#65 - A.O.C.

The first restaurant I'll be writing about that opened well before I moved to LA (opened in 2002) and that's been on my radar/list since I moved into town (2009) but I didn't make it here until starting this JGold 101 challenge. So thanks, Jonathan!

I really enjoyed A.O.C. For many reasons, but one in particular was that it lacked pretension. Our server Alex started off by asking if we wanted sparkling water or "LA's finest" I really liked that he made the regular free water sound fancy and normal. Throughout the entire meal he was great about coming at just the right moment, not ever interrupting us, and being overall delightful and funny.

The inside to (covered) outside transition is really beautiful, with tables of two sitting in the open doors. Fireplace burning next to running old-style fountain, vines growing on the walls. Good vibes abound.

Oh, and the food is fantastic!  All sharing style. We did one DineLA menu which was four courses and added on a few other dishes. I would come back here for sure. Loved everything!

Three cheese plate. I let our server choose the cheeses. Top is a goat cheese which was very sweet and delicious. Middle cheese was a VERY stank sheep's milk cheese, but it grows on you and pairs really well with the dried apricot. The bottom cheese was a triple cream brie, super buttery.

Chicory focaccia. Was tasty, the only problem being that the chicory should be cut up into smaller bites so this dish would be easier to eat.

Black (squid ink) rice with squid. Much tastier than I imagined. I'm generally not a huge paella fan nor do I usually like squid ink. BUT this dish was made perfectly - not too salty - and the squid wasn't fishy. I barely noticed any flavor from the aioli though.

Seabees with beets. So many different kinds of beets, this dish was beautifully plated. The seabass had some of the best crisp to the skin and flakiness from the flesh that I have ever experienced. Fantastic flavor and probably my favorite dish of the night. I sort of wish we'd each ordered one since it was a very small fillet and we shared it.

The cauliflower was sauteed and quite oily - but I loved it!

Ahh, dessert. It was a toss-up between the chocolate torte and the butterscotch pot de creme. I now wish we'd had both (possible if each of us would have ordered from the DineLA menu instead of only one of us. But, we are trying for low sugar intake this year, so just one dessert is fine. The cake was super dense and a bit too much once I had finished off the coffee cream, hazelnut praline, and caramel. But those bites which had all of the elements were beyond pleasurable!