Blackship - WEHO

Any reports?
https://www.blackshipla.com/

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no - I want to check it out

Going next week will report back

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Positive report from Garrett Snyder in LA Mag:

Mixed review here

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menu looks gimmicky af

Friend of ours said it was “OK. A bit pricey. Not in a hurry to return.”

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I liked a lot of the ideas but I don’t think the execution is there yet. The restaurant space itself is quite nice and the energy is good. Service is fine, nothing amazing but not unsatisfactory either. The hamachi bolognese is a very good dish, though.

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Now I’m debating whether to cancel my rezy. FTC indecision.

I would cancel. So many good restaurants in town, don’t waste your money on a mediocre place.

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Agree. FTC exists to help our member out of these types of jams.

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Ok guys I decided to try it even against the good advice of some people on this board, as it’s in the neighborhood and I felt like I was going to try it one way or another eventually. I would say there are some promising signs but the food was very uneven.

We had the following

Arancini tkg- well fried and the rice had a great chew with a runny egg yolk in the middle accompanied by an “umami” soy that tasted very close to thinned out smoky bonito tonkatsu sauce. It was very tasty.

Additionally we split squash croquette which was equal parts potato and squashy with a tamago sauce, which kinda tasted like a hollandaise. The tamago sauce paired well with croquette and these two items got me super excited as it made me forget about my prior trepidation…

Next we were served the shingiku gnocchi in browned butter sauce topped with fried Brussel sprouts. This dish was actually very good as the gnocchi were pillowy and toothsome and that paired well with the sauce. Apparently shibgiku means chrysanthemum in Japanese, but I did not get any chrysanthemum leave bitterness or flavor from the gnocchi. Unfortunately, the brussel sprout leaves were unevenly fried which left some leaves quite chewy which detracted substantially from this dish. If every leave had remained crispy this would have been a very memorable dish.

We next were served baby artichokes in a wasabi aioli and roasted soy. I ordered this dish because the LA times writer loved it; however, I did not. I had one very well fried baby artichoke which kinda of allowed me to understand what the dish might taste like, but unfortunately the rest of the artichokes were either too hard, not peeled enough, or undercooked as the out sides were quite pointy and rough reminding me of the outside of a mature artichoke. Plus there were all these crispy things on top that That were indiscernible and wasn’t sure how it added to the dish. I feel like they were plantain chips but I’m not really sure.


Finally we had the hamachi bolognese which was not pictured. I thought the fish added an interesting element to the flavor of the bologonese but definitely nothing earth shattering. Noodles were cooked to the proper texture and well sauced but for some reason many of them were clumped together. Maybe they forgot to stir the noodles while cooking :man_shrugging:

Overall I liked 2 dishes out of four (if you count the gnocchi/bolognese as a 50% each of one dish). The waitress was clueless and not familiar with menu or wine list but very attentive so I give her a pass since she checked in on us regularly and refilled our waters and since the restaurant is relatively new.

The design of the space is very nice and the ambiance is great. They charge mandatory 20% so they can share with back of the house and I know that drives some ppl crazy but I don’t mind.

So overall again very uneven, I don’t think the menu is gimmicky as some others have mentioned but definitely could use some refinement in both thought and execution. If you don’t live around weho don’t rush to come here. If you’re in the area stop by and try a couple of things just don’t commit to a whole meal. Maybe the chef will get it dialed in as he’s young and it appears to be his first venture.

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We really enjoyed Blackship. So much more to try.

Hamachi Bolognese - casarecce, shiso, grana padano
Great sauce - reminded me of a Sicilian Spaghetti con Sardi, excellent casarecce texture

Winter Squash Croquette - tamago, fontina, tonkatsu sauce
…mmmmmm…this thing was just outstanding

Romanesco - hazelnuts, yuzu kosho salsa verde
Perfectly cooked BRIGHT GREEN romanesco (most places do not fully cook it, or overcook it) and the salsa verde was wonderful

Wa Chopped Salad - local lettuces, seasonal vegetables, tofu, hijiki, parmesan
yummy beets, watermelon radish…loved the dressing

Kurobuta Pork Chop Roast - brown butter koji polenta, apple miso mostarda, ichimi
Up there with the tomohawk at Chi Spacha but with mutch better sides - polenta, apple mostarda and a spicy sauce were just fantastic.
The side rib was so succulent.


Sides for the Chop
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Service at the bar could not have been nicer, speedier or more attentive/caring.
Excellent cocktails and bartender (Ryan).
Cannot wait to return.

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The Mayor of Bologna would like to call that hamachi ragu…

On casarece? It might as well not exist.