I’d admittedly heard some mixed things about Gjelina in the year since my last visit to Los Angeles – most of them describing a restaurant that is pretty much jam packed from noon till midnight serving good, sometimes even great, California inspired cuisine but some suggesting that the chef was a bit sold on himself and that so too were the clients and servers. Having heard similar about a handful of Los Angeles restaurants in the past I certainly took these critiques into consideration in deciding whether or not to visit the Venice eatery but in the end the final decision came down to two things; a lunch menu that I personally think is the most interesting in the city and the fact that a fellow diner reached out to me and offered to accompany me to lunch.
With my co-diner, a pescetarian and frequent patron of Chef Travis Lett’s 2008 establishment, explaining to me that lineups could be quite long at any time of the day and with reservations not accepted save for large parties it was eventually decided that a 12:30 meet-up would be most logical and being an early bird with plans that would lead late into the evening the timing sounded perfect, even giving me time to walk on the beach and visit some of the unique shops on Abbott-Kinney Blvd before allocating parking and scoping out the location just after 11:00am.
With the area quite unique and featuring a number of stores most certainly not seen in Ohio I spent my time browsing after finding the restaurant but given my early arrival I couldn’t help but walk into Gjelina Take Away (GTA) next door and with a menu largely written in black magic marker and chalk I spent some time examining the selections, pizzas, and sandwiches before a young woman asked if I needed any help. At first deferring but then finding myself drawn in by some of the smaller pastries I weighed my appetite, timing, and plans and eventually decided “why not,” selecting two of the five options that I’d take with me while roaming the streets.
Beginning first with what would be my second of four scones on the trip, the still-warm Cornmeal Strawberry Scone would prove to be a very unique and delicious take on the pastry as the team at GTA opted to use a very rough cut cornmeal as opposed to its smoother counterpart thus providing a bit of grit and a lot of toothsomeness to the scone. With the strawberries plentiful and pockets of butter juxtaposed against areas of sweet this was definitely preferable to the drier biscuit like scones and not as muffin-esque as others I’ve tried. A bit pricey compared to the fantastic versions at Almandine and Intelligentsia but not as much so as the subpar selection at AOC I’d definitely order it again.
Moving next to the Chocolate Sticky Bun, this one not served warm and perhaps suffering from its exposure to the warm California air, I will simply say that where the scone flourished in its use of a more toothsome grain the sticky bun unfortunately did not. Appropriately “sticky” and laden with a flavor something akin to Mexican Hot Chocolate (think cinnamon and black pepper, but not quite as spicy) the texture here just did not do much for me as the exterior was nice, golden, and palatable while the interior was simply doughy with a rather dense crumb and not much flavor on its own.
Receiving a call and then a text from my friend stating she’d be a few moments late I continued to browse the $300 jeans and $12,000 sofas before making my way back to Gjelina where I found my dining partner waiting in the short line and within moments we were lead right in – no wait, though the line would increase to approximately twenty within twenty minutes of our seating and would never reach less until they closed the doors at 2:30. Seated at the communal bar, myself thankfully on the end so as not to fight for elbow room in the tight space, we spent a few moments chatting before we would be greeted by Kiva, a pleasant young woman befitting the overall feel of the restaurant who offered us water and cocktails plus the menu – an extensive list divided into sections titled oysters/charcuterie/salad/small/sandwich/plates/pizza/vegetables – before leaving us to make our decisions.
With the restaurant expectedly loud and full of what I can only describe as hipsters on a level even trumping Brooklyn we spent quite some time weighing our options and deciding how best to balance pescetarianism with someone with eyes for fowl and pork and after coming to our conclusions we spent some time chatting while I browsed the space – a large but cramped room with lots of reclaimed brick and wood quite similar to Red Medicine and communal tables abound. With the patio, a fire pit, and a wall of wines in back plus a center service bar where a young woman was meticulously cutting charcuterie dominating the front of the house I have to admit I kind of liked the tavern-like approach, but all things being equal I was also glad that we’d come at lunch as the space was bathed with natural light from the open doors and some of the sound was free to infiltrate the outside world.
With Kiva returning moments later and answering a few questions (mostly whether we had to order all at once or if we could order in sections) it was confirmed that we could order as we chose, though alterations to menu items were not allowed, and with that we placed a part of our order with the rest to follow later. A good server though clearly working more tables than she should have been (and through her own admission suffering from a head cold) l will note that while the comment about alterations was unnecessary I understand the policy and save for the rapid pacing of delivery that often left too many things on the table at once I found the mood, personnel, and service all well within what would be expected of a restaurant of this price point and caliber – and as a matter of fact, if it hadn’t been for some camera issues (my fault, not theirs) the pacing may not have even been an issue.
Having heard good things about Lett’s skills, particularly as it relates to his use of Southern California’s bounty of produce and his predilection for Italian cuisine, our meal would start off rather quickly after our orders were placed with the first of two selections from the Vegetables portion of the menu arriving as “Marinated Beets, Burrata, Arugula, Walnuts, Balsamic.” As straight forward as it gets and as good as the market could provide there really isn’t much to say about this dish that isn’t detailed by its ingredients – each a marvelous example and with just a bit of honey and olive oil used in the marinade to add a touch of sweetness.
With a lull in the action and in the noise as a particularly rambunctious group got up to leave our next three dishes would all arrive within moments of one another – two pizzas and the second vegetable. Beginning first with the Margherita Pizza – the standard bearer for how well a restaurant makes a pie in my opinion – this version would prove to be quite good, though not great largely because of the cheese. Beginning first with the crust, thin but with some chew and nicely blistered, and moving on to the pristine tomatoes and basil the pizza started out great, but with the pockets of mozzarella applied somewhat haphazardly and lacking the slight funk I’ve come to expect from well sourced artisan or imported versions the entirety of the pizza just came off a little too sweet.
Moving next to the second pizza something a little more unique would be presented and with less focus placed on the cheese the results would be much more impressive. Left on my lonesome due to my partner’s dietary restrictions the “Duck Sausage, Nameko Mushrooms, Mozzarella, Garlic” would be all mine to enjoy and enjoy it I did. Beginning first with the crust – identical to that of the Margherita though this time featuring a bit more bubble and char – I particularly liked it in the context of this dish not only because the mild rigidity did an admirable job of supporting the hefty sausage but also because without the tomatoes it remained a bit more crisp. Moving on to the ingredients, the same benign mozzarella was again present but this time when combined with the hefty notes of garlic and mild funkiness from the well seasoned duck the mildness actually played to its advantage in helping to tame the meat and also allow the mushrooms their time in the spotlight. Really a great pizza, but still not quite as striking as the shaved mushroom at Stella Rossa two days prior.
For our second vegetable dish, my dining partner’s favorite of the meal, “Wood Roasted Parsnips with Pistachio Gremolata” would arrive tender and fragrant with notes of butter, parsley, and lemon all lightly accented a mild sweetness strangely reminiscent (at least to me) of baklava. Cooked and sliced largely like one would prepare redskin potatoes I cannot say that this was my favorite dish of the afternoon, but unless my memory is flawed it is certainly the best preparation of parsnips I’ve yet encountered.
For our final savory, clearly the one requiring the most preparation time of the kitchen, “Potato Gnocchi with Smoked Trout, Shitake Mushrooms, White Wine” would arrive just as I was finishing up the duck pizza and topped lightly with breadcrumbs and shredded basil I can say without a doubt that this was the highlight of the savories for myself and one of the better preparations of my favorite type of pasta in all of 2011. Beginning first with the pillow like dumplings, perhaps twenty in total, each was light and flavorful on its own but all the more so with the lightly smoked trout, aromatic mushrooms, and buttery sauce with the faintest notes of citrus and lime. Generally not a fan of trout as I tend to find it a bit fishy unless sourced and prepared exquisitely I was pleasantly surprised by Lett’s treatment of the fish here using both the wood fired oven and the wine to help smooth it out and allow it to balance nicely with the mushrooms.
With a few slices of Margherita left over and boxed up Kiva asked if there was anything else we would like and although the volume of the restaurant originally led to the check being dropped off here a wave of the hand produced both an apology and the previously requested dessert menu – a dessert menu where six out of seven options sounded delectable but the realization that I was to eat 18+ courses of dinner in less than 5 hours led me to only select two, the first probably Gjelina’s most raved item – the “Butterscotch Pot De Crème with Salted Caramel and Crème Fraiche.” Having already had the fabled budino at Mozza and any number of Pot du crème elsewhere I honestly didn’t know what to expect going into this dish but when it arrived in a small porcelain cup it somehow seemed exactly right in landing right between the two; the flavor pure butterscotch and the texture a faultless pot de crème. Intensely sweet as you might expect but nicely balanced by flakes of crunchy salt and the slightly sour whipped crème fraiche it would be hard for me to say this was better or worse than the Mozza budino, it was just different and really quite delicious.
Moving on to the second dessert, a must order just like the gnocchi, “Pumpkin Chocolate Bread Pudding with Fresh Cream and Caramel” would arrive looking like a hot mess, but tasting oh so much better. While my dining buddy personally felt that this dessert was much too salty an I still can’t figure out why they opted to serve it in such a sloppy manner all I can say is that I loved it and honestly only felt a little bit bad that my friend did not as I ate each steaming hot bite of the four moist slices imbued with flavors somewhere between pumpkin pie and a Twix bar all swimming in vanilla and cinnamon whipped cream.
With the check now delivered appropriately and the bill split down the middle (a nice gesture from my new friend as I clearly ate more) we walked for a bit and agreed to future dining endeavors before going our separate ways – her to her car and me back to shopping. With the day still young and the streets abuzz with activity as people in Santa Monica and Venice seem to be on permanent vacation (which clearly helps explain the never ending line at a spot now nearly four years old) I must say that I came away from Gjelina pleasantly surprised and eager to go back with a larger group in order to sample more things. Sure the place is loud, cramped, and certainly not for those who detest communal dining but for those of us who will tolerate some mild annoyances and the occasional service glitch the menu and the food are really quite impressive for the price, especially during lunch hours.