I decided to take my mom out to Odys & Penelope for a bit of a celebration regarding some good medical news.
The meal has only affirmed for me that it remains one of the greatest restaurants in Los Angeles. The Hatfield’s really captured pretty much everything great about LA dining at the place. I am always pleasantly surprised at how attentive and excellent the service is given the casual setting. Plates are cleared for coursings, food is brought out at appropriate intervals, water is never low, and yet never once do you feel pestered, only completely taken care of; it’s something the vast majority of such casual spots miss in LA. Additionally, there is no tipping, and no “additional tip line” nonsense, which, for me, relieves a tremendous amount of anxiety. The servers could phone it in and still get paid, but they don’t. They never push you or try to upsell you on anything. I had many questions about various wines, and was leaning towards some expensive bottles, but ultimately ended up with a very pleasant glass of reasonably priced Bourdeaux instead. There are many places that would have tried hard to push me to buy the expensive bottles when it wasn’t the best choice. It’s all too rare that I genuinely feel cared for by staff, and they seem to have that pretty much down pat at Odys + Penelope. Of particular note to other diners is that some of their chairs are a bit hard, however, they will bring you a lovely pillow to sit on if you request it. This particular request turned a slightly sour note into a luxuriously joyful one at the beginning of our meal.
Anyhow, I rarely judge places based off of service, but it’s so good I had to note it. The servers could spit on me while I was dining and I would still return because of their food. I wanted vegetables, and meat more than their wonderful fried items tonight, and it’s a great place to get them, since they almost invert the churrascaria formula by making their vegetables the real stars, despite their humble placement on the menu.
A Lolla Rosa salad was glorious in its asphotic mammoth appearance. The mole roasted carrots, the incredibly fresh lolla rosa, savory goat cheese wisps, crunchy nuts, cool creamy avocado, and tangy grapefruit and pickled onions all came together in one of the most delicately bold salads I have ever had the pleasure of eating. Sweet, savory, bitter, vegetal, nutty, fermented, bitter, spicy, refreshing, crunchy, creamy… a mesmerizing symphony of tastes and textures unleashed upon the palate.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BBHFqYzk0C5/?taken-by=compulsiveaesthete
Moving onto larger courses, the Pork Belly Bolognese Pappardelle was absolutely tremendous. for $19, the size must be at least 2x what Bestia or Republique give out in terms of portion sizes, yet the pliant, al dente noodles were immaculately coated with the savory bolognese, and perfect. I usually do not like pappardelle because it is too thin, and the sauce never seems to fully immerse itself in the pasta, plus there is no chew factor. Here, the pappardelle is thick, and has the blissful bite that one craves from great fresh pasta done right. This may be the best value pasta dish in all of LA.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BBHGmx3k0EP/?taken-by=compulsiveaesthete
Skirt Steak was recommended medium, which was surprising at first but worked out very well. There were roasted carrots, along with a huge amount of exceptionally smooth carrot ginger puree. The ginger added just the right kick to the sweetness of the carrot, especially in conjunction with the pickled onions and cilantro. The steak itself had a lovely beef tartness, and a ridiculously intense crust to it. The prep remained very faithful to churrascuria skirt, somewhat chewy, but in the best possible way. It felt incredibly rustic somehow, despite the bright, colorful plating.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BBHGyBuk0Ed/?taken-by=compulsiveaesthete
The magical Cauliflower and Millet with Walnut Pesto is famous by now, and it is a prodigious little dish. It’s almost impossible to state what this is like; I’ve never had cauliflower, nor millet, nor pesto quite like any of these anywhere else. It’s like the porridge at Taco Maria had a wild night with the Mandilli di Setta at the Factory Kitchen, and somehow produced the most beautiful baby in the world.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BBHF-AMk0DS/?taken-by=compulsiveaesthete
Of course, one MUST save room for dessert here. I don’t see any room for not declaring them the best dessert restaurant in LA, I often bring people just for desserts here haha. Tonight we hewed light. With the new creeme brulee tartlette, which humbly said it came with lemon sorbet. The tartlette itself had the most delicately creamy, eggy creme atop a bit of Karen Hatfield’s impossibly buttery, savory crusts, and the lemon sorbet conveyed the pure essence of lemon tenderly over it, but there was also a candied slice of meyer lemon, and a slew of diced meyer lemon and kumquats adding bulbous textures. It was one of the most simple, yet complex desserts I have come across, displaying citrus in 4 different ways juxtaposed against a simple creme and crust backdrop. Each bite allowed the palate to discover a new perspective on the classic combination of citrus and cream; a tart explosion from kumquat here, a toasted saccharine from the candied slice there, a burst of orange juice suddenly, a lilting of delicate lemon sorbet on the end… subtle, yet showstopping.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BBHHAWvE0Eo/?taken-by=compulsiveaesthete
And finally, my favorite dessert ever, the simple Cornmeal Ricotta Fritters. The most delicate, moist, yet crisp fritters I have ever tasted accompanied by the best, whipped creme fraiche and salted honey butter sauce I have ever tasted. The quality of the honey butter sauce reminds me of the butter sauce served alongside extremely aged persimmons at Saison. How utterly ridiculous to find such beauty in a little California churrascaria, and yet how incredilby splendid! To experience the immense sweet, salty, savory butter sauce, the viscous, cool cream that coats your delicate, puffy, crisped fritters is to leave one’s body and enter the astral plane of heaven, if only for a moment.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BBHHM93E0E1/?taken-by=compulsiveaesthete
By now my effusive tone has conveyed my final thoughts hopefully: everything at Odys & Penelope is glorious. It’s the kind of place that makes you envious of the people who live in the neighborhood where it is located. Ah…I feel privileged that the staff remembers me when I come in. Dining here is dining at the best of Los Angeles to me, a truly remarkable gem.
(Cost: All told, with a glass of Bordeaux and a rootbeer flavored Ramazotti this meal was $145.99 for 2. Minus the drinks I think it would’ve been about $120, or $60/person. For the atmosphere, service, and quality of food, you feel like you are underpaying.)
