Matteo's Westwood

Happiest Happy Hour
Tuesday-Friday  Sunday Too
5-8:30PM
Bar Menu & Cocktails
$7 And Under

 

We went to Matteo's on Westwood Boulevard Wednesday night for their Happy Hour. Diane had Absolute martinis while I had the house red, which was better than the average house red. It had bite.

Matteo's has undergone a serious renovation. The rooms are spare and elegant. The music isn't intrusive. The model train that circles the bar room has been recently refurbished by craftsmen. Apparently, the trains, the tracks, the entire set design had been in disrepair prior to the restaurant's renovations. Now the sets have been restored and the train runs like new, as it was in 1963 the year of the restaurant's birth.

We ordered the "Italian" fish tacos, which were superb. Yes, the fish was battered and deep fried, but delicous and wrapped in a grilled corn tortilla with cabbage and a unique hot sauce (on the side). This hot sauce appeared to combine an Asian composition with Italian and Mexican herbs.

Two tender meat balls, peppered with green herbs, were served with a "light tomato sauce" that might even rival your mother's recipe.

I like the way the chopped salad was chopped, but I would've preferred the salami to be cut wider, for a tastier bite. Also, the dressing, while tasty enough, could be accentuated by asking the server for more vinagrette to encourage the bite once again.

Oh, and try the antipasti plate - the grilled asparagus is killer.

The mission of the nouveau happy hour is to introduce the restaurant to the curious, so the treats will tend to be designed for a broader palate. However, in this case, the excellent sauce served at happy hour hints to the majesty to be found in their dinners. I'll let you know.

We hadn't been near Matteo's since the early 80s and can't remember a thing. This affordable happy hour does serve as an introduction to this restaurant. We're going back for dinner. I see a veal chop with my name on it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lonigi's on Sawtelle - West L.A.

California Pizza Kitchen - Santa Monica

Bo-Jay's Pizzeria: LONG TIME CLOSED - West L.A.

More Alejo's - Marina Del Rey

Alejo's - Marina Del Rey

Sepi's Giant Submarines - Westwood

Buca di Beppo - Santa Monica

We took a walk out to the Palisades to smell the salt air. Then hunger kicked in. We stopped at the Kings Head, but the place was too crowded. When the bartendress at the rear bar ignored us and then served others first who came after us, we decided to leave. It was too loud in there anyway, so she gave us the motivation to go someplace else.

It turned out we were better off. We walked down second street and decided Italian food, red wine, and Sinatra was a superior choice than the cold, bitter hospitality of the local Brits. So we went to Buca di Beppo.

Our timing was off and the Saturday night crowd had started to fill up the tables. We were offered a small two top in the middle of a huge room overcrowded with tables occupied by families and their screaming children. One look at that table and I turned around and headed for the bar. Once again, we were better off.

The bar was still empty and we easily found two seats near the television silently showing the news. We could still listen to Dean Martin and watch the current footage of our local disasters. The attentive bartender quickly put up two settings while we perused the wine list. We ordered the wine and an antipasto salad to start.

Buca di Beppo has changed their menu from the original version. Tell me if I'm wrong, but they used to market their food as "family style," which in San Francisco means bowls and platters, but in L.A. it means big portions. Nowadays, Buca has a more traditional menu, giving the individual more choice and their own dinner plate.

Unfortunately, their recent menu has lost some of its individuality. Their food originally had proprietary titles. Now the menu is streamlined for efficiency. But the quality of the food hasn't changed and the service has always been excellent.

My wife decided on a sausage and mushroom pizza and that was okay with me. The entire meal proved consistent with what I expect from Buca. In the past, I'd only had Buca's pepperoni pizza and on this occasion I was pleasantly surprised with the quality of the sausage on the pizza. Unlike other local pizzas, this sausage tasted almost homemade, certainly not like the mass market choices made by the home delivery joints. I was impressed.

Buca di Beppo - Web Site

Norm Panto Live at Palermo Ristorante Italiano - Los Feliz

When we lived on Cochran Avenue in the Park La Brea neighborhood, we used to dine at Palermo's frequently. One Friday night, the gang went to El Coyote, the next week Palermo's. The place is an old school Italian restaurant with food excellent enough to attract police officers at all hours. The line to get in is long on Friday and Saturday nights. So long that they offer free red and white wine for those whom are waiting. The pizza's great. The pasta dishes are like mom's. The antipasto salad can choke a anglo-saxon.

The last time I went to Palermo's, musician Norm Panto serenaded us with his accordian, playing and singing tunes worthy of Mulberry Street, or Hoboken.

Music by Norm Panto

442 Hillsborough St.

Thousand Oaks, CA 91361-1330

(805)446-1481

(800) 54 PANTO

westlake982000@yahoo.com

Music by Norm Panto - For All Occasions

Palermo Ristorante Italiano - Los Feliz

Miceli's on Las Palmas - Hollywood

My wife, a native Californian raised in the Fairfax and Carthay Circle, tells me she used to go to Miceli's as a kid with her family. We've been going there since we lived together on Cochran Avenue just south of 3rd street. Upon your arrival at a table at Miceli's, you are greeted with the most supple white rolls, steaming hot, with iced butter of course. The pizzas are flawless. The meatballs taste like mom palmed their creation. We like the antipasto salad. The new house wine is more tasty than any Trader Joe's wine under $10. Once, around 1989 I think, I remember being here with playful friends and slightly intoxicated. I must have been intoxicated because I remember standing on a chair and singing HOORAY FOR CAPTAIN SPAULDING. Thank god they don't remember me. I can still get a table.

Monday Night in Brentwood - Louise's & Pinkberry

We ran out to get an early dinner before the Monday night rush. (Sarcasm intended.) Having enjoyed Kay and Dave's Cantina on Pico, we decided to try their Brentwood location on 26th street, south of San Vicente. We were being seated at a table when we realized the place was so noisy that we couldn't hear ourselves think much less talk. Then, the screaming babies started adding to the cacophony. We got up and went next door to Louise's. Much better. More serene. No screaming babies.

We dove into the bread and wine while we waited for:

the chopped salad (a generous serving, but lacking the salami magic)

and the Chicken Balsamico (excellent, kind of like an Italian teriyaki).

Afterwards, we watched a firetruck pull out of the red zone across the street, turn around and parallel park into two metered spaces in front of the restaurant. What fun!

We decided to go in search of the rumored new Pinkberry location in deeper Brentwood. Obviously, we found it. Now, we already eat a lot of plain, non-fat yogurt, so the tartness of the Pinkberry product didn't present a problem. The dessert satisfied, but the mechanical customer service and the lack of chairs on the patio won't be bringing me back. (This is one of those corporate places that you enter and they register your complete order and take your payment before you can even look at the goods. The clerk demanded I chose my three toppings, but I didn't even have a menu to chose from. I guess she thinks everyone is a repeat customer or everyone went through the same Pinkberry product training course that she did.)

Here's a fellow who so loves Pinkberry that he shares it with his dog. Is that Rudy in L.A.? Watch that spoon!