I am taking my mother to a concert for her birthday this Friday night. I have a reservation at Patina. I have never been to the restaurant in its current location. Last time I visited Patina, I it was located where Providence now resides. The menu looks good. But I realize that I haven’t heard much about the place at all recently: good, bad, or indifferent. I sort of want to try Otium, but the reviews from the field seem to be polarized. I would not mind some feedback from the board. Thank you.
Patina! Alright mostly because I am curious to see a current review of the place, lol
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We went to Otium recently, and really wanted to love it; love the concept and decor, and the wines we had were good. However, thought the food was a little uneven given the prices they’re charging. Not bad, just would have liked it to be more “perfect”… To me, some things were a little under-done. Seasoning was Ok, but nothing I had was really transcendent.
Music was good, but maybe a little on the loud side.
Looking forward to going back in 5-6 months to see if things have improved.
Have never tried Patina.
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LOL – Fair enough!
Patina.
Remains one of my favorite restaurants in the city.
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I have to agree with Patina. It’s my “go to” pre-concert place and I’m never disappointed. Excellent food. Top notch service. The room is lovely. And being able to valet park…eat, go to the concert and have your car waiting post concert…is a great options.
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I’d vote for Patina as well. Did not like my visit to Otium; felt it was overly expensive and with lots of misses / bad dishes with only a couple standouts.
The most recent tasting menu I had at Patina was very good (not Providence’s level, but good), and between the two I’d go back to Patina.
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Patina, because cheap(er) Asian labor matters.
I like Otium for the bar + drinking. Unless your mom is into bars + drinking…
Patina is good but you’re committed to a 75 prix fixe menu. Supplements will take you over. Wine list is superb. We just had dinner there last Friday.
Otium I’m pretty meh on except for that clam, bacon, carbonara pasta. Order wrong and it’ll easily cost north of $75 pp also.
Otium is the cooler hipper space.
Patina is literally 50-75% empty.
i would skip both and go to redbird
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+1
I had one perfectly decent dinner at Redbird, but not itching to go back anytime soon. I felt the same way about my one meal at Grace. Chef Fraser’s food does not sing to me the way it does to so many others.
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or Nick + Stefs. Pre-order the Whole Roasted Suckling Pig.
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Already booked a table for 6 in March where I fully plan on doing just that. Thanks for the heads up.
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One more vote for Patina.
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I read J. Gold’s review in today’s LAT. The food he described was very unappealing. Definitely won’t be going to Otium after the symphony in a couple of weeks.
Many thanks to the consensus of this thread. Had a really great time at Patina last night. Not sure why the photo uploads are out of order, but I bet most will be able to figure it out. Was the food game changing? No, but it was really, really good. The savory dishes I ordered for myself (escargot porridge and wagyu hangar steak) were cooked perfectly. I was really impressed by my desert (lemon, chamomile, and honey) in terms of flavor and technique. I tasted the dishes my mom ordered (lobster chitarra and barraumundi) and they were done right as well. The only bone of contention might have been my mom’s huckleberry dessert, which was really cloyingly sweet. The amuses and mignardises were spot on and did exactly what they were intended to do. I’m just a little sad that I haven’t come sooner.
Maybe even more impressive was the service. With various articles and posts going around about the end of fine dining and the weakening of the Michelin system, it’s nice to know that this level of service still exists in Los Angeles. Very, very attentive yet never overbearing. Warm, but always professional. And the GM handed my mom a box of Patina chocolates as he opened the door for her and wished her a happy birthday. Followed up by a concert next door, it is probably one of the most “civilized” evenings I have ever had here in my home town.
Thanks again for the recommendation. It really made for a most enjoyable night.
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Glad you enjoyed Patina.
I hope that pic of the huckleberry dessert was, um, not plated that way.
#JacksonPollock
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It was. It was the only sort of “PoMo” thing that was served. I didn’t mind the plating so much, although that style works way better with Craig Thornton. It was way too sweet though.
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I was totally thinking what ipse was thinking, and then I thought to myself, “Well, maybe it was MEANT to look very avant garde, or something…?”
Glad to hear it (well, maybe not the dessert) was delicious and that the evening was great. The food looks wonderful.
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