What’s that name about, anyway?
It’s the name of Centeno’s two dogs.
Went last night because I’d been travelling all day and it’s a block from where I’m staying. I was hesitant since they call it a tasting menu, but it’s fewer courses of mostly larger portions than the Thomas Keller thing. What I was served roughly matched the printed menu but some ingredients were different. Overall it seemed like it was starting from a Japanese point of view but incorporating other ingredients and techniques. Best wine pairings I’ve had in a long time.
I forgot to take a photo of the nori chip amuse. Great bite with some raw fish and seasoning that kind of split the difference between togarashi and pappadums. I could have eaten a lot of those.
Crudo had great yellowtail and abalone but the whole was not greater than the sum of its parts, which, again, were great. I don’t know what that fermented leaf thing is. Laugner Cremant.
Off-menu extra, “milk bread / focaccia,” great butter, delicious radishes with a little Japanese cucumber and grape pickled in kombucha?
“Vegetable course,” I can see a family resemblance to David Kinch’s “into the garden.” The dark stuff is a fermented combination of three grains (quinoa, kamut? and something) kind of reminiscent of tempeh. Another great dish. Alto Adige Riesling.
Fresh pea soup with pea sprouts and smoked? scallop. The soup was a little sweet for my taste but otherwise a great dish. Alto Adige Kerner.
Rice porrridge with uni, delicious. All soft textures but I think that’s true to the Japanese model for this dish. Haut-Marin Cuvée Marine.
I guess I forgot to photograph the quail. Another solid dish. 2011 J.L. Chave “Silène” Crozes-Hermitage.
Palate cleanser of yuzu granita, hibiscus, and bergamot. Sort of a non-sweet dessert.
Pavlova. Great. Nice Italian moscato.
Great service, friendly atmosphere, overall a fantastic value (at least compared with SF).
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That looks great and I really should give it a shot again. I had one very underwhelming meal there, but a pretty spectacular one when they rolled out their yakitori pop-up concept. The seafood porridge that night was stunningly good.
Went for dinner last night and was a bit disappointed their alc menu was nothing like what they have on their website. I went specifically for their “japanese breakfast” that they’ve been teasing on their instagram, but sadly it wasn’t on the menu. All was not lost though because they were still serving their fantastic satsuki okayu.
a5 miyazaki wagyu over koshihikari rice
Super thin slice of wagyu over seasoned rice.
satsuki okayu - santa barbara uni, hokkaido scallops, geoduck, abalone, koshihikari rice
Holy shit this was the best okayu-not-okayu I’ve ever had. It was pretty much a japanese risotto that was thick, creamy, flavorful, and cooked perfectly so you can still taste each individual grain of rice. The uni was cold and refreshing, the scallops, geoduck, and abalone were tender with just a bit of char from the griddle. This was a huge portion and filled me up enough that i could only order one more dish. Best dish of the night.
foie gras torchon, huckleberry, brioche
The foie was smooth and creamy and paired great with the toasted buttery brioche.
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Hi @PorkyBelly,
Ah! I just found this post (instead of the Weekend thread), where you have more details. 
So how was the A5 over rice? Thanks.
That Satsuki Okayu sounds and looks amazing.
The A5 over rice had good flavor but the protein to rice ratio was too low. It was a super thin cut of beef, the thickness of carpaccio, over a mound of rice. I wish there was more to eat the rice with.
The satsuki okayu on the other hand had a perfect balance of seafood and rice. i was able to have a bit of seafood with each bite of rice i ate.
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Those are great pictures.
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Quick update from this weekend at Orsa & Winston. We sat at the Chef’s counter and opted for the standard 6-course pre fixe with a supplement of the omelette. Also did the wine pairings.
My expectations were not that high given LA is not a fine-dining town and given some mixed reviews online. But overall, it was an absolutely wonderful meal. My most recent “fine dining” meals were at Eleven Madison Park and NoMad. I’m not going to go crazy and say this place is up there on the EMP level, but O&W acquits itself very nicely, especially at the price point of $85/pp.
I really could not get enough of the artichoke/scallop soup and the dry aged ribeye. Both were some of the best bites I’ve had in the last year. The only so-so dish from my perspective was the udon bucatini. Desserts are pretty strong. Wine pairing was decent, but I could also see myself buying two bottles I really liked instead.
Service was excellent. Friendly, attentive, and but they don’t take themselves too seriously.
Definitely recommended.
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Looks really good! Looks like you added the egg supplement? How was that?
Comparing to EMP is not a fair comparison. One is $85 vs $295 for the other.
I was at Atelier Crenn in December and the tasting menu was $300 inclusive of tax and tip. Was good but I am sure I will not be back any time soon for that price.
I agree that comparing to EMP isn’t fair. The most economical way to experience EMP is the five course tasting at the bar for $150 (by the time I drank, it was $250 with gratuity). My dinner at NoMad (their DTLA branch is opening in the fall) was about $150. I only bring this up to demonstrate that in comparison, they are doing some nice things at O&W for the price. More delicate and subtle flavors at O&W than NoMad (1* Michelin) but quality of cooking is on par. just my novice opinion
My gf and I split the omelette. I was perhaps expecting something a bit lighter or fluffier but it was still quite good and a worthy supplement.
Forgot to mention those little eclairs that came with our bill. Give me a box of those.
Very interesting.
Do you think that the 20+ course super omakase would be something the kitchen could pull off?
We share a lot of the same favorite dining spots so this renews my resolve to hit up O and W. Last time I went was the yakitori popup where I ordered the entire menu and enjoyed the experience thoroughly. I just fear being disappointed by the typical menu because of the stage of LA fine dining. But then again, I didn’t care for EMP when I went so maybe my bias for LA terroir would carry me through the meal…
Is Crenn comparable to anywhere else? I keep wondering if I should pull that trigger but wonder f the food tastes good or is simply interesting to look at.
When I was at O&W, some guys at the next table had a lot of extra dishes, maybe 20. They seemed to be having a great time.
She conceives her menus as autobiographical poems, as does chef Nei Chia Ji, of Jai Yun.
Well that’s very nice and actually appeals to me aesthetically but if it doesn’t translate gustitorily then it would be better to stick to actual poetry imo.
There are not typically 20 supplements on the standard menu right? That’s good to hear that others are ordering it. I think at $225 it may well be worth the plunge. First one I’ve heard anything related to anyone actually ordering it though.
They had dishes that were not on any menu I saw.
@Aesthete: Definitely we seem to hit up many of the same spots! The only food menus that we were given are posted above, so I have no idea what would be on the super omakase. Their menu changes enough that I’m sure Centino has 20 great dishes that he’s dreamt up. But on the same night? Hmmm. My feeling is that if I was intrigued enough by the standard 6 course menu, maybe I’d request something smaller. Like 10 or 15? 20 seems like a risk but it depends how much the $$ means to you. Centino seemed to have a ton of dishes at Opus back in the day and the “miss” rate there was higher than what I experienced at Orsa.
To be honest, I think I enjoyed my meal at NoMad more then EMP!
Food looks really good. Is the bread in the picture a biscuit? How was it?
This place has been sort of off the radar for many of us. Maybe it’s time I give them a visit.
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