The best part of Akasha is the design of the space, which is incredibly impressive and artful. But I'd say the whole facade was a bit like the curtain hiding the wizard, engendering false hope about both the food and service.
In fact... I might have had the worst dining experience I've ever had. And I have eaten out a lot, people. A LOT.
Two in our group ordered the seared salmon. One serving came out raw throughout and the other was dry and dessicated, as was the pork chop. So if you want a lump of salmon sashimi when you were expecting seared fish or you're hankering for a big chunk of pork "jerky"...this is your place!
To be fair, the steak was perfect, though accompanied by undercooked potatoes, the salty caramel tart and apple tarts were delicious and the little loaves of dinner bread were tasty...
But the true disappointment was in the wait staff, which so outweighed any slight achievements in terms of food that our party felt hugely gyped by the experience. The bussers hovered and roved as though every dish load dumped earned them a commission. They began clearing the table before everyone was done eating and two in our group picked up their bread to take a bite only to find their bread plates had been whisked away.
But worst of all was our waiter. You know when you see a TV show where an older grandma is shocked by some improper behavior or rudeness and then mutters "Well I never!" That's how I felt by the end...and I am too young to be muttering such things. Our waiter was inattentive and rude. He wandered off literally mid-sentance several times, smirked when we wanted to share a small appetizer and....
Oops sorry! I wandered off there. And he made snarky comments under his breath throughout the meal...it was really quite odd. Didn't he know we could hear him?
I say avoid Akasha and go a couple doors down to Ford's Filling Station, which also serves a lot of locally bought, but waaaaay more satisfying, American food.
The Loving Critic
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Bond St. Sushi Beverly Hills, CA
Bond St. Sushi..."Unshackled!"
Brian Redzikowski (exec chef) and the management there have definitely pulled Bond St. out of whatever funk it was in. I'm a complete foodie, (even used to write mini reviews for Art and Living magazine) and on all accounts Bond St. has raised the bar.
The staff was lovely and attentive and the menu design and sushi was spectacular. It is a bit higher cost but it's worth it because this isn't just sushi...it's well thought out and artfully served sushi fusion. Where else do they find a way to serve delicious sesame crusted shrimp sushi with a silken curry sauce? And the Big Eye Tuna Tarts, which adeptly combine the rather fickle taste of truffle with sashimi grade tuna, are a study in flavor balance. I could wax eloquent but I have to get back to my "real job" so here are the basics.
*The first sign of a BAD sushi place is bad Miso soup. And the miso soup was rich and brothy, chock full of tofu, seaweed and flavor...almost creamy in consistency...
*If you go there and don't get the Big Eye Tuna Tarts you're an idiot. My sister envisioned checking herself into the hotel and having them delivered every hour on the hour for a day or so. Yeah. That's how good they are.
*There is none of the usual LA bullshit/waiter attitude (which I found in spades at both Fraische and Akasha in Culver City recently...) Either the management at Bond St. is enforcing better conduct requirements or they hired a new crew of actor/waiters who are much better at acting pleasant...
*The pacing of the meal was excellent and leisurely, no rushing one through like pigs to a trough while the waiter stares you down and thinks "go on, eat up so I can load in the next group of customers..."
*Presentation was consistent and pleasing to the eye. All the dishes were aesthetically strong and we know it's consistent because we ordered the Big Eye tarts at both the beginning of the meal and then again at the end...as dessert.
*Also try the eggplant in sweet miso, the lobster roll, the duck confit salad, and the spicy crab crispy rice, which offers a rich twist on the usual spicy tuna crispy rice...
The Loving Critic
Brian Redzikowski (exec chef) and the management there have definitely pulled Bond St. out of whatever funk it was in. I'm a complete foodie, (even used to write mini reviews for Art and Living magazine) and on all accounts Bond St. has raised the bar.
The staff was lovely and attentive and the menu design and sushi was spectacular. It is a bit higher cost but it's worth it because this isn't just sushi...it's well thought out and artfully served sushi fusion. Where else do they find a way to serve delicious sesame crusted shrimp sushi with a silken curry sauce? And the Big Eye Tuna Tarts, which adeptly combine the rather fickle taste of truffle with sashimi grade tuna, are a study in flavor balance. I could wax eloquent but I have to get back to my "real job" so here are the basics.
*The first sign of a BAD sushi place is bad Miso soup. And the miso soup was rich and brothy, chock full of tofu, seaweed and flavor...almost creamy in consistency...
*If you go there and don't get the Big Eye Tuna Tarts you're an idiot. My sister envisioned checking herself into the hotel and having them delivered every hour on the hour for a day or so. Yeah. That's how good they are.
*There is none of the usual LA bullshit/waiter attitude (which I found in spades at both Fraische and Akasha in Culver City recently...) Either the management at Bond St. is enforcing better conduct requirements or they hired a new crew of actor/waiters who are much better at acting pleasant...
*The pacing of the meal was excellent and leisurely, no rushing one through like pigs to a trough while the waiter stares you down and thinks "go on, eat up so I can load in the next group of customers..."
*Presentation was consistent and pleasing to the eye. All the dishes were aesthetically strong and we know it's consistent because we ordered the Big Eye tarts at both the beginning of the meal and then again at the end...as dessert.
*Also try the eggplant in sweet miso, the lobster roll, the duck confit salad, and the spicy crab crispy rice, which offers a rich twist on the usual spicy tuna crispy rice...
The Loving Critic
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
