Iregeo

Hi. DH and I have friends in town from the east coast, who want to have a "real" L.A. dining experience tonight. Ha! Like anything in L.A. is "real!" Anyway, they want to see the L.A. scene, maybe a "star" or two, beautiful people, trendy, that sort of thing.

For a variety of reasons, we have eliminated both Spago and The Ivy. We have narrowed it to Cecconi and Patina.

Which of these would you choose, and why? Any other recommendations based on positive experience?

Thanks.

garyt22

How about The Lobster near Santa Monica Pier or One Pico at Shutters on the Beach... eating near the Pier allows for a fun walk afterwards along the beach... perfect for east coast visitors....

Iregeo

That's a good idea, gary, but they are spending the day today at the beach in Malibu. I think they want to go into L.A. tonight.

I've never been to Patina (though DH says I have) or Cecconi. Have you? Do you recommend one over the other?

SeaUrchin

Hmmm, define "real".

Beverly Hills, Melrose, 3rd street areas can be real I suppose but then so can other areas. How real is real? That is the question.

garyt22

You probably ate already, but I forgot to mention the secret button you have to push... when you push it, it alerts all the "stars" that you need them to come out so your visitors can see them... they come arunnin'... kinda like that Batman light thing in the sky... good luck...

socialworker

Where did you end up going?

We are in LA right now and went w/DS and DDIL to a place that defies belief! (So not sure where it would fit in your "real" category! ) The food was amazing and the experience was so far beyond amazing, I am still in a state of awe! If there were any celebs there, the place was so completely mesmerizing that one would not have noticed them!

www.sbe.com/sls/bazaar

PS to Sea Urchin---if you have not tried this place, it is worth a try!

SeaUrchin

I haven't been, thanks for the suggestion. It does look incredible and an experience for sure!

Iregeo

Hi. Well, we ended up at Cecconi, in the old, original Morton's space at Melrose and Robertson. Remember, the goal was to meet our east coast friends desire to see glitzy L.A. dining, stars, beautiful people, etc. I was completely and totally kidding when I said "real" L.A., as I think L.A. is as far from real as it gets.

The place was jam packed. The space is pretty, but the tables are too close and cramped. There is also patio dining, which looked pleasant but also cramped.

The clientele sure is beautiful...extremely well heeled 20 somethings with micro minis and legs from here to there. Tons of eye candy, especially for the men. In our late 40's, We were the oldest in the place, by far.

There are tables and banquette style booths. Ours was really uncomfortable, as there was no way to sit far enough back to have the support of the banquette and still reach the table. Maybe the 20 somethings don't need that support, but I sure do.

The service was very good. The food was good, not great, and expensive. I had a chilled tomato and cucumber soup, which I didn't care for. My main course was an ossobucco, with an interesting and tasty gremolata. Dessert was a-m-a-z-i-n-g...a mousse of chocolate and one other flavor (layered) with little toffee bits. Wow.

Dinner for 4, inluding 1 cocktail and 2 glasses of wine, ran about $350, excluding tip.

Will I go back? Nope. I'm so over this type of dining experience.

mlgb

My definition of real is Jitlada Thai, Mochica Peruvian, or Enriques in Long Beach. But then I'm interested in the food, not the scene.

Iregeo

mlgb, so am I. From my posts above, you can see that scene, not food, was the primary concern of this particular dinner.

sheri_lp

Which restaurants does TMZ camp out at?

Iregeo

I'm happy to say I haven't a clue!

Iregeo

I know that The Ivy is still supposed to be a paparazzi circus, as is Mr. Chow. Their kids are flying in today and are eager to go to Urth Cafe, which I guess is where Entourage is filmed. I wouldn't know...I've never seen it.

socialworker

Urth Caffe has 3 locations, Melrose in West Hollywood, Main St in Santa Monica and Beverly Hills, altho the street name of the BH location escapes me at this moment. It is a wonderful place that has organic coffee and teas, great pastries, sandwiches and salads and pays all of its employees living wages.

The Melrose location is a good celeb-spotting locale, but that is not the reason it is so popular. It deserves its popularity for its quality.

We live in Boston, but are in LA right now and have a wonderful bag of Urth coffee w/us that we will take back to MA tomorrow.

If Entourage is filmed there, it is not a case of Entourage making Urth popular, but rather Entourage choosing to use Urth b/c Urth is so popular!

Iregeo

socialworker, we drove by the Melrose location on Friday night. They were packed! I've never been.

Hope you enjoyed your time here, and travel home safely.