The Other Critics

The Gorbals Gives Gold Good Pub Grub; La Cachette Bistro Blows It with Virbila

Though it may be spartan, The Gorbal's scores with Gold and Kuh
Though it may be spartan, The Gorbal’s scores with Gold and Kuh

Jonathan Gold recalls his favorite meals of 2009, recalling Kiyokawa as “the kind of discovery every gastronaut hopes to make at least once in his life.” [L.A. Weekly]

La Cachette Bistro’s “large menu has more misses than hits,” says S. Irene Virbila, adding “if you’re going to open a bistro, you have to do it with conviction. And that’s one thing this kitchen lacks.” [L.A. Times]

The rebirth of Café Pierre was not just a transformation into “a French restaurant as it is a Culinary Phoenix,” says Merrill Shindler on the addition of Remi Lauvand to the legend. [Daily Breeze]

Jonathan Gold wouldn’t be shocked to discover The Gorbals is “a Springtime for Hitler scam on investors” given its weird hours and off-putting “Sacrilicious” recipes, but he thinks it has good pub food. [L.A. Weekly]

Mark Peel’s new dishes at The Tar Pit tempt S. Irene Virbila, while Audrey Saunder’s “cocktails are elegant and sure to become classics.” [L.A. Times]

Mantee’s Lebanese might not be the best in town, declares J. Gold, “but the flavors have an edge quite unlike anything else in town.” [L.A. Weekly]

Josef “Centeno’s vigorous, imaginative and not-quite-polished cooking is the sort of thing you want to dive into” at Lazy Ox Canteen, observes Jonathan Gold, who feels the supremely talented toque “seems always to wash up at the wrong restaurant at the wrong time.” [L.A. Weekly]

Hollywood’s Spicy BBQ is your joint for khao soi, the Northern Thai coconut chicken noodle spicy curry specialty, offers Jonathan Gold, though he thinks a trip to Lotus of Siam in Las Vegas might be even better. [L.A. Weekly]

The Gorbals “isn’t just a gimmick” states Patrick Kuh on Ilan Hall’s restaurant, where the waitstaff might be as confused as everyone else. [Los Angeles]

Merrill Shindler is blown away by the sheer Italian-ness of Long Beach’s La Parolaccia Osteria Italiana where he even overhears “a few moans of pleasure” from other diners. [Daily Breeze]

Though they don’t always float his particular boat, those wanting macaroons will be content with Paulette in Beverly Hills, suggests J. Gold while examining the city’s offerings that don’t resemble Junior’s “coconut hockey pucks.” [L.A. Weekly]

The Gorbals Gives Gold Good Pub Grub; La Cachette Bistro Blows It with Virbila