MANHATTAN BEACH: So few restaurants pass the quarter-century mark these days, and then there's Cafe Pierre, which celebrates its 30th this year. Guy Gabriele opened a creperie in 1977, but transformed it into a cafe and rode the waves of 80's and 90's cuisine like a pro surfer. This month he unveils an updated interior and menu (thank goodness we all don't need a nip and tuck at...cough...30) that pairs old-school favorites like steak au poivre with contemporary seasonal farmer's market-inspired dishes. The wine special nights (buy wine at retail prices Sun-Wed) are tres popular. Let's all raise a glass and toast. [EaterWire Inbox]
SANTA MONICA: It's not totally confirmed that NY restaurateur Jonathan Morr is opening Bond Street at the new Thompson Hotel in Beverly Hills, but we do know that he's overseeing the new guest-only restaurant at the renovated Hotel Oceana. Read that again: Guest. Only. [EaterWire Inbox]
HOLLYWOOD: LA.com reports that Chris Breed will finally unveil Ritual, which replaces White Lotus on Cahuenga, on June 1. The space has several different rooms (dance floor, two full bars, a lounge), red and gold décor, and chef Andrew Pastore will serve Pacific Rim cuisine with a California twist. So we have to ask: Other than the new paint, what's really different here? [LA.com]
WEST HOLLYWOOD: A press release came across the inbox that Empress, which we thought opened last summer (even tickled the fancy of S. Irene Virbila), had a "grand opening" on Wednesday. The man behind Citizen Smith, Andrew Belchic, took over, redesigned it, and put Chris Goosen in charge of the menu. Once a private chef to stars like Mark Whalberg, Goosen serves food "that takes from Hawaiian, Filipino, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and over 20 other Asian cuisines." Wow. That's a lot of cuisines. [EaterWire Inbox]
