MIX

1114 N. Crescent Heights Blvd, West Hollywood (323) 650-4649

 

To some it may seem ironic that the stretch of boulevard undulating down from ‘boy’s town’ hasn’t conceived a single enduring restaurant for the more discriminating patron, instead surrendering to a string of bars, fast-food and altogether forgettable eateries.

 

Mix adds something new.

 

The impression is immediate.  Tucked away inconspicuously on the corner of Crescent Heights and Santa Monica Blvd, this sophisticated eatery from Michael Paris Bourseau and John Armstrong Jackson is a cause for celebration. You can eat inside or on the spacious patio offering al fresco dinning around tree trunks that pierce through the roof, giving us the impression that this newcomer has stood here forever. An intimate bar inside feels romantic and is the perfect spot for a rendezvous or blind date.  The walls are covered with pop art, its jazz musicians complementing the horn playing on the stereo.  And the room temperature always feels right, even on chilly days, thanks to the unobtrusive forced air heating hidden away in the floor.

 

Sit down amongst butter-colored walls and start lunch with a house pistachio-pesto spread on rustic toast, kissed with just enough garlic to give it a kick.   The Chantrelle mushroom soup is a must -- creamy yet light with tendrils of mushroom, cooked just right so that they are still crunchy.  Foie gras torchon with apple gastrique is perfect and will leave you spoiled.  The pan fried crab cakes, served with fresh watercress, are meaty patties with lumps of Dungeness crab and thankfully, little else.  Crispy duck confit with beluga lentil salad is irrefutably satisfying and a testament to the chef’s expertise.  And the surprising delight, for those in the mood for something, well, a little less adventurous, is the dry aged roast beef sandwich with cucumber salad, which is roasted to perfection, served on focaccia bread and anything but prosaic.

 

Boursea picked up his culinary skills at Paris’ renowned Ecole Superiore du Cuisine Francaise and has held court in restaurants all over Europe.  Jackson, fondly known as JJ, went to the Pennsylvania Institute of Culinary Arts and his impressive resume includes Mike’s on the Avenue and the world famous Breakers Hotel.  Together, the duo has transformed the space that was formally a tea house into a nuanced, winning restaurant where food elicits gasps of delight and one wants to linger on well after the plates have been polished off, just so they can relish the ’01 Joseph Phelps Viognier.

 

They should have been warned not to make the chairs so comfortable.

 

-GD