Something moody
Rokusho, The Oaks listings, Beverly Hills outdoor dining, A.O.C., Downtown Proper, Carlsbad twofer, end of WFH, MORE
RESTAURANTS • First Word
Tokyo sunset
The Skinny: Already a hit in the trendy Nakameguro neighborhood of Tokyo, Rokusho’s first stateside location is serving Japanese comfort food classics in an intimate space with just 34 covers. It opened earlier this month.
The Vibe: Formerly a music studio on Sunset, the space’s high ceilings with exposed metal beams and stark gray walls are welcoming in their own mildly gothic way. The main dining room is outfitted with a central swell of bar counter stools, a few high-top tables for two, and a couple of large-format areas for big groups. The overall experience is zen to the max. During a recent celebrity visit, even the flash of paparazzi lenses outside didn’t shift the vibe.
The Food: Rokusho’s menu includes plenty of the Tokyo classics along with plans for an ongoing series of residencies by Japanese chefs, but don’t expect much typical nigiri or sashimi here. Instead, find signature dishes like a “sushi cake” with tuna or wagyu as a base, piled high with additional toppings and served on triangular slices of crispy rice. Another well-known Japanese favorite — Gindari, or Black miso cod — is served with mizuna (Japanese mustard greens) and parmigiano salad, caramelized lime, and shellfish broth. This version goes for umami in contrast to the sticky-sweet version popularized by Nobu. But the real star is the Wagyu Warayaki, a buttery tenderloin cut into bite-sized pieces and served with various seasonings aligned at each of the plate’s corners. Guests choose their own adventure with salt, pepper, and wasabi.
The Verdict: Sleek and refined, Rokusho might not be a trip to Tokyo, but it’s about as close as you’ll come on Sunset. –Caitlin White
→ Rokusho Los Angeles (Hollywood) • 6634 W Sunset Blvd • Wed-Sun 5-11p • Reserve.
LA RESTAURANT LINKS: New fine dining restaurant Jaca coming to former Son of a Gun space next year from chefs Daniel Patterson and Keith Corbin • After a dozen years on Sunset Strip, Pink Taco has closed • What LA loses when we lose our dive bars • The bloody mary breaks free of brunch at last.
REAL ESTATE • First Mover
Three for-sale listings in The Oaks in Calabasas that have come to market in the last month:
→ 3801 Prado Del Trigo (The Oaks) • 5BR/7BA, 5692 SF • Ask: $7.29M • corner lot house with pool, spa, and in-ground trampoline • Days on market: 2 • Monthly HOA: $442 • Agent: Emil Hartoonian, The Agency.
→ 4133 Prado De Las Cabras (The Oaks, above) • 4BR/4BA, 3739 SF • Ask: $3.58M • contemporary home with landscaped backyard and pool • Days on market: 9 • Monthly maintenance: $4917 • Agent: Marc Garbell, Keller Williams.
→ 3950 Prado De La Mariposa (The Oaks) • 5BR/6BA, 5388 SF • Ask: $5.69M • two-story contemporary with pool and European-style courtyard • Days on market: 21 • Monthly HOA: $446 • Agent: Emil Hartoonian, The Agency.
LA WORK AND PLAY LINKS: World’s first AI art museum, Dataland, is coming to downtown • UCLA buys Cheviot Hills apartment complex for fancy grad student housing • Hanging out at Healing Force of the Universe, Pasadena’s coolest vinyl shop • ‘Founder mode:” the devil’s in the details.
WORK • Thursday Routine
A Proper office
CAROLINE STYNE • president • The Lucques Group
Neighborhood you live in: Hancock Park
It's Thursday morning. What's the scene at your workplace?
My workplace isn’t just one location. We operate a number of businesses (A.O.C., A.O.C.. Brentwood, food & beverage service at the Downtown LA Proper Hotel, Hollywood Bowl food + wine, Larder Baking Company), so I’m in my car a lot. Where I end up each day changes week to week. Sometimes, I start at the Proper to help oversee lunch at Cara Cara, our rooftop restaurant, and then hop in the car to either work at one of the A.O.C. restaurants or at the Hollywood Bowl.
What's on the agenda for today?
Pop into the Proper, check in on the chefs and management teams, and have a couple of wine tasting appointments with wine imports along with Michael Scribner, our beverage director. After overseeing lunch service at Cara Cara, I often order a Cobb salad and sit in on two management Zoom meetings for the A.O.C. restaurants. And then, I’ll drive over to the Hollywood Bowl to work with the staff there for service at all of our restaurants at the venue before showtime!
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
When I do have the chance to dine out, I love sitting at the bar at Republique. My husband and I share a baguette with Normandy butter with a glass of Champagne and a lovely salad or two. For something more moody, we head for the Tower Bar to share a steak and martini in the dimly lit dining room that I absolutely love.
How about a little leisure or culture?
After working the pre-show shift at The Bowl, I love joining my family to enjoy a concert there. The Hollywood Bowl is truly the most beautiful setting to listen to music. Also, my husband is an art dealer — I met him when I was working in the art world — so going to galleries and museums is also always on the menu.
Any weekend getaways?
We love spending time in Malibu on the weekends. It’s magical, and so close. We spend a lot of time in Point Dume picnicking on the beach with a lunch put together from Vintage Grocers.
What was your last great vacation?
A long weekend in Cabo for a wedding. We stayed at my favorite hotel, Las Ventanas. Incredible service, beautiful accommodations, perfect weather. Heavy sigh.
What store or service do you always recommend?
I always recommend home design items from Nickey Kehoe, an incredible interior design firm that also has a furnishings and homewares store called Household in Hancock Park. Dreamy dreamy, everything in that shop!
CULTURE & LEISURE • Into the jungle
Pearl Jam, Maren Morris @ Ohana Music Festival • Doheny State Beach (Dana Point) • Fri 12p • general admission, $303 per
Black Pumas • Wiltern Theater (Koreatown) • Fri 7p • loge, $162 per
JUNGLE • Hollywood Bowl (Hollywood) • Fri @ 7p • terrace 4, $32 per
WORK • RTO
Thanks, team
The best part of Amazon CEO Andy Jassy’s memo to employees last week, shared publicly by the company on AboutAmazon.com, is the way it begins: “Hey team.”
Uh oh.
Nine paragraphs about culture-strengthening and bureaucracy-trimming follow before the bomb: Team, You’re going back to the office five days a week.
Next, six grafs of understanding (you’ve got three months) and thanks in advance (because “the work won’t be trivial and it will test our collective ability to invent and simplify”), and, finally, the signoff: “Thanks, Andy.”
The WSJ says the breezily delivered change in policy (most Amazon employees had been on a three-days-in-office plan) signals the end of “the work from home free-for-all,” pointing to a recent KPMG survey, which showed a marked increase in CEOs expecting a return to five days a week in the next three years.
But just because you wish it doesn’t make it so. The current reality is that most companies are still offering some flexibility, because that’s what workers want and — whether office-straddled bosses like it or not — it generally boosts productivity and helps retain talent. (They should like it!).
The good news is that Amazon’s plan and its aftermath will make us all smarter about remote and hybrid work’s durability. But, for the love of Nick Denton, let’s hope they also make us smarter about writing sharper corporate memos. –Josh Albertson
GETAWAYS • Carlsbad
Block party
Chef Eric Bost currently oversees the kitchens of two restaurants on the same block Carlsbad. While both spots have different menus and vibes, both are worth the drive.
The first, Campfire (above), features a massive and relaxed indoor-outdoor dining room, where shelves of chopped wood double as decor and cooking supply. Outside, string lights hang from the retractable canopies. There’s always a convivial energy here, with a hint of smoke in the air. As the name implies, fire is the center of the menu. Oysters are warmed over coals and topped with smoked oxtail dashi. Octopus is roasted over fire. Coffee-rubbed brisket is smoked and served with polenta. Even the bread comes with charcoal butter.
If Campfire is dark and rustic, sister restaurant Jeune et Jolie is a more subdued, pastel-colored spot. There’s a central U-shaped, eggshell-blue bar and pink velvet banquettes. The dining room menu is a French-Californian four-course prix fixe ($115 per) with a supplemental raw bar, but there’s also an a la carte menu at the bar. On that menu is seabass with perfectly crisped skin and a sauce of saffron, vanilla, and warm spices — an extraordinary execution.
Campfire’s menu is best explored with a group, while Jeune et Jolie is tuned for couples or solo diners — even those who, if you’re anything like me, insist on eating an entire plate of mornay-filled gougeres, each topped with a sliver of black truffle.
If one night is all you can spare in Carlsbad, no matter. Sidle up to the bar at Jeune et Jolie when it opens at 5p for some light bites, and then stroll over to Campfire for dinner. –Fiona Chandra
→ Campfire (Carlsbad) • 2725 State St • Mon, Wed, Thurs 5-10p; Fri-Sat 5-11p; Sun 4-9p.
→ Jeune et Jolie (Carlsbad) • 2659 State St • Wed-Sun 5-10p.
GETAWAYS LINKS: New Delta One Lounge at LAX opening Oct 10 • Anticipated new hotel Regent Santa Monica Beach opening Oct 1 • Ritz Carlton Half Moon Bay debuts results of major renovation • Road trip waystation Pea Soup Andersen’s to reopen • Inside the rise of secret villas • The world’s best bar.
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RESTAURANTS • The Nines
Outdoor dining, Beverly Hills
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Gucci Osteria, Massimo Bottura’s Michelin-starred hideout above Gucci boutique; don’t skip “risotto camouflaged as pizza”