Scouting out a respectable restaurant in the sea of options in West Hollywood can be daunting. Why not follow in the footsteps of former Los Angeles food expert?
Pulitzer-prize winning food-critic Jonathan Gold died July 21 at the age of 57. Following Gold’s passing, Venice-based muralist Jonas Never unveiled a mural at Margo’s in Santa Monica paying tribute to the legendary Jonathan Gold.
Located on 16th and Montana, the mural depicts Gold holding a copy of the Los Angeles Times’s Jonathan Gold’s 101 Best Restaurants. The annual publication featured Gold’s favorite restaurants in the greater Los Angeles area, including a couple notable West Hollywood establishments.
Alma’s Restaurant (The Standard Hollywood, 8300 Sunset Blvd., WeHo)
On head chef at Alma’s (The Standard Hollywood, 8300 Sunset Blvd., WeHo), Gold describes “the contrast between Taymor’s technical, intellectual cooking and the happy chaos of the Sunset Strip” as “startling at first.” Gold comments on technique and skill, such as “foraged ingredients, exotic emulsifiers and the idea of ordering time through the texture of celery root” ultimately as “kind of fun.”
True to his honest nature, Gold was not so kind to Connie and Ted’s (8171 Santa Monica Blvd., WeHo). His review opens by stating, “sometimes it seems like a miracle that Connie and Ted’s even exists.” It doesn’t get nicer from there. He concludes by telling the reader that they are going to drink a lot of white wine with a meal here.
“Make sure someone else is driving home.”
Click HERE for the complete list and map of Gold’s favorite Los Angeles restaurants.
