Lucques

User Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Went last night for my birthday dinner. Suzanne Goin must not have been there-- i can't believe that she would have allowed the food to come to the table tasting like that. The red pepper soup, advertised on the menu as sweet, was so spicy that I had to ask for some extra creme fraiche to calm it down, and now, 5 hours later, the tip of my tongue is still scorched. Someone needed to taste it and start over.

My mother-in-laws pork belly was overcooked, excessively fatty, and lacking in flavor-- the slices of cheese, maybe a dried ricotta, were a weird addition, and tasteless.

My wife's herbal tea came in a charming pot, but tasted of the previous brewings.

Her salmon was all right, as was the fresh sardine appetizer I had, but the overall impression, and the lingering aftertaste, literally, was unpleasant.

I guess Suzanne's phoning it in these days. I teach cooking here in LA, and have always recommended Lucques and her fine cookbook, but I guess those days are over.

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User Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Amazing: Nothing better than the atmosphere and food at Lucques. Both are relaxed, but extraordinary. As suzanne's name appears on everything and anything as one of the top chefs in the country, her food follows her rising star.

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User Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

go for the sunday supper!: i'd been reading about lucques forever and ever, and a.o.c., run by the same restauranteurs, is one of my favorite restaurants in l.a. but i'd been checking the menu for the sunday supper week after week, and for some reason, the choices just didn't call to me. they sounded sort of...plain. (the sunday supper is a special prix-fixe menu they do for $35 every week--a salad, a dessert, and your choice between two entrees).

finally i decided a leap of faith was in order, and my bf and i went last night (the choices were sea bass and oxtail). the interior was warm and welcoming...romantic in a low-key way. they brought amazing roasted almonds and green olives to the table, along with wonderful bread and creamy butter. you dip the almonds into a dish of crunchy sea salt before eating them.

the salad was wonderful--perfectly dressed and interestingly composed. the entrees were also excellent. we both liked the bass slightly better, but only slightly. the oxtail was incredibly tender and served with a rich, savory sauce. both dishes were deceptively simple, yet interesting enough to keep you wanting more (luckily the portion sizes were manageable). i liked the dessert, which was a subtly sweet pumpkin cake with fresh whipped cream, but wasn't overwhelmed by it. still the overall meal was incredibly enjoyable and one of the best dining values i've had in a long time.

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