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Rojo y Blanca at the Bazaar by José Andrés
SLS Hotel at Beverly Hills
465 South La Cienega Boulevard
Los Angeles, California 90048
(310) 247-0400
www.thebazaar.com

Ordered Dishes:
Too many tapas to list! See below!

Review:

Since SLS opened several months ago, I had been wanting to see what the big deal was about. Getting a reservation was difficult – not Gary Iammeko difficult – but still somewhat of a challenge. We settled on a random Tuesday night several weeks down the line. It should be noted that we were more interested in experiencing the space than tasting the food. Both, however, were pretty decent.

We ended up dining in the Blanca side of the restaurant, which was immediately to the left of the hotel’s public entrance. The Blanca side is attractive in a Dali-meets-modern type of way. The Rojo side is more Voodoo Lounge-meets-Geisha House. I preferred the (relative) quiet spaciousness of Blanca.

We ordered a couple drinks to start the night off.

Bellini – Fresh Peach Juice, Japanese Peach, Sparkling Wine; Cotton Candy Mojito:

Good cocktails! We would definitely come back here again for a drink! The mojito had a cute presentation. It arrived as a fluff of cotton candy in a martini glass; Then, our waiter poured a slow trickle of ice cold mojito on top. Yum.

For the sake of clarity, we will break down our review of the food based roughly on when certain dishes should have arrived. In reality, dishes were brought to us in no particular order, with drinks arriving after a few appetizers already had.

Cotton Candy Foie Gras:

Our waiter suggested this to us, and we accepted. Then, a lady with a cotton candy cart came by asking us if she could make us one. She also tried to sell us some other appetizers – cream cheese caviar what-have-you. For the rest of the night, she proceeded to go from table to table in the small dining room, selling the same stuff to everyone. It was kinda awkward to hear the sales pitch over and over. Especially awkward was her ginormous cart, which did not fit in between the dining room chairs at all.

The Cotton Candy Foie Gras was OK. It was fun to eat cotton candy, but, man… what a waste of foie gras. Cold and chunky and encased in sugar.

“Philly Cheesesteak” – Air Bread, Cheese, Kobe Beef; “Hilly Cheesesteak” – Air Bread, Cheese, Mushrooms:

The Kobe beef was really good! The bread was basically a hollowed-out breadstick, kinda hard and not very tasty. The cheese was liquid like Velveeta so when the breadstick broke, it leaked. Wouldn’t order it again. It wasn’t a food that was well-thought through.

Jamon Serrano – Olive Oil, Tomato Bread; Three Cheese Plate – Valdeon (Cow & Goat), Murcia al vino (Goat), La Serena (Sheep), Spanish Crispy Bread, Quince, Marconas:

The ham was very good: just the right amount of salt and fat, very tender, too. The tomato bread was fine, but dripping in messy olive oil. Usually, when I order charcuterie, it comes with a small amount of olive oil drizzled on top of the meat. This was not very easy to handle.

Neither of us liked any of the cheeses; they were really bitter (even for my taste) and bland (even for Iamme’s taste). And those breadsticks again! *Iamme’s comment – I didn’t expect to see all that oil on the cheese plate. It made the cheese plate unappetizing for me.*

Foie Gras Sliders – Foie Gras, Brioche:

Iamme ordered this one. All I remember is thinking “Man, this place should stay away from foie gras. Just because it is foie gras, doesn’t mean it automatically tastes good.” The outside of the buns were also slathered in butter or grease. Totally unnecessary.

Artichokes and Citrus Salad – Orange Blossom Dressing and Pomegranate:

Beef Hanger Steak with Piquillo Pepper Confit:

Wild Mushroom Rice with Idiazabal Cheese:

The salad was fine, a nice removal from all the rich food. The hanger steak was fine and cooked to our liking. The rice basically tasted like risotto. It was very rich and ate like a casserole. The grains of rice weren’t under-cooked, a nice surprise from what we’re used to.

Boneless Chicken Wings with Green Olive Puree:

Galician Lobster Medallions with Olive Oil Crushed Potatoes and Paprika:

The chicken wings were super salty, with added salty olive puree on top (I thought olives were supposed to be kinda bitter??). The lobster meat was water-logged. White potatoes and broth didn’t add to the dish.

Finally, we had dessert!!!

Greek Yogurt Panna Cotta – Apricots and Muscat Gelatin:

Nitro Coconut Floating Island – Passion Fruit and Vanilla:

The panna cotta should have been called a pudding. It was pretty sour, and without the firm creaminess you expect from panna cotta. I didn’t like the dried apricots. The Nitro Coconut Floating Island was OK.

Overall, The Bazaar and SLS are about looks. There are a lot of bright lights and fancy knick-knacks to look at, but the planning of the space is not that smart. The different chairs and couches were pretty, but more conducive to napping and not sitting. Some of the love seats would actually give you back pain if you tried to sit and eat! The toilet stalls are completely mirrored, so you can watch yourself… if that’s your thing. At least the women have individual stalls! The mens urinal is communal AND completely mirrored all the way around (so be prepared to make some friends!). The bathroom sinks take a second to figure out. They are interesting looking, but are essentially just flat surfaces, so that your water will splash all over the place.

For me, the Bazaar doesn’t work. Mashing all these things into one giant room takes away from the ambiance of each space. The food, I think, reflects this thoughtlessness. Novelty for novelty’s sake, without focus on taste and ease of consumption. The meal itself came out to be about $171, not counting $15 dollars for valet (standard fee plus tip). SLS is kinda interesting to look at, but not very. If you are a scenester, this has replaced W and the Standard as the new place to be in LA. I would come back, but only for cocktails, sangria, and Spanish hams and sausage.

Rating:
6.5 out of 10 Spoonfuls

Value:
$$$ (pricey!)