March
24Lean Times for Eateries
A recession forces folks to make tough choices. Travel is down 22% – that was easy to predict. The cosmetic surgery business needs a facelift. The long lines to buy corporate jets have all but vanished.The business lunch also seems a casualty of the downturn, as a visit to any expensive eatery will confirm. The corporate players seem eager to demonstrate their dedication to “the new austerity.” Talent agencies are warning employees to avoid the pricey eateries – they’re even distributing lists of bargain restaurants.
Toward the end of my lunch at Mr. Chow’s in Beverly Hills the other day, I studied the room as the tabs were distributed. The ensuing ritual was an apt metaphor for the recession: No one was grabbing for the check. At two tables it just sat there, orphaned and ignored, as three diners held to their stall.
Of course, Mr. Chow’s isn’t among the “bargain” eateries and it seems relatively undaunted by the recession; however that in itself is indicative. The restaurants that seem to be surviving the best are those that are “comfy,” not those nurturing haute cuisine. No one is more adept at “managing” his high-ego clientele than Chris Denton, who’s been running the room for 20 years and who knows how to safely seat Sean Penn several tables away from whomever he’s having his latest quarrel with.
Similarly, Piccolino is not feeling the recession because of the “cool” of Eddie Kerkhofs, who presided over the old Le Dome for many years. The same for La Dolce Vita, where Ruben Castro has been shepherding his followers since 1974!
The restaurants that seem to be hurting are those more-formal emporiums where the waiters don’t ask you what you think of a dish but say something like, “It’s great, isn’t it.” Any place in New York with the name Daniel reflects this haughty attitude.
To be sure, I’ve never boasted about my sophisticated palate. In my home growing up, my parents seemed more interested in what we drank than what we ate, and I was grateful for that. My lunch-time sandwich from home consisted of soggy lettuce and tomato on Wonder bread and that worked fine at the time.
Hence, I’m comfortable with the recessionary attitude of favoring “comfy” restaurants. I admire Wolfgang Puck’s professionalism, but I’d just as soon eat at the Melrose Bar and Grill because it reminds me of the old PJ Clarke’s in New York. In Palm Springs, I hang out at a place called Wangs because Alford Harrison and Joel Herzer serve up the best fried catfish this side of Baton Rouge. Plus, the place is comfy.
I took a friend to the restaurant at the new Montage Hotel in Beverly Hills the other day and I felt apologetic about ordering – there were no other diners and I didn’t want sole responsibility for activating the kitchen. That wasn’t comfy.
But it definitely reflected the time we live in. Out of pity, I even picked up the check. (I was dining with an agent.)
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Posted by: invosotoDus | 10/11/2009 3:32:41 AM
Ate at Craft last night in Century City. The place was almost packed inside. They mix and match some weird ingredients, but the food is relatively simple, the decor elegant yet understated, and the atmosphere lively. It''s still too expensive, though.
Posted by: Dan R | 3/27/2009 5:42:16 PM
Had ben gone from LA for a few months, and had the same experience, blamed it on Monday and Tuesday, then on Wedneday, finally t dawned on me on Thursday night, airports are pretty empty too.....
Posted by: Roy@TheFilmPortal | 3/25/2009 3:41:37 PM