From Carmel to La Jolla via Bel Air and Hollywood, here’s where to book now
Words by S. IRENE VIRBILA
From left: Paradisaea chef de cuisine Gabriel Bonis and culinary director Mark Welker. Baja Kumiai oysters topped with frozen passion fruit sangrito. Photos by Jtran Photos.
Fresh Perspective
Owners Eric and Zoe Kleinbub scored a terrific location for their new La Jolla restaurant, Paradisaea, in the modernist Piano Building designed by William Kesling and built in 1949. Culinary director Mark Weller, who spent over a decade cooking at New York City’s Eleven Madison Park and Nomad, is thrilled to leave braised short ribs behind and cook in a lighter coastal spirit. Happily exploring farmers markets and the renowned Chino Farm in Rancho Santa Fe, he notes, “It’s a little melting pot here, with all the ingredients you can find for different cuisines. Between all the stone fruit, tomatoes and different greens, I’m excited to just dive in and cook.” His menu is big. Oysters come with a frozen passion fruit sangrito, and tagliatelle is prepared with San Diego uni, Dungeness crab and sun gold tomatoes. He pairs Chino corn (the sweetest he’s ever tasted) with beef tenderloin, while white sea bass swims in a Szechuan peppercorn broth. Dessert? Mud pie made with his own coffee ice cream, rolled in cookie crumbs and served with a macadamia Bavarian cream. Good luck, though, remembering how to spell the restaurant’s name. 5680 La Jolla Blvd., La Jolla; paradisaea.com.
Chez Noir’s chef Jonny Black in his element. Photo by Joseph Weaver.
Coast to Coast
Chef Jonny Black has put in time in the high-pressure kitchens of Per Se, Atelier Crenn and Quince. Now, he and his wife, Monique, are debuting Chez Noir, their dream of an intimate, hyper-local restaurant in Carmel-by-the-Sea. “The food is inspired by the Big Sur coastline, the coasts of Brittany and the Spanish Basque Country with a little of Paris and New York mixed in,” explains Black. The kitchen does almost everything in-house, including charcuterie, pasta and baking—even making vermouth and caviar cured in salt from Big Sur. Dishes include a Tortilla Española topped with sea urchin and lime crema, and Txuleta, Basque-style grilled beef with peppers, onions and potato. Yet, with seasonality and local seafood at the forefront, the menu will always change. 5th Ave. between Dolores and San Carlos St., Carmel-by-the-Sea; cheznoircarmel.com.
Prestige caviar, Vietnamese bone broth bisque and EVOO at Habitué. Photo by Oskar Bakke.
Bel-Air Banquets
It’s big deal when Swedish chef Marcus Jernmark, who presided over the kitchen of the three-star Frantzén in Stockholm, decides Los Angeles is the place and convinces his best friend, the also much lauded chef Robert Sandberg, to join him in opening their dream restaurant. Over the past few months, Habitué has operated in test mode, offering private dinners in Bel-Air. Now the restaurant is open to the public by reservation and pre-payment only, for parties no larger than 8. At $1,500 a head, the menu is strictly prix fixe and ever evolving as the highly pedigreed chefs source premier seasonal ingredients and bring it all home to their Bel-Air kitchen to cook—no holds barred. Every Monday, tables are released for dates four weeks in advance; habitue.us.
From left: A cozy spot to enjoy a cocktail at Rosy Café. The Hollywood Roosevelt watering hole specializes in unique handcrafted cocktails.
Blooming Marvelous
Desperate for a brief getaway? Head for the storied Hollywood Roosevelt hotel and its poolside Rosy Café. Set in a froth of palms and greenery, with bistro chairs and tables beneath fringed yellow-and-white umbrellas, the cheerful outdoor dining spot serves breakfast all day, the better to indulge a hankering for huevos rancheros, gluten-free almond flour pancakes or duck confit and sweet potato hash. Chef Rigoverto “Rigo” Salas headed the kitchen at Santa Monica’s Tar & Roses and Venice’s Superba Food & Bread before joining Rosy Café. In addition to breakfast, the day-long menu includes gulf shrimp ceviche, chopped dino kale and classic steak frites with salsa verde—not to mention rum-soaked baba cake. Cocktails can be conjured from the Tropicana Bar. Loathe to leave? Reserve a day pass for the David Hockney-painted Tropicana Pool via resortpass.com. 7000 Hollywood Blvd., L.A.; 323-856-1970; thehollywoodroosevelt.com.
Feature image: Rosy Café is an alfresco casual eatery located behind The Hollywood Roosevelt’s famous David Hockney-painted Tropicana pool.
Parts of this story originally appeared in the Fashionable Living 2022 and Mens Edition 2022 issues of C Magazine.
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