Preview of DineLA/Restaurant Week

Yesterday was the official start of DineLA/Restaurant Week in Los Angeles and so begins 2 weeks of Prix-fixing and planning!

Every year I enjoy the search for a place I’ve never been and for a price value that makes January 20th-January 31st the ideal time to go. Lucques for example offers a $50 prix-fixe dinner which appears to be a good value but is actually more than they charge every Sunday for the famed “Sunday-Supper” Prix-fixe.

This year I got an opportunity to preview a dinner at Acabar which I must admit is usually a place I think of for drinks before dining. Chef Kevin Luzande is on a mission to change that, and there’s no better time than DineLA!

Three-Course Menu

Choice of Appetizer

Shades of Winter Salad with parsnip & cashew puree, cauliflower couscous & goat cheese

Kanpachi Crudo with olive dust and salmon roe

Beef Carpaccio with bone marrow, black truffle arancini, crispy pulled beef, and horseradish 

Choice of Entree

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with hen of the woods mushroom and brown butter

Seared Scallops with roasted chestnuts and bok choy

Braised Short Rib with smoked oyster cream and smoked grapes 

Dessert

Choice of Coconut Coulant, Parsnip Split, and Gimmie S’More

How you can tell a chef is absolutely invested in every diner…when you’re served a Gimmie S’More directly from his hands because he catches you slipping out of the dinner early 🙂 Just one of the many wonderful moments on my savory journey at Acabar and my top choice for a $40 DineLA dinner that will have you rethinking this Arabian palace as just an after-dinner spot.