Went to reservoir last night, Gloria Felix's (ex-Hell's Kitchen) tiny neighborhood bistro along Silver Lake Blvd for a generally good meal with Christine, Josh, and Allison. The pizza was passable and small (though the quince - fresh tomato sauce pairing was unique) and the blood orange roasted beet salad was pretty tiny as well.
The entrees were more solid: Josh had the black cod with crispy skin atop farro. I had the grilled skirt steak, a generous portion laced with garlicy, herby chimmichurri and on top of warm polenta, English sugar peas, chanterelles, and pickled cipollini onions. My dish was a marvel, well constructed and executed, with a near sear on the outside with a fantastic, juicy, meaty inside.
Christine's blue-cheese burger was one of the best I'd had in the city with its sweet "hawaiian bread" bun, well-seared but still very raw-juicy middle with arugula and blue cheese to top it off. The burger came with a mix of regular and sweet potato fries. The sweet potato fries were delicious but the regular ones got limp real quick. We ended up fishing out the sweet potato fries because they were so much better. We skipped dessert but they all sounded very good - most of them sounded more appropriate at Gordon Ramsay or Water Grill than at a small neighborhood joint.
I was a little annoyed by the orange lighting, essentially orange filters on flurescent lights overhead and the table on which we sat was really uncomfortable in the sense that Christine's chair kept getting bumped by servers and bussers. I recommend sitting along the windows for a better experience. Also the bar seems like a fine spot for a single or duo diner set without the hassle of the wait. Reservoir doesn't take any reservations so best come on a weeknight or early on the weekends (like 6PM). The wait could be easily an hour on Friday or Saturday night. Oh another gripe? The wine list was much too expensive compared to the price of the dishes. Bottles averaged $50 or so with glasses averaging $12. This isn't the Westside; this is supposed to be a cozy bistro in Silver Lake.
I do see how wine will essentially support after-expense profits, but I'd like to see the prices (and also the selection) get closer to something like Canele's, which average $35-40 a bottle. Corkage at reservoir is an acceptable $15 if you want to pick up a fine bottle at Silver Lake Wine just a mile or so away. Get a bottle of Saarloos Purper Hart ($33) and it'll pair perfectly with that grilled skirt steak ($21).
One quick correction though: Though Jonathan Gold noted that Gloria Felix took a page from Tom Colicchio's early concept at Craft where diners can pair sides with their entrees, Chef Felix told me that she didn't copy his concept at all. I agree because at Craft, you pick sides that are meant to be shared by the whole table, like pomme puree or roasted corn. At reservoir, you pick a "setup" which is much more than one side - it's a combination of sides such as the one I had with the skirt steak.
Also, I've added photos (even with flash) since that's more useful than not having any.
7 comments:
Nice first look, even for photo-free, of Reservoir. I can so see myself going there, then swinging to LA Mill for coffee and desserts!
blue cheese burger, medium RARR!! it was delicious and cooked EXACTLY the way i wanted it. ur skirt steak was super juicy too. oh yum. I totally felt like I had the stepchild seat in the house :( its okay though. sweet potato fries made up for it :)
Good commentary on reservoir. Nice job of capturing the restaurant's strengths and weaknesses.
Overall, the meal was solid. It was especially interesting to see how two different setups paired with the skirt steak. Your polenta with English peas paired well, but the cauliflower puree didn't come together and seemed to combat the chimichurri.
Christine's burger was a definite highlight. I ran into Gloria Felix at Silverlake Wine a couple months back and she explained the beef mixture, and now she's tight-lipped. I should have taken notes. Now we'll never know. I enjoyed the sweet potato fries, and the regular fries were on the verge of being good, but could have been crispier.
My black cod separated into juicy sheets, and it paired well with the currant-studded farro. Overall, a good entree, though the skin could have been a little crispier.
Those prices do seem high for wine at what is essentially a neighborhood restaurant.
I didn't understand Gold's comparison to Craft either, since everything at Craft is a la carte, and at reservoir, you get to choose how you want your plate composed.
The photos look great! It's amazing what a difference they make. Before, I wasn't so interested in trying Reservoir, but now I feel a bit more inclined. If I can get myself over to the eastside...
HC - we've got photos now, check 'em out!
choisauce - yeah it's too bad they kept bumping into you. They should've comped us dessert for it! :) (totally kidding...)
FoodGPS: I didn't taste any aged meat in that burger, but it definitely high quality stuff. I'll try to order the cod next time and ask for the skin extra crispy, but the flesh was very well cooked.
Diana - thanks! you definitely should head east - wayyyy better food (though Santa Monica's got some highlights)
for some reason, as $15 corkage bothers me more than a $12 glass of wine. i think $15 is high for a neighborhood place, and if the wine is good I have no problem paying $12 a glass. I guess I am a little fed up with neighborhood restaurants serving good beer but crap wine.
Hey everyone, I posted another quick review of reservoir after our meal tonight.
Food, She thought: while I agree that a $15 isn't the most inviting thing, it's more reasonable than other LA restaurant, and just about right for a restaurant of this caliber. $15 a bottle is a fitting compensation for a restaurant of this scope. That said, it's easily a better option than paying $50 for a bottle.
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