no reports here yet…
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Did this same chef open another Rivera (or a sister restaurant) mid-city-ish around the same time? My vague memory is that this was the case and that I actually had a b-day dinner at the sister restaurant where the server hated my partner’s wine selection (by the glass) that she actually brought him another wine to try gratis (which was indeed a better selection…).
It was high-end Central American cuisine?
If memory serves me correctly, it was very good.
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Long history in LA
Rivera, Bikini, Abique, Playa
Rivera was downtown - you are prob thinking of Playa mid-city, which was his, but not for all that ling IIRC, before the Mantzke’s took it over.
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Coincidentally, I was about to write one up. ZoZo is a fun space in the Maison Midi store, with delicious and interesting food (described vaguely as “Cuisine of the Sun”). Started off with the escargot with trumpet mushrooms and a piece of jamón ibérico, served with a housemate tortilla–the flavor combo was good but the portion small for $26. Following that was the lamb, served with a chayote chutney, heirloom polenta, a pot of ratatouille, snap peas, and root vegetables–really tasty and (with all the vegetables) filling. Still, dessert beckoned, the dessert called Ritual (Zapotec mole ice cream, hierbas dulces, chiles suaves, served over assorted exotic fruits) was a great way to end the meal, though the tarte tatin looked good as well. Service was mixed–managers and somm were great, but the server was a bit green and did not do well explaining the dishes or following up during the meal. Wonderful to have John Sedlar back as I have enjoyed his cooking since the days of St. Estephe in Manhattan Beach some 40 years ago.
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great to hear! thx
My issue with Sedler are the tiny portions, as you mentioned. He’s a great chef, but $20, 4 bite tamales (Rivera) are a deal breaker. And that was 10 yrs ago. The Rivera cocktail program was fabulous though.
THAT was fun, as I recall…
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To be fair they were more like $11-12, yes 4 bite tamal but they were tasty. I know because I use to make them when I worked there. Definitely considered expensive back in 2010. Maybe it would be $20 after inflation today.
The cocktail program was the first one that Julian Cox made his name on and the rest was history.
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Their web site popped up an offer of $75 off $225 if you sign up for their mailing list.
TBH, 4 bites for a $20 for a fancy, high-end tamal doesn’t seem that bad, nowadays…
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