Today we have S. Irene Virbila's semi-glowing review of Citrus at Social, otherwise known as the Michel Richard/Jeffrey Chodorow show. Citrus is Richard's big return to Los Angeles, although "return" is relative since the chef mainly lends his menu and cleverly named dishes to the capabable hands of an on-the-ground team led by chef Remi Lauvand. In her eyes, Chodorow is brilliant for bringing in a chef who's name "has resonance in LA" and creating "the most glamorous room in all of L.A. at the moment." But is it enough?
Cuttlefish carbonara is another tour de force, which makes Nobu's famous squid "pasta" seem clumsy in comparison. No noodles are involved. Instead, it's tender, sweet cuttlefish cut to resemble fettuccine -- a subtle ode to texture. Escargots is so rich it's better to share than eat all yourself; it's something like an escargots crumble, with the earthy nuggets disposed in three small crocks, each topped with mixed chopped nuts in a parsley sauce.
Lauvand is turning out very polished food at Citrus at Social. Big question: Will the coterie of fine diners from the Westside make it this far east on a regular basis? And will the condominiums and the W Hotel going up in Hollywood be built in time to save the day? From the looks of it, they don't seem to be turning the tables much, even on the weekends.
Miss Irene gives Citrus three stars, but it seems to be more a direct homage to Richard and his menu than the restaurant itself. Service is genial, but the hosts made her wait at the bar when she was on time and gave her the "worst table" in the house---automatic star dockers anywhere else. (She did get the best table on her second visit. Shocking.) And the crowd is as mixed as expected, with both a parade of "metrosexuals with cocky hats" and older diners, AKA the Richard fan club. Today the "S." stands for "social experiment." [LAT]
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What started in October as phase one negotiations comes to fruition this weekend, as Michel Richard opens Citrus at Social, the restaurant that's taken over Jeffrey Chodorow's very pretty ghost town, Social. The official wording on this venture is that Richard is 'joining' Jeffrey Chodorow to open the restaurant, and that it'll have a seperate entrance and bar area. This is code for Social Hollywood, take two. Alright, fine, we can't keep the full press release from you for another second:
The Michel Richard/Jeffrey Chodorow experiment will be fully unveiled this Friday when Citrus at Social debuts---it's listed on OpenTable, albeit with old info, but accepts ressies for Friday and not a day sooner. According to the website, the dining room has been completely reworked and now has a lot of citrusy accents (drapes, banquettes), and a "garden feeling." It also now has it's own bar and cocktail area, which might give it the added boost it needs because the Moroccan thing only worked for so long. Richard created the menu, leaving it to Remi Lauvand (La Grenouille, Le Cirque, Montrachet) to carry out his vision of French brasserie with Richard touches (think: frisee with lardons and poached egg; l'escargot; onion tarte), but still something for the young people. In his words: "Casual postmodern, where 25-year-olds can come for dinner and not have to have a second mortgage on the house." Not quite the Citrus of Melrose past, now is it?
· Michel Richard's Social Experiment is So On [~ELA~]
· Citrus at Social Getting Citrus Decor [~ELA~]
From a tipster: "I just walked by Social Hollywood, and the door is wide open. You can see a lot of things going on in what I think is their dining room. Lime green (citrus?) banquettes are everywhere. I don't know what the space looked like before, but there certainly is a lot of activity going on there." This, of course, is the transformation of Social Hollywood to Citrus at Social, helmed by Michel Richard-trained chefs. The dining room had a Moroccan thing happening before, so lime green (we picture chartreuse) banquettes is definitely new. No word from the Chodorow-China Grill camp, which owns Social Hollywood, on what's really in store decor-wise for Citrus, but we have pretty firm confirmation that it will open in February. [EaterWire]
After we broke the news that Michel Richard was negotiating a deal with Social Hollywood, we knew he wasn't closing Citronelle or Centrale in Washington D.C. to take over one of Jeffrey Chodorow's projects. The expectation was that he'd be in a consultant postion, because what else would a chef of his stature do in Hollywood? This became even more clear when Richard was pegged to do the menu for an upcoming Variety luncheon at Social, and he was at the Ratatouille DVD launch party there last week.
So, no, Richard isn't opening Citronelle Hollywood; but per the LAT (who originally heard the rumor from "the blogs"), he will construct new menus for what will become Citrus at Social. He says the food will be "casual postmodern, where 25-year-olds can come for dinner and not have to have a second mortgage on the house." We don't know what's more out of touch with that statement: That LA is rampant with 25-year-old mortgage holders, or that he thinks they're all going to Social for dinner. Anyway...it's also noted that Richard is "in negotiations" to do something at Caesars in Vegas, which we think is with Chodorow's group as well. Why so busy? Apparently the chef has six kids to put through college.
· BREAKING: Michel Richard's Return to LA [~ELA~]
· Michel Richard and Social CONFIRMED [~ELA~]
· Michel Richard Loves Ratatouille, the Movie and the Dish [~ELA~]
· Michel Richard's L.A. 'return' -- the straight scoop [LAT]
So the Michel Richard/Social rumor is really gaining ground. First Richard is in talks with Jeffrey Chodorow's China Grill Management group to take over the exec chef post at Social. Then he'll debut a menu for a Variety luncheon in November. We got email confirmation from CGM saying they were "in negotiations" with Richard, but no official word that it's a done deal. Now, this from a reader all the way in Washington D.C., where Richard's Citronelle has been since 1994:
I went to Centrale in DC, which is Michel Richard's newest restaurant (note: NOT michael, but said Michelle like the girl's name) and I asked the manager if Michel was going to be opening a restaurant in LA. She said Yes, and that it was called Social. So I think it's a pretty sure thing that he is at least going to be a partner-chef there, which is a good thing because Centrale is amazing. Especially because he is originally from the LA area. ALSO Wolfgang Puck opened a restaurant in DC 3 weeks ago, which is not as good as CUT but pretty good. Lots off good crossover with DC it seems.
HOLLYWOOD: Chef Michel Richard was all over town last weekend. He was guest chef at Bin 8945, co-cheffed a dinner at Providence, and he was at AWFF. But it's not like he's a stranger to these parts: He opened a patisserie in 1977, and when he opened Citrus on Melrose in 1987, it put him on the culinary map (oh how he must cringe to see the same space as Red Pearl Kitchen now). His Cintronelle restaurant in Washington D.C. continues to garner praise and hit all the top restaurant lists. But so much time in LA? All at once? Something is definitely afoot. Today we hear that Richard is in preliminary negotiations---and we mean preliminary---to take over at Social Hollywood. If the rumor is true, Jeffrey Chodorow's China Grill Management group would still retain control of Social, but Richard, we assume, will tweak the concept and change the menu. Chodorow and Richard = dream team?
The thing about Social is that it's such a stunning venue, all rooms have incredible design, a very cool bar, comfortable, sexy. But we were in for a special wine dinner a couple months ago (gratis), and the dining room was dead. Granted, it was early in the evening. We gave it the benefit of the doubt: Perhaps it gets busier later. But we left around 9pm and pretty much crickets. In general, we hear little to nothing about the restaurant, and except for Thu-Sat, it's on the OpenTable 1,000 points page. A cry for help if there ever was one. We know Chodorow is not one to back down from defeat. So Super Richard to the rescue. You know calls have been placed. All lines are open. [EaterWire]
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What started in October as 
After we 
So the Michel Richard/Social rumor is really gaining ground. First Richard is in talks with Jeffrey Chodorow's China Grill Management group 
