Finally there's a reasonably priced great restaurant in Santa Monica! The menu seems to change every time I go, but I've never had anything but a great meal. They say ingredients are 90% of cooking, and you can tell here since they use fresh stuff that's in season, from local farmers markets. My favorites so far have been the lamb chops (get them medium rare), the best caesar salad in town, the wild snapper ceviche, and the 1/2 chicken. \r
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Now they are open for lunch too, with a really creative thing called a falafel hoagie. it's falafels wrapped in flatbread, with eggplant spread, hummus and spicy harissa. It's fantastic! and the lunch dessert menu was a pleasant surprise. instead of parading the usual dinner dessert menu out like most restaurants, they have cookies and cupcakes!\r
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And where do i start with the wine? They have a great selection by the glass, ranging from $7 or $8 to almost $20 most of the time. It too always changes, so there is always something new. The bottle markup over retail is lower than anywhere else I've been, and the list is really interesting, with smaller production wines like Sean Thackery's Pleiades and Orin Swift's The Prisoner. The manager really knows his wines, and seems to insist on the same from the waitstaff. They can always recommend something different and well suited to any meal.\r
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It can be tough to get a reservation, but it's well worth planning ahead! My new favorite on the west side!
Pros: wine list, friendly staff, seasonal menu, great food
Cons: tough to get a reservation, can be noisy
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