la.foodblogging

Earlier this year – actually, during summer – I made my way down to Santa Monica to try a restaurant that I’d heard rave reports about. A young, new chef, Evan Funke, had just taken over the kitchen at Rustic Canyon Wine Bar. Word on the street was that he had studied pasta making in Italy. Plus, Rustic Canyon’s primary ethos is to use fresh, local produce. They even declare on their menu that “All of our food comes from growers and suppliers practicing sustainable agriculture and is handled and prepared with love.”

Perfect!

Well, after our very first small course I was swooning. What kind of creative culinary genius pairs two of the most luscious things on the planet – soft, ripe and sweet nectarine chunks with creamy, dreamy burrata – and dresses it with a mild, unfermented version of balsamic vinegar known as saba? Wow!

We took a flight of SMALL PLATES, that included:

Postage-stamp sized Sweet Corn Agnolotti was served with caramelized corn in a light and creamy sauce. This dish was outstanding and extremely memorable. Sadly, this sweet item was not on the menu the next time we visited, several months later. BUT according to their online menu, this delectable dish is currently available.

One small course was a delightfully golden, single Scallop served beneath a large, crimped raviolo that housed more slices of scallop as well as a vibrantly golden, runny egg yolk that burst forth when I punctured the elegant square of pasta. So cool.

Another favourite was the Crispy Stuffed Squash Blossoms, all golden and oozing with warm chevre ricotta. These were comparable to those on offer at Pizzeria Mozza.

We just loved the Roasted Baby Beet salad;

paper-thin shavings of pretty, variegated beets are beautifully offset by fresh sorrel leaves and a piquant mustard seed dressing.

These last two dishes are on the current menu.

So, although they are a seasonal kitchen, certain dishes (or versions of them) are available virtually all year round:

MAINS include:
Pan Roasted ‘Jidori’ Chicken
Slow roasted ‘Grimaud Farms’ Duck breast with cherries, celery-fennel puree and wild morels.
Apparently a house favorite is the Niman Ranch Cast Iron Burger served with crispy onion rings, point reyes blue cheese, wild arugula and hand cut french fries.

SIDE NOTE:
This restaurant has a fascinating story behind its origin.

Owner and proprietor Josh Loeb, now in his early thirties, began the venture several years ago by hosting twelve-guest brunch and dinner party “events” every month at his home in the heavily wooded canyon, adjacent to Pacific Palisades.

From their website:

“A series of dinners held inside a beautiful tree house of a home nestled in Rustic Canyon, an intimate neighborhood carved into the mountains of Santa Monica. Every month lovers of quality food and wine gathered around a long, candlelit table to share the joy of a meal created with thought and passion. New friends were made. Stories were told. Favorite new wines were discovered.”

Quite the savvy businessman, Loeb charged a nominal fee to cover food costs and tested various recipes and menu combinations while the rotating list of privileged guests sampled, and sometimes contributed, various wines.

After about eighteen months of running these gastronomic creations past his inner circle of influential friends, Joel opened Rustic, his first resto, in November 2006 with the backing and support of many of those ‘guinea pigs’ as ardent investors. Sheer brilliance!

As Loeb’s background is in wine (he gained experience at Capo), the wine list at Rustic Canyon is strong, including at Pinot Noir Freja “Winemakers reserve” from Willametta Valley and a delightful 2005 Bodegas Pablo Padin ‘Segrel’ from Albarino, Rias Baixas. I’ll have to try their appealing-sounding Kosta Brown’s Rosé of Pinot Noir from the Russian River district next time.

The bar at Rustic Canyon is small but pretty cool. More a waiting area than a place to hang, there are a couple of high tables to dine at if the place is packed – which it apparently is almost always. Their mixologist, Jon Hoeber, offers several sparkling Prosecco-based libations, including a Bellini with bing cherries and nectarine puree and the deadly-sounding Black Velvet; Prosecco plus Stout.

Meanwhile Pastry chef Zoe Nathan is offering delectable desserts such as Old Fashioned Pumpkin Pie, Chocolate Peanut Butter Tart and Citrus Cornmeal Cake served with lemon crème fraîche ice cream.

The dining room is medium-sized and inviting. Through its massive front windows facing busy Wilshire Boulevard, you can watch the summer sky darken to evening. Even packed, the room is lively and kinda noisy. I don’t think I’d go with a party larger than four… Cozy booths for two (or a snug foursome) line the east wall and complement the small bar area near the entrance. The décor is less rustic, more city chic, with its warm brown, cream and dark green hues and subtle lighting from cylindrical bent wood light fixtures overhead.

Their seasonal dinner menu is refreshed each month.

Rustic Canyon Wine Bar is an exceptional venue that gets everything right. It just goes to show what even an inexperienced restaurateur can do after a period of thoughtful research and development as well as consistent attention to every single detail.

Rustic Canyon Wine Bar

1119 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica (at 11th Street)
tel (310) 393 7050
fax (310) 393 7045

Open: Sunday – Thursday; 5:30pm - 10:30pm
Friday & Saturday; 5:30pm – 11:30pm

NB – a sister venue called Huckleberry — a breakfast place — is set to open a few doors down the street in February 2009.

By MaxMillion (see more of her posts). Max Million is the nom de 'net of Pauline Adamek. Born in Sydney, Australia, Pauline has lived in Los Angeles for the past thirteen years and finds it agrees with her. She has been reviewing films and filing celebrity-based interview articles since 1991, and has filed stories from various international film festivals, including Cannes, Venice, Berlin, Toronto and Sundance. She completed a family cookbook and has also written novels for 8-12 year olds. She is the creator and host of ArtsBeatLA.