a two star rating. The only saving grace is the food.
Yumi i.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Altadena, CA
i’m surprised that fraiche has 3.5 stars. just ate there an hour ago and loved every dish as well as our drinks. to start we had the wrapped dates which i get at many restaurants and was very good here. then we got the pumpkin ravioli with mushrooms which was soo yummy. and my fiancé got the roasted corn pizza which was so delicious he wanted another one. for drinks i got the morgan syrah 2010 which ive known and enjoy. my fiancé got the ginger on fire which he ended up ordering two he liked it so much. service was very good. our water glasses were full the entire meal. dishes were collected right after they were made empty. we hardly waited for our food. we are definitely going back.
Katie D.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Boston, MA
Great for lunch away from the tourists and hustle of the promenade. Nice place with very few diners. I’d glad to see their lunch menu competitive with rest of Santa Monica. Most entrees including sandwiches, burgers, and pastas are $ 10. For an additional $ 5 you can even add both a soup/salad and a dessert. A great deal indeed. BF really enjoyed his chicken carbonara. My truffle burger is decent, meat is juicy enough. However I really don’t taste the truffle flavor very much. But hey, what do you expect for $ 10? Their happy hour also runs all day long, so if you are able to get a drink on lunch break, this is a good place for it! Considering the iced tea is $ 4, might as well go for the vodka… Just don’t go overboard and stumble back to the office =D
Lillian C.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Palo Alto, CA
It’s a little strange that their«happy hour» menu is basically all day… and it’s basically the same as their regular menu. We sat in the bar area but still ordered from the regular menu so I really don’t think there is a difference. However, I think for the price the food is pretty good. Plus, their white wine is actually pretty good and they give you a good amount. We came just as their kitchen was about to close one night and ordered oysters, the truffle burger, fries, salmon tartare, and chicken alfredo. The oysters and salmon were pretty fresh. The burger was delicious! I mean, for $ 10 it’s hard to beat. The fries were a little too crispy on the outside for me and lacked flavor, but hey, it’s french fries. The pasta was cooked al dente and the sauce so rich and creamy. All in all, all the food was pretty good for the price and I will def be back!
Maribeth H.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Beverly Hills, CA
Had what I thought were happy hour mussels and wine here(which was buy one get one free). The menu said the mussels were $ 7, the wine $ 6(but buy one get one free) My bill was $ 32. For some reason my wine was $ 10 a glass and I was charged for both glasses. I didn’t feel like haggling because a guy was chatting me up at the bar and I was trying to escape ASAP. I won’t go back here.
Laurie M.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Bakersfield, CA
Where do I start… Probably by saying if you only have an hour for lunch this is not the place to go. My friend and I have been here twice for lunch and have had the same(terrible) experience. We didn’t even get to eat today because we were constantly waiting for something or someone from their understaffed staff. It is never a good sign when the restaurant is fairly empty and you have to wait 15 minutes to get a server to come over. My friend ordered her salmon burger rare and received a raw pattie. Had to wait at least 10 minutes to get some attention until we asked the hostess if she could take care of it(she was very nice). Add another 10 minutes for the new burger. When it arrived the fries were missing. Another 10 minutes to wait for that. We figured we didn’t have time to finish our meal so we asked for to-go boxes. Guess what? Another 10 minutes. And I’m being generous with these wait times. Management needs to step it up. And though we understand that having only one waitress at lunch is not her fault, neither she nor one of the two runners ever came back to check on us once we received our food. I had to wait about 30 minutes to be told there was no crushed pepper and to be brought my parmesan cheese for my cold pizza. At least they didn’t shove my 3 leftover slices into a tiny box this time, I got a proper pizza box. On our first visit they took the initiative to comp our lunch but this time I had to ask for some of our items to be comped since we never got to enjoy our meal. I know our experience isn’t unique because as I looked around the place everyone had empty tables and long faces. Was a manager around? No. We saw him leave at the begining of lunch. The food is normally pretty great but now we understand why it is empty more times than not.
Marco D.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Malibu, CA
Not very friendly, the food is soandso, and perhaps better than Mcdonalds should those be the only options. My friend and I were shopping in the Third Street Promenade and wanted a good place to sit and have a quick bite. We found this place by walking along Wilshire and seeing as it had a promising menu and was not busy it would be the perfect place. Again, there were several tables open(7 from where I could see). But the hostess greeted us with a «do you have a reservation?» Slow down speedy, we just walked-in. Say hello, or welcome to soandso. right off the back, a star falls from this place. We then let her know that we don’t, we are simply walk ins and we see plenty of open tables. After a little back and forth she finally sits us down in a empty table with plenty of other empty tables around. I would have loved to walk somewhere nicer but my friend was determined to make it a nice mea, so we look at the menu and surprise they are having a $ 10 pasta special, really? You mean to tell me that I can’t walk in, I need a reservation in oder to eat at your $ 10 pasta place?! GTF out of here! I would love to tell the awesome Unilocal audience about the place, how nice it was, the great people sitting there or even the tasteless mushroom salad that was full of grass trimmings, but I couldn’t focus due to a rude hostess looking to turn down business on her already empty restaurant. So, as far as the food goes the chicken was ok, my friend’s fish was tasteless baby throw up and the service more average than a high school production of the Wiz. Note to the establishment, next time I might overlook the bland salad, tasteless chicken, shabby menu, and focus on the nice décor if you learn how to treat your customers like the important part of your business they are. You might secure a table for walk ins in 30 mins but in the mean time will you turn away new potential business? Shame on you, you made me look bad because I suggested we walk in, not anymore!
Max F.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Austin, TX
I was rather disappointed the most recent visit. I tried the culver city location first and it was fantastic. Santa Monica not so much. It was overpriced pasta dishes I felt I could get anywhere. Not to mention the portion sizes are tiny. Overall — there are plenty of other nice restaurants in the area that I would much rather go
Dave F.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Santa Monica, CA
Fraiche is consistently inconsistent. The good news is the one of the original Chef’s has taken over the Executive Chef duties and brought back the killer entrée: Branzino en papillote, which is a seabass prepared in their hot, hot over in a paperbag. This sounds odd, but it’s a parchment bag which retains the moisture and flavors. Being a serious fan of fish, this was my favorite menu item and I ordered it and found it to be as good as the original. The bad news is the restaurant was nearly empty. This is a place I really hope makes it, the food ambiance and service were all excellent!
Johnson K.
Rating des Ortes: 2 West Covina, CA
Came here with a Groupon for dinner and I was quite disappointed given the initial perceptions I have of the place when I first stepped in. I thought it was a fancier romantic sort of restaurant, perfect for the night out with my significant other. Little did I know until we got situated in the table I reserved. Tables were quite close to one another in the dining area. If I didn’t know any better, I felt like my neighbor’s table was right up against ours… making it as if we were sharing one big table, rather than a couple of separate ones. Food was a hit and a miss. We ordered the truffle burger(based on reviews on Unilocal), the Spicy Hawaiian pizza and a salmon tar tare. The burger came out quite dry and the pizza came out soggy. The only highlight of the evening was the salmon tar tare and that was delicious. It was a good portion size. The prosecco that came with the Groupon was actually quite good as well. Location wise, this place was great. It’s right next to 3rd Street Promenade and parking in the nearby structures($ 5 flat after 6pm) were aplenty if you don’t want to opt for their valet.
Nelson F.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Culver City, CA
I’ve come to Fraiche a few times now(both locations), and I’m sorry to say that the food has gone a little down from it’s original inception. I remember it used to be a lot more Rustic French Italian cuisine, but now the menu has been down-sized with a more commercial Italian selection. No more duck confit, foie gras appetizers, coq au vin or steak tartare which is a shame. Also, the pork tenderloin which my friend raved about last time he went is no longer on the menu. However, the food they do have is still good, my favorite being the short ribs. Also, I’ve come a couple times for their brunch which is a good satisfying meal. Their baked eggs in particular was memorable. Happy hour is especially a really great deal too, with $ 5 beer/wine and awesome bar food selections. This more then makes up for their dinner menu and I’m giving them +1 stars for Happy Hour. Plus I noticed they extended their hours Sun-Thurs from 5-close! I took my friend for lunch and I ordered the truffle burger. During Happy Hour it’s $ 9 and a total steal! For lunch it’s only a few dollars more and it’s a really good, hearty burger. My friend ordered the roasted corn pizza and she really liked it. She asked if they could take off the ham and they forgot to, so they redid it and it came out a little longer. We also had their corn chowder and the mushroom salad, which were both delicious. Overall, come for happy hour and brunch, their dinner and lunch is good but not all that memorable anymore. There are so many other choices in the area(both culver city and santa monica) and they need to bring their game back up. So Lunch/Dinner: 3 stars Happy Hour/Brunch: 4 stars
David A R.
Rating des Ortes: 4 San Francisco, CA
Excellent service that wasn’t judgmental when I presented their very popular Groupon. I far prefer the interior design of their Culver City store, compared to the industrial walled high ceilinged Santa Monica venue, but the food seems identical. My companion dug the mushroom salad, but the mushroom selection was too monolithic for me. I’m not mycologist, but I’d have preferred greater variety as well as a greater proportion of frisee to shroom. The monkfish was light and tasty both times I’ve tried it, and while it’s perfectly fried, I wish they offered it in a more healthy style of preparation. My companion had the shrimp tagliatelle which was so creamy she almost felt ill and needed to excuse herself after being unable to finish. I tasted it and thought the pasta was fresh and delicate and the sauce was flavorful, but a bit heavy for my taste. The sorbet desert was an orgy of tangy delight nicely balanced by one scoop of coconut. Her trio flavored crème brule was disappointing though — indistinguishable from Jell-O pudding besides the perfectly blazed tops — by her estimation. Still the food is tasty and the experience excellent.
Julie L.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Brea, CA
My first impression was, «Nice ambiance: casual chic, dim lighting, wait… the music is so off.» I was excited to try Fraiche because of all the buzz about this place, and stayed with a positive attitude even after I read the reviews. But as soon as we were seated I immediately experienced for myself the number one complaint I’ve been reading in the past reviews: the service. We waited for so long to get our order in, to get the food, to get our check, and to be able to leave the restaurant. Oh, and like I mentioned, the ambiance was pretty nice, until the musical numbers of mainstream rock and superpop began to clash with the intimate setting. The BRANZINOPAPILLOTE(fennel/bell peppers/olives/red onion/limoncello) was sort of plain and boring. Nothing special about the fish, nor the ingredients used to attempt to compliment it. It was good, at least edible, and somewhat enjoyable for the first few bites. The MONKFISH(with potato purée/spinach/white wine sauce) was the better option out of the two. I think I would have gave it one more star if the service wasn’t so terrible. The lasting impression? «There are way too many good French options in LA to waste your time trying this one(or more like waiting for this one).»
Kathy W.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Long Beach, CA
Brought a Gilt City coupon for $ 20 for $ 40 worth including 2 non-alcoholic drinks. Made a reservation for a weekday lunch, though it wasn’t necessary since no one was really there. We were immediately seated and greeted by the host and waitress. Complimentary bread: soft and crispy. go well with the olive oil and balsamic vinegar. very small portion. not sure if you can request for more Prix Fixe($ 15): — Caprese: sliced tomato with mozzarella cheese and pesto. The tomatoes were ripe and crunchy. My brother enjoyed the mozzarella combination.(I’m not a big fan of cheese). — Truffle burger with salad: Burger is fairly huge. The meat is well seasoned. The grilled onions complimented the burger well. The arugula salad with a vinaigrette was decent but it was too hard to pick up with the fork. Decent but I have confirmed that I only like beef burgers from In-N-Out and nowhere else… yes even Umami, which seems to be a favorite. — Crème Brulee: tiny portion. The custard is pretty thick. Decent but I think I prefer a lighter consistency. Steak with Frites($ 22): — sliced steak — some pieces were more tender than others — fries were the highlight of the dish: well-fried and seasoned. Wish it had garlic though. — Not worth the price Dessert Platter($ 15) — choose any 3 desserts from the menu — Chocolate Purse with Vanilla Bean ice cream: suggested by Giada from the Food Network. The innards are basically Nutella; taste pretty good; the crêpe-like outside didn’t seem fresh; ice cream was pretty good — can taste the bean — Plum Panna Cotta: panna cotta was too hard; the plum reduction is too sour — Coffee Coulant with caramel ice cream: basically a coffee-flavored chocolate molten cake; not freshly baked; caramel ice cream was okay — good value but the desserts were eh — the only dessert worth trying is the Chocolate Purse($ 12 individually) Mint Cucumber Lemonade: — pretty sour; then again it is a lemonade — refreshing drink for the first several sips Gingerberry Lemonade — unique flavor — bits of ginger inside but not too bitter — my brother seemed to enjoy it Environment: semi-upscaled but casual dress. Also a more upscale happy hour place. Appropriate for the Santa Monica area. Decent décor. The restrooms were also pretty nice and classy. One of the walls are filled with wine bottle corks. Service: very attentive. Fill water appropriately. The only thing is the food takes too long to prepare. Waited a good 30 minutes. The desserts on the other hand came out relatively quickly. Overall, would not visit unless I had a deal. The food isn’t really worth the price, only the ambiance.maybe. The Chocolate Purse was also a mild disappointment since I have tried Giada’s other favorites(Bi-Rite Creamery and Lola’s Donuts) and enjoyed those. Parked near Bank of America on 4th before Wilshire Blvd. Parking in the structure is free for the first 2 hours. Then it is $ 1 per half hour. More of a place to visit because you’re in the Promenade area otherwise find eat somewhere else.
Michelle L.
Rating des Ortes: 4 San Francisco, CA
Om freakin nom. Fraiche seriously has an amazing happy hour. At around 6:30 on a Monday night, the bar was empty and full of seating. Truffle burger: SO delicious and juicy. Definitely one of the top burgers in the LA area. Doesn’t come with fries or anything but honestly, it doesn’t need it. It stands on it’s own. Salmon tartare: Decent. The salmon and avocado paired well together, though I didn’t appreciate the creamy sauce it was in. Came with a small arugula salad and one toasted piece of bread(just one). Fungi pizza: Full of mushroomy goodness. Very very thin, and the mushroom flavor was infused throughout the pizza, including the crust. Cranhattan: LOVED this drink. Bourbon, bitters, and cranberry juice. Very strong, but deeelicious. Ginger(something i forget the second part of the drink): also made with bourbon, but sweeter than the cranhattan. The tab came out to be around $ 60 for dinner, including tip, which i thought was reasonable considering the quality of food and the level of fullness i was at by the end of the meal(i was stuffed). Definitely will be back for more of that truffle burger, and to try the prosciutto pizza.
Jenny S.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Diamond Bar, CA
HAPPYHOUR(sun– thurs 5pm-close, fri-sat 5−7pm) in the bar area FTW! FIRST: i love when happy hour deals go ’til close SECOND: i love it even more when happy hour gives you a cheap opportunity to taste an expensive restaurant THIRD: i love when the happy hour food is BOMBDOTCOM fraiche fits the whole bill! —truffle burger: EVERYONE’S FAVORITE. «father’s office» has an undiscovered rival! savory truffle oil w/a juicy but perfectly seared patty, & onion fondue NOMNOMNOM —prosciutto pizza: w/fresh burrata & peppery arugula. great combo! —salmon tartare: i love salmon esp when paired w/CRUNCHY crostini! —black mussels: a yummy bowl for 6 bucks! —short rib burger: flavorful but not as good as the truffle burger —mushroom & margherita pizzas: SKIP ‘EM. dont know how these failed so hard in comparison to the prosciutto pizza my well DRINK was kind of week. that was a let down. but i heard the white wine was enjoyable. as was the beer NOTE: they’ve got a TV so we got to catch the lakers game… PARKINGISSTREET. so read the very restrictive signs!
Ciara G.
Rating des Ortes: 4 The Heights, NJ
Solid 4 and was oh so close to the 4.5 with the rounding up to the 5 Interesting music choice to say the least. As we were browsing through the menu deciding on entrees, Smashing Pumpkins was playing. As we were browsing at dessert menus The Cure loudly sang my favorite road trip song«show me show me show me» and we finished the meal to Stevie Nicks singing Landslide. ALL those artists are easily in my top ten favs but it was not really the appropriate music selection for a place like this. I get that it’s a Saturday night but still. Service started strong but finished on a weak note. That was really the deciding factor for me when it came down to the final stars. Food completely impressed my palate and I didn’t expect that. I started with their seasonal soup which tonight was a Squash and Pumpkin Purée with Pear Balsamic Oil and a Cranberry Marshmallow. YES they put a marshmallow in the soup. It was truly delightful. The texture and flavors of the soup was outstanding. The sweet melty marshmallow in the harvesty soup was genius. The soup was served piping hot. Most restaurants do not serve their soup hot enough IMO and this one scorched my tongue a bit in the best way ever. For my entrée I went with the Large order of Squash Angnolotti. These were delightful and larger that any angnolotti I have had in the past. Delicious butternut squash center, tossed in a perfect brown butter sauce garnished with a fried sage leaf, almond slivers and tiny squash cubes. I do not know the number difference between the large and small order but I took 5 home and ate about 6 – 7 there. A very generous portion and for under $ 20. I snagged a few bites of Lucy’s Short Ribs and they were flavorful and juicily tender. The romesco sauce on top was delicious and the polenta was perfection. Our server disappeared near the end of the meal and left us waiting a good 15 minutes until he returned after dropping off dessert menus. I was already full to begin with but there is always room for dessert. Unfortunately he waited too long and we were able to realize how full we actually were. Only two minor gripes… Gripe 1: I had my heart set on the Faro Salad. I did not see it on the menu but I asked our server if they still offered it hoping it was on their lunch menu still and they could just plate up a dish if any was left over. He replied with«oh madame you have not visited us in a long time then» I replied«actually this is my first time here and I saw that dish on your website and it sounded really wonderful» He then replied«oh that dish has been off the menu for at least 6 – 7 months» I in turn replied«then maybe it is time to update your menus on your website. Please pass that along to whomever is in charge» Gripe 2: I did not get an iced tea refill until our server came back to box up my entrée togo. I then had to ask for a refill at that time as well. Lucy Y was generous enough to let me participate in her groupon with her for this meal so it was pretty much a steal of a deal. But even without groupon the price for two before tip was only $ 80 and I felt that reasonable for the food ordered. Parking options are Valet, street by meter or a hidden lot up the street on 4th(first 2hrs free and $ 5 flat rate after 6pm) that Anthony N. mentioned to me once. Will return.
Anthony N.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Playa del Rey, CA
I’m mixed about dineLA Restaurant Week because several restaurants feature pre fixe menus that do not really reflect what that restaurant would serve. On the other hand, some LA restaurants put out food they may just serve on a regular night and some even feature their signature dishes like Fraiche(Santa Monica location). Fraiche’s current dineLA menu is featuring three of their more popular dishes(the Baby Beets starter, Monkfish Francaise and Steak Frites). They are even featuring them at the more price friendly lunch timeframe(without sacrificing portion size). The dineLA lunch was $ 24 per person. There are two Fraiche restaurants(the original one in Culver City and this one). Original chefs(Jason and Miho Travi) are gone, but the restaurants are still putting out pretty good food. I wonder though how they will perform once they start changing the menu more(especially with desserts because Miho Travi is a very skilled pastry chef). The Fraiches differ a lot with the décor. Fraiche Culver City is a much more contemporary atmosphere with warm colors and an upscale, sharply designed and vibrant dining room. The Santa Monica location is clean and comfortable, but it differs in that it is more rustic and sparse. Fraiche Culver City feels like a restaurant that has completely taken over a space while Fraiche Santa Monica feels like it merely just inhabits its space. There were two complimentary bread options. A warm and toasted flatbread(kind of like a naan) and a spongy bread with a good crust. There were also two dips – olive oil and a tasty olive tapenade. I started with the baby beets, which were quite different than the baby beets offered at Culver City(different presentation and different ingredients). The Santa Monica presentation is fuller(less minimalist) and with more color(via use of the multi-colored beets). They also do not use hazelnuts, which is used in Culver City. The baby beets starter was good. The baby beets were fresh and very juicy. There were nicely minced shallots as well as some good leafy mache greens. The ricotta was very good and creamy. The dish was garnished with a light mustard-like vinaigrette. I debated between the Monkfish Francaise and the Steak Frites as my entrée, but I finally decided on the monkfish. Good portion size. Three monkfish medallions breaded and pan-fried. The monkfish was topped with a sauce of white wine and lemon and garnished with parsley and diced shallots. The monkfish was served over top of sauteed spinach and some creamy yukon gold potato purée. This was a pretty tasty dish and it had similarities in flavor to chicken picatta. I’ve had this dish before and there were some things that could have been better. The batter was not as crisp as I’ve had on previous occasions. It is not really supposed to be a super crisp batter, but there should have been a little more crispness to it. Also, while the fish was moist and had a good flavor, the quality was a little bit below what I’ve had previously(may have to do with having this dish on a Monday as opposed to later in the week). I went with the Chocolate Purse and the presentation was nice. The chocolate purse was a crisp phyllo pastry shell that held a molten chocolate center. The pastry was buttery and crisp, which I liked(some of the pastry folds did not come apart as easily as I was expecting though). The molten chocolate center was rich and sweet though I felt there was too much of it. It really was kind of a chocolate sauce and(for me at least) that is something I would like more as a garnish as opposed to the centerpiece of the dessert. The chocolate purse sat on top of some caramel sauce. The chocolate purse was accompanied by some very good Nutella ice cream – great flavor with a smooth and creamy consistency. There were also some nice and crunchy hazelnuts on the plate. Service was good and attentive. The waiter was friendly as was the hostess. Fraiche Santa Monica is a good restaurant and a worthwhile spot for dineLA Restaurant Week – good portions, good value and(regardless if you like the food or not) a good reflection of what they typically serve. Even without dineLA, this restaurant seems reasonably priced considering the quality and ingredients. For lunch, they have many lunch options below $ 15. While I haven’t been to this one for dinner, they were featuring a veal chop special that sounded like it would be a good dinner main course. Fraiche Santa Monica seems to have a larger menu than the Culver City one so I may need to head back here for my next Fraiche dinner experience. For parking, there is a structure that is a little bit east and north of Fraiche(directly north from P.F. Chang’s). The structure is free for the first 2 hours. Even though this parking structure is close to 3rd Street Promenade, I typically find it easy to get a space here.
Carol L.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Los Angeles, CA
A couple of friends(Lorena and Marisela) and I came here to take advantage of the one-time BlackboardEats( ) special I signed up for — 40% off lunch! We split an appetizer, three entrees and two desserts. The bookends of our meal were the best. 1. Burrata Peperonata — The burrata cheese was nice and creamy. The prosciutto was wonderful. It came with arugula, not roasted peppers or herb bread crumbs like it states in the menu. Oh well. The presentation was also very good. 2. Royale — Their prime beef burger with gruyère cheese. Avocado and bacon is $ 2/each extra. My friend wanted carmelized onions which the kitchen obliged for $ 2 extra. The meat was over-salted. I think it might have been good otherwise. The burger came with yummy hand-cut fries. There’s no dipping sauce, so we asked for good ol’ ketchup. 3. Bucatini — It looks like a small portion, but it’s actually quite filling. The pasta was cooked al dente. It came with shrimp and asparagus in a lemon cream sauce that I found to be a bit salty. 4. Wood Fire Braised Pork — The pork pulls apart easily. The lentil, carrot and ginger sauce it sat in was lovely, but the green sauce on top I could have done without. This was the least salty of the three entrees and my favorite. 5. Chocolate Panna Cotta — I’ve never had chocolate panna cotta. This was really good. It came with shaved chocolate on top, plus some nuts and a scoop of ice cream. 6. Pear-Cranberry Cobbler — Came out hot. The pear was soft, but not mushy. The whole cranberries were nice and tart. The crumbly topping was good. The scoop of horchata ice cream was great. Overall the service was okay. A little slow maybe. Also my friend asked for some crushed garlic and balsamic to go with the olive oil for the starter bread. Sliced garlic was brought out instead. Not quite what we asked for but it still did the trick. By the way, they serve LAMILL coffee! Check out how they present the sugar. Totally cute. This location of Fraiche is near the 3rd Street Promenade, so there’s plenty of parking options in nearby structures if you want to skip valet.
Torie Y.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Playa del Rey, CA
I’m still left scratching my head, wondering where Riva went. I’m also giving a tentative 4 stars, on the premise that I just suck at ordering. I will also forgive them for the two lackluster amuse bouches, which between the cherry-sauce cheeseball and bacon brussels sprout cake with that horrible salty jelly cube did absolutely nothing to amuse my mouth. My app for the night was the beef tartare, which quite frankly saved my night. The mix of raw beef with toasted bread and the underlying creamy cheese was better than having a designer burger. Not sure if I was too full from my app to care, but the Papardalle really fell flat. The one looping noodle had zero flavor, and there was no sauce in sight to save it. The oxtail did little to salvage the dish, and the mustard greens were sad and wilty blobs of bitterness. My friend even commented«yeah I know it’s bad when [you reach] for the salt.» Maybe I just had plate envy after tasting the delicious squid ink pasta/tender calamari, lamb/pillowy gnocchi, and seared monkfish/amazing potato purée that my friends had. Sadly, I seem to have loved everyone else’s dishes much more than my own. But no worries, Fraiche, I forgive you. Since you so conveniently located yourself next to both my apartment and office, I will be back for more.