December 16, 2013
Downtown News 17
NEW YEAR’S EVE HANDBOOK
Downtown Restaurants Gear Up for the Final Mea l of 2013 By Jon Regardie ew Year’s Eve is approaching, and before you decide where to go to celebrate the end of one year and the dawning of another, you have to get some food in your belly. Actually, that’s only partly true: Sometimes, the two are one in the same, and it’s worth breaking in the next annum over a long meal with family and friends. Fortunately, Downtown Los Angeles has a number of restaurants that can help you say goodbye to 2013. Below is a very small list of the places where you can get that last supper of this year, or your first bite in the next one.
N
Three Choices: Patina, the flagship restaurant of Joachim Splichal’s dining empire, is sort of like a Ginsu knife on Dec. 31: You hear what they have, but wait, there’s more! The restaurant in Walt Disney Concert Hall has three “gala” seatings, starting with a 4:30 p.m. meal that features a three-course option ($80) and a fourcourse choice ($100). The 7:30 p.m. dinner has an amazing seven courses ($160), which ensures you’ll be hella full come the start of 2014 (yes, we wrote “hella full”). Things ease back a bit with a late à la carte menu seating at 10:30 p.m. Among the dazzling options are chestnut agnolotti, short ribs, poached Maine lobster and a chocolate clementine battera.
At 141 S. Grand Ave., (213) 972-3331 or patinarestaurant.com. It’s Hard to Say Goodbye: It’s not too often that you have a literal last supper, but that’s the case on Dec. 31 at the Spice Table. The adored restaurant from chef/owner Bryant Ng is being displaced by construction on the Downtown Regional Connector, and on Dec. 31, Ng is hosting an all-you-can-eat-and-drink blowout. Ng has engineered a loyal following over the past three years, and expect his fans to show up for a final taste of his inventive dishes with a Southeast Asian spin. Expect to sample shared-plate favorites such as the raw yellowtail, the assortment of satays, the beef rendang, the laksa (a noodle dish) and much more. Dinner runs from 8 p.m.-12:30 a.m. and is $75 a head, and when they’re out of something, they’re really out of it. At 114 S. Central Ave., (213) 620-1840 or thespicetable.com. Ooh la la, dinner!: The Arts District is all the rage these days. So it’s no surprise that the neighborhood is a destination on Dec. 31. Among the choices is Church & State, the French restaurant on the ground floor of the Biscuit Company Lofts. It has two New Year’s Eve dinner seatings: A 6-8:15 p.m. meal delivers four courses ($75), with choices including wild mushroom soup and beef tenderloin (an optional wine pairing is $38). The
8:30 p.m. meal provides six courses ($95), and in addition to the previous dishes, options include a braised pork belly and, for dessert, a chilled poached pear. At the latter seating the wine pairing runs $48. At 1850 Industrial St., (213) 405-1434 or churchandstatebistro.com. The Choice Is His: The Old Bank District restaurant Orsa & Winston is part of a burgeoning “omakase” trend, in which you make a reservation and the esteemed chef decides what you’ll consume. In this case, the diners are the culinary guinea pigs of Josef Centeno, who previously opened Bäco Mercat and Bar Ama. The recently debuted Orsa & Winston marks Centeno’s dive into fine dining, and on New Year’s Eve he’ll have what the reservations site Opentable.com describes as a “6-course tasting menu with optional bubbles pairing.” What will you eat? The only way to find out is to make a reservation. At 122 W. Fourth St., (213) 687-0300 or orsaandwinston.com. Tabla Rosa: The L.A. Live restaurant Rosa Mexicano is saying adios to 2013 with a special holiday menu. In addition to the regular offerings, there is a two-course prix-fixe menu. The entrée is a choice of braised pork shank or roasted turkey, and dinner closes with a sticky pumpkin cake. There are also plenty of specialty cocktails. At 800 W. Olympic Blvd., (213) 746-0001 or rosamexicano.com. Say It With Sake: Another Dec. 31 option at L.A. Live is Katsuya, the striking restaurant featuring the creations of chef Katsuya Uechi. They’ll be doing New Year’s Eve with an assortment of dishes the small chain has become
photo courtesy of Nick & Stef’s Steakhouse
The Last Supper
Nick & Stef’s Steakhouse has a three-course prix-fixe dinner on New Year’s Eve.
known for, among them the yellowtail sashimi and the wagyu tenderloin. There is also a large sushi and robata selection, along with plenty of sake choices and specialty cocktails. At 800 W. Olympic Blvd., (213) 747-9797 or katsuyarestaurant.com. Calling All Carnivores: Nick & Stef’s Steakhouse is closing out 2013 with, what else, some red meat. The Bunker Hill establishment has a three-course menu ($79) built around a choice of filet mignon or a dry-aged New York strip. Start with diver scallops or blackened hamachi and finish dinner off with either citrus carpaccio or chocolate banana parfait. For an additional $35, you can get a side of caviar and a glass of champagne. At 330 S. Hope St., (213) 680-0330 or patinagroup.com. regardie@downtownnews.com
There’s a new pony in town! Meet Shamrock, the 2013 Tournament of Roses pony For a limited time, there are two ways to take home a special Tournament of Roses edition of your very own, or give one to a friend. Simply open a qualifying Wells Fargo checking account1, or refer a friend to open one2. Like the ponies that inspired Shamrock, our checking accounts deliver the convenience and services to help you better manage your money throughout the year. Talk with us to learn more. 1
2
To qualify for the plush pony, customer must be a new Wells Fargo consumer or business checking customer, open and fund a new eligible Wells Fargo Checking Package checking account, Wells Fargo Everyday Checking account (where available), or Wells Fargo Business Services® Package checking account with a $50 minimum opening deposit. All Wells Fargo Checking Packages®, the Wells Fargo Everyday Checking account, and Wells Fargo Business Services Packages are eligible for this offer. See banker for account details. Offer valid from 11/18/2013 through 12/31/2013 only, or while supplies last, and cannot be combined with any other offer. Limit one plush pony per customer. Customer will receive the plush pony at the time of opening and funding the new Wells Fargo Checking Package® checking account, Wells Fargo Everyday Checking account, or Wells Fargo Business Services® Package checking account. Offer is only available at participating Wells Fargo banking locations. Wells Fargo team members are not eligible for this offer. To qualify for the plush pony, a new Wells Fargo consumer or business checking customer must present a referral card (photocopies cannot be accepted) and open a new eligible Wells Fargo Checking Package checking account, Wells Fargo Everyday Checking account (where available), or Wells Fargo Business Services Package checking account with a $50 minimum opening deposit. All Wells Fargo Checking Packages, the Wells Fargo Everyday Checking account, and Wells Fargo Business Services Packages are eligible for this offer. See banker for checking package details. Offer valid from 11/18/2013 through 12/31/2013 only, or while supplies last, and cannot be combined with any other offer. Limit one plush pony per customer. Referring customer must be an existing Wells Fargo consumer or business checking customer. If all eligibility requirements are met, new customer will receive a plush pony at the time of opening and funding the new Wells Fargo Checking Package checking account, Wells Fargo Everyday Checking account, or Wells Fargo Business Services Package checking account, and the referring customer will be contacted within 30 days to make arrangements to receive a plush pony. All accounts must be funded during promotional period. Offer is only available at participating Wells Fargo banking locations. Wells Fargo team members are not eligible for this offer. © 2013 Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. All rights reserved. Member FDIC. Materials expire on 12/31/2013. ECG1016961